Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel) - Chapter 131 - Skill (1)
Chapter 131 – Skill (1)
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Jang Neung-ak, the second disciple and one of the candidates for next Society Leader.
There was much dispute regarding his origins, and many also took issue with his disposition and conduct.
However, though he was overflowing with greed, those who acknowledged Jang Neung-ak believed that his skill at handling affairs would make the Heaven and Earth Society stand tall once more as a pillar of the Central Plains.
The same might be true of first disciple Na Yul-ryang, but Jang Neung-ak had, over the years, built up quite a great deal of power.
It was estimated that the scale of it reached thirty percent within the Heaven and Earth Society.
Among so vast a power base were the next-generation experts who formed its core, and Jang Neung-ak referred to those close aides of his in this way.
‘The Five Peaks Assembly.’
Five great mountains.
The words literally meant the five aides he cherished.
Jang Neung-ak, who liked to assign order and rank, regularly made his subordinates compete and set new rankings, thereby encouraging rivalry.
As a result, five powerful figures were determined, and they were precisely the Five Peaks Assembly.
Excluding Jang Neung-ak himself, there were five in all.
Among them, aside from the female guard attached to Ho Jong-hyeok, the grand unit leader of the Bu Myeol Unit, everyone from Second Peak to Fifth Peak had gathered here.
Most people thought that Ho Jong-hyeok, disciple of Ho Tae-gang the Axe-Breaking King, one of the Eight Stars of the Central Plains and one of the Five Kings, would be either First Peak or Second Peak, but the truth was different.
‘Second Peak Wi Maeng-cheon.’
Even though he was a blind man with both eyes gone, he was a powerful figure who contended for the position of First Peak.
And among the members of the Five Peaks Assembly, he alone had not originated from the Heaven and Earth Society but had been brought in from outside, and he possessed one ability that everyone feared as much as his martial prowess.
Those were the supersenses he had developed after losing his sight.
Among them, by far the most outstanding was his hearing.
[A talent worth using.]
Jang Neung-ak held Wi Maeng-cheon’s hearing ability in high regard.
That was only natural, since with that absurd level of hearing Wi Maeng-cheon could read the emotions of others or distinguish truth from falsehood.
-Thump! Thump! Thump!
‘…Steady.’
From the first moment he saw this man, Wi Maeng-cheon had been carefully listening to the sound of his heartbeat.
Ordinarily, it was not as though he paid attention to every stranger.
But this had begun because of the guard at his side.
[Young master. You must quickly pay your respects. The person right at the front is Young Master Jang Neung-ak, the Society Leader’s second disciple.]
From this conversation alone, Wi Maeng-cheon learned that one among those approaching was meeting his liege, Jang Neung-ak, for the first time.
Ordinarily, when the opponent was the Society Leader’s disciple, unless they were of executive rank, emotional fluctuations clearly showed when meeting him for the first time, and changes appeared in the sound of their heartbeat.
But,
‘Far too steady.’
There was not the slightest change in the sound of his heartbeat.
It just kept beating thump, thump without stop, and at this point it could only be called excessively regular.
Even while sleeping, if a dream turned unsettling, the sound of one’s heartbeat changed, so how could it possibly remain this steady?
To this degree, it was almost on the level of an assassin trained to the utmost extreme.
Yet even assassins showed changes in the sound of their hearts.
‘Who is he?’
To begin with, he too was seeing this man for the first time.
Because he was blind, Wi Maeng-cheon distinguished people through their footsteps, heartbeats, and the habitual sounds they normally made.
But this man was entirely unfamiliar to his ears.
‘To remain calm even when facing the young master…’
The martial prowess he could sense through qi perception was only around the entrance of the peak realm, so for someone who was at best no more than a senior warrior or squad-leader class figure, he was unusual.
And Wi Maeng-cheon realized through Jang Neung-ak’s test that Mok Gyeong-un was certainly different.
Though he had lost his sight, he knew how precious eyes were to people.
That was why, if someone aimed for their eyes, he had confirmed that most people showed heartbeats far greater than usual.
Yet,
-Thump! Thump! Thump!
‘…What in the world is this man?’
How could the sound be completely unchanged from just a moment ago?
Judging from the sound of movement and his reaction, he seemed startled and to have flinched, yet there was not the slightest change in the sound of his heartbeat.
It was as ordinary as if he were going about daily life.
‘What is this?’
This was the first time he had encountered such a person.
Nothing represented emotion so well as the sound of the heartbeat.
So how could this be possible?
Though his puzzlement lasted only a moment, Wi Maeng-cheon was able to be certain of this much.
“If my ears are not mistaken, the one before us was not surprised in the slightest, young master.”
“…Not surprised in the slightest?”
At Wi Maeng-cheon’s words, Jang Neung-ak stared at Mok Gyeong-un with a sharp gaze.
If nothing else, he trusted Wi Maeng-cheon’s judgment, since he possessed an outstanding ability for reading others.
“You…were you really not surprised?”
At these words, Mok Gyeong-un waved his hands and said,
“…How could that be? My eyes were almost stabbed. What person would not be surprised…”
-Tap!
At that moment Jang Neung-ak placed the head of his fan against Mok Gyeong-un’s chest.
Though he did not possess supersenses like Wi Maeng-cheon, he too could judge the beat of a heart through a medium without placing his hand directly on it.
Then Jang Neung-ak gave a derisive snort and opened his mouth.
“This fellow is completely interesting.”
“What? Surely you are not saying Sir Maeng-cheon’s words were right?”
The woman in red with thick lips asked with interest.
Then Jang Neung-ak ran the fan upward along the chest and set it against Mok Gyeong-un’s chin as he said,
“Is it that your nerve is thick? Or are you hiding your skill?”
Jang Neung-ak’s gaze looked as though it would pierce straight through Mok Gyeong-un.
At this sight, Mok Gyeong-un clicked his tongue inwardly.
He had thought he could fool them with nothing more than expression control and a suitable act, but that blind man seemed more troublesome than expected.
It was his first time facing someone who listened to heartbeats.
-Mortal. Calm yourself. Even if his hearing is abnormally sharp, your true strength has not been exposed yet.
Blue Spirit said to Mok Gyeong-un.
The situation was different from when they had been in Corpse Blood Valley.
If he became hostile to the Society Leader’s disciple, it would go beyond mere trouble, and before he could even attempt anything, avenging his grudge might become a distant prospect.
‘This brat must not make any sudden moves.’
She had stayed attached to him all this time, but Mok Gyeong-un’s actions were impossible to predict.
That was why she was worried.
When the situation was not fully prepared, the answer was to suppress one’s emotions.
At that moment Mok Gyeong-un opened his mouth.
“I heard you are one of the people closest to the Society Leader.”
“Hm?”
At those words from Mok Gyeong-un, one of Jang Neung-ak’s eyebrows rose slightly.
It seemed he did not find those words entirely unpleasant.
Mok Gyeong-un continued what he was saying.
“The master who taught me said that even before a great tiger, one had to remain calm to survive.”
At those words, the corner of Jang Neung-ak’s mouth slowly lifted.
Unlike appearances, the fellow seemed to know how to say flattering words.
Calling him a great tiger meant raising him as an existence too much to handle, while saying he tried to maintain calm in order to survive lowered himself.
At that, Jang Neung-ak said,
“You seem fairly skilled at conducting yourself.”
“Even if I were thick-nerved, if you set your mind to it, young master, you could kill the likes of me at any time, so how could I dare behave carelessly?”
“You are not a fool. Yes. Those who know how to conduct themselves tend to live long.”
-Tzzzt!
Mok Gyeong-un glanced at the fan touching below his neck.
There was nothing sharp there, yet the sharp intent flowing from that contact seemed ready to pierce his throat at any moment.
Certainly, as befitted the disciple of the ruler of the Heaven and Earth Society, he was no ordinary man.
“…I will keep your words in mind.”
At Mok Gyeong-un’s answer, Jang Neung-ak gave a snort of laughter, removed the fan from his neck, clasped his hands behind his back, and stepped away from Mok Gyeong-un.
Could this pass quietly?
Just as that thought came, Jang Neung-ak walked forward several paces and said,
“But then, I understand that you conduct yourself well, yet without the skill to back it up, one could not remain this calm. Is that not so, Maeng-cheon?”
“That is so, young master.”
“This young master thinks that hostage bastard like you must be hiding his skill as much as that calmness. I know not by what method or technique, but still.”
At that, Mok Gyeong-un lowered his head and stance and said,
“How could that be? I simply do not measure up to the level you expect.”
“There is no way a fellow who does not measure up would take first place at the Corpse Blood Valley gate for no reason. Is that not so, Jong-hyeok?”
-Gulp gulp!
At that question, Ho Jong-hyeok, grand unit leader of the Bu Myeol Unit, poured down the liquor from his bottle, wiped his lips with his sleeve, and answered,
“If he took first place with the skill he is showing now, then either he possessed heavenly luck granted by the sky, or there was corruption inside Corpse Blood Valley. Otherwise it would be impossible.”
“You think the same as this young master.”
-Shing!
At that moment the blind Wi Maeng-cheon slightly lifted his bamboo cane as if drawing it.
Then the sharp blade hidden inside revealed itself.
“It is something that can be clarified simply by testing him. Young master, leave it to me. I will confirm it.”
At those words, the thick-lipped woman in red stepped forward as well.
“Hohoho. I will do it. I want to see whether his skill is worthy of that handsome face.”
At the sight of the two of them showing enthusiasm, Jang Neung-ak gave a derisive laugh, shook his head, and then spoke to the one who until now had remained silent the whole time, a massively built man with a coarse beard reminiscent of Zhang Yide.
“Jeo Mo-pal.”
“Yes, my lord.”
“I want to see this friend’s true skill.”
“Yes, my lord.”
The instant those words ended,
-Pap!
The still man, no, Jeo Mo-pal, suddenly moved.
Jeo Mo-pal, whose body movements were so quick they did not suit his huge frame, tried in an instant to smash down Mok Gyeong-un’s skull with both hands clasped together.
-Swoosh!
At this, Mok Gyeong-un unfolded his footwork and pulled his body backward.
Then Jeo Mo-pal lowered the arms he had brought down and charged forward like a boar.
His momentum was such that it seemed he would smash apart anything before him.
Yet despite that momentum, Mok Gyeong-un lost none of his composure and continued to unfold his footwork, widening the distance.
-Tatatatatak!
“Hmph!”
At that, Jeo Mo-pal stepped down hard on the ground and threw a punch toward Mok Gyeong-un, who was opening the gap.
-Boom!
Then in that instant,
-Paaang!
White light shimmered from Jeo Mo-pal’s fist, and at that same moment an unseen, massive something rushed toward Mok Gyeong-un’s face.
This was fist wind.
As fist wind laden with qi flew at him, Mok Gyeong-un found it difficult to evade, so he crossed both arms and at once took a defensive stance.
-Paaang!
Taking the fist wind on his crossed arms, Mok Gyeong-un’s body was pushed back about six steps.
-Rattle!
As his trembling arms vibrated, Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes narrowed.
He had already guessed it to some extent from the aura being revealed, but as expected, this man called Jeo Mo-pal possessed martial prowess reaching the extreme of the peak realm.
However, if one considered only the power carried in his fist, it was above even that.
It seemed that he was likely equipped with external and internal arts nearly approaching the transcendent peak.
‘This will not do.’
With the skill he had hidden, it seemed difficult to properly face this man.
But if he truly revealed his skill, things would proceed exactly according to the picture Jang Neung-ak wanted.
‘There is no helping it.’
Rather, it seemed better to let himself get hit moderately.
His pride was not wounded by something like this.
It was better to take a few hits and evade than to become entangled in troublesome matters right now.
It was then.
-Thud!
Before he knew it, Jeo Mo-pal’s fist, hurled with a flying body, struck Mok Gyeong-un in the face, driving his head to the side and into the ground.
-Bang!
‘Hoo.’
This hurt a little.
But this level of pain was nothing.
Mok Gyeong-un was someone who endured far worse than this without so much as a groan.
At that moment Jeo Mo-pal, with Mok Gyeong-un sprawled on the ground with his head driven into it, kicked his abdomen with a kick carrying inner force.
-Thud!
-Skid!
Having been struck in the abdomen, Mok Gyeong-un was driven back bent like a shrimp.
At this sight, Ho Jong-hyeok, grand unit leader of the Bu Myeol Unit, clicked his tongue.
“Tsk tsk. He will get caught. He will get caught.”
When he had seen the body movements of the footwork, he had guessed he might be at the level of a seasoned peak master, but seeing him suffer helplessly, perhaps he was not even to that extent.
Jeo Mo-pal might rank last among the Five Peaks, but he was a figure close to the transcendent peak.
When a man of that level was determined and displaying his martial prowess, how could even the first-place finisher of Corpse Blood Valley possibly be a match?
“Hmmm.”
‘Is it only to this extent.’
Disappointment mixed into the eyes of Jang Neung-ak, the Society Leader’s second disciple.
He had thought the boy would at least show as much as he had expected to some degree, yet as he kept getting beaten like that, his anticipation was fading away.
Then again, even if he had hidden his skill, there was no way he could possibly be a match for one of the Five Peaks like Jeo Mo-pal.
“That is enough. Now…”
He had been about to tell them to end it suitably, when,
“His heartbeat still sounds completely ordinary.”
“What?”
“Please leave him to me instead.”
-Pap!
With those words, someone shot forward.
It was none other than Wi Maeng-cheon, the blind Second Peak.
-Shing!
Drawing the sword hidden in his bamboo cane, Wi Maeng-cheon flew forward in an instant and slashed a sword stroke toward Mok Gyeong-un’s neck as he was being beaten by Jeo Mo-pal.
He let murderous intent erupt as much as possible, as though he truly intended to cut off the neck in one blow.
-Shraaaak!
It was at the very moment the blade was about to touch the neck.
-Clang!
-Paaang!
‘!?’
In that instant Jeo Mo-pal’s eyes widened.
Had Mok Gyeong-un not lightly caught the fist he was throwing with his left hand, while having already drawn his sword and blocked Wi Maeng-cheon’s blade?
“You bastard…”
He was about to say, so it is true that you hid your skill, when Mok Gyeong-un, as though Jeo Mo-pal was not even worth his notice, looked at the blind Wi Maeng-cheon and said,
“I was kindly taking the hits, yet you have made things troublesome.”
“What did you just say?”
This rat-like bastard was arrogantly saying that he had deigned to take hits from him?
At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, rage surged up in Jeo Mo-pal, and he tried to yank free the fist that had been seized and smash Mok Gyeong-un’s face with the opposite fist.
But then,
-Crack!
“Guh!”
-Thump!
In that instant, with a cry of pain bursting from Jeo Mo-pal’s mouth, his captured right wrist bent backward and one knee was forcibly driven to the ground.
‘Wh-what kind of inner force is this bastard using?’
Jeo Mo-pal could not contain his shock.
This bastard’s inner force surpassed even his own, which was close to the transcendent peak.