Episode 64. They Do Say Even Dog Shit Has Its Uses

Those struck head-on by the Flame Rooster Great Hand Seal were crushed flat. Even amid all this, those with quick wits and excellent movement arts somehow managed to dodge, but it didn’t matter.

Because I had succeeded in seizing the initiative.

As soon as I landed on the palm-shaped depression in the ground, I wrapped Flame Rooster around my right hand again, as though I were about to unleash another Flame Rooster Great Hand Seal.

When my hand turned red once more beneath the lone moonlight…

The rabble alliance retreated as one.

It was a perfectly normal reaction. After all, the corpses of those who had taken the Flame Rooster Great Hand Seal head-on were strewn all around them.

The leaders of the enemy ranks set the rabble up like shields, then retreated even farther.

With a single attack, I had gathered everyone’s attention.

A man who uses a secret technique not to kill rabble, but to win the right to speak—that is me.

“Where is the Silver Ghost Yu Sacheong? Hiding, are you? Where is the Muak Sect Master, that bastard who might be a bat or might be a rat? You’re hiding too. I heard that lunatic Lady Cheolseom, who goes around throwing hidden weapons, joined up as well? Ah, there you are. Listen well, all of you. I killed the vice chairman of the Unuhoe.”

I pointed past his subordinates at Elder Two Dragons, who was glaring at me.

“And that bastard over there. Bear this in mind: you’re all going to die today because of that senile old fuck who’s done nothing but grow old and eat whatever feed the Great Rakshasa threw him.”

Whew. Short and sharp.

With that, I had provoked every one of the enemy leaders.

When a melee breaks out, provoking them like this first is effective. The more people die, the more they tend to blame their own side.

I drew Black Cat Fang from my waist and said,

“What are you standing there staring for? You fucking idiots, come at me all at once.”

At that moment, a thud sounded from behind, and Dokgo Saeng advanced while swinging his twin blades, killing anyone who got in his way at random. Then the disciples of the Twelve Divine Generals surged in, and the Black Cat Gang, led by So Gunpyeong, also pushed forward, breaking through the encirclement behind me.

I laughed in the middle of the enemy ranks, my shoulders shaking.

“The moonlight is good, my men’s morale is good, and I’m in a good mood too.”

When I infused Flame Rooster into Black Cat Fang, the blade turned red.

As I suddenly advanced, the rabble retreated. They were still moving as if to protect their leaders.

What I always pay attention to is the enemy’s state of mind. That was why even my footsteps and the tone of my words carried psychological warfare.

“Rabble, get out of the way. I’m the kind of bastard who only kills bosses.”

When I suddenly cackled and charged in with my blade in hand, the rabble who had volunteered to serve as their leaders’ blade shields were seized by fear and scattered wildly.

Of course, that didn’t mean I spared the rabble.

I poured blade wind into the backs of those who fled, chased them down tenaciously, grabbed them, and brought my blade down as if Jang Deuksu were butchering a pig.

In an instant, screams and shouted orders mingled together.

Amid it all, Baegin’s calm voice came from behind.

“Junior Sister Hong, cut down the ones interfering from Eldest Senior Brother’s rear. Four Divine Generals, join in however you can to support Eldest Senior Brother’s rampage.”

It seemed Baegin understood the broad strokes of my strategy.

From behind, I could clearly hear the pitch-black Haomun members led by Dokgo Saeng talking as well.

“Boss, what do we do?”

Dokgo Saeng answered without stopping his blade work.

“Just kill them all.”

As soon as Dokgo Saeng finished speaking, someone’s scream shot up into the sky. Nearby, So Gunpyeong was urging on his subordinates while hurling curses at them. Most of them were variations of, “Get your heads on straight!”

To conserve my internal energy, I advanced while swinging Black Cat Fang in a simple manner. When enemies are stepping backward, the correct answer is to press them at a pace slightly faster than that. Since killing rabble did not consume much internal energy, my mouth was free as well.

“You… had a feeling today was going to be unlucky, didn’t you?”

I cut one man’s shoulder with Black Cat Fang.

Splurt!

After slicing the neck of a man charging in from the side, I sprang into the air and drove my knee into someone’s face.

Thud!

“Did you think this was your chance because the Great Rakshasa died?”

I drove Black Cat Fang into the neck of the man who had collapsed after taking my knee.

Thunk!

When I pulled Black Cat Fang free, a long stream of blood poured over the heads of the men who kept retreating.

“Why do you keep running away? Huh?”

I raised my speed again and swung my blade.

While swinging my blade, I sent out side kicks, front kicks, roundhouse kicks, flying kicks, and palm blasts in succession, all while spewing nonsense from beginning to end. Sometimes even I didn’t know what my words were supposed to mean, but it didn’t matter.

The important thing was to talk while killing the enemy, so every word I spat out did not need to be accurate.

These were merely words and actions meant to bring the flow of the battle over to my side and keep it there.

Thanks to that, it was not difficult for my men to keep track of my location. Naturally, an assault formation with me at the front had taken shape.

“Why do you think the Great Rakshasa suddenly died? You mad bastards. Why do you think he died?”

I pulled one man toward me with the Absorbing Star Great Art, grabbed him by the collar, and asked in a calm tone,

“Why do you think he died?”

I struck the forehead of the stammering bastard with the handle of Black Cat Fang.

Crack!

Now, more men retreated every time my gaze touched them. But I deliberately chased only the ones who were visibly backing away, hounding them to death.

“I asked why you think he died. Answer me, you bastards.”

Someone screamed “Aaaagh!” for the first time and fled with his back turned. As if imitating the enemy’s scream, I roared out loud.

“Aaaagh!”

“…….”

When their gazes gathered on me, I infused Flame Rooster into my blade and blew on it.

“Haaah. Nice and toasty.”

Flame Incense coiled around the blade.

“Flame Rooster Great Saber March.”

A man who shouts the name of his form when he fights—that is me.

In truth, it was an attack hardly different from the Flame Rooster Great Hand Seal, with only the name changed. But to the enemies watching the red lines winding around the blade, it would seem different.

“Die.”

I advanced while lashing the whip-shaped Flame Incense forward again and again. Each swing tore apart the bodies of four or five people. As I advanced, cackling, it felt as if a third of the enemies were running away. In reality, the number of men completely abandoning the battle line and fleeing was gradually increasing.

Some had their heads taken off by attacks from Mr. Su, Elder Two Dragons, and the others before they could even run a few steps.

I looked at Mr. Su, who had just cut off the neck of a fleeing man, then roared,

“Mr. Su!”

Mr. Su also glared at me with his eyes wide open.

I spoke to Mr. Su in the tone of someone who had known him for a long time.

“Sir, why won’t you believe me? I killed your vice chairman. Weren’t all their skulls split open by an axe? Am I wrong? It was an axe, wasn’t it?”

Mr. Su’s face turned red.

“That crazy bastard….”

I gripped the blood-soaked Heukmyo-a and trudged toward Teacher Su.

“He died by the axe at the incinerator. I’m the culprit.”

The Unuhoe officers blocked Teacher Su, and I charged straight ahead. Now I could hear the enemies’ conversations clearly.

“Teacher Su, stay calm. We still have the numbers.”

This was the voice of Iryong Nogun.

“Everyone, gather. He’s the commander.”

This voice likely belonged to Cheolseom Buin.

But that bastard Yu Sacheong never made a sound. I asked while fending off the Unuhoe officers.

“Officers, where is that bastard Yu Sacheong? Is he the one who blew up this situation?”

I sliced through an officer’s pakdo like a dumpling with Heukmyo-a, then carved a straight red line across the bastard’s face as well.

“Guaaack!”

I quickly plunged Heukmyo-a into the bastard’s neck and then bellowed.

“Yu Sacheong. I’ll put a bounty on your head across all the Central Plains. It’s no use fleeing today. I intend to live for the pleasure of hunting you down. Especially you—I’ll split you apart with an axe.”

Suddenly, from the left, a massive palm force surged in like a tidal wave.

“Kwaaaaaaaaang!”

I responded precisely with my left palm, but the motion of my slashing pushed me slightly to the side. Unfortunately, a meteor hammer flew fiercely from the direction I was being pushed.

I had no choice but to swing Heukmyo-a to knock away the meteor hammer, but in that instant, the meteor hammer wrapped around the blade.

I slipped up.

“A Meteor Hammer Wanderer, is it? Good, a pleasure.”

At the same time, something flashed before my eyes, and a concealed weapon presumed to be a cheolseom flew at me.

While pulling on the meteor hammer, I flipped backward to avoid the cheolseom, and clashed palm force with Iryong Nogun, who finally appeared from the left, his white hair flying. Iryong Nogun seemed to have a cautious disposition; though he unleashed palm winds and palm force, he never approached in the end.

A laugh escaped me.

“You old bastard.”

In that instant, the taut iron chain of the meteor hammer pulling at Heukmyo-a snapped. Hongsin had appeared and cut it with a dagger.

After clashing palm force with Iryong Nogun once more, I cackled.

Then Baekin, Cheongjin, Baekyu, and Hongsin—who had each killed several dozen small fry before arriving—took positions behind me and glared at the surroundings.

There are times when the tide of battle is decided in a single exchange, and times when a fight repeats cycles of clashes and temporary lulls, as it did now.

During the lull, I too adjusted my mask once and looked around.

We had been at a numerical disadvantage from the start, but those lying on the ground were all enemy corpses.

Cha Seongtae, a minion officer who had tagged along without killing a single person until now, pointed at someone and shouted.

“You there!”

All eyes in the vicinity fixed on Cha Seongtae. Cha Seongtae spoke with absolute certainty.

“You’re the one called the Silver Ghost, Yu Sacheong?”

A man whose outfit was ordinary and whose appearance was utterly unremarkable stared silently at Cha Seongtae.

I shook the blood off Heukmyo-a and asked Cha Seongtae.

“Why him?”

Cha Seongtae replied in a tone that suggested he had seen through to the truth.

“He isn’t doing anything, just like me. In the middle of this chaos, that is.”

“A great detective, I see.”

While feeling impressed by Cha Seongtae in many ways, I couldn’t think of a suitable proverb, so I just said,

“They say even dog shit is used for medicine. You did well.”

“Yes.”

Even though I was glaring at him, the man presumed to be Yu Sacheong showed no change in expression.

If he were a mere underling, it would only be natural for him to be afraid.

Suddenly, Yu Sacheong, who had apparently judged that hiding his identity was meaningless, smiled.

When expressionless, he truly looked like an ordinary man, but when he smiled, it was as if he had become a completely different person.

Yu Sacheong spoke to me.

“You’re not the Heukmyo Bangju. Will you figure out my identity first? Or will I figure out yours first? You won’t be able to find me with just the name Yu Sacheong. Since both sides have already set the board, let them continue fighting. A victor must be decided, mustn’t it?”

Yu Sacheong spoke as if his true identity were even more impressive. Surprisingly, Yu Sacheong even threatened his own allies, Iryong Nogun and Teacher Su.

“Iryong Nogun, Teacher Su. Are you going to fight like this even after taking my money? It seems it wasn’t long ago that I heard your bold claims about seizing control of Namhwa, paying back your debts, and expanding your influence.”

For a moment, I tried to take off my mask but restrained myself.

‘Will you look at this guy?’

I carefully observed Yu Sacheong’s aura. At first he had looked young, but upon closer inspection, he seemed to be past forty. There were signs in his posture and gaze that indicated he possessed considerable skill.

Even in this situation, a random thought occurred to me.

If you quietly observe the ways of the world, the ones who lend money are the worst bastards of all.

Rather than catching and killing him right away after so long,

he was the kind of man who made me want to torture him unconditionally to make him spill everything he knew.

There was no specific reason.

Because I was originally the sort of man who caused trouble without any foundation or evidence.

As if the supreme commander of the enemy forces had finally been revealed, Yu Sacheong gave an order.

“Then let’s keep fighting with all our might until the matter is settled. All of you trash of the Black Path.”