Chapter 39
Chapter 39
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Flame Emperor 1
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Baek Moo-jin gazed down at Jin So-hye, who still hadn't woken, his face etched with grave concern.
There were too many oddities to count. Above all, Jin So-hye possessed the most overwhelming power among the experts he'd faced. Someone with that level of inner strength had no reason to lose consciousness so easily.
The first thing that came to mind was...
'Could she be ill? No, that doesn't seem right.'
At her level of cultivation, one's body transcended the limits of ordinary humanity.
Baek Moo-jin shook his head.
'If not that, then...'
At that moment, the sword slipped from Jin So-hye's grasp. Baek Moo-jin ignored it, still watching her intently, but eventually had no choice but to lay his hands on her body again.
As he carefully tried to infuse his qi, an unidentified energy repelled it with tremendous force.
Baek Moo-jin wore a look of even greater shock than during their duel.
'What is this?'
How to describe the sensation?
It was as if a colossal power roamed inside Jin So-hye's body—one she couldn't control herself.
"Miss Jin! Miss Jin!"
With qi unable to enter, Baek Moo-jin had no recourse but to tap her temple lightly with a chilled finger infused with the barest trace of inner power. Jin So-hye let out a ragged breath utterly unfit for the Little Palace Lord's status and briefly opened her eyes.
"The Flame Emperor... must be tamed... with qi..."
"Pardon? Flame Emperor? Do you need to circulate your qi?"
Jin So-hye's pale face was rapidly flushing red.
"How much time? Miss Jin!"
"Take me somewhere... with no one around."
"No one?"
There was no time to parse her words.
'What even is the Flame Emperor, and why a place with no one...?'
Baek Moo-jin racked his brain furiously.
He suspected either a backlash from her martial arts or her body failing to contain a surge of rampaging inner power. Whatever the Flame Emperor was, time was short.
Baek Moo-jin said,
"Hang in there just a bit longer, Miss Jin. Forgive my impertinence."
Circulating qi here was out of the question. Baek Moo-jin scooped her up in both arms once more, knelt to grab her sword as well, then bolted off with lightness skill without another word.
Finding an isolated spot was the top priority.
Baek Moo-jin unleashed his full speed for the first time. He moved so swiftly it seemed the wind god itself was racing by. Soon, a rundown inn appeared, but with drunks clustered out front, he sped past without stopping.
The inebriated patrons, mid-lewd banter, gawked blankly as a white blur shot by, staring after the direction Baek Moo-jin had vanished.
"What was that?"
"Did you see? Something just whizzed past, right?"
"I saw it! A white streak."
Their crude talk shifted in an instant to heated debate over what had passed, devolving into shouts and scuffles.
Clear of the drunks, Baek Moo-jin kept calling out to Jin So-hye.
"We'll be there soon. Try to stay conscious. What is this Flame Emperor? King of flames? Some elixir? No... you need to explain so I can help, Miss Jin!"
With no response from her, Baek Moo-jin saw no need to go farther and ducked into a quiet roadside inn out of sight of the drunks. He hoisted her piggyback-style to hide her face, then roused the dozing errand boy with a quiet word.
"Hey."
"Y-yes?"
The boy wiped drool from his chin and blinked dazedly at Baek Moo-jin, who murmured,
"A quiet room."
The errand boy peeked at the long cascade of a woman's unbound hair dangling between Baek Moo-jin's shoulders and grinned knowingly.
'Heh, just boozed up somewhere... and already like this. Tsk tsk, handsome guy starting early.'
Out loud, though, he was all politeness.
"I'll give you a secluded one. Twenty-five nyang."
"What?"
"Why?"
"Oh, nothing."
Baek Moo-jin wasn't in the mood for haggling. He simply tossed a silver ingot onto the counter and said,
"Please. If anyone comes looking for someone..."
Not even finishing, the boy slapped his hand over the silver and replied swiftly.
"Would we ever? Don't worry, follow me. You've come to the right place. For quiet spots, nothing beats our Love Song Inn."
Baek Moo-jin grunted softly and trailed the boy. The inn's name—Love Song, evoking romantic ballads—felt oddly suggestive, and the dim, secluded atmosphere hung heavy. The layout was peculiar too, but there was no time to nitpick.
2.
A man halted before the Jin Family Merchant Group, where flames still raged unchecked. A massive flame emblem adorned his back, much like Left Attendant Lee Gon's.
He was Lee Gon's younger cousin and Right Attendant of the Holy Flame Palace, Lee Mong-yeom.
He stared wordlessly at the inferno engulfing the Jin compound, as if unable to believe his eyes.
Where had it all started?
A bloodied subordinate dispatched by Left Attendant Lee Gon had reported the disaster, and Lee Mong-yeom had raced nonstop for nearly two shichen.
Yet not a single ragged breath escaped his lips.
Soon after, three elite experts—his direct subordinates equivalent to the Eight Great Protectors—arrived slicing through the wind.
These four had been carrying out the Palace Lord's orders nearby, unconnected to the Little Palace Lord's group. They'd finished their task and were en route to pay respects when the urgent summons pulled them at full speed.
The first to arrive spoke to Lee Mong-yeom, who surveyed the devastation with a stony face.
"What happened here?"
"Scour the area. The flames are dying down—we're too late."
Even now, Lee Mong-yeom's voice remained calm and steady.
The three Protectors fanned out to investigate the perimeter. It wasn't long before one shouted loudly.
"The Left Attendant is down!"
Lee Mong-yeom surged forward and was suddenly kneeling beside him. His knees hit the dirt as he cradled the Left Attendant in his arms.
His voice trembled faintly as he spoke.
"Brother, your little brother is so late. How could you lie here like this?"
Left Attendant Lee Gon, of course, made no reply. From behind, another subordinate examined a severed head caught on his foot and said,
"Looks like Iron Blood Gang's Deputy Leader Yoo Ja-eon. His throat was slit."
Lee Mong-yeom, still inspecting the Left Attendant, turned his head.
"Any sign of the Little Palace Lord?"
"None. Perhaps she was taken by the Iron Blood Gang."
"Impossible. With Yoo Ja-eon dead, another faction may have intervened."
"Hm... Then the Nine Heavens Alliance?"
Lee Mong-yeom shook his head.
"Jang Protector, take my brother... to the An Family stronghold. Bang-ik, report to the Palace Lord—just the facts; she'll decide."
The two acknowledged.
"Understood."
As Jang Protector took Lee Gon's body, Lee Mong-yeom eyed the sporadic blood trail on the ground. Someone had fled while bleeding.
"An Protector, follow this blood. Someone injured escaped. I'll check the opposite path for the Little Palace Lord and regroup at the stronghold if nothing. Watch for Iron Blood remnants nearby."
"Understood."
The three gazed at him briefly, and Lee Mong-yeom said with resolute expression,
"After sending brother off..."
He glanced at the burning compound, then continued.
"We'll raze the Iron Blood Gang together."
The three Protectors nodded.
"Of course. We'll prepare right after reporting to the Palace Lord. Farewell."
"Be careful."
"See you at the stronghold."
As the three vanished in different directions, Lee Mong-yeom remained, scanning the area alone.
His steps halted upon spotting a cluster of steel needles scattered on the ground.
Darts and iron maces lay haphazardly nearby, most faintly damp to the touch.
Lee Mong-yeom was now certain a third party was involved.
'...Could they have moved already? No, impossible.'
He pushed away the ominous thought and calmly surveyed once more.
Bodies littered the ground—some killed instantly by blows to the forehead, others slashed by blades. But the wounds were unusual, unlike typical cuts. It was as if the blood had frozen solid the moment the blade struck.
'Even a lightning-fast sword would draw more blood... Someone using a bizarre sword technique.'
After closely examining the corpses, Lee Mong-yeom's face grew grave as he pieced it together.
"Just one person...?"