How to Live as a Mage in the Murim World

Chapter 28 – Episode 7: Demonic Cultivator (2)

The explosion of the Clear Spirit Pill released enough magical energy to disperse the demonic qi infesting the small creatures.

This was only natural as the Clear Spirit Pill had been fully charged with the pure and clean energy from the incense burner.

As the demonic energy clashed with the energy of the Clear Spirit Pill, the mosquitoes couldn’t withstand the shock.

“!”

The swarm of mosquitoes, resembling a cloud, exploded and died in an instant, leaving the young martial artists stunned.

It was a spectacle reminiscent of the qi blast of a master who had reached the realm of Grandmasters.

Before they could voice their astonishment, Zhuge Hyeonmong shouted.

“It’s not over yet! There are still snakes and other things left!”

“R-right!”

Though the mosquito swarm had been dealt with, larger venomous creatures like snakes remained.

“Hmph, mosquitoes are one thing, but these should be easy!”

Indeed, after they drove away the remaining venomous creatures without much difficulty. Only then Seo Ryeonhwa, running out of adrenaline, staggered and slumped down.

“Ryeonhwa! Are you alright?”

“Don’t come near me! I’m poisoned right now. If you come close, Young Lady, you’ll be affected too…”

Sima Lin bit her lip and ignored Seo Ryeon-hwa’s words as she approached.

“Do you think I’d be afraid of something like that?”

“…I said don’t come closer. You’re not well yourself.”

“It’s too late for that. More importantly, where are the others? Are they inside the cave?”

Seo Ryeonhwa nodded.

They were ambushed by those deadly creatures while following the Demonic Cultivator to the Ghost Well Valley. As a result, many of them get poisoned and they end up in this cave while fleeing the ambush.

‘I never expected the venomous creatures would throw themselves into the fire to create toxic smoke.’

Those poisonous fumes were now thickly filling the cave.

“Hwa-ryeong.”

Sima Lin looked at Tang Hwa-ryeong, who was the poison expert among them.

Tang Hwa-ryeong wore a troubled expression.

No matter how well she knew about poisons and how resistant she was, she couldn’t be omnipotent in every situation.

“There are too many different poisons mixed together. It’s too dangerous to enter recklessly. Unless the wind blows somehow…”

They needed to physically disperse the toxic smoke first before venturing further.

But wind wasn’t something that could be summoned at will.

‘Wind, huh.’

Except for one person.

Zhuge Hyeonmong raised his magic wand.

Since the energy he spent previously was the energy from the Clear Spirit Pill, he still had plenty of energy left.

With a flick of his wrist, he summoned a gust of wind that enveloped them.

At the same time, Zhuge Hyeonmong frowned.

‘This is harder than I thought…!’

Because the poisonous smoke had spread wider and deeper than expected, projecting wind with mana wasn’t as easy as he had thought.

But for Tang Hwa-ryeong, that was already more than enough.

“This will do! Big Sis Seo, how many people are inside?”

“About five or so…”

“That’s manageable.”

Soon, the young martial artists held their breath and rescued the people inside the cave.

Among them, Peng Ak stood out particularly, showing his mettle by carrying two people at once, befitting his large build.

Fortunately, none of the people inside were in critical condition.

But surviving didn’t mean they were in good shape.

After checking their condition, Sima Lin made a decision.

“It seems I’ve lost the wager.”

“!!?”

Everyone’s eyes widened in surprise as the prideful Sima Lin readily admitted defeat. Understanding their surprise, she sighed.

“You knew I had sent my subordinates ahead, you knew they were in danger, and you even rescued them from that danger—It would be shameless of me to not admit defeat. Besides, if it weren’t for Young Master Zhuge Hyeonmong, the situation would have been disastrous.”

Indeed, while the other small creatures could be dealt with, the mosquito swarm would have been difficult to handle even with sword or fist techniques.

People who belatedly understood the situation nodded to Zhuge Hyeonmong, expressing their gratitude.

“And shameless as it may be, could the Green Forest Road Alliance protect us for a while? We’ll need time to recover.”

“Don’t worry. During your stay at the Green Forest Road Alliance, we’ll ensure you lack for nothing!”

While saying this, Jo Gwol was inwardly amazed.

‘Could he have foreseen even this?’

Given their status and value, the young prodigies from the martial families and sects are picky with their accommodation. No matter how urgent the situation, these arrogant brats would never under normal circumstances, enter the residence of an Unorthodox Faction’s sects, much less the dwelling of bandits.

From this perspective, the fact that the young martial artists themselves had requested protection would greatly boost the Green Forest Road Alliance’s reputation.

A sudden chill ran down Jo Gwol’s spine.

He glanced at Zhuge Hyeonmong who stood calmly observing the scene.

‘What a terrifying mind!’

While Jo Gwol was lost in his own fantasy, Zhuge Hyeonmong was lost in thought.

‘So there are techniques that can capture and control small creatures.’

Within the countless tales circulated in the Jianghu, there are tales about soul-controlling techniques. However, many of those tales are actually greatly distorted and exaggerated, that’s why he had thought that such techniques were mere fiction.

‘Of course, small animals can be trained to some extent depending on how you tame them.’

But training multiple swarms of mosquitos to control them at will was virtually impossible.

Unless one was using some kind of bizarre sorcery.

‘Sorcery, huh.’

Zhuge Hyeonmong felt a sense of unease.

He couldn’t quite put it into words yet, but it was definitely a gut feeling he couldn’t ignore.

“Those going to the Green Forest Road Alliance should depart now. The rest of us will hunt the Demonic Cultivator.”

“What?”

Sima Lin turned her head sharply at Zhuge Hyeonmong’s words.

‘Did I hear that wrong?’

Going after the Demonic Cultivator in this situation carried a significant risk.

Even if they put the Demonic Cultivator’s martial prowess aside, the fact that the Demonic Cultivator was using strange sorcery is already a danger on its own.

Moreover, since Sima Lin had conceded the bet and decided to seek refuge at the Green Forest Road Alliance, Zhuge Hyeonmong essentially had achieved the result he wanted.

In this situation, suggesting they go after the Demon Cultivator was more of a loss than a gain.

“Isn’t it too dangerous?”

“It is. But if we don’t act now, we’ll lose their traces. Even if they’re a Demonic Cultivator, they’ll hesitate to face young martial artists from orthodox sects.”

Of course, it was more about fearing the major sects and the Martial Alliance behind them than the young martial artists themselves.

“If we don’t capture them now, they’ll be free to act for a while. Innocent blood might be shed in the process.”

“!”

Everyone was surprised by Zhuge Hyeonmong’s spirited words.

And Im Jun-gyu genuinely wondered if Zhuge Hyeonmong had eaten something wrong.

‘Since when was he this kind of person?’

The Zhuge Hyeonmong he knew tended to overlook injustices and move on.

“Are you sure? We don’t know what kind of sorcery the Demonic Cultivator might use.”

“I think I can handle the Demon Cultivator’s sorcery. And in my opinion, the Demonic Cultivator is weakened now. Even in the worst case, I’ll hold him back, so I’d be grateful if you could bring Master Ma in the meantime. I’ll tell you where to come.”

The small creatures that had been suppressed and controlled had burst all at once.

Given the structure of the sorcery, there must be a backlash.

As the young martial artists looked skeptical, Zhuge Hyeonmong shrugged.

“If you’re unwilling, I’ll give up…but are you fine with letting the Demonic Cultivator escape?”

“I’ll go.”

Zhuge Jun raised his hand and stepped forward.

“Then I’ll go too. If my friend trusts you, so do I.”

The loyal Peng Ak joined as well.

But that was it. No one else stepped forward.

Sima Lin needed to care for her subordinate, and Tang Hwa-ryeong needed to treat the poisoned individuals. The other young martial artists either didn’t fully trust Zhuge Hyeonmong or or had come for Sima Lin or Tang Hwa-ryeong, not the Demonic Cultivator.

“So it’s me, Brother Jun, Brother Peng Ak, Mister Hang Gon, and Escort Im.”

“Me?”

Im Jun-gyu’s eyes widened in disbelief.

No, if he was going, he should go alone, why was he dragging him into this?

Zhuge Hyeonmong responded as if it were obvious. “Didn’t you say last time that I needed someone to protect me? Surely you haven’t forgotten what you said?”

“Hey, it’s petty to bring up something I did a while ago.”

Hang Gon patted Im Jun-gyu’s drooping shoulders.

“Haha, don’t worry, Escort Im! This Hang Gon will protect you no matter what!”

“It’s Escort Im, not Young Master, Master Hang Gon.”

“Ah, right. Anyway, don’t worry!”

“Somehow I think I should be worried…”

Meanwhile, Tang Hwa-ryeong beckoned to Zhuge Hyeonmong.

“Hey, come here for a moment.”

“I refuse. We are in a hurry.”

Tang Hwa-ryeong took out her hidden weapon.

Zhuge Hyeonmong quickly walked over to Tang Hwa-ryeong.

“Do you have any advice?”

“…Just come a bit closer.”

Any closer, and even his quick spellcasting wouldn’t save him.

Zhuge Hyeonmong’s feet stopped.

“They say men and women should not sit together after the age of seven. As someone who has studied Confucianism…”

Tang Hwa-ryeong sighed, then lunged like lightning to grab Zhuge Hyeonmong’s ear.

‘She’s fast!’

Zhuge Hyeonmong had been on guard, but martial artists were indeed different.

“Hey, you stole my hidden weapon technique earlier, didn’t you?”

“……”

Even the great Zhuge Hyeonmong couldn’t argue with that.

“Well, that’s not why I called you.”

She’d pulled his ear mostly out of annoyance.

After releasing his ear, Tang Hwa-ryeong casually tossed something from her sleeve.

“This is a poison pill, and these are some decent hidden weapons. You can just throw them like you did earlier, so don’t worry about how to use them.”

“Is it alright to give me such things?”

“Among the people whose lives were saved thanks to you just now, there’s my servant too. Consider it payment for that life. And since you don’t know martial arts, you’ll need at least this much.”

The Sichuan Tang Family is a martial family that valued debts of gratitude and grudges.

As soon as he thought of that, Zhuge Hyeonmong asked Tang Hwa-ryeong.

“Do you have any poison powder? The more potent, the better.”

“…Are you always this shameless?”

“No.”

Im Jun-gyu eyed Zhuge Hyeonmong with a look that clearly wanted to punch him.