Episode 155: The Return of the Demon Sect Guardian
“Is this man… the gatekeeper of Tongmun Pavilion?”
The cadets gaped, their mouths agape, as they looked up at the towering figure before them. They had never seen anyone so massive. But it wasn’t just his size that was intimidating; his entire body seemed as solid as iron, and his hands were as large as cauldron lids. He was a man of formidable strength.
Yeon Woo-kyung furrowed his brow, scrutinizing the giant. “Did Tongmun Pavilion always have such a gatekeeper?”
If someone this distinctive had been around, he would have surely stood out in the records. Just to be sure, he turned to Dam Woo-gi and asked, “Is he the gatekeeper of Tongmun Pavilion?”
“No, he’s likely a hired martial artist from outside,” Dam Woo-gi replied.
“I thought so,” Yeon Woo-kyung nodded faintly. This was a test to evaluate the cadets’ combat abilities, after all. It made sense that they would hire skilled fighters to pose as pavilion members.
“Do you know who he is?” Yeon Woo-kyung inquired.
“I think I do,” Dam Woo-gi nodded unexpectedly.
“Who is he?”
“He’s probably Baek Sang-san, the ‘Giant God of Power.’”
“The Giant God of Power…?”
“He’s a renowned martial artist from the Shaanxi region. In terms of strength, he’s among the top five within the Justice Alliance.”
Meanwhile, Baek Sang-san scanned the cadets and bellowed, “Stop making a racket and get lost!”
His voice was so loud it felt like it could knock the wind out of them, even without using any internal energy. But the cadets weren’t about to back down so easily.
This time, Yeom Ja-ryang stepped forward, tossing accounting documents to the ground. “The records show evidence of embezzlement by the pavilion master. And we’ve found the body of an orphan beaten to death. We must take the pavilion master into custody.”
Baek Sang-san glanced at the papers on the ground and snorted. “Hmph! I’ll report the ledger to the master. And just because the body was beaten doesn’t mean our master is responsible.”
“If you won’t step aside, we’ll use force,” Yeom Ja-ryang warned.
“Oh? Go ahead and try,” Baek Sang-san chuckled, crossing his arms. His massive frame blocked the entrance completely, leaving no room to pass.
Yeom Ja-ryang shrugged and stepped back. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Moments later, Gok Bo-ok emerged from the group of cadets. Though he was large himself, he seemed small next to Baek Sang-san.
“If you want to test our strength, so be it!”
Bang!
With those words, Gok Bo-ok launched himself like an arrow, his fist striking Baek Sang-san’s abdomen with a thunderous impact. The force of the blow sent shockwaves rippling outward.
“Ugh!”
Baek Sang-san clutched his stomach, bending over. Gok Bo-ok smirked triumphantly. “How about now? Still not moving…?”
“Heh, not bad, kid,” Baek Sang-san chuckled.
“Huh?”
In an instant, the Giant God of Power leaped into the air, descending like a meteor. The speed of his movements was astonishing.
Boom!
The ground shook as if an earthquake had struck. It was the ‘Falling Meteor Fist,’ a technique that left the cadets visibly stunned.
“So fast!”
“How can a person be that strong?”
The impact was so powerful that dust billowed around Baek Sang-san and Gok Bo-ok. The cadets swallowed nervously.
Baek Sang-san straightened up, a faint smile on his lips. Gok Bo-ok’s punch had been strong, but who was he? He was one of the five great strengths of the martial world, the Giant God of Power. Surely, the overconfident youngster had fainted from the blow.
But when the dust finally settled…
“What…?”
Baek Sang-san’s eyes widened. Gok Bo-ok stood there, arms crossed, his feet firmly planted in the ground, as if nothing had happened. His ankles were buried in the earth, a testament to the force of Baek Sang-san’s strike. Yet Gok Bo-ok remained standing, a faint smile on his face.
“I’ve learned well from you, senior. Now it’s my turn.”
“You… insolent brat! Hah!”
Baek Sang-san roared, spreading his fists wide in a move called ‘Full Bloom Giant Flower.’ The technique, named for its resemblance to a flower blooming, was anything but gentle. A direct hit could be fatal, as it harnessed an explosive burst of energy.
But Gok Bo-ok blocked Baek Sang-san’s fists with his arms, unfazed.
“Hmph! You think you can withstand this?” Baek Sang-san was confident. No one had ever blocked his Full Bloom Giant Flower before. It was a force that could shatter boulders.
Yet…
Crash!
With a heavy sound, Gok Bo-ok was pushed back, sliding across the ground. Baek Sang-san’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“He blocked it? The Full Bloom Giant Flower?”
Unbeknownst to Baek Sang-san, Gok Bo-ok wore a special iron glove that enhanced his strength and defense in proportion to his abilities. Over the past six years, Gok Bo-ok had trained relentlessly, reaching the pinnacle of his power. His focus on strength had maximized the glove’s effectiveness.
Gok Bo-ok grinned, pushing off the ground. “Here I come, senior!”
Whoosh!
Baek Sang-san’s eyes widened. Instinctively, he realized, “This is different!”
The attack was on a whole new level compared to the initial strike to his abdomen. Though Gok Bo-ok’s fist seemed small, it felt like a boulder was hurtling toward him.
He couldn’t afford to be hit. He had to block or dodge.
Swish!
In the end, Baek Sang-san chose to dodge. Ironically, he didn’t trust himself to block the small fist this time. The power emanating from Gok Bo-ok was anything but ordinary.
As Gok Bo-ok’s fist sliced through the air,
“Stop fooling around!”
Baek Sang-san roared, throwing a punch of his own.
But then,
Thud!
“Ugh!”
Suddenly, he found himself airborne, the world flipping upside down.
“Did he trip me?”
Never in his life had anyone tripped him. It was unthinkable. Who would dare try to trip him? Anyone attempting such a thing would end up with a broken leg.
Yet…
“I was tripped…!”
Incredibly, Baek Sang-san’s body was lifted into the air, only to crash down with a thud.
Boom!
Dust rose once more as his massive body hit the ground.
“Hah!”
In that instant, Gok Bo-ok leaped into the air. Baek Sang-san was too stunned to react.
“That’s… the Falling Meteor Fist.”
Could he have learned it just by watching? Impossible. Martial arts required understanding the essence, not just imitation.
Yet…
“It’s not just imitation!”
In truth, Sa Bi-gang had spent the past six years teaching Gok Bo-ok various martial arts techniques, including fist, kick, and palm techniques. Having mastered numerous martial arts texts in his past life, teaching these techniques was not difficult for him.
Gok Bo-ok hadn’t mastered everything Sa Bi-gang taught, but he had learned what resonated with him, sometimes adapting techniques to create his own.
One such technique was the Falling Meteor Fist, which Baek Sang-san had used. While Gok Bo-ok couldn’t execute it as perfectly as Baek Sang-san, it was far from mere imitation.
“Argh!”
Baek Sang-san rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding Gok Bo-ok’s descending fist.
Crash!
With a loud crash, debris flew in all directions.
Baek Sang-san, now on his feet, gritted his teeth and launched a counterattack.
“You brat!”
It was the ‘Killing Wind Great Power Fist,’ the technique that had earned him his reputation in the martial world.
Whoosh!
With a fierce gust, his iron-like fist flew toward Gok Bo-ok’s face. Despite his size, Baek Sang-san was incredibly fast, leaving Gok Bo-ok no time to dodge. He raised his hand to block.
“Hmph! It’s over! I’ll crush that hand of yours…!”
Crunch!
“Ugh!”
Baek Sang-san gritted his teeth, his eyebrows shooting up in surprise. Gok Bo-ok had blocked his Killing Wind Great Power Fist with his bare hand.
“This is insane…! Blocking me with his bare hand?”
By now, Baek Sang-san was seething. His pride in his martial arts was being challenged, and it infuriated him.
“Haaah!”
He abandoned all pretense, unleashing a powerful shout as he swung his left fist.
But…
Smack!
“Ugh!”
Astonishingly, Gok Bo-ok blocked his Killing Wind Great Power Fist again with his hand.
With both fists caught in Gok Bo-ok’s grip, Baek Sang-san’s expression turned to one of shock.
“Hiyaah!”
This time, Gok Bo-ok let out a battle cry, and an incredible strength surged from his grasp.
“Argh!”
Baek Sang-san let out a piercing scream as his mouth twisted in agony.
The cause was the Mana Muscle Transformation Technique, a martial art developed by Gok Bo-ok over the past six years. Unlike the traditional methods of the Central Plains, which focused on using internal energy to compensate for a lack of physical strength, this technique consumed internal energy to directly enhance physical power.
To those who valued internal energy over brute strength, it might seem laughable. But for Gok Bo-ok, who wore the Iron Manacle, it was invaluable.
As Gok Bo-ok’s strength surged, the efficiency of the Iron Manacle amplified, allowing him to crush Baek Sang-san’s fist like a dry leaf.
Crunch!
“Aaaaargh!”
Baek Sang-san staggered back, collapsing to his knees. His hands were a mangled mess, bones shattered and hanging limply.
In contrast, Gok Bo-ok’s hand, swollen from the sudden surge of power, was gradually returning to its normal size and color.
Gok Bo-ok clasped his hands in a respectful gesture. “Thank you for the lesson, senior.”
The guards watching the scene stepped back, mouths agape. The students, however, seemed unfazed, as if they had expected this outcome all along.
Gok Bo-ok turned to them with a sly grin. “Shall we head inside?”
“Stop trying to act cool,” Yeom Ja-ryang teased as he started walking, followed by the other students.
**
“What? The Mighty Fist was defeated?”
Deng Wang-pae, who had been about to retire for the night, raised his voice at the report from his subordinate. He had considered the possibility that Baek Sang-san, known as the Mighty Fist, might lose. That’s why he had placed him as the first line of defense.
But the timing…
“Too fast. The Mighty Fist has already fallen?”
He furrowed his brow. “Was it a group attack?”
“Well…”
“Speak.”
Pressed by Deng Wang-pae, the subordinate bowed his head and replied, “It was just one person.”
“What did you say? Just one?”
“Yes, a student named Gok Bo-ok. While he fought, the others merely watched.”
“Gok Bo-ok…”
He remembered now. That prematurely aged student who had blocked his path at the banquet!
Could that boy have taken on the Mighty Fist, Baek Sang-san, known for his incredible strength?
‘Damn you, Sabi-gang…!’
What on earth had he done to the students in just three months?
The subordinate continued with more unsettling news. “The rumors have spread, and people are flocking to Tongmun Pavilion to witness it.”
“Hmm.”
Part of him wanted to see it with his own eyes. But he knew he couldn’t act rashly over something like this.
‘I’ve already set things in motion…’
It was best not to draw unnecessary attention. After all, it was just one gatekeeper they had overcome. There were still many challenges ahead for them.
Stay calm.
‘It’s probably nothing. Anyone can win by luck once.’
Deng Wang-pae took a deep breath and waved his hand. “Understood. You may go.”
Once the subordinate left, Deng Wang-pae lay back on his bed. It was going to be a restless night.