Murim Login - Chapter 336
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I will re-publish the earlier chapters to fix those issues with the translation. I apologize in advance if it did not meet your standard. Please comment the chapters you find that is lacking in quality so I can fix them ASAP. Thanks for understanding!
Current re-published chapters (270 - 305)
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The word that came to mind upon seeing the old man was “withered tree.”
In the dark pavilion, surrounded by curtains on all sides, the old man’s solitary figure standing there resembled a lifeless ancient tree. Had he not turned around slowly at that moment, I might have thought he had taken root in the ground.
His eyes glowed with a greenish light.
The old man, Tang Sado, known as the Lord of Ten Thousand Poisons, spoke in a hissing voice akin to a snake.
“You brought a letter?”
The middle-aged man answered.
“Yes, Uncle. It’s from Sword Saint Ma Jeonghak…”
“Did I ask you?”
The middle-aged man realized his mistake, bowed, and exited the pavilion. Tang Sado, who had coldly dismissed his nephew with just a few words, leaned back in his leather chair.
‘The old man’s got a presence.’
The problem was, it was the presence of a villain.
Just from his first impression, he seemed more like someone from a demonic cult than a righteous faction. I stepped forward under Tang Sado’s gaze.
“I am Jin Taekyung of the Taewon Family, here to meet Lord of Ten Thousand Poisons, Tang Sado.”
Tang Sado responded with an inscrutable expression.
“I have heard that Jeok Senior took on a disciple in his later years. I also have connections with the Taewon Family.”
“Oh, is that so?”
This was a good sign.
Tang Sado, stroking his chin as if recalling something, spoke again.
“Your name… yes, Fire Sword Jin Baekyang. Now I remember.”
A good sign, my foot. That name keeps popping up whenever it’s least welcome.
It seems the Grand Elder was quite the figure in his heyday.
Considering his significant achievements during the Great War between the righteous and the demonic factions, it wasn’t surprising that he had connections with other masters.
‘Even the Fire King had seen him once or twice.’
Thanks to that, during my first meeting with Jeok Cheon-Gang, I got beaten up with fire energy before I could even explain the situation.
Tang Sado, gazing at me quietly, asked.
“How has Jin Baekyang been lately?”
“Well, you see…”
I looked around before speaking. I wanted to be prepared for any sudden attacks or poison darts.
“He passed away.”
“What?”
I knew it would come to this.
As Tang Sado’s eyes widened, I hurriedly continued.
“He died in an accident. But there’s a story behind it, and if you give me a moment, I can explain everything without any misunderstanding…”
“There’s no need.”
“Pardon?”
“He was an unlucky fellow. Every time people praised him as a hero, it made me sick.”
“For a martial artist, an untimely death is just part of life. Once dead, that’s the end.”
I’m relieved things are going smoothly, but the old man’s character is as toxic as poison. Unlucky fellow? It sounded as if he was glad Baekyang was dead.
‘His character is almost as bad as Amcheon’s.’
Whether he knew of my doubts or not, Tang Sado waved his hand dismissively.
“Let’s stop talking about the dead and get to the point. So, Ma Jeonghak sent me a letter?”
“Yes, it’s best if you read it yourself.”
I made a gesture of reaching into my bosom and summoned the Sword Saint’s letter from my inventory.
Tang Sado took the letter, and as he read through it, his brows furrowed until he finally roared in anger.
“These scoundrels!”
Whoosh!
His powerful voice, imbued with internal energy, made the entire pavilion tremble. Tang Sado, who had been expressing his anger, spoke with a tone full of contempt.
“Is everything in this letter true?”
“Yes, exactly as written.”
The letter from the Sword Saint detailed the incidents in Henan and requested Tang Sado’s cooperation in finding the Divine Healer to treat Jeok Cheon-Gang.
“So, Jeok Senior’s condition is that severe…”
“Indeed, before we find the Divine Healer, there’s something I would like to ask for.”
The Sichuan Tang Clan was famous for their poisons and hidden weapons, but each member of the family was also an excellent physician.
And among them, there was one person at the pinnacle.
I looked straight into Tang Sado’s eyes and asked.
“May I meet the Grand Elder?”
The Poison King, Tang Samun.
He was known as the best in the world regarding poisons and hidden weapons even before the Great War between the righteous and the demonic factions.
A master who once ruled an era, he had disappeared twenty years ago after passing on the leadership of the Tang Clan to his only child.
The old man before me, Tang Sado, was the one who had taken his place.
“It might take days to find the Divine Healer. If the Poison King could look at my master’s condition before then…”
“Enough.”
Tang Sado interrupted, his face stiff.
“No. That is my answer.”
“What?”
The unexpected response made my heart sink.
Even though Tang Samun had not shown himself for many years, Tang Sado undoubtedly knew his whereabouts.
“No,” meant that he was unwilling to help even if he knew.
My voice trembled as it slipped through my lips.
“Why?”
“I cannot say.”
“Cannot say?”
“I will assign some people to guide you. Qingcheng and Emei will surely help.”
What did I just hear?
The shock from this statement was several times greater than the previous one. It implied that the Sichuan Tang Clan would not provide any more assistance regarding this matter.
They would help only by guiding us to Qingcheng and Emei.
That’s all the help we could expect from the Tang Clan.
The back of my head throbbed as if I had been hit with an iron club. A hot feeling surged in my chest.
“Is that all?”
“What more help do you expect?”
“We need to find the Divine Healer!”
“That is your problem, not ours. Even though you brought Ma Jeonghak’s letter, it was just a request, and I have refused it. That is all.”
I was speechless.
Tang Sado was right. For him and the Tang Clan, all of this was a matter of choice, not obligation.
‘So that was it.’
Realizing the harsh reality I’d been denying, an overwhelming sense of disappointment and anger surged up.
As I struggled to find words, a sweet scent of pastries wafted through the air, and someone stepped forward.
“This is Cheongpung of the Hwasan Sect, paying respects.”
Was this another side of him?
Cheongpung, taking a respectful stance with a demeanor I had never seen before, spoke.
“I do not know why you are refusing to help, but if you do, I will never forget this grace.”
“I know you are a disciple of Ma Jeonghak. When forming ties of grace and resentment in the martial world, one must be cautious. Do not interfere and step back.”
“This is not interference.”
“Then what is it?”
Cheongpung answered with unwavering eyes.
“My grandfather called it human decency.”
Tang Sado, looking at Cheongpung with a complicated expression, shook his head.
“Even if Ma Jeonghak personally came to request, my answer would not change.”
“But…”
As Cheongpung, Gungibang, and Hyeok Moojin all tried to speak at once, I suddenly blurted out a question.
“What’s the reason?”
“Reason?”
“What reason does the Tang Clan have to refuse us? Everyone knows the power of the Tang Clan. So why are you refusing?”
“And if I don’t want to say?”
“Then…”
I stared into Tang Sado’s green-tinged eyes and answered.
“Then it means that the matters between the Tang Clan and us will not be resolved favorably. And I don’t mean that in a good way.”
“Ha, such a fearless fellow.”
“Normally, I assess the situation before acting, but this time, I’m in a desperate situation.”
At most, we had half a year left.
We had failed to find the Divine Healer even with the efforts of the top martial arts sects and the imperial family.
If Jeok Cheon-Gang died because we couldn’t find help in time, if it was due to the Tang Clan’s refusal…
“Then I don’t know what I might do.”
The pavilion fell into a suffocating silence.
After a long, silent stare, Tang Sado finally spoke.
“It is unfortunate what happened to Jeok Senior.”
“If it’s unfortunate, then help us.”
“I wish I could. But what can I do? The main house currently lacks the capacity.”
Lacks capacity?
Hearing that, the scenes I had witnessed on the way here flashed before my eyes.
The oppressive atmosphere, the artisans working tirelessly, and the endless movement of weapons being transported somewhere.
“What… exactly is happening here?”
“Happening?”
Step.
Tang Sado stepped toward me.
His eyes, glowing eerily due to the effects of his poison techniques, shone with both anger and sorrow.
“It has already happened. Now, all that remains is for the main house to mobilize all its forces to exterminate the culprits.”
This was it. The reason why the Tang Clan couldn’t help us now.
The reason he couldn’t easily respond to a brash young man challenging him right in front of his eyes.
Finding the Divine Healer to save the Fire King was less urgent and less significant than the matter at hand.
“…No way.”
Sensing my realization, Tang Sado spoke in a voice dripping with murderous intent.
“By the time we heard, it was too late. His body was already in pieces.”
Those words turned my suspicion into certainty.
The Poison King, Tang Samun, was dead.
* * *
“Hmm.”
A man of moderate height with a round face, the middle-aged man had an unremarkable appearance.
Leaning against the wall of a dark cave, he scrutinized his forearm and muttered.
“This won’t do. The poison is too severe.”
The middle-aged man clicked his tongue.
Despite his best efforts, all he managed was to contain the poison in one arm.
“The Poison King… he was tougher than expected.”
The last expression of Tang Samun, the Poison King, as he finally breathed his last, was still fresh in his mind.
But for the middle-aged man, it was far from satisfactory.
Although he had succeeded in eliminating a master like the Poison King, he had failed to accomplish the more critical task.
‘I never expected it to be easy.’
Muttering to himself, he suddenly struck his left forearm with a chop.
In an instant, a blinding flash accompanied the severed arm hitting the ground.
Slash, hiss!
Poisoned blood splattered, corroding everything it touched. Simultaneously, a choking poison smoke rose.
Small creatures observing from hidden spots perished instantly upon exposure to the poison smoke, without understanding what had happened.
Screech, screech…
Listening to the dying cries of bats, the middle-aged man stepped out of the cave, smiling under the sunlight.
It was an incongruous smile for someone who had just severed his own arm.