The Ignored Granddaughter of a Murim Family - Chapter 53

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

Chapter 53
The Namgung Clan Family Head spoke.
“Hand over the Gongcheong Stone Jade. Then I shall turn a blind eye to that wretched creature. What say you? Of course, if you refuse, you’ll have to forfeit your life!”
“….”
“….”
I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them and rose to my feet.
Yalyu seized my wrist. When I pulled my hand free from his grasp, shock flooded his face.
‘I knew bringing him here was a mistake.’
I turned toward the bed behind Yalyu and retrieved the black porcelain vial I had hidden away. From the moment I produced it, the old man’s gaze never wavered.
“Take it.”
Just as the old man reached for the vial in my hand, I gripped it tightly.
“In exchange, you must guarantee Yalyu’s identity.”
“Guarantee?”
“Yes. If Yalyu’s demonic cultivation is ever exposed, you must protect him.”
The old man’s brow furrowed.
I continued speaking.
“My father overlooked Yalyu’s demonic cultivation because of me. And I couldn’t tell Namgung Wan because of my treatment.”
“Hmph, and?”
“I simply wish that even if the Namgung Clan discovers the truth about Yalyu, my father won’t suffer for it.”
The old man’s eyes narrowed as he studied me.
“Your filial devotion is truly profound. And quite clever, too.”
The old man spoke with hearty approval.
“Very well! I shall guarantee it!”
Just as I was about to hand over the vial, I gripped it once more. Sparks seemed to dance in the old man’s glare.
“Are you playing games with me!”
“But sir… you’re not the Namgung Clan Family Head, are you?”
“What nonsense is this?”
As expected of someone with such profound cultivation, his expression revealed no flaw.
I pressed on.
“Come to think of it, I already gave the Gongcheong Stone Jade to Namgung Wan.”
“I know.”
“If you truly needed it, wouldn’t you simply ask your son for it? There’s no reason to demand it from me.”
I knew Namgung Wan’s temperament well enough. If he learned that the Namgung Clan Family Head had taken it from me, I could already foresee his reaction.
The old man chuckled and answered with composure.
“What belongs to that boy is his. What belongs to me is mine.”
I nodded as if accepting this and continued.
“Then it’s fine if I go to Namgung Wan and ask him to return what I gave him, since the Namgung Clan Family Head has taken it?”
The old man’s eyes widened.
“You little…!”
“What belongs to you is yours, and what belongs to the Namgung Clan Family Head is the Namgung Clan Family Head’s, after all.”
The old man glared at me with a piercing gaze.
I smiled faintly and spoke.
“Ah, of course I have no such intention.”
I couldn’t afford to harbor such thoughts, not with Yalyu at stake. I extended the porcelain bottle toward the old man once more.
“I won’t presume to ask who you are, sir. But you will guarantee Yalyu’s identity for me, won’t you?”
“You speak such words without even knowing who I am?”
“As you yourself said, you’re someone who can move freely throughout the Namgung Clan, are you not? If that’s the case, wouldn’t you have a deep connection with the true Family Head of the Namgung Clan?”
Otherwise, no matter how formidable one’s martial prowess, one could not simply come and go from the Namgung Clan as they pleased—a place teeming with masters on all sides.
This meant you were someone permitted to move about the Namgung Clan from the start, and someone intimate enough to learn within half a day that Namgung Wan had obtained the Gongcheong Stone Jade, and that I possessed two bottles of it.
The old man exhaled sharply, as if exasperated.
“Hmph! Not clever—cunning, more like! Very well. I am not the Family Head of the Namgung Clan. But I stake my name on protecting that child. Now hand over the Gongcheong Stone Jade!”
I tightened my grip on the porcelain bottle I had been offering.
“One moment, please.”
“What now!”
The old man bellowed, his voice so laden with inner force that my eardrums vibrated. He seemed to realize his outburst and glanced cautiously around.
“Don’t you have something to say to me?”
“Tsk, what would this old man have to say!”
I tilted my head with a puzzled expression.
“You owe me an apology.”
“What?”
“You nearly killed me by piercing my vital acupoint, didn’t you? I expressed my gratitude for you sparing my life, and yet… surely you’re not simply going to let that slide?”
The old man’s face registered utter disbelief.
* * *
I bowed as I watched the old man’s retreating figure huffing away.
“Safe travels!”
I pricked up my ears and listened intently to the sounds outside.
Has he left? Has he truly left?
Even after waiting for a long time, I heard nothing.
Only when I was certain he had truly departed did I release a breath of relief.
“Phew.”
‘I was right to hide one bottle.’
So in total, I had discovered three bottles. I had shown Namgung Wan only two, just to be safe—and I was glad I had.
‘There’s no helping it.’
I had hidden one to give to my father and one for myself to consume when the opportunity arose, but now I had no choice but to give mine to my father instead.
Losing it was heartbreaking, but if that old man was indeed who I suspected, then I could consider this outcome a fortunate escape.
“He’s really gone now, it seems.”
When I turned to look at Yalyu, he stood with his fists clenched, his gaze fixed upon the ground.
“Yalyu.”
“…”
“Yalyu.”
“….”
It wasn’t until the fourth time that Yalyu lifted his head.
“Because of me….”
I cut off Yalyu’s words and spoke.
“Cheonsan Yeomje Gu Hong-ma.”
“…?”
“That’s who that damned old man is. It’s not your fault.”
“Cheonsan…Yeomje?”
“Yeah. You’ve heard of him, haven’t you?”
Yalyu shook his head.
Coming from the Orthodox Sect’s martial arts tradition and not knowing of Cheonsan Yeomje?
“He’s one of the Top Eleven Masters of the World—an eccentric who belongs to neither the Orthodox Sect nor the Unorthodox Sect, famous for living exactly as he pleases.”
Unknown to the world, he was also the sworn brother of Namgung Mu-cheol, the Family Head of the Namgung Clan.
‘So Cheonsan Yeomje is still alive at this point in time.’
Cheonsan Yeomje Gu Hong-ma would naturally fade into history within a few years. He never took disciples, and his martial arts would vanish without any successor to carry them forward.
“How could anyone stop one of the Top Eleven Masters of the World who’s determined to take something? Even if Father were still alive, he couldn’t have stopped him. It’s not your fault.”
“….”
But it didn’t seem to comfort him much.
Suddenly, something Yalyu had said not long ago came to mind.
“Yalyu, Yalyu.”
I waved my hand in front of Yalyu, who was staring down at the floor.
“So you can’t say your life is worthless anymore. It’s a life I saved with the Gongcheong Stone Jade.”
I laughed playfully, letting out a soft chuckle.
And in that moment, Yalyu threw himself at me—or rather, he embraced me, or perhaps it was more accurate to say he clung to me.
‘What, what is this?’
I stared bewilderedly at the head nestled against my chest.
* * *
The next day, I received an invitation from So Bu-in to dine at the Ja-cheong Pavilion.
Yalyu was also invited, but he declined to attend. I agreed with his decision.
I followed the maidservant alone.
The Ja-cheong Pavilion was renowned throughout the world as the most scenic location within the Namgung Clan. It was a pavilion situated in the middle of a blue lake, and in the past, I had visited it several times during the day to admire the view.
Back then, the lotus flowers blooming profusely across the lake had been a magnificent sight, but now they were difficult to see. Instead, paper lanterns floating on the lake cast shimmering light across the water’s surface. The glow was neither excessive nor too dim—gentle enough that one could remove a blindfold and still see clearly.
As I climbed the pavilion steps, I widened my eyes in surprise. Everyone from the Namgung Clan was already seated.
‘But I left early myself?’
I greeted them in confusion.
“I apologize for being late.”
An elderly man seated in the center spoke.
“No, we simply arrived early because we had matters to discuss.”
His eyebrows were half-streaked with gray, and his eyes remained sharp and piercing. Now, the wrinkled, keen gaze resembled Uncle Namgung Wan’s eyes perfectly.
This man was the true Family Head of the Namgung Clan, Namgung Mu-cheol.
It wasn’t merely his appearance—the luminous essence dwelling within his dantian bore a striking resemblance to Cheonsan Yeomje Gu Hong-ma’s. Yet the color of his qi diverged entirely.
Where Cheonsan Yeomje Gu Hong-ma’s energy leaned toward a crimson hue, Namgung Mu-cheol’s matched Namgung Wan’s precisely—a pale amber radiance, though his possessed noticeably greater density.
In truth, qi as visually distinctive as Cheonsan Yeomje Gu Hong-ma’s was the rarity; most cultivators bore such subdued colorations.
I offered a respectful fist salute.
“Baek Li-yeon of the Baek Li Family greets the esteemed members of the Namgung Clan.”
To Namgung Mu-cheol’s right stood Namgung Wan and So Bu-in, while to his left stood the long-awaited figure—Namgung Ryu-cheong.

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