Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 172 – Cho Tae-cheong (4)

From the round entrance of smoke near the ceiling, Yeo Su-rin clicked her tongue.

She didn’t expect this to actually work.

When she first heard Mok Gyeong-un’s plan, she thought he was crazy.

[What? You want to go back to that person?]

[Yes.]

[Are you insane? We barely escaped, and you want to go back? If you get caught this time, you might die.]

The Three-Eyed, known as the Wretched Fiend.

The number of diviners who died by his hands was too many to count.

Yet, he said he would return to such a person. He must be out of his mind.

[Even if I die, I won’t regret it.]

[No, that’s not the issue. I saved you, and now you’re saying you’ll die again. Do you think I’ll just agree and let you do that?]

[But if we miss this opportunity when his familiars aren’t by his side, it will be harder to kill him later.]

At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, Yeo Su-rin became genuinely concerned.

Does he really believe he can kill that monster?

If it were possible, the Three-Eyed would have died long ago.

[Please, I’m begging you. Let’s just go.]

[If you don’t help me, I have no choice. I’ll have to go back alone.]

[…Are you threatening me now?]

[Threatening? I only said I’d go alone.]

[That’s a threat. You’re trying to stimulate my tender, pure sympathy, aren’t you?]

[Not to that extent.]

[…How annoying.]

Yeo Su-rin clicked her tongue.

Two beasts at the monstrous-level were guarding outside.

If he went out like this, his body might be torn to shreds and become food for those two monsters.

Ignoring him and leaving felt truly unsettling.

[Argh! I should have just passed by earlier. Why did I have to save a stubborn person like you?!]

[You never know.]

[What?]

[If things go well and the Three-Eyed dies, your master’s concerns will be resolved, and you won’t have to push yourself to hide and monitor here anymore.]

[…You’re really confident.]

[You won’t know until you try.]

Mok Gyeong-un smiled brightly.

Seeing him like this made her burst with frustration.

Why are men so insistent on trying things before knowing if it’s dung or sauce?

Yeo Su-rin shook her head and said, [I don’t know. If you want to die so badly, do as you wish. I’ll bet on you failing, crying, and regretting it.]

[What if I succeed?]

[What?]

[What will you do if I succeed?]

No, why is he showing such confidence?

Does he have some hidden trump card?

[Sigh…]

After staring at Mok Gyeong-un for a while, she took something out of her bosom and showed it.

It resembled the treasure she wore on her index and middle fingers.

[What’s that?]

[If you succeed, I’ll give you this.]

[You had two of them?]

[No, this is a spare my master gave me in case I lose the treasure.]

[A spare?]

[Yes. It can only be used once. But it can open a door anywhere within a radius of about two hundred zhang.]

[Oh.]

[You’re probably filled with greed again, right?]

[How could I not be?]

[You’re honest. Anyway, if you succeed, I’ll give you this.]

It was a temporary treasure prepared for an emergency, which could only be used once.

If, by any chance, this man could really kill the Three-Eyed, she wouldn’t need to monitor him anymore according to her master’s orders, and she wouldn’t be in danger.

-Pak!

Yeo Su-rin grabbed the sleeve of Mok Gyeong-un’s arm and said, [If you want this, then make sure to succeed. I really don’t want to see you trying to commit suicide after I saved you.]

[I’ll have to succeed, even if it’s just to get what you’re offering.]

[I guess you’re more interested in the leftovers than the main dish. You’re quite unusual. Sigh, so what’s the plan? I have no intention of helping if I feel like I’ll be in danger.]

[Just open the entrance.]

[What?]

[As long as you open it at the exact location I specify at the moment I give the signal. And close it right away since it’s dangerous.]

[…Is that really all you need?]

[Yes, that’s all.]

What is he thinking?

Is that really enough?

It was truly puzzling for her.

However…

‘…This person knows martial arts.’

It was a part Yeo Su-rin hadn’t predicted at all.

She was convinced that Mok Gyeong-un, who was knowledgeable about sorcery and techniques, must be a diviner from the same industry.

But she couldn’t help but be surprised by his martial arts skills that surpassed her expectations.

She had heard that only martial artists with quite advanced skills could send sharp energy from a sword over a long distance.

Yet Mok Gyeong-un was capable of that.

‘Could it be that he’s not a diviner but a martial artist?’

Just seeing him somersault and land, he was far from ordinary people.

Who exactly is this person?

Did he learn both sorcery and martial arts?

At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un raised his head and looked at Yeo Su-rin.

Seeing him like this, she clicked her tongue.

‘He’s telling me to give it to him.’

Yeo Su-rin immediately understood why Mok Gyeong-un was looking at her.

In a situation where his life might be in danger if he failed, he hadn’t forgotten about this.

He must have really coveted it.

‘Impressive. Truly impressive.’

So, she put her hand in her bosom and took out the spare treasure.

Then she glanced at Cho Tae-cheong, who had collapsed on the floor, staggering.

No matter how outstanding a diviner or a Wretched Fiend he was, he wouldn’t be able to avoid death with a dagger deeply embedded in his third eye before it could fully open.

With that…

“Catch.”

-Swish!

-Tak!

Mok Gyeong-un caught the spare ring treasure she threw.

Although his face was covered like a mask with a black cloth, the corners of his mouth slightly rose.

Even if it could only be used once, it was sufficiently valuable.

He had to kill the enemy anyway, so getting this on top of that was quite a bonus.

Mok Gyeong-un looked through the door of smoke open in the ceiling and said, “Aren’t you coming over?”

At Mok Gyeong-un’s question, Yeo Su-rin slightly poked her head out and said, “He’s definitely dead, right?”

-…Ah.

At that moment, Cheong-ryeong let out a sigh.

Mok Gyeong-un asked in puzzlement, -Why are you sighing?

-That wretched girl said something inauspicious.

-What do you mean?

-Keep this in mind. After fighting an enemy, it’s best to avoid saying things like “He’s dead, right?”, “Is he dead?”, or “Did you get rid of him?”

-Is that a problem?

-In my long experience, when someone says such useless things, it’s an ominous sign…

-Crack!

Before Cheong-ryeong could finish speaking.

At that moment, the body of Cho Tae-cheong, who had collapsed with a dagger stuck in his head, stood up straight as if someone had lifted him.

‘!!!!!!!!’

“Be careful!”

Yeo Su-rin hurriedly formed a simple hand seal with her left hand.

-Pak! Pak! Pak! Pak!

Lim (臨)! Byeong (兵)! Gae (皆)! Jin (陳)!

‘Five Spirits Heavy Strike Technique!’

As she extended her hand, a huge pillar of energy shaped like a beam descended upon Cho Tae-cheong, whose body had been lifted.

It had the force to instantly flatten Cho Tae-cheong’s body.

However…

-Crack!

Before it could even touch him, it was split into a cross shape.

‘Gasp!’

What was happening?

The power emanating from Cho Tae-cheong was beyond imagination.

It possessed an ominous and evil energy that was hard to believe belonged to a human.

-Pak!

At that moment, Cho Tae-cheong reached out his left hand towards Yeo Su-rin.

Then, Yeo Su-rin’s body on the ceiling was about to be pulled towards him.

“How persistent.”

-Swish!

However, in that instant, Mok Gyeong-un used his Clear and Manifest Water Crossing Steps to appear in front and tried to cut off Cho Tae-cheong’s left arm with the Evil Commandment Sword.

But at that moment…

-Roar!

The surroundings were shrouded in dark shadows, and Mok Gyeong-un’s movements froze in place.

All his senses were lost, and once again, everything except his consciousness was taken away.

‘!?’

In this situation, Mok Gyeong-un saw Cho Tae-cheong’s strange state.

With his eyes rolled back and a dagger embedded in his forehead, he was no different from a dead person.

Yet, how could he move in this situation?

Moreover, he seemed to have no consciousness at all.

It was then.

-Crack! Crack!

At that moment, something appeared as Cho Tae-cheong’s cheeks split open.

It was none other than an injured eyeball.

The center of the eyeball was sunken as if stabbed by something, and black blood flowed from it.

‘Could it be?’

As he thought that, Cho Tae-cheong opened his mouth, staggering with a hoarse voice.

“You damn human, how dare you stab my eye?”

That voice was filled with anger and murderous intent.

Seeing him like this, Mok Gyeong-un, with only his consciousness alive, inwardly clicked his tongue.

Considering he was alive despite his eye being stabbed and a dagger penetrating his brain, he was already a being that could hardly be considered human.

It seemed there was a reason he was called a Wretched Fiend.

“I’ll make you feel the same pain.”

With those words, Cho Tae-cheong snatched the Evil Commandment Sword from Mok Gyeong-un’s hand.

And as he gripped the hilt…

-Flinch! Tremble!

At that moment, Cho Tae-cheong’s injured eyeball trembled.

“…What’s with this sword?”

Suddenly, a spiritual energy trying to interfere with his consciousness through the sword’s hilt made Cho Tae-cheong hurriedly try to let go of the sword.

It was at that very moment.

-Swoosh!

“Kuh!”

In a brief instant, Cho Tae-cheong’s neck was severed.

Thanks to the interference with his consciousness, his power was disrupted for a moment.

Mok Gyeong-un didn’t miss that moment.

In that fleeting instant when his senses temporarily returned, he cut off the guy’s neck.

“You’re quite unlucky.”

He finally had a chance to kill him, but when he tried to take revenge by grasping the demonic sword, the Evil Commandment Sword, he suffered a setback.

-Thud!

“Ah!”

At that moment, Yeo Su-rin, who fell from the ceiling to the floor and landed on her bottom, was dumbfounded.

“Ouch, my butt. W-What’s going on? Eek!”

She couldn’t hide her bewilderment upon seeing Cho Tae-cheong’s severed neck.

What on earth had happened?

It felt like only her time had stopped for a moment and then flowed again.

It was as if the flow had been cut off.

Cheong-ryeong clicked his tongue and said, -What a truly bizarre fellow. To revive even after the source of his energy was stabbed and his brain was penetrated.

He had a truly tenacious vitality that could no longer be considered human but an beast.

But now that his neck was severed, it would be difficult for him to truly revive.

Or so he believed, but a strange thing was happening inside Cho Tae-cheong’s severed head.

-Thump! Thump!

The third eye with blood vessels rising.

Unlike the dead body, that eye possessed its own sense of self.

‘Damn it.’

It was a clear mistake.

When his senses were taken away, he should have killed this bastard without caring about the repercussions of losing his body.

But he messed up because of that damn demonic sword.

With just this head, it was impossible to deal with that guy.

Now that it had come to this, the only answer was to play dead, wait, and find a new body.

‘Just you wait.’

Even though he hadn’t seen his face, he remembered his voice.

The moment he found a new body, he would definitely kill him…

-Squish!

Right at that moment, Cho Tae-cheong’s head was crushed.

It was because Mok Gyeong-un had stepped on the head.

“Ah! What are you doing now?”

“Making sure.”

Yeo Su-rin protested, unable to bear the sight of the head being crushed, but Mok Gyeong-un ignored her and continued to step on Cho Tae-cheong’s head.

-Squish! Squish!

“Hmm?”

Then, he put his hand into the crushed, miserable thing and took something out.

It was none other than the eyeball.

‘T-This bastard!’

The blood vessels in the eyeball were raised and trembling wildly.

Looking at this eyeball, Mok Gyeong-un chuckled and said, “I had a hunch, but it seems to be an independent existence separate from the dead body.”

At these words, the eyeball couldn’t hide its inner bewilderment.

This bastard had noticed its true nature.

Until now, even diviners hadn’t detected it, but its existence was exposed to a guy like this?

-Creak!

Then so be it.

It’s commendable that you noticed my existence, but you made one mistake.

You should have at least avoided direct contact with me.

-Splat! Splat!

At that moment, blood vessels shot out from the eyeball and dug into the flesh of Mok Gyeong-un’s fingers.

‘I’ll take over your body like this… Argh!’

-Sizzle! The blood vessels that had dug into the flesh were soon burned.

‘P-Poison?’

The eyeball was dumbfounded.

It had tried to penetrate his skin and consume his blood and nerves.

But this bastard’s blood was poison itself.

The poisonous energy coming through the blood vessels was too painful.

-Shrink!

The eyeball trembled and twisted in agony.

Seeing this, Yeo Su-rin said with wide eyes, “T-The eyeball seems to be suffering and shrinking.”