Unrivaled Spear Demon
68 The Yangtze River Pirates (2)
A river as wide as the sea.
Beneath the clear, undulating waves, the riverbed, ten jang deep, was clearly visible.
Yet, one could not see into the heart of a person, which was barely a gil deep.
“…….”
To the woman, Chui was exactly that.
An expression that gave no hint of his thoughts. He sat there so indifferently, watching the flowing current, which only made him more inscrutable.
Eventually, the woman was the first to remove her face mask.
Flap—
Beneath her large, beautiful eyes, a jagged scar was revealed. It stretched horizontally across the bridge of her nose.
As she pulled off the long, fake hair, her original short hair scattered in the wind.
The Butcher of the Yangtze.
One of the twelve Thousand-Head of the Yangtze River Pirate Fleets was staring at Chui.
“How did you know?”
The Butcher of the Yangtze asked in a low, sunken voice.
Chui was still watching the waves. Finally, his lips parted.
“The stench.”
“What? That’s impossible. I applied perfume to my new clothes.”
“The smell of blood, caked even onto your soul, is reeking. How could I not know?”
“……?”
The Butcher of the Yangtze wore a puzzled expression.
But to Chui, it was a matter of course.
From the moment the Butcher of the Yangtze first appeared, the Changwi—the spirits of those killed by her—had been leaping and dancing about, so there was no way he could have missed it.
Regardless, the Butcher of the Yangtze, having no way of knowing this, shrugged her shoulders.
“Are you talking about karma or something? You sound like some babbling monk.”
She lifted the hand axe she had hidden within the folds of her skirt.
“You shouldn’t trust beauty that hides the lower half of the face.”
“I don’t think there’s much difference.”
“……Is that so?”
The Butcher of the Yangtze seemed momentarily flustered, but she soon tightened her grip on the hand axe.
“Flattery won’t help you. Anyway, now that the Death Plum Blossom bastard is gone, things have become much easier.”
She raised her axe and aimed it at Chui. Then, she continued in a resolute voice.
“You must pay the price for killing my subordinates.”
“Try it.”
Only then did Chui slowly rise to his feet.
At last, the standoff between the two masters began.
Ssssssssss……
As the Butcher of the Yangtze raised her momentum, she flinched at the scent of blood brushing past the tip of her nose.
Dark red vapor was rising from Chui’s body. The thick, bloody stench was clearly emanating from there.
Suddenly, the words Chui had spoken just moments ago came to mind.
‘The smell of blood, caked even onto your soul, is reeking. How could I not know?’
A single drop of sweat formed on the Butcher of the Yangtze’s forehead, cooling as it trickled down.
Soon, a mountain-like pressure began to erupt from Chui, who had sheathed his blade at his waist and gripped his staff.
‘That man is dangerous.’
The Butcher of the Yangtze thought.
O Ja-un and Do Mak-saeng, whom she had seen at the Paedo Guild, were strong, but they did not seem particularly dangerous.
But the boy before her eyes was different.
He was strong, and he was dangerous. It felt as if she were looking at the very essence of violence, lurking deep within the human heart, condensed into a human shape.
‘Was he born under the Star of Slaughter? What kind of killing intent is this…….’
The Butcher of the Yangtze clicked her tongue inwardly. In all her life, she had never seen anyone exude such dense killing intent.
‘No, there was one. My third senior brother was like that.’
The Butcher of the Yangtze’s expression crumpled as she recalled the face of a person she preferred not to think about.
“Do you think people die just because you exude killing intent!?”
With a shout, she swung her hand axe.
Chui also extended his staff to meet the Butcher of the Yangtze’s attack.
Clang—!
As the iron staff and the iron axe collided, a heavy shockwave erupted.
The boat rocked violently, and dozens of circular ripples began to overlap and surge outward.
…Clang! Clang! Thud!
Sparks flew in all directions. Chui and the Butcher of the Yangtze exchanged over a dozen blows in the blink of an eye.
Creak! Creak! Creak! Creak!
Each time they clashed, the planks forming the boat screamed in protest.
…Tap!
Chui stepped back, planting his feet on the prow. Then, spinning his body, he channeled centrifugal force into the tip of his staff.
The hexagonal, square-edged Ink Bamboo Staff lunged toward the Butcher of the Yangtze’s head.
At that very moment.
“Hmph!”
The Butcher of the Yangtze stomped hard on the right side of the boat.
…Thump! Splash!
The boat suddenly tilted sharply to the right, and the axis of the floor was shaken.
Chui’s body, which had been rotating while stepping on the prow, leaned to the right, and his balance crumbled.
Seizing that opening, the Butcher of the Yangtze’s axe flew toward his left side, which had been left wide open.
“…….”
Chui twisted his staff.
The opposite end of the Ink Bamboo Staff rose up and collided with the blade of the Butcher of the Yangtze’s axe.
Clang— Crack!
The axe blade, its trajectory skewed by the impact with Chui’s staff, fell down onto Chui’s shoulder.
Fortunately, because the axe blade had grazed the tip of the staff and twisted sideways, it was the back of the axe blade that struck Chui’s shoulder.
Even so, having been struck by a heavy mass of iron, the pain was significant. Chui’s left arm hung limp at his side.
The Butcher of the Yangtze grinned.
“What a pity. I could have made you one-armed, just like that Death Plum Blossom fellow.”
“…….”
“Still, I’m sure at least the bone is dislocated.”
But Chui still wore no expression. He simply.
…Crunch!
Snapped his dislocated arm bone back into place with his other hand.
Seeing that, the Butcher of the Yangtze felt a slight chill.
‘The more I look at him, the more he’s like my third senior brother.’
To shake off the unprecedented feeling of unease rising in her chest, she feigned composure.
“……You will never beat me. At least, not on the water.”
That was no mere threat.
Splash—
The Butcher of the Yangtze rocked the boat again.
Every time she shifted her weight between her right and left feet, the boat rocked violently from side to side.
The river pirates who had spent long years on the Yangtze were masters at maintaining their center of gravity on a boat.
The Butcher of the Yangtze, too, could move as if she were on flat ground, even on a boat rocking this violently.
Whoosh—
The axe blade flew in once more.
Chui raised his staff to block the axe. He tried to push it back, but.
“I told you, it won’t work.”
The Butcher of the Yangtze stepped on the gunwale with a beaming smile.
The boat tilted to the right as if it were about to capsize.
Because of that, Chui was forced to extend his staff in an awkward trajectory once again.
Swoosh—
The Butcher of the Yangtze’s axe blade flew in with terrifying speed.
Because she had looped her wrist through the ring attached to the end of the axe handle and was spinning it to add centrifugal force to her downward strike, it was far faster and stronger.
Clang—!
Chui retracted his staff, but he was a beat too late.
…Slice!
A thin wound appeared on his cheek where the axe blade had licked past, and a few drops of fresh blood fell.
Plop— Plop—
The blood spread into the clear water.
The Butcher of the Yangtze’s subsequent offensive grew even more ferocious.
Clang! Clang—! Clang-clang-clang!
The axe blade gradually drove Chui toward the end of the boat.
Chui swung his staff to block or deflect the axe blade, but at this rate, he was nothing more than a mindless, stationary target.
Just then.
“……Indeed, it would be difficult on the water.”
Chui spoke.
The Butcher of the Yangtze smirked and swung her axe.
“You only just realized that?”
Realizing it changed nothing. They were already in the middle of the river, and there were no other boats.
But Chui remained calm.
“Then, not on the water.”
“……?”
“Let’s fight underwater.”
“……!”
At the same time, Chui swung his staff. It was not aimed at the Butcher of the Yangtze.
Rip—!
Chui’s staff pierced through the bottom of the boat.
Whoosh— Pshhhhhhhhhh!
Water began to gush up from where the staff had been pulled out.
“Are you crazy!?”
The Butcher of the Yangtze’s mouth hung half-open.
The boat began to sink at a furious pace. The Butcher of the Yangtze rocked the boat from side to side to bail out the water, but it was useless.
“Come in.”
Chui said, standing on the prow that was slowly submerging.
However.
“……. ……. …….”
The Butcher of the Yangtze’s attitude was a bit strange.
She wore an expression as if she were afraid of falling into the water.
Chui asked.
“Are you afraid of falling into the water, for a river pirate?”
“Bullshit! Who’s afraid!”
Even as the Butcher of the Yangtze shouted, Chui was sinking deeper into the water.
Soon, the boat was standing almost vertically.
Chui extended his staff while submerged underwater.
Swish—!
The staff, appearing distorted by the waves, lunged toward the Butcher of the Yangtze.
At that very moment.
…Pop! Crack!
As Chui’s staff shattered the opposite prow, the Butcher of the Yangtze kicked off the prow and leaped into the air.
Due to the recoil of her leap, the boat submerged completely.
“……!”
Chui’s eyes widened slightly.
In the distance, in the direction the Butcher of the Yangtze had leaped, something was visible.
Flap—
A boat, flying a flag with a pig emblem, was approaching.
…Pop! …Tap! …Splash! …Splash! …Splash!
The Butcher of the Yangtze stepped on rocks and driftwood protruding from the water, making her way toward the boat.
On the boat, several river pirates had already emerged, bows in hand.
The Butcher of the Yangtze looked back at Chui and shouted.
“Too bad for you! I didn’t fall into the water!”
“…….”
Meanwhile, Chui slowly sank to the riverbed.
Having taken a deep breath, he could stay on the riverbed for the time being.
Because the staff was so heavy, Chui did not float up and was able to settle his stance on the riverbed.
‘Should I use the technique I used at the Paedo Guild once more?’
The method of swinging the staff with all his might on the riverbed to create waves.
The only difference from back then was that the water here was so clear that he couldn’t hide his body.
Just then.
“……!”
A strange scene appeared before Chui’s eyes.
Beyond the clear water, an anomaly was occurring.
The pirates standing on the boat began to fire their arrows.
Because the water was so clear, it was clearly visible where the arrows were being fired.
Ping! Fwip! Thud!
The arrows the pirates were firing were clearly aimed at the Butcher of the Yangtze.
“……!?”
The Butcher of the Yangtze had barely leaped into the air when she was startled by an arrow that grazed the lobe of her ear.
"Wh-what!? Was that a stray shot!?"
Unfortunately, it was not.
Thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack-thwack!
A dozen arrows slammed into the piece of driftwood she had just stepped off, turning it into something resembling a porcupine.
Swoosh-
Another arrow flew straight toward her chest.
Clack!
The Butcher of the Yangtze swung her axe to split the arrow in two, but in doing so, she failed to maintain her lightness skill.
She deflected the incoming volley of arrows one after another, but in the process, she could barely even get close to the boat.
Splash!
In the end, the Butcher of the Yangtze fell into the water.
"Gah!?"
She gasped, spitting out water in a panic. Then, she shouted toward the pirates who were cackling on the deck.
"Y-you bastards! Where are you aiming!? It’s me! It’s the Thousand-Head, the Butcher of the Yangtze!"
The pirates on the boat just laughed and replied.
"We have eyes, too."
"We know who you are, Master Thousand-Head."
"Watching you flail about like that is quite a sight."
They lowered the flag that had been hanging from the boat.
Flap-
The banner, which bore the image of a pig, was swept away by the river wind and vanished into the distance.
"I was already sick of being under a woman's command anyway, so this works out well."
"Let's take this chance to serve under the Butcher of the Tiger and earn his recognition."
"Archers! Open fire! Catch that sow and kill her!"
The pirates pulling back their bowstrings had eyes filled with pure venom.
It was a mutiny on the water, meticulously planned from the very beginning.
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