Appearance of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 36

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

Chapter 36
* * *
Gu Yeong’s expression, gazing up at the vertiginous Cliff, betrayed an uncharacteristic unease.
His throat tightened for a moment.
“…!”
His body flinched, trembling.
Plink—patter-patter—
Stone fragments tumbled down past his feet.
What he was watching was a small child scaling the sheer Cliff with bare hands.
It was Yeon-u.
‘That was close…’
Almost fell….
A long breath escaped him.
Gu Yeong exhaled the breath he’d been holding without realizing it.
‘Which is exactly why it’s dangerous.’
Despite his warnings not to climb, the child had insisted on scaling the bare rock face with nothing but their hands.
From what Gu Yeong had observed these past days, the determination blazing in the boy’s eyes left no room for argument, and he understood this much:
There was no stopping him.
And now.
“….”
Gu Yeong watched Yeon-u ascending the Cliff, anxiety knotting in his chest.
Sometimes the stone beneath the child’s feet crumbled away; sometimes a branch he’d grasped snapped clean in two.
It was easy to fear, easy to surrender—but the boy did neither.
The days of Cultivation had not been wasted; despite the absence of any equipment, his physique and strength were remarkable.
Sweat streaming down his face, the child climbed on.
And Gu Yeong’s gaze, fixed upon him, had taken on the sharp, focused light of genuine intensity.
* * *
“He won’t rescue him.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun watched Yo-hwa Ma-gun as she reclined in her chair.
Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s slender fingers traced along her jawline.
“The Master’s hound is nothing if not pragmatic.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun’s gaze descended, growing distant.
Yet a soft smile lingered at the corners of his mouth.
“So you know that much?”
The Master’s hound.
That was what he called Gu Yeong.
It meant Yo-hwa Ma-gun knew that Gu Yeong had been assigned to guard Yeon-u during his absence.
‘So she sent an assassin even knowing that.’
If so, at least she wouldn’t have sent anyone weaker than Gu Yeong.
Am-yeong Ma-gun’s eyes swept across the space beside Yo-hwa Ma-gun.
‘That child.’
Was gone?
“Isn’t it overkill to send such a formidable one just to snatch a child?”
“Will the Master’s hound suffice?”
Ha ha ha. Ha ha ha ha.
Warm smiles passed between them.
On the surface, the air seemed pleasant and convivial.
“You cunning woman.”
“Snakes are said to be the most beautiful of creatures.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun’s gaze and Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s curved smile locked without the slightest retreat.
She had always been inscrutable, but the Face Veil draped across her features rendered her even more unreadable.
‘Perhaps there’s no choice.’
If it came to this, he could only entrust it to her.
‘Though I can’t simply fold my hands and do nothing either….’
Hmm.
Am-yeong Ma-gun rubbed his chin and studied Yo-hwa Ma-gun for a moment.
“Then, shall we make some inquiries?”
“…?”
“About whether the Master’s hound will really abandon the child.”
Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s expression stiffened almost imperceptibly.
He’d sent an assassin, and made it clear that the assassin was stronger than the escort—so Gu Yeong expected him to bolt at any moment.
‘Will he… actually listen to what I have to say…?’
What was he plotting now?
“You said we needed to buy time? I’m happy to oblige.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun let out a soft chuckle.
Watching that playful smile, Yo-hwa Ma-gun flicked her fingers toward the servants standing in the distance.
Soon the servants bustled about, and an elaborate spread of wine and delicacies began to appear in succession.
Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s lips curved upward.
“Conversation with a beauty is always welcome.”
* * *
“Here!”
Yeon-u wiped the sweat trickling from beneath his chin and thrust something toward Gu Yeong.
Gu Yeong’s expression hardened at the sight of it.
What Yeon-u held out was a medicinal herb.
This time, it was unmistakably a medicinal herb.
Even Gu Yeong, without any knowledge of herbalism, could recognize it. Because.
“Whenever you see a herb that looks like this, eat it without question—it should extend your life a little, at least.”
It was the exact same herb the physician at Cheon-ma Hall had shown him, even drawing pictures to explain it.
There was nothing gravely wrong with Gu Yeong.
Simply, he had been unable to sleep properly for a long time, and as that stretch wore on, exhaustion had accumulated.
The physician at Cheon-ma Hall would scold Gu Yeong every time he saw him.
Gu Yeong was twenty-three.
At this rate, he wouldn’t live to thirty.
So this herb was nothing more than an ordinary one—meant to help him sleep soundly.
“You climbed the Cliff for this?”
“Yep!”
Yeon-u nodded, sniffling a little.
“This is good for Gu Yeong! Take it, hurry!”
Gu Yeong extended his hand to the child.
Soon a wilted medicinal herb rested on his palm, still warm from the child’s grip.
“…Why…?”
“Why?”
Yeon-u tilted his head.
Why—?
“Just! Because I thought it would be good for Gu Yeong?”
“I meant how you reached that judgment.”
“Gu Yeong is always tired, right? Can’t sleep well! I was thinking—your eyes would be prettier if you got good sleep!”
“My eyes…?”
These eyes, hidden behind the black silk?
“Yes! Can’t see them well, but they’re pretty.”
Sparkling.
The eyes of the child speaking those words shone more brightly than anyone’s.
It was a gaze that seemed to be urging him to eat the herb he’d just been given.
Gu Yeong found himself at a loss for words.
Not a spiritual herb, not a rare medicine—just an ordinary one that aided sleep.
For something like that, he’d climbed that dangerous, grueling Cliff, spending two full double hours on it.
Something strange flickered in Gu Yeong’s gaze as he looked at Yeon-u.
An incomprehensible child from the start, now even more mysterious—Gu Yeong slipped the herb into his robes.
“I’ll take it before bed.”
“Oh? All right…!”
His voice carried a hint of disappointment.
Gu Yeong smiled at the child.
“Thank you. I’ll eat it well.”
The child’s lips curved deeply.
Yeon-u nodded emphatically.
“Yes!”
* * *
“Shall we make a wager?”
Am-yeong Ma-gun pointed toward Yo-hwa Ma-gun.
Beneath the half-mask, his mouth curved in a leisurely smile, already certain of victory.
“Whether Gu Yeong protects the child or doesn’t.”
That baseless composure ignited Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s competitive spirit.
“What shall we wager?”
“What do you want?”
“That child’s life.”
“That’s rather high, isn’t it?”
“Lacking confidence, are we?”
Am-yeong Ma-gun spread three fingers.
“Four days. For four days, you won’t go near that child.”
“Very well. What do you want in return?”
“Don’t touch the government anymore. That’s what I want.”
“…That’s rather steep as well.”
Yo-hwa Ma-gun drummed her fingers on the table and pondered briefly.
“That child. Let’s make it the child. If I lose the wager, I won’t touch that child anymore. How is that?”
Am-yeong Ma-gun considered for a moment.
The target differed, but the bargain was not entirely unfavorable as it stood.
Am-yeong Ma-gun’s lips curved into a grin—just for an instant.
“Agreed!”
Am-yeong Ma-gun slammed the table—Bang!—and rose to his feet.
Yo-hwa Ma-gun looked up at him.
“Where are you going?”
“Where? It’s time I moved on. I’ve indulged you enough, haven’t I?”
For all this meaningless delay.
“Won’t you stay the night?”
“How ghastly.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun waved his hand dismissively.
“That assassin you sent—I can kill her, yes?”
Yo-hwa Ma-gun tilted her head.
Then, understanding his meaning, she let out a short sigh.
Am-yeong Ma-gun meant to kill the assassin Yo-hwa Ma-gun had dispatched.
In other words, one of her own people.
“It won’t be easy. My children learn to sever bonds from the start.”
“As expected.”
Am-yeong Ma-gun turned sharply.
Then he waved his hand lightly.
“Let’s not see each other too often.”
In the next moment, Am-yeong Ma-gun vanished without a trace.
Whoooosh—
A faint breeze swept across Yo-hwa Ma-gun’s back, arriving late.
The wind lifted the Face Veil covering her face just slightly.
For just an instant, a serpentine, sharp gaze lay hidden beneath the veil was revealed.
Yo-hwa Ma-gun picked up her cup.
“We are one and the same, after all.”
* * *
Tap-tap-tap! Tap! Tap-tap-tap-tap!
Early evening, as darkness began to settle.
Three figures dashed swiftly across the undergrowth.
The figures, moving without pause or slackening speed, came to a halt before a solitary Inn.
Han-eum Valley. A remote Inn.
The foremost of the three raised his gaze beneath his Bamboo Hat to peer up at the Inn.
Namgung Ho-yeon.
He had come on an errand from Un-hyeon, having visited the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect.
“Young Master Namgung. Is it true—is Je Wang-geom truly here?”
An elderly Daoist approached from behind, removing his Bamboo Hat.
Appearing to be of similar age to Un-hyeon, he was the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect—Myeong-hyeon Jin-in.
Ho-yeon turned to face him.
“Yes. Surely he is here at this place….”
Surely he is here at this place….
Yet Ho-yeon could not continue.
“But why, I wonder, do we sense no presence at all?”
Ho-yeon had already sensed it too.
The inn was empty.
Not a single presence stirred within it.
Ho-yeon’s expression darkened.
Countless troubling thoughts flickered through his mind.
It couldn’t be. Father wouldn’t….
“Young Master Namgung….”
Myeong-hyeon Jin-in closed his eyes and exhaled slowly.
“Are you certain it was here we were summoned?”
“…Yes? Yes. This is the place….”
Rustle.
Myeong-hyeon Jin-in withdrew a letter from his robes.
It was the letter Un-hyeon had given him to deliver to the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect.
Myeong-hyeon Jin-in unfolded it silently before Ho-yeon’s eyes.
“I ask once more.”
It was blank.
“Did you truly meet Je Wang-geom here?”

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