Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Blue Bee Honey Temple (7)
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The female Taoist's beautiful appearance contrasted sharply with her cold voice.
"Heh... You insolent fool have no idea of your place."
- Whoooong!
Under the dark night sky, blue moons rose from all directions.
Upon closer inspection, dozens of spheres were actually clusters of something.
A massive swarm of bees, so enormous it begged the question of where they had come from. Gathered together, the blue bees resembled a full moon floating in the night sky.
The man who had been acting so arrogantly muttered in despair upon seeing it.
"Damn it..."
- Bwoooong
The blue moons floating in all directions scattered into powder. The blue bees filling the sky began pouring down on the thugs.
The swarm flew like beams of light, too fast to even track properly. The air around them shimmered—no matter how you looked at it, these were no ordinary bees.
"Aaagh!"
The swarm brushed past the black-clad thugs.
- Zzzzt
With that alone, their limbs began twisting and tearing apart. The worse-off ones lost limbs entirely.
'What the hell is that?'
The space around the bees was warping.
Si-woo stared intently, eyes wide, and in an instant, all the thugs collapsed to the ground. Even the man he'd thought was a master was no exception.
"Kwaaaagh!"
He seemed to hold out for a moment, but then his limbs flew off. The sword he swung shattered along with his arm.
Silence.
The time it took to dispatch all the enemies was but a fleeting moment. Before he knew it, the bees had scattered in all directions.
The female Taoist he'd seen that morning smiled gently once more.
"Handsome warrior? Could you explain what this is all about?"
Si-woo nodded.
*
There were strange miscreants up to no good on Blue Bee Mountain. The female Taoist's brow furrowed as she heard the explanation.
Seeing that, Si-woo asked,
"Now that things have come to this, couldn't you handle it yourself?"
"Ah... I'd love to, but I can't. I have my reasons for not being able to stray far from the village."
As the Taoist fell into thought, Joo Seol-ran spoke politely from beside her.
"Greetings to Lady Azure Moon. I am Joo Seol-ran of the Murim Alliance."
"From the Alliance? How delightful. Then...?"
"If I report this, Alliance members will come here. Would that be acceptable?"
The Taoist's expression brightened a little.
Murim Alliance conference hall.
A bearish man grumbled curtly. As he tapped the bell lightly, his entire body rippled with muscle even from that small motion.
"This for real?"
A man with a long chin beard fanned himself vigorously.
"Haha... Have your brains filled up with muscle too? Can't you tell just by looking?"
The bearish man scowled at that.
"What I'm saying is, some random punk didn't just pick up this bell and start yapping nonsense, right?"
"Mind your words. You're not some street thug—you're an elder of the Murim Alliance. Is that how you talk?"
"You...!"
The two abandoned the bell and started nitpicking each other's words.
A woman sitting quietly in the corner shook her head at the sight. It was just posturing to check each other—pointless conversation.
It was exasperating. The Murim Alliance had been off for some time now.
She, who possessed the power of prophecy, suddenly sensed something amiss.
The bell sent by her daughter carried an unusual energy. Not from the bell itself, but traces of the fire that had burned it.
According to her daughter's message, a man named Choi Si-woo had incinerated a monster. Faint remnants of the fire he'd ignited lingered.
'That...?'
Feeling a powerful urge, she rose from her seat.
She approached and picked up the bell.
At that instant—
"Eut...!"
Her straight back arched.
An intense sensation she'd never felt before. Her mind went blank white, her legs giving way.
Contact with this man's energy let her glimpse the future for a split second. But it was so brief, nothing remained in her mind.
Only a thrilling jolt, like lightning flashing through, lingered.
The conference hall fell silent as her face flushed red. The fanning man asked,
"Did you see something, by chance?"
A hint of mockery laced his tone.
She shook her head. No point saying anything—they wouldn't believe her anyway.
Just then, the conference doors opened, and the Alliance Leader entered, drawing all attention.
She quietly returned to her corner, lost in thought.
More contact with this energy might reveal something. And she wanted to feel that sensation again, even briefly.
For some reason, her lower abdomen tingled.
From morning, dozens of Murim Alliance warriors arrived at the Blue Bee Honey Temple. They paid respects to Lady Azure Moon and promptly headed to Blue Bee Mountain.
Joo Seol-ran followed to guide them, while Si-woo stayed at the temple.
'They even brought the bell, so they'll handle it.'
As the matter wrapped up roughly, Si-woo relaxed a bit. From now on, the Murim Alliance would take care of it.
The village was safe thanks to Lady Azure Moon anyway. He planned to rest at the temple and reflect on his gains.
- Razor Flame.
Energy fusing flame and sharpness.
At a glance, it resembled red sword qi, but it wasn't. The cohesion of the flame itself had absorbed the sharpness infused in his Mixed Origin Qi, mimicking sword qi.
In that moment, Si-woo realized the advantage of the Mixed Origin Qi Art.
'The steps are incredibly fine.'
People often likened advancing in cultivation to climbing stairs. Si-woo agreed.
But with Mixed Origin Qi Art, those stairs were absurdly gradual.
While others struggled up stairs taller than themselves, he climbed ones only waist-high.
Quasi-sword qi born from two attributes.
But it wasn't meaningless. Researching this sensation would lead to true sword qi. It was a beacon toward it.
He swung his flame-wreathed blade, eyes gleaming. He could feel himself on the cusp of first-rate realm.
As he trained hard, sweating it out, Lady Azure Moon approached with a smile.
"So diligent. Straight to training after all that hardship."
"Ah, thanks to you, I survived. My gratitude."
"No need. I'm sorry you were endangered because of my request. But thanks to you, it seems resolved... Shall I give the promised reward?"
Of course he welcomed it. He followed her swaying hips to the storeroom, her smile soft.
Si-woo stole glances at her twitching rear with half-lidded eyes. Even her gait oozed something lewd.
Was she seducing him, or was she just born that way? Impossible to tell.
Gazing at her plump hips, Si-woo swallowed hard. She might even know about such stares.
She was a master, after all.
"What form of reward would you prefer?"
He nearly blurted, "You," but barely controlled himself.
"Could you give me Blue Bee Honey?"
She smacked her lips regretfully but soon smiled and pulled out a box. It held jars of honey the size of a face.
"I'd love to give more, but regrettably, this is all I can offer. My apologies."
Si-woo shook his head. Even this would last him half a year alone.
Sharing would shorten it, but he could always harvest more hives. No big deal.
"This is plenty. Ah, could I stay at the Blue Bee Honey Temple for a while?"
Her face lit up with a smile at his words.
"Of course. Stay as long as you like."
He decided to solidify his entry into first-rate realm here for a time.
'And if the chance comes, I'll bed the Taoist lady too.'
Si-woo smacked his lips at her voluptuous figure.
When Joo Seol-ran returned from guiding the Alliance members on Blue Bee Mountain, Si-woo asked just in case.
"All sorted?"
"Yeah. The altar was already burned, and we rounded up the rest. Alliance members will comb the mountain and catch any stragglers."
Joo Seol-ran brushed dirt from her clothes.
"Lady Azure Moon got some info from the captives. Want to hear?"
Si-woo nodded.
"Keep it brief."
"Ever heard of the Blood Cult?"
Si-woo searched this body's memories, but nothing on Blood Cult. He was a rich heir ignorant of the martial world.
"No."
"Hm... A cult preaching truth lies in blood. Madmen who sacrifice and eat people."
Recalling the altar strewn with mutilated bodies, he got the picture.
"Ha... Total lunatics."
"Yeah, properly insane. They got wiped out properly 200 years ago... For remnants to crawl back, it's no small matter."
Si-woo nodded, and Joo Seol-ran sighed. Her expression darkened, so he asked,
"Isn't it good we found out now? Why the long face?"
"...Mother's prophecy has everyone dismissing it as nothing. Just crazies who lucked into a Blood Demon Token. So complacent."
"That make sense?"
She sighed in frustration.
"Anyway, local branches are deploying to encircle them. This incident should wrap soon."
*
After Joo Seol-ran left, Si-woo pondered.
Why had those possible Blood Cult remnants chosen this place for their rituals?
'Because of the legend of the immortal descending to slay evil?'
Thinking back, Lady Azure Moon's blue bees were no ordinary insects. They seemed imbued with mystical power.
Was it her ability or the bees'? Hard to say. No more clues.
'The Alliance will guard it diligently anyway.'
He focused on quest rewards. Shortly after Joo Seol-ran departed, it completed.
Quest completed.
You have obtained the following rewards:
1. [Random Mid-Grade Skill]
2. [Mid-Grade Essence Extraction Scroll]
3. [Combat Specialized Random Reincarnation (Lv.3) Awakening Scroll]
Si-woo grinned at the floating messages. He'd leeched the quest off the Murim Alliance.
Worth the effort slaying that monster.