Chapter 220
“If Sima rules the world, then in the South Sea there are the Three Ma: Ma Gyeong, Ma Geom, and Ma Do.”
Among the Three Ma of the South Sea, Yoon Sak—the Blood Sea Ma Do—sat quietly on his ship, eyes closed in deep thought.
He was waiting for news from the Four Heavenly Kings of Baekgyo Bang, who had gone to capture the children of the Jin family.
The plan was to take hostages, scatter the Jin family’s forces, and then pick them off one by one.
But for some reason, the wait was longer than expected.
Yoon Sak’s close aides exchanged worried glances as they watched him remain silent, eyes shut.
Knowing Yoon Sak’s temperament, they feared he wouldn’t tolerate waiting much longer.
Suddenly, Yoon Sak’s eyes snapped open, and he asked his men sharply, “Any news?”
The men glanced at each other nervously before answering cautiously, “Not yet.”
Yoon Sak tapped his fingers on the armrest thoughtfully, then spoke again, his voice low and decisive.
“Execute.”
Though brief and cryptic, the words cast a shadow over the room.
Yoon Sak was not one for long speeches, but those who had served him long enough understood perfectly: carry out the plan without hostages.
One subordinate hesitated, “B-Boss, but if we attack without scattering them first, the casualties will be heavy. It also goes against Lord Jin’s orders.”
Yoon Sak smirked coldly. “My elder brother cares only about results. Do it like a true pirate.”
The “elder brother” he referred to was Jin Tae Do, the head of the South Sea faction.
Yoon Sak meant that since Jin Tae Do only cared about the outcome, it didn’t matter if they didn’t follow his orders to the letter. So Yoon Sak would charge straight in, pirate-style.
The men exchanged uneasy looks.
They didn’t doubt Yoon Sak’s skill, but the Jin family was no easy opponent—renowned not just for strength, but for their relentless, vicious nature.
One aide tried again, voice trembling, “Please, just a little longer—”
At that moment, a sharp beam of light flashed inside the cabin.
It was the gleam from Yoon Sak’s wakizashi as he gripped it at his waist.
As he released his hold, the aide’s throat slowly began to slit open.
Blood sprayed like a fountain as the others’ faces drained of color.
They bowed their heads and shouted in unison, “Understood, Captain!”
There was no choice.
Yoon Sak was a man of few words and swift action—and he cared little for life, whether friend or foe.
The decision was made: a direct assault on the Jin family, no hostages.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The attack began with cannon fire.
Boldly, Baekgyo Bang bombarded the Jin family’s stronghold inside Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, in the early evening.
Such an act was unthinkable unless they completely disregarded the government forces.
The impact was devastating.
Kaboom! Crash! Rumble!
“Ahhh!”
“What’s that?!”
“Cannons! It’s a bombardment!”
“Here, inside Guangzhou? What is this madness?!”
“More incoming! Take cover!”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Ahhh! The ship!”
“My leg! Aaaah!”
“Help! Somebody save me!”
One side of the Jin family’s base began to crumble under the relentless barrage.
Because the stronghold bordered the Pearl River, they could immediately deploy their naval forces.
The docks and the ships moored there were shattered in an instant.
The warriors guarding the docks fared no better.
Panicked and disoriented, many were blown apart by direct hits or crushed beneath collapsing buildings, their agonized cries filling the air.
Hell had broken loose at the Jin family’s stronghold.
Aboard the flagship among the thirty or so vessels, Yoon Sak watched the chaos he had wrought, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
He was thoroughly pleased.
A subordinate cautiously asked, “Boss—Captain—what are your orders now?”
Yoon Sak’s gaze remained fixed on the Jin stronghold as he replied tersely, “Continue.”
“Yes, sir!”
The bombardment went on, relentless, until the docks and surrounding buildings were utterly razed.
Inside the Jin stronghold, chaos reigned.
Wounded and dying comrades groaned in the rubble, while others, paralyzed by fear, dared not enter the blast zone to rescue them.
They could only watch helplessly as their brothers perished and their home was destroyed.
Then, Jin Gwang Magon, the head of the Jin family, burst onto the scene.
He had been wandering the garden outside his father Jin Samong’s chamber, bitter and restless, when the thunderous explosions drew him out.
His face twisted with rage as he shouted, “What is going on?! Who dares attack us with cannons inside Guangzhou?!”
“We don’t know! They struck without warning, bombarding us out of nowhere!”
Despite one side of their base being reduced to rubble, they still had no clue who the enemy was.
Jin Gwang Magon’s voice cracked with fury as he looked upon the wounded trapped in the blast zone.
“Who?! Why?!”
At that moment, a subordinate pointed toward the largest ship, almost hidden among the others.
“Lord Jin, look at the flag on that ship! That’s definitely—”
Jin Gwang Magon’s eyes locked on the banner.
A red flag emblazoned with a white shark.
The unmistakable symbol of Baekgyo Bang.
“…Baekgyo Bang?”
His expression went blank.
Baekgyo Bang? Those cowards attacked us? On such a scale?
They had never once openly challenged the Jin family before.
Even as they rose to become the second most powerful faction in Guangzhou, there had been no serious clashes.
The Jin family’s men had always dismissed them as insignificant, joking that they knew their place.
But now…
“Baekgyo Bang attacked us?”
Jin Gwang Magon realized they had been terribly mistaken.
They had mistaken a snarling hyena for a harmless pup.
Grinding his teeth, his fury deepened—not only for the comrades lost to this attack but for having been so thoroughly deceived by these hyenas.
His eyes blazing, he muttered, “They dared to look down on the Jin family?”
The Jin family’s signature martial arts were the Gwangma Eighteen Fist and the Noho Thirty-Six Fist—both fueled by rage and passion.
The warriors of the Jin family grew stronger the angrier they became.
There was even a saying in Guangdong’s martial world:
“If you fight the Jin family, kill them before they get angry. If you fail, no matter how strong you are, you will die alongside them.”
Once their fury ignited, they charged like mad dogs, willing to die alongside their enemies.
Jin Gwang Magon’s voice thundered, filled with inner power.
“Jin family warriors, listen! The cannon range is limited—soon they will finish the bombardment and land!”
The warriors, watching their comrades caught in the blast zone, focused intently.
“Do not think about defending the stronghold or defeating them. Our goal is one: look there!”
He pointed toward the shattered docks, broken walls, and riverside buildings.
And the people inside—those dying in agony, and those already dead.
His voice burned with passion.
“Our brothers died there! They are dying! We failed to save them! Remember this! Remember their pain! Never forget this helplessness! Our only mission is revenge!”
As his fiery cry ended, the Jin warriors let out low, beast-like growls.
“Uuuuu!”
The sound was the roar of boiling rage, compressing the inferno in their chests to unleash all at once on their enemies.
Aboard the flagship, Yoon Sak, hearing this clearly, smiled fiercely.
“Hmph.”
This time, the prey was a true beast.
Not some weak rabbit screaming at a scratch, but a real predator that grew stronger with every wound.
And Yoon Sak had always sought such an opponent.
With a cold grin, he said simply, “Charge.”
His men shouted loudly.
“All hands, land! Charge!”
Their voices echoed across the fleet of thirty ships.
“Land! Charge!”
“Charge!”
“Waaahhh!”
With a thunderous roar, warriors poured from every ship, plunging into the river like a tidal wave.
Splash! Splash! Splash!
They swam skillfully to shore, then surged forward, charging straight into the Jin family’s stronghold.
The force was terrifying, like a tsunami surging relentlessly toward the shore.
“Waaaaah!”
“Kill them all!”
“Yeeah!”
For the warriors of the Jin family, the wisest move would have been to stop the enemy before they even set foot on land.
But unfortunately, the Jin estate near the river had already been reduced to rubble by relentless bombardment, leaving them unable to mount an immediate defense.
Yet, they were the Jin family.
The Jin family—fierce and passionate.
They were not the kind to lose heart just because they’d lost the initiative or suffered casualties.
On the contrary, the greater the pressure, the stronger their resistance—like a tightly coiled spring ready to snap back.
Jin Gongmu, head of the Jin family, shouted with fury burning in his voice.
“Warriors of the Jin family! What must we do now?!”
Every Jin warrior answered in unison.
“Revenge!”
Without hesitation, Jin Gongmu leapt forward, shouting.
“Let’s go! It’s time for vengeance!”
“Waaaaah!”
The elite warriors of the Jin family, long renowned as the strongest in Guangdong Province, charged forward like a herd of wild stallions unleashed by rage.
At the moment when the Jin estate was under heavy bombardment from Baekgyobang, Jin Samong, the former head of the Jin family, lay resting in a separate building. The commotion outside stirred him, and with great effort, he pushed himself up.
He called for the attending physician.
“Doctor Im! Doctor Im!”
At his summons, the doctor entered the room.
“You called, Grand Patriarch?”
“What’s all that noise? What’s happening out there?”
The doctor’s face darkened as he replied.
“Some scoundrels have launched an assault on our Jin estate. I hear over thirty ships are bombarding us.”
“Bombardment?”
Jin Samong repeated the word with a grim expression, then his eyes flashed sharply.
Though his face was gaunt, his gaze burned with the fierce spirit of a predator.
“Doctor Im, take me there.”
The doctor’s eyes widened in alarm, and he tried to dissuade him.
“No, Grand Patriarch! You must rest and stay safe!”
But Jin Samong was resolute.
“If something happens to the Jin estate, what good is my rest? I won’t move unless it’s absolutely necessary, so don’t worry. Just take me there. And prepare the Blood Fury Elixir.”
The doctor gasped in shock.
“Grand Patriarch!”
The Blood Fury Elixir was a potent medicine that unleashed a sudden burst of energy, greatly enhancing the body’s strength.
But once its effects wore off, it often left the user vulnerable to possession or severe physical damage.
Still, the elixir was perfectly suited to the Jin family’s martial arts, which drew power from anger and passion.
Its ability to amplify their fighting spirit far surpassed other techniques.
That’s why every elite Jin warrior carried a dose of the Blood Fury Elixir.
Of course, the stronger the effect, the greater the risk.
Most who took it died from the aftereffects once the elixir’s power faded.
Yet the Jin warriors never hesitated to use it.
Taking the elixir was a testament to their unyielding spirit—they would rather die alongside their enemies than ever retreat.
The doctor pleaded earnestly.
“Grand Patriarch, you must not take the Blood Fury Elixir! Your body—”
But Jin Samong was unyielding.
“As I said, I won’t act unless absolutely necessary. But if the Jin estate is in danger, what use is my life if I don’t risk it? Prepare it at once.”
“Grand Patriarch…”
The doctor knew there was no breaking his stubborn will.