Chapter 539
The one who was scorned by all as a mere assassin, but who rose to become a star that illuminated the heavens.
A living testament who shattered the fence that only the chosen were allowed to cross and proved the four characters of Supreme Among the Strong through his own strength. Yet most people didn’t know his age, appearance, or even his name. Assassins were supremely discreet, never revealing themselves.
The veil over the name “Killing Star” remained even after several decades had passed.
After the end of the war, the Killing Star vanished without a trace and never once revealed himself during all that time. Still, words about him spread from mouths across a thousand, ten thousand li.
The Killing Star is dead!
Half right, half wrong.
The day when the Demon Lord was defeated by the Martial God, and a hundred thousand demon cavalry fell.
What the old man, who wore a bamboo hat low over his face, buried on an unnamed hill wasn’t just his blood-soaked favorite sword. He buried the title of Killing Star as well.
Thus, the Killing Star died, and Moon Kyung emerged into the world. And the world began to call him by another name.
Divine Doctor. Though the tributaries of the Yangtze River may split in many directions, they ultimately converge into one stream.
In that sense, Moon Kyung was also a river. A single river bearing two names: the greatest assassin in history and the finest physician under heaven.
To put it simply…
‘Top recruitment candidate.’
He was more than qualified to board my S.S. [Going-Murim]. (T/N: Again, this is another One Piece reference for those of you who doesnt know One Piece, Going-Murim is a word play for the first pirate ship Luffy had which was Going Merry.)
Of course, hanging around him meant there’d be frequent assassination attempts, but compared to dying at the hands of a monster like the Western Heavenly Demon Army, I figured it was far better to shit blood a few times instead.
Black cat or white cat. As long as it catches the rat, who cares?
It was rather unfortunate that my first recruitment target wasn’t a cute horned deer, but a former assassin who probably wanted to kill me three times a day. Still, it wasn’t something I could choose.
‘What’s the problem with his personality? He’s got top-tier DPS and healer capabilities.’
Exactly. That’s enough.
To survive in this harsh Murim where even a cheap potion doesn’t exist, I absolutely needed Moon Kyung.
Even if it’s not for me, when someone else I’m with is in grave danger, there might be a chance to save their life at least once.
The biggest problem… was that despite all my confidence, I had overlooked one person.
“Hehe.”
“Hello, benefactor.”
Hello, my ass. What the hell is going on here.
‘No way?’
With trembling eyes, I stared at Cheongpung and barely managed to speak.
“…Why are you coming out from there?”
“Ah, well. I was just passing by earlier.”
“No, I know how you got here. But I mean…”
This is driving me nuts. Seriously.
I was so flustered I could barely form words. Moon Kyung, who’d been watching me fumble, concluded the situation in my place.
“Told you. You were a step too late.”
Cheongpung smiled brightly and chimed in.
“Hehe, that’s how it turned out, benefactor.”
One blow that turned suspicion into certainty.
I alternated my gaze between the two and barely managed to open my lips.
“Is this for real?”
Moon Kyung nodded.
“It’s no legend.”
“So it’s true?”
“Yes. It’s true.”
“Why?”
“I have no reason to explain that.”
“I get that, but I feel like I need to hear it to give up cleanly.”
Moon Kyung clicked his tongue quietly.
“You’re acting quite messy.”
“And if I still want to hear it, messy or not?”
“…Then I’ll have to find a cleaner method.”
Srrng.
Something silver and glinting slid from the end of his long sleeve.
I blinked at the small sword that popped out like a jack-in-the-box.
“Maybe I’m just tired and my eyes are failing me. Why’s that thing coming out at this point?”
“Because this makes it clean.”
“I get that, but wouldn’t it make the surroundings a mess?”
“That doesn’t matter. I know plenty of ways.”
Seems like he’s got a lot of assassin know-how built up over the years.
And I had not even the tiniest interest in experiencing those know-hows firsthand.
“Whew, I’ll be going now.”
“Go. Forever.”
“See you later, benefactor!”
With the vastly different parting greetings from the two, I turned around, muttering under my breath.
‘Wow, I’m losing it.’
Cheongpung beat me to it.
This was an outcome I never even considered.
The Cheongpung I know should be holding a meat dumpling in one hand and a veggie dumpling in the other, trying to decide which one to eat first.
‘Did he invest points in Intelligence instead of me??…?’
With things like this, there’s no choice. I need to quickly recruit the others.
From the entrance of the Medical Hall, Hyuk Mujin spotted me and ran over.
“So, did things go well…… wait, no, judging by your expression, I take that back.”
Seeing my face, Hyuk Mujin quickly corrected himself and blinked.
“I don’t see Moon Kyung around, so… don’t tell me?”
“You can’t tell just by looking?”
“Huh… to think he’d reject Squad— I mean, Captain’s offer. Seems he’s got better judgment than I thought… no wait. That was a joke. Please, I beg you, put your fist down.”
“Crack one more joke and that’ll be your last words.”
Backpedaling to a safe distance, Hyuk Mujin opened his mouth in a solemn tone.
“There’s one way.”
“A way?”
“Yes.”
The confidence in his voice piqued my interest. I asked, clutching at straws.
“What is it?”
“Well… should I go talk him into it? That guy, Moon Kyung, he’d totally fall for whatever I say.”
Fall for it, my ass. More like fall to his death.
If Moon Kyung really wanted, one inhale could make Mujin a corpse, and one exhale could turn him into powder.
“Mujin…”
“Don’t worry. We’ve built up a bond over time. If I go with Gung and try to persuade him, he won’t reject it too coldly.”
“That’s not the issue, you bastard… now you’re trying to commit double suicide?”
I gazed at Hyuk Mujin with a look full of pity.
“You really hate courtesans, don’t you.”
“…Excuse me?”
“Never mind. Anyway, don’t even think about persuading him.”
“Why not?”
“Just don’t, you bastard.”
Hyuk Mujin didn’t know Moon Kyung’s true identity, so there was no way they’d be able to communicate properly.
I let out a long sigh as I looked at his aggrieved expression and opened my mouth.
“Can you write decently?”
“My writing? Please, even Wang Xizhi would cry if he saw it.”
“Answer properly before I make you cry.”
“…I write okay. I was called a prodigy when I was a kid, you know.”
“Then write a few big posters and post a ‘Recruitment’ notice.”
“Recruitment?”
“Yeah. Since it’s come to this, let’s find a proper talent.”
The world is vast, and there are plenty of experts.
And right now, Henan is a sleeping den of many dragons and tigers.
‘What’s a public audition if not this?’
The civil service exam, when you think about it, is the most traditional audition program there is. With my fame and eye for talent, it’s definitely worth a try.
Thinking of the flood of applicants, I murmured to myself inwardly.
‘Let’s do it. Screw it.’
* * *
Shwik, swish swish!
Movements fast and fluid like nothing I’d ever seen before.
Each time his hand danced, the tip of the thick needle gleamed, and the thread stitched the wound shut.
It took only a matter of moments for a swordsman, slowly dying with a large abdominal wound, to be snatched back from death.
“How can someone so young have such medical skill…!”
“I’ve never heard of a medical practitioner like this before.”
“Huh, this is practically divine skill!”
From graying middle-aged men to white-haired elders, the physicians gathered in one place all stared in amazement at the scene before them.
Then, at the voice that followed, they snapped back to their senses.
“It’s done.”
Tap. The treatment had ended like a flash of lightning.
What was even more shocking was not just the speed but the perfection of the treatment itself.
With their mouths agape in astonishment, the physicians looked at the owner of that voice who was now rising from his seat.
“H-How is this possible…”
“You there!”
Too youthful to be called a young man, but too strange in atmosphere to be a boy—Moon Kyung rose while gathering his things and spoke.
“Are there still patients left?”
The physicians exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.
“N-No, there are none.”
“That’s right. Thanks to you, everyone was treated.”
This wasn’t the first time this young practitioner had shown such astonishing skill.
About an hour ago, he had brought in a trauma patient, quickly scanned all the patients lying down, and casually remarked:
‘This’ll be over soon.’
Then, one by one, he began treating them.
The speed and precision of his work were so remarkable that even the physicians who’d come to kick him out couldn’t bring themselves to interrupt.
‘Is there truly such medical skill in the world?’
‘Who is this person?’
They had been waiting to ask for his identity, but the young practitioner’s response was calm and simple.
“Then I’ll be going now.”
“W-Wait! Please hold on. We have a mountain of questions to ask!”
“Who is your master? Could it be…!”
Under the barrage of questions, Moon Kyung simply dipped his head slightly.
“If I have time before I leave, I’ll stop by again to check on the patients.”
“You may come in freely, but you can’t leave as you please!”
“Stop that man!”
“Sorry! But we can’t let you go like this!”
Shwik! Thud!
But the physicians who lunged desperately only clawed at empty air.
They didn’t even brush the hem of his robe. As they stared blankly at the floor they crashed into, Moon Kyung’s voice rang out.
“I’ve left prescriptions tailored to each patient at their bedside. Review them and follow the instructions for treatment.”
“W-What? Prescriptions?”
“Where? Where are they!”
To physicians, prescriptions written by a master were like secret manuals left by a martial arts grandmaster.
Their eyes rolled back in frenzy as they scrambled over the dozens of prescriptions, engaging in a fierce battle of snatching and grabbing.
Meanwhile, Moon Kyung, quietly walking outside, suddenly spoke.
“Come out.”
Srrk.
With a small sound, a figure emerged from behind a large pillar where they had been hiding.
“Ah! How did you know I was there?”
“Just did.”
“As expected, amazing. I really thought I fooled you this time. Hehe.”
Staring directly at the brightly smiling face of Cheongpung, Moon Kyung asked.
“What martial art is that?”
“Footwork.”
“I can tell that much.”
“Ah, I named it Mimi Steps.”
“Mimi Steps?”
“Yeah. I named it after my Mimi. Cool, right?”
What returned to his sparkling eyes was a cold response.
“…What a ridiculously silly name.”
“Ah. Ugh…”
Cheongpung visibly shrank as Moon Kyung gazed at him with heavy, sunken eyes.
‘What the hell is with this kid?’
The name Mimi Steps might sound laughable, but the mystery embedded in those movements was anything but.
‘To create a martial art inspired by the movement of a snake…’
Most martial artists spend their entire lives trying to fully understand and make a single martial technique their own.
But this kid had done something so difficult like it was nothing.
Not only had he made it his own, but he had entirely recreated it.
This guy… he’s got the makings of a Grandmaster.
Geniuses weren’t limited to Jin Taekyung.
No—in some ways, this boy even surpassed Jin Taekyung.
‘Sword Saint, you’ve raised a monster.’
Murmuring internally, Moon Kyung looked at the still-pouting Cheongpung and spoke.
“So why did you reach out to me?”
“Um. Because benefactor is amazing.”
“You think Jin Taekyung is amazing?”
“Yes. I used to want to catch up to him quickly… but now I feel like he is slowly getting further ahead.”
“I see.”
Moon Kyung immediately grasped what he meant.
A genius who had never been second to anyone was now, for the first time, filled with a competitive fire.
“Are you trying to learn martial arts from me?”
“No. You don’t have to teach me.”
“What?”
“I’ll just watch and learn. That’s enough for me. Hehe.”
“…?”
For a moment, Moon Kyung paused—then let out a quiet chuckle.
Seriously, what a ridiculous kid.
To say he’d watch and learn.
And not just anyone’s martial arts—his own.
And yet, strangely, it didn’t feel bad.
“Ah. You smiled.”
“…No, I didn’t.”
“You did though. I saw it.”
“You little—”
“Ah! Now you’re mad.”
“Do you want—”
“Want a dumpling?”
Moon Kyung hesitated, about to draw his short sword, but ended up taking the dumpling Cheongpung held out and bit into it.
It actually didn’t taste half bad.
