LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 37
I used the needle to threaten Yangmul, extracting some information from Songeun.
There was no need to delve into the process, and the information was not particularly nutritious.
Of course, it was information that required some degree of caution.
Those who were aware of the real nature of the Demon Cult would find it utterly astounding, to the point where they would begin to pity the Demon Cult.
“Does Yangma really think that Cheonma will resurrect?”
Yangma, one of the Ten Demons, a law guardian of the Demon Cult, is an old man with a power level at the Transformation stage.
He had witnessed the glory of the Demon Cult from its heyday, when it claimed to be the Cheonma Divine Religion or the Ilwol Divine Religion.
He was about 80 years old and had been active around the same time as the Sword Mistress of Haedong Sword Sect.
I may not know much about his background as someone who was kidnapped and raised in the Demon Cult, but he was indeed a true believer in the Cheonma’s absurd plan to ruin the future of the Central Plains Martial World by abducting orphans.
Son Geun, the disciple of Yangma, was also raised under such a person’s tutelage, doing his utmost to fulfill the role of “Zamdok” as envisioned by the Cheonma.
A follower of the Cheonma and a person striving for the supremacy of the Demon Cult.
And for me, perhaps he was just an assassin staying quite close to home.
Son Geun had one order handed down to him.
“If the physician Seok Muwol fails, you are to kill Mo Yongseol and ensure that the Sword Saint falls into the Cheonma’s hands.”
It was a contingency plan aimed at the Mo Yong Family in case I failed.
“Physician, shall we kill him?”
“Calm down, Young Miss Mo Yong.”
“Physician, you must want to kill him too.”
“I am going to kill him, but I’ll give it more thought about how to do so before I actually do.”
“Mmph! Ugh!!”
Songeun couldn’t say anything.
Though he had been pouring out his words, he couldn’t speak now, no matter how he attempted to voice his thoughts.
They brought a rope and gagged him, stuffing a silk cloth into his mouth.
With a large sphere in his mouth and the gag in place, all he could emit were muffled groans.
“Well, it seems we won’t achieve any meaningful results from further tests here.”
Songeun had outlived his usefulness.
Even if I prescribed the Extreme Yang Reversal to induce a miracle, Songeun wouldn’t see any hair grow back or have his manhood enlarged.
What Songeun desired at this moment was the strength to evade the death that was about to arrive.
Whether it be internal energy or martial prowess, or even his own fortunate encounters, he wanted to retrieve the power to unleash the needle holding his blood, regain his freedom, and do whatever he wished to Mo Yongseol.
He did not wish for the restoration of his lost hair.
Nor did he desire that his manhood, which I had ‘restored’, return to the point where miracles might happen again.
He wanted strength as revenge for those lost things, which is why he had to die.
“Surely you have something you want to say one last time. Well, it is, as the Demon Cult’s minions always say.”
I picked up a needle thicker than the others.
“Do you really think you’ll be safe after this? If I die, another Zamdok will come after you. Since you’ve betrayed the Demon Cult, someday the Cheonma will appear and seek to kill the Zamdok embedded within you.”
“Mmph! Ugh…!”
“Right. It’s time for your last remaining ‘usefulness’ to be utilized.”
I infused “qi” into the silver needle of chopstick thickness.
“I may not be a martial artist and haven’t trained in martial arts, but I learned enough internal energy to treat martial artists.”
White qi shimmered on the silver needle, starting to glisten.
Though it wasn’t the same level of power as those above Transformation, it shone slightly brighter and clearer than the weapons of top-tier practitioners when infused with qi.
Even if fighting directly with martial arts had its limits, I still had enough strength and qi to pierce through the trained skin of a martial artist.
“Farewell, Son Geun.”
I shook my head at the glaring Son Geun.
“Oh, and before you die, let me tell you something else.”
With a thrust—
“Yu Gwain and Yu Giyeon are already dead. They burned to death in the Demon Flames, yet you’re obliviously stepping over the main gate of the Mo Yong Family.”
“!!”
Before I plunged the silver needle deep into his heart, Son Geun looked at me in utter shock.
Thud.
And just like that, he rolled his eyes, trembling before collapsing.
The silk ball stuffed into his mouth slowly turned red, and I stepped back, observing his condition with the needle still embedded.
“Unlike Yu Gwain or Yu Giyeon, burning to death for breaking the ironclad rules doesn’t seem to be the case here.”
“Indeed… Perhaps it shows how committed they are to the Demon Cult?”
“Probably.”
While I couldn’t fully understand it, considering the backgrounds of orphans like myself and Dang Yu Ri who were captured by the Demon Cult, it wasn’t to the point I couldn’t comprehend it.
“Had they lived, they might have been third-rate warriors instead of just beggars beaten by trash like them, but thanks to the Demon Cult feeding, clothing, and even teaching them martial arts, they could wear expensive silk clothing and live with proper attire.”
The Demon Cult kidnapped countless Zamdok to kill the children, but among those kids, there were some who genuinely thank the Demon Cult that abducted them.
Songeun was one of them.
“What a pitiful fellow.”
So regrettably so.
“Did you know? The first prescription my master, the Witch Doctor, gave me was ‘Resistors’?”
“Resistors…?”
“Indeed.”
I pierced a new needle into Son Geun’s pelvic area.
“Now that I think about it, the Cheonma was indeed a father. Or perhaps he hated the thought of his daughter being with another man.”
Thud.
“The orphans of the Demon Cult received ample loneliness, leading to various constraints, one of which was to prevent the males from getting entangled in their desires, thus impairing their missions.”
As Son Geun’s power ebbed away, something began to settle.
“During the time when one should grow most healthily, their potential for growth in areas not needed for the duties of a Zamdok, martial artist, or assassin was completely used for increasing internal energy.”
“Could it be…?”
“Though I am profoundly grateful for the medical skills I gained, if there’s anything I still owe my master, it would be…”
I stood up, gesturing beneath me.
“That I did not take the suppressive medication that would leave only the roots behind to inhibit healthy growth.”
“…….”
“To be more precise, male Zamdok, including Son Geun, were to be utilized in other ways. Among the skilled martial artists, there were occasionally those who fancied males.”
“…Among the White Path martial artists?”
“Both.”
Whether in white or black, there were those who fancied young men.
“There were various reasons why the Zamdok harbored resentment toward the Cheonma and yearned to betray the Demon Cult, yet those still loyal to the Cheonma were often delighted to receive his ‘permission.’”
“…Ugh…”
Mo Yongseol shivered and gritted her teeth.
“Is the Cheonma perhaps a homosexual?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say that…”
If I were to estimate based on the level of the Cheonma, or rather his thoughts—
“As long as he can dominate the Central Plains Martial World, anything goes, I suppose.”
* * *
The information obtained from Son Geun would gain significance only if properly interpreted, but the issue lay in securing support from the Emperor or the Imperial Palace.
In particular, while conducting experiments regarding the hair problem of the Emperor, there was the task of keeping secret the possibilities that Extreme Yang Reversal possessed—
“Then we could just grab any random person from the family and shear their hair while they’re asleep, right?”
Dang Yu Ri suggested.
“There must be someone within the Mo Yong Family secretly colluding with another family or someone who is always on the brink of betraying the clan, right?”
If there were no subjects for experiments, then anyone could be caught to carry out “random” tests.
“…What makes you so knowledgeable, anyway?”
“Do you really think I’m the Cheonma? Would I be so oblivious?”
Indeed.
Unless one was on the level of the Cheonma, one would reasonably suspect that my Extreme Yang Reversal could be used not only for Absolute Meridians or Reversal of Aging but also for other purposes.
“I’m someone who’s in the same boat as you all. You can rest easy. If I return to the Demon Cult, the Witch Doctor would surely brand me as a traitor, and if I went to other Zamdoks, I’d be mercilessly beaten up without reason, right? So if you could see me as one of the caregivers among the Purple Sword Gate, and now as a maid managing the food supply for this Sacred Paradise, I would truly appreciate it.”
To my surprise, Dang Yu Ri actively proposed cooperating with the Mo Yong Family.
“Feeding and lodging me, even allowing me to train martial arts in my spare time—what more could I ask? Above all…”
“What above all?”
“If rumors get out about the traitor, and the Cheonma inflicts the cost of betrayal, what would I do? It would be safer being inside the Mo Yong Family. I certainly don’t want to be forced into bed with someone like the Cheonma and have his child.”
“…….”
While I worried about the ever-present possibility of being killed by the Cheonma, he was certainly a crazy person who would mess with Zamdok before killing them.
“Fine. So what do you want to do?”
“Is there much to it? We’ll just head to the Vice Governor and explain the situation, then while any male or female is sleeping, we’ll shear their hair completely.”
“What a simple and foolish plan.”
Hmm.
“Do it immediately.”
If there’s no balding patient for an experiment, then we just need to create a balding patient.
It doesn’t have to be Son Geun, after all.