Murim Login - Chapter 257

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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 257
Boom, boom, boom.
From far away, a distant rumble echoed across the earth, causing the ground to tremble faintly.
Ordinary citizens ignorant of martial arts merely tilted their heads and continued on their way, but Cheon Myeon Ho-ri Song Ho was different.
‘This is….’
The Shadow Pavilion agents following Song Ho discreetly transmitted their voices through sound transmission.
– Seven hundred paces to the north.
– It appears something has occurred at the Tournament Arena.
– Understood, chief.
Song Ho wavered. From his vast experience, he had already surmised that this rumble was the aftermath of martial arts—and not just any martial arts.
But rather….
‘An absolute master?’
An absolute master was a being so rare that even if one scraped the entire realm from top to bottom, there would scarcely be thirty of them.
The tremor he felt now unmistakably signified a clash between absolute masters.
This was no ordinary matter. The Ascending Sword Jong Ri-chu—what scheme had that bastard finally set in motion?
‘But we should be sufficiently prepared for it.’
I had already conducted a thorough search around the Martial Alliance headquarters. In preparation for any contingency, I had implemented rigorous inspections and searches, even accounting for the possibility of explosives being smuggled in and planted.
A tiger remains a tiger even with broken fangs. Though not as formidable as before, the Shadow Pavilion’s intelligence network was more than capable of controlling Henan Province.
‘And there are three of the Ten Kings present.’
Beyond that, there were the leaders of the Nine Major Sects and One Alliance and the Five Great Families, along with the elite disciples they had brought. It was no exaggeration to say that a miniature version of the entire martial world was gathered there.
‘I have grown old indeed. Perhaps I worry too much.’
It was all because of those mysterious entities whose identities remained unrevealed.
Song Ho clearly remembered the conversation he had shared with Dharma King Hung-do a year ago.
‘Dark clouds are obscuring the sky.’
‘Could they be dark clouds from Cheon Mountain?’
‘I know neither where they come from nor when they will arrive. All I know are the two characters: Dark Heaven.’
‘Dark Heaven….’
‘Help me. I need your strength.’
Since the Great Demon Subjugation, five generations had passed—enough time for mountains and rivers to change completely.
The fox who had abandoned the mundane world and lived in obscurity had returned to the realm, and now I was acutely aware of how much time had elapsed.
Cheon Myeon Ho-ri Song Ho exhaled a shallow sigh, his lips moving slightly.
– Tell the Abbot that I will come after finishing this matter.
A Shadow Pavilion agent who had arrived late, with a half-quarter’s delay, responded.
– The Dharma King left his seat after you departed, chief.
– The Abbot left his seat?
– Yes.
Song Ho hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. Whatever the matter was, I trusted Hung-do’s judgment.
He would trust mine as well.
– One of you goes to the Tournament Arena. Two remain here on standby. Report immediately if anything occurs.
– We acknowledge your orders.
– The rest of you, follow my lead. The moment we arrive at the scene, seal off the perimeter without a single gap.
– Understood.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Black silhouettes scattered through the alleyways.
As Song Ho bounded across the endless expanse of rooftops, his mind was consumed entirely by the report his subordinate had delivered moments ago.
‘We’ve found the Dark Assassin.’
Tap!
Power surged through the crutch as I channeled my lightness technique. With each surge, the pain intensified proportionally.
* * *
Crash!
The transparent spear blade of White Flame collided with the rust-corroded sword.
A single exchange. In the same instant the heavens split with a deafening roar, a violent pressure engulfed my entire body.
Boom!
A whirlwind erupted from our point of contact, obscuring the vision of all others.
Through the dust clouds swirling from all directions, beyond the weapons locked against each other, I could see Jong Ri-chu’s face with eyes wide open in surprise.
“Heh, impressive. I didn’t expect to be pushed back.”
Swish, swish, swish.
True to his words, his body had retreated several steps. It was clear he couldn’t withstand my strength, which had long since transcended human limits.
But.
‘What the hell is this bastard?’
If Jong Ri-chu was surprised, I was astounded.
I, who had spent an entire year in relentless training while bearing an iron sphere weighing over a thousand pounds. My martial prowess and stats were incomparable to what they once were.
‘Yet he withstood that?’
That single exchange should have been more than overwhelming—it should have been absolute domination.
Yet Jong Ri-chu had merely retreated a few steps after receiving such a blow.
Moreover, that rust-covered sword hadn’t even cracked.
‘What the hell is this bastard really?’
A bead of cold sweat slid down the nape of my neck. A playful smile bloomed at the corner of Jong Ri-chu’s mouth.
“Four ounces deflect a thousand pounds. You must read the flow, not simply push with brute force.”
“…!”
Click, click, click!
The sword blade wrapped around my spear tip, redirecting its trajectory. I tightened my grip on the shaft, but the more I did, the more it felt like sinking into a swamp.
Jong Ri-chu’s sword was the horse, and my spear was the cart. The cart could only follow wherever the horse led.
The moment the transparent spear blade of White Flame, forged from eternal cold iron, pierced the ground, Jong Ri-chu extended his palm.
Boom!
Compressed air erupted before my chest, and my vision blurred.
I barely managed to stabilize my body as it was sent flying backward. Gripping the shaft buried deep in the earth, I spun and closed the distance to his throat.
Blue flames coalesced around my right foot, channeling the power of an entire cycle of cultivation.
‘Fire Wheel Kick.’
Blazing flames lashed out at Jong Ri-chu’s neck.
Boom!
The man who had been driven back brought his elbow down. His sleeve, charred black, crumbled to ash and scattered into the wind.
“What a shame. I rather liked this robe.”
Crack.
The man twisted his neck left and right like some third-rate thug and chuckled.
“But truly, you’re impressive. You keep improving. So then….”
Whoosh!
With a sharp whistle of wind, his form vanished. A low voice pierced my ear from right beside me.
“Now show me what you’re really made of.”
The wind stilled. This time my senses reacted faster than my body. In a fraction of a second, I crossed my arms upward and caught his fist.
A strike imbued with tremendous internal force—far beyond anything before.
Crash!
The power had already transcended normal limits. Despite being merely flesh against flesh, the collision erupted with the roar of an explosion.
Even as I anchored myself with the Thousand-Pound Hammer technique in that final moment, my waist bent backward until it nearly touched the ground.
Crack.
Even my body, renowned as the Heavenly Flawless Frame, proved useless this time. I gritted my teeth and endured the sharp, tingling pain coursing down my spine.
‘This bastard dares.’
Thud!
I struck the ground with my empty left hand and rocketed upward at twice the speed of my fall. Jong Ri-chu’s face appeared before me, beaming with that radiant smile. I roared with fury.
“You haven’t even seen my waist technique yet!”
The Fire Dragon extending across my limbs surged toward his open palm, and a scorching heat wave erupted like molten lava.
The martial art that once drove me to the brink of death—the Flame Divine Palm—collided with his single fist.
Boom!
My ears rang as the ground trembled. I was sent flying backward, still gripping the Hundred Flames.
As I rose to my feet, I saw Jong Ri-chu standing motionless on the Tournament Arena beyond the haze of dust, the entire stage now blackened with soot.
“That was an unwise choice. As you can see, I’m quite confident in my internal force.”
I glared at Jong Ri-chu, who smiled serenely, then suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood. The color was dark—a sign of internal injury.
‘Damn it.’
My opponent had reached the realm of Returning Qi to Origin—a supreme master. I had expected it to some degree, but he was far stronger than I had anticipated.
No matter how much I had mastered demonic arts, it was suspicious how he could possess such power at his age.
“Who the hell are you really?”
I wiped the blood from my sleeve and asked. Jong Ri-chu let out a hollow laugh.
“That’s what I’d like to ask you. I never thought I’d meet a monster like you in my lifetime.”
“Now you’re even trying to deceive me.”
“I’m being sincere.”
“Sincere my ass. If I’m a monster, what does that make you?”
“I would say… I’m simply a bit special.”
I spat out a mouthful of blood while regarding Jong Ri-chu with his subtle smile. My insides burned from the internal injury.
“Is this also some legendary demonic art or something?”
“When people encounter something that defies the natural order, they always think of the word ‘demon.’ It’s simply difficult to accept things as they truly are.”
“Phew, that’s not easy at all. So what martial art did you learn?”
“Further questions would be a waste of time.”
Jong Ri-chu raised his sword toward me. Transparent energy flowed like valley water, coalescing into tangible form.
Sword Essence. A concentration of qi granted only to those who had stepped into the transcendent realm of the Absolute Peak.
Tssssss!
Merely witnessing it sent chills down my spine. The momentum radiating from Jong Ri-chu left my palms slick with sweat and my lips parched.
‘This is… dangerous.’
I drew a deep breath. How many times had I brushed against death? I’d lost count by now.
What mattered was that I’d survived each time, and that would remain true going forward.
That’s why I’d followed the Fire King, enduring training that seemed impossible to bear.
‘Sleep for only one double-hour a day. Every remaining moment is devoted to training!’
That damned old fool.
Suddenly, I recalled what Jeok Cheon-gang had said before my serious training began, and a smirk escaped my lips.
‘Talking about a double-hour like it’s nothing.’
I was granted only half a double-hour of sleep. Without the system’s power to rapidly restore my body, those days would have been unbearable.
As my sleep diminished, the weight of the iron sphere increased relentlessly. Yet under those harsh conditions, I threw punches, delivered kicks, and wielded my spear.
“That was a masterstroke.”
“Hmm?”
“Our master was right. For warriors, sleep is a luxury. And…”
Status window open.
The moment I thought it, a holographic window flooded my vision. Over the past year, my level, the numbers, and the titles in my status had changed dramatically.
But right now, only one thing mattered to me.
Remaining Points: 500
“Repeatable quests are pure gold.”
Endless repetition of training meant endless repeatable quests.
Add to that the points from leveling up. Seeing the savings I’d diligently accumulated over a year turn into a substantial sum was deeply satisfying.
“That’s why people should save, you know.”
“What do you mean by that?”
I grinned at Jong Ri-chu, who tilted his head in confusion, and raised the White Flame.
“Things are about to get much harder from here on out.”
Simultaneously, countless system commands echoed through my mind.
Strength, agility, stamina. Even my bones and meridians.
Everything advanced one step further, new power coalescing, linking, and permeating through me.
In a world slowed to a crawl, I took a step forward.
Whoosh.
Not a sound. One stride and I was before Jong Ri-chu.
The Fire Dragon Divine Spear, elevated to the Seventh Celestial Realm, burned through air and sound as its blade danced with flame.
Papapapapat!
The spear blade transformed into streaks of light, pouring toward Jong Ri-chu’s entire body. Simultaneously, his sword, wrapped in transparent Sword Essence, moved.
Kwaaaang!
In the span of time fractured into countless fragments, dozens of exchanges unfolded. I caught sight of Jong Ri-chu’s eyes, wide with astonishment.
The deafening roar erupted ceaselessly, layering upon itself. I wondered if this was the sound the heavens would make if they collapsed.
Screech! Hiss, hiss, hiss!
Each time spear and blade separated, fist and palm collided in their place.
Narrowly evading and retreating, I found another assault waiting in that very spot.
Crack, crackle, crackle!
A single punch, a single kick—each spawned a massive crater, laying waste to everything around us. The Tournament Arena, impossibly durable as it was, now bore spiderweb fractures and gaping wounds.
Yet what was most shocking of all was Jong Ri-chu himself.
“Magnificent! Truly magnificent!”
Laughter burst from him as he continued his assault, his eyes alight with pure joy.
Even as I fought with everything I had, his movements grew faster, stronger.
‘What kind of monster is this…!’
My composure shattered, and with it, my coordination crumbled. That fractured focus became a fatal mistake.
Thud, thud, thud!
“Ugh!”
My vision flooded white as searing pain surged through me.
As I staggered backward, Jong Ri-chu gazed at me with an expression of wonder.
“Shanxi Sleeping Dragon Jin Tae-kyung. I’ll remember you well. You truly are…”
In that instant, Jong Ri-chu’s expression hardened like stone.
As if drawn by something unseen, he stared intently into the distance before suddenly launching himself skyward with a powerful thrust from the ground.
Boom!
It happened in a heartbeat.
I watched his departing figure vanish into the void, dazed, before my senses returned and I cried out.
“Where are you going, you bastard!”

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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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