Chapter 312: Connection |
Chapter 312
Connection
Even though he was wrapped in extreme yang energy, the child's punch was just that – a child's punch. To So-cheon-ju, who had reached great heights, it was merely 'child's play.'
To block it, he didn't even need to use his full strength. Just a slight breath would have sufficed.
However, the problem was that he was in the midst of facing the Shaolin Dragon.
That slight breath led to a fatal outcome.
While moving his right hand to block the child's punch that flew towards his face, Mu-jin’s punch, which did not miss the opportunity, flew towards So-cheon-ju's abdomen.
In the midst of this, So-cheon-ju barely managed to block Mu-jin's punch with his arm while deflecting the child's punch.
“Ugh…”
So-cheon-ju vomited blood from Mu-jin’s great strength and was pushed back.
The strain of rapidly moving his internal energy caused his barely healed danjeon to crack again.
Unable to withstand the shock, So-cheon-ju turned pale and even let go of the precious child he was holding.
Plop!
Instead of finishing off So-cheon-ju, Mu-jin dashed towards the child thrown away by So-cheon-ju and caught him in mid-air.
Having successfully secured the child, Mu-jin prepared to charge at So-cheon-ju for the final blow.
Though fighting while holding a child wouldn't be easy, given So-cheon-ju's pale state, it seemed a decisive victory was within reach.
However,
“Protect him!!”
Before Mu-jin could charge at So-cheon-ju, the Red Flame King, who was fighting Mu-gyeong, shouted.
Despite suffering internal injuries from Mu-jin and accumulating cuts from the Asura Path during the fight with Mu-gyeong,
Slash!
Even while being cut by the Asura Path, he leaped to protect So-cheon-ju as he gave the order.
The behavior of the Red Flame King, one of the Four Heavenly Kings of the Demon Cult, puzzled the disciples of Shaolin and Wudang.
Why did the Red Flame King refer to a young man who appeared to be a mere demon cultist as ‘him’?
Why was their superior, the Red Flame King, so determined to protect this young man?
Why had they helped this young man kidnap the child?
Why must they protect this young man?
Although there were many incomprehensible things, they willingly threw themselves into the fray.
The fanatics of the Demon Cult, who were accustomed to strict obedience, found it only natural.
Slash!
Several demon cultists were cut by the swords of the Wudang Swordmasters or the attacks of the Shaolin monks as they disregarded their opponents to move.
Disregarding injuries, they charged towards Mu-jin.
“Get out of my way!!!”
While Mu-jin, driven by anger, killed several demon cultists, the Red Flame King, suppressing his internal injuries, launched the Explosive Soul Demon Palm at Mu-jin.
Bang!!
As he neutralized the Explosive Soul Demon Palm with a counter-punch,
“Clear the way!!”
The disciples of Shaolin and Wudang also swung their swords and striking bone techniques at the demon cultists.
Thanks to this, Mu-jin, who passed the demon cultists clinging like leeches, prepared to charge at the young man again.
“Kill me and go!!”
The Red Flame King, who was coughing up blood from internal injuries, blocked Mu-jin’s path once more.
Though defeating the already injured Red Flame King wouldn't be difficult,
“Ugh!”
The Red Flame King clung to Mu-jin like a leech in a gruesome manner.
Thunk!
By the time Mu-jin finally landed a decisive blow to the Red Flame King’s abdomen,
The young man had already vanished into the bushes, disappearing from Mu-jin's sight.
"Ugh."
Before long, the last demon cultist fell, his abdomen pierced by the sword of a Wudang swordsman.
Barely a quarter-hour had passed since the battle started, and over thirty demon cultists had all fallen.
During this, not a single Shaolin or Wudang disciple had died, and injuries were minimal.
Even if the battle had progressed normally, victory was certain, but such a one-sided and overwhelming victory would have been impossible.
But because the demon cultists recklessly threw themselves to protect the young man, the battle inevitably turned one-sided.
With all the demon cultists down, Mu-jin was about to pursue the young man.
However, before he could move, Mu-gyeong and Mu-yul spoke up.
“Mu-jin!”
“Someone's coming!”
“Ugh!”
Considering the signal flare they fired at the beginning of the battle, it was obvious what kind of forces were coming.
“Ugh…”
At that moment, a pained groan escaped from the child in Mu-jin’s arms.
“Damn.”
Setting his frustration aside, Mu-jin had no choice but to make a decision.
“We'll retreat while covering our tracks!”
If they continued to fight while chasing the young man, the child’s life would be in danger.
Having decided to retreat, Mu-jin approached the fallen Red Flame King.
“I was right to save my strength at the end.”
While fighting the Red Flame King, Mu-jin had confirmed the young man's escape and had knocked out the Red Flame King instead of killing him, just in case.
Although it was disappointing not to interrogate the young man directly, the Red Flame King's desperate attempt to protect him suggested he knew a considerable amount.
* * *
After covering their tracks, they stopped after gaining some distance.
“Elder Monk, the child's condition is deteriorating,”
Mu-jin said as he handed the child in his arms to Hyun-hyeon.
Though Mu-jin's martial prowess was greater than Hyun-hyeon's, Mu-jin had trained primarily in external techniques and had little experience with such situations.
Hyun-hyeon, after taking the child from Mu-jin, immediately started diagnosing the child and frowned.
“The extreme yang energy is running rampant, completely disrupting his qi pathways. At this rate, it's not surprising that his eight extraordinary meridians could melt down. We need to stabilize the child's qi immediately with an energy healer.”
The child had mimicked So-cheon-ju's technique and unleashed extreme yang energy, but it was more a desperate struggle for survival.
Moreover, the child's actions were merely an imitation. The young man's technique, which could be called divine, wasn't something a child could simply mimic.
Though the child avoided immediate death, his insides were now like a powder keg that could explode at any moment.
'If I had pushed to chase that guy, the child might have been in danger.'
Mu-jin felt relieved that he had given up chasing the young man.
If he had caught the young man only to find the child dead in his arms, the feeling would have been indescribably terrible.
After finishing his diagnosis, Hyun-hyeon placed the child on the ground and said,
“Help the child sit cross-legged.”
“Yes, Elder Monk.”
Following his instructions, the Shaolin disciples helped the child, who was about to have a convulsive fit, sit cross-legged, and Hyun-hyeon placed his palm on the child's back.
“Hoo.”
Given the child's serious condition, Hyun-hyeon broke out in a sweat as he performed the energy stabilization.
Some waited nearby to assist Hyun-hyeon, while others stood in a circle, guarding the area in case of emergencies.
After watching Hyun-hyeon's energy stabilization for a while, Mu-jin moved.
“Where are you going, Mu-jin?”
Mu-gyeong asked, and Mu-jin pointed to the unconscious Red Flame King slung over his shoulder.
“Since we’re waiting, I thought I’d interrogate him.”
“Ah…”
After explaining, Mu-jin carefully moved to a secluded spot.
Forcibly shoving a Spirit Reviving Pill from the Sichuan Tang Clan into the mouth of the Red Flame King, whose pressure points he had suppressed, Mu-jin watched as his resistance faded and his eyes glazed over.
Thud.
After releasing the pressure points he had suppressed, Mu-jin spoke,
“Who is that young man?”
“That…young man?”
“The young one you tried to protect.”
“He…is So-cheon-ju-nim.”
“So-cheon-ju?”
Mu-jin raised his eyebrows at the answer and asked again, and the Red Flame King replied with a hazy gaze,
“He is the heir of Cheon-ju-nim.”
“Is Cheon-ju the leader of your Shinchun?”
“Yes.”
With this answer, Mu-jin realized that his hypothesis was correct.
Even though they used the name 'Shinchun,' the highest rank Mu-jin knew was ‘Inju.’
“Other than Cheon-ju and Inju, are there any other positions above the rank of Daeju?”
“I don’t…know.”
“Do you know if there are others who have learned the Celestial Blood Absorption Technique besides So-cheon-ju?”
“I don’t know.”
“Are there any other heirs of Cheon-ju besides So-cheon-ju?”
“I don’t know.”
Watching the Red Flame King answer with "I don’t know" to everything, Mu-jin’s eyebrows twitched.
‘This bastard?’
He wanted to punch him, but knowing it would be pointless, he stopped.
Given that his will was controlled by the Spirit Reviving Pill, it seemed he genuinely didn't know.
Thus, Mu-jin asked more specifically,
“How did you come to know about So-cheon-ju?”
Finally, the Red Flame King gave a slightly more detailed answer to Mu-jin’s question.
“The day before leaving for Nanzhao from the main stronghold of the Demon Cult, Yi Dae-ju introduced
him.”
“By Yi Dae-ju, do you mean the Bright Left Envoy of the Demon Cult?”
“Yes.”
“What exactly did he say?”
“He said that since So-cheon-ju would secretly join the expedition to Nanzhao, I should do my utmost to assist him. He also said that if So-cheon-ju acted impulsively, I should either stop him or report to Yi Dae-ju if I couldn’t.”
Hearing the long and detailed explanation from the dazed Red Flame King, Mu-jin asked again,
“So you didn’t know about So-cheon-ju’s existence until this expedition?”
“Yes.”
Having heard all the answers, Mu-jin sorted through his thoughts.
‘If that guy is the heir of Cheon-ju, the leader of Shinchun, then Cheon-ju must also have learned a similar martial art.’
In the world of martial arts, it was natural for the leader and heir to learn the same martial art, regardless of the family or sect.
Excluding the Black Path gangs or the bandit groups of the Green Forest, at least Shinchun wouldn’t be like them.
‘Even if Cheon-ju has multiple heirs, being called So-cheon-ju means that guy is the most skilled.’
Mu-jin felt a sense of relief at that thought.
If there were many such people, it would have been horrifying.
Recalling the disposition of the young man he had fought twice, Mu-jin asked again,
“How did Yi Dae-ju seem when giving you orders? Did it seem planned from the start for So-cheon-ju to join, or was it sudden?”
“…It was unplanned.”
With the Red Flame King's answer, Mu-jin nodded, ‘I thought so.’
‘Given his lack of actual combat experience despite his skill and his arbitrary decisions, it seems he forced his way into the mission.’
Because of that guy’s involvement, Ou-yang Pae suffered internal injuries, bringing crisis to the traitors, but thanks to his foolish decisions, Mu-jin managed to capture the Red Flame King and easily slaughter dozens of demon cultists.
So why did he suddenly join the expedition to Nanzhao?
Mu-jin, who was deep in thought, asked again,
“Do you know why So-cheon-ju came here?”
“…He said it was to assist Yi Dae-ju, but once we arrived, his behavior changed. He intended to take the miraculous elixir found by the late Five Dae-ju in Nanzhao.”
Finally, Mu-jin began to piece together the puzzle in his mind.
‘The elixir he mentioned must be special-constitution children. The reason he followed the expedition to Nanzhao to absorb children is probably due to a shortage in the Central Plains.’
Shinchun’s human trafficking plans had been largely disrupted.
By none other than Mu-jin himself.
The Butterfly Effect of his actions forced So-cheon-ju, who was likely hiding and comfortably absorbing children, to come out directly.
A major character who hadn't appeared in the novel had emerged, indicating a rapidly changing situation. However, Mu-jin took this as a positive sign.
‘My efforts to disrupt Shinchun’s human trafficking have indeed been effective.’
It meant that his activities had significantly hindered Shinchun’s operations.
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