Martial Arts Ain't Anything Special-Chapter 62: Demonic Arts (2)

“Well then, take care.”

“You too.”

After leaving the courtesan house with the Pavilion Lord’s farewell behind him, Seojun wrote a mental review of the mechanical formation.

The current level isn’t anything special... but if it’s properly constructed it could become troublesome.

It likely wouldn’t stop at simple traps either.

Though he hadn’t experienced it firsthand, these formations were likely integrated with battle formations.

Perhaps the Six Noble Clans or Nine Sects One Union had already established such comprehensive defenses?

He thought that an ordinary martial artist would probably become a cold corpse in those traps before even getting to fight.

Later, when he got a house to live peacefully with Chunbong, it might be nice to fortify the surroundings with mechanical formations and battle arrays.

“Hmm. Good.”

Seojun nodded with satisfaction, tucking one scroll into his clothes and unrolling the other.

“Let’s see...”

He immediately handed it to Chunbong, dizzy from the flood of countless characters written on the scroll,

“Read it for me~”

“Seriously, you bastard...”

Chunbong looked at him with an expression that seemed like she had a lot to say.

Whatever will I do with him? As she thought that, she quickly realized she would never get an answer and decided to just read the scroll.

“Hm.”

She summarized the contents after speed-reading it.

“This is about the Black Serpent. It seems the war could break out as early as this year, and the expected battlefield stretches from the Hebei Peng Clan to the Yellow River in the west. There aren’t many factions among the Seven Malevolent Dark Sects opposing the war, so most of the Black Serpent’s forces are likely to participate.”

“Seven Malevolent Dark Sects?”

“Yeah. Like the Six Noble Clans or Nine Sects One Union.”

“I see.”

Seems they’re the big shots in the Unorthodox Faction. More precisely, the big shots among the Black Serpent’s affiliates.

Seojun scratched his head and took out the other scroll.

“What about this one?”

He immediately handed it to Chunbong, who glared at him but silently unrolled and began reading the scroll without a word.

My Chunbong is such a tsundere.

While he was laughing to himself, Chunbong quickly finished speed-reading and clicked her tongue.

“We shouldn’t expect much from this one.”

“Why not?”

Seojun asked, but Chunbong stuck out her tongue and passed the scroll to Namgung Suah.

As expected, Namgung Suah also speed-read it quickly and blinked.

“Oh my. We certainly shouldn’t expect much indeed.”

“Come on, what is it?! Why am I the only one left out!”

As Seojun jumped up and down, Namgung Suah chuckled and handed him the scroll.

“There’s a place nearby suspected to be a secret cave. However, it’s uncertain what’s inside, and given that it’s remained untouched until now, it’s probably nothing too impressive.”

Seojun nodded, putting the scroll away without even reading it.

“But if it’s nothing impressive, wouldn’t unimpressive martial artists go and loot it?”

“Apparently the entrance is blocked by a rock of unusual material.”

“Oh.”

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If that’s the case, maybe there really is something there?

“Where is it?”

“There’s a map in the scroll.”

“Ah.”

He took out the scroll again, unrolled it, and immediately passed it to Chunbong.

“Look at the map for me.”

“Ugh please...! At least try, you bastard!”

“No way~”

“What are you gonna do without me?”

“I can’t live without my Chunbong. I’ll never let you get married...!”

“...Fine. Give it.”

Chunbong, looking somewhat pleased, examined the map.

But for some reason, the street was quite noisy.

It was natural with so many people around, but it was a bit different from just being noisy due to crowds.

“Seems like something’s going on, right?”

Namgung Suah nodded in response.

“Yes. Shall we go take a look?”

“Sure.”

Seojun picked up Chunbong, who was intently studying the map, and started walking.

— The heck’s that?

— My goodness. To think such a thing would happen in Henan.

— That’s one ballsy man.

Seojun pushed through the murmuring crowd and lifted Chunbong high above his head.

“Miss Geum, can you see anything?”

“Lift me a bit higher.”

“Like this?”

As Seojun stood on his tiptoes, Chunbong stretched her neck out to look ahead.

“That’s...”

Tap tap. She patted his hands, and he put her down.

“Let’s go take a look.”

Chunbong started actively parting the crowd to move forward.

“Stop pushing!”

“Who’s that!”

People grumbled, but they couldn’t stop Peak Realm Chunbong.

When the group finally broke through the crowd, Seojun raised his eyebrows at what he saw.

“Oh...”

“It’s a mummy.”

It was as Namgung Suah said. A mummy. Simply put, a dried-up human corpse.

The desiccated human corpse lay in an alley not far from the main street.

Seojun approached the mummy, crouched down, and examined it closely.

Though Seojun lacked expert knowledge, he sensed a familiar qi from this mummy.

Dark and gloomy, yet warm and virtuous.

He was staring at that mysterious qi like he was entranced by it when Namgung Suah let out a cold sweat.

“Demonic qi... It seems a demonic adept really has entered Henan.”

“Demonic qi? This?”

“Yes. Qi that’s sinister yet grimy, suffocating yet horrible. This is demonic qi.”

Horrible? It’s not that bad... More like adorable, if anything.

Seojun scratched his head as he looked at the adorably swirling demonic qi.

You’ve had it rough. Seems like getting hated on is just another day, huh?

If even the kind-hearted Namgung Suah spoke that way, it was obvious how other martial artists would view demonic qi, weird tastes aside.

“Please make way!”

“Excuse us for a moment, benefactors. We have urgent business.”

While Seojun was comforting the demonic qi, balls of light approached the group.

“Ugh...! My eyes...! Is this sorcery...!?”

“It’s just bald heads, please!”

Several bald men approached the group.

“Amitabha. We meet again, benefactors.”

Hyeun was among them.

He bowed slightly, then frowned upon seeing the mummy.

“That demonic adept bastard has done such a thing again.”

“Hyeun.”

“...I apologize.”

A reverse long-haired monk scolded Hyeun and stepped forward. By that, he was still bald but had a long beard.

“Benefactor, did you perhaps see anything?”

Seojun looked around. It seemed he was being addressed.

“No. I just arrived.”

“I see. We need to examine the body, so could you please make way for a moment?”

“Ah, yes.”

Seojun stepped aside slightly and approached Hyeun.

“Who is that?”

“That is my fourth martial uncle, Abbot Ji-am.”

“I see.”

Even with that explanation, he didn’t really understand, but he got the general idea.

“Is there anything I can help with?”

“This happened in Shaolin’s jurisdiction. We cannot trouble benefactors.”

“Is that so?”

Seojun watched Ji-am examine the mummy for a moment before nodding to Chunbong and Namgung Suah.

“Shall we get going then?”

There was nothing more to gain from staring at the mummy, and there was no need to play detective.

The group left after briefly greeting the Shaolin monks.

“Is that secret cave or whatever close to here?”

Chunbong nodded at Seojun’s question.

“It’s close.”

“I get it now. You mean it’s about three or four days away, right?”

“What are you talking about? It should take less than a day.”

“What?”

The fuck does close mean in murim?

It seemed anything within a week was considered close, but he just really couldn’t understand.

“Anyways, let’s go then.”

The Chunbong Spirit Pill Exploration Team sets out.

*At the Hao Sect’s Henan branch, the Crescent Moon Pavilion, the Pavilion Lord closed his eyes at the approaching presence.

Somehow, he had a bad feeling.

He heard a subordinate’s voice from beyond the thin paper door.

“...Pavilion Lord, there’s an intruder. They don’t seem to be an ordinary master. What should we do?”

“Don’t provoke them unnecessarily. Let them in.”

“Yes.”

Soon, one presence drew closer. It was his subordinate’s.

But when the paper door opened, there were two silhouettes.

The Pavilion Lord frowned from behind the current, sensing something off. The figure before him seemed simultaneously there and not there.

“What business do you have?”

“That’s for you to find out. Isn’t that your job?”

“Hah...”

The Pavilion Lord let out a bitter laugh as he observed the old man beyond the curtain.

The meticulously crafted curtain allowed him to see the other side clearly while remaining hidden himself.

An old man with graying hair. A martial arts master at that. From the air about him, regardless of his presence, he was not one who walked the path of righteousness.

While his hands were clean and his clothes neat, his eyes were bloodshot and traces of figure were visible all over.

He couldn’t tell much, but he could make a rough guess.

“Are you the one Shaolin is chasing?”

“Heheh, you’re not completely clueless.”

Damn it. The Pavilion Lord gritted his teeth.

If he wasn’t careful, today could be his last.

Not all lunatics practiced demonic arts, but those who did were all insane.

Just looking at that old man’s eyes, he could tell. He was absolutely not in his right mind.

He was different from the Mad Hungry Wolf. That one was crazy, but within reasonable limits. That degree of craziness could even be considered delightful.

But look at this old man. No sane person could have such eyes.

The Pavilion Lord was confident he wouldn’t be surprised even if the guy started gnawing on the courtesan house floor right now.

“Since you got one right, I’ll tell you one thing. What I’m looking for is...”

Step—

The old man approached while dragging out his words.

The Pavilion Lord checked the newly repaired mechanical formation.

Should he say something?

There was no guarantee the mechanical formation could kill him, so the Pavilion Lord made his decision.

“Be careful. There’s a mechanical formation ahead, so it would be best not to approach.”

“A mechanical formation? Do you think such a thing could stop this old man?”

And naturally, he’s going to walk right in. Why? This is why you shouldn’t associate with martial artists.

The Pavilion Lord gritted his teeth as the old man took a step.

Click—

The floor gave way, and arrows and needles shot out from all directions.

The old man spun in mid-air, then released a burst of qi to block the incoming weapons.

Boom!

The courtesan house shook from the qi wave, but the old man couldn’t help but widen his eyes.

Swords and spears shot up from the floor with a slight delay. The force imbued within them was not ordinary.

“You deceived me!”

The old man twisted and turned. A spear grazed the tip of his nose.

In that same instant, he wrapped reinforced qi around his hand to deflect the sword and kicked away the spear grazing him to escape the hole in the floor. He landed back where he had originally been standing, not where the Pavilion Lord was.

A long cut appeared across his cheek.

The old man licked the trail of blood flowing down and glared at the Pavilion Lord with red eyes.

“You damned punk! Repaying this old man’s kindness with evil!”

“Did I not clearly warn you beforehand about the mechanical formation?”

“Shut up! Who made this! No, someone has tampered with it! You dare deceive me? Tell me their name at once!”

The Pavilion Lord cursed inwardly while trying to maintain a calm voice.

“I know nothing about it. What do you mean someone tampered with the mechanical formation?”

“Someone touched it! Someone definitely touched it!”

The old man raged, stomping his feet like he was about to charge at the Pavilion Lord at any moment.

The Pavilion Lord gestured to his guards not to come out while breaking into a cold sweat.

“Listen. First...”

“I won’t ask again. Who was it!?”

If that old man charged, his head would be smashed in a single move.

The Pavilion Lord’s eyes widened.

Such a madman wouldn’t spare his life even if he gave a name. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to go out with some dignity?

A strained, bitter smile formed on the Pavilion Lord’s lips.

“The Hao Sect may be called a third-rate group of bottom feeders, but we are not without righteousness. Do as you will, but know that your plans will not—”

“Damn you!”

Crash!

The old man fled, smashing through the courtesan house wall in his escape.

The Pavilion Lord stared at the hole punched through the wall, completely dumbfounded.

“What in the world...”

At that moment, another figure flew in through the same hole in the wall.

The Pavilion Lord clutched his throbbing head and asked, looking around.

“Haah... What business does Shaolin have now?”

“Pardon the intrusion, benefactor. Did you perhaps hear anything from the demonic adept who just left?”

“He just spouted a bunch of nonsense before running away.”

“Amitabha... I see. Thank you.”

The monk darted back out through the hole in the wall and the Pavilion Lord heaved a sigh deep enough to sink the ground.

“...Everyone.”

At his call, the guards rushed out immediately.

“We truly apologize, Pavilion Lord!”

“It’s fine. If you had shown up, the situation would have only become more complicated.”

He sighed and slumped to the floor.

“These damn martial artists.”

Though he had learned martial arts himself, he could never understand the minds of those truly immersed in the martial world.

“Should we just close up shop?”

“P-Pavilion Lord...”

“I’m kidding. This is just fucking great.”

Haha, the Pavilion Lord laughed bitterly as he looked up at the ceiling.

Thank you, Mad Hungry Wolf. You saved my life.

If the old man hadn’t retreated once because of the mechanical formation, his neck might have been snapped before Shaolin arrived.

The Pavilion Lord hadn’t wanted to die a dog’s death.

“I’ll buy you a drink next time we meet.”

He could almost hear the Mad Hungry Wolf’s voice saying, ‘Wow really?’

Now that he thought about it, it would probably be better if he never met the Mad Hungry Wolf again either.

Pavilion Lord is such a mood. I feel him.