Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 310 – Reunion (3)

‘Are they all dead?’

The bamboo hat-wearing man, with narrowed eyes, stared at the inn building shrouded in darkness.

-Swish!

When it rains, the noise interferes with sound perception.

This is because when internal energy is used to enhance hearing, even the sounds of countless raindrops become amplified.

However, this isn’t the only problem.

Rain, which can be considered a natural phenomenon, is filled with a kind of water energy that causes the surrounding energy to disperse.

As a result, discerning something through energy sensing amidst the pouring rain is difficult even for exceptional masters.

‘Does it matter?’

In any case, from the moment one person woke up, the original plan was disrupted.

It was as if sacrifices had already been made.

At that moment, the old man leaning on the cane with a snake’s head spoke in an intrigued tone.

“Who is that fellow?”

At that question, the branch leader of this place spoke with perplexity.

“Th-That person! It’s the one who fell asleep the latest.”

“The latest?”

“Yes.”

“What are you trying to say by only mentioning it like that? You should tell us his name or which sect of the Heaven and Earth Society he is from.”

“I don’t know. They all addressed each other as ‘Lord’, ‘Lord’…… Yes. Even Vice-Leader Mong Seo-cheon’s son called him ‘Lord’.”

“The Vice-Leader’s son called him ‘Lord’?”

‘Hmm?’

The bamboo hat-wearing man couldn’t hide his puzzlement at the branch leader’s words.

Come to think of it, there should only be three people, including the Holy Fire Priestess, since that look-alike bastard died, but their total number was six.

That meant there were others included who weren’t part of the original plan.

However, for the Vice-Leader’s son to be in a position to be called ‘Lord’, he had to be at least a disciple of the Heaven and Earth Society Leader.

‘The Society Leader wouldn’t have secretly dispatched his disciple.’

I don’t know what his identity is.

The bamboo hat-wearing man then spoke to Mok Gyeong-un.

“Is that your real face? Or is it a human skin mask?”

“Oh my…… I thought you were from the imperial palace, but it seems that’s not the case.”

“What?”

“Then it’s one of the two, but since the branch leader over there obviously betrayed us, it’s not the Heaven and Earth Society, so is it the organization of the mark?”

With those words, Mok Gyeong-un drew a mark in the air with his finger, a vertical line penetrating the center of the character ‘two’.

‘!?’

As soon as they saw this, the eyes of the branch leader and all the masked individuals changed.

This was the same for the old man leaning on the snake cane and the one wearing the bamboo hat and bamboo raincoat.

‘Who the hell is this bastard?’

He knows about our existence?

This wasn’t simply a matter of considering it as such.

-Swoosh!

Two of the masked individuals surrounding Mok Gyeong-un moved and attempted to subdue him in an instant with a skilled joint attack.

Targeting the right and left sides simultaneously,

-Swish!

At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un lightly moved his hands separately and instead grabbed the arms of the masked individuals with the technique of Capturing Arm.

And then,

-Crack!

He pulled the two arms he had grabbed and tore them off as if it were nothing.

The masked individuals, whose arms were torn off in an instant, screamed and rolled on the ground filled with rainwater.

-Splash!

“Aaaargh!”

“M-My arm!”

“You’re noisy.”

-Thud! Crack! Thud! Squish!

With Mok Gyeong-un’s kick, one masked individual’s neck twisted and broke, and another masked individual’s head was torn off along with the spine by Mok Gyeong-un’s hand.

The eyes of the surrounding masked individuals were filled with vigilance at the excessively cruel handling.

Regardless, Mok Gyeong-un tossed the severed head and said,

-Splash!

“The masked individuals are obviously small fries, and you two gentlemen and the branch leader are probably higher-ups in the organization, right? At least Three Realms or above……”

Before he could even finish his words,

-Swoosh!

The old man with the snake cane disappeared and instantly appeared in front of Mok Gyeong-un, swinging the head of the cane towards his head.

However,

-Clang!

The cane was blocked by the blade of the Evil Commandment Sword that Mok Gyeong-un had halfway drawn.

As the snake head of the cane made a metallic sound instead of being cut by the exceptionally sharp blade of the Evil Commandment Sword, Mok Gyeong-un spoke with interest.

“It seems it’s not an ordinary cane.”

“Who the hell are you? How much do you know……”

-Tremble tremble!

The old man’s eyes gleamed with surprise.

Although the young fellow’s inner strength was quite impressive, he thought it couldn’t be that strong.

However, as he slowly drew up his inner strength, the snake cane only trembled but didn’t budge.

This fellow was no ordinary person.

-Whoosh!

What is this sword?

It’s only halfway drawn and clashing, but a bizarre demonic energy can be felt from it.

It’s definitely not an ordinary sword.

‘It seems his safe escape from the imperial palace wasn’t just due to luck. He’s definitely not at the level of the late-stage warriors. Good. Then!’

-Swoosh!

The old man began to draw up his energy in earnest.

Then, a green haze rose from his snake cane.

It was none other than poisonous energy.

As the poisonous energy flowed out, the old man’s inner strength doubled, and Mok Gyeong-un’s body was pushed back due to the repelling force.

-Splash! Splash!

However, as soon as his feet touched the ground, there was no phenomenon of being pushed back or anything.

At this sight, the old man’s eyes narrowed.

He had infused poisonous energy into the repelling force, albeit partially, but the fact that Mok Gyeong-un was unaffected made him puzzled.

Come to think of it, not only was he the only one who didn’t fall asleep from the medicinal ingredient he had concocted, but he even figured out what was in it.

‘This fellow has some knowledge of poisons or has built up a tolerance.’

It was impossible to be like this without studying poisons.

Meanwhile, Mok Gyeong-un spoke.

“Old man, it seems you’ve learned poison techniques?”

At that question, the old man laughed as if it were absurd.

“Hohohoho. You are the first youngster to address me in such a manner. Yes, I have mastered poison techniques. Even before you were born.”

-Swoosh!

As soon as those words ended, a green haze rose from the old man’s entire body.

Even his hair had a dark green color and fluttered, and the force was so strong that the raindrops instantly turned into steam upon contact.

It was a tremendous poisonous energy.

At that moment,

-Swish!

The bamboo hat-wearing man raised his hand and pointed at the inn.

As soon as that signal was given, the masked individuals surrounding the inn rushed towards it as if they had been waiting.

-Swoosh swoosh!

-Swish!

‘Indeed.’

As if he understood the bamboo hat-wearing man’s intention, the old man, who was emitting poisonous energy, raised the corners of his mouth and swiftly moved towards Mok Gyeong-un.

It was to prevent Mok Gyeong-un from stopping the masked individuals.

As the snake cane, infused with green poisonous energy, skillfully created a barrier, Mok Gyeong-un fully drew out the Evil Commandment Sword to block it.

-Clang clang clang!

-Swoosh swoosh!

As the snake cane, imbued with green poisonous energy, and the Evil Commandment Sword clashed, blue sparks flew, and the raindrops scattered in all directions.

The places where the scattered raindrops touched,

-Sizzle!

They turned black due to the poisonous energy.

The masked individuals who were unlucky enough to be hit by it quickly lost consciousness as the poison spread throughout their bodies.

At this, the surrounding masked individuals shouted,

“Everyone, get back!”

“Don’t go near the elder!”

The masked individuals hurriedly distanced themselves from them.

As they distanced themselves, the masked individuals couldn’t help but be surprised inwardly.

That’s because, as far as they knew, although they were aware that these individuals possessed extraordinary skills to escape from the imperial palace, they thought they would be considered among the top of the late-stage warriors at most.

‘Who the hell is that fellow?’

‘How is that youngster enduring against Elder So like that?’

‘Is he simply enduring the poison?’

It was to the point where they couldn’t understand the confrontation at all.

In the meantime, the two had already clashed their sword and snake cane over 40 times.

-Clang clang clang!

The old man, swinging the snake cane, spoke with a voice filled with exhilaration.

“Not bad. I never expected to encounter someone other than that damn bastard Tang In-hae who could properly endure five out of my Eight Poisons in a place like this.”

The old man couldn’t hide his genuine admiration.

He thought that even if one had studied poisons and had a tolerance, he could easily knock them down with just five poisons.

However, despite such potent poisonous energy, Mok Gyeong-un wasn’t being pushed back at all.

Where did this fellow come from?

If it was to this extent, it seemed alright to raise it to six poisons.

‘Huh?’

However, the old man suddenly found it strange.

This fellow is impressive for enduring against him, but shouldn’t he be impatient by now?

Thanks to being blocked by him, Mok Gyeong-un couldn’t stop the masked individuals from entering the inn.

Then, he should be anxious and eager to get away from him somehow to go and save his companions, but there was no such sign at all.

Does he prioritize his own safety over his companions’?

Curious about this, the old man asked bluntly.

“You’re quite peculiar. Of course, it would be difficult to escape from me, but do you not care at all even if your companions die?”

“Companions?”

“That’s right.”

“Well. Rather than that, shouldn’t you be more concerned about your subordinates first?”

“What?”

-Boom!

As soon as those words ended, the wall of the inn shattered, and someone was sent flying out.

At this, the old man swung his snake cane widely to create distance and turned his gaze towards the one who was sent flying.

‘!?’

The old man frowned.

That’s because the one who was sent flying from inside was none other than a masked individual.

The masked individual, whose chest was caved in by a fist strike, soon lost his breath and dropped his head.

“You damn rats, how dare you sneak in wearing masks?”

The expelled monk Ja Geum-jeong walked out from the broken wall, clashing his fists together.

He wasn’t the only one who came out.

Seop Chun emerged from inside, with his blood-soaked Gwangmudo sword slung over his shoulder, and right behind him, Mong Mu-yak could be seen holding what appeared to be a masked individual’s arm.

-Boom!

“Ugh!”

Moreover, the ceiling of the inn shattered, and one of the masked individuals was sent flying upwards by a series of rising kicks.

The masked individual, whose waist was almost broken by the storm-like kicks reminiscent of the Shadowless Leg technique, soon tumbled down from the roof.

-Thud! Roll roll! Splash!

The one who landed on the roof after taking down a masked individual was none other than the masked Ma Ra-hyeon.

At the sight of them, the eyes of the masked individuals were filled with perplexity.

They thought only one fellow was awake, but it seemed they were all awake.

What is going on?

The old man raised one eyebrow and glared at Mok Gyeong-un.

“It was you. You were the one who did something.”

The old man instinctively thought that the cause was Mok Gyeong-un.

If he had a tolerance to endure his poison and could even identify the sleeping medicinal ingredients, he should be able to prepare countermeasures against it.

Mok Gyeong-un shrugged his shoulders and spoke with a sneer.

“Then, did you think I would let them continue sleeping even though I knew it was a trap? You’re simpler than you look.”

-Grind!

At this, the old man, whose anger surged, gritted his teeth.

-Swoosh!

Then, he spewed out a green poisonous energy incomparable to before.

It was the realm of the Seven Poisons among the Eight Poisons he had comprehended.

The Seven Poisons could be considered the realm of the Poison Man, and it was to the extent that even the surroundings where he stood and the falling raindrops were affected.

As the green haze spread in all directions, the bamboo hat-wearing man hurriedly shouted,

“Elder! Restrain your poisonous energy!”

If there were only enemies, it would be fine, but there were also subordinates, the masked individuals, nearby.

If he turned into a Poison Man and spewed out such potent poison, even the masked individuals would be poisoned and suffer damage.

“This…… My god……”

At that moment, Mong Mu-yak, who had come out following Seop Chun while carrying the arm of a masked individual, couldn’t hide his perplexity upon seeing the old man holding the snake head-shaped cane.

At this, Seop Chun asked in puzzlement,

“Why are you acting like that?”

“That old man…… is Guyang Sa-oh.”

“Guyang Sa-oh? Guyang Sa-oh…… Could it be?”

“That’s right. He is Guyang Sa-oh, the Eight Poison Snake Staff and the head of the Guyang family.”

Eight Poison Snake Staff Guyang Sa-oh.

If one were to name the masters of poison throughout the martial arts world, the ones who were always mentioned were the Eight Poison Snake Staff Guyang Sa-oh and the Thousand Poison Hand Tang In-hae, one of the Eight Stars.

Both of them had reached the realm of the Poison Man, but only Tang In-hae had his name listed among the Eight Stars, so there were some who considered Guyang Sa-oh to be slightly inferior.

However, that was the kind of inference that novices in the martial arts world would make.

The reason Guyang Sa-oh couldn’t have his name listed among the Eight Stars was that he belonged to the Western Regions, such as Nanman or Beihai, outside the Central Plains.

Having reached the realm of the Poison Man, considered the pinnacle of poison techniques, he could be said to be the most specialized in killing people among all the masters who wielded various weapons.

At this, Mong Mu-yak hurriedly shouted,

“My Lord! That old man is the Eight Poison Snake Staff Guyang Sa-oh! Don’t engage him in close combat!”

At his warning, the old man, no, Guyang Sa-oh, snorted.

“It’s already too late. You were so confident, so let’s see how much of my poison you can…… Where are you looking, you bastard?”

Guyang Sa-oh, whose fighting spirit had risen, frowned.

That was because Mok Gyeong-un was not looking at him but at the person behind him.

The one Mok Gyeong-un was staring at was none other than the bamboo hat-wearing man.

He was staring at him very intently, which was absurd.

‘This bastard is looking down on me.’

He had drawn up to the Seven Poisons among the Eight Poisons in an instant.

Since he had turned into a Poison Man, each of his attacks was no different from extreme poison.

Yet, in such a dangerous situation, he was looking away?

He must be crazy, wanting to die.

-Smack!

Guyang Sa-oh, who had stabbed his cane into the ground, assumed the stance of the Toad Skill.

He crouched down like a toad with his legs bent, which was his unique technique, the Toad Poison Skill.

He would make him pay the price for looking away……

-Shiver!

At that moment, Guyang Sa-oh’s eyes wavered due to the chills running down his spine.

That was because Mok Gyeong-un was smiling so eerily that the corners of his mouth reached his ears, and he was exuding a tremendous killing intent that was unbelievable.

It wasn’t just him who felt this tremendous killing intent.

All the masked individuals surrounding them were overwhelmed by the killing intent in an instant, flinching and taking steps back.

‘W-What killing intent?’

‘This…… What the hell……’

-Clench!

At some point, the bamboo hat-wearing man had moved his hand to the sword hilt hidden inside his bamboo raincoat.

It was because he instinctively realized that the tremendous killing intent was directed at him.