Chapter 614: Daoist Yin-Yang Manual[R-18] (159)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 614: Daoist Yin-Yang Manual[R-18] (159)
Oh Ha-rang headed straight for the location she'd been told about. At the end of a mountain path battered by a snowstorm, a terrified woman and a bloodied man were huddled in front of a small hut.
The man was half-unconscious, letting out only groans, while the woman, clutching her arms, widened her eyes upon seeing Oh Ha-rang.
"Who is that man?"
As Oh Ha-rang glanced down, the woman beside her answered calmly.
"He was trying to assault the woman… so we subdued him. He's still alive."
To Oh Ha-rang, it looked like they had simply beaten him up for being a man, but she decided to let it slide.
Crunch.
She took a step forward, treading on the snow. The red hem of her robe swayed eerily through the flurries as she stopped before the woman.
"I am Oh Ha-rang of the Small-Dick Extermination Sect."
The woman's lips trembled as she nodded.
"Have you seen… a trio of lustful demons?"
Lustful demons. The moment the words left her mouth, the woman’s entire body began to shake, and even the man collapsed on the ground flinched instinctively. Their reactions confirmed Oh Ha-rang’s suspicion.
‘I knew it… They must have passed through here.’
Oh Ha-rang’s eyes glinted fiercely. She immediately commanded in an icy voice, "When were the lustful demons here?"
Her red eyes stared as if to pierce through the woman, who trembled, her lips parting and closing without a sound. It was the same reaction as the other women who had been violated by the Three Lust Demons of the Yin Wind.
It was then that the man on the ground suddenly staggered to his feet. His face was a bloody mess, but a suppressed fury erupted from him.
"Th-those goddamn bastards…! They raped that bitch and ran! Right in front of my eyes!"
“……”
Oh Ha-rang listened to his outburst in silence before pulling a wanted poster from her robes and shoving it in the man's face.
"Did the man look like this?"
The man gasped for breath, glaring at the drawing. After a moment's hesitation, he slowly shook his head.
"No… He was a bastard, but he was better looking than that."
The man added, grinding his teeth.
"And the women with him… Damn it, I've never seen such beautiful women in my life. They were incomparably more glamorous and seductive than this whore…!"
The man's voice trembled with rage and humiliation. The woman tearfully grabbed her husband's arm, but his eyes were already wild with fury.
Oh Ha-rang's red eyes slowly grew cold.
"I see. Thank you for the information. However…"
Her voice echoed, as cold as ice.
"Mak Ri-chu. To think you were hiding here."
"Huk…!"
The man flinched, biting his lip unconsciously as he looked up at Oh Ha-rang.
"Did you think no one would recognize you after twenty years?"
Her gaze was razor-sharp.
"Others may not, but there's no way I wouldn't recognize you."
Catching her breath, she clenched her jaw.
"The name my mother… repeated every moment through tears of blood, grinding her teeth as she swore to kill him. That face…"
Mak Ri-chu staggered, breathing heavily as if his soul had left him. The moment her gaze pierced him, his heart seemed to freeze solid.
"You, you… Don't tell me… you're Oh Jin-nyeo's daughter…? If so…"
"Don't you dare speak my mother's name with that filthy mouth!"
A murderous aura bloomed from Oh Ha-rang's fingertips and swept across the ground. In an instant, invisibly thin threads filled the air. They writhed like snakes, instantly coiling around his arms and legs, binding him.
"Guh, ghaaack…!"
Mak Ri-chu struggled, but the threads only tightened their grip. The moment they touched his neck, blood began to flow.
"W-wait! My blood flows in your veins! You're as good as my daughter! So please, just once… spare my life!"
"…You claim to be my father?"
Oh Ha-rang's voice was glacial.
As the threads tightened from all directions, the man's body creaked and twisted. The muscles in his limbs began to tear, and veins bulged beneath his skin.
"Kuaargh…! D-damn it… let's talk about this—!"
The man's plea was cut short.
"There is no trace of your filth… in my blood."
The moment she twisted her fingers, the man's limbs scattered into the air as blood rained down.
Amid the spreading stench of blood, Oh Ha-rang closed her eyes, then slowly opened them. What reflected in her red pupils was not the satisfaction of revenge. Only an endless sense of futility and emptiness.
"Senior Sister, what… should we do with the woman?" one of the sect members asked cautiously from behind.
Oh Ha-rang slowly turned her head to look at the woman huddled in the corner.
"…She is also a victim. Help her get some rest."
"Understood."
"W-wait a moment…"
Before they could help her up, the woman looked up at Oh Ha-rang and spoke with difficulty.
"S-so you're… Oh Ha-rang. He… told me to give you this."
A small letter appeared from her trembling fingertips. Oh Ha-rang took it and unfolded it.
[I have what you're looking for, bitch.]
Crumple…
The white paper crinkled in her fist.
‘Mother's keepsake… He must have stolen it.’
Oh Ha-rang forcibly suppressed her emotions and turned her gaze to the woman.
"What's… your name?"
"It's Shim Ye-ryeong…"
"Alright, Ye-ryeong. Is this all that bastard left behind?"
"Yes… that's all."
"I understand. Take her away carefully."
At her command, the women of the sect helped Shim Ye-ryeong up and slowly retreated.
In that moment, though it was brief, a chilling smile brushed across Shim Ye-ryeong's lips.
Oh Ha-rang, oblivious to the smile, walked heavily into the hut to search for any other traces the lustful demon might have left behind.
*
The Mosan Sect.
It was a school of Taoism based on Mount Mo in Jiangsu Province. However, they were different from other sects.
Instead of training with swords and spears, they drew talismans. Instead of martial arts, they dealt in sorcery, incantations, Taoist arts, immortal arts, and even curses.
‘They’re also well-versed in illusion magic, illusion formations, and techniques that manipulate the soul.’
But due to their reclusive nature, the Mosan Sect existed in isolation from the rest of the martial world. The Orthodox Faction even subtly ostracized them as a group that used ominous techniques.
I was interested in only one thing.
The Mosan Sect's chamber arts. And their soul-manipulating sorcery.
"The reason the Orthodox Faction looks down on the Mosan Sect is ultimately because they deal with souls," Seo Ryeo-hwa commented calmly.
"And they themselves never sought to belong to either the Orthodox or Demonic factions," Bi-yeon added, tilting her head.
"The reason you want to stop by the Mosan Sect… it's because of their soul-manipulating sorcery, isn't it?"
"That's right."
The Mosan Sect was the only place where I might find the secret to how the Honcheonhoe could bring forth the Honcheon even when it wasn't the time of the Red Ring Lunar Eclipse.
"Ryeon, do you know who the current leader of the Mosan Sect is?"
"No. I don't know anything. It's been so long since they were active that probably no one else knows either."
If even she, who had wandered the martial world, didn't know, I could guess just how reclusive they were.
As we talked, we soon reached the foot of Mount Mo.
"Ugh, this place is kind of creepy…"
Bi-yeon shivered and scanned our surroundings. The entire mountain was saturated with yin energy, making it feel like a ghost could pop out at any moment.
The Mosan Sect wasn't even covered in the original novel. It was a place I had no information on.
‘I guess we’ll just have to head up.’
The mountain path was strangely well-maintained. It was a strange contradiction: it felt desolate, as if no one had walked here for ages, yet at the same time, there were traces of someone going up and down it every day.
In the dead silence where even the wind had ceased, the sound of gravel crunching under our feet echoed unusually loudly.
"My love, look."
Where Seo Ryeo-hwa pointed, blades of grass were shimmering with a silver light. Looking closer, I saw that each stalk had a pattern like red veins running through it.
"Ugh, that's so creepy…"
Just then.
Fwoosh…
Faint lights began to appear one by one in the mist. The lights, appearing in a line like lanterns, moved as if they were alive, slithering along the mountain ridge.
"Hiek?! Ghosts?!"
Bi-yeon yelped in surprise, half-drawing her sword.
"You're a sword spirit. Why are you scared of ghosts?"
"I'm not scared!"
Seo Ryeo-hwa calmly surveyed our surroundings and spoke.
"Those are illusionary lanterns. It's a technique to warn people not to enter any further."
"A warning, huh… Let's go in deeper."
We passed the illusionary lanterns and ventured deeper inside.
The mist grew thicker and thicker. The pressure was so heavy it felt like it was weighing down on our very breath. With each step, a cold, damp air seeped into our lungs instead of the breath of the living.
After walking for some time, the lights vanished, and our view suddenly opened up to a wide, empty clearing. In the center of the clearing stood a massive, ancient tree that looked to be at least several hundred years old.
I stopped and narrowed my eyes. Something was strange. Just a moment ago, the mountain's energy had felt normal, but now it was tangled and flowing chaotically.
‘When… did we get trapped in a formation?’
A formation that could deceive both my and Bi-yeon's senses at the same time… It had been a while since a chill ran down my spine.
"Everyone, be careful. We've entered a formation."
At my words, the two women nodded lightly.
Swoooosh…
The mound of dirt beneath the ancient tree began to stir.
Rumble!
Dark energy erupted as the ground split open. With strange cries, pale hands clawed their way out of the dirt. Long fingernails, gleaming red eyes.
"Jiangshi…!"
Seo Ryeo-hwa drew her sword with a resolute expression. But I quickly raised a hand to stop her.
"Wait. Something's off."
I couldn't feel any presence from the Jiangshi.
Expanding my senses to trace the flow of energy throughout the entire mountain, I felt a single current. And I could also feel the center of the formation.
‘Just as I thought… an illusion. But unfortunately for them, they picked the wrong opponent.’
I slowly drew my sword and lowered my stance. Ignoring the Jiangshi rushing toward me, I lifted my head and looked up at the sky.
Fshaaaa!
The tip of my sword spat out a blue light. The moment I swung it upward from below, a crescent-shaped wave of sword force shot into the air.
Screeeeeeech!
An invisible barrier appeared in the sky, colliding with the sword force and letting out a bloodcurdling screech.
"There's still one more."
My second strike shot down like a rocket. Once again, a blue crescent of sword force flew up, cutting through the air.
Craaack!
This time, the barrier couldn't hold and shattered. Like shards of glass scattering everywhere, the formation that had enveloped the clearing broke apart.
"Kyaaaaah!!"
At the scream, we all turned our heads at once.
There was a woman sprawled on the ground. She had fallen in a strange position. Her upper body was pitched forward, but her rear was raised high in the air. Her thin Taoist robe had slid down, starkly revealing the curve of her round bottom.
"That's a big ass."
Seo Ryeo-hwa immediately chimed in.
"It certainly is."
Bi-yeon also chuckled and said, "I bet it would make a satisfying smack."
The woman's face turned beet red, and she scrambled to get up, but her robe hilariously got caught on her foot, causing her to stumble even more awkwardly. In the end, her rear bounced once more, emphasizing it further.
I deliberately walked slowly, entering her line of sight. I felt an unidentifiable chill from her body.
"So, who are you?"
"Heek…!"
The woman's eyes went wide like a frightened rabbit's before she hastily prostrated herself on the ground. Her long black hair fell around her, hiding her face, but her voice was trembling.
"P-please forgive me! I failed to recognize a person of great importance…!"
"I'm pretty sure I asked who you are."
"I… am the leader of the Mosan Sect, Ha-myo…!"