Chapter – 71
A small torch lit the dark path.
It was a narrow passage thick with dampness.
Musung led the way, holding the torch, with Kang Yu and Yeon Baek-rim following behind.
“Like I said before—whatever you’re about to see must remain an absolute secret. I ask this of you.”
“Don’t worry.”
Earlier, in the reception room, Kang Yu had asked when the Seventh Treasured Device could be moved.
Musung replied that it would be difficult for the time being.
When asked why, he didn’t answer—instead, he led the two down into the underground of the Main Hall.
And now, after walking through the subterranean corridor, they reached the end.
At what seemed to be an entrance—or exit—a stone plaque hung.
《Myeonbyeok-dong (Facing-the-Wall Cave)》
“Myeonbyeok-dong…?”
Musung caught Kang Yu’s mutter.
“A place built for those who perform wall-facing meditation. It no longer fulfills its purpose, though.”
“What do you mean it doesn’t?”
With a deep sigh, Musung stepped into the cave.
“It’s complicated to explain. You’ll understand once you see.”
Inside, the cave was just as narrow and low as the tunnel.
But unlike outside, from the plaque inward, every inch of wall, floor, and even ceiling was packed with engraved Buddhist scripture.
Tiny characters, carved everywhere.
“Wow…”
It felt like stepping into an otherworldly place—mysterious and profound just by being seen.
And at the very end of that profound sight—
“…”
A wall blocked the passage that had continued from the underground.
In front of it, an elderly man in red monk robes sat with his back toward them.
A deep, resonant voice rose against the wall.
“You’ve come, Musung.”
He addressed the deputy head of Shaolin—one of the Nine Great Sects’ leaders—as if speaking to a child.
“This is the Abbot.”
“…What?”
Yeon Baek-rim, not Kang Yu, was the one shocked by Musung’s words.
The Abbot of Shaolin—Living Buddha Seo Jung, Buddhist name Muhak, Musung’s senior martial brother, and one of the absolute masters whose martial attainment had reached the pinnacle.
That alone was shocking enough.
But the reason Yeon Baek-rim was so startled was something else.
The gentle and benevolent Muhak—was bound to the wall and floor with massive shackles.
The shackles reflected no torchlight at all.
They were thick, heavy—unmistakably forged of the legendary Ten-Thousand-Year Cold Iron.
The sound of rattling chains echoed through the cave.
“Ohh. New faces. Are these new disciples?”
Musung replied bluntly.
“As if they’d be disciples.”
“Then who?”
“You need not concern yourself with them.”
The turned back trembled with a hurt tone.
“How cold-hearted. Have you forgotten I changed your diapers, junior brother?”
“How am I supposed to remember something from infancy?”
“At least let me greet them. At my age, nothing is prettier than children.”
Kang Yu was just about to bow to the elder—
“Do not approach.”
“…Pardon?”
“That is why you were brought here.”
Immediately, the shackled Muhak continued:
“You insolent brat. Always disrespecting your senior. You’ve always been that way.”
Musung did not respond.
“Still stubborn, are you?”
“You know well how absurd your claims are.”
“Oh, Musung, Musung…”
Muhak sighed in great pity.
“What shallow Dharma you have. How many times have I told you—true Buddhists must cast off worldly desires to reach enlightenment!”
“By burning down the Sutra Library, you mean.”
“Empty-handed we come, empty-handed we go. The Buddha taught non-possession.
Clinging to material things goes against the true path.”
“Then Master, why don’t you relinquish the location of the Maitreya Relic first?
Aren’t you the one clinging to it?”
“Musung, Musung…!”
For the first time, Muhak turned around.
His long white eyebrows and beard were striking, and his presence was deeply benevolent.
He lifted his shackled arms.
“I’ve told you—Maitreya’s relic is not of this world. It can only be destroyed at the place where sun, moon, and stars rise together.
So release these chains. I shall bear the burden alone.”
Musung’s gaze darkened.
“You shackled yourself. Why ask us to free you?”
“I was not in my right mind then.”
“From where I stand, you seemed very lucid at the time.”
“Musung. Musung…!”
Muhak’s eyes reddened.
“A monk lusting after martial skills wasn’t enough—you now covet the Treasured Devices too? Next thing you’ll demand the Abbot’s seat!”
He wailed loudly.
“You there! Please—inform the outside world!
The Vice-Abbot is possessed by demonic madness!
He has bound the Abbot and intends to steal the Maitreya Relic!
He must be in league with the ones who caused the massacre!”
His voice trembled with heartbreaking desperation.
But Kang Yu remained expressionless.
For all of Muhak’s gentle tone and graceful manner… something was off.
It felt familiar.
Kang Yu spoke while staring at him:
“So this is why you called for me.”
Musung raised his energy and blocked the sound.
“Correct. I suspected this might be similar to Lord Namgung Cheon’s case.”
Kang Yu thought the same.
That sense of déjà vu—
It was the same as when they had faced Namgung Cheon of the Five-Element Hall.
Kang Yu focused on Muhak.
“But back then, the old lord couldn’t speak at all. He had that strange inscription on his chest. His eyes were bright red.”
Muhak’s chest, seen through his robes, was clean.
His eyes were only bloodshot, not blazing red like Namgung Cheon’s.
Clearly, this was different—yet similar in some way.
Kang Yu recalled the words of Namgung-gu beneath Sohocheon.
—The tattooed talisman disrupts the Five Elements, turning a person into a wooden medium.
—A human pillar—making a person into a vessel for something.
—The red liquid we found in the coffins is related. The ritual was incomplete when we interrupted it.
—The old lord must have undergone part of the ritual.
“So the lord’s transformation was only partial…”
Kang Yu looked at Muhak again.
“That one seems complete.”
“Huh?”
“That human pillar thing.”
Kang Yu continued:
“Has the Abbot been away from the temple recently?”
“Away?”
“Lord Namgung was missing for fifteen days, yet the ritual still wasn’t complete.
So at minimum—fifteen days.”
Musung began to understand.
“I see what you’re thinking. But his absence doesn’t help. He rarely stayed within the temple in the first place.”
“Then?”
“He mostly cared for the sick and distributed relief.
On other days, he’d go out to receive offerings.”
“But he didn’t disappear for long stretches, right?”
“True, but he’s someone whose outings were never fixed in place or time.”
“Hmm…”
Kang Yu’s eyes circled.
“So there’s no way to be sure.”
“I knew it—this will be difficult—”
“Could you close your eyes for a moment?”
“…What?”
“Just for a moment.”
“Your eyes? Why?”
Without waiting, Kang Yu walked straight toward the shackled Muhak.
“T-those chains won’t break, right?”
“They’re forged of Cold Iron. They shou—”
“Close your eyes please.”
“…!”
Yeon Baek-rim, unwilling to test Kang Yu’s temper, quickly closed his eyes.
Musung followed reluctantly.
Kang Yu confirmed both had complied, then approached Muhak.
Muhak smiled kindly.
The visage of a living Buddha.
“Yes, come closer child. I have waited for yo—”
Tap.
Kang Yu’s hand pressed onto Muhak’s forehead.
“What are you—”
Muhak’s eyes shifted color.
“Krrk!”
Dark demonic energy surged from Kang Yu’s body.
Though he always acted weak, he could sense it perfectly.
Muhak—shackled or not—was stronger than Namgung Cheon, stronger than Wi-yeon, the Left Priest, or Yong Sobaek.
Perhaps even as strong as the old beggar.
Perhaps even comparable to Divine Dragon.
Facing such a being, there was no time for polite conversation.
Kang Yu attempted to dive straight into his mind—
“—!”
Blinding golden energy erupted, instantly sweeping away his demonic qi.
Muhak opened his eyes sharply beneath Kang Yu’s sealed fingers.
“You wicked brat…!”
With feral teeth, he lunged for Kang Yu’s wrist.
“Yikes!”
Kang Yu jumped back in shock.
“Nope—that won’t work.”
This had never happened before.
As long as he grabbed the head, the lie-detection always worked.
No exception—until now.
“W-what happened?”
Startled by the sudden chaos, Musung opened his eyes.
He had felt overwhelming demonic qi moments earlier.
But he trusted the boy—given all he had done so far—and kept his eyes shut.
Now, Kang Yu was panting after retreating from the chains,
while Muhak’s face twisted with monstrous fury.
Musung asked urgently:
“You couldn’t do it?”
“I saw something—a log house.”
“A log house?”
“Just for a moment. A big log house.
A wide clearing in front. Behind it, mud huts and shacks.
The log house was far larger than anything else.”
“A log house with a wide clearing…”
The shackles thrashed violently.
The ground and walls trembled, bits of stone falling from the ceiling.
Muhak’s face twisted with demonic malice.
“You damn brat!
The moment I’m free, I’ll tear you apart!”
Kang Yu watched him briefly, then turned to Musung.
“That’s not going to break… right?”
“Extremely unlikely. But—are you certain about that log house? With shacks behind it and a clearing in front?”
“Yes.”
“How did you see it?”
“I was lie-detecting him. But I got kicked out early, so I only saw that.”
“Lie-detecting?”
“Yeah.”
“…”
Demonic qi.
Lies.
And seeing.
There was only one martial art that fit:
Mareong Soul-Seizing Technique—a demonic soul-capturing art of the Heavenly Demon.
Countless thoughts ran through Musung’s mind.
But he swallowed them.
The boy had shown enough evidence of goodwill.
Besides—time was short.
“Do you recognize the place?”
At Kang Yu’s question, Musung nodded.
“Not far from here. Likely the orphanage in the Mengjin slums.”
“Orphanage?”
“One the Abbot personally founded. He’d visit from time to time.”
Kang Yu tightened his pack.
“Then we should go there.”
“You’ve found a lead?”
“We’ll see once we get there.”
The shackles rattled again.
“Go nowhere!
There is nothing there!
NOTHING!”
The three ignored Muhak’s screams and left the cave.
Once outside the Main Hall, Yeon Baek-rim bowed.
“Then I’ll be on my way now.”
“Hm?”
Musung’s eyes widened.
“What do you mean? Leaving?”
Kang Yu answered for him.
“Oh, he said from the beginning he’d only be paying respects. He’s busy.”
Musung was stunned.
“What nonsense is this? Weren’t you here for this matter?”
“Huh? We met today for the first time.”
“What?”
Flustered, Musung faced Yeon Baek-rim.
“Help them.”
“…Sir?”
“If you meant only to pay respects, you should have left earlier. But you saw the cave—you now know Shaolin’s secrets.
You intend to walk away?”
“I…”
“Help.”
“That…”
Musung’s face hardened.
“If you refuse, you will stay confined at the Guest Hall until this matter is resolved.
You will not leave the temple.”
Musung raised his hand, calling the Ten Monks who upheld discipline.
The guardian Arhats of the Grand Hall rushed over.
Seeing that, Yeon Baek-rim surrendered immediately.
“I—I’ll help.”
Better to follow a monster than be trapped among countless martial artists.
Kang Yu clapped happily.
“As expected of the righteous hero who never ignores those in need!”
“…”
Thus Yeon Baek-rim reluctantly followed Kang Yu.
Musung gave directions to the slums, then returned to the Main Hall—saying he’d bring the list of donors to the orphanage.
Once outside the mountain gate, Kang Yu lowered his stance.
“Let’s go.”
“…”
The hellish carriage had opened its doors once again.
Yeon Baek-rim bit his lip in despair.
