While I dozed off, an itch stirred in my lower dantian, waking me up. Should I call this narcolepsy? Or perhaps a side effect of becoming stronger faster than most?

Every time my internal energy interacted with the Heavenly Pearl, I found myself falling asleep. It felt like a warning of sorts. Without this strange phenomenon, I might’ve gone around absorbing internal energy from everyone I fought like a damn leech.

The fourth calamity of Jianghu.

That could very well be me.

If one possesses martial power that transcends human limits… they might stop being human. I kept that in mind as a warning to myself.

I opened my eyes and gazed at the still tavern. For a brief moment, I mistook it for Zaha Inn. But the layout was different, snapping me back to reality.

“Whew, thought I’d gone back again.”

Too much of a hassle. I have no desire to return to the past again.

I drank the water on the table and glanced outside the tavern. That brat Jomsoi, who had stolen my liquor and gotten drunk, was passed out with his face on the table.

“Perfect posture for a guard. Disqualified.”

As soon as my mind cleared, a dozen things I needed to do came rushing in. I let out a sigh.

“Do I have some kind of martyr syndrome?”

I know living like this isn’t ideal. But I can’t help it—these circumstances demand hustle. Just as the Cult Leader said, I’m struggling like hell right now.

Still, if I keep scrambling like this, there’s a chance I’ll turn into an even crazier bastard than in my previous life. So in the quiet tavern, I calmed my mind with the Wooden Rooster Heart Technique.

I imagined myself as a wooden fighting rooster and cleared my thoughts.

A while later, I pulled a silver ingot from my travel pouch, left it on the table, grabbed my Flash Dagger, and stepped outside.

“See you around.”

From behind, Jomsoi’s startled voice called out:

“Leader! The bill!”

“On the table.”

“Ah, thank you! But how do I join Haomun?”

“We don’t take in guys like you.”

“Why not?!”

I picked up my pace as I answered.

“Because I said so.”

Truth is, there’s no need to pull in a random tavern brat like him. I gradually increased my speed, training my light footwork as I dashed toward Uhyanggok.

***

Thanks to the White-Faced Lord, I no longer had to go to Huashan myself.

But since he hadn’t given up the exact location of their base, I still needed to return to Uhyanggok. Which meant there was a high possibility that demonic masters would soon appear there.

The situation in Uhyanggok? A complete floral battlefield. Especially in the flower beds rumored to have poisonous thorns—many of the White-Faced Lord’s subordinates were strewn about there.

Looks like the Lord of Uhyanggok handled things with some clever tricks. I walked past the wrecked flower paths and arrived at the spot where we used to chat. There, Master Yukhap sat, calmly cleaning his sword.

“You’re back, Leader. What about White-Face?”

“Handled. And here?”

Yukhap answered while wiping his blade with a cloth.

“Of course, we killed them all. Not a single one escaped.”

“Knew you’d pull a Yukhap.”

Too lazy to talk, he responded with a single word.

“Yukhap.”

Looking around, I saw Sibi applying a healing ointment to the Lord of Uhyanggok’s shoulder, and wounded folks being treated all around.

I observed the expressions, scanned the mess of Uhyanggok, then spotted Lady Cheolseom standing awkwardly and called her over.

“Lady.”

“Yes, Leader?”

I confirmed she was unscathed and asked,

“You just stood around and watched?”

She chuckled sheepishly.

“Well, actually…”

“Actually what?”

“I stood still like someone who didn’t know martial arts and saved a subordinate of the Lord who looked to be in danger… and also used throwing weapons to take down two enemies who ambushed Master Yukhap from behind. I’m just not used to fighting at the front.”

Yukhap nodded.

“I got some help.”

I gave her a quiet round of applause.

“Come to think of it, your throwing skills were deadly when we fought too.”

“Ah, yes…”

“Still sneaky as hell, but at least you saved Master Yukhap.”

Yukhap mumbled from the side.

“It’s Yukhap.”

Lady Cheolseom, clearly a bit shy, laughed and said,

“The White-Faced Lord looked strong, but you defeated him easily. You really are something, Leader.”

“Right? Honestly, he was stronger than that Iryong Nogun bastard you sided with before.”

“Is that so?”

We shared a quick laugh before I brought up another matter.

“By the way…”

“Yes, Leader?”

“You once said you’d tell your friends not to interfere with my path. Did you pass that on to the Lord of Uhyanggok?”

“Oh, you remembered. I did tell everyone I know. But at the time, I called it the Black Cat Sect, so just earlier, I corrected myself and told the Lord here that the Black Cat Sect Leader is now the Leader of Haomun.”

“So that’s what happened.”

I clasped my hands behind my back and approached the Lord of Uhyanggok.

“You alright?”

He answered in a more relaxed tone than before.

“I’m fine.”

I sat across from him and gestured for the Lord of Yuhwagok and Byeokgeom to come over. Once all three were seated, I said:

“I heard the Lord of Yuhwagok knows a thing or two about medicine?”

The Lord of Yuhwagok nodded calmly.

“Yes, Leader.”

I explained the withdrawal symptoms I expected.

“Listen closely. Without the antidote, the first thirty days will bring unbearable full-body pain.”

“Yes.”

“Then twenty days of feeling like bugs are eating your flesh. Ten more days of agonizing itching. Then a few days of high fever… If they get through all that, they begin recovery. Thoughts?”

If I gave the details to Moyong Baek, he’d handle it better, but right now, the Lord of Yuhwagok would have to manage.

He thought it over.

“Pain, bugs, itching, then fever… I understand. Each stage must be handled separately. Otherwise, your friend might lose his mind completely.”

The Lord of Uhyanggok and Byeokgeom sighed simultaneously.

The Lord of Yuhwagok said:

“If the suffering is that extreme, we’ll need four distinct treatments as the Leader suggests.”

“For example?”

“For the full-body pain, a calming remedy. The patient should also be pushed to physical exhaustion—sweat it out, purge it faster.”

“Accurate?”

“I’ll judge each case myself.”

“And next?”

“Bug-like pain needs a proper detox. The itching is a side effect—apply herbal salves. The fever indicates recovery, so they’ll have to endure it like a severe flu.”

I pointed at Byeokgeom.

“Will you be able to care for him too?”

The Lord nodded.

“Yes, I will.”

With the poisoning issue settled, I turned back to the Lord of Uhyanggok.

“So, what now?”

“What do you mean?”

“We didn’t get the White-Faced Lord’s base. His subordinates here are dead. So his superior’s going to show up soon…”

“Hmm.”

“The guy ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) above White-Face is supposedly the Third Young Master of the Demonic Cult. He could come in person—or maybe his maternal grandfather will.”

I gestured around the ruined Uhyanggok.

“If you stay here trying to hold your ground, you might all die.”

The Lord fell silent.

I decided to be blunt.

“If the Third Young Master comes, I can probably fight him. If he’s a real prodigy, maybe I lose. But martial skill isn’t everything. Still, if that grandfather shows up, even I can’t guarantee anything. I’d have to run, hit and run, do all kinds of desperate shit just to keep up. He’s likely a veteran who fought in the Cult’s succession war and survived well into his sixties.”

The whole of Uhyanggok fell silent.

“What will you do?”

The Lord gave me a bitter look.

“If you advise it, I’ll follow. Honestly, this whole place was inherited from my father, so I’ve had no intention of leaving… But after hearing all this, I see now that it’s selfish.”

He wasn’t the worst type of fool, but something still bugged me. So I probed him further.

“First, bring out your best elixirs. I want to give some to Yukhap.”

“Elixirs… suddenly?”

“Why? You going to fight instead? Then forget it. Hey, Yukhap.”

Now called by name, he replied right away.

“What?”

“Let’s go.”

“Shall we?”

We both stood at the same time. I waved to the others.

“Then I wish you all good luck.”

“……”

Lady Cheolseom quickly scurried over to the Lord and whispered, frustrated,

“You really think you can handle this alone?”

“I—I just panicked and misspoke…”

The Lord called after me.

“Leader, sorry for the confusion today.”

When I turned around, he stood up and said,

“We do have elixirs. Of course I’ll give them to you.”

I responded flatly.

“Just don’t tell me it’s some cute little poison that still needs the antidote.”

“Of course not.”

“What is it?”

“We call it Rainflower Fragrance. It’s a medicine we cultivated with great care.”

“Effects?”

“On first use, depending on one’s internal technique, it boosts internal energy equivalent to seven or eight, maybe twelve years of training. Repeated use reduces its effect, so there must be gaps between doses.”

For a mass-produced tonic, that was top-tier. Might not even register with me thanks to the Heavenly Pearl, but for Yukhap, it’d be gold.

I looked at him.

“Ever heard of Rainflower Fragrance?”

“I have.”

“Can you tell the real deal from a fake?”

He nodded, no problem. Then he leaned in.

“Good stuff?”

Facing away from the others, he raised and lowered his thumb.

Still, the Lord’s attitude annoyed me, so I stayed prickly.

“Must be painful to part with, huh?”

“Not at all.”

I unleashed everything I wanted to say.

“Hey, Lord. You’re older than me, but this is how you assess situations? Your face says you regret losing the elixir, the money, the land—just like a wannabe tycoon. Your martial arts are worse than White-Face’s. You’re no righteous swordsman. Not a proud black-path rogue either. Just bouncing around, doing whatever you feel. No wonder people call you borderline righteous or demonic. I plan to eliminate all these fake martial sects, but watching you makes me question the point.”

Before he could answer, I turned to Lady Cheolseom.

“Help where you can, then pull out. If a demonic grandmaster comes, we’re all dead.”

She glared at the Lord with irritation.

“Lord of Uhyanggok, are you serious? Where are you going to find another ally like the Leader?”

The Lord turned pale, then walked up and stood near me.

“Leader.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve never been good at humbling myself. So my tone may have offended. But you’ve already helped once. If you leave now, I’ll still offer the Rainflower Fragrance. And if I survive, I’ll support Haomun’s cause.”

Hmm, a partially decent answer.

Still, I was annoyed, so I looked at Yukhap. He nudged my side and spoke, eager to take the medicine.

“Let’s cut him some slack. If we hadn’t known what was coming, we could’ve left easy. But now that we do, it feels wrong to walk away. We’re already in this mess to kill off the demonic sect anyway.”

I looked at him, astonished.

This was the longest he’d spoken since we met.

That’s how powerful elixirs are to martial artists.

I kept my tone calm, despite my real thoughts.

“Master Yukhap, turning into a righteous hero, are we?”

“Oh, come on.”

“Is this because of the elixir—”

He quickly interrupted.

“No, no. Just feels right to help. Besides, I’ve been wounded—medicine would help.”

I grabbed his shoulder.

“Even with both our strength combined, we might lose to a demonic grandmaster. We could die helping others. You okay with that?”

He hesitated.

Watching this former villain torn between heroism and elixirs was amusing.

He finally said:

“Can I be honest?”

“You must.”

“I want that Rainflower Fragrance. If I take it, I’ll owe this place. If I owe something, I pay it back. That’s how I stay sane. Those who live in Jianghu get stronger by pushing through hardship. So help me out, will you?”

If you thought I’d agree just like that—think again. I stared at the Lord and deliberately mimicked the speech of those old corrupt nobles.

“Lord of Uhyanggok.”

“Yes, Leader?”

I rubbed my fingers together and asked:

“Got any money?”

“……”

I was dead set: you pissed me off, so I’m not helping for free.