Chapter 168:
Killing Field
“!? What the…”
For a brief moment, it crossed the Wolf King’s mind that his opponent might have been hiding his true abilities.
But soon enough, the Wolf King identified the source of the noise: the very thin silver threads visible through the tears in Mu-jin’s clothes.
“So, you had it all along!!!!”
It was the Dragon Scale Thread, an artifact meant to be given to the Wolf King.
Mu-jin had infused his internal energy into the Dragon Scale Thread, deploying the Golden Turtle Technique. However, even with the artifact’s power, the difference in their levels was insurmountable.
The Dragon Scale Thread, which resisted the Wolf King’s Do-gang while emitting a horrific scream, could not hold out for long and was shredded to pieces.
“You filthy…!!!”
Furious that the artifact meant for him was now destroyed by his own hands, the Wolf King swung his Langdao, and its saw-toothed blade bit into Mu-jin’s side.
But Mu-jin never expected the Dragon Scale Thread to block the Do-gang completely. He only hoped it would buy him a brief moment.
Seizing that moment, Mu-jin managed to grab both of the Wolf King’s hands. Even though it cost him having the saw teeth of Langdao embedded in his side, he succeeded.
“Got you.”
Despite the blood rising from his internal injuries, Mu-jin smiled like a demonic specter.
“Hmph.”
Even with his hands caught by Mu-jin, the Wolf King remained calm. One common misconception in battle was using one’s body like a sheath to bind the opponent’s weapon. It sounds easy, but it’s an impractical tactic in real combat.
When a person is stabbed in the belly, their strength tends to dissipate. Even if one endures momentarily through sheer willpower, just a small twist of the embedded blade can turn the internal organs, sapping all their strength.
Yet, why was it different this time?
“What the…!?”
Despite being stabbed in the belly and his internal organs being stirred, with blood dripping from his mouth, the grip of Mu-jin did not weaken.
Was Mu-jin’s mental fortitude strong enough to suppress his body’s instinctive reaction?
However, this was a misconception by the Wolf King. Mu-jin’s intense training allowed him to maintain enough strength to hold on to the Wolf King even as his grip weakened due to the pain.
Nevertheless, Mu-jin was still at a disadvantage. Even though he was holding the Wolf King’s hands, the Wolf King could still channel his energy into the Langdao and create a massive hole in Mu-jin’s side.
The reason Mu-jin resorted to such a risky gamble was…
“Haaat!!”
“Mu-jin!!”
Unlike the Wolf King, Mu-jin had comrades. The moment Mu-jin grasped the Wolf King’s hands, his allies shouted and unleashed their ultimate techniques on the Wolf King.
Bang!!!
However, the Wolf King did not fall instantly. He managed to block their attacks with a defensive technique, showcasing his formidable internal energy control.
Mu-jin was aware that the Wolf King had trained in defensive techniques, which was why the Dragon Scale Thread was entrusted to him in the first place. In chaotic battlefield scenarios, the Wolf King relied on his defensive techniques and the power of the Dragon Scale Thread to dominate, ignoring his defense while wielding his destructive swordsmanship.
But the Wolf King’s defensive techniques were not perfected, and more importantly, the Dragon Scale Thread had already been destroyed by his own Do-gang.
With his defensive techniques failing and internal injuries worsening, the Wolf King coughed up blood. Seizing the moment when the Wolf King’s strength faltered, Mu-jin pushed his arms away.
“Ugh…”
As the saw-toothed blade of Langdao withdrew from his side, Mu-jin let out an involuntary groan. But the Wolf King had no chance to attack Mu-jin.
Enemies surrounded him from all sides, bombarding him with their ultimate techniques, forcing the Wolf King to pour his internal energy into his defensive techniques just to survive.
“Kill, kill, kill!!!”
The Wolf King’s eyes turned red with rage. He wanted to tear these brats apart, even if it cost him his life. Thus, he decided to use his last resort, a forbidden technique that would explode his remaining energy in exchange for his life.
However, activating this technique required a specific manipulation of acupoints.
“Damn you!!”
His arms, necessary for the technique, were still held by Mu-jin.
“I will kill you all!!!”
The Wolf King screamed in fury, coughing up blood while barely maintaining his defensive techniques against the onslaught of attacks.
“Shut… up, you bastard!!”
Despite the excruciating pain making him dizzy, Mu-jin, fueled by his own rage, forcibly gathered his strength.
Pulling the Wolf King’s body with all his might, Mu-jin leaned back and headbutted the Wolf King’s nose as it drew closer.
Bang!!!
In that unexpected moment, the Wolf King’s consciousness wavered.
Slash!
Crash!!
Finally, the attacks from Mu-jin’s allies broke through the Wolf King’s defenses, piercing his body.
The Wolf King, suspected to be a member of the Seven Great Masters, likely holding vital information about Shinchun, was now dead. Ideally, he should have been captured for interrogation, but they had no other choice.
“Haaat!!”
Seizing the opportunity, the members of Cheongsu Dojang and the Muja Trio unleashed their sword and fist techniques in quick succession, battering the Wolf King’s body.
Thud…
Soon enough, the lifeless body of the Wolf King collapsed to the ground. Though they had won a fight against a master capable of freely wielding powerful energy, there was no time to rejoice.
“Mu-jin!!”
Mu-jin had also collapsed to the ground alongside the Wolf King.
“We need to find a physician in the nearest large village immediately!!”
In response to Baek Ga-hwan’s urgent cry, those in a panic quickly sprang into action. Baek Ga-hwan and Ju Kyung-il hurried to the carriage to check on Mu-jin’s condition.
One of the carriages was completely destroyed, but fortunately, the other carriage had intact floors and wheels.
Although the walls shielding them from the wind were all damaged, it was still usable for travel. However,
“There are no horses! The bandits seem to have killed them all!”
“It’s alright, get on the carriage immediately!”
Mu-gung shouted to the group and approached the spot where the horses should have been, stopping there.
As the group loaded Mu-jin onto the carriage and prepared to leave, he started to drive the carriage himself, just like he had practiced with Mu-jin during their journeys to and from Wudang in the past.
Despite these efforts, Mu-jin’s complexion was growing increasingly pale.
“Ugh…”
The pain from his side wasn’t the main issue.
Whether due to internal injuries or blood loss, a pain and chill like a severe flu enveloped his entire body.
At that moment, Mu-gyeong, who had climbed onto the carriage with him, tore a piece of his clothing and wrapped it around Mu-jin’s abdomen like a bandage, then placed his palm over it.
“Phew.”
As Mu-gyeong began to infuse internal energy into Mu-jin’s wound, Mu-jin’s shivering body began to calm down slightly.
Meanwhile, as Cheongsu Dojang and Mu-yul were at a loss for what to do, Baek Ga-hwan urgently shouted,
“You two should start the Qi Conducting Technique right away.”
“How can we conduct Qi in this situation?!”
“What will we do if something happens to Mu-jin?!”
“That’s exactly why you need to conduct Qi! Mu-gyeong So-hyeop and Mu-gung So-hyeop also expended their internal energy during the battle. You need to recover your internal energy to take turns with them!”
Regaining their senses at Baek Ga-hwan’s words, Mu-yul and Cheongsu Dojang sat cross-legged on the carriage and began the Qi Conducting Technique.
Despite their anxiety over Mu-jin’s uncertain fate, they risked entering Qi Deviation due to their unstable mental state during the Qi Conducting Technique.
Having instructed Mu-yul and Cheongsu Dojang to conduct Qi, Baek Ga-hwan urgently stood up on the carriage.
“What’s the matter?” Ju Kyung-il asked.
“We need herbs. Not just for Mu-jin So-hyeop, but everyone has minor wounds that need at least hemostatic medicine and disinfectant water.”
“If you get off the carriage now, it will be hard to catch up with it again.”
While Ju Kyung-il was responding to Baek Ga-hwan, Ling-ling suddenly cried out.
“Ook! Ook!”
Ling-ling pointed at herself with her hand, making Baek Ga-hwan think,
‘Right, Ling-ling is a spiritual creature, so maybe she can understand what I’m saying!’
Considering Ling-ling had understood Mu-yul’s words, it seemed possible.
Baek Ga-hwan urgently explained the characteristics and appearance of herbs with hemostatic effects to Ling-ling.
“Ook!”
After listening to the explanation, Ling-ling jumped off the carriage and ran into the bushes. After about fifteen minutes, she returned to the carriage with a bundle of herbs in her hand.
Finding the moving carriage with precision was a testament to Ling-ling’s incredible sense of smell.
Baek Ga-hwan crushed the herbs Ling-ling brought and applied them to the minor wounds of Muja Trio and Cheongsu Dojang.
Meanwhile, Mu-jin was struggling between life and death.
At one moment, his body was burning hot, causing his mind to blur, and at another moment, he was shivering uncontrollably with chills and body aches.
In the midst of his delirium, he occasionally saw Mu-gyeong placing his palm on his abdomen, Mu-yul’s face, and even Mu-gung’s face appearing vaguely.
“Mu-jin So-hyeop!! You must not fall asleep!! We’re almost at the village!! Please, stay awake!”
Whenever he felt like closing his eyes and succumbing to the darkness, he faintly heard Baek Ga-hwan’s voice and saw his blurry face.
In the sensation of endlessly sinking as if underwater, he couldn’t tell how much time had passed.
“We’re at the village!! We need a doctor!! A doctor!!”
With Baek Ga-hwan’s voice fading away, Mu-jin completely lost consciousness.
* * *
How much time had passed?
When Mu-jin awoke from a deep sleep, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling.
‘Where am I?’
His memory was fuzzy after witnessing the fall of the Wolf King.
As Mu-jin was still gathering his thoughts, frowning at the ceiling, an unexpected person appeared.
“Mu-jin Seunim!!”
Tears welled up in her eyes; it was Ryu Seol-hwa.
‘Why is Ryu Seol-hwa here?’
While Mu-jin pondered this, he heard the door creak open, and his companions started to appear one by one.
Mu-jin tried to sit up to grasp the situation, but Ryu Seol-hwa reacted sharply.
“No! You’re not fully recovered yet! You must lie down!!”
“Don’t move, Mu-jin.”
“Please, stay lying down. Okay?”
“Mu-jin Daou-nim needs rest. Amitabha.”
With everyone, including Ryu Seol-hwa, pleading urgently, Mu-jin had no choice but to remain lying down and turned his head slightly to look at them.
“Ahem. So, where are we?”
His throat felt parched and cracked as he spoke, as if it were a dry desert.
“We’re in Nanchang.”
Ryu Seol-hwa replied, carefully pouring water into a teacup and gently letting it flow into Mu-jin’s mouth.
Even in his still-groggy state, Mu-jin felt a sense of confusion.
‘From Giran-hyeon to Nanchang, it would take two days of non-stop carriage travel, right?’
Realizing this, Mu-jin asked anxiously,
“Then, how long have I been unconscious?”
The companions counted the days briefly and answered.
“It’s been exactly fifteen days today.”
Mu-jin’s face turned rapidly pale at this succinct answer.
“Why, why are you like this, Mu-jin?!”
“What’s wrong? Are you not feeling well?”
Despite his companions’ urgent cries, Mu-jin, his face pale, started to feel his own body.
“I, I… I have muscle loss…”
And with that, he rolled his eyes back and fainted again.
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