Blood Demon.
A giant figure who created the Blood Cult by gathering all kinds of evil people and people from Unorthodox Sects in murim.
As a result, the cult behind the scenes began to attack the Murim Alliance, and even others who were strong had to join hands to resist.
In a fierce battle during the war, the Blood Demon, leader of the cult, was decapitated.
At that time, the Murim Alliance and other sects searched for his blood relatives, but it was never revealed if they found them all. And that is all I knew.
“The Blood Cult leader’s… granddaughter is alive?”
Hae Ack-chun smiled and nodded. Today was a day with a lot of extraordinary happenings. The Blood Demon’s blood is alive.
“You are lucky. You saw such a precious person up close.”
Regardless of luck, I was surprised.
Who would have imagined that she would still be alive after so many sects searched and went after the bloodline of the Blood Demon?
Somehow, I knew this old man wouldn’t have just backed out of a fight.
“Don’t tell your sajaes.”
“Yes.”
“And look for that herb. It is the only thing that can restore your dantian and well-being too.”
The Bloodline of the Blood Demon.
Her safety is essential to the cult. The reason searchers for the herbs are being mobilized also had to be for her.
-Wonhwi. Didn’t I say?
‘What?’
-People should be good at knowing the timing. Find the herb.
Short Sword said, excited.
Right. Perhaps, this was the golden chance that came for me.
Hae Ack-chun ordered the twins to find the herb too. From what I heard, most of the Blood Cult members were also searching for it. Gu Sang-woong, and the Bloody Hand Witch, who were like the heads of this place, scattered everyone all over, saying that this herb had to be found at all costs.
Actually, it was a waste of manpower to search for it together.
-But what are they doing here?
The place I was in was the cave where the South Heavenly Swordsman’s corpse was in. Instead of looking for the herb, I sat in front of a bonfire and cultivated my innate qi.
‘I am cultivating.’
-But what if someone else finds the herb?
‘They cannot find it.’
Short Sword clicked her tongue at my confident voice.
-You better go and find it sooner. Wouldn’t it be unfair if someone else finds it?
‘Even I cannot find it.’
-Why can’t I find it?
‘Right now, the flower buds of the herb are buried, so I cannot find them.’
-What are you even talking about?
‘Wait. It will take three more days to find the herbs, even with the help of all the trainees.’
-You’re the one who returned back in time. How could I have known that?
‘Then wait. Because after all, even that man doesn’t know when the buds of the sagebrush will bloom.’
The sun had to be in the middle of the sky, and then I would have to wait in the cold for a long time before taking it out.
So staying in this warm place was nice. As time passed, the red sun was about to set.
-Are you going to go now?
‘A little more.’
Small lights could be seen at the bottom of the mountain when the sun completely set.
It was light from torches.
Lights were moving here and there. After a while, they all gathered and headed to the main hall of the Six Blood Valley.
‘Done.’
I waited for this time. I went down the mountain with Iron Sword on me.
And when I went down, I could only feel the darkness and no presence.
-This is so creepy. It feels like everyone has withdrawn.
‘Because it is dark.’
-You were waiting for this.
The current weather was too terrible to rely solely on torches to find herbs. The whole area was covered with white snow, so how could they find it in darkness?
Now was the right time, especially with everyone out.
Tat!
It was dark, but I knew where the herb was, so I moved. Although not as good as Hae Ack-chun, I had learned the footwork technique that Iron Sword taught me.
‘I feel good.’
Even the cold wind was making my heart flutter.
I envied the footwork technique when I watched the other warriors use it in my previous life.
The feeling of running so lightly on the ground under the moonlight couldn’t be explained. Though the feeling didn’t last long.
Tak!
A sound rang in my ear. And it was coming from behind me.
-Wonhwi.
‘I know.’
I nodded at the words of Iron Sword. I thought everyone had withdrawn, but it didn’t seem like that.
Someone was following me.
“Phew.”
It seems that I was ready to use my cultivation for the first time outside of training. Warm qi welled up in my chest, leading to the soles of my feet.
The moment it reached my feet, my speed accelerated.
Phat!
I could see the surroundings pass so quickly. I thought it would be difficult to catch me, but the opponent could catch up.
And the sound kept ringing in my ear.
Tak! Tak! Tak!
Who was following me? To be able to catch up with me right now, they had to be a skilled warrior.
‘Iron Sword, can you see who it is?’
I asked the sword which was on my back.
-… Amazing.
‘What?’
-A fat woman is using a footwork technique at a similar speed to you.
‘What?’
At that instant, I thought of the woman I met with the veil on her head during the day. I glanced back with a hopeful thought, and it really was her.
‘Ha!’
Tak! Tak! Tak!
She was so fat that I wondered how she could even move, but she was able to catch up with me. Then she shouted.
“Stop there!”
And she was telling me to stop. This was insane.
It was an unexpected ambush. If I stopped, I would have to give up looking for the herbs.
-Hold on. If she is that fat, she cannot run for long.
Short Sword was right. No matter how great her skills were, it would be difficult to maintain this speed with her body.
If we continued this a little longer, then she would fall behind.
-Wonhwi! Be careful of your back!
Surprised by the cry from Iron Sword, I looked back. At that moment, I saw something shocking.
That fat woman with a veil on her face was gliding on the snow like a hawk?
‘What is she?’
What skill was this?
With the speed she was moving with now, she would catch up right away.
She reached out to me.
‘Tch!’
I had to twist my body to avoid being touched. However, her hand turned red and bent in a strange direction.
Pak!
I hurriedly stopped her with Iron Sword, but her hand was faster. The red hand touched my left shoulder, and my balanced body rolled to the ground.
“Ack!’
Thud!
I had to roll around ten times to stop.
-She is more skilled than you.
Even without it stating the obvious, I could feel it. When I rolled to the ground, I could feel my body ache and could not get up. Then I felt someone come over to me.
“I told you to stop.”
‘Ah…’
That fat woman. Her face was exposed as the veil ripped through the running, and she was more beautiful than I thought.
Round eyes and white skin. If she wasn’t fat, she would be called a beauty.
“… why did you follow me? You scared me.”
“Uh?”
She frowned as I asked her.
Did she think I was going to let her say it first? She wrinkled her forehead.
“You were going somewhere in the middle of the night, so I chased after.”
“What business do you have with me to know where I go?”
I came out strong. After all, I did nothing wrong to this woman.
But man, she was so unexpected.
“Ah, right? But, I heard that the elder’s disciple has trouble with dantian, but you seem to be doing the footwork technique fine?”
“…”
This is why I waited for everyone to withdraw. My luck must have run out. But it wasn’t like I had no excuses.
“… Yes, the innate qi is being used.”
“Uh? Innate qi? You mean you are using innate qi to do that?”
She was surprised. When anyone speaks of innate qi, they think about essentially burning up life. Those who overuse their innate qi will die.
“Can’t believe it? Check it out.”
I held out my hand.
If she was someone who could handle qi, then she would know the difference from my condition right away by infusing her qi.
But she couldn’t do it. She hesitated to check, sighed, and said.
“Then you will die.”
“What should I do then? I have no dantian to store qi.”
“You are stupid. You should not do that if you don’t want to live a short life by exhausting the innate qi.”
Was she worried?
A person who was under the Bloody Hand Witch.
“… isn’t that why I struggle with my teacher to heal the dantian?”
At my words, she put on a sad expression. She must have pitied me for trying to kill myself by using my innate qi.
“If your doubts are cleared up, can I go? It feels like my back is freezing as I am lying on the snow.”
This wasn’t a lie. It was really cold. At my words, she held out her hand.
I took her hand and stood up.
-What do we do? Will you give up for today?
Short Sword asked me.
If I showed her the herbs, my achievements and merits would disappear. If I found it alone and took it out, I would receive trust from the cult and would have made an enormous contribution to the cult leader’s daughter.
‘Right.’
I thought so as she said,
“So… was it young master Wonhwi?”
“You seem to be older, so please call me by just name.”
At that, she had an upset expression. Did I do something wrong?
-My former master said this. No matter how old a woman looks, the smooth way to live is to give regard to a woman.
I wanted to dismiss his words, but then the woman said,
“You are the Elder’s disciple, so I cannot do that, and I am not old.”
“Ah… no wonder you looked younger than me, but your martial arts were so good that I was being cautious.”
“Don’t try to fix it.”
And she was smart.
I already knew it in my past, but women were difficult to handle.
“I am a disciple of Sixth Blood Star, Ha Yeon.”
She took the initiative and introduced herself. As expected of a disciple of the Sixth Blood Star.
“No wonder I thought it was unusual to have red hands. You were doing the technique of the Sixth Blood Star.”
The Blood Jade Hand.
A defensive skill of the Bloody Hand Witch. I remember being told that her martial arts would turn the body red and bloody.
‘I cannot do it today.’
It would be hard to get rid of the disciple of the Bloody Hand Witch. It felt like I had to give up and aim for this tomorrow.
“Phew. I was going to look for the herbs, but it is getting dark, so it will be difficult. I need to head back…”
“Lie.”
“Uh?”
“Young master So, you know where the herbs are, right?”
I was speechless at her words. I didn’t know what made her come to this conclusion, but she was speaking it out!
So I casually asked her.
“If I had known where it was, would I be looking for it in the dark?”
“Maybe.”
“Maybe?”
“Even for today, you should have returned back by now. I met the elder on my way back heading up.”
Ah…
I don’t like this.
“But unfortunately, I didn’t see you.”
“Has to be a coincidence. It’s because I am not the kind to stand out.”
At my words, she smiled.
“Is that possible? Among the herbalists, a few helped us quite a bit.”
Three, the twins and me. This woman was more intelligent than she looked.
“It is strange. To show up when everyone is leaving.”
“True. It is a coincidence, but you are misunderstanding.”
I should just let this pass casually. I didn’t want her to catch onto anything else.
“Is it possible for a young master to look for the herb without even shoveling the snow?”
“…”
When I said nothing, she continued.
“The last and most decisive thing I realized after chasing after you was that you didn’t even look around for it but kept going ahead.”
Short Sword sighed.
-What are you going to do now?
This woman was too smart to be deceived with excuses. It didn’t seem like my excuses could work anyway.
“Miss Ha is special.”
“Are you acknowledging it?”
“Phew. I have no excuses if you have seen all of it.”
Her face brightened at my words.
“You know where the herbs are, right? Right?”
“I am not sure, but I have a guess.”
“Then let’s go together!”
She said excitedly, to which I responded.
“Is there any reason I should?”
“Uh?”
“I also need the help of Elder Shinui, and this is a great chance for me to be given credit for helping a great person. Do I need to divide my merit with you?”
I said it honestly.
“What!”
“What? You are a person who is trying to ride the carriage when someone else is doing all the hard work.”
“…”
“Anyway, I did my share today, so I will head back.”
“Are you going to act like this?”
“Yes. I will.”
“Huh! Then I will continue to follow the young master until you find the herbs.”
“… Do you need the merit that much?”
“It isn’t the merit! Hmph!”
She had a subtle expression and said,
“I am not doing it for the merit. I am doing this to save the person I serve. Can I not be greedy?”
The person that she is serving meant the granddaughter of the Blood Cult leader. She must have escorted her all the way here.
I thought I could be closer to Ha Yeon, but I needed the merit all for myself.
“I will save her, so don’t worry.”
“You are being too much.”
Her face turned red, and she bit her lip. And she tried to persuade me.
“Don’t do that, young master. I will give you all the merits in front of Elder Shinui. Then is that fine? “
“You will give the merit to me?”
“Yes. Even if the two of us go and find it, it doesn’t mean that the merit is divided, right? And you know if we are lucky, Elder Shinui will give help to the two of us too.”
I couldn’t be sure of that.
If the two of us found it, wouldn’t that change a lot of things? But I wasn’t going to change my stance just because of this.
“If that happens, then the elder will give me a plaque, and you’ll get one too, then I will give it to you.”
Her words sounded nice. Not one but two plaques which said that Elder Shinui would help me.
This wasn’t such a bad condition.
-Fine. Accept it. She will keep coming after you anyway.
‘Let’s try taking some time.’
She might change her stance if I was too difficult to compromise with.
-Either way, you are already doing that.
People can always turn greedy.
Anyway, I think it would be alright to work with her if her conditions didn’t change. I pretended to be concerned and tapped my chin.
“Phew, I don’t know if Miss Ha can be trusted.”
“Tch. Why do you have so many doubts? How can I make you trust me?”
Just accepting it right away was more suspicious, right?
She had an anxious look. She wanted to get the merit shared.
“I am just saying this, but don’t even think about running away. Even if I look like this, you realize I am faster than the young master, right?”
‘…!’
As soon as I heard that, a good idea struck me.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Miss Ha, how about doing this?”
“Doing what?”
“To have trust in each other, let’s put up something more than the plaque. Isn’t it possible that we may not receive the plaque?”
“Add something more? What is that?”
She narrowed her eyes. It was an anxious look.
“Teach me how to do that horizontal flying thing you did before.”
“Uh?”
I coveted it the moment I saw it. It was a new technique that made her look like a flying hawk.
“Ha!”
Miss Ha Yeon was excited.
Or was I just mistaking the angry steam rising over her head for excitement?
Miss Ha Yeon and I went together to look for the location of the herbs. In the end, she accepted my offer.
‘Do you know how rude it is to ask other people for their martial arts?’
‘I know.’
Which was why I had made the request. If she didn’t accept it, she would have to head back. If she did, she would pass on this mysterious technique to me.
-You aren’t an easy guy.
Short Sword said.
‘Fine. I will teach you. Instead, there are conditions.’
Her condition was simple.
Don’t use any reckless moves using your innate qi. Use it only when it is dangerous. Use it only to kill the opponent.
She seemed like a good person, but a person of an unorthodox sect can never be good.
In the end, she agreed to it. The condition she gave out, I could also accept. After all, a new technique such as that can be considered a trump card.
‘It is a good deal.’
Tak! Tak!
While we were moving, she asked.
“Young master… what happened during the day. You didn’t tell anyone, right?”
It seemed like she was talking about the bathroom incident.
“I was thinking about telling someone since I got one less coin.”
“I am sorry!”
She screamed with her face turning red.
“Well. I was given something better, so I will erase it from my mind.”
“Really?”
“I promise. Hmm, was that the reason you created this plan and came after me?”
“It isn’t! This is important for me!”
Well, she didn’t like being found out.
After all, no woman would want people to know about having jerky in the bathroom.
“Is it still far away?”
“It has to be near soon.”
I heard that it is in between the two mountains. In front of a frozen waterfall…
“Wow!”
Ha Yeon exclaimed. As we entered the place between the mountains, a wide field of snow came into view, and through it, we could see purple flowers sticking out.
The undersea plant.
“We found it. Has the young master been here before?”
She spoke with a bright face. Was it so fun to get merit?
Or was she glad to be able to save the granddaughter of the deceased cult leader?
“Now take it and go…”
-Wonhwi! Move up!
‘…?!’
At the cry from the South Heavenly Iron Sword, I moved ahead. I couldn’t feel anything, so what was he warning me for?
Papak!
“Uk!”
Before I could avoid it and turn my head, someone touched my blood points.
I fell to the front. When I was about to lose consciousness, a hot qi soared through my chest and spread to where the sealed points were.
And then I heard the sound.
Papak!
The sound of a hand-on-hand clash.
“Who are you? Ah!”
And I heard the voice of Ha Yeon.
Fortunately, she seemed to be better than me and could avoid the opponent’s surprise attack.
“Stop there right now!”
Tatatak!
The sound of people running and their footsteps could be heard. It seems like she was being pursued.
Not long after, there were clattering sounds from the sealed points on my back, and my stiff body began to relax.
‘Is this the effect of innate qi?’
I didn’t know that it could solve such issues. Well unknown to all, innate qi had a lot of benefits.
-This isn’t the time to be thinking that. The guys who attacked you took the herbs and ran.
As Short Sword said, some of the grass was torn off. It felt like they followed us both. And the fact that Miss Ha Yeon, who was supposed to be a first-rate warrior, didn’t feel them meant that they were of a higher caliber than her.
-Hurry up! You need the merit!
Short Sword told me, but do I have to pursue them?
-What?
I went before the rest of the plants blooming above the snow.
Five yellow beads were visible from the purple petals. And when I looked at it, I smiled.
‘Because this isn’t a fully grown undersea plant.’
You had to wait a little more for them to grow, you idiots.
