Murim Login - Chapter 127

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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 127
It did not take long for the question mark to transform into an exclamation, and the exclamation to morph into bewilderment and fury.
Jin Moo-kyung was the first to shatter the silence.
“You….”
His face flushed crimson, his breathing ragged. His fists trembled with the barely restrained urge to strike me across the mouth that very instant.
‘Ah, he’s truly furious now.’
A chill runs through me. A dagger flies toward my chest and embeds itself deep. But do not worry. I possess a formidable shield.
“Now, now, Moo-kyung.”
At the soft timbre of that voice, Jin Moo-kyung’s face contorted.
“Elder Brother!”
“Tae-kyung must have had his reasons. Is that not so?”
I lowered my gaze deliberately.
“No, sir. My thoughts were shallow and foolish.”
“Hmm?”
“Mere curiosity led me astray… but upon hearing your words, I have awakened to the truth. That such an object should never be possessed, nor concealed.”
I did not forget to tremble my fists as though seized by dread.
“The Demon Cult! The very name of those wicked fiends sends chills down my spine!”
This much is genuine. If one is to fabricate a story, one ought to do it well—not introduce a grave flaw that transforms one into a murderous lunatic consumed by madness!
“Heh.”
The gaze Jin Wi-kyung fixed upon me brimmed with affection.
“I recall a small, precious child who once declared he would become a man of virtue when he grew. You were six years old then. Do you remember?”
Of course I do not.
My memories of events from two years past are already hazy—how could I possibly know what this body’s original owner did at the age of six? Yet I nodded solemnly.
“I remember it vividly. It was my sole dream.”
Whether it was virtue or provincial governance, from this moment forward, that became my childhood aspiration.
“Haha, to see that small boy grow into such a fine young man.”
Jin Wi-kyung smiled warmly, then turned his gaze toward the other two.
“You were there as well. Wi Paeng, do you recall?”
Wi Paeng answered without hesitation.
“I cannot speak to that, but I do remember that exactly ten years later, he began his pursuits with courtesans. When I asked what he would become, he said he would be the greatest romantic in all the realm.”
“A true hero must understand the ways of romance.”
“But what good is romance when he knows nothing of martial arts? Your hero is a hero of the night, a hero to the courtesans. Is that what you mean?”
“Hold your tongue. Our youngest showed exceptional promise from childhood.”
“That very promise is precisely… ah, never mind. I should not speak.”
Glug, glug.
Jin Wi-kyung cleanly ignored Wi Paeng, who was pouring wine directly from the bottle, and turned his attention to the next person.
“Moo-kyung. Now that you know your youngest brother’s true heart, let your anger pass.”
Jin Moo-kyung, who had been wearing a haughty expression, finally spoke.
“Could I not at least strike him once?”
“Now, now.”
“Just one strike. Please.”
At his icy voice, I quickly lowered my head.
“Forgive this worthless younger brother, Second Brother.”
“The one who’s been speaking casually this whole time now calls me brother?”
“Pardon? Me?”
“Enough. This is my final warning.”
“No, sir. Rather, please strike me. If it would ease your anger even in this way, I shall gladly bear it.”
“You bastard!”
Jin Moo-kyung shot to his feet, then collapsed back down with a sharp gasp. The bandages wrapped around his chest were darkening with blood—his wound had reopened.
“Brother, are you alright!”
“You damn fool… Cough!”
“Physician, physician!”
The drinking gathering descended into chaos in an instant.
Wi Paeng silently picked up a second bottle of wine and muttered to himself.
“The family’s doing just splendidly….”
Indeed, splendidly enough to be the foremost clan of Shanxi.
* * *
Only after the Physician left did the atmosphere finally settle.
Ignoring Jin Moo-kyung’s gaze that seemed ready to tear me apart, I withdrew the Sleeping Dragon Pill from my robes.
“This is it.”
A crimson pellet, as if blood itself had been condensed into solid form.
Jin Wi-kyung and Wi Paeng examined the Sleeping Dragon Pill carefully.
“Wi Paeng, what do you make of it?”
“Just looking at it reeks of blood. A sinister object.”
“Do you think it really was made by the Demon Cult?”
“I’m uncertain. If so, I should sense demonic energy… but I cannot say with confidence.”
“Right? Something feels different.”
Both men’s expressions grew grave. I was equally curious about where and by whom the Sleeping Dragon Pill was made, so I decided to offer a hint.
“It’s called the Sleeping Dragon Pill, or so I was told.”
“Sleeping Dragon Pill?”
“Yes, I heard it directly from Pung Yang’s own mouth.”
Jin Moo-kyung interjected abruptly.
“Pung Yang? When exactly?”
“While you were unconscious.”
“…Haah. Haaah.”
Regardless of what anyone said, I was the only witness and proof. As Jin Moo-kyung steadied his breathing to quell his anger, the other two men’s furrowed brows only deepened.
“The Sleeping Dragon Pill, you say, Wi Paeng?”
“I’ve never heard of it either. If the Demon Cult possessed something of this potency, it surely would have been used during the Righteous-Demonic War….”
“It might not be from the Demon Cult at all, could it?”
Both men’s gazes turned toward me.
“Not the Demon Cult?”
“What makes you think that, sir?”
“There’s no need to jump to conclusions from the start, is there?”
In truth, the words sprang from a hopeful thought—if the Sleeping Dragon Pellet wasn’t created by the Demon Cult, perhaps I could reclaim it.
Of course, I had arrived at other conclusions as well through my own reasoning.
‘The Grand Elder.’
In the last conflict, the enemy revealed on the surface was certainly the Hangsan Inspection Bureau, but the true adversary was the Grand Elder himself.
Rather than resorting to binary assumptions, I believed one must always keep in mind the possibility of a third faction at play.
“Well, it was just a thought that occurred to me suddenly.”
The expressions of the two men who had heard my words grew grave. And in the next moment, a barely audible whisper escaped Wi Paeng’s lips.
It was a single word that slipped out like an involuntary groan.
“Dark Heaven….”
“Wi Paeng.”
Jin Wi-kyung’s sharp gaze cut off whatever else was about to be said.
“Ah, my apologies. I misspoke.”
Wi Paeng scrambled to cover his mistake. But it was already too late.
The two characters of Dark Heaven had already burned themselves deep into my mind.
‘Dark Heaven? What is that?’
Then, something unexpected occurred.
Ding.
–
[Dark Heaven]
You have obtained fragmentary information regarding this entity.
–
[Sleeping Dragon Pellet]
The item description has been updated.
An unexpected system notification. I extended my hand toward Wi Paeng, who held the Sleeping Dragon Pellet.
“May I examine it for a moment?”
“Of course.”
I checked the item. As I mentally called it up, information about the Sleeping Dragon Pellet appeared at once.
Finding the updated information was effortless.
Item Window
[Sleeping Dragon Pellet]
Type
: Spirit Pellet
Grade
: ???
Restriction
: [Peak Master] or above
Description
: A elixir manufactured by Dark Heaven. For approximately one hour, it dramatically amplifies the user’s latent power, though a price inevitably follows. Do not consume unless circumstances are dire.
Effects
: All combat-related stats +100
[Internal Energy] +15 years
[Guardian’s Resilience] becomes usable
The [Unknown Entity] vanished, replaced by the unfamiliar term [Dark Heaven].
‘From context, it’s clearly some kind of organization….’
Well, anyone manufacturing elixirs like this is cut from the same cloth as the Demon Cult—no better, no worse.
‘Dark Heaven.’
Whoever named them certainly had a flair for it. Two characters alone screamed that these people were suspicious.
These bastards are definitely up to no good. I’m ninety-nine percent certain.
‘Jin Wi-kyung and Wi Paeng seem to know something.’
The problem was that, judging by their earlier reactions, they would be extremely reluctant to expose any information about Dark Heaven.
‘Should I probe them anyway?’
But before I could even open my mouth, Jin Moo-kyung beat me to it.
“Dark Heaven? What is that?”
“That is….”
A troubled expression flickered across Jin Wi-kyung’s face.
“I apologize. I cannot speak of it yet.”
These words came from someone who cherished his younger brothers dearly.
With Jin Wi-kyung refusing like this, there was no point asking Wi Paeng.
“My apologies, Young Masters, but I cannot inform you until matters become clearer.”
A resolve more steadfast than anything I’d witnessed before. Both Jin Moo-kyung and I understood that we had to back away for now.
Yet the more they refused, the more my curiosity about Dark Heaven intensified.
‘A secret they must hide even from us.’
Setting aside our bloodline as direct descendants of the family, Jin Moo-kyung and I were among the Taewon Jin Family’s elite masters. If Wi Paeng was Jin Wi-kyung’s right arm, we were easily his left arm and one leg combined.
‘Which means this is top-secret information known only to those two within the entire family.’
I was only human—curiosity was inevitable. Moreover, the system had reacted when it had remained silent at the Hangsan Inspection Bureau, which only fueled my intrigue.
‘Dark Heaven, the elixir, top-secret information known only to Jin Wi-kyung and Wi Paeng.’
Several keywords flashed through my mind.
Fine. I had made my decision.
‘I’ll ignore it and move on.’
Excessive curiosity shortened one’s lifespan. It had only been days since I nearly died on that courier run to the Hangsan Inspection Bureau.
A mysterious organization with such an ominous name? Getting entangled would only lead to trouble.
“Come now, let us drop this subject and share a drink, shall we?”
Jin Wi-kyung forced a change of atmosphere.
Wi Paeng, who had already drained two bottles alone, and the injured Jin Moo-kyung both filled their cups, so how could I refuse? I accepted the wine Jin Wi-kyung poured and drank it down in one go.
Gulp, gulp.
The high-proof fire wine, notorious for its potency, burned down my throat with searing heat.
“Ahhh.”
This is no joke, is it?
I knew the alcohol content was high, but tasting it directly proved far more intense than expected. At this rate, soju and beer wouldn’t even be able to show their faces.
While my body trembled uncontrollably, the other three immediately refilled their empty cups to the brim.
“Drink!”
“Chug it!”
“Keep going until death!”
“….”
I only learned that Shanxi Province belonged to the Huabei region, and that men from Huabei were universally legendary drinkers, after spending the entire night drinking and carousing.
* * *
The next day at noon. As I mounted my horse in refreshingly good spirits, Hyuk Moo-jin stared at me as though I were some sort of monster.
“Are you feeling alright, sir?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“You didn’t happen to abstain from drinking yesterday, did you? Or perhaps you slept partway through?”
“No, the four of us kept drinking the whole time.”
“…You drank all of that?”
His mouth fell open in shock.
“How is that even possible? Are you human?”
“It all went down.”
“Good heavens, how many bottles did you drink throughout the night?”
The unit was wrong. Not ‘bottles’—’barrels’.
Enormous barrels of the sort you’d see in pirate movies were emptied endlessly, again and again.
“Well, I think I drank close to twenty barrels. After ten, I stopped counting.”
“Impressive, truly impressive, sir.”
Hyuk Moo-jin exclaimed in admiration, giving me a thumbs up, when suddenly the inn door burst open.
And three zombies—or rather, three peak-tier masters—stumbled into view.
“Hnnngh.”
“Urgh.”
“Huff, huff.”
Pallid complexions, lips parched and cracked, eyes hollow and vacant.
Without exception, they dragged their feet as they shuffled into the carriage, causing the escort soldiers’ eyes to widen in astonishment.
“Why are they suddenly getting in the carriage….”
“They seem to be in quite poor condition.”
“That can’t be. Haven’t you lads ever drunk with our lord? Wi Paeng, the God of Wine. You don’t know?”
“Wasn’t our lord’s epithet the Sword Saint?”
“Be that as it may, in terms of drinking capacity, he could outdo the God of War himself. He’s probably just accumulated fatigue from all this time, that’s all.”
Just as the soldiers were gossiping among themselves, the carriage door suddenly flew open and a figure came rushing out, bowing at the waist.
“Bleeeegh, huuuuaaaaaagh!”
Splooooosh.
After spewing only pale liquid for a long while, Wi Paeng staggered back into the carriage, and one of the soldiers who had been chattering loudly muttered in a bewildered voice.
“…This can’t be happening.”
“That can’t be right. Anyone can see that’s a hangover. He drank without sleeping, so it’s no wonder he’s in that state.”
“Then why does the Third Young Master look so perfectly fine?”
The escort’s gaze turned toward me. A reek of alcohol so pungent it was unsettling emanated from my entire body. Yet in stark contrast, my face was refreshed beyond measure, and my breathing was perfectly calm.
“Surely not?”
“The Third Young Master defeated the Grand Elder? That Grand Elder?”
The hall erupted into murmurs.
Now Hyuk Moo-jin’s eyes shone with admiration that transcended mere astonishment.
“Ah, of course! The legendary Commander Jo, who spent his days drinking with courtesans!”
“….”
“I remember the Steward saying that if Commander Jo had drunk for just three more years, the Main Residence’s very foundations would have been uprooted. So that’s why he was always forced to embezzle public funds!”
“…Hey, man.”
We weren’t even alone, and if he kept talking like that, what would become of my reputation?
My face was already burning from the gazes piercing at me from all directions since earlier.
“Ahem. Ahem!”
I cleared my throat and glanced around, only to find the eyes of those dark-skinned men glittering brighter than the morning star in the night sky.
“A true drinker. A true master of the cup.”
“He’s famous in the Taewon Red Light District. Haven’t you heard? They call him the Night King.”
“The Night King? Just hearing the title tells you everything. He’s already renowned for his exceptional capacity.”
“That’s not it… It’s that. That thing.”
“Really?”
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never seen it myself.”
“Turns out he’s a true man after all.”
Ding.
– Those gathered here admire your drinking capacity and prowess!
– Fame increases by 20!
– Fame increases by 22!
– Fame increases by 25!
– When certain rumors spread, you may obtain related titles.
“….”
What the hell, my fame is skyrocketing.
And related titles, no less. Fine, go ahead. Please, just let me be satisfied with Shanxi Sleeping Dragon.
‘Stop it. You crazy bastards….’
Turning my head away with inexplicable shame, I found myself face to face with Hyuk Moo-jin, whose gaze was fixed intently on a very specific part of me.
“…What are you doing right now?”
“Oh, I was just trying to estimate the measurements by eye.”
His answer was so matter-of-fact that I was taken aback. Hyuk Moo-jin grinned brightly and extended his forearm.
“Wow, you’re truly impressive. Hehe.”
I responded to his forearm with a fist of my own.
Thud!

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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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