Reaper of the Drifting Moon - Chapter 58

Chapter 58 novel Reaper of the Drifting Moon 

Light Novel: Volume 3 Episode 8

There was tension in the Qingcheng mountain.

It was because of the crowd who visited at sunset. The people who climbed Mount Qingcheng carrying a coffin with the body were Tae Yeon-ho and the martial artists of the Thunder Gates.

The warriors of the Qingcheng sect looked displeased at the martial artists who visited without notice. It was not considered polite in Jianghu to make such a sudden visit with another sect without a message in advance.

Much less, the Qingcheng sect is a sacred sect with ties to Taoism.

There was no reason to allow a group with swords to enter without permission. However, the matter was so urgent that the Qingcheng sect had no choice but to let in the martial artist of the Thunder Gates.

They are now facing each other in a big hall in front of the great Daejeon.

In the middle between the Qingcheng sect and the Thunder Gates, there was an Ongwan held from the bottom of the mountain.

At that time, the top leaders walked out from Daejeon. As they appeared, the warriors of the Qingcheng sect bowed their heads.

In the center of the leadership was Muryeongjin, the sect leader of the Qingcheng sect.

Muryeongjin looked at Tae Yeon-ho with clear eyes and said,

“What do you mean by this, sect leader Tae?”

“That’s what I wanted to ask, sect leader Muryeongjin.”

“Tell me what happened. Why did you bring a coffin to the sect?”

“In this coffin is the body of my disciple.”

“It’s unfortunate that sect leader Tae’s disciple died, but I don’t think this has anything to do with our sect.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?!”

Tae Yeon-ho opened his eyes and looked at Muryeongjin. At that, the disciples of the Qingcheng sect were furious.

“Show some respect!”

“How dare you persecute the sect leader of our Qingcheng sect!”

The disciples of the Qingcheng sect had the momentum to attack the martial artists of the Thunder Gates at any moment. This was the home of the Qingcheng sect, so their power and numbers were superior.

If the Qingcheng sect wanted to, they were capable of subduing all of the martial artists of the Thunder gates who came up here in a hurry.Nevertheless, the reason why Muryeongjin and the rest of the disciples keep their manners is because of their roots as a Taoist.

Muryeongjin raised his hand to calm down the agitated disciples. He then asked Tae Yeon-ho,

“I really don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.. Can you explain to me what happened?”

As the news of Nam Ho-san’s assassination had not yet been reported to the Qingcheng sect, Muryeongjin did not know why Tae Yeon-ho was making such a fuss.

“Okay. Then I’ll show you myself.”

Tae Yeon-ho opened the coffin lid. Then the body of Nam Ho-san, lying in a miserable state, was revealed.

“Ugh!”

“Amitabha Buha!”

The appearance of a corpse full of terrible sword slashes was enough to shake the hearts of the Qingcheng sect warriors.

“This is the body of my disciple. Do you not feel anything when you see this child?”

“I express my deepest condolences to the disciple’s misfortune. But what do we have to do with the disciple’s death?”

“Can’t you see this child’s wound? Even though it’s a wound from the Seventy-Two Sword Waves!”

“No way.”

It was then that the Muryeongjin people and the rest of the department heads took a closer look at the scars left on Nam Ho-san’s body.

“Hm!”

“Are you saying it’s really the Seventy-Two Sword Waves?”

They unknowingly let out a sigh. This was because the scars left on Nam Ho-san’s body were traces that appeared when the Seventy-Two Sword Waves was used.

A confused expression appeared on Muryeongjin’s face.

This is because the Seventy-Two Sword Wave was definitely a technique of the Qingcheng sect.

Tae Yeon-ho shouted,

“Are you still going to deny it? My disciple was assassinated by an assassin using the Seventy-Two Sword Waves of the Qingcheng sect. This cannot happen without the Qingcheng sect killing him.”

“Sect leader Tae! Calm down first.”

“How can I calm down? My disciple was killed by the sword of the Qingcheng sect.”

“I’ll figure this out—”

“Do not procrastinate, and give me a proper explanation. Is it because you think that if my disciple marries the Woo Seolha of the White Flower Room, we will be on the side of the Emei sect? Are you worried about the Emei sect that much? Enough to commit such a cowardly thing.”

At the words of Tae Yeon-ho, Muryeongjin’s eyebrows twitched.

At that moment, the lion’s hood exploded.

“Go!”

After the huge roar that resounded all over the Qingcheng sect, Tae Yeon-ho and the rest of the Thunder Gates covered their ears and stumbled.

At that time, a man with a cold expression jumped out from among the department heads.

A middle-aged man reduced the space in an instant and appeared in front of Tae Yeon-ho. He was Mu Jeong-jin, the strongest warrior of the Qingcheng sect.”

A ferocious light flashed in Mu Jeong-jin’s eyes as he looked at Tae Yeon-ho.

Muryeongjin, who saw it, cried out.

“Don’t!”

“How dare you! I won’t forgive you for barging into our sect and making a fuss!”

Mu Jeong-jin did not care and extended his hand to Tae Yeon-ho.

It was one of the  techniques of the Qingcheng sect, Wind Thunder Palm.¹

“No!”

Tae Yeon-ho quickly drew his sword and performed a defensive stance. However, it was not enough to block the sword of Mu Jeong-jin.

Bang!

Tae Yeon-ho’s body bounced back with the explosion. The sword he was holding split due to the formidable power of the Wind Thunder Palm.

Mu Jeong-jin jumped and then followed Tae Yeon-ho.

Tae Yeon-ho bit his lip at the unfamiliar flashing eyes and fierce momentum.

Mu Jeong-jin’s Wind Thunder Palm shook Tae Yeon-ho’s internal organs, so he couldn’t bring out his power.

“Priest! Show mercy!”

“You must not kill him, Senior brother!”

Muryeongjin and Muhwajin shouted at the same time.

At that moment, Mu Jeong Jin-in’s hands pounded Tae Yeon-ho’s whole body.

Purberbuck!

“Geuh!”

Tae Yeon-ho screamed and collapsed.

Luckily, Mu Jeong-jin controlled his attack, so Tae Yeon-ho did not stop breathing. But Tae yeon-ho’s appearance still looked very miserable. He knelt on the floor filled with his blood.

Mu Jeong-jin looked down at Tae Yeon-ho while holding his back.

“Do you think our sect is easy? For you to accused us of such absurd manipulation.”

“I didn’t lie.”

Tae Yeon-ho answered with difficulty. Then, Mu Jeong-jin’s eyes turned even colder.

“Quiet. If you talk nonsense again, I will kill not only you, but also everyone who climbed the mountain.”

Tae Yeon-ho kept his mouth shut at the terrifying threat of Mu Jeong-jin. There was a gloomy expression on his face. When he experienced the formidable power of a Mu Jeong-jin first hand, he couldn’t dare to respond.

Clearly, it was the Qingcheng sect who did something wrong, but they were the one being persecuted here. Tears wanted to come out from his heart.

Tae Yeon-ho looked at Muryeongjin.

“Is this how the Qingcheng sect does things? To suppress others with force so that no objection can be raised?”

“I apologize, sect leader Tae!”

Muryeongjin hastily tried to make excuses. But before that, Mu Jeong-jin kicked Tae Yeon-ho in the chest.

Puck!

Taeyeon-ho couldn’t even scream, flew away and lost consciousness.

“Priest! Why are you attacking him here? It will not be too late to find out the circumstances first and then act later.”

“Once we subdue it, it is not too late to check the situation. The more we look at the situation, the more they would look at us with ridicule. Amitabha!”

Mu Jeong-jin replied coldly and went into Daejeon. Muryeongjin looked at his back and murmured.

“what the .... happened to the priest in the past? He wasn’t that ferocious even though he was cold.”

At some point, Mu Jeong-jin changed little by little. He became ferocious and vicious. And he couldn’t hold back his anger.

At first, he thought that Mu Jeong-jin was just going through a simma in the process of learning martial arts. When anyone learns martial arts, they tend to experience a little bit of heart demon², and most of them escape safely.

Qingcheng sect’s martial arts contain the essence of Taoism, so it is especially easy to escape from heart demon. So he didn’t pay much attention to it, but as time went on, the brutality of Mu Jeong-jin was increasing.

The problem is that there is no way to control Mu Jeong-jin right now.

The martial arts of Mu Jeong-jin could be said to be the best of the Qingcheng sect. In order to control him, it was possible only at the level of Go Yeopjin, an elder from the previous generation. However, he retired a long time ago and it has been a long time since he left the Qingcheng sect.

Muryeongjin sighed softly and said to the Muhwajin.

“Hoo… Let the priest talk to you as soon as sect leader Tae wakes up. Give them a place to live.”

“Okay. Amitabha!”

After the Muhwajin politely stood up, he approached the members of the Thunder gates.

Muhwajin was respected by many for his mild personality. He led those who were angry at Tae Yeon-ho’s injury and took them to their own quarters.  In addition, a physician was sent to Tae Yeon-ho to treat him.

After the situation seemed to have calmed down to some extent, the Muryeongjin spoke to the nearby master of the Cheongsu Koreansang.

“Cheongyeop!”

“Yes! Please give me a command, sect leader.”

The name of the monk who responded politely is Cheongyeop. He was a great disciple of the Qingcheng sect famous for his nickname as the White Sword Crane.³

“I think you should go to Chengdu.”

“Are you talking about me?”

“Yes. This situation is unusual. You should take some disciples and check the situation over there.”

“Alright.”

“If you’re struggling, go to Priest Woo and ask for his help. Even though you’re heartbroken and let go of public affairs, I won’t refuse your request.”

“I will.”

Cheongyeop bowed his head.

Priest Woo, whom Muryeongjin spoke of, was referring to Woo Jinpyeong.

After the death of his son, Woo Jin-pyeong, who made the greatest contribution to the success of the Qingcheng sect, has lost all his motivation and returned to his hometown.

Muryeongjin quietly closed his eyes and muttered.

‘How did things get to this point? Oh Primordial Heaven. Please look over the Qingcheng sect.’

His eyes didn’t open for a long time.

* * *

As night fell, the Song Guest House was as quiet as a dead mouse.

This is because many of Song Guest House’s guests just used the restaurant and returned home. There were not many guests who stayed overnight. Thanks to this, Pyo-wol was able to spend time quietly alone.

There was only one small lamp illuminating his room.

Pyo-wol leaned his back against the wall and looked at the oil lamp swaying. Even with the windows closed, the wind was blowing from somewhere and waving the lanterns.

Pyo-wol thought that the oil lamp resembled himself a lot.

He lived a precarious life where he can’t even see what’s going to happen. If he wanted to, he could leave Jianghu and live comfortably. With his current ability, it was enough to enjoy a life filled with glory or wealth.

Still, Pyo-wol chose revenge.

Without hesitating.

He was arrested at the age of 14 and lived without seeing the light properly for 14 years.

He’s been living like an angler in order to somehow survive in a hellish environment where his fellow captives were dying right next to me.

For this reason, his emotions and way of thinking were remarkably different from those of ordinary people.

Even Pyo-wol knew that fact.

And he realized one more thing.

It’s the fact that he will never be able to live like everyone else.

Shruck!

At that moment, the sound of someone pulling their skirt was heard in Pyo-wol’s ear.

Someone approached his room.

Pyo-wol turned his head slightly and looked at the door.

The sound got closer and closer and stopped right in front of his door. Then the door carefully opened and someone came in.

Even though the woman who arrived was just wearing a light dress, she had a gorgeous rose-like appearance.

It was Woo Seolha.

Seolha, who came in with the door open, was looking straight at him. She had a surprised expression on her face. But it was only for a short time, she soon came to Pyo-wol with a bashful smile.

“So you’re still awake.”

“How did you know I was here?”

“There’s no place in Chengdu that our White Flower Room’s eyes don’t reach. It’s not particularly hard to find a remarkably handsome man like you.”

Seolha naturally approached Pyo-wol as if it was her own room and sat down next to him. When Seonha sat down next to him, the fragrant body scent of Pyo-wol stimulated her.

“How did you do it?”

“What?”

“I mean, the young master of the Thunder Gates. What kind of trick did you use to make them think that Nam Ho-san was killed by the Qingcheng sect?”

“It looks like the Qingcheng sect killed him.”

“So you didn’t kill him?”

Seolha had a confused expression on her face. It was her who asked Pyo-wol to kill Nam Ho-san, but she was not sure if Pyo-wol really killed him.

“Be honest with me. What happened?”

“Does it matter who killed him? All that matters now is that he’s dead.”

“That’s it, but…”

“Whoever is responsible for killing him, you’ve accomplished your purpose anyway. Isn’t that what you want?”

In an instant, Seolha’s eyes became hazy.

It was because Pyo-wol had a strong body scent that made her light headed.

“You’re right. Nothing else matters.”

Seonha’s breathing became ragged involuntarily.

At this moment, her mind is empty, and she can’t think of anything else. All she had in her mind was the thought of wanting to be embraced by Pyo-wol.

And she did what she thought.

“Haaa…”

Seolha hugged Pyo-wol’s waist and looked up.