Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 238 – Primordial True Qi (1)

It was a night with an unusually white and bright moon.

Joo Woonhyang, who was moving from the individual training room of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Training Grounds to the dormitory, stopped his steps near the rear gate of the dormitory.

‘What’s going on?’

Two Embroidered Uniform Guard Warriors were standing guard under the torchlight at each gate.

Since it was close to the morning, it was common for some of them to doze off occasionally, but it was strange that both of them had their heads lowered.

Joo Woonhyang approached them closely and examined them.

-Swish!

He lightly touched them.

However, they remained motionless with their heads lowered.

At this, Joo Woonhyang placed his fingers on the pulses on their necks,

‘…Acupuncture point sealing.’

Acupuncture point sealing was a technique that could put the opponent to sleep or immobilize them by pressing specific acupoints on the human body, and these guards had been subjected to it.

‘To do such a thing here…’

Although the martial arts of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Warriors weren’t that strong, who could have been so bold to do this in the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s territory?

Joo Woonhyang slowly drew upon his energy with vigilance.

Something didn’t feel right.

-Snap!

At that moment, the sound of fingers snapping came from the corner of the wall.

Turning his head, he saw the figures of two individuals in the darkness where the torchlight didn’t reach.

Focusing his energy to enhance his eyesight, their outlines became visible.

‘Mok Gyeong-un?’

It was none other than Mok Gyeong-un, the late-stage disciple of the Heaven and Earth Society.

But who was the one kneeling in front of him?

The face was covered with something like a headscarf, so it was impossible to see who it was.

However, the appearance of being subdued was utterly unsightly.

‘What’s going on?’

Already, his vigilance towards Mok Gyeong-un had heightened due to the incident during the day, and now he was perplexed about how to interpret this situation.

At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un gestured to Joo Woonhyang.

As if telling him to come closer.

‘He’s bold enough to seal the acupoints of Embroidered Uniform Guard Warriors in the Embroidered Uniform Guard’s territory. No matter what, he’ll try to make contact in some way if I avoid him.’

Although he didn’t know what purpose that fellow had, it seemed like a situation he couldn’t avoid.

After all, they were staying in the same dormitory.

Joo Woonhyang slowly moved his steps towards that place.

As the distance narrowed, Mok Gyeong-un smiled affably and said,

“Finally, we have an opportunity to have a quiet conversation.”

“An opportunity for conversation?”

So, had he been waiting for him all this time?

Although he responded calmly and nonchalantly, Joo Woonhyang’s vigilance heightened.

“How bold of you. Not only sealing the acupoints of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Warriors but also that fellow over there, what’s going on?”

At Joo Woonhyang’s words, Mok Gyeong-un still replied with a smiling face,

“There aren’t many places where we can have a quiet conversation here. So, I prepared a modest setting, although it’s not much.”

“Prepared a setting?”

“Yes, but someone tried to make an appointment first, so I had to make them yield like this.”

-Tap!

Mok Gyeong-un placed his hand on the head of a trainee wearing a headscarf and concealing his identity.

Then, the trainee who had been kneeling trembled.

Judging from the reaction, he seemed to be terrified.

‘Who on earth is it?’

It was difficult to tell who it was just by looking at the attire.

But he wasn’t particularly curious either.

If he tried to save that trainee from Mok Gyeong-un’s hands out of a misplaced sense of sympathy, it might lead to more troublesome matters.

At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un removed the headscarf from the trainee’s head.

‘Wi Bu-cheong?’

He was surprised inwardly at the unexpected face.

Why was that fellow, who could be considered a preselected candidate from Prince Gyeongjin’s faction, caught in the hands of that unsightly bastard?

While he was perplexed, Mok Gyeong-un said with a smile,

“He had done something interesting to your wooden pillow.”

“Something interesting?”

Joo Woonhyang glared at Wi Bu-cheong with eyes filled with suspicion.

‘!?’

He seemed to be filled with fear, unable to even make proper eye contact.

He was a disciple of Gwi Sa-man, the Sixth Devil Sovereign of the Demonic Alliance, so he had acted more arrogantly than anyone else, as if there was nothing in the world to fear.

But to see such a fellow making that expression…

‘What did he do?’

Joo Woonhyang opened his mouth, puzzled.

“…It’s poison.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

At Mok Gyeong-un’s affirmative answer, Joo Woonhyang clicked his tongue inwardly.

He had known it for a long time, but perhaps because he had received teachings from the Demonic Alliance, an unorthodox sect notorious for its wickedness, he had become even bolder.

To think that he would try to use poison on him in a place like this.

‘I guess I really got on his nerves.’

Although the bastard kept glaring at him with murderous eyes whenever he had the chance, he had expected some troublesome incident to occur in the near future, but to think it would be today was quite a spectacle.

Mok Gyeong-un asked with a puzzled expression,

“You don’t seem greatly surprised?”

“It’s not something to be particularly surprised about.”

At Joo Woonhyang’s words, the corners of Mok Gyeong-un’s mouth slightly lifted.

As if he had found something interesting.

“I’m starting to want to have a deeper conversation with you.”

“I don’t.”

When he flatly refused, Mok Gyeong-un chuckled.

Then, he tapped Wi Bu-cheong’s head, who was trembling in fear, with his fingers and said,

“Don’t be like that. Let’s have a bit more conversation. Before that, what should we do with this fellow? It’s a gift of sorts, so do you want to take him graciously?”

Mok Gyeong-un was giving him the choice.

At this, Wi Bu-cheong looked at Joo Woonhyang pitifully and moved his eyes up and down.

As if pleading for help.

‘Please! Please!’

Although he had wanted to kill Joo Woonhyang so badly, at this moment, he was the only lifeline.

This bastard was truly a fiendish fellow.

Joo Woonhyang, who had been staring intently at this sight, spoke,

“I refuse. It’s a bit much to simply accept as a gift someone who tried to harm me. If you’re going to give it as a gift anyway, I’d appreciate it if you could cleanly deal with it yourself.”

“Proxy murder?”

At these words, Mok Gyeong-un said with a smile.

He was even cunning enough to understand his intentions right away.

If he was going to give it as a gift, he should handle it thoroughly himself to avoid any future complications.

On the other hand, Wi Bu-cheong’s eyes widened as if they would burst out.

‘W-What the hell are these bastards?’

He was on the verge of going crazy, caught between the two who were casually bargaining over his life as if buying and selling goods.

If Mok Gyeong-un hadn’t sealed his mute acupoint, he would have screamed or begged for his life, but there was nothing he could do.

He couldn’t understand how he ended up caught between these crazy bastards.

At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un grabbed his head and neck with both hands.

“Proxy murder… You’re quite calculating despite having someone who tried to take your life right in front of you. To refuse such pleasure.”

He was licking his lips as he said that.

Seeing Mok Gyeong-un like that, Joo Woonhyang took a deep breath.

This fellow might be even more dangerous than he had thought.

Joo Woonhyang opened his mouth without showing any reaction, as if it was nothing.

“It’s not like I have a big backing like someone else.”

Behind that fellow were the Heaven and Earth Society and Imperial Concubine Seo.

On the other hand, from Joo Woonhyang’s perspective, directly killing Wi Bu-cheong would lead to troublesome matters.

The guy was a disciple of Gwi Sa-man, the Sixth Devil Sovereign of the Demonic Alliance, and belonged to Prince Gyeongjin’s faction.

He wasn’t even a Embroidered Uniform Guard yet, merely a trainee, so if he hastily killed the bastard, there was a high probability that Prince Gyeongjin’s faction would make a fuss.

Even if the bastard had tried to poison him.

“Backing… You’re quite the exaggerator. Alright. Then, let’s consider this my small gift.”

“What?”

It was at that very moment.

Mok Gyeong-un grabbed Wi Bu-cheong’s hair and tilted his head back.

Then, he whispered into the ear of Wi Bu-cheong, who couldn’t do anything due to the acupoint sealing,

“Do you know? When this type of poison enters through the skin, its effects appear very slowly. But there’s also a way to make it work quickly.”

‘!?’

Wi Bu-cheong’s pupils trembled.

Even the person who had provided him with this poison needle didn’t know about this, so how did this bastard know?

It was a moment of bewilderment.

-Stab!

The poison needle pierced Wi Bu-cheong’s right eyeball.

‘Arghhhh!’

Despite the mute acupoint being sealed, when the needle penetrated his eye, the pain was so severe that Wi Bu-cheong convulsed and even let out a groan.

‘!!!!!!’

Even Joo Woonhyang, who had been watching this scene, was at a loss for words for a moment.

He never expected him to stab the poison needle into the eyeball.

Wi Bu-cheong’s movements, who had been convulsing in pain, ceased not long after.

But before anyone knew it, he had a dazed expression and was in a trance.

‘Ha…’

Joo Woonhyang clicked his tongue at the sight.

Truly bold.

That fellow’s backing wasn’t ordinary either, yet there was not a shred of hesitation in his actions.

Mok Gyeong-un smiled brightly and said,

“Is it a satisfactory gift?”

He was smiling with a radiant face, but it was filled with nothing but malice.

‘…Dangerous. Really.’

Instinct was strongly warning him.

Telling him not to get involved with that bastard.

While his mind was somewhat complicated about what to do, Mok Gyeong-un took steps towards him.

“Now that I’ve given you a gift, shall we learn more about you?”

-Swish!

Mok Gyeong-un’s figure blurred in front of his eyes and instantly closed the distance between them.

‘Fast.’

His lightness skill was beyond imagination.

Joo Woonhyang hurriedly leaped backwards.

-Paat!

It was the Silent Shadow Step he had learned from his second teacher.

The Silent Shadow Step was a body movement technique of the Silent Killing Sect, one of the Four Great Assassin groups. Although it couldn’t be said to be significantly superior to the current body movement technique of the Kongtong Sect, it allowed for such mysterious movements.

-Swish!

Joo Woonhyang somersaulted in the air while leaping backwards, going over Mok Gyeong-un who was trying to grab him.

“Oh?”

‘Take this.’

Joo Woonhyang, who had been rotating his energy in reverse before somersaulting, struck Mok Gyeong-un’s back as soon as he landed behind him.

-Whoosh!

The palm strike infused with rotating wind pressure aimed at Mok Gyeong-un’s back.

However, Mok Gyeong-un bent his waist while simultaneously rotating his body sideways, and then struck Joo Woonhyang’s head and neck with his legs in succession.

-Bam! Thud!

Joo Woonhyang, who was hit on both the neck and head simultaneously, crashed to the ground.

It was so painful that he almost lost consciousness for a moment.

-Grit!

Joo Woonhyang, who gritted his teeth, launched another palm strike with reverse rotation towards Mok Gyeong-un’s ankle as he lightly landed after striking him.

-Whoosh!

This time, even Mok Gyeong-un couldn’t avoid it.

The moment it touched his ankle, Mok Gyeong-un’s body was flipped over by the fiercely rotating condensed wind pressure and was sent flying.

‘It worked.’

Even Mok Gyeong-un, who seemed to have reached the pinnacle-stage of Transcendent Realm according to his estimation, couldn’t withstand this power.

But the moment of joy was short-lived.

Mok Gyeong-un, who had been sent flying, maintained his balance with ease, let alone falling over.

-Tap!

“Interesting technique.”

‘What the? This bastard?’

Joo Woonhyang was dumbfounded.

It was the Reverse Rotating True Qi that possessed the power to almost turn the Gyeokse Stone slab into powder fragments.

It had struck his ankle directly, yet he was too unscathed.

No.

He wasn’t completely unscathed.

The torn flesh near his ankle was slightly open, and blood was flowing down.

Mok Gyeong-un, who had regained his balance and stood upright, slightly frowned as he looked at the wound on his ankle.

‘I blocked it with Death Qi, but a wound still formed.’

Death Qi was the energy of death.

It could scatter most ordinary true energy, but Joo Woonhyang’s technique not only didn’t scatter but also penetrated his Death Qi and inflicted a wound.

‘Is it because of that energy after all?’

The energy in Joo Woonhyang’s middle danjeon was different from ordinary internal energy.

It felt completely opposite to his own Death Qi or Demonic Qi.

The corners of Mok Gyeong-un’s mouth slightly lifted.

“I’m starting to become more and more interested in that power.”

With those words, he took steps towards Joo Woonhyang again.

At this, Joo Woonhyang endured the pain and stood up.

‘It’s a labyrinth.’

This was a complete monster.

To reach this realm at such a young age, unlike himself who had become strong due to various opportunities, he was a true genius.

There was no confidence in defeating him.

However, he couldn’t just take it lying down.

-Paat!

Joo Woonhyang, who judged that he couldn’t defeat Mok Gyeong-un with his current skills, leaped towards the main hall of the Six Offices Officials of the Embroidered Uniform Guard while simultaneously trying to shout.

At that very moment, Mok Gyeong-un’s figure blurred and instantly reached in front of him.

‘Crazy!’

He was even faster than before.

Mok Gyeong-un, who appeared right in front of him, struck his Adam’s apple with the blade of his hand between his thumb and index finger.

“Ack!”

He couldn’t shout as he was hit in the Adam’s apple.

As he staggered backward for a moment, Mok Gyeong-un grabbed Joo Woonhyang’s wrist with lightning-fast Arrest Techniques and twisted it behind his back.

Then, he placed his left palm on the immobilized Joo Woonhyang’s chest.

And he injected Death Qi into his activated middle danjeon.

-Whoosh!

The purpose was to find out what this unique energy in Joo Woonhyang’s middle danjeon was.

It was at that very moment.

-Roar!

The middle danjeon in the heart area became heated as if a flame had ignited.

The surging hot energy began to strongly push out Mok Gyeong-un’s Death Qi.

Mok Gyeong-un’s eyebrows raised.

‘What is this?’

-Mortal, why are you doing that?

Cheong-ryeong asked, seemingly puzzled.

-The energy in his middle danjeon is completely pushing out the Death Qi.

It was a phenomenon he had never experienced before.

The energy of death scatters and weakens the energy possessed by living beings.

However, this energy in Joo Woonhyang’s heart, the middle danjeon, strongly responded to the Death Qi and pushed it away, preventing it from approaching.

-It’s the first time I’ve seen innate source energy with such deep purity and strength.

-Source energy? Did you just say source energy?

-Yes.

-Ha!

At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, Cheong-ryeong couldn’t hide her astonishment.

She, too, had doubts when Mok Gyeong-un said that Joo Woonhyang had an exceptional energy in his middle danjeon, not the lower danjeon.

But upon learning that it was innate source energy with deep purity that opposed the energy of death, Death Qi, she could now be certain.

-Mortal. It seems this fellow… has learned the Breathing Technique of the Immortals.