By Zephyria 
The strange situation—having arrived in a different place after a mere blink of an eye—finally began to make sense.
‘If it’s the Flowering Bone, it would be possible.’
Without even realizing it, he had been enchanted by Peng Yuan-jin and moved here with no memory of the transition. It was a chilling ability. The fact that he couldn’t even trust his own memories brought a fresh wave of terror.
This time, he had simply woken up in an unfamiliar place, but if Peng Yuan-jin had harbored ill intentions, he might have lost his life without ever knowing it.
He had a vague suspicion that the reason martial artists feared and persecuted the Flowering Bone so intensely stemmed from this kind of horror.
“You have bad habits, Woo Ma-jang. To kidnap someone else’s guest and treat them like this while I was away for a moment. Return them immediately.”
Peng Yuan-jin scolded the Poison Freak in a casual tone, completely indifferent to Seong Mu-yeon’s presence.
“You just got lucky and stumbled upon them on the road, so why can’t we share the credit? You’re so greedy!”
The Poison Freak leaped up, indignant at being reprimanded in front of Seong Mu-yeon. It seemed the Poison Freak had taken them to Peng Yuan-jin’s residence and tied them up on his own whim.
“It is not greed… You know Do-hwan is my brother, even if you don’t care for the Seven Sons, right?”
“So what! Once someone leaves that life, brothers or not, it’s over! Who cares if he lives or dies!”
“…You are impossible to reason with. I will take my guests.”
“Hey!”
At Peng Yuan-jin’s gesture, the Demonic humans waiting behind stepped forward and untied Seong Mu-yeon and Peng Do-hwan.
“Ah, at least give me one! I’ll take the Seven Sons!”
“I refuse.”
Peng Yuan-jin gave a gentle smile and lightly caught Peng Do-hwan as he slumped toward the floor.
“Follow me, Young Master Seong.”
Seong Mu-yeon followed behind him in a daze. The sound of the Poison Freak pouring out foul curses echoed off the walls behind them.
Once they left the cavern, a long, narrow mine tunnel stretched out, with holes leading to other areas visible here and there.
“….”
Rubbing his throbbing wrists, Seong Mu-yeon walked blankly through the dark corridor, following only Peng Yuan-jin’s back.
His mind felt bleached white, as if he had been struck hard on the head; no thoughts came to him.
“By the way, since Young Master Seong Mu-yeon was with Do-hwan, do you know why he became like this? He cannot seem to regain consciousness. It’s not as if a martial artist would catch a common cold…”
After walking through the dark corridor in silence for some time, Peng Do-hwan—or rather, Peng Yuan-jin carrying him—tossed a light question over his shoulder. However, Seong Mu-yeon ignored the question and asked instead.
“…How are you alive?”
As the daze slowly faded, a cold anger began to surge.
What filth had he endured because of Peng Yuan-jin? He had been framed for murder, pointed at with fingers of accusation, and forced to flee while hiding from the eyes of others. In that process, he had hurt Baek Ryeo-il and been hurt himself.
And yet, he was perfectly alive?
Then why had he had to live in hiding, wearing a mask, until now?
He had tried consciously not to think about it, as one cannot vent anger on a dead person, but in the end, this entire disaster was because of Peng Yuan-jin.
“Do-hwan’s condition is very poor. A physician is waiting, but if you provide detailed information, the treatment will be more facilitate—”
“Is there a need to persuade me? Just as you brought me here as you pleased, can’t you extract the answers even if I don’t cooperate?”
Seong Mu-yeon sneered. He had nothing to say to the man who had framed him for murder.
Peng Yuan-jin paused, let out a faint sigh, and looked back at him.
“…Are you really going to be like this?”
“And if I am, what are you going to do?”
Peng Yuan-jin shook his head as if dealing with a child throwing a tantrum for a toy in the marketplace, then continued walking.
As Seong Mu-yeon lagged behind, the Demonic humans following them poked his back with their sword hilts, urging him to move faster.
Every kind of curse Seong Mu-yeon could imagine rose to his throat, but he barely managed to suppress the boiling rage.
“Since you seem to want an explanation, I shall gladly give you one. Three years ago, you thought you stabbed my heart, but that was not actually the case. It missed by a very small margin.”
Peng Yuan-jin spoke in a low voice as he moved forward.
“The physicians of the Zegal Clan would never have imagined I was alive. I had lost so much blood, and my heart likely wasn’t beating. However, my heart was merely slow; it had not stopped completely.”
“…That’s impossible. I know you were left abandoned like that for a night; how could you recover so perfectly?”
Peng Yuan-jin’s eyes crinkled into a smile.
“It is the grace of the Third Young Master. If one masters the Heavenly Extreme Soul Preservation Divine Art, which he personally devised, to a certain level, the body enters a state of suspended animation to preserve itself when suffering a fatal injury. In that state, it enters a recovery process over a long period of time.”
“….”
“I was not dead to begin with. I merely disguised myself to look that way.”
Peng Yuan-jin’s tone as he answered was incredibly kind and affectionate. Facing the exact same attitude as before made Seong Mu-yeon feel nauseous.
“Then you must answer my question now. What happened to Do-hwan? Though I have a rough guess.”
“…He drew upon his Innate True Qi.”
“As expected, it didn’t deviate from my guess.”
Peng Yuan-jin clicked his tongue.
“Do-hwan has a bad habit of rushing in without thinking when he gets overly excited. I told him repeatedly not to lose his reason in any situation, yet he still…”
Meanwhile, they seemed to have reached their destination as Peng Yuan-jin entered a certain door. A space that was the polar opposite of the Poison Freak’s room unfolded before his eyes.
The wide cavern, with only the necessary items placed appropriately, felt somewhat empty at first glance. However, it was a space perfectly suited for a frugal young master of an orthodox sect.
Many people were already waiting there, including someone who appeared to be a physician.
“He drew upon his Innate True Qi. Please see if he can be recovered,” Peng Yuan-jin said as he laid his brother on a bed.
Upon hearing the words ‘Innate True Qi,’ the physician’s complexion darkened instantly. Though his attitude was skeptical, he silently began examining various parts of Peng Do-hwan’s body.
Peng Yuan-jin stood a step back and watched, and Seong Mu-yeon stood awkwardly beside him.
Peng Yuan-jin acted as if Seong Mu-yeon weren’t even there. Considering his ability to manipulate human consciousness at will, the current Seong Mu-yeon posed no threat.
Furthermore, even if he could somehow deal with Peng Yuan-jin, a dozen Demonic humans were staring with sharp, piercing gazes, meaning there was effectively no way out for Seong Mu-yeon.
Even so, being brought here against his will and then ignored like a useless piece of furniture made him feel more than just uncomfortable; he felt a sense of displeasure, as if he had become a mere insignificant creature.
“…What do you intend to do with me? Do you plan to kill me and craft a Spirit Pill, like the fourth brother, as the Poison Freak mentioned?”
Unable to endure the silence any longer, Seong Mu-yeon spoke first.
“And what does it mean that the amount of innate Jin-gi is what matters?”
“It means exactly that. Whether the body is healthy or not has no effect on the quality of the Spirit Pill. Even among commoners who have not learned martial arts, usable materials occasionally appear.”
Peng Yuan-jin answered without taking his eyes off the physician examining Peng Do-hwan.
“Meridian Disorder is a disease that occurs because the innate energy and the physical body are incompatible, causing the body to eat away at itself. The more severe the Meridian Disorder, the more Jin-gi one is considered to possess within the body. In that sense, Young Master, you are the finest material. You were simply unlucky enough to wear clothes that didn’t fit, but in terms of quantity, you are second to none.”
“….”
“Three years ago, you should have accepted the Lord’s proposal. It was an overly merciful opportunity to give to a lacking youngest brother. But now the ship has sailed, and for you, only your value as a material for a spirit pill remains.”
Just then, the physician finished the pulse diagnosis and straightened his back. Peng Yuan-jin cut the conversation short and approached, listening intently to what the physician had to say.
‘Material’…
Peng Yuan-jin truly seemed to view Seong Mu-yeon not as a person, but merely as material for a Spirit Pill. Such a thought had naturally seeped into his behavior.
‘As if I’d just let that happen.’
Now that he knew Yak Seon was not here, there was no need to stay. Of course, he hadn’t come here by choice.
‘This is absurd.’
Seong Mu-yeon scoffed inwardly at how Peng Yuan-jin treated people like objects while cherishing his own brother so much.
At the same time, he began to devise a way to escape in his head.
‘I must avoid a fight.’
Counting the low-level warriors standing guard at regular intervals on the way here, he realized their numbers were significant. Not only that, but the busy sounds of people moving through other mine tunnels indicated that a considerable number of people resided here.