WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Episode 23: Corpse-Blood Valley Lord (2)
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Mok GyeongUn smiled faintly.
“You’re wondering how I know the secret of the Crimson Fire Sword Technique?”
‘!!!!!!!’
The eyes behind the Evil Spirit Mask widened.
Just what was this brat?
He had clearly been brought from Yeonmok Sword Manor as a hostage and sent to Corpse-Blood Valley on that person’s orders.
[It is that person’s order. Do not concern yourself with whether he is a hostage or anything else. Proceed as you always have.]
The masked figure had taken that to mean killing him would be acceptable.
Then how did this brat know about the relationship between the Crimson Fire Sword Technique and blazing Yang ki?
It was a secret known only to a few, including the Council Head.
Only four people knew: the Lee Family Head, the Young Clan Head and successor, the Valley Lord of Eccentric Medicine Valley, and the Council Head.
No one else in the Heaven and Earth Society knew.
Countless questions tangled in the masked figure’s mind, and the Evil Spirit Mask finally revealed its emotions.
Grab!
The figure seized Mok GyeongUn by the collar and held the sword to his throat again.
“Who are you really? Are you truly a child of Yeonmok Sword Manor?”
“How could I not be?”
“Rubbish! Does it make any sense for a mere child of Yeonmok Sword Manor to know this Clan’s secret...”
The eyes behind the mask narrowed.
Yes, something had felt strange.
Could it be that person, no, the Council Head, was testing the Valley Lord?
[Prove your loyalty through four generations. Then the Lee Family will be permitted to bear the title of King once more.]
That had become the Lee Family’s burden.
The Clan had stepped down from the position of King to prove it had no involvement in the bloody calamity of the Hoeryeong Great War.
From the Valley Lord’s grandfather to the present day, three generations had undertaken Corpse-Blood Valley’s missions.
Their loyalty had been tested several times.
And they had steadfastly proven it.
Before long, when the Young Clan Head and eldest son inherited the position, the promised fourth generation would be fulfilled.
Clench!
The Evil Spirit Mask bit down hard on their lip.
‘We have proven enough.’
Was it still not enough?
Had this person been sent to provoke the Valley Lord?
If the Valley Lord lost control and acted emotionally here, it would provide an excuse to delay the restoration of the King title indefinitely.
No, perhaps the Council Head had never intended to restore it in the first place.
The Evil Spirit Mask gradually regained composure.
Swish.
The masked figure lowered the sword and released Mok GyeongUn’s collar.
Then, in a calm voice, the figure said, “Did the Council Head send you to test this Valley Lord?”
“Hmm. What do you mean?”
“Do not play innocent. Now that I think of it, it was strange. Bringing not one, but two hostages here, neither of them the eldest son, was an odd thing to do.”
“...”
“If you act under that person’s orders, I will not interfere further.”
“Something...”
“There is no need to say more. I summoned you to confirm whether you were a spy. But if you were sent by the Council Head, there is no reason to ask further.”
The Evil Spirit Mask was relieved to have calmed down.
Had the Valley Lord fallen for this brat’s provocation or coveted him as a talent, word would surely have reached the Council Head.
It was fortunate that reason had returned in time.
Then Mok GyeongUn asked, “Why will you not answer my question?”
The Evil Spirit Mask frowned.
Was this brat provoking the Valley Lord again?
After glaring at Mok GyeongUn, the figure warned in a low voice, “Even if that person sent you, know your limits. Though I am not one of the Five Kings and Three Elders, I am one of the Four Valley Lords, ranked among the twelve highest in the Heaven and Earth Society.”
The Five Kings and Three Elders.
It was the title granted to the eight high-ranking officials of the Heaven and Earth Society.
Below them stood the Four Valley Lords.
Though the Four Valley Lords ranked below the Five Kings and Three Elders, they remained powerful figures within the twelve highest ranks of the Heaven and Earth Society, as well as supreme masters.
‘Oh?’
One of the twelve highest?
Mok GyeongUn considered it useful information.
Then Blue Spirit’s voice rang through his mind.
So he said, “The Lee Family was granted the title of King by the Three Veins. How did you end up becoming a Valley Lord?”
“You dare...”
The Evil Spirit Mask trembled with rising anger, then stopped.
If Mok GyeongUn had not been sent by the Council Head, an arm would have been cut off immediately.
Radiating killing intent, the Evil Spirit Mask said, “Leave this place at once. Otherwise, Council Head’s envoy or not, I will cut you down.”
In that instant, Mok GyeongUn saw an illusion of himself being cut down.
The figure had merely unleashed killing intent, yet an invisible, sharp ki weapon formed in his mind, and his skin seemed to sting.
As it was his first experience of such a phenomenon, he found it more interesting than frightening.
It was like gazing at a lofty, spectacular view.
‘This brat?’
The Evil Spirit Mask found Mok GyeongUn’s reaction absurd.
The threat had been deliberate, yet Mok GyeongUn’s lips twitched upward.
Did the brat truly have no fear?
‘Council Head.’
Had the Council Head sent him deliberately to provoke the Valley Lord to the very end?
Even knowing that, this test made it difficult to contain anger.
Then Mok GyeongUn spoke.
“Is the glove on your right hand, and the reason you wear a mask, because you still cannot control your blazing Yang ki and suffered burns?”
“...”
The Evil Spirit Mask’s hand trembled.
The figure barely resisted reaching for the sword hilt.
This brat truly had a talent for infuriating people.
“If you will not leave on your own feet, this Valley Lord will personally show you out.”
Thump!
The Evil Spirit Mask rose, about to reach toward Mok GyeongUn to throw him out.
At that moment, Mok GyeongUn formed a sword-finger seal and took an opening stance.
‘How dare he before this Valley Lord...!?’
The Evil Spirit Mask was about to break it with a grappling hold, but suddenly stopped.
Mok GyeongUn’s opening stance had startled the figure.
The eyes behind the mask trembled.
‘Th-this is?’
Among the Heaven and Earth Society’s officials, who would fail to recognize the opening stance of this sword style?
It closely resembled the opening stance of the Heavenly Vein Sword Formula.
‘Could it be?’
The Evil Spirit Mask stared at Mok GyeongUn in surprise.
Something was strange.
The Valley Lord remembered every one of the Council Head’s disciples.
Yet no matter how hard the figure thought, Mok GyeongUn was unfamiliar.
Could the Council Head have taken a new disciple?
The Evil Spirit Mask cautiously opened their mouth.
“Could it be that person has taken you as...”
Then,
Whoosh!
Mok GyeongUn extended his sword-finger seal, smoothly tracing a circular arc.
It resembled a full moon.
‘No.’
The Evil Spirit Mask’s pupils shook.
It resembled the Heavenly Vein Sword Formula, but the flow of its movements was different.
This was not the Heavenly Vein Sword Formula.
‘This is...’
Tap tap tap tap tap!
The circular arc Mok GyeongUn drew suddenly targeted the eight vital acupoints along the Evil Spirit Mask’s centerline.
The masked figure inwardly marveled at the flawless precision of the technique.
No ki weapon was carried within it, but the sword technique itself was like one performed by a supreme swordsman.
Step.
The Evil Spirit Mask retreated half a step.
With one hand still clasped behind the back, the figure formed a sword-finger seal with the other. Unable to infuse it with either ki weapon or Force of ki, the figure deployed a sword technique to block Mok GyeongUn’s technique.
Tap tap tap tap!
Though it was merely a light movement, it blocked all of Mok GyeongUn’s sword forms.
All but one.
‘This cannot be avoided.’
The Evil Spirit Mask leaped backward, avoiding Mok GyeongUn’s sword-finger seal as it thrust toward the space between the brows.
That final movement was more refined than the sword technique the Valley Lord had used, making it difficult to block by any means.
Had Mok GyeongUn continued the sword technique in this state, the Valley Lord would have been driven even further back.
Gulp.
The Evil Spirit Mask swallowed dryly.
‘There is no doubt.’
The Valley Lord had never seen it directly.
But the figure had heard of it from their grandfather.
The words slipped out unconsciously.
“The Moon Vein’s sword formula.”
“Oh. You recognized it.”
“What?”
Mok GyeongUn’s answer made the Evil Spirit Mask falter in confusion.
Could it truly be the Moon Vein’s sword formula?
“It’s hard to judge your age with that mask on, but I thought you might not recognize it, since you’re perhaps around Lee Hwa-mun’s grandson’s age. This is unexpected.”
Mok GyeongUn merely repeated what Blue Spirit had said.
The Evil Spirit Mask’s response was immediate.
Shing!
The figure drew the sword in an instant, aimed it at Mok GyeongUn’s throat, and unleashed tremendous killing intent.
“Who are you? How do you know the Moon Vein’s sword formula? And what exactly did you mean just now?”
“Um. I would prefer it if you asked one question at a time.”
That way, he could relay Blue Spirit’s words one by one.
Still, the pressure was powerful enough to make his flesh tremble.
Drip...
Though the sword had not touched him, its heat seemed enough to melt his flesh. The blade had grown so hot that it visibly glowed orange.
‘This cannot be blocked.’
Could he manage it by concentrating deathly aura at a single point?
Probably not.
This man’s martial prowess seemed no less formidable than Saber King Son Yun, who had wielded that enormous saber.
Hissssss!
Steam rose from the arm holding the sword.
The heat did not seem confined to the blade. It appeared to spread throughout the masked figure’s entire body.
The room became stiflingly hot in an instant.
The Evil Spirit Mask glared at Mok GyeongUn and spoke again.
“I have no time for word games. Speak at once. Otherwise, I will take you to the Society’s Main Base and...”
“Take me there and report that I learned the Moon Vein’s sword formula...”
“Silence!”
Grab!
With that shout, the Evil Spirit Mask gripped its edge and tore it off.
Half of the revealed face was hideously distorted by burns.
The burns were severe enough to explain why the figure wore a mask.
With trembling eyes, the unmasked figure spoke.
“The Moon Vein’s sword formula has died out. No one could read even its only martial arts book, and it was lost. How could you possibly...”
“Are you truly asking because you do not know?”
“What?”
“You said it yourself just now.”
“...You read the martial arts book? That is impossible.”
Even the Pavilion Lord of Origin-Killing Pavilion, which advised the Heaven and Earth Society on occult arts, had been unable to decipher that martial arts book.
Yet this brat had read it?
The unmasked Evil Spirit Mask, Lee Ji-yeom, furrowed his brow.
It was hard enough to believe Mok GyeongUn had read the martial arts book. Yet the things Mok GyeongUn said to him were even further beyond comprehension.
It was as if he knew far too much about the Lee Family.
“That is impossible. Reading the martial arts book alone would not...”
“Of course you would not know.”
“What?”
“You could not possibly learn things such as the Lee Family’s Crimson Fire Sword Technique and blazing Yang ki merely by reading the martial arts book. Then how do you think I know?”
Lee Ji-yeom frowned at Mok GyeongUn’s question, then opened his mouth.
“Could it be that person’s descen...”
“You are wrong.”
“If you are not a descendant, then what in the world...”
“I am that person’s direct disciple.”
‘!?’
Lee Ji-yeom’s expression hardened fiercely.
Was this brat playing with him?
He had heard it from his grandfather.
That person had been personally killed for the crime of the bloody calamity by the previous Council Head of the Heaven and Earth Society. The heart had been torn out, the limbs severed, and the head cut off and displayed for all to see.
That had been a hundred years ago.
How could this brat, who looked no older than seventeen or eighteen, possibly be that person’s direct disciple?
“Do you expect this Valley Lord to believe that? Do you truly wish to die...”
“Seeing is believing.”
Before Lee Ji-yeom could finish, Mok GyeongUn took a small wooden doll from his robes.
Then he formed a hand seal and chanted a spell.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
“Force of Fateful Origins, Ninefold Return to the Peach Garden, release!”
Lee Ji-yeom found the sight ridiculous.
Had this brat truly gone mad with the desire to die?
He was no Taoist occultist, yet he was chanting some bizarre spell...
Seep...
Then something unbelievable happened.
Drip... Drip...
Blood began to run down the walls of the office, soaking every direction in red.
Flinch!
‘What is this?’
Thinking Mok GyeongUn had used some sorcery, Lee Ji-yeom raised his sword, filled with blazing Yang ki, to cut off Mok GyeongUn’s head.
Then it happened.
Lee Ji-yeom’s eyes widened as though they would split apart at the sight of a figure rising from the blood pooling on the floor.
‘!!!!!’
A peerlessly beautiful woman with blood-red eyes, wearing a ceremonial crown and holding a smoking pipe.
The moment he saw her, radiating overwhelming pressure, the image his grandfather Lee Hwa-mun had spoken of until his ears hurt naturally overlapped with her.
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