The Youngest Prince of the Zhou Family - Chapter 9

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Youngest Master of the Zhu Family (9)

Tracking

Mu Ying guarded the kitchen as Woo Jin had ordered.

He watched and memorized everything without missing a single detail, from the people who came and went.

And finally, just as Woo Jin had said, when the estate became chaotic, he discovered someone moving secretly.

‘That’s the one.’

Mu Ying immediately whistled to signal Woo Jin and began tracking him.

He concealed his presence as much as possible and maintained the optimal distance to avoid being detected.

The target was one of the cooks working in the Yu Family’s kitchen.

Unlike the other servants who were moving to find a physician or report to the Family Head, he secretly slipped away in the opposite direction.

Behind a secluded warehouse.

The cook who arrived there took out a letter from his chest and looked around.

After confirming no one was around, he immediately took out a pigeon from a birdcage hidden under the wall and firmly tied the letter to its leg.

“….”

Then he released the pigeon just like that.

Mu Ying had no time to waste.

He took out something cylindrical from his chest, put it to his mouth, and blew toward the cook.

A very thin needle came out of the tube and pierced directly into the cook’s calf.

Of course, the needle was so small it was invisible, so there wasn’t even a stinging sensation.

After confirming the needle had embedded in the cook’s calf, Mu Ying immediately launched himself in the direction the pigeon had flown.

‘Pigeons can fly nearly 3,000 li in a day.’

The pigeon’s speed isn’t that fast.

However, everyone uses them as messenger pigeons simply because their stamina is remarkable.

In terms of speed, using a messenger eagle would naturally be more swift and accurate.

Swoosh!

Mu Ying pushed his Light Body Technique to the extreme.

He shot out like lightning.

The surrounding scenery blurred as he covered the distance in an instant and caught up to the pigeon’s tail.

Thwip! Pierce!

Of course, he didn’t forget to shoot needles along the way as he ran.

The needles he shot were a type of tracking needle.

It was a highly developed tracking technique that allowed one to smell only that scent when it met special incense.

This was a unique method used only by the Zhu Family.

‘Hmm?’

Since they used a messenger pigeon, he thought they were sending a message quite far, but the messenger pigeon stopped soon.

Watching the pigeon circle in the air and then land, Mu Ying gradually reduced his speed.

He looked around.

‘Jangpyeong Gate.’

It was exactly the place Mo Pyeong had mentioned.

The messenger pigeon immediately descended to the ground, and someone received it.

‘This is insane.’

Mu Ying was shocked as he recalled Woo Jin’s words.

Woo Jin had accurately predicted this current situation.

‘Someone will probably make contact. And that place will be Jangpyeong Gate.’

​

How did he know?

He was only fifteen years old.

Moreover, wasn’t he someone who had never even glanced at martial arts cultivation or tracking techniques like this?

​

‘Mu Ying, remember this. If the person who collected the messenger pigeon at Jangpyeong Gate has a blue mark on the back of his neck… you must return immediately, no more, no less.’

​

He had definitely said that tracking further would be dangerous.

But Mu Ying was confident.

‘The Young Master doesn’t know my level at all.’

He was quite a promising prospect even within the Dragon Ascension Unit.

His skills were so excellent that he might become the youngest Squad Leader during the next promotion exam.

​

‘Just see which direction he heads and come back. Got it? Remember that.’

​

Crack!

Though he had answered that he understood, Mu Ying couldn’t give up easily.

‘Blue mark!’

Just as Woo Jin had said, there was a blue mark on the back of the man’s neck.

Then it would be normal to return here, but…

‘The opponent is someone who tried to harm Foster Mother.’

He was someone with very deep loyalty to the Zhu Family.

He absolutely had to see the fierce beast that had harmed the mistress of such a family.

Moreover, Woo Jin still didn’t know him.

That he could handle this much.

Thwip!

Mu Ying shot a tracking needle and began pursuing the man.

He completely ignored Woo Jin’s advice.

​

* * *

​

“Damn it.”

I became anxious.

Even though the time for Mu Ying to return had passed, it had been quite a while.

“Don’t tell me he followed? Then does that mean the opponent didn’t have a blue mark?”

Blue mark.

This was the incident where someone tried to harm the Zhu Family’s Foster Mother.

But the mid-level manager doesn’t have a blue mark on his body?

‘That can’t be. The Blood Hand Poison Emperor isn’t a foolish opponent either.’

The blue marks are monsters created by the Blood Hand Poison Emperor.

With Mu Ying’s current skills, he absolutely couldn’t handle even one of them.

‘What should I do?’

This is troubling.

The night was deepening, yet Mu Ying showed no sign of returning.

I had no choice.

I took out a small pill from my chest.

It was a pill I had brought directly from the Zhu Family Estate, a tracking pill that could smell the tracking needles Mu Ying had scattered.

After rubbing it under my nose several times, I began following the scent of the tracking needles.

‘That bastard.’

Eventually, I found one of the servants working in the kitchen.

There was still a fine needle embedded in his calf, and the scent of tracking incense wafted from it.

“Hey.”

I grabbed the back of that servant’s neck and spoke quietly.

“Walk quietly without anyone noticing.”

“….”

He was flustered, but soon composed his expression and obediently followed my words.

I dragged him to the back of an empty warehouse.

“Listen carefully. Do you really think the Zhu Family only sent me?”

“…!”

The servant’s expression immediately turned pale upon hearing my lie.

Just the word “Zhu Family” alone completely broke his will to resist.

Moreover, I couldn’t sense any energy from him.

He was truly an ordinary person who hadn’t even learned martial arts.

But he had put poison in the food according to the Blood Hand Poison Emperor’s orders.

Why?

“Blackmail? No. That bastard wouldn’t use such obvious tricks.”

“Wh-what are you talking about? Y-Young Master.”

“It’s you. The one who put poison to kill Mo Pyeong.”

“What? Th-that’s what….”

He pretended to be confused, but his pupils contracted from extreme tension, unable to hide it.

Plus the slight trembling of his facial muscles.

Thanks to my extremely heightened senses, I caught every minute change in him.

“You’re lying.”

Crack!

I grabbed his collarbone as if to tear it off and pulled.

“Urgh, urghh!”

It must be tremendous pain.

But I covered his mouth and made him kneel.

“That bastard from Jangpyeong Gate. Who is he?”

“…!”

His panicked expression came clearly into my view.

“I won’t ask twice. Next comes death.”

I pulled his collarbone even harder.

Since I even drew up my internal energy slightly, he must be experiencing something close to hell.

“I-I-I’ll talk. I’ll tell you everything, Young Master! Please….”

“Good.”

I loosened my grip slightly.

“You’re just a tail anyway. The one waiting for your contact at Jangpyeong Gate. I’m curious about his identity.”

“Th-that person is….”

“He has a blue mark on his neck, right?”

“How do you know….”

I chuckled at those words.

“Right.”

I released my grip.

The one with the blue mark.

And Mu Ying who hasn’t returned.

The scattered pieces slowly came together.

“He followed, damn it. Even though I told him not to.”

Mu Ying ultimately didn’t listen to my advice.

It’s my fault for not giving him a proper explanation.

“Where would he go from Jangpyeong Gate? Do you know even that?”

“….”

I stared directly at the servant.

He couldn’t say anything and just trembled.

“I-I don’t kn-know anything, I-I really don’t. About that person, I c-can’t know….”

“Really? Then you have to die.”

I grabbed his collarbone again.

Then I applied force strongly.

“Urk, urghaaah!”

His scream burst out.

“If you really don’t know, you die. If you give me even slightly useful information, I’ll spare you.”

“Ur-urgh…! Act-actually…I do know that he st-stays at Wind Thunder Inn….”

“Wind Thunder Inn?”

I loosened my grip slightly.

He squeezed out tears and snot, quickly nodding his head.

“Sniff, sob. If-if you go about fifty li east from here, there’s a small village. Wind Thunder Inn is there. Really!”

“Really?”

His pupils aren’t shaking.

It’s the truth.

“Is that the extent of what you know?”

“Yes! I’ve told you everything!”

“Right.”

I nodded and pressed down on his collarbone.

“There are personal feelings too. I prefer not to leave future troubles by sparing bastards like you.”

“Urgh! Urghh…! You said you’d sp-spare me…!”

Crack! Crunch!

His collarbone collapsed completely.

Following the collarbone, his ribs shattered like straw, and he crumpled.

Instant death.

The broken bone fragments pierced his heart, stabbed his lungs, and blocked his airway.

For the few seconds before death, he must have felt pain so severe that hell would seem preferable.

This was the price for daring to step into the Demonic Path, whether willingly or not.

After cleanly killing the opponent, I quickly left that place.

​

* * *

​

Mu Ying followed behind his target.

Hiding his presence, stealthily so the opponent wouldn’t notice.

He walked endlessly along the mountain path.

How long had he walked like that?

The entrance to a small village appeared, and he could see an inn located there.

The man looked around, then entered the inn.

‘Wind Thunder Inn?’

It was a strange name.

Mu Ying hesitated for a moment.

‘Should I follow him in or not.’

The inn was strangely quiet.

Usually such inns should be filled with people’s chatter and various scents of alcohol and food.

How could it be so quiet?

‘A trap?’

Mu Ying steadied his breathing.

‘I’ve come this far anyway. It’s too late to turn back now.’

If these were Fierce Beasts, he judged that right now, having caught their tail, was the only chance to catch that bastard.

‘Since I don’t know where he might flee to next. I’ll catch him in advance.’

With that thought, Mu Ying opened the door of Wind Thunder Inn and stepped inside.

Creak!

The loud metallic sound of an unoiled hinge was particularly ominous.

Soon, Mu Ying stepped inside the inn and stopped right where he stood.

“Hmm.”

The group surrounding him.

All wearing dark stealth garb, they were pointing their swords at him in unison as if they had been waiting for Mu Ying to arrive.

“It was a trap.”

Thud!

At that moment, the door behind him closed.

And someone revealed their presence behind Mu Ying.

“You kept following me. Warrior of the Zhu Family.”

“…!”

It’s him.

Mu Ying’s pupils trembled finely.

‘I definitely couldn’t sense any energy from him….’

Not being able to sense energy from an opponent meant two things.

Either the opponent was an ordinary person who hadn’t learned martial arts.

Or they were a master who had transcended him by far.

And in the current situation, the opponent was clearly the latter case.

Mu Ying slowly turned around.

“Did you lure me in?”

“Speak properly. I didn’t lure you in—you followed me.”

The man chuckled.

“Interesting. There’s someone who can detect our existence. And it just happens to be a maggot from the Zhu Family.”

His attitude was relaxed.

He had good reason to be.

He was sufficiently overwhelming Mu Ying.

“Enough talk. Just… die here.”

As soon as his words ended, the group surrounding them all retreated in unison, creating distance.

At that moment, the man suddenly charged at Mu Ying.

Crash!

The inn’s floor shattered, sending fragments flying.

The opponent shot down at Mu Ying like an arrow.

Thwack!

Mu Ying’s body was helplessly sent flying.

Crack!

Barely managing to stab his sword into the floor, Mu Ying regained his balance and struggled to get up.

“Ugh.”

As Mu Ying was getting up, he momentarily staggered.

A single strike.

That one strike seemed to have broken one of his arms.

“Impressive! I didn’t expect you to be able to block that!”

Crash!

The opponent charged at him fiercely once again.

‘Ah, damn it.’

Regret came flooding in belatedly.

It was regret and self-reproach for not listening to Master Woo Jin’s words earlier.

But it was already too late.

“Fine then.”

Mu Ying gripped his sword hilt tightly.

Even if he was going to die, he would fight to the end like a warrior of the Zhu Family.

Shing!

Soon, the sword quickly slid out from Mu Ying’s scabbard.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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