Pruning Suspects and the Elixir's Promise
Such advanced techniques were the domain of peak experts—why on earth would a third-rate like him need to bother with that?
"Hm."
Jegal Cheongha rested her chin on the back of her hand as she scanned the document. The investigation into the list of martial artists who had visited Gansu two weeks before the incident was finally complete. Her strangely alluring eyes—the very ones that had earned her the nickname Dream Illusion Flower—now gleamed with an enchanting light.
Gok Wi-gang, the Lion Iron Fist, watched her intently. Personally, he wasn't thrilled about being paired with her of all people. She was an uncomfortable superior. But that was just his personal feelings; when it came to the case at hand, he figured she'd be helpful in all sorts of ways. Her skills were one thing, but the manpower she could mobilize was on another level entirely. Without her pulling strings in Bi-gak, this investigation wouldn't have been possible.
"Quite a lot," Jegal Cheongha said, her lips parting.
"Yes, well, Gansu is a vast province, so it's only natural..."
Gok Wi-gang scratched his head. Gansu might be huge, but so were the numbers of martial artists there. The common saying that the world is wide and martial folk as numerous as grains of sand wasn't just hyperbole.
"Time to prune the list."
"Ah, right. If we eliminate the righteous faction members..."
"Why eliminate the righteous faction members?"
"Pardon?"
Gok Wi-gang's eyes widened in bewilderment. Pruning low-probability leads was Investigation 101. Especially in a case like this one, with no evidence or witnesses—just a complete fog—they had to narrow the field aggressively. That was the only way to even have a shot at finding a lead. But what the hell was this reaction?
"...Nine out of ten cases the Murim Alliance handles are the work of demonic scum or unaffiliated neutrals. So focusing on the high-probability suspects is just common sense..."
"That's by your standards, Gok Daxia."
"..."
"Mine are different. What matters isn't whether they're righteous, demonic, or whatever—it's who they are."
I get what you're saying, but how the hell do you know that?! Frustrated, Gok Wi-gang barely held back a retort. Social survival was a tearjerker.
But then.
Without hesitation, Jegal Cheongha picked up a fine brush and dipped it in ink.
And then.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
Like flowing water, she began striking through names on the list without a single pause.
"Wh-what are you doing?"
Gok Wi-gang blurted out in panic.
"Pruning, of course."
"Pardon?!"
His face went slack with disbelief.
...This has to be a joke, right? Even for Bi-gak's Dream Illusion Flower, pruning this fast and seriously was impossible.
But.
Jegal Cheongha's eyes were utterly serious and composed. Only then did Gok Wi-gang realize this was no prank.
"W-wait a second! Isn't this too hasty? We should be more cautious..."
"It's fine."
"Huh?"
"It's all in my head."
...What the hell does that mean? All in her head?
Suddenly, realization dawned, and Gok Wi-gang's eyes bulged.
There was a saying in the murim world: nowhere escapes the eyes of Bi-gak. It sounded arrogant, but Gok Wi-gang knew it was close to the truth. In this golden age of the Murim Alliance's peak power, Bi-gak's intelligence network exceeded imagination. Even Haomen or the Beggars' Sect couldn't match it.
What if she had all that vast intel memorized perfectly?
...It's entirely possible.
Gok Wi-gang groaned inwardly. He didn't want to believe it, but if anyone could...
No, she's right here in front of me...
Sweat beaded on his forehead.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
Her pruning continued unabated.
Until, for the first time.
Her brush hesitated.
Surprise flickered in Gok Wi-gang's eyes.
"Something wrong...?"
"One I can't judge."
"Pardon...?"
Even Bi-gak's intel couldn't pin this one? Who the hell... some hidden recluse?
"Golden Dragon Battlefield Lord Bang So-un."
Jegal Cheongha murmured, narrowing her eyes.
"Ah, Hangzhou's playboy."
Gok Wi-gang reacted instantly to the unexpectedly famous name. The lightning-fast son-in-law who struck it rich. He was the guy who made Gok Wi-gang's gut twist with envy these days.
Not just because he'd landed in a pile of money. No.
It was because his wife was the Jiangnan Supreme Beauty Hwang Bo-seol, and the courtesan he kept was Hangzhou's top courtesan, the Red-Eyed Fox Eun Hwa-yeong. How could any man's stomach not ache seeing him with two peerless beauties?
The bastard was every man's enemy.
"You know him?"
Jegal Cheongha asked.
"Ah, well, that dog bas—ahem, just a lucky playboy, right?"
"Lucky playboy?"
"Well... not knocking him entirely. He's handsome enough and smooth with women, so he must've charmed Hwang Bo-seol and the Red-Eyed Fox. Anyway, us murim womenfolk need to keep our heads on straight. Fall for a pretty face and sweet talk, and you'll regret it later. That's life’s truth..."
"Jealous?"
"Kuh—cough, cough, cough!"
Like he'd choked, Gok Wi-gang's face turned beet red as he hacked away.
Jegal Cheongha stared at him blankly.
Once he'd calmed, he waved his hands frantically.
"Wh-what are you saying? I'm not that petty!"
Those who snap the loudest often have the guiltiest consciences. But Jegal Cheongha didn't press, changing the subject.
"So you don't know much about him?"
"Yeah, just the usual rumors..."
"Got it. The unclear ones always need investigating."
Her brush skipped over Bang So-un.
And Jang Il, the escort warrior below him.
Swish.
Swish.
Swish.
The pruning resumed without a hitch until the end.
Clack.
She laid her brush on the inkstone.
"Looks like you're done sorting... What's next?"
Gok Wi-gang asked.
"Investigate, of course."
Prune the shortlist further through legwork. Obvious.
But.
"M-me too?"
"Naturally."
"Aww..."
Seemed like hardship lay ahead for a while. Not that rest was an option until the case closed.
"Don't worry. We won't lack manpower."
Jegal Cheongha moved right on.
"Let's start with assignments."
Flutter flutter.
A messenger pigeon arrived.
Bang So-un swiftly read the letter attached to its leg.
And then.
"Heh, good news from my senior disciple."
He murmured with a pleased smile.
"Oh, really, Young Master?"
Jang Il's face lit up beside him. When Bang So-un called it good news, it was good news.
"Yeah, they've completed a truly precious treasure on the first try."
"A truly precious treasure? What's that?"
"Jade White Pill. Remember?"
"Jade White Pill?"
"The spirit elixir, spirit elixir."
"Ohhh, that!"
Jade White Pill.
The secret spirit elixir of the Absolute Divine Physician, the greatest doctor in murim history. Go-eui had declared even top elixirs like Shaolin's Great Return Pill, Huashan's Child-Mother Pill, or Wudang's Supreme Purity Pill couldn't compare.
-It's like comparing the sun to the moon, Master. In short, if the Jade White Pill is the sun, those are mere moons.
Its effects were beyond imagination.
One issue, though.
It required the ultra-rare millennium ice crystal from the Ice Palace's sacred relic, so they could only make two pills. No more materials left.
This message brought those two pills.
"One's yours, no question."
Bang So-un said without hesitation.
"Th-thank you, but is it really okay for me to take something that precious...?"
"Haha, what're you saying? You're my greatest asset."
Bang So-un laughed heartily.
His internal energy was proven to boost Jang Il's abilities through countless tests. An explosive surge—what would that do? He could hardly wait.
Besides.
"Poison's a real hassle. A huge one."
No matter how potent Go-eui's San-gong Poison was, it still required poisoning the target. Fine against the fully subdued, but slipping it to a vigilant powerhouse? Not easy.
And poison had variables. If bystanders were around when it spread, it could fizzle. Or the target might sense it, go berserk in a last-ditch attack, or flee.
"True enough, Young Master."
Jang Il agreed. Poisoning every first-rate expert one by one like now was tedious and risky in a pinch.
"So your explosive internal energy growth is essential for me."
Bang So-un chuckled.
"Haha, got it. If you're giving me such a treasure, I'll absorb it fully and gain massive power."
Jang Il thumped his chest confidently.
"Good attitude. Now, let's fetch that Jade White Pill. And then."
"And then?"
"Closed-door training."
"Cl-closed-door training?!"
Jang Il shot him a look screaming, Why's a third-rate scrub doing peak-expert stuff?
But Bang So-un was firm.
"You don't just pop a pill. Botch the absorption, and you've wasted a priceless treasure."
"I-I've heard that, but..."
"No worries. I know you can't do it alone. I'll assign Yeon Su-rin, my top peak expert, without stint. No coming out till results show."
"Eek, that's too stuffy. Gotta peek out now and then..."
"Dream on. Great deeds demand ruthlessness. Steel yourself."
"Ughhh...!"
"Quit the weird noises and let's get that pill."
The very next day after fetching the Jade White Pill from Go-eui.
Jang Il entered closed-door training with Yeon Su-rin, locked in tight. No escape.