The air in the office crackled with tension.

Park Ji-hoon’s forehead shattered the table and slammed into the floor. With a crunch, the ground cracked, forming a spiderweb of fractures.

“Ugh…”

I pressed my knee into his back with the force of a *Cheongeuncho* (Thousand-Pound Hammer), and a groan escaped from him. As I looked down at the back of his head, my eyes filled with astonishment.

‘Well, look at that.’

Modern hunters don’t have the concept of martial arts. Even in close combat, few like the Black Hunter Lim Young-jun focus primarily on body techniques, preferring to concentrate on weapon skills.

‘Because that’s a more effective way to increase survival rates.’

But Park Ji-hoon was different. Though it was only for a brief moment, his movements were comparable to those of a top martial artist from the Murim.

‘It was a bit rough, but it resembled *Geumnasu* (A high-level grappling technique).’

I had underestimated him and was genuinely surprised. The match was quickly decided, but the fact that he exchanged five moves with me was far beyond what I expected from his skill level.

‘How could such a technique survive into the modern era? And why has it remained unknown until now?’

I asked him, my voice laced with curiosity, “Where did you learn that technique?”

Park Ji-hoon, voice strained under the pressure, responded, “Let me go, before you regret it.”

“I see you still have some fight left in you.”

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Once, twice, three times.

With each slam of his head into the floor, muffled groans escaped him. The previously spotless office floor was now splattered with blood.

As his body finally went limp, Park Tae-seop, who had been watching in silence, suddenly spoke up.

“That’s enough.”

“Is this guy your son, Guild Leader?”

“Do you think he is?”

“Or your daughter, maybe?”

“Of course not.”

“Then, it’s not something you should be getting involved in. If you cross the line here, who knows what I might do.”

Park Tae-seop’s eyebrow twitched.

“You have a sharp tongue.”

“And a sharper hand. They used to call me the ‘Spicy Chicken Hand’ in Haengsin-dong… Want a taste?”

“I’m not interested in fighting someone as young as you. I do have my pride,” Park Tae-seop replied, uncrossing his arms.

“But if you hurt that man too much, I’ll be in trouble. He’s a key business partner.”

“A business partner sent him as a manager, I suppose. But calling him a business partner seems laughable now. Seeing how he’s been manipulated, it’s almost like you’re just a figurehead. Did they blackmail you with something?”

The jab hit a nerve, and Park Tae-seop’s expression briefly darkened.

“You’re sharper than I thought. I was told you weren’t too bright.”

I didn’t need to ask who had said that.

I gripped Park Ji-hoon’s stiff, waxed hair even more roughly and responded, “I’m a slow learner, but once I learn something, I don’t forget it.”

“You’ve learned your lesson, so let him go.”

“I was already planning on it.”

I yanked Park Ji-hoon’s head up, and as I did so, Park Tae-seop nodded slightly.

“That’s a wise—” I slammed his head down with renewed force.

*Bang!*

‘One more.’

*Crash!*

With a tremendous sound, the floor shattered. As Park Ji-hoon flopped around like a dying fish, I drove my foot into his solar plexus.

*Thud!*

He skidded across the floor, coming to a halt at the entrance, blood dripping from his mouth as he convulsed.

I turned to Park Tae-seop, who was too stunned to speak.

“I’ve let him go. Satisfied?”

“You… you’re quite something.”

“Am I worse than someone who slices off people’s arms as a warning?”

“I may not be fond of him, but you’d have been better off listening to my advice.”

His expression and tone were serious. He meant it.

Rather than being afraid, I became curious. Who could this person be that even Park Tae-seop, a war hero and one of the top hunters in the country, seemed reluctant to cross?

I asked with a puzzled expression, “Who is it? That bastard kept referring to him as ‘that person.'”

“I can’t say. Even if I told you, you’d only regret it later.”

“Oh, come on. Is this person some kind of Asmodeus or something?”

“If you were to make them your enemy, you might prefer facing a demon lord. At least the whole world would fight alongside you… But what are you doing right now?”

Park Tae-seop stared at me, wide-eyed.

No, more specifically, he was staring at the phone in my hand.

“I’m looking at my phone.”

“All of a sudden?”

“Yeah.”

His expression screamed disbelief.

Still baffled, he asked, “What are you doing with it?”

“What else? Since you won’t tell me, I’m trying to find the number myself.”

“Number?”

“Yeah, that person’s number.”

For a moment, he seemed to realize something.

“Wait… You don’t mean…?”

“That’s right. I took it from his pocket.”

At my reply, Park Tae-seop’s eyes widened, and Park Ji-hoon, who had been coughing up blood, suddenly shouted, forgetting his pain.

“Give it back, right now!”

“Yeah, hand it over.”

I fiddled with the unidentified phone, not sure of its make or model.

It was different from the one I’d seen in his office last time. There’s no way he switched phones in just a few days, so it was likely a secret phone for private contacts.

Even those sneaking around with multiple lovers carry two or three phones these days, so this wasn’t too surprising.

‘He’s a guy with a lot of secrets.’

When I touched the screen, a lock icon appeared, along with two messages instructing me to scan my fingerprint and iris.

Fingerprint scanning is one thing, but iris scanning too?

I waved Park Ji-hoon over as he struggled to stand.

“Hey, come here. I need your fingerprint and iris.”

“Jin Tae-kyung, you crazy bastard. Do you even know what you’re doing right now?”

“Yeah, I know. So get over here before I rip out your eyes and fingers.”

“Don’t worry. I was going to do that anyway.”

Park Ji-hoon wiped the blood from his mouth with a grinding of his teeth.

However, unlike earlier when he was gasping for breath, now he seemed full of energy.

Aside from the bloodstains, the cuts on his forehead and nose had healed, and his stamina was fully restored.

It was then that I noticed a small, reinforced glass bottle rolling at his feet.

“A potion?”

“Never take your eyes off the enemy, even at the last moment. Didn’t you learn that in training?”

While I was distracted by the phone, he had managed to pull out the hidden potion and down it. I shrugged and replied.

“That’s only when both sides are evenly matched, which isn’t the case here, is it?”

“What?”

“I don’t know who you learned from or where you picked it up, but…”

Following the *Gugyeol* (mnemonic technique) of *Yeolhwashingeong* (Blazing Fire Divine Art), I circulated my energy, awakening the fire dragon that had been coiled in my *Danjeon* (energy center).

I locked eyes with Park Ji-hoon, my gaze glowing a fiery red.

“Between you and me, there’s a world of difference, you lowlife scum.”

In an instant, the energy from *Yeolhyang Jigi* (Flame-Bearing Energy), split into hundreds of streams, awakening my acupoints. The energy surged through my body without hesitation.

The streams of energy, having reached their final destination, merged back into one.

‘Disperse, compress, and… unleash.’

*Fwoosh!*

Even though it was early winter, the frigid office turned into a blazing summer, like a furnace. The sudden surge of intense fire energy engulfed the room.

“Hah,” I exhaled hot air.

Through the shimmering heat waves, I saw a figure, frozen in shock. His face was rigid, and his eyes swirled with turmoil.

“You… you…”

Park Ji-hoon’s voice, a mix of disbelief and anguish, escaped from his lips.

“How… how is this possible?”

“I told you. We’re not on the same level.”

He shivered as if doused with cold water, biting his lip so hard that it split, blood trickling down.

“This… this doesn’t make any sense. How could you…?”

Muttering in a distorted voice, he suddenly spoke up.

“I’m going to need your help.”

It was clear whom he was addressing.

Myeongdong Guild Leader Park Tae-seop, who had been watching me with eyes full of shock, responded in a heavy voice.

“Is there any way to refuse that request?”

“No.”

“And if I still refuse?”

“You know the consequences. The rewards and punishments that follow a choice. Guild Leader, you’re familiar with his methods.”

“…I’m sick of it.”

With a sigh, Park Tae-seop pulled out a 60-centimeter rod from his waist. As he caressed the magic stone embedded at the end, a white blade shot out.

*Tsssss*

“Don’t blame me,” he said bitterly as the blue aura surrounding the sword tip pointed directly at me.

Facing me now was not just any opponent but a war hero from the Great Cataclysm, a top-ranked hunter in the country. The massive energy emanating from him rose to challenge my fiery aura.

With newfound confidence, Park Ji-hoon sneered coldly, “You’re finished.”

“Finished?”

I laughed aloud.

I had thought he might be somewhat intelligent, given that he attended a prestigious university, but he seemed to have completely forgotten what I mentioned last time.

“I decide when this ends, you idiot.”

Park Ji-hoon had arrogantly positioned himself at the start line, ready to fire the gun to commence the race. But he had failed to anticipate the most important fact.

In this race, there was no finish line. And wherever I chose to stop would be the finish line.

‘Inventory open. Summon *Baekyeom* (White Flame).’

*Fwoosh.*

With a burst of flame, I stepped forward.

Blue flames coursed along the blade, igniting everything in their path as they rushed toward my enemies.

“Hah!”

With a powerful shout, a massive greatsword came flying at me. The blue aura at its tip was darker and longer than anything I had seen in reality.

‘As expected of a top-ranked hunter.’

Aura and mana.

They may have different names, but their essence remains unchanged. In that sense, the energy that Park Tae-seop wielded was greater than mine.

But…

‘That’s all there is to it.’

With a thought, I sprang upward.

My hair brushed the ceiling as the blade, aimed at my waist, sliced through empty air.

*Whoosh! Slash!*

The immense pressure from the swing swept everything away. The reinforced glass wall lining one side of the office shattered and plummeted to the ground below.

Before the screams from below even reached my ears, I slashed my sword downward toward Park Tae-seop’s head.

*Swish, boom!*

With a deafening roar, Park Tae-seop’s knees hit the ground. He had barely managed to block my attack with a shield in his other hand, and his eyes widened in shock.

“What in the…!”

By now, he must be feeling the overwhelming pressure of a force that weighs like a thousand-ton boulder crushing him.

It was the difference in our physical capabilities and how we utilized our energy.

‘Hunters are inefficient compared to martial artists.’

In contrast, the internal martial arts of the Murim explosively enhance the efficiency of one’s energy. That’s why prestigious clans like the Nine Great Schools and the Five Major Families are so powerful.

The synergy between advanced internal energy techniques and various martial arts, perfectly synchronized like finely tuned gears, is what earns the title of *Shingong* (Divine Art).

‘Disperse, compress, and unleash.’

Energy is a precious resource. It must be used at the right time and in the optimal way. Even a top-ranked hunter like Park Tae-seop couldn’t fully break free from those limitations.

*Bang! Bang! Crash!*

After blocking a total of four attacks, Park Tae-seop’s shield finally shattered in half, just as a flash of light shot toward my side.

“Die!”

There was no need to look to know that the thin, sharp rapier belonged to Park Ji-hoon.

Thinking I had dodged it, I felt the extended aura from the rapier’s tip graze my side.

*Schwick!*

A hint of disappointment flashed across Park Ji-hoon’s face. His aura had only managed to slice through my clothes.

I checked my unscathed side and licked my lips.

“…This is quite interesting.”

“Interesting? You’re not afraid?”

“Did ‘that person’ or whoever teach you this?”

“Shut your mouth! You’re not worthy to speak of him!”

“Well, I guess it’s true then. It’s not some cult, is it?”

“You bastard…!”

*Whoosh! Swish, swish, swish!*

From the right, Park Tae-seop’s greatsword came slashing in, while from the left, Park Ji-hoon’s rapier thrust toward me.

Watching the two of them rush at me, tearing through the air, I extended both arms.

*Bang! Clang!*

Park Tae-seop’s greatsword was blocked by *Baekyeom*, and Park Ji-hoon’s rapier was stopped by the dagger I had just summoned. I twisted my wrists smoothly.

*Clang, clang, clack!*

The four blades, locked tightly together, twisted and tangled.

I remembered my duel with *Geomsung Maejonghak* (Sword Saint Mae Jong-hak).

His swordsmanship was mesmerizing, his movements fluid.

And I reenacted that memory.

*Flow.*

*Sssss.*

The spear and dagger in my hands slithered like snakes. Neither the massive greatsword nor the slender rapier could block their path.

In an instant, the two sharp blades touched the throats of Park Tae-seop and Park Ji-hoon.

“Drop your weapons.”

The two stared at me in shock.

Park Ji-hoon, his voice filled with fury and despair, said, “How…”

“Didn’t you hear me?”

*Crack!*

There was no hesitation. I lifted my foot and stomped on his knee, shattering the cartilage with a sickening crunch and drawing out a scream.

“Ahhh!”

“That’s one arm for two legs. Doesn’t seem fair, does it?”

Just as I was about to crush his other knee, a voice, unfamiliar and deep, pierced through the tension.

“That’s enough.”

The voice was chilling, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

This presence…

Murim Login — Chapter 14

Murim Login Chapter 14 — Chapter 283

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