Murim Login - Chapter 344

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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 344
Ding.
– Linked Quest,
[Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons]
has been created!
– A task you cannot refuse: you must see it through!
I stared at the holographic window filling my vision the moment the system notification appeared.
Quest
[Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons
萬毒指環)
]
The Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons, said to absorb any poison under heaven, is a divine treasure of the Sichuan Tang Sect and one of the legends passed down through the Martial World.
Its owner is unknown, and even its existence is uncertain, but currently it is the only solution available!
Rank
: Peak
Restriction
: Jin Tae-kyung
Objective
: Obtain [Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons] (Incomplete)
Reward
: Vast experience
Failure
: Death of Jeok Cheon-gang
“A divine treasure that absorbs any poison, they say.”
Moon-kyung nodded at my murmur.
“Correct. That is indeed the Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons’ power. However, there is one problem….”
“Its owner is unknown, and even its existence is uncertain.”
“Yes, in fact, even the Sichuan Tang Sect has denied the Ring’s existence on multiple occasions.”
The Divine Physician added in a grave voice.
“That’s why it’s a legend. It’s so ancient that it’s only been passed down through word of mouth.”
After a moment of contemplation, I suddenly spoke.
“No. It exists.”
“Hmm?”
“The Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons definitely exists. It’s simply hidden away.”
“How can you be so certain?”
Both the Divine Physician and Moon-kyung, who had first brought up the Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons, stared at me with wide eyes.
“Well, that’s obviously….”
Because of the system.
This is a linked quest for Jeok Cheon-gang’s treatment.
If the Ring of Ten Thousand Poisons didn’t truly exist, a quest like this would never have been generated.
Of course, if I said something like that here, I’d be branded a lunatic on the spot.
I continued naturally.
“If such a miraculous poison existed, people wouldn’t simply ignore it. The Sichuan Poison Sect is notorious in the Murim for their stubbornness, so naturally they’d want to avoid troublesome situations.”
In a world where murder happens over a single coin or a dumpling, how many vultures would circle around something like the Man Dok-su Antidote?
Though I was speaking off the cuff, my reasoning was persuasive enough that people nodded in agreement.
“That makes sense. In fact, our Main Residence has conducted extensive investigations into whether the Man Dok-su Antidote actually exists….”
I watched as Gung Ki-bang opened his mouth as if waiting for his cue.
“Enough. Tell the rest of the story to Moo-jin here.”
“Huh? Stay? You want Hyuk Moo-jin and me to stay here?”
“Leader, what do you mean?”
“What do I mean? Exactly what I said.”
I pointed at the two bewildered fools in turn.
“Hyuk Moo-jin and Gung Ki-bang stay here.”
“Why! How could you!”
“I want to come with you too! Please, don’t leave me with this savage beggar!”
“What did you say, you mangy mutt!”
Smack! Smack!
In times like these, a fist is the best medicine. I waved my knuckles threateningly at the two of them as they clutched their heads simultaneously.
“Stop your nonsense and stay here to guard the Myo Ryung Temple. If anything happens, Gung Ki-bang, you report it immediately.”
“Report? Is there a carrier pigeon here that goes to the Sichuan Poison Sect?”
“What kind of ridiculous excuse is that? If something happens, you run with fire under your feet.”
“How is that even—”
“If you don’t like it, tame one yourself. There were plenty of butterflies in that flower garden.”
Though the time was short, this was the conclusion I’d reached after careful analysis.
First, I’d leave behind Hyuk Moo-jin, whose martial prowess—especially his divine techniques—lagged the most, and assign Gung Ki-bang as a contingency measure.
He was a reasonably capable master of the highest caliber, and with reflexes as sharp as his perception, he could handle any unexpected situation.
“If you have objections to my decision or questions, raise your hand immediately.”
“…Put that fist down first and then ask.”
“…I’ll just stay here.”
Then, one person’s arm shot up. Chung Poong asked with an innocent expression.
“Benefactor, what about me?”
“You’re coming with me to the Sichuan Poison Sect, So-hyup.”
“Why?”
“Because I know what kind of trouble you’ll cause if I leave you behind. You won’t leave my sight for even a moment. Understood?”
“Yes….”
At Chung Poong’s dejected response, the Divine Physician spoke up with a sympathetic expression.
“Don’t be too harsh on him. He seems like an innocent young man.”
“Innocent, yes. Innocent enough to start a forest fire and burn this entire place down.”
“Haha, surely not.”
“I’ll bet my left wrist that within days he’ll burn down three thatched cottages, and when Old Master loses his home, Moo-jin will join the Beggar Clan.”
“…!”
The Divine Physician swept his gaze over Chung Poong with a cautious expression before responding.
“I think it would be best if we traveled together.”
“A wise choice, sir.”
“What about you, Kyung? What will you do?”
Moon-kyung, who had been pondering something, nodded as if he’d made his decision.
“I will follow my master as well. The abbess of the Emei Sect should have no problems as long as she gets proper rest.”
“I’m grateful for that.”
Truth be told, the Divine Physician is the person I need most right now. But having Moon-kyung, who always serves so capably as my master’s assistant, would be even better.
He was the one who first brought up the matter of the Poison of Ten Thousand Toxins anyway.
‘What remains is figuring out how to obtain the Poison of Ten Thousand Toxins.’
Man Dok-su, also known as Dang Sa-dok—the master of the Sichuan Tang Sect. If I face him directly, I will certainly learn the truth.
Once I’d finished my thoughts, I turned to Chung Poong and spoke.
“Chung Poong, gather two carrying frames and two ropes. Make sure they’re large and sturdy.”
“Benefactor, why do we need carrying frames and ropes?”
“We need to move as quickly as possible. If we drop anything along the way, it’ll be a disaster, so we’ll bind everything tightly with rope.”
At my words, the faces of the Divine Physician and Moon-kyung turned deathly pale.
* * *
In the dark Great Hall, the Old Master’s lips parted only long after the middle-aged guard had entered.
“Fifty years ago, before you were even born, our Main Residence suffered a great humiliation. Do you know of it?”
At the words of the Old Master, Man Dok-su, also known as Dang Sa-dok, the middle-aged guard bowed his head.
“How could I not know of it?”
“When I was young, I witnessed it all with my own eyes. Clan members fell from all directions, the armory burned, and the pavilions crumbled. We became the defeated and had to withdraw from Sichuan.”
The great war that raged for a full decade ended in victory for the Orthodox Sects, and the Tang Sect returned to Sichuan to rebuild the clan, but the wounds from that time were carved deep into everyone’s hearts.
“And yet, and yet how could this happen!”
The moment a green gleam flashed in Dang Sa-dok’s eyes, the poisonous miasma flowing from his entire body made the middle-aged guard hold his breath.
“Huff.”
“How could we suffer such humiliation again!”
Sizzzzzzle!
A withered, wrinkled hand pressed against the table—no, melted it.
At the sight of the wood and even the iron decorative trim melting into black toxic liquid, the middle-aged guard prostrated himself.
“Please calm yourself, Patriarch!”
Despite the middle-aged guard’s dissuasion, Dang Sa-dok’s rage did not easily subside.
His anger now was justified. He had failed to find the culprit who harmed his father, Dok Wang, also known as Dang Sa-mun, and had only grasped at empty air before receiving an urgent message from the Qingcheng Sect and having to return.
“How dare that bastard…!”
The message sent by the Qingcheng Sect was brief. And it was as shocking as the death of Dok Wang.
‘A single person killed Gyeong Cheon Shin-ni of the Emei Sect and all three elders.’
Moreover, it was said to have been a direct confrontation, not a cowardly assassination.
Gyeong Cheon Shin-ni was a supreme master worthy of contending for even the lowest seat among the Ten Kings. The three elders present with her were also seasoned masters of the highest caliber.
The culprit had single-handedly toppled the leadership of the sect and vanished like a phantom.
‘There’s no way there are two masters of that caliber. The one who harmed Father must be that same person.’
As my anger gradually subsided, vigilance filled the void it left behind.
He made his decision to return not as a son, but as the patriarch of the Sichuan Poison Sect, while simultaneously refusing to abandon the pursuit of the culprit.
“What of the Green Shadow Squad?”
“They’ve been divided into ten teams of five each, dispersed across Chengdu, Qingcheng, Emei, Iksan, Samhap, and other regions to carry out their missions.”
The Green Shadow Squad were specialists within the Sichuan Poison Sect, trained in intelligence gathering and assassination of key figures.
They had been the primary architects of success in eliminating countless demonic cultivators immediately after the Righteous-Demonic War, yet Dang Sa-dok felt an inexplicable sense of foreboding.
“We cannot afford complacency. Fortify the defenses of the Gate Tower and permit no one—absolutely no one—entry or exit.”
“Yes.”
“You may go now.”
As the middle-aged guard turned to leave with measured steps, Dang Sa-dok suddenly spoke.
“Once this matter is resolved, relinquish your position as Gate Master to another and transfer yourself to the Inner Hall.”
“M-Master?”
“Not as patriarch, but as your uncle, I say this. You’re approaching the age of seventy—how could I have left my only nephew languishing at the Gate Tower all this time?”
“I-I am grateful, Uncle.”
Dang Sa-dok answered by waving his sleeve.
The boy was neither exceptionally talented nor particularly flawed.
Time had dulled his memory, and he had forgotten for so long—but only recently had thoughts of his Elder Brother, who fell during the Righteous-Demonic War, returned to him.
“It seems I too am growing old, Father.”
In the solitude of Dang Sa-dok’s quiet murmur, his chest heaved, and something began to emerge from within.
Ssshhh. Shhhh.
A body as white as snow and eyes of azure blue—with a triangular head crowned by two horns, it was a serpent.
Known throughout the Martial World as the Thousand-Year Poison-Horned Snake, this legendary creature bore a fearsome reputation for its ferocity, yet it extended its slender tongue to lick Dang Sa-dok’s cheek.
“You little beast…”
The rigid expression that had hardened Dang Sa-dok’s face gradually softened.
Though he possessed a temperamental nature and despised meeting people, this Thousand-Year Poison-Horned Snake was the sole exception.
The first and only gift he had ever received from his father, Dok Wang—to him, who had no children, it was the most precious of all beings.
“Hehe, that tickles. In-seok.”
As he gazed at the serpent’s playful antics with a faint smile, the sound of approaching footsteps drew near, and the snow-white body hastily retreated into Dang Sa-dok’s embrace.
“What is it?”
“Master, it is I.”
At the sound of his nephew’s voice, who had only just departed, Dang Sa-dok deliberately furrowed his brow.
“Why have you returned so soon?”
“Those people from before… they’ve come again.”
“Those people?”
“The Shanxi Sleeping Dragon Jin Tae-kyung and the Huashan Divine Dragon Chung Poong.”
“I distinctly ordered you to deny them entry. The answer is no.”
“However… it appears the Divine Physician is among them.”
“What did you say? The Divine Physician?”
This time, even Dang Sa-dok could not suppress his astonishment.
The Divine Physician—a figure who had reached the realm of divinity through medicine. An enigmatic person who had remained hidden from sight for countless years.
‘Why would the Divine Physician appear at the Main Residence?’
My contemplation didn’t last long. A hoarse voice emerged from between Dang Sa-dok’s lips.
“Listen well.”
* * *
“Are you the Divine Physician?”
Such a blunt, straightforward manner of speaking.
Without even pretending to look elsewhere, Dang Sa-dok’s sudden question drew a chuckle from the Divine Physician.
“This old man’s name is Dong-bong.”
“So you’re not the Divine Physician?”
“The world has bestowed upon me an undeserved title.”
“It seems that’s the case.”
“You trust easily.”
“Unless one wishes to die, no one speaks falsehoods before this old man.”
….
That was remarkably convincing.
Dang Sa-dok’s distinctive green-tinged eyes swept slowly across me, momentarily at a loss for words.
“Divine Physician… even when all under heaven searched, not a single hair of yours could be found. What brings you to seek me out? And alongside the rising talents of the Martial World, no less.”
“May I be the one to explain?”
I stepped forward, and my gaze met Dang Sa-dok’s in the empty space between us.
“Speak. If you utter nonsense, be prepared to become a handful of blood…”
“Please lend me the Man Dok-su Restoration Elixir.”
At my blunt, straightforward request, Dang Sa-dok’s pupils trembled slightly.

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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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