Murim Login - Chapter 360
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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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I had no idea how much time had passed. My time seemed endless, while Seo Cheon-Ma’s time was as fast and turbulent as the waters of the Yangtze River I had seen weeks ago. [1]
One thing was certain: even at this moment, time was still flowing.
Whack!
I couldn’t even see his preparatory movements properly. By the time I thought Seo Cheon-Ma had taken a step, my head was already snapped back.
Before I could regain my posture, a sharp pain pierced my ear.
Swish, thud! Thud-thud-thud!
My shoulder, chest, and stomach were pummeled by his palm and fist imbued with energy, flowing smoothly over my upper body. The sound of bones cracking filled my vision with a blinding pain, and I clenched my teeth.
Crunch, my molars shattered, bringing me back to my senses momentarily.
“Aaargh!”
Whoosh!
With a scream squeezed from my lungs, I swung my fist. Seo Cheon-Ma clicked his tongue, catching my clumsy, slow punch.
“You still have some strength left?”
“No…”
My hardened muscles and bones were like kindling in front of Seo Cheon-Ma. His hooked hand grabbed my wrist and twisted, crushing flesh and bone together. My already once-broken left arm splintered into pieces, sending excruciating pain through me.
“Kraaagh!”
“Don’t worry. I’ll call in skilled healers later.”
“Fuck… off!”
I swung my still-intact right arm at Seo Cheon-Ma, who was wiping the blood from his face. The faint spear aura of the White Flame Spear aimed at his lower body.
Swish. Thud.
But the spearhead was blocked effortlessly, not by his Black Dragon Armor or protective energy, but by Seo Cheon-Ma’s hand.
“It’s pointless.”
His hand, wrapped in dark energy, gripped the spearhead tightly, absorbing the energy like it was swallowed by darkness.
“Give up. The outcome won’t change.”
With a low voice, Seo Cheon-Ma pulled the spear. I clung desperately to the spear shaft, my skin flayed and bloody.
The pain was intense but bearable. I had endured plenty of pain in the past and still did.
Whoosh, thud!
I stumbled forward with the spear, a mouthful of dirt mixed with blood. The cold, foul-smelling floor of the underground prison felt oddly comfortable.
‘I’m sleepy.’
If I closed my eyes now, I could fall asleep immediately. When I woke up, perhaps I’d be in the modern world, not in Murim. A comfortable seat on a private plane to Sichuan or the dingy room in Hope Gosiwon would be fine. [2]
‘Maybe this is all just a dream.’
In the past year, I had experienced so much.
From an F-rank hunter, Jin Taekyung, to the third young master of the ruined Jin family. From a wastrel tarnishing the family name to the Hidden Dragon of Shanxi.
I witnessed countless deaths and met many people.
Jin Wi-Gyeong, who adored his younger sibling, and Jin Mu-Gyeong, who wanted to kill me. Hyuk Moo-Jin, who stayed by my side through thick and thin, and Cheong Pung, my friend and rival.
And…
‘Noya.’
My eyelids, which had been closing unknowingly, stopped abruptly.
Right. Fire King Jeok Cheon-Gang.
He was behind me, and I was in front of him.
Therefore, I couldn’t fall or run away.
‘You arrogant bastard, Taekyung, go ahead first.’
‘Hyung!’
‘I’ll follow soon.’
Even after three years, that memory would never be erased.
I couldn’t protect those I cherished, and I survived because of their sacrifice.
Even after gaining unimaginable power, I repeated the same mistake.
‘How is it? Hwajin-Gwimu. Isn’t it amazing?’
Back then, Jeok Cheon-Gang was smiling.
His smile held the joy of avenging his best friend and the relief of protecting a child who was both his disciple and his enemy.
Yeah, it’s amazing…
A small voice escaped through my torn, swollen lips.
Suddenly, the floor of the underground prison didn’t feel comfortable anymore.
I began to rise, feeling the unpleasant chill and stench.
Using my relatively intact right arm to prop myself up, I knelt on both knees. My body felt like it would break at any moment, and my movements were slow, but I didn’t give up.
When I finally stood on my trembling legs, the first thing I met was Seo Cheon-Ma’s deeply sunken eyes.
“Impressive. Almost foolishly so.”
Whack!
My nose broke, and my head snapped back. But I didn’t fall or stagger back. Seo Cheon-Ma’s hand was gripping my shoulder like a shackle.
“Didn’t I tell you many times already? It’s over.”
Crunch.
My shoulder bone shattered. The spear shaft slipped helplessly from my weakening grasp.
I should have felt immense pain, but the pain I felt was faint.
“If you’re waiting for help, it’s futile. The Sichuan Tang Clan will be annihilated. No, by now, everything might already be over.”
Crack!
This time, my leg. Both my legs, which had been intact, shattered simultaneously, causing me to lose balance.
Ironically, the only reason I was still standing was that Seo Cheon-Ma hadn’t let go of me.
“Who could help you like in Hunan? Sword Saint, who will hear about this in two weeks? The descendant of Sword Saint, who is struggling? If not…”
Seo Cheon-Ma turned his head.
Beyond the destroyed and collapsed empty prison from our clash, his eyes rested on a firmly closed iron door.
“Your master, who hasn’t regained consciousness?”
“Cough.”
“Nothing changes. Today, the Tang Clan, Cheongseong, and Emei will be annihilated. And you all will…”
“Cough!”
Seo Cheon-Ma’s words were cut off.
A sticky mixture of dirt and blood splattered onto his face.
He hadn’t expected me, already with shattered limbs, to do something like this.
In a moment so brief it could be called a blink, I headbutted Seo Cheon-Ma, who had frozen while holding my neck.
Thud!
With a heavy thud, Seo Cheon-Ma’s head snapped back.
Despite my energy being long exhausted and severe internal injuries making it difficult to move even a finger, I didn’t know where such strength came from.
And…
‘There’s no time to think now.’
That headbutt was my last act of defiance.
Seo Cheon-Ma, who had been touching his burning forehead, chuckled.
“You really are… a dangerous friend.”
I responded in a faint voice.
“I should’ve smashed your head.”
“If I hadn’t activated my protective energy at the last moment, maybe you would have.”
“You monster.”
“Huh, it feels strange to hear that from you.”
Seo Cheon-Ma’s eyes held emotions I couldn’t decipher. At first glance, it seemed like anger, but it also felt like admiration.
But before I could grasp what those emotions were, an unexpected loud noise reverberated.
Rumble, rumble!
The source of the sound wasn’t from me or Seo Cheon-Ma.
The entire underground prison, stretching hundreds of feet, was trembling. Fist-sized stones fell from the ceiling, and the ground started to crack.
The noise and vibration stopped quickly, but deep furrows appeared on Seo Cheon-Ma’s brow.
“…I need to hurry.”
As Seo Cheon-Ma glanced at the ceiling, muttering, the world flipped. A small shock was transmitted through my back.
Thud!
It was the wall. He had thrown me against the wall.
I coughed up blood, and Seo Cheon-Ma’s indifferent voice reached my ears.
“Sit there for a while. I’ll be back soon.”
“If you’re still alive by then, I’ll take you. If you’re dead…”
After a brief silence, Seo Cheon-Ma continued.
“That wouldn’t be so bad either. You’re a dangerous person.”
“Stop…”
I reached out with all my might towards Seo Cheon-Ma’s slowly retreating back.
I had to stop him. I had to prevent Jeok Cheon-Gang and Shingui from being captured.
But nothing moved as I willed.
“Cough. Kuaaah!”
Dark red blood poured from my gaping mouth.
The clumps mixed in… damn. Those were pieces of my organs.
It wasn’t the first time, nor was it unexpected, but a deep sense of despair weighed down on me.
Disabled limbs and fatal internal injuries.
My mind wanted to block Seo Cheon-Ma’s path, but my shattered arms and legs couldn’t move even a step.
“Ah.”
With a groan, I raised my head blankly.
The corridor where Seo Cheon-Ma had disappeared was empty.
The place where I had clashed with Seo Cheon-Ma was filled with large and small craters and collapsed walls.
Half a day ago, the prison cells that held the prisoners were now filled with broken chains and fallen rocks.
Seeing that, I realized.
‘It’s over.’
I fought and lost.
I tried to stop him, but I couldn’t. I tried to protect them, but I failed.
Seo Cheon-Ma. He was right.
No luck like in Hunan would occur. The Tang Clan, Emei, and Cheongseong would face annihilation, and Cheong Pung couldn’t handle them alone.
‘He’ll probably die or be captured.’
I wished Cheong Pung would escape, but I knew that wouldn’t happen. He was the kind of person who, even drenched in blood, would return to save his benefactors in the underground prison.
I stared into the dark abyss where the exit lay and chuckled weakly.
‘Damn it…’
It felt like everything was my fault. Cheong Pung, Jeok Cheon-Gang, and Shingui—all caught up in this mess because of me.
I felt a small sense of relief that I hadn’t brought Hyuk Moo-Jin and Gung Gi-Bang into this.
Rumble.
A deep noise rose from below, accompanied by a slight tremor. It was like the sound signaling the end of a match.
No need to go twelve rounds like in boxing. I had only made it to the third round and was already down. I would soon die.
‘Sorry, everyone.’
The simple rule stated in the capsule’s user manual:
If you die in Murim, you die in reality.
Everything I had built by traversing the two worlds was crumbling, just like this underground prison.
“I never thought I’d die like this…”
My vision blurred. The pain in my body and the sounds ringing in my ears gradually faded.
As I was about to lose all senses, an old man’s face abruptly entered my field of vision.
His body, emaciated to the point where his bones jutted out, was bound in chains that seemed to have been forcibly removed. He was extraordinarily tall, even in his haggard state.
In a weak voice, I called out to him.
“…Cheonryeok-Ma (Heavenly Strength Demon).”
***
Footnotes:
[1] The Yangtze River, known as Changjiang in Chinese, is the longest river in Asia and is famous for its rapid and turbulent waters, often used in literature to symbolize something powerful and fast-moving.
[2] A Gosiwon is a type of small, inexpensive accommodation in South Korea, often used by students preparing for exams or individuals seeking affordable housing.