Namgoong the Sword Ghost - Chapter 63

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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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Episode 63. The Sword Demon Begins to Hunt the Tiger
Clop! Clop!
Rumble-rumble-rumble!
A cart climbed the mountain path.
A man in a bamboo hat sat in the driver’s seat, and beneath the hat, a plain wooden mask was just barely visible.
“Yawn. Exhausted.”
The masked man yawned and urged the horses forward with the reins.
He was returning from the southern edge of Yunnan Province after conducting salt trade.
He was eager to arrive at Yeom Bang, rest deeply, and receive a generous purse—thinking of indulging himself after so long.
“Hmm?”
Then, in that moment—
A man blocked the mountain path.
“Who are you… Gasp!”
Pat! Pat! Pat!
The moment the masked man’s eyes narrowed to a slit—
The stranger’s ankles and knees bent in an impossible direction, approaching like lightning.
The zigzagging speed with which he drew near was like a flash of light through stone.
“Come out!”
Whoosh!
The startled masked man drew his blade and cried out.
Flutter!
The yellow cloth covering the cart’s cargo bed tore open, and roughly a dozen wooden-faced operatives leapt out.
Thump!
Ping-whirr!
The stranger kicked off the ground to escape the encirclement, vaulting into the air.
“Fool! Cutting off your own escape route!”
In midair, even the most perfect Shin Beop technique faces movement constraints.
Unless one possessed the Un Ryong Dae Pal Sik of Kunlun or Heo Gong Dap Bo—the techniques of a transcendent master—
Thud! Thud-thud-thud!
“Ugh! What, what is this?!”
The masked man, who had cried out with confidence, now bulged his eyes wide.
The stranger moved through the void as if foothold existed there—flowing like a silver fish, graceful and effortless.
Splash-splash-splash!
The stranger flicked his hand, and five wooden-faced operatives crumpled like marionettes.
Thump!
‘A needle?’
The masked man saw a thin needle embedded in the Dang Mun Acupoint of a fallen subordinate beside him.
“Gather!”
At the masked man’s command, the remaining operatives formed a tight circle around him.
They resembled a flock of sheep crowding together for protection against a hungry wolf.
The defensive instinct of prey—overlapping their bodies to appear as one large entity.
But the stranger did not hesitate for an instant, rushing forward with both hands extended.
Whoosh!
A billowing blue force compressed into the stranger’s palms.
Crash! Boom-crack!
The two operatives at the front received a double palm strike to the chest, coughed blood, and collapsed.
“Pierce him!”
As the stranger entered the encirclement, the masked man seized what he thought was his chance and shouted.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
Just before the blades hurtling toward him could turn him into a pincushion—
Whoosh!
Time flowed slowly, and all sight began to fragment across eternity.
The operatives’ blades moved slowly enough for a fly to land on them.
The shocked masked man’s lips opened and closed like a Peking opera actor in exaggerated performance.
“Sto… op… the… at…”
In this world where everything moved slowly, only the stranger inhabited normal time.
The man calmly reached into his garment and withdrew an Acupuncture Needle Case, opening its lid.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
A dozen needles launched themselves from the case on their own.
Like swallows frozen in water, they flew toward the acupoints of those trapped in the flow of years.
Wheez!
“Ears… ears….”
Thup!
The wooden masked man, who had been gasping like a suffocating fish, also died instantly as a needle pierced the Cheon Geuk Acupoint behind his ear.
All of this had unfolded in less than a single breath.
Had anyone witnessed this spectacle, they would have rubbed their eyes in disbelief at such an impossible feat.
But the true marvel was only just beginning.
“Mm…….”
Ho Yeon, the rogue who had orchestrated this affair, concentrated his spirit on his upper dantian.
Whoooosh! Whoooosh!
At once, the Uigi Yeondong surged to its absolute limit, engulfing the fallen wooden masked men.
‘Perfection isn’t necessary. A mere semblance will suffice.’
Whoosh.
Ho Yeon gripped the Geom Gyeol Ji and flicked his fingers upward.
Under ordinary circumstances, swords would have risen. But this was different.
Thud! Thud-thud!
The wooden masked men scattered across the ground began rising to their feet one after another.
Their movements were unnatural—stiff and jerky, like wooden puppets being manipulated from outside by an unseen hand.
Clop, clop, clop.
The risen wooden masked men retrieved their swords and, staggering, walked back to squeeze their bodies into the cargo bed of the wagon.
The final wooden masked man even picked up a yellow cloth from the ground and draped it over the wagon.
“Phew, well, that’ll do the trick.”
Ho Yeon released the Uigi Yeondong and massaged his warm temples with his fingers.
Manipulating a person’s joints one by one consumed far more Spirit Energy than controlling swords.
Maintaining it for an extended period would be grueling, but it sufficed as sleight of hand.
―What in blazes are you doing?!
Cheon Rae Geom shrieked in alarm at Ho Yeon’s actions.
Ho Yeon answered casually.
“Puppet theater?”
―Damnable wretch! Making sport of the dead!
“What does it matter? They’re already dead anyway.”
As Ho Yeon shrugged, Heuk Ya Tae Geom burst into raucous laughter.
―Hahahaha! You scoundrel. This is a trick that Oniya used to pull all the time.
―You performed such madness frequently?
―Using righteous sect corpses to slay demonic sect members. Using demonic sect corpses to slay martial cult members. The variations are endless.
―The Two Tigers Fighting Strategy……!
Cheon Rae Geom muttered.
The Two Tigers Fighting Strategy was a form of sowing discord—making two tigers fight each other.
“I know nothing of such schemes. Just something I developed while scrambling to survive, you understand.”
―Puppet theater with corpses? No wonder you’ve become a wanted criminal of the martial world!
“It’s the other way around, actually. These are tricks I developed after becoming a wanted criminal and having to run.”
Click.
Ho Yeon approached the wooden masked man’s corpse and removed the mask as he continued.
“Now that I’ve gathered everything I need, let’s go recruit the Paewang Mun.”
Thud.
The corners of Ho Yeon’s eyes, hidden behind the wooden mask, curved gently like crescents.
* * *
“Hahahaha! Bring more wine!”
“What are you staring at? Huh? Want me to gouge out your eyes?!”
Two men raised their voices in Hohwa Ru.
Yet no one dared tell them to be quiet.
Because emblazoned on the chest of their black martial robes was a gold character: ‘Sovereign.’
“Tch. Paewang Mun thugs, eh.”
“Pfft, let’s go.”
“Lost the taste for my drink.”
As patrons began rising and departing one by one, Ru Ju approached the Paewang Mun ruffians with a troubled expression.
“Um…….”
“Huh?”
“Who are you?”
“Ah, h-hello. I’ve come to pay my respects to the heroes of Paewang Mun. This is a small token of my sincerity.”
When Ru Ju handed over a thick money pouch, the Paewang Mun disciples exchanged glances and grinned wickedly.
“Ahem! Where did you get all this?”
“Ha ha! Ru Ju’s got sharp eyes!”
“Well, gentlemen, I hear Hohwa Ru has a new courtesan debuting tonight.”
“Really? Is that true?”
“We should go see her at once!”
Having received such generous bribes from Ru Ju, the Paewang Mun disciples rose from their seats in high spirits and filed out of the tavern.
They naturally left without paying, and Ru Ju sighed deeply, muttering curses in their wake.
“Phew, worthless bastards. May you meet the blade on the road and perish.”
Whether because of Ru Ju’s curse or not.
The moment the Paewang Mun disciples turned into the alley leading toward Hohwa Ru.
Two sword-bearing men appeared before them.
“What? Who are you?”
“Are you ronin? Don’t you know who we are?”
The Paewang Mun disciples’ threats were met with silence.
“Those… wooden masks?”
“Ha ha ha! You cowards! Are you hiding your faces because you’re afraid they’ll be recognized? But that’s easy—we’ll just kill you and take them off!”
Clash! Clang!
Recognizing hostile intent, the Paewang Mun disciples drew their blades.
Thud. Thud. Tap-tap-tap!
The masked men advanced toward the disciples with awkward footwork, yet with undeniable precision.
“You take the one on the left!”
“Then I’ll handle the right!”
The Paewang Mun disciples unleashed the Cheon Pae Do Beop, the very signature of Paewang Mun.
Slash! Slash!
One strike of the Pae Cheon Il Wol technique tore open the left masked man’s chest, and one strike of the Cheon Geuk Swae Pae technique buried itself deep in the right one’s ribs.
“Ha ha! Pathetic—”
“Pfft, insects!”
Just as the Paewang Mun disciples erupted in triumphant laughter.
Thrust! Thrust!
“Gack!”
“Urrgh!”
The masked men, bearing grievous wounds that should have rendered them immobile, thrust their swords forward as though unhurt, piercing the disciples.
“What… what is this…!”
“Ahhhhh!”
Thrust! Thrust! Thrust! Thrust! Thrust! Thrust!
The masked men worked their blades relentlessly, and sharp screams echoed through the alley before falling silent.
Some time later.
“N-no! P-people are dead!”
A man who happened to pass through saw four corpses sprawled across the alley and fled in panic onto the main street.
It was the fifth murder of Paewang Mun disciples to occur across Ban Ji Hwa in recent days.
* * *
“Sect Leader, the body of another Pale Dragon Division member has been found!”
“Two Pale Wind Division members have been slain on South Street!”
“Four Pale Heaven Division members who went to collect their refined blades met the enemy and fell together on West Iron Road!”
……
With reports arriving in rapid succession, the face of Jeok Do Gwang, leader of the Red Fire Faction, flushed crimson.
“…Are they saying it’s the work of those wooden-masked men again?”
“Y-yes, sir! When we removed the masks, they had wrinkled, grotesque faces!”
Crack!
‘You bastard Yeom Bang! You’re asking for a war…!’
Jeok Do Gwang knew the identity of those masked men that his subordinates kept describing.
They were undoubtedly the salt masters of Yeom Bang, which had taken root on Gangam Mountain.
‘I ignored them, and now they’re crawling up my back!’
Paewang Mun controlled most of the Ban Ji Hwa territory.
Ban Ji Hwa was at the southern edge of Sichuan Province.
Though the orthodox sects—Sichuan Dang Ga, Ami Pa, and Cheongseong Pa—dominated the lands around Chengdu, here Paewang Mun reigned supreme.
‘Do they think they can act recklessly just because they have backers? Insolent!’
Paewang Mun was notorious for thoroughly crushing rival factions in Ban Ji Hwa.
It was their method of maintaining iron-fisted rule, ensuring no one would ever crawl back.
Yet there was one place he could not touch.
And that was Yeom Bang, nestled in the depths of Gangam Mountain.
‘No matter how much authority the Lord of Sichuan Province wields, he cannot protect you in this forsaken corner of the world!’
Moreover, the operations Yeom Bang conducted were strictly forbidden by imperial law—the illegal salt trade.
The Lord of Sichuan Province had no legitimate pretext to aid them directly.
‘But what is this? Why would the Master of Yeom Bang attack us? To monopolize the profits of Ban Ji Hwa as well?’
Though Jeok Do Gwang longed to slit the Yeom Bang master’s throat on the spot, he could not shake the feeling that something was amiss.
No matter how he turned it over in his mind, there seemed no reason for the Yeom Bang master to oppose Paewang Mun.
The Yeom Bang’s business spanned the entire Central Plains, while Paewang Mun’s operations were confined to Ban Ji Hwa alone.
Thus, though they were aware of each other’s existence, they had always ignored one another as insignificant.
‘Was there some misunderstanding? Or did the old men of Yeom Bang stage a rebellion and flee? If so, why would they attack us?’
He considered various possibilities, but could find no satisfying answer.
Then.
“M-Master of the Sect!”
“What now? Who’s been hit?”
At his subordinate’s urgent cry, Jeok Do Gwang snapped irritably.
The ashen-faced subordinate gasped for breath and delivered a report that defied belief.
“The, the Second Master……!”
“What—what?! Jeok Sa Heun?!”
“Huff, huff! We’re moving him to Uiyak Dang now! But, but……!”
Whoosh!
Jeok Do Gwang swiftly deployed the Shin Beop and rushed toward Uiyak Dang.
Upon arrival at Uiyak Dang, Jeok Do Gwang spotted a bloodied man being transported on a stretcher.
“Sa, Jeok Sa Heun!”
“Uhhhhh…….”
“How did this happen!”
Jeok Do Gwang’s eyes went wide.
Jeok Sa Heun was not merely his son—he was a martial genius.
At twenty-five, he had reached the Peak Realm and manifested Qi last year.
Though his weakness for beauty was undeniable, in terms of sheer talent, he was destined to place Paewang Mun’s name alongside Gucheon Sung itself.
Yet here he was, brought in shattered like this?
“What is his condition! His limbs are still intact, aren’t they?”
“His, his limbs are fine. However…….”
The physician trembled as he continued in response to Jeok Do Gwang’s cry.
“His, his manhood…… was severed.”
“……What?”
“That, that is to say. He can no longer…… father an heir.”
“……!”
At the physician’s words, Jeok Do Gwang’s mind reeled.
His manhood severed?
Unable to produce an heir?
The Second Master, who was supposed to place Paewang Mun on solid ground, had been rendered a eunuch?
Rumble—rumble—rumble!
A tangible crimson energy began roiling from every inch of Jeok Do Gwang’s body.
A thick, oppressive Killing Intent radiated outward in all directions, seizing the hearts of those around him.
“Uhhhhh…….”
“M, Master…….”
“Please…….”
“Who.”
Ignoring his subordinates’ pleas, Jeok Do Gwang spoke in a voice frozen rigid with fury.
Then his son on the stretcher muttered in a vacant daze.
“A, a wooden mask…… a ghost wearing…… a wooden mask…… I don’t even know how…… it happened…….”
“A Wooden Mask. A senior officer of Yeom Bang, then.”
At his son’s words, Jeok Do Gwang gnashed his teeth, his brow darkening with rage.
His eyes lingered on his son’s blood-soaked lower half before lifting to the full moon hanging in the sky.
“Hehehehe! Kuh-hehehehe! Very well, Master of Yeom Bang. If you desire war, I shall grant it!”
In a single night, they had lost more than twenty disciples, and the Second Master had been castrated.
To let this pass would be to declare to every surrounding sect that Paewang Mun was worthless.
“Summon all the hall leaders! War!”
Jeok Do Gwang’s roar thundered through Paewang Mun, shaking the very structure.
Flap-flap!
A small bird perched on the roof’s eave, watching the scene below, spread its wings and cut across the dark night sky.

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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
—————