Chapter 769: Three Souls (7)

After finishing our business at the Ziwei Palace, we returned once more to the Nine Heavens Palace.

Because only the chamber where we had first awakened allowed passage back to the Lower Heavens.

The hall where we had awakened after returning to the Nine Heavens Palace.

During our farewell with the Hyeonnyeo, Sonyeo, and Chaenyeo, the Hyeonnyeo spoke with an exceptionally benevolent expression.

“You all worked hard. You have been of great help to me.”

“Not at all. I was simply glad we could help.”

When I answered humbly, all three of them looked at me as though I were terribly adorable and praiseworthy.

“How can he speak so sweetly?”

“Truly.”

“I told you So-ryong is adorable. No wonder Ji-ryeon likes him.”

I had not personally done much, but the ones who solved this entire problem were all my wives, were they not?

So it was practically the same thing as me accomplishing it myself.

They were all my people, after all.

Which meant it was perfectly acceptable for me to receive praise too.

‘Ahem. Indeed. Indeed.’

Still, receiving this kind of affection from older women—no, unimaginably older older sisters—felt strange.

Hwa-eun was older than me too, but this was my first time dealing with super older women like these, so I awkwardly scratched my head before the Hyeonnyeo spoke.

“Now then, go lie down on that bed again. It is time to prepare your return, yes?”

“Yes, Lady Hyeonnyeo.”

Led by that motherly, gentle voice, I lay down upon the bed where I had first awakened.

The Hyeonnyeo looked down at me.

But something about the posture felt dangerously similar to a polar bear about to maul someone.

The Hyeonnyeo had laid me down and climbed on top of me.

If her body lowered even slightly more from here, would it not instantly become that kind of atmosphere?

I almost felt like the next words whispered into my ear would be something like:

‘Big Sister will take care of everything for you, alright?’

But the trust and affection contained within her gaze were genuine.

As she stroked my hair, the Hyeonnyeo continued speaking.

“The children received gifts from the Ziwei North Pole Emperor of the Middle Heavens, so although they currently remain asleep, the moment they return to their bodies, their cultivation realms will immediately rise. Make sure to take proper care of them.”

“I understand.”

At the moment, Gungbong and Soto had both received something akin to the power of the Wisdom Star and the Fortune Star from the Ziwei North Pole Emperor.

Just from looking at it, it was obvious these were not ordinary gifts.

Stars had always been sacred beings, whether in the East or the West.

Receiving the power of stars could not possibly be some insignificant blessing.

That was why, after receiving the starlight, the two of them had remained completely silent, and I had assumed they were organizing some kind of enlightenment.

But apparently, because the gift came from such a high-ranking immortal of the Upper Heavens, they had instead entered directly into realm advancement.

Though since they lacked physical bodies at the moment, the process seemed to be occurring purely within their spirits.

“And until Zihwa awakens, never lower your guard. Do you understand?”

“Yes. I will make certain Zihwa awakens safely.”

“You could remind yourself two or three times over and still not be cautious enough. Until Zihwa awakens and gains great power, dragons remain extremely dangerous beings.”

“So-ryong, I am trusting you.”

“Yes. I will engrave it into my heart again and again.”

What followed afterward were repeated warnings.

All three of them told me the same thing:

Never let my guard down.

Until Zihwa awakened and we obtained overwhelming strength, I was absolutely never to relax.

Once their warnings finally ended, all three of them took turns kissing my forehead.

“Then let us meet again in the Upper Heavens.”

“See you in the Upper Heavens.”

“We shall meet again in the Upper Heavens.”

A kiss on the forehead.

For a moment I wondered whether something was genuinely beginning here, but rather than that, it felt more like the kind of farewell given before telling a child to sleep well.

Soon my vision darkened, and a strange sensation overtook me.

‘Uwaaaaaah.’

What would it feel like if a person were sucked down into a sewer drain?

If anyone ever asked me that question, I could answer immediately.

Because that was exactly how I felt right now.

The three souls of Soto, Gungbong, and myself mixed together like something being sucked into a drain as we plunged downward toward the Lower Heavens.

My consciousness spun endlessly.

I could not think straight at all, and on top of that, the energies of Soto and Gungbong felt mixed together with mine into a single whole.

‘Even if nothing happened on the way there, weren’t our three souls definitely mixed together on the way back?’

Right as I became convinced our three souls had absolutely become tangled together during the return trip—

My consciousness suddenly felt as though it were being sucked into something.

Then bright light appeared before my eyes.

“Khk. Hahk. Hahk.”

“So-ryong-nim, have you regained consciousness?”

When I opened my eyes, Huiyang was seated nearby.

But after returning to my own body, the sensation felt strangely unsettling.

After the lingering feeling of waking from a nightmare, the emptiness between my legs was once again replaced by a heavy familiar presence, while conversely my chest felt oddly empty, as though something had vanished from there.

The space between my legs was supposed to feel empty, while my chest was supposed to feel heavy.

‘Huhhh?!’

I jolted violently in shock.

After entering and leaving the body of a woman—an actual celestial maiden, no less—the sense of dissonance was far stronger than I had expected.

Was not the body of a celestial maiden from the Upper Heavens the ultimate form a woman’s body could attain?

The reason Western artists had created countless masterpieces using the female body was because of that beauty and perfection.

And after entering and leaving the greatest of such bodies—

My original body no longer felt like my own, while the celestial maiden’s body strangely did.

Even though this was supposed to be my real body.

‘This is insane.’

Just as I shook my head hard, trying to throw away the confusion surrounding my identity—

Huiyang’s shocked voice rang out.

“T-this is?!”

At the same time, bright light filled my vision.

Streams of light burst forth from beside me.

When I turned my head, brilliant starlight had begun pouring from both Gungbong and Soto, who rested atop my head.

Apparently their realm advancement had finally begun.

The realm advancement that had occurred only within their spirits until now seemed to be exploding outward once reunited with their bodies.

I immediately rose from the bed and placed my hands against them both.

Realm advancement was best handled inside Dokmul-hyang.

We had decided to maintain good relations with the dragon race for now, but the cultivation realms of our family still needed to remain hidden.

Nothing good would come from others learning exactly how advanced our household truly was.

“Alright, both of you, go inside for a moment.”

After placing both Gungbong and Soto inside Dokmul-hyang, I spoke to Huiyang.

“Huiyang, I’ll be stepping inside briefly. The two of them are advancing realms, so I should probably check on their condition.”

“Understood.”

I quickly followed after them into the interior.

The inside of Dokmul-hyang was pitch black.

Night had already fallen within Dokmul-hyang, and two beams of light poured down from the sky onto Gungbong and Soto as though holes had been torn open above them.

There were no actual stars or moon inside Dokmul-hyang.

And yet starlight still descended here, meaning that light apparently transcended even spatial boundaries.

Within that starlight, the energies of the two fluctuated violently before their bodies slowly rose into the air.

There, within spheres of light, the realm advancement of Gungbong and Soto began in earnest.

At minimum, this would take three or four days.

For now, I decided to call someone through the group mental connection, but the words refused to come easily.

Because I still had no idea how exactly the Hyeonnyeo, Chaenyeo, and Sonyeo had resolved the current situation through Ji-ryeon.

It felt like returning home after running away during puberty.

Like wanting to ring the doorbell but being too afraid of getting scolded to press it.

Just as I was agonizing over how to begin speaking in the group chat—

“‘Husband, have you returned?’”

Hwa-eun’s voice rang out.

Apparently she had sensed my return because of the power overflowing from Soto and Gungbong.

In a faintly guilty voice, I answered,

“‘I-I’m back.’”

Then greetings immediately poured in.

My wives and dragon concubines all greeted me at once.

“‘You worked hard, Husband.’

‘Master, have you returned?’

‘So-ryong, welcome back.’

‘Elder, your concubines greet you.’

‘Elder, your concubines greet you.’

‘Elder, your concubines greet you.’”

I felt extremely self-conscious, but while awkwardly trying to greet them back, Okryeong suddenly spoke.

“‘Uh... a-anyway, I’m glad nothing major happen—’ ‘Ah, and we heard you took in new principal wives. We will make certain not to neglect them.’”

My heart nearly dropped at Okryeong’s words.

I had not expected her to say it so bluntly.

Especially not in front of everyone.

Cold sweat ran down my back.

“U-uh, r-right.”

When I answered awkwardly, Hwa-eun spoke again.

“‘Lady Hyeonnyeo explained the situation to us. Apparently there was... some kind of incident?’”

It was true there had been an unavoidable accident.

A completely unavoidable one.

But in my ears, Hwa-eun’s question sounded more like:

‘So you caused trouble again?’

Of course, Hwa-eun herself had not meant it that way.

It was simply that a guilty conscience made everything sound accusatory.

“‘Huh? Ah, y-yes...’”

As I answered awkwardly once more, Hwa-eun continued.

“‘Gungbong? Soto? Where are they? I think we should have a conversation.’ ‘Indeed. We also need to decide the order.’”

They were obviously just saying they wanted to talk normally, but my heart still twitched nervously.

Looking toward Soto and Gungbong floating in the air while absorbing starlight, I answered,

“‘The two of them received gifts after helping resolve matters up there, so they’re currently advancing realms. I placed them inside Dokmul-hyang for now. Could someone come watch over them?’ ‘We will go, Elder.’”

I had assumed my wives would come personally, but instead Okryeong answered.

Certainly, with concubines already present, it would not really be appropriate for the principal wives to handle something like this themselves.

Soon, the eight dragons appeared at the entrance.

The moment they entered and saw the pouring starlight, they froze briefly while staring blankly at it.

But they quickly recovered and rushed toward me.

“Elder!”

“Elder, are you alright?”

“Elder, we were worried! Ah, Elder, you smell strangely nice. Like flowers.”

“Really? Let me smell too. Ah, you’re right.”

“Elder, we missed you.”

The girls approached without hesitation, grabbing onto my robes and sniffing me.

The floral scent they mentioned was probably because I had entered and left the body of a celestial maiden from the Upper Heavens.

Still, surrounded by their chattering, I suddenly felt as though I were being mobbed by puppies.

And for the first time, I felt like I could vaguely understand why the Heavenly Emperor had become so obsessed with dragons.

‘S-so this is what it feels like...’

In a dignified voice, I answered,

“Y-yes. I’ve returned.”

“Yes, Elder. But... I’ve never seen realm advancement like this before. What exactly is this?”

At Okryeong’s words, everyone turned back toward the starlight.

The dragons’ colorful horns glittered beneath the falling radiance.

“I fulfilled a request from an immortal of the Upper Heavens and received a reward. They called it starlight.”

“Starlight?”

“It’s so beautiful.”

“I want starlight too. Though I’m not saying you should prioritize me, of course. The elder sisters should come first. Naturally.”

I had heard they were several hundred years old, but they felt unexpectedly adorable.

As I stroked their heads, I spoke.

“There is no need for all of you to guard them at once, so rotate in pairs.”

“Yes! Elder.”

“Understood, Elder.”

Just as the dragons began deciding the rotation order among themselves—

I was about to leave when Okryeong quietly approached and whispered:

[“Elder, Lady Tang requested that you visit her bedchamber.”]

[“Her bedchamber?”]

[“Yes. It is nighttime, after all.”]

I had assumed night had fallen because Soto and Gungbong’s realm advancement altered the atmosphere.

Apparently it was simply nighttime for real.

At Okryeong’s words, I quietly nodded.

Because honestly, this felt like I was being told to settle things physically.

Then I quickly exited Dokmul-hyang.

Red lanterns had been lit throughout my bedchamber, and incense candles were burning inside.

Turning my head, I spotted Hwa-eun’s figure lying upon the bed.

The instant she sensed my presence—

The blanket slipped downward.

—Srrrk.

What revealed itself was a naked body dyed crimson beneath the glow of the red lanterns.

‘Huhhh?!’

Such blatant temptation.

And her face was still hidden beneath the blanket.

‘Wait... could this be? “A conversation carried out only through the body, without emotions.” Ah! I get it now!’

Right.

I vaguely remembered hearing something like this before.

People fought emotionally during the honeymoon phase, but once the honeymoon ended, a hundred words mattered less than a single night together.

This was obviously an apology conveyed physically instead of through excuses or explanations.

In that case, I was perfectly fine with it too.

I quickly decided to respond to her feelings properly.

‘Here I gooo!’

Throwing off my clothes, I leapt onto the bed.

And just as Hwa-eun wanted, I skipped all unnecessary talk and immediately got to the main point.

But something felt strange.

This did not feel like the familiar path I had always traveled, but rather one I had never once explored before.

‘What?’

Tilting my head in confusion, I pulled away the blanket.

And the instant I did, I could not help jolting violently in shock.

Because lying there was not Hwa-eun at all, but Sister Seol, eyes squeezed tightly shut and face burning red.

“S-Sister Seol?”