C 401
"It's difficult."
The physician shook his head as he looked at Hong Ye-seol's condition.
Hong Ye-seol's state was truly the worst.
She was already seriously injured, but her body had further deteriorated from using the emergency elixir.
She had to take the elixir and perform a qigong treatment, but moving recklessly turned the medicine into poison.
Hong Ye-seol's insides were severely damaged.
The physician who examined her was one of the best in the region, but even he threw his hands up when he saw her condition.
"To fix her damaged energy channels, you need a physician with far greater skill than mine."
"Is there such a physician in Kangho?"
"As far as I know..."
The physician trailed off.
In other words, there wasn't.
Pyo Wol looked down at Hong Ye-seol.
She was in terrible shape, barely clinging to life, and her condition was dangerously precarious.
The physician, noticing Pyo Wol's expression, cautiously took something out of his pocket and handed it over.
"What is this?"
"Poison."
"Poison?"
"Yes! It's an extract from the venom of the Black Flower Spider, a rare and a difficult-to-obtain ingredient. When her life is at stake, administer it in small doses. It will stimulate her innate energy."
"So you're suggesting using the principle of detoxification?"
"Correct. It temporarily activates her vital signs by stimulating her innate energy. However, there are limits to the innate energy a person is born with, so I recommend not using it unless it's a real emergency."
"Hmm!"
"This is the best I can do with my abilities. While she still has breath, either find a better physician than me or look for another way."
The physician bowed his head.
He was the most skilled physician in the area.
Although not divine, he had the skills worthy of being called a renowned physician.
The person who introduced him was none other than Noh Tae-tae of Je-won merchant group.
At her request, the most skilled physician in the area, who possessed unparalleled medical skills, had rushed to help. But even with his skills, healing Hong Ye-seol was impossible.
All he could do was provide a poison that stimulated her innate energy.
Pyo Wol carefully put the Black Flower Spider's venom in his pocket.
The physician bowed to Pyo Wol and left the room.
Pyo Wol silently looked at Hong Ye-seol.
At that moment, Hong Ye-seol's eyebrows trembled, and she opened her eyes.
For a moment, she blinked as if her vision was blurry, and then she smiled softly.
"I'm still here."
"Did you think you wouldn't be?"
"Yes! I thought you'd leave me behind."
"..."
"Hehe! I'm just kidding."
Hong Ye-seol smiled as if she found something amusing, but soon her expression turned into one of pain.
It took a while for her pain to subside.
Finally, her expression relaxed.
"Phew! This pain is truly extraordinary. I've endured a lot, but this is something else."
"You pushed yourself too hard. If you hadn't taken the emergency elixir, you wouldn't have been this damaged."
"I had no choice at the time. The only regret I have is not being able to plunge my blade deep into her neck."
Hong Ye-seol gritted her teeth, thinking of Namgung Seol.
"Do that when your body recovers."
"Of course, I will."
Hong Ye-seol nodded.
Even though her eyes were closed, she had heard the physician's words.
Regardless of the physician's words, she knew her own condition better than anyone else. It was truly the worst situation. But Hong Ye-seol did not despair.
She had lived her entire life as an assassin.
Pain and despair were familiar to her.
Giving up because of this was something she couldn't accept.
Pyo Wol said,
"I heard there's a divine physician nearby."
"A divine physician?"
"Yes! I don't know how skilled he is, but the disciple of the Martial Sword Alliance’s master called him that."
"Ah... Master Yoo Soo-hwan. If he calls someone a divine physician, they must be genuine."
"I think so too."
"There might be a chance for my body to recover if we find him."
"It's certainly better than waiting for death here."
"Then let's get moving."
"Moving in your condition will be extremely painful."
"Haha! Why do you say that? I'm not new to Kangho. I'm an assassin. Pain is as familiar to me as breathing."
Hong Ye-seol forced herself to sit up.
Just moving her upper body caused her breath to catch, and sweat poured out like rain.
It was painful to watch.
But Pyo Wol didn't intervene, just watching Hong Ye-seol.
He knew that an assassin with her skills would find it extremely shameful to accept help from others.
"Ugh!"
Eventually, Hong Ye-seol stood up with her own strength.
She leaned against the wall, panting heavily.
This was her first time experiencing such pain. Even during her training to become an assassin, she had never suffered this much. Still, she gritted her teeth and endured it.
She was fueled by her desire for revenge against Namgung Seol and Lee Geom-han. As she thought of their faces, the pain somewhat subsided.
"Phew!"
Finally, she exhaled the breath she had been holding.
Pyo Wol spoke indifferently.
"Let's go now. We have to hurry if we want to find the one called the divine physician before he leaves."
"Alright."
Hong Ye-seol nodded and followed Pyo Wol.
As they stepped outside, they saw an old woman with so many wrinkles on her face that it was impossible to guess her age.
It was Noh Tae-tae, the owner of Je-won merchant group.
Beside her, Jo Seolpung supported her.
Noh Tae-tae asked, "I heard from the doctor. Considering her condition, wouldn't it be better for her to stay here?"
"I know someone who can cure her. We have to find him."
"Then it's really fortunate."
"Thank you for your help!"
"Hehe! It's embarrassing to hear such words from the Reaper."
"Let's go!"
"Be careful on your way."
Noh Tae-tae said with a smile.
Pyo Wol stared at Noh Tae-tae's face for a long time.
She was very old, and it wouldn't be strange for her to pass away at any moment.
There was a high probability that they wouldn't see each other again if they parted this way.
"I hope we meet again."
"Hehe! If the heavens keep this old lady alive until then, it'll be possible. Everything depends on the will of the heavens."
Noh Tae-tae laughed innocently.
Pyo Wol nodded and looked at Jo Seolpung standing beside Noh Tae-tae.
"Take care until we meet again."
"Will you return to the Poyang Lake?"
"Sometime."
"Please stop by."
"I will."
"Then..."
Jo Seolpung hugged Pyo Wol.
Pyo Wol hugged him back and then went outside.
Outside, his horse was waiting. A small cart was attached to the horse.
Pyo Wol placed Hong Ye-seol on the cart and drove the horse.
Noh Tae-tae and Jo Seolpung watched Pyo Wol's retreating figure for a long time.
Finally, when Pyo Wol disappeared from sight, Noh Tae-tae opened her mouth.
"Seol-pung!"
"Yes, great-grandmother."
"Leave Je-won merchant group. From now on, we’ll will treat you as if you don't exist."
"Understood."
Despite the unexpected words, Jo Seolpung replied without any signs of panic.
Noh Tae-tae continued, looking in the direction where Pyo Wol disappeared.
"Now that he's gone, both Golden heavenly hall and the Silver Lotus Hall will start moving in earnest. A bloody storm will blow on the shores of Poyang Lake. To protect Je-won merchant group from the bloody storm, we must close and lock the door."
People around Poyang Lake perceived Pyo Wol as a kind of disaster. That's why even Jang Ho-yeon chose to provoke Gwan Mu-su to deal with Pyo Wol instead of facing him directly.
The same was true for Silver Lotus Hall's leader, Yong Ha-sang, who was also uncomfortable with Pyo Wol. Because of this, he couldn't move Silver Lotus Hall properly while watching Pyo Wol's every move.
Now that Pyo Wol, who had been suppressing them, was gone, it was obvious how they would act.
The problem was Jo Seolpung's connection with the silver heavenly hall.
It was a choice for the future of the Je-won merchant group by Jo Seolpung, but his choice could potentially bring about the downfall of Je-won merchant group if mishandled.
"I've entrusted 100,000 gold in your name to the Silver Lily Pavilion, which should be enough to fulfill your wishes."
"Thank you for your consideration, great-grandmother!"
"That's all this old woman can do for you."
"That's more than enough."
"I hope you can fulfill your ambitions under the heavens."
"Thank you."
Noh Tae-tae tightly held Jo Seolpung's hand.
Jo Seolpung closed his eyes, feeling the warmth of Noh Tae-tae for the last time.
"He's gone, Chief."
Deung Cheol-woong frowned at the sight of his subordinate running towards him in a hurry.
"What do you mean, gone?"
"That man, the Reaper!"
"Reaper? Pyo Wol?"
"Yes! He left Poyang Lake."
"Is that true?"
Deung Cheol-woong unknowingly raised his voice and stood up from his seat.
His fierce energy made the nearby martial artists of Blood Ant Chamber flinch.
"I saw it with my own eyes. I saw him clearly leaving the Je-won-sang merchant group and going somewhere."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! I followed him and saw him definitely leaving Poyang Lake before returning."
"Is he really gone from Poyang Lake?"
Deung Cheol-woong stroked his chin with his hand.
His lips involuntarily opened, revealing yellow teeth.
Unknowingly, a laugh escaped him.
"Hehe! If that inhuman creature left Poyang Lake, isn't this the perfect opportunity?"
Just having Pyo Wol at Poyang Lake made it difficult to even breathe. The fear that he might come for him at any moment shrank him.
And it wasn't just Deung Cheol-woong.
Many martial artists and sects around Poyang Lake were keeping an eye on Pyo Wol's
movements. Now that Pyo Wol was gone, they could finally move without fear, and it was clear that a power struggle would ensue.
In a situation where many people felt fear for a single individual, it seemed ridiculous at first glance, but if they were in their shoes, no one would be able to laugh.
"Immediately gather all the kids."
"Yes? Why the kids?"
"Keep a close watch on Silver Lotus Hall's movements. The order will be given after I return
from the celestial place."
"Understood."
The celestial place was a large estate located south of Poyang Lake.
Currently, those staying at the celestial place were Jang Ho-yeon and martial artists from the
Rain Mountain Manor, as well as support troops from Golden Heavenly Hall's.
The scale was such that it could be considered a small martial arts alliance.
Deung Cheol-woong visited the celestial place with a few close subordinates.
He looked around the inside of the celestial place.
'The number of troops has increased since then.'
The number of troops staying in the celestial place seemed to have doubled since his last visit.
With this much power, they could sweep away Silver Lotus Hall in a single breath. As long as there were no special variables.
"What's that?"
"What's the high-ranking lackey doing here?"
The martial artists murmured after seeing Deung Cheol-woong's solemn face.
For a moment, Deung Cheol-woong's face twisted with shame.
'Darn it! They're all ignoring me. We'll see if they can still laugh at me after I become the ruler of Poyang Lake.'
Deung Cheol-woong moved his steps, carefully concealing his inner thoughts.
It wasn't difficult to meet Jang Ho-yeon.
The problem was that there was a woman he hadn't seen before next to Jang Ho-yeon.
The beautiful woman with a subtle blue aura in her eyes, like a mixed-blood, was Eom Soso.
Eom So-so and the Sea Squad had followed Yoo Soo-hwan's trail to Poyang Lake and learned that Jang Ho-yeon and the martial artists of Golden heavenly hall were staying at the celestial place.
As Golden Heavenly Hall's affairs were soon to be those of Dokgo Hwang, they came to the celestial place.
Jang Ho-yeon, who had been conversing with Eom Soso for a while, looked at Deung Cheol-woong.
"What is it?"
"I have urgent news to report."
"What is it?"
"Pyo Wol has left Poyang Lake."
"Is that true?"
"Yes! My subordinate personally confirmed it."
"What about the Silver Lotus Hall's movements?"
"We're in the process of figuring that out."
"Ho! Is that so?"
"This is a golden opportunity that won't come again. Hehe!"
Deung Cheol-woong laughed sinisterly.
A few days later, the Golden heavenly hall and the Silver Lotus Hall clashed at the Poyang Lake.