Murim Login - Chapter 347
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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 underground dungeon of the Sichuan Tang clan was dark and damp. It had an eerie chill that sent shivers down one’s spine.
Perhaps this was to be expected. Countless individuals had met their end here since the dungeon was first constructed.
“Would you like something to drink?”
In that sense, the old man offering me a shabby flask was like the grim reaper of this underground dungeon.
I briefly wondered how many people this hunchbacked old man had taken down before answering.
“No, thank you.”
“Suit yourself.”
Gulp, gulp.
The old man tilted the flask and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. The worn-out sleeve, which looked like it could crumble any moment, was covered in dark stains that seemed to be blood.
“Ah, that’s good.”
The sharp scent of strong alcohol mingled with the pervasive smell of blood in the corridor, tickling my nose. Drinking on duty would warrant a reprimand in the Taewonjin family, but it seemed not to apply in the Sichuan Tang clan’s underground dungeon.
“I’ve heard you’re a notable warrior of the latter generation.”
It was clear who he was addressing. Cheongpung and Tang Sado had already disappeared somewhere, and Shin Eui and Moonkyung were busy turning the dungeon into a treatment room.
Reluctantly, I replied.
“Not quite notable, but I do manage to pass gas occasionally.”
“The rumors say otherwise. They say you’re the successor of the Fire King, capable of urinating on the signboard of the Nine Great Clans.”
The old man grinned, revealing his decayed teeth.
“The man who did such a thing is confined here.”
“What kind of deed is that?”
“Urinating on the signboard of the Nine Great Clans. I believe it was the Kunlun Sect.”
“…There really are all sorts of people.”
“Haha, he was once a notorious demon of the Demonic Cult. Now, he’s tied up and leaking blood and feces. You must’ve seen him on your way in?”
“I’m not sure.”
The underground dungeon of the Sichuan Tang clan was a labyrinthine structure. Based on what I saw on the way in, there were dozens of cells and about ten prisoners.
‘That guy who urinated on the Kunlun Sect’s signboard must be one of those prisoners.’
They were paying for their misdeeds. I didn’t feel an ounce of sympathy. No, to be precise, I didn’t have the luxury to care about them.
‘I didn’t expect to be this nervous.’
Ever since I entered the dungeon, I couldn’t shake off a unique sense of unease.
It reminded me of the day a few years ago when my mother was taken into surgery. I sat in a quiet hallway, anxiously waiting for the outcome.
‘It’ll be fine. Everything will be fine.’
As I muttered to myself, the tightly closed dungeon door opened, and about a dozen servants carrying various cleaning tools rushed out.
I addressed the last person to emerge.
“Is it done?”
Shin Eui nodded with a bright face.
In just two hours, the dungeon behind him had been transformed into a decent-looking treatment room.
“It’s not perfect, but it’ll do.”
“Then…”
“Yes, we begin now.”
Finally, everything was ready. We had already brought various medicinal herbs extracted from the Ice Valley. The treatment room was prepared, and only one thing remained.
“Thank you all for your hard work. Could you please step aside for a moment?”
At my request, the people from the Sichuan Tang clan, including the old man, began to move. Once they disappeared, I reached into my chest.
‘Open inventory, summon.’
A hard object materialized in my previously empty hand. I handed the Poison Immunity Ring, which I had kept for safety, to Shin Eui.
Wearing the ring on his finger, Shin Eui gestured as he entered the dungeon.
“Bring the patient here.”
I removed the small figure from the palanquin. A faint breath accompanied the tiny form as it emerged.
“This way.”
Holding Jeok Cheon-Gang in my arms, I stepped into the dungeon. The floor was clean, though the lingering stench still pricked at my nose.
But such things didn’t matter. The feather-light weight of Jeok Cheon-Gang made my chest ache profoundly.
‘You’ve grown so weak.’
It had been about a month and a half since we left the Murim Alliance in Hanam. Although we reached Shin Eui faster than expected, Jeok Cheon-Gang had been deteriorating rapidly.
Gently, I placed him on the smooth white stone prepared in the center.
It was a special item called the Cold Ice Stone, provided by Tang Sado. Shin Eui believed the Cold Ice Stone would greatly aid Jeok Cheon-Gang’s treatment.
“He’s sleeping well.”
Despite his haggard appearance, Jeok Cheon-Gang’s face looked peaceful.
I gazed at his wrinkled, age-spotted face.
Memories from our first meeting to the present flashed before my eyes.
‘Interesting fellow.’
‘The more I see you, the more peculiar you are. Which sect do you belong to?’
I vividly remembered the irritable old man I met at Jang Taebo’s house a year ago.
‘The roof is old. It’s leaking.’
I also remembered a master who blamed the intact roof for not being able to save his beloved disciple, shedding tears of regret.
‘If you kill that bastard, you die too.’
‘I entrusted the sacred relic of the Yeolhwamun to him.’
‘I will teach you everything.’
From Shanxi to Hanam, from Hanam to Anhui, and then the year spent in Gu Hua Mountain. I remembered every moment spent with him.
Jeok Cheon-Gang led me out of the Taewonjin family, and I followed him into the vast world. We were always together.
‘See? Wasn’t I right?’
‘About what?’
‘The Spirit Summoning Technique. Wasn’t it amazing?’
Even as he coughed up blood, his faint smile and voice remained in my memory.
And the night the moon shone brightly, when he spoke gruffly, trying to hide his emotions.
‘Don’t call me master. Call me old man.’
“Old man.”
Even calling out loud, there was no answer.
I knew this, but I called out anyway because I had something to say.
“Did you know?”
No, I don’t know, you brat!
A voice seemed to echo like a hallucination, and I chuckled. I grasped Jeok Cheon-Gang’s wrinkled hand tightly and whispered.
“I’ve always wanted to call you master.”
I didn’t know when it started, but at some point, I realized.
He was my master, and I was his disciple.
We both cherished the title of master and disciple in our hearts.
“Jin Gongja, it’s time.”
At Shin Eui’s words, I took my eyes off Jeok Cheon-Gang’s face.
I then bowed respectfully to the elderly doctor and his young apprentice, who stood with calm expressions.
“Please take care of my master.”
They responded with cupped fists.
“We will do our best.”
“I will also assist my master in every way I can.”
That’s enough. Jininsa Daecheonmyeong (盡人事待天命).
Having done all I could, I now left it to the heavens.
God, Buddha, Allah, Jade Emperor?
‘Whoever it is, please help just this once, and I won’t forget it.’
Though I didn’t believe in a specific deity, I believed in an omnipotent being above the sky.
As I prayed briefly to the nameless deity, Shin Eui spoke with a solemn expression.
“Remember, for the next fifteen days, no one must approach.”
What should we do if more than fifteen days pass?
I swallowed the words on the tip of my tongue. Now, I had no choice but to trust the two of them. The only thing I could say was.
“I will stake my life to prevent anyone from approaching.”
—
“Is that all?”
The middle-aged man looked down at the man with an indifferent gaze.
With deformed limbs and flayed skin, the blood-drenched man gasped in a voice barely louder than a whisper.
“I-I’ve told you everything I know…”
“You’re missing the most important part.”
“I don’t know. I truly don’t.”
Tears of blood flowed from his remaining eye, and the already blood-soaked pants became wet with urine.
The man’s voice trembled as he spoke.
“Please, just kill me now…”
The middle-aged man clicked his tongue as he stared at the dying man’s eyes.
“It seems to be true.”
The man had endured unimaginable torture for half a day.
If he had asked to be spared, there might have been room for doubt, but since he had asked for death, it was time to believe him. No one had ever lied to the middle-aged man before, except for the Poison King, Tang Samun.
“I’ve seen enough of your half-day courage. Rest in peace now.”
Swish, thud!
With a gust of wind, the man’s blood-soaked head tilted back. Pierced between the eyebrows by a finger flick, the man died with a peaceful expression.
The middle-aged man, who had been observing the body of the former member of the Green Shadow Squad, a branch of the Sichuan Tang clan, extended his hand.
Boom.
With a thunderous sound, a hole about a meter deep formed in the ground.
In just a moment, the bodies of the five fallen men were neatly piled in the hole and covered with dirt.
“Green Shadow Squad… Just like a bunch of flies.”
The middle-aged man muttered as he looked towards the winding ridges. He gazed in the direction of the Sichuan Tang clan, which lay to the west.
‘I should have killed Tang Sado when I had the chance.’
It was a mistake. The resistance from the Poison King had been fiercer than anticipated, consuming a significant amount of time to purge his toxins and costing him an arm.
Though it would have been feasible to attack the Mount Hua Sect or the Qingcheng Sect, the Sichuan Tang clan was highly vigilant and well-defended. Even with his abilities, it would be impossible to storm their fortress alone with only one arm.
‘But this only extends their lives by a few more days. The outcome will remain unchanged.’
He had long since grasped every movement in Sichuan.
Preparations were complete to hunt down the three tigers crouched in Sichuan: the Mount Hua Sect, the Qingcheng Sect, and the Tang clan.
Now… it was time to call upon the hunters.
Shh!
The middle-aged man moved like a wisp of smoke. Each step covered a great distance as the scenery blurred past him.
He finally stopped at a remote cliff deep in the mountains.
“This is the place.”
Without hesitation, the middle-aged man extended his hand to touch the cliff.
Buzz.
The cliff face wavered with a resonant hum.
Rather than crumbling, it seemed as if space itself distorted. The weathered stone and rock vanished, revealing a gaping hollow.
‘The geomantic formations of the sorcerers. They never cease to amaze.’
But compared to what he was about to do, this was mere trickery.
Step by step, he ventured into the dark cavern. He stood at the center of a peculiar pattern etched into the floor and began to gather his energy.
As a dark, reddish aura emanated from his body and touched the pattern.
“O, Lord of Heaven!”
Flash!
The middle-aged man’s shout was accompanied by a brilliant light. A dark, indescribable radiance filled the cavern.
When the light vanished, thunderous roars echoed.
“Hail the Western Demon Lord!”
“Hail the Demon Lord!”
Hundreds of black-clad warriors with piercing, steely gazes and an aura like that of tigers filled the space.
The middle-aged man, the Western Demon Lord, looked at them with a faint smile on his lips.