Almighty God of War - Chapter 178

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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178

Ju Jaryeom opened his mouth toward Guyang Cheongang with a heavy expression.

“Hero Guyang.”

“Yes, please speak.”

“Three months have passed. Have you made a decision regarding what the Alliance Leader previously proposed? About joining the Changcheon Martial Alliance.”

A faint bitter smile formed at the corner of Guyang Cheongang’s lips.

“As I mentioned before, this is a major family matter, so I must first consult with my father and the elders. The Guyang Family Estate is not mine alone.”

“Hmm…”

Ju Jaryeom let out a low groan.

Soon his eyes darkened and emitted a sharp gleam.

“Hero Guyang, this emergence from Pungnimgok is vastly different from the legendary accounts passed down in Gangho. Therefore, your future will not be so smooth.”

“What do you mean?”

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes narrowed.

Ju Jaryeom slowly continued his words.

“The identities of past emergers from Pungnimgok have never once been clearly revealed to Gangho.”

“I’ve heard that as well.”

“What do you think the reason for that is?”

Instead of answering, Guyang Cheongang slowly looked around his surroundings.

Only then did he realize the true nature of the strange sense of unease he had felt immediately after returning.

‘Hmm…’

If an emerger appeared in a situation like now, with dozens or hundreds of martial artists waiting with wide eyes at the entrance, hiding their identity would be nearly impossible.

But the legendary emergers always appeared like ghosts and disappeared without a trace.

Ju Jaryeom read the change in Guyang Cheongang’s expression and nodded.

“You’ve noticed. The previous emergers never came out through this entrance. The moment they left Pungnimgok, they were randomly transported to arbitrary locations outside the boundaries of Cheonbo Mountain.”

Guyang Cheongang’s gaze deepened.

Random transportation.

Ju Jaryeom continued speaking.

“Some appeared in deep mountain valleys a hundred li away, others by unknown riversides or near ordinary villages. Pungnimgok itself scattered the emergers in all directions.”

Ju Jaryeom looked toward the still misty entrance of Pungnimgok and added with a sigh.

“Thanks to that, they could perfectly conceal their identities. Appearing alone in places with no observers, they could simply blend into Gangho. No one could know who had passed through, what they had obtained, or how much stronger they had become.”

That was Pungnimgok’s way of protecting those who cleared it.

Ju Jaryeom looked directly at Guyang Cheongang and spoke.

“But this time it’s different. All the returnees came back out through the entrance of the valley they had entered. Not only us, but everyone here clearly witnessed Hero Guyang’s emergence with their own eyes.”

His voice grew heavy.

“Now all of Gangho will know who returned. The martial world under heaven will watch. The one who opened the final door of Pungnimgok and emerged after four months – you, Guyang Cheongang.”

Guyang Cheongang immediately understood the uncomfortable truth implied in Ju Jaryeom’s words.

Unwanted fame would soon return as a poisoned cup.

Ju Jaryeom drove the point home with a sigh-laden tone.

“To speak coldly, the Guyang Family Estate is a fallen family. Its power is weak, its masters few, and it has no backing to rely on. In such circumstances, if rumors spread that you emerged bearing Pungnimgok’s treasures…”

Ju Jaryeom stopped speaking and cast a meaningful look.

“Old monsters blinded by greed will swarm like bees. They will try to steal what you’ve obtained, and if that fails, they’ll try to cut your throat to learn your secrets.”

Guyang Cheongang remained silent but inwardly acknowledged that Ju Jaryeom’s assessment was accurate.

“So I ask once more, Hero Guyang. Will you reconsider joining the Changcheon Martial Alliance? Will you accept protection under our banner?”

Guyang Cheongang met Ju Jaryeom with unwavering eyes and slowly answered.

“I am deeply grateful for Hero Ju’s sincere goodwill and concern. However, my answer remains unchanged. It is a child’s duty to first consult the elders of the family.”

Deep regret flashed across Ju Jaryeom’s face.

“…If that is truly your decision, then it cannot be helped.”

He stepped back and spoke one last time.

“But remember this. The doors of the Changcheon Martial Alliance are always open to you, Hero. If waves too difficult to handle alone come crashing down, do not hesitate to seek us out.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Ju Jaryeom gave a respectful cupped fist salute and withdrew.

However, he did not leave but stood with his hands behind his back not far away.

Guyang Cheongang fell into deep contemplation.

‘What could be the reason Pungnimgok specifically sent only this group of entrants out through the entrance?’

Considering the near-omnipotent abilities of Pungnimgok’s designer, the possibility of this being a simple malfunction was slim.

Scattering the survivors in all directions as before would have been no trouble at all.

Yet this time alone, it pushed the entrants out through the entrance where people were watching.

‘What does it want? Is it trying to forcibly thrust me into the center of the great whirlpool called Gangho? But why?’

Guyang Cheongang furrowed his brow but soon dismissed the complex thoughts.

Responding to the killing intent that was growing stronger in real-time before his eyes was more urgent than pondering questions he couldn’t answer immediately.

As soon as Ju Jaryeom withdrew, the atmosphere in the hall changed ominously.

An old man emerged like a ghost from among the Cheonsa Bu group.

His face was shrouded in darkness beneath a deeply pulled gray hood, but a cruel smile hung at the corner of his mouth visible below the hood.

The sinister demonic energy flowing from his entire body seemed ready to wither and kill the surrounding grass black.

He was Hu Yang, the notorious absolute master of Cheonsa Bu known as the Soul-Piercing Ghost Hand.

Stopping one zhang in front of Guyang Cheongang, he opened his mouth with a rough voice like scraping metal.

“Hero Guyang.”

Perhaps due to the sinister internal energy contained in the voice itself, just hearing it made one’s skin crawl.

“You’ll need to stop by our headquarters briefly before returning to your family estate. There are more than a few questionable points about Elder Yu’s death, so you must come personally to clarify them in detail.”

It was not a request but a clear threat.

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes turned coldly dark.

Greed to drag him away using Yu Garyang’s death as an excuse and devour Pungnimgok’s treasures whole was blatantly rippling in Hu Yang’s gaze.

At that moment, a middle-aged man also strode out from the Gunma Alliance side.

With his seven-chi tall massive frame and wire-like sideburns, he emanated an aura as hard and heavy as steel from his entire body.

It was Pae Yeob, the master of Gunma Alliance known as Iron Diamond.

Pae Yeob glared menacingly at Hu Yang across from him, then gave Guyang Cheongang an eerie smile.

“Don’t listen to Cheonsa Bu’s nonsense, Hero Guyang. You must come with our Gunma Alliance. Our Alliance Leader wants to hear directly how Elder O died.”

Hu Yang and Pae Yeob.

Though they might not match O Gwangnyeo or Yu Garyang who died at Pungdo Gate, they were absolute-level masters with notorious reputations in Gangho.

As they pressed in from both sides, the air in the hall became suffocatingly heavy.

Guyang Cheongang glanced around his surroundings.

Ju Jaryeom stood with furrowed brows but showed no sign of stepping forward first.

And Namgung Gyeol and the other figures from the Six Great Families were also watching this situation with the eyes of observers.

Having refused to join the Changcheon Martial Alliance, Guyang Cheongang was not an ally they needed to protect, but merely an outsider whose treasures they needed to assess.

Guyang Cheongang’s gaze turned cold.

Originally, he was not one who enjoyed conflicts with others.

Lee Jin-woo from Earth had preferred wrestling with data in the research laboratory and lived avoiding unnecessary friction whenever possible.

But this harsh world of Murim had changed him.

Through life-and-death bloody battles and experiencing the cruel logic of survival of the fittest with his whole body, the fundamental strength sleeping within him had awakened.

Usually calm and gentle like a lake, but when someone tried to suppress him unjustly, fighting spirit harder than diamond would surge through that surface.

Now was exactly that moment.

Guyang Cheongang slowly adjusted his bamboo hat and opened his mouth.

“If I refuse to go, what do you intend to do?”

His voice was low, but the intimidating presence contained within it was overwhelming enough to push back the auras of both Hu Yang and Pae Yeob simultaneously.

“Do you mean to refuse the wine of courtesy and drink the wine of punishment?”

Sharp killing intent filled Hu Yang’s voice.

But Guyang Cheongang lightly chuckled and responded.

“Do you have the ability to serve that wine of punishment?”

It was clear mockery and provocation.

Hu Yang and Pae Yeob’s faces twisted with malice.

They looked ready to charge forward and cause a scene at any moment, but surprisingly, the two showed no further action.

From the beginning, they had no intention of settling things with Guyang Cheongang here.

The real reason they stayed and waited was to identify who the final survivor of Pungnimgok was and what he had obtained, in order to plan how to steal it.

Above all, attacking Guyang Cheongang right now would be tantamount to suicide.

Ju Jaryeom, Namgung Gyeol, and other Orthodox Faction figures were watching with gleaming eyes, and Hu Yang and Pae Yeob themselves knew well that Guyang Cheongang’s martial arts had reached the Transformation Realm.

They too had endured the trials of Hongnyeom-ro and witnessed Guyang Cheongang’s divine prowess there.

Even if they, masters of supreme peak level, coordinated their attacks, Guyang Cheongang was an opponent they couldn’t guarantee victory against.

If they rashly attacked him and lost, maintaining their lives would be a secondary concern—they would suffer lifelong humiliation before the Orthodox Faction members.

Hu Yang’s eyes sank with sinister darkness.

‘The situation is unfavorable now. The best strategy is to immediately request reinforcements from headquarters, secure sufficient forces, then attack when that bastard returns to his family estate.’

He glared at Guyang Cheongang as if to bore through him and spoke with venom.

“Hero Guyang, we’ll be meeting again soon. Let’s see if you can maintain that same arrogance then.”

“By all means.”

A concise reply.

Rage and killing intent blazed in Hu Yang’s eyes.

He wanted nothing more than to rip out that heart and make him grovel and scream beneath his feet, but now was not the time.

‘When that time comes, I’ll slowly, very painfully, tear you apart.’

Hu Yang roughly turned around and left with the Heavenly Death Department warriors.

No sooner had he disappeared than Pae Yeob’s booming laughter shook the valley.

“Hahahahaha! Hero Guyang is truly worthy of being Pungnimgok’s last survivor! To reject both the Heavenly Death Department and our alliance’s proposals outright—your courage is truly unrivaled under heaven!”

Despite his hearty laughter, his eyes were as cold as a starving snake.

Pae Yeob continued with a meaningful smile.

“I look forward to meeting again soon. Then we’ll be able to have a much deeper conversation. A very… long one.”

Pae Yeob also led his subordinates away, using body movement techniques to disappear quickly.

Guyang Cheongang stood quietly, taking in their retreating figures.

‘Interesting.’

He had seen through that the Heavenly Death Department and Gunma Alliance never intended to capture him from the start.

They had merely wanted to test his momentum and attitude, leaving their mark before beginning the hunt.

‘The road home will be quite treacherous.’

But rather than fear, Guyang Cheongang felt his mind becoming clearer.

Clear hostility was far easier to deal with than half-hearted compromises.

As he surveyed his surroundings, Ju Jaryeom, Namgung Gyeol, and other Murim warriors were seeing him off with peculiar gazes.

A faint smile spread across Guyang Cheongang’s lips.

This was Gangho.

A world where those with power carved the path, and behind those who walked that path lurked blades that could strike at any moment.

Guyang Cheongang gave a brief cupped fist salute toward Ju Jaryeom’s group, then stepped out of the valley without delay.

Baek Muok and Jongnoeu followed behind him.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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