Meeting Paeng Soso
Black hair tied up like manju buns on either side for decoration, with long strands hanging down. Firm muscles. A massive saber strapped to her back. And those impressively long limbs—this striking beauty clasped her fists in a formal salute and spoke in a terribly awkward voice.
"Th-thank you for... your help, benefactor."
The women who'd been kidnapped by the bandits—now seemingly composed—bowed their heads alongside her.
Oh right... Come to think of it, it wasn't just me and Hong Yeonhwa here.
I straightened up while still holding Hong Yeonhwa in my arms, then lightly bowed my head in return.
"Please forgive me for not being able to salute properly—my companions are quite exhausted. Are your injuries alright?"
"N-no! Not at all! We're the ones who were saved—how could we complain to our benefactor over something so trivial? We have some wounds, but they're minor; they'll heal soon enough. Thank you for your concern."
She shook her head so vigorously I worried she'd get dizzy, then spoke in a cautious tone.
"...Um, my name is Paeng Soso. Might I have the honor of knowing your esteemed name, benefactor?"
"It's not quite esteemed, but... I'm Jin Sochan. And this is..."
"Mm?"
I turned my body slightly so the limp Hong Yeonhwa and Paeng Soso could face each other. Hong Yeonhwa, who'd been poking at her swollen red cheek as if checking if it was still attached, jolted in surprise and hastily plastered on a serious expression.
"This lady's name is Hong Yeonhwa. Of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult... ah."
Just like when we'd first met, she started to introduce herself as the Heavenly Demon but caught herself midway.
Her eyes darted around before slyly glancing my way.
"O... oh."
As if realizing something from me, her eyes widened round, and she continued in a triumphant voice.
"The woman who will become this man's wife-ni-ra!"
Not wrong. She'd said I could only call her my wife after we'd held a proper wedding ceremony in her world.
So right now, "the woman who will become his wife" was accurate....
But the way she boasted about it—like my "husband spot" was some prestigious position rivaling the leader of a demonic cult—tickled my chest in a funny way.
I wasn't the only one; Paeng Soso blankly opened her mouth for a moment before chuckling and nodding.
"I see. You two benefactors must be quite close."
"Mm!"
Hong Yeonhwa snorted in satisfaction and pressed even closer to me. The soft sensation of her plush chest against my torso grew more vivid, while my arm felt the full, weighty heft of her rear.
I wanted to stay like this forever, but... I could see the rescued women behind us growing gloomier as they overheard our exchange, so I hurriedly changed the subject.
"Bandits like these must've looted plenty over the years, right? Let's turn the tables and loot them instead."
The innkeeper had collapsed from Hong Yeonhwa's finger strike, they claimed—sensing the threat, he'd tried to flee at full speed but stumbled, leading to qi deviation.
There were no demonic cults in this world, but demonic arts existed. Not arts practiced by demonic cultists, but techniques deemed evil in method or those that corrupted their users—those got labeled demonic arts.
Hong Yeonhwa's dual cultivation refinement technique she'd wanted to improve was one example, as were things like the Star Absorbing Great Method or Reverse Blood Qi Art.
Hong Yeonhwa wasn't doing anything crazy now, nor did it seem like her arts would drive her mad. But it was true that her Heavenly Demon Divine Art exuded demonic qi so thick it was chilling.
No need to invite needless misunderstandings in a situation that didn't call for it.
Better to keep it under wraps for now.
Paeng Soso looked skeptical about my explanation, but since her benefactors—me and Hong Yeonhwa—insisted, she eventually nodded.
Hong Yeonhwa hadn't even leaked a hint of her aura toward Paeng Soso, so she wouldn't have noticed anything off anyway. Still, better to nail it down.
After that, with the help of the kidnapped women, we began searching the bandit lair high and low. The bandits had fled, but these women rummaged fiercely—seemingly determined to squeeze every last bit of damage from the bastards.
We gathered the found loot in the wide clearing at the center of the stronghold.
But there was one problem.
"What the hell? That's all?"
Way too little.
Three pouches mixing copper coins and silver pieces. A finely crafted gem ring and one hefty gold ingot.
And that was it?
Not a small sum, of course. Especially that gold ingot—if it was solid all the way through, it'd fetch a ridiculous price.
But for the full treasury of a bandit lair with a Peak realm master and multiple first-rate experts? Kinda underwhelming.
With that level of skill and numbers, they could've made this much in a day or two working as escorts, no?
One of the women guiding us started trembling, misreading my silence.
"Th-that's... We all pooled our money to go down to other villages for booze and meat.... W-we weren't hiding or skimming anything, I swear, milord!"
"Wasn't worried about that."
I'd been watching the whole time anyway. Hong Yeonhwa, nestled in my arms, had too.
These women might lack strength, but who knows if they had some hidden trick to fool my eyes.
But they couldn't fool hers.
"Meat... This lady craves five-spice cured pork-ni-ra."
...Yeah, couldn't fool her, right?
I patted Hong Yeonhwa's back and delivered the harsh truth.
"The inn we're staying at probably doesn't have anything that fancy."
"What? You don't mean... no meat...?!"
"Of course they have meat. Just not five-spice pork. They might have something cheaper like dongpo pork. And if not, we can go to another inn."
For looting bandits, the haul was meager—but objectively, not bad at all.
Plus, there was the bounty on the bandit's leader. No idea how much, but unless the government undervalued a Peak realm expert's head, it'd be a hefty sum.
This should cover our money woes for the most part.
We could splurge for a few days, easy.
I soothed the women who looked ready to kowtow in apology to prove their innocence.
Soon after, Paeng Soso returned from afar, escorting a few more rescued women, her face bright.
"Searched every nook and cranny, but no more loot. Found this instead, though!"
She handed over a single booklet without hesitation. Its cover bore the elegant title Iron King Heart Protection Art.
"A manual?"
"Yes. Probably the external art the lair master practiced. Found it in the biggest room!"
Fist and leg techniques have clear pros and cons. You can fight at full power anytime, anywhere since you just need your body, and channeling qi into your limbs rather than a weapon makes it easier to wield....
But fighting with limbs means every block hurts, and you get injured often.
So to properly learn fist or leg arts, you first need a body tough enough to withstand ordinary blades.
External arts are the usual choice for that.
The Iron King Heart Protection Art was probably one such art.
The name sounded impressive, but no need for high expectations.
My own Three Powers Sword Art initial stance was just a basic downward slash, yet it had the badass name Mount Tai Crushing Strike.
"You sure it's okay to give this to me? It's not like a solo-only art, so you could borrow it for a few days, Paeng Sojeo..."
I meant it. Hong Yeonhwa had crushed the lair master, vice-master, and all the hostage-grabbing bandits, but Paeng Soso hadn't been idle.
She'd held the lair master in check, and her presence was part of why he'd eventually bolted.
No harm in sharing an external art manual of middling value—it wouldn't wear out from reading.
But Paeng Soso just smiled awkwardly, looking troubled.
"You've probably already noticed, but I'm a direct descendant of the Hebei Paeng family. I already train in my own external art..."
Ah. Right.
The Hebei Paeng family was famed for wielding massive sabers, but also for their innate divine strength and sturdy muscles and bones. Bigger builds, muscles that packed on easy... the epitome of muscle heads!
That Paeng Cheoljin I'd met before was a seven-foot giant towering over me, and the Paeng Soso before me was tall for a woman too.
About my height, maybe?
No martial clan would waste a natural constitution like that. I'd have trained external arts alongside too.
As one of the Five Great Clans, their family arts would be top-tier.
The Iron King Heart Protection Art might be decent for a Peak realm practitioner's art, but it wouldn't match Paengga's heirlooms.
"Didn't consider your internal energy was that advanced."
"Hehe... But you're knocking on Peak realm's door yourself, aren't you, benefactor? That's amazing! Among non-sect or clan prodigies, you're one of a kind!"
"Ahem."
Hong Yeonhwa suddenly butted into our chat, puffing up proudly. Did she feel good getting praised by proxy?
Paeng Soso interpreted it differently, beaming at the abrupt Hong Yeonhwa.
"Of course, the finger art this benefactor showed was incredible too! I never knew pebbles could be that scary!"
"I-is that so? What exactly did it feel like...?"
"Well, it was like..."
"...Ahem ahem!"
Hong Yeonhwa, basking in Paeng Soso's admiration, lifted her chin—nearly staring at the sky. As I watched, I flipped open the Iron King Heart Protection Art manual.
......
Hm...
Even with annotations right there, I couldn't make heads or tails of it.
Why was an external art manual full of this vague nonsense?
Just leave it to Hong Yeonhwa.
I set her down—she'd recovered ages ago; I'd just kept holding her because she looked so cute clinging to me.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Paeng Soso's praise rang out, and Hong Yeonhwa alternated tilting her head left and right, weighing her options.
Soon, with a resolute glint in her eyes, she toddled over—tap tap tap—and hugged my waist.
"...Me or Paeng Sojeo? You weren't saying that, right."
"Then what was it?"
I handed the baffled Hong Yeonhwa—head cocked, no other guesses in sight—the Iron King Heart Protection Art manual.
"'Hold this for a sec.' We've found everything; time to pack up and head down."
"......"
Embarrassed by her misunderstanding, Hong Yeonhwa silently tucked the manual into her cleavage... no, her bosom.