Murim Login - Chapter 371

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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 371
“I pay my respects to the great hero Jin Tae-kyung, the Blazing Divine Dragon!”
The moment that reverent cry echoed through the grounds of the Sichuan Tang Sect, Jin Tae-kyung was not alone in feeling the tremor it sent through him.
The old master watching from afar had to strain with all his might to conceal the overwhelming emotion welling up inside him.
‘That boy….’
Jeok Cheon-gang remembered vividly the day he first met Jin Tae-kyung.
The third son of a frontier martial family. The young man who had only recently begun to make a name for himself in Sanseong Territory had become a sleeping dragon, and now he was finally spreading his wings wide and soaring into the azure sky.
‘Yes, you are the true Divine Dragon, the great hero.’
When their eyes met, I saw Jin Tae-kyung’s face break into a grin. Leaning his upper body out the window, he began waving his arms like a madman.
“What is my name?”
“Jin Tae-kyung!”
“What is my epithet?”
“The Blazing Divine Dragon!”
“Louder—!”
“Waaaaaaah!”
As the solemn hall transformed in an instant into a cauldron of frenzy, Jeok Cheon-gang could no longer contain his laughter.
“Hah, hahahaha!”
Hearty laughter and cheers mingled together. The wind was refreshing and the sky was clear.
Though it was the dawn of a chaotic age, that day when a new hero was born was a warm spring.
* * *
Jeok Cheon-gang appeared just after the frenzy had subsided.
“You’ve all crammed into a space the size of a millet grain.”
“What? It’s not cramped at all.”
“Master Jeok, there is space over there.”
Unlike Chung Poong and Hyuk Moo-jin, who possessed not a shred of tact, Gung Ki-bang—a beggar to his very bones—moved immediately.
“Oh my, now that I think about it, it does feel like it might burst. I’ll wait outside.”
Chung Poong and Hyuk Moo-jin waved him off.
“Safe travels, So-hyup Gung.”
“Finally, the man leaves. Commander, haven’t you been smelling a stray dog’s rear end since earlier?”
I nodded carefully.
“Well, it was rather strong….”
“Stop spouting nonsense and both of you get out!”
“No, I’m telling you it was real….”
“Understood. Please don’t be angry, So-hyup Gung.”
At Gung Ki-bang’s sudden outburst, Chung Poong lowered his head with a dejected expression.
“Mi-mi. Do a whirlwind greeting.”
Chirp, chirp-chirp-chirp!
“…What the hell.”
The skill had improved. After Chung Poong left the room with a flourish, Jeok Cheon-gang finally spoke.
“Like a thundering fool. Quite the spectacle you made.”
His stern expression and subdued voice—truly unchanged. He was every bit the Jeok Cheon-gang I knew, and somehow that made me smile.
“You’re laughing?”
“Of course I’m laughing. Why wouldn’t I?”
“Look at this fool. You make a spectacle of yourself before all these people, tarnishing the Main Sect’s reputation, and that’s what you have to say?”
“For someone who thinks that way, you were laughing awfully hard.”
“…!”
“I saw it all.”
The stern expression he’d been struggling to maintain crumbled entirely. Jeok Cheon-gang’s gaze drifted subtly toward the window.
“Ahem. What could you possibly have seen?”
“At least fifty other people saw it too. The blood at the corners of your mouth.”
It was practically a Cheshire cat grin.
Faced with my relentless follow-up that left no room for escape, Jeok Cheon-gang hesitated for a long moment before finally blurting out a single phrase.
“…You did well.”
“Pardon?”
“I said you did well!”
Jeok Cheon-gang’s face flushed crimson as he spoke, then he grumbled softly to himself.
At the sight of him, my smile deepened. Yes, that one phrase was enough.
“Thank you. It’s all thanks to Old Master Noya.”
“….”
What was that? His expression seemed off somehow.
Bewildered by the melancholy glint in his eyes, I asked, “What’s wrong this time?”
“Nothing. It’s nothing.”
“For something that’s nothing, your expression seems rather….”
“I said it’s nothing!”
“Why are you raising your voice like that? We were having such a warm moment just now.”
“If I say it’s nothing, then it’s nothing! Why do you keep pressing me about it?”
“Gradually?”
What’s gotten into him all of a sudden? Did I make some mistake?
I tilted my head in confusion at that very moment.
Whoosh.
Two presences ascending the stairs.
Had my senses not grown sharper from crossing that wall, I might have missed them entirely—their footsteps were light and controlled.
‘Both of them are masters of extraordinary caliber.’
Two supreme experts appearing suddenly?
Having faced so many crises recently, my body moved of its own accord now.
But Jeok Cheon-gang stopped me with a glance as I clenched my fists, then waved his hand. A gust of heat wind gently pushed open the closed door.
“Everyone’s so impatient. Can’t even wait a moment before rushing in?”
At Jeok Cheon-gang’s gruff voice, an elderly nun and a Taoist priest answered in turn.
“Impatient, you say. Hearing that from the benefactor stirs peculiar feelings in this old heart.”
“So you have a quick temper. Hearing it from the patron makes me feel rather strange.”
“My junior has been discourteous. However, given the nature of the matter…”
The elderly nun, her face etched with countless wrinkles, was a stranger to me, yet I recognized the Daoist immediately.
I clasped my fists in salute toward the old master.
“Greetings, True Immortal.”
“Good to see you again, Jin Tae.”
The old Daoist’s true identity was Cheong Poong, the sect leader of the Qingcheng Sect, whom I had sought out before to help me find the Divine Physician.
‘Then this nun must be the sect leader of the Emei Sect… but who is she?’
Having spent enough time in the Murim now, I possessed considerable knowledge of renowned masters, though I hardly knew the intimate details of other sects’ affairs.
Especially not regarding the new sect leader who had assumed her position after Gyeong Cheon Shin-ni’s death.
As if reading my thoughts, Jeok Cheon-gang sent me a subtle transmission.
– That old woman is Myeol-jeol Shinni of the Emei Sect. She may appear benevolent, but when her eyes flip, she becomes a demon incarnate—mind your words carefully. Especially, don’t breathe a word about her age.
I responded cautiously through transmission.
– How many springs and autumns has she seen?
– More than I have. She was also responsible for Gyeong Cheon Shin-ni’s death.
– I see.
I didn’t know Jeok Cheon-gang’s exact age, but I knew he had surpassed a hundred years. Add to that the formidable presence emanating from his epithet.
I bowed deeply to the grandmother who resembled the proprietress of a wrapping shop.
“Greetings! I am Jin Tae-kyung!”
“Pleased to meet you, Benefactor Jin.”
Myeol-jeol Shinni, who had been observing me with an enigmatic gaze, nodded.
“The rumors do you justice. No, they fall short.”
Cheong Poong smiled faintly and continued.
“Truly remarkable, is it not?”
“The Yangtze’s rear waves push forward the front waves. The rear waters of the Yangtze threaten to sweep us old ones away. To transcend the threshold at such a tender age…”
“That is not all, Shinni. There is also a young man named Chung Poong.”
“Ah, the successor of that Sword Saint?”
“Yes. Though we cannot determine superiority due to insufficient encounters, both youths are undoubtedly heaven-sent talents. A great blessing for the Murim.”
“Hmm…”
Interest and astonishment flickered across the faces of the two weary individuals.
Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I was merely rolling my eyes when Jeok Cheon-gang suddenly stepped in front of me.
Though the height difference remained unchanged regardless.
“The boy’s face will wear thin. Say what you came to say and be on your way.”
Flustered by the blunt remark, the two sect leaders broached the main subject.
“A problem has arisen. Could both of you accompany us for a time?”
“It won’t take long. We promise you that.”
“Accompany you? Right now?”
Jeok Cheon-gang, his voice tinged with displeasure, turned and asked me.
“What say you?”
“…”
When the two sect leaders of the Nine Major Sects and One Alliance made such a request, what could I possibly say?
“I’ll go.”
My body felt light enough anyway, and there was no real reason to refuse—traveling with them would let me hear the full story of what had transpired up to this point.
At my ready agreement, the two sect leaders took the lead, but Jeok Cheon-gang suddenly spoke up.
“By the way, why isn’t one of them showing up?”
“He’s waiting below.”
“He didn’t want to draw the attention of others.”
One of them? If he was part of this group, could it be Dang Sa-dok, the patriarch of the Tang Sect?
‘Well, I’ll find out soon enough anyway.’
But my curiosity evaporated the moment I stepped out of the Pavilion and encountered someone.
Seeing that familiar face, a delighted cry burst from my lips.
“Hey, you bastard! Moon-kyung!”
Moon-kyung looked exactly as he had before leaving the Sichuan Tang Sect.
I’d been worried since he’d left not long before Dark Heaven attacked, but somehow he’d managed to avoid injury—our paths must have crossed differently.
“How long have you been here? This kid, you’ve grown even taller since I last saw you. Are you in a growth spurt these days?”
“….”
“Why so quiet? Bad mood? Could it be….”
As I ruffled Moon-kyung’s hair, I whispered with a hushed tone.
“Did you have a wet dream this morning?”
“…!”
“You did. You definitely did.”
The kid wouldn’t say anything because he was embarrassed—how amusing.
I chuckled warmly.
It was common enough at that age. This might be a good opportunity to spread proper sexual knowledge to this antiquated martial world.
“Your elder brother will show you a whole new world. From now on, call me Professor Jin Sung-ae.”
Professor Gu Sung-ae, are you watching? Your knowledge is being transmitted across time and space.
I was feeling quite proud, patting Moon-kyung’s shoulder, when it happened.
“Uh….”
“That….”
“Huh… Nobody told him.”
Nobody told him? Told him what?
Three long sighs echoed from behind me. At the same time, a flat voice emerged from between Moon-kyung’s lips.
“Remove. Your hand.”
“…What?”
“And the wet dreams ended long ago.”
“That’s actually a bit problematic, because you haven’t fully completed secondary sexual development yet…no, wait.”
I swallowed hard.
A terrifying realization suddenly struck me.
“Who…are you?”
Mom, I’m scared.
* * *
“…And that’s how things came to be.”
“Truly a bizarre turn of events.”
Even as the two sect leaders wielded their divine techniques at tremendous speed, their voices remained steady and unshaken.
Faced with their expectant gazes, I forced my lips apart with effort.
“Ah, yes. So the place we’re heading to now has that, um, strange formation, right?”
“According to the interrogation of Sam-gwe, that appears to be the case. However, this formation is so peculiar that…”
Jeok Cheon-gang responded in his blunt manner.
“Neither the old master nor this fellow has any talent for formations, so we’re essentially blind.”
I couldn’t agree more. The Yeolhwa Cave on Jiuhua Mountain does have a remarkable Qimen Formation installed, but that doesn’t mean we’re proficient in deciphering it.
‘We should have summoned the Jeongal Family instead.’
But it would take considerable time for the Jeongal Family to arrive.
For reasons I couldn’t fathom, both sect leaders seemed to harbor great expectations of us—particularly of me.
“Jin Tae. Did you notice anything else strange about him? Any peculiar words or behavior?”
“I’ve told you everything I observed. And from my perspective… there’s nothing more strange to discover there.”
Dark Heaven’s members are strange by their very existence. Fanatics who revere the Heavenly Master as a god—literally, not figuratively.
The power and bizarre abilities displayed by the Blood Lord and the Western Heavenly Demon Lord were no different.
‘They regenerate like human trolls, attach and detach limbs as if they had double-sided tape on them. And in the end, one even possessed a body.’
The more I think about it, the more miraculous it seems that I managed to fight and defeat such creatures.
“Hmm. Before you regained consciousness, I heard the general situation from Jeok Cheon-gang. Once the Messenger Hawk returns from Hanan with a reply, we’ll have a clearer direction.”
“Just in case, if you notice anything strange about the formation, let me know.”
“Yes.”
As I answered, I glanced at the figure moving ahead in the distance.
Moon-kyung—or rather, the one who bore the epithet Sal-sung.
‘Damn it, why is Sal-sung here?’
To be honest, I nearly lost control of my bladder.
Even if I’d spent half a day playing in the water at Sam Do Cheon Valley and roasted fish to eat, it wouldn’t compare to this shock.
‘Moon-kyung was Sal-sung all along. I actually asked Sal-sung if I’d had a wet dream!’
Teacher Sung-ae. I nearly died because of you.
Just as I was quietly releasing a sigh of relief, the lush grass and vegetation surrounding us vanished, and a towering cliff began to come into view.

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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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