Murim Login - Chapter 134

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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 134
Crack!
With a sharp sound, Woo Jin-tae’s head snapped to the side. He stood dazed, gingerly touching his cheek.
‘What in the world just happened?’
I was utterly bewildered. Slapped? By some nobody like this?
At nearly thirty years old, he had already established a household through an early marriage.
Yet here he was, suffering such humiliation at the hands of a mere youth barely past twenty.
“Kyaaah! Young Master Woo!”
“B-brother, are you alright?”
“Isn’t that the young lord of the Seongyun Escort Agency?”
“That’s him. My goodness, who has the audacity to… wait, where have I seen that face before?”
The delayed reactions of the onlookers and the stares of the inn patrons only magnified Woo Jin-tae’s shame.
He glared at the brat before him with murderous intent in his eyes.
“How dare you….”
“That’s not quite right.”
“What?”
“It should be ‘how could you,’ not ‘how dare you.’ If you’re truly a martial artist, that is.”
Woo Jin-tae froze momentarily. From childhood, he had absorbed all manner of elixirs and first-rate martial arts under the full support of the Seongyun Escort Agency.
Though he hadn’t been born with exceptional talent, he naturally took pride in being a step ahead of other youths his age in terms of martial prowess.
‘How could I fall so easily?’
He hadn’t even seen when or how the brat had approached. The shame of being humiliated before all these people consumed him.
Only then did Woo Jin-tae scrutinize his opponent with a wary gaze.
“Look at the way this bastard’s eyes move. What, want to tell me your measurements?”
“Which sect do you belong to?”
“I’m Jin Tae from the Dodong Sect, you bastard.”
He was able to tolerate the young man’s profanity because his reason had returned.
In the Murim, one never knew what might happen. If his opponent was a disciple of a major sect, he needed to back down gracefully.
‘The Dodong Sect? Jin Tae of the Dodong Sect?’
Neither the sect nor the name rang any bells. Glancing back, he could see the same confusion written across the faces of the other youths.
Woo Jin-tae’s mind raced.
‘As far as I know, there’s no Dodong Sect in Shanxi Province.’
In Shanxi Province, where each sect had already firmly established itself, founding a new sect was nearly impossible.
Regardless of interference from other sects, word would spread immediately—the structure made it inevitable.
‘If they’ve cultivated a youth of this caliber at such a young age, they must be a sect of considerable power… But where? Shaanxi Province perhaps? Or Hanan?’
It was at that very moment, as Woo Jin-tae struggled to speak and his eyes darted about nervously.
A young martial artist who had been standing idle like a spectator watching a fire across the river suddenly interjected.
“The Dodong Sect? Is that even a real sect?”
“How could it be? A well-told lie becomes truth, after all.”
“Ah, I see. Words as precious as gold and jade—I’ll treasure them in my heart.”
“You little bastard, it’s been a while since you’ve spoken so prettily.”
A young man dressed in rags like a beggar chimed in as well.
“A well-told lie becomes truth… Those are wise words. I can feel the profound mystery in them.”
“…Ah, yes. Well, I appreciate the compliment at least.”
Sparks of fury ignited in Woo Jin-tae’s eyes as he listened to the three of them converse.
“You! Reveal your identity!”
“Why? So you can hear who I am and where I’m from, then pick a fight if you think I’m easy, and apologize if I seem too strong?”
“….”
A blunt remark that struck home. The young man clicked his tongue disapprovingly at Woo Jin-tae, who couldn’t bring himself to speak.
“Kid, your question itself is flawed. As the saying goes, the one who broke wind gets angry first. If you wanted an answer from me, you should have apologized first.”
Woo Jin-tae bit his lip firmly.
An apology?
Born as the sole heir of the Seongyun Escort Agency, he had lived his entire life being deferred to. He was not someone with the flexibility of mind to bow his head to an opponent of unknown origin.
Having finally made his decision, Woo Jin-tae cast a subtle glance toward the junior masters of the Sanseo Five Gates.
‘No matter how strong that bastard is.’
The opponent was merely three people. Meanwhile, his side consisted of five first-rate masters—junior experts renowned throughout Shanxi Province.
Seeing the four men and women subtly grasp their weapons at his signal, his confidence swelled.
“Do you know who I am—who we are?”
“Somehow I’ve picked up three characters of your name. But is that an apology?”
“An apology? You’ve got some nerve.”
Woo Jin-tae laughed coldly.
“We are the heirs of the Sanseo Five Gates. You must know of the Sanseo Five Gates.”
“I’ll grant you that. But are you really not going to apologize? This is your last warning.”
“And I’m warning you. Whoever you are, you’ve made a grave mistake touching the wrong person….”
Crack!
Woo Jin-tae’s vision flashed white. Lightning-fast slaps rained down on him as he stumbled backward involuntarily.
Crack! Crack! Crack-crack!
One blow with each step. After taking five slaps in succession, Woo Jin-tae staggered.
Because only one side of his face had been struck relentlessly, his cheek swelled grotesquely, and blood pooled in his split mouth.
‘I’ve never even been hit by Father.’
A humiliation he had never experienced before. And it was happening in front of countless onlookers.
His eyes flickered with rage.
“You damn dog…!”
“I told you—last warning. Do you not understand what ‘last’ means, or do you not understand what ‘warning’ means? Or both?”
“How dare you strike me?”
“You may be the first man I’ve treated so roughly, but please don’t fall in love with me. I’m already busy loving Song-i.”
“I’ll kill you!”
“I’ll beat you!”
Crack-crack-crack!
“Ugh!”
Woo Jin-tae couldn’t regain his senses.
There was no inner force behind the strikes, nor did they follow any mysterious footwork technique. Yet there was no way to block the relentless barrage of slaps raining down on both cheeks.
‘How is this even happening?!’
Into the ears of the man helplessly enduring the assault came a voice tinged with madness.
“Left hand strikes, right hand strikes!”
Slap, slap!
“One cheek, two cheeks, three cheeks, four cheeks, smack smack cheek! Smack smack cheek!”
Slap, slap, slap!
Incomprehensible words poured forth in an endless stream as the slaps continued, and the figure looked like a madman born solely for the purpose of delivering them.
Just like now.
“Raise the left hand, lower the right. Lower the right hand, lower the left. Lower the left hand, don’t raise the right.”
“Gasp!”
“That’s right. Well done. Your teacher will reward young Woo Jin-tae by giving his cheeks a thorough beating.”
Slap, slap, slap, slap!
How many times had he been struck in mere moments? Thirty? Fifty?
From being hit so relentlessly, my head throbbed, and tears welled up in my eyes.
In the end, all Woo Jin-tae could do was cry out for help.
“S-someone help me!”
* * *
The director of the Seongyun Escort Agency—a man whose wealth rivaled even the Taewon Jin Family, the richest in Shanxi Province—cried out in a desperate voice.
“P-please help me!”
Despite the raw desperation in his plea, stripped of all pride, the junior members of the Sanseo Five Gates could not bring themselves to draw their weapons.
“How could we possibly win against that…”
The words that escaped like a groan from someone’s lips spoke for them all.
It was true. There was no need to experience it firsthand.
Simply watching from the side made their legs tremble and their knees buckle. The opponent was barely their age, yet undoubtedly a master beyond imagination.
“At that age, to reach such a level…”
“That’s completely monstrous.”
Slap, slap!
“P-please spare me!”
His voice grew even more desperate. The plea for rescue subtly shifted in tone.
If this continued much longer, he might soon be begging to be killed instead.
“W-we should help, shouldn’t we?”
“At least we should try to stop him… Wang Ga-jang, can’t you do something?”
“Me? Why suddenly me?”
“Why? You’ve been bragging about Gajeon Martial Arts every chance you get. You said your sword technique is so refined it wouldn’t embarrass you anywhere in the Central Plains?”
Wang Ga-jang’s heir, who had seized every opportunity to boast of Gajeon Martial Arts’ greatness, answered with a serious expression.
“I am a swordsman, so I have not trained in sword technique.”
“What?”
“And why are you pushing this onto me? If you really want to stop him, why don’t you step forward yourself, Miss Song-i?”
“My goodness. This is ridiculous, truly.”
While the junior members of the Sanseo Five Gates were passing the responsibility back and forth, Hyuk Moo-jin, who had been quietly observing the situation, suddenly interjected.
“You’re all overthinking this. If it were me, I’d rush over and lend a hand right away.”
“You there—who exactly are you?”
The terrifying spectacle unfolding before their eyes was so daunting that they found themselves using deferential speech even toward a single martial artist.
Miss Hwang, who had received a dagger as a gift from Woo Jin-tae just moments ago, quickly stepped forward as well.
“Let me be clear—we harbor no ill will toward any of you. You understand, yes?”
“Is that so? Well then, let’s consider it settled.”
“It’s not a matter of considering it settled. It’s simply the truth.”
“What good does it do to tell me that?”
Hyuk Moo-jin chuckled and gestured with his chin toward the back of Jin Tae-kyung, who was gleefully pummeling Woo Jin-tae.
“Our leader has quite the temperament, you see. Once that fellow getting beaten so enthusiastically falls, who do you think goes next? Perhaps you, young master? Or the young lady beside you?”
“….”
“Just so you know, that man beats people without regard to gender.”
“I, I wasn’t laughing!”
“Neither was I!”
“Do I need to hear the same thing twice? I’m telling you, there’s nothing I can do about it. Though, there is one method that might actually work.”
“A method?”
The junior members’ ears perked up instantly.
They had all come to realize that their martial arts training was far from exceptional, and they stood no chance against this monstrous youth.
“S-save me….”
Woo Jin-tae’s dying voice, which reached their ears at precisely that moment, only ignited their survival instincts further.
“W-what exactly is this method?”
Hyuk Moo-jin stroked his chin with an air of gravity.
“Well, seeing as you’re all young masters and ladies from families of some standing, I’m not sure if you’re capable of it.”
“We’ll do it!”
“We’ll do it! Absolutely anything!”
“Good. At least you have the basics down.”
Hyuk Moo-jin nodded with satisfaction, then pointed to Chung Poong, who had been watching the one-sided beating with his mouth agape.
“First, you must offer a sincere apology to this gentleman here.”
Before he could even finish speaking, the young members of the Sanseo Five Gates bent at the waist.
“We apologize from the depths of our hearts.”
“We’re truly sorry for making hasty judgments based solely on appearances.”
Chung Poong scratched the back of his head.
“It’s fine, so please, all of you stand up.”
For someone who had just been mocked before so many people, his forgiveness came far too readily, leaving Hyuk Moo-jin genuinely taken aback.
His complexion, which should have been flushed with displeasure, was instead radiant and serene.
“You forgive us so easily?”
“Yes. Is there a problem with that?”
“Not exactly, but… weren’t you upset just now? You were insulted in such a public place.”
“Why would I be upset? I just found it rather amusing.”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
“It was the first time so many people paid attention to me like that. Being apologized to by someone who ignored me before—it’s strange and rather amusing, actually.”
“….”
“Ah, I’m glad I decided to descend the mountain after all.”
This fellow’s lost his mind a bit.
Hyuk Moo-jin gazed at Chung Poong with the eyes of one observing something utterly bizarre, then shook his head and turned his attention to the junior disciples.
“You all heard that? Since the young master here has received an apology, we’ll consider this matter settled.”
“Ooh!”
“Ooooh, we’re saved!”
But Hyuk Moo-jin’s words didn’t end there.
“Well then, that leaves us with the second and final matter.”
“…A second matter?”
“There’s more?”
“Yes, and this is the most important part.”
Then he turned solemnly toward the four men and women before him and declared:
“Everyone, bow your heads.”
“…!”
“…!”

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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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