Tales Of The Nine Dragons [EN]: Chapter 207

Nine Dragons Chronicle (207)

Hwa-rin leisurely ate the food Wang Yi-jung made, waiting for the monks of Soeum Temple to leave the inn.

Hwa-rin took out a yellow piece of paper from his sleeve, folded it, and a bird materialized from Hwa-rin’s fingertips.

“Go outside and follow them closely. Understand?”

The paper bird seemed to understand Hwa-rin’s words, flapping its wings and flying out through the window.

“Even if they use sorcery, they won’t be able to detect me chasing them from afar.”

Even if they did discover the tail, he would have already erased his tracks, making pursuit straightforward, he mused.

“But why did they kidnap that kid?”

Hwa-rin looked out the window, a puzzled expression on his face.

“Is Natal Psha a Hwanmae constitution?” [A body suitable for soul replacement]

Spiritual medium and Hwanmae serve similar purposes, but a spiritual medium is controlled by a soul, while Hwanmae involves complete soul replacement.

“The Vajra of the Demon, the Jade Treasure of the Poison Demon, the Helmet of the Dream Demon, the Armor of the Illusion Demon, the Gloves of the Fighting Demon, the Sword of the Water Demon. These are known as the six demonic objects used to seal the six demons, but the object that seals the power of Asura is not known. Even in the legend of Sakra [King of the Devas in Buddhist tradition], it is said that Asura was imprisoned in the abyss, but there is no mention of annihilation.”

Hwa-rin’s thoughts deepened.

To onlookers, he appeared to be slowly savoring the food and alcohol, but Hwa-rin was deeply contemplating the existence of Asura.

Hwa-rin’s thoughts expanded, allowing him to process multiple ideas simultaneously, a feat made possible by his mastery of Dualism.

Despite the complexity of his thoughts, Hwa-rin maintained a blank expression, focusing solely on his mental task.

After a long period of contemplation, a hypothesis or clue surfaced from the secret arts of the Betrayers imprinted in his mind, clearing his head as if the gears of several cogwheels were finally meshing together.

“Natal Psha must be a Hwanmae constitution. And they will use the objects that sealed the energy of the six demons to replace the souls of the six demons with the soul of the Hwanmae constitution to revive them. That means there are more Hwanmae constitutions like Natal Psha.”

Hwa-rin recalled the words the Demon spoke during their battle in his mental world, solidifying his certainty.

“And their plan is to find the Abyss where Asura is sealed through the six demons, release Asura’s seal, and unleash him upon the world.”

Hwa-rin turned his gaze towards the monks of Soeum Temple, who were engaged in their yogic practices.

“The problem is, I don’t know if they only need one of the six demons, or if they need all of them.”

Hwa-rin even briefly considered approaching the monks of Soeum Temple mid-meditation to directly question them, but he decided to postpone the idea, knowing it would necessitate a thorough search of the entire Aenoesan Mountain.

“That’s right. I can retrieve the Jade Treasure and interrogate the Poison Demon.”

When he absorbed the Demon’s energy, the Demon’s spirit manifested and attempted to consume him, leading him to believe a similar event would occur with the Poison Demon.

“It’s been a while since I’ve beaten up some ghosts.”

Hwa-rin grinned and looked out the window.

* * *

The inn was deserted.

Just moments ago, it had been bustling with activity, guests coming and going, but after mealtime, it became eerily quiet.

“Are they going to eat and come back?”

Hwa-rin was waiting for Baek Gun-seong and Lee Seo-won.

He wasn’t concerned about the monks of Soeum Temple, as the paper bird talisman was diligently tracking them. However, he worried that the spirit and power of the Poison Demon sealed within the Jade Treasure might be transferred to Natal Psha, given his Hwanmae constitution, while he waited.

It was only after about two hours, as Baek Gun-seong had predicted, that they finally arrived at the inn.

“Why are you so late?”

“I told you it would take some time.”

“Still, you’re too late. I was bored waiting.”

At Hwa-rin’s words, the two exchanged dumbfounded glances and then looked at the spread of food on the table.

“You ordered a lot. Are you going to eat all of this?”

“I ordered some for you too. You haven’t eaten yet, right? Please bring all the remaining food here.”

When Hwa-rin called out to the kitchen, Wang Yi-jung, the head chef, promptly brought the remaining dishes and placed them on the table.

“Enjoy your meal, young master.”

“Thank you. The food is really delicious.”

“Haha, I’m a bit of a cook, if I do say so myself. The person who taught me how to cook…”

Wang Yi-jung launched into a lengthy boast before hurrying back to the kitchen, remembering he had left other guests’ food unattended on the fire.

“What a funny person.”

“There are all kinds. Oh, I saw the monks of Soeum Temple here.”

“What? So?”

“So what? I watched them leave. I didn’t chase after them because I was waiting for you.”

“Hey, you should have chased after them and caught them.”

“Then you wouldn’t have been able to find me. If you changed your mind later, I’d be the only one inconvenienced.”

“You could have caught them and then returned to the inn.”

“I don’t know. Anyway, I think they’re hiding in Aenoesan Mountain, and we’ll go find them after you guys fill your stomachs. So eat slowly, but also quickly.”

“How can we eat slowly and quickly?”

“Just eat.”

* * *

“Is this the right way to go?”

“Just trust me and follow me. Do you think I would have just let them go? I’ve taken all the necessary precautions; I was just waiting for you guys at the inn.”

Hwa-rin, Baek Gun-seong, and Lee Seo-won, having left the inn after their meal to find the monks of Soeum Temple, had ventured quite deep into Aenoesan Mountain.

“They say the scenery of Aenoesan Mountain is outstanding, but I don’t really see what’s so special about it. I’m too busy avoiding these poisonous creatures to appreciate the scenery.”

Hwa-rin grumbled as he carefully followed the path indicated by the paper bird talisman.

“You’ll be amazed if you look down from a high place. Find the Soeum Temple guys, get revenge, and then go up to Nuran Peak, the highest point of Aenoesan Mountain, and take a look.”

“Even if I go and look, there’s nothing special. You have to be able to see through the clouds.”

“Have you been there?”

“Of course. I’ve traveled so much that there’s hardly a place I haven’t been.”

The two shook their heads, wondering how to continue the conversation with Hwa-rin.

As they entered a deep valley, they were surrounded by ancient, towering trees, and nestled among these trees was a large cave.

As Hwa-rin approached the cave, the paper bird flew to him.

“Good job.”

The paper bird seemed to understand Hwa-rin’s words, or perhaps it had simply completed its task, as it then burned to ashes.

“The guys are inside there. Be careful when you go in.”

Hwa-rin warned the two, who responded with determined nods.

“Don’t worry. I’ve been on edge since we entered Aenoesan Mountain.”

Hwa-rin reached into the air and produced several red pieces of paper.

“Let’s go in.”

Hwa-rin threw the red papers into the cave, and as they ignited, they floated into the darkness.

The red paper floated in the air of the cave like will-o’-the-wisps, illuminating the interior.

Looking at the now-brightened cave, he said to the two:

“This way, we won’t have to worry about being ambushed in the dark.”

“You seem to be learning some sorcery. Doesn’t it conflict with martial arts?”

Baek Gun-seong asked.

“There’s no such thing as inherent conflict.”

“Really? I heard that martial arts and sorcery are incompatible and can’t be learned together.”

“That’s because they are *incompatible*. Martial arts styles also conflict if they are incompatible, and the same goes for sorcery, Taoism, and magic. However, martial artists are often unfamiliar with sorcery, Taoism, and magic, and they don’t know much about it, so they often learn things that don’t mesh well, and that’s when problems occur. But if they are compatible, it will be helpful, and there will be no conflict or inconvenience.”

Hwa-rin asked Baek Gun-seong:

“Why, are you thinking of learning sorcery?”

“No, I’m already being nagged for not knowing how to use martial arts properly, so if I say I’m going to learn sorcery, I’ll be nagged even more.”

“Who?”

Baek Gun-seong looked pointedly at Hwa-rin.

“You know.”

At that moment, Hwa-rin’s figure blurred on the spot.

“It’s them. Be careful. I’m going inside to save the girl first. Clean up these guys and then come inside.”

As Hwa-rin’s figure completely vanished, monks wearing red robes appeared.

“Who are you?”

“Why do you need to know?”

Baek Gun-seong replied and immediately attacked the monks, with Lee Seo-won assisting him.

Cheeeeng!

The monks of Soeum Temple seemed to have anticipated their attack, blocking the swords with the iron clubs they held.

The monk wielding a short club in both hands knocked away Baek Gun-seong’s sword and then swung the other club with enough force to crush Baek Gun-seong’s skull.

Baek Gun-seong leaned back to avoid the blow and then retaliated with his sword, but the monks of Soeum Temple were skilled martial artists and effectively blocked Baek Gun-seong’s attack.

The monk attacking Lee Seo-won quickly gained the upper hand and pushed him hard, causing Lee Seo-won to grit his teeth.

‘I can beat him.’

He resolved to find an opening, blocking the sword swung by the monk of Soeum Temple.

Baek Gun-seong glanced at Lee Seo-won while fighting his own opponent. Seeing Lee Seo-won’s reddened face and strained efforts, he realized that Lee Seo-won would be seriously injured if he didn’t intervene.

‘Quick decision!’

Baek Gun-seong circulated the Death Spirit Art. The energy of the Death Spirit Art flowing from his dantian [energy center] granted Baek Gun-seong tremendous power in his limbs.

“Ugh!”

The first to notice Baek Gun-seong’s change was the monk facing him.

Sensing that the force generated by the collision of the sword and the iron club was different from before, the monk of Soeum Temple looked at Baek Gun-seong, who then unleashed the Death Spirit Sword Style.

Through rigorous training, Baek Gun-seong’s Death Spirit Sword Style had become smoother, and that smoothness contained a powerful force.

A red light flickered on Baek Gun-seong’s sword, affecting the surrounding area.

The monk of Soeum Temple was intimidated by Baek Gun-seong’s full power. It was clear that Baek Gun-seong was stronger than Lee Seo-won.

Just as a tiger uses all its power to hunt a rabbit, Baek Gun-seong unleashed all his power towards the monk of Soeum Temple.

The monk of Soeum Temple tried to raise his own power to resist, but once he was pushed back by the initial momentum, it was difficult to recover.

Cheeeeng!

The energy generated by the collision of the sword and the iron club left marks on the walls and ceiling of the cave.

Baek Gun-seong’s sword, radiating a terrifying energy, aimed at the monk’s chest and thrust forward.

The monk of Soeum Temple put the iron club forward to block the sword, but at that moment, Baek Gun-seong twisted his wrist.

Due to the change in his wrist, the trajectory of the sword also changed, causing the monk of Soeum Temple to panic and attempt to counter the changing trajectory with the club in his other hand.

In the meantime, Baek Gun-seong’s body rotated, his foot soaring into the air, and his heel struck the monk’s chin directly.

It was a linked attack that the monk had not anticipated.

Puh-uhk!

With the sound of the impact, the monk’s head snapped back and he staggered. Seeing this, Baek Gun-seong slashed the monk’s back with his sword.

“Keuh-uh-uhk!”

The monk, spewing blood from his back, glared at Baek Gun-seong as if he could not accept his impending death, but Baek Gun-seong, disliking such a look, raised his sword and decapitated him.

Baek Gun-seong killed the monk of Soeum Temple and then moved to help Lee Seo-won.