Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 140 – Annihilating Poison King (1)

The Shadow Clan Master gently placed his hand on Mok Gyeong-un’s shoulder and spoke with a benevolent smile,

“We are now in the same boat.”

“I will keep that in mind. I will contribute to the revival of the faith.”

The Shadow Clan Master nodded with a satisfied expression, then crossed his hands, brought them to his shoulders, slightly bowed his head, and spoke in a reverent voice,

“May the Holy Fire’s blessing be upon you.”

Mok Gyeong-un followed suit.

“May the Holy Fire’s blessing be upon you.”

“Ohohoho. Then get some good rest.”

“Yes.”

With that, the Shadow Clan Master left the private residence.

The Shadow Clan Master’s attitude, which had been as if he would kill Mok Gyeong-un at any moment until just now, had changed to be quite favorable.

It was because he was convinced that Mok Gyeong-un, who could write and read the original scripture in Persian, was a follower of the Baehwa Faith that worshipped fire.

After the Shadow Clan Master’s presence had completely disappeared, Cheong-ryeong’s voice reached Mok Gyeong-un’s ears.

-You really have a knack for using your head.

With a single lie, Mok Gyeong-un had led the situation as he intended.

He had made it seem as if they were on the same side and made the Shadow Clan Master interested in the person he was searching for, the Ghost Blade.

Mok Gyeong-un chuckled and replied,

“The more hands helping, the better.”

Helping hands?

It must mean there are more useful pieces to take advantage of.

Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue and said,

-That’s true, but it’s best to be careful.

“Careful… of the Shadow Clan Master?”

-Yes. Those who worship fire are not called heretics and persecuted for no reason.

“That’s interesting.”

-What is?

“It’s surprising that someone who claims to dislike black-and-white logic is so passionate about a religion that came from the Western Regions.”

-…

At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, Cheong-ryeong was at a loss for words.

It was difficult to refute a statement that pierced right through the heart of the matter.

She had expressed her hatred for the black-and-white logic between the righteous and evil factions with her own mouth, but when faced with a believer of the Baehwa Faith, which was called a heresy and persecuted, didn’t she treat them with prejudice?

She spoke in a slightly lowered voice,

-… You’re right. This is also a kind of prejudice.

Mok Gyeong-un smiled at her readily admitting it.

He liked this aspect of her.

Of course, her words didn’t end there.

-But I have experienced that era. They also treat those outside their own religious group as heretics. If you know that, it’s best to be cautious.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

-Anyway, even if you’ve made the Shadow Clan Master move, there’s not much difference in having to move with your own feet.

“That’s true.”

Mok Gyeong-un had set up the situation as if the clue to the incarnation of Ahriman might be connected to the Ghost Blade, one of the Eight Stars and possibly the enemy who killed his grandfather.

So he thought the Shadow Clan Master might tell him something he knew about the Ghost Blade, but surprisingly, he also knew nothing.

[… It’s quite troublesome that the Ghost Blade might be the clue.]

[Do you know something?]

[About the Ghost Blade?]

[Yes.]

At Mok Gyeong-un’s question, the Shadow Clan Master shook his head.

As the head of the Shadow Clan in charge of information in the Heaven and Earth Society, he thought he might know something.

But the unexpected answer drained his energy.

[… I’ve heard rumors that the Ghost Blade might be a master of the Heaven and Earth Society.]

[You mean the rumor that the Ghost Blade might be the Society Leader’s personal bodyguard?]

[Yes.]

[A kid who hasn’t been in the organization for long has heard all sorts of rumors. Yes, there was such a rumor at one point.]

[Is it just a rumor?]

[I don’t know.]

[What do you mean, you don’t know?]

[Rumors can have various tendencies. They can be completely false, or they can circulate because they are close to the truth.]

[… Which side do you think it is, Master?]

[I can’t give a definite answer.]

[Why?]

[Only the Society Leader himself knows the identity of his personal bodyguard. I’ve heard that even the vice-leader, known as the Society Leader’s right-hand man, doesn’t know.]

At the Shadow Clan Master’s words, Mok Gyeong-un thought it seemed fishy.

Rumors didn’t spread for no reason.

However, at this point, even if he was suspicious, it was difficult to directly contact the Ghost Blade.

He had considered using Cheong-ryeong and the spirit servants, but since the spiritual perception of masters above the peak was incomparable to those below, it was difficult to make them move recklessly.

Moreover, he had heard that Cho Tae-cheong, who might surpass even the Primal Killing Pavilion’s diviner In Seo-ok with his techniques, was guarding the main hall where the Society Leader resided.

In many ways, he still lacked strength.

However, Mok Gyeong-un, who couldn’t just wait while building his strength, carefully said to the Shadow Clan Master,

[I heard that Elder Baek Sa-ha, the Annihilating Poison King, had confronted the Ghost Blade. I know he’s the only one who survived after fighting him. Wouldn’t he know something?]

[… He probably would.]

[Then how about trying to contact Elder Baek Sa-ha?]

[That would be difficult.]

[Pardon?]

Why was it difficult?

As Mok Gyeong-un was puzzled, the Shadow Clan Master clicked his tongue and said,

[The Annihilating Poison King is currently in seclusion, observing a three-year mourning period for his deceased mother. Unless it’s a special case, he’s not meeting anyone.]

[Ah…]

The three-year mourning period is observed for three years after a parent’s death to fulfill one’s duty and filial piety towards them.

After the burial, the ancestral tablet is enshrined in the mourning hall, and the mourner resides in a hut, offering ritual meals to the deceased morning and evening.

Sometimes, during the three-year mourning period, especially in the early stages, no guests are received except for blood relatives.

The Baek family, the Annihilating Poison King’s household, was like that.

‘This is unexpected.’

If the Shadow Clan Master moved, wouldn’t it be easier to obtain information?

But with this, it became difficult.

Mok Gyeong-un said as if he had no choice,

[… Then how about I go?]

[You?]

[Yes. I happen to have three first-place tokens, so I can ask the executives for guidance.]

[You’re going to use that for this?]

[Yes.]

At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, the Shadow Clan Master couldn’t hide his bewilderment.

It was an opportunity to receive guidance from two of the Eight Stars, known as the supreme masters of the era, among the Five Kings.

Why would he give up that opportunity and ask for guidance from the Annihilating Poison King, who, in a sense, practiced a unique poison art different from ordinary martial arts?

[Isn’t that too much of a waste?]

[Of course, it could be, but I also want to do something for our faith. Please let me lend a hand.]

[Ah…]

At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, the Shadow Clan Master couldn’t hide his satisfaction.

What believer wouldn’t be happy to hear that he would fulfill his duty as a follower of the Baehwa Faith?

[If you’re willing to do that, there’s nothing more I could ask for. Then, since we’re already at it, tomorrow might be a good day.]

[Tomorrow?]

[Yes. It seems that Baek Sa-ha’s grandson is having his first birthday tomorrow.]

[First birthday?]

[Even if he’s in the middle of a three-year mourning period, he won’t just overlook his grandson’s first birthday, who will carry on the family line. They’ll have a simple feast, even if it’s just with close relatives.]

Since it was his grandson’s first birthday, his mood would be better than usual.

The Shadow Clan Master suggested taking advantage of this.

[I was planning to send a gift to the Annihilating Poison King anyway. If you deliver it and carefully request the benefit of the three first-place tokens, it should work out.]

***

Early in the morning before the sun had risen,

-Creak!

Jang Neung-ak, the second disciple of the Society Leader, hurriedly came to the residence of his blind subordinate, Wi Maeng-cheon, after receiving an urgent message.

Jang Neung-ak, who had come to the residence, couldn’t contain his anger and gnashed his teeth.

Wi Maeng-cheon’s head, decapitated and dead.

What kind of sudden calamity was this?

-Grab!

Jang Neung-ak grabbed the collar of Jong-im, Wi Maeng-cheon’s subordinate, and pressed him,

“What the hell were you doing for this to happen?”

“… I apologize.”

Jong-im couldn’t say anything and only uttered an apology.

At his response, Jang Neung-ak threw Jong-im to the floor.

-Bang!

“Ugh.”

Jang Neung-ak, who had thrown him to the floor, glared at the guard warriors prostrating as if confessing their sins with sharp eyes.

Then he soon spoke,

“What kind of guards are you who can’t even protect your own master? Behead them all.”

“Yes.”

-Swish!

At Jang Neung-ak’s order, Ho Jong-hyeok, the third-ranked member of the Five Mountains Alliance and the Grand Clan Leader of the Destruction Clan, raised the huge ax he was carrying on his shoulder.

The four guards, frightened, pleaded with tears in their eyes,

“P-Please spare us!”

“We were also suddenly attacked.”

At their pleas, Jang Neung-ak snorted.

They all claimed to have fallen asleep at that moment and knew nothing, yet now they were begging to be spared.

“Kill them.”

-Slice!

“Ugh!”

Despite their desperate pleas, they all ended up with their heads cut off by Ho Jong-hyeok’s ax.

Still not appeased, Jang Neung-ak, the second disciple of the Society Leader, considered killing even Jong-im, who was known as Wi Maeng-cheon’s right-hand man.

However, the other subordinates dissuaded him.

“Please hold back. If you do that, there will be no one to lead Maeng-cheon’s subordinates.”

“…”

There were about fifty elite warriors personally trained by Wi Maeng-cheon.

If Jong-im, a lieutenant-level subordinate who had been managing them, was also killed, their morale might decline, and it could become difficult to control them.

Knowing this, Jang Neung-ak also barely restrained himself.

However, this was not something that could be overlooked.

‘How dare they kill this young master’s subordinate.’

What an absurd bastard.

He had carried out this audacious act not elsewhere but within the inner city of the Heaven and Earth Society.

Touching his person, who might become the next Society Leader, was essentially equivalent to declaring war.

-Swish!

At that moment, someone touched the cut surface of Wi Maeng-cheon’s severed neck and spoke,

“He’s no ordinary person.”

“What?”

“He cut Maeng-cheon’s sword and neck with a single slash.”

A man with an angular jaw and a fierce-looking face pointed to Wi Maeng-cheon’s broken Bamboo Sword on the floor.

Although it was impossible to know exactly how the duel unfolded since the cunning bastard had erased all the footprints on the floor, one thing could be inferred from the broken sword and the cut surface of the neck.

Jang Neung-ak’s eyes sharpened.

‘He cut Maeng-cheon’s sword and neck with a single slash?’

To do that, one had to be a tremendous master of the sword and have reached the perfected realm of the supreme stage.

A woman in colorful clothes with thick lips approached and said,

“Then the suspects are narrowed down to some extent.”

Wi Maeng-cheon was a subordinate of Jang Neung-ak, the second disciple of the Society Leader.

If someone was bold enough to kill Wi Maeng-cheon in the middle of the night, it would be the work of those who wanted to hold him back from becoming the next Society Leader.

‘Na Yul-ryang… Wi So-yeon…’

The first people that came to mind were naturally his older and younger martial brother and sister competing for the position of the next Society Leader.

They were also supreme masters of the sword, so this kind of thing was possible.

Moreover, they were in a situation where they were fiercely competing for power with him, so they had sufficient justification to carry out such an act.

However, it was unlikely that they had personally come out like rats just to deal with one of his subordinates.

In that case, the number of suspects was significantly reduced.

The two wenches that Grand Young Master Na Yul-ryang boasted about and that bastard who was Wi So-yeon’s right-hand man.

Except for them, no one could have possibly cut Wi Maeng-cheon’s sword and neck with a single slash.

-Creak!

“Find them. No matter what.”

“Yes, sir!”

At his words, the remaining four members of the Five Mountains Alliance bowed their heads and shouted in unison.

Amidst this, there was one person watching with frustrated eyes.

It was none other than Jong-im, Wi Maeng-cheon’s subordinate.

‘Damn it… They’re not even considering me as a suspect.’

Jong-im knew the true culprit behind this incident.

Of course, he would.

Because he was the one who had moved together with Wi Maeng-cheon on his orders.

However, apart from that, he couldn’t reveal this fact.

The reason was that he himself was not Jong-im, but Wi Maeng-cheon, who had become a spirit servant and possessed the body of his subordinate.

‘My lord… I apologize.’

He could no longer serve Jang Neung-ak.

Since he had become a spirit servant, he couldn’t defy Mok Gyeong-un, and if he did, his wife and child would lose their lives.

At that moment, Jang Neung-ak, who had been gnashing his teeth, muttered while glaring at somewhere,

“No. This is perfect timing. I can see those damned things there.”

‘There?’

Where was Jang Neung-ak referring to when he said “there”?

***

Around noon.

Mok Gyeong-un was heading somewhere, accompanied by his guard warrior, Seok Jung.

That place was none other than the estate of Baek Sa-ha, the Annihilating Poison King, one of the Five Kings of the Heaven and Earth Society.

‘Damn it.’

Seok Jung, who was in charge of guarding Mok Gyeong-un, found this situation quite awkward.

He had tried to avoid encountering him as much as possible, but he had no choice but to deliver the gift from the Shadow Clan Master.

He had no choice but to cater to him as much as possible.

Mok Gyeong-un smiled and said to him, who was very tense,

“Is your lover doing well?”

-Flinch!

When Mok Gyeong-un asked about his lover under the pretext of a greeting, Seok Jung felt shivers all over his body.

Mok Gyeong-un’s words sounded more like a warning after a long time rather than a greeting.

Seok Jung spoke in a trembling voice,

“I, I will never act in a way that harms you, Young Master.”

“What did I say?”

“…”

Damn it.

Then he should have just asked if he was doing well instead of asking about his lover.

Seok Jung felt an urge to retort, but he didn’t show it.

Mok Gyeong-un was too frightening for him to do that.

“Is that large case on your back the gift prepared by Master?”

“Yes, it is.”

“The gift should be to his liking.”

“I believe he put a lot of thought into it.”

“That’s a relief, then.”

Well, the gift wasn’t the essential thing.

He had to somehow persuade Baek Sa-ha, the Annihilating Poison King, to obtain information about the Ghost Blade, one of the Eight Stars, from his mouth.

However, the timing was really bad.

Of all things, he was observing a three-year mourning period.

‘Persuade him.’

For now, he had received and familiarized himself with the information about Baek Sa-ha and his family from the Shadow Clan Master.

But it seemed that Baek Sa-ha was a person with a more difficult personality than he had thought.

So persuading him didn’t seem like it would be easy.

At that moment, Seok Jung, who was walking ahead, pointed somewhere with his chin and said,

“It’s over there.”

A grand estate was visible where he pointed.

In terms of size, it was smaller than the Shadow Clan, which handled confidential information, but it was quite large, befitting one of the Five Kings, who could be considered high-ranking executives.

“Shall we go, then?”

Mok Gyeong-un approached the entrance of the estate with him.

Two warriors wearing mourning clothes were guarding the front gate.

However, before they could reach there,

‘Hmm?’

Mok Gyeong-un turned his head and saw a group of people approaching.

Leading the group was a woman wearing a bamboo hat and a veil, and she was none other than,

‘Wi So-yeon?’

She was Wi So-yeon, the third disciple of the Society Leader.

Why was Wi So-yeon coming here?

As he was thinking that, he saw another group of people coming from a different path.

They were none other than,

‘Oh… Goodness.’

Jang Neung-ak, the second disciple of the Society Leader, and his subordinates from the Five Mountains Alliance, no, the Four Mountains Alliance now, were coming here together.