Chapter 141

There hasn’t been a disaster like this before.

To think that my disciple would be the Heavenly Demon!

Isn’t it the infamous scourge who invaded the Central Plain four times, turning the entire world into a funeral home?

It might be better to just enroll him into the Divine Maiden Sect.

I should take him to Elder Taesang at the Divine Maiden Peak and make him read scriptures until he dies of old age.

Seomun Sulin seriously contemplated this.

What a foolish disciple, harboring the world’s calamity; his lack of virtue is my lack of virtue, and it’s all due to having such a useless master, living my life while holding onto him.

“You dim-witted girl. You only have to take care of yourself and get away, so why on earth did you take on such an ugly burden? Do you think the Demon Sect will let you go now?”

“But if I just leave, the Demon Sect will swarm in again…”

“What? Are you actually considering sacrificing yourself for the peace of the world?”

“I never thought it would turn out like this. And besides, this war will affect the members of the Divine Maiden Sect too…”

How could Seomun Sulin get even angrier in front of her disciple saying that?

With a long sigh, Seomun Sulin thought: It seems my desire to hold onto her is selfish after all.

Having her around brings me joy as her master, making me try to justify keeping her close.

“So, after overpowering the Heavenly Demon Soul, you headed for Sichuan, huh? But what’s this about a revolt? Who is this scoundrel who offended my disciple?”

“Ah, it was the Golden Guard Commander! Some high-ranking fellow like that, but my disciple has already encountered misfortune, you see? And he was some… Blood Sect demon, I think.”

Seomun Sulin frowned deeply.

Every time she opened her mouth, heavy things seemed to pop out.

Commander generally refers to the military organization of the government, so saying the Golden Guard Commander means he must be at a high command level, yet he performed a human sacrifice for the Blood Sect—what nonsense is that?

Just mentioning it could be a major treason.

“I should start telling you what happened when my disciple arrived in Sichuan. She came looking for some hot pot, ah, The Greatest Chef of the World is in Sichuan, right, that’s what they say! It’s not really the Greatest Chef of the World, but the Greatest Chef of Sichuan because Sichuan dishes are the best, so it’s the Greatest Chef of the World. Anyway, the ultimate hot pot is, oh, in the end, I couldn’t eat it. Master, do you like hot pot?”

“…? I’m not into the greasy macho food. Just skip the hot pot.”

“Ah, anyway, those Odukmun guys. Uh, what were they again? Just bad timing, I guess?”

Since Odukmun had aligned poorly with their allies, they were about to face a nasty attack from the King’s gang and the Tang family’s revenge seekers soon.

Qing didn’t care, nor did she want to know, so she just glossed over it.

“…So when I woke up, it was all over.”

“Right. You kept your loyalty until the end, but you didn’t dig in too deep, so I’d say your handling of the situation was quite admirable. I just wish you hadn’t gotten hurt.”

“Oh, right! Master, check this out, the cross carvings are quite rugged and wild, huh!”

Smack!!

Qing, daring to expose her unnecessary large bosom in front of her master, rolled on the ground.

“You’ve really earned a beating.”

“No, it seriously hurts…”

“You only say it hurts, but your resilience is growing. In this world, I doubt even the head of Hyun-cheol is harder than your disciple’s head.”

This time, she was serious.

She had learned about the mystical training, but she never imagined it would come to shape Hyun-cheol’s head.

When Seomun Sulin intended to leave a scar on her chest as a lifelong lesson, she changed her mind.

Some lessons can reach certain people.

This deficient girl, even with a grotesque scar on her chest, only flaunting her wildness by laughing and smiling.

It would only leave a mark for others to gossip about rather than act as a lesson.

“Let’s return home first. The news has spread, and our disciples are worried.”

Listening to this, it seemed staying at the Tang family would bring no benefits.

Related to the royal entanglements, it might be better to leave the world for a while until the name settles down somewhat.

Qing rolled her eyes and softly replied.

“Uh, but I need to wait for Uncle Ho…”

“Leave that old man here, and later on, set up a home in Jagwi. Even if he’s just a servant, it won’t work to keep him within the clan anyway.”

Jagwi is the name of a city near the Divine Maiden Sect.

The Divine Maiden Sect has been a place of inviolable sanctuary for years.

At least since the Great Master Mucheondae’s time, prior to which there had been some incidents involving the immoral royal family invading.

The Taoist deity enshrined in the Taoist Temple was the daughter of the Flame Emperor and the emperor’s lover, so they let that go, but after the bureaucratic power had waned, they never permitted it again.

This meant such an occurrence had never happened in Seomun Sulin’s life.

“Uh, about treating the scars, ah, that doesn’t really matter.”

“Scars can be treated with medicine. The Tang family’s medicinal pavilions are quite renowned for their effectiveness.”

“Oh? All I need is the medicine?”

“Then? Do you really want to mess with a painful scar just to play with it?”

“Surely, the treatment involved some sort of massage, right…?”

“Massage only works on muscles, tendons, and bones, it won’t do anything for flesh. With your already clumsy size, don’t you dare touch it. It’s just going to get bigger.”

Qing narrowed her eyes.

Tang Nan-ah was a truly dreadful person.

Shouldn’t we revoke her physician’s license?

Of course, there was no such thing as a license in the Central Plain, and the uncivilized Central Plain didn’t recognize female physicians, making her just an unqualified physician named Uncle Ho.

Knock, knock.

As the saying goes, when you mention a tiger, one appears. Just as Tang Nan-ah knocked on the door, she showed up.

“Lunch is ready. Would the esteemed elder like to grace us with your presence?”

Tang Nan-ah fidgeted nervously, inviting them to eat while her sparkling eyes kept glancing at Seomun Sulin.

How could she not be nervous? Elder Seomun Sulin was the idol of all female martial artists.

Can you imagine meeting the best female martial artist? Who wouldn’t be flustered and excited?

Qing pointed at her with a grin.

“Hey, you. Is it okay for a physician to deceive their patients?”

“Huh? Who’s deceiving? Me?”

“Yeah, you.”

But this accusation was unfair to Tang Nan-ah.

Even if her motives were not pure, she performed medical procedures rather diligently, making sure internal structures didn’t misalign after a serious cut.

She would even sweat profusely, utilizing her inner strength to exhaust her energy while treating them.

Seomun Sulin wasn’t an actual physician either, so her methods consisted of merely stitching wounds when they opened, taping fractures, and cleaning bleeding or applying ointments.

She didn’t know proper medical practices at all.

“…Sorry, I didn’t know.”

“Hmph. My bad for being an amateur then.”

“I’m truly sorry.”

“Oh? If you’re sorry then, um, later you have to do me a favor. You owe me a favor proportional to your apology.”

Not just a few but asking for a favor proportional to an apology; what a cruel form of manipulation.

Qing argued back, “That’s no way to go about it.” Still, Tang Nan-ah, having shifted her stance, gently spoke to Seomun Sulin.

“Elder Seomun, there’s a girl named Qing here. May I allow her to stay at the Divine Maiden Sect to tend to her wounds?”

“If you can manage that, I’d appreciate it.”

Seomun Sulin looked around the splendid guest hall.

In the Divine Maiden Sect, which practiced frugality, the only place they didn’t skimp on was the meals.

“Our lives here will likely be quite austere, are you okay with that?”

“Of course! That would be wonderful! Thank you!”

Tang Nan-ah, even without being a disciple’s friend, would surely be viewed positively by Seomun Sulin.

This was true since there were hardly any female physicians in the martial world, and women hesitated to seek treatment for even trivial ailments.

Rumor had it that she was a spoiled and petulant child, although she thought the gossip was untrustworthy.

—-

After receiving lunch, Seomun Sulin quickly packed her bags and left the Tang family.

Only then did she turn her gaze towards Choi Riyong.

Choi Riyong couldn’t meet her gaze and only stared at the ground.

Being young, inexperienced, and even insignificant compared to Qing, he simply waited to face his fate.

Seomun Sulin caught onto the anxiety he was trying to hide.

If he was known as a devilish figure, a notorious patrolman of the Demon Sect, he seemed aware of his shameful past.

Though to have thrown away a lifetime of hard work, imagining what kind of feeling that might evoke was beyond comprehension.

Seeing that her disciple had taken his side, perhaps she had been a bit biased in her interpretation, but if he conferred some divine skill, those sentiments of laborious efforts wasted should have been all but forgotten by now.

With a deep sigh, Seomun Sulin finally spoke.

“My disciple, while lacking, finds herself in the martial world, like a child left unattended by the river. It doesn’t rest easy on my heart. At times like this, could you tend to her?”

“…Yes. Thank you, Senior.”

“Hmph.”

Having given birth to such a hopeless disciple, being called ‘Senior’ by the Great Demon Lord was downright absurd.

Yet, it wasn’t that hard to bear knowing that a master of the Realm of Transformation was looking out for her disciple.

Preparing for the journey was going to be a wild ride.

Maybe it was a trial to reject her innate killing nature so she couldn’t be forcibly restrained.

The Prince Deokhyeon, loitering in the royal yard, grinned slyly at Yeon Pa.

“Hmm, isn’t it alright to see her off?”

“Wang Ya, it’s best to be inconspicuous. She may look like the former wild lady who used to be called the radiant canine, but can you imagine Elder Taesang of the Divine Maiden Sect, blessed with her surname, watching her disciple enter another household?”

“Nobody is saying I’m entering. I simply wanted to see off a friend.”

“Oh, Wang Ya, you must know when to practice restraint. Who’s to say that after the big event, you won’t go asking the son-in-law for forgiveness?”

Yeon Pa said with a grin, giving off an amused elder vibe.

“No, not a son-in-law. I am not like that.”

“Are you not? Didn’t you go ask the elder about blending politics and the martial world?”

“Well, for the greater good…”

Prince Deokhyeon’s face flushed red as he defended himself.

Yeon Pa, having caught on to something good, teased with delight like a grandparent playing with a grandchild.

“The greater good is all well and good. This old woman appreciates the greater good, and selfishness as well. I’ve lived long, so if Wang Ya finds it good, then it’s also good for me. Hahaha.”

And truly, this was the biggest flaw of those who claimed to be born of the emperor’s blood.

Just waving a purple banner with a golden dragon design would make anyone’s eyes go wild and rush at them without a thought.

One should first be considerate about whether the merchant is even open for service before questioning what to drink.

And before chugging honey water as a protective measure before the drinking began, all you’d end up with is a bloated stomach.