Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel) - Chapter 213 - Aboard a Ship (3)

Chapter 213 – Aboard a Ship (3)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“So seeing this old man earlier was not mere coincidence after all.”

‘!?’

At the voice heard from behind him, Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes sharpened.

‘Earlier?’

Mok Gyeong-un recalled the time before entering the village.

The figure of the old man who had vanished in the instant he looked away.

‘…….At that time too he had clearly been looking only at the river. Yet he recognized the fact that I was looking at him?’

As soon as he realized that, Mok Gyeong-un’s thoughts began turning in a much more complicated way than before.

It seemed that the old man behind him was a monster whose strength he could not even begin to estimate.

Into Mok Gyeong-un’s ear came Blue Spirit’s voice.

-Living being. You did not notice him at all?

‘……..’

He had not.

Neither with the naked eye nor with aura-sense.

-Clench!

Mok Gyeong-un found that strength had already entered his hand.

He had not been this tense even when he met the Society Leader of the Heaven and Earth Society, one of the Six Heavens called the peak of the current murim.

Of course, the Society Leader had been weakened by a long illness, but even taking that into account, the feeling was utterly different.

He ran countless possibilities through his head, yet every single one of them felt meaningless.

The gap was that overwhelming.

‘What in the world is this old man?’

Blue Spirit was no less shocked.

Up to now, Mok Gyeong-un had never shown this much tension no matter what kind of powerhouse he faced.

That was probably because he possessed a will strong enough not to fear death or pain.

Yet this was the first time she had seen the living being this tense.

What in the world was the identity of this old living being?

While she wondered that, the old man opened his mouth.

“I merely intended to express my thanks, but this is interesting.”

“…….What exactly do you mean is interesting?”

“I wondered how you had seen this old man. Your aura is unusual.”

“What in the world do you mean?”

“Even this old man, who has lived many long years, has never seen a young man like you who carries the sort of aura that should belong to the dead or to uncanny beings.”

‘!!!!!’

At those words, Mok Gyeong-un’s left eye trembled.

It was the first time such a thing had happened.

A living person, not a resentful spirit, was accurately sensing his death aura.

Even the fact that he carried demonic aura in his body as well.

The being before him was clearly alive, not a spirit body, so how was he recognizing his aura?

As Mok Gyeong-un stood astonished, the old man said,

“Hmm. Yet that is not all. The aura of the dead, cold aura, toxic aura… even the demonic aura of uncanny things. You possess all sorts of dangerous energies.”

‘What?’

Mok Gyeong-un was genuinely dumbfounded.

What in the world was this old man’s identity?

Without touching his body at all, he was reading most of the auras within it.

Still, judging by the fact that he did not mention the demonic aura that unified all of those powers, it seemed he had not sensed that one.

But the moment he had read the death aura, it was no different from having grasped most of the rest as well.

So Mok Gyeong-un spoke openly.

“…….Elder, who exactly are you? And how did you come to board this ship?”

Whether he would truly answer was another question, but as he spoke, he concentrated true qi into the soles of his feet.

It was in preparation for the worst.

Just then.

“Young man. This old man has no intention of harming you, so relax.”

-He is reaching a hand behind his back!

-Papapapapak!

At Blue Spirit’s cry, Mok Gyeong-un reflexively used Bright Manifest Water-Crossing Step and attempted to widen the distance from the old man with high-speed movement.

After opening the distance in an instant, Mok Gyeong-un turned his body around.

Yet the old man, whom he had expected to pursue or respond in some way, was simply standing there with his hands clasped behind his back.

‘!?’

Seeing the old man’s face clearly, a strange light appeared in Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes.

He had formed a certain impression when he saw only the bamboo fishing rod and not the old man’s full face, but the truth was entirely the opposite.

Rather than dark and weathered, the old man’s face was astonishingly pale, and even his white beard was so well kept that it looked neat and refined.

He had the air of a scholar in his youth.

The only thing that did not suit that atmosphere was his eyes, which were exceedingly sharp.

Then the old man spoke.

“I thought you would be cold and cautious, but you have a surprisingly bold side.”

“I do not like having my back taken.”

“Is that so? Yet with the degree of study you possess, you must already have realized that no matter how much you struggled, I am not an opponent you could do anything against.”

“…….”

Mok Gyeong-un did not deny it.

The bamboo fishing rod the old man held behind his back.

From some moment onward, that fishing rod had begun to feel like a razor-sharp straight sword.

It felt as though the moment it moved and brushed toward him, his body would be split in two.

Because of that tension, every one of Mok Gyeong-un’s nerves was sharpened toward the old man alone.

It was then that the old man looked at Mok Gyeong-un’s face and said with interest in his eyes,

“I thought that no matter how young you might be, you must have been past thirty, but I was mistaken.”

“Thank you for seeing me as mature, but I have not even reached twenty yet.”

“Not even twenty? Huh huh huh huh.”

The old man burst into hearty laughter.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un asked, puzzled,

“What is there to laugh about?”

“What a wonderfully curious coincidence. To see talent like this once again aboard a ship like this.”

“Pardon?”

“It is nothing. It only brought back old memories.”

At the old man’s tone, as if he were recalling the past, Mok Gyeong-un showed no particular interest.

Mok Gyeong-un’s only concern was a single thing.

Why had this unknown old man boarded the ship and approached him?

At that moment, the old man lightly shook his head and said,

“Relax. If this old man had intended to harm you, I would have done so long ago.”

“……..My apologies. I am suspicious by nature.”

“Is that so? Good. I like honesty.”

“Thank you for looking kindly on it. In that case, if you did not come aboard this ship to harm me, why did you board it?”

“Ah, yes, yes. You asked that. Ever since I passed one hundred, my memory has not been what it once was.”

‘One hundred?’

At the old man’s words, Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes narrowed.

Though his hair and beard were white, his wrinkles were fewer than expected.

Taking his profound internal power into account, Mok Gyeong-un had still thought him perhaps between sixty and seventy.

Yet he was saying he was this old?

While he was inwardly surprised, the old man continued.

“It seems I gave you cause for wariness unintentionally, but this old man only wished to express thanks.”

“Thanks…..?”

“Yes.”

Mok Gyeong-un tilted his head.

He and this old man had had no contact and no ties, so he could not understand what there was to be thankful for.

As he wondered, the old man gazed quietly toward the land they had left behind, in the direction of the village.

When Mok Gyeong-un looked that way as well, the old man parted his lips.

“When I came to Xiaohe Village after a long time, I found that someone had dug up the grave and shrine of an old acquaintance.”

“An old acquaintance?”

“Yes. A truly steadfast person, deeply loyal at heart.”

At those words, Mok Gyeong-un could not suppress his inward surprise.

Could this old man possibly have known the resentful spirit Ha Yun?

-Ha!

Blue Spirit too seemed startled and let out an exclamation.

That was only natural, because Ha Yun was a high-ranking resentful spirit who had reached Blue Spirit rank.

To reach such a level, one had to remain in the world for more than a hundred years while carrying han.

Which meant this old man really had lived past one hundred.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un asked, puzzled,

-Then if he is over a hundred years old, you may know him too, Blue Spirit?

Blue Spirit had only recently reached Indigo Spirit rank after absorbing the demonic aura of the Sea-Slaying King, but in actual time she had existed as a resentful spirit for about a hundred years.

Which meant this old man could well have moved through the martial world in the same age as Blue Spirit.

However,

-I do not know.

-You do not know?

-That man is not in this Exalted One’s memory.

-Are you certain?

If he had truly lived this long and possessed strength whose limits could not even be guessed, then he surely must have enjoyed fame in his youth as well.

Yet Blue Spirit plainly did not know him at all.

-Perhaps you do not recognize him because he has grown old?

-Old? Hmm. Yes, that could be. In that case, pry out the old living being’s name. He may be someone this Exalted One has heard of.

Appearance and voice were bound to change with time, so one might fail to recognize him.

That was all the more true for someone over a hundred years old.

So Mok Gyeong-un decided to learn the old man’s name through conversation.

“…….Might the person you mean be someone named Ha Yun?”

“Yes, that is the one. To tell the truth, I was sitting and wondering what I should do, perhaps while fishing, when you destroyed that manor. Thanks to that, the han of that dead friend seems to have eased at least a little, so I am relieved.”

“………”

At those words, Mok Gyeong-un grew puzzled.

Something was unclear.

Whether this old man could actually see resentful spirits or not.

One might think that someone who could even sense death aura, the aura of the dead, should be able to do such a thing as well, yet his way of speaking made it sound otherwise.

Without showing this doubt, Mok Gyeong-un said,

“That was not something I did intentionally.”

“Whether intentionally or not, you did what this old man had intended to do, so I wished to express my thanks.”

Listening to him, it seemed that Wu In-yeom and his clan had been fated to meet punishment in one way or another.

At any rate, one thing was certain. Fortunately, this monstrous old man truly did not seem to intend harm toward him.

If so, it seemed safe enough to ask.

Mok Gyeong-un respectfully clasped both hands and bowed his head as he said,

“Forgive me, but since this meeting itself is a matter of fate, may this junior ask your honorable name, Elder?”

“This old man’s name?”

“Yes.”

At that, the old man shook his head and replied,

“It is a name long forgotten. What use would there be in hearing such a name?”

“Even so…”

“Huh huh huh. Do you think fate ceases to be fate simply because one knows a name or does not? Fate will take form one way or another.”

“…….When you put it that way, I cannot insist.”

It seemed the old man had no intention of revealing either his name or his identity.

Since it was no good to press a being overwhelmingly stronger than himself, Mok Gyeong-un gave up quickly.

The fact that this monster of an old man was not an ill-fated encounter was alone enough to be grateful for.

Then the old man said,

“And so, concerning this gratitude and this fate, this old man wishes to offer a small repayment.”

“A repayment?”

“It seems you practice the sword.”

The old man suddenly stretched out his hand toward Mok Gyeong-un.

Then,

-Pak!

‘What?’

The scabbard of the Evil-Answering Sword at Mok Gyeong-un’s waist flew away with the sword still inside it.

Then it was drawn into the old man’s hand.

As Mok Gyeong-un wondered what the old man’s intent was, the old man said,

“I hope this will serve as sufficient repayment.”

-Srrrng!

No sooner had those words ended than the Evil-Answering Sword slid free of its scabbard and revealed its blade.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un cried out in shock,

“Elder, that sword is…”

He had been about to warn that it was a demon sword and dangerous to grasp carelessly.

But an astonishing scene unfolded.

The moment the old man gripped the hilt of the Evil-Answering Sword,

-Uuuuuung!

a strong resonant cry burst from the sword, and the blade shook violently, only to settle again a short while later.

‘He suppressed the sword?’

Seeing that, Mok Gyeong-un could not suppress his genuine amazement.

Anyone who grasped the Evil-Answering Sword should have its demonic nature draw out their desires.

Yet the Evil-Answering Sword had even given voice to its resonance and exposed its demonic nature, only for that sword-heart to be suppressed soon after.

While Mok Gyeong-un was still astonished, the old man murmured,

“A strange coincidence indeed. Ou Yezi’s demon sword…”

The old man had grasped the sword intent’s nature at once.

He was truly no ordinary old man.

“Elder. Are you all right?”

Though he plainly seemed fine, Mok Gyeong-un asked out of courtesy.

The old man looked at the sword and smiled faintly.

“Young man, you are making this old man recall too many old things that were on the verge of being forgotten.”

“…….What do you mean?”

“Nothing. More importantly, watch this.”

No sooner had he finished than the old man traced brilliant trajectories with the Evil-Answering Sword, as though performing a sword dance.

-Chwak! Chwachwachwak!

Mok Gyeong-un could not take his eyes off the sword.

The clean trajectories, like full moons being painted across the night sky, were so utterly shocking that words failed him.

How could a sword form that appeared so simple contain not a single flaw?

-Chwachwachwachwak!

The sword formulas were so excellent and flawless that he could not tear his gaze away.

Blue Spirit was no less astonished.

As a great swordswoman in life, she too could tell that every motion the old man performed was not merely a simple sword form, but something leading into peerless sword moves.

Yet the sword moves the old man was performing with the Evil-Answering Sword felt strangely familiar.

‘Why does this sword feel so familiar?’

The same was true for Mok Gyeong-un.

From some point onward, everything about the sword forms the old man displayed felt deeply familiar.

He had never seen them before, and yet they felt known.

What in the world was going on?

While he stood full of doubt, Blue Spirit spoke in a shocked voice.

-…….This cannot be.

-What is it?

-Living being……

-Yes?

-……It is the Moonless Void Sword.

‘Moonless… Void Sword!?’

At that moment, the mnemonic formulas of the moves written on the paper Blue Spirit had hidden in the treasury of Corpse Blood Valley flashed into Mok Gyeong-un’s mind.

Showing him the hidden mnemonic formulas, Blue Spirit had said,

[Consider yourself fortunate. These are the only remaining sword moves of the Moonless Void Sword, one of the Five Great Sword Arts that once symbolized the old murim.]

And together with those mnemonic formulas, the peerless swordsman he had seen within the state of selflessness gradually began to overlap with the old man before him.