Myst, Might, Mayhem (Novel) - Chapter 90 - Origin Kill Pavilion Lord (5)
Chapter 90 – Origin Kill Pavilion Lord (5)
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Translated by Jinmu
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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“Do you still not want the chance?”
The instant he heard that, goosebumps ran across his whole body.
That face smiling as though its grin would reach the ears looked far too full of malice.
‘…….I underestimated this brat far too much.’
He had thought that while the boy was talented, he was still a stripling with much left to learn.
But now he saw that was not the case.
This boy was nothing less than a savage beast that would tear out one’s throat the instant even the slightest opening appeared.
Jo Ui-gong’s eyes darted back and forth.
-Craaaack!
The three Willow Spirit Divine Generals still bound within the chains, unable to break free.
His master and Lord of Origin Kill Pavilion, In Seo-ok, now transformed by the Six-Person Spirit Descent Art into a living corpse demon and having lost his will.
The strength in the fist of occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong gradually ebbed away.
He did still have a hidden final card.
Yet for some strange reason, the thought kept wrapping around his mind that it would not work on that boy.
‘So that is why my dreams were ill-omened.’
Perhaps it had all been for the sake of a day like this.
One might call it the turning point of a life.
It seemed that was what had happened.
Occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong, who looked at the sky for a moment and let out a long sigh, lowered his head and opened his mouth.
“……..If I say that I want the chance, what is there in it for me?”
“You made a good choice.”
At those words, Mok Gyeong-un nodded as if of course he had, and was about to step closer, when
“Do not come any closer. I have not yet made my decision. Answer my question.”
“Didn’t I already tell you a moment ago? I said I would help you become the Lord of Origin Kill Pavilion.”
Mok Gyeong-un said that while indicating In Seo-ok, Lord of Origin Kill Pavilion, with a motion of his head.
At that, occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong’s eyes narrowed.
It seemed he meant that he would manipulate his master and have that position passed to him.
But there was a problem here.
“Do you think senior brother will fail to notice that Master has become a living corpse demon?”
“Will he notice?”
“Senior brother already rivals Master in spell force and skill in occult arts alone. If he meets him face to face, he will surely notice.”
Senior brother Jo Tae-cheong.
It was said that In Seo-ok, Lord of Origin Kill Pavilion, had taken him in as a disciple more than thirty years ago.
His talent was so outstanding that it would not be an exaggeration to say he was already designated as the next Lord of Origin Kill Pavilion, and his spell force was exceptional. Deceiving the eyes and senses of such a senior brother was no easy matter.
At that, Mok Gyeong-un said with a smile,
“Shouldn’t it be Master who takes care of making sure he does not meet Grandmaster face to face until Grandmaster hands over the position?”
“What?”
“I have set the table for you, and do I now have to lift the spoon for you too? I think that is something you should naturally be able to manage.”
At those words from Mok Gyeong-un, occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong only looked at him in silence.
Was that his way of saying Jo Ui-gong ought to be prepared for that level of risk himself?
Silently, Jo Ui-gong clicked his tongue inwardly.
Then he said,
“Fine. If you also transfer part of the control over the living corpse demon to me, then I will somehow handle that myself.”
“Then is that settled?”
“No. There are still two more things.”
“Two more?”
“Yes. To cooperate with you means I must also be prepared to lose everything I have built up all this time.”
“So you mean you need further compensation for that?”
Mok Gyeong-un’s voice dropped slightly.
That meant he was becoming displeased in some emotional way.
But occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong had no intention of backing down.
He believed that if he did not make things clear here, he would simply be dragged about by the boy in an awkward half-measure.
“Then what is it that you want?”
“The Six-Person Spirit Descent Art.”
“The Six-Person Spirit Descent Art?”
“I want the secret that you possess.”
Mok Gyeong-un’s Six-Person Spirit Descent Art had succeeded despite not meeting the condition of the dead’s yin-cold energy.
When he saw that, occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong inwardly could not suppress his shock.
What in the world had the boy done to make such a thing possible?
This purely stimulated his powerful curiosity as an occult practitioner.
‘I want to know.’
One could say that Mok Gyeong-un’s Six-Person Spirit Descent Art compensated for the existing weakness.
If one could omit the countless sacrifices required to create a single living corpse demon, then there was hardly any art more efficient than that.
‘Would he really teach it?’
In truth, Jo Ui-gong was only half convinced.
If it had been him or his master In Seo-ok, they would never have shared such a secret with anyone.
But then,
“If you want it that badly, I’ll teach it to you.”
“What?”
For a moment, Jo Ui-gong stared at Mok Gyeong-un with blank eyes.
He would really teach it?
He had only thrown out the demand on the off chance, with nothing to lose.
His true aim was the following point.
Yet he had not expected Mok Gyeong-un to truly say he would teach him the secret of the Six-Person Spirit Descent Art.
At that, Jo Ui-gong, his eyes trembling because he was somewhat excited, asked,
“…….Is that truly so?”
“You said that was what you wanted as the price.”
“Yes!”
Seeing the force that entered his voice, Mok Gyeong-un let out a faint laugh.
It seemed Jo Ui-gong had truly wanted the secret.
Of course, it was not particularly difficult to tell it to him.
Only,
‘Even if he knows it, can he actually do it?’
It was possible only for himself, who had the unusual constitution of being able to absorb death aura, the energy of the dead.
If Blue Spirit was right, then the living could not accept death aura into the body.
So even if Jo Ui-gong knew it, it would be of no use at all.
“And what is the final third price?”
At Mok Gyeong-un’s question, occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong, who had been unable to hide his excitement, gathered his emotions and said,
“Since we are to work together, swear it to me.”
“A vow? Of what?”
“Swear that you will not harm me or aim for my life. If you do that, I will help you with all sincerity.”
More than the other prices, this was what mattered most.
Having dealt with this boy, Jo Ui-gong had seen that, if necessary, the boy felt no hesitation at all in killing someone.
That was why he intended to settle it clearly on the spot.
Of course, even if the boy swore that here, Jo Ui-gong would never truly believe it.
He merely intended to buy time, since if the boy made that oath, then for at least a while he would try to maintain it for the sake of his own needs.
‘And once I have demanded even this much as a price, he will surely believe that I will follow him in earnest.’
That was his true aim.
After making the boy trust him, he would prepare countermeasures.
How could he possibly trust and follow one who had casually killed even his own Grandmaster?
Occult practitioner Jo Ui-gong hid those inner thoughts and said,
“What will you do?”
“If you feel uneasy, then naturally I should do that for you.”
“……….”
Somehow, though the boy’s words sounded polite, there was something in them that subtly scratched at one’s nerves.
But for now, Jo Ui-gong was in the position of having to lower himself, so he did not show it.
It really was impossible not to find it ironic that in only half a month, the situation had turned upside down like this.
Then,
“There is actually a method that should put Master most at ease.”
“A method to put me at ease?”
What was he trying to say?
As Jo Ui-gong stood there puzzled, Mok Gyeong-un removed the chain of incantation words from his own wrist, shook it before him, and said,
“I think it would be best if you put this on and made the vow to me.”
“What?”
For a moment, Jo Ui-gong was left dumbfounded.
Was the boy now telling him to wear that and make an oath of incantation words?
“You brat, are you even speaking sense…”
“Bind him.”
-Chwarrrrrrr!
Before those words had even ended, the chains of Green Spirit Gyu So-ha burst up from the ground and bound Jo Ui-gong’s body.
‘Damn it!’
At that, Jo Ui-gong tried to move his fingers and form a rough hand seal, but
-Tak!
It was right at that moment.
“Huh?”
He was still thinking what, when before he knew it, Mok Gyeong-un had already reached his front.
It had been a distance of about ten paces, yet the boy had crossed it in barely the span of two blinks.
Flustered, Jo Ui-gong hurriedly tried to complete the hand seal.
But before he could, Mok Gyeong-un seized his wrist first.
-Clench!
“Hngh!”
He squeezed so hard that it felt as though the wrist would break.
While he suffered in pain and could not even breathe properly, Mok Gyeong-un said,
“I think you are misunderstanding something, so let me make it clear. I am giving you a chance because I would like you to become a more voluntary and faithful dog.”
“L-let go…”
-Clink!
Mok Gyeong-un fastened the chain of incantation words around Jo Ui-gong’s wrist.
Then he smiled and said,
“If Master trusts me and follows me, then there is no reason for me to go out of my way to harm Master, right? So please do as I did last time and make the vow.”
-Craaaack!
Jo Ui-gong writhed in pain, his wrist still gripped.
It truly felt like it might break.
“Or you can keep resisting if you want. It might be fun breaking them one by one.”
‘Th-this bastard…’
He looked at Mok Gyeong-un while writhing in pain, and the boy was looking at him with a mocking expression, as if enjoying this.
At that sight, Jo Ui-gong realized he had no real choice.
This boy was enjoying the situation.
If he did not swear, the boy would truly do exactly as he said.
So, forcing back the pain, Jo Ui-gong said,
“I… I, Jo Ui-gong, will uphold Mok Gyeong-un’s wi…”
“Ah. Not Mok Gyeong-un. Please say Jeong.”
“What!?”
Jo Ui-gong’s eyes shook.
‘Ha!’
Only now did the doubt become clear.
An oath of incantation words could only bind the will when made in one’s true name.
Naturally, because the boy was a child of Yeon Mok Sword Manor and everyone called him Mok Gyeong-un, Jo Ui-gong had never suspected it.
But the boy had been hiding his name?
‘To be tricked by such an absurd thing…’
It felt unbearably hollow.
“Now then, stop being so shocked and do it properly, please.”
-Craaaack!
Mok Gyeong-un put even more strength into his hand.
At that, Jo Ui-gong hurriedly said,
“Grrrr. I… I, Jo Ui-gong, will uphold Jeong’s will.”
The instant those words ended, the chain rattled and trembled.
At that, Mok Gyeong-un released the wrist he had been gripping.
“Huff… huff…”
Jo Ui-gong, whose face had turned crimson and who was drenched in sweat from the pain, clutched his wrist and ground his teeth.
To end up making an oath of incantation words to the very disciple he had accepted.
How had it come to this?
Mok Gyeong-un set a hand on the shoulder of the suffering Jo Ui-gong and said with a smile,
“Since Master says he will help this disciple like this, I hardly know what to do with myself.”
‘……..What have I done?’
It seemed he had taken a devil into the school as his disciple.
* * *
This was Crimson Grace House, a pleasure house located on the outskirts outside the Heaven and Earth Society’s outer castle.
There, a seductive and beautiful woman sat with narrowed eyes, trying to look toward the distant mountains.
She was Ha Chae-rin, a candidate to become the sect master of the Flying Assassin Sect, one of the three-generation assassin groups, no, Gochan who was possessing her body.
‘Damn it. Where am I even supposed to rest my eyes?’
Gochan was sincerely in torment.
With the help of a traveling beauty-hand, he had safely had makeup applied.
Ha Chae-rin’s face was already quite beautiful even bare, but after the hand of a skilled beauty-hand of the pleasure house touched it, she transformed into an even brighter blossom.
‘This is driving me mad.’
But there was only one reason Gochan was suffering like this.
He had nowhere to look.
The place he was now in was a common waiting room where the courtesans of the pleasure house stayed, and all of their clothing was so thin that if one looked only a little too directly, everything could practically be seen through.
“Oh my, elder sister. Didn’t you put too much effort into that area?”
“You silly thing. If I don’t put in effort on a day like this, then when am I supposed to? And you too, with all your skin showing through, clearly came prepared.”
“Kyarrrr. That’s true. How could I let an opportunity like today slip by?”
Hearing the spirited conversation of the courtesans, Gochan only pricked up his ears while keeping his face tilted toward the ceiling.
From what he heard, some incredible guest had made a reservation today.
Apparently he had asked that only the courtesans most skilled in the arts and most beautiful in appearance be prepared, so this was how it had come to this.
[I hear someone of rather high rank in the Heaven and Earth Society is coming.]
When the beauty-hand said that, Gochan thought this was his chance and insisted on being let in as well, but now he was in a truly awkward situation.
Out of the roughly forty courtesans gathered here, only six would make it inside.
Perhaps that was why, though they all called one another elder sister, the undercurrent of checking and competing was no joke at all.
They were fighting with smiles on their faces, and it was enough to exhaust him.
It was enough to make him think, do I really have to infiltrate inside the Heaven and Earth Society for my master Mok Gyeong-un by going this far?
As he was thinking this, someone approached him.
“You there.”
“………”
“New girl. I’m talking to you.”
At that call, Gochan pointed at himself with a hand.
Then the mature courtesan before him, who looked to be in her mid-twenties, snorted and said,
“How bold. An elder sister speaks to you and you don’t even answer. What an impressive new girl. Who told you that you could come into this room?”
“Uh… well…”
What in the world was he supposed to say to that?
He knew that by the standards of courtesans, mid-twenties was rather old, but his real age was different from this body’s.
Perhaps because of that, words did not come easily.
He was clearly supposed to act, but his male pride would not allow him to say elder sister.
‘Damn it.’
So, to avoid a pointless quarrel, Gochan simply bowed his head.
“You still won’t answer?”
No sooner had she said that than the courtesan in her twenties suddenly tried to slap Gochan across the face.
Of course Gochan, possessing the body of an expert at the peak stage, was not about to be hit by a slap.
-Whoosh!
He lightly avoided the hand flying toward him.
At that, the courtesan arched a brow and raised her voice.
“Oh? So you dodge your elder sister’s hand now?”
Thinking that it would be tiring if this continued, Gochan waved his hands and said,
“Now look here, miss. I have no wish to fight with you. So let us stop this about here.”
At Gochan’s manner of speech, the courtesan’s expression went blank.
“What is that… that old-man way of speaking?”
“………”
At her words, Gochan suddenly realized his mistake.
He should have imitated the speech of young women to some extent, but in his effort to avoid a quarrel, he had slipped up.
Then the courtesan said,
“If you dodge your elder sister’s hand this time too, you’d better prepare yourself.”
It seemed the courtesan would not rest easy unless she landed that slap.
At that, Gochan put on a serious face and said,
“You keep saying elder sister, but miss… no, I’m older than you.”
“What?”
“Even if I look like this, I’m twenty-seven.”
Gochan gave an age that seemed plausibly older than hers.
Since she kept stressing hierarchy with all this elder sister talk, he hoped that speaking as though he were older might let this pass.
He could not afford to cause trouble here and ruin the mission.
Then the courtesan snorted and said,
“Aha. So that’s how it is. You’re a new girl, but older than you look.”
“Ahem. Then let us stop this pointless contest of wills here…”
-Sseuk!
The courtesan rolled both sleeves up as she said in a voice for everyone to hear,
“Watch closely. This is a fight between elder sisters.”
“……….”
Gochan sincerely began to wonder whether he should abandon this plan altogether.