Abolition of the Wicked - Chapter 206

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#206

Geom U-bin, who had been waiting in the inn, startled at the sight of someone entering his room.
“Oh? You’re back! Didn’t you go after the carrier pigeon? Have you already found where it went?”
Yeon Geum-hong let out a long sigh and shook her head.
“That blasted pigeon became an eagle’s meal in the sky.”
“What?”
Yeon Geum-hong used her left hand to mime a pigeon and her right to mime an eagle, expressing her disappointment.
“You didn’t kill the eagle just because it was hunting, did you?”
“Come now, surely you don’t think I’d resort to something so childish as revenge——”
“You killed it.”
“Yes. It had to pay for ruining our work!”
Yeon Geum-hong quickly changed the subject.
“Seo Seok-san hasn’t arrived yet?”
“The pursuit of Sam Gongja must be taking longer than expected.”
Neither of them doubted that Seo Seok-san would catch Sam Gongja.
“Did anything happen to you?”
“I killed the head of the Moyong Clan.”
“What?”
Geom U-bin recounted his encounter with Mo Yong Cheong-gwang.
“He must not have wanted to be discovered practicing Demonic Art.”
“So he was trying to silence you, only to be killed by you instead. But you say poison came from his Demonic Art?”
“Yes. It was quite vicious.”
“Are you all right?”
“Of course. I’m still carrying a bit of it in my body.”
“What? You need to have it removed at once! Come here!”
Geom U-bin pushed away Yeon Geum-hong’s hands as she tried to remove his clothes.
“I’m keeping it on purpose.”
“Why would you deliberately keep such a revolting thing?”
“To show Jang Man-dok. If I understand the poison, couldn’t I also understand the origins of the Martial Art itself?”
Yeon Geum-hong nodded.
“I see your point. You buried the body?”
“For now, yes, but I suspect it will be discovered.”
“Once the body is found, the Moyong Clan will suspect you. Will that be a problem?”
Whoever had been tailing Geom U-bin would become a witness, and suspicion could only fall upon him.
“There’s no evidence.”
“Why not eliminate the problem before it arises?”
“Once trouble comes, the Moyong Clan will seek us out whether we go to them or not.”
Geom U-bin wanted to avoid a fight that would certainly result in innocent deaths.
Yeon Geum-hong spoke, watching the window begin to darken.
“We’ll have to stay here tonight, but I only booked one room……”
Geom U-bin pointed to the left of two beds placed side by side.
“You can sleep here tonight.”
“Ha ha! Yes, that makes sense. No point wasting money on another room.”

***

Mo Yong Gang-seok looked up at the window of Geom U-bin’s room on this floor. The light had gone out a little while ago, so by now he would surely be asleep.
Mo Yong Seol-yeong had warned against it, but he lacked the patience to restrain himself with his enemy so close at hand.
Of course, that Geom U-bin was no match for him had been proven by Mo Yong Cheong-gwang. But victory was not determined by Martial Arts skill alone.
He possessed an excellent method: Ambush.
‘I’ll send him to the other world without even knowing he’s dying.’
Mo Yong Gang-seok hurled himself onto the roof.
His movement was quiet enough to satisfy even his own standards. The surroundings were still, and the lit windows could be counted on one hand.
Mo Yong Gang-seok hung upside down from the roof, peering into Geom U-bin’s room. Only faint breathing could be heard, and the moonlight behind him was far too weak to illuminate the interior.
He eased the window open—it was unlocked—and it swung open effortlessly.
To kill the head of the Mo Yong Clan and not even bother locking the door—what a fool.
Mo Yong Gang-seok slipped through the window into the room and drew his blade with practiced speed. Faint moonlight barely revealed a figure on the bed to his right.
It was Geom U-bin’s quarters, so the sleeping form could be no one else. Mo Yong Gang-seok crept closer, positioned himself beside the bed, and raised his sword with the point aimed at Geom U-bin’s heart.
“Father’s enemy. Die.”
Crack!
His vision spun violently, and he heard the sharp snap of bone breaking. A heartbeat later, Mo Yong Gang-seok realized it was his own neck shattering, and pain flooded through him.
Mercifully, the agony did not last long.
As strength drained from his limbs and the world crumbled away, even pain ceased. Death, after all, takes everything.
“Clumsy killing intent like that, and he thinks he can manage an assassination technique. Tsk, tsk, tsk……”
Yeon Geum-hong, who had just snapped Mo Yong Gang-seok’s neck, clicked her tongue as she looked down at the corpse.
Geom U-bin rose from the bed and let out a weary sigh at the sight of Mo Yong Gang-seok.
“The father falls to me, and the son falls to your hand.”
“They brought it upon themselves. While we’re at it, let’s wipe out the entire Mo Yong Clan. They’ll only seek revenge regardless. It’s better to eliminate future troubles before they take root.”
Mo Yong Gang-seok’s arrival meant Geom U-bin had learned of Mo Yong Cheong-gwang’s death.
Yeon Geum-hong’s suggestion to eliminate enemies-in-waiting was sound, but Geom U-bin could not bring himself to decide so quickly.
Just then, someone suddenly burst through the window. Only they could enter through that opening without being sensed.
Seo Seok-san, one of their group, hurled something onto the floor.
“Seo Seok-san! What’s happened?”
What Seo Seok-san had thrown down was the Samgongja they had been tailing.
“He was heading for Sae-oe. I didn’t see the point in chasing him all the way, so I brought him back along the way.”
“You got tired of tailing him and just threw him over your shoulder, didn’t you.”
“You doubt my superhuman patience? Wait—what’s this?”
Seo Seok-san nudged Mo Yong Gang-seok’s corpse with the tip of his foot and murmured, “He’s dead.”
Geom U-bin explained the whole chain of events—his fight with Mo Yong Cheong-gwang and why Mo Yong Gang-seok had become a corpse.
“Then let’s use this chance to sweep the Mo Yong Clan away.”
The Hyeolpung Saja’s thoughts were much the same.
“Did you learn anything from Samgongja?”
“No. I only brought him here. He might have a poison pellet like the sect leader from Huashan, so I’ve sealed his meridians thoroughly to be safe.”
Yeon Geum-hong said, “I’ll dispose of the body first,” and carried Mo Yong Gang-seok’s corpse outside.
She returned in little more than half an incense stick’s worth of time.
Only Yeon Geum-hong knew where and how the body had been disposed of.
During that brief interval, Geom U-bin examined Samgongja’s mouth. A poison pellet was indeed hidden deep within the inner surface of his molar.
“What kind of mission could inspire such men to face death without fear?”
At Seo Seok-san’s question, Geom U-bin studied Samgongja and replied.
“The strongest force is always faith.”
“The Demonic Cult, perhaps?”
“We’ll find out now.”
As he spoke, Geom U-bin ran his fingers carefully over Samgongja’s face.
“What are you doing?”
“Checking if he’s using a disguise. For someone my master was seeking, this Samgongja seems far too young. And disciples like Seo Seok-san are hardly common.”
Yeon Geum-hong returned just as he finished speaking.
“This one had a poison pellet in his mouth too.”
“Let’s bring him to his senses.”
At Geom U-bin’s words, Seo Seok-san nudged Samgongja with his toe.
The Samgongja’s eyes snapped open, but only his eyes could move. They had not released his meridian seals for fear he might bite his own tongue.
Seo Seok-san spoke to the Samgongja, whose eyes darted frantically back and forth.
“Do you know Ma Gun-ja? Why was Ma Gun-ja chasing you? Are you from the Demonic Cult? What else should I ask?”
Yeon Geum-hong looked at Seo Seok-san with an expression of disbelief.
“You ask question after question when he can’t even give a single answer. What’s the point?”
Seo Seok-san glanced at Geom U-bin.
“You’ll read his expression, won’t you?”
“Me?”
“Yes. Since you can read Jang Man-dok’s expressions, you should be able to read this man’s too, right?”
“I know Jang Man-dok’s face only because we’ve spent so much time together. I’m seeing this one for the first time.”
“Ah, I see. I thought you’d be able to read him.”
Geom U-bin suddenly seemed incompetent for not being able to read the stranger’s expression. Yeon Geum-hong swatted Seo Seok-san across the back for burdening him with that doubt.
“Is your brother a mind-reader? You fool!”
Seo Seok-san had no excuse for the blow, so he simply nudged Samgongja’s ribs with his toe instead.
“So what do we do? Should we give him a brush and have him write?”
Yeon Geum-hong shot him a look.
“What if he smashes his own head with his bare hands?”
“His toes?”
“The one with the poison pellet in his mouth would charge straight into a wall, wouldn’t he?”
He hadn’t realized there were so many ways a man could choose to end himself.
“Should I stick a brush up his rear end? Don’t you remember when we first met Se-hwa? She said she could write characters with a brush stuck up there.”
Yeon Geum-hong, who had been thinking for a moment, waved her hands in the empty air.
“No! I don’t even want to imagine it!”
“I can picture it just fine.”
“Stop it! That’s impossible anyway!”
Watching the two of them, Geom U-bin heaved a long sigh. It felt like he was in a room with two Do Pyeong-sus.
“It’s late tonight. Let’s sleep and think about this tomorrow.”

***

Mo Yong Gang-seok never came back.
Mo Yong Seol-yeong, who had spent the entire night without sleep waiting for him in his room, dragged herself out with faltering steps.
The morning sun, barely beginning to ripen, spread across the courtyard in full measure. As she descended into the courtyard and headed toward her own room in the back garden, the gate creaked open.
The man who entered was her second brother, Mo Yong Seong-baek.
He was some distance away, but the stench of alcohol wafted over.
When Geom U-bin had come and caused the commotion, he hadn’t been seen, so apparently he’d been drowning himself in drink ever since.
“Oh? You’re up already?”
Mo Yong Seong-baek, regarding her with bloodshot eyes, muttered something about “the girl’s diligent” and turned to head to his own room.
“Second brother. Look at me.”
“I’m tired. Let’s talk after I sleep.”
“Father has passed away.”
Even after she finished speaking, Mo Yong Seong-baek took two more steps before he stopped.
“What?”
When Mo Yong Seol-yeong repeated herself, Mo Yong Seong-baek’s expression hardened.
“Are you joking with me? Father was accepting visits this morning with a healthy complexion—how could he suddenly be dead?”
As the diligent servants began to emerge, Mo Yong Seol-yeong turned away.
“Come to my room. We’ll talk there.”
Having heard that Mo Yong Cheong-gwang was dead, he could not refuse to follow.
Once inside, Mo Yong Seol-yeong took a seat, and Mo Yong Seong-baek claimed the chair opposite.
“Is it true? Father is really gone? If this is a lie…”
“Why would I lie about Father’s death? It’s possible my eldest brother is dead too. In fact, he almost certainly is.”
“What on earth happened?”
Mo Yong Seol-yeong explained calmly everything that had occurred.
When she spoke of discovering their father’s corpse and of Mo Yong Gang-seok going to Geom U-bin, groans escaped Mo Yong Seong-baek’s lips.
“So your eldest brother still hasn’t returned? You’re certain about Father’s body?”
“I checked several times.”
Mo Yong Seong-baek clutched his head in both hands.
The alcohol hadn’t worn off; his mind wasn’t working properly.
“If elder brother is also gone, then Geom U-bin’s next target will be us.”
“That we don’t know. What matters is how we seek revenge.”
“Revenge? Father himself, who came out of closed-door cultivation, was no match for him. How are we supposed to take revenge?”
“Of course we can’t draw the sword of vengeance immediately. They say a gentleman’s revenge isn’t too late even if it takes ten years…”
Mo Yong Seong-baek cut her off.
“First we need to think about surviving, not revenge. Would Geom U-bin, who killed Father and our elder brother, leave us alone? It was a mistake to become blood-sworn to the Murim Alliance in the first place.”
“What do you mean?”
“We could have lived in peace as the regional lord of Yao-ryeong Province. Why did we have to pursue expansion into Zhongyuan?”
It was exactly the sort of thing to come from Mo Yong Seong-baek’s mouth—a man without courage or ambition.
“This whole mess is because of elder brother’s greed. If he’d handed over the six hundred thousand taels as promised, no one from Oseong Jang-won would have come looking.”
Mo Yong Seol-yeong knew it was Mo Yong Seong-baek who had nudged Mo Yong Gang-seok to embezzle the money from Oseong Jang-won, but she chose not to press the matter.
“We should pay the six hundred thousand taels as promised. Then Oseong Jang-won will have no reason to trouble the Mo Yong Clan anymore.”
“And then?”
“What do you mean ‘and then’? We withdraw from the Murim Alliance and live peacefully as the regional lord of Yao-ryeong Province, like before.”
“What about revenge?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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