Absolute Regression

Translator: FenrirTL
Editor/Quality Checker: Saphartlantis
Murim Term Consultant: Kopke
========================

< Chapter 195: A Gangster Reflecting Regretfully? >

The leader of the Beast Sect, Gu Yasu, was watching his subordinates count the money. It was silver collected from the marketplace as tributes.

“Three hundred nyang.”

One of his men brought over a hefty pouch of money.

“We’re going broke because of one damn idiot. Where’s that bastard Kongpae now?”

In response, Yang, his right-hand man standing beside him, answered.

“He was released from the Murim Alliance’s branch and is probably out somewhere drinking.”

“When he comes in, tell him to come straight to me.”

“Yes, sir.”

The three hundred nyang was a bribe for the Murim Alliance’s branch leader. Even though he received regular payments every month, he should’ve let it slide, but he demanded three hundred nyang in exchange for releasing Kongpae.

But Gu Yasu couldn’t just leave Kongpae rotting in prison either. Kongpae was essential to the Beast Sect. With scumbags like him around, merchants would get scared and obediently pay up.

“What about the woman who reported him? She didn’t run off, did she?”

“Her mother is sick, so she won’t be able to run away.”

“Didn’t you say she was pretty? Makes sense. That’s why that horny bastard Kongpae acted up. Once things settle down, sell her off to a brothel far away. We need to at least recover half of the money lost because of her.” 1

“Understood.”

“And make sure that idiot Kongpae doesn’t touch her anymore.”

“Got it. By the way, the Jangdo Sect has encroached on our territory again.”

“Those bastards!”

The Jangdo Sect was a rival black-market gang from a nearby region. They often clashed whenever territorial disputes arose.

“There’s a rumor that they’ve recruited a martial expert.”

“What kind of expert?”

“I’m not sure. It’s said that the expert’s identity is unknown, but it seems they’re acting bold because of him.”

Gu Yasu snorted dismissively. Just then, one of his subordinates rushed in urgently to report.

“Intruders are here!”

At the mention of intruders, Gu Yasu immediately called for someone.

“Fetch Chun Mu-in.”

The reason Gu Yasu could dismissively snort at the Jangdo Sect recruiting a new expert was because of Chun, a master known only to Gu Yasu. The secret Gu Yasu kept was that Chun was a former member of the Demonic Cult.

A martial master from the Demonic Cult, Chun!

It was thanks to him that the Beast Sect had grown this strong.

When Gu Yasu and Yang stepped outside, the intruders were crossing the training grounds, walking toward them.

As Gu Yasu saw the figures approaching from a distance, he was taken aback.

“What the hell?”

There were two intruders: a burly, muscular man and a slender young man. Their leisurely pace made them seem more like visitors than intruders. Of course, they were Geom Mugeuk and Gongpae.

Yang quickly spoke up.

“They seem to be the ones sent by the Jangdo Sect.”

“The expert they supposedly recruited this time?”

“Yes. Who else could it be if not them?”

Gu Yasu nodded. There was no one else in the area who would dare to attack them other than the Jangdo Sect.

“Where’s Chun Mu-in?”

“He’ll be out soon.”

Around twenty members of the Beast Sect sprang from all directions, brandishing their weapons as they surrounded the two intruders.

“Where are you from?”

At Gu Yasu’s question, Geom Mugeuk glanced around and replied.

“You’ve turned the outside into a hellhole, but here you’re living quite comfortably.”

The Beast Sect’s headquarters was a newly built estate. The building Gu Yasu resided in was especially lavish, constructed with expensive materials without any reservations.

“I asked, who are you?”

To kill or to submit—ordinarily, Gu Yasu would have already barked his commands. But today, the words wouldn’t leave his lips.

It was because of the muscular man standing next to the young man. Gu Yasu, who had experienced all sorts of scoundrels in the underworld, had never seen anyone as terrifying as this.

Geom Mugeuk addressed Gu Yasu.

“Do you know why you keep asking who we are instead of why we’re here? It’s because you’re in the habit of first deciding whether someone’s worth killing or not.”

With that, Geom Mugeuk began striding directly toward Gu Yasu.

Startled, Gu Yasu shouted to his men.

“Kill him!”

The Beast Sect members charged at Geom Mugeuk.

Geom Mugeuk dodged the incoming attacks and began throwing punches.

To Gu Yasu, the attacks didn’t look powerful at all. Just light taps—one after another.

He dodged skillfully, avoiding the attacks coming from all directions while landing single blows here and there. Some men were struck in the face, others in the stomach.

Though Geom Mugeuk’s moves were fast, his attacks seemed devoid of any real power, which gave Gu Yasu a sense of relief.

‘It’s nothing special!’

That was exactly what he thought. In fact, he started to worry more about the muscular man standing aside, not getting involved in the fight.

“Get up! Get up and join forces! Stab him in the back!”

But the subordinates who had been struck and fallen didn’t get back up.

“Stop pretending and get up! You useless idiots!”

Gu Yasu understood, though. Even he might have pretended to be knocked out if it meant avoiding a fight with that muscular guy.

“Ah, I trusted these fools.”

In the meantime, all twenty of those who had stepped forward were down.

Yang kicked a fallen subordinate nearby, trying to wake him up. Geom Mugeuk just let him do as he pleased.

“If you don’t want to die, get up!”

It was obvious that the men were only pretending to be unconscious after receiving such light taps. Anyone could see it was an act.

Even after being kicked, they didn’t move. Yang, feeling something was off, carefully examined the fallen subordinates.

Yang flinched. The subordinate was dead. He checked another who had collapsed nearby; he was dead too. Yang realized then that all of the subordinates were dead.

Yang slowly looked up at Geom Mugeuk.

At that moment, his eyes met Geom Mugeuk’s. The gaze was cold and chilling, devoid of any emotion.

‘A true master!’

Yang realized that one wrong word could lead to his death on the spot.

Geom Mugeuk had shown no mercy in his actions. It was to ensure that no one survived to seek revenge and harm Seok’s family.

Just then, Chun appeared. His hair was disheveled, likely from drinking too much the previous night, and his unshaven face made him look incredibly haggard. He also had gained quite a bit of weight since joining the Beast Sect. Still, Gu Yasu didn’t mind; Chun had never failed to eliminate a target so far.

“Get rid of both of them.”

Chun walked forward with long strides, paying no attention to the fallen members of the Beast Sect. He knew their skills were mediocre.

He was, after all, a former member of the Eastern Fist Faction, specifically from the Iron Fist branch. Though he had reached the rank of Blue Fist, he eventually fled to the Demonic Cult, unable to endure the grueling training. 2

Since then, Chun had been hiding within the Beast Sect. Many had tried to target Gu Yasu, but they all died at Chun’s hands. In return, he received ample money to indulge in his vices. In this third-rate underworld, even the abilities of a Blue Fist practitioner were sufficient for Chun to reign as a Fist Demon King.

*Whoosh.*

Chun’s fist, aimed at smashing Geom Mugeuk’s head, halted in mid-air.

The problem wasn’t that Geom Mugeuk had effortlessly dodged his attack; it was what Geom Mugeuk said next.

“This is Blue Fist martial arts, isn’t it?”

Chun was startled. It was the first time anyone had recognized his martial arts.

Right then, Chun’s eyes finally settled on a figure standing with his back turned, gazing at the sky—the massive man who now turned his head towards him.

The moment he saw that face!

“Aaargh!”

Chun let out a scream. He was so shocked it felt like his heart would burst. The hangover that had plagued him all day vanished instantly.

Gu Yasu, who was behind Chun, couldn’t see his face, but Yang could.

He saw Chun’s twisted expression. It was hard to believe that such profound despair and fear could manifest on a human face.

The Fist Demon King muttered under his breath, almost to himself.

“You used my martial arts to serve as the lackey of some black-market thug?”

The Fist Demon King’s words carried no emotion. The moment he finished speaking—

*Thud! Crack!*

Chun immediately struck his own celestial acupoint and took his life. He knew there was no escape, no forgiveness. If he were to die at the hands of the Fist Demon King, his death would be far more painful. 3

Seeing this, Gu Yasu’s mind went blank. The situation was so bizarre that he found himself unable to think.

As Geom Mugeuk walked past Yang, he spoke.

“Follow me.”

“Yes!”

Yang obediently followed the order as if Geom Mugeuk were naturally his leader all along.

Gu Yasu snapped back to his senses when Geom Mugeuk approached him. Now, there was only one thing he could rely on.

“Do you know who’s behind us? If you mess with us, there will be consequences.”

“Who’s behind you?”

“The Murim Alliance.”

“The entire Murim Alliance belongs to you?”

“The head of this branch supports me. If you touch me, he won’t stand still.”

Geom Mugeuk turned to Yang.

“Can you bring the branch leader here?”

Yang hesitated, realizing it wouldn’t be easy.

“If you bring him here, you’ll be the leader of the Beast Sect.”

“I’ll bring him no matter what it takes.”

Gu Yasu glared at Yang as if he wanted to kill him as he ran out without hesitation.

“That damned bastard.”

He didn’t expect Yang to betray him so easily. After all, Yang was his right-hand man for many years.

Once Yang left, Geom Mugeuk spoke.

“There’s no need to be so angry. The promise to make him the leader was a lie.”

Gu Yasu’s expression relaxed slightly at that moment.

“It’s not like you’ve been in the dark side for just a day or two; you know everyone dies, right?”

Gu Yasu’s face hardened again. He realized that Geom Mugeuk’s words included him too.

“Please, spare me.”

Geom Mugeuk said to him, “Give me evidence of the bribes you gave to the branch leader.”

Gu Yasu’s eyes darted around.

“If you don’t have it, just die.”

As Geom Mugeuk clenched his fist, Gu Yasu shouted.

“I have it! It’s in the safe.”

Geom Mugeuk led him to the safe. Gu Yasu’s hands trembled as he opened it. The fear came rushing in, as he belatedly realized the gravity of the situation. Chun’s suicide, someone he trusted deeply to reslove problems, weighed heavily on him.

“Here it is.”

He pulled out a ledger from the safe. It contained details of the bribes given to the Murim Alliance branch leader and records of all the corruption he had committed.

“Go and move the bodies where they can’t be seen.”

Gu Yasu walked toward the corpses.

‘This is my chance!’

Gu Yasu made up his mind to seize the opportunity and escape, but before he knew it, his inner energy at his dantian had been suppressed, leaving him unable to use it.

‘When did this even happen?’

With no other choice, Gu Yasu went ahead and cleared the corpses. Without his inner energy, moving about twenty bodies left him drenched in sweat. Having lived his whole life without lifting a finger, this felt like torture.

After laboriously clearing all the corpses, Gu Yasu returned to Geom Mugeuk.

“They’re all cleared.”

“Exhausted? Feeling powerless?”

“…Yes.”

“The people who suffered at your hands felt that a hundred or a thousand times more than this. As individual pieces, you’re insignificant, but like a pack of dogs, you roamed together, intimidating, robbing, beating, and killing.”

“From now on, I’ll turn over a new leaf.” 4

“A man of the underworld, talking about repentance? How unsophisticated. Keep doing bad things, but do them where I tell you. There’ll be plenty of partners there, so you’ll be fine.”

“Where is that?”

“Hell.”

Geom Mugeuk’s fist flew at him.

Second Technique: Thunderous Asura Fist.

*Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!*

In a flash, dozens of punches landed on him like lightning strikes, and without a chance to scream, he died a bloody mess.

Geom Mugeuk dumped his body unceremoniously into the warehouse with the other corpses. He gave no significance to the man’s death.

A short while later, Murim Alliance Branch Leader, Baekchul, arrived at the scene.

“Why does it smell like blood in here? Didn’t I tell you bastards to stop killing people?”

Baekchul grumbled at Yang as he stepped inside. He had visited so frequently that he felt at home there.

“What’s so important that you dragged a busy man like me all the way here?”

Baekchul flinched when he saw Geom Mugeuk and the Fist Demon King.

“Who are they?”

“They’re new warriors we recruited.”

Baekchul looked surprised at Yang’s calm response.

“Where did you find guys that big? Just having them stand around is worth their meals. But where’s your boss?”

Yang answered nonchalantly, “Seems he stepped out for a moment.”

At that moment, Geom Mugeuk spoke to Baekchul.

“How do you just let someone go after assaulting and raping a young girl?”

Baekchul turned to Yang with a look that said, ‘What’s going on here?’ Didn’t these new guys know who he was? Hadn’t they been properly briefed?

But Yang just stood there, observing the situation silently. Baekchul sensed that something was wrong from Yang’s uncharacteristic reaction.

Baekchul responded calmly, “Ah, that case? We let him go due to lack of evidence.”

“The girl’s whole body was battered, and the thug was bragging about it to his fellow underworld scum. What do you mean, lack of evidence? You didn’t even investigate, did you?”

Baekchul was inwardly seething with anger, but given the atmosphere, he couldn’t retort.

“If it were your family, would you have just let it slide?”

Mentioning his family made Baekchul’s expression instantly harden.

“You really think you can get away with this?”

“Feeling upset because I brought up your family? Your family is so precious, but do you think other people’s families deserve to suffer?” 5

In that moment, Baekchul considered drawing his sword but held back for now.

‘I’ll make sure they all pay later.’

Getting out of this situation was the priority. Baekchul forced a smile and spoke in a conciliatory tone.

“Please understand. The main alliance has its laws, you know.”

“Whose laws are those for? You? The Beast Sect? Who, exactly?”

Baekchul took a step back under the chill of Geom Mugeuk’s overwhelming presence.

“I don’t know who you are, but I am the branch leader of the Murim Alliance. Touching me makes you an enemy of the martial world!”

“That won’t happen. I know someone in the Murim Alliance, and I’ll make sure your crimes and everything about this place are reported.”

“To whom?”

“There’s someone high up there, the person who once wanted to make me their son-in-law.”

Baekchul thought this was nonsense, but he held his tongue.

“My crimes? Do you have evidence?”

Geom Mugeuk pulled out the ledger he had taken from the Beast Sect.

“You’ve pocketed a lot of bribes from the Beast Sect. You even used them to kill people for your own interests.”

“What nonsense is this? I’ve never done such a thing.”

“You think denying it will change anything? They’ve meticulously recorded everything.”

Baekchul’s face stiffened.

“They’re framing me!”

“That’s not true. They weren’t in a position to lie.”

Baekchul knew he needed to get that ledger at any cost. Taking care of them would come next.

“How much? How much for that ledger…?”

*Whooosh.*

*Bang!*

Baekchul disappeared before their eyes.

Far away, Baekchul was smashed against the exterior wall, his body shattered, and he died instantly.

Now left alone, Yang looked around cautiously and said,

“Then from now on, I’ll be the leader of the Beast Sect…”

*Whooosh!*

*Bang!*

Yang also vanished from sight.

He was sent flying in the opposite direction, ending up a bloody mess too.

The one who sent both of them flying was Dan Woo-gang. With a single punch, he had sent them to the afterlife.

“Let’s go.”

His eyes seemed to say, ‘Why bother talking with scum like these?’

“I was thinking of asking for about a million nyang for the ledger.”

“Stop joking around.”

“Just a moment.”

Geom Mugeuk carefully buried the ledger inside a box in a corner of the courtyard.

After burying the ledger, Geom Mugeuk planned to inform the investigator sent by the Alliance Leader so that it would be handled properly. He also intended not to forget to include a message in the letter, asking them to take good care of Seok’s family.

Watching Geom Mugeuk, the Fist Demon King commented, “You’re very meticulous.”

“When helping others, you have to be thorough. It’s nice to help others, but if you don’t finish properly just because it’s bothersome, the one who ends up suffering is the person you helped. I get the satisfaction, but they get the consequences. That’s not right, is it?”

Dan Woo-gang unexpectedly replied, “I don’t think you should become the Heavenly Demon.”

“Why do you say that?”

“The Heavenly Demon has to deal with so many people. Can you endure it with a mindset like this? If you try to handle everything so meticulously, you’ll be the first to go mad.” 6

“Now that I think about it, you’re right. I understand. Instead of becoming the Heavenly Demon, I’ll just be your disciple, Fist Demon King.” 7

Dan Woo-gang quietly looked at me and then gave a faint smile.

“That’s the best attempt you’ve made so far.”

“You almost fell for it; that’s a shame.”

Geom Mugeuk and Dan Woo-gang walked out of the manor side by side. Just like when they entered, the Fist Demon King’s broad back filled the entrance as they exited.

Fortunately, the Fist Demon King didn’t mention returning to the Cult. As if asking where they should go next, Geom Mugeuk smiled at the look in his eyes and said,

“This time, it’s somewhere that will please you even more than it did me.”

1 : What trash.
2 : What a happy coincidence, get prepared for some heartfelt reunion ^^
3 : This dude sure was decisive.
4 : Oh please, do you think he’s Batman ? Getting put in prison to escape next week ?
5 : Yeah he don’t deserve to feel upset. His family would/should be ashamed of him.
6 : True, he’ll need to delegate a lot. Especially if he’ll run away frequently.
7 : You stretched a pole there, Fist Demon King XDXDXD