Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel) - Chapter 44 - Manor Lord (2)

Chapter 44 – Manor Lord (2)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Mok Yu-cheon approached with quick steps as though he had something to say.

But when he actually came near, perhaps because the two inner-hall warriors who had come to escort them were close by, he could not immediately say what he had intended.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un smiled first and said,

“It’s been four days.”

“Don’t talk like you’re relaxed. You…..”

“You?”

Mok Yu-cheon mumbled something, then ultimately could not continue his sentence.

What was the reason for him acting like this?

As he stood there puzzled, Mok Yu-cheon indicated with a motion of his head that they should go to the main hall first.

So they walked toward the main hall.

When the inner-hall warriors tactfully went ahead on their own, Mok Yu-cheon said in a quiet voice,

“You…….have you tried practicing that?”

“That?”

“Speak quietly.”

Mok Yu-cheon rebuked him softly.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un let out a small laugh and said quietly,

“What do you mean?”

“Are you asking because you truly don’t know?”

“Ah! You mean Yeon M…..”

“Shh.”

Mok Yu-cheon cut off Mok Gyeong-un’s words.

Glancing at the inner-hall warriors walking ahead, Mok Yu-cheon whispered in an even lower voice,

“Don’t directly mention it. Just answer what I’m asking.”

What Mok Yu-cheon was asking about was none other than the Wood-Transforming Heart Cultivation Method, the secret manual reserved for the Manor Lord.

In truth, upon seeing that Mok Yu-cheon’s complexion had turned markedly dark red compared with four days earlier, Mok Gyeong-un had immediately understood what he was talking about.

He had only pretended not to know.

-It’s remarkable he hasn’t suffered qi deviation yet. Hoo.

Blue Spirit, beside him, said as she puffed smoke.

She too knew that Mok Yu-cheon had learned the cultivation method incorrectly.

Because Mok Gyeong-un had not handed over the cultivation method properly and had arbitrarily altered some of the characters in the formula, there was no way there would not be side effects.

“Is there some kind of problem?”

Though it had been intentional, Mok Gyeong-un spoke as though he knew nothing.

At that, Mok Yu-cheon’s brow twisted fearfully.

“You’re saying that even after looking at my face……”

His voice was about to rise, but after glancing ahead, Mok Yu-cheon cut himself off.

It seemed he was calming his anger.

After barely regaining control of his body and mind, Mok Yu-cheon said quietly,

“Have you tried it? Or not? Just answer that.”

To that question, Mok Gyeong-un replied casually,

“If it were you, would you say you hadn’t practiced it?”

At those words, Mok Yu-cheon narrowed his eyes and stared fixedly at Mok Gyeong-un.

‘…….Right. There is no way he wouldn’t have practiced it.’

No matter that he said he did not covet the Manor Lord’s position, it was still a secret manual of higher martial arts.

Any martial artist could not help but be curious about it.

‘Then why are you fine?’

For four days, Mok Yu-cheon had practiced the circulation method of the Wood-Transforming Heart Cultivation Method with overflowing zeal.

Yet the more he did so, the more he felt the qi inside his body becoming corrupted and changing strangely.

On the first day, he had dismissed it as something that could happen because it was the cultivation method of a higher art, but after four days, his skin had turned dark red, and something felt wrong.

‘…….Did he deceive me?’

Because of the phenomenon that had appeared in his body, his suspicion did not easily clear.

Since Mok Gyeong-un had orally recited the formula to him nine times on the spot at his own request in exactly the same way each time, it was awkward to accuse him of giving a false version.

‘If this bastard gave me the proper version, then that would mean the problem is with me.’

That, in its own way, was hard to accept.

Even he, who had reached the peak realm, was having difficulty mastering the cultivation method, and yet this bastard showed none of the same side effects.

That meant he himself might have understood or learned the formula incorrectly.

-Clench!

Force entered Mok Yu-cheon’s fist.

No, that could not be.

There was no way this fellow, whose martial talent was so poor that he was only third-rate, could have a higher understanding of higher martial learning than himself, who was called a genius.

Whatever the problem was, he would certainly overcome it.

Then Mok Gyeong-un said to Mok Yu-cheon,

“I don’t know what the problem is, but now that the Manor Lord has awakened, won’t the situation change anyway?”

At those words, the corner of Mok Yu-cheon’s mouth rose slightly.

And for good reason, because the awakening of the Manor Lord was heavenly fortune to him.

He had begun practicing the martial arts reserved for the Manor Lord through that transaction, but a considerable number of the retainers still did not trust him because he was the child of a concubine.

That had left him greatly uneasy.

But now that the Manor Lord, who cherished him, had awakened like this, the succession situation once again tilted in his favor.

‘Heaven is helping me.’

The fact that he had called for his children the moment he awoke might perhaps be related to this as well.

To decide the successor clearly, that was.

At the sight of Mok Yu-cheon so full of expectation, Mok Gyeong-un snorted lightly and turned his eyes away as though he had no interest.

-Hooh.

At that moment, Blue Spirit showed interest as she looked somewhere.

At that, Mok Gyeong-un glanced at her with a puzzled expression.

Then she said,

-It seems they’ve entered.

‘Entered?’

-They’ve got rather thick guts. To step in without fear even after seeing this one’s Domain of Ghost Intent.

‘Ahhh.’

At her words, Mok Gyeong-un nodded as though he understood.

He had expected that associates connected to the occult practitioner New Moon would surely come before long.

-This one will go greet them first.

-Sreuk!

-With those words, Blue Spirit, whose red eye-light flashed, disappeared over the wall beside the road.

* * *

In front of the main hall.

Another of the Mok bloodline had already arrived first.

It was the eldest young master, Mok Yeong-ho.

He had circulated internal power to dispel his hangover to some degree, but the smell of alcohol still hung heavily around him, so the First Madam, Madam Seok, did not look pleased at all.

His debauchery was nothing new, and though it made her insides burn, she had become used to it to some extent.

But not today.

‘And at a time like this.’

She had already been suffering a headache because of the variable called Mok Gyeong-un.

But that variable was something that could be resolved if they dealt with Mok Gyeong-un or merely snatched away the martial arts manual reserved for the Manor Lord, so she had been considering other methods.

And yet the Manor Lord, whom she had naturally thought would breathe his last, had awakened.

She was seized not by joy at her husband’s awakening, but by anxiety.

‘………Could it be?’

Why had he called for the children first, the moment he awakened?

No matter how much she thought, only one thought came to mind.

‘A successor.’

Most likely, because the Manor Lord had barely awakened from a long coma, he might be trying to choose a successor in preparation for the worst.

If that prediction of hers was correct, then it was a great problem.

It was a fact known to all that the Manor Lord cherished the youngest, Mok Yu-cheon.

If, on top of that, Yeong-ho entered looking like this,

-Grit.

-Though he was her own child, at times like this he truly felt like an enemy.

Just two years ago, he had been perfectly decent, enough to be called clever even if not a genius, but from some point onward he had sunk into wine and women.

All of this was because of that bastard Mok Yu-cheon.

Yet now was not a situation in which to be hating him or anything like that.

“Yeong-ho.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“On no account speak uselessly in front of the Manor Lord. Your mother will take care of everything, so you just remain still.”

Nothing good would come of opening his mouth while reeking of alcohol.

Though this was a gathering called only for the children, she believed it was unlikely he would block her, his wife, from entering.

If he was trying to confirm the succession immediately, she had to stop it somehow.

While she was thinking that, she saw Madam Jang and Mok Eun-pyeong, the second of the Mok family, approaching from the entrance of the hall to the left.

‘Hmph.’

Those people were detestable as well.

Though Madam Jang, from the Jang family of Huaibei, acted sweetly in front of her, calling her Elder Sister and so on,

behind the scenes she did everything she could to get her own son onto the Manor Lord’s seat, even going so far as to win over retainers.

‘Disgusting thing.’

That bastard Mok Eun-pyeong was the same.

Like mother, like son, he was a thief coveting the place of the eldest son, Mok Yeong-ho.

She could not be certain what the Manor Lord was going to say today, but she would not let things go as those two wished.

Because she would stop it somehow.

As she was ruminating on this, the last of the Mok family’s young masters arrived from the entrance of the southern hall.

They were the third, Mok Gyeong-un, and the youngest, Mok Yu-cheon.

At that sight, the Inner Hall Lord Jang Myeong-in climbed onto the veranda and reported through the paper door.

“All of the young masters have assembled.”

* * *

The four half-brothers of the Mok family stood lined up.

From the left, they were the eldest young master Mok Yeong-ho, the second Mok Eun-pyeong, the third Mok Gyeong-un, and the youngest Mok Yu-cheon.

Only these four had entered the Manor Lord’s room.

The First Madam, Madam Seok, and the second madam, Madam Jang, had insisted on entering as well, but could not because of the Manor Lord’s stubborn refusal.

They were now waiting outside in agitation.

‘Hm?’

Mok Gyeong-un was inwardly puzzled.

That was because of the reactions of the Mok brothers.

Since the Manor Lord was their father and had returned alive from death’s doorstep, he had expected them to show joy and welcome him, but unexpectedly they all looked extremely tense.

Even Mok Yu-cheon, who was said to have received such affection, was the same.

Because of that, the atmosphere was rather heavy.

‘…….So that’s why.’

Now he finally understood.

Namely, why they had been so concerned about the life and death of the bedridden Manor Lord.

It seemed they had actually been mindful of the Manor Lord’s mood.

How stern was he that they looked this tense?

Mok Gyeong-un casually looked at the face of the Manor Lord, who sat half reclining on the bed.

Though he had long lain unconscious after being struck by killing force, his eyes were still alive enough to feel sharp.

‘Was this the man said to be the strongest in Yeon Mok Sword Manor?’

The information note left behind by the real Mok Gyeong-un had written it like that.

The Manor Lord, Mok In-dan.

It was said he was the strongest in Yeon Mok Sword Manor and a master of sword intent counted among the top ten in all of Anhui Province.

Curious after reading that, he remembered asking the deceased Guard Gam about it.

[If he’s in the top ten, about what level does that make him?]

[Do you think becoming a master of sword intent counted among the top ten in an entire province is that easy?]

Guard Gam had said that Manor Lord Mok In-dan was a martial artist who had reached the transcendent peak realm.

At the time, he had not really felt how impressive that was.

But now that he had experienced the strength of the youngest, Mok Yu-cheon, who had reached the threshold of the peak realm,

he could somewhat imagine how strong an expert who had reached that level would be.

Still, that also gave rise to one question.

‘Then how was he struck by killing force?’

They said that for a master at the transcendent peak realm, handling qi was no different from breathing.

How, then, had someone so great been struck down by killing force, a kind of curse?

Because he was studying occult arts, the question troubled him all the more.

Just then, Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes met those of Manor Lord Mok In-dan.

He considered lowering them again like his other brothers, but then decided not to.

No matter how stern the man might be, there was no reason to go that far between father and son.

“………”

At this sight, a strange light entered Manor Lord Mok In-dan’s eyes.

The reason was simple.

Since his mother died, this fellow had never once properly met his gaze, yet now he did not avert his eyes.

But that was only one part of what puzzled him.

Mok In-dan opened his mouth.

“Do you know why I summoned you?”

“……….”

At this question, all of them fell silent.

Of course, each of them was guessing one thing.

‘A successor.’

But they could not openly speak that aloud.

Here, they absolutely must not appear overeager.

But then someone broke the silence and spoke.

“Did you perhaps summon us all the moment you rose from your long sickbed because you intend to speak of the successor?”

All of them looked with slight surprise at the one who had spoken.

It was Mok Gyeong-un.

‘You?’

‘Saying that openly?’

The others glanced at Mok Gyeong-un, then carefully watched the Manor Lord’s expression.

They were checking whether he had become displeased.

But unexpectedly, Manor Lord Mok In-dan showed no sign of discomfort at all.

Rather,

“That’s right. It is to choose a successor.”

He openly acknowledged it.

At that, all of them looked tense.

Until he awakened from his bed, the Manor Lord had never once spoken of the successor in his own mouth.

And now, for the first time, he had raised the matter.

‘Is he going to decide it on the spot here?’

‘Could it be he summoned all of us intending to hand the position of successor to that bastard Mok Yu-cheon?’

‘Is Father giving me a chance?’

Each of their thoughts became complicated in that instant.

Of course, Mok Gyeong-un had no attachment to the Manor Lord’s seat, so he only intended to roughly go along with the atmosphere.

Perhaps because of that, he was more relaxed than anyone else.

Yet this appearance struck the Manor Lord as unexpectedly.

‘Does he have no expectations? Or has he changed?’

Because his reaction was so different from the other children, it instead drew his interest.

Manor Lord Mok In-dan had already heard what had happened over the past days through the Inner Hall Lord.

[Mok Gyeong-un, that child, saved me?]

[That is correct. Even I found it hard to believe at first, but the Third Young Master blocked the occult practitioner possessed by the strange phenomenon who tried to harm you, Lord.]

It had been quite unexpected.

If it had been the youngest, Mok Yu-cheon, he would have believed it readily.

But for none other than this child, whom he had considered the most cowardly and lacking in martial talent, to have saved him.

[However, that is only according to the Third Young Master’s account, and what truly happened……]

[That is enough.]

[Pardon?]

[Summon all the children.]

[You mean the young masters?]

[Yes.]

Less than half a shijin after awakening, the Manor Lord had all his sons summoned.

For the first time, he thought that perhaps the time given to him might not be long.

He had spent much of his true qi lying bedridden for a long time, and this affair had nearly made him close his eyes forever.

If that had happened, Yeon Mok Sword Manor would have been thrown into ruin by war among the children.

He could see that future plainly even without experiencing it.

So he made a decision.

“I will determine through a test who among you has the qualifications to become my successor.”

‘!!!!!’

As he said those words, the Manor Lord’s eyes slid subtly to Mok Gyeong-un.

‘I shall give even you a sliver of opportunity.’

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