Chapter 277

With a mischievous grin, Maeng Hogon and Baek Muho addressed Sun Woojin and his group.

“So… who among you will face me? I’m curious if any of you truly have the skill to take down the Soju martial artists. Honestly, my heart’s pounding just thinking about it.”

Just then, Jeong Chil, thinking it was his turn since Yeon Taejin had stepped forward earlier, chuckled and stepped up.

“Khuhuhuhu. You’ll soon find out if you’re worthy. This elder right here is—!”

Before he could finish, Jin So-eun hurriedly stepped forward, cutting him off.

“Nice to meet you! I’m Jin So-eun of the Jin family from Guangdong!”

Her eyes sparkled brightly—something rarely seen in her—and that gleam was unmistakably the fire of competition.

Jeong Chil blinked in surprise, clearly caught off guard by her sudden appearance.

“Ah, but it’s my turn this time…”

Sun Woojin smirked and gently grabbed Jeong Chil’s arm, then nodded toward the black staff Baek Muho was holding.

Only then did Jeong Chil understand why Jin So-eun had stepped up.

“Oh? So you wield the same staff style.”

The Soju Baek family was renowned as the only clan among the Forty-Three Houses to specialize in the staff. Their signature technique, the Yeoui Staff Method, was highly respected throughout the martial world.

So it was only natural that Jin So-eun, a member of the Jin family and the sole inheritor of the natural staff style, would show interest.

But she wasn’t the only one intrigued.

Baek Muho’s eyes lit up at her introduction.

“Ho! You’re from the Jin family? I’m well aware of the fame of the Guangma and Nohog staff techniques, the Jin family’s signature styles.”

Jin So-eun smiled gently and shook her head.

“I don’t practice those two staff methods.”

Baek Muho’s brow furrowed in confusion.

“Not those two? Then…?”

Her eyes blazing, Jin So-eun replied, “The staff style I’ve mastered is called the Natural Staff.”

“The Natural Staff? What?! The Natural Staff?!”

Baek Muho’s face instantly filled with an uncontrollable mix of shock and excitement.

He had heard the rumors about the Natural Staff before.

His eyes burned with a fiery intensity, as if ready to unleash flames.

“The Natural Staff! It seems today, Baek Muho has stumbled upon a rare opportunity. I’m itching to clash staffs right now. What do you say, young lady? Shall we stop talking and let our staffs do the talking?”

Jin So-eun nodded fiercely with a sharp smile.

As if waiting for this moment, Baek Muho lunged forward.

“Hahap!”

Bang!

His new form surged toward Jin So-eun with the force of a wild beast.

His movements were dynamic, more like the spring of a predator than a calculated strike.

In response, Jin So-eun’s wooden staff began spinning fiercely at her fingertips.

Whirrrr!

It moved with such dazzling agility, as if alive and acting on its own.

The staff darted around Baek Muho’s incoming attacks from every direction, like an independent creature.

Baek Muho let out a triumphant yell as he bounced away.

“Yah-ho!”

Thud!

His movements resembled a gust of wind—wild and untamed.

More beast than man, he leapt and flipped through the air like a nimble monkey performing acrobatics.

Baek Muho darted here and there, evading Jin So-eun’s dazzling strikes.

Where Jin So-eun’s staff seemed to move independently with minimal body movement, Baek Muho’s style was the opposite—his body was in constant motion, while his staff struck only when necessary to block her attacks.

Clang! Clang! Clang-clang!

Their duel was a brilliant spectacle.

Jin So-eun’s swirling staff techniques filled the air, while Baek Muho’s lightning-fast movements weaved through the gaps.

The Soju crowd had never witnessed such incredible martial prowess.

They couldn’t help but cheer.

“Wooooah!”

“Amazing! As expected of the Soju Baek family’s martial arts!”

“That young lady’s staff technique is incredible! Who is she?”

“She said she’s from the Jin family in Guangdong! That clan’s famous for their staff styles too!”

“Either way, this is incredible! The best!”

At that moment, Baek Muho, leaping like a swift monkey, spun in midair and thrust his staff like lightning.

Flash!

Jin So-eun frowned slightly.

His strike was just out of reach—too far for her to block.

It seemed like a feint, not worth defending against.

But just as she moved to evade, Baek Muho’s staff suddenly stretched out, extending all the way to where she stood.

It was like watching Sun Wukong’s legendary Ruyi Jingu Bang.

“Ugh!”

Jin So-eun gasped and hurriedly thrust her hands forward.

Her spinning staff barely managed to deflect Baek Muho’s elongated strike.

Clang!

From that moment, the tide turned.

Baek Muho, like an enraged monkey, launched a fierce assault on Jin So-eun.

“Kiyah!”

Swish-swish-swish!

His staff lengthened and struck from beyond normal range, forcing Jin So-eun onto the defensive.

Her staff, swirling around her like a living thing, continuously parried Baek Muho’s attacks.

Clang-clang-clang!

It was a breathtaking sight.

Baek Muho’s staff techniques, stretching and striking like magic, and Jin So-eun’s spinning staff, defending as if it had a life of its own, made their battle feel like a clash between mythical creatures.

The crowd erupted in cheers once more.

“Wooooah! Lord Baek is incredible!”

“This is what a real master’s fight looks like! So cool!”

“Jin So-eun! From today, I’m rooting for you!”

Watching the crowd’s excitement, Sun Woojin smiled softly.

The atmosphere among the spectators was electric, and the two fighters themselves seemed to be having the time of their lives.

It was clear even from the sidelines how much they were enjoying this rare duel between staff masters.

Sun Woojin smiled contentedly, already thinking ahead.

‘Good. If this fight ends well and we can head to the Soju Baek family together, maybe we can build some connections.’

Just as he was lost in thought, Baek Muho, completely fired up, shouted.

“Alright! Take this, young lady! Hahap! Yeoui Windstorm!”

So excited, Baek Muho even called out the name of his technique as his staff suddenly radiated outward in all directions.

Shhh-shhh-shhh!

The dazzling display resembled Sun Woojin’s own Thirteen Swords’ Illusion Sword Mirror.

A brilliant technique that sent staff energy radiating like the sun.

Sun Woojin gasped in surprise at the familiar sight.

“Huh?!”

But then, everyone watching was shocked for a different reason.

Baek Muho, mid-attack and full of energy, suddenly coughed up blood.

“Gahk!”

It was an incomprehensible sight.

The excited Baek Muho collapsed onto the duel stage floor, black blood splattering everywhere.

“?!”

“?”

The once roaring crowd fell into stunned silence.

Everyone stared in horror at Baek Muho’s fallen form.

Sun Woojin and his group were no exception.

At that moment, one of Baek Muho’s accompanying warriors shouted.

“Poison! That woman ambushed Lord Baek with poison!”

“Eek?!”

Startled, Jin So-eun frantically waved her hands.

“No, that’s not true! I didn’t do that…!”

But the Soju Baek family warriors ignored her protests.

With angry expressions, they charged forward, shouting.

“Protect Lord Baek! Subdue the traitor!”

“No, wait! I’m not—!”

It all happened in an instant.

A dozen warriors swarmed Baek Muho, while another dozen closed in on Jin So-eun.

Overwhelmed, Jin So-eun could only look helplessly at Sun Woojin.

At that moment, Sun Woojin’s mind raced at lightning speed as he shouted.

“Jin So-eun! Take them down!”

“W-what?!”

Jin So-eun stared at him in shock, not understanding.

But her staff seemed to grasp his meaning immediately.

It began spinning fiercely once more.

Whirrrr!

Babababababam!

“Gyaaaah!”

“Ughhh!”

True to the Natural Staff style, the Soju Baek family warriors attacking Jin So-eun were mercilessly struck back and sent flying.

At the same time, Sun Woojin leapt toward Baek Muho, shouting.

“Brothers!”

Like a whirlwind, Sun Woojin appeared before Baek Muho, and Seolpung and Jeong Chil rushed in to strike down the Soju Baek family warriors.

Bam-bam-bam-bam!

“Gahhh!”

It was a perfect display of unspoken understanding.

Seolpung struck down the soldiers with a blank expression, as if Sun Woojin’s words raised no questions at all. Jeungchil approached hesitantly, as if unsure if this was allowed, but then suddenly shouted and unleashed a powerful strike.

“Ah, whatever!”

Brrrraaaak!

“Gyaaaah!”

“Ugh! You bastards! How dare you come from Soju to challenge our Baek family…!”

Before the words could finish, Sun Woojin grabbed Baek Muho and shouted,

“Let’s get out of here!”

Without hesitation, Sun Woojin leapt away, with Seolpung, Jeungchil, and Jin Soeun right on his heels.

Only Yeon Taejin, who had been the slowest to catch on, scrambled after them, his frustration boiling over.

“Hey, what the hell?! Why am I the only one left in the dark?!”

Behind them, the Soju Baek family’s warriors, battered and sprawled on the ground, shouted angrily.

“We won’t let them get away! Close the city gates! Sound the emergency alarm!”

Sun Woojin’s plan to build good relations with the Soju Baek family had completely fallen apart from the very start.

---

Gwanggyeon Jeon Seokgu just stood there, dumbfounded, watching everything unfold before his eyes.

With his simple mind, he couldn’t make sense of what was happening today.

It had all started when he saw some beautiful women from out of town and picked a fight with the warriors accompanying them.

Well, that part was understandable enough.

Challenging them was a manly thing to do, and even if he lost, there was no shame in it.

“Yeah, that’s how it was…”

But once he realized those people were masters far beyond their reach, everything started to go wrong.

He had been beaten like a dog.

Since the time he stole money from his parents as a kid to buy alcohol and came home drunk, he’d never been beaten so thoroughly and miserably as he was today.

“And it was by a beauty who looked even more delicate than my own mother back then.”

From that point on, nothing but surprises kept coming.

Even Daeung, the head of the Hotuhoe that Gwanggyeon belonged to, was shocked to see his senior, Gu Hang, get beaten even worse than himself.

When Jo Duseok, the leader of the higher-ranking Baekwoo faction, was also beaten, there was nothing left to be surprised about.

And finally, when Baek Muho of the Soju Baek family appeared and engaged in an incredible duel with the short-haired beauty…

Gwanggyeon found himself genuinely enjoying the display of their extraordinary martial skills.

But then, suddenly, Baek Muho coughed up black blood and collapsed.

And the one who ambushed him with poison was that very woman.

He couldn’t understand what on earth was going on.

Suddenly, a flash of her flustered expression came to his mind.

“No matter how I think about it, she was the most surprised of all.”

Gwanggyeon had a strong feeling that she wasn’t the one behind this.

Maybe it was just because she was beautiful that he wanted to believe her.

But now, whatever the truth was, it didn’t matter.

They had beaten the Soju Baek family’s warriors and fled with Baek Muho himself.

No matter how unfair their situation might be, they would never be able to prove it.

The city gates of Soju were completely sealed off, and everywhere on the streets, the Baek family’s warriors were scouring the area with fierce determination.

All of this was because they had dared to challenge the rulers of Soju—the Baek family.

No matter how skilled they were, there was no way they could survive.

Wherever they hid, it was only a matter of time before they were found.

As Gwanggyeon Seokgu thought this and returned to their lodging with his gang, he sighed and muttered as he opened the door.

“What a… exhausting day. I think I can finally sleep at twelve o’clock.”

“Tell me about it, brother. I think I could even sleep for twenty-four hours straight.”

At that moment, the door they had just closed suddenly swung open again, and a voice rang out.

“Oh my, is this your place? Hmm, a bit shabby, isn’t it?”

The moment Gwanggyeon and his gang heard that voice, a chill ran down their spines.

It was the voice that had been etched into their instincts with terror when they were beaten like dogs earlier.

It was Yeon Taejin’s voice.

“!”

“!”

Startled, they slowly turned their heads like broken wooden dolls.

They felt as if their necks were creaking.

And then they saw her.

A woman as beautiful as a celestial maiden descending from the heavens—but now, to Gwanggyeon’s gang, she was branded as a witch from hell.

Yeon Taejin smiled enchantingly and waved at them.

Behind her, Sun Woojin and his group, carrying Baek Muho, looked on with smiles.

“Hello. I’ll be staying with you for a while. Hope that’s okay. Thanks.”

It seemed they didn’t really need an answer from Gwanggyeon’s gang.