“Do you not wish to take this opportunity?”
The moment I heard those words, a chill ran down my entire body. That smiling face, which seemed to stretch from ear to ear, looked so full of malice.
‘... I have underestimated this brat.’
I had thought of him as a talented fledgling who still had much to learn. But now I saw that was not the case. This brat was no different from a fierce beast that would sink its teeth into your neck the moment you showed the slightest weakness.
Occultist Jo Ui-gong’s eyes darted back and forth.
Kwwwwwak!
The three Spirit Generals were still bound by the iron chains, unable to escape. His master, In Seo-ok, the Pavilion Master of Grudge Killing Pavilion, had become a living corpse ghost through the Six Souls Summoning Art, losing his own will. The strength in Occultist Jo Ui-gong’s clenched fist gradually faded.
He did have a hidden trump card. But for some strange reason, the thought that it wouldn’t work on that brat filled his mind.
‘I had a feeling something was off when I woke up.’
It must have been a premonition of today’s events. Should I call this a turning point in my life? It seemed that moment had arrived.
After looking up at the sky for a moment and letting out a long sigh, Occultist Jo Ui-gong lowered his head and parted his lips.
“... If I say I will take the opportunity, what is in it for me?”
“You’ve made a good choice.”
At his words, Mok Gyeong-un nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world and was about to approach.
“Do not come closer. I have not yet made my decision. Answer my question.”
“Did I not tell you earlier? I said I would help you become the Pavilion Master of Grudge Killing Pavilion.”
Mok Gyeong-un said, gesturing with his head toward the Grudge Killing Pavilion Master, In Seo-ok. At this, Occultist Jo Ui-gong’s eyes narrowed. It seemed to mean he would control my master and have him pass the position to me.
But there was a problem.
“Do you think Eldest Senior Brother will not notice that Master has become a living corpse ghost?”
“Will he notice?”
“Eldest Senior Brother’s curse power and occult arts already rival Master’s. If he were to meet him in person, he would surely notice.”
Eldest Senior Brother Jo Tae-cheong. It was said that the Grudge Killing Pavilion Master In Seo-ok took him as a disciple some thirty years ago. His talent was so outstanding that his curse power was formidable, to the point where it was no exaggeration to say he was already designated as the next Grudge Killing Pavilion Master.
Deceiving the eyes and senses of such an Eldest Senior Brother was no easy task. At this, Mok Gyeong-un smiled and said.
“Shouldn’t you, Master, be able to handle preventing a direct meeting until Grandmaster passes down his position?”
“What?”
“I’ve set the table for you, must I also feed you with a spoon? I thought you would naturally be capable of that much.”
At Mok Gyeong-un’s words, Occultist Jo Ui-gong stared at him silently. Was he telling him to be prepared for this level of risk? Jo Ui-gong silently clicked his tongue.
Then he spoke.
“Understood. If you delegate some control over the living corpse ghost to me, I will manage it somehow.”
“Is that settled then?”
“No. There are two more things.”
“Two more?”
“Yes. Cooperating with a brat like you means I must also be prepared to lose everything I have built up until now.”
“So you’re saying you need more compensation for that?”
Mok Gyeong-un’s voice grew a little quieter. It signified that he was becoming emotionally displeased. But Occultist Jo Ui-gong had no intention of backing down either.
He felt that if he didn’t make things clear here and now, he would be awkwardly dragged along by the boy.
“So what is it you want?”
“The Six Souls Summoning Art.”
“The Six Souls Summoning Art?”
“I want the secret you possess.”
Mok Gyeong-un’s Six Souls Summoning Art had succeeded without fulfilling the condition of the yin energy of the dead. Seeing this, Occultist Jo Ui-gong couldn’t help but be inwardly astonished. What on earth had he done to make this possible?
This purely stimulated his strong curiosity as an Occultist.
‘I want to know.’
In a way, Mok Gyeong-un’s Six Souls Summoning Art was no exaggeration to say it had compensated for the existing weaknesses. If the numerous sacrifices made to create a single living corpse ghost could be omitted, there was no magic art with higher utility.
‘Will he really teach me?’
To be honest, he was half in doubt. If it were him or his master, In Seo-ok, they would never share this secret with anyone. But then, “If you desire it so, I will teach you.”
“What?”
For a moment, Jo Ui-gong stared at Mok Gyeong-un with a dazed expression. He’s going to teach me this? He had just thrown it out there, thinking he had nothing to lose.
His real objective was the next demand. He hadn’t expected Mok Gyeong-un to actually say he would reveal the secret of the Six Souls Summoning Art. Somewhat excited, Jo Ui-gong asked with trembling eyes.
“... Is that really true?”
“You said you wanted that as compensation.”
“Yes!”
Seeing the force in his voice, Mok Gyeong-un smirked. It seemed he really wanted the secret. Of course, telling him was not a difficult matter.
It’s just, ‘Even if he knows, will he be able to do it?’ Only he, with his unique constitution capable of absorbing death energy, the energy of the dead, could do it. If Blue Spirit was right, a living person could not take death energy into their body.
Therefore, even if he knew, it was utterly useless.
“What is the third and final compensation?”
At Mok Gyeong-un’s question, Occultist Jo Ui-gong, who couldn’t hide his excitement, composed himself and said.
“Since we have agreed to work together, make a pledge.”
“A pledge? About what?”
“If you pledge not to harm me or seek my life, I will help you with all my heart.”
This was more important than the other compensations. Having experienced this boy, he had no hesitation in killing someone if necessary. That was why he wanted to make sure of it here and now.
Of course, even if he made that pledge here, he would never believe it. It was just that if he did make a pledge, he would try to maintain it for a while for his own needs, so he was just trying to buy that time.
‘And since I’ve demanded this much compensation, he will surely believe that I will follow him.’
This was his real objective. After making the brat trust him, he would devise a countermeasure. How could he trust and follow a brat who had killed even his own Grandmaster without a second thought?
Occultist Jo Ui-gong hid his inner thoughts and said.
“What will you do?”
“If you are uneasy, then of course I must do it.”
“..........”
There was something about this boy’s words that, despite seeming polite, subtly grated on his nerves. However, he didn’t let it show, as he was in a position where he had to lower himself. It was truly ironic how the situation had reversed in just a fortnight.
Just then, “There is a way for you to be most at ease, Master.”
“A way to be at ease?”
What was he trying to say? As he wondered, Mok Gyeong-un removed the Chain of Cursed Words from his wrist, shook it, and said.
“I think it would be best if you wore this and made your pledge to me.”
“What?”
For a moment, Jo Ui-gong was dumbfounded. Was he telling him to wear that and make a cursed pledge?
“You brat, do you think that’s something to......”
“Bind him.”
Chwa-rrrrrrrk!
As soon as those words were spoken, Green Spirit Gyu So-ha’s chains shot up from the floor and bound his body.
‘This is!’
At this, Jo Ui-gong tried to move his fingers to form a simplified hand seal.
Tat!
It was at that very moment.
“Huh?”
What? he thought, and Mok Gyeong-un had already arrived in front of him. He had been about ten paces away, but he had reached him in the time it took to blink twice. The startled Jo Ui-gong hurriedly tried to complete the hand seal.
But before that, Mok Gyeong-un grabbed his wrist first.
Gwak!
“Heok!”
He gripped it so tightly that he was seized by a pain as if his wrist would break. Unable to breathe properly from the agony, Mok Gyeong-un spoke.
“I’m saying this because you seem to be mistaken about something. I’m giving you an opportunity because I’d like you to be a more voluntarily faithful dog.”
“Let… let go of this…”
Cha-rang!
Mok Gyeong-un fastened the Chain of Cursed Words onto the wrist of the agonized Jo Ui-gong. Then, with a broad smile, he said.
“If you, Master, trust and follow me, what reason would I have to harm you? So please, make the pledge just as I did last time.”
Kwwwwwak!
Jo Ui-gong, his wrist still caught, writhed in agony. It really felt like it was about to break.
“Or you can keep resisting. It would be fun to break them one by one.”
‘This, this bastard…’
He looked at Mok Gyeong-un in agony, but the boy was looking back at him with a jeering expression as if he was enjoying this. Seeing that, Jo Ui-gong realized he had no choice. This brat was enjoying the situation.
If he didn’t pledge, he would really do as he said. At this, Jo Ui-gong, barely enduring the pain, said.
“I… I, Jo Ui-gong, will follow the will of Mok Gyeong-un……”
“Ah, ah. Please say ‘Jeong’, not ‘Mok Gyeong-un’.”
“What!?”
Jo Ui-gong’s eyes wavered.
‘Ha!’
The mystery was finally solved. The contract of a cursed word could only bind one’s will if one’s true name was used. Naturally, since he was a child of the Lotuswood Sword Manor and they all called him Mok Gyeong-un, he had never suspected anything.
But he had been using a false name?
‘To think I was fooled by such a preposterous trick…’
It was utterly disheartening.
“Now, stop being surprised and do it properly.”
Kwwwwwak!
Mok Gyeong-un put more strength into his hand. At this, Jo Ui-gong hurriedly said.
“Keu-euk. I… I, Jo Ui-gong, will uphold the will of Jeong.”
As soon as those words were finished, the chains clinked and trembled. Then, Mok Gyeong-un released the wrist he was holding.
“Hah… hah…”
His face was bright red and drenched in sweat from the pain. Jo Ui-gong clutched his wrist and gritted his teeth. To make a cursed pledge to the boy he had taken as a disciple.
How did it come to this? Mok Gyeong-un placed a hand on his agonized shoulder and said with a smile.
“I don’t know what to do with myself, now that you, my Master, have offered to help your disciple like this.”
‘…What have I done?’
It seemed he had taken a demon as a disciple.
This was the Red Shoes Pavilion, a brothel located on the outskirts of the Heaven and Earth Society’s outer city. There, a bewitching and beautiful woman was trying to gaze at a distant mountain with half-closed eyes.
She was one of the candidates for the Sect Master of the Flying Kill Sect, one of the three great assassin groups, Ha Chae-rin. No, it was Go Chan, possessing her body.
‘Damn it all. Where am I supposed to look?’
Go Chan was truly in a predicament. With the matron’s help, he had successfully had his makeup done. Ha Chae-rin’s face, which was already quite beautiful without makeup, was transformed into an even more radiant flower by the touch of the brothel’s matron, who could be called a master.
‘This is driving me crazy.’
But there was only one reason Go Chan was in such a predicament. He had nowhere to look.
The place he was in now was the common room where the courtesans of the brothel waited, and their clothes were all so thin that you could see right through them, to the point where everything was visible if you stared just a little too hard.
“Oh my. Sister. Aren’t you trying a bit too hard?”
“Child. If I don’t put in the effort on a day like today, what am I supposed to do? But I see you’re determined as well, with all your flesh showing.”
“Kyahahaha. You’re right. How could I miss an opportunity like today?”
Listening to the conversation of the highly motivated courtesans, Go Chan just perked up his ears and turned his head toward the ceiling. He had heard that a very important guest had made a reservation for today. It seemed they had been asked to prepare the most skilled and beautiful courtesans.
[I heard that someone with a rather high position in the Heaven and Earth Society is coming.]
Thinking this was a great opportunity after hearing the matron's words, he had asked to be included, but now he was in a difficult situation, unsure of what to do. Apparently, only six out of the forty or so courtesans here could be chosen.
Perhaps that was why, even while calling each other ‘sister, sister’, the level of rivalry was no joke. It was getting tiring just watching them engage in a battle of wills with smiles on their faces.
It even made him wonder if he really needed to go this far to infiltrate the Heaven and Earth Society for his master, Mok Gyeong-un. As he was thinking this, someone approached Go Chan.
“Hey, you.”
“.........”
“Newbie. I’m talking to you.”
At the call, Go Chan pointed at himself with his hand. Then, the mature courtesan standing in front of him, who looked to be in her mid-20s, snorted and said.
“How arrogant, not even answering when your elder sister speaks to you. What an amazing newbie. Who told you to come into this room?”
“Uh… um…”
What should he say to this? He knew that being in her mid-20s was quite old for a courtesan, but his actual age was different from that of this body. Perhaps because of that, no words readily came out.
He definitely needed to act, but the man’s pride in him wouldn’t allow him to say the word ‘sister’.
‘Damn it.’
To avoid any unnecessary trouble, Go Chan bowed his head with a nod.
“Still not answering?”
As soon as he did that, the courtesan in her 20s suddenly tried to slap Go Chan’s cheek. There was no way Go Chan, who was possessing the body of a Peak Realm master, would be hit by a slap.
Hwik!
He lightly dodged the approaching courtesan’s wrist. At this, the courtesan raised her eyebrows and her voice.
“Oh? You’re dodging your sister’s hand now?”
Deciding that dealing with her further would be tiresome, Go Chan waved his hands and said.
“Look here, Young Miss. I have no intention of fighting with you. So let’s stop here.”
At Go Chan’s way of speaking, the courtesan’s expression went blank.
“What’s with… that old man’s way of speaking.”
“.........”
At the courtesan’s words, Go Chan had a moment of realization. He should have tried to imitate the speech of young women to some extent, but in his haste to avoid a confrontation, he had made a mistake. Just then, the courtesan said.
“If you dodge your sister’s hand this time, you better be prepared.”
It seemed the courtesan wouldn’t be satisfied until she had landed a slap. At this, Go Chan said with a serious face.
“You keep saying sister, sister, but Young Miss… no, I’m probably older than you.”
“What?”
“I may look like this, but I’m twenty-seven.”
Go Chan roughly stated an age that seemed older than hers. Seeing how she was concerned with the hierarchy of ‘sister, sister’, he thought that if he said he was older, she might let it go. He couldn’t cause a dispute here and ruin things.
But then, the courtesan snorted and said.
“Aha. Is that so? You’re a newbie, but you’re a bit older than you look, is that it?”
“Hmph, hmph. So, let’s stop this pointless battle of wills between us…”
Seuk!
The courtesan rolled up both of her sleeves and said, as if for everyone to hear.
“Watch closely. This is a fight between sisters.”
“..........”
Go Chan seriously considered abandoning this plan altogether.