Chapter 118
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 118
Chapter Title: Bountiful Harvest
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Looking at those who emerged, they were clad in the distinctive Taoist robes of the Qingcheng Sect.
"There's no need for Young Master Nangong to worry. Young Master Seob hasn't fallen to demonic qi—he's succumbed to qi deviation."
I let out a scoff.
'When did he manage to pull in the Qingcheng Sect? They really do control the commerce in this region.'
The moment Seob Manor Lord Seob Jeon saw his son Seob Hyeonrok tainted by demonic qi, he must have immediately sought help from the Qingcheng Sect.
The Seob family manor and the Qingcheng Sect had long shared a symbiotic relationship for mutual benefit.
'How much did they promise the Qingcheng Sect to cover up even the demonic qi?'
But the demonic qi from the Mad Demon Pill wasn't something that could be casually purged.
Judging by how the middle-aged Qingcheng Taoist's robes were soaked with sweat, it seemed he'd met with disaster while trying to remove Seob Hyeonrok's demonic qi.
"May I know your esteemed Daoist's title?"
Nangong Seongjin couldn't treat the high-ranking-looking Qingcheng Sect Daoist lightly.
"I am Hong Myeong, elder of the Qingcheng Sect."
Hong Myeong was a Qingcheng Sect elder, one of the younger ones among them.
He also enjoyed considerable standing within the sect.
"Elder Hong Myeong of the Qingcheng Sect, I presume. I am Nangong Seongjin of the Nangong Family. This humble martial artist of the younger generation offers his respects to senior."
"Ah, yes. I've long heard of Young Master Nangong's reputation."
This put Nangong Seongjin in a position where he couldn't push back hard against Hong Myeong.
The martial world was a society bound by seniority and status, after all.
For Nangong Seongjin, who was set to lead the Nangong Family one day, he had no choice but to tread carefully.
Being rude to an elder of one of the Nine Great Sects was taboo.
So Pang Soun stepped forward.
"Elder Hong Myeong, we heard that the Seob family manor's son has fallen to demonic qi. We intend to take him to the Murim Alliance branch for investigation."
"And who might you be, young hero?"
"Pang Soun."
"Hm, that Pang Soun?"
"Yes. The Murim Alliance's notorious scoundrel, Pang Soun."
Pang Soun had been a rogue back at the Alliance headquarters, charging headfirst at anyone who rubbed him the wrong way, regardless of rank or age.
"Didn't this Daoist say it already? Young Master Seob isn't afflicted by demonic qi. He's merely in a state of confusion from qi deviation. That's why I've come to cure him."
It was a clear dismissal: ignore it and leave.
"We can't do that. We just finished a skirmish with the Demonic Cult. Don't you know how far their influence has spread?"
"I, Hong Myeong, take responsibility for this. Juniors, mind your own business and be on your way."
Hong Myeong clearly knew little about the Mad Demon Pill's demonic qi.
If he'd known what it was, he wouldn't have even touched Seob Hyeonrok.
He appeared to have made physical contact with Seob Hyeonrok in an attempt to purge the qi.
Soon enough, the backlash of the demonic qi's invasion would hit Hong Myeong too.
But with his high internal energy, it hadn't manifested immediately.
Instead, the reaction came from someone else.
One of the Qingcheng Sect Taoists standing behind Hong Myeong suddenly spewed blood.
Pfbt!
"Urk!"
He collapsed in a heap, trembling as he tried to suppress the demonic qi with his internal energy.
"My disciple!"
Hong Myeong rushed to his disciple's side.
"It looks like he's been infected by the Mad Demon Pill's demonic qi."
Hong Myeong whipped around at my words.
"Who are you?"
"Scholar Cheon Taesan."
At that, someone came charging out of the pavilion with a clatter.
"Are you the Divine Sword Scholar Cheon, the great hero?"
I glanced at him, and he composed his flustered expression before speaking.
"I am Seob Jeon, lord of the Seob family manor. Are you truly the Divine Sword Scholar?"
I knew why Seob Jeon was greeting me like a long-lost son.
'He already knows about the Jeongryong Sect's Yi Mokseong.'
With his immense wealth, he'd quickly scoured for a way to save his son from the demonic qi.
And he'd heard that I'd purged Yi Mokseong's demonic qi.
"I was just about to send for Scholar Cheon from the Tang family today, but the Demonic Cult attacked..."
It seemed he'd planned to invite me to remove the demonic qi, but had returned due to the Demonic Cult's assault.
The Qingcheng Sect Taoists had brought their disciple along preemptively, fearing the Murim Alliance would take him for interrogation.
A swift move, indeed.
If the Tang family had tried to make an issue of it, Elder Hong Myeong of the Qingcheng Sect would have blocked them.
I feigned ignorance.
"Why were you looking for me?"
Seob Jeon started to speak but glanced around at the onlookers and led me to a secluded spot.
"I know Scholar Cheon removed Yi Mokseong of the Jeongryong Sect's demonic qi."
"And?"
"Please save my son."
"Elder of the Qingcheng Sect says Young Master Seob has qi deviation. How am I supposed to save him? I can't treat qi deviation."
Seob Jeon came clean.
"That was just an excuse because the Murim Alliance showed up. I don't know where he caught it, but my son is poisoned by demonic qi."
"Manor Lord Seob, I'm here on Captain Wang's orders too. I intend to take Young Master Seob with me."
Seob Jeon cut me off.
"Scholar Cheon, don't you need funds? I hear many people have gathered at Sammu County. Since they came together in haste, they'll be short on building materials, daily necessities... and with so many mouths to feed, food supplies must be tight. I'll provide all that. Generously."
Seob Jeon seemed to have prepared an offer I couldn't refuse.
A smile crept onto my face at his words.
Non-human, kill freely.
That was my creed. If saving good people meant shaking hands with the wicked, that fit my values too.
'Strictly speaking, it's more like exploiting them.'
I gave him a look of pity.
"You may not know this, but purging demonic qi isn't a one-time thing. Yi Mokseong was in the early stages, so I could do it in one go."
"It doesn't matter how many times it takes—just please remove it. Hyeonrok is our family's sole heir."
"Even the Qingcheng Sect elder can't purge it. To remove the demonic qi, I'd be risking my life."
Seob Jeon seized my hand.
"Whatever Scholar Cheon desires, I'll provide it. Shameless as it is, I beg you."
I let out a deep sigh.
"Then first, to make it worth risking my life, show me your sincerity, Manor Lord. Send those supplies you mentioned to Sammu County right away."
"Ah, yes. Quite right. One needs motivation to face such danger."
Ever the merchant, he nodded in agreement immediately.
"I'll procure and send the goods today. I'll contact Scholar Cheon later for confirmation."
I could tell from Seob Jeon's earnestness that he meant it.
No matter how ruthless a man, he couldn't abandon his family's only heir.
"Manor Lord Seob, for now, I'll seal the demonic qi so it can't rampage further."
"Ah, you can do that? As expected of the Divine Sword Scholar."
"Then, we'll take Young Master Seob to the branch for investigation."
"Th-that..."
"It's necessary. That way, even after Young Master Seob is free of the demonic qi, he can live without suspicion. I'll declare that his affliction was due to the Demonic Cult's schemes."
"Oh!"
"That's the truth of it. Young Master Seob's symptoms match those from ingesting a Mad Demon Pill. It's almost certain, looking at Elder Hong's disciple. The Mad Demon Pill's demonic qi is contagious upon contact."
"Indeed! Entrusting this to the Divine Sword Scholar was the right choice."
"Has Young Master Seob come into contact with many people?"
"No. The moment we saw the demonic qi on Hyeonrok, we called Elder Hong, so only he and his disciple have touched him."
"Thanks to your swift handling, Manor Lord, many lives were saved."
Worried Seob Jeon might change his mind, I pressed on.
"First, we need to block the demonic qi from reaching Young Master Seob's brain. Please lead the way."
I told Nangong Seongjin and Pang Soun to wait outside, then followed Seob Jeon into the pavilion.
Nangong Seongjin had already been instructed by Wang Qing before departure to let Scholar Cheon handle things as he saw fit upon arriving at the Seob family manor, so he simply observed.
Soon, he was shocked to see Seob Hyeonrok emerge with dozens of large needles embedded in his face.
Frost had settled on the needles, making them gleam white.
That level of chill meant he'd cultivated the Frozen Yin Qi.
"Scholar Cheon has mastered Frozen Yin Qi too?"
Nangong Seongjin asked Pang Soun, who seemed to know a lot about Cheon Taesan.
"I haven't seen him use the Frozen Yin Qi Art with my own eyes, but from what the legend guests said, it seems he has. There were rumors he was the Alliance's joint exhibition martial artist too. If he's a true joint exhibition martial artist, he'd know the Frozen Yin Qi Art, right?"
"I see."
"He manipulates beads with void grasping to take on hall leaders and kills Blood Demon Cultists by hurling paper. What can't he do?"
"True enough."
Nangong Seongjin had no retort.
Cheon Taesan approached and said,
"Let's head to the branch, examine Young Master Seob's condition, and conduct the investigation. Conveniently, I can remove this demonic qi."
Nangong Seongjin turned and asked,
"Will Manor Lord Seob be coming too?"
He'd seen Seob Jeon preparing to follow with the manor's guard warriors.
"Of course. I'll go to the branch and report everything to Captain Wang."
"We'll hear him out together."
Nangong Seongjin nodded at Cheon Taesan's words and loaded Seob Hyeonrok into the carriage.
As they were leaving the Seob family manor, Qingcheng Sect's Hong Myeong grabbed Cheon Taesan.
"Scholar Cheon. Can you really remove the demonic qi?"
"It's possible, but..."
"Save my disciple."
Cheon Taesan approached the unconscious Qingcheng Taoist, removed the large needles, applied acupuncture, and infused Frozen Yin Qi.
As the disciple's face relaxed upon receiving the needles, Hong Myeong breathed a sigh of relief.
"Bring your disciple to the branch."
Cheon Taesan said to Nangong Seongjin,
"It's urgent, so we'll go via lightness skill."
They unleashed their lightness skills and headed for the branch.
Entering the Murim Alliance Sichuan branch, they were hit with groans and the stench of blood.
The White Tiger Unit warriors were in the midst of treatment.
I spoke loudly enough for Seob Jeon to hear.
"Looks like I'll have to treat the wounded. There are many critical cases."
At that, Seob Jeon ordered his subordinates,
"You lot! Fetch every physician from the nearby clinics right now!"
He feared I'd delay treating his son while tending to the warriors.
Seob Jeon's influence was astonishing.
Within less than half a shichen, dozens of physicians arrived at the branch.
With them treating the injured, what would have taken days was handled in half a day.
Wang Qing sidled up to me and murmured,
"Scholar Cheon's resourcefulness is truly impressive."
"They say earn money like a dog, spend it like a prime minister. That's all I'm doing."
"Thank you."
There had been no small number of severely wounded who might have died from delayed treatment.
But with dozens of physicians on hand, the risk of fatalities from lack of care was greatly reduced.
"Captain, leave Seob Hyeonrok to me this time."
Wang Qing met my eyes and grinned.
"Got it. Handle it as you see fit."
I moved Seob Hyeonrok and the Qingcheng Taoist to a room.
I told Seob Jeon,
"For now, I'll suppress the demonic qi to keep it from stirring. It has to be removed gradually over time. Purging it suddenly could cause the qi embedded in his organs to flare up and kill him."
"Understood. I entrust my son entirely to Scholar Cheon."
"Then, the two of you step out and ensure no one enters this room."
Seob Jeon nodded in understanding, but Hong Myeong shook his head.
"This Daoist intends to observe Scholar Cheon's procedure."
"This treatment allows no margin for error. I can't concentrate with someone watching."
I knew he wanted to stay and learn the secret of how I removed demonic qi.
I was about to coax him with other words when Seob Jeon intervened first.
"Elder Hong, didn't you hear Scholar Cheon? He can't focus with people around. Isn't that obvious for delicate work?"
Hong Myeong stared at him as if this were the first time Seob Jeon had treated him this way.
"Get out already. I never took you for such a petty man, Elder Hong. With a life hanging by a thread, you try to satisfy your own curiosity."
Hong Myeong blinked in shock at Seob Jeon's sudden scolding.