âIâm going to ask you one more time.â
Wang Ki-song remained seated at his desk despite the three trespassers in his office.
âWho are you guys to barge in here without permission and run your damn mouths?â
âYou donât have to know about us. All you have to do is listen to our offer and nod.â
âOffer?â
âYes.â
The man with braided hair treaded slowly. He pulled the sofa next to him towards himself and sat across Wang Ki-song.
âThereâs something we want. But shit, it appears that itâs gotten into the Seven Dragons Associationâs pockets.
âIf you have something you want, why donât you just buy it with money? We are a business. Throw some money on the table. If the price is right, we will sell it.â
âThat would be nice, but what we are doing is confidential. And your security wasnât as easy to get past as we expected, so we were unable to steal it.â
âSo you want me to secretly take it?â
âAha! Youâre quick on the uptake for someone who looks so stupid.â
There was genuine surprise in the manâs voice, but Wang Ki-song was not provoked.
The Shanghai royal family may be looked down upon, but they were still a noble clan in the Seven Dragons Association. And among the noble clans, he was the man substituting for the role of the Black Dragon Buildingâs South Asian branch manager.
âI just donât know what your intentions are to be doing this⦠So what are you offering?â
âOffering?â
âYouâre telling me to steal it, right? Then a fitting price ought to be given in exchange.â
âOh, donât worry about that. There is a very big payday awaiting you.â
âOh, really? What is it?â
âThere wasnât anything he wasnât willing to do if the price was right.â Fitting for a member of the Black Dragon Clan.
âYour life.â
ââ¦Hmm.â Wang Ki-song nodded. That was the kind of answer he had anticipated.
âSo⦠Am I going to die here if I decline?â
âAs I thought, youâre a quick learner.â
âAh, our family is known for that kind of thing. I wouldnât be the family headâs replacement if I werenât this quick.
âSo can I expect a positive answer?â
âOf course.â Wang Ki-song laughed heartilyâ
And kicked the desk from his seat.
Bam! Hitting the flying desk with his fists, the man sat across him as well as the other two were swept into the air.
How awful its force was! The back wall completely crumbled as bits and pieces of crushed flesh and blood scattered all over the office.
âThis is my answer.â
Wang Ki-song coldly scoffed in the bloodied office. There was no reason to be scared of a pathetic threat like this. Maybe if the threat were a bit more elegant.
âThatâs unfortunate.â
âYou or me? It looks like your friends are in quite the unfortunate state.â
A desk had slammed into him with the force of a thousand pounds, and yet the man remained standing as if nothing had happened.
Wang Ki-song held a laugh. Although the man had avoided the attack with whatever trick he used, it was clear to see that at least his two partners were bloodied messesâ
âMy goodness. I heard that the masters were as good as high-level players, but this is no joke. I thought I was gonna die for real.â
A grave look appeared on Wang Ki-song.
âLying is bad, comrad.â
âYou got hit the same, my crazy comrade.â
âThatâs okay. I never die.â
Instinctively gathering his Psionic power using the tactical laws of the Eight Great Forces, Wang Ki-song twirled his body like a top and threw out an attack.
It was a truly godlike blow, a burial method with the force to demolish a skyscraper.
ââ¦?!â
But the hand holding the Great Dragonâs secret curriculum was smashed before the hurl could be finished. His guard hadnât been let down. His opponent was just so unimaginably powerful that it crushed his Psionics head on.
âSorry. I was going to break your fingers, but it was sturdier than I thought. My badâ¦â
Just when had she taken that out? She hadnât even unzipped the large bag on her back. With his injured arm, Wang Ki-song struck the blonde woman, continuing his assault with clenched teeth.
He used Heavenâs Avalanche to bring down her shoulders, crushing her collarbones. Duel Electric Overload to crush her jaws, Great Pengâs Downfall to mince her guts; each almighty skill bringing extreme pain to his broken wrist.
But the string of techniques did not falter, each flowing as smoothly as a river. The 72 Martial Arts were not so frivolous to be passed down to a man who would falter from just a few shattered bones.
âAh man. Those fists came out of an old Hong Kong movie. Iâd learn it if I could.â
Shunk!
Perhaps he had pushed himself too hard. Wang Ki-song could not avoid the young manâs knife.
But he did not waver, crushing the young manâs skull with the force of a typhoon and ripping out the knife wedged in his insides, staunching the bleeding with the use of Psionics.
âBe warned. Itâs your turn now.â Wang Ki-song smiled coldly as he looked to the only person left standing.
The man, however, was not the slightest bit shaken upon witnessing the death of his two colleagues. Rather, he cynically laughed, looking back at Wang Ki-song. He had not budged from the sofa.
âYouâre one feisty old son of a bitch. Though, you should only bark like that after actually killing my comrades.â
***
***
âWhat nonsense is that? Your friends are alreadyâ¦ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âGreat! Amazing! Fighting with a wrist blown outâwhat an incredible fighter!â
âWhy didnât you just ambush him if you had the time to be in awe? You couldâve torn his head off.â
âNo, thatâs foul! Kill head-on, thatâs how a Swordmaster thinks!â
Wang Ki-song was at a loss for words. The feeling of bones breaking and guts mashing was still fresh on his hands.
âJust who are these guys?â
He could presume that they were high-level players the moment they barged into his office.
But that presumption was a mistake. They were not merely that. It wasnât their mysterious ability to return after being killed multiple times, but their attitudes towards the fight. Theyâve been toying with him.
It sent chills down his spine.
âJust from their abilities alone⦠These guys arenât normal.â
Judging the force that crushed his wrist and the knife technique that stabbed him, they were at least on the level of Dukes. Heck, maybe even Grand Dukes. Wang Ki-song could not understand. Grand Duke players were practically kings, with the only beings stronger being the ten Monarchs.
The mere fact there were even three Grand Dukes he was unaware of was a surprise. But them being after a certain thing? That was the real mystery.
âI have to find a way to escape.â
Going to flight, Wang Ki-song concentrated his Psionics to his feet. Aside from saving his hide, he had to get it out that there were dangerous people after the Seven Dragons Association.
âYouâre not fighting, eh? Fighter?â
âThe way his eyes are darting around, there is only the thought of ârunning awayâ on his mind.â
âThen, ladies first!â
Theyâd read through his thoughts of escape.
The blonde woman charged at him with her giant weapon while the young man with slit eyes ran at him with his knife held backwards.
The blonde woman wielded her giant weapon as the young man with slit eyes ran at him with a reverse grip on his knife.
Bending his body back to avoid the woman, he crushed the manâs knife and threw a low kick at their ankles. In the blink of an eye, theyâd exchanged dozens of blows.
Finally finding a blind spot, Wang Ki-song aimed his body through the window.
Boomâ!
âThatâs cheating. Shouldnât you see to the end of a fight you started?â
The man with braided hair removed his hands from his pockets.
Wang Ki-songâs body had bounced off the window like it was made of cast iron. His eyes shot open, realizing what was in the manâs grip.
âCould this skill beâ¦?!â
Finally, Wang Ki-song understood. He realized why he couldnât recognize their capabilities. Why they were threatening him, a complete stranger, and avoiding an official meeting with the Seven Dragons Association.
But that realization came far too late.
The instant he lost his balance, the blonde woman swung a blow straight at his head.
A single blow was all it took. Wang Ki-songâs cranium shattered, his eyeballs bursting out of his sockets as brain matter scattered about the room.
Pow! Pow! Pow!
âLook, my crazy comrade. That comradeâs already kicked the bucket. You can stop beating him up.â
âReally?â
âCanât you see? Who would still be alive after having their brain turned into soup?â
âBut you donât die even after getting your head or your heart mushed, comrad.â
âThat comrad isnât me.â
âIs fact-checking really that important?â
ââ¦Do whatever you wanââ
âOkay!â
She took his defeated words as permission, swinging her weapon down on Wang Ki-song again with a grin on her face.
The man with slit eyes clicked his tongue at the sight of the body spasming like a frog from every hit. Still sat on the sofa, he watched her butcher with leisure as he spoke to the man with braided hair.
âWhat do we do now, comrade? It looks like getting an insider is off the table.â
âThatâs just fine.â
âYou got another plan?â
âOf course. There is a plan for everything.â
He hadnât expected there to be a plan B. He was quite surprised.
âIf we canât find an insider, all we have to do is keep killing until there is one, donât you think?â he laughed in a mellow tone.
âIâm the fool for expecting anything moreâ¦â
ââ
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