The moment an unexpected exclamation flowed from Eulji-tae's mouth.
"You bastard!"
U Sim-gi roughly spat out curses and rushed at the man in blue martial robes.
His fist flew fiercely toward the blue-robed man's face. It was Chasing Cloud Fist, one of the fist techniques Kunlun prided itself on. Though it was no more than a simple straight punch, it concisely contained the graceful movements characteristic of Kunlun Sect.
However!
Ting, thwack!
"Urk!"
Swing, swish.
The blue-robed man flicked the thumb of his left hand to lift the sword hilt. That was all he did to block U Sim-gi's attack.
When his thumb struck the sword hilt, the rear end of the longsword shot out straight like a shark or orca leaping out of water to swallow prey, striking U Sim-gi's fist.
With that, U Sim-gi's fist completely deviated from its original path. His fist passed over the blue-robed man's head, and U Sim-gi's body instead leaned forward toward the blue-robed man.
The blue-robed man seized that gap and brought the end of the sword hilt to U Sim-gi's neck. If he had cut U Sim-gi's neck with the blade part rather than the sword handle, U Sim-gi would have lost his life with this single move.
It appeared simple, but it was by no means easy.
"...Impressive."
Eulji-tae put down the piece of Five Spice Soy Sauce Meat he had picked up. Following the appearance of Heavenly Rigid Sword, its owner's amazing move made him do so. Now his interest had completely shifted from food to the fight.
Dong Gwang-cheon's head was also turned in that direction. He was clearly watching that fight. However, because his hair covered most of his face, it was difficult to know exactly where he was looking.
"Y-you bastard! Do you think a mere fellow like you can do this to me, Kunlun White Dragon, and get away unscathed?"
Having been pushed back in skill, U Sim-gi instead glared at the blue-robed man and threatened him.
Sring.
Was it because he felt fear at Kunlun Sect's prestige or U Sim-gi's reputation? The blue-robed man lowered the sword he had half-drawn and put it back in its sheath.
Then he brushed past U Sim-gi and walked forward.
U Sim-gi flinched, wondering if the blue-robed man might suddenly attack. That's how tremendous the move the man had shown was.
However, the man had no intention of attacking U Sim-gi in the first place. He just kept walking forward. Judging by that direction, the place he was heading was the ferry dock.
Just then.
"Halt right there!"
A group of people poured out of the inn and stopped the blue-robed man's steps.
They were clearly disciples of Mount Hua Sect, all wearing red robes and carrying swords with plum blossom embroidery.
Following them, another group of people also burst out, and they were disciples of Kunlun Sect wearing white robes with cloud-shaped embroidery hanging from their shoulders. It seemed the blue-robed young man had gotten into a quarrel with both Mount Hua Sect and Kunlun Sect. Or perhaps he had gotten into it with one side, and the other was helping.
Eulji-tae was curious.
He had absolutely no desire to know the details like why they fought or what happened. What he was curious about was the skill of the blue-robed man, who was clearly the owner of 'Heavenly Rigid Sword.'
'Has the real sword been drawn and entered the world? Or has it just come out to the Martial World for a brief outing to get some fresh air? Show me once.'
If it was the latter, it would be better to quietly return to the original mountain from here.
The blue-robed man stopped.
He slowly turned his head and body back.
Between his shaggy hair, flashing eyes swept over the disciples of Mount Hua Sect and Kunlun Sect, then inadvertently went toward the second floor of the inn.
His eyes met Eulji-tae's, and then he directly clashed gazes with Dong Gwang-cheon who sat in front of him. However, it was literally only a brief moment, just passing by.
"A wild beast."
Eulji-tae's assessment was as brief as the brief clash. In his view, the blue-robed man was an unrefined, raw wild beast.
On the other hand, Dong Gwang-cheon's assessment was completely different.
The blue-robed man's eyes that briefly passed by felt like they would burst his brain right open. They were intense. Yet strangely, there was no greed in those raw eyes. They were purely transparent, that was all.
He had seen such eyes once while hunting in that other world. Back then, that fellow had such eyes because he mistakenly thought himself to be just, but this one was different. Eyes that purely looked only at 'the sword,' believing only in strength. He wasn't a human who could be evaluated as right or wrong. In some ways, an existence like himself.
Truly the sword. A human who was the sword itself.
Dong Gwang-cheon had never seen such a human in his life. Humans are all animals and omnivorous with a herbivorous bias. Occasionally there are carnivores, and such people are his hunting targets.
But that fellow wasn't such a predator. Yet he was extremely intense. Stimulating enough to make the back of his head burn hot with competitive spirit.
He's not the kind of animal that survives by attacking others to steal or kill.
He's a herbivore. A herbivore, but extremely strong... should he be called a herbivorous beast? He was such a unique type of human that no suitable word came to mind to describe him.
If he had to make a comparison.
'An elephant perhaps...?'
Elephants are in fact the kings of animals. The strongest creature on land that no one can match if they weren't herbivorous.
Is such a creature the king of herbivores?
Dong Gwang-cheon's heart pounded just slightly. To feel such emotion toward someone who wasn't a hunting target. No, even from hunting prey, it was very rare to feel this much.
Then is that fellow... a hunting target?
Dong Gwang-cheon became interested in the blue-robed man in a different sense than Eulji-tae. His eyes concentrated on the blue-robed man more than before. Of course, no one could tell since it was hidden by his hair.
"If you don't immediately apologize to Young Lady Hwa and this young master, according to the ways of the Martial World, we will give you a harsh lesson."
Gaining confidence as the group grew, U Sim-gi stepped forward again and first threatened the blue-robed man.
"I did not... do. I did... nothing...."
The blue-robed man's words were jumbled and extremely stuttering. As if he had lived forgetting speech for years and was just now uttering his first words.
"You did nothing? Didn't you keep sending those filthy eyes of yours to Young Lady Hwa?"
Saying that, U Sim-gi briefly looked around inside Cheongcheong Pavilion. His tone and posture were showing off, as if asking 'I'm doing well, aren't I?' Probably that woman called Young Lady Hwa was inside Cheongcheong Pavilion, and he clearly had ulterior motives toward her.
"I did not... do. I...."
The blue-robed man repeated the same words. Still stuttering, but somewhere the tone had become a bit stronger.
"This young master clearly gave you a chance to apologize."
"...."
"Earlier, this young master didn't use his sword, so it was like that, but to think you'd act so arrogantly trusting in that meager martial art of yours. This Hundred-Breaking Sword shall gouge out those lustful eyes of yours."
Saying that, U Sim-gi half-drew the sword hanging at his waist.
His epithet Hundred-Breaking Sword was earned because he won in martial arts contests against a hundred masters active near the Kunlun Mountains. If he drew his sword, true to his reputation, he would attack the blue-robed man with sharp sword strikes.
A hair-trigger moment.
"Do not... draw. You will... regret it...."
The blue-robed man spoke quietly. Those stuttering words were oddly chilling.
But U Sim-gi, who had already half-drawn his sword, had no choice but to draw it completely. He had already been humiliated once. He thought that if he didn't fully draw the sword here and sheathed it again or forgave his opponent, he wouldn't be able to lift his face in front of his fellow disciples and Young Lady Hwa in the future.
Clang!
U Sim-gi finally drew his sword. No, tried to draw it.
When his blade was about eight or nine-tenths drawn, the blue-robed man finally moved.
Srrrk.
"...!?"
A strange movement technique that clearly had feet touching the ground yet somehow seemed to glide forward stepping on air. What was peculiar was that the pattern of those footsteps seemed to follow some fixed form—in a way almost like formation techniques—and principles, yet also appeared chaotic. Yet it was incredibly fast. So fast that the blue-robed man's body appeared as several blue afterimages.
Just seven steps.
Seven steps that felt exactly like one step.
"...!"
The blue-robed man came to stand before U Sim-gi.
U Sim-gi's sword was not yet fully drawn.
Conversely, the blue-robed man's longsword was already in his hand—when had he drawn it—and the tip of that blade was striking down the end of U Sim-gi's sword handle from behind.
Bang!
U Sim-gi had no choice but to sheath his sword again in the same position he'd been drawing it.
Still the blue-robed man's longsword didn't stop. His sword that had returned U Sim-gi's sword to its original position rose to about the height of U Sim-gi's neck, then quickly swept around U Sim-gi's neck as if peeling fruit in a spiral.
Swiiish—
The neck was cut. Not completely cut—a thin line was drawn as if the area around his neck had been carved out.
Naturally, from U Sim-gi's neck, blood seeped out and flowed down below his neck like juice flowing.
"Ugh, aaagh!"
Judging by his screaming, he wasn't dead. But the pain and terror... were terrible. To carve around the neck meant he could have killed him anytime he wanted. U Sim-gi not only bled but even pissed himself as he collapsed to the ground.
"You bastard...!"
The disciples of Mount Hua Sect and Kunlun Sect finally reacted. However, no one moved as nimbly as the blue-robed man.
Swish swish swish swish.
Moving as if drawing the Big Dipper, the blue-robed man created the same wound on everyone's neck that he had made on U Sim-gi's neck.
Soon everyone clutched their necks and rolled on the ground like U Sim-gi.
Even after reducing the official disciples of Mount Hua Sect and Kunlun Sect to such a state, the blue-robed man's face remained utterly cold and stern. As if it had nothing to do with him.