The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 96

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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 Jin Family of Luoyang – Chapter 157

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“Kwaaaak?!”
Jang Chuchyeong, who had been lying quietly, suddenly bolted upright.
As if he had just awakened from a nightmare, he gasped for breath before turning his gaze to confirm my presence. His eyes, which had been staring blankly, suddenly widened dramatically before his expression crumpled into despair.
“I’m… dead. Without even getting married, in a place like this!”
“Why do you think you’re dead?”
“Well, because our young master is here when he shouldn’t be. But… did you die too, young master?”
Jang Chuchyeong, speaking with a foolish expression, tilted his head as if genuinely curious, his gaze fixed on me.
Unable to help myself, I pressed my hand to my forehead.
“We’re both alive and well.”
“No… that can’t be right? Our young master is supposed to be outside. Or is this a phantom? A hallucination?”
“Stop spouting nonsense. I was deceived by the elder too and came here. It seems he was uneasy about sending you alone.”
“Huh?!”
Jang Chuchyeong approached with an expression of disbelief.
As if desperate to confirm that all of this was not an illusion, he cautiously reached out and tried to pinch my face.
Smack—
Without thinking, I swatted his hand away and frowned.
“Are you really the young master?”
“Yes, so stop wasting time on foolish things. Now tell me, what happened?”
“Well, my master said that if I were truly his disciple, I should be able to break through a place like this. So I came in, and then… I fought with beasts, got hungry and ate grass, nearly died… .”
As Jang Chuchyeong recounted what had transpired, his complexion visibly turned ashen with each word.
It seemed to be a memory too horrific to willingly recall.
“Then while I was resting by the water’s edge drinking, suddenly everything went dark and I lost consciousness. What did I do?”
“You attacked me. With the intent to kill.”
“What?!”
“It seems there are parasites of some kind here that can control people. Be cautious of everything you see in this place. Even the smallest creatures you could crush underfoot.”
“Yes!”
At my words, Jang Chuchyeong nodded without a shred of doubt.
The sight of him brought back memories of the past, causing me to smile involuntarily.
“Was there anything else?”
“Anything else? I’ve noticed my senses have become strange… and the beasts that appear seem to view me as prey?”
“Not that kind of thing. I’m asking if you saw any people.”
“People, people… No. I haven’t seen any.”
I turned my gaze to examine Jang Chuchyeong’s condition.
Blood was visible on him in various places, suggesting he had engaged in quite intense combat.
Similarly, his body bore numerous wounds that appeared to be sword marks, and judging by his lack of memory, they seemed to have been inflicted while he was unconscious.
With that level of skill, he faced off against the Divine Sect’s men?
Truly, his growth rate is remarkable.
I rose from my seat and urged him forward.
“Let’s go.”
“Go where?!”
“We’ll retrace the path you took to get here.”
With that, I led Chu Hyeongi along the route where he had appeared, following the traces left behind.
Even if parasites could control a human body, they couldn’t erase all traces of their passage, so I followed the scattered signs and moved for quite some time.
This place, constructed with formation techniques, seemed far wider than I had anticipated. Despite traveling for over half an hour, I couldn’t discern where it ended.
Or perhaps the formations were causing us to circle the same location repeatedly.
As I pondered this while observing my surroundings,
I discovered two corpses crushed beyond recognition not far ahead.
“Huh?! There really are people here? But… ugh!”
The moment he saw them, Jang Chuchyeong began vomiting from the gruesome sight.
Anyone would have reacted the same way.
Though the bodies hadn’t been dead long, they were decomposing rapidly.
Countless ants, too numerous to count, were stripping flesh from the corpses and crawling through the gaping mouths, ears, and nostrils, devouring everything that had once formed a human shape.
At this rate, identification would be impossible.
The moment we approached, we would become their prey.
I could sense that threat clearly.
I furrowed my brow.
“This place truly has everything.”
“What… what is that thing? Ugh?!”
“You’re witnessing ants decomposing a human body. It’s not something you see every day.”
“Don’t say that!”
Unable to bear the sight, he turned away, but at my continued words, he recalled the brief glimpse he’d caught and retched again.
I let out a quiet laugh and turned my back.
“First, we need to find a place to rest. Preferably somewhere without ants.”
“Seriously!”
I turned my head at the sound of his complaint, smiling.
We needed to find a place to rest first.
In this place, everything visible is an enemy.
Only predator and prey relationships exist here.
From small insects and plants to massive beasts.
I was acutely aware that nothing could be underestimated.
To survive in this place, we had to find shelter.
And it had to be the safest place where we could catch our breath.
Only with some comfort could I think clearly, so Jang Chuchyeong and I carefully searched our surroundings for a suitable place to stay.
But it was not an easy task.
As if no safe place existed, we couldn’t find one no matter where we looked, and we had to search for over an hour.
That’s where I stopped.
It was a place where the air flowed in a way strangely different from everywhere else.
Not a single ant caught my eye, and I felt neither the gaze of threatening plants nor beasts.
A giant cave.
Compared to Gu Gunbaek’s cave, it could be called small, yet it was vast enough that hundreds of people could enter comfortably with space to spare.
Among all the shelters I had found so far, this seemed to be the finest.
But.
“…Young Master, look here.”
As I turned my head at the trembling voice, I saw countless bones scattered about.
Not only the bones of massive beasts, but large and small ones alike.
And among them, human bones as well.
I approached that place slowly.
There were clearly signs of something having torn them apart.
Judging by the traces around, it appeared someone had tried to establish a shelter here but was devoured without even managing to resist.
As I examined it briefly and let out a groan, Jang Chuchyeong tapped my shoulder, cold sweat dripping down his face.
“Let’s run!”
“There’s nowhere else to go.”
“No, don’t you see this? This is the lair of a mad monster.”
Chu Hyeongi’s words were right.
I couldn’t know who owned this place, but it seemed no weaker—perhaps even stronger—than the Black-Haired Savage Beast I had seen before.
Just looking at the overwhelming quantity of bones scattered about, my first thought was whether this might actually be where the owner lived.
But I ignored Jang Chuchyeong’s words and entered deeper into the cave.
The interior of the cave was somewhat filthy.
Beast fur scattered here and there, and a foul stench pierced my nose.
So much so that breathing itself became nearly impossible.
Yet I didn’t stop examining.
I needed to know what it was to prepare accordingly.
As I scrutinized every small detail without missing anything and furrowed my brow, Jang Chuchyeong’s voice came again.
“…Did you figure something out?”
“It’s a creature of massive size. Overwhelmingly so.”
“Eek?!”
Jang Chuchyeong gasped in alarm and dragged my arm.
As I was pulled along by his strong grip, I continued to scan the cave with my eyes.
Judging by the marks on the walls, the creature was large.
Overwhelmingly so, as I said.
Sharp claw marks appeared on the upper part of the wall, at a height one could barely reach by jumping, suggesting the creature was similar to a feline.
And it possessed exceptional intelligence.
From there, my conclusion naturally converged into one.
“A tiger?”
Considering that all the beasts I had seen so far were at least twice the size of ordinary ones, the tiger living here was likely far larger than imagination.
Or perhaps…
“Could it be a spirit beast?”
“A spirit beast?! The kind that only appears in stories?”
“Yes. Anyway, let’s get out of here. There’s nothing good about staying longer.”
“Then you shouldn’t have looked in the first place!”
Jang Chuchyeong bellowed loudly and pulled me forward with even greater force, sprinting ahead. Given his strength, his running speed while dragging me along was quite impressive.
We had been moving like this for some time.
Suddenly, Jang Chuchyeong’s footsteps stopped.
“…!”
“Who goes there!”
Clang-!
Unexpectedly, there were people right before us.
Three or four figures dressed in pure white martial robes were positioned against what looked like a cliff face.
Looking closely, I could see a narrow gap in the wall—barely wide enough for an adult man to squeeze through.
It appeared they had set up camp there, and one man was emerging from the crevice, his body tensing as he turned to guard against us.
“Young master? Could those be… .”
“Yes, the ones I’ve been searching for.”
I regarded them calmly.
Their number was four.
Since I sensed no presence from within the wall, that count should be accurate.
Considering the corpses of the dead scattered throughout this place, were they perhaps searching here in organized squads?
I examined the embroidery on their martial robes and smiled.
“Sin Gak men? Then that means both Sin Gak and the Snake Clan are here together.”
“…What kind of fool are you?”
The Sin Gak men narrowed their eyes and released their killing intent.
The pressure was strong enough to feel—their level was formidable.
Had their numbers been greater, it would certainly have felt threatening.
But with only four of them, the fact that I had noticed them was their misfortune.
Shing-
I slowly drew my blade.
Jang Chuchyeong beside me also sensed something was amiss and took his stance.
The sharp killing intent of those who recognized each other as enemies cut through the air.
Yet, it hardly mattered.
“A perfect hideout has just presented itself.”
I smiled wickedly and rushed forward.
Clang-!
Someone blocked my blade and retreated half a step.
Simultaneously, a precise strike aimed at my body came from the side. I tilted my head to evade it, twisted my body to change direction, and thrust my blade forward, targeting the heart.
Squelch-!
“Gack?!”
As the final man’s scream pierced the air, one of them clutched his heart and collapsed, yet his companions showed no concern for their fallen comrade—only sharper blades came flying toward me.
The blade pierced precisely through the chest of the fallen man, but as if anticipated, the attacker stepped closer, withdrew it, and thrust upward, aiming for my jaw.
Squelch—Shriek!
It was a grotesque sight, cutting through a corpse, yet it seemed of little consequence to these men.
Feeling the blade graze my jaw as I stepped back, Jang Chuchyeong’s fist suddenly erupted from between the enemies.
“Haaaagh—!”
Thud-thud-thud-thud-crack!
A torrent of fist energy hammered across my entire body.
From the upper body to the lower.
It was a technique as if pounding a person into submission.
Crunch-crunch!
Bones shattered, organs twisted, and blood sprayed from his mouth. The moment I confirmed the once-vital man’s eyes dimming helplessly as he collapsed.
I swung my blade.
Slice!
Behind the falling man, the head of the one who had been targeting Jang Chuchyeong’s opening flew through the air.
Thump!
As the severed head fell absurdly to the ground, the body spewed blood and crumbled.
I confirmed it and turned my gaze.
Clang!
I lightly swung my blade to block the incoming strike.
Only one remained now.
Though he tried to conceal it, the man clearly felt fear, and I offered him a light smile as I observed his expression.
Crash!
Soon my swung blade glanced past his sword and in an instant flashed, severing the tendons in his leg.
“Kugh?!”
The man shrieked and collapsed, his body trembling.
As the blade pointed at him and he swallowed hard, about to bite down on something in his mouth.
I quickly reached out and seized his face with a firm grip.
“Gaaaaah!”
“There are many ways to loosen a heavy tongue. Especially here, there could be nothing better. Let’s see how long you can endure.”

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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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