The Winner, Seomun Cheong of the Goddess Sect!
"Winner, Goddess Sect disciple Seomun Cheong!"
In response, another wave of boos poured down. Cheong let out another soft chuckle behind her veil. Looks like my odds were high again. She didn't have any elitist superiority complex, but it was completely impossible for ordinary commoners with their extremely limited insight to see through her martial prowess. And that was exactly what happened.
She hadn't shown much in the previous match, and the unaffiliated warriors had made revolutionary progress, so her odds were high this time too. Of course, they weren't as extreme as before, so quite a few people who bought her win-loss ticket still made money. Still, the actual content of the match felt lacking in substance.
They had only clashed blades once. Unlike the fiercely sharp and believable strikes of Do Raeman, Cheong had simply danced around elegantly, staying on the defensive the entire time. Then Do Raeman suddenly charged forward as if handing over the victory.
Of course, if coincidences kept piling up, one had to suspect they weren't coincidences at all. Many people wondered if the Ugly Swordswoman actually possessed real skill. But whether in the Central Plains, the Western Regions, this barbaric medieval era, or even modern times that claimed not to be barbaric, no special reason was needed to curse an ugly person.
Someone would start the booing first. Those who lost money would join in, and the rest would think, Oh, I guess that ugly bitch must have pulled some trick.
While the host was shouting for silence, Cheong leaped down lightly into the passage beneath the arena. She glanced around once, then dashed away using the Thousand-Li Flight technique.
"Do Sohyeop! Could we speak for a moment?"
"Oh. Lady Seomun."
Do Raeman, who had been heading back to the opposite waiting room, turned and greeted her with a fist-palm salute. He looked uncomfortable as he glanced around before speaking.
"Even though you showed such generosity, the public's sentiment is poor. I feel truly ashamed."
"It's not something for you to feel ashamed about, Do Sohyeop. There are still many matches left. Those people will soon come to recognize this girl's true ability as well."
"You truly have a kind heart. Hup. I don't mean anything strange by that—"
"Oh dear. Are you going to apologize again? It's fine, really."
Cheong waved her hands dismissively. Then she got to the main reason she had stopped him.
"I'm not very knowledgeable about martial arts, but your Danyang Sword Technique didn't seem to be based on extreme speed. Am I correct?"
"Yes, that is correct. But how could you tell...?"
"Well. That's the thing."
Now that she had said that much, she suddenly found herself at a loss for what to say next. She had grabbed him because he seemed suspicious, but what was she supposed to say now? She couldn't just ask what kind of evil deeds he had been committing to have such terrible karma. Even if she tried to ask indirectly, saying "Have you done anything bad lately?" felt too awkward. If his score had gone over a hundred she could have just beaten him up, but it was annoyingly short by four points.
That was when it happened.
"Ugh...!"
Do Raeman's waist bent like a scythe as he let out a retching sound—urgh, uwegh—that was extremely unpleasant to hear. Fortunately, aside from long strands of drool, there was no actual vomit at the midpoint between liquid and solid. It was just a rather severe bout of dry heaving.
"Do Sohyeop. Are you alright?"
"Ugh, I'm fine, I'm fi—urgh."
But no one would look at him and think he was fine. Cheong gently rubbed his back. Should she call for a physician? But she couldn't just leave him like this either.
"I'm alright now..."
"Are you sick somewhere? You don't have some chronic illness, do you?"
"No. It's just..."
He hesitated, glancing at Cheong, then let out a deep sigh and asked.
"Lady Seomun. What would you say is the difference between a true elixir and something that merely claims to be one?"
What the hell, why are you asking me?
"Hmm. I'm not sure."
"The truth is, I met the Divine Thief."
"Oing?"
Cheong's eyes widened into circles. Of course, with her face veil on, her expression didn't show, but anyone who heard her unique strange sound would end up laughing.
"Haha, you unexpectedly have a cute side, Lady Seomun. Ah! Please don't misunderstand. It's just that I had imagined you as someone more elegant."
"I was actually pretending to be elegant. Looks like it worked. So you met the Divine Thief?"
"Yes. And he gave me this medicinal pill."
He took out a wooden case from his robes, opened it, and revealed two pills of a deep crimson color. Isn't the color a bit much? Just looking at them made her feel extremely reluctant.
"It's called Jamramdan. Do you happen to know of it?"
"I don't. Is it a famous medicine?"
"When consumed, it creates an overflow of true origin energy for a short time."
"True origin energy? If that overflows, your lifespan..."
"Correct. It allows one to temporarily transcend their limits at the cost of their lifespan. However, because it draws upon one's true origin, the burden on the body is severe. Hence... this."
"Ah..."
In terms from her hometown, it was doping with doping side effects. But was it really doping? If someone was using their own lifespan, could that be considered an evil act? Would it accumulate bad karma?
Since this was her first tournament, Cheong didn't know the rules of the Murim world. Was this illegal? Was it evil? For something like that, he was confessing rather readily.
"Are you disappointed?"
"Hmm. I'm not sure. Is it something to be disappointed about? But isn't it irrelevant?"
If this had been her hometown—the modern world—she could have criticized it as doping. But this was the Murim. If one used inner power increased through legitimate elixirs, they could hold their head high beneath the heavens. So was a pill that borrowed from one's lifespan for a brief moment considered a trick or fraud?
Do Raeman stared at her blankly.
"You don't seem like a martial artist from a prestigious sect. Ah, please don't misunderstand—"
"No, it's fine. Before my master took me in, I was a wandering rogue myself. And that was only four years ago."
"I see."
Do Raeman smiled brightly. He took out only one pill, wrapped it in his handkerchief and put it away, then handed the wooden case to Cheong.
"I'll give this to you. However, please don't use it during the tournament. It would normally be criticized as fraud."
With those words, Cheong finally understood the storm-like performance of the unaffiliated warriors. So they had all taken medicine before competing. No wonder her evil karma had increased. But was that really an evil act? Isn't the status window being too stingy?
Separately from that, why give it to her?
"But why are you giving it to me?"
"It's called a life-saving pill. If you take it in a critical moment or before a life-or-death battle, it will surely be of great help."
"Ah. Right."
Since it was a tournament, she hadn't thought of that angle. Certainly, shortening one's lifespan was better than losing one's life.
"Then isn't this quite valuable?"
"I received it without any particular price. The Divine Thief said to try stealing a victory once and bestowed this treasure upon me."
He said he was going to sell tonics, but he was selling these instead? But why?
If she was curious, she could just ask. She wasn't exactly a stranger to the Divine Thief. If one had to put it into words, she could be considered as inheriting the position of Divine Thief. Though the phrasing sounded rather vicious, it was the truth.
In that case, there was no need for her to accept the remaining pill. She could just get one from her master later.
However, Cheong didn't get the chance to refuse.
"Well then. I'll take my leave."
"Ah, yes. Take care."
Do Raeman left after offering a very polite fist-palm salute. His retreating figure looked remarkably refreshed.
Then, in that short time, her evil karma—what? Why did it drop by fifty points again? Because she revealed the doping? Was that worth fifty points? Or was it because she received a pill? That counted for fifty points?
Evil karma piled up easily, but good karma had such strict judgment that accumulating it was truly difficult. Even cutting down an evil person only gave a fraction of a point toward good karma, so to accumulate fifty points one would need to cut down five thousand points' worth of evil.
What on earth was going on?
With her own match now over, Cheong left the arena's artificial canal area and settled into a somewhat secluded teahouse, munching on snacks.
As she was doing so, Cheon Yuhak stealthily plopped down on the chair across from her.
"Ah. Master, you're here."
"Of course. Didn't you stay here because you wanted to see me?"
Cheon Yuhak had some mysterious tracking technique or whatever that let him find his disciple, so if she was alone, it was only natural he would show up. And sure enough, he appeared as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"That's right. Oh, right. Master, about that tonic you said you were selling—"
"Ahem, hem, hem. Who said such a thing?"
"You can pretend all you want, but you're already caught, you know? There's someone who bought it. Here."
Cheong pushed the wooden case forward. Cheon Yuhak opened it, then tilted his head.
"What is this? An elixir?"
"He said it was Jamramdan. That you gave it to him."
"Ah. Jamramdan. Right, I have a few that the Divine Doctor made. I forgot to give you one. I'll bring it later. But what? Who gave it to him?"
Since Cheon Yuhak was still pretending not to know, Cheong recounted Do Raeman's story exactly as she had heard it. Cheon Yuhak's expression grew serious.
"This is strange. I never gave it to anyone. Who dares impersonate me? What? Steal a victory?"
"Isn't that exactly the kind of thing you would say, Master? It sounded pretty plausible to me."
"It does sound interesting, but it wasn't me. Hmm. Why didn't I think of that?"
Cheon Yuhak spoke decisively, then made a thoughtful sound as he organized his thoughts before speaking again.
"You're close with that girl from the Tang family, aren't you? Ask her to look into it. We need to first verify whether the medicine being distributed under the Divine Thief's name is the real thing."
"And after we confirm?"
"If it's the real medicine, then there's no need to do anything. But if it's strange that it's being spread under my name, we'll have to collect it. You brat. Are you asking like it's someone else's business? Is the Divine Thief's honor someone else's problem?"
"Hehe..."
Having run out of things to say, Cheong awkwardly laughed in a cutesy manner and changed the subject.
"Ah, Master. About the Flowing Softness Softening Refinement torture method. Could you do it tomorrow?"
"Torture method, huh. Well, it's not exactly wrong. But aren't there still several rest days left?"
"To prepare for the next match, I think it needs to be as soon as possible. Besides, my body's in perfect condition right now."
"Aigo. Just because you say you're fine doesn't mean it magically works. Looks like I'll have to stay up all night preparing again. Raising one disciple is making me suffer so much. But are you really okay? Your eyes are already trembling."
"With the Awakening Divine Art, it won't hurt any more than usual, right?"
Cheon Yuhak let out a derisive snort.
"The skin's senses awakened, but did the senses in your joints and tendons awaken too? The pain will feel exactly the same."
"Can't you at least lie and say it'll hurt less?"
"If I lied to coax you, I'd only get resentment later. Seeing you ask to do it first, this girl has really steeled her resolve."
It was her own training. She couldn't avoid it just because it would hurt, nor could she delay it while trembling when her body was perfectly fine. There was no such thing as training that didn't involve bodily suffering. Overcoming pain and becoming stronger was the very essence of training.
Even looking at people who exercised back in her hometown, it was the same. The problem was that the pain exceeded all limits—far beyond them—reaching the level of extreme torture. Moreover, it was grueling work that left even Cheon Yuhak exhausted and collapsed, so it wasn't something the disciple could avoid just because her body hurt a little.
Above all, if the disciple avoided it because it hurt, how would the master who had to force her feel? Therefore, it was better to proactively pester him and get it over with quickly. That was Cheong's judgment.
She also had a bit of confidence. Hadn't this body already adapted wonderfully to the pain of skin being torn away over the past five days? She had grown somewhat used to pain by now.