The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 84

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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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The Youngest Son of the Nakhyang Jin Family — Chapter 84

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The Imperial Guard’s neck before me severed cleanly, his head slamming against the wall.
Thud-thud-thud—
As the head rolled across the floor and came to rest at the Emperor’s feet, I turned my gaze toward the Iron-Blooded Emperor.
Our eyes met.
The pupils of a being who commanded nations, radiating absolute authority.
The Yellow Dragon mask concealed his face, yet even his gaze and presence alone were enough to make most men cower—of that I was certain.
But his aura was fading.
Was he dying?
Once I had consumed the Spirit Elixir, there was no method of survival that could have existed.
In truth, it was remarkable that he endured this long.
“How dare you raise your head before me!”
Then.
Ga Inhoo’s roar erupted beside me.
Simultaneously, a sharp metallic ring pierced the air as a sword was drawn, and the Eastern Camp’s blade came slashing toward me.
Clang!
Heavy. Powerful.
As I deflected the strike infused with the subtleties of a greatsword, I sensed it immediately.
Not particularly swift, yet there was undeniable strength and technique behind it.
Shiiing-shiiing-shiiing—!
Ga Inhoo’s swordplay was straightforward.
Yet each stroke felt sharp enough to be lethal, targeting vital pressure points with precision. Failure to defend properly would result in grievous injury.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
I parried each attack while gradually retreating.
As distance opened between us and space expanded, the other Imperial Guards protecting the Emperor surged toward me as well.
What had been Ga Inhoo alone suddenly multiplied—six opponents in moments.
Their blades descended relentlessly.
Clang—clang-clang-clang!
I observed their movements, executing footwork to evade and parry without creating openings.
In this situation, their coordinated assault actually favored me.
The passage was narrow; all six could not wield their swords simultaneously. At most, two or three could manage a swing—so I would simply eliminate them one by one.
Shing!
Splash!
I cleaved through the guard before me and spun, releasing a hidden projectile.
As the dart pierced the Imperial Guard’s brow and embedded itself in the wall, the bodies of the two men before me collapsed, spraying blood.
“Gah?!”
I saw Ga Inhoo’s jaw clench.
With a fleeting glance, he confirmed the two corpses.
Whether to discern the method of their deaths, his eyes—wary yet examining the bodies—never ceased their vigilant scrutiny.
However, regrettably, the time to uncover the truth was brief.
I seized the opening and pressed forward.
In that instant, the other Imperial Guards retreated, evading my blade.
As if I had been waiting for precisely that moment, I extended my hand and unleashed the Ohdok Needle. The projectile flew without sound, piercing one guard’s chest and tearing through another’s throat.
“Gahhh!”
I confirmed those falling in sprays of blood. The space was too confined for any to escape properly.
Without torches, even seeing ahead would be nearly impossible. In such a place, the Ohdok Needle was devastatingly lethal.
Smaller than a pinky finger and utterly silent.
Even if one heard it coming and tried to evade, the cramped quarters made evasion futile.
I watched the last remaining guard retreat cautiously, then instantly lowered my stance and closed in, seeking the opening.
My extended blade deftly disarmed the man’s sword and severed his artery as I withdrew.
“This is… impossible…”
“It happens more often than you’d think.”
Ga Inhoo trembled violently, gripping his sword with both hands.
Five of the Emperor’s Imperial Guards had fallen in mere moments before his eyes.
They had surely been selected from among the most skilled within the Imperial Palace, yet they had died without even properly drawing their weapons.
Even Ga Inhoo could not help but feel fear.
“Your Majesty! Your Majesty! I shall hold them back with all my strength! In that moment—!”
“…”
Ga Inhoo cried out, but the Emperor did not respond.
He merely gazed at me intently.
I did not miss that moment.
That brief instant when the Emperor’s attention turned away.
I swiftly extended my blade toward Ga Inhoo’s throat.
Thwack!
“Gahhhhh!”
He grasped the blade embedded in his throat, trembling violently. His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at me, but no words escaped—only choking, gurgling sounds.
As I withdrew the blade, he collapsed, clutching his throat.
Glug, glug—
As blood poured forth and he died, the desperate hunger for life blazed unmistakably in his eyes as he gazed upon the Emperor.
“Cough, cough.”
The Emperor expelled a cough, his gaze fixed upon the dying Ga Inhoo. Then, moving slowly forward, he picked up the fallen blade.
Thwack!
Without hesitation, he drove it through Ga Inhoo’s brow.
“Useless. If a life is forfeit anyway, it should be disposed of usefully for my sake.”
Shing—!
The Emperor shook the blood from his blade and turned his gaze toward me.
Even as death approached, those eyes remained arrogant and unyielding.
A being who knew better than anyone that he was the Son of Heaven.
I, too, met his gaze without flinching or turning away.
“How audacious. Since I ascended the Imperial Throne, I have never witnessed such a look in anyone’s eyes.”
“You may not have seen it before, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”
As I spoke with a faint smirk, the Emperor’s pupils trembled.
He must be deeply displeased.
No one had ever dared to talk back to him.
Having lived his entire life—nearly a hundred years—in such a manner, this situation could hardly sit well with the Emperor.
“Let us return to the matter at hand. You possess a golden Jade Orb?”
“Do you dare question me?”
His voice carried indignation, as though my question had displeased him.
His eyes gleamed with lethal intent, and it seemed clear to anyone watching that he had no intention of answering.
The moment I subtly grasped my sword.
The massive Emperor closed the distance and swung his blade.
Clang!
The two swords locked together with a sharp, piercing sound.
A force so tremendous it seemed impossible from a dying man, and simultaneously, the Emperor’s sword moved along the blade in an unusual manner, thrusting forward.
Fast.
Clang!
Parrying it, both the Emperor and I stepped back half a pace.
In that moment of separation, one grants the opponent an opening.
He was aware of this.
Zing—
Then, a warning bell rang as the scene flashed past.
I quickly lowered my head, and something severed strands of my hair.
The Emperor had drawn a dagger from his left hand and swung it.
Boom!
I pushed the Emperor back with force and retreated a step, while he too created distance, regarding me with surprised eyes.
“The title ‘Iron-Blooded Emperor’ doesn’t seem to stem merely from excessive slaughter. Your skills are quite formidable.”
“An interesting opponent. To evade in such a brief moment.”
The Iron-Blooded Emperor’s martial arts were not those of the Imperial Court.
They were techniques learned from wandering the back alleys since childhood, honed for survival. Having cultivated them into a martial discipline, they felt fundamentally different from anything I had witnessed before.
The Emperor twirled the dagger in his left hand and laughed.
A sword in his right hand, a dagger in his left.
Both were equally threatening.
Combined with his trained physique, he did not seem like an opponent I could face as easily as Ga Inhoo.
I remained still, quietly observing the situation.
In an instant, the Emperor’s eyes flashed with light as he drew near.
Whoosh!
A sword swept through the air, aiming for my neck.
I saw a dagger suddenly emerge from within his robes, thrusting with precision toward my heart—whether he intended for me to sidestep lightly or not.
Clang! Clang-clang!
I evaded the dagger and parried the sword.
Then I retreated again, widening the distance between us.
The Emperor’s movements grew even faster.
It was hard to believe such speed and agility came from an aging body.
I did not attack—I merely observed, blocked, and evaded. If one were to ask whether the Emperor’s assault was so fierce and left no openings, the answer would be no.
I was simply waiting.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-slash!
The relentless cascade of blades targeted only the vital pressure points.
This was not swordplay meant merely to kill.
Seeing how he aimed exclusively at the most agonizing pressure points, I could sense how much he savored watching an opponent writhe and perish in torment.
In that moment, laughter escaped me unbidden.
“Cough-cough!”
A fit of coughing erupted from the Emperor’s mouth.
This time it did not stop there—his body staggered.
The weapon fell from his grasp, yet unwilling to collapse, he gripped the wall and labored to steady his breathing.
Then the Emperor’s gaze turned toward Chaeseoha.
“Hah… hah… What are you doing? Heal me at once. Now!”
There was nothing I could do in this moment.
Yet he shouted because of his fear of my blade, which could strike at any instant.
A man who once ruled all under heaven from the Imperial Throne would not wish to die in such a manner.
The Emperor’s urgent gaze pressed Chaeseoha.
But she did not grant his wish.
She shook her head gently.
“It is impossible.”
“…What did you say?!”
“Your Majesty’s body has already been ravaged by age and poison. If there were a Spirit Elixir, the matter would be different… but…”
“Then produce that Spirit Elixir!”
“That too is impossible. Do you not know that a Spirit Elixir cannot be crafted in mere days?”
“You wretched woman…! Your words have not changed.”
“How am I different from Your Majesty, who strives so desperately to live, yet I who spoke falsehoods in the desire to live?”
Step by step—
Chaeseoha, who had been keeping her distance, slowly walked forward and closed the gap. Soon, without fear, she approached the Emperor, supported him, and eased him down against the wall.
Only then did I see it.
The Emperor’s hands trembling uncontrollably.
Though he exerted force, it seemed power could not properly flow into them.
And simultaneously, a strange phenomenon was occurring. The Emperor’s body began to visibly wither.
Even his once-black hair was turning white in an instant.
“I… I…”
“If you wish to live even a moment longer, you must not speak anymore.”
Chaeseoha fumbled through her robes and withdrew acupuncture needles.
Watching her insert them methodically throughout his body, it became clear she was administering a final measure.
“Your innate vital energy is nearly exhausted. If you remain still and refrain from speaking… you might survive another two days at most.”
Chaeseoha withdrew the needles one by one, her eyes closing gently as she delivered her final verdict.
These words came from her, after all.
Her assertion that he could survive two more days if he did nothing would certainly not be false, and it was equally certain that any exertion of strength would rob him even of that meager reprieve.
The Emperor trembled, his eyes widened in shock as he gazed at Chaeseoha.
He attempted desperately to grasp her, but finding no strength in any part of his body, his hand slipped away from her shoulder.
Rising from her seat, she turned to look at me.
“Young Master, I believe it would be wise for you to accept this as well. The Emperor will no longer be able to speak.”
Chaeseoha’s resolute voice struck my ears.
Even if I forced his mouth open and wrung out words, I would not be able to understand them clearly.
Besides, I had no desire to forcibly open the mouth of a dying man.
It seemed I had to accept this outcome.
Thud, thud—
Just as I was about to abandon this line of thought.
Footsteps echoed from deeper within the cave where the Emperor had walked.
Not just one or two.
Undoubtedly, the Crown Prince had found the passage and entered.
I seized Chaeseoha’s hand and ran swiftly in the opposite direction.
“I hear them! This way!”
Then, someone’s shout reverberated through the cave.
Was the voice Chungho’s?
They advanced faster than I had anticipated.
I forcibly pulled Chaeseoha’s hand and embraced her. Startled by the sudden action, her eyes widened, but I felt her relief as she quickly unleashed her lightness technique with even greater speed.
Then, her voice came softly.
“Thank you. I never thought you would actually come.”
“You’re an important member of Sega. Of course I had to rescue you.”
“Did you come alone?”
“Chu Hyeongi and Elder came with me. They’re probably making quite a racket outside by now.”
“Ah— could all this commotion be…?”
“Not all of it, just part of it. Though this side was where it started.”
I chuckled softly as I broke free from the formation.
Accelerating my lightness technique further, I rushed toward where Gu Gunbaek and Jang Chuchyeong were. As the distance closed, the sounds of chaos grew increasingly distinct around us.
Clang, clang, clang—!
The sound of clashing blades echoed relentlessly from all directions.
The dying screams of someone continued as well.
Moreover, flames that had started somewhere were gradually consuming all of Dowon Village, and I couldn’t help but think it would be impossible to restore this place to its former state.
A scene utterly different from what had come before.
The Crown Prince’s rebellion was indeed unfolding in Dowon Village, yet there had been no riots, no fires consuming the buildings.
Moreover, I knew that the Crown Prince, now seated upon the throne, had made excellent use of Dowon Village and thoroughly enjoyed it.
“Baek Jin-hwa will have a fit when she hears about this.”
I exhaled with an awkward expression.
Merely thinking of her anger already gave me a headache.
“Young Master—! Over here!”
At that moment, Jang Chuchyeong’s voice rang out.
He waved his hand frantically, drenched crimson with blood.
I had lost count of how many he had slain.
I shook my head unconsciously and came to a halt.
“That man escaped!”
“You mean my uncle?”
“Yes! My master let him go!”
At those words, I turned my gaze toward Gu Gunbaek.
In the midst of this chaos, he had removed his mask from somewhere and was blowing on a wine bottle like a trumpet, grinning widely as our eyes met before pulling a scroll from his robes and waving it about.
“Forty percent interest per day—only a madman would accept such terms. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“Quite astute, sir.”
I nodded in agreement.
It was a method anyone with even minimal thought could devise. Yet Gu Gunbaek seemed to see only what was directly before him, never considering what lay beyond.
He simply burst into laughter with genuine delight.
“Ahahaha! Come now—let’s go! Much longer and we’ll be roasted alive.”
Gu Gunbaek drained the remaining wine in one long gulp and rose to his feet.
As he said, it was time to leave this place.

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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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