Murim Login - Chapter 648

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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 648
It was as if the world had frozen. The music and movements ceased all at once, as though by prior agreement, leaving only silence in their wake.
In that sudden stillness, the Beast King Miao Wang’s single utterance cut through the cold, piercing gaze that Baek Sang had fixed upon me.
“Brother, come sit down.”
The eyes that had been boring into me slowly withdrew.
In that interval, whether Baek Sang had changed his garments or not, he moved forward with snow-white sleeves billowing around him.
“Very well.”
Step. Step.
In the Great Hall, it was as though nothing had transpired—his composure immaculate, his voice measured and calm.
As I watched the Beast King Miao Wang observe him ascending the steps with the two great tribal chiefs flanking either side, a hint of bitterness seemed to shadow his gaze.
‘Understandable, truly.’
One called him brother; the other answered as palace master.
Though their blood was not mingled, the two had grown up together since childhood as sworn siblings.
Yet I had never once heard Baek Sang address the Beast King Miao Wang as elder brother.
And in that same moment, a thought occurred to me.
‘What does the Beast King Miao Wang represent to Baek Sang?’
A sworn elder brother in whose heart some thread of affection still lingered?
Or merely a superior bound to him by the hierarchy of the Southern Beast Palace?
Or perhaps something else entirely….
‘An enemy who made him lose his only son by participating in the Zheng Ma Great War?’
I couldn’t say for certain.
Yet I had a premonition that I would learn the answer before long.
Whether it would unfold favorably or unfavorably remained to be seen.
For my part, I could only hope for the former, and it seemed the Beast King Miao Wang harbored the same wish.
“After so long, let this foolish elder brother fill your cup.”
Baek Sang, who had been silently observing the wine bottle in the Beast King Miao Wang’s hand, replied in a measured tone.
“It has been decades since I turned away from wine and indulgence. I must respectfully decline.”
No matter how much the Southern Beast Palace maintained itself as a form of divided rule within tribal society, the authority of its palace master remained formidable.
This refusal was only possible because it came from Baek Sang.
For he was the great tribal chief of the White Tribe before he was the sworn brother of the Beast King Miao Wang.
“You loved fruit wine as a child. But now you won’t even accept the wine your elder brother pours with his own hands? It’s a fruit wine I brewed myself for you.”
“….”
“Baek Sang.”
At the soft call laden with disappointment and bitterness, Baek Sang slowly closed his eyes, then opened them and took the cup.
“If you insist, then I have no choice.”
“Then…”
“I shall accept at least a cup.”
Only then did the Beast King Miao Wang’s expression brighten as he filled Baek Sang’s cup to the brim. And in a voice so low that only Baek Sang and I could hear, he whispered.
“I hope you both will forget what transpired in the Great Hall. You have both wronged each other, so neither can blame the other.”
To me, Baek Sang remained a suspicious and disagreeable figure. Yet I was not fool enough to press the accelerator even in such circumstances.
“I understand. I was perhaps a bit excessive, truth be told.”
“….”
Baek Sang, who had been studying me with an inscrutable gaze, gave a small nod as well.
“Forgive me for displaying such an unsightly performance, Palace Master.”
It was a surprisingly forthright response.
Beast King Miao Wang, his face beaming with satisfaction, turned and cried out.
“Today is a joyous occasion where all the tribes of the Southern Wilderness gather, along with esteemed guests who have journeyed far from the Central Plains. Eat and drink to your hearts’ content!”
At Beast King Miao Wang’s proclamation that echoed through the Training Ground, the music that had paused resumed, and the dancers—a mix of men and women—began their movements anew.
At last, the atmosphere eased.
But in the next moment, a transmission that reached my ears was utterly cold.
– Esteemed guests from the Central Plains, how amusing.
Ah.
‘I knew it. This resolved far too easily.’
I scratched the bridge of my nose and looked toward Beast King Miao Wang. Having risen from his seat, he was encouraging the various tribal leaders around him and the warriors they had brought.
Unaware of what was transpiring behind him.
– Leave. There is no place for you in this land.
To the transmission that continued to reach my ears, I drained my cup in one gulp and licked my lips.
– Your great tribal leader certainly lacks generosity. Even if you despise the Han people, surely not to this extent. I saved several people from Ai-nao Mountain last night.
– I shall provide compensation.
– What?
– What do you desire? Gold? Silver? Speak. I will give you treasures heavier than your own body weight.
– …Hmm.
The sweet fragrance of the fruit wine turns bitter. Much like my current mood.
‘Gold and silver treasures.’
This is rich.
I had anticipated disrespect, but it left a far worse taste than I expected. I refilled my empty cup and sent another transmission.
– I wasn’t seeking such things in the first place. Do you in the Southern Wilderness truly compare human lives to material wealth?
– Of course not. The lives of our tribespeople are beyond price. But when the other party is Han, the matter becomes different.
– Why is that?
– Because you people….
The transmission that was about to continue grows faint. Baek Sang stared at his cup, now full of dark liquid, then shook his head.
– I spoke foolishly. Say no more and depart.
– If you cut it off here, I won’t be able to sleep tonight. Wouldn’t it be better to lay everything bare and find a solution?
– A solution.
A faint laugh.
I had never seen Baek Sang laugh before.
And the emotion contained in that quiet laugh was unmistakably contempt and mockery.
Thud, crash!
Though buried beneath the noise of the raucous feast, I heard and saw it clearly.
A porcelain cup falling to the ground and shattering into pieces, its wine spraying in all directions.
Drip, drip. Patter.
As the spilled fruit wine trickled down the stone steps, Baek Sang’s voice resonated directly in my mind.
– It is already too late to undo. Like those things.
– Hmm.
Too late? Is that truly so?
Staring intently at the scene, I suddenly reached out my hand.
Whoosh!
A single thread of qi energy released from my fingertips swept gently across the surrounding floor.
As if reversing time itself, the formless fragments that had scattered moments before surged upward and were drawn into my open palm.
Whisper. Click!
Dozens of shards clung to one another like magnets. Using my qi as adhesive, I joined the fractured edges together, and finally—a single cup was reformed.
“…!”
“…!”
In that instant, the air around us stirred with tension.
Turning my head slightly to observe, the reactions of those who had been watching this place were quite a sight.
Nam Ho and Hyuk-ung stood frozen with their mouths agape, astonishment flickered in Sa Ma-pyo and Yo-hee’s eyes, while Tae-san had forgotten even to chew his meat, his expression vacant.
‘Quite useful. My control over qi has definitely become more refined since opening the middle dantian.’
Aside from everything else, the fact that I had stopped Tae-san from eating was a satisfying result.
“Well, excellent. This level of void-grasping technique is truly admirable.”
Baek Sang, observing my self-satisfied demeanor, opened his mouth with an impassive tone.
“Did you wish to boast of your martial prowess? Yet for such a display, that cup is absurdly defective.”
“Defective?”
“Such a thing cannot hold anything. The wine will leak out before it even fills the cup.”
His words were not entirely wrong. I was no divine being, and without completely reversing time itself, perfect restoration was impossible.
As Baek Sang said, because I had failed to recover every fragment, the cup was riddled with cracks, and retrieving the wine that had already seeped into the floor and steps was beyond my capability.
But….
“You’re being awfully picky about it. Just drink it as is.”
I spoke bluntly, then without hesitation seized the wine bottle and filled the cup. No—I poured it to overflowing.
Then, cupping my entire hand around the gaps where the wine was spilling out, I brought it directly to my lips and drank.
Gulp.
My throat burned as if I had swallowed fire. As I opened my mouth, the fragrant aroma of the fruit wine emerged along with my heated voice.
“What’s the big deal? Even if the cup cracks and shatters, as long as it can hold something and I can drink it, that’s what a cup is.”
“…!”
In that moment, Baek Sang’s gaze deepened with intensity.
– What of the wine already spilled on the ground long ago?
Had a stranger heard this, they might have thought we were speaking nonsense.
But to me, who had just exchanged these transmissions with Baek Sang, it sounded different.
‘The cup is faith. The spilled wine is people.’
In the Great War of Zheng Ma, the Southern Beast Palace had lost countless tribespeople, and afterward, Baek Sang had completely lost faith in the Central Plains for reasons he could not bear to speak of.
Thus, I conveyed my meaning by reassembling the shattered cup.
‘Whether he accepts this as a plea to trust him once more, or as a final warning, I cannot say….’
Either way, my intention was conveyed clearly enough.
I gazed toward the Training Ground, where the festive banquet was in full swing.
Standing at the center of the cheering crowd, Beast King Miao Wang stared at me with penetrating eyes.
‘Impressive. His intuition really is something.’
For some reason, I felt like a high school student caught red-handed causing trouble.
I gave Beast King Miao Wang a casual shrug and rose from my seat, then walked away with measured steps.
“Where are you going?”
Baek Sang’s voice came from behind me.
I gave him a brief, direct answer.
“To take a piss.”
That fruit wine was surprisingly potent.
* * *
“Ugh…hack!”
A bear of a man. Yet even his massive frame—over eight feet tall with martial power exceeding a full decade of cultivation—proved insufficient to escape the death descending upon him.
Crack!
“Gah, you, you bastard. Who are you?”
Relentless hands strangled his throat. Blood streaming from his crown and suffocation painted his vision entirely red and blurred.
The man squeezed out every ounce of strength he possessed to continue speaking.
“P, please, s, save me….”
He wanted to live. Desperately. But the Mysterious Warrior gripping his throat harbored different thoughts.
Crunch!
The sound of bone snapping, followed by the whites of his eyes rolling back.
As the lifeless body of the man went limp, the Mysterious Warrior released the grip in his palm.
Thud!
The heavy corpse rolled across the ground, and the Mysterious Warrior, who had ended his life without the slightest hesitation, muttered inwardly.
‘Ah. Was that last one the final one?’
It had been merely half an hour ago. Enemies had suddenly appeared from both ends of the Gorge.
And then he had bellowed without warning.
‘I will surely tear you to death and avenge my Senior Brothers and comrades.’
‘Kill him!’
Thus began a battle of one against many, and as he ceaselessly slew those rushing at him from all directions, he forgot to count the numbers.
‘Around two hundred, I’d say.’
They had gathered quite a force. Though the outcome had been predetermined from the start.
A mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.
It was a sight that could only be described in those four characters, and the Mysterious Warrior, who had once again left his mark upon an unnamed Gorge in Gwiju, briefly retrieved his weapon that he had leaned against a Large Boulder.
Clang. Metallic screech.
The Zen Staff trembled with the sound of steel.
His footsteps, treading through pools of blood, were directed toward somewhere in the south.

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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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