novelraw Chapter 368 : The True Identity of Secret Lord Han Jin (1)
Chapter 368 : The True Identity of Secret Lord Han Jin (1)
Chapter 368: The True Identity of Secret Lord Han Jin (1)
That day, the Lady of Mount Lu did not leave her quarters and remained inside her room.
They all lay down early to rest.
Yong Hwarin lay beside Priestess Saenghui and roused the Dragon Concealment Heavenly Art.
Priestess Saenghui, who had briefly entertained a strange thought, was startled when Yong Hwarin’s presence suddenly vanished.
Even the Lady of Mount Lu, who was in the same room, was shocked and kept her eyes fixed on her disciple’s bed.
‘The Murim of the future may perhaps be reshaped by Young Master Yong.’
Just as Yong Hwarin had instructed, both the Lady of Mount Lu and Priestess Saenghui began to maintain steady, even breathing, as if they had fallen asleep.
Around the Guest Hall, countless footsteps gradually quieted until silence fell.
It was the hour when all had gone to sleep.
At that moment, a faint sound stirred from the roof.
‘So, they have come.’
Yong Hwarin drew up the Dragon Concealment Heavenly Art to its utmost, suppressing every trace of his presence.
Moments later, smoke seeped into the room.
‘Old-fashioned, but a certain method nonetheless.’
Having prepared for this, both the Lady of Mount Lu and Priestess Saenghui used the
Turtle Breath Technique to suppress their breathing to the utmost.
After a while, the assassin on the roof grew bolder, prying at the tiles with greater noise.
Had the Lady of Mount Lu been awake, she would certainly have reacted to such clamor.
But when she remained motionless beneath the covers, a shadow dropped into the room.
The assassin, face fully concealed behind a mask, grinned faintly at the Lady of Mount Lu, who seemed utterly lost in the Dream-Soul Incense, fast asleep.
He immediately drew his dagger and thrust it toward her chest—without a moment’s hesitation.
Yet from beneath the quilt, a blade suddenly shot upward, stabbing into the assassin’s flank even as his dagger descended.
Startled by the unexpected counter, the assassin was forced to divert his strike and parry the incoming sword.
For him, it was a sudden attack while he was nearly defenseless, and his heart lurched.
But his reaction was lightning-quick.
He rolled and shot upward toward the roof.
At that instant, Yong Hwarin fired several Large Needles with the Dragon Scale Finger.
Even in haste, the assassin struck down the needles with precise blows.
But Yong Hwarin did not relent—this time, he threw orbs instead of needles.
The assassin split the orbs with his dagger.
They shattered into dozens of fragments that scattered down.
The assassin fled far swifter than expected, forcing Yong Hwarin, the Lady of Mount Lu, and Priestess Saenghui to leap onto the roof in pursuit.
When Yong Hwarin launched forward with the Wind-Horse Flashing Step, the assassin was shaken—this footwork was as swift as lightning.
On the verge of being caught, the assassin veered sharply, darting toward where Guest Hall monks were still working late into the night.
Just as Yong Hwarin was about to seize him, the assassin slipped into the midst of the monks.
Yong Hwarin froze, dismayed.
There were far more monks scattered about than he had anticipated.
Soon, the Lady of Mount Lu and Priestess Saenghui arrived, and Yong Hwarin spoke.
“Find the one who is not a monk.”
“Has anyone left this place?”
“No. I followed him closely. He could not have escaped. He is certainly still here.”
Having seen Yong Hwarin’s movement arts with their own eyes, they had no choice but to believe him.
“But… there are no outsiders here.”
At Priestess Saenghui’s words, the Lady of Mount Lu and Yong Hwarin exchanged troubled glances.
“So, the assassin disguised himself as a monk to slip in?”
Yong Hwarin said,
“Priestess Saenghui, ascend to the highest point and watch for anyone who tries to flee.”
Priestess Saenghui leapt onto the roof of the Main Hall.
Meanwhile, Yong Hwarin shouted to the monks scattered within the Guest Hall’s main compound.
“Everyone, gather here! An assassin has infiltrated, disguised as a monk. We cannot identify him otherwise!”
The monks looked at him in alarm.
“What do you mean?”
One of them asked, and this time the Lady of Mount Lu stepped forward.
“An assassin entered my quarters, intending to kill me. He is among you. But there are too many monks for us to tell apart. Please, gather here.”
The Main Hall was encircled by walls; anyone leaving would be quickly noticed.
The assassin was like a rat trapped in a jar.
Forced by Yong Hwarin’s swift pursuit, he had hidden inside the Main Hall.
Recognizing the Lady of Mount Lu, the monks gathered together.
“The monk who does not join the group is the assassin.”
At those words, all stopped their work and came forward.
The Lady of Mount Lu carefully inspected each of their foreheads, then let out a sigh.
“Ah, it seems the assassin had pressed his seal long ago. There are no freshly pressed seals.”
All the Guest Hall monks bore clear seal-marks.
Had there been a fresh one, the Lady of Mount Lu or Yong Hwarin would have noticed it.
“No, this man was originally a monk. He must have been a monk of the Shaolin Temple.”
“Why do you think so?”
“Although the assassin moved in haste, the fact that he came straight to the Guest Hall proves that he knew the grounds of Shaolin Temple well.”
“Mm!”
If Yong Hwarin’s words were true, it was a grave matter.
It was already problematic if the assassin had once been a Shaolin monk, but if he was still a
Shaolin monk, then his destructive potential would be enormous.
“Lady, you may be mistaken. I see no one who appears to be an assassin.”
As one of the Guest Hall monks looked around and spoke, Yong Hwarin replied.
“My apologies. Please remain as you are for a while longer.”
Yong Hwarin looked up at the sky.
The moon was still hidden by clouds.
‘This is troublesome.’
He had a secret move in mind, but the weather did not favor him.
“We have much work to do.”
One monk shouted, and those with tasks nodded their heads.
“The assassin is here without doubt.”
Just as the Lady of Mount Lu spoke again, people began to emerge one by one from the surrounding Guest Halls, drawn by the commotion.
Seeing this, the Lady of Mount Lu spoke with concern.
“Young Master Yong, if the assassin is not here, then I alone will be branded a fool.”
She feared that by raising this uproar, people might judge her as an incapable person who could not even catch an assassin.
If handled poorly, her honor could fall to the ground.
“The assassin entered the Main Hall of the Guest Hall precisely with that aim in mind.”
Until now, it was unclear why he had chosen to hide in the sealed Main Hall.
But with martial artists gathering around from all directions, his intent became obvious.
People continued to gather, but there was still no way to reveal the assassin.
The Lady of Mount Lu glanced anxiously at Yong Hwarin.
Yong Hwarin still stared at the sky.
Then suddenly, he clapped his hands.
“It’s done! Now it’s done.”
“What do you mean, done?”
“The moon has risen.”
“And how does the moon reveal the assassin?”
“It does. All that was needed was the moon.”
Yong Hwarin smiled as he continued.
“When I shot my Large Needles at the assassin, I also threw an orb.”
The Lady of Mount Lu remembered this, for she had seen the assassin shatter it with his dagger.
“And then? What was that orb?”
“It was one of the Abbot’s Jade Prayer Beads.”
“Jade Prayer Beads!”
“When the Jade Prayer Bead shattered, fragments would have stuck to his clothes. The one whose body glows with a faint blue light is the assassin.”
Only then did the Lady of Mount Lu understand why Yong Hwarin had spoken of the moon.
Under moonlight, the Jade Prayer Beads emitted a soft azure glow.
For this reason, Yong Hwarin had stopped by the Abbot before visiting her quarters, borrowing one bead.
As moonlight spilled across the ground, it slowly reached the Main Hall of the Guest Hall.
Then, upon spotting a monk whose body sparkled faintly blue like fireflies, the Lady of Mount Lu leapt toward him.
“There you are!”
Realizing he had been exposed, the assassin knew he could no longer flee.
He drew his dagger to block the Lady’s strike.
The Lady of Mount Lu’s martial arts were based on the Azure Jade Clear Shadow Sword, a sword art of Cho Geukryang, who had once been enthroned as one of the Five Emperors of the Martial World during the Era of Martial Prosperity.
Cho Geukryang was also famed for the Maiden Sword Art, which he had devised for the woman he loved.
Both the Maiden Sword Art and the Azure Jade Clear Shadow Sword had been handed down to the Lady of Mount Lu, his descendant.
Following Yong Hwarin’s instructions, the Lady of Mount Lu roused the Azure Jade Clear Shadow Sword to its utmost and attacked.
With inner power at the level of Three Gaps, she unleashed one ultimate technique after another, forcing the assassin onto the defensive.
“Ohh! Truly, it is the Lady of Mount Lu!”
“Who could block such a sword?”
Leaders of the various sects looked on, entranced by her dazzling and overwhelming swordplay.
Yet soon they were shocked, for the assassin’s martial arts were revealed.
Against the Azure Jade Clear Shadow Sword, he used Pushing Mountain Palm and Lightning Flash Combat Technique, both among Shaolin’s Seventy-Two Arts.
Moreover, his inner cultivation was the Prajna Heart Art, a mind technique taught only to those ranked above the Arhat Monks in Shaolin.
Those who recognized this were utterly dumbfounded.
—Lady, you must not delay any longer. Render him incapable of fighting.
Hearing Yong Hwarin’s voice, the Lady of Mount Lu pressed her attack relentlessly.
She poured her full inner power into her sword and flipped it.
In that instant, blazing azure Nascent Qi erupted from the reversed blade, merging with moonlight as it surged forward.
“Gahhh!”
The assassin’s left shoulder was severed by the Nascent Qi, and he collapsed backward, vomiting blood without pause.
The internal damage was severe.
Exclamations of awe arose everywhere at the Lady of Mount Lu’s majestic display.
—Lady, search his robes and recover the Explosive Phosphorus Pellet.
Yong Hwarin had arranged everything so that the Lady herself would deliver the finishing stroke, engraving her prestige in the minds of all.
The Lady of Mount Lu subdued the assassin with a point-sealing strike, then retrieved a small jade vial from his chest.
—Open it. If it smells of garlic, then it is the Explosive Phosphorus Pellet.
When she opened the vial, the pungent garlic scent wafted out strongly.
The Lady of Mount Lu nodded toward Yong Hwarin.
—Count how many are inside. As long as they are not ingested, the pellets will not explode, so there is no need for alarm.
She poured them out—the jade vial contained only one pellet.