Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel) - Chapter 29 - Death Aura (4)
Chapter 29 – Death Aura (4)
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Hyewha Hall, the residence of the First Madam, Madam Seok.
Madam Seok sat with her chin resting elegantly on her overlapped hands, regarding a woman with suspicious eyes.
She was a woman with a very peculiar atmosphere.
Even if one were generous, she looked no older than twenty-two or twenty-three.
Yet perhaps because one of her eyes was white, she gave off a somewhat heavy atmosphere that was hard to approach carelessly.
‘If not for that unpleasant white eye, she would probably have bewitched quite a few men.’
That white eye was very irritating.
Even the bodyguard warrior Ho Aeng beside her seemed to feel something similar, as she was lightly frowning.
She was that unusual.
But what in the world was that on her shoulder?
She had perched there a claw stand woven from cowhide and oak branches.
Such things were usually used so trained messenger pigeons or hawks could perch on them with their claws.
But there was no bird on hers.
No, there was not even a smell.
As Madam Seok wondered about it, the woman stroked the empty claw stand with her hand as if petting something and muttered to herself,
“It’s all right. We’ll be going out soon.”
At the sight, Madam Seok clicked her tongue inwardly.
‘It is hard to find a proper human being among occult practitioners.’
Why was it that she trusted this one even less than the occult practitioner Myo-shin who had come last time?
She had informed Ghost Shadow Pavilion, the occult practitioner group in Meng City, about Myo-shin’s death, so she had expected them to send someone more capable, and yet this was displeasing.
Still, she did not show it and said,
“Your name was New Moon, was it?”
“Yes.”
“……..If it is not rude, may I ask your age? You look rather young for your appearance.”
“Age is not important.”
“Very well. I suppose you cannot reveal it.”
“I am nineteen.”
“Pardon?”
She was even younger than expected.
Not even twenty.
Realizing how young the woman called New Moon was, bodyguard warrior Ho Aeng cautiously cut in.
“Shall we request someone else from Ghost Shadow Pavilion?”
At those words, New Moon silently rose from her seat.
Then she held out her hand and said,
At this, bodyguard warrior Ho Aeng frowned and asked,
“What is that hand for?”
“You will still pay travel expenses, I trust.”
“……..What have you done to deserve travel expenses?”
“Your side is the one breaking it off, not ours.”
“This isn’t breaking it off.”
“It is a replacement of the dispatched occult practitioner, so I am only asking for travel expenses and not the penalty.”
“……..”
It was not only the atmosphere that was irritating.
Madam Seok let out a snort as if dumbfounded and said,
“My maiden family has had ties to Ghost Shadow Pavilion for a long time and we have maintained a good relationship, but this is difficult to tolerate. In a matter so grave that the occult practitioner you sent died a mysterious death, you send a young friend not even twenty…….”
“Occult practitioner Myo-shin was my junior disciple.”
“Pardon?”
At New Moon’s words, Madam Seok frowned.
Myo-shin had looked like a middle-aged man who had refined occult arts for many years.
Yet this woman called New Moon was only nineteen at most.
And she was saying occult practitioner Myo-shin was her junior disciple?
As Madam Seok was puzzled, New Moon said,
“Occult practitioners receive one of six titles according to skill. From the top, they are divided into Divine, Sun, Moon, Skill, Mysterious, and Conveyance. Junior disciple Myo-shin was merely a Conveyance-ranked practitioner at the very bottom, and had only held it for five years.”
“At the very bottom?”
As far as Madam Seok knew, occult practitioner Myo-shin was fairly well known in Meng City.
Yet he was saying that such a man was only at the lowest rank?
“Then what are you?”
“Skill.”
It was the fourth of the six titles, and made her two ranks above Myo-shin.
At New Moon’s words, Madam Seok stared at her for a moment.
Her youthful appearance and her oddly bold, insolent attitude still irritated her, but if what she said was true, then she would surely be better than Myo-shin, not worse.
“Madam. I will go again and……”
-Shhk!
Madam Seok raised a hand, cutting off bodyguard Ho Aeng, and said,
“Very well. I will entrust the matter to you.”
“Madam?”
“This practitioner says she is skilled, so let us see.”
For now, she decided to entrust it to her.
If she failed, then just like with Myo-shin, the silver would remain unspent.
And it would give her grounds to lodge a protest with Ghost Shadow Pavilion as well.
Madam Seok rose from her seat.
“I have something to show you, so follow me.”
With those words, she went outside and led them to a storeroom-like place behind Hyewha Hall.
Inside there was yet another door, and a waiting attendant opened it and lit a lamp.
-Whoosh!
As she went inside, Madam Seok covered her nose with her sleeve.
That was because of the terrible stench.
Madam Seok pointed to a corpse with only its feet showing from beneath a straw mat.
“It’s Practitioner Myo’s corpse.”
The corpse was none other than the dead Myo-shin.
She had made it appear as though he had been burned, but had hidden him away to show to another occult practitioner.
-Step, step!
New Moon walked up to the dead Myo-shin’s corpse.
Then she removed the straw mat.
“Junior disciple.”
With trembling eyes, New Moon stared hard at the dead Myo-shin’s face.
Occult practitioners did not share deep bonds, but even so, the death of someone one knew could only be unpleasant.
Madam Seok asked her,
“What sort of death does it look like?”
A blunt question.
To this, New Moon answered in a low tone,
“The cause of death is not judged by what is seen. One asks the dead.”
-Shhk!
Then she brought her hand toward the dead Myo-shin’s face.
At the sight, Madam Seok and bodyguard Ho Aeng frowned and turned their heads slightly away.
Neither of them could imagine touching a stinking corpse with their bare hands.
New Moon touched Myo-shin’s face and closed both eyes.
And then,
-Clap! Clap!
with her left hand, she formed a series of hand signs.
‘Kai. To. Zen.’
Then the outer sign of Rin, the outer sign of Sha, and the following sign of Bing.
Having formed the hand signs of the nine-character activation method, New Moon murmured in a low voice.
“Threefold life-commanding method. The Northern Emperor has granted me authority. Therefore reveal all that was experienced. Swiftly, by decree.”
The atmosphere became extraordinary.
It felt as though the air itself was growing heavy.
What in the world was she doing?
Madam Seok and bodyguard Ho Aeng watched in silence.
At last, a bizarre sight unfolded before their eyes.
-Parrrrrr!
‘!?’
The entire body of dead Myo-shin began to tremble on its own.
‘Th, the corpse is moving by itself?’
So startled was she that bodyguard Ho Aeng covered her mouth and unconsciously took a step backward.
Madam Seok, by contrast, only frowned at such a sight and was not greatly frightened.
Rather, since it was not often that she could observe the process of occult arts at close range, she focused on how it would proceed.
“Reveal all things. Swiftly, by decr…..”
-Clench!
New Moon bit down hard on her lip, and in an instant her expression twisted.
‘As expected.’
It had not strayed from her prediction.
When New Moon pulled back the left hand that was maintaining the hand signs, dead Myo-shin’s mouth yawned open and shut again.
After that, the movement became still.
New Moon half opened her eyes and released the hand sign with her left hand.
“What happened?”
At the question, New Moon said nothing.
Then she opened her eyes, withdrew her hand, and spoke.
“I asked my junior disciple.”
“Asked? Do you mean a dead man really answered…..”
“Of course not. Unless the soul remains in the po, the dead do not answer directly.”
“……….”
Was she playing word games now?
Had she not clearly said she had asked?
As if reading Madam Seok’s thoughts, New Moon continued,
“All dead carry traces.”
“Traces?”
“Within the po of a corpse that has not yet passed forty-nine days, spiritual traces remain. If one awakens those traces, one can see how the owner of that po met death.”
“Then did you see who did it?”
“I could not see.”
“What do you mean you could not see? A moment ago you clearly said that before forty-nine days…..”
“When life is taken by kill, only the final fragment remains, so no matter how skilled the occult practitioner, it is difficult to confirm precisely how the death occurred.”
‘Terror…….’
What she had seen in occult practitioner Myo-shin’s final fragment was extreme terror.
That was why she had bitten her lip so hard.
That itself was not particularly special.
But would an occult practitioner, who made a life out of dealing with such things, really have been this terrified simply because he had been struck by kill?
Of course, if it had been a Yellow Spirit class resentful spirit, then a mere Conveyance-ranked occult practitioner might well have found it impossible to handle.
Madam Seok asked,
“……..Then does that mean you cannot learn anything?”
“That is not the case.”
“Then what do you mean?”
“To die by kill means, in the end, to die by a strange phenomenon. Judging by the way the blood vessels rose hideously through the corpse, this was no ordinary resentful spirit.”
At those words, Madam Seok’s eyes sharpened.
That was the very point she had been wondering about.
“Then you are saying it truly was caused by a strange phenomenon?”
“Yes. A very strong resentful spirit.”
“So it was after all. Then that child is truly the one who did it. Ahhh.”
The answer she wanted had come out.
That meant that bastard Mok Gyeong-un had used a strange phenomenon to kill occult practitioner Myo-shin and even threaten the life of her maid So-hwa.
Now that everything was certain, her teeth ground together.
Just what kind of bastard was he, that even a resentful spirit like that would help him?
Madam Seok asked in a voice full of anger,
“You can resolve it, yes?”
At her question, New Moon asked back,
“If you will promise me one thing with certainty, then yes.”
“What is that?”
“Not all strange phenomena are the same. Resentful spirits are fundamentally opposed to life-cultivation and cannot be used as shikigami in the first place. Therefore, he must be considered possessed.”
“And so?”
“If what was said in the request is correct, then that Young Master Mok Gyeong-un may already have had his corporeal soul taken by the strange phenomenon and may have lost his soul. Taking that into account, during the exorcism…..”
Annoyed by the complicated explanation, Madam Seok cut her off.
“Just tell me the point.”
“…….There is a very high chance he will die. Is that acceptable?”
At New Moon’s words, the corner of Madam Seok’s mouth lifted slightly.
That was rather what she wanted.
“I do not mind.”
At that, New Moon sneered inwardly.
To think family members sought each other’s lives even within one household, all for the sake of succession. It was absurd beyond measure.
But it was not her concern.
From the belt of leather around her waist, she drew a dagger made of wood.
“What are you trying to do?”
“First, I will return the kill and weaken both the resentful spirit and the host.”
“How?”
“To be struck by reverse kill means pain so severe it makes one wish for death. Just watch.”
-Shhk!
New Moon drew a talisman from her robes.
On the talisman,
[Reverse]
was written in red ink.
She wrapped it around the wooden dagger and then, without hesitation, drove it into the chest of dead occult practitioner Myo-shin.
-Thunk!
“Northern Emperor, grant me this talisman to strike evil spirits. Swiftly, by decree!”
(The Northern Emperor grants me this talisman to strike evil spirits, so by his command, let it be done swiftly.)
-Udeudeudeuk!
At that moment, the corpse of the dead occult practitioner Myo-shin twisted.
* * *
-Hoo. That damned sentient being.
Smoke flowed out between the Blue Spirit’s red lips.
With a displeased expression, she glared at Mok Gyeong-un as he circulated his energy.
Just what in the world was that bastard?
If one reversed qi circulation, then suffering qi deviation, becoming crippled, or dying should have been the natural result.
Yet the energy of death was gathering.
Those affected by or able to sense death aura were the dead, beings like themselves, resentful spirits.
But Mok Gyeong-un was a living human.
Could such a thing be possible?
-……..A living human gathering the energy of death.
It was an unprecedented sight.
Still, it was too early to say.
Because it was an unknown domain no living human had ever entered, one could not confidently say that merely by gathering death aura, he would be able to circulate and handle it like life energy.
To handle the energy of death was literally no different from stepping into the domain of the dead.
-Hoo.
Curiosity settled into her blood-red eyes amid the thick smoke she exhaled.
Could a living human truly gather and even control the energy of death?
That was something immensely interesting and deeply stimulating.
However,
-Sseumeol sseumeol!
One of the Blue Spirit’s eyebrows rose as she watched Mok Gyeong-un.
-This is?
The Blue Spirit gazed toward the northeast.
Then the Demon Monk also flinched, then looked northeast, and soon moved to stand in front of Mok Gyeong-un as though acting as his Dharma protector while he drew in death aura.
Tension filled the Demon Monk’s eyes.
At that moment,
-Pak!
The Demon Monk clutched his chest, then was shoved backward.
-Chwareureureu!
As though receiving some enormous pressure, the Demon Monk crossed both arms and distorted his face.
-Papapapapapak!
Wounds began appearing all over the huge body of the Demon Monk.
Even the blood vessels were bulging out hideously.
At this, the eyelids of Mok Gyeong-un, who had been concentrating with his eyes closed on his reversed circulation, trembled.
At this rate, the kill would reach him.
Seeing this, the crimson light in the Blue Spirit’s eyes deepened.
-How dare a mere insignificant sentient being.
-Saraak!
The Blue Spirit, who had been at the ceiling, descended lightly as though with a beat of wings.
Then she swung her smoking pipe toward the place from which the reverse kill was flying in and parted her red lips.
-Begone.
-Swaaaaaa!
No sooner had the words ended than the gray smoke that had been flowing from the Demon Monk’s wounds gathered into one and rushed toward the northeast.
* * *
-Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
New Moon, keeping a hand sign formed with her left hand, repeatedly stabbed the corpse with the wooden dagger wrapped in talismans.
Watching New Moon, Madam Seok trembled as if seized by a strange pleasure.
Just imagining that bastard Mok Gyeong-un, who was like a demon, writhing in agony made her excitement refuse to fade.
‘More. More. Suffer.’
-Thunk! Thunk!
The more she saw the corpse being stabbed, the more relieved she felt inside.
New Moon, who had been stabbing the body repeatedly, now lifted the dagger to stab dead Myo-shin between the brows.
It was at the very moment.
-Paaang!
New Moon’s body was flung backward, and she smashed into the wall of the storehouse.
-Bang!
“Aah!”
Striking the wall, New Moon let out a groan and dropped the dagger.
She looked at her palm, and it was heated in the shape of the dagger as if burned.
-Jureuk!
Then black blood flowed from her mouth.
“Practitioner New Moon!”
Startled, Madam Seok helped her up.
It was hard to understand what in the world had suddenly happened.
“Why are you like this?”
“………”
At the question, New Moon could not answer at all.
That was because the impact she had just received had been so great that she was suffering pain as though her five viscera and six bowels were twisting.
‘Reverse kill…… to think the reverse kill was struck back……’
New Moon’s mismatched eyes trembled.
This was a completely unforeseen situation.
Partway through, something chillingly evil and powerful had intervened.
‘…….This isn’t just Yellow Spirit class.’
It was a resentful spirit of a still higher rank.
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