Chapter 164
Chapter 164
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 164
Chapter Title: The Missing Sect Leader
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Thud. Thud.
Sangseo walked slowly toward the sect leader's office, reflecting on the recent journey.
He had thought the Shaanxi Sword Assembly would unfold just as ordinarily as before.
He never could have imagined, not even in his wildest dreams, that the Plum Blossom Sword Dragon would suffer defeat—let alone that he himself would lose in the sparring matches.
Naturally, thoughts of the blemish on Mount Hua Sect's honor led to self-reproach.
But he didn't dwell on it for long.
After all, an assault by the unorthodox factions had followed right on its heels.
'That was an enormous crisis.'
Their blades had been razor-sharp, and death had loomed right before them.
But as the saying goes, heroes emerge in chaotic times.
In that dire moment, Hyeok Mulin had turned the tide with his brilliant exploits.
Without him, not only Sangseo himself but most of the martial artists present would surely have lost their lives.
Sangseo, Mount Hua, and the sword experts of Shaanxi all owed him their lives.
'The world is still vast.'
To think such an expert had been hidden away in the wilds.
It was a moment that made Sangseo reflect once more on his own insignificance, steeling his humility.
Absorbed in these thoughts, Sangseo soon arrived at his destination.
The towering office of the sect leader.
Upon reaching Qingxu Pavilion, Sangseo asked the two disciples guarding the entrance,
"Is the sect leader inside right now?"
"Yes, he is."
Sangseo nodded at the reply.
He knew the sect leader rarely left Qingxu Pavilion unless absolutely necessary, just as he had expected.
"I have something to report to the sect leader. Please inform him that I'd like an audience."
"Please wait a moment."
Though it was an unannounced visit, Elder Sangseo carried more than enough weight to warrant it.
The disciple nodded and entered to relay the message.
Sangseo waited at the entrance for his return.
'This meeting will surely have a positive impact on the sect leader as well.'
Hyeok Mulin and the sect leader.
Having met both men, Sangseo was perhaps looking forward to their encounter even more than they were.
A pleased smile graced his lips as he waited.
"...He's taking his time."
Time passed, but the disciple didn't return.
With a quiet mutter, the other disciple waiting at the entrance spoke up.
"I'll check on him."
The second disciple also entered Qingxu Pavilion, leaving Sangseo to wait once more.
But even as time dragged on, nothing changed.
There was no sign of them coming back from inside.
'Something's wrong.'
After staring into the interior and pondering briefly, Sangseo finally stepped into Qingxu Pavilion.
He decided it was better to check the situation inside, even if it meant a light scolding, than to wait pointlessly at the entrance.
As he walked down the corridor toward the sect leader's office, he began to hear the voices of the disciples who had gone ahead.
But their tones were laced with immense bewilderment.
Upon reaching the office, Sangseo immediately asked,
"What happened?"
The disciples spotted him entering and stammered in trembling voices,
"Th-the sect leader..."
"He's gone!"
"What?!"
Sangseo hurriedly checked the interior.
It looked as though the sect leader had been handling work just moments ago—the desk still held various documents and a brush intact.
But the most important thing...
The person who should have been using it was nowhere to be seen.
Sangseo's pupils shook as he surveyed the empty office.
His gaze soon turned to the wide-open window.
A fresh pine scent rode the cool breeze wafting in.
Sangseo stared blankly outside before parting his lips.
"Sect leader..."
* * *
"...And that's how it happened."
Beneath the sect leader's statue, Sangseo explained the current situation to Hyeok Mulin.
He had first informed the elders through the disciples, then decided to apprise Hyeok Mulin as well.
After the incident at the Shaanxi Sword Assembly, trust in Hyeok Mulin had soared, and the very reason he had gone to see the sect leader was because of him.
Since what had been possible was now impossible, he owed him at least an explanation.
But even faced with the sect leader's disappearance—a major incident—Hyeok Mulin's reaction was nonchalant.
He simply pondered in his usual composed manner.
'The sect leader has vanished.'
Things had changed from before.
Hyeok Mulin's gaze shifted subtly as he recalled his past life.
In truth, the Sword Immortal had vanished at some point back then too.
But that had been several years from now, and here it was happening much earlier.
And Hyeok Mulin could guess why.
'Did the Shaanxi Sword Assembly influence this?'
In his past life, most of Mount Hua Sect's disciples at the assembly had perished, heightening tensions between the orthodox and unorthodox to the extreme.
The current relative peace created inevitable differences.
"For now, stay at the Azure Guest Courtyard I passed on the way here. We plan to search for the sect leader in earnest."
"Understood."
Hyeok Mulin nodded and headed to the Azure Guest Courtyard for Mount Hua's guests.
Afterward, Mount Hua Sect kept the sect leader's disappearance internal, mobilizing their members to gather traces and information without alerting the outside.
However, even after scouring the main sect grounds for days, they found nothing.
Sangseo visited Hyeok Mulin at the Azure Guest Courtyard and relayed the facts.
"It seems I can't fulfill our promised meeting after all. I have no face left to show you."
"Still no trace?"
"Indeed. No clues whatsoever. It seems he suddenly decided to go into seclusion, but that's just speculation."
No traces left behind.
After a moment's thought, Hyeok Mulin said,
"May I see the sect leader's office?"
"The office? We've already searched it thoroughly and found nothing..."
"There's something I need to check."
Sangseo pondered briefly.
But there was an inexplicable conviction in Hyeok Mulin's voice, so he eventually nodded.
He had heard this man resolved the Danri Clan's issues and quelled the chaos at the Shaanxi Sword Assembly—perhaps he could uncover something.
"Very well. Follow me."
Sangseo led Hyeok Mulin to the office in Qingxu Pavilion.
As Hyeok Mulin examined the interior, Sangseo spoke.
"We've combed through this place for days, but aside from the documents, nothing seems touched. You can consider it the scene exactly as it was on the day he vanished."
The important documents had already been sorted by the elders before the investigation, allowing Hyeok Mulin access.
While inspecting the office, Hyeok Mulin briefly activated his Divine Demon Eyes.
Things invisible to him before came into view.
His gaze soon settled on the empty teacup on the desk.
"Does the sect leader enjoy tea, by any chance?"
When Hyeok Mulin asked, Sangseo answered promptly.
"Yes. He always savored it leisurely during his noon duties. He made a point of taking that time to brew and drink it."
"And the flowers used for that tea—are they Plum Moon Immortal, Chrysanthemum Wanderflower, and True Immortal Herb?"
"How did you know? Spot on. He brewed those three flowers together for a long infusion."
Hyeok Mulin posed a few more questions after that.
Having heard all the answers, he reached a final conclusion.
"The sect leader didn't go into seclusion. Someone took him."
"What? What nonsense is that?"
Sangseo's face twisted in disbelief.
Who in the world could kidnap the Sword Immortal of Mount Hua?
Yet Hyeok Mulin continued calmly.
"In normal circumstances, impossible. But what if he couldn't use his internal energy?"
Hyeok Mulin slid the teacup forward.
"The secret lies here."
Mixing venom from the Three Souls White Scorpion into water brewed with Plum Moon Immortal, Chrysanthemum Wanderflower, and True Immortal Herb creates a new poison tea.
It was an extreme toxin that twisted the dantian's flow far more potently than Meridian Severing Poison, rendering internal energy unusable.
When Hyeok Mulin recited this, Sangseo asked,
"I've never heard of such a poison. If it's that powerful, why hasn't it been known until now?"
"Because it's too finicky to use. It takes a full year to administer."
This poison couldn't be used in a single dose.
It required gradual daily absorption, accumulating over a full year to take effect.
Too impractical for timely use, it had faded into obscurity despite its potency.
'Until later, when its effects were exposed to the world.'
In his past life, the Four Black Alliances had targeted the Murim Alliance Leader with it, failed, and revealed its existence widely.
And now, the sect leader had fallen victim to it as well.
With his daily noon tea ritual, they had exploited that perfectly.
'There are other suspicions too.'
But Hyeok Mulin held those back.
"No signs of combat."
"Many possibilities. They could have used a combination of sleep or paralytic poisons that leave no trace."
Sangseo fell into thought at Hyeok Mulin's explanation.
'If he's right, it's entirely plausible.'
If the poison surpassed Meridian Severing Poison as he claimed, the sect leader—his energy sealed—would have been gravely handicapped.
With no discoveries so far, no better hypothesis existed.
Verifying his theory was the best course.
"I'll relay this to the elders."
Sangseo moved to consult them first, but Hyeok Mulin stopped him.
"Wait."
He halted.
As Sangseo paused, Hyeok Mulin continued.
"Better if we investigate first."
"Hm? Why?"
When Sangseo questioned, Hyeok Mulin replied,
"Investigating the one who brewed the sect leader's tea is essential, but that means suspecting an inner disciple. Without solid proof, it'll provoke backlash."
Sangseo slowly nodded at Hyeok Mulin's point.
"Indeed. Understood."
Even he, favorably inclined toward Hyeok Mulin, hadn't fully believed at first—the elders would be worse.
Gathering evidence to back the claim came first, as he said.
"What next, then?"
"We need to meet the disciple who attended the sect leader and brewed that tea."
At Hyeok Mulin's words, Sangseo acted swiftly.
He summoned Hwejeong, the second-generation disciple who served the sect leader exclusively, to the Azure Guest Courtyard.
Thus, Hwejeong found himself abruptly called to a small room, seated and facing two warriors staring him down.
"Elder, why have you summoned me...?"
Flustered by the sudden call, Hwejeong could only gaze at them in confusion.
Seeing his eyes, Sangseo glanced briefly at Hyeok Mulin before turning back and saying,
"Hwejeong, I have questions for you. Speak only the truth."
"Yes, of course."
At his ready response, Sangseo carefully broached,
"In serving tea to the sect leader, did you ever mix in anything besides the flowers?"
"Pardon? Of course not..."
"...Is that so."
Hwejeong waved his hands in denial, and Sangseo nodded.
Sangseo asked a few more questions after, but the exchange yielded nothing.
Hyeok Mulin watched impassively.
'This could drag on for another fifty years.'
They were like family after years together, so Sangseo couldn't press due to old affections.
Interrogating on mere suspicion without proof made strong pressure impossible.
As their fruitless Q&A continued, Hyeok Mulin spoke firmly.
"I'll ask the questions. Please step out."
"...Very well."
Sangseo had gotten no real answers anyway, leaving him no reason to stay.
Once Sangseo exited and closed the door, Hyeok Mulin fixed his gaze on Hwejeong alone.
He then erected a barrier to prevent sound from leaking.
Meeting the stranger's eyes, Hwejeong swallowed hard at the abruptly shifted atmosphere.
He stated his case.
"No matter what you ask, I know nothing. In serving tea to the sect leader, I never harbored any impure intentions—"
"No need to answer."
"...Pardon?"
"I won't ask anything."
Hwejeong looked puzzled at Hyeok Mulin's words.
"What do you...?"
He couldn't finish.
Rumble—
As Hyeok Mulin unleashed his mad killing intent, Hwejeong's heart plummeted, words forgotten.
Simultaneously, pressure like boulders from the sky crushed his body; his head drooped, cheek nearly smashing into the table.
His eyes rolled back, violent convulsions wracking his frame.
"However."
Yet Hyeok Mulin merely gazed at him indifferently with half-lidded eyes.
"I'll hear your dying words."