Chapter 249: Commandery Princess Gyeonghwa-2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 249: Commandery Princess Gyeonghwa-2
A woman sat still in a lotus position, her eyes closed in meditation.
She possessed a most peculiar appearance.
Judging by her facial features alone, she was unmistakably a woman of the Central Plains, yet she possessed hair and eyebrows of a brilliant, fiery red.
This exotic look held a strange, captivating charm that drew the eye.
After a moment, the woman slowly opened her eyes.
"Dammit!"
As soon as she opened them, she scowled fiercely and spat out a curse.
Whoosh!
Simultaneously, flames flickered around her body before erupting outward.
"Aaaaaagh!"
The woman began to scream as if in agonizing pain.
Whoosh!
Before long, the clothes she was wearing were incinerated, the charred remnants falling away.
Bang!
"Commandery Princess Gyeonghwa!"
The door burst open, and a middle-aged woman rushed in frantically.
"The Moon Sound Herb! Bring the Moon Sound Herb!"
Princess Gyeonghwa shouted desperately at the woman.
"Y-yes, right away!"
The woman quickly turned and bolted back out.
"Aaaaaagh!"
The flames erupting from Gyeonghwa's body grew even more intense.
"Hurry! Faster!"
Gyeonghwa screamed toward the open door.
Thud, thud, thud.
Soon, the sound of hurried footsteps approached, and the middle-aged woman reappeared.
In her hand was a small porcelain vial, which she immediately handed to Princess Gyeonghwa.
Pop.
Gyeonghwa snatched the vial and tore off the stopper.
Gulp, gulp.
She tilted her head back and downed the contents in one go.
Gradually, the flames flickering across her body began to subside until every spark had vanished.
"Whew..."
Once the fire died down, Princess Gyeonghwa let out a sigh of relief.
She had managed to suppress the flames for now.
Slowly, she lowered her gaze to inspect her own body.
Her jade-white skin and prominently curved chest came into view.
"To hell with this."
Seeing herself completely naked, Gyeonghwa cursed again.
She had quite liked those clothes, but they had been reduced to ash in an instant.
She felt a surge of rising fury.
"Bring me some clothes."
Gyeonghwa spoke while looking at the middle-aged woman.
Upon receiving the order, the woman bowed deeply and hurried out again, presumably to fetch a new outfit.
Princess Gyeonghwa was left alone in the room.
Irritation welled up within her.
She had no idea how much longer she would have to endure this wretched existence.
"Aaaaaagh!"
She let out a frustrated shriek and began smashing the furniture to vent her rage.
Since her movements were infused with a significant amount of internal energy, the room was reduced to a shambles in an instant.
She was livid.
She had finally managed to get some decent sleep, only for a sudden surge of Yang Energy to ruin everything.
She had tried to control it by sitting in a lotus position, but it was futile.
The flames had erupted from her body and incinerated everything.
"Aaaaagh!"
Her rampage continued until the woman returned with her clothes.
*
"What on earth is General Lee Yeon doing? He was supposed to find the Ice Essence!"
Princess Gyeonghwa’s voice was sharp and overbearing.
She was in a foul mood. There had been no word from Lee Yeon, who had promised to retrieve the Ice Essence for her.
"That... the North Sea is so vast... it is not easy to find..."
The chief standing before her stammered as he replied.
"I don't want to hear excuses! Do you have any idea how much I suffered yesterday?!"
Gyeonghwa cut him off, her temper flaring even more.
She was living every day in a state of extreme anxiety.
One day, she had achieved a great enlightenment that brought her to the threshold of the Profound Realm.
She had been overjoyed.
At the young age of twenty-eight, she was on the verge of reaching a legendary state often referred to as the Half-Immortal stage.
There was no reason not to be happy.
But then, the unexpected happened.
The heat from her Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art became uncontrollable.
Flames would erupt from her body at random intervals, incinerating everything—including the clothes she was wearing.
No matter how hard she tried to control the Flame Emperor's Demonic Qi, it was useless.
In fact, the more she tried to suppress it, the more it resisted, creating even fiercer flames.
She had tried every method to find a solution, but nothing worked.
She tried soaking in a bathhouse, but the water would simply evaporate from the Demonic Qi radiating from her body. She tried consuming herbs and elixirs with strong Yin energy to suppress the Yang, but these provided only temporary relief; the fires would always return.
Eventually, due to the uncontrollable side effects of the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art, she was confined to a detached palace.
This was because she had nearly burned down the Emperor's main palace several times.
And so, the woman once hailed alongside Lee Yeon as a shield of the Imperial Family was shut away in a detached palace.
Of course, even after her confinement, Princess Gyeonghwa did not stop trying to cure her condition.
She was only one step away from the Half-Immortal stage.
She couldn't let these side effects stop her now.
She consulted physicians and pored over countless books to research the side effects, eventually deducing a way to suppress the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art.
The solution was to consume Ice Essence from the North Sea.
Normally, for someone practicing an extreme Yang cultivation method, Ice Essence would be more lethal than the deadliest poison, but Gyeonghwa didn't care.
While searching through historical records, she had discovered a mention of the original Flame Emperor traveling to the North Sea.
Specifically, it was right after he had accidentally burned down half the country.
Seeing that record, she could guess the truth.
The Flame Emperor, like her, must have suffered from constant eruptions of fire. Unable to control those flames, he had turned half the land into a sea of fire.
He must have left for the North Sea to find a way to control that heat.
She was certain of it.
The key to everything lay in the North Sea.
She pondered.
How did he control the flames?
And why did he specifically go to the North Sea?
She formed several hypotheses.
Either he consumed something unique to the North Sea to calm the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art, or he received help from the North Sea Ice Palace, which was already powerful at the time—or perhaps both.
Having established these theories, it didn't take long for her to think of the one special item that could only be found in the North Sea.
The Ice Essence.
A treasure among treasures, found only in the North Sea and managed exclusively by the North Sea Ice Palace.
Once she thought of the Ice Essence, she became convinced.
She was certain that the Ice Essence was what the Flame Emperor had used to stabilize his martial arts in the past.
She immediately sent a letter to the Emperor.
She told him she had found a way to treat the side effects of the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art.
The Emperor, delighted by the news, sent a letter to Lee Yeon, who was stationed at the northern front.
He ordered him to retrieve the Ice Essence immediately.
From the Emperor's perspective, he would feel much safer if Princess Gyeonghwa returned to her peak and resumed her role as a guardian of the Imperial Family.
Even after suppressing Prince Jin's rebellion, the Emperor had been plagued by anxiety despite strengthening the palace guard and deploying numerous soldiers.
To him, Princess Gyeonghwa was more reliable than a thousand soldiers.
After all, she was the one who had single-handedly suppressed Prince Jin's rebel army.
Upon receiving the Emperor's command, Lee Yeon sent a reply stating he would carry out the mission.
Six months had passed since that reply arrived.
For six months, Princess Gyeonghwa had waited patiently for the Ice Essence.
But no matter how long she waited, not even a shard of ice arrived, let alone the Ice Essence.
It was impossible not to be angry.
Princess Gyeonghwa furrowed her elegant brows as deeply as she could.
Six months could be considered short, but it could also be considered very long.
And in all that time, she hadn't received a single letter from Lee Yeon.
She had reached her limit.
Whether it was a side effect of the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art or just her natural temperament, Princess Gyeonghwa was incredibly short-tempered.
Patience was no longer an option for her.
"...I have no excuse."
Hearing Gyeonghwa's furious shouting, the chief bowed his head low.
In truth, he felt it was unfair.
Wasn't he just someone staying in the detached palace with her to handle chores?
Why was she taking out her anger at General Lee Yeon on him?
"Is 'no excuse' all you have to say?! How can you handle matters so incompetently!"
Despite his cowering attitude, Gyeonghwa did not stop her tirade.
She was well aware that it wasn't the chief's fault.
However, she felt like she would go insane if she didn't vent like this.
She continued to raise her voice until her anger finally began to ebb.
.
.
.
.
.
After some time had passed, Princess Gyeonghwa felt her heart calm down somewhat.
Her anger hadn't vanished completely, but at least she was no longer at the point of screaming in a blind rage.
Having composed herself, she looked slowly at the chief.
The chief was standing there awkwardly, looking thoroughly shriveled.
Sigh.
Gyeonghwa let out a deep internal sigh.
She realized she had taken her temper out on the chief once again.
She fell into deep thought.
She felt as though the Extreme Yang Flame Emperor Demonic Art was beginning to encroach upon her very personality.
When she first learned the technique, she thought she could control it, but that seemed to have been nothing but arrogance.
She couldn't control anything properly.
Not the Flame Emperor's Demonic Qi, and not her own explosive, violent temperament.
She shook her head.
"I am sorry."
She spoke while looking at the chief.
"N-no, not at all!"
The chief responded hurriedly, looking overwhelmed by her apology.
An apology from a member of the Imperial Family was unheard of.
"No, it seems my volatile temper flared up again."
"How could that be your fault, Princess?"
Chief Ma knew that Princess Gyeonghwa was being influenced by the demonic art.
Therefore, he knew better than anyone that her outbursts were not her true self.
Princess Gyeonghwa watched Chief Ma closely.
Then, she slowly opened her elegant lips and called his name.
"Chief Ma."
"Please, give your command."
Chief Ma replied instantly.
"I must leave for the North Sea."
She looked at him with a calm gaze as she spoke.
"The... the North Sea!?"
Chief Ma asked back, his face a mask of disbelief.
The North Sea, all of a sudden? What was she talking about?
"Leaving my affairs to others was a mistake from the start. I will go and retrieve the Ice Essence myself."
Princess Gyeonghwa continued in a firm, determined tone.
Her eyes were filled with resolute will.
"That... that is impossible!"
Chief Ma stammered as he spoke.
"And why is that?"
She asked, as if she truly didn't understand.
"Well... Princess, your flames erupt at irregular intervals, do they not? You cannot travel to the North Sea in such a state."
Chief Ma spoke cautiously.
What he said was true.
She never knew when the flames would burst from her body.
And those flames incinerated everything—from the clothes she wore to the very ground she stepped on.
If she headed for the North Sea in this condition, it wouldn't be long before she was forced to wander around naked.
While she was in the detached palace, it didn't matter how much she burned, but traveling to the North Sea was a different story.
She couldn't carry an infinite supply of clothes, and she wouldn't be able to ride a horse or a carriage.
The flames would destroy them all.
"Do not worry."
Hearing the chief's concern, Princess Gyeonghwa spoke as if it were a trivial matter.
"Do you think I would say such a thing without thinking? There is a way."
She spoke with a confident expression.
"Exactly what method do you intend to use?"
Chief Ma asked, looking bewildered.
"It's simple. I will forcibly seal my internal energy."
"A seal!?"
Chief Ma's eyes widened.
A seal?
That meant she would become someone who couldn't use martial arts at all.
How could she make such a choice?
"Yes. If I place a seal on myself, traveling to the North Sea will not be impossible."
Princess Gyeonghwa's eyes sparkled as she spoke.