Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Am I Right? (1)
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I felt her presence fading away and quietly let out a sigh of relief.
'Sigh, fuck...'
The Dragon Fragment had missed its mark, and the moment Huangbo Hyo-seon drew her sword, the situation was already fucked.
From that point on, I'd been fighting solely with escape in mind, but her sword had gotten so fast that I couldn't find an opening to pull back.
Her sword strikes had become familiar enough that I could react somewhat, but it was clear this would end with "I lost, but I fought well."
So I'd taunted Huangbo Hyo-seon, thrown a stone to snap the trees behind her, and at the last moment, exploded the boulder to obscure her vision.
Then, pretending to flee along the clearest path, I'd whipped back around with Dragon Soaring Step and hidden under the fallen trees.
Thankfully, it had worked—her presence was gone, too far to sense anymore.
That dog-like stubborn thick-skulled bitch was damn good with a blade; I'd nearly gotten myself killed.
'Still, those tits were something else...'
Her heaving breasts flashed in my mind, my dick stiffened, blood rushed south, and my head throbbed from the lack of it.
I didn't have any major wounds, but with blood leaking from cuts all over, I couldn't hold out forever.
Next time I saw Huangbo Hyo-seon, whether it was revenge-fuck or whatever, I'd deal with it later. For now, push it aside.
I closed my eyes and began circulating my qi. The dual energies of yin and yang drew in ambient qi, swelling in size and slowly mending my body.
As they healed my damaged meridians and flowed through my body, the Heavenly Yang Qi and Phantom Yin Qi reached the Ren and Du Meridians and clashed once more.
It was expected, so I gritted my teeth and endured the pain from the collision.
'SkullGreymon evolution, huh...'
The third internal energy born from the clash of Heavenly Yang Qi and Phantom Yin Qi was called Phantom Heavenly Qi. Master's current inner energy was all composed of this.
This energy, born from the harmony of yin and yang, was a cheat that could convert to either yin or yang qi.
Even without converting, it packed more power than the same amount of any other energy—a total bullshit force.
The problem was, I hadn't awakened it through insight; I'd forced the two energies to collide and wrenched it out.
Brute... If you wanted to do it that way, you could've just asked me to release the seals...
Master said reaching the pinnacle this way was a method abandoned generations ago, and there were more stable ways to prevent yin and yang from clashing...
No shit, then tell me sooner!
I couldn't produce Phantom Heavenly Qi directly yet, so whenever it ran out, I'd have to smash the two energies together to generate more.
Until I built up enough Phantom Heavenly Qi, I couldn't even circulate qi using the Ren and Du meridians.
In other words, I thought I was MetalGreymon, but I was SkullGreymon. Having reached the pinnacle once this way, there was no turning back.
It sucked, but thanks to this path, I could use Phantom Heavenly Qi—and it had gotten me out of that jam earlier.
If I hadn't summoned it at the last second, even a cracked boulder wouldn't have shattered from a single Finger Wind.
Time passed, and with enough Phantom Heavenly Qi gathered, the three energies flowed side by side along the Ren and Du meridians, seeping into every vessel to heal my flesh.
I entrusted my mind to the flow of true qi and sank into a trance.
***
"We'll arrive at the Tang Family soon, milord."
A woman with an intellectual air gazed at the passing scenery outside the carriage and spoke.
"Is that so? It's been ages since I last visited Sichuan, so I'm not sure."
The man with a dignified presence sitting opposite her replied, and the woman smiled.
"I suppose. But what brought this on, suggesting we visit the Tang Family? Not that I'm complaining..."
"Don't you and Lady Peng get along well? No need to avoid her just because I find the Tang patriarch prickly."
"Is that right? What delightful news. I've been wanting to show Sister Hwa how much bigger Hyeon-i's gotten..."
She seemed to answer with a smile, but her next words carried a subtle sting.
The man flinched and averted his gaze.
"W-well, you see... dear, to inherit the escort agency, he needs some actual escort runs under his belt..."
"Of course. Our esteemed Agency Lord must have judged it wisely. Ah, right now our Hyeon-i's probably eating dirt and wind..."
She gave him a pointed look as if it were nothing, but his expression darkened noticeably.
[This fucking bastard, trying to stab me in the back!]
At that moment, a hearty curse rang out from somewhere. A man was grabbing another by the collar and yelling.
The husband sighed inwardly with relief as his wife's attention shifted, but soon paled in shock.
"Dear! Where are you going?!"
"Hyeon-i!"
The woman shouted her son's name, leaped from the moving carriage, and dashed toward the scuffle using lightness skill.
"You're crazy! You put me to work and now won't pay? Huh?!"
"There's no proof you did it, is there?!"
Wow, this prick playing games? I'd helped move stuff for some quick cash, and now he's screwing me over?
"Whether it was me or someone else, you hired me, and the job's done! What's your problem?!"
"How could one guy move all this in that short time alone? Call everyone who worked on it! Then I'll pay!"
"I did it! Me! Are you fucking deaf?!"
"I'm not paying! If a bunch worked and you take the money alone, what do I say when they come bitching to me broke?!"
"What the hell kind of bullshit is this...?"
It was so absurd it almost made sense. At a loss for words, someone called out to me.
"Hyeon-i."
"Hm?"
My name wasn't Hyeon-i, but I turned instinctively—and choked at the sight of a stunning milf weeping openly.
She was on par with Eon So-young or Huangbo Hyo-seon in hotness, no doubt.
But more striking was her expression—like reuniting with someone she'd desperately missed.
As she slowly reached out, touching me here and there, I couldn't adjust and glanced around, but no one offered answers.
"How... how did you end up like this... Hyeon-i... Hyeon-i... sob..."
The mood was so solemn that saying "My name's not Hyeon-i, it's Yun" felt extremely awkward.
"If you were this hurt, you should've come straight home. Why fool around here... You could've gone to Aunt Hwa... Silly boy..."
"N-no time..."
Playing along here makes me a legend...
"I told you you're not ready yet, but your father... sob..."
This escalating family drama felt ominous, so I tried backing away, but this milf was stronger than expected.
A martial artist, huh?
"Dear, what's going on?"
"Milord, Hyeon-i... Hyeon-i's here. See? I was right, wasn't I? You said he was definitely alive!"
A broad-shouldered man had appeared. "Milord" suggested he might be my "father" (tentative).
The man sighed deeply, glanced at my face, paled briefly, then nodded. What? Huh?
In my confusion, a deep voice rumbled in my ear.
[Hey. Mind playing along for a bit? Think of it as helping the poor souls. Just pretend the woman in front of you is your mother and speak.]
"...?"
[Come on, say it. "I've missed you, Mother."]
"I-I've missed you, Mother."
At my words, her subsiding sobs swelled into wails as she hugged me tight.
Hey, passerby, this ain't some tearjerker mother-son reunion, so hold those tears.
"How did you get hurt this badly? What happened?"
[Say bandits ambushed you while passing Hyeong Mountain, and you fled.]
"Bandits swarmed me on Hyeong Mountain, and..."
I was in a lavish carriage, sandwiched between the two.
The woman poked at my wounds from Huangbo Hyo-seon, tearing up, while the man fed me answers via transmission.
"See? I said Hyeon-i wasn't ready! Why... sob..."
"I'm sorry. But he's back safe, isn't that a relief? So dry your tears..."
"Safe? A relief? Does this look safe to you, milord? Can't you imagine how terrified this child was facing those vile bandits?"
"R-right, next time I'll prepare him properly. My fault."
[I'm Go Cheon, head of the Go Escort Agency. This woman is my wife, Zhuge Mi-ryeong. Please play my son Hyeon-i for a while, even if briefly.]
Go Cheon seemed the doting husband type. He took his wife's constant jabs without a hint of irritation.
From the conversation flow, it seemed their son had gone missing—or worse...
[How did you find me?]
"I'm Go—"
"I'm Zhuge Mi-ryeong! Apologies to the Tang patriarch, but greetings later! Can you provide clean clothes and bathing preparations?"
This milf radiated overprotective mama-bear energy... Bet she babied her boy rotten...
The Tang Family gate guard looked flustered, but Zhuge Mi-ryeong's name carried weight—they were ushered straight to lodgings.
A tidy room in the elegant quarters had a bath already steaming with hot water. Tang Family class...
"Come bathe with Mother, let me check for more injuries..."
No, milf! Are you nuts?
I mean, thanks, but hubby's staring!
I shot Go Cheon an urgent glance; he spoke up.
"I'll check him, dear. You stay here. He's past twenty—bathing with his mother? Absurd."
Bathing with Go Cheon was still awkward, but given Zhuge Mi-ryeong's mama-bear vibe, she wouldn't let me go solo.
Sigh, fine. Smile through it.