Chapter 197

Namgung Hwi casually flicked the blood from his blade.

His sky-blue eyes settled on the corpse of a member of the Demonic Sect sprawled across the ground.

He stared at the dead man for a moment, then murmured,

“...Strange.”

Had members of the Demonic Sect always been this common?

They were so rarely seen that even the discovery of the faintest trace of demonic corruption was enough for the Martial Alliance to organize an investigation team.

Yet Namgung Hwi had already encountered three demonic practitioners today alone.

No matter how deeply he had dug before, he had never managed to catch even the tail of one.

But ever since he began following Tang Sohae, he had been running into them with disturbing frequency.

Disquiet crept across his face.

Their martial prowess was pathetic, suggesting they were nothing more than scouts.

That only troubled him more.

As far as Namgung Hwi knew, members of the Demonic Sect rarely left Xinjiang except for a select few. Only those who had reached first-rate mastery were supposedly sent into the Central Plains as infiltrators.

And yet people who could not even properly conceal their demonic energy were now wandering around the Central Plains.

It was a bad sign.

Something inside the Demonic Sect had changed.

Had they been driven into such desperate straits that they were forced to send even mediocre martial artists into the Central Plains?

Or had they decided to intervene in the Central Plains in earnest?

Namgung Hwi toyed with the hilt of his sword, hoping it was not the latter.

Of course, there might be some other reason he had failed to consider.

If it’s neither of those... are they here to capture an apostate? But unless he was a high-ranking officer, there’d be no reason to mobilize an entire dragnet just to chase him... Damn it.

The thought that flashed through his mind made him swallow a curse and snap his head around.

“Jeokroe. The Demonic Sect’s people. There are probably more who were kidnapped and taken there than people actually born in Xinjiang, right?”

“Most likely. Xinjiang isn’t exactly a pleasant place to live. I’ve heard kidnappings of infants and young children are especially common in Sichuan and Shaanxi, since they’re relatively close.”

“The brother Sohae had with her at the Martial Alliance... didn’t they say they had the same mother?”

“I believe so. They said she was a famous courtesan from Moon Fragrance Pavilion.”

“...Haah.”

Namgung Hwi let out a long sigh and scrubbed roughly at his eyes.

Infant abductions.

The child of a courtesan.

A suspiciously spotless past.

An ambiguous identity.

The Demonic Sect’s dragnet.

Every clue pointed toward the same conclusion.

Tang Sohae’s companion was a member of the Demonic Sect.

And not an ordinary one, either.

He had to have held a position important enough for the Sect to mobilize manpower to hunt him down.

That was a possibility Namgung Hwi had never considered.

He pressed his fingers against his temples, then raised his head.

“Jeokroe. Send someone to Moon Fragrance Pavilion. Find out what happened to any other children Sohae’s birth mother had. If there were several, find out about every one of them.”

“What? Yes, of course. But why would you...”

Jeokroe trailed off, then his eyes widened.

“Young Clan Head. What exactly are you thinking? Don’t tell me...”

“It’s not certain, so don’t say it out loud. I could be worrying over nothing. But if I’m right, everything fits.”

At Namgung Hwi’s answer, Jeokroe went pale.

His master called it a mere possibility, but the sharp-witted Namgung Hwi’s predictions had never once been wrong.

If his suspicion proved true, this was no small matter.

For the past four days, they had remained near the mountain where Tang Sohae appeared to be hiding, eliminating every demonic practitioner they encountered.

But if Tang Sohae truly had ties to the Demonic Sect, then his master—and by extension the Namgung Clan—would appear to have knowingly sheltered a member of the Demonic Sect and his companion.

Horrified, Jeokroe unconsciously raised his voice.

“Young Clan Head, we need to leave immediately! If you knowingly help a member of the Demonic Sect, both you and the Namgung Clan will be placed in a terrible position.”

“I told you not to say it out loud. Besides, Sohae isn’t one of them.”

“We don’t know that!”

“Of course we do. The Poison King’s disciple, a member of the Demonic Sect? Even a passing dog would laugh.”

“Whatever the truth, you know how dangerous it is to become entangled with those fanatics. We should return and report this to the Martial Alliance while we still can.”

Jeokroe spoke firmly.

Namgung Hwi did not appear to care in the slightest.

“It’s dangerous. That’s exactly why I need to stay. What is Sohae supposed to do on her own if a Bishop-level demonic practitioner shows up?”

“And you think you can handle one? This is driving me insane. Even the Clan Head would struggle against a Bishop-level demonic practitioner. You could die!”

“Mm-hm. Sure.”

“Young Clan Head... I’m not joking. Please, think about this seriously. You’re always perfectly rational about everything else, so why do you become impossibly stubborn whenever Miss Tang is involved? Why are you so blindly devoted to her? Did someone slip you a poison parasite behind my back?”

“It’s my heart. I want to do it. What do you expect me to do about that?”

“Young Clan Head!”

Jeokroe pounded his chest in frustration.

Namgung Hwi pretended not to hear him and idly picked at his ear.

Jeokroe was just opening his mouth again, face twisted in exasperation, when he sensed someone approaching.

He immediately composed himself and looked back.

One of the search party members was running toward them in haste.

The man dropped to one knee before Namgung Hwi and quickly reported,

“Miss Tang came down to the market, then hurried back toward the mountain, Young Clan Head. She was dressed shabbily, but judging by her movement art, I am certain it was her.”

“When?”

“About fifteen minutes ago.”

“Lead the way.”

At Namgung Hwi’s nod, the scout rose and immediately started guiding him.

Jeokroe stared after his master, who was already walking away without having listened to a single word he had said.

His mouth opened and closed helplessly.

Then he grabbed at his hair and hurried after him.

If he could not stop his master, then the only thing left was to stay by his side.

Jeokroe tightened his grip on his sword sheath and prayed that his fears were nothing more than needless worry.

*****

Maybe it was because I knew Grandfather was on his way.

I couldn’t stop smiling.

As I hid my green robe beneath a shabby cloak and prepared to head to the market, Yeon Ryang watched me grin from ear to ear and chuckled.

“You’re that happy the Poison King is coming?”

“Of course! Once Grandfather gets here, I’m telling him everything. I’m telling him how Tang Gak barged into my quarters out of nowhere and threw me in the dungeon. I’m telling him how Third Madam put a bounty on my head. I’m telling him how that bastard of a father threatened me never to set foot in Sichuan again, and how Wiji Gok pretended he was helping me while pulling his own little scheme...”

I should tell him how I escaped thanks to Elder Paeng Rak’s token of gratitude too.

And that Paeng Jiyun gave me spending money.

Yeon Ryang quietly watched me chatter away while counting each grievance on my fingers.

Eventually, he burst out laughing.

“Sure, sure. But at this rate, the sun will set before you’re done, Sohae. Go and come back before your grandfather arrives. If the messenger hawk only got here today, I’d guess the Poison King won’t arrive until tomorrow or the day after.”

“Got it. I’ll be quick, so take care of the house, Brother. Cane, you remember, right? If anything happens, you protect Brother.”

“Kkit!”

Cane answered valiantly and straightened up on Yeon Ryang’s shoulder.

With the two of them seeing me off, I happily made my way down the mountain.

There was so much I wanted to tell Grandfather when I saw him.

I wanted to tell him how much I had missed him.

I wanted to tell him about all the new friends I had made.

And I wanted to show him how much stronger I had become while he was gone.

But my excitement did not last long.

The moment I imagined Grandfather’s reaction to Yeon Ryang, my throat went dry.

...How am I supposed to explain Brother so Grandfather will understand?

Would saying he saved my life be enough?

Everyone agreed on one thing: Grandfather absolutely despised the Demonic Sect.

Hadn’t Yeon Ryang himself said Grandfather was the orthodox martial artist the Demonic Sect feared most?

Grandfather had spent his entire life yearning for the woman he loved, so of course he hated the Demonic Sect.

But imagining that hatred directed at Yeon Ryang made my chest feel as though someone had placed a rock on it.

Grandfather adored me.

That did not mean he would readily accept Yeon Ryang’s existence.

Maybe he would even be disappointed in me.

Even so, I had absolutely no intention of leaving Yeon Ryang.

No matter how angry Grandfather became, I had to take Yeon Ryang to the Bamboo Sea and have the Ghost-Hand Divine Physician examine him.

I bit my lip and quickened my pace.

There was no point tormenting myself over something that had not happened yet.

It would be better to finish my shopping, hurry back, and stay beside Yeon Ryang.

I forced the thoughts from my mind.

By the time I reached the market at the foot of the mountain, the sun was high overhead.

I bought a sack of salt and five chickens, slung them over myself, and slowly looked around.

Perhaps merchants from elsewhere had arrived that day, because there were quite a few things on sale that were rarely seen in such a small village.

There were plenty of snacks Yeon Ryang would like, too.

Should I buy him something?

He’d love some spicy stir-fried chicken hearts.

I stood staring at them long enough for the merchant to address me with an easy smile.

“Why not have a taste, miss? There’s no gamey smell at all, and they’re wonderfully chewy.”

“Should I?”

I was just reaching for the chopsticks he offered when I sensed something suspicious behind me.

Keeping my expression perfectly natural, I tasted the chicken heart while sharpening my senses.

Three or four martial artists with pure, orthodox inner force were watching me from around the market.

None of them possessed particularly impressive martial prowess, but they seemed to be around the level of Wudang’s third-generation disciples.

Who are they? Are they connected to that persistent bastard who kept chasing me?

Pretending not to notice anything, I paid for the food and blended into the crowd like an ordinary civilian.

The martial artists continued following me while maintaining a fixed distance.

They were apparently trying to watch me from afar.

I had no intention of taking that lot back to the safe house.

I need to lose them.

I was just about to pick up my pace and pretend to head toward the neighboring village when a strand of energy so revolting it nearly made me gag brushed past me.

It lasted only an instant, but every hair on my body stood on end.

I knew exactly what it was.

Demonic energy.

Far thicker than Yeon Ryang’s.

Far more sinister.

Instinctive revulsion wiped my mind blank.

Something was wrong.

I needed to get back to Yeon Ryang immediately.

I threw aside everything I was carrying, clenched my teeth, and sprinted toward the safe house.