Chapter 99 : The Woman I Loved (3)

Chapter 99: The Woman I Loved (3)

Since Black Kill Sword Wonho was a handsome man, criminals liked him.

Only then did Black Kill Sword Wonho realize that Yong Hwarin's words weren't mere bluff. His body began to tremble like a sasana tree quivering in the wind.

Even though he was used to raping and killing women, he had never imagined that he would suffer the same fate.

He had never even considered such a possibility.

‘Just torture me instead. Not this.’

As Yong Hwarin brought the key ring to the lock, Black Kill Sword Wonho stared intently at the keys.

Yong Hwarin tried to insert the key into the lock but dropped it to the floor.

As he bent down to pick it up, his eyes met Black Kill Sword’s.

‘That bastard’s probably burning up inside right now.’

Yong Hwarin glanced at Black Kill Sword and asked,

“Why? Feeling ready to talk? If you are, move your eyes left and right.”

Black Kill Sword quickly moved his eyes.

“Saying no?”

His eyes darted left and right rapidly.

Yong Hwarin released the pressure point of Black Kill Sword Wonho and then asked,

“Now, are you ready to answer me?”

“Y-yes. I’ll talk. Just get me out of here.”

“Depending on your answers.”

“Ask me anything.”

“If your answers are disappointing, you’ll be living here for the rest of your life. And if you lie, I’ll make sure you live in a place worse than this.”

Understanding the meaning behind those words, Black Kill Sword nodded.

“First, where is the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm?”

Black Kill Sword Wonho replied with a grim expression.

“I left it with a courtesan named Bingajeong at East Moon Pavilion.”

“Second, where is the item you stole from Shaolin Temple?”

“The White Tiger Demon-Subduing Sword is with Deung Hwaun.”

Judging by the conversation between the Demonic Master and Deung Hwaun, Black Kill Sword didn’t seem to be lying so far.

“Third, what item are you looking for in Heavenly Central Sect?”

Black Kill Sword Wonho was internally shocked at how much Yong Hwarin knew.

‘How does this brat know all of this?’

As Black Kill Sword rolled his eyes, seemingly thinking, Yong Hwarin inserted the key into the lock.

“W-wait just a moment.”

Black Kill Sword Wonho had no choice but to admit that this brat had a hundred serpents inside his brain.

And he could tell this brat was someone who did whatever he said he'd do. The superior he served wasn’t any different from Yong Hwarin.

‘A kid who kills with a smile...’

He knew from his superior that people like this were the most dangerous.

“It’s the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice.”

“What’s it used for?”

“That much, I don’t know. I’ve only seen a drawing of the item.”

Hearing that, Yong Hwarin suddenly burst into laughter.

At the mention of a drawing, something flashed through Yong Hwarin’s mind.

When Yong Hwarin suddenly laughed, both the criminals and Black Kill Sword were startled.

“Such a foolish bastard! We didn’t need to go through all that trouble. I just wasted my energy for nothing.”

I carried Black Kill Sword under my arm and exited the prison.

Black Kill Sword Wonho trembled as he feared my sudden change in demeanor.

Once I left the prison, I returned immediately to the document archive.

Mae Yeongyeong was waiting there.

For a woman who had nearly been raped by Black Kill Sword, her expression seemed remarkably calm.

That alone proved the strength of her spirit.

“Did you get what you needed?”

When Mae Yeongyeong asked, I shook my head.

“This is shameless of me, but I must ask one more favor. Is there any place quieter than the archive?”

She appeared to hesitate for a moment, then opened her mouth.

“There is one place. If Young Master Yong does not mind, it’s the quietest place in this whole official residence.”

“And where would that be?”

“My room.”

“Ah!”

An exclamation slipped from my lips.

Certainly, if it was Mae Yeongyeong’s private room, no one would dare approach it. And at the moment, extracting crucial information from Black Kill Sword was more important than anything.

If someone like the Three Chivalrous Sisters or Hoi Unkyung were to arrive, I wouldn’t be able to ask the necessary questions.

After a moment of hesitation, I made up my mind.

“Then, I’ll trouble you just for a bit.”

Mae Yeongyeong smiled softly and said,

“It’s nothing. Being able to help you like this makes me feel more at ease.”

To her, offering this level of help to the one who had protected her chastity was not a big deal at all.

“Please follow me.”

To avoid attracting attention, I hoisted Black Kill Sword onto my back.

To onlookers, it would appear as though I was carrying an unconscious person.

“Young Mistress, where are you going?”

Whenever guards along the way asked, Mae Yeongyeong swiftly replied that she was transporting a sick person.

Thanks to that, we arrived at Mae Yeongyeong’s private room without being stopped.

“No one will be allowed in here. Come out once you’re done. I’ll go take a stroll through the flower garden.”

Her thoughtfulness was just as it had been in my previous life.

‘I used to love that noble heart of hers.’

For the daughter of a high-ranking official to possess such character was a rare thing.

After watching Mae Yeongyeong for a moment, I entered the room and laid Black Kill Sword on the floor.

Then I released his pressure point.

“I answered your questions, didn’t I? Why did you bring me here?”

“Because I don’t know if you lied.”

“Why would I lie?”

I shook my head.

“No. You have plenty of reasons to lie. A lot. From here on, the questions I ask will heavily rely on whether or not you're lying.”

“S-so what are you going to do?”

Black Kill Sword’s gaze was suddenly filled with fear.

“D-don’t tell me… you’re going to rape me?”

That was the only conclusion he could come to.

Otherwise, there’d be no reason to bring him here from the prison.

‘He’s planning to rape me himself. Damn it, to think I would be raped by a brat like this in my life!’

As I drew closer, Black Kill Sword began to panic.

“S-stay back! I’m not ready yet!”

He tried to move, but whatever point I had sealed, he couldn’t move a single limb.

“Don’t spout nonsense.”

I sealed his pressure point again and sat down in front of him, closing my eyes briefly.

‘I could have just awakened the Demonic Master. With his ability, it would’ve been easy to determine if this bastard was telling the truth or not. I can’t believe I went with the hard way.’

Lately, I had been too preoccupied with clan affairs to bother awakening the Demonic Master’s spirit.

Moreover, unlike before, he no longer initiated conversation on his own.

When he sensed danger to his own life, the Demonic Master would awaken my Upper Dantian on his own and give me an instant warning.

But after achieving the Tai Chi Dantian, such occasions had drastically decreased.

It might have been a sign that I was finally in control of my own body.

That was why I had completely forgotten about the Demonic Master’s presence for a while.

I immediately began circulating qi to stimulate my Upper Dantian.

‘Elder Demonic Master.’

‘It’s been a while.’

I had expected a cold response, but was surprised by the calm tone of the Demonic Master’s voice.

‘I figured you were busy with clan affairs since it’s been so quiet.’

Having lived a long life, the Demonic Master was quick to understand such things.

‘But what’s going on?’

The Demonic Master perceived through my eyes, but since they were closed, he couldn’t grasp the situation.

I opened my eyes.

‘Do you know who that man is?’

‘Have you never seen him before?’

‘Not in my memory.’

‘That one is called Black Kill Sword Wonho.’

‘Ah, so he’s the one involved with my current self. Did you catch him?’

‘Yes. This place is one of the administrative rooms of the local office. We must finish quickly and leave.’

‘From the looks of it, you awakened me to look into his memories.’

‘Exactly.’

‘Good, that’s no trouble at all. Press the part of your palm where the Laogong Point lies against both of his eyes. From there, I will begin penetrating his brain through the optic nerves. Once I enter his mind, bring your questions to mind as thought-images. Then scenes related to those questions will flow into your mind. This technique can’t be sustained for long, so only ask what’s important.’

It seemed I had made the right choice in awakening the Demonic Master.

Even without detailed explanation, he quickly understood what was going on and figured out what needed to be done.

Following the Demonic Master’s instructions, I pressed the part of my palm containing the Laogong Point against both of Black Kill Sword’s eyes.

Black Kill Sword grew nervous, unsure of what I was about to do.

Originally, he was the sort of man who defiled women as casually as picking flowers by the roadside, but ever since he met me, his boldness had shriveled to the size of a silkworm cocoon.

‘He’s got eyes just like my superior. I know—men like this are the most brutal in the world!’

But soon Black Kill Sword had no room left for thoughts.

An agonizing pain like hot irons searing into his eyes made his body tremble.

‘I-I can endure torture like this!’

As he gritted his teeth through the pain, he felt a sharp, needle-like prick in his brain—and his consciousness began to slip away.

In that moment, the Demonic Master rummaged through Black Kill Sword’s mind, absorbing his memories.

Strangely enough, the Demonic Master’s perceptions flowed directly into my own head.

Thanks to that, I was able to seize several important clues.

‘So he really did answer my questions truthfully.’

As I recalled the questions about their hideout and the item at Heavenly Central Sect, bizarre characters and images seeped into my consciousness.

‘As expected, their hideout was East Moon Pavilion. I knew it the moment he said he left the Black Silk Celestial Silkworm with a courtesan from East Moon Pavilion. And the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice, which he claimed was at his main house...’

Skimming through the fragments of imagery pouring into my mind, I let out an exclamation.

‘Ah, so the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice was really at the main house. And it is...’

A hollow laugh escaped me, born from sheer absurdity.

The Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice wasn’t something small like a regular wine cup.

The image of the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice flowing from Black Kill Sword’s memories was something I had seen many times as a child.

‘No way… that’s the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice? The chamber pot my grandmother used during her lifetime?’

It was truly laughable.

Chamber pots in the continent were tall and large to begin with.

They were big enough for someone to sit on—practically the size of a large flower pot.

‘No wonder they couldn’t find it when they were looking for something cup-sized.’

Right now, the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice would be stored in the artifact vault of the Ancestral Hall.

‘But what I still don’t understand is… What are these so-called “artifacts” they’re looking for with their lives on the line actually used for?’

That was the question I was most curious about.

But the images from Black Kill Sword’s mind offered no answer to that.

It meant even he didn’t know what the artifacts were for. And it was even funnier that he also thought the Vermilion Bird Blood Chalice was just a small wine cup.

‘Since he only saw a drawing, he probably didn’t think it would be as big as a chamber pot. That’s why these bastards had no problem stealing artifacts from Shaolin Temple or Jeong Family Manor but failed to retrieve the one at their own main house.’