Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Mission 5
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Baek Moo-jin and Ban Go-yeong clashed in an internal energy duel.
Ban Go-yeong's internal energy was at a higher realm than Mak So-gwang's, so for a very brief moment, he managed to barely block the internal energy Baek Moo-jin was emitting.
But Baek Moo-jin hadn't even truly begun. There was only one thought floating in his mind at that instant.
'Just like Mak So-gwang, he's being utterly reckless.'
Baek Moo-jin's eyes peered into Ban Go-yeong. His previously calm gaze sharpened like a blade, piercing straight into Ban Go-yeong's mind.
It was a look carrying the question "Who are you?" just as Mak So-gwang had faced. But the words that emerged from Baek Moo-jin's mouth were different.
While fixating on Ban Go-yeong's pupils...
"Mak So-gwang."
"...!"
As Ban Go-yeong's pupils widened, Baek Moo-jin immediately surged his power.
A scream of agony burst from Ban Go-yeong's lips.
"Gahhhh!"
With a sharp pop—the wine bottle shattered into fragments and scattered. In the next instant, Ban Go-yeong's face drained of all color.
It was because icicle-shaped shards of chilling ice had formed in both their hands.
'What is this!'
In that split second, as Ban Go-yeong failed to grasp the icicles' true nature, his momentum faltered. Then, a wave of frigid energy came crashing in through Baek Moo-jin's hand.
"Urk...!"
Ban Go-yeong let out a groan as realization finally dawned. How had he not recognized something so obvious? The wine inside the bottle had frozen solid... But self-recrimination aside, his teeth began chattering nonstop.
Having forced Ban Go-yeong to his knees, Baek Moo-jin questioned him.
"What's your connection to Mak So-gwang?"
Clack clack clack...
Only the sound of chattering teeth filled the air.
Extreme cold brought extreme pain. Ban Go-yeong wanted to reply but simply couldn't.
Baek Moo-jin pressed on, though he already knew the answer.
"You're from the Iron Blood Gang too, aren't you?"
The inn's patrons, who had been silently watching the scene, finally began murmuring. The Iron Blood Gang—an infamous Black Path faction. Some even drew their swords, bracing for any potential escape attempt by Ban Go-yeong.
"I... am..."
As Ban Go-yeong's face contorted, Baek Moo-jin's next question followed.
"Did you infiltrate the West Light Branch?"
Trembling violently, Ban Go-yeong shot him a fierce glare.
"West... West Light..."
For the briefest moment, a ruthless glint flashed across Ban Go-yeong's features. Unwittingly, his expression had betrayed him as he recalled the murderous rampage he'd unleashed there.
Grasping the implication, Baek Moo-jin narrowed his eyes, withdrew his power, and gazed down at him.
"You'd better answer properly this time. Now..."
Baek Moo-jin's withdrawal of power was, in a way, even more perilous for Ban Go-yeong.
Though his energy had diminished, Baek Moo-jin's killing intent grew denser.
Ban Go-yeong panted heavily, steadying his thoughts.
"Huff... huff! Wait... just a moment... I'll answer."
He hastily regulated his breathing and summoned his internal energy. Still coiled around his waist, unknown to Baek Moo-jin, was his soft sword.
'I'll finish him in one strike.'
Ban Go-yeong looked up at Baek Moo-jin with an excruciatingly awkward smile. Curses welled up inside him.
'You bastard...'
But entirely different words tumbled awkwardly from his lips.
"I infiltra—"
Breaking off mid-syllable, he unleashed the soft sword with a shing and thrust it straight at Baek Moo-jin's solar plexus.
Even in that instant, convinced his ambush had succeeded, Ban Go-yeong grinned so widely his ears nearly met.
—Clap
Inconceivably, a single clap echoed through the room.
Baek Moo-jin had somehow brought his palms together, clamping the soft sword between them. Then, from his mouth came a curt farewell for Ban Go-yeong.
"Die."
From the palms gripping the blade, White Flower Palm erupted simultaneously.
Whoosh—!
Baek Moo-jin's hands blazed with light, as if engulfed in radiance. But the truth was far otherwise. Extreme yin chill poured from both palms, colliding ferociously.
As if a biting cold wind howled.
Baek Moo-jin's robes billowed wildly. A ghostly wail emanated from his hands, and...
The thin ice wheel blade forged from the clashing White Flower Palms shot forth, slicing vertically through Ban Go-yeong's body.
Splurt...!
"Gurk!"
From shoulder to navel, Ban Go-yeong's body cleaved apart left and right, blood gushing wildly. Yet even that blood froze solid with crackling sounds upon contact with the White Flower Palm.
Thus, his deathly still corpse sprawled on the floor in eerily pristine condition, marked only by a single diagonal bloodline.
Thud—After that lone sound, a profound, chilling silence reigned for a long while.
Baek Moo-jin tore his gaze from the corpse, eyed the soft sword in his hand, then tossed it atop the body.
He scanned the surroundings.
Wherever his gaze fell, onlookers hastily averted their eyes, heads swiveling awkwardly.
He had just killed a man. Normally, some excuse or explanation might be in order.
But Baek Moo-jin had no desire even for that.
He simply returned to his seat, lifted the wine bottle Ban Go-yeong had ordered, and poured himself a glass.
2.
When had he arrived?
Seo Moon-geuk descended the stairs, where he'd been watching Baek Moo-jin, and spoke.
"Young brother Baek, care to drink together?"
Baek Moo-jin filled another cup for him. Seo Moon-geuk smiled and drew near.
He began soothing the inn's patrons, their hearts still frozen in shock.
"We're warriors of the North Heaven Alliance. That was an Iron Blood Gang expert pursuing us. He deserved to die—no need to fret."
Seo Moon-geuk turned back to Baek Moo-jin.
He trusted Baek Moo-jin's discernment. He was certain it had been an Iron Blood Gang tracker.
After all, Baek Moo-jin was the one who had talked him out of killing the West Light Branch Chief. With a wry expression, Seo Moon-geuk said to him,
"That's why you need drink to survive in the jianghu."
He could well imagine Baek Moo-jin's mood as he poured in silence.
Grinning, Seo Moon-geuk raised his glass.
"You've eased my tension. Did he know Mak So-gwang?"
Baek Moo-jin finally spoke a word.
"Yes."
"Good. Cheers."
They tossed back their drinks.
Seo Moon-geuk closed his eyes, seemingly savoring the flavor. Then he snapped his fingers to summon the waiter.
"Sorry for the hassle. Could you handle it?"
He pulled a silver coin from his bosom and handed it over. The waiter's face beamed.
"Of course! Thank you!"
As Baek Moo-jin refilled their glasses, he remarked,
"I'm concerned about the West Light Branch."
"Why's that?"
Glancing at Ban Go-yeong's corpse being dragged out by the waiter, Baek Moo-jin replied,
"He was strong. No one there could have handled him."
"Hmm..."
Seo Moon-geuk wore a regretful look, but it was beyond either of them to change.
If blame was to be laid, it fell on the Iron Blood Gang. And with Alliance Leader Goo Yang-hoo having just declared war on them, no less.
Sharing the sentiment, Baek Moo-jin opened his mouth.
"The Iron Blood Gang."
"Those Iron Blood Gang bastards are a real pain."
To Seo Moon-geuk's blunt response, Baek Moo-jin replied curtly.
"When the North Heaven Alliance strikes the Iron Blood Gang, I must accompany them."
"As if you weren't going to?"
Baek Moo-jin offered a rare smile.
"What I mean is... I want to see the Iron Blood Gang Leader. He's their head, isn't he? I'm curious what kind of man he is, what thoughts drive him to let his subordinates run rampant like this."
"Hahaha!"
Seo Moon-geuk burst into laughter, reassuring Baek Moo-jin.
"Leave Gwan Min-gang to the Alliance Leader."
At the name Gwan Min-gang, someone nearby hiccuped sharply.
"Gasp."
The inn's patrons, overhearing the Iron Blood Gang Leader's name from Baek Moo-jin and Seo Moon-geuk, began slipping out one by one in fear of entanglement.
Seo Moon-geuk commented on their retreat.
"See? That's the proper reaction. The terror—or awe—the name Blood Wind Great Axe Gwan Min-gang inspires."
Baek Moo-jin nodded absently, then called over the waiter who had returned to clean, having left the body outside for now.
Assuming the group wouldn't object after the silver tip, the waiter scurried over.
"Hehe, anything else I can get you?"
Baek Moo-jin addressed him gravely, concern in his tone.
"If anyone asks about this man's death, answer clearly."
"Yes. What should I say?"
"That Baek Moo-jin of the North Heaven Alliance killed him. That's me."
"Baek Moo-jin... Baek Moo-jin..."
The waiter eyed him eagerly for a moment, then nodded.
"Got it."
Baek Moo-jin nodded back.
"No trouble will come here, but they're a rough bunch—stay cautious."
The waiter grinned at the warning.
"Understood."
He rubbed his palms together with a smile. But no silver appeared from Baek Moo-jin.
'Stingy one.'
That very caution Baek Moo-jin urged would one day save the waiter's neck from the axe. Yet in the moment, he felt only regret over the missed coin, harboring no gratitude. With a disappointed expression, he withdrew.
Seo Moon-geuk smirked, reading the waiter's face. Yet despite round after round, Baek Moo-jin showed no sign of calling it quits, so Seo Moon-geuk paced himself to keep company.
Chattering with inane jokes, Seo Moon-geuk gradually thawed Baek Moo-jin's stiff demeanor. Martial skill aside, he had wandered the jianghu a touch longer than Baek Moo-jin.
As Baek Moo-jin chuckled at his ridiculous quips, Seo Moon-geuk finally felt a genuine brotherly bond.
'Trouble... This kid feels like a real little brother...'
Seo Moon-geuk, who'd been moderating, shoved his empty glass at Baek Moo-jin with deliberate cheek.
"Hey, young brother Baek."
"Yes."
"Pour your big bro a nice, cool one too."
The words evoked the time Seo Moon-geuk had scalded himself on hot tea, sending both into simultaneous laughter.
And so, the night at the famed inn stretched on considerably.
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