Love Ballad of the Tyrant King

Chapter 2: Jaseung, Demonstrates

Lee Jaseung smiled every time Dan Woobin put on a serious expression because he found it cute for some reason.

Of course, Go Cheonyang didn’t feel that way as he was very shocked after he failed his attack.

The ambush just now was executed with his unique martial art, infused with the essence of advanced-level techniques.

Because of that, it wasn’t easy to block his attack, especially not when he was seated like that.

“So it wasn’t just all rumors huh?”

“What kind of rumors did you hear?”

Go Cheonyang responded to Lee Jaseung’s question.

“False rumors such as cutting down Cheon Yeombaek in just 400 moves, or single handedly killing 100 masters of the Black Assassins.

Suddenly, Dan Woobin spoke out.

“They are indeed false rumors.”

Go Cheonyang nodded with a look that said ‘I knew it’.

However, Dan Woobin said something that shocked him immediately after.

“Cheon Yeombaek was killed in exactly forty-seven moves, not 400. And it wasn’t 100 masters of the Black Assassins. It was 700 from the Black Death Army, and the Black Assassins were taken care of by our Divine Sword Army.”

“What?”

Go Cheonyang frowned in shock. He was doubtful.

It sounded too absurd to believe Dan Woobin, but he had a very serious expression.

“Then how come you didn’t bring that great Divine Sword Army of yours?”

“They are currently busy attacking your main headquarters. By now, that place must have been taken care of.”

Go Cheonyang laughed out loud after standing dumbfoundedly for a moment.

“Hahahaha!”

He concluded that Dan Woobin was just bluffing. There was no way that his base was going to be attacked that easily, and even then they wouldn’t have fallen already.

Lee Jaseung spoke to Dan Woobin.

“Go wait inside the kitchen.”

“Understood.”

Dan Woobin got up from his seat and walked over to the kitchen.

“Is that brat really the strategist of the Black Way Alliance? He’s just like you when it comes to having no manners.”

“He’s a guy with a really strong pride.”

“Too much pride can lead to a needless death.”

“I’ll take care of him, so how about you mind your own business?”

Go Cheonyang gritted his teeth.

‘How dare he!’

He wanted to kill him this instant.

At first, he believed that someone else came in his place because there was no way that a young brat like him unified the Black Way.

However, his opinions changed by this point.

His opponent definitely had something up in his sleeve, and he admittedly wasn’t easy to defeat. The attack he blocked earlier was proof of that.

Go Cheonyang gave up on intimidating his opponent with sharp aggression. Instead, he chose to acknowledge them as a strong martial artist and deal with them accordingly.

“Your martial art is impressive for your age.”

There wasn’t anyone in the world who disliked compliments. Moreover, compliments regarding one’s martial arts sounded sweet every time to a martial artist, whether it was tens or hundreds of times.

However, this didn’t work against Lee Jaseung.

“Get to the chase on why you called me here.”

Go Cheonyang felt slightly annoyed by his response, but he quickly controlled his emotions.

‘Hehe, you probably think what you are doing is cool, but you couldn’t be more wrong. That’s just being arrogant and rude, you little brat!’

Hiding his thoughts, Go Cheonyang responded calmly.

“There is something I received from the previous Black Way Alliance Leader.”

“What is it?”

“It’s a kind of peacekeeping fee. It was for the condition that we don’t invade the Central Plains. Now that the leadership of the Black Way Alliance has changed, a new contract has to be made. Some of the merchant groups that used to travel between the Central Plains and the Frontier were the ones who forged this in order to pay us.”

He emphasized that they were paying them.

Lee Jaseung smirked.

“Why are you smiling?”

“I just find it funny. That old man filled with pride was secretly being charged behind the scenes.”

Go Cheonyang laughed this time.

“They were taking so much anyway. It was cheaper for them to use a few coins than to cause unnecessary trouble. Want me to tell you something even more surprising? We also get money from the bastards of the Orthodox Faction.”

“And how much are you getting from them?”

“Five hundred thousand silver coins per year. But for the first year as a congratulatory gesture, we only take three hundred thousand. Starting next year, it goes back to the original amount- “

“One million.”

Go Cheonyang was shocked. He laughed out loud right after.

“Hahahahaha! Your greed has no bounds. I like that!”

Lee Jaseung said abruptly.

“It seems like you have a habit of not listening until the end.”

“What?”

“I’m telling you to give them to me.”

The smile slowly faded away from Go Cheonyang’s shocked face. He noticed that Lee Jaseung wasn’t joking around.

“Are you ordering me to pay you a million silver coins every year?”

“No.”

After hearing Lee Jaseung’s response, Go Cheonyang made an expression of relief.

However, Lee Jaseung struck him with an even more shocking answer.

“Give them to me every month.”

“What?”

Go Cheonyang stood still dumbfoundedly for a moment, and laughed out loud in the end.

“Hahahaha!”

Lee Jaseung showed no change in his expression.

“That’s insane! You were really being serious huh?”

“Of course I was. I don’t joke about money.”

Go Cheonyang’s killing intent poured out.

“What makes you so confident?”

He gave a cold glare and spoke to Lee Jaseung.

“What about you? I personally would feel nervous at all times, worrying about how I might be killed at any moment. Perhaps it’s because of those seven rats that are hiding behind you?”

Slish…

Then, seven master martial artists revealed themselves behind Go Cheonyang.

They came in all shapes and forms — some were elderly, others middle-aged men, and there was a woman among them as well. They were Go Cheonyang’s most trusted subordinates, the Seven Masters of the Ten Thousand Evils Alliance.

“Impressive. I didn’t think you would notice them.”

Go Cheonyang felt even more wary of Lee Jaseung now. It was understandable that he noticed their presence, as their ability to conceal themselves varied from person to person.

However, there was a master of stealth who even he couldn’t find among them. Yet Lee Jaseung knew that there were exactly seven of them hiding.

Meanwhile, the Seven Masters were very annoyed right now because they were called rats. In their eyes, Lee Jaseung was the one who looked like a rat and a little brat.

Lee Jaseung purposely taunted them. Mindset was most important when it came to a fight between masters. The one taunted first, was always going to be at a disadvantage.

With a mocking smile. Lee Jaseung asked.

“Which one is Dobek?”

Though of course, they weren’t going to answer him that easily. Go Cheonyang asked with a curious look.

“Why do you ask?”

He wondered why Lee Jaseung mentioned Dobek, one of the Seven Masters here.

Then, Dan Woobin poked his head out from the kitchen and quickly spoke all of a sudden.

“The one on the far left is Dobek.”

Go Cheonyang shouted out in anger.

“Someone go tear that guy’s mouth off!”

Dan Woobin responded with a scowl.

“How could you do that to a person who lives off of speaking to others!? I’ll say it again, but I’m not someone who deserves such a treatment! I was able to recite scriptures fluently at the age of four you know!”

He quickly slipped back into the kitchen.

Everyone looked bewildered, knowing that he was genuinely angry.

“That guy has a strong pride.”

After hearing Lee Jaseung, the ones at the back spoke out their thoughts they’ve been keeping inside.

“I’ve been thinking this since, but that guy is definitely crazy.”

“It’s certain that the Black Way Alliance Leader sent a fake.”

“It doesn’t matter if he’s real or not, let’s just kill him here.”

“He must’ve become arrogant because he became a Leader at a young age.”

“Bastards from Central Plains only learn and cry after seeing a coffin in front of them.”

They all released their killing intent at once.

Feeling their aura, Lee Jaseung took a deep breath. At first, he found his opponents’ killing intent very unpleasant as it stung and clung onto him like something sticky.

However, it was different now. He didn’t mind this sensation at all.

It instead served as a starting signal of battle, or permission for him to unleash his power without restraint.

Lee Jaseung stared coldly at Go Cheonyang and spoke.

“Do you think I came here through all that sandstorm just because you asked me to? I’m not trying to get my money taken away after traveling this distance.”

Go Cheonyang became slightly nervous due to the sudden strange chill he felt.

“If that wasn’t the reason, then why did you come here?”

Three things that defined Lee Jaseung revealed themselves and moved at once.

The cold smile on his lips, the deadly glare in his eyes, and his dagger.

With a flash, Lee Jaseung was already on his way to stab Go Cheonyang in his heart.

Swish!

Gong Yo, one of the Seven Masters wielding a greatsword, stepped forward to block his attack.

A massive greatsword came flying toward Lee Jaseung. The price of underestimating his opponent’s skill and his tiny dagger was steep.

Clang!

When their blades clashed, an immense impact shattered Gong Yo’s wrist that held the sword.

“Ugh…!”

Before his opponent could even scream, Lee Jaseung’s dagger cut his neck.

Pwoosh!

Covered in his opponent’s blood that spurted out, Lee Jaseung launched himself again. His next target was Gimang, standing right beside them.

Swish!

Gimang’s sword rapidly swung six times toward Lee Jaseung.

It was a flashy technique, but Lee Jaseung precisely identified the flaw in the sword and charged straight at his opponent’s chest.

Thunk-thunk-thunk!

After repeatedly stabbing his chest, Lee Jaseung spun quickly like lightning along with his opponent’s body.

Swoosh!

A sword plunged into Gimang’s body. It was Wang Woo’s blade that came flying from behind.

Lee Jaseung used Gimang’s corpse as a shield and pushed forward relentlessly. Wang Woo was taken aback as it was a tactic rarely seen in battles between masters.

That brief hesitation inevitably led to one outcome.

Splatter!

Wang Woo held onto his bleeding neck, took a few steps and collapsed shortly after.

Lee Jaseung’s fighting style truly defied common sense.

However, no matter how unconventional his methods were, they were still masters representing the Ten Thousand Evils Alliance. It should have been impossible for them to be defeated this easily.

There was only one reason why they were overwhelmed, and it was speed. Lee Jaseung was simply way too fast.

Dobek charged in, swinging his huge greatsword. However, Lee Jaseung dodged Dobek’s attack and quickly rushed toward Gu Rupa who was behind him.

Lee Jaseung didn’t lay a finger on Dobek which confused him. Dobek tried to attack again, but Lee Jaseung was already slicing off Gu Rupa’s ankle.

Swish!

Gu Rupa collapsed after his ankle was severed.

Papapapak!

That sound was from Lingpa’s attack aimed to kill Lee Jaseung, but it cut Gu Rupa’s body instead. After cutting his comrade’s body, Lingpa fell as well after swinging his sword wildly in the air.

After having cut down Lingpa in a single stroke, Lee Jaseung was already rushing toward Hwayeo, the only woman there.

Chang! Chang Chang!

She was a master of the swift sword technique. Her moves were so fast that they were almost invisible. However, Lee Jaseung deflected all of her attacks with his short dagger.

Pwoosh!

Blood gushed out from Hwayeo’s wrist.

As she staggered in shock, Lee Jaseung’s dagger sliced her throat.

Swoosh!

The sound of a refreshing gust came in at last.

A scream of despair followed.

A dagger was embedded in Go Cheonyang’s chest.

Lee Jaseung had thrown his dagger as soon as he killed Hwayeo, and it flew like a ray of light toward him.

Go Cheonyang, who stood as if he was dreaming, failed to dodge the dagger.

Watching the fight in front of him made him completely lose his fighting spirit, and even if he was prepared, he wouldn’t have been able to dodge it anyways. It showed just how fast the last dagger was.

“...Damn it!”

He admitted he had never seen an attack so fast, powerful, and unorthodox.

“...What kind of martial art is this?”

Go Cheonyang kneeled down. He saw a person as his vision faded. It was Dobek that Lee Jaseung mentioned earlier, and he was standing there with a blank expression.

“...Why?”

“Why are you only sparing him?”

Go Cheonyang stopped breathing before he could hear an answer, and he fell forward.

Lee Jaseung gave a cold gaze and asked Dobek.

“Do you think I spared you because I don’t have a dagger in my hand right now?”

Like he said, Lee Jaseung was empty handed at the moment. However, Dobek didn’t dare think about attacking him. Instead, he quickly ran toward him and hurriedly kneeled down.

“Not at all! Please spare me!”

Lee Jaseung slowly walked to Go Cheonyang, pulled out the dagger from his corpse and asked.

“Do you know why I spared you?”