Chapter 193
Chapter 193
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: The Bewitched Chamber
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Breaking down the door with gusto had gone well enough.
“…….”
But what was this? The White Flame Witch stared wide-eyed at the scene unfolding before her. Where the hell was she? That question popped into her mind.
The Blood Palace's chamber. Dawn Shadow had insisted on using the largest room. It was stupidly spacious anyway.
“You rotten bastard. What the hell have you been doing in my room?”
It had been left to gather thick layers of dust. The Blood Palace was vast, with countless rooms. That didn't mean she had no attachment to it. Why? Because it was hers. The White Flame Witch scowled fiercely as she strode into the room.
Wi Seongcheon was just as stunned. Just a few days ago, he'd received the Soul Fusion Ritual from Dawn Shadow in this very room and been taught the Supreme Purity Secret. Back then, it had been an ordinary chamber.
But now, the sight was utterly transformed. The floor, walls, and ceiling were covered in dense black-and-red script that writhed like living insects. That alone was enough to churn the mind with disgust, but a hazy smoke drifted through the air, carrying a thick, cloying fragrance. And there, in the center, something burned in a massive incense burner.
"Wait, hold on!"
The furious White Flame Witch was about to obliterate the room in one go, but just before she could, Dawn Shadow—seated before the burner, hands in a mudra—cried out desperately. Hundreds of talismans floated around him in various formations.
Seated like that, Dawn Shadow looked profoundly mystical, but he crawled forward on his knees, pleading with the White Flame Witch.
"Please, Silver Veil. Hold your anger."
"You dog of a bastard. What the hell are you doing in my room?!"
"It'll be done in a few more days. After that, the room will be spotless again."
"Why start this without even asking the owner—me?!"
"The timing of fate was perfect; I had no choice. You wouldn't understand, Silver Veil, but two days ago at the Hour of the Ox, yin energy was at its peak. And Baekrihyang, that girl, is born of the moon, darkness, and sea..."
"What are you babbling about?!"
"So, what I'm saying is—you wouldn't get it, Silver Veil! Two days ago was the ideal moment for the ritual. In just a few more days, the Five Elements Ruyi Method will be complete."
Dawn Shadow gestured into the air as he spoke. There lay Baekrihyang. She was completely nude, but swirling mists and talismans enveloped her body in constant circulation, leaving her skin barely visible.
"Once the Five Elements Ruyi Method finishes, her imbalanced elements will be corrected. Then, if she properly enters the Five Elements Path and learns the Mutual Generation Arts..."
"Not my problem."
The White Flame Witch cut him off with a scowl.
"Right now. Fix this little one's face."
“……Why did that kid's face end up like that?”
"Come fix it. Be careful with the nose. If it's even a bit lower than before, I don't care about your Five Elements whatever—I'll wreck it all."
"Those ribs are broken too."
Wi Seongcheon spoke up quickly. Dawn Shadow looked utterly dumbfounded.
"That's what I heard. What are you waiting for? Come fix it."
"Silver Veil, I'm incredibly busy right now..."
The White Flame Witch's hair whipped around. Seeing her hands turn deathly pale, Dawn Shadow clamped his mouth shut. He rose slowly and approached Wi Seongcheon.
[You bastard. Shouldn't you be diligently practicing the Supreme Purity Secret? Where'd you go and get beat up?]
[This is all because you filled my head with nonsense about immortal arts, Lord Dawn Shadow.]
[What? What nonsense? Immortal arts?]
Dawn Shadow's eyes rolled back. He wanted to smack Wi Seongcheon, but with the White Flame Witch glaring daggers, he couldn't. Grievance heavy in his heart, Dawn Shadow sat before Wi Seongcheon.
[...Turns out this slippery punk isn't the Black Demon King's son, but Silver Veil's?]
It wasn't an implausible theory. For that fierce, heartless White Flame Witch to dote on a kid who still smelled of milk.
[Could it be the Black Demon King and...]
Suspicion deepened, but Dawn Shadow didn't ask outright. He'd be courting violence from the White Flame Witch the moment he did.
"Hmm, cleanly broken. Artfully snapped at an angle that spared the organs."
"Ow."
"Don't whine. And the nose... this one's been crudely smashed flat. Open the nostrils. Sniff in. Hmph, hmph."
Wi Seongcheon obediently followed Dawn Shadow's instructions. Dawn Shadow caressed Wi Seongcheon's body with one hand while shaking a pill pouch with the other. Various medicines floated out from its mouth.
"With your healthy body bolstered by my treatment, just lie still and in four days, the bones will knit."
It wasn't mere caressing. Dawn Shadow's fingertips precisely probed muscles and meridians, aligning the broken bones. What demanded his focus wasn't the ribs, but straightening the collapsed nose.
Squelch! Dawn Shadow's finger plunged into Wi Seongcheon's face. A strong sense of wrongness hit, but the pain was minimal. Dawn Shadow wriggled his finger, lifting the sunken nose. He then stroked the bridge several times to adjust the height.
After that, he slathered sticky salve thickly over Wi Seongcheon's nose, face, and side.
"This salve will melt inside you over a week, binding the healing bones even stronger."
Several finger-length golden needles pierced the side. Shorter ones sank into the nose and cheekbones.
"Take a restorative pill before rising and sleeping. There, done."
“…….”
Wi Seongcheon stared at Dawn Shadow with dazed eyes.
He hadn't felt it during the previous treatment with all the elaborate incantations, but this one—finished in less than an hour—truly showed why Dawn Shadow was called the world's greatest physician. The sore, uncomfortable side was now pain-free, and the flattened nose stood straight again. The sticky salve was annoying, but breathing was fine.
"There, happy now? Silver Veil, please leave."
“……Isn't it taller than before?”
"Better too tall than too short."
The White Flame Witch peered intently at Wi Seongcheon's nose, muttering. Though she said that, she seemed satisfied enough and rose quietly.
* * *
Wi Seongcheon lay obediently in the room as Dawn Shadow had instructed. The White Flame Witch had piled thick rice cakes in the corner—hardly suitable patient food—before leaving. It was surprisingly thoughtful of her.
For two days, Wi Seongcheon sorted his thoughts. The mistakes he'd made in his game with the Green Forest Demon Emperor. His carelessness. His impatience.
He hadn't given up on the Supreme Purity Secret or the Dragon Veins.
He just decided not to rush. He wasn't confident in wielding them properly yet. So, until he was, he'd devote himself solely to training.
“……Ha.”
Not four days, but three.
When he opened his eyes, Wi Seongcheon knew instinctively. The bones had fully mended. He blinked, running a hand over his side. No pain. Even tapping it lightly with force, the ribs didn't budge. Same for the nose and cheekbones.
"Damn."
Wi Seongcheon chuckled wryly as he rose. Dawn Shadow's treatment? Or his innate qi, the Supreme Purity Secret? He stretched long. His body was completely healed. No doubt about it.
Wi Seongcheon closed his eyes, focusing his mind to scan his body. Dawn Shadow had said the golden needles would dissolve over a week.
...They'd been noticeable yesterday, but now, not a trace remained inside him. They'd all melted away while he slept.
[Did I unconsciously circulate the Supreme Purity Secret in my sleep?]
Not even in a horse stance? No, maybe stance didn't matter. The Supreme Purity Secret embodied the mysteries of heaven, earth, and man. Heaven in the upper dantian of the head, earth in the lower of the abdomen, self in the middle of the heart. It connected heaven and earth through oneself, humbling the self to draw them near.
That's why it used the horse stance. But if stance wasn't key? Puzzled, Wi Seongcheon left the room. No point brooding alone; he'd ask Dawn Shadow.
“……Huh.”
As he opened the door.
Wi Seongcheon froze.
In the inner courtyard stood Baekrihyang. First time in days. It felt... strangely unfamiliar. Unthinkingly, he stood rooted, gazing at her.
She wore thin clothes, standing with her back to him. Face hidden. Long hair cascading down. Once black as ebony, now it was pitch-black, like night poured forth. Through the strands, her nape gleamed transparently white. Wi Seongcheon stared blankly at it.
An indescribable feeling, one he'd never known. Just a nape. Peeking through black hair. Yet that glimpse of white skin pierced his awareness intensely. His heart pounded strangely, head spinning.
"You're up now?"
Still facing away, Baekrihyang spoke. Her voice felt unfamiliar, eerie. Was it really?
Wi Seongcheon knew her voice. It hadn't changed since last time. His reason knew that. But the voice drilling into his ears felt alien. The timbre, intonation—everything. Unthinkingly, he stepped back.
His heart still thumped wildly.
Then Baekrihyang turned her head. Wi Seongcheon felt his mouth go dry. No saliva, yet he swallowed on an empty mouth. Palms slick with sweat, skin prickling with goosebumps. Another unfamiliar sensation. Or was it?
Faintly.
Something similar. In the sword forest of Yiseon Mountain, facing the Demonic Cult spy. Meeting the spy's Blood Eyes, sensing Heavenly Demon Hyuk Wol-un beyond.
"Why the weird face?"
Baekrihyang tilted her head. Her face... unchanged. Beautiful before, still beautiful. But now, it held what she'd lost long ago.
Demonic allure.
At six years old, she'd driven back Black Death Alliance warriors not just with ageless beauty, but an untouchable demonic allure.
Her innate allure had faded with growth, but now it shone riper than in childhood. Utterly unlike lust. It made the heart race, the head reel, yet inspired no desire to possess. It instilled the certainty of being utterly outmatched. Baekrihyang's current allure was that lethal. A poison not poison.
“……What... are you?”
Wi Seongcheon steadied his breath. Growing accustomed, bit by bit. Baekrihyang blinked at him, then giggled softly.
"Not used to it yet."
She murmured, reining in her demonic allure. Like a qi master withdrawing their aura, it quietly dispersed.
"Guess I can't help it. They say I hold the moon, night, and sea. So innately strong allure that it charms others against my will."
“……More than just charming.”
"It's all in how you use it. Honestly, control's tricky. Supposed to be just a tiny bit... Not that I want to. What's the point in charming people?"
To a lust-crazed pervert like the Jade Qilin, it'd be a power to rave over. But Baekrihyang had never wished for such a thing. Not that she hated it entirely. Poison had its uses.
"Where's Lord Dawn Shadow?"
"Passed out. Why?"
"Got a question."
"Better wait. He clung to me for days, barely slept. Wake him, and he'll try to kill you."
Baekrihyang giggled as she approached Wi Seongcheon. No longer emanating allure, but in her eyes, he saw a depth utterly unlike before. At that profound bottom.
Something unknowable seemed to writhe.
"How's the body? Heard you got hurt."
“……All healed.”
"Good. Then, mind a favor?"
"What favor?"
Baekrihyang smiled brightly.
"You said you're going to meet the Black Heaven Young Lord, right?"
“……Yeah.”
"Take me with you."