Chapter 151
Chapter 151
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 44
>Chapter Title: Talent (1)
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The Jangwon Pavilion, located to the southwest of the Heaven and Earth Society's inner castle main hall, served as the base for the Round Kill Corner, which handled consultations on sorcery matters.
Sorcerer Jo Ui-gong dragged his staff along as he hurriedly made his way to the main hall of the pavilion.
He tried his best not to show it, but he couldn't help feeling tense.
‘...Eldest senior brother.’
Word was that Eldest Senior Brother Bang Il Jo Tae-cheong was currently in the main hall.
He had heard that Jo Tae-cheong had gone somewhere on the Society Leader's secret orders, but for him to return and visit without any prior notice like this...
It made him feel uneasy for no reason.
‘The preparations are solid.’
While Eldest Senior Brother was away, he had swiftly obtained the Society Leader's approval through the Vice Leader.
The former Round Kill Corner Leader In Seo-ok, who had become a living corpse ghost through Mok Kyung-un's Sixfold Spirit Descent Technique, had handed over the position to him.
Junior Brother Yun from Blood River Valley had also been present and agreed.
Some elder sorcerers who supported Eldest Senior Brother had objected during the process, but what could they do?
It was the Leader's command.
Thus, Jo Ui-gong was now the legitimate new Leader of the Round Kill Corner.
‘He must have come as soon as he heard the news?’
That was likely the case.
Unless it was something extraordinary, Eldest Senior Brother rarely left the main hall where the Society Leader resided.
The fact that he had come like this meant he had heard about Jo Ui-gong becoming the Leader.
At least it was fortunate that he had secretly relocated the former Leader In Seo-ok beforehand.
He had sent her over fifty li away and erased all traces with sorcery, making it impossible to track her even if they tried.
‘As long as he doesn't see her directly, there won't be any problems.’
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say Eldest Senior Brother's sorcery skills were on par with Master's.
Fooling him would never be easy.
Even with all preparations in place, Jo Ui-gong couldn't help but feel tense.
"Loyalty!"
The warriors guarding the front of the main hall bowed their heads in greeting upon seeing Jo Ui-gong.
He asked them,
"Where is Eldest Senior Brother?"
"He said he's waiting inside."
"I see. Understood."
As Jo Ui-gong moved to enter, one of the warriors spoke up.
"However, Senior Brother Jo Tae-cheong entered carrying a large wooden box that looked like a coffin on his back."
"A wooden box?"
What could that be?
Was it related to the Society Leader's secret orders?
Puzzled, Jo Ui-gong soon entered the main hall and headed to the Leader's office.
He opened the door at the end of the corridor,
-Creeeak!
‘!?’
There, someone was asleep at the office desk, legs propped up on it and head tilted back.
Even just seeing the gray martial robe with the yin-yang symbol, it was clear who it was.
It was Eldest Senior Brother Bang Il Jo Tae-cheong.
‘......’
Jo Ui-gong's eyes narrowed.
There was a separate seat for guests, yet he had chosen to sit in the Leader's personal chair and sleep like that.
It was clearly a provocation directed at him.
Thanks to that, he could gauge Eldest Senior Brother's current mood.
‘......I must not get agitated.’
No matter the reason, he had taken Eldest Senior Brother's position.
His anger was justified, and it was bound to erupt in some form.
*Ahem.*
Jo Ui-gong deliberately cleared his throat as he entered.
Then,
"You've arrived?"
Jo Tae-cheong, who had been sleeping with his head tilted back, opened his eyes and spoke.
Jo Ui-gong carefully cupped his hands together with his staff and greeted Jo Tae-cheong.
"Has Eldest Senior Brother come?"
"Yes. I have."
"I heard you were away on the Society Leader's orders."
"Since you even know that, it seems the handover has been completed."
"......"
A subtle edge in his voice brought a flicker of tension to Sorcerer Jo Ui-gong's eyes.
He had already anticipated resistance from Eldest Senior Brother, who had practically been the de facto successor.
Jo Ui-gong replied calmly.
"Yes. I'm still lacking in many ways, but I intend to adapt step by step."
"Step by step..."
"......"
"Was that position so desirable to you?"
-Gulp!
At Jo Tae-cheong's blunt question, Jo Ui-gong unwittingly swallowed dryly.
No matter how prepared he was, knowing Eldest Senior Brother's sorcery skills better than anyone made tension inevitable.
It was something he had to face eventually.
Jo Ui-gong put strength into his voice and said,
"How can you say such hurtful words? I merely followed Master's orders."
"Master's orders?"
"Yes. I too declined, telling Master that with Eldest Senior Brother here, how could I possibly inherit the Leader's position."
"Declined..."
"Yes. However, Master said that Eldest Senior Brother must remain by the Society Leader's side, so he couldn't entrust you with the Leader's position."
"......Did he really say that?"
"How could I lie to Eldest Senior Brother? If you truly find it hard to believe, we can summon Junior Brother Yun and..."
"Are you asking me to play along with your lies?"
"......It's not a lie. Are you the one denying Master's decision, Eldest Senior Brother?"
"Denying? Ha!"
-Creak!
Jo Tae-cheong rose from the office chair.
Seeing this attitude, Jo Ui-gong gripped his staff, preparing to respond.
He had fortified the entire office with various sorceries in anticipation of this moment, ready to activate the Fourfold Suppression Barrier at any time.
At that moment, Jo Tae-cheong folded his index and middle fingers, forming a single hand seal.
Then,
-Pop!
In an instant, the lid of the coffin-like wooden box in one corner of the office flew off on its own.
Immediately after, something inside the wooden box stiffly rose to a standing position.
Seeing this, Jo Ui-gong's eyes widened as if they might tear.
It was none other than,
‘M-Master?’
The former Round Kill Corner Leader—and now living corpse ghost—In Seo-ok.
A talisman reading "Seal" was affixed to the forehead of her pale-faced form.
Jo Ui-gong couldn't hide his bewilderment at this sight.
He had sunk her deep in a lake over twenty li from here, weighted with heavy chains to prevent her from surfacing.
How had he found her?
‘Damn it.’
He didn't know how, but Eldest Senior Brother had tracked down his Master, who had become a living corpse ghost.
That meant he had come to drag Jo Ui-gong down from this position.
Jo Ui-gong hurriedly formed a simplified hand seal with his left hand.
-Clack! Clack!
All! Front! Split! Strike!
This was the hand seal of the Nine-Character Activation Method to activate the Fourfold Suppression Barrier.
Since it was a pre-prepared spell, he assumed it would activate immediately, but,
‘No?’
The barrier didn't activate.
As he wondered what was wrong, Jo Tae-cheong clicked his tongue and said,
"You prepared quite a lot. Did you think I'd just leave them be?"
-Tight!
At those words, Jo Ui-gong bit his lower lip hard.
Had he dismantled all the spells during the brief time Jo Ui-gong had been away?
He had made them as undetectable as possible, yet as expected of Eldest Senior Brother.
Thus, Jo Ui-gong hurriedly tried to invoke the sorcery inscribed on his staff.
But before he could even chant the incantation,
-Thud!
"Hk!"
Something kicked Jo Ui-gong in the back, sending him sprawling forward.
-Thud!
As he fell, something stepped on his back.
The weight was so immense that the flesh around the pressed area sank inward, causing excruciating pain.
"Grrrgh."
In his instinctive pain, Jo Ui-gong turned his head, and,
-Chill!
He saw a bizarre creature with tall red horns held high, a massive quadruped pressing him down with its front paw.
The moment he saw it, Jo Ui-gong instinctively realized what it was.
‘Tolu!’
The creature's name was Tolu.
A monster inhabiting Kunlun Mountain, known as the Star of the Heavenly Emperor.
Unlike its goat-like appearance, it was extremely ferocious, a demonic beast-class man-eater that devoured humans entering the Misty Valley of Kunlun.
Also called the Red Comet, it was Eldest Senior Brother's prized spirit beast.
-Step, step!
Bang Il Jo Tae-cheong slowly approached and said,
"Who is it?"
"W-What do you mean?"
"With your skills, even if you died and came back to life, you couldn't have reduced Master—who bestowed upon me the title of Bang Il—to this state. Who helped you?"
‘Damn.’
Trapped in a corner, Jo Ui-gong's expression darkened rapidly.
He had thought his preparations were thorough, but they had been woefully insufficient.
No, how had Eldest Senior Brother found Master in the first place?
As he puzzled over it, Bang Il Jo Tae-cheong approached, pressing down on Jo Ui-gong's right wrist and spoke.
"Chains of Command... As I thought."
"Th-This is..."
-Swish!
With a light gesture from Jo Tae-cheong, the demonic beast Tolu pressed harder on his back.
-Crush!
"Grraaagh!"
Looking down at the writhing Jo Ui-gong with cold eyes, Jo Tae-cheong clicked his tongue and said,
"Tsk tsk. To be caught and dragged like this by something so trivial. Pathetic."
"Grgh... Stop..."
"If you want me to stop, you should speak now. Tell me who bound you with the Chains of Command."
Under this pressure from Eldest Senior Brother Jo Tae-cheong, the light in Jo Ui-gong's eyes gradually weakened.
* * *
-Creeeak!
The blade of the Black Fire Sword in Mok Kyung-un's grip began to bend little by little.
At this, the eyes of Woo Ho-rang, confidant of the Society Leader's second disciple Wi So-yeon, widened in shock.
The Black Fire Sword was a prestigious sword forged by a master craftsman with ties to its owner, Sword King Son Yun, and its hardness was incomparable to ordinary blades.
Moreover, infused with his internal energy, it became even tougher.
For the sword to bend like this meant Mok Kyung-un's energy had reached not just the beginner level of transcendent realm, but true transcendent mastery.
‘This isn't someone I can go easy on.’
Only then did Woo Ho-rang feel a sense of wariness.
This opponent could not be subdued without treating him seriously.
Woo Ho-rang thus raised his internal energy.
-Roooar!
From six stars, it surged to eight stars in an instant, and a repulsive force emanated from the bending blade.
-Clang!
Mok Kyung-un's hand, gripping the blade, was repelled.
Seizing the moment, Woo Ho-rang spread his stance to create distance, but,
-Bam!
In that instant, Mok Kyung-un's palm struck Woo Ho-rang's chest with force.
Having already raised his energy to eight stars, Woo Ho-rang endured it with his protective aura and countered with a kick to Mok Kyung-un's abdomen.
-Thump!
The two, who had simultaneously struck each other, were pushed back.
Woo Ho-rang, pushed backward, instinctively checked how far he and Mok Kyung-un had been repelled.
‘Four paces.’
He had been pushed four paces, Mok Kyung-un five.
That meant he held a slight advantage in energy.
At this level, if he pushed to peak power, he could subdue the guy without issue.
Confident of victory, Woo Ho-rang said to Mok Kyung-un,
"You'll regret running that mouth of yours... Cough!"
In that moment, a burning pain surged from within, forcing a cough from Woo Ho-rang.
He hurriedly wiped his lips with his sleeve, and,
‘!?’
Black blood stained the sleeve.
Seeing this, Woo Ho-rang frowned and glared at Mok Kyung-un.
What the hell had just happened?
He had taken a palm strike but blocked it with his protective aura.
So what was this unpleasant pain?
-Rip!
Woo Ho-rang roughly tore open his upper garment.
A palm-shaped mark had formed on his chest, with dark red veins bulging grotesquely.
‘No way...’
Woo Ho-rang muttered with widened eyes.
"Poison?"
Had this guy used a Poison Palm?
Woo Ho-rang's pupils shook.
From what his lord Wi So-yeon had told him, Mok Kyung-un had only been taken as a disciple by the Island Poison King about one shichen ago.
‘That can't be...’
There was no way he could learn poison arts and use them freely in just one shichen.
No matter how prodigious a martial talent he had, it was impossible.
Moreover, poison arts fundamentally differed from ordinary martial arts.
As he felt bewildered, Mok Kyung-un smiled faintly and said,
"Perfect. I was itching to test out what I just learned anyway."
-Roooar!
On Mok Kyung-un's hands, dark red poison qi swirled like heat haze.
‘!!!!!’
Seeing this, Woo Ho-rang was utterly appalled.
It was none other than the Island Poison King's signature poison technique from the Wave Demon Poison Scripture: the Toad Poison Demon Palm.