Chapter 494

Slash! Shhk-shhk-shhk!

Scales split apart, and huge chunks of flesh were cut into evenly sized pieces.

The enormous bones emerging between them were so clean it hardly seemed possible.

Thud! Slash!

His skill bordered on the supernatural.

As the onlookers stared in a daze, a quiet murmur spread through the crowd.

“Hyuk. I’m asking because I genuinely don’t know, but… Was the Jin Family of Taiyuan originally a family of fishermen?”

“Can I ask the Lesser Family Head that exact question?”

“Of course not, you lunatic. But you’d have to be born with a talent like that. Could he actually be a fisherman…?”

“Lesser Family Head! Do you know what Gung Gibang just said?”

“Hey, hey!”

“Was one of our ancestors a fisherman? How can the youngest one do that?”

“…Lesser Family Head?”

“If Zhuge Wuhou¹ had seen this, he’d have fallen right out of his four-wheeled carriage. Wouldn’t you agree, Perfected Being Hyeongong?”

“Good heavens. Infinite Amen, Avalokiteshvara.²”

“…Perfected Being?”

While everyone questioned the roots of the Jin Family of Taiyuan and worked toward religious unification, one person was thinking about something else entirely.

Huh. Look at this guy.

Mungyeong’s clear eyes followed Jin Taekyung as he cut and sliced like a man possessed.

What incredible power. And it’s fast and concise, too.

You could tell a person’s realm from the smallest movement. By that measure, what Jin Taekyung was doing was astonishing.

What an achievement. Hard to believe he’s barely past twenty.

Mungyeong already knew Jin Taekyung defied common sense. Everyone in this dusty martial world knew it. Even the young prodigies of the Nine Sects and One Gang, with all the support they received, struggled to break through to Peak at twenty. Jin Taekyung had reached Supreme Peak and now stood shoulder to shoulder with masters one or even two generations above him.

But that was not the only reason Mungyeong admired him.

He moves like a veteran of the martial world. That control over his strength, at his age… Not a motion wasted.

Thump! Slash!

Even the smallest movement was efficient. He might have been conscious of all the people watching, but he showed none of the flashy affectation someone his age might have indulged in.

He simply cut, sliced, and separated, like a traveler quietly following the quickest, easiest path.

He was the same when he fought the imugi.³

An assassin took in and analyzed everything around him. His profession demanded that he kill his target and find a way out, whatever the circumstances.

And Mungyeong was the Slaughter Saint, called the greatest assassin of all time.

He had watched Jin Taekyung ever since Sichuan—not as the Divine Physician, but through the eyes of the Slaughter Saint.

The Heavenly Martial Physique… Could it really be true?

It had been forty years since Mungyeong left Murim. For all that time—long enough for the mountains and rivers to change four times—he had lived as a medical apprentice. He had examined and treated thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of patients.

Yet even with all that experience, he could not easily explain Jin Taekyung’s body or talent.

He’s similar to Cheongpung, but there’s a subtle difference.

Mungyeong glanced at Cheongpung, then looked away.

Cheongpung was the only person who could be compared to Jin Taekyung. In his understanding and application of martial arts, he might even surpass him.

Cheongpung, too, had a remarkable body unlike any Mungyeong had seen. But not quite like Jin Taekyung’s.

Cheongpung was refined. Jin Taekyung was born this way.

The shape and size of his muscles, his skeleton, his acupoints—everything was perfect.

The Heavenly Martial Physique.

Mungyeong’s gaze deepened as he watched Jin Taekyung.

What if that boy made my secret martial arts entirely his own…?

He pushed the thought aside almost as soon as it came.

Ridiculous.

Martial arts were like an endless mountain range. Most martial artists still at its foot might think Mungyeong had reached the summit, but he could see another mountain ahead.

That was how vast and distant the world of martial arts was.

Even Mungyeong had not reached the end of the secret martial arts he practiced. Heavenly Martial Physique or not, Jin Taekyung could hardly achieve anything satisfactory with them in such a short time.

Especially now.

War was almost upon them. With countless battles ahead, Mungyeong needed to teach him what mattered most. Too much of anything could become poison.

The Fire King, Jeok Cheongang, must have known that when he entrusted Jin Taekyung to him.

But… what on earth should I teach that bastard?

At a loss for the first time in a long while, Mungyeong watched the scene before him.

“Cheongpung! Ready?”

“Yes, Benefactor!”

“Lay into it with the Plum Blossom Sword Technique!”

“Agh!”

“Perfected Being! Where are you?”

“Oh. Here I am!”

“Why are you standing over there instead of working? Can’t you see the rest of us working?”

“I-I was just going to take a short break…”

“Perfected Being, you’re such an individualist! Where’s your teamwork?”

“I-I’m sorry.”

“Show me how sorry you are. Taiji Wisdom Sword, go!”

“I-Infinite Life Buddha!⁴”

Slash! Slash! Slash!

Under Jin Taekyung’s forceful direction, the Water God Dragon’s corpse was dismantled in no time.

The others cried out in admiration. Mungyeong only grew more troubled.

What am I supposed to teach that bastard?

At this point, he looked like the kind of person who would grow just fine on his own…

Then Mungyeong made up his mind.

No. Now that he had taken this on, he would see it through to the end. He wanted to stay close and find out just how far that arrogant bastard Jin Taekyung could go.

First, I need to fix that absurdly complacent attitude of his.

Mungyeong slipped up beside Hyuk Mujin, who was staring with his mouth open.

“Martial Warrior Hyuk.”

“Holy shit. He cut through that in one go—oh, Mungyeong. What is it?”

“Young Master Jin must be exhausted. Would you take him some water?”

“Huh. You really do think of things the rest of us don’t. I’ll take it right over.”

“Please don’t tell him I gave it to you. I’d be happier if you got the praise.”

“You really are something…!”

Hyuk Mujin looked at Mungyeong with deeply moved eyes and accepted the leather waterskin.

Of course, along with cool water, it contained a deadly poison called Seven-Step Soul-Chasing Powder—an extreme poison that killed its victim before they could take seven steps.

“…What’s this?”

Immediately after the work was finished, Hyuk Mujin approached me with a leather waterskin. He answered my question with a proud expression.

“Water. I thought you might be tired, Captain.”

“There’s no way you thought of something this considerate.”

“I fetched it myself! Why don’t you trust me?”

Had I been too sensitive lately? He looked so wronged that I felt a little guilty for doubting him.

Besides, after working that long, I really was thirsty.

“Hm. Really?”

“Forget it. If you’re going to be like this, don’t drink it! I’ll drink it myself!”

“Hey, hey. Fine. Leave it here and go. I’ll drink it.”

“I said forget it!”

“That’s enough. You’re starting to piss me off.”

“…Yes.”

Once Mujin was gone, I carefully pulled the stopper from the waterskin and sniffed it.

Mm. Smell.

Smells normal, at least.

I still wasn’t letting my guard down. Very carefully, I tilted the waterskin.

A drop of water trickled out slowly and plopped onto my tongue.

Just in case, I’ll start with one drop…

Beep.

System

• You have been poisoned by Potent Seven-Step Soul-Chasing Powder!
• Potent Seven-Step Soul-Chasing Powder is an extreme poison capable of killing dozens of bulls with a single drop!
• Severe Internal Injury and organ damage are likely. Very, very urgent treatment is required!

“…Hyuk Mujin, you son of a bitch.”

Fuck. That wasn’t the kind of one drop I’d had in mind.

Inventory open. Summon!

I hurriedly put on the Myriad-Poison Ring and raised my Scorching Yang Qi to drive out the poison.

The next System notification told me the poison had been purged. But that wasn’t the end.

Beep.

System

• Quick action—but the extreme poison has left aftereffects!
• Your Sinews and Meridians have suffered slight damage!
• Some stats have decreased due to the damage to your Sinews and Meridians!
• Strength decreased by 5!
• Agility decreased by 5!
• Status abnormality: Severe Stomachache!
• Status abnormalities will return to normal once you have fully recovered, but the lost stat points cannot be restored!

“What the hell?”

No, fuck. Had I really lost stat points?

Not one or two, either. A whole ten points between Strength and Agility had vanished.

Ten points is one level-up!

Damn it. I knew exactly who was behind this.

I’d gone through hell to raise those stats, and now they were gone. Hot fury surged up from deep in my gut.

Grrrggg.

…Was that fury, or feces?

And of all the shitty status abnormalities to get, I had to get this one. My vision went white with pain, and I hurried off.

“Young Friend Jin, where are you going?”

“Benefactor, where are you going?”

“Move, move. We’re done dismantling it, so all that’s left is sorting. I need to take care of something first…”

“Benefactor, are you going to poop?”

Don’t say it so loudly, you lunatic. What if Mungyeong hears you?

Pale-faced, I stumbled on. Only when I got close to a place out of sight did I start to feel relieved.

Whew. Thank goodness.

Shitting myself while standing would be humiliating enough. If Mungyeong saw me, I’d be in for it.

Fortunately, he wasn’t among the others, so he must have gone somewhere else…

Wait. Somewhere else?

The question crossed my mind just as my foot touched the ground.

Then I heard a faint sound.

Step. Tap.

A chill ran down my spine. I launched myself into the air on instinct.

Shhk-shhk-shhk-shhk!

Four blades whistled through the air.

Four daggers came from the front, back, left, and right. They pierced the edges of my clothes and skimmed my skin. If I hadn’t dodged, they would have lodged in my chest, back, and limbs.

What the hell…!

I righted my body and landed on the ground, then glared furiously at the rock wall more than ten zhang⁵ away.

“Can we take it down a notch? Huh?”

The rock wall shimmered like a heat haze. A figure emerged and answered in a dry voice.

“I told you clearly. I decide how you train.”

“You put me in this state and then hide over there? You could at least face me—”

“I wasn’t hiding. I was watching.”

“What difference does that make? You got caught.”

“I showed myself just enough for you to notice. If you couldn’t manage even that, you might as well bite down on a blade and die.”

“You…”

“You?”

Mungyeong. No—the Slaughter Saint.

The moment I met his deep, steady gaze, goose bumps rose on my skin and hot fury surged up again.

Grrrrrrrk. Frrt.

“……”

“……”

It wasn’t fury. It was feces.