The Growth of a Titan-Chapter 465- A Sense Of Victory And Triumph

Twang~

Cheong-su plucked one of the seven strings with one hand while having the other slide across it. This caused a reverberating and long-lasting sound to echo out. But before this musical note could reach its crescendo, Cheong-su’s fingers started flittering across the seven strings.

A song that had high notes with little variation slowly engulfed this area of the deck and spread out. The music was not fast, but the upbeat feel of the notes gave one the sense that it was.

Sol nodded when he heard the song before he turned to the laughing disciples and said.

"Everyone follow the way how I clap."

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Sol began clapping and the disciples obediently followed.

It was a type of continuous clapping with little to no interval between each one. When so many disciples clapping overlayed with the music, everyone suddenly felt the atmosphere had become several times more festive.

Sol then looked toward Ushi and said with a smile.

"Now, let’s dance."

Ushi smiled awkwardly and said.

"Elder Brother Sol, I don’t really know how to dance."

Sol patted his shoulder and reassured him.

"It’s going to be fine, just follow my movements. The theme of this dance is revenge."

"Huh? What does that even mean?"

"You’ll know, just think of the dance as Martial Arts but the movements are slower. And remember to follow my movements, respond as naturally as you can."

After saying that Sol lowered his body and got into a stance. Ushi, seeing this, plucked up his courage and got into a similar stance as Sol. He soon ignored the disciples who could still be heard joking over the clapping and music, and focused on Sol.

Sol gave a smile at this before he threw out a punch. Ushi easily tilted his head to the side and dodged it as it wasn’t that fast. He then countered by throwing a punch of his own towards Sol’s chest. Sol stepped back just out of reach of his fist, but then tapped his fist and said.

"Loosen your grip, be more relaxed."

Ushi’s tightly clenched fist loosened, but Sol suddenly grabbed his wrist and pulled him forward.

Sol slid past and exchanged positions with Ushi, while at the same time nudging him in his chest, causing him to stumble backward.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The disciples clapping continued.

Ushi regained his footing quickly and looked at Sol who had begun circling him while in a stance. It looked as if he was a predator sizing up his prey, looking for the best method of attack. But along with this, Sol’s footsteps caught Ushi’s attention. He realized each step Sol took matched the rhythm of the music and the claps of the disciples.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Ushi quickly adapted and followed Sol’s movements. The two then circle the clearing eyeing each other. The disciples, upon seeing this, suddenly became intrigued and started paying close attention to this so-called dance.

Sol took the initiative once again and attacked. He crouched down while his leg went sweeping toward Ushi’s foot. Ushi responded by raising his leg, dodging the attack. However, Sol suddenly sprang up from the ground and swept out his leg again towards Ushi’s head.

Despite being off balance due to lifting his foot, Ushi still managed to pull his head back in time for Sol’s leg to go whipping by his face. He then steadied himself before taking a step forward and throwing out a punch towards Sol.

Sol’s movements were slow and graceful. After his kick, he landed on the ground with his back towards Ushi. As Ushi’s fist approached from behind, Sol leaned back and dodged it. His hands met the ground and his legs flicked over aiming for Ushi’s face once again.

Ushi could only pull back his fist and blocked Sol’s legs with both hands.

Thud!

A sound of contact echoed out from the clash and Ushi was forced to retreat from the blow. Sol used the rebounding force to push off his hands and land on his feet; then swiftly turning around he sent out a punch toward Ushi’s chest before he could fully recover.

Ushi blocked the fist but was pushed back once again.

Despite the advantage, Sol didn’t continue to attack Ushi but started circling him once again. For some reason, Ushi got the sense that Sol was mocking him by doing this. But not only him, the clapping disciples in the crowd also felt this way for some reason.

"Brother Ushi, why are you letting Brother Sol win? You’re not even putting up a fight!"

One disciple in the crowd was heard saying.

Ushi didn’t say anything and instead joined Sol in circling the clearing, the clapping of the disciples and the music echoing in his ears. However, he secretly made up his mind to get an advantage in the next exchange.

However, before Ushi could take the initiative to attack this time, he suddenly saw Sol’s smiling expression. He then recalled what Sol said before this all started, that the theme of this dance was revenge. Immediately, Ushi understood what those words meant, and he stopped himself before he could attack Sol.

Seeing this, Sol smiled and nodded. He then took the initiative for the third time and attacked Ushi.

Ushi was once again at a disadvantage in the third exchange.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

The clapping disciples who were watching all felt that Ushi should be able to do better. This feeling then soon turned into annoyance as there were times when Ushi almost got the upper hand, but Sol quickly shut it down.

As the third exchange finished with Sol and Ushi circling each other, the clapping disciples unknowingly started hoping Ushi would gain the advantage in the next round. However, this feeling quickly turned into frustration when it didn’t happen.

Even the disciples who were once cheering for Sol went to Ushi’s side.

Ushi was now the underdog and the disciples started to get more invested in this dance as they wished for him to win.

When Ushi finally got the upper hand in one exchange a few people actually cheered. As these small victories increased so did these disciples’ excitement. This soon accumulated into the sixth round where Ushi was no longer at a disadvantage but was actually winning.

Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!

Unknowingly the disciples clapping started getting faster and faster. They realized that the more they clapped the faster Ushi’s movements became. It was as if their actions could directly influence the outcome of the dance. As if they were the ones in the midst of battle, finally overcoming an opponent that had been suppressing them all this while.

Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!

The disciples’ clapping grew louder and faster along with Ushi’s movements as he continued to win exchanges against Sol. Similarly, Cheong-su who had been watching the dance adapting to the changes, the music gained a rising feeling as if something was about to happen.

Then everything, the music, the disciples clapping, Ushi’s increasing advantage, everything accumulated into one scene. The scene of Ushi striking Sol in his chest and causing him to stumble back.

Sol soon regained his balance while Ushi started circling around him. Their roles reversed.

Sol smiled and then got into a stance before facing off with Ushi as they circled the clearing together.

Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!

The disciples clapping and the music were at an all-time high. Ushi couldn’t help but have a prideful expression appear on his face. Everything until now had been a struggle and finally, he had succeeded in overcoming it.

Suddenly, Sol paused and stood upright before bowing towards Ushi. It looked like a sign that he admitted defeat.

Ushi was at first taken aback but he quickly stood up and returned the bow as if to acknowledge his win.

The music then seemed to reach a crescendo and suddenly came to an abrupt but fitting end.

The disciples who were engrossed in this dance—a dance that told a story of struggle and finally taking revenge—immediately erupted into a cacophony of cheering. The amount of excitement they were feeling even surprised them. Some of them even rushed towards Ushi and began throwing him into the air, a sense of victory and triumph in their hearts.

Sol upon seeing this couldn’t help but chuckle. He had somewhat achieved his goal with this dance.