Peng Woo-jin and Eon Ga-hye were martial artists who had reached the Peak Realm.
Of course, given the outstanding talents inherited from their families and the divine arts they called martial arts, reaching the Peak in their twenties might have been only natural.
But setting aside their circumstances, if one looked purely at their martial strength, they were by no means lacking compared to anyone across the Central Plains.
If one wanted to finish them off for certain, it would take a master at the Transcendent Peak, not a few mediocre Peak-level experts.
Someone like the Blood Flame Fist Demon, for instance.
"But the Demonic Cultists won't have anticipated that Senior Seomun Hwa-rin is on our side."
"Hmm. You need only trust this one. It has weighed on my mind that I only watched from the sidelines when you fought the Lord of the Black Heaven Sword Gate before. It seems I will have a chance to repay that debt sooner than I thought."
"A debt? At the time, I thought that was the best course of action, and I stepped forward because I wanted to."
"That may be true for you. However, the feelings I hold are mine alone, are they not? I harbor nothing but gratitude and regret toward you, and I wish to resolve that debt with this opportunity."
"Well… if that's the case, I have nothing more to say. Honestly, it's also true that I feel reassured."
"Ahem!"
Seomun Hwa-rin, who had seemed pleased ever since realizing our party was leaning on her, let out a snort with a determined expression.
But the reason I brought this up wasn't merely to soothe her mood—she had been slightly sulking after being called "elder" throughout our journey.
"Then we'll trust only Senior Seomun Hwa-rin and track down the Blood Flame Fist Demon."
"Hm? Did you say track? This is a man who committed such an abhorrent act to hide his traces and eliminate witnesses… Do you even have a way to chase him?"
"If I were alone, it would be a bit difficult, but with the help of others, there is a method worth attempting."
"Hoh. I don't know what you're thinking, but do as you see fit."
I nodded to Seomun Hwa-rin, then turned to Peng Woo-jin and Eon Ga-hye.
"This has grown into a fairly large matter, and at this point, it will be hard to receive help from the Paeng and Eon Clans. You both know the reason well."
"Hm. That's probably true."
"Yes. I share the same thoughts as Clan Head Paeng."
A Demonic Cultist who had reached the Transcendent Peak had slipped into Hebei Province and committed such an act—whether it was running away or not, seeking the aid of one's family was the right call.
After all, both the Paeng and Eon Clans were Orthodox Sect families rooted in Hebei Province.
A whole village had been massacred, and they wouldn't just stand by watching, using their feud as an excuse.
But there was a reason they couldn't act.
"With a spy hidden somewhere in our clan, we can't recklessly leak information."
"Once this matter is settled, we will catch that rat and punish it."
That was right. Spies of the Demonic Cult had infiltrated both the Paeng and Eon Clans. They had discovered this by comparing the facts each had uncovered within their own households and sensing something amiss.
There was a reason they had gathered all their materials in the house originally prepared for their secret meetings.
Because hiding them within the clan estates was too dangerous.
Well, in the end, that hidden house was discovered, and all the materials and evidence they had collected turned to ashes, but…
Still, the information lodged in Peng Woo-jin and Eon Ga-hye's heads wouldn't simply vanish, would it?
…Which meant the Blood Flame Fist Demon's next target would be their necks.
As he nodded inwardly, Peng Woo-jin let out a deep sigh.
"Hoo. To have tampered with the information going up to the clan head, he must hold a fairly high position. What could he possibly have lacked that he'd betray the Paeng Clan over…"
"Let me say this first—it might not have been a betrayal born of intent to betray."
"What kind of bizarre nonsense is that? Is there such a thing as a betrayal that isn't a betrayal?"
"What I mean is, there are cases where one is forced into the role of a spy regardless of their own will. Have you heard of seals, or perhaps Godok?"
"I know of seals—the Paeng Clan has a few similar ones as well… But Godok actually exists? I thought it was just an exaggerated tale."
"That's usually the case. However, the story is different with the Demonic Cult. Their martial arts may be somewhat lacking, but when it comes to Sorcery, they have deeper expertise than anywhere else in the Central Plains."
"How very Demonic Cult of them. So you believe the Blood Flower Sword Demon is working for the Demonic Cult because some member of your clan was forced into it for some reason?"
"I'm not certain. It's just that the possibility is high. …Besides, just because it's due to a seal or Godok doesn't mean the betrayal ceases to be a betrayal."
"…That's true as well."
Peng Woo-jin let out another sigh with a complicated expression. Eon Ga-hye patted his back gently to comfort him, and only after waiting for a moment did he speak again.
"At any rate, we can't rely on the clan's help, but we can rely on Senior Seomun Hwa-rin's. So, from now on, I intend to track down the Blood Flame Fist Demon."
"Have you learned the Tracking Art?"
"A little."
Before the regression. The war against the Demonic Cult dragged on, and the longer it went, the more desperate it became—to survive, I had to learn things beyond the sword.
To leave no loose ends, I had to chase down and kill fleeing enemies, and to escape from pursuers, I had to hide my tracks.
So of course I had mastered the basics of the Tracking Art.
"Of course, that alone won't be enough to find the Blood Flame Fist Demon. No matter how well fire erases traces, it's hard to be this clean. Demonic Cultists know how to fight, but they don't know how to hide."
"…The Assassin Valley."
At Eon Ga-hye's subdued voice, I slowly nodded.
"That's the most likely possibility. I've already thinned out their Slaughter Ghost ranks, which were a major asset, but just because their martial level is lacking doesn't mean their assassination skills are. For someone like the Blood Flame Fist Demon, who leaves such flashy traces, to be walking around while things stay this quiet—it must be because the Assassin Valley's assassins are following him and covering his tracks."
"That makes sense. But that's exactly why I'm even more confused. How exactly do you plan to track traces that even assassins have gone out of their way to conceal?"
"There's no rule that says I have to solve everything with my own strength. I'll use Tang So-wol's poison."
"Pardon?"
"Isn't it said that poison, used well, becomes medicine?"
"For a moment there, you really sounded like someone from the Tang Clan."
At Eon Ga-hye's admiration, I gave a shrug of my shoulders and continued.
"At any rate, the reason I brought this up to you two is something else. I intend to track the traces, but even with Tang So-wol's help, it would be difficult for me to fully see through the skills of a professional assassin. So I want to narrow down the candidate locations in advance."
"You mean narrow down the candidate locations?"
"Peng Woo-jin. Eon Ga-hye. Tell me every single place the two of you used to meet in secret. If you knew the location of the house, then your investigation of them is already complete. The Blood Flame Fist Demon's next destination is highly likely to be a place where frequent meetings occurred."
"…"
"…"
The two of them looked at each other, their faces flushed red. It was only after a long while that Peng Woo-jin broke the silence with a cough.
"Ahem! If that's the reason, then of course I'll tell you… but what you're about to hear from now on is absolutely secret. Understood?"
"Of course. Don't worry."
As I nodded readily, Peng Woo-jin finally leaned in and whispered cautiously.
Only then did I understand why the two of them had reacted like that.
These bastards. They'd really done everything there was to do.
After inadvertently learning about the private lives of Peng Woo-jin and Eon Ga-hye—which I hadn't been particularly curious about in the first place—
the next place I headed was to Tang So-wol's side, where she was digging in the earth alongside the others.
"What are you doing?"
"It wouldn't feel right to just leave like this. The village isn't that large, and we've already turned over half the rubble, so I thought I'd at least bury the bodies."
"I'll help."
Only after finishing the half-dug hole and fashioning a simple grave did I speak up.
"I need poison."
"What poison might you be referring to?"
"I need one made from a blend of red fruit grass, purple acacia fruit, three-leaf viper, and white-horned centipede venom, all in equal parts."
"If this is poison needed for interrogating captured Demonic Cultists, there are far more efficient options, you know?"
"I intend to consume it myself."
"…I do not know what reason the young hero Cheon has for turning his back on the world, but I would have you know that I too intend to follow shortly after."
"That sentiment is truly touching, but even if I die, you, Tang So-wol, must live. And I'm not taking it to die. Do you think I hold my own life so cheaply?"
"Well, I wonder. Given the young hero Cheon's usual conduct, does he not act as though it would be no surprise to die at any moment?"
"I was always confident I would survive. This time is no different."
"Hm."
Tang So-wol tilted her chin upward with a crooked attitude, as if daring me to explain myself.
I let out a small laugh at the sight and continued with a detailed explanation.
"Tang So-wol, as you know, every poison I listed just now is a poison filled with Yang energy."
"Filled with Yang energy? They're all extreme poisons that melt internal organs, one and all."
"But as they say, going too far is as bad as not going far enough. When you mix them all together, it's a combination where the toxicity surprisingly dies down."
"I know that much myself. But it doesn't disappear completely. The neutralized residual toxicity isn't enough to kill a person, but given the nature of Yang poisons, it will still be painful."
"But doesn't it have the effect of sharpening the senses to the extreme?"
"You're certainly drawing out the part about it being painful enough to make one want to die."
"That's where Seol Ri-hyang's help comes in."
"Pardon?"
I let out a small chuckle at Tang So-wol's bewildered expression and continued.
"By taking in Seol Ri-hyang's Yin Energy, even the pain gets neutralized. What remains is nothing but heightened senses, isn't it?"
"…It's a novel approach, but there's no guarantee it'll work that way."
"It's true that I intend to take that poison, but that doesn't mean right this instant. Catch a suitable wild beast and test it out first—if it seems fine, then you can apply the poison to me then."
"If that's the case, I suppose there's no problem… but I'm not sure it'll work out."
Tang So-wol tilted her head, yet even so, she drew out different poisons drop by drop from her fingertips.
It would probably be fine. This was a formula she had created back before my regression, after I kept coming home beaten black and blue by the Blood Flame Fist Demon and grinding my teeth in frustration—she had made it so that next time, I could strike first instead of being ambushed.
Of course, back then, Seol Ri-hyang wasn't around, so Tang So-wol had to examine my condition herself and neutralize the poison with a rebalanced blend laced with Yin Energy.
But with Seol Ri-hyang here, there was no need for that. If Tang So-wol displayed unrivaled talent in poison, then Seol Ri-hyang possessed a comparable gift when it came to handling Yin Energy.
Above all, the current Tang So-wol was bound to still lack much compared to the Tang So-wol of before my regression.
That was the reason I had chosen this method.
Tang So-wol combined the poisons with a dubious expression. I called Seol Ri-hyang over and we lightly tested it on a bird flying nearby, but…
Sure enough. The bird was hopping around perfectly fine.
Only after confirming that sight did Tang So-wol approach, thick venom dripping from her fingertips.
"Where on earth did you learn something like this, young hero Cheon?"
"That's a secret. But I can tell you this much—I heard it from someone who was like me, someone who created an Oral Formula to improve the Poison Spirit Constitution."
"Surely it's not another woman?"
"She is a woman, but there's no need to worry. She's no longer of this world."
"Ah…"
This was now a fairly old story. It was something I had told Tang So-wol, who had snuck into my room the day after we brought down the Agwibu.
As if recalling the memory of that time, Tang So-wol nodded with a slightly awkward expression.
"Th-then, I'll now apply the poison, so please open your mouth. Hyang-i, place your hand on young hero Cheon's back so you can neutralize it right away."
"Yes."
Seol Ri-hyang scurried over and placed her hand on my back. Meeting her wide, innocent gaze, Tang So-wol slowly slipped her fingers into my mouth.
Four fingers filling my mouth. Before I could even register the sensation, a sticky poison liquid flowed down my esophagus.
My body heated up in an instant. Just as a hiss was about to escape from the pain of my whole body feeling like it would burst—
A cool energy flowed in from Seol Ri-hyang's hand on my back. The pain that had surged up in an instant began to subside.
Before long, my five senses expanded, and things I normally couldn't see began to appear faintly before my eyes.
"Found it."
Now it would be our turn to do the chasing.