Let's Have Some Fun
Cheong’s eyes narrowed into thin slits. Here was a perfectly healthy man who ate well, drank well, and slept well, and the first thing out of his mouth after being called over was that he wanted to throw himself into the Blood Sect? What was this? A brag? Had he finally gone senile? Or was he simply saying he didn’t want to live anymore?
“Isn’t it a good thing for the Blood Sect as well? I rank among the top ten in the world when it comes to snake venom. My medical skills aren’t particularly outstanding, but a physician who also knows martial arts is still incredibly rare.”
“This is getting more ridiculous by the second. And?”
“Well. Right. So, if I’m going to defect to the Blood Sect, don’t I need to prove myself somehow? They’re not just going to take my word for it if I suddenly declare I’ll become one of them.”
“Yeah… that makes sense, I guess?”
Now that she thought about it, she was a little curious. Surely the Blood Sect had some method of verification? They were an organization so vile that even the Righteous Path, the Unorthodox Path, and even the Demonic Cult recoiled from them. Shouldn’t they have been exposed by spies long ago and wiped out in a joint attack from the entire Murim world?
“Ahem. That’s why I’m saying this. I’ve cut off the Yo Clan’s bloodline and left. While I was at it, I also burned all the family registers, so the Yo Clan’s medical house is finished. Completely bankrupt.”
No wonder his evil karma had dropped so much. But there was something far more concerning—
“Huh? What about him?”
Cheong pointed at Yo Min, who was nervously rolling his eyes in the corner. The moment her pale, slender finger pointed at him, Yo Min flinched violently and couldn’t hide his anxious fidgeting.
“Wasn’t he the third son? I clearly saw him causing a ruckus at the Gyerim Sword Sect. You said you cut off the bloodline?”
“I’ve decided to take him as my disciple. The poor boy was rejected by his parents and abused by his siblings. He’s filled to the brim with resentment. He even has the venomous heart to feed his own brothers deadly poison.”
“Master? Your disciple—”
“Tsk tsk. Well? Doesn’t he just scream Blood Sect material? He’s the perfect talent for them. The man was practically born to join the Blood Sect.”
When Cheong’s veiled face turned toward him, Yo Min flinched again. The fact that he had survived a quarrel with Cheong meant his evil karma wasn’t in the triple digits. Thinking back to how he had been licking the ground, he hadn’t seemed that vicious… And what did “born to join the Blood Sect” even mean?
“So, what do you think?”
“No, why do you want to join the Blood Sect? You’re a perfectly respectable physician.”
“The Unorthodox bastards abandoned me first. They’ve been looking down on me for a while now. I suppose I was too mediocre to warrant their respect.”
Bo Yeol—formerly known as the Poison Master of the Evil Sect—had now completely given up on the Sadoryeon and was openly calling them “Unorthodox bastards.”
“They looked down on you? On someone like you, sir?”
“Ugh, don’t even get me started.”
Bo Yeol himself claimed to be among the top ten in snake venom. Usually, when someone claimed to be in the top ten, it was a rather pathetic thing to say. Most people ranked roughly sixth or seventh would conveniently exclude those above them and place themselves fifth. That was why masters in the vague eighth-to-thirteenth range liked to call themselves one of the top ten. He hadn’t even said top ten in poison, just top ten in snake venom.
Bo Yeol knew he was in an ambiguous position. At over eighty years old, the Harmonious Realm was nowhere in sight, so he had given up on it long ago. Realizing he lacked the talent to master all poisons, he had focused solely on snake venom. Even then, renowned physicians and poison experts like the Divine Doctor, the Ten Thousand Poison Scholar, and the Killing Physician were far superior. His medical achievements were merely at the level of an old country doctor; he wasn’t talented enough to write his own medical texts.
“Come on, why think like that? You’re a famous old devil who crossed the mountains of Sichuan. That alone is impressive enough.”
“Thanks for the kind words. It just means my remaining days are few. If not for you, I wouldn’t have even made it to the top floor of Yonggung-ru in Nanning. So how could I not be grateful?”
“So you’re going to the Blood Sect for revenge?”
“More like the living must live—wait, no. Yes, revenge. I’ll drown the entire world in blood. What do they shout in the Blood Sect? Blood Age? Blood Heaven Establishment?”
“Why are you asking me? Instead of joining the Blood Sect, why not defect to the Righteous Path?”
“The Righteous bastards won’t stop me from settling personal grudges, but if the Unorthodox masters line up one by one with proper justification, what can I do?”
“Hmm. Yeah, I get it. But why did you call me?”
“That’s why I desperately need your help. Introduce me to the Blood Sect, won’t you?”
“Huh? Me?”
Cheong blinked rapidly.
“It’s not a bad deal for you either, is it? After all, I’m a master at the Harmonious Realm.”
“Why do you keep bringing up other people’s positions?”
Come to think of it, this seemed to be the old man’s verbal tic. Every time they met, he would say things like “for you too” or “from your position as well.”
“Why? Isn’t life the same everywhere? The Blood Sect must have its own factions fighting for power too, right? So it’d be good for you to secure some reliable allies. Exactly. In a faction war, nothing is more useful than deadly poison.”
“Wow, you really are a dangerous old man. Talking about using poison to assassinate people in a faction fight. And more importantly, why do you keep asking me about Blood Sect matters?”
“Then who else should I ask about Blood Sect business if not a member of the Blood Sect?”
“Huh?”
Cheong froze for a moment, then pointed a slender finger at her own throat.
“Blood Sect?”
“Of course?”
“I’m not in the Blood Sect?”
“What nonsense is that? Aren’t you the Little Water Witch?”
“Ugh, I’m not the Little Water Witch. Just because someone learned the Sosu Magong doesn’t mean they’re all Little Water Witches.”
“You learn medicine and you’re a physician. You learn swordsmanship and you’re a swordsman. So how can you learn Sosu Magong and claim you’re not the Little Water Witch?”
“It’s not Sosu Magong, it’s the Divine Maiden’s Divine Hands.”
This time, Bo Yeol was the one left speechless.
“Divine Maiden’s Divine Hands?”
“Divine Maiden’s Divine Hands.”
“Not Sosu Magong?”
“They’re a little similar, so it’s understandable to be confused, right?”
Bo Yeol suddenly roared.
“Does that even make sense?!”
“Why wouldn’t it?”
Cheong was completely confident. Bo Yeol was utterly dumbfounded.
“Do you take me for a fool?”
“Come on, trust is important.”
“This isn’t a matter of trust—wait a second.”
Bo Yeol’s eyes narrowed.
“Didn’t you pretend to be the Little Water Witch in front of me and take the poison?”
“Ah.”
A triangular prism of conscience spun round and round inside Cheong’s chest. Of course, after being worn down so much in the gangho, it was nearly spherical, but it still hadn’t developed any scratches.
“Hehe. Sorry.”
“What?!”
“The Ten Great Poisons of the World were just too tempting. One bottle could take down one of the Great Demonic Lords. If three of them disappeared, wouldn’t the world become that much more beautiful? You’d be doing a good deed too, right? Later it’ll all become merit, so from your position, it’s not bad either, is it?”
“Wait, what—did you never intend to keep your promise from the beginning?”
“I’m sorry.”
“What if I reveal your identity?”
“That the Heavenly Flower Sword is actually the Little Water Witch? Who in the world would believe that? Especially if it’s coming from an old devil of the Unorthodox Path? Would you believe it if you were in their shoes?”
“Still, the name of the Sasa-ui isn’t that light. If I say I saw it with my own eyes—”
Bo Yeol’s words suddenly cut off. Because from Cheong’s fingertips, pitch-black energy had spread instantly, covering her entire sleeve. Then, on her completely blackened hand, purple demonic energy crackled violently.
Black Killing Demonic Palm and Purple Lightning Magic
“There. Now that you’ve seen it with your own eyes, are you going to go around saying I also learned the Black Killing Demonic Palm and Purple Lightning Magic?”
“Uh… um?”
Then a thought suddenly occurred to Bo Yeol.
‘Why not just say she also learned the Jeonryun Mageop and that her eyes have spinning wheels in them?’
“You didn’t learn the Jeonryun Mageop by any chan—ah. Right. You did. That guy really is something else……”
“So. Now if I say anything, will people believe me?”
“Hmph. What’s there not to believe?”
“Ugh. If I said that Mun Jeong-yeok was actually a spy from the Righteous Path who learned the Taiji Sword—”
“What?! That bastard Mun Jeong-yeok?! No wonder! I thought it was strange how he guessed everything correctly! So he was planning to eliminate me with such venomous intent! He really was a Righteous Path spy!”
What kind of old devil was this naive? Well… that was probably why he had been tricked three times already……
Cheong let out a deep sigh. Sigh. Sigh. She had only one mouth, yet two sighs came out. When she turned her head, Yo Min, who had also let out a big breath, jumped in fright and hid behind his master.
“Um, Master. I think she was asking if you would believe her if she said that Great Hero Mun—no, Mun Jeong-yeok—was a spy from the Righteous Path……”
“What? Ah, right. I thought it was something else. No wonder. It did sound hard to believe.”
Even so, wasn’t his reaction a bit too surprised? But since she had tricked him not once, not twice, but three times to get poison out of him, Cheong kept her mouth shut for now and watched his reaction carefully.
“I trusted you, yet you……”
“It was between the Righteous and Unorthodox Paths. And honestly, between the one threatening and the one being threatened—huh. Yeah. You threatened to reveal my identity, so what are you complaining about?”
“Look at this insolent wench!”
Bo Yeol shot to his feet and thrust out his fist. From beneath his long sleeve, a white snake’s head emerged with a sharp hiss, making a rather cute threat. Cheong refused to back down either. She kicked over her chair and placed her hand firmly on the hilt of her Paru Sword.
“Hmph. Fine, let’s settle this once and for all today! I was going to go easy on you because I’d grown somewhat fond of you, but what’s this about the Blood Sect? You really want to become one of the Great Demonic Lords of the world, huh?”
The two glared at each other for a long time. The white snake kept hissing, warning her not to touch its master, while Yo Min quietly moved to stand on his master’s right side. If she drew her sword and swung, the first thing the blade would reach was that spot—meaning even if he got cut, he would be the first to be cut.
Cheong let out another deep sigh.
“Anyway, you have nowhere else to go, right? You can’t go to the Righteous Path.”
“Ahem. Well… that’s true.”
“How about I introduce you to a merchant group I know? It’s not small anymore—actually quite large now. It would be a good place to quietly practice medicine and live peacefully.”
Cheong thought of Seolgajik and Choe-ri-ong. Every time she saw them, their evil karma kept decreasing, probably because they were using the money they earned for good deeds. Adding one more physician there wouldn’t hurt.
“Ahem. But didn’t I tell you? I have a mountain of grudges following me. The Unorthodox bastards will definitely try to harm me.”
“There are a lot of experts there. Like, a ridiculous number.”
Not just Choe-ri-ong—apparently even the laborers, porters, and even the aunties working in the kitchen were masters. Were they perhaps refugees from the Demonic Cult? Escapees from the Demon Escape realm? Calling them Talma felt a bit too grand. Cult escapees? Whatever. Of course, all those people were extremely devout believers who had never once practiced the Demonic Cult’s ways. They were simply fanatics who would become escapees the moment Cheong declared she was fleeing.
And if she stayed at the Seol Clan Merchant Group, she could occasionally visit to receive poison, right?
Poison was good. So good. The absolute best. Good when she ate it, good when others ate it. Truly all-purpose.
“Ahem. Will that really be alright?”
“If you’re okay with it, sir, then go ahead. The people there all have their own stories, so they’ll understand.”
“Then I’ll shamelessly impose on you.”
It wasn’t particularly dramatic, but the negotiation was concluded. Cheong picked up the overturned chair, and Bo Yeol sat back down on the one Yo Min had set upright for him.
“Go to Jagwi-hyeon west of Hubei Province and look for the Seol Clan Merchant Group. Just say I sent you.”
“Will words alone be enough? Shouldn’t there be some kind of token?”
In response, Cheong pulled out one of her iron hairpins and handed it over. She could just retrieve it later when she visited the Seol Clan Merchant Group anyway. Then, with sparkling eyes, she said,
“Oh, by the way, about that snake earlier—does it bite? Can I touch it? Actually, it’s fine even if it bites, so can I touch it? It looked really pretty.”
“Oh! Of course. Snakes are actually very gentle creatures. Only ignorant people think they’re fierce. They’re not fierce, they’re just sensitive. In truth, there’s no creature as intelligent as them……”
Bo Yeol’s face lit up with a bright smile. The face of someone explaining something they loved always bloomed like that. This was exactly why Bo Yeol had been selling snake venom.
In the end, if one were to summarize Cheong’s introduction, it was this: She had shoved him straight into the den of the most hardcore fanatics among the Demonic Cult and intended to suck out only the precious poisons. Completely unaware of this, Bo Yeol continued to passionately brag about his snakes. After all, a truly naive person could be tricked endlessly without limit.