Chapter 239
Chapter 239
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 66
>Chapter Title: Innate True Qi (1)
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It was a night when the moon shone exceptionally white and bright.
Joo Woon-hyang was making his way from the personal training room at the Imperial Guard's drill hall back to the dormitory.
As he walked for a while, he halted his steps near the rear annex leading into the dormitory.
'What is this?'
Two Escort Division warriors stood guard under the torchlight at every door of the annex.
It was nearly dawn around the hour of the rat, so it was common for some to doze off occasionally, but both had their heads bowed in a way that seemed off.
Joo Woon-hyang approached them cautiously to check.
-Swish!
He lightly touched them.
Yet they remained utterly still, heads still lowered.
Joo Woon-hyang then pressed his finger to the pulse on their necks.
'......Acupoint Strike.'
Acupoint Strike was a technique to seal specific meridians on the body, putting the opponent to sleep or immobilizing them. These two had clearly fallen victim to it.
'To pull something like this off here.'
The Escort Division warriors weren't particularly strong in martial arts, but for someone to be so brazen in the Imperial Guard's territory—who could it be?
Joo Woon-hyang slowly began to circulate his energy, heightening his vigilance.
Something felt terribly wrong.
-Snap!
At that moment, a finger-flicking sound came from the corner of the wall nearby.
He turned his head to see two shadowy figures in the darkness beyond the torchlight.
Focusing his energy to enhance his vision, their outlines came into view.
'Mok Kyung-un?'
It was none other than Mok Kyung-un, the Heaven and Earth Society's junior disciple.
But who was the one kneeling right in front of him?
Their head was covered with what looked like a hood, hiding their face.
The way they were subdued made the whole scene deeply unsettling.
'What is this?'
He had already been wary of Mok Kyung-un since the earlier incident that day, and now his mind grew even more complicated trying to process this.
Just then, Mok Kyung-un beckoned to Joo Woon-hyang.
As if inviting him to come closer.
'This guy's bold enough to acupoint strike Escort Division warriors in the Imperial Guard's domain. He's probably going to try to make contact no matter what.'
He didn't know what the guy's intentions were, but it didn't seem like a situation he could avoid.
They were staying in the same dormitory anyway.
Joo Woon-hyang slowly walked toward them.
As the distance closed, Mok Kyung-un smiled amiably and said,
"Finally, we have a chance for a quiet talk."
"A chance for a talk?"
Did that mean he'd been waiting for him all this time?
Though Joo Woon-hyang responded calmly and indifferently, his wariness spiked.
"You're quite bold. Acupointing the Escort Division warriors wasn't enough? What's with that guy?"
At Joo Woon-hyang's words, Mok Kyung-un replied with the same smiling face.
"There aren't many places around here for a quiet chat. So I prepared a modest spot."
"You prepared a spot?"
"Yes. Though someone else had prior plans, so I graciously yielded it to them."
-Thud!
Mok Kyung-un placed his hand on the head of someone dressed in trainee robes, hooded.
The kneeling trainee shuddered violently.
From the reaction, they seemed terrified.
'Who the hell is it?'
Hard to tell from the clothes alone.
But he wasn't particularly curious.
If he let some misplaced pity lead him to rescue the trainee from Mok Kyung-un's grasp, it might just stir up more trouble.
Just then, Mok Kyung-un pulled off the hood.
'Wi Bu-cheong?'
It was an unexpected face, leaving him inwardly puzzled.
Why was this inner agent of Prince Gyeongchin's faction captured by such a shady character?
As he puzzled over it, Mok Kyung-un smiled and said,
"I found something amusing done to your pillow."
"Something amusing?"
Joo Woon-hyang glared at Wi Bu-cheong with eyes full of suspicion.
'!?'
Wi Bu-cheong was filled with fear, unable even to meet his gaze properly.
This was the disciple of the Four Links Alliance's Six Alliance Lord, the Evil Serenity Sword Gwi Sa-man—arrogant above all, acting as if the world held no fear for him.
For such a guy to wear that expression.
'What did he do?'
Still puzzled, Joo Woon-hyang soon opened his mouth.
"......Poison."
"Yes, exactly."
Joo Woon-hyang inwardly clicked his tongue at Mok Kyung-un's confirmation.
He'd known it before, but this guy, trained by the notoriously vicious unorthodox group, the Four Links Alliance, was even bolder for it.
To think of using poison on him in a place like this.
'Guess I really got under his skin.'
He'd anticipated some hassle soon, given the murderous glares whenever they crossed paths, but for it to be tonight was something else.
Mok Kyung-un asked, puzzled,
"You're not all that surprised?"
"Not really something to be surprised about."
At Joo Woon-hyang's words, the corner of Mok Kyung-un's mouth curled up slightly.
As if finding it intriguing.
"It makes me want to have a deeper conversation with you."
"Not interested."
Mok Kyung-un chuckled at the immediate refusal.
He then lightly tapped the trembling Wi Bu-cheong's head with his finger and said,
"Come on, let's talk a bit more. But first, what should we do with this guy? It's a gift of sorts—want to take him nicely?"
Mok Kyung-un was handing over the choice.
Wi Bu-cheong pitifully looked at Joo Woon-hyang, rolling his eyes up and down.
As if begging for help.
'Please! Please!'
Someone he'd wanted dead, but right now, Joo Woon-hyang was his only lifeline.
This guy was a real demon.
Watching the scene intently, Joo Woon-hyang said,
"I'll pass. Taking a guy who tried to screw me over as a simple gift feels excessive. If you're giving a gift, it'd be appreciated if you handled it cleanly yourself."
"Turning murder into a favor?"
Mok Kyung-un laughed at the words.
Sharp enough to catch his intent immediately.
If it was a gift, having him finish it off would prevent any backlash.
Wi Bu-cheong's eyes bulged as if they might pop.
'Wh-what the hell are these bastards?'
Between these two casually bargaining over his life like an object, he felt like he was going mad.
If Mok Kyung-un hadn't sealed his mute acupoint, he would've screamed or begged for mercy, but he was helpless.
How had he ended up between these lunatics?
Just then, Mok Kyung-un grabbed his head and neck with both hands.
"Turning murder into a favor...... You're quite calculating, even with your would-be killer right in front of you. Turning down this fun."
With that, he smacked his lips.
Seeing Mok Kyung-un like that, Joo Woon-hyang steadied his breathing.
This guy might be even more dangerous than he'd thought.
Without showing it, Joo Woon-hyang casually opened his mouth.
"Not everyone has a big backer like some people."
The guy had the Heaven and Earth Society and Consort Seo Hwang behind him.
For Joo Woon-hyang, killing Wi Bu-cheong directly would only invite headaches.
The guy was the disciple of the Four Links Alliance's Six Alliance Lord, Evil Serenity Sword Gwi Sa-man, and part of Prince Gyeongchin's faction.
He wasn't even an official Imperial Guard yet, just a trainee. Rashly killing him would likely bring Prince Gyeongchin's side hounding him.
Even if the guy had tried to poison him.
"A backer...... You're exaggerating. Fine, then consider this my little gift."
"What?"
It happened in that instant.
Mok Kyung-un grabbed Wi Bu-cheong by the hair and yanked his head back.
He then whispered into the ear of Wi Bu-cheong, who couldn't move due to the acupoints.
"You know, this type of poison works very slowly when absorbed through the skin. But there's a way to make it act fast."
'!?'
Wi Bu-cheong's pupils shook.
Even the one who'd given him this poison needle didn't know that—how did this guy?
In that puzzled moment.
-Pierce!
The poison needle plunged into Wi Bu-cheong's right eyeball.
'Kughhhhhh!'
Even with his mute acupoint sealed, the agony of the needle piercing his eye was so intense that Wi Bu-cheong convulsed and groaned.
'!!!!!!'
Even Joo Woon-hyang, watching, was momentarily speechless.
He hadn't expected him to stab the poison needle right into the eye.
Wi Bu-cheong's convulsing movements from the pain soon stopped after a short while.
His face had gone blank and dazed, as if lost in a stupor.
'Ha......'
Joo Woon-hyang stuck out his tongue at the sight.
Truly audacious.
The guy had solid backing too, yet there was no hesitation in his hands.
Mok Kyung-un grinned broadly and said,
"Satisfied with the gift?"
Smiling brightly, yet utterly malicious.
'......Dangerous. Really.'
His instincts screamed a warning.
Stay away from him.
His mind grew complicated thinking what to do, when Mok Kyung-un stepped toward him.
"Now that I've given you a gift, shall we learn more about you?"
-Swish!
Mok Kyung-un's form blurred before his eyes, closing the distance in an instant.
'Fast.'
His lightness skill was beyond imagination.
Joo Woon-hyang urgently launched his body backward.
-Whoosh!
It was the Soundless Shadow Step his second master had taught him.
The Soundless Shadow Step was the movement art of the Soundless Kill Sect, one of the Four Great Assassins groups. It wasn't vastly superior to his current sect, the Kongdong Sect's movement art, but it allowed such mystical maneuvers.
-Whirl!
While retreating, Joo Woon-hyang flipped in midair, going over Mok Kyung-un who was trying to grab him, landing behind.
"Hoh."
'Eat this.'
Before flipping, Joo Woon-hyang had reversed his energy's rotation. As he landed behind, he unleashed a palm strike toward Mok Kyung-un.
-Shrrrrr!
The rotating wind pressure palm targeted Mok Kyung-un's back.
But Mok Kyung-un bent at the waist and twisted sideways, immediately striking Joo Woon-hyang's head and neck repeatedly with kicks.
-Paak! Thud!
Hit on the neck and head at once, Joo Woon-hyang crashed to the ground.
The pain was so intense he nearly blacked out.
-Grit!
Gritting his teeth, Joo Woon-hyang launched another reverse-rotating palm toward Mok Kyung-un's ankle as he lightly landed after the kicks.
-Shrrrrr!
This time, Mok Kyung-un couldn't dodge.
The moment it touched his ankle, the intense rotating wind pressure flipped his body and sent him flying.
'It worked.'
Even Mok Kyung-un, who seemed to have reached the pinnacle of superhuman level, couldn't withstand it, by his guess.
But his satisfaction was short-lived.
The flung Mok Kyung-un didn't tumble; he effortlessly regained balance.
-Thud!
"Interesting technique."
'What the? This bastard?'
Joo Woon-hyang was dumbfounded.
It was Reverse Coiling Energy, powerful enough to pulverize even a stone slab.
A direct hit to the ankle, yet he was fine.
No, not entirely fine.
The flesh near his torn ankle was split slightly, blood trickling.
Regaining balance and standing, Mok Kyung-un glanced at the wound on his ankle and furrowed his brow faintly.
'Blocked with death qi, yet it wounded me.'
Death qi was the energy of death.
It could usually disperse most true qi, but Joo Woon-hyang's technique not only didn't disperse—it pierced his death qi and wounded him.
'Surely because of that energy?'
The energy from Joo Woon-hyang's middle dantian felt different from ordinary internal energy.
It felt completely opposite to his death qi or demonic qi.
The corner of Mok Kyung-un's mouth curled up.
"I'm getting more and more interested in that power of yours."
With that, he stepped toward Joo Woon-hyang again.
Joo Woon-hyang endured the pain and stood.
'One mountain after another.'
This was a total monster.
To reach such a level at that age—unlike himself, strengthened by various fortunes, this was true genius.
He had no confidence in winning.
But he couldn't just take this lying down.
-Whoosh!
Judging he couldn't beat Mok Kyung-un with his current skill, Joo Woon-hyang flew his form toward the main Imperial Guard Six Select Hall building while trying to shout.
In that instant, Mok Kyung-un's form blurred and appeared right in front of him.
'Crazy!'
Even faster than before.
Mok Kyung-un, now in his face, struck his throat with the knife-hand of thumb and index finger.
"Guh!"
His throat hit, he couldn't shout.
Staggering back, Mok Kyung-un seized his wrist with Capturing Hand like a bolt of lightning and twisted it behind.
Then, with Joo Woon-hyang immobilized, Mok Kyung-un placed his left palm on his chest.
He poured death qi into the activated middle dantian.
-Shoooo!
To figure out what this unique energy in Joo Woon-hyang's middle dantian was.
Right then.
-Roooar!
The middle dantian in his heart core flared up like it was on fire.
The surging hot energy began strongly repelling Mok Kyung-un's death qi.
Mok Kyung-un's eyebrows shot up.
'What is this?'
-What's wrong, successor?
Cheong-ryeong asked, puzzled.
-The middle dantian's energy is completely pushing out the death qi.
It was a phenomenon he'd never experienced.
Death qi weakens and disperses the energy of the living.
Yet the energy in Joo Woon-hyang's heart core, the middle dantian, strongly countered the death qi, repelling it.
-Innate vital energy this pure and strong—it's a first.
"Vital energy? You said vital energy now?"
-Yes.
-Ha!
Cheong-ryeong couldn't hide her shock at Mok Kyung-un's words.
She too had been half-doubting when Mok Kyung-un mentioned Joo Woon-hyang had unusual energy not in his lower but middle dantian.
But learning it was pure vital energy opposing death qi confirmed it.
-Successor. It seems this guy...... has mastered the sages' nurturing method.
[Chapter 66: Innate True Qi (1)] End
ⓒ Han Jung-wol-ya