No Realm, Yet There Is One (2)
The carriage arrived at Tang Family Village after the sun had already dipped below the western mountains. We headed straight to the banquet hall. The long table was laden with enough food to make its legs buckle—steaming dishes and glossy meats that you'd never see at the Ami Sect. I swallowed hard at the feast before me.
"Daddy!"
Moyong Yeong dashed toward her father in the guest seats.
"Yeong-ah!"
The boisterous swordmaster scooped up his daughter and plopped her down beside him.
"Are you feeling okay?"
"The treatment's all done."
Sitting across from them was my father, who must have arrived first using lightness skill. Uncle Moyong shook the wine cup in his hand with his signature hearty smile. The quiet murmur of the father-daughter reunion after days apart filled the hall, warm yet laced with underlying tension.
"Yeong-ah, did they treat you well at the Ami Sect?"
Hiss—
I sucked in a breath at the tension, recalling all the torments the Bi Yeon Pavilion Master had inflicted on Moyong Yeong: the Thousand Pace Nails, forcing her to eat that temple slop with no flavor, showing her a mummy-like corpse, parading the Yang Wife's iron-fisted discipline! I figured she'd burst into tears in front of her dad and spill everything, but against my expectations, she didn't rat out the Pavilion Master.
"Oh, the ghost? Come on, I'm not a kid—who believes in ghosts? More importantly, Dad..."
Her vehement denial was so absurd I clenched my fist tight.
You! You totally believed it!
"I want to get engaged!"
Her bombshell declaration left Uncle Moyong with a dumbfounded look.
"Yeong-ah, what did you say?"
"Why not? I have to marry someone anyway, right? So I'll do it with Dang Jihwan!"
Moyong Yeong twisted halfway around and pointed at my brother. I'd already caught on that she had a crush on him. They'd been stuck together in the carriage earlier, too. No idea how Jihwan hyung reeled her in. Maybe they grilled and ate the transparent lizard my dad gave him as a midnight snack.
That daughter-spoiling fool's gonna lose his mind.
Uncle Moyong glared resentfully at my father, trembling with betrayal.
"Tang Family Head—no, Dang Myeongseok. We've known each other for years—how could you..."
"No harm in matching them early, is there?"
"Still, rushing into kids' matters like this... Even the Poison Insect Elder—how could she not even ask my opinion..."
"Who'd turn down a lively girl like Yeong-i as a daughter-in-law? Jihwan might seem like a pushover, but he's no slouch—he's been steady since he was little. We could even take him as a son-in-law."
Before I could react, my father jumped in.
"We sent a formal marriage proposal to Moyong Family Head."
"You... you...!"
"Daddy!"
I watched calmly as Uncle Moyong collapsed and they called in the Life and Death Pavilion physicians. Lesson learned.
Never defy the family elders.
After the meal, as I headed back to my room, a member of the Heart Shadow Unit grabbed me and relayed a sound transmission.
The Bi Yeon Pavilion Master summons the Fifth Young Master.
Why not say it at dinner? As I entered the Bi Yeon Pavilion, the familiar air welcomed me. It had been a while since Grandma Pavilion Master summoned me here. Sunlight filtering through the window bathed the room in warm golden light. Opposite her, seated primly as always, was an unexpected figure.
"Father?"
"Take it."
Father unfolded the paper to reveal a round, glossy pill. It gleamed greenish and emitted a faint glow, carrying the scent of herbs.
"I got this in place of the Gongcheongseokyu."
"Whoa!"
I realized he'd gone back to the Ami Sect that day to settle my matter. Any spirit medicine was fine by me, whether Gongcheongseokyu or weed roots.
"Should I take it now?"
His furrowed brow and worried expression felt off.
"Yohwan-ah. Do you know what this spirit medicine is?"
I examined it closely and guessed.
"Hm, a Small Return Pill?"
"Yohwan-ah, do you know the difference between Shaolin's Small Return Pill and Great Return Pill?"
"The accumulated power, right? Small Return Pill is five years, Great Return Pill is a decade."
The Pavilion Master sighed again and continued.
"The ingredients for Great Return Pill and Small Return Pill are the same. Precisely, the Small Return Pill matures into a Great Return Pill through aging."
"Aha!"
Her explanation clicked perfectly—like how fermented foods deepen in flavor, the Small Return Pill ripens over time. Sichuan had weird stuff like fish sauce instead of miso or gochujang, but same idea.
"Of course, many spoil along the way, making Great Return Pills precious."
"So this is a Great Return Pill?"
"No."
"Then what is it?"
She explained reluctantly.
"In the history of the jianghu and murim, which faction excels most in spirit medicine refinement?"
"Shaolin Temple, obviously?"
Since Great Return Pills were made in Shaolin, they had to be the masters.
"No. The Blood Cult."
"Whoa, the Blood Cult? Wait—this is a Blood Cult spirit medicine?"
"After losing to the Murim Alliance and wandering, Blood Cult members studied ways to age easily obtainable spirit medicines themselves."
Like shuttering the spirit medicine factory and modding off-the-shelf pills. As I mulled it over, chills ran down my spine.
"...Is it safe to eat?"
She hesitated before answering.
"It's based on pure Shaolin spirit medicine, so it should be fine, but..."
Why not say for sure!
"It's not my first Blood Cult medicine, but seeing one with two decades of power is new. I'd like to test its effects."
"Two decades?"
For reference, a Great Return Pill holds one decade. The Blood Cult's refinement tech was impressive.
Father spoke up.
"Aunt, you called the youngest because you think it's safe to consume."
"...Myeongseok, still..."
"I'll step in if needed."
Father? From context, he meant he'd assist with the consumption. So far, it'd been the instructor or that enemy-like Dang Chehwan. Oh, and the Pavilion Master helped during my qi deviation once.
"You said even with Poison Fruits, the youngest handles deviation well. Isn't it his constitution?"
My constitution? The backhanded praise felt weird, but Father seemed to approve me taking it.
"Still, Yohwan-ah, it's risky—you don't have to..."
"I'll take it!"
Spirit medicines are usually bitter, but this one was surprisingly sweet and tangy from the first chew, wrapping around my tongue. Soon, a warm energy slid down my throat, spreading through my body. Closing my eyes, I felt the medicine's qi swirling in circles. It felt no different from pure righteous sect medicine—smooth and steady circulation.
Then suddenly, it churned like rapids. In an instant, it surged fiercely through my meridians, my heart pounding wildly. Breath caught in my throat.
Ugh—
"Yohwan-ah! Steady your mind!"
I cracked my eyes to see the Pavilion Master's face, her stern voice laced with worry. At the same time, advice came from behind.
"Blood Cult medicine has strong water qi—wild and free. Don't cling to the meridians."
If you're gonna advise that, say it before I swallow!
Thanks to Father, I visualized the overflowing water with my mind. The excess energy felt sucked away by his hand on my back. True to demonic path style for quick power, absorption finished in a flash.
"How many years?"
The Pavilion Master checked my pulse.
"Forty years. Your accumulated power is now forty years."
"Ha..."
I was moved. Efficiency under thirty percent of the two-decade total, but not bad for my age.
"Myeongseok, and you?"
"I can breach the Mysterious Realm wall soon."
Father had consumed some too? Did he have an absorption technique? As I tilted my head, the Pavilion Master explained.
"Yohwan-ah, you know your father is a poison art master, right?"
"Sure."
For reference, poison techniques and poison arts differ. Poison techniques are all about making and using poisons; poison arts apply inner force with poisons. Our family excels at both, naturally.
"Not using poison art inner force?"
In short, using inner force like glue to handle poison. Manipulating drops precisely requires inner force.
"That's what I heard."
I didn't know details—haven't learned yet.
"Yes, and among poison arts, absorbing poison into the body shares principles with the Star-Sucking Great Technique."
"Huh? The Star-Sucking Great Technique?"
I was shocked. The demonic cult's signature evil art—and poison masters rival it? Wait, reverse might not hold; our family's poison resistance doesn't mean they'd resist ours.
"...Are we really righteous?"
Father brushed it off.
"Even the Nangong family has demonic cult origins—what's the issue?"
Fair—history has righteous traitors and demonic converts.
"Yohwan-ah, don't worry. Unlike Nangong, our family has never been caught in scandal."
Boasting better at massacres than Nangong?
"Anyway, you're tired—go rest. Skip training tomorrow."
I bolted from the Pavilion without refusing her kindness and ran into Sohee standing alone outside.
"Huh? Sohee? What are you doing here?"