Chapter 163. Even If I Have to Paint Myself with Lacquer or Swallow Charcoal (9)

As Ah Hee contemplated, Cho Woo-Yeon looked between Yeo-Seol and Ah Hee before smiling and baring her teeth.

“How touching. Now, the bastard bitch and the whore of a mother can die together. To think some bitch who stole the Palace Lord position while breaking the rules of the North Sea Ice Palace went so far as to call us traitors to keep her secret. The hypocrisy is killing me.”

“Shut your mouth!”

Ah Hee was in a very precarious state.

The stab wound almost touched her dantian, causing it to receive an incredible shock. If she were to move too much while in this state, there was a chance that she would suffer irreversible damage.

However, enraged by Cho Woo-Yeon’s words, she still exploded and unleashed a Divine Frozen Soul Palm.

Cho Woo-Yeon’s eyes widened in shock when she saw the sheer force of the incoming Divine Frozen Soul Palm. She hadn’t realized that Ah Hee still had such power left within her.

She couldn’t dodge or stop the blow!

As she closed her eyes, one of the thirty or so men who had barged in earlier rushed over and blocked the palm before punching forward.

Bang!

An intense explosion ensued and Ah He took a step back, her face paling even more.

“Hmph, looks like the Otherworldly Ice Fairy isn’t all that,” said Rabid Wolf as he walked toward Ah Hee. He was an Absolute Master, third in command of the Cruel Sandstorm Riders, and the leader of the outside force attacking the North Sea Ice Palace.

Woo-Moon cut in, blocking his path.

“You’re quite arrogant for someone who only gained an advantage by attacking a wounded woman.”

“I don’t know who you are, but you’re dead meat, kid.”

“You ever been smacked by a kid?”

Swish!

Inkblade flew directly at Rabid Wolf, aiming for his throat.

“Whew!”

Rabid Wolf exclaimed in admiration of Woo-Moon’s blow as he leisurely dodged backward.

“Watch your mouth or it might freeze in this weather,” Woo-Moon commented.

Inkblade suddenly changed trajectory as if it was alive. It pierced Rabid Wolf’s shoulder, and blood spurted out of the deep wound.

“Ugh!”

Rabid Wolf had acted all relaxed not one second before, but he was now greatly flustered as he looked at Inkblade with an expression of disbelief.

“You...!”

“Me what? How is it my fault that you didn’t bother to check my cultivation and you just thought I was a random kid?”

Woo-Moon made sure to give the sword a good twist, as it was halfway through Rabid Wolf’s shoulder, then pressed down, cutting into his opponent’s ribs and heading toward his heart.

Crack!

‘Fuck, I’m going to die like this!’

Rabid Wolf held Inkblade with one hand while running to the side in the same direction Woo-Moon was directing his sword, preventing it from cutting into his flesh any further.

“Third Boss!”

“Protect the boss!!”

“Pull back your sword, you dog ass bastard!”

With loud shouts, Rabid Wolf’s men rushed Woo-Moon.

On the other hand, Woo-Moon, with Rabid Wolf hanging on the tip of his sword, leisurely called out to Yeo-Seol.

“Young Lady Ha.”

"Y-yes?"

Yeo-Seol was half out of her mind because of Cho Woo-Yeon's words.

“Close your eyes for a moment.”

“U-understood.”

Like an obedient child, Yeo-Seol closed her eyes without even asking why. Then, Woo-Moon used his movement technique to avoid the attacks of the Cruel Sandstorm Riders while carrying Rabid Wolf like a ragged doll.

Then, he suddenly thrust out a palm.

‘What the...!’

Forcefully stuck to Woo-Moon, Rabid Wolf saw and felt everything Woo-Moon was doing.

As Woo-Moon moved his palm in a circular motion and pressed forward, the air around his palm was compressed to a horrifying degree, and a terrifying force grew within his hand.

Squelch!

The sound of flesh being torn apart echoed eerily, and blood splattered everywhere.

Fourteen of the Cruel Sandstorm Riders who had attacked Woo-Moon to save Rabid Wolf died without even having time to scream as the Raging Wind Palm tore them to pieces.

Rabid Wolf was an Absolute Master, and many of his subordinates, while not at the Absolute stage themselves, had at least reached the peak of the Transcendent stage. Their combined strength was enough to topple sects—hence why they had been dispatched here. However, even with such power...

H-he’s a Paragon!’

It was only now that Rabid Wolf realized his opponent's true level.

Bang!

Rabid Wolf's train of thought was interrupted after just one moment, as Woo-Moon immediately raised his right foot and stomped violently.

Rumble!

As the ground split in all directions, Rabid Wolf's subordinates stumbled.

Swish!

Before they knew it, Lightflash swam through the air like a nimble fish, piercing the throats of all of the remaining Cruel Sandstorm Riders before returning to Woo-Moon.

Rabid Wolf was furious.

Furious with himself, with how helpless he was.

To think he would be captured by the enemy like this, watching as his subordinates are slaughtered. All the while, he allowed himself to be dragged around like a toy, all in the name of surviving!

“You bastard!”

Instead of trying to run, Rabid Wolf shifted his weight forward.

Squelch!

As he moved, Inkblade dug deeper and deeper into his torso, blood pouring out like a fountain.

However, Rabid Wolf didn't pay any attention to it whatsoever.

“I’ll kill you!”

His fist, covered in blood, swung at Woo-Moon's chin.

Thud!

‘Damn it!’

Although there was a loud thud, Rabid Wolf cursed to himself.

Instead of hitting his target, Woo-Moon’s chin, he had hit his palm instead.

Still, that wasn't a bad result in itself, either. He used the rebound force from hitting Woo-Moon’s palm to forcefully push himself back.

Squelch.

Finally, he was able to remove Inkblade from his shoulder. Now, he had the freedom to move as he pleased.

‘I’m close enough now. I just have to take him down, no matter what!’

Not only had his shoulder been punctured, it had been completely shattered, and some of his ribs were broken too. Still, the injury was far from fatal, and he was still in a state where he could use his qi to act in place of bones and muscles.

Rabid Wolf had long reached a level where he could create things from empty air and attack opponents using his intangible qi.

He may have been toyed around by Woo-Moon, but he was still a proud Absolute Master of the Cruel Sandstorm Riders. Though his shoulder was well and truly broken, he had no problem moving his arm.

His right fist struck at Woo-Moon's solar plexus, and before it even landed, his left fist flew out at Woo-Moon’s face.

Meanwhile, his feet moved brilliantly, providing him the stability to chain his attacks in succession.

In the blink of an eye, countless attacks rained down on Woo-Moon. Moreover, the power behind each attack wasn't something that could be ignored, as each fist was imbued with the fist aura of an Absolute Master.

However, none of Rabid Wolf’s attacks seemed to have any effect.

Rabid Wolf’s fists and feet did not once make contact with their target. Every time they seemed to get close, Woo-Moon shifted ever so slightly, letting them slide by, and the attacks that did hit something were actually blocked by Woo-Moon's hands, forearms, or shins.

The moment he stopped, he would lose. If he slowed down for even a second, he would be counterattacked and killed!

Instinctively realizing this, Rabid Wolf increased his speed even more and continued to attack indiscriminately.

“RAGHHHHHH!!”

Rabid Wolf let out a great roar as he continued to barrage Woo-Moon with blows.

Massive explosions filled the air as shock waves spread out in all directions. The building shook, decorations broke, and the surrounding temperature even began to rise.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

Rabid Wolf’s attacks seemed as if they would last forever. However, his momentum gradually weakened.

Boom! Boom! Boom... bang... thud.

“Huff...huff...huff...ugh!”

As the flashes of light and explosions created by the collisions of aura on aura finally stopped, Rabid Wolf stumbled and coughed up blood.

This was a side effect of continuing to attack endlessly, gathering up every last dreg of qi, and going so far as to squeeze his dantian to the point where it was utterly crippled.

When he proudly blasted his way into the hall, he looked as though he was in his early forties, yet he now had wrinkles and age spots on his face. His black hair had even turned white.

“ To think I would... like this...”

Rabid Wolf was born a member of the Cruel Sandstorm Riders and lived as he wanted until a mysterious organization called Martial Heaven appeared and helped him become the Absolute Master he had always dreamed of.

However, he had no choice but to stay in hiding for a long time under Martial Heaven's orders, never getting the opportunity to demonstrate his Absolute-realm power.

It was only now that, at the direction of Martial Heaven, he had finally been able to come out into the world and display his dominance over the

gangho.

To think it all ended in vain just like this.

‘ I'm really going to die here...’

With only that thought in his mind, Rabid Wolf's heart stopped.

Even though Rabid Wolf had attacked relentlessly, until he literally died from exhaustion, Woo-Moon was still unharmed. His sleeves were a little torn and his hair was rather messy, but that was the full extent of the damage he had taken.

Cho Woo-Yeon and her subordinates were gobsmacked. Rabid Wolf was on par with Otherworldly Ice Fairy Ah Hee, so how could he be defeated like this by a mere youngster.

“J-just who the hell

are

you?”

News traveled slowly in the frozen North, so even the North Sea Ice Palace was not always up to date with what happened in the Central Plains. Cho Woo-Yeon, who had spent the past decade in hiding, had no idea who Woo-Moon was.

“That’s not important, is it? The important thing is that I could become your enemy.”

𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Woo-Moon clearly said that he “could” become their enemy, expressing that he hadn't yet made a decision.

Ah Hee, who was treating her wound, looked at him with a cold gaze.

“Palace Lord, the ones who attacked you right now were the Cruel Sandstorm Riders, and the ones behind them are Martial Heaven. They must have been planning to use that woman to swallow up the North Sea Ice Palace whole. Do you still plan on doing nothing?’

Although he didn't say it directly, the implication was painfully clear.

‘If you’re dreaming that you can use me and then just sit on the fence, you better wake up.’

Ah Hee understood his point well enough.

Moreover, she was boiling with rage toward Martial Heaven and the Cruel Sandstorm Riders now that they had attacked the North Sea Ice Palace directly.

“You've already gone through the Marriage of the Snow Flowers and even took care of this for us. You’re a member of the North Sea Ice Palace, are you not? Yes, I will help you eradicate Martial Heaven.”

“That’s a wise choice.”

With these words, Woo-Moon slowly walked toward Cho Woo-Yeon and her subordinates.

“Well, it seems like we’ve come to a conclusion. The North Sea Ice Palace’s internal affairs are none of my business, but you just

had

to join hands with Martial Heaven and therefore you are my enemies.”

This was the first time Cho Woo-Yeon heard the term Martial Heaven. She had just assumed all this time that she was getting help from the Cruel Sandstorm Riders. Well, not that it mattered in any way. The youngster who had easily defeated an Absolute Master, was coming toward her with obvious killing intent.

“Just a second! Young Master Song, wait a minute!” shouted Yeo-Seol.

When the girl who had seemed frozen solid suddenly stopped Woo-Moon, everyone in the chamber turned to her.

“What is it, Young Lady Ha?”

Yeo-Seol bit her lip, and then she looked straight at Cho Woo-Yeon.

“What did you mean by what you said earlier? What did you mean by bastard?”

“That’s none of your business!” Ah Hee cried out sharply.

Cho Woo-Yeon burst out laughing.

“

Kekeke

! So, you're curious about that? You want to know why I called you an illegitimate child?”

‘What the hell is going on?’

Woo-Moon suddenly felt that he was about to find out something that did not concern the rest of the world, so he took the initiative to lock everyone inside a soundproof qi barrier.

“It’s none of your business, so don’t pay attention to her! Woo-Moon, kill her right now!”

Hearing Ah Hee’s unusually emotional words, Yeo-Seol, who had always been weak-hearted and feared her master more than anyone else, shook her head and shouted, surprising everyone.

“No, please don’t! I want to hear her answer! You there, tell me what really happened. What you said about me being the Palace Lord's illegitimate child... Is that true?”

“Are you disobeying your master’s orders?”

Even in a seriously injured state, Ah Hee exuded a mighty, angry aura. Her Absolute Qi spread out in all directions like a net, covering Yeo-Seol.

However, Yeo-Seol did not back down at all.

"Please tell me!"

“Fine, I’ll answer you. That bitch Ah Hee and I used to be disciple sisters. You knew that, right?”