Chapter 9
Trash Pang Deokjo
Chi Yulang, with a puzzled expression, spoke.
“Why are you getting angry?”
Pang Deokjo, biting his lip to swallow his anger, responded.
“The family head has passed away.”
“Oh, really? He was quite a bold fellow, so that’s unfortunate. May I ask how it happened?”
“During the Great Cataclysm, he died protecting the Pang family from invading beasts until the very end.”
“I see.”
After a moment of silence to pay respects, Chi Yulang nodded.
“A fitting end for him. Staying to protect his family until the last moment, even though he could have fled alone. That’s very much like Hoyeon.”
“Shut up!”
Unable to hold back, Pang Deokjo stomped his foot with a thud.
Chi Yulang looked at him as if to say, What’s your problem?
“You keep calling him Hoyeon, Hoyeon!”
Pang Deokjo’s eyes blazed with fury.
“Is the Pang family a joke to you? Even if our manor burned down, our members scattered, and we don’t even know who’s alive or dead! The spirit of the Pang family hasn’t crumbled!”
“? Isn’t that exactly what crumbling means?”
“Enough!”
Pang Deokjo shouted.
“I won’t tolerate any more insults. Don’t dare call the family head by his name! Show some respect!”
Chi Yulang, with a sullen expression, retorted, “Hoyeon didn’t mind, so why are you making a fuss?”
“I said stop!”
Shing!
Pang Deokjo drew a sharp blade from his waist.
It was well-maintained, exuding a chilling edge.
As he brandished the blade, his demeanor changed entirely.
Licking the blade, he grinned wickedly.
“Heheh, do you know my nickname?”
“What is it?”
“Those who know me call me Trash Pang Deokjo.”
“…That’s something to brag about?”
“I have no mercy. So merciless that I’m known for specializing in beating up grandmas and grandpas.”
“….”
“Damn it, attacking old folks is my specialty!”
Pang Deokjo swung his blade wildly, shouting like a madman.
The collective intelligence of the chat sprang into action.
- Trash Pang Deokjo!
- Oh, that’s the guy.
- Pretty infamous in the martial arts gallery, but not in a good way.
- Anyone who knows him, explain what he’s about.
A viewer stepped up, typing out a detailed explanation.
- Trash Pang Deokjo. One of the few survivors of the Pang family, which was destroyed during the Great Cataclysm.
- Uses the Pang family’s domineering blade techniques. Estimated to be early first-rate. Tier: Gold.
- Famous for trashy remarks, including:
- “I only beat up old folks, women, and kids,” “I never lose to women,” “Granny, say hi to grandpa in heaven,” etc.
The viewers marveled.
- Wow, actual trash?
- What a mess.
- Lol, for real, he’s insane.
- I’d believe he’s a punk lol.
- Truly a chaotic era.
The Pang family of Hebei.
One of the five great families renowned in the martial world, known for their domineering and practical blade techniques.
Bold, steadfast, practical, and domineering. These were their defining traits.
But the descendant of the Pang family before him…
Isn’t he a bit too domineering?
Was this a consequence of the Great Cataclysm?
The distorted era had reduced the Tiger of Hebei, the Pang family, to a jackal preying on the weak.
“Heh heh heh!”
“….”
Or perhaps that was just his natural disposition.
“Come on, you cocky little brat! I’ll make you pay for daring to make an enemy of our Extermination Squad!”
Chi Yulang quietly stared at Trash Pang Deokjo, swinging his blade threateningly, before speaking.
“Do you know?”
“?”
“There’s a saying in the martial world: beware of old men, women, and children.”
Chi Yulang grinned.
“Unfortunately, I fall into all those categories.”
Pang Deokjo openly sneered.
“Stop talking nonsense and come at me, kid. No matter what you say, I won’t go easy on you.”
“Fine.”
[3, 2, 1]
[Fight!]
The girl bearing the weight of years and the trash unable to let go of his folly charged at each other.
———-
End it in one strike!
Pang Deokjo resolved to unleash his greatest technique.
A man’s word is worth a thousand gold.
As he’d declared, he had no intention of going easy just because she was a child.
Mountain King’s Reigning Step!
In an instant, he closed the distance to his opponent, drawing out his inner power.
The energy circulating in his body surged into his arm, flowing into his blade.
The moment his blade was enveloped in the Pang family’s signature domineering aura—
A white flash gleamed.
White Tiger Soul Severing!
Clang!
With a clear sound of metal clashing, the two crossed paths.
…Huh?
Pang Deokjo belatedly sensed something off.
His opponent was empty-handed, yet there was the sound of blade meeting blade.
And the palm technique she used…
“Done.”
HeavenlyMaiden muttered and turner around.
At that moment, the blade Pang Deokjo held split in two.
A belated rumble of thunder roared in his ears, and—
Splurt!
Blood sprayed from his shoulder to his chest as Pang Deokjo collapsed to his knees.
His health bar above his head was completely drained.
This… impossible…!
Pang Deokjo, falling, glared with wide eyes.
As his consciousness faded, HeavenlyMaiden’s voice reached him.
“For Hoyeon’s sake, I’ll give you some advice.”
Coming to, he saw HeavenlyMaiden standing before him.
Looking down at him arrogantly with her hands behind her back, her gaze was calm.
Pang Deokjo glared at her with bloodshot eyes.
“How dare you… know the Pang family’s Primordial Thunder Palm…!”
Ignoring him, HeavenlyMaiden continued.
“You’re wavering.”
“…What?”
“Wavering means you’re alive. All flowers bloom while swaying.”
He couldn’t understand what she was saying.
“It’s not your fault that Hoyeon died.”
“…!”
Pang Deokjo’s eyes widened.
“At least, that’s what Hoyeon would have said.”
“You…!”
“Let go of your delusions. Only then can you move forward.”
Crunch!
Pang Deokjo gritted his teeth and muttered.
“Stop… talking nonsense…!”
Whoosh—
With those words, Pang Deokjo’s body went limp, and he collapsed forward.
He had fainted.
“Hm.”
Chi Yulang looked down at him quietly.
More precisely, he focused on the hand still clutching the blade.
“Feels like I’ve found a rare wildflower.”
[HeavenlyMaiden wins!]
- Wooooooow!!
- Insane, insane!!
- Trash down! Trash down!
- You’re the best, HeavenlyMaiden!!!
- One-hit KO HeavenlyMaiden is on fire!!!
The chat was flooded with cheers.
[Record]
10 Wins, 0 Losses
[Congratulations on your promotion!]
Previous: Bronze → Current: Silver
[BurntRiceBread has donated 50,000 cookies!]
Insane, Silver in just five matches, is that even possible?!
[MintFried has donated 20,000 cookies!]
HeavenlyMaiden is a Silver star!
[HakoDigger13 has donated 10,000 cookies!]
You’re amazing, HeavenlyMaiden!
[MentalFortifier has donated 10,000 cookies!]
Yo, Extermination Squad! Bring your boss!
“Heavenly Nyan~ Thank you, nyan!”
While celebrating the victory and Silver promotion with increasingly lively reactions to the growing donations, a challenge arrived.
[HeavenlyDemonForever (Grandmaster) has challenged you!]
[Do you accept?]
[Y/N]
- ?????
- Grandmaster???
- What’s this??
The chat was flooded with question marks, plunging into chaos.
———-
- Isn’t HeavenlyDemonForever the troll spamming about changing her nickname?
- That guy’s a Grandmaster?
- Damn! Didn’t see that coming.
- A Grandmaster being a troll…
- HeavenlyMaiden, reject it!
“Oh…?”
But Chi Yulang, rubbing his chin, eyed HeavenlyDemonForever’s challenge with interest.
He had thought the guy was just a crazed troll obsessed with the Heavenly Demon title, but it turned out he had considerable skill.
Grandmaster was no small feat.
The Trash Pang Deokjo he’d just defeated in one strike was Gold.
After Gold came Platinum, then Diamond, then Master, and only then Grandmaster.
Four tiers above Gold!
Only Challenger and Beyond Heaven ranked higher, placing Grandmasters among the top RealFight players.
“Hm.”
But from Chi Yulang’s perspective, it was hard to gauge what kind of skill that represented.
He hadn’t faced them directly.
Of course, they were surely below him.
He’d heard the Martial Alliance Leader was the only martial artist among the Nine Heroes.
But that was ten years ago.
Ten years was enough for rivers and mountains to change.
He recalled killing the previous Alliance Leader, who had started the Righteous-Demonic War for power, and passing the position to a promising youngling.
Did he grow by devouring adversity?
Some people thrived in crisis and hardship.
Like pine trees rooting deeper at the edge of a cliff, they sharpened and tempered themselves through life’s trials.
Such people were truly like swords.
Ten years ago, before falling to this cursed island, when he looked down on the world from Tianlian Mountain, that youngling was still unripe.
How much had he grown since then?
I look forward to meeting him again someday.
But that was then, and this was now.
“What kind of level is Grandmaster?”
- Dunno lol.
- We don’t know much about the celestial ranks.
- I heard the higher you go, the smaller the gap.
- Yeah, in the celestial ranks, except for a few monsters, it’s a hair’s difference.
- That’s obvious.
“You said you watch a lot of streams, didn’t you?”
- Yeah, tons.
- But still don’t know.
- Honestly, even watching, it’s hard to tell.
- We just watch for the pew-pew bang-bang lol.
- You don’t watch boxing knowing all the techniques, right?
- How would we Silver scrubs know lol?
- Oh, that’s an upper Sword Master’s sword! Not many would recognize that.
- No clue about Grandmaster, but Diamond’s about Sword Master level.
“Sword Master?”
- Means Sword Master.
“Sword Master?”
- Roughly equivalent to a peak-level martial artist.
“Aha.”
- Gotta explain in martial artist terms for her to get it lol.
- Show some respect for martial artists lol.
- So Grandmaster is at least Sword Master or higher.
- Right, for martial artists, at least peak-level or above.
“Then…”
Chi Yulang recalled the posts HeavenlyDemonForever had been spamming.
- The Cult Leader didn’t die. The Cult Leader didn’t die. The Cult Leader didn’t die. The Cult Leader didn’t die. The Cult Leader didn’t die.
- The Cult Leader is alive. The Cult Leader is alive. The Cult Leader is alive. The Cult Leader is alive. The Cult Leader is alive.
- The Cult Leader will return to us when the time is right. He didn’t abandon us! Heavenly Demon Reborn, All Demons Bow! Heavenly Demon Reborn, All Demons Bow! Heavenly Demon Reborn, All Demons Bow!
An obsessive, almost worshipful fixation on the Heavenly Demon.
At first glance, it seemed like someone possessed by a heart demon.
Chi Yulang had often seen such posts while scouring forums to learn about the new world.
After seeing all the nonsense the guy had been spewing, Chi Yulang came to one conclusion.
Hm. Definitely not one of our followers.
The proud followers of the Heavenly Demon Cult wouldn’t proselytize so crudely.
Such behavior would only breed resentment. Who would preach like that?
The followers of the Heavenly Demon Cult, refined, dignified, elegant, and noble, would never do such a thing.
More likely, it was someone with a deep grudge against the cult, wearing a mask to tarnish its reputation.
Yes, that must be it.
Chi Yulang was certain the guy was impersonating a cult follower.
It was a common tactic on forums to spam nonsense while pretending to be part of a group, a cold conclusion he’d reached.
Especially after hearing the cult had been annihilated in a beast-infested area.
But now, seeing the guy’s tier, cracks began to form in Chi Yulang’s firm belief.
Could it be… a survivor of the cult?
Doubt began to sprout.
Was there a survivor? If so, who?
The Left or Right Guardian? One of the Four Heavenly Kings? Or perhaps…
After a moment of thought, Chi Yulang accepted the challenge.
I’ll find out when I meet them.
[Challenger entering!]
- What are you doing?!
- Why’d you accept that?!
- She beat a Gold and now thinks she’s unstoppable!
The chat went wild, but he ignored it.
That wasn’t important now.
Whoosh—
A silver door, reminiscent of soft moonlight, appeared before him.
Intricate, elegant patterns were etched into it, marking the symbol of a Grandmaster.
The door opened, and a figure in a silver mask stepped out.
- What’s that?
- Grandmasters even get a different entrance?
- Wait, I’ve seen that silver mask on other streams before.
- That’s HeavenlyDemonForever?
- Holy crap.
Chi Yulang, hands behind his back, quietly observed the silver-masked figure.
“You’re HeavenlyDemonForever?”
“Indeed.”
A neutral voice.
But it felt unnatural.
Likely a martial technique to alter the voice, or perhaps one of those artifact things.
“….”
“….”
The two silently sized each other up.
Even close inspection gave no clues about their identity.
Every inch of skin was meticulously covered.
But habits and behavior can’t be hidden.
He’d find out by clashing.
Their level of mastery, and who they were.
Even if they had no connection to the Heavenly Demon Cult, it didn’t matter.
They’d promised ten million cookies if they lost.
Even if they went back on their word, it was fine.
His current tier was Silver.
Beating a Grandmaster, five tiers above, would yield an unimaginable amount of points.
There was no reason to refuse such a fight.
Either way, it was pure profit.
Chi Yulang calculated it in an instant.
Losing wasn’t even a consideration for him.
The opponent broke the silence.
“You haven’t forgotten the deal, have you? If I win, you change your nickname.”
“And you’ve got the ten million cookies ready?”
“Hmph, no need to worry. I won’t lose.”
“No weapon?”
“Little one, my bare hands are more than enough for you.”
No more words were needed.
The silver mask took a stance, while the twin-tailed girl, hands behind her back, calmly observed.
[3, 2, 1]
[Fight!]
Tap!
The moment it began, the silver mask stomped the ground, charging at Chi Yulang with terrifying speed.
Hm?
Chi Yulang caught a familiar scent in their footwork.
“Chilbok?”
Crash!
The charging opponent tripped and fell.
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