Chapter 191
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 191
Chapter Title: Insipid
"Ha Mu-baek..."
Gwang Hoe-cheon muttered through gritted teeth as he glared.
"You're Gwang Hoe-cheon, aren't you?"
Ha Mu-baek stared right back at him.
"How are you still fine? You wolfed down all that food. The Latent Soul Poison should have kicked in by now..."
Ha Mu-baek let out a scoffing laugh.
Step.
Ha Mu-baek took a step forward.
He positioned himself right in front of Yeo Hwa and Dan Mok Un-hye, turning his back to shield the two women as he faced Gwang Hoe-cheon.
"Did you come here aiming for the Dan Mok Clan's secret vault?"
"How the hell do you know that?"
Gwang Hoe-cheon's eyes widened slightly at Ha Mu-baek's question.
"I heard about it. How the Dan Mok Clan got wiped out."
Ha Mu-baek clenched and unclenched his fist as he spoke.
At those words, Yeo Hwa's eyes flashed with hatred once more.
Dan Mok Un-hye still looked terrified amid the sudden chaos.
Ha Mu-baek stared at Gwang Hoe-cheon with an expressionless face.
Gwang Hoe-cheon glared back at him.
He ground his teeth hard.
The man he'd assumed had been poisoned by the Latent Soul Poison and turned into an Iron-Devouring Cadaver was standing right there before him.
His mind reeled in confusion.
He'd already burned through a huge amount of his internal energy battling Byeok Ryeok-gae.
And now, a powerful enemy had appeared out of nowhere.
It was completely off-script.
When he'd heard that the guy had devoured a massive amount of food at the Wolryong Guest House,
he'd figured the poison would turn him into a cadaver for sure.
'Fuck... how the hell did this bastard...'
Sweat beaded on Gwang Hoe-cheon's back as he squared off against Ha Mu-baek.
"You were planning to turn Muchang upside down."
Ha Mu-baek said in a cold voice.
"Five hundred Iron-Devouring Cadavers."
Gwang Hoe-cheon's eyes trembled at the follow-up.
How did this bastard know that?
"Did you catch a messenger pigeon?"
That was the most obvious conclusion.
Ha Mu-baek smirked and nodded.
"Yeah. I figured there'd be scum like you around. But how did you read the message? It was in code."
"How much of the Blood Cult's cipher do you think I picked up during the last war?"
Gwang Hoe-cheon hadn't expected him to know the Blood Cult's secret code.
"Where did you send it?"
Ha Mu-baek demanded, eyes fixed on Gwang Hoe-cheon.
He'd released the pigeons and responses in twelve directions.
Birds fanning out in a circle from Muchang.
The one Ha Mu-baek caught was just one of them.
"You think I'm gonna tell you that?"
Gwang Hoe-cheon spat dismissively.
Ha Mu-baek's expression didn't change.
"Doesn't matter. I think I already know where."
Gwang Hoe-cheon eyed Ha Mu-baek warily as he said it.
But that wasn't important right now.
Escaping this mess was.
No matter how crucial the Dan Mok Clan's secret vault was, it couldn't compare to his own life.
'I should have stayed closer.'
Too late for regrets.
With Ha Mu-baek already between him and Yeo Hwa, taking a hostage was out of the question.
"Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest."
Ha Mu-baek's voice cut through suddenly.
Gwang Hoe-cheon flinched.
He'd been deep in thought, and the name hit too precisely.
"Just as I thought. That's where it is."
Ha Mu-baek nodded, as if Gwang Hoe-cheon's reaction confirmed it.
No point denying it now.
"How?"
"Looks like that's the spot. There's something more underground..."
Gwang Hoe-cheon's eyes bulged at Ha Mu-baek's words.
He'd never been to the Blood Cult's main base himself. No reason to.
But he'd heard enough to know what Ha Mu-baek meant.
The main base was deep underground—that much was true.
"How do you know even that?"
It wasn't a guess. Gwang Hoe-cheon had been played.
Ha Mu-baek knew it exactly.
"What do you think turned it into that?"
Ha Mu-baek smirked.
But Gwang Hoe-cheon showed no reaction.
He couldn't.
He hadn't seen it himself.
"Looks like you never went there."
Ha Mu-baek read it from his lack of response.
No one who'd witnessed the ruins would react like that.
Ha Mu-baek glanced back briefly.
Yeo Hwa, mother of Dan Mok Un-roe.
And Dan Mok Un-hye, the little sister.
What was about to unfold would be brutal for them to witness.
Better to change venues.
"Alright. Let's finish the rest of this chat somewhere else."
Step.
Ha Mu-baek advanced a step toward Gwang Hoe-cheon.
Gwang Hoe-cheon retreated a step.
The positions had reversed from moments ago.
Another step from Ha Mu-baek.
Two steps back from Gwang Hoe-cheon.
The standoff repeated a few times.
Thud.
Gwang Hoe-cheon's back hit the wall.
Nowhere left to go.
Ha Mu-baek flashed a grin and kicked off the ground.
He appeared before Gwang Hoe-cheon in an instant.
Thwack.
He smashed a fist into his jaw.
Gwang Hoe-cheon's body floated into the air.
Ha Mu-baek seized him by the scruff and leaped onto the wall.
"I know the grudge runs deep, but I'll handle this one."
Those were Ha Mu-baek's parting words to Yeo Hwa as he vanished.
Yeo Hwa stared blankly after him.
"Instructor Ha..."
A faint murmur.
"M-Mommy... waaah!"
Dan Mok Un-hye burst into sobs in her arms.
She hadn't even been able to cry through all the terror until now.
"It's okay, Un-hye. It's all over. You're safe now."
Yeo Hwa patted Dan Mok Un-hye's back soothingly.
"Urgh. Let go!"
Gwang Hoe-cheon snarled.
"Don't rush me. You'll get your wish soon enough."
Ha Mu-baek raced at full speed, leaving Muchang behind and entering the wild hills.
There, he hurled Gwang Hoe-cheon aside.
"Guh."
Gwang Hoe-cheon tumbled across the ground, then sprang up and bolted.
He had to escape this guy first.
He poured every last drop of his internal energy into his lightness skill.
Ha Mu-baek wore a look of disdain at the sight.
Who the hell was he running from, right in front of him?
Even Blood Viper Young of the Blood Cult's Ten Paths hadn't escaped him.
Gwang Hoe-cheon didn't get far before Ha Mu-baek caught him.
"That's all you got? I heard you were some martial prodigy."
Ha Mu-baek mocked, blocking his path.
Gwang Hoe-cheon gnashed his teeth.
"A prodigy knows better. I can't match a monster like you."
Ha Mu-baek looked disappointed at the answer.
"You put up a hell of a fight against Elder Byeok Ryeok-gae."
Ha Mu-baek had sensed their battle through his energy perception.
"What do I have to do for you to let me live?"
Gwang Hoe-cheon asked sharply. Resistance was futile; he knew it.
Ha Mu-baek's eyes widened in surprise.
"Let you live? You think that's on the table? After what you did in Muchang? Bold dream."
Gwang Hoe-cheon's face twisted under the barrage of questions.
He couldn't go down this pathetically.
"You fucking bastard."
Gwang Hoe-cheon charged at Ha Mu-baek.
He knew he couldn't win, but dying like this? No way.
His fist, wrapped in crimson battle aura, flew toward Ha Mu-baek's face.
Thud.
Ha Mu-baek's fist met it head-on.
Enveloped in pure white battle aura.
A resounding crack echoed.
"Gah."
Gwang Hoe-cheon groaned.
His right fist shattered.
Disappointment filled Ha Mu-baek's face.
"This is the guy who wiped out the Dan Mok Clan?"
"Shut up!"
Gwang Hoe-cheon swung his left hand wildly.
Ha Mu-baek countered with his fist again.
Gwang Hoe-cheon twisted away in panic, dodging.
Otherwise, his left fist would've been pulverized too.
Ha Mu-baek's fist lashed out once more.
Thud.
"Kuhuk."
It slammed into Gwang Hoe-cheon's solar plexus.
"Gack. Gack."
The heavy impact left him gasping for air.
Ha Mu-baek regarded him coldly.
With Infinite Bright Wheel Eye active, he could see Gwang Hoe-cheon's internal energy state clearly.
This was the best the guy had.
His fight with Byeok Ryeok-gae at the Wolryong Manor headquarters.
That was his peak.
His internal energy had been sealed for years.
He'd only just broken the seal.
Somehow triggered a temporary surge.
But he'd burned it all against Byeok Ryeok-gae.
And he hadn't adapted to his changed body yet.
Pathetic.
If he'd unsealed earlier and trained properly in this state, who knows.
But now? Laughable.
Sensing Ha Mu-baek's contempt,
Gwang Hoe-cheon's eyes blazed.
But every attack was futile flailing.
"Insipid."
Too insipid.
Way too insipid.
He'd rushed to handle those ten poison-spreaders, only to find this.
And they hadn't known much either.
He'd wanted to crush them slowly, but sensed this one heading for Dan Mok Un-roe's house and prioritized.
Those ten were probably meeting King Yama by now.
"How should I finish you?"
Boredom flickered in Ha Mu-baek's eyes.
Mixed with rage.
It pissed him off that most of Muchang's residents were poisoned because of this trash.
No outbreaks yet, but who knew.
The poison they'd scattered had spread wide.
Ha Mu-baek strode forward, appearing before Gwang Hoe-cheon.
Thud. Thud-thud.
The sounds of pummeling.
"Ugh. Urgh."
Groans leaked from Gwang Hoe-cheon's mouth.
"Y-You... fucking... bastard..."
As curses spilled out,
he clamped down on Ha Mu-baek's arm with his remaining good hand.
Pouring all his internal energy into his left hand for a vise grip.
Ha Mu-baek shook it off lightly, but Gwang Hoe-cheon clung like a leech.
"Die!"
He glared and roared.
His clothes swelled and tore.
A hidden pouch burst, scattering powder.
A contingency Latent Soul Poison pouch.
Designed to burst only with internal energy.
Gwang Hoe-cheon had held his breath.
Caught off-guard, Ha Mu-baek inhaled once, taking in the poison.
Gwang Hoe-cheon leaped back.
"Kekeke. Think you'll be fine this time? With the food from Wolryong Guest House still in you? Become a cadaver now!"
It was his trump card.
He'd taken the beating on purpose.
To dust Ha Mu-baek's face with poison.
But.
Ha Mu-baek showed no change.
Just an irritated glare.
"Heh heh. You'll feel it soon. Latent period for those with internal energy. But more poison speeds it up. The more, the faster. Any moment now..."
As Gwang Hoe-cheon gloated,
Thud.
Something jammed into his mouth.
His teeth shredded it, and powder poured down his throat.
The taste.
Gwang Hoe-cheon's eyes nearly popped out.
"I snagged some of that Latent Soul Poison myself, you see."
From the scattered airborne poison he'd recovered with his energy sword and internal energy, plus the ten pouches seized—that made ten in total.
One had just been shoved into Gwang Hoe-cheon's mouth.
Enough for fifty cadavers. A hefty dose.
"You said more poison makes it hit faster, even with internal energy? Wonder how you'll handle it."
Ha Mu-baek glared coldly.
"Ptoo!"
He spat out the pouch,
but a quarter had already gone down.
Far too much for one person.
"U-Uh... Uhhh."
Gwang Hoe-cheon, who knew Latent Soul Poison better than anyone,
trembled violently.
Utterly lost.
Ha Mu-baek watched intently.
Infinite Bright Wheel Eye at full power.
'He made the poison. If there's an antidote, he'll know it.'
That's why he was observing so closely.
Why he'd dragged him here for this exact purpose.
He hadn't expected the hidden stash, though.
The poison in Ha Mu-baek's body raged to activate, but he'd handled it before.
First time's the hardest; second was easy.
His Infinite Harmony Heart Method's energy suppressed it firmly.
Gwang Hoe-cheon shuddered, then hastily sat cross-legged.
Desperate to suppress the poison before it manifested.