The Miraculous Divorce Technique

Chapter 18

'So this is what a cook's martial arts are like.'

Yong-sik thought that Cheok Sagyeol was a reclusive master hiding his identity.

'Don't tell me he didn't even feel the need to use sword qi? I wonder if he's confident he can slaughter all of us without using internal energy...'

Yong-sik had lost another subordinate due to a single misjudgment.

If his guess was correct, he was a master that the Ilsuhoe could not contend with.

At that moment, a lifeline descended to Yong-sik.

"What is it?"

He was the man who had been having a private meeting with Yong-sik.

"I'm... I'm sorry. We tried to handle it on our own, but he's such a master..."

"A master?"

The man narrowed his eyes and looked at Cheok Sagyeol.

But he did not feel any particular aura from him.

It was only natural, as the internal energy of the Bodhi Lotus Art was assimilated with his body like a stone Buddha, completely concealing his aura.

"Is that bastard interfering with the collection?"

"That's right."

Yong-sik raised the corners of his mouth while his head was bowed.

He thought that he might be able to make the two of them suffer a mutual defeat.

But at that moment.

SWOOSH.

"Gaaaaaah."

Yong-sik screamed at the pain that felt like his right shoulder was being seared with fire.

Even if he screamed until his throat tore, the pain did not easily subside.

"Ugh. Suddenly... why..."

"Tsk, it's the crime of bothering this one."

CLANG.

The man who had cut Yong-sik's arm sheathed his saber and walked down from the platform.

"This one is the Soul-Reaping Assassin, Eum Ga-gyeong. You must have heard of the fame of the Hundred Great Masters of Gangdong at least once, right?"

"The Hundred Great Masters of Gangdong..."

"Hehe. It's no use begging. Because I'm the one who will take your life. Tell King Yama when he asks."

Despite Eum Ga-gyeong's provocation, Cheok Sagyeol was not particularly impressed.

Gangdong was just a term for the eastern area of the Yangtze River.

Besides, the Hundred Great Masters? It was a number that was not even in his consideration.

"But what's your exact rank among the hundred?"

"What?"

"You're not number one, are you?"

"..."

At Eum Ga-gyeong's hesitation, Cheok Sagyeol smirked.

"Seeing as you can't even open your mouth, you must be last."

"Y-you son of a bitch!"

"Don't brag about being the tail of a snake in a country village. It's pathetic."

"Gah! Shut that mouth!"

CLANG. SWOOOSH.

The fastest draw using the scabbard.

Unlike a sword, a saber with a gentle curve could achieve the fastest speed when drawn.

CLANG.

But it was the same for Sa-wang. And after the first clash of sabers, the consecutive attacks continued.

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG. CLANG. CLANG, CLANG, CLANG, CLANG.

Cheok Sagyeol's Sa-wang did not fall behind Eum Ga-gyeong's incredibly swift chain of saber attacks.

After exchanging about ten moves in an instant, they stood about three zhang apart and glared at each other.

"Heh, you're better than I thought. Who are you? With skills like these, you can't be a nameless person."

"This one? Hmm... what should I say?"

Unlike the Ilsuhoe or the Jakdupa, Eum Ga-gyeong could be called a martial artist, so saying he was an inn cook was not something a man of the demonic path who revered martial arts would do.

But he couldn't call himself the supreme one of the Demonic Cult either.

Because his current skills were not even at the level of the soles of his original self's feet.

"I have no name to reveal to the likes of the last place. Just know this. That this one is the 'number one' in the world. Hehe."

At Cheok Sagyeol's sneer, Eum Ga-gyeong's eyes rolled back, and he rushed at him.

He had poured so much internal energy into it that his saber qi stretched out for about one zhang.

'Saber qi can't be cut in a single stroke... hmm...'

He had tested the destruction of the weapon by exchanging saber moves earlier, but it didn't work.

If it was protected by internal energy, even Sa-wang could not easily cut it.

'But it's not completely ineffective.'

There were chipped parts on Eum Ga-gyeong's saber, and those were the parts that had come into contact with Sa-wang.

'If I put more power into it, it will break.'

CRUNCH. CREAK.

The right arm holding Sa-wang began to rotate.

It continued to twist beyond the limit of the joint's range of motion.

It was then, when Eum Ga-gyeong's figure approached the area that Cheok Sagyeol had designated in his mind.

SWOOOOOSH.

The rotational force was added to the force of thrusting Sa-wang.

If it were a sword, it would have been a single point of concentration, but Sa-wang was in the form of a curved saber, and its tip was even more curved than a normal saber.

Therefore, the rotation that occurred in the arm had turned into a typhoon that swept through the front when it reached the tip of the saber.

BOOM.

After the thrust was over, Cheok Sagyeol stood still with Sa-wang extended.

THUD, THUD, THUD.

Eum Ga-gyeong's saber shattered into pieces, and his upper body was also minced to the point where its shape was hard to recognize, and pieces of flesh fell to the floor.

'Shall I call the stance name 'Gale Explosion Kill'?'

It was a formidable power even without using internal energy, but in the midst of that, Cheok Sagyeol was thinking of a stance name.

But the audience was different.

No one who had seen Cheok Sagyeol's divine might just now was moving.

A silence where not even a breath could be heard continued, and especially Yong-sik felt a cold chill on his back.

'Think. Think. At this rate, I'll die...'

Since even Eum Ga-gyeong had been minced into fish paste, there was no guarantee that he would not become like that.

In Yong-sik's eyes, the trash loaded on the cart came into view.

"Great hero! We didn't recognize you! To have uttered such nonsense about such a wonderful dish. It was such a groundbreaking dish that these foolish ones have only now opened their eyes."

Cheok Sagyeol smirked as he looked at Yong-sik, who was prostrated and rolling his tongue.

The tongue-wagging to save his life was wrapping the food waste loaded on the cart with all sorts of flowery words.

"You must have warmed up your mouth enough by chattering. Now, why don't you show me the real thing?"

"What? The real thing...?"

At Yong-sik's question, Cheok Sagyeol nodded his head and said.

"Eat. I'll give you one hour. If you can't finish it all, I'll mince you like that bastard just now and feed you to the dogs. If you become food yourself, you won't be able to curse at food, right?"

Hearing Cheok Sagyeol's words, Yong-sik's face turned pale, and he shouted.

"Rush in, you bastards! If you can't eat it all in one hour, you'll all die!"

There was no need for further threats.

Even before Yong-sik's words, the subordinates were running towards the cart like a pack of dogs.

MUNCH. MUNCH.

CHOMP, CHOMP, CHOMP. CHOMP, CHOMP.

SLURP. SLURP.

Since it was the food waste from preparing for eight hundred people, in terms of quantity, it was about a thousand people's worth.

Since the number of the Ilsuhoe was about a hundred, each person had to handle at least ten people's worth.

"Hey, Dog Jakdu."

At Cheok Sagyeol's call, Jakdu, who was giggling as he looked at Yong-sik, turned his head.

"Yes, great hero."

"Why aren't you guys eating?"

"What?"

"You've brought it all this way, so you should eat it now. It'll be tasteless if it gets colder."

"..."

Where was the food that had enough warmth to get cold?

Those words came up to his throat, but Jakdu could not bring himself to say them.

"Guys... let's... eat. Ha... ha."

Behind Jakdu, who was walking with heavy steps, his subordinates with slumped shoulders followed.

One hour later.

Cheok Sagyeol looked at the empty cart with a satisfied face and said.

"You eat well. It must have been quite delicious, huh?"

The Ilsuhoe and the Jakdupa covered their mouths with their hands and nodded their heads.

They were desperately holding it in because they felt like they would throw up what they had eaten if they took their hands off.

"Now, let's settle the bill. Pay for your meals."

At Cheok Sagyeol's words, Jakdu gestured to his subordinate with his head.

He was the subordinate who had gone to the money lender to get five thousand nyang.

Cheok Sagyeol frowned as he held the bill for five thousand nyang.

GULP.

"Great hero. Why... are you doing that..."

Jakdu, feeling that something was wrong, swallowed the food he was holding in his mouth and asked.

"The calculation is wrong."

"Wrong? But earlier..."

Cheok Sagyeol tapped the floor with his foot and said slyly.

"I heard the interest here is that good, right? And there's a packing and delivery fee. How can the amount be the same?"

Jakdu's mouth dropped open in disbelief.

Why was the fact that the Ilsuhoe's interest was high being attached here?

Besides, it was them, the Jakdupa, who had put the food waste in the cart and dragged it here.

"Don't worry too much. I'm not going to ask you to pay it all right now. Just pay five thousand nyang today."

Despite Cheok Sagyeol's comfort, Jakdu asked in a weak voice.

"Then how much is the principal you're thinking of..."

"Fifty thousand nyang."

"Gasp! Ten times..."

Jakdu's legs gave out, and he sat down on the spot.

"Don't worry. I won't take the remaining forty-five thousand nyang in money."

At Cheok Sagyeol's words, Jakdu's mind cleared.

"From today, the Jakdupa will go around the nearby villages and do environmental beautification activities. The daily wage is one pun per person."

"Great hero. If the wage is one pun, our total daily wage is only five nyang."

"Even so, the debt will be paid off in 25 years, right? Isn't it better than a lifetime contract? If you don't like it, pay it off right now."

"I... I understand."

"Clean well from now on. If there's a single piece of trash rolling on the street, it'll go straight into your mouths."

If it were the territory of the Demonic Cult, the Jakdupa would have all been beheaded today.

The reason Cheok Sagyeol did not do so was because he would be leaving, and it was obvious that another villain would appear and take his place.

In that case, it would be better for a quick-witted bastard like Jakdu to keep his place while being wary of him.

Cheok Sagyeol this time turned his head towards the Ilsuhoe.

"H-how much should we pay?"

"Oh. You seem confident, huh?"

"It was going to be taken by that bastard Eum Ga-gyeong anyway. We can give it all to you, great hero."

Yong-sik, seeing Cheok Sagyeol's treatment of Jakdu, gave up on negotiating.

He had done such things several times himself, so he thought it was better to just accept it.

"How much is all that?"

"One hundred thousand nyang."

"Is that all your assets?"

"That's right. Among them are the house and land documents of this mansion."

Cheok Sagyeol stroked his chin with one hand and asked again.

"Thirty thousand nyang would be more than enough to kill that bastard Eum Ga-gyeong, not one hundred thousand nyang. Why did you obediently try to hand over one hundred thousand nyang?"

"His moniker is the Soul-Reaping Assassin. He's a ronin-like bastard who doesn't belong to a group and wanders around. He suddenly appeared three days ago and demanded one hundred thousand nyang. It's difficult to hire a master who can kill him in three days, isn't it? And it's not like guys like us can ask the righteous faction for help."

Hearing Yong-sik's words, Eum Ga-gyeong was a typical man of the demonic path.

Suddenly, Cheok Sagyeol recalled the words of the past Lord of the Four Alliances, Baek Cheonak.

-The policy of our alliance, which has been passed down from the first generation, is laissez-faire, I guess. In a word, it means that everyone has the freedom to think and act according to their own will.

'Laissez-faire, my ass.'

Because of their thoughts, all the trash in the Central Plains flowed into the demonic path, and the most beast-like bastards who were not human were in the demonic path.

Although the huge force called the Four Alliances was said to be self-purifying, it was impossible to dispose of all the filth that was constantly pouring out from all over the Central Plains.

Cheok Sagyeol was of the opinion that because of the Four Alliances, villains were constantly being created, more and faster.

Eum Ga-gyeong was a son of a bitch who had chosen the freedom to go around places like the Ilsuhoe and extort what he wanted through violence.

'By the way, it's been three days since that guy Eum Ga-gyeong appeared, right? Hmm...'

Cheok Sagyeol had a good idea about the period of three days.

"You said your name was Yong-sik, right?"

"That's right."

"I'll call your food bill one hundred thousand nyang."

"Thank you, great hero."

Yong-sik thought that obediently following him as he had thought was the right answer.

But Cheok Sagyeol's words were not over.

"But there's a condition."

"Please speak."

"Burn all the collection ledgers and return the physical goods to their original owners. Also, dispose of the house and land documents, turn them into cash, and bring them to the Pungryu Inn within today."

"Yes, I will follow your orders."

"Also, the Ilsuhoe is disbanded as of today. The subordinates will all leave today, but you, Yong-sik, will leave after confirming all matters. If I hear rumors that you guys are in the vicinity in the future, I will definitely find you and turn you into minced meat."

After laying down a chilling threat, Cheok Sagyeol threw what he had taken out from his bosom to Yong-sik.

It was the identity token that Grand Master Musan had given him, which proved that he was a disciple of the Shinhyun Sect, a secular sect of Shaolin.

"What is this?"

"It is this one's identity token. The Jongli family bastards will come by tomorrow at the latest, so if they ask about this one, give them that."

It was impossible for the Jongli family not to know for more than four days that a demonic path person of the level of Eum Ga-gyeong, the Hundred Great Masters of Gangdong, had appeared.

Although they were not as powerful as the Five Great Families, they were a family that had built up their own power.

But what would happen if a Shaolin secular disciple ran wild in their jurisdiction and even confiscated their property?

Moreover, the Arhat monks who were looking for him would have expanded their siege to the vicinity by now.

The clash of the two groups was inevitable at this point.

'Confusing the investigation is the basis of escape.'

(End of Chapter)