Almighty God of War - Chapter 96

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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096

Myeonghwa Palace, early afternoon (around 1 PM).

Guyang Cheongang began investigating everything in Myeonghwa Palace together with Akasha.

Thanks to the special order issued by the Emperor, no one could interfere with him.

However, he didn’t start searching recklessly. He began with logical deduction first.

‘Akasha, analyze the toxic substance in the Princess’s body in more detail.’

[Analysis already completed. This poison has the characteristic of becoming stronger when it reacts with yang energy or life force. It’s as if it feeds on and grows from the Doctor’s healing energy.]

‘Then this poison must have been administered to the Princess recently. And regularly, through a method that wouldn’t arouse suspicion.’

Guyang Cheongang looked around the bedroom while organizing the possibilities in his mind.

‘There are four main ways to deliver poison. Food, bedding, cosmetics, and inhalation through incense or air. Among these, the most suspicious one is…’

His gaze stopped at the incense burner.

‘Incense. It’s changed daily, and when burned, it becomes smoke that naturally enters the body. Moreover, incense itself is supplied from outside, making it easy to tamper with.’

He said.

‘Akasha, investigate the incense.’

A moment later.

[Doctor, I found it.]

Akasha’s voice followed, sounding somewhat excited.

[Strange substances were found in the burnt incense stuck in the incense burner. It’s colorless and odorless but contains powerful toxicity. However, simply burning this alone wouldn’t cause poisoning.]

‘As expected. You’re saying the toxicity activates when combined with the Pure Yang True Energy I injected?’

[That’s correct. That’s why the Princess’s condition worsened when the Doctor treated her.]

‘Hmm… Then who placed this in the incense burner? A palace maid would be the most likely candidate?’

[That would be the case.]

Guyang Cheongang gathered all the palace maids in charge of Myeonghwa Palace in one place.

There were twelve in total.

Chief Eunuch Jang In Sang-on was watching from the side.

Guyang Cheongang asked.

“Is there anyone among you who recently changed the Princess’s incense?”

The palace maids looked at each other and murmured.

“We… we take turns being in charge.”

“Who was in charge last night?”

One palace maid raised her hand.

She was a woman with a cute appearance who looked to be around twenty years old.

“I… I was in charge.”

Guyang Cheongang approached her.

“What is your name?”

“Chae… Chae Ryeon.”

[Doctor, very strange brainwave patterns are being detected from the palace maid.]

‘What do you mean?’

[Alpha waves and theta waves are appearing in bizarre combination as complex waveforms in this palace maid’s brain. Moreover, the amplitude of the complex waveforms is modulated to be more than three times stronger than normal brainwaves.]

Guyang Cheongang’s expression hardened.

[Such patterns can never occur naturally. It’s as if specific frequencies are being artificially forced from outside to simultaneously control both the conscious and unconscious areas of the brain.]

‘Could this be… the Soul Absorption Technique?’

[I can’t be certain, but this isn’t simple memory manipulation – it’s a physical modification of the brain’s information processing system itself. Only someone with very advanced techniques could accomplish this.]

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes deepened as he asked the palace maid.

“Do you remember what you did last night?”

Chae Ryeon answered hesitantly.

“Yes… I changed the Princess’s bedding… tidied the room… and changed the incense…”

As she spoke, her eyes became hazy and her pupils lost focus.

“And then… and then…”

Lightning-like divine light flowed from Guyang Cheongang’s eyes.

‘Akasha, can you break the Soul Absorption Technique?’

[It seems possible. I’ll execute the Memory Restoration Protocol.]

Akasha sent an extremely small amount of nanobots to Chae Ryeon’s brain.

At the same time, Guyang Cheongang said to the palace maid.

“Chae Ryeon, remember slowly. Don’t you recall what happened last night?”

“Uuugh…”

Chae Ryeon groaned while holding her head.

The nanobots were finding the Soul Absorption Technique’s frequency in her brain and sending reverse signals.

“Someone… someone came to me…”

Suddenly, deep fear cast over her eyes.

“I… I remember… Last night, there was someone who… came to see me!”

“Who was it?”

“A person in black clothes… their face was covered with a mask… that person gave me this incense and told me to definitely place it in the Princess’s incense burner before dawn…”

Chae Ryeon suddenly began trembling like an aspen tree.

“That… that person was scary… Their eyes… their eyes were red like a beast’s…”

“Did they have any distinguishing features?”

“On their wrist… on their wrist…”

“What was there?”

“A small… small snake-shaped tattoo… it was a snake biting its own tail…”

Thud.

The palace maid’s eyes rolled back showing the whites, then she collapsed on the spot as if crumbling.

[Doctor, the artificial True Energy waves that were suppressing the palace maid’s brain have disappeared. This is a temporary shock state due to the backlash. There’s no danger to her life.]

The other startled palace maids supported her, and Guyang Cheongang had them all withdraw.

‘A snake biting its tail… Akasha, do you have any information about this symbol?’

[There’s no matching information in this world’s database. However, when cross-referenced with Earth’s ancient mythology data, this matches the ‘Ouroboros’ which symbolizes ‘eternity,’ ‘destruction,’ and ‘recreation.’]

In the room, only Chief Eunuch Jang In Sang-on remained.

Guyang Cheongang turned to him and said.

“Chief Eunuch, from now on I will begin the Princess’s full-scale treatment. Until I call again, no one must set foot in this room.”

An unpleasant expression appeared on Sang-on’s face.

How dare he give orders to himself, the Emperor’s closest confidant.

However, the moment he met Guyang Cheongang’s intense gaze whose depth he couldn’t fathom, he unconsciously swallowed dry saliva.

“Please tell His Majesty that I will personally visit and report after stabilizing the Princess’s condition.”

“…I understand.”

Sang-on left Myeonghwa Palace quietly with a stiff expression.

Mid-afternoon (around 4 PM), Emperor’s Office

Guyang Cheongang sat facing Emperor Changseong alone.

He pointed to the half-burnt incense placed on the table and began speaking.

“Your Majesty, the Princess’s sudden deterioration was caused by this object.”

“Isn’t this just incense?”

“It appears to be ordinary incense, but invisible microscopic poison was soaked into it.”

A pained groan flowed from between Emperor Changseong’s lips.

“Mmm…”

“This poison is very peculiar – it’s completely harmless normally, but the moment it encounters Pure Yang Energy, it combines and transforms into deadly poison.”

“Pure Yang Energy?”

“The Internal Energy I inject to treat the Princess. The toxicity is designed to activate when it meets that. It was a trap designed to make it appear as if my treatment was actually harming the Princess.”

Emperor Changseong held his breath while looking at the picture.

He seemed to get chills from that meticulousness.

“Then who could have used such poison…?”

“After investigating the palace maids, we found that someone used Soul Absorption Technique to control a palace maid named Chae Ryeon, making her place this poisoned incense in the Princess’s incense burner.”

Emperor Changseong’s eyebrows twitched.

“Soul Absorption Technique?”

“Yes. It’s a demonic technique that manipulates memories. Chae Ryeon had no idea what she had done.”

All expression disappeared from Emperor Changseong’s face.

A terrible anger blazed in his eyes.

“Then… all of this was someone’s conspiracy?”

“That’s correct.”

“Huuu…”

Emperor Changseong let out a long breath to calm his anger and asked.

“Have you completely removed the poison from the Princess’s body?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After a moment of silence, Emperor Changseong spoke in an ice-cold voice.

“I will definitely find the identity of that snake who dared to spread poison beneath my dragon throne and exterminate their nine clans.”

Guyang Cheongang bowed his head and answered.

“We haven’t yet identified their exact identity, but there’s a high possibility they’re the same force that harmed the Crown Prince.”

“Hmm…”

“They are a massive organization with roots deep within the Imperial Palace. We’ll need to be even more careful going forward.”

Killing intent flashed in Emperor Changseong’s eyes.

The fact that there was a force that had been toying with his son and daughter for decades, and that it had happened right under his nose, filled him with rage.

Just then.

The office door opened and Sang On rushed in with hurried steps, his face pale as a sheet.

“Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened!”

“What matter causes such commotion?”

“Palace maid Chae Ryeon… Chae Ryeon… is dead!”

Emperor Changseong’s eyes widened.

“What?”

Sang On caught his breath and hurriedly continued.

“She was found dead in her quarters, appearing as if she were sleeping.”

Guyang Cheongang’s face hardened.

Emperor Changseong asked.

“How did she die?”

“That’s the thing…”

Sang On’s voice trembled even more.

“The room was firmly locked from the inside. All the windows were locked too, and there were no signs of intrusion whatsoever. It’s as if she was possessed by a ghost.”

Emperor Changseong and Guyang Cheongang looked at each other.

“You’re saying there were no wounds either?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. None at all. However, her face bore extreme terror, and there were marks where she had clawed at her own throat with her fingernails.”

Emperor Changseong clenched his fist and muttered in an angry tone.

“…These bastards.”

His voice was filled with rage and killing intent as he gave orders to Sang On.

“Eunuch Jangin, tell him to thoroughly investigate the palace maid’s death. We must catch the culprit.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

After Sang On backed out, Guyang Cheongang spoke.

“Your Majesty, you must be even more careful from now on. Their abilities may be far more dangerous than we imagine.”

Emperor Changseong’s gaze hardened like steel.

“You focus on treating Myeonghwa. I will definitely find out who these bastards are that dare to humiliate the Imperial Palace like this.”

* * *

In an underground secret chamber of a manor in the Imperial Capital.

In the darkness where only a single candle flickered, a man wearing a black face mask knelt.

Across from him, a Lord wearing a bizarre ghost mask sat in a chair, looking down at him.

“Failure…”

The Lord’s voice that broke the long silence carried bewilderment.

Because in decades, he had never once experienced failure.

The Masked Man’s shoulders trembled slightly.

“Hahou Gang’s abilities exceeded my… expectations.”

“He even undid the Soul Absorption Technique I had cast on palace maid Chae Ryeon. I never expected he would have the ability to undo that with Medical Arts.”

“You took care of the palace maid, didn’t you?”

“Yes, all evidence has been destroyed. However, Emperor Changseong’s anger is too great, and the Eastern Bureau and Brocade Guards under his command have begun a full investigation. It would be best not to move for a while…”

The Lord’s voice grew cold as he responded.

“For decades we have never failed once. Does it make sense to hold back now because of a mere physician?”

“I apologize, Lord.”

“If Princess Myeonghwa lives and the Crown Prince’s condition is revealed, our grand plan will inevitably fail. If that happens…”

His voice was heavily shrouded with fear.

If they failed, it was obvious he too would find it hard to escape death.

The Masked Man spoke.

“We must kill Hahou Gang.”

“Of course. If Hahou Gang is murdered, the Emperor will certainly conduct an intensive investigation. We might get our tails caught then, so we mustn’t use our own forces.”

“The Master of Blood Sea is in the Imperial Capital.”

“He is?”

“Yes. There’s information that he drifted here while tracking someone, but we haven’t confirmed who the target is.”

“That’s not our concern.”

The Lord continued in a cold tone.

“Commission Blood Sea Heaven Killer to kill Hahou Gang.”

The Masked Man bowed his head.

“Yes, sir!”

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