By Zephyria 
That night, a medicinal herb shop in Lanzhou City was struck by an unexpected bolt from the blue in the middle of the night.
At an hour when one should have been fast asleep, several martial artists stormed in and caused a commotion. Thinking that thieves had broken into the shop, the owner grabbed a hoe used for tilling fields and crept toward the herb warehouse. Bold thieves were noisily rummaging through the storage.
“You thieves! Stop this instant!”
The owner swung the hoe wildly, attacking the thieves from behind. Having closed his eyes tight while swinging, the owner opened them when he realized he hadn’t moved an inch, as if his body had suddenly frozen.
“We are not thieves, Elder.”
A youthful young man held the hoe firmly with one hand and offered a pouch with the other, smiling apologetically.
“This should be enough to cover the cost of the medicine.”
Then, having found the herbs they desired, the midnight thieves vanished like the wind. It had all happened in the blink of an eye.
“……What in the…”
Left alone in the suddenly empty warehouse, he slowly opened the pouch the young man had given him. His eyes widened at the glittering yellow gold inside.
Such incidents did not happen at only one herb shop. Almost every medicinal shop in Lanzhou was raided during the night. Testimony followed that, in every case, several martial artists had stormed in, ransacked the warehouses, thrown down pouches of money, and disappeared.
The martial artists who had plundered(?) the herb shops gathered at an inn in Lanzhou.
“Hmm……”
Jegal Un inspected the herbs with a solemn expression. Materials that people had rushed to procure were spread across the table. Among them were many precious herbs, such as Human-shaped Ginseng, which would be difficult to obtain even for a fortune. This was possible thanks to Lanzhou City being a trade hub.
“Are you truly confident…… If the mixture is off by even a little……”
Owl asked worriedly. However, Jegal Un scoffed loudly.
“I’ve watched Yakseon Daein prepare medicine several times; it would be absurd if I couldn’t memorize this much.”
“……We couldn’t memorize it,” Seomun Yuha mumbled. They had only watched over someone’s shoulder a few times every three months. Moreover, there were dozens of herbs, each requiring a different amount. How could anyone memorize that?
Jegal Un stared at Seomun Yuha as if looking at a foolish beast.
Feeling inexplicably offended, Seomun Yuha pouted and slowly turned his head. Then, he locked eyes with Baek Ryeo-il, who had a face like a demon.
“So, you knew where Seong Mu-yeon was hiding, didn’t you……”
Baek Ryeo-il glared at him with a murderous gaze.
“I recall you flatly denying it when I asked in a letter before…… Turns out you were meeting him quite often?”
“Gasp……”
“Then Namgung Cheon-chu must have known too…… Right? Answer me.”
“Ah, ah, that’s right! I had something urgent to do and completely forgot! Ahahaha……”
Seomun Yuha stepped backward and quickly fled.
Baek Ryeo-il ground his teeth, staring intently at the door where Seomun Yuha had disappeared.
‘That son of a bitch.’
He knew everything and still made me look like a fool?
It wasn’t just Seomun Yuha.
From Jegal Un, who was weighing the herbs, to Owl, who was watching anxiously, more people than expected knew of Seong Mu-yeon’s whereabouts.
The most galling was Namgung Cheon-chu.
That bastard had also been rushing here after receiving Jegal Un’s letter. However, because of the distance, he received news that the matter had ended before he arrived and immediately turned back home. He had undoubtedly chickened out to avoid Baek Ryeo-il’s interrogation.
Baek Ryeo-il felt as if he were the only idiot.
“The herbs are all prepared. Heartless Sword, come here.”
Meanwhile, Jegal Un, having finished the measurements, called him.
“While the herbs are being refined, inner force must be injected so that Extreme Yang, Extreme Yin, and the five elements achieve harmony. Until now, others have replaced you, but the medicinal effect was inevitably lacking. However, if you step in personally, we can expect a much better result than before.”
‘A shameless and vile bastard who doesn’t even blink after deceiving people.’
Baek Ryeo-il glared at Jegal Un in silence. Owl, who was nodding beside him, was just the same. However, the two didn’t care at all whether he glared or chewed on a sword. One was naturally like that, and the other wore a face like a wooden mask, making his inner thoughts impossible to read. Regardless, the fact remained that neither could be trusted.
“And one more thing.”
Jegal Un gazed steadily beyond the closed door as if waiting for someone. As if responding, the sound of footsteps approaching with fierce momentum was heard.
It was Jegal Yeom-gang, who had just returned after cleaning up at Demon Subjugation Valley. He scanned the faces of the people gathered in the room sharply and headed straight for the pot where the herbs were prepared.
“The blood of kin is needed……”
Slash!
Jegal Yeom-gang drew a dagger, sliced his own palm, and red blood poured out.
“A-ah, no, you don’t need that much……”
“Shut up! I have not yet decided what punishment to inflict upon you.”
He glared at his son with bulging eyes as if he wanted to devour him. He looked scruffy, perhaps due to the hardships of handling the remaining remnants of Demon Subjugation Valley and the chore of transporting prisoners, but his temper was still fiery.
‘Why is Jegal Yeom-gang……’
When Baek Ryeo-il sent a look demanding an explanation, Jegal Un shook his head with a bitter smile.
“……I will explain later.”
Then, he shut his mouth and finished the task at hand.
A short while later, Owl brewed a decoction using the completed herbs.
“The rest will be made into pills. Decoctions that must be brewed in a pot every time aren’t portable. We must prevent this from happening again.”
Jegal Un said. Once the decoction was finished, Owl took the medicine and crossed over to the room where Seong Mu-yeon was.
Seong Mu-yeon lay as if dead, his complexion not looking like that of a living person.
Baek Ryeo-il watched for a moment as Owl supported his upper body and slowly poured the medicine into his mouth.
This is enough.
There was no point in watching any further. Seong Mu-yeon would wake up. Baek Ryeo-il turned and left the room.
Ma Jin-cheon stood in the hallway, looking exhausted.
“Is it done now?”
“……Just one last thing. I will kill the Poison Freak with my own hands.”
“You wouldn’t listen even if I stopped you, would you? Go see Ung. He says he found a place where the Poison Freak might have fled by interrogating the prisoners.”
Demon Subjugation Valley had been completely buried by an inexplicable explosion. Because the scale of Kilyeon Cliff was so massive, it had only sunk slightly, but it was expected that no one could have survived inside.
However, there were several testimonies that the Poison Freak had fled toward the forest rather than the abandoned mine, and his location was found through the prisoners.
Baek Ryeo-il tilted his head and brushed past him.
“Flowing Cloud Sword Master.”
As Ma Jin-cheon entered, the people, including Jegal Un, paid their respects. He approached Seong Mu-yeon’s bed.
Yakseon’s medicine was as incredible as her reputation. Seong Mu-yeon’s complexion, which had been pale as a corpse, had quickly returned.
“I will keep watch. You all must be fatigued from the overnight battle, so please go rest.”
“Yes, we leave it to you.”
Jegal Un nodded. He ushered the people out of the room. The servant wearing the owl mask tried to stay, but unable to withstand Jegal Un’s urging, he was forced outside.
“Phew……”
Once the surroundings became quiet, Ma Jin-cheon sank deep into a chair. Ma Jin-cheon’s brow furrowed deeply as he looked at Seong Mu-yeon, who was breathing steadily.
Seong Mu-yeon’s eyelashes fluttered, and his blurred eyes appeared. In the pitch-black darkness, he stared at the ceiling for a while.
His mind was blank. As he moved his eyes, he saw moonlight leaking through the paper-covered windows. And he realized he was lying on a bed in an unknown place.
His last memories vaguely returned. Demon Subjugation Valley, Seong Mu-jae, Peng Yuan-jin……
And the hot touch that had wrapped around his shoulder as he was falling……
Baek Ryeo-il!
Seong Mu-yeon hurriedly pushed himself up.
However, the moment he threw off the blanket and stepped onto the floor, a hand emerged from the darkness and pressed firmly on his shoulder.
“Where are you planning to go?”
“Ma Instructor……”
Ma Jin-cheon was sitting in a chair near the bed without any lights on. Seong Mu-yeon felt glad, but there was something more important right now.
“Where is Master Baek?”
“Why do you ask about that child?”
“I must meet him.”
“And what do you intend to do upon meeting him?”
There was an inexplicable hint of hostility in his tone. Only then did Seong Mu-yeon sense an unpleasant atmosphere and stiffen.
As Ma Jin-cheon slowly leaned forward, his hardened face was revealed under the dim moonlight. His deeply furrowed brow was full of worry, and despite meeting after a long time, there was no trace of joy toward Seong Mu-yeon.
“What is it that you want to say to that child?”