Almighty God of War - Chapter 34

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

034

After a moment, Guyang Cheongang opened his eyes and withdrew the needles in reverse order from how he had inserted them.

“Manor Lord, today’s treatment is finished, so you may dress her now. If we complete the final treatment tomorrow, Miss Nokju should regain consciousness.”

“…Thank you for your hard work, Young Master.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy looked at him with eyes filled with reverence as she continued speaking.

“Would you care to join me for a cup of tea? I have tea that’s quite effective for relieving fatigue.”

“That sounds good.”

After moving to a separate tea room, Heavenly Fragrance Fairy personally brewed precious Dragon Well tea.

She poured the tea while looking at him with eyes that held a subtle light.

“How is it that someone with such extraordinary medical arts as Young Master has remained unknown to the world until now… Only today do I truly understand the saying that the world is vast and there are many hidden dragons.”

Her words were not mere flattery.

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy was genuinely impressed by the acupuncture techniques Guyang Cheongang had displayed.

“You flatter me.”

“May I ask from whom Young Master learned such miraculous medical arts?”

“I have no proper master. I simply delved into medical arts on my own to treat my body’s illness, and by chance came across some old records and gained some understanding through my own methods. That’s why I’m still quite inexperienced.”

His words were essentially equivalent to refusing to answer.

“If Young Master’s medical arts are inexperienced, then all the physicians under heaven should close their doors.”

“Haha.”

Having no suitable response, Guyang Cheongang laughed awkwardly.

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy didn’t press further.

She too understood the ways of Gangho.

She knew well how foolish it was to forcibly dig into secrets the other party wished to keep hidden.

Guyang Cheongang changed the subject and asked.

“Manor Lord, even when I said I could treat her, you didn’t ask what illness had struck Miss Nokju. Did you already know what it was?”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy slowly nodded her head.

“Yes, I knew.”

“I thought so.”

“Since you treated her, Young Master must know as well?”

“Yes. Miss Nokju’s illness is not ordinary. As far as I know, it’s a type of evil sorcery called ‘Soul Slumber Thread.'”

“That’s right. Haah…”

A cold killing intent briefly flashed through Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s eyes as she let out a long sigh.

“Soul Slumber Thread is a secret technique of a sect that gained legendary fame through evil sorcery. Samae has a grudge against them and was ambushed.”

“It seems you don’t want to say which sect it is.”

“It’s a place that would bring no benefit for someone like Young Master to know about. They are cruel beings who can bring calamity just by knowing their name, so please understand that I won’t speak of it.”

“Hmm…”

After being lost in thought for a moment, Guyang Cheongang spoke in a calm tone.

“I plan to leave the family estate around the end of next spring to travel through Gangho. Since Manor Lord knows more than others, I’d like to ask for your advice.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s eyes widened slightly.

“Would it be alright for someone suffering from illness to undertake a journey through Gangho?”

“There’s no problem with taking care of this one body.”

“The more I speak with Young Master, the more mysterious you become.”

“I don’t know how to react when you gild me with praise to my face.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy smiled lightly seeing Guyang Cheongang’s embarrassment and opened her mouth.

“How much do you know about how the current Gangho is flowing?”

“I haven’t been in a position to pay attention to the outside world, so I know almost nothing.”

“Then you wouldn’t know about the Five Hegemons of the World either.”

Guyang Cheongang asked back.

“Five Hegemons of the World… That’s the first time I’ve heard that name. Please enlighten me, Manor Lord.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy set down her teacup and looked at him with deep eyes as she spoke.

“The Five Hegemons of the World refers to the five massive forces that currently rule Gangho in practice.”

“Hmm…”

“The righteous hegemon Azure Heaven Martial Alliance, the evil path’s leader Heavenly Evil Manor, the two symbols of the demonic path – Demonic Cult and Sovereign Demon Castle, and the fifth force is the Great Merchant Alliance, which includes Golden Tower Manor, your maternal family, among the Five Great Tycoons Under Heaven.”

At Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s last words, Guyang Cheongang’s gaze intensified.

‘Golden Tower Manor is part of the Great Merchant Alliance… The road ahead is long…’

He didn’t show his inner thoughts and asked about something else.

“Manor Lord, when you say Azure Heaven Martial Alliance, do you mean the Martial Alliance that was formed during the Great War between Righteous and Demonic?”

“That’s right.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy nodded.

“Originally it was a temporary organization created by the Nine Great Sects and Ten Great Families joining forces to oppose the Demonic Cult, but it wasn’t disbanded even after the war ended. And now it has become a massive power that dominates the order of Murim. Their sphere of influence almost perfectly matches most of the Central Plains regions that were once ruled by the Nine Great Sects and Ten Great Families.”

Guyang Cheongang asked again.

“But… why are the Demonic Cult and Sovereign Demon Castle called separately? Aren’t they both demonic path forces?”

A faint smile appeared on Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s lips.

“People usually see those two as one, but their roots and what they aspire to are subtly different. The Demonic Cult is a fanatical religious group that worships the ‘Sacred Fire,’ mainly controlling the southern parts of the continent like Guizhou, Guangdong, and Guangxi. They were also the main players in the past Great War between Righteous and Demonic.”

She paused briefly, then lowered her voice slightly.

“On the other hand, Sovereign Demon Castle is a group that pursues only pure martial force and the path of supremacy, but almost nothing is known about them. They’re said to rule somewhere, but throughout all under heaven, only a few people know their true nature.”

“Then what about the last one, Heavenly Evil Manor, the leader of the evil path?”

“Heavenly Evil Manor is as secretive a force as Sovereign Demon Castle.”

Strangely, there was a faint sense of disgust in Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s continuing voice.

“Where their headquarters is, what the scale of their power is – none of this is properly known. They’re simply shadow-like beings that scheme from unseen places. If Young Master undertakes a journey through Gangho, you should be most careful of them above all others.”

Her explanation clearly showed the vast Murim landscape that Guyang Cheongang would have to face in the future.

The next morning. Guyang Cheongang visited Nokju’s quarters again with Heavenly Fragrance Fairy.

In the room, benzoin incense that had been burning all night lingered faintly.

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy approached the bed to undress Nokju as she had grown accustomed to doing.

But Guyang Cheongang raised his hand to stop her.

“There’s no need for that today, Manor Lord.”

“Ah! That’s a relief.”

Guyang Cheongang explained calmly.

“Yesterday’s treatment gathered all the evil qi scattered throughout her body into one place – the Mingmen acupoint behind her back. Today I only need to remove that, so there’s no need to examine the meridians throughout her entire body like yesterday.”

At his explanation, Heavenly Fragrance Fairy nodded with bright eyes.

“Instead, please sit Miss Nokju up on the bed, then support her firmly from behind so she doesn’t fall over.”

“Understood.”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy sat up the unconscious Nokju as Guyang Cheongang instructed.

She then leaned the girl, who kept trying to fall over, against her own embrace to fix her posture.

Guyang Cheongang sat in lotus position behind Nokju’s back.

After taking a deep breath, he carefully placed his right palm against the Mingmen acupoint on her back where the Soul Slumber Thread’s evil qi had gathered.

‘Akasha, are you ready?’

[Yes, Doctor. I’ll begin now. Having broken through fifteen years of total internal energy, the maximum number of nanobots currently projectable outside the body is 30 units. Starting now, I’ll project 30 nanobots to the target point, the Mingmen acupoint, and begin the ‘Soul Slumber Thread’ removal procedure.]

In his mind, a three-dimensional neural network map projected by Akasha unfolded.

On the map, near the Mingmen acupoint, the ‘Soul Slumber Thread’ marked as an ominous red dot was crouched.

[Target locked. Doctor, please use the Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art to absorb and purify the subject’s evil qi. Simultaneously, I’ll assist with nanobots to completely decompose any residual toxins.]

As Guyang Cheongang operated his internal energy, a powerful suction force from the Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art generated from his palm.

The Soul Slumber Thread’s evil qi condensed like a black orb in Nokju’s Mingmen acupoint was drawn into his palm like iron filings attracted to a magnet.

The furnace of Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art rotating in his dantian purified and eliminated that evil energy without leaving a trace.

[Soul Slumber Thread main body removal complete. Now entering neural network synapse reconnection procedure. From now on, Doctor’s precise internal energy control is required.]

‘I know. Begin.’

Following Akasha’s instructions, the nanobots that had already infiltrated Nokju’s body scattered throughout her brain and spinal nerve areas.

On the map in his mind, countless neural networks severed by the Soul Slumber Thread were displayed like red warning lights.

Guyang Cheongang drew out his internal energy thinner than a strand of hair, then flowed it into Nokju’s body through his palm.

His true energy moved precisely to the damaged synaptic areas, guided by the nanobots.

The nanobots grasped and held the severed ends of the nerves in place.

Then Guyang Cheongang flowed his true energy, infused with life force, through the gaps to stimulate the severed nerve cells and induce regeneration.

It was like connecting two severed electrical wires with ‘life’s solder’—an extremely delicate and dangerous process.

It was a procedure that reached the realm of gods, impossible without Akasha’s assistance.

Each time he connected a synapse, thick beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.

Once this arduous process of purification and regeneration was complete, Nokju would finally be able to awaken from her long slumber.

How much time had passed?

The procedure that began in the morning finally ended when the sun was setting in the west.

Having finished the treatment, Guyang Cheongang removed his hands from Nokju’s back and spoke to Heavenly Fragrance Fairy.

“The treatment is complete. Young Lady Nokju will awaken soon.”

Before the echo of his words could fade, a miraculous event occurred.

“Mmm…”

With a soft moan, Nokju’s long eyelashes, which hadn’t moved for months, fluttered like butterfly wings.

A faint color began to return to her pale cheeks.

Then very slowly, her tightly closed eyelids opened with difficulty.

Her eyes, meeting the world’s light for the first time in months, blinked as her pupils focused.

Then they turned toward Heavenly Fragrance Fairy, who was looking down at her from beside the bed.

“…Master?”

Her voice was dry like cracked earth in a drought.

“Nokju! Nokju, are you coming to your senses!”

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s eyes, holding Nokju’s hand, blurred with tears.

She turned her head to look at Guyang Cheongang, who sat drenched in sweat.

Her eyes held sincere gratitude.

A while later, after entrusting the sleeping Nokju to a maid, Heavenly Fragrance Fairy led Guyang Cheongang to her tea room.

She poured personally brewed Dragon Well Tea into a cup and said.

“I will never forget Young Master’s kindness for the rest of my life. Now it’s time to honor the promise I made to you.”

“Good that I don’t have to wait.”

Guyang Cheongang smiled softly and listened attentively.

Heavenly Fragrance Fairy spoke.

“The person known to possess the Ten Thousand Year Cold Jade is Ghost Hand Divine Thief, a great master of the Jianghu Martial World who suddenly disappeared during the Righteous-Demonic Great War forty years ago. And the last place he was sighted was Daeyang Mountain Island in Poyang Lake.”

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes lit up.

Finally, a concrete clue about the Ten Thousand Year Cold Jade had emerged.

But Heavenly Fragrance Fairy’s story wasn’t finished yet.

“Young Master, Daeyang Mountain Island is now an abandoned island that no one visits, but it wasn’t always so. During the Righteous-Demonic Great War, there were rumors that the Demonic Cult had a secret branch there. You must be careful.”

Guyang Cheongang bowed his head with a calm expression, cupping his hands.

“Valuable information indeed. I gratefully accept it.”

The next morning, Guyang Cheongang left Heavenly Fragrance Tower with Elder Hwang.

At the highest point of Heavenly Fragrance Tower.

Standing by the window, Heavenly Fragrance Fairy watched his retreating figure for a long time with eyes as deep as a lake.

‘Sigh… To think a forgotten connection from the past would continue like this… Great Master, you must be watching from heaven, right? The precious bloodline you left in this world seems to be growing up truly magnificently, overcoming their heavenly burden.’

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————