Chapter 70
Translator: Wjin
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: That's How I Feel (5)
A rugged gravel field formed from shattered and split boulders.
On that sharp, rocky expanse—too harsh even to lie down comfortably—the elders and disciples of the Mount Zhongnan Sect lay sprawled out.
Stains of bright red blood marred their robes here and there, blood streamed from their ears, and their faces were twisted in agony.
“Ugh...”
“Kuh...”
The elders, whose cultivation bases were deeper than the disciples', regained their senses first and staggered to their feet.
But they weren't in much better shape than the disciples. Their conditions were far from good.
“Amitabha... How could such a monster appear in the mortal world?”
“Damn it... We couldn't even get close.”
The Mount Zhongnan elders' robes were caked in dirt and blood, their faces bore the marks of grueling battle, yet their swords remained remarkably pristine.
They hadn't been able to approach that creature called the Kui beast even once during over an hour of fighting.
“We have no chance like this.”
“I'll sacrifice myself.”
Elder Pung-rim gripped his sword with a resolute expression.
“While I draw its attention and endure its sonic attack, the other elders, unleash your ultimate techniques on it.”
“No, you can't!”
“Elder Pung-rim! Do you plan to die here?!”
Despite the elders' protests, the determination on Pung-rim's face didn't waver.
“It's a monster we can't capture without someone sacrificing themselves. Even then, I'm not sure if we can take it down.”
The Kui beast wasn't just a monster with superior sonic attacks.
Its tough hide repelled even sword gangs—the pinnacle of cutting power.
The Mount Zhongnan elders had already confirmed this through painful sacrifices, so they knew it well.
“That's our only option. It has only one mouth, and its sonic waves go in one direction. Please, follow my lead, elders.”
“Elder Pung-rim...”
The elders nodded with troubled expressions.
Though they didn't want to, Pung-rim was right—there was no other way.
“Now!”
Pung-rim charged toward the Kui beast ahead.
Tak-! Tadak-
At the same moment, four elders twisted their bodies and leaped in from different directions.
“Kuooh!”
The massive, ox-like creature with a single leg opened its maw toward the charging Pung-rim.
An invisible, formless wave of energy shot toward his body.
“Kraaak!”
Pung-rim, suffering severe internal injuries, spat blood from his nose, mouth, and ears as he collapsed.
But the Kui beast showed no mercy, halting its sonic assault just because a human fell. It continued blasting relentlessly at the unconscious Pung-rim.
“You bastard!”
“Won't you stop?!”
The four elders closing in infused their swords with gang qi and prepared to unleash the ultimate technique of the Taiyi Formless Sword.
But at that exact moment.
“Kuooh!”
With a roar, immense energy erupted from the two massive horns sprouting where the Kui beast's eyes should be. It was far denser with heaven-earth spiritual energy than the sonic waves from its mouth.
“...!”
“...!?”
The Mount Zhongnan elders' eyes widened in shock at the completely unexpected attack.
The formless wave engulfed their bodies in an instant.
“Kuhuk!”
“Kaaaak!”
The elders spewed blood from all seven orifices and were sent flying.
The sonic wave was so powerful they were hurled back over ten zhang, landing right where they had started.
“Kuh...”
“Wh-what the hell is that monster...”
“Is... is there no way...?”
With their qi and blood churning and internal energy flowing backward, the elders lacked even the strength to twitch a finger.
Thud- Thud-
Even amid this, the Kui beast leisurely approached them on its single leg.
“Is this... how it ends?”
“So futile...”
As sighs escaped the lips of the Mount Zhongnan elders gazing at the overcast sky,
“Tsk. Sleeping here might make your head spin.”
A young man with distinctly toned muscles—visible even through his thick coat—cast a shadow over the elders' faces.
“...?”
“Wh-who are you?”
“Kang Moo-jin. I'm here to exterminate that thing on a commission.”
“...!?”
The elders' eyes bulged at his words.
“Nonsense! Get out of here!”
“What lunatic commissions a junior warrior to handle a monster like that?!”
“Run, now! Stay and you'll die!”
The elders mustered what little strength they had to shout at Moo-jin.
They issued stern commands to prevent this young man from throwing away his life pointlessly.
“The commission came from Mount Zhongnan Sect.”
“From some no-name place with no credibility— What did you say?!”
“It was commissioned by the Mount Zhongnan Sect in Shaanxi Province.”
“...?”
The elders blinked in stunned silence.
Fr-from Mount Zhongnan...? Why on earth?
As the elders panicked at the incomprehensible situation,
“Kuooh!”
Reacting to the new intruder, the Kui beast roared again and unleashed its sonic waves.
“Kraak! R-run! You can't handle it!”
“Don't be reckless— Kraaak!”
Blood gushed from the elders' seven orifices, horrific screams escaping their mouths.
“Ah, damn. You're noisy as hell.”
Moo-jin scratched his ear irritably and turned toward the Kui beast.
Incredibly, Kang Moo-jin showed no damage from the Kui beast's sonic attack!
“...!?”
“...??”
The screaming Mount Zhongnan elders froze, their eyes nearly popping out.
“Kuo?”
Even the Kui beast tilted its head in confusion.
“Think you're the only one who can make noise?”
Kugugu-
Moo-jin circulated his internal energy, channeling it into both hands before spreading his arms wide.
“Your turn.”
Clap-!
He swiftly clapped his palms together, the energy-packed strike unleashing a thunderous boom.
Kwaaaa-!
Compressed air exploded outward, hurling a massive shockwave at the Kui beast.
“Kuooh!”
The beast's eardrums burst beside its massive twin horns, red blood spraying everywhere.
“...!”
“...!!”
The Mount Zhongnan elders gawked at the shocking sight, jaws dropped so wide they might unhinge, breaths caught in their throats.
The Kui beast—a monster that Mount Zhongnan and Mount Hua had failed to subdue multiple times—now staggered with shattered eardrums and internal injuries in an instant!
“Am I dreaming?! Unbelievable.”
Rubbing his eyes until they reddened in disbelief, Elder Pung-seon channeled energy into his fist.
To distinguish dream from reality, he needed pain.
Pow-!
“Guk!”
Elder Pung-seon collapsed primly beside the fainted Pung-rim.
* * *
“Kuooh!”
Feeling pain for the first time in its life, the Kui beast thrashed its head wildly.
The massive red eye between its brows glared murderously at Moo-jin, burning with fury.
It planned to tear this insolent human who dared wound a spirit beast into dozens of pieces.
“Kuooh!”
Thud-! Thud-!
Defying belief for a one-legged creature, the Kui beast charged at Kang Moo-jin with astonishing speed—like a cannonball firing.
“...! B-be careful!”
“That charge is dangerous!”
“Run, quick!”
The Mount Zhongnan elders paled.
Memories flooded back of six disciples having their ribs shattered by that brute-force rush.
“Oh ho. A test of strength, eh?”
A sly smile curled Kang Moo-jin's lips as he spread his arms arrogantly, chin raised.
“Come on. I'll take it.”
“Kuooh!”
The Kui beast, horns thicker than an adult's thigh, barreled toward Moo-jin.
“N-no!”
“Hero Kang...!”
Kwaaaang-!
A deafening crash echoed, like a mountain colliding with rock.
The shockwave pushed the elders and disciples back four zhang, cratering the ground in a semicircle.
Fwoosh-!
The Kui beast snorted, convinced of its victory, a smug grin on its maw.
However.
“That all you got?”
“...!?”
Once again, Kang Moo-jin stood unscathed, not a scratch on him. He still wore that sly smile.
“My turn, then.”
Kraduk-
Moo-jin seized the Kui beast's single leg, hoisting it into the air,
Bam! Bam- Kwaaaang-!
and slammed its body alternately into the left and right ground.
“Uhahaha! Uhahahaha!”
Watching belatedly, Mount Hua Sword Demon Un-cheon pumped his fist overhead with a cheer.
“Yes!!”
Seeing someone else suffer the same as he had was pure thrill.
“Uhahaha! That's how I feel, you spirit beast punk!”
“...”
Pung-hyeon shook his head at Un-cheon reveling excessively.
Even at his age, still a madman.
* * *
“...”
“...”
The Mount Zhongnan Taoists who saw the corpse of the Kui beast that had wrought havoc on Mount Tai were speechless in awe.
That... monster defeated so easily?
Was that even possible?
It was a beast the mighty Mount Zhongnan Sect had failed to subdue after four attempts.
Even their famed sword experts, the Azure Crane Swordsmen, and the veteran elders who had honed their blades for decades—all had failed.
Yet one man accomplished it alone. Overwhelmingly, without a single wound.
“...A true monster.”
“They say real masters hide beneath the surface...”
Awe filled the eyes of the Mount Zhongnan warriors gazing at Moo-jin.
Some disciples here had cursed behind his back upon hearing Gale Divine Sword Pung-hyeon commissioned him.
But no more doubt or negativity remained. Only respect and reverence.
No one would doubt him after witnessing that overwhelming display of martial prowess.
“Mount Zhongnan owes you a great debt, Hero Kang.”
Regaining consciousness, reception hall leader Pung-rim smiled at Moo-jin, bowing with cupped fists.
He had met Moo-jin before over a secret escort matter.
“Thank you, Hero Kang!”
“You saved our lives. Thank you!”
The Mount Zhongnan elders and dozens of disciples followed, bowing and cupping fists before Moo-jin.
It was quite the spectacle—members of one of the Nine Great Sects bowing in unison to a single escort warrior.
“Just doing my job.”
Moo-jin smiled and returned the gesture with cupped fists.
His mind was already filled with the remaining 5,000 taels of silver from Mount Zhongnan.
“Honestly, I had my doubts. Whether Hero Kang could take down that monster.”
Gale Divine Sword Pung-hyeon approached Moo-jin with a smile.
With Moo-jin subduing the Kui beast, Pung-hyeon—who had been criticized for the reckless commission—now stood vindicated.
Even those who doubted him now looked at him with trust.
“I apologize for doubting you due to my poor judgment.”
“It's fine.”
Moo-jin swallowed the unspoken “As long as you pay up properly,” along with his saliva.
The sparkling eyes of the Mount Zhongnan disciples watching him felt a bit burdensome.
“They say the greater the skill, the broader the understanding. That rings true. You're truly an exceptional warrior—one with the Way. You could be called a true Taoist.”
Pung-hyeon gazed at Moo-jin warmer than ever, pulling a money pouch from his bosom and handing it over.
“This is the promised 5,000 taels in silver notes and an extra 500 taels in silver.”
“Hm? An extra 500 taels?”
Moo-jin swiftly pocketed the pouch—in case they changed their minds—and asked.
“The contract was for 5,000 taels.”
“Payment for saving our disciples and elders. Of course, this pittance doesn't repay the life debt. It's just the only way to show sincerity right now.”
As he spoke, Pung-hyeon glanced sideways at Mount Hua Sword Demon Un-cheon.
Evidently, Un-cheon had suggested offering even the money in the pouch if grateful.
‘Even dung has its use as medicine. That old man's good for something.’
Moo-jin flashed a satisfied smile and subtly thumbs-upped in a direction only Un-cheon could see.
“Now that the extermination's done, time to head back?”
“Yeah. I've been away from the escort agency long enough.”
“I see.”
Pung-hyeon exchanged glances with the elders before cautiously asking,
“Might I ask one more favor?”