Moorim Pochang - Chapter 60

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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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Episode 60. The Secret of Rejuvenation.

‘I hate to admit it, but this is truly delicious.’
The chicken noodle soup here was, as her husband said, a culinary masterpiece.
It wasn’t just the noodles—even the humble seasoned vegetables were exquisite.
The fragrance lingered on her palate in such a way that it seemed to clear her mind itself.
“Well? How is it, madam?”
“I find myself resenting that you kept such a place hidden from me all this time.”
Dok Go-yeop offered an awkward smile.
It wasn’t that he’d hidden it intentionally.
If his wife ever came to this place, she would inevitably encounter him.
He despised the way that man looked at his wife.
That was why he’d kept it hidden until now.
“Please, eat more, madam.”

*

Baek Moon-do’s voice erupted the moment the Stone Bridge came into view.
“Who in blazes are you to tell my wife to come and go as you please…?”
He’d been accused of coveting a married woman, and now he finally had grounds to make a scene.
“Welcome, sir.”
Kang Jo bowed respectfully, and Baek Moon-do nodded before stepping inside.
But the moment he crossed the threshold, his body went rigid.
‘Gwak So-jeo…?’
Gwak So-jeo sat there looking exactly as she had in the past.
He rubbed his eyes and examined her closely—there was no doubt. The beautiful woman seated before him was unmistakably Gwak So-jeo.
As he stood transfixed, Dok Go-yeop suddenly bellowed.
“Where is your wife? Why did you come alone, you wretch…!”
Ah…
The cry jolted Baek Moon-do back to his senses.
‘Right. I have a wife too.’
He had a wife, and it wasn’t as though he didn’t love her.
For a moment, memories of his youth had simply surfaced.
How had time stolen away the bloom of youth so mercilessly?
“It has been long, Gwak So-jeo.”
He cupped his hands respectfully and gave a formal bow.
“It has been long, Alliance Leader.”
The woman rose from her seat and returned a polite bow.
Baek Moon-do felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
Alliance Leader.
Once, she had called him Baek—just Baek, as if he were no one at all.
Yet that memory remained vivid, as clear as if it had happened yesterday.
“Bring me the same.”
After ordering, he took a seat across from Dok Go-yeop.
Baek Moon-do deliberately avoided meeting Gwak So-jeo’s eyes.
Instead, he fixed a glare on Yang Jung.
‘If that fool had simply relayed the message properly, none of this would have happened.’
Seeing the Alliance Leader’s murderous gaze, Yang Jung hastily ducked behind Kang Jo.
‘I don’t understand why he’s singling me out like this.’
“What are you doing?”
At Kang Jo’s question, he quickly shook his head.
“Nothing… nothing at all.”
“Spineless fool.”

*

“How are our children doing?”
“They’re well.”
“They’re not fighting with each other?”
At Dok Go-yeop’s question, Baek Moon-do fixed him with a savage stare.
“Because of you, I’ve aged ten years more….!”
The moment he flared up, the woman offered a gentle smile.
“I apologize.”
That smile made Baek Moon-do feel his heart quicken.
“Ah….no, Gwak So-jeo.”
Dok Go-yeop, who had been studying his face, also lost his temper.
“You still call my wife Gwak So-jeo? What kind of way is that to address her? Gwak So-jeo, indeed.”
“Then what should I call her, you fool?”
“You should call her Mother Instructor.”
“How can I call Gwak So-jeo Mother Instructor when I’m not even part of the Ma-gyo?”
Dok Go-yeop’s face flushed crimson.
“You scheming wretch.”
Sigh……….
Baek Moon-do merely exhaled.
He couldn’t let this quarrel continue any further.
With Gwak So-jeo sitting right there, he was at a disadvantage in any argument.
He shifted his gaze away.
When he looked toward the table, he saw a sword and a large sword laid out side by side.
“That large sword looks like the one Tae-woo used to carry?”
Dok Go-yeop’s expression softened as he answered.
“That’s right. I recovered the large sword on the way here.”
He couldn’t tell this man the truth.
A fellow like Yang Jung was already coveting it, so Kang Jo would never simply let it go.
Besides, for what lay ahead, Tae-woo’s death had to have nothing to do with Kang Jo.
Baek Moon-do was taken aback.
“How did you come to recover the large sword?”
“I ran into some men covered in facial tattoos. One of them was carrying that large sword.”
Hmm……
“Then Tae-woo must already be dead.”
“Yes.”
The woman shared the same thought as Dok Go-yeop and said nothing.
“Chicken noodle soup is ready.”
As Kang Jo brought out the chicken noodle soup, Baek Moon-do picked up his chopsticks.
“But what brings you here today with Gwak So-jeo?”
The woman answered in Dok Go-yeop’s place.
“We came to inquire into the secrets of rejuvenation.”
Ah……..
The moment Baek Moon-do heard her words, he let out a silent sigh within himself.
‘Even Gwak So-jeo has reached that age.’
Though her outward appearance seemed unchanged, she too was growing older with each passing day.
He turned his head toward Kang Jo.
“Can you bring out medicinal wine?”
Kang Jo shook his head firmly.
“I can bring wine, but there is no medicinal wine.”
“None at all?”
“No.”
Baek Moon-do wanted to procure medicinal wine for her by any means.
But with Kang Jo being so steadfast, there was no other way.
“What if I offered ten thousand silver coins?”
Dok Go-yeop bristled at his offer.
“Why are you throwing silver around for my wife’s sake, you bastard? I’ll provide the silver—now bring the medicinal wine.”
“How can I bring what doesn’t exist?”
Kang Jo spoke back without hesitation and turned to Yang Jung.
“Do we have medicinal wine or not?”
“We had about two cups left, but we drank it all.”
At Yang Jung’s answer, even Dok Go-yeop could press the matter no further.
Unlike Kang Jo, this man wore his lies plainly—they showed on his face the moment he spoke them.
But the woman was different.
She had come all this distance and had no intention of leaving empty-handed.
“Are you absolutely certain there’s none?”
“Yes.”
“What if we traded the Jeonryun Gucheonma-검 and that medicinal wine instead?”
The woman’s proposal left not only Baek Moon-do but Dok Go-yeop visibly stunned.
“The Jeonryun Gucheonma-검? …Gwak So-jeo…?”
“Are you in your right mind, madam?”
And for good reason—the Jeonryun Gucheonma-검 was the Cult Master’s martial art.
Kang Jo had hesitated, if only for a breath.
Seeing them react with such shock, the Jeonryun Gucheonma-검 must have been a formidable art indeed.
Could such an art not rival his master’s technique?
But the hesitation lasted only a moment.
Even that offer could be a trap.
If he agreed here, it would be as good as admitting he possessed the medicinal wine.
“However impressive a martial art you bring, I cannot conjure something that does not exist.”
“I know it’s an unreasonable request. Still, I would have liked to taste even a cup.”
The woman turned toward Yang Jung, her disappointment plain to see.
Yang Jung lowered his head, avoiding her gaze.
She smiled faintly and held up the empty bowl.
“Could I have another bowl?”
Kang Jo ladled chicken noodle soup into a clean bowl and set it before her.
“Here you are.”
“So what will you do with the boys, Alliance Leader?”
The woman picked up her chopsticks and directed the conversation toward Baek Moon-do.
“For some time now, Jamryong-hoe and Seong-ma-dan will be locked in conflict. Through that struggle and those confrontations, their strength will grow by leaps and bounds—surely you’ve seen enough to know this from experience?”
At Baek Moon-do’s words, both Dok Go-yeop and the woman nodded.
It was the method Dae-hyung had used to train the One Hundred Heroes.
As long as they didn’t fight for each other’s lives, sparring and conflict were permitted without limit.
The Murim Alliance had exhausted itself fighting the Ma-gyo, while the Ma-gyo had reduced their own sleep, clinging to martial training to overcome the Murim Alliance.
But what came after was the problem.
Dae-hyung, who had led the One Hundred Heroes through blood-soaked battles against Hyeol-gyo, was no longer here.
“I cannot empty the Murim Alliance, and you cannot empty the Ma-gyo—surely you see the bind we’re in?”
“What if you asked the head of the Eom family? Eom Byeok-su?”
Dok Go-yeop recalled Eom Byeok-su, the Eom family’s patriarch.
He had been among the One Hundred Heroes and had survived to the end.
Tch.
Baek Moon-do made a bitter face.
“Byeok-su lacks the capacity for such work. Besides, I doubt he’d abandon his household.”
Eom Byeok-su had proven his martial prowess by surviving the great battle against Hyeol-gyo.
But he could not be compared to Dae-hyung.
“In the end, there’s no one but you to step forward.”
“That’s why I tried to send Jamryong-hoe to the Ma-gyo…but that cunning bastard.”
Had Jamryong-hoe been dispatched to the Ma-gyo, Dok Go-yeop would have had no choice but to act.
But with his trump card stolen, it fell to Baek Moon-do instead.

*

When the bottle emptied, Dok Go-yeop rose to his feet.
“Let us end this, madam.”
But the woman showed no sign of standing.
“I came all this way. I cannot return with nothing.”
She turned to Kang Jo and continued.
“I won’t make such requests again. The Cult Master and the Alliance Leader won’t press me with impossible favors. Still, you won’t grant me even this?”
“How can I produce what doesn’t exist?”
Kang Jo held firm to the end.
But she was equally stubborn.
“Such determination. Or should I say—such audacity?”
The woman looked between Dok Go-yeop and Baek Moon-do.
“From now on, don’t bother looking for medicinal wine at this inn. If you try it again, I won’t let it slide.”
“Ah… understood, madam.”
“As you wish, Gwak So-jeo.”
Dok Go-yeop and Baek Moon-do nodded obediently without protest.
When the woman smiled and met their eyes again, Kang Jo couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.
‘This woman… she’s truly formidable.’
Even the Cult Master of Ma-gyo and the Alliance Leader, for all their prowess, were rendered helpless before her.
In the end, Kang Jo himself took a step back.
“The supply is not yet ready.”
“Then when will it be available?”
“Return in a month’s time. I’ll provide you with a cup or two then.”
Hahahaha…!
The woman burst into laughter.
At that, Dok Go-yeop and Baek Moon-do shot glares at Kang Jo.
“Did you dare to lie to my face?”
“This is utterly galling.”
But Kang Jo met their piercing gaze without flinching.
The woman quickly rose and positioned herself between the two men.
“If you make me displeased, there won’t even be broth left for you. I’ll come back in a month. And the wine—the minimum is three cups.”
She drew a small short dagger from her robes and set it on the table.
At first glance, it looked like an exceptionally valuable blade.
“For the meal.”
Dok Go-yeop was taken aback.
“Madam, this short dagger is…”
“Not another word.”
When the woman’s voice turned cold, Dok Go-yeop quickly closed his mouth.
But Kang Jo showed no interest in the dagger.
“Take the blade with you and give us silver instead. This inn has plenty of swords and cutlery.”
Hehehehe…
The woman’s face twisted slightly, and a suppressed laugh escaped Dok Go-yeop’s lips.
If he understood what that dagger truly meant, he would be astonished.
“Here it is.”
Baek Moon-do retrieved a money pouch on her behalf.
Dok Go-yeop quickly pulled out his own pouch as well.
“That’s enough, you conniving wretch. Here you go.”
He removed ten silver taels from the pouch and placed them on the table.

*

Once the guests had left, Kang Jo gathered the silver coins from the table.
“Elder brother, this short dagger is incredibly sharp, isn’t it?”
Yang Jung picked up the dagger that had been left on the table and examined it from every angle.
The blade was so keen that even brushing it with a fingertip would draw blood.
Moreover, the steel gleamed with a subtle blue luminescence.
The woman had left the dagger behind after all.
“May I keep this, elder brother?”
“Don’t you already have a short dagger?”
“This one looks far superior.”
“Do as you like. Just don’t go selling it anywhere. It seems quite precious.”
Kang Jo passed the dagger to Yang Jung.
Ha…
“I won’t, elder brother.”
Yang Jung tucked the dagger into his robes, delighted with his prize.
“Get the dishes washed.”
“Of course, elder brother. Leave it to me.”
Pleased with his new dagger, he carried the plates off to the stream without complaint.
Hmm… hum…
As Yang Jung washed, a cheerful hum drifted from his lips.

*

Baek Moon-do looked up at the bright moon hanging in the sky.
‘Gwak So-jeo hasn’t changed.’
Youth did not pass slowly.
Like a monster, it opened its great maw and swallowed everything in an instant.
‘I was so occupied I never even asked how many children they had.’
Two of them were in the Murim Alliance; the rest would be in the Ma-gyo.
The children inherited the striking beauty of both Dok Go-yeop and Gwak So-jeo.
According to information that came in long ago, there were four children.
But it was old information, so he couldn’t be certain.
“Why aren’t you coming in?”
His wife’s voice called from the room.
“I’m… coming now.”
Baek Moon-do turned quickly and entered the room.

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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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