The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 206

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 206
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The first floor of the inn—its doors and windows removed so that one could see inside from outside at a glance.
From a distance of roughly ten zhang away, I felt Namgung Wan’s gaze upon me. And there I sat in the inn’s first floor, separated by only six or seven paces from Cheon-ma, the Sect Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.
Cheon-ma, who had descended from the carriage, did not attack us. He did not even spare a glance at the corpse of what must have been his own son, the Third Young Master. Because he conducted himself as though he had not come to fight, we too found ourselves unable to move carelessly.
Cheon-ma had demanded to speak with me. There was no choice but to accept. And so I found myself seated across from him.
‘To face him here, with so many witnesses present.’
I both understood and could not understand how such a situation had come to pass.
From the moment our eyes met, I could discern that his business concerned me. It would surely relate to regression, to the future I had altered—matters of that nature.
But why he would conduct himself in such a manner, what his true purpose might be—of that I had not the faintest notion.
“….”
The headache that had always plagued me intensified further under the weight of tension.
That Cheon-ma would descend from the Cheon-ma Divine Cult Headquarters….
It had not happened once in the past hundred years.
Moreover, in the novel itself, Cheon-ma had never moved. Not even once, while Namgung Ryu-cheong gradually spread his wings and subdued the remnants of the Demonic Cult.
Yet why had he come all this way to sit across from me at this table?
Until now, there had been trials aplenty, but I could at least comprehend the flow of events and perceive a path to overcome them.
But this—I could not fathom it at all.
Dae-gae wore an expression as though his very soul had departed. The warriors of the Baek Li Family seemed to be clinging desperately to their wits.
By contrast, those of the Demonic Cult—even the few whose faces were visible—maintained a perfect, trained blankness that revealed nothing, and the Sect Leader was beyond question.
The poor Inn Clerk carried the teacups and teapot. I had expected him to tremble greatly, yet his expression seemed perfectly composed.
The clerk walked calmly, set down the teacups and teapot, and withdrew.
Soon I understood why. The clerk seemed entranced, as though his spirit had been drawn away.
Likely, in days to come, he would not even remember that Cheon-ma had come, nor that he had served tea.
‘If I survive this, that is.’
I gazed at the empty teacups and teapot but did not move.
If he meant to kill me simply for not pouring the tea, then no action of mine would change that fate, so I remained still.
Should Cheon-ma so much as lift a finger, Namgung Wan would not even have time to act before my breath ceased.
Whether because Cheon-ma perceived my reluctance to pour or simply gave it no thought, he grasped his sleeve and lifted the teapot himself, filling both his cup and mine. Truly, he was a man impossible to predict.
His opening words, too, were utterly unexpected.
“It has been a long time.”
The oppressive weight made it difficult even to speak. I forced my voice out with effort.
“…A long time, you say?”
Cheon-ma was not suppressing me directly.
Rather, there was some incomprehensible force within him, and I felt its influence upon me as well.
Moreover, the power itself was so dark and gloomy, as though it had gathered all shadow into one form—it was the Demonic essence itself. For that reason, it repelled me all the more.
Cheon-ma spoke.
“You have not yet recalled that far back?”
Not yet recalled that far back?
His words carried profound meaning.
‘Could it be that Cheon-ma knows I’ve been recalling numerous memories recently?’
Moreover, the very act of speaking such words suggested he intended to reveal something to me.
If he had no intention of revealing it, there would be no reason to bring up facts I was entirely unaware of.
I asked carefully.
“…You say I haven’t recalled it? Have we met before?”
“Still haven’t noticed.”
His tone carried a hint of disappointment. Cheon-ma continued.
“Did you not feel anything upon seeing Jegal Family Head?”
“…”
“Human memory has its limits. Did you think you would be any different?”
My eyes widened.
The Jegal Family Head inherited memories across generations. And Jeggal Hwa-mu despised and was wary of this greatly.
The more inherited memories he accepted, the more his own memories faded. His sense of self wavered, he would say.
He felt less like himself and more like a puppet of the family.
So while Jeggal Hwa-mu could gain much knowledge by accepting all the memories, he refused to do so. And his question—whether I would be any different—meant…
I furrowed my brow.
‘Am I also struggling to accept all the memories?’
Could that be why I haven’t remembered everything until now?
And regarding my recent continuous recollection of memories, I could make an educated guess.
‘My Golden Eyes ability has advanced one level recently.’
The Golden Eyes ability was influenced by the upper dantian. And observing how Jeggal Hwa-mu’s upper dantian had developed so peculiarly, I could discern that memories and the upper dantian were connected.
“…”
If Jeggal Hwa-mu and I were like this, how was Cheon-ma—an immortal transcendent being beyond the cycle of reincarnation—managing all of this?
The moment doubt seized me, I could only stare blankly at Cheon-ma.
‘…What is that?’
Thread-like things from an unknown source were tangled all over Cheon-ma’s body.
The instant I tried to examine them more closely, they vanished.
Understanding struck me like lightning from the heavens.
The reason Cheon-ma had remained inactive since his regression, save for matters concerning Man Shin-ui, before attacking the Murim Alliance.
It was because of those threads binding his body. Moreover…
‘Can this even be called a person?’
Though it bore human form, I could never call this a person.
It was merely a mass created from dark, murky, incomprehensible vicious power—wearing a human mask.
“You’ve seen it.”
The corners of Cheon-ma’s mouth lifted slightly.
A smile worn on a human face, ordinary in appearance. That was precisely what made it so chilling.
I wanted to rise immediately and flee this place.
But contrary to my will, my body would not move.
It felt as though it was not Cheon-ma who was bound by threads of unknown nature, but my own body.
Only my fingertips beneath the table could tremble slightly.
The Sect Leader spoke.
“Do not be afraid. I have no intention of killing you.”
Cheon-ma lifted the teacup to his lips and took a sip. His demeanor was utterly composed.
“If I intended to kill you, I would hardly be conversing with you like this.”
I wanted to ask why, but the suffocating pressure that seemed to crush even my breath kept my lips sealed.
Perhaps fortunately, Cheon-ma appeared to have intended to explain everything from the start.
“Moreover, if I killed you, Baek Li-ui-gang would become my adversary.”
“My father?”
Startled by the sudden mention of my father, I asked without thinking. Though moments before I could barely part my lips, my mind had cleared enough to form the question.
Cheon-ma gazed at me intently, and as if something pleased him, his lips curved upward once more.
“Yes. My adversary.”
“An… adversary?”
“One could also call it an opponent.”
….
Unable to comprehend his meaning, I furrowed my brow deeply.
Cheon-ma set down his teacup while regarding me.
“You wish to detoxify Baek Li-ui-gang, do you not?”
“…!”
He knew that my father had been poisoned.
Having repeated the regression countless times, he would naturally know such things.
But more than that….
“You were the one who administered the poison, were you not?”
He spoke in an almost casual tone.
“Yes. He was an obstacle to my grand design.”
I clenched my fists beneath the table.
Cheon-ma continued.
“You will not remember it all, but across the repeated regressions, there have been several instances where Baek Li-ui-gang succeeded in detoxifying himself. They all shared a common element. Are you curious about the method?”
Of course I was!
As if reading the answer in my eyes, Cheon-ma spoke.
“Even if that method is extraordinarily difficult?”
“It does not matter.”
It was absurd—he poisoned someone and now offered the antidote. What could he possibly be thinking?
I could not fathom his intentions.
Yet whether he merely sought amusement, or this was a sudden whim, or even a trap, I could never abandon this opportunity.
“The truth is, it is quite simple.”
Cheon-ma smiled again.
“You need only die.”
For a moment, I could not comprehend his meaning and doubted my own ears.
Cheon-ma continued with leisurely composure.
“Without you, no matter how I interfere, Baek Li-ui-gang would eventually detoxify himself and stand in my way.”
Cheon-ma chuckled softly.
“Beyond that, there has never been a single successful detoxification.”
“….”
“If you die, Baek Li-ui-gang will be free.”
In other words, what the Sect Leader was saying….
Because of my existence, Father had been unable to devote himself entirely to finding a cure all this time.
And if I were to disappear, Father—unshackled and free—would discover the method of detoxification.
Because of me, because my very existence had bound him, he had passed away without ever finding the cure, so pathetically….
Cheon-ma spoke.
“But would Baek Li-ui-gang truly wish for that?”
I, who had been silent, stammered out my words.
“…Then the reason you left me alone all this time…?”
“Indeed. That is your purpose.”
Cheon-ma spoke, laughter still lingering in his voice.
“Were you pleased, thinking you had changed the future? Did it seem as though you were winning?”
“….”
“How unfortunate. A future without you held far greater possibility.”
Cheon-ma spoke as though bestowing mercy.
“Tell me—could you die for your father? If you fear it, I could do it for you instead.”

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