Chapter 63: Baek Yak, the Cold Woman
Baek Yak, the Cold Woman
Episode 63: Baek Yak, the Cold Woman
Elder Yang spoke in a calm tone until the very end.
"Grand Prince, I merely came to guide you to the elixir. The Sosunpa? What kind of misunderstanding is this?"
"Misunderstanding?"
"Yes."
The Sosunpa's sect leader had conspired with Guyang Hoo, only to be killed by Dan Woo-sung at the Flower Viewing Pavilion after being exposed by Joo Ja-ryang, the failed scholar.
That was why the courtesan Soo Ran-yi had come to mind.
The reason Dan Woo-sung could easily track down those who still held grudges against him was that there were surprisingly few incidents tied to the Silver River Merchant Group. Back when he was known as the Fist King, he had too many enemies to narrow them down like this.
In any case, since he had killed the Sosunpa's sect leader himself, he intended to clean up the aftermath thoroughly.
Dan Woo-sung studied Elder Yang.
He knew of the Sosunpa, but it seemed the man had no direct connection to them. There was no hatred in his eyes—only growing fear. If that was the case, this man's role was likely to lure him out and guide him to Yonggok Mountain.
Dan Woo-sung asked in a subdued tone:
"Elder Yang, do you know how to consume the Moon Blossom? If you don't, let's just say you'll die too."
Dan Woo-sung already knew the Moon Blossom well.
It would have been absurd for the Fist King to be ignorant about elixirs in the martial world. He had simply kept his composure in front of the medicine merchant.
Elder Yang wiped the smile from his face and asked:
"Then, does the Grand Prince know how?"
"I do, so recite it for me."
Elder Yang's hands, resting on the table, began to tremble slightly as he spoke.
"As I mentioned, you must not pluck it. Though it may look ridiculous, you must bow your head and swallow only the petals. Does that answer your question?"
Dan Woo-sung stated the exact method.
"If you touch it with your hands, it absorbs the poison and withers instantly. Its form resembles that of a woman, and it only grows in damp places where moonlight seeps in regularly. In other words, unless you're a highly skilled swordsman, you'll be consuming a Poison Blossom, not a Moon Blossom. The Moon Blossom is a bizarre elixir that must be consumed in an instant—by severing its stem with a sword without ever touching the petals."
Elder Yang's jaw clenched once before he continued.
"My words—"
Dan Woo-sung picked up a wine cup and splashed its contents onto Elder Yang's face. As Elder Yang startled and stood up, Dan Woo-sung grabbed him by the collar, yanked him forward, and poured the wine from the table down his throat. Then, pressing down on Elder Yang's skull as if to crush it, a scream erupted as the wine forced its way down his gullet.
Gulp—
"Ghk—!"
Elder Yang clutched his throat with both hands, trying to speak, but collapsed face-first instead.
Thud.
His poisoned complexion darkened in an instant, and his entire body stiffened.
A poison that was colorless, odorless, and tasteless, yet caused such symptoms, could only be the Three-None Hardening Poison—a highly expensive toxin. And its supplier was none other than the Five Poison Valley in this era.
"So it was the Five Poison Valley?"
When Dan Woo-sung turned to look at Jeom So-i, the man raised his hands in a panic.
"I-I know nothing about this!"
"Who do you take me for—some kind of fool?"
As Jeom So-i tried to flee toward the kitchen, Dan Woo-sung grabbed a wine bottle and hurled it.
Thwack!
This wasn't the real Jeom So-i—just someone disguised as him.
Dan Woo-sung strode over and crushed the man's neck underfoot. The inn fell silent in an instant, but the outside was a different story. The sound of rustling leaves mixed with the wind echoed from all directions.
There were many of them.
"Grand Prince, come out."
Dan Woo-sung first slipped on his gauntlet, then collected all the receipts from Elder Yang's corpse. Stepping outside, he saw a medicine merchant dressed similarly to Elder Yang approaching with his hands clasped behind his back.
"Grand Prince, it seems you deliberately followed me. Hahahaha...."
Black-clad figures had already surrounded the inn, glaring at Dan Woo-sung. As if preparing for the impending battle in the dark, they pulled up their black scarves to cover their mouths. Even the swords in their hands were pitch black.
Dan Woo-sung asked the newly arrived medicine merchant:
"Five Poison Valley?"
The merchant tilted his head and replied:
"But how did you know? That we're from the Five Poison Valley? You're a genius, a real genius."
Suddenly, Dan Woo-sung frowned. He had planned to chase them all down and kill them, but something felt off.
"Don't tell me you've targeted the Silver River Merchant Group...?"
The medicine merchant smiled.
"Why? Worried? Afraid we've released snakes or something? Well, it's not just snakes. We won't kill too many people. What else would we care about besides money?"
Dan Woo-sung grabbed the two sickles resting beside the table, then charged into the darkness. Hidden weapons, glinting with moonlight, rained down like falling stars from the shadows.
Enemies surrounded him from all sides.
He didn't care who died. Leaping into the air, Dan Woo-sung unleashed the lightning energy of the White Lightning Ten Stages—Ninth Stage—from his sickles in all directions.
Crackle—zzzt!
From the very start, he unleashed his full power, thinning their numbers. His movements were limited to downward strikes and horizontal slashes. However, his footwork allowed him to twist his body abruptly, changing directions at blinding speed. Dozens collapsed in convulsions within moments. Amidst the chaos, Dan Woo-sung stomped on skulls and sliced at the legs of the Five Poison Valley warriors as he moved.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Bending low, he executed horizontal slashes, dodged incoming straight thrusts, and repeated his downward strikes. At some point, the energy of the White Lightning Ten Stages intertwined with his own violent temperament, surging uncontrollably through his body.
"Damn it...."
As the Extreme Yang energy overflowed beyond his control, Dan Woo-sung hurled both sickles away.
Thud! Thud!
Clashing his palms together, wreathed in lightning, he unleashed the Thunderclap Annihilation Technique. The moment the technique erupted, he shot into the air before slamming back down.
BOOOOOOM—!
The recoil sent him flying upward, while the bodies of the black-clad warriors at the epicenter were torn apart in all directions. This was a technique reserved for opponents bearing titles like kings or emperors.
Had Dan Woo-sung made a mistake? Or was this a mistake he could afford to make?
Half of the Five Poison Valley's disciples stood in formation before the Silver River Merchant Group's gates. They weren't particularly close allies with the Sosunpa's sect leader.
However, after securing the testimony of a courtesan who claimed the sect leader had been killed by the Grand Prince of the merchant group, they had used it as a pretext for revenge. Of course, revenge wasn't their true goal—they intended to ransack the merchant group and take only the money.
But their plans were abruptly halted by an unusual sight.
Baek Yak, who had come looking for Dan Woo-sung at the Silver River Merchant Group's gates only to leave again, now stood alone with her hands behind her back, facing off against the Five Poison Valley.
And she was dressed in white robes...
Tilting her head at the Five Poison Valley disciples blocking her path, she mused:
"Hmm... Why do you all look like villains without even saying a word? Strange. Ran-ah, why is that? Am I imagining things?"
Baek Ran, who had been waiting near the merchant group, stepped forward and glared at the sizable force before approaching Baek Yak.
"I don't think it's your imagination. Given their murderous aura, they're definitely heretics."
Baek Ran wasn't alone. Baek Yak's escorts, who had been bored to the point of madness, now gathered with eager expressions, lining up as if to occupy the merchant group's main gate.
Lee Hwa-eon, the Chief Administrator, rushed out with a pale face, gripping the gate as he stared at the Five Poison Valley forces.
Baek Yak asked:
"You don't know these people, do you?"
"No!"
"Then please go back inside."
"Ah, understood."
As Lee Hwa-eon swallowed hard and retreated, Corps Leader Han Yeop and the Double Report Brothers stepped out in his place. The brothers were determined to hold the gate at all costs until Dan Woo-sung returned. The escort team, having just finished their breathing exercises, also began pouring out.
Baek Ran raised a hand to stop them.
"Merchant Group members, please stay inside. We're a bit embarrassed to show off our martial arts. Go back inside."
Corps Leader Han Yeop sighed.
"But this concerns our merchant group—"
"It's fine. You've only been feeding us, and we've felt awkward about it. We'll handle this ourselves."
Baek Ran gently ushered Han Yeop and the Double Report Brothers back inside.
Baek Yak, walking forward with her hands behind her back, remarked:
"Guess we'll earn our meal today."
One of the Five Poison Valley warriors stepped forward, holding a sack, and hurled it at Baek Yak. As the sack unraveled midair, hundreds of writhing snakes flew toward her.
This was the same Baek Yak who had terrified Cheol Myung-ho, making him mistake her for a ghost.
She extended her hand toward the incoming snakes—
A white whirlwind erupted from her palm. It had been a long time since the White Flower Divine Art had been displayed in the Central Plains.
The snakes froze solid midair before shattering like ice as they hit the ground.
"......"
The Five Poison Valley disciples stared in stunned silence at the white, frozen remains of the snakes.
Baek Yak addressed them:
"Baek Mujin once said: 'Death or freezing—choose.'"
Her figure shot diagonally into the air, stopping above the Five Poison Valley forces before plummeting straight down. A wave of white frost spread outward in an instant.
Those who had been moving in various combat stances froze mid-motion, unable to move.
Walking calmly through the frozen statues, Baek Yak instructed her subordinates:
"Kill them all."
Only then did her escorts draw their swords and advance.
Dan Woo-sung returned to the Silver River Merchant Group at breakneck speed, frowning as he flung the gates open.
The lively merchant group fell silent in an instant.
Blinking, he scanned the surroundings.
Chief Administrator Lee Hwa-eon greeted him with a bright expression.
"Brother, you're back?"
"Yeah."
Baek Yak was there, and her escorts were all inside the merchant group—that much made sense. But what he didn't expect was a grand banquet being held in their honor. The escort team, even the Double Report Brothers, were all mingling.
Dan Woo-sung's face burned red with embarrassment.
"Nothing happened?"
Lee Hwa-eon glanced at Baek Yak, coughed awkwardly, and replied:
"Nothing happened...?"
"Really?"
"Yes. Did you secure the elixir?"
"No."
"I had a feeling they were swindlers. Come in, Brother... What are you doing just standing there?"
Dan Woo-sung took a deep breath and scanned the crowd, checking if anyone was missing.
"Where's Father?"
"He doesn't drink, remember? He said a few words, then went inside because it was cold."
"Right. He doesn't drink."
Lee Hwa-eon wiped the sweat from his brother's forehead with his sleeve, then subtly nudged him toward Baek Yak.
"Why were you in such a hurry?"
Finally, Dan Woo-sung approached Baek Yak.
"Lady Baek, nothing happened?"
She replied:
"No. I mentioned I was hungry, and they suddenly prepared a feast. My subordinates and I have been shamelessly indulging."
She poured a cup of tea from the table and handed it to him.
"Drink. Slowly."
Dan Woo-sung studied her before taking a sip. The taste was indescribable—was it tea or honey sliding down his throat? The Five Poison Valley's methods had been cunning. Their target wasn't him—it was the Silver River Merchant Group. Of course, given how quickly he had returned, he could have dealt with them himself. But there would have been casualties—those bitten by snakes or poisoned. That would have been his first major failure since his rebirth.
As Dan Woo-sung sat down, Baek Yak quietly took the seat across from him.
It felt like there was much to say, but only the lively chatter of the escort team and Baek Yak's subordinates filled the air. People deliberately avoided approaching the two of them.
Dan Woo-sung asked Baek Yak:
"Do you drink?"
"I can handle a little."
He looked around for alcohol, then stood and brought over a bottle, filling both her cup and his own.
Holding his cup, he asked:
"I think I owe you a debt."
Baek Yak lifted her cup and replied:
"Not a debt. Just repaying the meals."
She gazed at him intently. This usually composed man bore all the signs of someone who had raced back as if his life depended on it—yet he didn't look bad doing so.
Dan Woo-sung bowed his head slightly.
"Lady Baek, thank you."
Baek Yak pressed her lips together and smiled faintly, a dimple forming on one cheek.
< Baek Yak, the Cold Woman - End >
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