Dead Lion Revived, Dead Root Revived (5)
By threatening him with needles aimed at his manhood, I extracted some information from Son Geun. There was no need to go into the details of the process, and the content wasn't particularly valuable anyway. Of course, it was information worth paying some attention to.
If those who knew the true nature of Magyo heard it, they'd go beyond being stunned—they'd start pitying Magyo for real.
"Does Yangma truly believe that Cheonma will fully revive?"
Yangma. One of Magyo's protectors, the "Ten Demons," an old man at the Hwagyeong level. Back when Magyo claimed to be the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult or the Sun and Moon Divine Cult and enjoyed its golden age, this old-timer had witnessed that glory for ages. He was around eighty years old, active in the same era as Geomhu, the leader of Haedong Geomgak.
I didn't know the details of his background—having been an orphan kidnapped into Magyo myself—but he was one of those who sincerely believed in Cheonma's bastardly plan to kidnap orphans, implant Godok, and ruin the future of the Central Plains martial world.
Soyangma Son Geun had grown up learning under such a man, devoting himself fully to his role as the "sleeper agent" Cheonma envisioned. A follower of Cheonma, striving for Magyo's domination of the world.
And to me, he might have been an assassin lurking right under my nose.
The single order given to Soyangma Son Geun:
—If Maui Baekmyeon's disciple, Seok Mu Wol, fails, you kill Moyong Seol and drive the Sword Saint into demonic madness.
A backup sleeper agent aimed at Moyong Sega, prepared for my potential failure.
"Physician. Should we just kill him?"
"Calm down, Lady Moyong."
"You want to kill him too, don't you, Physician?"
"We'll kill him, but let's think a bit more carefully about how to do it first."
"Mmph! Mmmph!!"
Son Geun couldn't say a word. I'd released his mute acupoint when he was talking, but now, even if he tried to use his inner energy to free it, he couldn't speak.
I fetched a rope, gagged him, and stuffed a ball of silk fabric into his mouth like a gag. With a large sphere crammed inside and the gag over it, all he could manage were muffled groans of "mmph mmph."
"No point in running more experiments here anyway. I doubt we'd get any meaningful results."
Son Geun had outlived his usefulness. Even if I prescribed the Geukyang Jihwan now and worked a miracle, his hair wouldn't grow back, nor would his manhood suddenly enlarge. What Son Geun craved now was the power to escape the death bearing down on him—whether through inner energy, martial arts, or some stroke of fortune. He wanted the strength to eject all the long needles sealing his acupoints, regain his freedom, kill me, and do who-knows-what to Moyong Seol.
He didn't care about lost hair. Nor did he wish for the miraculous restoration I'd given his manhood to revert to that state.
Since he sought power for revenge over those losses, there was no choice but to kill him.
"You must have some last words. Though they're all the same from Magyo's minions."
I picked up a needle thicker than the others.
"You think you'll get away with this? If I die, another sleeper agent will come after you next. Since you've betrayed Magyo, someday Cheonma will appear and activate the Godok in your body to kill you."
"Mmph! Mmmph...!"
"Right. Now it's time for you to fulfill your last remaining 'purpose.'"
I infused qi into a silver long needle the thickness of a chopstick.
"I'm no martial artist, so I never learned martial arts properly. But to treat martial artists, I did pick up the bare minimum of inner energy cultivation."
White qi gathered on the silver needle, making it gleam. It wasn't the intense energy visible from Hwagyeong masters or higher, but it shone brighter and clearer than the glow on a weapon when a first-rate expert infused it with qi.
I had limits in direct combat, but this was more than enough to pierce the tempered skin of a captured martial artist with a long needle.
Thrust.
"Farewell, Son Geun."
I shook my head at him as his eyes cursed me.
"And before you die, one more thing."
Thrust harder.
"Yugoein and Yugiyeon are already dead. Burned to death by Magyeom, and you didn't even know—crossing Moyong Sega's main gate in ignorance."
"!!"
Before plunging the silver needle into his heart, Son Geun stared at me in utter shock.
Stab.
His eyes rolled back, his body convulsed, then went limp.
The silk ball in his mouth slowly stained red. I stepped back, observing his state with the needle still embedded.
"Doesn't seem like he'll burn up in Magyeom for breaking a taboo, like Yugoein or Yugiyeon."
"Yeah... Does that mean he was that loyal to Magyo?"
"Probably."
I couldn't fully understand it, but considering my own background as an orphan captured by Magyo—like Dang Yuri—I could grasp it to some extent.
"If he'd just lived a normal life, he wouldn't even be a third-rate martial artist. He'd be a beggar getting beaten by guys like that. But thanks to Magyo feeding, clothing, and teaching him martial arts, he got to wear fancy silk uniforms and long robes."
Magyo kidnapped countless orphans for Godok and killed many children in the process. Yet among them were those who truly thanked their kidnappers. Son Geun was one such soul.
"Poor bastard."
As pitiful as that was.
"You know what? The first medicine my master, the Demon Physician, prescribed when she took me in was an 'anti-androgen agent.'"
"Anti... what?"
"Exactly."
I stabbed a new needle toward Son Geun's pubic bone.
"Thinking back now, maybe even Cheonma saw his father as a father. Or perhaps he just hated the idea of his daughter getting involved with another man."
Stab.
"Magyo's orphans get Godok implanted along with various taboos. One of them prevented the males from getting swept up in lust and botching missions."
The tension below Son Geun's body relaxed, something slowly receding.
"At the age when they should grow healthiest, their bones and muscles developed—but any potential for growth unnecessary to their roles as sleeper agents, warriors, or assassins was all diverted to boosting inner energy."
"No way..."
"I'm grateful she taught me medicine, but what I still thank my master for every day is..."
I stood, pointing downward.
"...that I never took the drug that stunts growth, leaving just the roots."
"......."
"To be more precise, male sleeper agents like Son Geun were meant for other uses too. Among the martial world's masters, some fancy men."
"...From the righteous sects?"
"Both sides."
Whether white or black paths, there were those who lusted after pretty young men.
"Some sleeper agents harbored resentment toward Cheonma and betrayed Magyo. But those still loyal to him? They rejoiced at Cheonma's 'permission' for such things."
"...Ugh."
Moyong Seol shuddered, grinding her teeth.
"Is Cheonma... a pervert or something?"
"Who knows. Less that, and more..."
If I gauged it by Cheonma's level—or rather, his mindset—
"As long as it lets him dominate the Central Plains martial world, he doesn't care."
* * *
The information from Son Geun could be meaningful if we made use of it, but the problem was verification—especially for securing support from the Emperor or the palace.
In particular, while experimenting with the hair issue the Emperor had, we had to hide the secrets of Geukyang Jihwan's potential—
"Then just grab anyone from the family, shave their head in secret while they sleep. Problem solved."
Dang Yuri said.
"Even in Moyong Sega, there must be someone secretly colluding with other houses or ready to betray the family anytime."
If there's no test subject, just make one "accidentally." Right?
"...Why do you talk like you know everything?"
"Think I'm Cheonma? Can't even notice that?"
Fair point. Unless you're at Cheonma's level, it's only natural to suspect my Geukyang Jihwan could be used not just for Jeolmok Jeong or rejuvenation, but in other ways too.
"I'm in the same boat as you guys. You can trust me. If I go back to Magyo, Dokma will call me a traitor bitch and lop off my head. Hit up other sleeper agents? I'll just get beaten for picking a fight. So if Moyong Sega treats me as one of the former Black Sword Gate nurses—or now, a maid managing ingredients shipped to Seongnakwon—I'd be thrilled."
Dang Yuri was more proactive about cooperating with Moyong Sega than expected.
"Feed me, house me, clothe me. Even let me train martial arts in my spare time. How great is that? And most importantly..."
"Most importantly?"
"If Cheonma decides to punish this traitor bitch and starts groping me? What then? I'm safe inside Moyong Sega. I don't want to be forced into bed with a lunatic like Cheonma and bear his kids."
"......."
I always worried about Cheonma killing me anytime, but yeah—he'd definitely toy with any sleeper agent before killing them.
"Ha. Fine. So what's the plan?"
"Nothing fancy. Tell the deputy head, then shave some guy's—or girl's—head clean while they sleep."
"What a simple, idiotic plan."
Hm.
"Do it now."
No bald patient for the experiment? Then make one. It doesn't have to be Son Geun.