Chapter 15

Damn, I seriously almost died.

I’ve had several heart-stopping moments.

Thanks to Yang Sowol’s help and the fact that attacks were mostly directed at Jin Jangmyung’s side, I barely survived.

But the attacks didn’t go after Jin Jangmyung.

The goal of all those villains gathered at the tavern was that brat over there.

And here I am, getting ambushed like some kind of side dish.

What’s up with this kid? Is she a princess or something?

But she sure doesn’t look the part…

At that moment, Yang Sowol made a deep bow to A-Qing.

A-Qing freaked out.

Being older than her mother, it was a hundred times more burdensome—like a royal burden.

“Once again, I owe the Great Hero a debt of gratitude.”

“What debt? Ah, just forget it.”

A-Qing swung her arm and swallowed a scream.

Blood gushed from her arm.

I’m fine with other people’s blood, but my own is too precious. Am I selfish?

“Great Hero, your wound…!”

“It’s fine. Just put some spit on it, and it’ll heal.”

A-Qing had no need to worry about infections.

It was just a wound that could heal with some medicine and rest.

It would take a while and be quite uncomfortable, though.

“But Great Hero, your arm…!”

“Lady, patience is…”

“Great Hero?”

“It’s fine. It’s just an arm. As long as the kid is safe, that’s what matters.”

I did it! A-Qing looked all silly and giddy.

“More importantly, we need to treat this quickly.”

Fortunately, Yang Sowol knew a bit of medicine.

She even had some decent healing powder.

But there was one unfortunate thing.

No way to numb the pain.

In the end, instead of anesthesia, she stuffed a handkerchief in her mouth.

So, while pulling out the needle and stitching up the wound, A-Qing experienced a hellish moment.

The deep wound was turned inside out.

She pressed it down neatly and stitched it up with large stitches, repeating the process based on the depth.

Afterward, she closed it up with smaller stitches.

While bandaging the wound with clean cloth, A-Qing’s eyes had turned bloodshot.

All those tiny blood vessels had burst.

Of course, her crying contributed to that.

It was just too painful, regardless of whether she was a girl or not.

Really.

Once she calmed down, embarrassed, A-Qing changed the subject.

“So, what about those guys?”

“That is…”

Yang Sowol hesitated, trailing off her words.

Then, a moment later, her expression turned resolute.

“I suppose it’s only proper to tell the benefactor.”

“Uh, I wasn’t that curious, you know.”

I asked without thinking, and now it feels like a burden.

I meant it sincerely, but Yang Sowol didn’t take it that way.

“Thank you for your consideration. Actually, this child is…”

It sounded like there was a big secret behind such grand statements!

A-Qing swallowed hard.

“She was born with Pure Yin Blood.”

That was a shocking conclusion!

Pure Yin Blood! I have no clue what that even means!

Yang Sowol, with her seasoned insight, had already figured it out.

“Great Hero, Pure Yin Blood is…”

—–

Yang Sowol was originally a Martial World Individual, but after marrying her husband, she retired and settled down in a remote area of Fujian.

Her husband was a kind man, and they lived happily.

The peak of that happiness was when she became pregnant.

The child was weak.

Her hands and feet were always cold, and once she fell asleep, she found it hard to wake up.

Of course, that didn’t interfere with the happiness.

But as the child grew a little and they began teaching her basic self-defense, they realized something was off with her constitution.

It was a kind of rare constitution.

Children born with this constitution rarely live past thirty.

The shocked couple spread the word and gathered skilled physicians renowned for treating rare constitutions.

The results were the worst.

Innate True Energy.

This refers to the basic energy every person possesses.

The amount of innate True Energy differs from person to person.

But it’s all roughly the same.

There are slight differences in the energy’s properties among individuals.

It’s that whole Yin-Yang Five Elements thing.

But still, they’re all somehow in the same ballpark.

Very rarely, a child is born with the nature of this energy pushed to extremes.

Yin has two properties.

Yin energy is cold and dark.

Among this, the cold energy is separated and called Pure Yin.

Only the dark energy is termed Dark Yin.

Yang energy is bright and heated.

Similarly, bright energy is the Right Yang, and hot energy is Pure Yang.

Occasionally, six extreme children are born.

Boys born with the energy of Pure Yang, Extreme Yang, and Right Yang.

Girls born with the energy of Dark Yin, Extreme Yin, and Pure Yin.

Among them, girls with Pure Yin Blood are the most precious.

The child was exactly that Pure Yin Blood.

Meanwhile, within the wicked methods of the martial world, there existed a practice known as Channeling Yin to Absorb Yang.

This involved taking Yin energy through sexual relations with a woman.

It was different from the Daoist practice of mutual energy exchange.

In mutual energy exchange, both parties share and cycle their energies for mutual benefit.

So, while it might be unsightly, it isn’t wicked. It’s actually a form of Daoist technique.

And among the six Yin and Yang, Pure Yin was just too convenient.

When mixed with Yang energy, it enhances the heat and brightness from below.

There’s no better elixir for a warrior who has mastered Yang Unyielding martial arts.

And for a warrior trained in Yin Unyielding martial arts?

It’s an outstanding elixir that further refines Yin energy.

And the thoughts Martial World Individuals have about elixirs.

Elixirs are worth risking one’s life for.

If not for elixirs, then what would one save their life for?

Martial World Individuals are folks who would risk death for elixirs.

Once it became known that she was born with Pure Yin Blood, the child wouldn’t survive.

She would meet a most miserable death amid cruel torment.

To protect the child from threats too horrifying to be voiced, a suitable background was needed.

At the very least, she needed to reach a top-tier realm, so no one could steal her innate True Energy anymore.

Fortunately, there was a sect in the martial world that could offer such protection.

The Divine Maiden Sect.

However, the journey from the secluded countryside of Fujian to the Divine Maiden Sect in Hubei would be far too harsh for the already weak child.

Traveling across half the continent with a frail child?

But after her husband died, Yang Sowol no longer had time to hesitate.

Thus, mother and daughter held hands and set out from home.

—–

“Wait a second. So these crazy bastards are right now.”

All those punks gathered to get at one female middle school student, causing this chaos.

Is this… martial arts?

Separately, the identity of the brat was also a bit shocking.

You… were a middle school girl?

A-Qing looked down at the kid sleeping soundly on her thigh.

The brat had resorted to using her innocent treatment as a guise to suffocate, leaving only tears streaming down her face while her cries were muffled by the handkerchief.

She was an outrageously wicked little girl.

“If I may be so bold, if you feel sorry for the child, might I ask for your assistance in accompanying us to the Divine Maiden Sect?”

“Of course! To deal with those horned dog bastards.”

Suddenly, a mission window popped into A-Qing’s mind, locking her voice.

[Precursor, (unknown) level crisis]

[You stand before a life-changing opportunity.]

Actions required to complete the mission

Good Deeds) Take the child to the Divine Maiden Sect

– or take the child to an appropriate sect.

Good Deeds) Transfer the elixir to the rightful owner.

Evil Deeds) Sell the elixir.

Evil Deeds) Keep the elixir for yourself.

Heaven’s Kill) Destroy the elixir and take the True Blood.

[This choice could impact the world.]

It was a task window with entirely new formatting.

Normally, task windows are just random missions about killing bad guys or doing something wrong, right?

Or maybe even just killing the bad guy’s friends.

Killing anyone labeled bad and good, no exceptions.

It’s always pretty much like that.

If I’d known this was going to happen, I should have read up on mission strategies.

Character creation and early farming runs.

Those were the only two bits of info A-Qing had before stepping into the game.

There was no time to find out more.

The game’s size was quite modest from the get-go.

It was installed quickly, and she jumped straight into playing.

What’s a precursor? And what’s this nth level crisis?

The conditions for achieving the second good deed were just as unclear.

So I’m supposed to give the elixir to its rightful owner?

On top of that, the word choices were uncomfortably explicit.

There was only one way to treat Jin Jangmyung like a person in the task.

The elixir?

You mean to refer to a living, breathing child as an elixir?

Agh. A-Qing ground her teeth.

What the heck is going on?

What do you want me to do? Who am I in all this? Am I the protagonist? What is this world?

The child? What about my mom? Are they humans or programs?

Why is it me? Why only me? Why?

What’s a precursor mean?

Why did I meet that middle schooler?

Was it a coincidence or by some predetermined fate?

If I’m just a mere choice made in some fixed script—what’s waiting ahead after the end—

Suddenly, something touched her wrist.

A-Qing turned her head like a rusty machine with empty, faded eyes.

A small hand grabbed her wrist.

So cold it snapped her back to reality.

“It’s cold…”

The kid weakly tugged at her wrist.

A-Qing’s hand found its way to the child’s unusually cold cheek.

“Haah.”

A-Qing let out a deep sigh.

This feels absolutely awful.

Watching just the status menu triggers panic like this?

Is this some kind of disease? Am I a lunatic?

How utterly surprising!

But if you experienced this too, you’d understand.

A-Qing forced herself to swallow down the nausea rising within her.

The bitter bile that had reached her tongue now turned back down her throat.

And out of frustration, she scratched her throat harshly.

“Great Hero?”

“Ah. Yeah. What were we talking about? Oh, right. Of course, we should go together. That’s what I should say. No doubt about it.”

A-Qing replied like that.

Is there no setting window?

Get that popping task window to shut up.

What a piece of crap.

Instead of swearing, A-Qing looked down at the child’s face.

A sleeping child inherently brings about calm.

Humans probably evolved that way.

To protect the weak child? Maybe?

Regardless of missions or anything, A-Qing had only one choice.

The middle school girl is a baby. She must be protected.

That’s the common sense of a cultured modern Korean.

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