Murim Troubleshooter Dan Mujin

Chapter 5: Thunderstruck Naked Baby

At a single word from that brat Dan Mujin, the little ones all dashed out at once.

He called it the “Encirclement Annihilation Formation,” so I wondered what it was about, but it turned out to be nothing more than surrounding the enemy in a circle.

An old man let out a chuckle at the absurdity.

“Protect Boss Mujin!”

“Oohrah!”

Buoyed by their string of victories, the kids were brimming with fighting spirit.

Maybe it was thanks to being well-fed and well-rested, but for beggars, they were surprisingly plump, and their eyes sparkled with life.

They say you can tell a leader by looking at their subordinates. Contrary to what the merchants said, this Dan Mujin kid seemed like a decent fellow.

“No need for long talk. Just leave before you get hurt.”

Trying to scare me off, Dan Mujin walked out from between the kids, pretending to carry some serious weight.

Now that I saw him up close, he was even more brazen than I had heard.

“Heh heh, truly hasn’t learned any martial arts.”

His Solar Acupoint was flat. No sign of internal Qi, nor any traces of rugged external arts.

And yet they say his strength was like that of a bull?

“You rascal, let me at least check your pulse once.”

“No thanks, old man.”

By the way, that wasn’t a request.

The old man suddenly closed the distance and flicked his hand several times. “Huh?” The kids let out startled cries and landed on their butts.

That ambitious Encirclement Annihilation Formation fell apart pathetically.

The kids stared wide-eyed at the strange steps and hand movements and shouted,

“A-A master!”

A real martial artist, not some random passerby, had appeared. Dan Mujin’s gang was instantly thrown into shock and confusion.

“Damn, Thirty-Six Stratagems!”

Dan Mujin shouted something quickly. As if pre-arranged, the kids scattered in all directions.

But against a martial artist skilled in Lightfoot Arts, that was utterly meaningless.

The old man’s toes tapped the ground. His right hand shot out like lightning toward Dan Mujin’s shoulder.

Smack!

But something unbelievable happened. Even though he had held back his strength, the kid instinctively deflected the old man’s hand.

“……What did you just do?”

The old man asked in a stunned voice. The brat himself seemed just as surprised, eyes wide open.

“When I sense danger, my body just moves on its own… Wait, who are you, old man!”

Did the sudden hand strike give him the chills?

While the old man was momentarily lost in thought, the startled kid once again bolted.

“Hmph.”

The boy ran frantically toward the crowded main street.

What stamina for someone so young. The old man took a single step and was instantly in front of him.

As the old man suddenly appeared like a ghost from the direction he was fleeing, Dan Mujin let out a screech.

“Holy crap, shi-pal!”

The curse was oddly rustic, but regardless, the old man infused Qi into his fingertips and tapped the Paralysis and Mute Acupoints.

Tap-tap!

It must’ve been his first time experiencing pressure point strikes. Dan Mujin’s eyes spun wildly as his entire body stiffened from the bizarre sensation.

The old man began carefully pressing and massaging from the Jingmen Acupoint on, examining the boy’s chest, shoulders, groin, and limbs to assess his physique.

“……Mmmph!”

Dan Mujin’s mouth moved like he wanted to yell something at the old man’s probing hands.

The merchants said extortion was his specialty. Good thing I sealed his mouth.

“If only you’d listened when I asked nicely. Tsk tsk.”

I could’ve just checked your pulse and been done.

Clicking his tongue, the old man grabbed Dan Mujin’s wrist and sent his Qi flowing in. The foreign sensation of another’s energy coursing through his meridians made the kid flinch and shudder.

But the moment the Qi flowed through the Governing Vessel and reached the Baihui Acupoint, the old man felt every hair on his body stand on end.

‘……!’

There was something terrifying inside the upper dantian that should’ve been empty.

Dozens of bloodshot eyes stared directly at him, dripping red blood.

Within the boy’s body, a storm of murderous intent raged, as if to tear apart the entire world.

A hellscape filled with rivers of blood and mountains of corpses. Unknown vengeful spirits wailed endlessly, shedding bloody tears as they were trapped within.

And at that moment, the horrific “something” that had been restraining them sensed the presence of an intruder.

“……Guh!”

The old man quickly withdrew his hand from Dan Mujin.

Cold sweat ran down his spine. Though it was only a blink of an eye, the experience felt like an eternity of horror.

Sobriety hit the old man like a tidal wave. No, the self-proclaimed sage groaned as he realized the true nature of the swirling murderous intent.

This wasn’t something as trivial as being born with a martial artist’s physique or having talent in martial arts.

A constellation that filled the night sky. Among them, the one that shone with the most terrifying light— the Red Evil Star.

“Heaven-Slaying Star…!”

Some say it is a calamity sent by the heavens when they are enraged.

The very being that appeared in the Central Plains a century ago and brought forth a blood-soaked disaster… to think it would appear before me now.

“How… how are you still sane?”

The old man asked, stammering without even realizing it himself.

Those burdened with the curse of the Heaven-Slaying Star usually began to lose their sanity around the age of ten, eventually becoming full-fledged murder fiends.

But no matter how he looked at it, this kid seemed completely normal.

To think he could remain so lucid while harboring something so horrific within his body.

“Hey, shi-pal, would you stop groping my body already? You perverted old geezer.”

Then again, maybe he wasn’t completely normal.

That was the first thing he blurted out as soon as I tapped his acupoints and released the pressure.

“Don’t come any closer, old man.”

What kind of damn disaster was this on my way to eat dumplings?

As soon as I regained control of my limbs, I hastily stepped back onto the main street and shouted at him to stay away.

“Nope, brat.”

Despite my shouting, the old man responded with a “what are you gonna do about it?” attitude and walked toward me step by step.

He was no ordinary master. Judging from the way he glided like a ghost, escape seemed impossible.

“People of the town! Help me! Some perverted old man is beating up kids!”

So I rushed out into the street crowded with people and shouted for help.

Isn’t the world supposed to be one big family? When a child cries for help, at least someone should look over, right?

But today, everyone’s reactions were strange.

“...Why are they avoiding eye contact?”

It was as if I had turned invisible. No one would look me in the eye. People rushed past, clearly wanting no part in this.

“I showed off some strange steps and even used pressure point strikes. You think anyone’s crazy enough to get involved? Tsk tsk.”

The old man, hands clasped behind his back, clicked his tongue as he watched the scene.

Still, come on. Not even one person?

Not even some righteous hero popping out like in those martial novels?

I screamed loud enough that even a constable should have at least run over to see what was going on.

“Hah.”

So this is what Murim is like. A place where the weak can’t even scream as they die.

On the flip side, it’s a world where the strong can do whatever they want.

“What is it you want? My body?”

“...Do you really think I’m that kind of pervert?”

The old man let out a dumbfounded laugh at my resigned response.

Then why the hell did he grope me first thing in the morning?

“Have you been marked by the Heaven-Slaying Star?”

He suddenly asked bluntly if I had been chosen by that cursed fate.

He had freaked out earlier when he sent that strange energy into my body. So that was why?

“Old man.”

“Call me Hwang Noya.”

“Old man Hwang. Did you come to stab me too? Sent by those bastards?”

To finish what my sister, Murong Cheonghye, had failed to do.

Come to think of it, why else would a master of his level come looking for a brat like me?

I had even come all the way out here and lived among beggars. They were truly relentless.

“What nonsense. I came here of my own will.”

Apparently not.

The old man, who introduced himself as Hwang Noya, tapped the Baihui point on the crown of my head and continued his questioning.

“More importantly, I didn’t get to ask earlier. Answer me—why haven’t you gone mad?”

Despite your cheekiness even in front of a master, he said he couldn’t feel the characteristic madness of a Heaven-Slaying Star and pressed me for answers.

“Dammit, how would I know? If I did, I wouldn’t have a hole in my gut right now.”

Of course, even if I found out the reason, there was no guarantee the Murong Clan would believe me.

With all the crap Murong Cheongjin’s pulled while half-crazed, no one listens to reason anymore.

“Truly strange. At your age, you should be stark raving mad. Haven’t you ever felt the urge to stab someone? Heard strange whispers in your head?”

“Actually, it feels like something is whispering to stab the old man in front of me right now.”

That sinister energy that got “recognized” by the old man earlier had been poking at my nerves, telling me to kill him, and it was driving me nuts.

Words slipped out before I even realized it.

“Then why aren’t you stabbing me?”

“Because I don’t want to?”

I’m not some blood-crazed demon. Why the hell would I lose my mind and start a bloodbath in broad daylight?

Especially not against a master of his level. It’d be suicide.

“Huh, a sane Heaven-Slaying Star. Am I really supposed to believe this?”

A hundred years might’ve dulled people’s fear, but there were still plenty in the Central Plains who were wary of the Heaven-Slaying Star’s glint.

The old man looked down at me silently, repeatedly clenching and unclenching his fist.

I had seen that look before. It was exactly the same as Murong Cheon’s when he’d said, “Uproot the weed by the root.”

He was probably wondering whether to kill me now before I became a real disaster later.

“...Dammit, I’m in my right mind.”

I’d have preferred the escort warriors who came to teach me a lesson. After all I went through to survive that cliff, and now I’m about to lose my head again.

The old man’s expression didn’t change at my protest.

Seriously, people in Murim just don’t listen. It’s a world soaked in distrust.

And then—

“You perverted old geezer!”

“Let go of our Boss!”

From far away, I could hear the voices of Ilhong and Ochil. They must’ve heard my desperate cry for help just earlier.

The kids were now rushing back to rescue their captured Boss.

Far more loyal than the members of the Murong Clan.

“Huh, children running to save a Heaven-Slaying Star?”

Even adults avoid getting involved when they sense the presence of a martial arts master.

The old man wore a complicated expression as he watched the kids shouting “Boss!” while dashing toward us.

A small wrinkle appeared between his brows, as if he were growing more troubled.

“...Let’s move somewhere else for now. I need some time to think.”

Apparently not wanting to scuffle with the young beggars, he said that while lifting me up by the scruff of my neck.

A bold declaration of kidnapping, without my consent.

“I don’t want to! Let go of me!”

“Did that sound like a request to you?”

He said that only the strong have the right to choose, and as I struggled for my freedom, he struck my pressure points again.

“Damn it, this again...”

My limbs stiffened like wood.

And then the whole world went black.

Trading companies and escort agencies run on trust and promises.

Especially the escort side, since they handle the transportation of expensive goods. If anything goes wrong, it causes major headaches.

Not only do they have to cough up compensation, but they also lose public trust—hence, a double blow.

And the Eunseong Escort Agency had already suffered two consecutive failures of this crucial duty.

All thanks to one lunatic monster wielding a langya staff.

Every time they set out for a delivery, this maniac would spring out from the mountains and smash their cargo with a thunderous strike.

His martial skills were so terrifyingly strong that even first-class escorts couldn’t stand a chance and were swept away like nothing.

Thanks to him, no more delivery jobs were coming in.

With funds drying up, Head Inspector Jin was pacing in panic, while the coachmen and escorts wailed about starving to death because they had no work.

“That damn guy with the langya staff—who even is he?”

Such is the nature of Jianghu, where one martial master can make or break everything. Which is why all the trading companies were scrambling to hire skilled martial artists as guest warriors.

Of course, the Eunseong Trading Company had also tried recruiting various talents in response.

But once the towering father died suddenly, the sericulture business they were pushing faced crisis, rumors of a cash crunch spread, and word got out that an inexperienced rookie had taken over as Trading Lord—

All the connections they had built up fled like the ebbing tide, saying the company was doomed.

“They say ‘good deeds bring rewards,’ but that’s all bull.”

At twenty years old—

An age where you begin to understand the coldness and filth of the world.

Eun Hwaran flushed either from the sunlight or from a surge of hidden anger, then snapped open her fan with a sharp crack and fanned herself furiously.

“At least with Hwang Noya here, it seems we’ll have some chance with the escort business.”

He had promised to help out with Eunseong’s matters for a while. Though how long that “while” would be, no one knew.

Still, in a world full of beasts that don’t know gratitude, he was truly a blessing.

That said, some of the company’s staff had been suffering from his eccentricities and disturbances.

Despite having access to a luxurious guest house, he insisted on sleeping on stone floors or roof tiles, only to be discovered by house servants.

He hummed incomprehensible tunes, mocked the Emperor in the direction of the royal palace,

Burdened the dedicated company cook with his massive appetite, and quietly swiped dozens of bottles of wine from storage.

“...He does have his peculiarities.”

He didn’t seem greedy for wealth, but his obsession with food and drink was something else.

Still, since his martial arts were incredible, such flaws could be overlooked.

Martial masters who reached a certain level always carried a touch of eccentricity.

“Mmm.”

Nodding her head, Eun Hwaran waved her fan lightly over her round, pale face.

But suddenly, a commotion erupted at the entrance of the manor.

“Let go! I said let me go, old man!”

A young boy was flailing and shouting as he hung over Hwang Noya’s shoulder like a sack.

The bizarre scene drew everyone’s attention as they prepared for an escort mission, turning toward the main gate.

“When the hell did he undo his mute point again?”

Hwang Noya asked with a baffled look.

“Guess you’re getting old and your technique’s losing its punch! Now let me go!”

Maybe it was thanks to my unusual body constitution. Before anyone noticed, the seal on my mouth had come undone, and I was now yelling that there was a child abduction happening.

Hwang Noya began tapping my mute points again—like Jianjing, Yintang, and Yamen points.

“Gasp! This perverted old man is groping me! People of the town, look at this!”

“...What a thunderstruck naked baby of a brat.”

Was even the paralysis point coming undone? I thrashed like a freshly caught fish, writhing wildly on his shoulder.

While Hwang Noya was stuck wondering how the hell to shut this brat up—

“Hwang Noya? What is going on here...?”

Someone spoke in a flustered voice.

It was Eun Hwaran, the Trading Lord of Eunseong.