Chapter 10: Yin-Yang Unity
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 10: Yin-Yang Unity
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom looked down at Seol Yerin, who had collapsed onto the bed.
Her pale face was covered in a layer of frost. A faint, shallow breath escaped her lips.
"Seol Yerin," Hyeok Ryeon-yeom muttered softly as he took her hand.
A biting chill surged up his arm, but the intense heat of his Extreme Yang Body repelled it.
"If I leave you like this, you really will die."
Simply injecting Extreme Yang Qi through her hand wasn't enough to soothe the rampaging Extreme Yin Qi this time. The cold energy had already coiled around her dantian and acupoints, gnawing away at her life force.
Furthermore—
Crackle—
The Extreme Yin Qi was spiraling so far out of control that it began to freeze Hyeok Ryeon-yeom’s hand. Having expended a significant amount of his Extreme Yang Qi during the battle, he had to treat her using the limited energy he had left.
In other words, he was in just as much danger as she was.
There was only one way.
‘This is the only option.’
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom carefully removed Seol Yerin’s upper garment. As the fabric fell away, the ice crystals covering her chest and shoulders were revealed.
He then stripped off his own shirt, exposing his bare skin. Above his rugged muscles, the heat of his Extreme Yang Body radiated outward, tinting his skin a deep crimson.
Then, Hyeok Ryeon-yeom pulled Seol Yerin into his arms.
The moment their skin met, a violent burst of steam erupted with a loud hiss.
He drew Yang Qi from his dantian and began to slowly inject it into her body.
*
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom closed his eyes and began to perceive the internal state of Seol Yerin’s body.
His Extreme Yang Qi transferred through her skin, melting the ice crystals. But simply melting the surface wasn't enough.
‘I have to thaw her frozen acupoints.’
Suddenly, the principles of mana circuits he had mastered in his previous life flashed through his mind. As he felt the energy flowing through her acupoints, he realized this was the moment he could achieve what he had researched and craved so desperately in his past life.
‘The Human Mana Circuit.’
It was a system he had created by reinterpreting the circulation of qi and acupoints through magical principles during his first life as Hyeok Ryeon-yeom. It was a theory that allowed him to visualize the Extreme Yin Qi flowing through her body as if it were mana.
The moment he recalled it, Seol Yerin’s three pulses and meridians became vividly clear in his mind’s eye.
‘I see it.’
The flow of energy connecting her acupoints and dantian was drawn clearly before him. The frigid Yin Qi was suppressing her Acquired Qi and running wild. Conversely, his own Extreme Yang Qi was resisting it, enveloping her body like a scorching flame.
The two energies were pushing and pulling at each other, as if desperate to merge.
"Yin-Yang Unity..."
Seeing this, Hyeok Ryeon-yeom realized that simply injecting Yang Qi wouldn't save her. Only by bringing the Extreme Yin and Extreme Yang into harmony could he stop the rampage and restore her life force.
—In the beginning, Yin and Yang were divided; the Heavens are Yang, and the Earth is Yin.
—Heat gives birth to fire, and cold conceives ice.
—The two energies push and pull each other, forming the source of the world.
—Let the mind quietly observe the flow, and let the heart embrace the qi to bring harmony.
This was the theory of harmony the Master of the Demon Tower had once told him.
‘The source of the world is the harmony of Yin and Yang.’
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom delicately adjusted his Yang Qi. He moved his hand toward her dantian and drew out her Yin Qi.
The moment the two energies touched, his body shuddered.
The frigid Yin Qi coiled around his dantian, clashing with his Extreme Yang Qi. Pain surged through him, but he gritted his teeth and endured.
"Match the flow."
He tuned the path of the energy according to the circuits visible in his mind. He guided his Yang Qi to flow along her acupoints, intertwining it with her Yin Qi.
At first, the two energies repelled each other, but gradually, they merged into a single stream. As the heat and cold found harmony, the energy began to circulate through Seol Yerin’s body.
Sssssss—!
Thick steam filled the Young Palace Lord’s Hall. Beads of sweat formed on Hyeok Ryeon-yeom’s forehead. He placed his hand over her dantian and injected his Yang Qi even deeper.
As Yin and Yang unified, the ice crystals on her skin began to melt away. Simultaneously, a harmonious balance of Yin and Yang began to form within his own dantian as well.
Boom!
The Yang and Yin energies, now moving in unison, raced through his meridians. As the energy spread to every acupoint in his body—
Crackle—
His skin began to split. His meridians, which had always been dry from being filled with Yang Qi, were first frozen by the Extreme Yin Qi and then melted as the Extreme Yang Qi flowed through them again.
Amidst the agonizing pain that felt as if his meridians were snapping, regeneration occurred repeatedly. His weak bones and muscles creaked and groaned as they were reborn.
‘This is...’
Metamorphosis.
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom realized he was undergoing a Metamorphosis through the process of Yin-Yang Unity. The Yang Qi in his dantian burned even more intensely, reaching a perfect equilibrium with Seol Yerin’s Yin Qi.
When the balanced energy struck his Baihui Point, he entered a state of total self-transcendence.
How much time had passed?
His eyes snapped open.
He could see that Seol Yerin’s breathing had stabilized. Her skin, now free of ice, was as clear as white jade, and her entire body began to radiate a vibrant life force.
The joy of successfully treating her was short-lived, however. Soon, a revolting stench began to rise from his entire body.
*
Seol Yerin was lost in a deep darkness. Her consciousness was hazy, as if trapped inside a block of ice. At the moment her life force was flickering out due to the rampage of her Extreme Yin Qi, she had been ready to give up on everything.
But then, a warm heat enveloped her, dispelling the darkness.
‘What is this?’
Her consciousness drifted like a dream. She saw a vision of a scorching flame surrounding her.
It was Hyeok Ryeon-yeom. She instinctively felt that the man who was like a flame was right before her. Soon, his warm touch caressed her body, melting the cold ice.
‘Is this a dream?’
Even if her father had taken him in as a matrilocal son-in-law, wasn't this moving a bit too fast?
And yet...
Seol Yerin felt his warm breath and his intense gaze.
"Third Young Master..." she murmured his name unconsciously.
When the frigid chill tried to swallow her, the flame pulled her into an embrace. That warmth made her heart race.
"It will be alright," his voice reached her.
In her dream, she could see him smiling.
‘He’s... actually quite handsome.’
Thinking she could only say such things because it was a dream, her hand brushed against his cheek. To Seol Yerin, who had lived only within the cold ice, this man was a stranger who showed her emotions as warm as his touch.
In the dream, she took his hand. As their hands met, heat and cold intertwined. She wanted to remember this feeling forever.
Thump— Thump—
Then, her heart, which had been slowing to a cold stop, began to beat again. Warmth spread through her meridians to every corner of her body.
Seol Yerin opened her eyes to a warmth she had never experienced in her entire life.
*
The ice in the Young Palace Lord’s Hall had melted, and warm air filled the room. Hyeok Ryeon-yeom was catching his breath while holding Seol Yerin. His Yang Qi was circulating through her body, having completely brought the Extreme Yin Qi under control.
Seol Yerin’s eyelids fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes.
"Third Young Master?" her voice rang out weakly.
"You're awake."
Seol Yerin realized her body was no longer cold. The ice crystals were gone, and her skin was flushed with life. She looked at him with wide eyes. His upper body was exposed, covered in a startlingly vivid, mottled pattern.
"What in the..."
Her gaze quickly dropped lower.
"Ah?"
He was naked.
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom smiled and set her down. "I'm glad you're okay."
Seol Yerin’s mind went blank as she realized she didn't have a single stitch of clothing on either.
"W-W-What have you done to me!"
Squeeze—
Just then, she felt a sensation in her hand and looked down. Her hand, now free of frost, was warm and full of life.
"How...?"
"Ahem. It was Yin-Yang Unity," Hyeok Ryeon-yeom explained. "I harmonized your Extreme Yin Qi with my Extreme Yang Qi to stop the rampage. You should be fine for the time being."
"For the time being...?"
"Since our energies crave each other, it seems we'll need to periodically replenish each other's energy to fully cure the condition. For now, let's get dressed. I think washing up should be the priority, but we can't exactly move around like this."
The mention of washing up snapped her back to reality.
Sniff, sniff.
"Ugh."
A stench she had never smelled in her life was rising from her.
"Is this... coming from my body?"
"It's the same for me, so don't be too embarrassed."
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom handed her the clothes she had discarded. Seol Yerin decided to get dressed before thinking about anything else. After quickly tidying her appearance, she muttered, "So... that wasn't a dream?"
"What dream?"
She turned her head and saw his face. Today, for some reason, he looked even more handsome than before. Her head began to spin.
The bandits had attacked, and she had let her Yin Qi run wild upon hearing the news that he had been killed. She must have lost consciousness after that, and now she was here.
"How much... time has passed?"
"It's morning. We've spent our first night together."
"That's..."
They spent the night together? With a man she had only met yesterday?
"More importantly... it seems my father-in-law is about to burst in..."
The word 'father-in-law' struck her mind once more.
BAM!
At that moment, the doors to the hall swung open. In walked the Ice Palace Lord, Seol Baek-ho, along with the Chief Officer, Seol Su-hyeok. Behind them were Baek Mu-yong, Eun-bin, and Weizhi Young of the Little Snow Unit.
Seol Baek-ho’s eyes widened like saucers when he saw Seol Yerin sitting on the bed.
"Yerin!"
Seol Yerin stood up and looked at her father. "Father..."
Her voice was clear and strong. Unlike before, when she was filled with a deathly chill, her face was now full of vitality. Seeing his daughter looking so healthy, Seol Baek-ho’s eyes welled with tears.
"Are... are you alright?"
"Yes, I think I'm fine."
"Palace Lord, the Young Lady is..." Seol Su-hyeok was also speechless at the change in her.
"I'll wait outside." Baek Mu-yong, quickly assessing the situation, took control of the door.
"Young Master, are you alright? What on earth happened?" Weizhi Young asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom shrugged. "I just melted the ice."
Eun-bin, the bald deputy leader of the Little Snow Unit, stepped forward to examine her. "Young Lady, are you truly alright?"
Seol Yerin nodded. "Yes, I've recovered enough that you don't need to worry." She then looked toward Hyeok Ryeon-yeom. "It's all thanks to the Third Young Master."
Eun-bin fell silent.
"I stayed out because you told me to, but what exactly did you do to my daughter?" Seol Baek-ho, having confirmed his daughter was safe, hardened his expression again and barked at Hyeok Ryeon-yeom.
Then, Seol Baek-ho heard words he had never heard in his entire life.
"Father. I was able to recover like this thanks to my Gaga. Please don't be so hard on him."
"..."
The room fell into a heavy silence. Seol Baek-ho’s eyebrows twitched.
"Ga... Gaga?" [T/N:it is a affectionate term for "Husband" or "Darling"]
Hyeok Ryeon-yeom also turned to look at her, surprised by the sudden change in title. But he quickly assessed the situation and smiled.
"Well, since things have turned out this way, I look forward to your continued support, Father-in-law."
Seol Baek-ho, the Lord of the North Sea Ice Palace, clutched the back of his neck.