“See this guy?”
Gu Dae-yeom said with an uncomfortable look.
Volunteering to step into a duel of martial theory showed one was confident in martial arts. And it was not just against any random person but him?
“Do you know who the person from Kangho is?”
Gu Dae-yeom asked. Usually, there was basic martial arts which people knew under a sect.
However, this man was caught in the central plains, so there would be a great deal of confusion if a duel of martial theory were to be conducted.
“I heard from an elder.”
“Wudang Sect?”
“Right.”
Gu Dae-yeom looked stern.
“Then, do you know that he cannot use a technique that he doesn’t understand?”
Wudang Sect.
He was warning him that he did not know the martial arts of Nine Great Sects, he might end up doing something that wasn’t possible, and furthermore, the giant was his own subordinate.
This was basically asking if he was trying to carry out this fight despite knowing he was in such an unfavorable situation.
“Right.”
“Hehehehe!”
Gu Dae-yeom laughed out loud.
It was a situation which could not be easily understood, so he laughed at the sight of Seol-Hwi jumping to his own death.
“You really are a reckless and arrogant one.”
So that appearance was interesting to him, as he had never seen such a foolish person. No, there was none like this around him.
The passion and the young blood of this guy was showing him what he missed. Even though he knew that with long experience that it would be better to stop the kid, he was still going along with it.
“I accept it.”
He agreed.
Rather it made him worry about why the young one took this proposal. So he decided,
“You go first.”
At those words, Seol-Hwi looked back.
Then, by the window, his eyes met with a young man who was breathing weakly.
A man that had been brought to this area without any connection, waiting for death, looking at his own weak self.
The first one is important.
It seemed like it was one sided, but Seol-Hwi saw that this man had reached master level. He thought so because of how swiftly the man was reacting earlier to the attacks of his opponent.
But since he was in this unfamiliar place, he was on defense this entire time.
In addition, the movement of the giant was more nimble than expected, and it was difficult to find a weak point of the opponent properly.
In the end, in order to overcome the difference in fighting passively, he had to shock the opponent.
Get a number of wins quickly.
However, there is a difference in the ability which clearly exists in performance. And he had to find a way to shock the opponent.
Seol-Hwi had already thought of that part.
Aim for the vitals.
No matter how much one concentrated on defense, the other one would not even move until the vital point was touched.
Of course, in order for something like that to happen one should be playing defensively and only do it after fully understanding the fighting style of the opponent.
After organizing his thoughts, Seol-Hwi said,
“The first thing to do is maintain a state of standing. Move while looking at the opponent like a predator and as soon as they react, kick with the left foot.”
“As soon as the left foot being kicked is seen, one can evade it with footwork and at the same time try to go for the shoulder of the opponent to grab or throw.”
The first explanation needed the person to have a strong stance of standing tall and one hand out ahead and the other hand on standby.
The second one meant to move as slowly as moving in water, to observe the opponent’s movement, and then kick with the left foot. It meant to aim for the outstretched foot when the opponent moved.
And the reaction of Gu Dae-yeom was—
After seeing the kicking action, rush in to neutralize the attack. From there, it meant to strike down the opponent by grabbing the shoulder and throw them.
He saw it right.
Seol-Hwi realized that the logic of the Warlord was flawless.
Since the martial arts of the giants are superior, it was judged that they would be able to react while watching the movement of the Kangho person.
Seol-Hwi spoke again.
“After pushing the opponent away with Tiger Returning to Mountain, it makes the opponent retreat to evade the movement by letting go of excess internal energy since sudden movement would pull more internal energy. At the same time, one whirlwind kick, two breaks, wait, and then use a circle fist to return the attack down according to the speed of the opponent. It ends quickly by pushing down at the Arm Pulse point and then piercing the neck point.”
“…!”
The Warlord looked wide eyed.
It was true that he had executed two attacks, but it was because the number of moves was too much. Usually, one would expect one or two attacks and wait for the opponent to speak, but Seol-Hwi did four.
That was because of the variables during the fight and it was easy to be refuted by the opponent, but this guy did it in this duel of martial theory.
There were also seven parts which could be refuted, variables which could be pointed out.
And yet, this man was bold.
What was he hiding?
“Does the Kangho man know what the Tiger Returning to Mountain is?”
Gu Dae-yeom asked. Since it was an opponent he was facing, he had to take them down with words.
First, point out simple things.
“I should know it, it is the 37th form of movement of the Taiji Fist.”
“You know Taiji arts?”
“I learned from books.”
“Huh…”
Now he understood why Seol-Hwi was acting this confident, because it is unlikely that he would lie.
Then the problem is…
He began to think to find something off.
There had to be loopholes to break the opponent’s words. Just like he said, the giant would not move straight away or it could be destroyed with a specific martial art.
Taiji’s unique strength is to match the speed of the opponent’s attack. Therefore, it wasn’t odd to use the technique of receiving the attack head on to diffuse it. Besides, it shouldn’t be difficult to press the nerve on the wrist.
Gu Dae-yeom looked at the entire thing that was said earlier.
Could it be said that the Kangho man was able to block his subordinate’s attack with it? Of course, if pushed away, there shouldn’t be difficulty with throwing a punch in. Of course, it can be blocked and evaded.
But his agony continued to deepen. And after several thoughts, Gu Dae-yeom pointed out the annoying part.
“You said one whirlwind kick and two breaks in movement?”
“Yes.”
“If you use that technique, my subordinate will not give a chance to the Kangho man. Either defeat them before then or destroy the skills.”
At those words, Seol-Hwi looked up.
The opponent showed a loss.
“Would you like to confirm it?”
Twitch
Seol-Hwi stared at him and Gu Dae-yeom twitched the corners of his mouth. It was a look that was not pleasant. It felt like his knowledge was being questioned.
“Nice. Let us check it.”
When they came this far, Gu Dae-yeom’s mouth did not hold back.
It was because he never imagined the entire thing in his head, the concept of the Kangho person pushing his subordinate in.
“Go on.”
As he gestured, a warrior cautiously approached, and Gu Dae-yeom conveyed what Seol-Hwi and he said,
And the subordinate approached the Kangho person in the garden.
“Black Demon Warlord. The possibility that the Kangho person doesn’t hold…”
“Do no worry about it.”
Gu Dae-yeom replied like he knew it.
“We relayed it to him. If you follow what I said earlier… he thinks the guy would be alive.”
Seol-Hwi turned to the Kangho person.
The fate of the kidnapped man will be decided here.
My life and yours is also at stake here.
Not one or two expectations, but seven assumptions.
Seol-Hwi could not be sure that everything he said would come true with an honest feeling. But he had faith that he could win.
Shh. Shh.
The Kangho person did not have a trace of blood on his face. He showed a bit of a surprised expression listening to the subordinate who approached him.
And then slowly moved his shocked expression to Seol-Hwi who was at the back.
I can only hope you understand what I am saying.
Seol-Hwi held his silence as he wanted to believe this man, and on the other end Gu Dae-yeom relayed this to his warrior.
Of course, since it was a duel of martial theory which Seol-Hwi started, its result depended on if this Kangho person could attack and not just defend.
Soon after, the confrontation of the two began according to the duel of martial theory’s terms.
Swish
As Seol-Hwi said, the Kangho person took the form of the basic martial arts.
And slowly, like the unique movement of Taiji, he looked at his opponent.
“This guy!”
The giant, who was looking for the right chance, rushed in first, and naturally, the opponent put out the front foot.
The Kangho person attacked the left foot of the guy with his left foot, just like Seol-Hwi said,
Pat
However, the attack failed because the giant had faster than expected movement, and at this, as Gu Dae-yeom said, the distance was narrowed in an instant, so he tried to grab the Kangho person with both hands.
At that moment, the Kangho person moved like he was bending down and pushed the giant.
Tiger Returning to Mountain!
Gu Dae-yeom looked seriously.
The movement which was revealed to be Taiji Arts and what the vassal of the Fourth Disciple spoke of. And the fist pushed ahead.
Even though Gu Dae-yeom did not tell him about this move, the giant twisted his body to avoid the attack of the opponent.
At that moment, Seol-Hwi and Gu Dae-yeom looked at it.
For the first time, the Kangho person moved.
Shh
His leg stretched out, making a circular motion. The giant who was expecting something powerful was shocked at how threatening the movement was.
Shh!
Once again, the movement of the kick turned to the opposite side, and the giant rushed at the chance and tried to stab him.
At that moment, the Kangho person raised his hand and twisted the wrist of the giant. It showed the sheer power he could release after taking an attack from the opponent.
“Enough!”
It was then—
Gu Dae-yeom shouted in rage.
The Kangho man and the giant, both of them flinched at the cry, and the Black Demon Warlord’s men blocked their ears.
“What!”
Gu Dae-yeom frowned looking at Seol-Hwi, and urging him he said,
“Why is he using the whirlwind kick like that!”
Two calls.
His anger was because of this.
The movement of the Kangho person was different than expected. Only then did Seol-Hwi look up and say,
“Taiji’s whirlwind kick is different from the central plain’s one.”
“What?”
“Unlike the movement of pushing ahead with a strong kick with one foot on the ground. The key to this is to move in close range and not actually hit the opponent but to get their attention.”
“So, by mentioning the technique of the whirlwind kick, you set up a trap?”
“This was no trap, senior. Think about it. Would that Kangho person, who is a toy to the kidnappers, be friendly to me? Of course, there is a higher chance that he showed the original whirlwind kick everyone knew, than his one. If that was the case, he would be on my side.”
It was right.
If someone he saw for the first time told him to use the whirlwind kick, of course, he would not use the martial arts of his sect. Nonetheless, he used the one of his sect.
This guy. He laid it all first.
It was only then Gu Dae-yeom realized something.
The guy in front of him talked about the martial arts of Taiji, fearing that the Kangho person might not understand, and then he mentions the whirlwind.
“Amazing.”
For the first time, Seol-Hwi was praised.
In the end, the depth of martial arts was important for a duel of martial theory. This was possible because Seol-Hwi knew Taiji martial arts.
“Everyone step down. Let him go.”
And he left, shouting for all to hear.
Even in the situation where the Kangho person should be freed, the subordinates hesitated, but they did not object.
It was something that showed how strong the influence of the Black Demon Warlord was.
“Now, shall we talk in earnest?”
Seol-Hwi smiled slightly at the words of Gu Dae-yeom.
Even though it was time for the blood to spill, the thought that he barely crossed a huge mountain still alive, made him laugh out loud.