Trash of the Count's Family - TCF Part 2 - Chapter 100: Blood! (5)

Correction:
Great War Between Good and Evil -> Great War of the GED
***
Cale held the divine mirror, and Beacrox asked if Jungwon was okay. He had put down the monk statue he was carrying. Cale replied that it was fine to ignore it. The sound of message notifications went on in the background, but Cale seriously ignored it. Below are some of his past messages:
‐ Cale-nim, it’s dark. I’m contacting you like this because my alter ego has turned into stone! Are you worried about me?
‐ Cale-nim, this Jungwon is doing well! …Do you want to see me?
‐ Cale-nim, you’re so cool! You’re the best! Let the Namgung Clan handle those hateful things!
‐ …I-I’m alive and well! Aren’t you curious! I’ll see you soon with my alter ego!
‐ …Cale-nim?
‐ …Knock, knock?
‐ …Are your reading my messages and ignoring it? How can you do this!
Cale returned the mirror to his pocket and asked Fist King Mok Hyeon if he was curious about the mirror. Mok Hyeon replied that he felt a mysterious energy from it. Cale was amazed that he sensed something like that, and asked what kind of energy he felt. Mok Hyeon answered that contrary to the mirror’s luxurious appearance, the energy was kind of calm and heavy.
He inquired on the mirror’s identity. As if it was nothing special, Cale casually replied that it came from an annoying god called the God of Death, and that it was given to him. It also allowed him to cross worlds. Elder Ho gasped at the words ‘God of Death’ and ‘cross worlds.’ Mok Hyeon commented that if it was the young master, meeting such a god was possible.
Elder Ho was even more astonished at the very calm reaction of Mok Hyeon. He wondered if the young master was indeed a divine immortal. He was also puzzled at Mok Hyeon since the latter’s energy had changed, making it hard to discern his martial arts rank. Mok Hyeon praised the young master, and Cale was embarrassed at the praise.
Elder Ho thought that it was amazing. Despite the young master being at a very high level, he remained polite and respectful. At that moment, Chief Eunuch Wi opened the door of the abandoned house, welcoming the Sword Saint and Tae Wi. Cale stood up and shook hands with the Sword Saint, thanking him for listening to his request.
Sword Saint stepped back and introduced Tae Wi. Tae Wi said that he heard from the Sword Saint that the imperial family wanted to catch the Sword Demon. Wi confirmed that statement, and Tae Wi asked if they wanted the Heavenly Sword too. There was a sharpness to that question as he glanced at Cale who had sat down again.
Cale calmly replied that he wanted it, and then silently gave a signal to Wi. Afterwards, Wi and Tae Wi conversed. Durst was covering his nose with the hem of his wide sleeves as he sniffed. Wi and Tae Wi were talking about cooperation between the imperial family and the Murim Alliance. Tae Wi expressed doubts about the intentions of the Murim Alliance and the Namgung Clan.
Wi replied that the Namgung Clan would not dare disobey the imperial family’s will. Raon commented that they were good at acting. Cale nodded and glanced at Durst, asking quietly how it was. Durst replied that the closer he smelled it, the worse the smell was. He did not hesitate to say that it smelled worse than Jiangshi, and finally declared that it must be a Living Jiangshi.
The Central Plains residents were surprised that Durst spoke about that out loud, but Cale did not want to waste his time any longer. He told them to begin checking. Cale stood up and looked at Tae Wi who was confused at being called a Living Jiangshi. He looked so genuinely confused that the Sword Saint wavered.
Cale asked Durst to check it in another way, thinking that Durst was the most trustworthy person here. Durst replied that checking was simple, and everyone’s eyes focused on him. Durst began by saying that the Blood Cult created Living Jiangshi. Mok Hyeon spoke to Cale via Chi Hidden Voice that he saw Tae Wi flinch at the mention of Blood Cult.
Flashback to Wi and Mok Hyeon’s conversation before arriving at this abandoned house. The two had talked about there being few records about Living Jiangshi, so they did not know much about its characteristics. They had then agreed to deal with the Living Jiangshi once they had actually met one. Back to the present, Durst began his tirade…
“The Blood Cult is a cult, isn’t it? And that Blood Demon is its leader? Did they say he’s like a god? Okay.” Durst then told Tae Wi to shout out the following words, “Blood Demon, you foolish idiot! Curse the Blood Cult! Blood Demon should die! Blood Demon is the world’s most insignificant and worthless being! Blood Demon does not deserve to live! – Shout out like this.”
Cale closed his eyes and let out a sigh. Raon remarked that Durst was amazing but also questioned Durst’s sanity. Tae Wi looked confused, and Cale said that he would check himself. A tiny spark of fire appeared in Cale’s hand, and Mok Hyeon was startled. Mok Hyeon sensed that it was the pure energy of nature.
He could not take his eyes off the flame. Tae Wi looked at Sword Saint, saying that these people were talking about unbelievable things. He headed towards the Sword Saint and exclaimed that it was all nonsense. His voice rose and he looked displeased. Cale thought that he really looked like an alive human.
Tae Wi stopped in front of the Sword Saint and asked if he knew about this. He looked to be in disbelief as he pleaded to the Sword Saint to disagree. The Sword Saint closed his eyes as he also thought that Tae Wi looked alive. Tae Wi continued to persuade the Sword Saint as tears welled up in his eyes. He looked like someone who was deeply betrayed.
Suddenly, Durst groaned and pointed to Tae Wi, saying that the rotten smell grew worse. Cale ordered the people to catch Tae Wi, and Mok Hyeon immediately moved. Upon seeing that, the Sword Saint reflexively tried to stop it because he was afraid that Tae Wi’s arms might be broken by Mok Hyeon. Tae Wi was so shocked as he asked for help from the person he trusted.
Cale wondered if this was really acting, and the Sword Saint grabbed both of Tae Wi’s hands. Tae Wi looked relieved, thinking that the Sword Saint believed him. But Mok Hyeon grabbed Tae Wi’s upper clothes and tore it apart. Cale saw Tae Wi’s bare back and thought that there was nothing abnormal there.
But the Sword Saint’s voice trembled when he saw Tae Wi’s bare chest. At the place where the heart should be, there was a hideous bulging black heart. Durst covered his nose in agony, shouting that the smell had worsened. The Sword Saint stared at Tae Wi whose face expression disappeared. The black heart loudly beat, and Tae Wi began to monotonously speak.
“In case of detection, the last goal is to be given priority. The final goal. Kill the Sword Saint.” Tae Wi tightly gripped the Sword Saint’s hands. The eyes of the Sword Saint shook, and black lines protruded from the black heart, spreading all over the body. It was a horrifying sight as all the veins seemed to have swollen.
Elder Ho shouted that it was the self-destruction mode, and panicked that it happened too quickly. Within a few seconds, the black lines covered Tae Wi’s entire body. It would explode soon, and Wi also panicked as the records did not mention anything about this. He wondered if the Living Jiangshi created by the Blood Cult was special.
He realized that it was dangerous, and wondered how the young master could purify the Living Jiangshi quickly. They were trying to buy time for the young master, but it seemed to be in vain, so Wi shouted that they should run now. Wi tried to grab the Sword Saint, thinking that he could not let that person die.
But Mok Hyeon stopped him, saying that it was fine. He tried to ask why, but soon noticed that the air was different. Wi glanced at Cale who was holding a small stove in his hand. Fire and golden lightning burned brightly in that stove, and the smoke it generated rapidly spread inside in an instant. The moment Wi inhaled the smoke, he realized that it was the energy of nature.
The energy was so clean and gentle as if it did not come from someone who had a dominating aura. Wi teared up as he had felt this energy once. It was when he first learned martial arts. The refreshing energy had enveloped him back then. Back to the present, the smoke only gave off warmth and did not burn them. Wi relaxed, thinking that everything would be fine. At that moment, Tae Wi shuddered and groaned.
***
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Greetings, this is Yoo Ryeo Han.
It seems like I’m greeting everyone after a really long time.
Almost half a year has passed since the beginning of Part 2, and we are finally here at chapter 100.
Actually, I was scared when I decided to write Part 2.
Will I be able to do it well?
After the long publication time of the series, I wondered if it would collapse at some point without my knowledge.
Perhaps I wouldn’t be able to finish this series properly.
There were many worries and insecurities.
Nevertheless, I wanted to put an end to the story I had in mind, so I began Part 2 like this.
As we reach the 100th episode, I have many emotions.
Anyway, I want to say thank you more than anything, so I’m conveying my feelings like this.
As always, thank you.
In the future, I will continue to walk this path with Cale and his colleagues diligently and steadily.
Again, thank you.
-Yoo Ryeo Han.
*On that note, it’s the 100th today, so I’m going to eat meat. Hahaha!
(Trivia: Beef is expensive in Korea, so the author is referring to eating beef in celebration of this special occasion.)