Chapter 77

Of course, the essence of existence hasn’t changed.

Gyeon Pohee is fundamentally the second support column.

The Heavenly Demon City was composed of nine districts.

The nine districts, like many cities in the Central Plain, were given intuitive names, divided into the Central District and the East, West, South, and North Districts, plus other painfully obvious names.

Hwanhui Palace stood at the end of the East District’s red-light street, making itself obvious.

“So, Junior Sister, where should we go sightseeing? Anywhere you want? Shall we check out some accessories? Should I also buy a throwing hairpin?”

“Do what you want. I heard there’s a place called Heating Street in the Northwest District.”

“Huh? That’s dangerous!”

“Dangerous? Why?”

“It’s a neighborhood full of non-believers, so the patrols don’t even go there. It’s a total lawless zone.”

Qing didn’t get it.

To her, the entire Heavenly Demon Sect seemed like a chaotic lawless zone ruled by the strong.

But there was one thing on her mind.

“Patrols? Officials? Is there a government office here?”

If such things are around, they’ll be a nuisance at night.

Qing had been caught a few times in the past.

Most citizens of the Republic of Korea just didn’t get that one shouldn’t wander outside at night.

In fact, Qing still didn’t understand.

Not just her; even seasoned masters felt that way.

Once they reached a certain level of mastery, they suddenly couldn’t grasp why nighttime strolls were dangerous.

“Patrols? Officials? Oh. Junior Sister, you said you’re from the Central Plain? We don’t have a government office! Those are just our school’s patrols! Yeah, I heard that those officials in the Central Plain extort money and even capture children to cook and eat! We need to liberate the Central Plain from the oppression of the government and the martial world,”

“Enough.”

Qing neatly cut off Gyeon Pohee’s nonsense.

“Are there really a lot of patrols? Will they catch us if we roam around here at night?”

“At night? Why? Patrols finish their shifts at sundown, right?”

“…?”

Qing momentarily froze.

Aren’t patrols supposed to be active at night?

When things happen during the day, all you get are martial artists brawling, and the patrols wouldn’t be doing much.

So, maintaining public order for the government office was mainly about protection during the night.

Anyway, it was a comforting sound for Qing, who was setting out on her nighttime stroll.

“Let’s just head to Heating Street. There are masters here, so what’s there to worry about?”

—-

And that night.

A heavily wrapped Qing climbed over a wall.

The weightlessness of the Moon Lady’s Step technique shone through.

In a yard about a foot wide and a quaint little two-room house.

Qing cautiously moved aside the fallen door after breaking the hinge with her hand.

Then, as she entered—

Something snagged at her ankle.

A thread so thin it was nearly invisible.

A trap!

Qing immediately dived out of the way.

And surprisingly, nothing happened.

No arrows or darts flew in, nor was there any loud noise to alert her to an intrusion.

What the heck?

A trap with no result?

What’s this? Unsettling.

Feeling a little dirty, Qing stood up.

Just then.

“Who’s there?”

The sliding door creaked open, revealing a middle-aged man.

He looked odd.

His hair was soaked, and water dripped from his face.

He didn’t seem particularly hostile.

Qing asked out of curiosity.

“Uh, were you just washing your face?”

“Aren’t you the one who pulled the string?”

The middle-aged man pointed inside with the knife he held.

On the table unnaturally pushed up against the bedside, a fallen water bottle was visible.

“So if you pull the string, you get splashed with water?”

“That’s right. But who are you? Out at this hour?”

“I heard you have good martial arts, so I came to ask for some help. Are you the one called Seolga?”

Then the middle-aged man responded.

“You might have heard me as Seolga, but it’s actually Seolga Nom. My surname is Seol and my first name is Ga Nom. It’s rare, but it’s a proper Northern Sea name.”

“Oh, your name is Seolga Nom…”

It’s fascinating, but what mattered wasn’t the name of a villain.

“Anyway, Binging… Sin Asura Martial Arts? If you hand over your demonic arts peacefully, there won’t be any bloodshed.”

“It’s Bingcheon Asura Martial Arts. Seems you’re a little slow on the uptake?”

“Either way, give it over before it gets ugly, while I’m still being polite, will you?”

The man asked back.

“Why? If you want to learn, can’t you just become a disciple?”

“I already have a master.”

“Hm? Aren’t you a demon cultist? Demon cultists are the type to give up their martial arts even for their parents.”

“Oh. I can relate to that. But I’m not like that.”

“Is that so? Alright.”

Seolga Nom nodded.

Qing, perplexed, said.

“Hey, aren’t you a little too relaxed? A master has barged in, you know? I’m at the peak of mid-level mastery!”

“If I’m tense, will you spare me?”

“Probably not, right?”

“Then why bother?”

“Well, that’s true.”

Qing agreed.

“Anyway, whether it’s a secret manual or a secret technique, it’s better if you hand it over now. If not, it’s gonna hurt a lot.”

“That’s unfortunate. Torture doesn’t work on me.”

“You’ll realize it’s not easy once you experience it, trust me.”

“Look at this.”

Seolga Nom lifted his long bangs, revealing a mark on his forehead.

“I got this brand when those demon cultists got me while I was sleeping. I didn’t realize until the next morning. So, I set up the water bottle. Because I don’t feel pain.”

“Uh, really?”

You don’t feel pain?

Then, well… that’s not good, right?

“If a person doesn’t feel pain, it turns out like this. If you don’t know what pain is, you won’t fear anything. Does this seem normal to you?”

“Nope.”

“Right. Yet you still want the Bingcheon Asura Martial Arts? Once you learn it, there’s no going back. The more you practice, the more dull your senses become.”

That was the major downside of Bingcheon Asura Martial Arts.

Practicing it became a habit a warrior had to stick with for life.

In the end, you lose all your senses.

From Qing’s perspective, that wasn’t a big issue.

After all, once she achieved great success and mined all her ability points, it would be over.

She was more worried if the red-edged Bingcheon Asura Martial Arts would have less effect than the golden-hued Sonyeohwanhui Art’s side effects.

“I’ll handle that myself, so just comply.”

“Understood.”

Seolga Nom abruptly agreed, cutting Qing off.

“…Is that real?”

“Only if there are conditions.”

“What are they?”

“Spare my life.”

Seolga Nom boldly begged for his life.

This caught Qing off guard.

“Didn’t you just say you weren’t feeling anything? You were acting like you could die at any moment?”

“Even a dull life like this one, I still wanted to crawl into a backwater demon cult.”

He was a strangely logical demon.

“Hmm…”

Qing had a habit of killing or torturing villains.

Because it’s acceptable when it comes to villains.

But she wasn’t obsessed with killing them.

She didn’t have to.

“Then how about instead, if you happen to know an easy target to kill, with a strong martial art, just let me know?”

“There’s a hitman next door named So-myeon Flesh Demon. His name sounds grand, but he’s just at the initial level of mastery, so it’s probably just bragging.”

“Left? Right?”

“Right, as you face my front door.”

“What’s his martial art?”

“He’s a hitman, so he probably knows some stealth techniques. If he’s going to be robbing, you’d at least need something to obscure your presence, right?”

That was a logical and rational suggestion.

Qing completely agreed.

“Alright. That’s pass.”

“But I don’t have a secret manual. Even if you call out the secret technique, it’s a different thing whether you’ll believe it or not, isn’t it?”

“Do you think I have a knack for catching wrong techniques like nothing? If you want this life you’ve just begged for, don’t pull any silly tricks.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. It’s a cursed demonic art after all, so there’s no need to guide it wrongly. Just don’t come back whining later on.”

Then Seolga Nom recited the secret technique.

I thought about cutting off an arm if he tries to be tricky, but the Martial Arts Inventory sparkled saying “Truth!”

Ah, what a shame.

But then again, it wouldn’t be much fun against someone who couldn’t feel pain.

“Now that I think about it, having to recite it continually until you memorize it sounds like a chore. If you think it’s hard to remember, I could come again tomorrow. I could just write it down.”

“I’m good. I only need to hear it once.”

“You memorized it all in one go? Impressive. You’ll be like me in no time.”

Whether that was a compliment or a curse was unclear.

Qing ignored it.

“Anyway, is it a secret that I’ve seen you?”

“What’s there to brag about being extorted for martial arts? It’s too embarrassing to even mention. Ah, but.”

“But what?”

“Not only should you cover your face, but you might as well bind those huge breasts tightly. How many three-headed girls are there in the demon cult? Just don’t blame me later if you get found out.”

“Lady, that’ll make me sweat.”

But it was a logical and reasonable point, with a solution provided.

Qing accepted the critique.

“Thanks for the advice, anyway.”

And so, Qing left Seolga Nom’s house.

And about an hour later, just as the summer night sky began to brighten at dawn, Seolga Nom emerged with an uncomfortable expression after washing his face, again against his will.

“What’s going on? Has your mind changed already?”

“No. You explained it so well. Do you perhaps have more strong martial arts masters I can kill conveniently?”

And the next day.

So-myeon Flesh Demon was found murdered.

His body was in pieces; torso, head, and limbs all separated.

But this was still nothing much.

It wasn’t shocking enough to draw attention in Heavenly Demon City.

So, for now, everything was just fine.

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