The Rising Martial Arts Genius

Chapter 4: Cloud Sword Sect (2)

A single line was drawn toward the two in front, and Jang Woo-hyun turned around to target the two warriors behind him.

With internal energy added, his body displayed strength and movements beyond that of an ordinary human.

In the face of a sword imbued with force, human flesh and bones were cut apart in vain.

Splat!

In an instant, the necks of the four who had rushed at him from all sides were severed.

Blood spouted like fountains from their necks, and their headless bodies collapsed with a thud.

Perhaps due to the lingering pain in his head, or for some other reason, there was no fear, terror, or guilt from killing for the first time.

‘I must survive.’

That was the only thought in his mind.

He swung his sword toward the ground to shake off the blood clinging to it.

With a soft sound, drops of blood splattered on the ground.

Gal Yoon, unable to utter a sound, watched that scene and slowly opened his mouth.

“Were you hiding your skills?”

“What are you talking about, you bastard?”

No good words would come out of Jang Woo-hyun’s mouth.

There was no need to be polite anymore.

“Well, I did learn one thing from the old man. Don’t trust people so easily.”

“If you had obediently followed, you wouldn’t have had to die.”

Gal Yoon raised both hands as he slowly stepped forward, exuding an aura distinctly different from the warriors who had just fallen.

Jang Woo-hyun’s eyes scanned him.

His stride wasn’t wide, and he didn’t use any weapons.

Though he was an elder of the Cloud Sword Sect, his martial arts were in the form of fist techniques and palm strikes.

Judging by the energy he exuded, his martial level was higher than Jang Woo-hyun’s.

‘A first-rate expert.’

He was a somewhat challenging opponent for Jang Woo-hyun at his current level.

‘But it’s still doable.’

There was one visible flaw.

Jang Woo-hyun’s gaze settled on Gal Yoon’s left leg.

‘His balance is off.’

Upon closer inspection, his overall balance leaned slightly to the left.

Even his steps appeared awkward.

‘A trap?’

Such a thought crossed Jang Woo-hyun’s mind for a moment, but he soon dismissed it.

It wasn’t a trap.

It was either an injury or some other problem.

He instinctively felt it.

Having identified the weak spot, he moved without hesitation.

Thud!

He kicked away the fallen sword of the Cloud Sword Sect warrior and charged forward.

His target was Gal Yoon’s left side.

While Gal Yoon deflected the flying sword with his hand, Jang Woo-hyun closed in on his left.

“How dare you!”

Gal Yoon’s body spun with his left foot as the pivot, and then he extended his fist.

‘As expected!’

Jang Woo-hyun’s judgment was correct.

For his level, Gal Yoon’s reaction was a bit slow.

Twisting his upper body, Jang Woo-hyun dodged the fist and once again aimed for the left side.

Though Gal Yoon tried to turn his body again, this time Jang Woo-hyun was faster.

With the Tiger Leaps Forward stance, Jang Woo-hyun extended his sword to stab at Gal Yoon’s side.

Slice!

“Guh!”

Though it was only a shallow wound, blood began to seep out, and Jang Woo-hyun had no intention of missing this opportunity.

He stepped forward using the Tiger Step.

The Tiger Form Sword was an offensive martial art with no defense.

He needed to maintain his momentum.

Stomping strongly, he swung his sword again.

Roaring Tiger Claw.

Jang Woo-hyun’s sword transformed into the claws of a furious tiger and targeted Gal Yoon.

Clang! Clang!

“You bastard!”

Gal Yoon enveloped his fists in energy and blocked Jang Woo-hyun’s sword with his bare hands.

But that was all he could do.

Jang Woo-hyun had already figured out Gal Yoon’s weakness, and he kept pressing his left side.

Since Gal Yoon was a beat slower in his reactions, Jang Woo-hyun was able to push in even more.

Jang Woo-hyun initially planned to press in with the basic moves of Tiger Form Sword’s seven techniques but quickly changed his mind.

‘I’ll finish this now.’

Dragging out the fight wouldn’t be to his advantage.

Despite the temporary upper hand by exploiting Gal Yoon’s weakness, there was still a significant difference in skill.

As Jang Woo-hyun moved to attack the left side again, Gal Yoon preemptively turned his body faster this time.

It was clear that Gal Yoon had realized his weakness was being exploited and was now defending in advance.

However, Jang Woo-hyun wasn’t planning to attack that side this time.

Having decided to make a decisive move, Jang Woo-hyun closed in on Gal Yoon’s right side instead.

Gal Yoon’s preemptive defense created an opening instead.

One chance.

One strike.

Jang Woo-hyun gathered his strength to strike down and immediately stepped forward.

Thud!

With a resounding noise, he concentrated all his strength into the sword.

Humm.

His sword, filled with an overwhelming amount of internal energy, vibrated and emitted a sound as it aimed for Gal Yoon.

It was the strongest technique of the Tiger Form Sword, Mountain Lord Descends.

Crack!

The sword came down, shattering Gal Yoon’s collarbone and ripping through his chest.

“Guh!”

Jang Woo-hyun twisted the sword, now stuck in Gal Yoon’s ribs, and pushed it further in.

“Guh, guh…”

Making strange noises as blood spurted from his mouth, Gal Yoon struggled.

Applying force to the sword stuck between his ribs and spine, flesh and bone split simultaneously.

Splat!

With a tearing sound, Gal Yoon’s chest was split horizontally, and his body, severed in half, collapsed backward.

“Phew.”

It was his first fight since mastering martial arts.

He had killed five people.

One of them was a first-rate expert.

His body was still burning with heat.

Though the battle had not been long, it felt as if an entire day had passed.

As he steadied his breath, he began refilling his depleted dantian.

After a few breaths, Jang Woo-hyun gathered a bit of internal energy, shook the blood off his sword, and prepared to leave.

Staying here any longer would only cause problems.

Of course, things didn’t go as he wished.

The sound of people rushing from all directions could be heard, and the surroundings became noisy.

The sounds of fighting had attracted the warriors of the Cloud Sword Sect.

More than twenty warriors leaped over the walls or came through the gates, surrounding Jang Woo-hyun.

As the warriors in front of him parted, two men stepped forward.

“Well, well… Killing an elder and warriors of the Cloud Sword Sect within the Cloud Sword Sect… What a madman we have here.”

A middle-aged man with a solid build glared sharply at Jang Woo-hyun.

On the outside, Jang Woo-hyun pretended to take the glare calmly, but countless thoughts swirled in his mind.

‘It’ll be hard to escape for now.’

His dantian was empty.

His body, exhausted from the tension of his first fight.

It was difficult to run or fight.

Taking a deep breath, Jang Woo-hyun decided to buy some time.

“Please, listen to me for a moment.”

“To think you want to explain when ripping you to pieces wouldn’t be enough… Fine, speak. Whether I kill you now or later doesn’t make much of a difference.”

“I’m the one who was wronged here.”

“What? You insane bastard, you’re still…!”

“Elder Gal Yoon tried to use me to take over the Cloud Sword Sect.”

It was an absurd claim, but the surrounding warriors became slightly unsettled by the statement.

“What nonsense are you spouting…”

As the middle-aged man began to shout angrily, Jang Woo-hyun interrupted him, raising his hand.

“Elder Gal Yoon gave me a special elixir. It looked like a simple pill, but inside it was a small bug called the Blood-Brain Worm. He intended to control me and take over the Cloud Sword Sect.”

“Hah! And who are you that Elder Gal Yoon would use you to seize control of the Cloud Sword Sect? Do you take the Cloud Sword Sect for a joke, that it would fall to someone like you?”

At the shouting man’s outburst, Jang Woo-hyun gestured around him.

“I did this all by myself, without anyone’s help.”

The five corpses, including Gal Yoon.

It wasn’t a level of skill that could be easily dismissed.

“Of course, I alone wouldn’t pose any threat to the Cloud Sword Sect. But if you include Elder Gal Yoon, and me, who defeated him, don’t you think the story changes?”

It was a somewhat reasonable argument, causing the middle-aged man to pause.

“Do you have any proof?”

Another person who had been silently observing the situation asked.

It was a middle-aged man with a magnificent beard, dressed in fine clothes.

“If you go inside, you’ll find the Blood-Brain Worm I spat out.”

At the bearded man’s gesture, one of the warriors behind him passed by Jang Woo-hyun and entered Gal Yoon’s quarters.

“I’ve found it.”

The warrior soon emerged, holding a small bug with countless legs in his hand.

The finely dressed middle-aged man stared at the bug for a while before finally looking away.

Then, he spoke with the man who had initially shouted in anger for a moment.

“Is everything you’ve said so far true?”

“Yes, I only fought to survive.”

Seeing Jang Woo-hyun’s confident demeanor, the finely dressed man seemed to make a decision, nodding slightly before speaking.

“I am Jo Hwa-rip, the leader of the Cloud Sword Sect. I’d like to hear the full story, if you don’t mind?”

“As much as you wish.”

“Then, let’s head to my room.”

Jo Hwa-rip turned and began walking.

Jang Woo-hyun followed behind him, surrounded by the warriors of the Cloud Sword Sect.