Chapter 563
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 563
Chapter Title: It Might Hurt a Little
Guan Po wandered aimlessly through the streets.
The people on the road slunk away at the sight of him.
They had a rough idea of who he was.
Guan Po, lord of Sangnam's Opium Den.
He was something of a celebrity among the common folk.
Ha Mu-baek had said he'd purge the opium qi from him once he holed up somewhere suitable.
But...
He had no clue where that might be.
With Seon-gyu fleeing in terror, the Black Face Gang might as well have vanished.
He'd abandoned the Opium Den too.
So he had nowhere to go.
"Ridiculous."
He muttered under his breath.
With the Black Face Gang gone, he had no place in Sangnam, where he'd spent years.
In the end, he just kept walking until an inn caught his eye first, and he stepped inside.
The area around the southern street where the Opium Den had been never had an inn before, but it seemed a new one had opened recently.
The sign read "Travelers' Inn."
"Welcome!"
As he pushed open the door, a youthful voice rang out brightly.
Thinking the errand boy was full of energy, Guan Po scanned the room for a seat.
Then he froze.
His eyes fell on an old man.
'Plum Blossom Sword Sage...'
What the hell was that old man doing here...?
After what he'd done, he couldn't face the man comfortably.
The old guy had come looking for the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall that he'd bullied.
And on top of that, he was an absolute master who'd reached a transcendent realm beyond what Guan Po could even fathom.
Gyu Hwi seemed slightly startled by Guan Po's sudden appearance too.
At that moment.
"What are you doing here?"
A voice called down from the upper floor. Looking up, Guan Po saw Ha Mu-baek staring at him in disbelief.
A little ways east of Sangnam lay the border between Shaanxi and Henan Provinces.
One day beyond that border was a small village called Uhyang.
The reason Sangnam had grown so large was that there were no major cities in the Henan region to its east.
Travelers heading for a big city would hurry through Henan and straight to Sangnam, making the city swell even more.
On the outskirts of Uhyang Village.
In a rundown shack.
This was where the retainers of the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall had gathered.
They'd fled Sangnam in haste and settled in this abandoned shack without its owner.
After five more days here, if neither Pung Geon nor Gwan Ha-gyeong returned, they'd have to flee even farther.
Yu Gwi-gwang patrolled the area around the shack again today.
Tormented by doubts over whether this was the right choice.
It would be a blessing if both came back.
But what if one or both had met with misfortune?
Yu Gwi-gwang might never live properly again from that day on.
Those two were mere visitors who'd come to the hall just to meet him.
They had no ties to the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall, yet they'd stayed to protect it while the hall's own retainers fled.
It was utterly absurd.
"Brother..."
Yu Hyeon-gwang came looking for him.
"Yeah?"
"It's time to eat. Come inside."
"Not hungry."
Yu Gwi-gwang replied curtly.
It wasn't much of a meal anyway.
Just porridge made from jerky and dry rations.
They could eat at the village's one inn, but to prepare for any contingencies, they were holing up in the shack.
"Do it for Seon-a. Eat with her. The poor girl's terrified."
His brother's words made Yu Gwi-gwang flinch.
His daughter.
The child who'd given him hope to survive the hell of Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
He couldn't just keep wandering if she was scared and suffering.
"I'll come in shortly."
"Alright."
Yu Hyeon-gwang headed back to the shack after hearing his brother's reply.
He wasn't at ease either.
His brother had returned safely, and it seemed the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall might get back on track.
Then this mess had happened.
What was so special about their hall that a massive sect like Maehyang Gate coveted it?
The world was a harsh, unforgiving place.
"Hoo."
A sigh escaped Yu Gwi-gwang's lips.
He couldn't stomach even a spoonful thinking of his comrades, but for his frightened daughter, he had to force it down.
Yu Gwi-gwang gazed west.
"Please, let them be safe..."
He murmured softly, then turned to head back.
Forcing himself to eat.
Just as he took a step.
He sensed someone approaching fast.
Whipping his head around.
A familiar face was sprinting toward him full-tilt.
Pung Geon.
His expression suggested things hadn't gone south.
There wasn't a shadow of worry on his face.
Just urgency to deliver news.
"Gwi-gwang!"
Pung Geon shouted upon spotting him.
Yu Gwi-gwang kicked off the ground and ran to meet him.
"You're safe! Thank goodness!"
The two stood face-to-face.
Yu Gwi-gwang's eyes turned red.
Pung Geon chuckled at the sight.
It was a face he rarely showed even in Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
Cold-Faced Guest.
That was the nickname his comrades had given Yu Gwi-gwang for his perpetual stoic, icy expression.
"Never knew you had a soft side."
"What about Gwan Ha-gyeong?"
Since Pung Geon had come alone, he asked after her first.
"She's guarding the hall. It's all over."
"Over?"
"Yeah. It turned out fine. Not just the Black Face Gang—Maehyang Gate won't touch the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall ever again. Hell, those two might not even survive."
Mystifying words.
Resolving it peacefully was miracle enough, but Maehyang Gate worrying about survival?
What the hell had happened?
He had a ton of questions, but seeing his comrade and friend who'd raced from Sangnam to Uhyang...
"Come on in and eat first."
He led him to the shack.
With Pung Geon's arrival and news they could return to the hall, the retainers' mood warmed.
Even Yu Seon-a, who'd been clinging fearfully to her mother, smiled again.
Pung Geon watched warmly as he ate the porridge Yu Gwi-gwang offered.
Dinner ended that way.
As darkness settled over the land.
Yu Gwi-gwang and Pung Geon stepped out of the shack and moved beyond Uhyang Village.
"What happened?"
Pung Geon had only shared the essentials with the retainers.
That was all they needed to know, really.
But not Yu Gwi-gwang.
He wanted the full process and details.
Pung Geon slowly recounted everything.
Yu Gwi-gwang could hardly believe it when he heard it all.
"What does our hall even have..."
A sword sage from Huashan Sect visits, his master's master's master aids Maehyang Gate.
Demonic qi flows, people die.
What was what?
"Why did the Sword Sage help us?"
Un Se-hyeok had sided with Maehyang Gate, a branch of Huashan, claiming it was Huasan's will.
Yet the Plum Blossom Sword Sage had defied that and fought for the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall.
Of course, the one who'd wrapped it all up was Corps Leader Ha Mu-baek, a monster in his own right.
Pung Geon shrugged.
He'd rushed off to find Yu Gwi-gwang without hearing the full story himself.
"We'll find out when we get back."
Yu Gwi-gwang nodded at Pung Geon's words.
At least he was a guest who'd come with goodwill toward the hall.
Yu Gwi-gwang faced Pung Geon.
He clasped his hands in salute and bowed deeply.
"Truly, thank you. So much. For risking your life for our unrelated hall. How can I ever repay this debt..."
Now that he knew everything, he had no choice.
If Ha Mu-baek hadn't come...
The Flowing Cloud Martial Hall would have been done for.
Even with peak-level Pung Geon and Gwan Ha-gyeong defending it, a transcendent master had sided with Maehyang Gate.
Pung Geon smiled and straightened Yu Gwi-gwang's body.
"I didn't do it. Corps Leader Ha did."
"Without you and Gwan Ha-gyeong, he wouldn't have been there either. Thank you. Truly."
At Yu Gwi-gwang's repeated thanks, Pung Geon turned away, face flushing.
"Hoo."
Gwan Ha-gyeong was busy.
She was fixing up the Flowing Cloud Martial Hall's damages from the battle.
Only what she could manage, leaving the rest.
She wanted to present the owner with as clean a sight as possible upon his return.
No matter how peacefully it ended, seeing their home in ruins wouldn't sit well.
Fortunately, after Ha Mu-baek arrived, nothing had been too badly damaged.
His clash of energies hadn't spread far.
"This should do it."
She'd done everything she could.
It had taken two full days.
The rest needed professional work.
Beyond what Gwan Ha-gyeong, unfamiliar with Sangnam, could handle.
Standing in the center of the training ground, she checked the surroundings once more and nodded.
It looked pretty tidy now.
"Still can't believe it..."
Standing there brought that day back to mind.
The insane battle.
Ha Mu-baek's monstrous strength had actually been even more terrifying in Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest.
He'd unleashed greater power sweeping away those dreadful jiangshi.
But witnessing a battle beyond the transcendent realm this close was a first.
That made this fight hit harder for her.
"Was it like this?"
Before she knew it, Gwan Ha-gyeong had drawn her sword.
Recalling what she'd seen, she began replaying it.
Her body moved on instinct.
The clash of phenomenal sword arts was tough to mimic even roughly from memory.
But Gwan Ha-gyeong focused.
She swung her sword, pondering each movement's meaning.
And what trajectory Heaven-Severing Demon-Slaying Blade would choose.
In an instant, she sank into a trance.
"Hmm..."
Ha Mu-baek watched her quietly from atop the hall's wall.
"Can't interrupt that. Let's go elsewhere."
He hopped down from the wall and spoke to Guan Po, who was watching him.
"The abandoned official shrine to the north should be quiet."
He'd come out to find a spot to extract the opium qi from Guan Po's body.
Ha Mu-baek didn't know any places, so he'd thought to borrow a corner of the hall, but with Gwan Ha-gyeong in trance...
They needed somewhere else.
"Official shrine? Won't there be Beggars' Sect folks?"
He could sense Beggars' Sect members to the north right away.
"Oh, go a bit further north from there—there's a small, rundown one they don't use."
"Let's go there."
The two arrived at the official shrine even the Beggars' Sect ignored.
"Sit."
At Ha Mu-baek's word, Guan Po assumed a cross-legged position.
Ha Mu-baek placed his palm on Guan Po's Mingmen acupoint.
"It might hurt a little."
A short warning.
Before Guan Po could brace himself.
Whoosh.
Ha Mu-baek's energy surged like a flood, sweeping through Guan Po's meridians and blood vessels.
"Guh... kuh... ack..."
The sudden overwhelming agony left Guan Po unable to even scream.
His eyes bulged, body trembling violently.
He never imagined pain like this existed.
And this was just "a little"?
Insane.
His dantian crippled by demonic arts, the seal to protect it, the ensuing torment.
He'd thought that was the worst pain in the world.
That's why he'd drowned it in opium.
And figured he'd built some tolerance to pain.
No.
Each time Ha Mu-baek's energy rushed his meridians, it felt like they were ripping and bursting.
Yet strangely, they didn't actually tear or explode.
Ha Mu-baek's internal energy had split into two streams—one shielding the meridians, the other scouring them.
But Guan Po had no room to think that far.
Since they held without breaking, the pain was all the worse.
"Won't take long. Just endure it a bit."
Ha Mu-baek said calmly, nonchalantly.