Chapter 224
“Hmm.”
The headquarters of the Heavenly Ghost Corps.
A middle-aged man with an utterly distinctive bearing was deep in thought.
He was none other than Go Muwon, the current Corps Leader of the Heavenly Ghost Corps.
“What are you thinking about so deeply? You look troubled.”
Chu Hyeon-jae, the First Squad's squad leader, approached him and asked.
Go Muwon let out a deep sigh and gave a small laugh at his question.
“I was wondering whether that story might actually be true.”
“Haha. You know very well that it can't be.”
Chu Hyeon-jae immediately understood what Go Muwon meant.
An heir of the Martial God? It was absurd.
Hundreds of years had passed since Martial God Hyeok Jonghu disappeared.
Yet it was hard to believe that an heir who had never appeared even once in all that time had suddenly shown up now.
And not only that—he had supposedly appeared just when Lee Jina, an ordinary corps member, was in danger, saved her, and introduced himself that way.
Rather than believable, it was downright suspicious.
“I, on the other hand, suspect this may be some prank being played by the Black Abyss.”
At Chu Hyeon-jae's words, Go Muwon nodded.
Of course, that possibility was quite real.
But why?
From the moment he heard the story, Go Muwon's heart had begun to race.
If he could have his way, he wanted to go meet the man claiming to be the Martial God's heir right away.
But as the Corps Leader of the Heavenly Ghost Corps, he could not easily leave his post amid the ceaseless war with the Black Abyss.
So he had sent two trustworthy squad leaders instead.
They would probably find out the truth.
What kind of person the one claiming to be the Martial God's heir would turn out to be.
Go Muwon was simply curious.
***
“…So it is that man.”
“How did he know and come here?”
They had been startled by Yeo Un-hwi's sudden appearance, but the eyes of the two capable squad leaders of the Heavenly Ghost Corps had soon settled into calm.
As they spoke, Yeo Un-hwi answered with a shrug.
“How could I not know when you were staring at me like that?”
“Ha.”
Was that really all there was to it?
It was unbelievable.
He had definitely concealed his aura perfectly.
Moreover, they were not the only ones watching him in the market.
Countless people in the market had been watching him and his companions.
And he had noticed their presence amid all those gazes?
One thing was certain: he did not seem to be at an ordinary level.
The burly man among the two squad leaders slowly approached Yeo Un-hwi and asked,
“I heard you called yourself the Martial God's heir. Is that true?”
“It is.”
When Yeo Un-hwi nodded, the man's eyes narrowed.
“Do you have proof?”
“Proof, hmm.”
Yeo Un-hwi paused to think.
“I don't particularly have any proof. The only thing I can offer as proof is this body of mine.”
“What?”
“By the way, it seems the Corps Leader hasn't come.”
Yeo Un-hwi said this while looking at Lee Jina among the Heavenly Ghost Corps members.
Lee Jina tried to answer, looking flustered.
“Well, the thing is…”
“The Corps Leader has no time for a scammer like you—too busy.”
Another man, addressed as a squad leader, stepped forward, cutting off Lee Jina.
He was the man who had previously claimed to be the representative of this suspicious merchant caravan.
His name was Hong Jong-hyeok.
He was the squad leader of the Heavenly Ghost Corps' Third Squad.
In truth, he was not normally so sharp-tempered.
If this had not concerned the sensitive matter of being the Martial God's heir, he might not have acted so aggressively.
But that was how sensitive this matter was to the Heavenly Ghost Corps.
Moreover, the Heavenly Ghost Corps had passed down through the generations that the Martial God had never taken a disciple of his own during his lifetime.
He had passed on his teachings only once.
The man who received those teachings was the reason the Heavenly Ghost Corps came into being, and its line had continued to this day.
Yet now, hundreds of years later, someone had suddenly appeared claiming to be the Martial God's heir.
If such a person had existed, he should have appeared long ago.
Thus, from the Heavenly Ghost Corps' perspective, Yeo Un-hwi, who had suddenly appeared claiming to be the Martial God's heir, could only look like a scammer.
From the moment they had set out for this place, they had not even considered the possibility that Yeo Un-hwi was the Martial God's heir.
Even so, there were two reasons they had come all the way to Hebei.
First, because Lee Jina had stubbornly insisted they had to go, her eyes shining with excitement; second, because they could not simply leave someone claiming to be the Martial God's heir to go unchecked.
If he kept running his mouth so carelessly, the Black Abyss might kill him at any time. So despite the headache, they had come to teach him a lesson.
Now that this unintended situation had unfolded, Lee Jina looked extremely troubled and fidgeted helplessly.
“Hmm. You’ve been calling me a scammer and the like since earlier.”
They were acting like this without even properly hearing him out.
Yeo Un-hwi briefly clicked his tongue at the Heavenly Ghost Corps' attitude—hiding and watching him, then openly showing hostility the instant they faced him.
“I'm disappointed. So this is what you people are like.”
“What? Disappointed?”
“Let me ask you one thing. Is the Martial God's will—the will you claim to carry on—really this frivolous and discourteous?”
At Yeo Un-hwi's words, the eyes of every Heavenly Ghost Corps member there gleamed fiercely.
“You bastard. You seem to be throwing your weight around because you trust in your paltry skills, but I'll teach you proper manners today.”
“Having hot blood is all well and good, but you people look like you need some etiquette lessons.”
Lee Jina wanted to stop them somehow, but it no longer seemed possible.
Everyone already seemed thoroughly worked up; if she intervened clumsily, it would only make things worse.
“Let's go outside.”
“As you wish.”
Soon they moved from the building to a deserted clearing a short distance away.
“I'll do it.”
“No. I'll do it.”
“Wait your turn. I said I was going first.”
Normally they could have sent some corps members, but from what Lee Jina had told them, he seemed to be at a considerable level, so the squad leaders had decided from the outset to step up themselves.
But the two squad leaders, both already heated, stubbornly insisted on being the first to face Yeo Un-hwi.
Yeo Un-hwi chuckled at the sight.
“What's so funny?”
“There's no need to decide an order.”
“What?‘
“Because it'll be over in no time.”
“Ha, hahaha. Did you hear that?”
“Yeah. I've heard of the White Wolf Unit. It seems to have made a name for itself in the martial world. Sorry, but we're on a different level.”
“Hmm. You don't really look like it.”
“You…”
Hong Jong-hyeok stepped forward, glaring fiercely.
“I'll wipe that composure off your face in no time.”
Before Yeo Un-hwi could reply, Hong Jong-hyeok kicked off the ground.
He charged at Yeo Un-hwi at tremendous speed.
Swoosh, swish, shwoooosh.
The instant Yeo Un-hwi realized that Hong Jong-hyeok, who had vanished before his eyes, had reappeared in front of him, Hong's attack was already headed his way.
The Heavenly Ghost Corps members who saw it gasped in admiration.
This was the true ability of Hong Jong-hyeok, who boasted the greatest speed even in the Heavenly Ghost Corps.
Even on a second look, it was impressive.
But then—
“W-what is that?”
Yeo Un-hwi was evading every one of Hong Jong-hyeok's attacks, despite their terrifying speed.
And with ease.
“What? You were so confident, and this is all you've got?”
“Damn!”
Faced with the unexpected situation, Hong Jong-hyeok stared blankly for a moment, then increased his speed even further and unleashed a barrage of attacks on Yeo Un-hwi.
His body now seemed to split into dozens, like a cloning technique.
“Impressive. But—”
Soon Yeo Un-hwi's body split into many more figures than Hong Jong-hyeok's.
“Aaaaargh!”
He had not been struck by anything, but the wind pressure caused by Yeo Un-hwi's incredible speed sent Hong Jong-hyeok flying backward.
“Grrk. You…”
“That's enough. This time, it's my turn.”
“Wait. I'm not finished yet—”
“Cool your head for a moment. You're too worked up to show your true ability.”
“Tch.”
The burly man stepped forward.
He was Tak Dae-han, the squad leader of the Heavenly Ghost Corps' Second Squad.
Despite his size, he looked extremely calm.
Yeo Un-hwi raised his brows slightly.
At a glance, this man was clearly more skilled than Hong Jong-hyeok, whom he had just faced.
Kuuuuung.
Tak Dae-han quietly took his stance and raised his energy.
“I will go all out from the start.”
There was not the slightest hint of arrogance or carelessness in his eyes.
Yeo Un-hwi smiled without a sound and nodded.
“By all means.”
No sooner had Yeo Un-hwi finished answering than the man appeared directly before him at tremendous speed.
Then his enormous fist flew toward Yeo Un-hwi, sending a fierce gust of wind ahead of it.
His trajectory was precise.
“Got him?”
Even the watching Heavenly Ghost Corps members blurted that out unconsciously, so perfect did Tak Dae-han's attack seem.
But at that moment, Yeo Un-hwi's figure blurred, and in an instant, nothing remained in that spot.
It was an astonishing feat, unbelievable even to their own eyes.
Even so, Tak Dae-han did not waver. He quickly sought Yeo Un-hwi's presence and moved swiftly toward it.
In terms of movement speed, Hong Jong-hyeok was clearly superior, but Tak Dae-han felt more threatening because of the force packed into his movements.
Whoooosh! Whoooosh!
Tak Dae-han's punches were incredibly threatening.
They surpassed any fist technique Yeo Un-hwi had seen thus far, including those of the Hwangbo Clan.
As if to prove it, each time Tak Dae-han swung his fist, the resulting wind pressure tore through the surroundings like a small storm.
Because of that, even the Heavenly Ghost Corps members had no choice but to watch the fight from farther away.
Yet once again, Yeo Un-hwi had not even suffered a scratch from all those attacks.
Hong Jong-hyeok was also staring wide-eyed, astonished by Yeo Un-hwi's movements.
He knew better than anyone what a formidable martial artist Tak Dae-han was, how skilled he was with his fists, and how powerful he was.
An insurmountable wall Hong Jong-hyeok could never overcome no matter how hard he tried.
Yet even that formidable man had not managed to land a single attack on Yeo Un-hwi.
After continuing his assault for a while, Tak Dae-han suddenly stopped attacking and stood tall.
“Sloppy attacks won't work.”
Tak Dae-han wore an expression as though he had made up his mind.
Soon blue wisps of qi began to rise from his body.
The eyes of every Heavenly Ghost Corps member, including Hong Jong-hyeok, widened.
They knew what Tak Dae-han was about to do.
Was he really going to go that far?
But Tak Dae-han had acknowledged Yeo Un-hwi, and for some reason, he felt the urge to put his all into it and see what happened.
Now he would be able to see how this mysterious man who called himself the Martial God's heir would respond to his attack.
Soon space rippled, and Tak Dae-han swung his huge fist toward Yeo Un-hwi.
[Demon-Slaying Fist (滅魔拳)]
A power both familiar and yet different shot toward Yeo Un-hwi.
Yet even as a fierce wave of fist qi came flying at him, Yeo Un-hwi merely smiled leisurely, without any intention of dodging.
The faces of the Heavenly Ghost Corps members stiffened.
Anyone hit by fist qi of that level would inevitably suffer serious injuries.
Why wasn't he dodging? What on earth was he planning?
Then Yeo Un-hwi opened his mouth.
“Not bad. But you still have a long way to go.”
With those words, Yeo Un-hwi slightly raised his leg, and then—
Kuuuuung.
He brought his foot down hard in a stomp.
And the moment he revealed his true strength—
Kwooooooo!
A huge golden dragon soared toward the sky.
Radiating a dazzling light.
“……!”
Everyone there gaped at the sight.