Conflict (5)
Huff…… huff……
Yang Cheon's face, lost in unconsciousness, looked more serene than expected. His breathing was steady, his complexion ruddy like a young man's. The muscles on his exposed arm suggested no major bodily issues.
Yet he lay insensate.
"The physician says it's hard to pinpoint the deputy leader's exact condition right now. But he suspects it might be related to his internal energy gradually shifting toward the upper dantian."
"Does he drink heavily as a rule?"
"He does. But I doubt mere alcohol could harm the deputy leader's body."
It was an obvious assessment. Once one reached the peak realm, internal energy could expel alcohol from the body almost instantly. Even those without peak mastery but with deep insight into neigong could manage it. Moreover, inner energy circulated ceaselessly through the body. With several to dozens of times more pure energy coursing through a master's veins than in an ordinary person untrained in martial arts, even the strongest liquor struggled to damage them.
Especially not someone like Tu Wang, a transcendent figure of the age.
"And one more thing."
"Hm?"
"There's a golden handprint on the deputy leader's chest."
Lightning flashed in Yeon Hojeong's pupils.
"A golden handprint?"
"Yes."
"……You think he was ambushed?"
"No."
Baek Seo spoke in an unusually stiff tone, clearly forcing composure.
"I heard that scar dates back to a duel with some master in the past."
"……."
"Only I among the Twelve Branch Gods know of it. I've never seen it myself, of course."
"If that mark hasn't faded, does that mean he's been suffering chronic internal injuries?"
"Only the deputy leader himself could say. The physician mentioned nothing unusual, so it's unlikely the cause."
Yeon Hojeong eyed Baek Seo. The man's face remained impassive.
"Why did you call me here?"
"……."
"I may have the deputy leader's trust, but I'm hardly a close confidant yet. You've served him far longer—the senior Branch Gods."
"The deputy leader trusts you more than anyone."
"……."
"At least in Muk Ryong Bu, no more than three others enjoy his favor to your degree. Considering he doesn't even fully trust the countless disciples you've raised, that's extraordinary faith in his intelligence chief."
Disciples.
Yeon Hojeong recalled the madman they'd clashed with in the Myeol Sa Army's first battle.
"Only the deputy leader holds authority over Muk Ryong Bu's affairs. At least for now."
"……."
"If he were awake, you'd be the first he'd summon. That's why I kept the other leaders away and let you in."
Baek Seo was no ordinary man, indeed. He lacked the vessel to lead an organization himself. But as an aide, his insight was unmatched.
"Don't misunderstand, though. He trusts you. I do not."
Yeon Hojeong nodded.
"As it should be."
Baek Seo nodded back.
"You've seen him. Now speak with the physician. Handle whatever's needed with your intelligence chief authority, and summon more doctors."
"I'll do that. But first……."
Yeon Hojeong's gaze deepened.
"May I take his pulse?"
Baek Seo's eyes turned icy.
"You know medicine?"
"A little."
"A 'little' won't suffice to touch the deputy leader's sacred body."
"Who knows? My modest skills might catch what the physician missed."
"……."
"I understand your unease. But I came to him with grand ambitions of my own. For my sake, he can't die now."
A bold declaration. Yet it earned Baek Seo's trust precisely because it rang so true to Yeon Hojeong—self-interest over empty loyalty.
Baek Seo stared a moment longer, then stepped back.
"Pulse only."
"My thanks."
Yeon Hojeong carefully rolled up Yang Cheon's sleeve. The hand was thick with calluses. Despite shedding layers of skin through extreme cultivation, they persisted—a sign he'd never slacked in training.
Yeon Hojeong gripped the wrist.
……Impressive.
The meridians and vessels have astonishing resilience. Weaker than my past self, but still.
Unconcealed admiration crossed his face.
The Tu Wang, indeed.
One reason the Thirteen Seats of Heavenly Firmament were deemed the martial world's strongest, invincible monsters, was this internal energy. Not just the sheer volume, but its quality transcended ordinary masters. A peak expert's flow was a babbling brook; theirs, a river on the verge of flood.
Overwhelming power in excess. The same amount unleashed with incomparable speed and destructive force.
To disrupt a flow this mighty……
Yeon Hojeong knew. Yang Cheon's energy, once wielding Void Grasping effortlessly, was fraying at the edges.
A subtle yet critical flaw. Odd that Yang Cheon hadn't noticed first, but on second thought, an outsider might spot it sooner. One treads familiar paths blind to roadside pebbles.
Hm.
Probing Yang Cheon's body, Yeon Hojeong couldn't hide his puzzlement.
The flow itself seems fine, at least.
He glanced at the chest, hidden by robes. Baek Seo had mentioned a golden handprint there.
Let's check the subcutaneous nerves in the chest.
Wooong.
Azure Dragon Qi of verdant hue flowed in through the wrist. The mystical eastern energy traced up the forearm, glowing faintly, then surged through elbow and shoulder to seep into the chest skin.
Then—
Crackle!
A bolt of lightning seemed to flash.
Pak!
Yeon Hojeong yanked his hand back. Baek Seo asked in startled alarm.
"What is it?"
"……."
"Intelligence chief."
"……?"
"What happened? Did you find something?"
Yeon Hojeong fell silent, staring at Yang Cheon's chest with endlessly deep, cold eyes.
Baek Seo wanted to throttle him in frustration.
"Hey!"
"……The cause."
"……."
"I couldn't pinpoint it. But I sensed something ominous from the scar on his chest."
"……?!"
"Hard to say for sure. Call the physician."
With that, Yeon Hojeong strode from the chamber, urgency in his steps. Baek Seo reached out, but he was already gone.
It was you after all.
Returning to his quarters, Yeon Hojeong's eyes burned red with rage.
Saneumgyo Leader!
Yin Huang Shin Jang.
One of the Saneumgyo leader's signature techniques, paired with Yin Huang Ji as his favorites.
Yin Huang arts weren't his strongest. Yet he favored them because, unless the victim expelled the energy immediately, heart meridian rupture was inevitable.
Heart meridian rupture meant instant death. No one had ever survived it.
Well, one had: Dang Gwan. Pierced through the chest by Yin Huang Ji, he'd jammed a poison needle into his own sternum to endure. As the Central Plains' poison sovereign, he'd delayed the rupture somehow.
Though Dang Gwan died from it eventually.
That's not the point now.
Something bubbled hot in his chest. But calm returned swiftly. Rage wouldn't catch the Saneumgyo leader anyway.
Yeon Hojeong pondered deeply.
The key is why Yang Cheon didn't die right away.
History might have shifted. But in the original timeline, Yang Cheon had clashed fiercely with the Saneumgyo leader.
Golden handprint. The hallmark of Yin Huang Shin Jang. But it should vanish upon death.
He halted in a dim passage, leaning against the shadowed wall, arms crossed in thought.
Aside from collapsing unconscious, his body was perfectly normal. The Void Grasping flow was off, but no actual damage to dantian, acupoints, or vessels.
His eyes darkened.
Yin Huang Shin Jang. The handprint was slowly corroding him from within.
Unconfirmed? No matter. Yeon Hojeong was certain.
The reason: Yin Huang Shin Jang's principle was dark palm—infiltration energy. It specialized in hidden wounds, not always killing outright. Depending on the user's control, it could slay instantly or fester indefinitely.
And the Saneumgyo leader Yeon Hojeong knew wielded such precise control effortlessly.
That's it. Heuk Yang's presence fits too. The leader never allied with Yang Cheon. He deceived him, made him a pawn, and planned to use him as a foothold for invading the Central Plains.
Hardly surprising. Yeon Hojeong had suspected as much.
But Yang Cheon collapsing this soon? How to interpret it? The leader didn't make mistakes.
Is he already eyeing the Central Plains?
If true, this was no small matter.
…….
Deep in thought, Yeon Hojeong flashed a chilling smile.
"This could get interesting."
Too many events piling up had dizzied even him momentarily. But upon reflection, solutions weren't impossible.
"Uncertain, but Saneumgyo is infiltrating the Central Plains. Moyong Gun's gone berserk, and my team and I need to escape Muk Ryong Bu safely……."
His eyes blazed.
"Yang Cheon, you owe me big."
That night.
"Senior."
"Physicians arranged?"
"Yes. And I have a matter to discuss, so I returned."
"Discuss?"
Yeon Hojeong spoke bluntly.
"The deputy leader is set to meet Moyong family head. Word from him within three days."
Baek Seo's gaze sharpened.
"But he's collapsed."
"Can't cancel. He proposed it first."
"……What do you say, intelligence chief?"
"Exactly."
Yeon Hojeong's eyes gleamed slyly.
"Assign leaders and troops. I'll go as his proxy to meet Moyong family head."
Life's all about that one shot, right?