ch 8

 

Chapter 8

When Munpyeong awoke from his sleep, the first thing he saw was a snow-white forehead hovering before his eyes. It was as smooth and round as ivory, so pale and translucent that not even a single vein was visible. For a moment, he didn't even realize it was a human forehead.

But in the next instant, he realized he was lying naked in bed. The person sleeping beside him, their round forehead exposed, was also naked. The more shocking fact was that this person was a man—and not just any man, but Yun Seung-hyo.

Startled, Munpyeong shot up. As he put strength into his waist, a sharp pain shot through his buttocks, but he had no time to worry about that. He was truly and utterly terrified.

"B-Seung-hyo! B-Seung-hyo!"

How on earth did this happen? Munpyeong shook Yun Seung-hyo's shoulder to wake him, just like a child.

He had so many questions for Yun Seung-hyo. Why are we both naked? Why does my backside hurt so much right now? Why is the bed covered in dried patches of some unknown liquid, and why are you sleeping next to me with such an exhausted face?

"...Brother Guan. Are you awake?" the man asked, rubbing his eyes. Unpleasantly roused from sleep by Munpyeong’s rough shaking, his blue eyes, glinting in the sunlight, were still heavy with drowsiness.

"Seung-hyo! What is all this? Why are we in this state?" Munpyeong urged him on, his face pale with fright, a stark contrast to the placid Yun Seung-hyo.

Yun Seung-hyo, still rubbing his sleepy eyes, looked around at Munpyeong's question. "I see. I should have woken up before you and cleaned up the evidence. You were so demanding that I was completely drained. I only meant to close my eyes for a moment... You must be uncomfortable, so just lie down. I'll take care of it."

Yun Seung-hyo spoke nonchalantly and slid out of the bed, revealing his naked body. The morning sun, streaming through the window, illuminated a physique that looked as if it were sculpted from white jade.

Having only seen him clothed, Munpyeong had assumed he was very slender, but the man before him wasn't quite like that. He was lean, yes, but his entire body was well-toned. His shoulders and chest were particularly developed, so he didn't look frail even when undressed.

`...Why is it so big?`

But there was one astonishing thing about his body. In a place impossible to see when he was clothed, there hung a massive object that could almost be called a weapon.

Attached to his slender frame, it appeared even more prominent—an enormous thing boasting the thickness and length of a child's forearm. Munpyeong had never seen anything like it on any human, save for Cheonma. Yes, on a human...

The thought that such a thing might have been inside him sent a chill down his spine. His already aching rear seemed to throb even more violently after seeing it. Munpyeong lowered his gaze, dejected.

`Why is it that I only ever end up sleeping with men who have things like that...`

It was a feeling different from a sense of loss as a man; it was a strange feeling, as if his dignity as a human being had been utterly disregarded. Munpyeong’s face twisted.

"I would appreciate an explanation, Seung-hyo. I don't remember anything about last night. I don't know what happened between us. Please explain it to me properly. What in the world happened?"

"To be precise, you can't call it 'last night.' If the 'yesterday' you're referring to is the day we went to the Sahyeolhoe's gambling den, then two more days have passed since then. Today is the morning of the third day."

At Yun Seung-hyo’s words, Munpyeong’s jaw dropped.

`What? Two days have already passed since that day?`

Munpyeong found it impossible to believe. His last memory was of returning from the gambling den and washing off his disguise. After that, everything was a complete blank.

That day, after Yun Seung-hyo had gone out to fetch washing water, he had moved to tidy up the room. He had folded the black robes Yun Seung-hyo had taken off and placed them on the table. He drank the tea that had been prepared. And then... nothing. He remembered feeling a sudden dizziness and losing consciousness, only to wake up to this situation.

"Seung-hyo! I..."

"I'm sorry, but could we talk after getting dressed? It feels a bit embarrassing to talk like this, completely naked. It's also a little cold."

Yun Seung-hyo cut off Munpyeong, who was trying to say something urgently. Unlike Munpyeong, who had completely lost his composure, Yun Seung-hyo seemed far too calm. The circumstances made it clear that they had shared an intimate night, yet Yun Seung-hyo showed no sign of being bothered by it.

Speechless, Munpyeong blankly watched Yun Seung-hyo leisurely get dressed. His mind was a tangled mess. The situation made so little sense that he felt as if he were in a strange dream.

But no matter how much he wished for it, this could not be a dream. The throbbing ache in his buttocks and the familiar dull pain resonating in his lower back proved it.

Since Yun Seung-hyo was dressing, Munpyeong couldn't remain naked, so he put on his clothes as well. Then, Yun Seung-hyo called for an attendant to bring washing water. After they washed up, he even ordered a meal to the room.

At Yun Seung-hyo's suggestion, Munpyeong sat at the table, though he had no appetite at all. A simple fish porridge was served for breakfast, but Munpyeong, having lost his taste for food, could barely eat it.

In contrast, Yun Seung-hyo cleaned his bowl of porridge completely. After finishing his meal, he requested hot tea, drinking a cup himself and pouring a full one for Munpyeong. However, remembering what had happened the last time he drank tea, Munpyeong accepted the cup but did not drink from it.

"Have you ever heard of something called Ten Nights in a Dream?"

The meal was over, and the tea was served. It was time for him to stop delaying and talk. As if sensing Munpyeong’s intense anticipation, Yun Seung-hyo finally spoke.

"Isn't Ten Nights in a Dream a secret concoction from the Joyful Pavilion?"

Munpyeong asked, wanting to confirm if what he knew was correct.

For men, nighttime affairs were always a topic of interest. Whether drinking or not, in a large group or small, whenever men gathered to talk, lewd jokes were bound to come up. It was during one of these conversations that Munpyeong had heard about Ten Nights in a Dream. A potion that, with a single sip, would make one live through ten days in a dream. It was called a secret medicine, but in reality, it was an aphrodisiac.

Ten Nights in a Dream was a vicious aphrodisiac, a secret elixir primarily used by the wanton women of the Joyful Pavilion. It wasn't just a simple aphrodisiac; it was a mix of a hallucinogen and a power-scattering powder. It was said that if one wasn't careful, even a transcendent master would be rendered helpless.

This wasn't just a rumor; there were quite a few masters in the Jianghu who had actually fallen victim to Ten Nights in a Dream. Whenever a promising young master suddenly went into seclusion and disappeared for several years, it was openly rumored that he had been ensnared by a woman from the Joyful Pavilion due to Ten Nights in a Dream and was recuperating.

"Three days ago, on the day you last remember, the medicine in the teacup you drank was precisely that Ten Nights in a Dream."

Munpyeong was shocked.

`I was sure it was a sneak attack from the Tang Clan, but it was an aphrodisiac? Does that mean a woman from the Joyful Pavilion was targeting me?!`

"It seems the original target was me, but things got complicated, and you ended up drinking it instead. For that, I offer my apologies. I should have been more vigilant; my guard was down."

However, Munpyeong's wild assumption was quickly shattered. With an utterly placid demeanor, Yun Seung-hyo stated that he had been the original target.

`Tsk. Of course. There's no way I was the target, not when a prodigy like him is right here.`

It was an obvious conclusion, but he felt a little disappointed nonetheless. He had been anxious lately, getting entangled with men so often, and for a brief moment, the thought that a 'woman'—even one called wanton—had taken an interest in him had made his heart flutter.

"What are you saying? The one whose guard was down wasn't you, but me. Wasn't I the one who poured and drank the tea myself without sensing anything amiss? It was fortunate that it was an aphrodisiac; had it been poison, I would have died on the spot. I was lucky for being so careless."

Munpyeong quickly reined in his straying thoughts and refused Yun Seung-hyo's apology. The incident was truly not something for which Yun Seung-hyo needed to apologize.

He wasn't on a leisurely trip; he was secretly tracking an enemy's conspiracy. For a man in his position to eat and drink without even suspecting that something might be mixed in, the mistake was entirely his own and had nothing to do with Yun Seung-hyo.

"...But, Brother Guan."

Yun Seung-hyo, who had been listening silently to Munpyeong, suddenly wore a serious expression and placed his teacup on the table. The atmosphere suggested that the real conversation was about to begin, so Munpyeong quickly fell silent and awaited Yun Seung-hyo's words.

"What is it, Seung-hyo?"

"I have something I'm truly curious about concerning you. Would you be able to tell me honestly about it?"

Yun Seung-hyo's face was still bare. Knowing that he rarely wiped the smile from his face unless it was a serious matter, Munpyeong wondered what he was about to say and nodded.

"I don't know what it is, but I will answer you honestly."

Yun Seung-hyo raised his eyes and looked at him intently. The lines of his features were fine and his eyes soft, giving him a very gentle impression, but now that the smile was completely gone, he revealed an unexpected strength.

Yun Seung-hyo stared at Munpyeong for a long moment, as if seeing him for the first time, before suddenly posing a question.

"You had a Gu in your stomach, didn't you? From what I could see, it was a Child Gu. If so, who holds the Mother Gu?"

The question, sharp as a sudden blade, left Munpyeong speechless. He tried hard not to let his calm expression falter, but unfortunately, Munpyeong was not a very good actor. A chill ran down his spine. Goosebumps rose on the nape of his neck.

`My god, how on earth does he know that?`

Munpyeong couldn't hide his wavering gaze as he looked at Yun Seung-hyo. He had no idea what to do.

"Seung-hyo, I don't know what you're talking about..."

He opened his mouth to deny it, but he was so shocked that he was stuttering. Such an excuse was unlikely to work. Yun Seung-hyo firmly blocked Munpyeong's clumsy attempt.

"I asked you to answer me honestly. I have no use for lies."

"...Seung-hyo."

"If you're worried about the Gu in your stomach and can't speak the truth, let me tell you. As I said before, you had a Gu in your stomach. But it's gone now. I removed it. So you can speak with peace of mind."

What should he do? Should he run? But in this condition, his movement technique wouldn't get him very far. Furthermore, his luggage, his identification plaque, and even his only weapon were in the next room. There wasn't enough time to retrieve them when he barely had time to escape.

`What should I do?`

From the moment Yun Seung-hyo asked about the Gu in his stomach, Munpyeong began to plot his escape. There was no way Yun Seung-hyo, a hero of the Orthodox Faction, would let him, a member of the Demonic Cult, live.

Yun Seung-hyo was a transcendent master. He was someone Munpyeong couldn't face even in perfect condition, let alone in his current state and without a weapon.

`Should I escape empty-handed, hide, and then find a secret branch of the Demonic Cult? Or should I turn back and rejoin the Ma-yeong Brigade?`

He was so engrossed in thinking of a way to survive that Yun Seung-hyo's words about removing the Gu only registered later.

Only after a moment did Munpyeong realize what Yun Seung-hyo had said. He looked at him with a dazed expression. Just in case, he circulated his internal energy and found his stomach was indeed completely empty. Moreover, for some reason, his internal energy had even increased slightly. Munpyeong was bewildered, unable to understand what had happened to him.

"...You said you removed the Gu?" Munpyeong asked suspiciously after a moment of silence, pondering the situation. Yun Seung-hyo simply nodded.

"Yes. I removed it."

"How were you able to do that? Are you perhaps also skilled in poison arts?"

"I am not skilled in poison arts, but I know a little about medicine."

"I know that a Gu is not something that can be handled just by knowing medicine. How did you really do it? Please tell me."

"...While I was infusing my internal energy into your body to expel the Ten Nights in a Dream, I discovered the Gu below your dantian. If it hadn't been for the Gu, expelling the aphrodisiac's energy would have been easy, but the Gu made things difficult. If there had been another way, I would have taken it, but there wasn't, so I had no choice but to use a method I'd rather not have. In any case, a life had to be saved."

As Munpyeong pressed him, Yun Seung-hyo began to explain the situation of how he had treated the Gu. He didn't specify what "method" he had used for the treatment, but just hearing this much, one could roughly guess how things had unfolded.

Realizing this, he could also understand Yun Seung-hyo's reaction when he had woken up in bed earlier. At the time, he had just thought Yun Seung-hyo was shameless, but now he knew it was not such a simple matter.

`So for him, that act wasn't an act of passion. It was merely a treatment, a method he had no choice but to use to save a life. There wasn't a speck of lust or personal feeling mixed in, so there was no reason for him to be ashamed of it.`

When he thought about it, it was a truly grateful thing. This wasn't the first time, but the third. Munpyeong had now owed his life to Yun Seung-hyo three times. Once from the Five Venoms of the Tang Clan, once from their pursuit, and now for removing the Gu.

A life debt was an enormous debt that could not be repaid even in a lifetime, and he had incurred it three times. It was a grace so great that even repaying it over three lifetimes wouldn't be enough.

As the thought struck him, he could no longer sit still. He carefully straightened his collar, rose from his seat, and gave Yun Seung-hyo a deep bow. It was a bow of utmost respect, with his clasped hands extended forward and his head lowered almost to the table. Yun Seung-hyo said nothing, even as he watched Munpyeong.

"Though I have lived a lowly life, I am not a man who is ignorant of grace. Great Hero Yun, you have saved my life, a man with no connection to you, three times. I will repay this grace, even if I must offer my head to make your sandals."

He abandoned the familiar titles they had used with each other and used the ultimate honorific, "Great Hero," to elevate Yun Seung-hyo. He was genuinely moved, so calling a man younger than him by that title didn't feel awkward at all.

The Gu was gone. The Gu!! If he could, he wanted to raise his hands and jump for joy, shouting "Mansei!" Thanks to him, one of the shackles that had bound his ankles was completely gone.

"Please, sit down, Brother Guan. And retract your bow. I did not do it to hear your thanks."

"It may be a trivial matter to you, Great Hero Yun, but to me, it is a grace I will never forget, even in death."

"What I want from you, Brother Guan, is not something like that. Didn't I tell you what I wanted before? I want to know the truth, Brother Guan. So please, tell me everything honestly."

Munpyeong nodded eagerly. Yun Seung-hyo was the man who had removed the Gu from his stomach. The organization he had served faithfully for ten years had only humiliated and used him, but this man, whom he had met by chance, had done everything he could for a complete stranger.

"I will ask again. Brother Guan... no, it would be better to ask this first. Are you really Brother Guan? Is the identity on the plaque I checked your true identity?"

Yun Seung-hyo, who had habitually called him Brother Guan, frowned and corrected his question. Hearing this, Seok Munpyeong shook his head. He had no intention of hiding his real name from his savior.

"No, Great Hero Yun. My real name is Seok Munpyeong."

"Then from now on, I will call you Munpyeong. Is that alright?"

"You can call me whatever you like. Please, call me as you feel comfortable."

Munpyeong said loyally. It was the first time that he, always a little crooked and cocky, had answered someone with such sincerity. Whether he knew this or not, Yun Seung-hyo continued to question Munpyeong with a calm demeanor.

"I know well that our meeting was not someone's deliberate act. It was my impulsive decision to visit Guizhou, and no one could have known that I would be passing through that place at that time.

"However, a suspicious thought does not leave my mind. It's because of the Gu that was in your stomach. What is your true identity, Munpyeong? And who was the person who put the Gu inside you?"

Munpyeong opened his mouth to answer earnestly. Then it suddenly occurred to him that the person he was about to expose was none other than Po Yeong-ui.

The organization Munpyeong belonged to was the Demonic Cult, the person who put the Gu in him was the 'Consumer' Po Yeong-ui, and the person he was looking for was none other than Cheonma. The organization was the most powerful under heaven, the culprit was the second-in-command of that very power, and Cheonma was a being whose existence alone was a disaster for the Orthodox Faction.

If he were to get entangled with such people, even someone like Yun Seung-hyo would surely find himself in a difficult position. No matter how great a master Yun Seung-hyo was, he was alone, not a group. Unless he was at the level of Cheonma, it was natural that one hand could not handle ten.

Frankly, if he were to clash with just the Ma-yeong Brigade, who were probably staying nearby—no, since two days had passed while Munpyeong was unconscious, they were likely very close—Yun Seung-hyo's life could not be guaranteed. Therefore, it was not good for Yun Seung-hyo himself to know everything.

Munpyeong couldn't bear to put his savior in danger. It wasn't difficult to answer, but if he did, both Munpyeong and Yun Seung-hyo would be in peril.

If that vicious Po Yeong-ui found out about this, he would surely devise a way to kill Munpyeong for good this time. Since that man treated murder for the sake of silencing someone as a hobby, he might even be pleased to have another excuse to eliminate someone.

"I believe you have already guessed that I am not of the Orthodox Faction. I was originally a mercenary and, by a chance opportunity, became affiliated with a group that can never join hands with the Orthodox Faction."

He began by speaking in vague terms, avoiding specific details. Yun Seung-hyo listened silently to Seok Munpyeong's words with a calm expression.

"I apologize, but I cannot tell you which organization I belong to. It is a place with many secrets, and they will do anything to protect those secrets. If I were to tell you the details, it would bring harm not only to me but also to you, Great Hero Yun, so please forgive me for not being able to answer."

With those words, Munpyeong began to unravel his hidden story.

He confessed that he too had come to Guizhou to solve the case of the kidnapped children. He said that the person behind it was presumed to be the same one who had betrayed the organization Munpyeong belonged to, and he had been dispatched to verify this. And he added that they were likely in league with the ones who stole the Qilin Plaque from the Zhuge Clan. Since this was Po Yeong-ui's own speculation, it was probably true.

However, since he didn't know much and had much to hide, Munpyeong's explanation was not long. He wasn't much of a talker either, so even though he thought he had said all he could, upon reflection, it seemed he hadn't really told him anything of substance.

Even to himself, it sounded like a rambling story. It was no wonder that such a tale, offered as an excuse by an already suspicious person, would not be believed by Yun Seung-hyo.

"But why did you eat the Gu?"

As expected, his answer only seemed to raise more suspicion in Yun Seung-hyo. At his sharp, interrogative question, Munpyeong answered awkwardly.

"They thought I might run away in the middle of my assigned task."

"Why would they think that? Did you do something to make them doubt your loyalty?"

"It's not so much that... I was the one who said I wanted to leave first. I had asked them to let me go after properly resolving this one mission. I couldn't stand it there anymore; it was so suffocating. In response, they gave me the Gu as a farewell gift, telling me I had to take it to complete the mission before they would let me go. If I didn't eat it, I would have died on the spot, so I just closed my eyes and swallowed. It was not a pleasant experience."

Thinking of that time left a bitter taste in his mouth again. Even though he had been there for over ten years and there were still people he wanted to see, Munpyeong was so fed up with the place that he had no desire to ever go back.

Hearing Munpyeong's answer, Yun Seung-hyo's eyes narrowed slightly. Was it displeasure? Or a sneer? A look that would fit a cold snort flickered across his face and vanished. But Seok Munpyeong, lost in his own thoughts, did not notice the expression on Yun Seung-hyo's face.

"I know well that it is difficult for you to trust me. Having admitted my own suspicious nature yet failing to reveal my true identity, it is only natural that you would not trust me, Great Hero Yun. In this situation, I will not insist on accompanying you. I will not become a burden to the one to whom I owe my life."

The man was already weary from tracking a conspiracy alone. If on top of that, he had to be constantly on edge, wary and suspicious of his companion, that was no way for a person to live. Considering Yun Seung-hyo's position, Munpyeong made a difficult decision.

Munpyeong decided to step out from the shade of Yun Seung-hyo, who had been his umbrella against the pursuit of the Tang Clan. The fact that he didn't have the nerve to stay after his suspicious identity was revealed played a part, but it was more out of consideration for Yun Seung-hyo's situation.

It was rare for the shrewd Munpyeong to think of another's predicament before his own difficulties. But with Yun Seung-hyo, he didn't feel any regret in doing so.

Perhaps it was because he had received so much from him. Having already received so much, he didn't feel like he was at a loss even if he gave up one of his own things. Instead, he only felt sorry that this was all he could do for him.

"If you leave my side, do you have a place to go?" Yun Seung-hyo asked.

Understanding that this was a roundabout way of asking, 'What will you do about the Tang Clan's pursuit?', Munpyeong replied with a bitter smile.

"Until this mission is over, I have a place to rely on."

Whether it would truly be a reliable place was questionable, but he couldn't say he was leaving without a place to go.

"So you intend to return to 'that place'? To the ones who fed you the Gu?"

"Even though the Gu is gone, the promise remains. They won't let me go until I fulfill my promise, so I must see the mission through to the end, one way or another."

"They are people who trust only in the fear of poison, not in the loyalty of their subordinates. Do you truly believe such people will keep their promise?"

When he said, 'trust only in the fear of poison, not in the loyalty of their subordinates,' sparks flew from Yun Seung-hyo's eyes. It was a fierce anger rarely seen in the ever-smiling man. For some reason, Yun Seung-hyo seemed genuinely furious.

It was hard to tell if it was anger at the immoral group that substituted trust with poison, or at Munpyeong's foolishness for insisting on keeping a promise even after being treated so harshly. In any case, Munpyeong didn't dislike that Yun Seung-hyo was angry on his behalf.

"Great Hero..."

"If you're going to return to such people, you might as well stay by my side. Since we are chasing the same people anyway, it's even better. I will help you escape from that place."

Yun Seung-hyo held onto Munpyeong firmly. The thought of his unknown identity seemed to be of no concern. Munpyeong tried to argue, but it was useless. He uncharacteristically insisted on his own way with force.

What should one call this? Dependable? Munpyeong, who grew up as an orphan and never knew the feeling of being protected by someone, felt a new kind of emotion from Yun Seung-hyo, who seemed to stand firmly before him.

Listening to Yun Seung-hyo's assurance, he felt as if he had become a child again. A small, powerless child, being carried on the back of an adult who was protecting him.

Munpyeong had never experienced such comfort, not even when he was a real child. It was truly strange. It felt as if something was slowly filling his chest. He hadn't even known there was a space there, but now that something was entering it, he realized it had been empty all along.

A type of emotion he had never felt before gently tickled Munpyeong. That warm and pleasant feeling, like perfectly heated water, was slowly rising, filling Munpyeong's empty space.

Munpyeong did not know exactly what his heart was yearning for. He simply thought that he was grateful to Yun Seung-hyo and resolved to repay his kindness with utmost devotion. But the reason he smiled like a flower before Yun Seung-hyo's gaze was because his instincts knew exactly the emotion he was beginning to feel.

He, so clumsy, did not know, but his instincts did. That some emotions can, at times, bloom so suddenly.

"Excuse me, Seung-hyo. Do you happen to know what 'To find the dragon, chase the cloud' means?"

Yun Seung-hyo, who had been looking down at the street while sipping tea in the teahouse, turned to Munpyeong, who had suddenly presented a strange sentence and sought an answer.

An hour ago, Yun Seung-hyo had belatedly remembered telling Munpyeong that it was suspicious for two companions to sit and stare at the street without any conversation, and that he should say something. Realizing that this outlandish question was the best topic Munpyeong could muster, Yun Seung-hyo let out a wry smile.

"Well. With just that one sentence, I can't tell the context it came from. It's a strange sentence. Was it from a storybook?"

Unable to say it came from a coded message sent by Po Yeong-ui, Munpyeong awkwardly nodded. Unaware of the circumstances, Yun Seung-hyo's face grew thoughtful. "Hmm."

"What is the dragon? Is it talking about a real dragon? Or is it a metaphor for something else?"

As the sentence couldn't be interpreted without context, Yun Seung-hyo posed a question.

"It's a metaphor for a person. A person of exceptional ability."

"Then he must be quite an elusive person. What's the next sentence?"

"The cloud will follow the dog."

"A dog? Why a dog all of a sudden?"

"Well, you see, that is..."

Munpyeong, who had intended to subtly poke at the most difficult sentence and then piece together the meaning based on the interpretation, was at a loss for words as Yun Seung-hyo began to ask questions in earnest. But he couldn't take back what he had started, and Yun Seung-hyo's blue eyes were already filled with such interest that it was difficult to dash his expectations.

In the end, Munpyeong had to reveal the full coded message he had received to Yun Seung-hyo. After hearing the full code, which consisted of four sentences, Yun Seung-hyo tilted his head.

"This sounds like a code. But the metaphors are too simple and straightforward for that."

Without any detailed explanation of the situation, Yun Seung-hyo seemed to have figured out its meaning.

Munpyeong, who had struggled for over ten days with what was supposedly 'too simple and straightforward,' felt a brief sting of annoyance but quickly shook it off. He had genuinely asked because he didn't know, so if the other person could interpret it, it was something to be grateful for, not envious of.

"'To follow the dog is to find the master.' This literally means to find the master by following the subordinate. 'A carp can be caught with a net, but a dragon cannot.' I'm not sure what this means. If the dragon is a person, then the carp must also be a person, so it's probably related to that, but I don't know who the carp refers to.

"'To find the dragon, chase the cloud.' According to legend, the dragon is a mystical creature that lives hidden in the clouds. Even when it reveals itself to humans, it covers its body with clouds and never shows its full form. If the dragon is a metaphor for a person, this sentence could be interpreted to mean that the person is hiding their identity.

"The last sentence is the same. 'The cloud will follow the dog.' It means the dragon will hide its identity while following its subordinates, so you must find that hidden identity."

Yun Seung-hyo explained the sentences with a clear demeanor. What had been so enigmatic when he was grappling with it alone was solved so easily in Yun Seung-hyo's hands. Is this why people say you have to learn? Munpyeong was deeply impressed by Yun Seung-hyo's intelligence.

No matter how he looked at it, Yun Seung-hyo didn't seem to be lacking in any way. Good family, good looks, outstanding martial arts, a benevolent personality. On top of that, he was just, witty, brilliant, and even humane.

To Munpyeong, everything about Yun Seung-hyo seemed perfect. The rose-tinted glasses he already wore became even more powerful due to a certain emotion that had begun to grow in his heart. It was so obvious that even Yun Seung-hyo could see it, but ridiculously, Munpyeong himself was completely unaware.

"By the way, that code... did you perhaps receive it from your superior, Munpyeong?"

He asked a question, but there was no answer. Yun Seung-hyo, puzzled, looked up and noticed that Munpyeong was dazedly tracing his lips with his eyes. It seemed his gaze had wandered there by chance, but he couldn't seem to tear it away, staring at Yun Seung-hyo's lips as if mesmerized.

His gaze made Yun Seung-hyo feel subtly irritated. But he didn't want to point out something the man himself hadn't noticed, so he tactfully blocked the stare by raising his teacup to his lips.

Munpyeong, who had been staring at Yun Seung-hyo's lips with the expression of a boy in love, reluctantly turned his gaze away. The emotion was more akin to admiration than lust, so he seemed to have no inkling of what he was doing.

"Munpyeong. Are you listening to me?"

As Munpyeong lowered his gaze but remained lost in thought, Yun Seung-hyo raised his voice in frustration. Munpyeong, his eyes dazed from whatever he was thinking, finally came to his senses at Yun Seung-hyo's prodding.

He blinked for a moment, then belatedly understood what Yun Seung-hyo had said and hastily shook his head. The way he belatedly tried to deny it after showing all his cards seemed utterly ridiculous in Yun Seung-hyo's eyes.

"No. That's not it."

Munpyeong lied with a clumsiness that seemed to advertise, 'Please don't believe me.' He wouldn't have been so naive if his opponent hadn't been Yun Seung-hyo, but since the person was the object of a new and unfamiliar emotion, he was flustered, not knowing how to act.

"Don't be so flustered. Didn't I promise not to ask if you didn't want me to, Munpyeong? I was just asking just in case. If it's not, then it's fine."

It used to be amusing to see Munpyeong flustered, but lately, it wasn't like that at all. Instead, the more flustered and embarrassed Munpyeong became, the colder his mood sank.

To hide his irritated gaze, Yun Seung-hyo turned his eyes to the window and ended the unpleasant conversation. Munpyeong, his expression darkened as if he thought he had made a mistake, watched Yun Seung-hyo's face as if trying to gauge his mood.

"Seung-hyo..."

Munpyeong opened his mouth to make some excuse. But just as he was about to continue, a coincidence occurred. The shape of the chopsticks laid out by a person sitting behind Yun Seung-hyo caught his eye.

Munpyeong recognized it at once. It was such a familiar shape that he couldn't possibly not know it.

At first glance, it looked like someone had been playing with the chopsticks, but it was a heukhwa—a black flower symbol. The characters for 'Cheonsan' (天山, Heavenly Mountain) were overlapped, making the meaning of the symbol perfectly clear.

`Cheonsan!`

Discovering the heukhwa in such an unexpected situation, Munpyeong's heart sank first and foremost.

Could that person have overheard my words? Did they watch me reveal a directive from the Cult to someone else? The tables were some distance apart, but for a master, such a distance was nothing. He must have heard everything.

As Munpyeong stood rigidly, unable to hide his tension, the man who had been playing with another pair of chopsticks rose from his seat. Then, without a word, he brushed past Munpyeong. Munpyeong had to struggle to keep his head from turning to follow him.

A passing waiter saw the chopstick code the man had made and started to grumble.

"Why did this person lay out unused chopsticks like this? Are chopsticks for eating or for playing games?"

The clueless waiter swept up the chopsticks all at once and shoved them into the chopstick holder.

Noticing Munpyeong's bewilderment, Yun Seung-hyo, who had been looking outside, turned his head. Munpyeong smiled awkwardly and said to Yun Seung-hyo,

"Um, Seung-hyo. I just remembered something. I need to run an errand for a moment, is that alright?"

Yun Seung-hyo looked at Munpyeong without a word. Munpyeong knew he was acting in a way that was transparently obvious. But this time, it wasn't a mistake. He was deliberately being conspicuous.

The person who came to deliver the code might have heard their conversation. No, he certainly did. If that fact became known, it was obvious how the Cult would react.

He would try to resolve it himself, but he didn't have much confidence in his success. So he needed to prepare for failure. At the very least, Yun Seung-hyo needed to know that something was up so he could make a timely escape if necessary.

Munpyeong did not want to drag Yun Seung-hyo into danger without any countermeasures. Just as Yun Seung-hyo had done everything he could for Munpyeong, Munpyeong wanted to repay him with the same kind of action.

"...If you must go, then go. But you must return safely."

Yun Seung-hyo, after staring at Munpyeong for a long time, said reluctantly. Munpyeong smiled faintly, clasped his hands in a fist-and-palm salute, and turned away. Each step he took was filled with a terrifying resolve. Yun Seung-hyo watched his retreating back with a cold gaze.

Yun Seung-hyo watched Munpyeong's back until he disappeared down the stairs of the teahouse.

The further Munpyeong got, the more Yun Seung-hyo's atmosphere changed. The lips that had been smiling warmly just moments ago slowly hardened. A chill swept through his eyes, which had been as clear as autumn water, and his gentle demeanor turned stern.

As if he had become a different person, he folded his fan with a frigid expression. From the crimson lips that Munpyeong had stared at so raptly, a voice as cold as frost flowed out.

"Tea!"

The Harmonious Hero, who was polite to everyone, even to a mere commoner, suddenly changed his demeanor. He called the teahouse attendant with an arrogance as if summoning his own servant. The waiter, who had been walking around with a long-spouted teapot refilling customers' cups, heard him and quickly came over to fill his cup.

Yun Seung-hyo downed the tea in one gulp, as if it were alcohol, then set the cup down on the table and requested tea again.

The waiter, a towel for wiping tables slung over his shoulder and dressed in worn but clean clothes, silently approached and refilled the cup. Judging by his lack of reaction to the customer's rough attitude, he seemed to be a man who had been around the block a few times.

"What's with that getup? After getting the unsuitable title of Haomun's Lord, have you now taken up a job at a teahouse?"

Yun Seung-hyo secretly spoke to the waiter. To an onlooker, it would seem like a melancholic scholar drinking tea, not someone speaking to another. But this method of speaking to someone without even moving his lips was Jeoneum-immil, one of the most sublime secret arts in the Jianghu. It was a technique that a master of the supreme level could not even imitate, let alone perform, yet Yun Seung-hyo used it without even the slightest twitch of his facial muscles.

If the waiter had been an ordinary commoner as he appeared, he would have been terrified by the stranger's voice that seemed to speak directly into his ear. However, the person Yun Seung-hyo spoke to seemed to have anticipated this and showed no sign of wavering at the sudden secret message.

He simply glanced up at Yun Seung-hyo as if by chance, then turned back and continued his work as if nothing had happened.

"And what is that attitude of yours, Grand-Uncle? The Harmonious Hero does not act like that. You swore you wouldn't let anyone catch on, so why are you showing your true colors right away?"

After the abrupt scolding, a fittingly blunt reply came back from the other party. A conversation that no one could have known was happening began between the two.

"I don't know what you're thinking, but this form I'm imitating is Yun Seung-hyo's true nature. What's so hard about playing the part of a false gentleman? Don't worry. I've crossed two provinces in this guise, and no one has noticed that I am not Yun Seung-hyo."

Yun Seung-hyo said nonchalantly, sipping his tea. He showed no hesitation in calling himself—that is, the Harmonious Hero Yun Seung-hyo—a false gentleman.

"Please remember that I am a false gentleman, but an exceedingly skilled one, Grand-Uncle. When I am outside, I do not let my guard down even in the privacy of my own room. I am not, at least, like you, who only seems to be conscious of the companion right next to you."

The waiter replied to Yun Seung-hyo in a very serious tone. Yun Seung-hyo—or rather, the man who had been impersonating Yun Seung-hyo until now—let out a low snort at the real Yun Seung-hyo's words.

"How shameless. It's a pity the world is being deceived by the likes of you."

As the man impersonating Yun Seung-hyo muttered in disbelief, the real Yun Seung-hyo shot back.

"This is a joyous occasion. To think that my Grand-Uncle is finally thinking of the world. It seems the rumors are true, and you really are planning to ascend to immortality?"

Yun Seung-hyo called him "Grand-Uncle" but acted audaciously. His Grand-Uncle, finding his grandson's antics ridiculous, snorted coldly again.

"Immortality? I was wondering which fool was spouting such nonsense, and it turns out to be you. Do you have nothing better to do?"

Though it was a light comment, it was meant as a compliment to praise him, but his Grand-Uncle ridiculed him so harshly that it was embarrassing for the one who had spoken. It was a thoughtless remark, but for some reason, Yun Seung-hyo felt a surge of resentment and muttered under his breath.

"Why are you so negative about the word 'immortality'? How many in the Jianghu have reached the same level as you, Grand-Uncle? If the Three-Peaked True Man became a Sword Immortal after a lifetime of enlightenment, shouldn't Cheonma, a great master of a similar level, also be matched in status? In my view, even if you can't be a Sword Immortal, you could certainly be a Demonic Immortal."

In fact, Yun Seung-hyo thought that without such a thing, his monstrous level of skill could not be explained. Frankly, was it even possible for a human to achieve rejuvenation? Yun Seung-hyo had never seen or heard of anyone who had actually achieved such a thing, aside from Cheonma, Hyeokryeon Sang.

"Isn't a Demonic Immortal a being that brings chaos and death to the world? And yet, while becoming a Demonic Immortal, you're worried about the world? Do you not even know the logic of your own words? You must have been tainted by playing with fools. Otherwise, you wouldn't be spouting such nonsense, unlike you."

Now that he heard it, that was true. If you're going to flatter someone, you need to use your head to be effective, but he had just blurted out whatever came to mind, so this was the result.

Yun Seung-hyo reflected on his own thoughtless words. He knew well that his Grand-Uncle's temperament was difficult, yet he had failed to treat him accordingly, so he deserved the scolding.

"Instead of your strange antics, confess the reason you came all this way. You wouldn't have shown up with your tail on fire just for borrowing an identity, would you? Have you found what I asked you to find? Have you caught their trail?"

Despite stealing someone's identity with only a single letter, the Grand-Uncle acted as if he were owed a debt. The sarcasm he threw as soon as they met, and that attitude of trying to extract information as if it were owed to him...

Honestly, Yun Seung-hyo found his Grand-Uncle's attitude incredibly annoying. To have his identity stolen and be unable to wander the world without a disguise, and not even receive a word of thanks for it, was understandable.

`Did you know where I was and what I was doing to act so boldly? If I hadn't received the letter in time, there might have been two Yun Seunghyo's roaming the world, you know?`

He had a lot he wanted to argue about. But he held back. He had to. Because he himself had once committed the exact same act that his Grand-Uncle had just committed.

His Grand-Uncle had at least sent him a letter, but Yun Seung-hyo had not even done that. He had just gone ahead and done it secretly, without even telling his Grand-Uncle. He had done it thinking that since it was related to a reclusive master, it wouldn't become a rumor in the world.

He had his reasons for doing so, but seeing his Grand-Uncle's actions now, it seemed that incident had really gotten him into trouble. And yet, he hadn't said a word about it until now. What a sly old man.

"I came to deliver some bad news."

Bringing up what was on his mind would only earn him another scolding. Yun Seung-hyo, unhappily smacking his lips, did not bring up the related topic again. Instead, he began to explain the reason he had to come all this way.

In fact, the really important business had not even begun. There was a good reason for him to change his clothes and come all the way down to this distant land of Guizhou.

"A strange rumor is spreading in parts of Hubei. It's a rumor about the Qilin Plaque, and I thought it was something you should know about, Grand-Uncle."

"A rumor about the Qilin Plaque?"

"Yes."

"What kind of rumor?"

"As the rumor grew, many embellishments were added, but the common thread is one thing. That the Qilin Plaque is a supreme treasure of the Demonic Cult, and the key to the ancestral shrine of the Demonic Cult, where successive cult leaders chose to meet their end. There's even a theory that a map to the ancestral shrine is hidden on the back of the Qilin Plaque. It's a rumor that started in Hebei and is spreading fast, and I hear that the Righteous Path Alliance has already caught wind of it."

Cheonma was dumbfounded. A jade plaque that used to hang from his waist had somehow become a supreme treasure of the Demonic Cult, and now it was the key to a non-existent ancestral shrine. It was a case of a snowballing lie.

Cheonma knew about the rumors of the Demonic Cult circulating in the Central Plains. The people of the Central Plains seemed to think of the Demonic Cult leader as some kind of elephant; they had created a legend that deep within the Demonic Cult lay an ancestral shrine where the leaders met their end, and that all the secret arts of the Demonic Cult were gathered there, and they sincerely believed this legend.

That alone was ridiculous enough, but this time they had gone a step further and even created a map to it. Of course, he had a good idea who had done it, but the people of the Jianghu who went along with the rumor were not entirely innocent either. They would accept even such absurd stories without verifying their authenticity.

`He knew that, which is why he fabricated such a ridiculous rumor. How simple for you, Gwak Hyo. With just that kind of rumor, the foolish people of the Jianghu will flock to it, so you can achieve your goal without lifting a finger.`

Cheonma sneered inwardly and clicked his tongue sharply.

"A map to the ancestral shrine on the Qilin Plaque? So what are they going to do? Don't tell me they're planning to invade the Heavenly Mountains with just a single Qilin Plaque?"

Until now, the place rumored to hold the tombs of the Demonic Cult leaders was the Heavenly Mountains. Since the Demonic Cult had been based there for nearly a thousand years, there were no other candidates. But his prediction was wrong. Yun Seung-hyo, while clearing the table of a departed customer, conveyed an unexpected fact via secret message.

"No, Grand-Uncle. They say it's not in the Heavenly Mountains. According to the new rumor circulating now, the Demonic Cult's ancestral shrine is not in the Heavenly Mountains but in the Central Plains. They say it existed before the Demonic Cult was driven to the Heavenly Mountains a thousand years ago, so it's in the heart of the Central Plains. The clue to finding it is hidden in the Qilin Plaque, and those without the plaque cannot enter even if they find the place. It's also said that this is the reason you made the Longzhong Pact. The story goes that the Sword Hero, who happened to acquire the Qilin Plaque, showed his resourcefulness before the Demonic Cult's invasion of the Central Plains and, as a condition for returning it, demanded that three promises be granted."

The outcome of the incident at Mount Longzhong that year was very famous, but almost no one knew exactly how the event had unfolded. The only official evidence was the testimony of the Orthodox Faction's only witness, Zhuge Hui-ryeon. Perhaps because of this, various 'truths' about the incident were circulating in the Jianghu as baseless rumors.

Because of this precedent, this new rumor was also easily accepted. People only believe what they want to believe. The idea that the Demonic Cult's martial arts, which made Cheonma the greatest master of his time, were located within the Central Plains was a bait so sweet that even a rational person could not help but be tempted.

"Is that so?"

The martial artists who swaggered around calling themselves heroes often claimed to be detached from worldly possessions. However, seeing the state of the Jianghu, which was often in an uproar over things like the treasure troves of divine thieves or legendary swords, it was clear that their claims were nothing but empty words.

Their words and actions were completely different. For a single manual of a past master, they would massacre common people and repeatedly kill each other. That was the way of the Jianghu.

How much more blood would flow because of this? It was obvious without even looking. Cheonma foresaw the future situation and laughed silently. He felt no sympathy for a death they brought upon themselves.

"What are you going to do about this?"

Yun Seung-hyo, intuitively feeling that a conspiracy that would cause much bloodshed in the Jianghu had begun, asked Cheonma.

Cheonma slightly raised the corners of his mouth and picked up his teacup. He was not unaware of Yun Seung-hyo's hidden anxiety, but he simply savored the taste of the tea with a deliberately indifferent attitude.

"Leave it for now. It's already a growing issue. No matter what we do, any effort will be useless in this situation. After all you've been through, do you still not know how greedy humans are?"

"But, Grand-Uncle..."

"Let the ones who are meant to die, die, and let's wait for the situation to escalate. We can't jump in to save what are essentially just moths to a flame. If we do, the one who orchestrated this will achieve everything they intended, and my pride won't allow that."

Cheonma seemed unconcerned by the plotter's scheme to use him as bait in a net. He didn't care how many people would die because of this. To Cheonma, finding the one who dared to target him was more important than the peace of the world and the countless innocent lives that would be lost.

That was the nature of a demon, but Yun Seung-hyo, who was considered a hero in his own right, looked downcast at Cheonma's attitude.

Even with the outstanding intelligence network of Haomun and the power of being the son of the Imperial Guard's Commander, this situation was too much to handle. If a master with overwhelming martial power like Cheonma became his ally, it would be a great help, but the selfish and individualistic Heavenly Demon seemed to have no intention of actively intervening to resolve the situation.

"Grand-Uncle."

"For now, just observe the situation. I plan to stay in Guizhou for a while. The disappearance of the children bothers me. Gwak Hyo is a man who seeks to gain more than two benefits from a single act. It's unlikely he would go to such trouble just to lure out a single Jade Qilin. There must be something more. Something essential to the great work he aims to achieve."

Cheonma spoke so firmly that there was no room for further argument. There was no one in the world who could change Cheonma's mind once it was made up. Although he still had lingering attachments, Yun Seung-hyo realized that he could no longer do anything with his own power and quietly closed his mouth.

"Oh, and one more thing."

Yun Seung-hyo, dressed as a waiter, was about to clear the table, wipe it down, and withdraw. But Cheonma stopped him.

"Some kid just came up to me and demanded the Rite of the Spring Dream. What am I supposed to do about this, Seung-hyo? What should I do with that brat?"

Thinking about the mess that brat caused still made his teeth grind. Furthermore, considering Munpyeong's subtly changed attitude after 'that incident'... He really wanted to grind that damn brat's bones to dust while he was still alive.

Cheonma, who had to let the kid go peacefully because he was wearing Yun Seung-hyo's face, threw the question at Yun Seung-hyo in an almost confrontational manner. He asked what he should do, but it was really a question of whether he could kill him.

Yun Seung-hyo, who had been so calm while discussing a conspiracy that could shake the world, stiffened slightly. He tried hard to hide his flustered expression as he answered Cheonma.

"The Rite of the Spring Dream... to me?"

"Yes. He said it was a promise. Since he was ten. I find it hard to believe that you, who pretends to be a righteous gentleman, would make such a promise with a ten-year-old brat. Moreover, that kid used the promise as an excuse to play a nasty trick on me. Thanks to him, I suffered a great loss."

Yun Seung-hyo's heart sank. He knew that kid was audacious and rude. To Seung-hyo, who had watched him since he was young, even that was cute, but Cheonma, who had no patience for others' circumstances, would have found him nothing but impertinent and annoying.

Why was that kid already out in the Jianghu? He was supposed to be released next year at the earliest, or the year after at the latest. Yun Seung-hyo was internally flustered by the unexpected situation.

"Grandfather, he is still young. Too young, and immature..."

He began to make excuses in a hurry.

"Not only is he immature and audacious, but the kid is also cunning. I've been putting it off because I have more urgent matters to attend to, but I'm wondering what to do. The deed he has done is too great to just let it go."

Cheonma said coldly. He should have been heading to the kitchen after clearing the table, but unable to leave in this situation, Yun Seung-hyo stood there awkwardly and urgently sent a secret message.

To think that this guy, who tried to maintain his composure no matter what, would go this far. He had suspected it from the brat's behavior, but it seemed there was a considerable story between his adopted grandson and that insolent kid.

"He is my lover, Grand-Uncle. He made a mistake without knowing who you are, so please, for my sake, forgive him. He must have thought you were me."

Yun Seung-hyo's secret message was almost desperate. Cheonma, hearing him call that kid his 'lover,' asked in disbelief.

"Lover? That vile thing is your lover?"

"Yes."

"And a thing like that promises a Rite of the Spring Dream? Are you really going to perform the Rite of the Spring Dream?"

Cheonma asked again, as if amused. On the surface, it was just a curious question, but in reality, it was a cruel taunt. He didn't ask because he didn't know it was painful; he knew, and that was why he deliberately and persistently picked at the wound.

"...It was a promise made without knowing what it was. He made the vow rashly, thinking it was just a promise for tomorrow, without knowing what the words meant. So please, Grand-Uncle, do not say such things. I will not perform the Rite of the Spring Dream with that child."

"Oh? So you intend not to perform the Rite of the Spring Dream? You're going to hand over that child's, your lover's, first night to another man?"

At Cheonma's merciless prodding of the wound again, Yun Seung-hyo laughed painfully inside. As expected of his unforgiving Grand-Uncle, he wasn't going to let it go this time either.

It wasn't his own weakness being exploited, but that of someone he cared for, so even he couldn't feel good about it. The matter Cheonma so easily brought up was, to him, his greatest wound and pain.

"It is a matter I am already deliberating. Whichever decision I make, it will shape my life, so how could I not agonize over it? So I ask you, please do not create any changes in my relationship with that child. Since you borrowed my identity for a while, I believe you can do at least that much for me."

He could have gotten angry or vented his frustration at having his suppressed wound reopened. But it would all be useless. No, it would only be a foolish act that would further provoke Cheonma's displeasure.

Yun Seung-hyo, who had known Cheonma since birth, knew his personality better than anyone. So instead of getting angry, he made a heartfelt plea to Cheonma in a calm tone.

"Are you truly sincere? You, a descendant of a royal family and the son of a great commander, are sincere about a person from the Joyful Pavilion?"

Cheonma asked again, as if he couldn't understand. To his question, Yun Seung-hyo quietly returned a question.

"Years ago, wasn't it you, Grand-Uncle, who introduced my maternal grandmother, who was a slave, to my maternal grandfather, who was a prince? Why do you care about status?"

"Is that incident the same as this one?"

"And what is so different?"

Yun Seung-hyo stubbornly insisted, even though he knew full well they were different. At a glance, his argument seemed to have some truth. As he said, it was Cheonma who had introduced the slave Cheongryeon from Hwaran to the Prince of Seopyeong, Zhu Jiangjin, and it was also Cheonma who persuaded the prince to take her not as a mere concubine but as his official wife.

However, that union could hardly be called a fruit of pure love. It was more appropriate to call it a thoroughly calculated political move. Thanks to that marriage, the Prince of Seopyeong, who was merely a prince, was able to establish his own royal court.

The imperial throne would not go to a king who had taken a foreigner as his official wife, nor to his children. Thanks to this, the Prince of Seopyeong was able to escape the vigilance of the Empress Dowager and her faction, who had enthroned the young emperor. Since there was no possibility of him coveting the throne, he could build up his power without being suspected.

The fact that the Prince of Seopyeong was able to live a comfortable life, free from the constant threat of assassination, was all thanks to his foreign wife. How could the brilliant Yun Seung-hyo not have noticed such a backstory? That guy wasn't saying that because he didn't know.

What is this thing called love? Cheonma clicked his tongue at Yun Seung-hyo's attitude of insisting on a blatant lie.

From his perspective, he was just a naughty and ill-mannered brat, but to his adopted grandson, that child was incredibly precious. To the point of defending him with such flimsy excuses.

`And for a mere creature like this, that fellow gives such looks. A man who plays the part of a hero while holding the dual identity of Haomun's Lord, and who pretends to be a righteous gentleman while secretly grooming a disciple of the Joyful Pavilion since he was ten... what will you do when you find out this side of him? Will you still be so full of admiration? Even if you know all this, will you still blush before this face, unable to pull away a captured wrist, and only flutter your eyelashes?`

Seeing his adopted grandson so smitten with that naughty brat reminded Cheonma of his own weed. The most recent time he had seen someone so completely lost in another was from his weed. That weed, true to its name, swayed uncontrollably at the slightest breeze, much to Cheonma's displeasure.

Without knowing that this man's true nature was like this, that fellow looked at Yun Seung-hyo's face as if he were a great hero. He didn't dare to look openly, but stole glances. Like a shy maiden peeking at her lover over a wall.

Munpyeong seemed to believe he wasn't showing it, but it was all too obvious. To Cheonma, it seemed Munpyeong approved of every single one of Yun Seung-hyo's actions. Even though the one inside was Cheonma he loathed.

In reality, Munpyeong had never even met the real Yun Seung-hyo. From the time they first met in the mountains, no, from the time he found Munpyeong in Songban's brothel and started following him, it had been Cheonma.

Though he didn't show it, Cheonma had been in low spirits lately. He disliked Munpyeong's differential treatment of him as Cheonma versus him as Yun Seung-hyo.

He hadn't done anything less for him than Yun Seung-hyo, yet Munpyeong treated Yun Seung-hyo like a general descended from heaven and regarded Cheonma himself as a demon.

He had given him more silk clothes, and more alcohol to drink. What was so lacking that Cheonma was inferior to Yun Seung-hyo?

"If any important news about the Jade Qilin comes in, contact me. Otherwise, do not contact me."

Thinking about Munpyeong made him dislike the real Yun Seung-hyo as well. A sudden surge of irritation made Cheonma give a firm order and dismiss Yun Seung-hyo. Yun Seung-hyo hesitated, as the story about Ja Myorang was not yet finished, but Cheonma would not entertain him further and rose from his seat.

Watching the back of his Grand-Uncle in his own form descending from the teahouse, Yun Seung-hyo bowed deeply and lamented inwardly.

`Myorang, Myorang. Why did you have to come out so early?`

Yun Seung-hyo called his lover's name and sighed deeply in his heart.

Munpyeong, who had left the teahouse late, finally caught sight of the man who had left the heukhwa on the table just as he was about to disappear into the crowd.

The man was strolling leisurely through the middle of the marketplace. He would peek into shops as he walked, and even chuckled while admiring the figures of passing women, looking for all the world like a profligate.

Munpyeong mixed in with the crowd and followed the man. It was not difficult to tail him, as if the man was deliberately giving him leeway to follow. The man walked carelessly, like someone with no training whatsoever.

A chaotic gait with no discernible pattern. However, it was impossible for someone sent by the Cult to be an ordinary person with no martial arts. Either he was a master who had achieved the state of returning to simplicity, or he was an assassin specially trained to conceal his tracks. Both were difficult opponents for Munpyeong to handle.

Thinking that things had become difficult, Munpyeong gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist. His palm was damp with sweat. It had been a long time since he had held a saber, and since it wasn't his original one, the feel of it in his hand was very unfamiliar.

Like other mercenary, he used a saber, but Munpyeong was not a saber master. He used a saber, but he also used a spear, and if necessary, a bow. He could handle almost any weapon unless it was a very unusual one, and his skill level was not ordinary, but he was not particularly good at anything. This was because he had not specialized.

Munpyeong's martial arts were practical combat skills from the battlefield, and on the poorly supplied front lines, it was difficult to survive by sticking to one weapon, so he had unintentionally learned to handle various weapons. If he had developed this trait well, he would have completed the unique Eighteen Martial Arts of the Imperial Guard, but since he was from the miscellaneous troops and not the elite, he had not received such benefits.

He began to learn martial arts in earnest after joining the Demonic Cult. The foundation was laid by Manjawoe, but it was the basic skills of the demonic headquarters, refined over a long period, that added new flesh to the frame he had built.

In the Demonic Cult, Munpyeong learned the basics of fast sword techniques and the saber. Although it was just the basic training that anyone who joined the Demonic Cult would learn, Munpyeong's martial arts, which had been a messy jumble without a proper system, became organized and neat thanks to it. The insights he had gained over the years also found their place, and his skills improved remarkably from then on.

In fact, in the entire Jianghu, the level of a first-class master was not something to be trifled with. In the Central Plains, a first-class master was at the level of a representative master of a small to medium-sized sect or a core disciple of a large sect, and was at least treated as a senior member.

However, Munpyeong, who had been in the Demonic Cult for a long time, where supreme and transcendent masters were abundant, could not easily realize this. Living in a place where most people were a cut above him, or at least had a hidden trump card even if they were at a similar level, his senses had become accustomed to that standard.

Munpyeong hooked his fingers on the handguard to draw his sword faster. His movement technique, renowned for casting no shadow even on water, flowed lightly through the crowd.

He moved so naturally that people, even while looking at him, did not realize he was using a movement technique. Even if he brushed past them, they would only think he was walking a bit fast, not perceive his true speed.

The opponent turned into an alley. Munpyeong followed him into the alley. A light movement that made no sound. It was like a flowing cloud.

Munpyeong was deeply conflicted as he watched the man's back, walking with his back nonchalantly exposed. He couldn't be unaware that he was being followed, so why was he so carefree?

`Is he confident he can dodge my attack? Or are there other companions lying in wait ahead?`

Should he attack or not? Munpyeong hesitated, his fingers tapping the handguard. If he continued to follow, he might fall into a trap.

Fortunately, there were no prying eyes here, and no one passing by. Should he settle it here? In such a narrow alley, he, who had the advantage in movement technique, might have a chance of winning.

"Oh, look at this. You're that Ja-ok bitch, aren't you?"

Just as he was about to draw his sword and attack, the man in front suddenly stopped and muttered to himself. Munpyeong flinched and stopped his draw. The man's attitude was unusual, and sure enough, the man suddenly ran forward, shouting.

"Damn it! Stop right there, you bitch! You're Ja-ok, aren't you! You're definitely Ja-ok!"

Ignoring the bewildered Munpyeong, the man ran forward with all his might. Thump, thump. Although the man's bulk blocked his view, he could hear the sound of something small scrambling away in front of him. But it wasn't long before the small thing was caught by the man. The man shook it and cursed violently.

"Is this bitch in heat? Where do you think you're wandering off to, you damn dog! Do you know how embarrassed I was because of you? I promised Lord Seo I'd hand you over, and you just up and ran away? Oh, you're caught now. Your whole body must be itching for a beating, isn't it?"

As the man raised his hand with a shout, a piercing scream began. It was the voice of a young girl.

"Aah! Brother, I'm sorry! Don't hit me, please don't hit me!"

"Damn bitch, you cleverly ran off to the So Manor, so why are you here in rags? Did the So Manor not want a bitch like you either? Do they only like virgins there?"

"Brother, it hurts! Don't hit me! Aah!"

"Don't hit you? You filthy rag, you only listen when you're beaten."

"Aah! Brother!"

Thwack, thwack, thwack. Thud. Screams filled the air, and the sound of the man trampling the young girl was loud. Munpyeong, who had firmly believed that the man was a master from the headquarters, was so dumbfounded by the sight that he was momentarily paralyzed.

He had never heard of a master, no matter how undignified, using such foul language and beating a young girl who didn't even reach his waist.

It was a ridiculous situation, but it seemed the man was indeed a profligate. The fact that familiar names like Lord Seo and the So Manor came up meant that the man was not only a profligate but also a local of Kaiyang.

`What? Was I mistaken? The signal he sent wasn't a heukhwa from the Cult?`

Munpyeong tilted his head, wondering if the shape the man had made with the chopsticks just happened to resemble a heukhwa by coincidence. But it didn't seem likely. The character for cheon (天) was upside down, and the character for san (山) was upright and overlapped, and even the distinction between the chopsticks going up and down according to the strokes was a perfect match. If all of that were a coincidence, it would be a very elaborate one.

Seeing that he had created the heukhwa so accurately, even if he wasn't sent directly from the Cult, it was highly likely he was instigated by a member of the Demonic Cult. He would have to hear the exact circumstances from the man's own mouth.

Munpyeong went behind the profligate, who was preoccupied with hitting the small girl, and kicked him. The man, who had been beating the child without any guard, was kicked hard in the back and rolled on the ground.

"What the hell!"

The profligate, who had been suddenly kicked, shouted as he raised his head. His spirit was good, but the opponent was the problem. How could an ordinary person face a master who had formally learned martial arts? Without a word, Munpyeong kicked him again.

After kicking the man, who was squealing like a pig, once more to silence him, Munpyeong smacked his lips and nudged the man with his toe.

He had kicked him a bit hard, but he hadn't expected the man to go down so quickly. It seemed he only knew how to hit others and hadn't been hit much himself.

The little girl, who had been trembling with her bloodied arms over her head, widened her eyes in surprise. Her small frame, which looked no older than six or seven, was pitiful. She was so thin that she was all bones, with only her large eyes standing out. If it weren't for the man's words, he wouldn't have even been able to tell if she was a boy or a girl.

The child was still crying streams of tears. One eye was swollen shut, and the other cheek was bruised black. Munpyeong kicked the profligate and glanced down at the small child. Even that brief glance startled the child.

From the child's perspective, it was bound to be terrifying. Munpyeong was the man who had sent her terrifying brother, who had been beating her, flying with a single kick. But in truth, Munpyeong had only looked down at the child out of bewilderment, not with any intention of harming her. The child had already been beaten far too much.

"...Does it hurt a lot?"

Having no memory of talking to such a small child since he grew up, Munpyeong hesitated before asking abruptly. The child was startled again and hastily shook her head.

"It doesn't hurt. It doesn't hurt at all."

"...It looks like it hurts."

Despite her arms being over her head, the child's face was a mess of blood. Her arms were covered in bruises, and the joint of her left arm was so swollen that she couldn't even lift her hand properly.

That was definitely broken. Munpyeong inwardly clicked his tongue. To beat such a small child until her arm broke, how could a brother do such a thing?

It was obvious just by looking, but the child shook her head again. The child grew more and more frightened each time Munpyeong said she looked hurt. It seemed she thought he would hit her if she admitted it hurt.

"It, it doesn't hurt. It doesn't hurt at all."

The child was on the verge of tears now. Seeing that she became more frightened the more he did, Munpyeong couldn't approach the child. The child was staggering backwards, too weak to even run away. If he got any closer, she might have a seizure.

"That arm, if you leave it like that, it'll cause trouble, little one. Go to a doctor."

Knowing the sorrow of not being able to go to a doctor even if you want to because you have no money, Munpyeong searched his pocket and took out a silver coin. It would be nice to place it in her hand, but he couldn't, so he flicked it with his fingertip so that it landed on the child's lap.

The child, who had reflexively flinched when something landed near her, widened her eyes in the next moment. She realized that what had landed on her lap was a silver coin.

The child looked down at the silver coin with one eye so swollen she could barely see, then looked back at Munpyeong. Munpyeong, unconcerned by the child's gaze, approached the fallen profligate and slung him over his shoulder. The child was staring intently at the scene. It seemed she wasn't even blinking.

It was difficult to know what the child was thinking. But Munpyeong was unconcerned, as he didn't think the suspicion in the child's heart would disappear with just one silver coin.

Children who grow up in such harsh environments do not easily believe that others can give them something for no reason. Having been betrayed and extorted constantly, they do not trust the kindness of strangers.

Not being able to trust the kindness of others has its good and bad points. The bad point is that you can't distinguish a genuinely helping hand, and the good point is that you can avoid a hand that approaches with malicious intent.

Unfortunately, it was rare for a kind hand to reach out in the lives of such children, so Munpyeong prayed that the cheap sympathy he had thrown would not change the child. The child still had a long and arduous life ahead of her. A life where a moment's carelessness would lead to being devoured by life itself.

For the time being, the child had to run and run. She had to run the farthest without being caught by anyone to have a chance of survival.

Munpyeong began to walk with the child's brother slung over his shoulder. He needed to find a secluded place to have a friendly chat. Where did he learn that heukhwa? Why did he reveal it in front of him? As Munpyeong was carefully organizing the things he needed to ask the profligate, he felt an unfamiliar presence above him and stopped in his tracks.

"Hmph. I was wondering why you were so late, and this is what happened. Hey, where are you taking that man?"

As soon as he stopped, he heard the swish of clothes. It was from the top of the wall.

When Munpyeong looked up, there stood a cute young lady in a red skirt and yellow top, with her hands on her hips. Then, she started to pick a fight with Munpyeong in a clear voice.

It was a familiar face. The girl was so beautiful that once seen, she was not easily forgotten, so Munpyeong clearly remembered who she was.

"What is it? Do you have business with me?"

It seemed she was talking to him, so Munpyeong answered.

"Of course, I have business. Do you know that I've been waiting for you in front of the teahouse? I've been waiting all this time for you to be separated from Gege Yun."

Hearing the girl's words, Munpyeong tilted his head. Just in case, he asked the girl.

"Did you perhaps send this man to lure me here, Miss? Did you call me out?"

"Of course not. Do you think I would talk to such a dirty man? I just followed you because you were moving."

Munpyeong did not know why she was being so hostile. The last he remembered of her was her retreating back as she cried in the fabric shop.

Unaware that the medicine he had taken was prepared by Ja Myorang, and that Myorang had tried to kidnap him, he was genuinely bewildered by the malice that filled the girl's face.

"You! Don't you remember me? You don't remember someone as pretty and cute as me?"

Seeing Munpyeong's puzzled expression, the girl misunderstood and became indignant, thinking he was deliberately pretending not to recognize her. In a sharp manner completely different from the image Munpyeong remembered, she pointed her finger and shouted in anger.

"Though I have only met you once, I remember you clearly. Are you not Miss Ja?"

Munpyeong, remembering that the girl had called herself 'Ja Somae' at that time, answered politely.

Hmph. Of course. Ja Myorang, seeing Munpyeong remember her name at once, nodded as if it were only natural.

"Yes. I am Ja Myorang. I am the one who promised the Rite of the Spring Dream with Gege Yun."

He seemed to have heard this claim once before at the fabric shop. But now, having developed a subtle feeling for Yun Seung-hyo, the words did not sound very pleasant.

This little girl claimed to have promised her future to Yun Seung-hyo, but Yun Seung-hyo had denied it. If the girl's words were true, it would mean that Yun Seung-hyo was a scoundrel who carelessly abandoned his fiancée, but Munpyeong knew Yun Seung-hyo's character too well to believe that.

"Great Hero Yun said there was no such thing. I believe Great Hero Yun."

Munpyeong answered bluntly. Hearing Munpyeong's words, Ja Myorang frowned again. She stomped her small feet on the wall of someone else's house and shouted in frustration.

"Hmph! Don't be so smug! Gege Yun will definitely come back to me. I won't lose to a man-woman like you!"

"Man-woman? Are you talking about me right now?"

Munpyeong, who usually didn't raise his voice at women, found this truly unpleasant. It was even more so because he had a guilty conscience.

Munpyeong's face hardened as he shot a cold glare at Ja Myorang. Ja Myorang, undaunted by the threatening face of a man much larger than her, even lifted her chin and shouted confidently.

"Yes. I'm talking about you!"

"A young lady who truly says whatever she wants. Don't you think you're being too harsh to a man you don't even know well?"

If it had been a boy, he would have beaten him half to death and then spanked him seven more times. But because the opponent was a young girl, Munpyeong endured. He believed that a man who laid a hand on a woman or a child was not even human, and he couldn't stoop to the level of the people he despised just because of this one young lady.

"What's so harsh! You're the one who's truly harsh. Like a cat in heat. How dare you take the meal I prepared?! I heard everything! I heard it all! You moaning under Gege Yun. You crying out for him to put it deeper inside you! Do you know how much I cried on the roof that day? It would be unfair enough to lose my lover to a woman, but to a man-woman of all things! To think I'd lose my Gege Yun to someone like you!"

The girl spewed out rough words unfitting for her young age and raged like a fire. Hearing her words, Munpyeong couldn't even let out a gasp and froze on the spot.

It felt like hot coals had been poured over his face. His skin grew hot and a wave of heat rose from within him.

Unable to overcome the rising shame and embarrassment, Munpyeong desperately wished he could just faint.

"My Gege Yun's waist is at most half the size of yours. Who are you to get on top of a waist like that? And why are you so lewd?! It wasn't just once or twice, but two days. Two days! I thought my Gege Yun was going to die of exhaustion! I thought you were going to devour my Gege Yun!"

He knew that 'something' had happened between him and Yun Seung-hyo, but he didn't know exactly how it had unfolded.

Munpyeong's memory was completely gone, and Yun Seung-hyo never brought it up. Yun Seung-hyo didn't seem to think of it as an act of passion, and Munpyeong, worried that he might misunderstand, also kept silent.

Thanks to that, he was about to let it slide as if it had never happened, but a witness who claimed to have overheard it from outside the window appeared and stirred up the dying embers.

Perhaps because of the girl's graphic description, a series of scenes like a spring painting flashed through Munpyeong's mind. The scene of him getting on top of the slenderer Yun Seung-hyo and shamelessly moving his hips, and the scene of him pulling the opponent who was trying to finish back and trapping him in his body. The scene of him shouting for him to thrust harder, and as if that wasn't enough, the scene of him taking Yun Seung-hyo's massive member in his mouth and sucking on it.

It was closer to a delusion sparked by Ja Myorang's words than an actual memory, but to the flustered Munpyeong, it all felt like a true memory.

`Did I really do that? Did I show such vulgar behavior to a man who had no choice but to embrace another man to save a life?`

The more flustered and afraid he became, the more vivid the delusions in his mind became.

"Th-that is a misunderstanding, Miss. What happened then was a medical act for treatment, absolutely not an act of passion..."

Munpyeong stammered out an excuse with a flustered face. It was an excuse not for himself, but for Yun Seung-hyo, whose pure name might be tarnished because of him. If this became a rumor, it would be a fatal blow to the reputation of the renowned hero. He couldn't let a man whose only crime was treating a dying person be pointed at as a deviant.

"Treatment? What treatment? That Ten Nights in a Dream you took? You only drank a single sip of that, and you couldn't get it out? That amount can be expelled with just internal energy circulation. What's all this about treatment for something that can be finished with one cycle of the small heavenly circulation?"

In her understanding, her words were not wrong. It was a difficult drug for the person who took it to expel alone, but if there was a master nearby, escaping the influence of Ten Nights in a Dream was indeed simple. All that was needed was to push out the aphrodisiac's energy with internal energy circulation.

She did not know about the existence of the Gu that Munpyeong had, nor did she know what effect Ten Nights in a Dream had on the Gu. Therefore, her misunderstanding did not stop.

"Don't make excuses. You were just taking advantage of the situation, weren't you! ...No. Maybe you knew the drug was there and deliberately drank the tea. Did you really do that? Did you deliberately drink it, knowing? Did you really go that far just to get your hands on my Gege Yun??"

She turned the tables and started to get excited, claiming that he had deliberately taken the drug to seduce her lover. Being a young girl, her imagination was excessively vivid.

Munpyeong, who was about to make another excuse for Yun Seung-hyo, stopped short. There was a strange clue in the girl's words. He had dismissed it at first, but as the information began to accumulate, the truth began to dawn on him.

`How did that girl know that I had taken the drugged tea?`

Munpyeong finally began to suspect that point. No matter how much she eavesdropped from outside, it would be difficult to know that the tea Munpyeong drank was drugged. Unless Yun Seung-hyo had monologued something like, 'What, he collapsed after drinking tea? And this is an aphrodisiac?', all an eavesdropper would have heard would have been a thud.

But the girl knew that the drug he had taken was Ten Nights in a Dream, and she also knew how he had taken it. Furthermore, she knew the antidote too well for someone who had just overheard the name.

The way she raged, 'took the meal I prepared,' and the way she had clung to Yun Seung-hyo from the very beginning...

"Could it be, Miss, that you are a member of the Joyful Pavilion?"

Munpyeong, who couldn't have imagined that this tiny girl was the 'wanton woman from the Joyful Pavilion who had put an aphrodisiac in the tea to target Yun Seung-hyo,' muttered like a groan. Even then, he couldn't bring himself to say 'wanton woman' and politely said 'member of the Pavilion,' because the girl's face before him was so young and beautiful.

The Joyful Pavilion was said to be able to maintain the youth of a 60-year-old woman to that of a 20-year-old through yin-yang cultivation, so he couldn't predict the girl's actual age. But since her appearance was that of a young girl, he couldn't be harsh.

"I'm not just a member. I'm the Young Mistress. The one who will be the next leader of the Joyful Pavilion!"

At Ja Myorang's proud answer, Munpyeong's head spun. He had thought she was excessively audacious for her young age, but it seemed there was a reason for it.

The Joyful Pavilion, despite being a female-only sect, was a powerful organization that ranked among the top three in the Unorthodox Faction, and the current leader, Ja Ok-gun, was a great female master who had narrowly lost the title of the number one female martial artist to the Emei Sword Empress, Jo Yak-yeong. Her name was Ja Myorang, he remembered. Since she had taken her mother's surname, it seemed she really was Ja Ok-gun's daughter.

"Hmph. Now you see how great I am. Do you have any idea how dangerous an enemy you've made?"

Ja Myorang, thinking that Munpyeong was intimidated by her status as he was speechless for a long time, boasted loudly. Since no one had ever been so bold after learning her identity, she believed that her opponent would naturally submit to her.

"Listen here, Miss."

Munpyeong called out to the girl, who had been raised so delicately that she had not a speck of sense, with a sigh in his voice.

`Yes. Now he's going to back down, right?`

Ja Myorang sneered inwardly and looked at Munpyeong.

`Go on. Apologize. Apologize on your knees for daring to covet the man this Ja Myorang has claimed. If you kiss my shoes and then roll in the mud crying "I am a sow, oink oink," I might just let it go this one time. Of course, with the condition that you never approach my Gege Yun again.`

Confident of complete victory, Myorang had already prepared a way for Munpyeong to be forgiven.

"Let me say it again, what happened between me and Seung-hyo was not what you think, Miss Ja. I had a strange illness that you couldn't have anticipated, and the aphrodisiac you used made it much worse. Great Hero Yun was only helping me to treat it. It was a situation where neither I nor Great Hero Yun had a choice."

Because Yun Seung-hyo had insisted so strongly, he had returned to using formal address in his presence, but not when he was absent. Munpyeong, who held a deep reverence for Yun Seung-hyo, called the younger man not 'Young Hero' but 'Great Hero.'

Hearing Munpyeong's story, Ja Myorang pouted but said nothing. Although she pretended to be aloof, she seemed to be listening intently, as her eyes softened even as she pouted.

The reason she listened to him so attentively was not because she was overwhelmed by him, but because he was saying what she desperately wanted to hear. Realizing that Yun Seung-hyo had not betrayed her for Munpyeong, Ja Myorang's mood brightened a little.

But Munpyeong did not let Ja Myorang's mood stay good for long.

"I had always thought that incident was the work of a wanton woman targeting Great Hero Yun. Great Hero Yun said so too, and the viciousness of the method left no room for other thoughts. But after meeting you today and hearing your story, it seems you were the one who committed that act. I am very surprised and regretful. I never thought that you, who claimed to love Great Hero Yun, would do such a terrible thing. How can a young lady of your age be so vicious?"

Even a truly vicious person would get angry if they were called vicious to their face. The young Ja Myorang was no exception, and she became very angry when Munpyeong repeatedly called her vicious and shouted.

"What's so vicious? What did I do wrong?"

"Do you really not know what you did wrong? You put an aphrodisiac in Great Hero Yun's tea and tried to force yourself on him. Because Great Hero Yun rejected you, you tried to rape him!"

"What's wrong with that? The one who broke his promise to me first was Gege Yun. Gege Yun promised me the Rite of the Spring Dream. And then he betrayed me. I just wanted him to keep his promise. The only partner for my Rite of the Spring Dream is Gege Yun. Even now that Gege Yun has betrayed me, I can't think of anyone else."

Ja Myorang stubbornly insisted as if it were a matter of course. It didn't matter if his heart had changed. The promise came first, so he had to keep it, even if the heavens split.

`The Rite of the Spring Dream, the Rite of the Spring Dream... what on earth is that?`

Munpyeong sighed inwardly, thinking that he didn't know what made the girl so obsessed. He didn't know what the Rite of the Spring Dream was, but he felt he had to make her abandon her misguided obsession with Yun Seung-hyo. Right now, she was completely equating Yun Seung-hyo with the man who had abandoned her, and it was too dangerous to leave her like this.

"I don't know what the Rite of the Spring Dream is. But I know well that your words are an excessive stretch."

"What's a stretch? A promise is meant to be kept!"

When she heard what she wanted to hear, she was quiet, but as soon as she was blamed, Ja Myorang changed. She flared up without even listening to the end of the other person's story.

Still, Seok Munpyeong endured. He had to. If he didn't correct this girl's mistake, he didn't know what kind of unexpected situation she would create. He didn't know what would happen if such a blind girl focused only on her goal. To prevent a major disaster that might happen in the future, patience was desperately needed now.

"Let's think about it from a different perspective. There is a young lady and a young man. They fall in love and promise to marry, but in the middle, the young lady has a change of heart and the engagement is broken. The young man is heartbroken and angry at the young lady for not keeping her promise. So he kidnaps her and rapes her... In this story, who is really at fault? The young lady who had a change of heart, or the young man who raped the young lady?"

She wasn't a fool; she knew who the story was about. In her stubbornness, she wanted to say that the young lady was at fault, but she couldn't bring herself to say it. The Joyful Pavilion where she grew up was a place where women who had been hurt by men gathered.

Among the nannies and maids who had doted on her since she was young, there were women with stories similar to the one Munpyeong had just told. It felt like she would be insulting them, so Ja Myorang couldn't bring herself to say that the young lady was at fault.

She opened and closed her mouth a few times like a goldfish and gradually began to look tearful. If she didn't speak, it would be an admission that she was wrong, but she couldn't answer, so she was so frustrated and angry that she was on the verge of tears.

"If you know who was wrong, you don't have to answer. Instead, I want to get a promise that you won't make the same mistake twice. Can you do that?"

"Why should I make such a promise to you? Who are you to Gege Yun?"

"Of course, I am just Great Hero Yun's companion. But to you, I am also a victim who was harmed by your scheme. Am I truly not a person who deserves your promise?"

Ja Myorang bit her lip. If Munpyeong pressed that point, she had nothing to say. Whatever the intention, it was because of her that Munpyeong had taken the Ten Nights in a Dream, and it was ultimately because of that drug that Yun Seung-hyo had to have relations with Munpyeong.

When she thought about it, her mistake was trying to use the drug so hastily in the first place. She hadn't even targeted Yun Seung-hyo directly, but had been satisfied with just putting it in the teapot in his room, so she had handled the matter too carelessly.

"I promise I will never use drugs again. But don't think you can force anything else on me. I will never give up on Gege Yun. I can't be with anyone but Gege Yun."

Pushed by Munpyeong's silent gaze, Ja Myorang made a declaration rather than an apology. She wasn't promising not to attack Yun Seung-hyo in the future, just that she wouldn't use drugs.

The girl, having promised only that much, began to seethe as if she would die of frustration. Her pride seemed to have been hurt by being forced to make a promise.

"But don't think you've won with this. Just you wait. One day, I will get my Gege Yun back for real."

Ja Myorang, who had been biting her lip, suddenly shouted and turned to disappear over the roof. She had appeared out of nowhere and disappeared when she felt like it. A truly cat-like girl.

Munpyeong looked up at the roof where Ja Myorang had disappeared with a sense of emptiness, then turned his head to look around. The little girl who had been sitting on the other side of the road was gone. Ja Myorang was also gone. All that was left was the profligate he had been carrying on his shoulder while arguing with Ja Myorang.

"...You heard everything, right?"

Munpyeong asked quietly, and the profligate flinched and stiffened. The profligate, who had regained consciousness while he was talking with Ja Myorang, had realized he was hanging on the shoulder of the man who had knocked him out with a few kicks and had tried to sneak away, only to have his pressure points struck. He had been unable to move a muscle since then.

It was just a sharp sting in one part of his body, but the profligate's entire body was paralyzed. He couldn't send any strength to his dangling arms or his healthy legs. Only then did the profligate realize he had been captured by a martial arts master. To carry a grown man on his shoulder for a long time without any sign of fatigue, and to be able to immobilize his entire body with a finger, was an act impossible for anyone but a martial arts master.

"It would have been better if you had remained unconscious. You've only hastened your death by waking up. Thanks to you, there's one more reason for you to die."

Munpyeong threatened the man and walked deeper into the alley. He could feel the man's limbs tense up. He hadn't struck his mute point, but the man was too scared to even breathe. The occasional sob and falling tears suggested he was crying.

`What a coward. Does he really think I'm going to kill him?`

Munpyeong let out a hollow laugh at the man's absurd attitude. He beat his younger sister until her arm was broken, but when he was in the same situation, he trembled without even being able to beg for his life. This man was not only not human, but also not a man.

Of course, he had no intention of killing someone just for overhearing a few words. He wasn't Po Yeong-ui; what would he gain from such a brutal act?

He just intended to teach the man a little, a very little lesson. Not much, just enough to sever the tendons in his hands and feet so that he could never kill so much as a passing ant again, let alone his own family. But he had no intention of making him a complete cripple, so this profligate was very lucky.

If he had been caught by Ak Hyung, who had a pathological hatred for men who hit women, he would have not only become a cripple but also a eunuch. It was because he was caught by Seok Munpyeong that he was getting off with just having his tendons cut.