Special Martial Arts Chapter 2
It seemed that neither Qingcheng nor Emei had decided who would step forward, as they continued to exchange glances.
“If no one intends to step forward, please disperse now,” declared Mu-jin confidently. After a long period of hesitation, a Taoist from the Qingcheng Sect stepped forward.
“I am Feng Yun, the second-class disciple of Qingcheng Sect.”
He appeared to be in his early to mid-thirties.
“Qingyun Defends Against Evil!”
“The Qingcheng Sect seems determined!”
Although this character did not appear in the novel, the spectators’ reactions indicated that he was a well-known master.
– Be careful. As you may know, this Taoist reached the third round of the Yongbongji Conference last time.
Mu-jin, who was unaware of this, received this warning from Tang So-mi through a telepathic message. The Yongbongji Conference is a martial arts tournament held every ten years. Advancing to the third round (quarter-finals) in the previous conference meant that ten years had already passed since then. Considering the changes that can occur in a decade, this opponent was quite dangerous.However, Mu-jin did not pay much attention to Tang So-mi’s advice and greeted Feng Yun with a bow. Though he found the formal fist greeting slightly awkward due to his habit of performing the half-bow often used in the novel, he managed.
“I am Kang-hyuk.”
Feng Yun frowned at Mu-jin’s greeting and asked, “…Which sect do you belong to?”
“You probably haven’t heard of it. It’s not a sect based in the Central Plains.”
“Still, tell me.”
“I hail from a distant eastern land, from the Special Martial Arts School.”
“Special Martial Arts… you say?”
Feng Yun looked puzzled.
‘Of course, he wouldn’t know. I just made it up.’
The name wasn’t completely fabricated; it was derived from the Special Forces. The techniques Mu-jin intended to use in this duel were practical martial arts he had learned during his time in the Special Forces. He had used these techniques against Mu-gung in the past and also during Yeon Ga-hee’s seventieth birthday celebration against Ryu Seol-ho’s bodyguard.
‘Since it wasn’t used in the Yongbongji Conference, no one will know.’
While Mu-jin was lost in his thoughts, a peculiar expression appeared on Feng Yun’s face—a mix of relief and complacency.
‘He thinks it’s an unknown school, huh.’
Mu-jin didn’t mind. If his opponent underestimated him, it would make things easier.
‘He’ll come to his senses after a few hits.’
“Let’s start, shall we?” Mu-jin asked.
“Very well.”
Feng Yun drew his sword in response to Mu-jin’s question. Observing Feng Yun’s posture, Mu-jin turned slightly to the side and assumed his stance. To effectively deliver punches and grappling moves, his hands were half-clenched, with his left foot and left hand forward and his right hand and right foot back. He slightly bent his lower body for flexibility and leaned his upper body slightly forward, ready to tackle at any moment.
It was the most basic stance often seen in mixed martial arts matches. In reality, the martial arts taught in the South Korean Special Forces, ‘Special Martial Arts,’ were based on Hapkido and Jujitsu, with additional training for handling military weapons like combat knives and entrenching tools. Despite the long-established training regime, modern martial arts techniques were being incorporated into it.
As Feng Yun took note of Mu-jin’s unusual posture, an unfamiliar stance from an unknown school made him uneasy. Still, despite his underestimation, he did not let his guard down entirely. After all, he was there to secure the sect’s interests and had accumulated some experience by his thirties.
Feng Yun of Qingyun Defends Against Evil. He mastered Qingyun’s Red Mist Sword, one of Qingcheng Sect’s unique skills, earning his title by killing numerous evil practitioners. His sword began to move, and a blue sword aura emanated like mist.
Right from the start, he deployed the Qingyun Red Mist Sword, a technique embodying the natural transformation of time with its blue clouds and red dusk. The initial attack was a pure blue, gradually turning red. However, having slain numerous evil practitioners, Feng Yun had a different interpretation of his swordsmanship.
‘The blue clouds will inevitably be stained red with the blood of the enemies.’
And once again, he was confident his blue clouds would be dyed red with the blood of this man named Kang-hyuk.
Whoosh!
However, with a simple step back, Mu-jin easily evaded the first strike. Unfazed, Feng Yun continued to release blue sword energy, expanding his aura like clouds to dominate the space.
Meanwhile, Mu-jin utilized the Golden Turtle Technique with his hands to deflect the incoming aura, making it appear as if he was using his fists.
“There seems to be some skill!” Feng Yun exclaimed, feigning excitement while raising his energy further. As his sword technique transitioned, the blue mist gradually turned red.
“Try to block this!” Feng Yun shouted confidently as he increased his offensive. At that moment, Mu-jin, who had been dodging sideways and backward, suddenly lunged forward. He waited for Feng Yun to make a larger move, ensuring his opponent underestimated him.
Mu-jin’s reason was simple. Since he had to conceal his martial arts, he couldn’t fully utilize the Golden Turtle Technique or the Fast Ascent Step.
Although his clothes were torn and blood splattered from the red aura during the lunge, Mu-jin managed to grab Feng Yun’s knees with both hands. Simultaneously, he pulled at Feng Yun’s knees with his hands and pushed his upper body with his shoulder, executing a perfect tackle.
“Ugh!”
As Feng Yun groaned from the forced impact with the ground, Mu-jin swiftly pinned his arms to prevent any counterattacks. He wasn’t just stopping him from wielding his sword; he aimed to prevent any deadly techniques like the Golden Locking Hand from being used. In previous encounters, Mu-jin had learned that submission techniques could be highly dangerous against skilled opponents. Even a light touch could be lethal due to the existence of pressure points and internal energy in this world.
‘If only I could use the Golden Turtle Technique to defend myself while applying submissions.’
This was Mu-jin’s goal, but since he couldn’t use it now, he first subdued his opponent’s hands. Utilizing his superior strength, he pinned Feng Yun’s arms to his chest with one hand and gripped Feng Yun’s neck with the other.
“Will you surrender?”
Feng Yun quickly realized the immense strength in Mu-jin’s grip and, struggling, admitted defeat.
“…I concede.”
Being pinned to the ground and choked was humiliating, and Feng Yun’s face turned red with shame. But to Mu-jin’s surprise—
“We do not accept this!” Some elders from the Qingcheng Sect shouted, veins bulging in their necks.
“Is this so-called martial arts, mere street brawler techniques?”
“There’s no difference from a back alley thug!”
Mu-jin smirked at their blatant disdain and responded, “So you’re saying Feng Yun was defeated by a thug’s techniques?”
“!!!”
“That, that’s unreasonable…”
“You’re the unreasonable ones!” While the Qingcheng elders were momentarily silenced, the Tang family vigorously supported Mu-jin.
“Ahem! We acknowledge the martial arts! But this was a duel. Therefore, since Kang-hyuk was already cut before he overpowered Feng Yun, we can consider him defeated!”
“Right! Even sustaining such wounds, he is clearly defeated! How could he attack while Feng Yun showed mercy?”
“You mean this?” Mu-jin pointed at his wound, now openly mocking their objections.
Then he tore his shirt as if it were paper.
Revealed beneath were robust, granite-like muscles. Although there were scratches from the duel, his sturdy build made them seem like mere superficial cracks.
“Practicing external energy techniques means these scratches are nothing.”
The sight of Mu-jin’s imposing physique and his dismissive words left the Qingcheng martial artists speechless. The surrounding atmosphere was already in favor of Mu-jin.
– It’s fine. We’ve gauged his martial arts. Our Emei Sect will handle it from here. Amitabha.
The Emei Sect nuns communicated telepathically to the Qingcheng elders.
“Ahem… We accept defeat.”
“Then, Emei Sect will challenge next. Kang-hyuk.”
Though it was clear what Qingcheng and Emei had discussed, Mu-jin readily accepted the challenge.
“Fine.”
He preferred resolving disputes with fists rather than words.
As soon as Mu-jin agreed, an Emei Sect nun stepped forward.
“I am Gye-ryun, the second-class disciple of Emei Sect. Amitabha.”
“I am Kang-hyuk of Special Martial Arts School.”
As they exchanged greetings, Mu-jin analyzed his opponent.
‘She’s unarmed, indicating they’ve devised a strategy.’
Emei Sect was known for its swordsmanship despite being a Buddhist sect. But this opponent was barehanded, suggesting she intended to use Golden Locking Hand techniques to target pressure points during the grapple.
However, they misunderstood one crucial fact: Mu-jin’s weapon wasn’t only external martial arts and submission techniques.
The duel began, and Mu-jin took a step forward. Rather than a long-range confrontation, he opted for close combat.
As soon as Mu-jin feigned a tackle by lowering his upper body, Gye-ryun, as expected, attempted to use Golden Locking Hand to target his pressure points.
But instead of grabbing her knees as he had done before, Mu-jin pulled back and threw
a light left jab at Gye-ryun’s face.
In modern terms, it was a fake tackle followed by a left jab.
Although Gye-ryun barely managed to block Mu-jin’s left punch, she quickly found herself overwhelmed by a barrage of light but powerful jabs from Mu-jin, both left and right.
Though they appeared light, Mu-jin’s immense strength and internal energy made them devastating. Gye-ryun’s defense began to falter. Desperately, she tried to escape by using her footwork, but Mu-jin relentlessly pursued her.
Bam!
Her defenses finally collapsed, and Mu-jin’s left punch landed squarely on Gye-ryun’s face.
With that single blow, the duel ended. Though he had pulled his punch to avoid killing her, Mu-jin’s formidable strength was still overwhelming.
Silence enveloped the area as Mu-jin stood victorious against the second-class disciples of the Nine Great Sects with unheard-of martial arts from an unheard-of school.
However, regardless of the surrounding atmosphere, Mu-jin gazed at the nun lying unconscious on the ground and cracked his neck.
“Next.”
In the cold silence, the only sound was the faint cracking of his joints.
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