Chapter 275
Soon, Sun Woo-jin and his group entered Suzhou, the city of pleasure located at the southernmost tip of Jiangsu Province.
The moment they stepped inside, they immediately realized this wasn’t Zhejiang Province’s Xinji, but rather Jiangsu—the territory of the Sawang Alliance.
As they passed through Suzhou’s city walls, they were met with bustling streets teeming with countless pedestrians.
It was a massive crowd unlike anything they had ever seen before.
The group couldn’t help but be impressed.
The sheer number of people and the lively expressions on their faces left a strong impression.
Just then, a few men approached them.
All appeared to be martial artists.
“Hey! Are you guys martial artists?”
The martial artists they had met in Zhejiang had always greeted them with friendly smiles and passed by without incident.
But here, things were different.
With a sly grin, one of the men glanced at Yeon Tae-jin and Jin So-eun, cracking his knuckles audibly as he spoke.
“Let’s have a fight! We’ll crush you and show these beauties what a real man’s charm is!”
The group was momentarily stunned, unable to respond.
It was surprising enough that someone was picking a fight with Sun Woo-jin’s group, but what was even more shocking was how openly they admitted it was because of the women.
Their confident attitude and tone made it almost sound like righteous heroes about to punish villains.
What’s more, these men’s martial skills seemed barely second-rate at best.
To a group like Sun Woo-jin’s—whose members were all top-tier or close to it—these guys were nothing more than overconfident puppies.
It was utterly absurd.
At that moment, Jung Chil, who had been momentarily speechless, let out a disbelieving laugh.
“I’ve never seen such…”
But before he could finish, Yeon Tae-jin interrupted with a captivating smile.
“Hmm, the charm of a real man, you say?”
The men’s expressions froze, as if spellbound by some enchantment.
Sun Woo-jin’s group, having spent so much time with Yeon Tae-jin, had grown somewhat immune to her beauty—and even found her excessive confidence a bit tiring.
But Yeon Tae-jin was originally one of the legendary Four Great Beauties of the underworld.
No ordinary man could withstand a smile like hers.
The martial artists stared blankly at her for a moment before snapping back to reality and shouting.
“Y-Yeah! They might look decent, but once you see us fight, you’ll realize that for martial artists, true charm lies only in martial skill!”
“That’s right! Martial artists speak through their skills!”
“We, the martial artists of Suzhou, will show you what real men’s charm is!”
Yeon Tae-jin’s smile deepened.
“Exactly. For martial artists, martial skill is the ultimate charm. I’m really looking forward to seeing it.”
Once again, the men were entranced by her smile.
Interpreting it as a sign of favor, they shouted boldly.
“We’ll show you right now!”
“Right here, right now!”
“You’ll be amazed!”
Yeon Tae-jin returned their enthusiasm with a beautiful, yet sly smile that made her companions chuckle.
She looked like a spider weaving a web to lure in prey.
Sun Woo-jin’s group could already foresee the poor martial artists getting tangled up and beaten like dogs.
Seol Poong glanced sideways at Sun Woo-jin, silently asking what he intended to do.
Sun Woo-jin smiled faintly, as if he had made up his mind, and said to the men.
“Fine. Let’s have a fight. Right here?”
The man grinned fiercely.
“Oh! Not bad for a girl! I like your spirit! If you get badly hurt, I’ll even buy you a drink! But not here. If we cause trouble among the civilians, the Sawang Alliance’s martial artists will intervene. Come on, there’s a fighting arena not far from here!”
With that, the man and his group led the way, and Sun Woo-jin’s party followed.
As they moved, ordinary citizens who had overheard the conversation began to chatter excitedly.
“A duel! The Mad Dogs are fighting outsiders!”
“Oh! Those crazy dogs? This’ll be a show!”
“Ha! Those outsiders don’t know what they’re in for. They’re going to get trounced, haha!”
In no time, a crowd swarmed around, trailing behind the group like they’d found some great entertainment.
Sun Woo-jin’s group was taken aback by the reaction.
Usually, people from other regions either ignored martial artists’ affairs or tried to avoid them altogether.
But the Mad Dogs grinned at the crowd’s response and waved, shouting.
“Watch closely! We’ll make sure these outsiders remember the strength of Suzhou’s martial artists!”
The crowd jeered playfully.
“Ooooh! You think you represent Suzhou’s martial artists?”
“Hahaha! To be called the best in Suzhou, you’d have to be at least as good as the Baekga or the Alliance’s fighters!”
“Bah! Fighting outsiders makes you the best, right? What’s the big deal about being a representative?”
“Wahahahaha!”
Sun Woo-jin and his group were struck by how the Mad Dogs interacted with the common folk.
It was a refreshing contrast to the atmosphere they’d experienced in Zhejiang.
Jung Chil chuckled dryly.
“This place is interesting. I thought the Sawang Alliance’s territory would be bleak and ruthless.”
Sun Woo-jin looked around with curiosity.
“I heard that the original Sawang, Gwangma, founded the Tongcheon Sect—the predecessor of the Sawang Alliance—to gather all the bad guys under his control. Because of that, the Sawang martial artists have a strict rule not to harm ordinary people. But I never imagined the atmosphere would be like this.”
Indeed, the rule against harming civilians was a long-standing tradition within the Sawang Alliance.
Among the underworld circles, there was even a saying: “If you want fame, join the Sawang Alliance; if you want freedom, run away from it.”
Among ordinary people, it was common knowledge that the Sawang Alliance’s territory was far more livable than most righteous sects’ domains.
Hearing this for the first time, Jin So-eun’s eyes widened.
“You’re saying that even though they’re underworlders, they have a rule not to harm civilians? Is that really possible?”
Her question was natural.
The underworld was called that because its members valued their own interests and freedom above all else, often at the expense of others.
If they truly refrained from harming civilians, they might not even qualify as underworlders anymore.
Sun Woo-jin smiled gently and answered.
“That’s why, for underworlders who want to live selfishly and comfortably, the Sawang Alliance isn’t an attractive option. Not being able to lord over civilians like kings is a fatal flaw for them. But aside from that rule, the Alliance’s code is very simple.”
“What is it?”
“Strength. That’s all.”
The Sawang Alliance unconditionally favored the strong.
They promoted those with absolute power, rewarding them handsomely.
Because of this, their members could live well without bothering ordinary people.
Moreover, the Alliance didn’t suppress conflicts among martial artists; they encouraged them.
They accepted all kinds of fights—one-on-many battles, ambushes using stealth techniques—anything except poison was allowed.
Jin So-eun frowned slightly.
“You’re saying one-on-many fights and ambushes are okay? But if that’s the case…”
“Since they’re underworlders, they accept that if you get caught like that, it’s part of skill. But that doesn’t mean they consider such tactics legitimate strength. As I said, the Alliance values strength above all.”
Because the Sawang martial artists revered true strength, those who won through ambushes or overwhelming numbers were seen as weak.
Even if they won, they wouldn’t gain recognition or high status within the Alliance.
That’s why one-on-one duels were like daily life in the Sawang territory.
Fighting arenas were set up everywhere, and it was easy to watch martial artists duel every day.
The place the Mad Dogs were leading Sun Woo-jin’s group to was one such arena.
Yeon Tae-jin, surveying the surroundings with deep eyes, suddenly turned to Jin So-eun.
“Little sister So-eun, you said before you wanted to make Gwangju like Zhejiang, right? I want to make Hawon like this. If it’s a place where martial artists live, it should be like this.”
Though Hawonbang, where she was the leader, was an underworld faction, it had always sought coexistence with ordinary people.
To Yeon Tae-jin, this place looked like the ideal utopia she had dreamed of.
Jin So-eun fell silent, lost in thought as she looked around.
The fighting arena wasn’t far.
Just off the main street stood a well-maintained arena, where some martial artists had already begun their matches.
Then the leader of the mad hound pack—a man who was probably the mad hound himself—spoke to Sun Woo-jin and his group.
“Wait a moment. It looks like this fight’s almost over. We’ll take the next turn.”
At his words, Sun Woo-jin glanced over at the two martial artists still sparring on the stage.
They were both third-rate fighters, nothing much different from ordinary commoners—mere amateurs.
Suddenly, a faint smile crossed his lips as he addressed the mad hound.
“If you’re called the mad hound, I’d expect you to have quite a temper. But you’re willing to wait patiently for these low-level fighters to finish? That’s unexpected.”
The mad hound snorted derisively.
“Hmph! Did you think I’d chase off the weak? Martial artists from Jiangsu don’t stoop to such undignified behavior!”
Sun Woo-jin’s group genuinely admired that attitude.
They were impressed by the Jiangsu martial artists’ sense of honor—treating the weak with respect rather than contempt.
Muk-rang suddenly said to Sun Woo-jin,
‘Indeed. There’s a lot to think about. And that mad hound seems better than I expected. Looks like we’ll have to go easy on him.’
A moment later, as the previous fight ended, the mad hound leapt onto the stage with a bound.
He flashed a sharp grin at Sun Woo-jin’s group and shouted,
“Alright! Now I’ll show you the greatness of Jiangsu’s martial artists! Come at me! Anyone at all!”
The crowd of commoners gathered around erupted into cheers and applause.
“Woooo! It’s finally starting!”
“We believe in you, Mad Hound!”
“Show us the fury of the Jiangsu mad dog!”
Sun Woo-jin’s group exchanged wry smiles as they looked around.
Seol Poong said with a baffled expression,
“Somehow, I feel like we’ve become the villains here.”
To which Jeung Chil replied with a wicked grin,
“Well, that’s not entirely wrong. From now on, we’ll be playing the bad guys. Heh heh heh!”
Just as Jeung Chil was about to step onto the stage, he blinked in surprise.
“Wait?! That bare-skinned woman—you?”
The first to step onto the stage was Yeon Tae-jin, who wore an enchanting smile as she surveyed the crowd.
The raucous cheers instantly died down to a pin-drop silence the moment she appeared.
Neither the mad hound pack nor the commoners could believe their eyes.
They had expected a man to step up, not a beautiful, delicate-looking woman.
Stammering, the mad hound addressed her,
“Y-Young lady, you don’t mean to fight me…?”
Yeon Tae-jin smiled sweetly and asked,
“Why not? Am I not allowed?”
“No, it’s not that….”
The mad hound glanced awkwardly at Sun Woo-jin and the others.
His original plan had been to use the duel as a way to get close to her—but now she was the one stepping forward to fight. This wasn’t quite what he had in mind.
But Yeon Tae-jin didn’t care about his discomfort.
She beamed brightly and cracked her knuckles.
“Then let’s have a match. Martial artists always settle things with their skills, right? I hope you’ll show me an impressive fight.”
Her radiant smile reignited the crowd’s excitement.
“That’s right! Martial artists speak through their skills! What does it matter if it’s a man or a woman?”
“Exactly! Show the mad dog of Jiangsu your finest moves, Mad Hound!”
“We’re cheering for you! Go, Mad Hound!”
Buoyed by the enthusiastic support, the mad hound puffed up with pride as he looked at Yeon Tae-jin.
He carried himself like a man who believed he was a force to be reckoned with.
He decided to accept the challenge.
If he didn’t go too hard, this could even be a good opportunity.
He stepped forward, bowed respectfully, and introduced himself in a confident voice.
“My name is Jeon Seok-gu. I’m usually gentle, but when it comes to fighting, I never back down. That’s why people call me the Mad Hound. But young lady, you needn’t worry. I’ll go easy on you.”
Laughter and jeers erupted from the crowd.
“Ha! When have you ever been gentle? You’re a mad dog whether you’re fighting or not!”
“Don’t act all soft just because there’s a beauty in front of you. Be your usual self, Mad Hound!”
As the crowd’s familiar taunts made his face flush red, Yeon Tae-jin gave him a captivating wink.
“I’m Yeon Tae-jin. And I apologize in advance.”
“Apologize?”
Jeon Seok-gu looked puzzled.
“Excuse me? For what…?”
At the same time, a vague sense of recognition stirred in his mind. He felt like he’d heard the name Yeon Tae-jin somewhere before.
Then, in an instant, the smiling Yeon Tae-jin appeared right before his eyes.
Before he could react, she drove a palm strike into his stomach.
Bwoooom!
“Ughhh!”
The mad hound’s back bent like a shrimp’s.
Suddenly, it clicked in his mind.
‘Yeon Tae-jin… Ha Won-dal’s disciple?!’
But that was the last thought he had time for.
Bwoooom!
Another kick slammed into his face, and his consciousness faded.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The mad hound tumbled across the stage in a humiliating heap, his flashy acrobatics reduced to a pitiful collapse.
The crowd fell silent in an instant.
Yeon Tae-jin turned to the mad hound’s companions with a bright smile.
“Oh dear, a mistake! I misjudged my strength. I’ll have to do better next time. Now, who’s next?”
The mad hound’s comrades swallowed hard without realizing it.
The smile that had just moments ago seemed more beautiful than a fairy’s now looked as chilling as the Grim Reaper’s.
Muk-rang whispered to Sun Woo-jin,
‘Ha ha ha, well, she didn’t kill him, did she? Didn’t even break a bone. That’s pretty gentle from Yeon Tae-jin’s perspective…’
‘…Sorry. Controlling Yeon Tae-jin is beyond me.’
Since meeting Yeon Tae-jin, Sun Woo-jin had come to deeply understand why the ancient masters said women were difficult to handle.