Chapter 15
Translator: penny
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Unexpected Surge
Morning sunlight filtered through the paper window.
Warmed by its gentle glow, Somwol opened her eyes as usual and tried to sit up.
Or rather, she tried to.
"Ugh."
But a sharp pain in her lower abdomen made her pause midway, bending her head to check her body.
Her usual sleepwear was gone, leaving her stark naked in pristine white skin.
And traces of last night's passion scattered across it.
Only then did Somwol recall what had happened before she fell asleep.
The vile blackmail and the forced intimacy.
And her inner energy being drained...
Remembering up to that point, she abruptly shot upright.
A stinging pain shot through her lower abdomen, but that hardly mattered now.
'My inner energy...!'
Without a thought for dressing, Somwol immediately assumed a meditative posture.
She examined her body and...
'...It's increased?'
She could only panic at the inexplicable situation.
She had clearly been on the receiving end of yin essence extraction, certain all her inner energy had been stolen... yet it had grown instead.
By a massive amount.
'Double...? No, triple?!'
Her shock was so intense she nearly disrupted her qi flow.
No one would believe deviation into madness stemmed from a sudden surge in inner energy.
But she was genuinely that stunned.
'Why...?'
She barely completed her breathing exercise and opened her eyes.
In her vision appeared a man.
Snore— pffft—
A man sleeping naked, scratching his belly.
And below it, that enormous manhood.
Unbidden, her gaze was drawn there before she startled and whipped her head away.
That wasn't important right now.
The most crucial thing was the unknown energies now settled in her dantian.
Pure, refined qi that had already converted to inner energy without further meditation.
An effect no ordinary spirit pill could match.
'Even a Shaolin Great Reversion Pill wouldn't yield this much...'
As a Brothel Hall candidate, Somwol had consumed her share of elixirs.
The inner energy she possessed until yesterday had been built that way.
Yet overnight, more than double that amount had taken root in her dantian.
No matter how hard Somwol pondered, she couldn't fathom it.
Should she wake Mok Jimyeong and ask...?
Snore— pffft—
Seeing him snore in deep slumber, she hesitated.
Sleep habits utterly at odds with his handsome face.
And that massive manhood...
Gulp—
Recalling last night, Somwol unconsciously swallowed.
The waves of pleasure she'd felt for the first time in her life.
In that moment, she'd even thought losing her inner energy wouldn't matter.
'That thing inside me...'
Unthinkingly, Somwol's hand drifted toward her privates.
She jolted at the slick sensation on her fingertips.
'Somwol, what are you doing!'
This was no time for that.
First... she needed to wash up.
While cleaning herself in the bathroom, she sorted her thoughts.
'My inner energy has increased.'
With this much... she might truly become the Shadow Gate Sect Leader.
Somwol had been sold by her parents for a handful of grain as a child.
The Brothel Hall of the Shadow Gate Sect had taken her in.
But the Brothel Hall's standing within the Shadow Gate Sect was poor.
The Shadow Gate Sect, a gathering of the lowly.
Among them, the Brothel Hall was the most despised branch.
Inevitably so, since other branches like the Pawnbroker Hall or Cart Hall didn't discriminate by gender.
Men vastly outnumbered women, but women did exist.
Yet the Brothel Hall consisted solely of courtesans—all women.
The women of other branches scorned them as easy whores while they toiled, and men dismissed them as purchasable with coin.
Even the courtesans dreamed of saving enough to marry an upright man and erase their past, placing the Brothel Hall at the very bottom of the lowly.
Somwol already owed the Brothel Hall a great debt.
Through her efforts, she'd improbably become a candidate.
But that was the end of it.
Two years into the five-year competition.
Somwol ranked dead last.
She'd half-given up...
'Can I repay that debt...?'
Now, becoming sect leader seemed possible.
In his dream, amid a debauched romp with beauties,
Ding-ding— ting—
A sweet zither melody drifted in.
As awareness returned, sunlight through the paper window greeted him.
'Mm... this kind of morning feels pretty nice too.'
In a pleasure quarter devoid of windows, lit only by red lanterns.
Waking there felt entirely different.
Unlike the sticky dimness, this carried a bright vibe.
Even the current melody did.
A zither tune infused with joy.
Somwol's emotions rang clear as she played.
'Is the inner energy boost that thrilling?'
Chuckling, he watched her play.
Somwol, dressed prettily and made up.
She'd dolled up so much she looked even more beautiful than when greeting him yesterday.
'A woman like that last night...'
Recalling it, blood rushed to his manhood.
He made no move to cover up, simply lying there enjoying her performance.
The tune, progressing beautifully, suddenly cut off.
"You're awake, Benefactor."
Benefactor?
He burst into laughter at the absurd address.
"Yesterday you called me Lecherous Demon, now Benefactor?"
"...I was mistaken then."
"What mistake? Thought I was draining your yin essence?"
Huff— He sat up.
The sun was high; he couldn't lounge forever.
As he rose naked, Somwol averted her eyes.
Though he felt her sidelong glances.
"Curious? Just look then."
Only then did she fully turn away.
Her ears flushed faintly red.
"No, Benefactor. But... do you know what happened?"
The abrupt question—he grasped its meaning instantly.
She meant her boosted inner energy.
"Nothing special. Just my martial art."
She whipped around in shock.
"Martial art...! Is that truly possible...?"
He shrugged at her.
"You experienced it yourself—possible or not."
"...May I know its name?"
That much, sure.
"Bliss—"
But saying it, he hesitated.
'Blissful Creation Art... sounds off now.'
He planned a righteous path now; "blissful lust" felt wrong.
He tweaked it.
"Harmony Art. It's called the Harmony Art."
"Harmony Art... I see..."
She nodded as if convinced.
Then cautiously asked,
"Could... a woman learn it too?"
Even as she spoke, she shyly looked away.
A roundabout way of expressing her desire.
But this required firm refusal.
"No."
He had countless supreme techniques from his Lecherous Demon days.
He could teach her any she wanted.
'Not like I'm short on martial arts.'
However.
Not the Blissful Creation Art.
It required shared passion with a desired partner to gain inner energy.
Somwol learning it and bedding other men?
'Absolutely not.'
Nor would he teach other men.
What if they touched his woman?
This had to remain his unique art.
Somwol's face fell slightly.
But she nodded as if expecting it.
"Of course. A woman wielding such an art? Unthinkable."
Whatever misunderstanding, correcting it seemed tedious.
As he considered washing up, a nagging curiosity surfaced, prompting him to call her.
"Hey, let me ask something."
"What piques Benefactor's curiosity?"
"What's your deal?"
"My deal...?"
"I know you're Shadow Gate Sect. But your status? Even the lounge master couldn't touch you."
Somwol fell silent at his words.
Soon, composing herself, she spoke carefully.
"You've likely guessed, Benefactor, so I'll tell you."
Her tale proved intriguing.
The Shadow Gate Sect's structure and sect leader selection.
The candidate role and her past.
"...So, thanks to you, Benefactor, I can repay the Brothel Hall."
"Repay a debt... that's vital."
Not his usual line—he who repaid grudges promptly but favors grudgingly—but now it mattered deeply.
"Yes. I..."
"Hold on. My turn. You're calling me Benefactor."
"Yes, Benefactor?"
"Means I did you a favor, right?"
She hesitated, sensing something off.
But nodded in agreement.
"...Yes."
"Then you owe me a favor too?"
Understanding dawned; her fine brows furrowed.
But spilled water couldn't be gathered.
Somwol sighed softly and asked,
"...Yes. How shall this girl repay Benefactor's grace?"
How to repay?
With her body, obviously.
"Strip."
Looks like washing up would wait a bit.