Even when confronted by Go Il-won's words, Pyo Wol's expression did not change in the slightest.
To be called cowardly was the highest praise for an assassin.
It was true for Pyo Wol as well.
It was the nature of an assassin to approach and kill his opponent by any means necessary.
If he could sacrifice the life of a single assassin to plant two daggers in Go Il-won's back, then it was a worthy trade.
For now, he tensed his muscles to stop the bleeding, but it was only a temporary measure.
A mere splinter under a fingernail could prevent a person from exerting his full strength. Not to mention two daggers, each as long as a child's palm, stuck in the back.
Such injuries will prevent him from exerting his full strength.
It might not seem to have any effect now, but it would definitely eat away at him over time.
That alone was enough for Pyo Wol.
Go Il-won brushed back his disheveled hair.
His eyes, previously hidden behind the hair, shone with intensity.
The fact that he had lost a battle of patience, along with the injuries, filled him with rage.
He could not even remember the last time he had been wounded like this.
"You make me exert myself to the full. Good! It should be like this,"
Go Il-won extended a fist as large as a pot lid. A mist began to rise from his entire body.
Pyo Wol activated Black Lightning and glared at Go Il-won.
A sneak attack was pointless now.
It wouldn't work, and now that he had been seen, there was no chance of trying again.
All that remained was a head-on confrontation.
He felt a tingling sensation as his brain power stimulated the nerves throughout his body.
Simultaneously, his field of vision narrowed.
All other surroundings were erased, leaving only Go Il-won in view.
It was a phenomenon that occurred when one's concentration was at a high level.
The same was true for Go Il-won.
He too was elevating his concentration to match Pyo Wol's.
Ku-ku-ku!
The air around them shook from their confrontation.
“Hoo!”
Thump!
Go Il-won let out a huge breath for a moment, then stomped on the ground.
As he charged forward with his huge body, he looked like a bison.
Shortening the distance in an instant, he swung a fist full of energy.
Swoosh!
Pyo Wol narrowly avoided Go Il-won's fist.
Synchronization..
A unique martial art technique of Aguido that precisely tunes to the breath and vital reactions of the opponent.
He would read his opponent's breathing and muscle movements and react in real time. It was a technique that could never be executed without the support of Black Lightning.
Screech!
As Go Il-won advanced, Pyo Wol retreated.
The energy was so terrifying that a mere graze could cause a serious injury.
No matter how strong he was and how confident he was in his martial arts, it was best to dodge quickly.
However, Pyo Wol avoided Go Il-won's attack by only an inch.
His figure was like a ghost.
Go Il-won's eyebrows twitched.
He was furious that Pyo Wol had dared to play such a trick on him.
“You dare to play such games with me?”
Boom!
Suddenly, Go Il-won opened his palm wide towards Pyo Wol.
At that moment, an enormous suction force pulled Pyo Wol towards him.
As Go Il-won clenched his fist, the pulling force grew stronger.
Swoosh!
Pyo Wol was drawn towards Go Il-won as if tied to a string.
Deep grooves formed in the ground where his feet scraped.
Even using the "Heavenly Anchor" technique proved useless.
It took a tremendous amount of power to draw an absolute master like Pyo Wol with the skill of Void Capture.
Go Il-won possessed energy that was nearly infinite.
That's why his complexion did not change even as he drew Pyo Wol with Void Capture.
Pyo Wol released the Heavenly Anchor technique.
He knew that resisting was futile.
Instead, he surrendered his body to the suction force, spreading both hands wide.
Chahahaha!
Ten Soul Reaping Threads reached out towards Go Il-won.
Each followed a different trajectory, and they were so thin that they were difficult to distinguish, let alone in the dark.
An ordinary martial artist could never detect the Soul Reaping Threads. However, Go Il-won was different.
His eyes emitted a scarlet glow from within the darkness.
He opened the Sura's Eyes.
His eyes precisely captured the Soul-Reaping Threads, and his body reacted in an instant.
Boom!
A protective aura formed around Go Il-won's body momentarily.
The Soul-Reaping Threads were deflected, unable to penetrate the protective aura.
Go Il-won didn't miss the opening, and attacked Pyo Wol.
Kwaah!
An enormous energy brushed past Pyo Wol's temples.
Pyo Wol, who narrowly escaped Go Il-won's attack, unleashed his threaded serpent qi.
Kakakakang!
Go Il-won's fist power clashed with Pyo Wol's threaded serpent qi.
Both energies were imbued with an intense force.
One of the highest realms a martial artist could attain was the mastery of Force Qi.
It required a tremendous cultivation of internal energy, and it was a realm that could never be reached unless one had complete control over the emission of internal energy.
A master who had reached the Absolute Realm could naturally use Force Qi, but it was not something that could be used casually.
The consumption of internal energy was enormous. Therefore, they would only unleash their force qi in dire situations or when it was absolutely necessary.
Yet, the two were using such force qi without any hesitation.
Seeing that his Threaded Serpent Qi was ineffective, Pyo Wol infused it with Black Lightning.
He unleashed the Black Lightning Threaded Serpent Qi.
Crackle!
Every time Pyo Wol swung the Black Thunder Threaded Serpent Qi, lightning would light up the night sky.
It was as if the Thunder God himself was wielding a whip.
Go Il-won realized it would not be easy to deal with Pyo Wol barehanded.
He reached out and unfolded the Void Capture Technique.
A metal spear that was rolling nearby flew into his hand.
It was used by an unknown martial artist.
The owner of the weapon had already died and become a wandering ghost, but his weapon was now in the hand of Go Il-won and was given a new life.
Kuuuu!
The spear seemed to tremble, and then it spat out a spear energy.
The spear trembled before emitting an elongated spear aura that nearly tripled its length.
"Chahat!"
Go Il-won yelled and swung with the added spear energy.
Kukukukuku!
The rain of spear energy poured down on Pyo Wol.
Pyo Wol did not retreat even an inch and unfolded his Black Lightning Threaded Serpent Qi.
Purrrrurrrur!
The spear energy and the Black Thunder Threaded Serpent Qi clashed in mid-air, causing countless explosions.
It was as if stars were exploding, as clusters of light burst endlessly.
Yet, the two did not even blink, continuing their onslaught against each other.
Pifit!
Pyo Wol's Black Blood Robe was torn apart.
It was the Robe that Tang Sochu had painstakingly crafted for him.
The robe was made by mixing a special silver thread into the fabric. It withstood water and fire, and couldn't be scratched by ordinary swords and blades.
Even such a robe could not withstand Go Il-won's spear energy.
No, it was precisely because of this quality that it protected Pyo Wol to this extent.
Swoosh!
A stone wall, hit by the rebounding Force Qi, was sliced like tofu.
The entire area was thoroughly destroyed by the confrontation.
The barely standing pavilions and houses collapsed, and dust rose like a mist.
Furthermore, sparks from the explosions ignited the trees, causing a massive fire.
The duel between the two, transcending human limits, was clearly visible even from afar.
Even the Taemu brothers, who were moving with Soma, saw the spectacle.
"Crazy!"
"Is, is that even possible?"
The Taemu brothers were so astonished that they could not even think to close their gaping
mouths.
It was like watching a battle between the God of Thunder and an evil god.
Each time they swung their weapons, clusters of light flashed and burst, and the entire area was thoroughly destroyed.
The martial prowess on display defied all logic.
Taemu Sang and Geom Yeong were overwhelmed and did not even dare to move.
"Come on, get a grip. Is this the time to be admiring?"
Soma’s shout woke them up
Soma, too, couldn't help but be astonished at the two's martial arts.
He was well aware of Pyo Wol's martial arts, but Go Il-won's skills were also beyond belief.
No matter who the winner was, it wouldn't be surprising; both were exhibiting such martial arts.
It was a showdown that was impossible to look away from. But Soma forced himself to look away.
He believed in Pyo Wol.
Now he had to trust him and find and eliminate the wall bombs.
The Ghost Fleet warriors still had the explosives hidden in various locations throughout Sea Gate City.
Many had been found and removed, but quite a few remained undiscovered.
Even though a great deal of damage had already been done, they had to find them to prevent even greater damage from occurring.
Fortunately, the assassins had joined them.
At that very moment, the assassins were scattered throughout Sea Gate City, killing the warriors of the Ghost Fleet.
They could not waste the time that the assassins had bought them.
"Let's move quickly."
"Yes!"
"Sorry!"
Taemu Sang and Geom Yeong apologized and followed Soma.
"Stop!"
At that moment, a group of warriors blocked their path.
They were from the Ghost Fleet.
They had noticed the existence of the three and tried to prevent them from finding and removing the wall bombs.
As Soma and the Taemu Sang prepared to respond:
Swish!
Others moved before them.
From both sides of the Ghost fleet's warriors, black shadows suddenly appeared and attacked.
Swoosh!
"Kuk!"
"Kuhuk!"
In an instant, several warriors lost their lives to the black shadows.
The surviving ones spat out warnings.
"What's going on?"
"The assassins."
Those who attacked the Ghost fleet's warriors were the assassins following Pyo Wol.
They had come to remove the obstacles in Soma's path.
While facing the ghost fleet, the assassins did not say a word to Soma. But their intention was more than sufficiently conveyed to Soma and the Taemu brothers.
Screech! Beep!
The sound of a whistle echoed through the streets.
It was a signal from the Ghost Fleet's warriors.
Announcing the appearance of assassins.
Sea Gate City turned into a hellhole when the battle between the Ghost Fleet and the Assassins began in earnest.
Streets were filled with corpses, and the screams of people never ceased.
This was the state even though they had minimized the damage.
Had everything gone according to Go Il-won's intentions, Sea gate city would have become a ruin where no one could live.
Go Il-won's face twisted.
Even in the midst of fighting Pyo Wol, he realized that the situation was not going his way.
Screams could be heard from various places.
Among them were the screams of the assassins, but most were from his own followers.
The Ghost Fleet's warriors were being pushed back by the assassins.
'I underestimated him too much.'
Go Il-won honestly admitted his mistake.
Although Pyo Wol's martial prowess was extraordinary, he had mistakenly assumed that those following him were insignificant.
If things continued this way, the Ghost Fleet would suffer tremendous damage.
Go Il-won clenched his teeth.
Killing Pyo Wol, the leader of the assassins, was the best way to turn the situation around.
Kuuuu!
Go Il-won summoned all his remaining energy. Not only his spear, but also his body was swallowed by a ball of light.
Stellar Sky Annihilation Fire.
The ultimate technique that burns everything by absorbing the surrounding energy.
"Pyo Wol!"
Go Il-won called Pyo Wol's name and charged.
He became a meteor, trailing a long tail of light.
"Haah!"
Pyo Wol took a deep breath.
Crackle!
Around ten strands of Black Lightning threaded serpent qi wrapped around his body.
Thus, Pyo Wol became a black lightning bolt, colliding with the incoming meteor.
Kwaaaaang!
