Murim Login - Chapter 476

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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 476
When was it?
I once saw that line in some dusty old martial arts film whose title I can no longer recall.
Martial prowess consists only of the vertical and the horizontal, they said. A fight ends when one of two combatants falls and the other remains standing.
True words. Throughout my countless battles in the Murim, the outcome had always been one of two things.
‘Knock them down, or be knocked down.’
Except for the Blood Lord, who fled after losing an arm, the result was always binary—and it was never me who fell.
But clinging to the mutated Water Dragon as we plunged into the deep river currents, I recalled a third possibility I had forgotten.
‘What if this creature simply fled?’
For centuries, it had been the undisputed master of Dongting Lake and the Yangtze River.
Even a stray dog eats half its meal in its own yard before leaving—if this beast decided to run, there was nothing I could do to stop it.
In that moment, I understood something. I had been laboring under a grave misconception.
‘This should have been a hunt, not a duel.’
This was not a life-or-death contest between martial artists.
To bring down the monster before me, I needed to abandon all pretense of honor and do whatever it took.
For seven years I had lived as a hunter, yet somewhere along the way I had begun mimicking the rigid code of a martial artist. I couldn’t help but laugh at my own foolishness.
‘What a stupid mistake.’
Hunter and martial artist. Martial artist and hunter.
Both identities were mine. I was the unique fusion of the modern Murim and the hunter of the Murim itself.
Standing at that blurred boundary, I reminded myself of this truth once more.
‘Yes, that’s it.’
Like awakening from a long slumber, I landed lightly on solid ground and unleashed a thunderous command.
“Formation attack—now!”
“…!”
“…!”
“…!”
The sudden shift in the air’s current made three pairs of eyes widen. Jeok Cheon-gang and Moon-kyung, their gazes trembling with intensity, opened their mouths.
“So you’ve been playing along, but you’re still a green brat with no blood on your hands, talking back to your elders?”
“The Fire King certainly did a poor job training his disciples.”
“…My apologies. It was unintentional.”
I had forgotten. Who was standing here with me.
The sudden shift in atmosphere had momentarily clouded my judgment.
Unlike the two old men whose eyes blazed with fury, Chung Poong responded with genuine enthusiasm.
“Master, that was incredibly cool! Mi-mi! Formation attack—now!”
Screech!
“By heaven and earth, I swear that one day I shall turn that serpent into liquor….”
Jeok Cheon-gang’s oath went unfinished.
The massive shadow that had been wavering across the churning waters finally broke the surface, revealing itself at last.
– KRAAAAAAHHH!
A roar more ferocious than ever shook heaven and earth.
A tremendous surge of energy erupted from that mountain-sized frame, pressing down upon all directions, and the radiated fear caused the very air to tremble.
At the center of it all, dozens of zhang above us in that dizzying expanse of sky, a pitch-black pupil gazed down upon us.
As that single eye—composed entirely of absolute darkness devoid of even a glimmer of light—began to shine, a groan escaped from someone’s lips.
“Ugh…!”
Terror of the unknown.
Everyone except Chung Poong and myself remained entirely vulnerable to the fear emanating from the mutated Water Dragon.
This held true even for those counted among the world’s most transcendent masters.
But….
‘I’m here.’
A veteran hunter who had grown weary of facing monsters—that was me.
I had stood unflinching against tens of thousands of the Undead Legion, their rotting flesh hanging in tatters as they charged, so there was no reason to tremble in fear simply because one more creature—a serpent the size of an aircraft carrier—had been added to the mix.
“Now that I look at it again, it’s rather beautiful.”
The moment the words left my lips, a sharp sting struck the back of my head. Anyone listening would think I’d lost my mind.
But what I’d just said was one hundred percent sincere.
‘The creature is indeed powerful, but the Arch Lich was far more troublesome and formidable.’
Had it not been for the Skeleton King’s aid back then, I would surely have perished.
But what mattered was that I ultimately survived and brought it down, and the fear I felt when facing the Arch Lich had become experience, etched indelibly into both body and spirit.
‘And I learn quickly.’
Good experiences and bad alike become flesh and blood. Over the past seven years, I learned how to survive and discovered the path to victory.
I drew a deep breath and raised the shaft of White Flame high.
In the next instant, the end of the spear I drove down with all my might was infused with unprecedented force.
Kuuung—!
The wave of energy that surged forth with a thunderous roar pushed back the fear the creature was radiating.
As if an invisible pane of glass had shattered, the oppressive weight that had enveloped us completely dissipated.
“What is——”
“You….”
The astonished gazes of Jeok Cheon-gang and Moon-kyung fell upon my face. I stared directly at the creature and spoke.
“First. Don’t panic for no reason.”
“…!”
“…!”
Everyone harbors fears both great and small within their hearts, and fear is an energy that stimulates those terrors, making one feel dread.
But if one erases that fear, one awakens to a truth long forgotten.
– Grrrrr.
That enormous monster, which emitted a low growl, was not nearly as strong or fearsome as I had imagined.
I continued speaking while staring directly into those pupils that gleamed with an obsidian sheen.
“Second. From this moment on, follow my instructions and beat that bastard without mercy or hesitation.”
Moon-kyung’s parched voice pierced my ears.
“I’m not fond of the process, but the result sounds rather appealing.”
“So you’re not opposed to it, then?”
“Who do you think I am?”
“I asked a foolish question.”
Sal-sung (Kill Star). The greatest assassin in all of Murim’s distant history.
For an assassin who eliminates targets by any means necessary, the process is irrelevant. Only the result matters.
“Old Master Noya.”
“I don’t recall the Old Master ever teaching me how to deal with such vile creatures… First, let us finish that beast, and then I shall hear the explanation.”
Tssssss!
Following Jeok Cheon-gang’s blunt voice, Chung Poong answered with a violet sword aura.
A nightmarish combination composed solely of damage dealers with neither healer nor tank, yet there existed no Raid Team more formidable than this.
‘Four supreme masters of the highest caliber.’
A combination that would make even a five-star general weep with envy.
Compared to the colossal frame of the mutated Water Dragon, they were but ants, yet within each of their bodies crouched a giant brimming with unprecedented power.
And now, these four giants would hunt the massive abomination.
“You’re finished now.”
As if understanding my words, the mutated Water Dragon rose its enormous body from beneath the water’s surface and unleashed a roar.
– RRRROOOAAARRR!
Rumble, CRAAAAAASH!
With but a single roar, dozens of water spouts erupted and crashed toward us. Between them, the creature’s tattered maw gaped wide open.
GOOOOOONG-!
The atmosphere vibrated faster and more violently than before.
Yet before the third Water Breath could take form, a shout burst from between my lips, piercing through the tempest and searing into everyone’s ears.
“Scatter!”
Whoooosh whoooosh whoooosh!
As if by covenant, four silhouettes shot forth in different directions, each claiming their own space.
Now, the hunt had begun.
* * *
Raid.
When the unreal invaded reality and Hunters and monsters began their deadly dance, this word—once confined to fantasy games—became something even a three-year-old child knew.
Yet among the billions of humanity who survived the great upheaval, none could have imagined it.
That across time and space, in another realm entirely, a Raid was unfolding against a dragon-like creature of strange origin.
And that a familiar face stood at the center of it all.
Crack, WHOOOOSH!
A massive frame shot through the air, treading upon scattered stone fragments.
A colossal tail grazed past with terrifying closeness, shattering the half-collapsed cliff and unleashing a pressure wave.
Between strands of windswept hair, the eyes of the young man Jin Tae-kyung blazed with light.
‘If I sever that tail now… No, wait.’
Jin Tae-kyung instinctively restrained his hand from swinging the spear.
He understood precisely the most critical aspect of this Raid.
Block the mutated Water Dragon’s escape, lure it onto land as much as possible, then strike it down like lightning.
If he dealt damage beforehand, he might only alert the creature’s vigilance.
Of course, someone observing this spectacle harbored slightly different thoughts.
“That damned bastard…!”
I couldn’t lose my disciple, whom I’d barely gained in my twilight years, so pathetically!
Yet Jeok Cheon-gang’s movement to unleash a strike at the monster, accompanied by a barrage of crude curses, came to an abrupt halt at the cry that followed.
“Old Master Noya!”
“…!”
Whoosh, roooaarrr!
The hastily pivoting flame energy swept across the ground uselessly.
Bewilderment flickered across the monster’s pitch-black eyes for just a moment before transforming into the gaze of a ferocious beast.
– Grrrraaaaahhh!
Whoosh, crash!
The colossal tail swept across the ground like a broom with the creature’s roar, and Jeok Cheon-gang, who had leaped into the air to evade the attack in that fleeting instant, burst with frustration.
“How much longer must I keep retreating!”
Boom!
High above in the sky, Jin Tae-kyung, who had dodged the monster’s body crashing toward him with full force, replied.
“I’m giving the signal!”
“That’s exactly what I’m asking—when!”
“Look, I’ll handle it, so please stop talking nonsense! This isn’t some joke to pull twice! Do as I say like everyone else!”
“…!”
Jeok Cheon-gang’s eyes trembled.
Though he couldn’t quite grasp the exact meaning due to some strange words mixed in, one thing came through crystal clear.
‘Nonsense? Is the old master spouting nonsense?’
Just recently he’d been worried whether the old age sickness might cause him to soil the walls, and now this disciple was speaking such harsh words.
What pulled Jeok Cheon-gang from his shock was Jin Tae-kyung’s next command.
“Old Master Noya, now! Retreat thirty paces back! Chung Poong, move to its rear! Moon-kyung, take the flank!”
“Yes, benefactor!”
“Funny fellow. I meant you should follow my lead, not that you could speak informally to me.”
“Damn it, this non-communicative carry player is seriously unbearable. Just listen to what I’m saying!”
“…!”
Seeing Moon-kyung, momentarily speechless, clamp his mouth shut and obey without question, Jeok Cheon-gang’s mood improved slightly.
‘Well, at least he does call me Old Master Noya.’
Normally he should be furious, but watching Moon-kyung being called by name like some neighbor’s dog, Jeok Cheon-gang felt grateful that he hadn’t been called Cheon-gang.
At the same time, he began to understand Moon-kyung’s current feelings somewhat.
‘What is this strange sensation?’
Somehow, Jin Tae-kyung was radiating an extraordinary force right now.
And to Jeok Cheon-gang’s perception, it wasn’t the overwhelming presence or bearing of a supreme master.
It was more like….
‘A seasoned veteran. Yes, that’s exactly the feeling.’
Though Jeok Cheon-gang had lived his entire life as a martial artist and had never served as an officer or soldier, somehow he understood what it felt like for a fresh recruit to face a battle-hardened veteran.
“Hmm, no matter how I look at it, he’s truly a peculiar fellow….”
“Hey, Jeok Cheon-gang! Get your head in the game!”
“…!”
The moment Jeok Cheon-gang’s eyes began to tremble, before he could even unleash his rage, the words he had been waiting for rang out.
“Now, strike!”
Whoooosh!
Toward the Water Dragon that had already climbed onto the shore, leaving Dongting Lake behind, four colossal figures launched themselves simultaneously.

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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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