Martial Artist Lee Gwak Episode 164

A Useless Hound Is Bound to Be Abandoned (1)

Yu San-ok’s eyes widened in shock.

Each time the silver blade light flickered around Lee Gwak, members of the Nine Shadows Fleet fell, spewing blood.

Lee Gwak was like a ghost. He specifically targeted those within the Nine Shadows Fleet known for their notorious cruelty and ruthless hands, taking their lives without hesitation.

Yet, he was not lenient towards others either. Lee Gwak’s blade destroyed their dantians, the energy centers within their bodies.

For those who had relied solely on their brute strength to commit evils, losing all their power overnight was akin to being dead even while alive.

Lee Gwak was sending both the living and the dead straight to hell.

Yu San-ok shuddered at his ruthless handiwork and recoiled in fear.

If Lee Gwak’s blade had been imbued with something like blade qi or blade aura, it might not have been so frightening.

But there was no such energy manifesting from Lee Gwak’s blade. He simply leveraged the inherent skill of the blade to stab and slash, yet no one could withstand even a single stroke from him.

Even those skilled with sword qi lost their lives to Lee Gwak’s blade in a vain manner.
Lee Gwak and Yu San-ok’s eyes met.

Yu San-ok felt as if he had been doused in ice water, shivering with an intense chill.

He wanted to flee, but there was nowhere to escape on an island surrounded by the sea.

“This demon!”

Overwhelmed by fear, Yu San-ok charged forward instead. The large sword in his hand unleashed the Eighteen Wind Swords.

Whoosh!

His sword, filled with sword qi, aimed directly at Lee Gwak’s vital points.

It was a powerful display befitting the vice leader of the Nine Shadows Fleet. However, when his sword was in motion, Lee Gwak was no longer there.

“What?”

Yu San-ok’s head spun around rapidly. He felt a presence to his left. Lee Gwak had already moved there.

“Chyaaa!”

Yu San-ok executed another move from the Eighteen Wind Swords.

At that moment, Lee Gwak lowered his body and pushed off the ground, executing the revolving steps.

To Yu San-ok, it seemed as though Lee Gwak’s figure blurred, but he had already closed the distance between them in an instant.

“Ah!”

Yu San-ok was shocked to his core, barely managing to swing his sword halfway before Lee Gwak was upon him.

A chilling sound filled his ears, followed by immense pain attacking him.

“Aaagh!”

Yu San-ok couldn’t help but let out a desperate scream.

“Aaagh!”

A fountain of blood erupted from his shoulder. His right hand, which had been holding a sword just moments ago, was now severed from the shoulder.

It was Lee Gwak’s doing.

“You!”

Yu San-ok glared at Lee Gwak with a face twisted like a malicious spirit. At that moment, Lee Gwak spun around in place.

Schlick!

A chilling sound of cutting followed.

Yu San-ok’s body tilted, then he collapsed to the side.

“Argh! Ahh!”

Yu San-ok screamed as if his throat would burst.

His left leg was severed from just above the knee. The immense pain from his shoulder and knee turned Yu San-ok’s mind blank.

He had tormented and killed countless people before. Among them, many were tortured to death in unimaginably cruel ways.

Yu San-ok used to laugh at those writhing in agony like insects, mocking their inability to endure the pain. Now, he found his past self cursingly detestable.

The pain was so severe he couldn’t breathe. If possible, he wished he could just die like this.

That’s when it happened.

Thud!

Lee Gwak stabbed Yu San-ok’s collarbone with his blade. The blade penetrated Yu San-ok’s muscles without any resistance.

Yu San-ok was like a fish speared through by a harpoon.

Kneeling on one knee, Lee Gwak looked down at Yu San-ok, holding the handle of the blade.

“Ugh!”

A groaning sound came from Yu San-ok’s mouth, and tears streamed down from his eyes.

He was terrified of Lee Gwak’s gaze looking down at him. That cold look was unbearably frightening.

“Please, save me…”

“I will save you.”

Lee Gwak’s response seemed unexpected to Yu San-ok, who blinked in surprise.

“Re-really? Thank you. Thank you so much. From now on, I’ll live a good life…”

“Where is the leader?”

“That, that is…”

Yu San-ok stuttered.

His face twisted in pain, yet he was scheming. Then, Lee Gwak twisted the handle of the blade he was holding.

“Aaaaah!”

The blade that had penetrated his muscles tore through his body, delivering him to hell. Lee Gwak looked down indifferently at Yu San-ok writhing in agony.

Lee Gwak’s expressionless face drove Yu San-ok to madness.

“On Haenam Island…”

Yu San-ok answered, drooling.

“Why are they on Haenam Island?”

Yu San-ok answered with his eyes tightly shut.

“They, they were trying to kill the grandmaster…”

“Are you talking about me?”

Lee Gwak’s gaze turned colder.

It was true that there was bad blood with the Nine Shadows Fleet, but he couldn’t understand why they were so obsessed with him.

“Why? What’s the reason for him wanting to kill me? It seems like it’s not just because I interfered with your operations.”

“That, I don’t know. The leader has many secrets. Grand master, please pull out the sword. I will die if you don’t stop the bleeding.”

Yu San-ok pleaded with Lee Gwak.

He was already losing so much blood that his consciousness was beginning to fade.

Lee Gwak, deciding that there was nothing more to gain from Yu San-ok, withdrew his blade and stepped back.

Yu San-ok hastily pressed his wounds with his remaining hand, seemingly stopping the bleeding for a moment.

‘I can survive.’

Yu San-ok clung to a sliver of hope.

That’s when a dark shadow loomed over his face.

“What, what’s this?”

Looking up, he saw Ahn Yu-san struggling to hold a rock as big as a child’s torso.

Despite his battered body, Ahn Yu-san lifted the rock above his head. Yu San-ok understood what that meant.

“No, don’t!”

The moment Yu San-ok screamed, Ahn Yu-san slammed the rock down.

Crack!

Yu San-ok’s head burst open like a watermelon.

“Huff! Huff! This is revenge for those you’ve killed.”

Ahn Yu-san knelt on the ground, panting heavily.

Having lived a life as a merchant without ever harming another, this was the first time Ahn Yu-san had inflicted injury, let alone killed someone.

The rage and despair he felt were immense.

Most of his family and those close to him, akin to family, were killed by Yu San-ok and the Nine Shadows Fleet. Such a grudge couldn’t just be suppressed.

“Aaah!”

After completing his revenge, Ahn Yu-san looked up at the sky and screamed.

Lee Gwak silently watched Ahn Yu-san, knowing that no words of comfort would reach him at this moment.

“Bastards!”

“We’ll kill them.”

Inspired by Ahn Yu-san, the survivors began to rise, their bodies shaking as they picked up the weapons their enemies had dropped.

Survivors of the Azure Maritime Company, women who had lived miserable lives as playthings and those who had been slaves, took up swords and knives and approached the crippled pirates.

“No, please!”

“Save me!”

Fear appeared on the faces of the pirates lying on the ground with their dantians destroyed by Lee Gwak.

They had killed and plundered countless people, but the fear of death was real to them. They begged for forgiveness from those they had tormented.

However, the pain inflicted on the victims was too great for mere words to earn forgiveness.

“Die!”

“You dogs! We’ll kill you all.”

The women stabbed at the pirates with swords.

The feeble attempts by the women didn’t penetrate well, requiring several tries. During this time, the pirates experienced unimaginable fear and pain. The people of the Azure Maritime Company also took their revenge. They hadn’t forgotten the faces of those who killed their
comrades.

Cries of agony and screams filled the clearing.

Lee Gwak bit his lips hard as he watched the scene unfold. No matter how deserving of death these people were, watching them die was never easy on the heart.

Yet, Lee Gwak did not turn away from the hellish spectacle before him. Although it was not the sight he had wished for, he was somewhat involved in this affair.

“Argh!”

The screams of the people troubled Lee Gwak’s ears.

Drip!

Blood trickled from Lee Gwak’s lips. He had bitten them so hard that the flesh tore. Still, Lee Gwak felt no pain.

Then, Ahn Yu-san staggered over to Lee Gwak.

“Grandmaster Lee, thank you. Really, thank you.”

He grasped Lee Gwak’s hand tightly with his blood-covered hand.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. Some are dead, what does a mere wound count for? But let’s head over there.”

Ahn Yu-san weakly pointed towards a large warehouse on one side of the clearing.

Lee Gwak looked puzzled, but Ahn Yu-san patted his shoulder and continued.

“You’ll understand once you see.”

Lee Gwak nodded and walked towards the warehouse.

A massive lock, forged from solid iron, hung on the warehouse door. But to Lee Gwak, it was no obstacle.

Swoosh!

With a swing of his sword, the lock was cut in half and fell apart.

As Lee Gwak opened the warehouse door, he involuntarily grimaced. Inside, cages made of iron that seemed fit only for holding fierce beasts stretched out in a line. But it wasn’t beasts that were caged; it was people.

“Madness!”

A curse involuntarily escaped Lee Gwak’s lips.

Ahn Yu-san approached Lee Gwak.

“These were the usable ones among those captured from the ships, intended to be sold as slaves. It’s unimaginable how many have been sold into slavery so far. You shouldn’t feel any guilt. You’ve killed not men, but creatures less than beasts.”

***
Numerous people had gathered at the dock.

They were all people who had been captured by the Nine Shadows Fleet. Treated like animals and waiting to be sold, they wept at their unexpected salvation.

They were emaciated from lack of proper food and reeked from not being able to bathe. Indeed, they had lived like animals.

Ahn Yu-san had them all board the largest ship of the Nine Shadows Fleet. He intended to escape this hellish place with them.

Lee Gwak asked Ahn Yu-san, “Is it alright to take them all with you?”

“What else can we do? Leave them behind? No! I will take them all. Fortunately, the wealth I’ve acquired here is substantial. I can share it with them and somehow manage.”

Ahn Yu-san looked at the cargo filled on the ship.

The goods from the Azure Maritime Company were only a fraction of what was there. The warehouse contained considerable wealth that the Nine Shadows Fleet had looted but had not yet disposed of.

Ahn Yu-san loaded all of it onto the ship.

“It may not fully compensate for their ruined lives, but it will serve as a foundation for their recovery. Until then, the Azure Maritime Company will take care of them.”

“You will surely do well, master Ahn.”

“But will you really not come with us? Avoid getting entangled in troublesome matters and come with us on the ship. I’ve heard that the Nine Shadows Fleet’s power is not just this. Other ships went on raids. If they return, you will be in greater danger”

Ahn Yu-san looked at Lee Gwak worriedly, but Lee Gwak shook his head, declining his offer.

“I’m sorry.”

“You… Sigh! Never mind.”

Ahn Yu-san sighed.

Lee Gwak’s martial prowess was something Ahn Yu-san had seen with his own eyes. It was of such a high level that Ahn Yu-san could hardly fathom. Remembering how Lee Gwak dealt with the Nine Shadows Fleet’s pirates still sent shivers down his spine.

If he hadn’t seen it, it might have been different, but having seen it, it wasn’t easy to treat Lee Gwak casually.

He grasped Lee Gwak’s hand tightly and said, “Please be careful. And if you ever come to the Central Plains, be sure to visit the Azure Maritime Company. I wish to repay my debt of gratitude.”

“I will make time to visit.”

“You promise?”

“Yes!”

Ahn Yu-san looked relieved at Lee Gwak’s answer.

“Then depart.”

“What about you?”

“…”

Lee Gwak silently looked towards the direction of Haenam Island.

He harbored no desire to change the world or stand out among others.

He had no intention of putting forth grandiose justifications.

‘Just to enact justice within my sight.’