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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 5
Chapter Title: The Enemy's Movements (1)
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"...So, you're saying that my internal injuries aren't just ordinary internal injuries, but symptoms of poisoning?"
The guards standing at the door hurriedly stepped back.
As they bowed their heads, a pale-faced old man appeared.
Ga Won-seong walked over with difficulty and stood before Dang Yu-wol, speaking.
"I've seen you before. You're Dang Yu-wol of the Tang Clan, right?"
"Thank you for remembering. It was around last year, wasn't it? When I met you, General."
"Yes. You came with the Tang Clan Head."
Ga Won-seong's eyes scanned Dang Yu-wol.
He was different from the Dang Yu-wol he remembered.
The biggest difference was in his eyes.
"You seemed like a naive kid back then... but now you're different."
"There's a saying for that: 'one who has grown remarkably.'"
"Hah. You talk well. Alright, then. Want to take my pulse?"
-He's provoking you.
'He must think someone like me is beneath notice.'
Ga Won-seong was also a military martial artist who had reached the transcendent realm.
Such a man would know exactly what it meant to let someone take his pulse.
'But it also proves just how agonizing it is for him.'
It was hard to trust him, but his urgency was that great.
That was why he was offering his pulse to an unproven Dang Yu-wol.
"No need for that. A verbal diagnosis is enough."
"Then ask away."
"Your eyebrows have turned white, and both shoulders have thickened."
"Hah..."
"And seeing the chill settled in your pupils, the technique you've cultivated isn't the White Cold Divine Art, is it, General?"
"...How do you know that? The White Cold Divine Art is an imperial palace technique."
"I read about it in a book."
-Well done. You're good at lying too.
'Isn't that basic?'
In truth, he'd seen it in the Blood Cult.
But Ga Won-seong had no way of knowing that.
His eyes could only fill with surprise.
'He doesn't even look twenty yet, but his eyesight is sharp.'
Military martial artists or palace folk might recognize it.
But it was rare for murim folk to spot it.
Yet this boy had seen it at a glance.
"Then you know my current condition too?"
"You're surely not getting proper sleep."
"Why do you think that?"
"The chill starting from your dantian flows through your meridians, chilling your entire body."
"...Go on."
"You must also be breaking out in cold sweats every day."
Dang Yu-wol pointed to his shoulders.
"And every time you try to circulate your qi, you feel pain."
"..."
"Especially intense pain in your shoulders, to the point you can't even hold a weapon."
It was spot on.
He was describing his exact condition as if he'd seen it firsthand.
Expectations began to rise.
Ga Won-seong suppressed his excruciating pain and asked.
"Can you treat me?"
"Of course."
Dang Yu-wol answered leisurely, as if it were nothing.
"But I will need something in return."
-Here it comes.
'Yes. Now the real start begins.'
Revenge's first button was about to be fastened.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The real discussion began once they moved inside.
The initial dismissal had completely vanished.
"Pouring the tea yourself... I am but a mere wild man."
"To me, you're a benefactor. So? Tell me. What do you need?"
He thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Medicinal herbs? If it's that..."
"Not that."
"Then what?"
"It's a bit hard to say right now."
Dang Yu-wol dragged out the time.
At this moment, it was Ga Won-seong who was in a bind.
Push and pull were necessary.
"Once the treatment proves effective, please judge then, General."
"It sounds like you're trying to use me."
"Yes."
He didn't hide it.
He knew Ga Won-seong wouldn't refuse him.
"I know not everything in the world is done out of pure goodwill."
"Thank you for understanding."
"But... I'm curious. Whether you can really treat me or not."
"The White Cold Divine Art possesses strong yin energy and is a stable technique."
"Yes. That's why many high-ranking military officers cultivate it."
"Yet you were poisoned by cold poison."
"Why do you think that?"
"Because you encountered a chill strong enough to disrupt the White Cold Divine Art's stability."
"'Excess is worse than deficiency'?"
"Yes. Humans live by the principles of yin and yang balance..."
"But excessive yin energy was injected into your body, breaking that balance and leading to cold poison affliction."
"That's right. Your current symptoms are very similar to cold poison poisoning."
"Not internal injuries? The Healing Sect said it was due to deep internal wounds."
"Cold poison also causes internal injuries, so it's not wrong."
"I see... Tch. They claimed there was no illness they couldn't cure..."
"That's not wrong either."
"What do you mean?"
"This is more poisoning than illness, so it's just a different field."
"That's an excuse. What is medicine if not solving poisonings too?"
"For ordinary poisonings, they could."
"You mean my condition isn't ordinary?"
"Yes. That's why they recommended rest."
"...You know my condition well, so I can trust your claim that you can treat it."
"Then let's begin the treatment."
Dang Yu-wol inserted needles into various points on his wrists.
His hand movements were far more precise and swift than those of the Healing Sect physicians.
"Hah. Look at those hands."
"Is he doing it right? Seems too sloppy..."
They chattered because they didn't know.
Dang Yu-wol ignored the voices from behind.
'Ye-ui. Can you make Fire Poison by any chance?'
-Of course.
Dang Yu-wol's internal energy transformed into Fire Poison.
He opened the pouch containing poison infused with fiery qi.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm neutralizing the cold poison in your body with Fire Poison."
"Beating poison with poison?"
"Yes."
He inserted the needles laced with Fire Poison into various points on his body.
Each time, Ga Won-seong flinched, and his subordinates gripped their weapons tightly.
-They look ready to cut your throat if you slip up.
"Ugh..."
But it didn't last long.
As the needling continued, Ga Won-seong's expression began to relax.
"General?!"
"This feels good. Ever since the injury, I've constantly felt a chilling cold like ice touching my whole body..."
"Is it better now?"
"Yes. The pain has lessened a lot. Impressive. Very good."
To the satisfied man, Dang Yu-wol held up a dagger.
"May I cut your fingertip?"
"Go ahead."
The moment permission was given, he sliced the tip of his finger.
Black blood immediately dripped out.
"Ugh... the smell..."
Even Ga Won-seong, seasoned by harsh battlefields, wrinkled his nose.
"The horrific smell from the blood... this is the poison?"
"Yes. It's expelling the remaining cold poison and Fire Poison from your body."
He used the wondrous technique of countering poison with poison for treatment.
But poison was poison.
Unless one cultivated poison arts, leaving it in the body did no good.
"What will you do with that?"
"Since it's poison, someone who uses poison arts should handle it."
He collected the blood thick with poison into a vial.
Then offered it.
"Do you need it?"
"No need. Whew... I feel much better."
It was the first time he'd felt this relieved since the injury.
His ability to treat had been proven true.
Accordingly, Ga Won-seong's expression and tone softened greatly.
"Thank you."
"No need. The treatment isn't finished yet."
"How much longer?"
"At least half a year of full rest."
Five years reduced to half a year.
Still, Ga Won-seong couldn't hide his regret.
"I should be heading north to fight for the Great Empire right away, yet here I am convalescing..."
"Trying to go a year early might send you thirty years early."
"...I-is that so?"
"Impatience is its own poison."
"Can't argue with that."
"Having poisons battle inside your body builds up that much fatigue."
"Sigh. Regrettable."
"Don't skip meals from now on, do light exercise and meditation daily."
"Got it."
"And take your medicine diligently. It'll be bitter, but."
"Got it. Got it. Alright, now tell me."
Dang Yu-wol had proven himself.
Now it was time to keep the promise.
"What is it you want?"
"The leader of Sacheon Escort Agency has been embezzling to build his own wealth."
"Hah. Such a bastard existed?"
"I want to recover his assets."
"Is it certain?"
"An investigation will reveal it all. We have ledgers too."
"I see. And?"
"Please ensure the government doesn't interfere or obstruct."
The old Tang Clan wouldn't have needed such a request.
But the current Tang Clan was weak.
'If the government meddles needlessly, resolving it will take time. This shortens that.'
Time was already short.
No intention of wasting it on such matters.
-Well, such scum always bow to greater power anyway.
'With General Ga's involvement, they won't dare interfere.'
"You treated me for that?"
"Yes."
"Not a great deal for me."
'What more should I ask for?'
"Just letting things proceed by the law, right?"
An unexpected response.
As Dang Yu-wol looked surprised, he chuckled.
"Too good a deal for me. So if you want something else, say it."
Fortunate.
He was offering more help.
No reason to refuse.
"Soon, I plan to unleash a bloodbath in Sacheon. Please permit it."
Ga Won-seong was momentarily shocked.
But only briefly.
"Declaring private killings before an official. Truly brazen."
"'Honest' would be appreciated."
"Come to think of it, what about that Gang Il-deok?"
"I killed him."
"Bold."
"I don't think it's something to hide."
Dang Yu-wol showed no hesitation.
"But I believe I can be more helpful to you than him, General."
It was a transaction.
His composure sparked interest rather than contempt in Ga Won-seong.
He'd seen many such deals as a high official.
"...I heard the Sacheon Tang Clan was betrayed by those they once followed. Planning revenge?"
"Yes."
"That won't be a small number... Is it worth it?"
"The Sacheon Tang Clan repays favors twofold and grudges fivefold."
'Still so young, yet such a venomous heart. Those eyes... truly the eyes of a killer.'
The Tang Clan experts he'd seen in his youth had such eyes.
'Perhaps Dang Yu-wol is the most Tang-like in the clan now.'
That thought made him like him more.
'And coming to get permission for future actions too...'
Few among murim folk saw officials as beneath them.
Especially prestigious clan heirs.
Compared to them, how good was this?
'For a murim man, he's excellent.'
Ga Won-seong grinned.
"That you're useful... sounds like you'll continue helping me."
"Yes."
'Ga Won-seong will be a great help against the Blood Cult.'
-Better to clearly distinguish enemies and allies.
The Great Empire's aid was needed against the Blood Cult.
Ga Won-seong was worth allying with.
"Don't overdo it."
"Thank you."
"And try to minimize the bloodshed if possible."
Dang Yu-wol nodded at his words.
-There are plenty of poisons that don't draw blood.