Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Great Bandit Sect (4)
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Clang-clang-clang!
An emergency bell rang out across Muyoung Island, the stronghold of the So Lake Bandits.
They hadn't noticed until half their forces were already wiped out—a perfect case of complacency. Humans always grow lazy in familiarity until danger strikes. They probably thought their sentries had everything under control, but reality isn't so forgiving.
Most only learn the cost of negligence after tasting bitter defeat.
"Knowing that doesn't change a thing."
Mujin's eyes gleamed cold as ice, devoid of any emotion. The bandits' deaths were a foregone conclusion.
"Do me a favor, Demon King."
-Don't use me like this!
"If you're crashing at my place, you gotta earn your keep."
-I do more than you!
Mujin didn't activate Soul-Piercing Demonic Eye himself. Cheon-gyeong handled it independently, consuming no mental energy whatsoever. It was the epitome of efficient teamwork.
Screeeeech!
Mujin shot forward at blinding speed.
Compared to absolute mastery realms, it might seem slow, but Mujin didn't rely on overwhelming power. He exploited the relative gap with the bandits for maximally efficient combat.
"Enemy... guk!"
"You think allies are showing up now?"
Mujin unleashed his merciless gonad-crushing technique on a blocking bandit's lower abdomen. He targeted the opening without mercy, turning the man into a eunuch in an instant. The bandits met an unfilial end, failing to protect even their own bodies.
"Brutal...!"
"Blocked it! Graaah... my eyes!"
Think blocking below is enough?
What about above?
Mujin gouged out the blinded bandit's eyes and snapped his neck. A trivial death. He pressed on with the massacre. A precise half-step thrust shattered the bandit's sternum with a crunch.
Breath caught, blood spraying like a fountain from his mouth—Mujin's form was already onto the next target.
Thud-thud-thud-bam!
Twenty men fell in a single breath. Watching it unfold was a parade of impossibilities—why were they flying back like that?
They sensed the assault and reacted, but froze like grasshoppers in a web. Struggle all they wanted; one glance at Mujin's eyes connected them to the afterlife.
The eyes of Yama, king of the underworld.
Splurt!
Mujin showed no hesitation. He unleashed his ruthless hands fully, sending the bandits off without piling on more karma. They'd end up in Avici Hell anyway, but this shortened their sentence.
"Where'd this monster come from... hup!"
In-sal-do Wang-pal, second-in-command of the So Lake Bandits and chief of the Flesh Dragon Stronghold, faced an unreal nightmare. Even with a hundred men gone, three hundred subordinates fell helplessly.
From the sidelines, it made no sense. How could they drop so defenselessly? But the moment their eyes met, all questions vanished like smoke.
'Not human!'
His gaze evoked the King of Hell himself.
I'm dead.
He thrashed in desperation.
Wang-pal couldn't die meaninglessly. True to his name, he was one of eight sons. He'd clawed from starvation's brink to this vice-chief position, witnessing countless deaths along the way.
'...Move!'
His will to live peaked, and a miracle happened. His fingers twitched beyond his control.
"Impressive resolve."
"Please spare... guk!"
"No mercy."
Anyone spouting nonsense like "your grit earns you life" doesn't last long. Kill when you can—or don't try at all. Survivors always come back tougher, a real hassle.
Crack-crunch-snap!
Mujin charged up the stairs against descending bandits. Like boulders rolling down a hill, they bounced away.
Kraaaah!
Falling bandits breathed their last.
Mujin left no chance for miraculous survival. He snapped their necks clean before letting them drop.
That explain it?
They all hit headfirst.
Splat!
The ground below was blood-soaked, bodies piling neatly atop one another.
"...Father! You said we'd train!"
"...He's killing them all himself!"
Taejin and Cheol-ho grumbled, chasing far behind the rampaging Mujin. No weed survived his path—everything in his way died. After initial skirmishes, it was a walkover.
"Don't run!"
"Block him!"
"Roll out the iron balls!"
Boooom!
"It's coming back!"
"Stay away!"
Muyoung Island resembled a demon's realm.
To halt Mujin's charge, they rolled massive iron spheres—he batted them straight back. The mountainside gaped open, leaving a terrifying scar. Dozens of bandits there were pulverized like pounded rice cake.
"No more karma for you."
"Demon!"
"Spare me... kraaah!"
"Stay back, please!"
The bandits' desperate struggles meant nothing to Mujin. Grit, tenacity, obsession—none swayed him. He wasn't sloppy enough for such trifles. They gave their all before death.
Shiver!
Cheol-ho, who thought he knew Mujin's strength, rediscovered just how monstrous he was. Strong, sure—but a human butcher. He swatted men like insects.
What if he'd pushed harder himself?
'...Never piss him off again!'
The future Iron King was known for iron will, unbroken by any. Yet here he trembled.
"Bro, snap out of it. No kills left for us!"
"...Right."
Oh yeah, this guy's his son. They looked nothing alike—Mujin must've strayed, he'd thought.
But experiencing it, Cheol-ho saw the spitting image.
Can't lose, right?
'Absolutely not!'
Defeat meant capture by that devil's grasp. Worse, losing to Mujin's son would void his harsh training and master's promise.
"He killed them clean. Right, bro?"
"...Yeah."
Mujin's wake was a typhoon-ravaged wasteland. No live bandits left—time to flush out the hiders.
"He showed restraint, at least."
"...What?"
Cheol-ho prayed he'd misheard, that his ears failed. Taejin's casual tone irked him, but rang true.
'What the hell is that guy?'
Master always said the jianghu crawled with monsters. Stay cautious. Yet this exceeded reason. How's he human? Why's he unknown?
'In ten years, I'll beat him!'
Empty vow.
Meanwhile, Taejin pressed ahead, burning to claim kills from his father.
Cheol-ho shook off doubt. No time for reverie.
He stuck close behind Taejin.
"Stop the intruders!"
"Don't come this way!"
"My sick mother... guk!"
"I'll live right... kraah!"
Led by Mujin, Taejin and Cheol-ho showed no quarter. Repentance before them? They hit harder.
Think heaven forgives last-second regrets?
Thud!
Others stood dazed.
Hwangbo Jang-seong, Hwangbo Jin-un, and the Crimson Dragon Squad pinched themselves watching the slaughter. Doubts had plagued their reckless charge. Bandits or not, numbers mattered. Strategy was key.
Basic tactics.
Even clueless warriors knew that. But tactics were irrelevant—Mujin far exceeded expectations.
Especially batting back that iron ball straight—chills.
What if it'd hit them? Same as the bandits.
"They're just bandits. Uncle could do it, right?"
"Sure, if I tried. But sustaining that dominance? And that speed... haa!"
Some bandits were trained warriors. Yet they fell identically. Seemed simple, but he dominated space.
'Beyond the wall, maybe.'
Hwangbo Jang-seong's strongest known was his father, the previous clan head and Fist King. Could Mujin rival him? Absurd thought.
'At that age?'
He'd dismissed the So Lake proposal as bravado. Reality: power to spare.
'He held back.'
Hwangbo Jang-seong accepted it.
True effort from Mujin? He wouldn't stand here. Mujin flaunted power: gossip all you want—the price is on House Hwangbo.
'Great House Hwangbo my ass!'
Mujin disregarded them entirely. Should sting—yet hollow.
Hwangbo Jang-seong steeled himself.
"How long you gonna stand there? We're House Hwangbo warriors. Don't lag behind."
Hwangbo Jin-un and Crimson Dragon Squad snapped to, joining the bandit purge. No survivors hiding.
"Block him! Block that guy!"
"Why us...?"
"...Guard the entrance!"
"...At least one of me!"
"Stop chasing!"
Futile resistance. No match from the start. Despite the vast gap, Mujin stayed vigilant. Even pebbles can kill.
It ended when Do-ryong Stronghold chief Myo-geun Lee Gwang-seong's head exploded.
Bodies piled everywhere.
Mujin headed for the cave where the stronghold chief hid.
"Where you at?"
No trust in underlings—easy to find. Iron door led from room to cave.
Crunch!
Mujin ripped it apart.
A full cubit thick, yet tore like paper. No shoddy work—the chief invested to protect his loot.
Inside: spoils from twelve days nonstop pillaging, neatly stacked for "later." No sharing intended.
Smirk!
Mujin praised the chief's unexpected tidiness despite the looks. Prejudices are bad. Who'd guess that face hid such order?
Huff... huff!
Hwangbo Jang-seong, Jin-un, Crimson Dragon, Cheol-ho, and Taejin arrived late, mopping up remnants.
Before the shredded door, Mujin grinned brighter than ever. Everyone thought: no way, right?
Don't prejudge, they'd sworn moments ago. Mujin shattered that hope instantly.
Clear: he wanted no trust.
"We won't starve for a while."
When did we ever?
Mujin brazenly pocketed gold bars and jewels. He spared nothing. These treasures soaked in So Lake blood and sweat—precious spoils. He honored their deaths by claiming every bit.
"What're you standing around for? I told you: no hesitation."
Uh?
Taejin and Cheol-ho nearly protested, but Mujin's glare made them grab loot fast. Scary calm; angry? Unimaginable.
"House Hwangbo's share too."
"...?"
Who cares!
Is that what Great Thieves do?
Hwangbo Jang-seong and crew learned a harsh new definition of Great Bandit Sect. No guts to complain. Greed burned in Mujin's eyes. Demand return? Who knows the fallout.
'...Damn it!'
Rumors spread? House Hwangbo's done.