The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 47

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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 47
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“It’s been two months already. There’s no way he could still be alive. Sigh. Perhaps it’s time we accepted this and moved on.”
“Baek Li-ui-gang likely knows the truth as well. He simply cannot bring himself to accept it.”
Two sturdy men climbed the mountainside. The slope they ascended bore the scars of recent devastation—eroded soil, boulders the size of men scattered about, and splintered trees all testified to a catastrophic landslide.
“By the way, did you hear anything about why So Ga-ju and Baek Li-ui-gang came all the way out to this remote place?”
“Not a word. Shim Bu-gwan has kept his lips sealed tight, so who would know?”
“Sigh. It’s only been about ten days since Baek Li-ui-gang headed toward the Baek Li Estate. We’ll likely be stationed here for another two months.”
“That’s probably right. We won’t withdraw until the people from the Baek Li Estate arrive.”
“Even if reinforcements come from the Baek Li Estate, I doubt it will change anything. We’re all suffering needlessly by coming this far.”
“At the very least, he hopes to recover the body. Who could have foreseen such a terrible tragedy?”
“Still, we need to retrieve the remains. If the child remains buried in a place like this alone, they won’t even be able to find peace in the afterlife… Hmm?”
One of the men suddenly stopped and let out a sound of surprise.
“What’s wrong?”
“Look over there.”
Following where the man pointed, I glimpsed the figure of a child between the rocks before it vanished.
“What? Did that kid come back here again? No, that brat keeps interfering with the search….”
“No, wait—look carefully! Behind that child, isn’t someone being carried on their back?”
“!”
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The place where I had been confined was an ancient royal tomb of a long-fallen kingdom, which Man Shin-ui had converted into his personal Meditation Chamber.
Since Man Shin-ui frequented this place, there was an abundance of drinking water and food. There were even medicines I could consume like candy.
The problem was that I had no idea how to escape. Only after finally stepping outside did I realize that nearly two months had passed since I became trapped there.
In my memory, the forest had been lush and verdant, but now I could see the green leaves gradually tinged with autumn’s varied hues.
The constant temperature of the Meditation Chamber had prevented me from feeling the passage of seasons at all. It was as if the place had been designed to sever all connection with the outside world.
The physician across from me asked a question.
“How is it?”
I carefully opened my eyes.
White gauze obscured my vision.
“Much better.”
“Good, then keep that on for now.”
The thin gauze reduced the light while still allowing me to discern the outlines of objects to some degree.
Shim Bu-gwan, standing beside the Old Physician, posed a question.
“What on earth is wrong with the young lady’s eyes?”
“I’m not certain. It seems to be from spending too long in darkness before emerging, but I cannot say for sure.”
“You cannot say for sure?”
“If it were merely from not seeing sunlight, her condition should improve with time, yet it shows no signs of recovery. If permanent damage has occurred, it may not heal at all….”
“Permanent? You mean she will remain unable to see for the rest of her life?”
“It could be, or it could not be.”
“No, Physician!”
Shim Bu-gwan and the Old Physician bickered for some time. After the physician left, Shim Bu-gwan spoke with heightened urgency.
“Miss, let us depart for the Namgung Clan.”
“The Namgung Clan?”
“Yes. They have far superior physicians compared to that charlatan. I have already sent letters to Baek Li-ui-gang and So Ga-ju.”
Both of them had searched for me here for a month before departing, or so I was told.
“However, since both the Namgung Clan and the Baek Li Family are at considerable distance from here, it will take quite some time for word to reach them.”
My father had gone to request reinforcements from the Baek Li Family, while Namgung Wan had clan matters to attend to.
“I believe it would be better to depart first rather than wait for their replies. Especially given the condition of your eyes.”
He then spoke in a reassuring tone.
“You need not worry. The Namgung Clan’s physicians are renowned for their skill. Your eyes will surely recover.”
I simply smiled ambiguously.
Even if I went to the Namgung Clan, they would find no cause. This was not an illness. My eyes became this way after I lost consciousness before Yalyu.
When I regained awareness, I possessed two forms of vision. The ordinary sight I had always known. And a vision composed of light.
Inside the Royal Tomb where light was scarce, the second vision was hardly bothersome. But the moment I emerged from the tomb, countless lights flooded my eyes.
The chaotic, moving lights scattered my vision so severely that tears streamed down my face and headaches rendered me unable to walk. Once I covered one eye to block one form of vision, the dizziness subsided. It seemed my mind could not process both visions simultaneously.
‘This ability—or should I call it an eye? It must be something Yalyu passed on to me.’
There was no other explanation. And without this eye, I would have been trapped and perished inside that tomb.
The vision composed of light was, to be precise, the ability to perceive the flow of qi. For instance, the Old Physician I had just seen had qi flowing uniformly throughout his body in a human form.
But Shim Bu-gwan and the Namgung Clan warriors differed from the Old Physician in one crucial aspect. The concentration of light near the dantian at the center of their bodies. I could infer this was the inner strength they had cultivated.
Shim Bu-gwan possessed the largest and most powerful light among all the Namgung Clan warriors.
‘Then what of my father’s level?’
Seeing was not the limit. The greatest advantage of this ability was that I could move the visible qi according to my will.
According to the texts in Yalyu’s library, the amount I could manipulate varied depending on my concentration and proficiency.
That was it. This eye’s ability was the reason Yalyu could be called a Divine Physician. If one could see and move a person’s qi, it was no different from peering into the depths of their body!
Yalyu seemed to have used this to heal people, but if utilized correctly….
‘Perhaps I could use martial arts even without a dantian…!’
Yalyu must have harbored the same thought, conducting research on applications to martial arts. Yet strangely, the research had been abruptly abandoned midway.
Then Shim Bu-gwan asked carefully.
“You mentioned you emerged from Yalyu’s Meditation Chamber, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Do you perhaps also know the method to enter it again?”
The moment I emerged, the Meditation Chamber’s door closed immediately. And it had not opened since. There seemed to be a separate method to enter, just as there had been to exit.
I answered hesitantly.
“No, I only discovered the method to exit….”
It had taken two months just to find the way out; I had never even considered how to return.
Shim Bu-gwan spoke with evident regret.
“I see. Very well. Then we shall conduct our own research on the matter.”
I had certainly considered the idea of retrieving the materials and various medicines from Yalyu’s Meditation Chamber. But escaping the chamber had been the priority.
“Then I shall help as well. If I recall the method of exit, it might be connected to the method of entry.”
That had been my intention from the start. But at my words, Shim Bu-gwan nearly leaped from his seat.
“No! No, please don’t! There’s no need for that! Miss, I beg you—go to the Namgung Clan first. If the So Ga-ju finds out that I accepted help from someone in your condition… I’d be… ahem, well, it doesn’t matter anyway.”
Then I heard footsteps approaching. It was Yalyu, appearing with bamboo sandals on his feet and a medicinal bowl in hand. Now that I thought about it, I’d completely forgotten about him.
I turned to Shim Bu-gwan and asked.
“Why is Yalyu here? Shouldn’t he be with my father?”
Shim Bu-gwan’s expression was caught between laughter and tears.
“How could Baek Li-ui-gang have had the presence of mind to look after Yalyu? He entrusted the boy to me before leaving.”
“Ah….”
“Then I’ll take my leave now. Please rest.”
After Shim Bu-gwan left, I was alone with Yalyu. He handed me the medicinal bowl.
When I emerged from the Meditation Chamber at the Royal Tomb, I had immediately encountered So Nok and Yalyu. At that moment, my vision was so disoriented that I couldn’t tell front from back. I heard that Yalyu had carried me on his back and brought me to where people were, since I couldn’t even walk properly.
I blew on the medicinal bowl and observed Yalyu.
‘He’s similar too.’
I focused intently on examining his dantian to see if there were any differences, but aside from the murky coloration, there was little distinction.
‘And somehow his blood vessels seem more active than other people’s….’
Then his voice came.
“Why did you do that?”
“Hm?”
“Why did you save me?”
It was the first thing he’d said to me since we met. I found it rather absurd.
“Well, it’s just….”
As I tried to give a vague answer, Yalyu’s next words left me speechless.
“You hate me anyway.”

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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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