Moorim Pochang - Chapter 95

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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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Chapter 95. Second Sortie (2).

The Cheon Sa-gyo branch was quite substantial in scale.
Numerous people stood in line at the entrance, waiting their turn, while armed disciples inside kept watch over them.
Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan scaled the wall behind the manor.
Whoosh… whoosh…
The moment they all cleared the wall and slipped around the pavilion, the Training Ground came into view.
Dozens of martial artists were in the midst of practicing their techniques there.
Some bore tattoos; others did not.
The martial artists showed no surprise whatsoever.
“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you.”
A tattooed figure stepped forward, spreading both arms wide.
Sensing danger, Cho Yak raised her hand, stopping the skilled personnel behind her.
“Is it Cheol-goe? Or Yeo Hwa?”
At her question, the pavilion door opened and Yeo Hwa walked out.
Ho ho ho…
“As sharp as ever. The old Cho Yak still lives on in you, doesn’t she?”
She laughed with a sneer.
But the laughter did not last long.
The aura radiating from Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan was far from ordinary.
How had these wretches grown so strong in such a short time?
“Is Cheol-goe here as well?”
“No. But there are others instead.”
Before Yeo Hwa’s words had even finished, an unpleasant presence began closing in.
Those with eyes shrouded in pallid mist streamed in ceaselessly.
And leading them were the tattooed Eon So-ryong and Eon Ga’s gait.
Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan did not recognize him.
Yeo Hwa’s laughter returned, as if amused by the sight.
Ho ho…
“How many will die here? If Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan are annihilated, there will be no masters to follow them. Unless Dae-hyung reveals himself again, the Gangho itself is finished.”
Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan were the finest skilled personnel culled from the martial world of Gangho.
There would be no talent superior to them remaining, so it was hardly an exaggeration to say the martial world of Gangho was at an end.
Baek Moon-do and Dok-go Yeop, along with the young masters who should have inherited the Myeong Family’s legacy—all would vanish.
She turned her gaze toward Eon So-ryong.
“Shouldn’t you introduce yourself?”
At that, Eon So-ryong stepped forward.
“Do you recognize me? I am Eon So-ryong, whom you all abandoned.”
Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan could not hide their shock.
Despite all their searching, Eon So-ryong had already become one of Hyeol-gyo’s own.
“How can this be? Eon So-hyup!”
At Baek Won-yeong’s question, Eon So-ryong burst into laughter.
Ha ha ha ha…!
“Thanks to you abandoning me, I’ve gained ultimate power! How could Baek Moon-do ever grant me such strength! Now I don’t envy any of you…!”
His laughter ceased, and he bowed slightly toward Yeon Ja-seol.
“It has been long, Lady Yeon.”
She returned the greeting coldly.
“Indeed it has, Eon So-hyup. Though… I suppose now it’s Eon So-ryong, isn’t it?”
At her words, Eon So-ryong smiled thinly.
‘Cute one.’
Ho ho ho…
“Shall we begin?”
With a smile, Yeo Hwa waved her hand nonchalantly.
“We should move to another location, shouldn’t we?”
The moment Yeo Hwa unleashed her Body Technique, Eon So-ryong drew his sword.
“Kill them all…!”

*
Crash-crash…! Crash-crash-crash…!
The Mi Cheom-do and Yu Yeop-do clashed violently, then sprang apart.
“You haven’t forgotten Han-seo yet, have you?”
Yeo Hwa struck at a tender spot in Cho Yak’s defenses.
In truth, she was furious with Cho Yak.
To abandon life in Gangho and go into seclusion over a mere man?
How utterly foolish.
But Cho Yak did not waver at her provocation.
“And you? You couldn’t forget Moon-do either—so much so you tattooed his face on your own.”
There was a saying about giving with a measure and receiving with a cup, and this was precisely the moment it applied.
Enraged, Yeo Hwa spat out a curse.
“You…wretched…bitch…!”
The Yu Yeop-do carved across Cho Yak’s throat while the Mi Cheom-do slashed at Yeo Hwa’s waist.
Crash-crash…! Crash…!
As befitted masters of absolute caliber, trees split and splintered whenever their blades carved through the air around them.
Crack-crack…boom…!
They evaded the falling timber and sent their blades flying toward each other through the void.
Crash-crash…!
The blades that cut through space collided in midair, then returned to their masters’ hands.
“So the wretch hasn’t been idle.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
In the midst of their razor-sharp psychological warfare, both women activated their Body Technique simultaneously.
The Mi Cheom-do bisected Yeo Hwa’s body while the Yu Yeop-do descended on Cho Yak’s throat.
Both their forms scattered into the void as blood sprayed outward.
Cho Yak raised her Mi Cheom-do toward Yeo Hwa, who had sliced open her shoulder.
As blood dripped from the wound, Yeo Hwa laughed.
Hehehehe…
“Since you couldn’t forget Han-seo, I’ll send you to him.”
“I have no intention of going alone.”

*

Squelch…squelch…
Enemy heads rose into the air in succession.
The Training Ground was already so choked with severed corpses there was scarcely room to set foot.
With each movement of his Body Technique, blood soaking the ground squelched beneath him.
Yet still the enemies poured forward.
Squelch…
Those who had lost an arm drew swords with the other; those who had lost their legs crawled through the pooled blood on the ground.
Eon So-ryong stepped back and observed the spectacle.
‘I’ve grown stronger myself, but these ones… they’ve become unrecognizable in their power.’
Remarkably, though there were wounded among Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan, not a single soul had yet been lost.
‘How did they become so formidable in such a short span?’
Among the skilled personnel, Baek Won-yeong, Dok-go Il, Dok-go Eun, and Yeon Ja-seol stood out most prominently.
They were so powerful that no one could withstand the blades of all four together.
“At this rate, they’ll be annihilated.”
He turned to glance behind him and nodded.
At that, Eon Ga moved swiftly with his Body Technique.
He was heading toward the place where the sick were being treated.
“The Savage Beasts mean to slaughter this place…! Everyone, go forth and stop them…!”
As Eon Ga’s voice rose, the queue of sick folk trembled with rage.
Soon they would receive the blessings of Heaven and be cured of the illnesses that had tormented them their entire lives.
How could this place be targeted for massacre?
This place had to be defended with their very lives.
“Follow me…!”
At Eon Ga’s cry, the sick surged forward in a great tide behind him.
They seized whatever lay within sight.
Some grabbed wooden sticks, others scooped up stones.
As they rushed forward, Eon So-ryong smiled.
“Retreat…!”
Those bearing tattoos and those with pale eyes all withdrew in unison.
In their place, the sick came forward.
“If you wish to be healed, strike down those men………!”
At Eon So-ryong’s cry, the sick began hurling stones with hollow, menacing eyes.
Thud…….! Bang……!
The skilled personnel, caught off guard, batted away the rocks in rapid succession.
Baek Won-yeong and Dok-go Il both wore expressions of dismay.
These were not Gangho masters—they were the sick.
Though some bore the appearance of martial artists, most were common folk.
“Fall back…….!”
In the end, both Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan retreated.
Emboldened by this, the sick surged forward with even more menacing expressions.
“We have no choice but to withdraw.”
At Dok-go Eun’s cold words, Baek Won-yeong raised his voice.
“Retreat…………..!”
Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan scrambled back over the wall they had climbed.
The sick did not pursue beyond the wall.

*

“How about we withdraw for now?”
Yeo Hwa smiled thinly.
At this, Cho Yak sheathed her Mi Cheom-do and fell back.
Had she been alone, she would never have retreated.
But now she was leading Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan.
“Until next time.”
Hehehehe………
“Next time you’ll die.”
Yeo Hwa mocked Cho Yak as she withdrew.
Her words were no idle jest.
She had grasped the fundamentals of Cho Yak’s martial arts, and preparation tailored to that knowledge was all that remained.
‘I never expected them to grow so strong so quickly, but it is what it is.’
Her prepared subordinates had surely lost countless lives.
‘Still, I must have killed two or three of them.’
Whoooosh………..
Yeo Hwa deployed her Body Technique and returned to the Manor.
Upon arriving at the Manor, she found her subordinates recovering the bodies.
“How many did we kill?”
So-ryong hung his head, unable to show his face.
“We did not kill……..a single one.”
At his answer, Yeo Hwa fell silent for a moment.
‘Attack truly surpasses defense. If Cheol-goe refuses to cooperate, I’ll have to summon either Ah-hap or Gu-ya. Though whether they’ll listen to me is another matter.’
Just as Cheol-goe and she were headstrong, Ah-hap and Gu-ya were not the sort to heed others.
It was because their martial arts were exceptionally formidable.
Of course, the strongest of all was Hyeol Je.
She opened her mouth and asked.
“What did you make of Baek Won-yeong, seeing him directly?”
“He seemed slightly beyond my current ability.”
Hehehehe………….
Yeo Hwa could not suppress her laughter.
“That much will do. We lost many subordinates, but we did gain something. Separate out the masters for me.”
“The masters? Why……..?”
Eon So-ryong’s eyes filled with questions.
She brightened, parting her lips to speak.
“Cho Yak will certainly attempt to return to the Murim Alliance. She’ll view this place as enemy territory. Do you know what troubles those in retreat most? Ceaseless ambush. Relentless attacks that grind them down.”
It was a method Dae-hyung had once employed.
He would harass enemies during their retreat with constant assault.
Of course, at that time too, he had selected only those of formidable martial prowess.
He grasped her meaning immediately.
“I will prepare the Family’s entire force.”

*

Jamryong-hoe and Seong Ma Dan rushed to the Infirmary.
More than ten of their companions had been wounded in the fighting.
“As soon as we’ve treated the injuries, we’re heading back to the Murim Alliance.”
Cho Yak spoke with quiet resolve, and Baek Won-yeong voiced his concern.
“Nine of them can move without difficulty, but two have rather severe wounds.”
Yet she would not yield on this point.
“This place is enemy territory. We don’t know when they’ll strike again.”
Cho Yak’s words held weight.
Baek Won-yeong had nothing more to say.
“We’ll make the arrangements. You should show your wounds to the physician as well.”
She glanced down at her own shoulder, where the skin had split open.
“This is nothing.”
“Still, the wound should be cleaned and Wound Medicine applied. I’ll fetch the physician.”
Cho Yak did not object to this much.
She nodded and settled herself in a chair, leaning her Mi Cheom-do against the wall beside her.
‘The retreat won’t be easy either. Yeo Hwa knows Dae-hyung’s plan, so she’ll be ready for us.’

*

“You’re cutting corners, aren’t you?”
Kang Jo was uneasy about the Guest Inn that Yang Jung was constructing.
The pillars and beams were thinner than before.
On top of that, the spacing of the rafters was uneven and sparse.
“It won’t collapse, I assure you.”
Yang Jung spoke with confidence, but Kang Jo was not convinced.
“If a customer gets crushed while eating, then I’m the one who gets beaten to death.”
“You really don’t trust me at all, do you?”
“No, I don’t. So at least lay the rafters close together.”
“Understood.”
Yang Jung himself seemed a little uncertain, and he began adding extra rafters in the middle sections.
Bang… Bang…!
As he hammered, he kept casting sidelong glances at Kang Jo before finally speaking.
“By the way… what did you do with the Spirit Herb and the other things that were in the pouch?”
“What do you mean, what did I do? I put them in alcohol to pickle.”
Kang Jo answered matter-of-factly, but Yang Jung’s insides twisted.
It wasn’t the alcohol that troubled him.
When he’d dug up the Spirit Herb, he’d also unearthed a root of He Shou Wu, aged about five hundred years, and he’d been planning to steep it separately.
If he steeped it in alcohol and kept it hidden, he could drink a cup whenever he needed strength, without anyone being the wiser.
“That’s not it. Didn’t you notice the He Shou Wu in the pouch? The one that’s about five hundred years old?”
“That went in with the rest.”
“………Right.”
Yang Jung’s shoulders sagged.
His dark premonitions always came true, without fail.
‘It was an opportunity like no other—and those bastards have completely ruined it.’
From his perch on the roof, securing the rafters, he turned his gaze toward the road.
Watching the road, Yang Jung quietly climbed back down.
“Why are you coming down?”
“I think I need to go back to the Murim Alliance soon.”
As Kang Jo was about to ask what he meant, Dok-go Yeop stepped onto the Stone Bridge.

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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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