Chapter 47
"It's already been two months. There's no way she's still alive. Aigoo. It's time to give up."
"Young Master Baek Ri knows that too. He just can't accept it."
Two burly men were climbing the mountain. The slope they ascended was littered with landslide debris—boulders the size of men, tumbled trees—clear signs of a massive recent rockslide.
"Say, have you heard why the young clan head and Young Master Baek Ri came all the way to this backwater?"
"No clue. With Deputy Shim keeping his mouth shut, who's gonna know?"
"Aigoo. It's been about ten days since Young Master Baek Ri headed back to the Baek Ri Clan, right? So we'll probably be stuck here another two months."
"Yeah. They won't pull back until Baek Ri Clan reinforcements arrive."
"Even if support comes from Baek Ri Clan, what difference will it make? Feels like everyone's suffering for nothing out here."
"They're just hoping to recover the body, that's all. Who could've predicted something this horrific?"
"True, they at least need to retrieve the remains. Leaving a child buried alone like this... she wouldn't even find peace in the afterlife...... Hm?"
One of the men suddenly halted with a groan.
"What is it?"
"Look over there."
Where he pointed, a child's figure flickered briefly in the crevice between rocks—then vanished.
"What the—did that kid come back in here? No, that brat keeps getting in the way of the search..."
"No, wait—look closer! Isn't there someone on that kid's back?"
"!"
The place I'd been trapped was an ancient royal tomb of a fallen kingdom, repurposed by Manshin-ui as his pill refinement chamber. Since he frequented it, there was plenty of fresh water and food. Even the various medicines were there for the taking, like candy.
The problem was, I had no idea how to get out.
I only realized nearly two months had passed once I finally emerged. In my memory, the forest was lush and green, but now it was a riot of autumn colors, leaves drifting down one by one. The chamber's steady temperature had hidden even the shift of seasons.
It felt like... a place designed to cut off the world entirely.
The physician seated across from me asked, "How does it feel?"
I cautiously opened my eyes. White gauze covered them.
"Much better."
"Good. Keep that on for now, then."
The thin cloth dulled the light while still letting me make out shapes.
Deputy Shim beside the old physician asked, "What in the world is wrong with the young miss's eyes?"
"No idea. Probably from being in the dark too long, but I'm not certain."
"Not certain?"
"If it's just lack of light, it should improve over time. But it's not getting better at all. If it's permanent damage, it might never heal..."
"Permanent? You mean she might be blind for life?"
"It could go either way."
"Doctor!"
Deputy Shim and the old physician bickered for a while. After the physician left, in an agitated voice, Deputy Shim said,
"Young miss, let's go to the Namgung Clan."
"The Namgung Clan?"
"Yes. They have far better physicians than that quack. I've already sent letters to Young Master Baek Ri and the young clan head."
He explained the two had searched here for about twenty days before leaving—Father to request reinforcements from Baek Ri Clan, Namgung Wan for clan business.
"Both clans are quite a distance, so it'll take time for word to reach them."
"I think it's better to head out first rather than wait for replies. Especially with your eyes like this."
Then, consolingly: "You'll be fine. The Namgung Clan's physicians are renowned. Your eyes will surely heal."
I gave a vague smile.
Even at the Namgung Clan, they wouldn't find the cause. This wasn't an illness.
My eyes had changed after passing out before Manshin-ui. When I came to, I had two fields of vision. The normal one. And one made of light.
In the dim royal tomb, the light vision hadn't been intrusive. But outside, countless lights flooded in—swirling chaotically, scattering my sight, tears streaming, headaches pounding so bad I could barely walk.
Covering one vision eased the dizziness. Probably my brain couldn't handle both at once.
This ability—no, these eyes? Must be Manshin-ui's gift.
Nothing else explained it. And without them, I'd have been trapped and died in that tomb.
To be precise, the light vision showed the flow of qi.
Just before, the old physician's qi flow had been a uniform human shape. But Deputy Shim and the Namgung warriors differed—they had a glowing cluster at their dantian core. That had to be their cultivated inner energy.
Deputy Shim's was the largest and strongest among the Namgung warriors.
I wonder how big Father's is?
It wasn't just seeing. The real boon was manipulating the qi at will. According to Manshin-ui's books, the amount depended on focus and proficiency.
Yes. This eye power was why Manshin-ui was called divine. Seeing and controlling qi was like peering into a body's every secret!
He'd used it for healing, but wielded right...
I might cultivate without a dantian...!
Manshin-ui had researched martial arts applications too—but oddly, the notes cut off midway.
Deputy Shim asked cautiously, "You said you came out of Manshin-ui's refinement chamber, young miss?"
"Yes."
"Do you know how to get back in?"
The door had slammed shut right after I emerged and stayed sealed. There must be a specific way, like the exit.
I hemmed and hawed. "No... I only figured out how to get out."
It had taken two months just to escape; re-entering hadn't crossed my mind.
Deputy Shim looked deeply disappointed. "I see. Understood. We'll research it ourselves then."
I'd wanted those documents and medicines too—but escaping came first.
"I'll help. Recalling how I got out might relate to entering."
That was my plan from the start. But Deputy Shim practically jumped out of his seat.
"No! Absolutely not! You don't need to! Please, young miss, just go to Namgung Clan first. If the young clan head finds out we let your frail self help, he'll kill m—er, anyway, it's fine!"
Footsteps approached then. Yahul appeared, thumping on a bamboo cane, carrying a medicine bowl.
Oh right—I'd completely forgotten.
I turned to Deputy Shim. "Why is Yahul here? Shouldn't he be with Father?"
Deputy Shim wore a smile that looked like a grimace. "Do you think Young Master Baek Ri had the mind to watch him? He left the boy with me."
"Ah..."
"I'll take my leave then. Rest well."
Once Deputy Shim was gone, Yahul and I were alone. He handed me the medicine bowl.
After emerging from the tomb—from Manshin-ui's chamber—I'd run into So Nok and Yahul right away. Blinded by the unexpected vision, disoriented, I couldn't even walk properly. Yahul had carried me piggyback to the others.
I blew on the steaming bowl and observed Yahul.
Similar to the others.
Zooming in on his dantian, aside from the murky color, no major differences. But his meridians seem more active than most...
His voice came then.
"Why'd you do it?"
"Huh?"
"Why save me?"
"What? Well..."
I'd planned a casual dodge, but his next words stopped me cold.
"You hate me."