Mistaken for a Fairy
ch6

[To Henan (1)]

Yeonheo.

A village located on the border between Anhui and Henan provinces. Or rather, it was a village.

They say a decade can change the landscape, but when did this small village become such a large city? Thousands of people came and went, carriages raced in all directions, and three-story buildings were not uncommon.

It was a sight Seo-yeon had never seen before she secluded herself in the mountains.

'Have I been too cooped up?'

Nothing much happened on the way here. In fact, she had braced herself to some extent. If anyone picked a fight, she planned to bow her head immediately, and if she saw any signs of a sword fight, she would retreat first.

But contrary to her worries, nothing happened.

Come to think of it, how much could ordinary people, not martial artists, get caught up in incidents? Only in martial arts novels do martial artists destroy inns; in reality, the government is watching with sharp eyes, and no one would do that unless they were crazy.

Moreover, this was near Anhui Province, where the Namgung Clan's authority reached, so it would be even less likely.

Seo-yeon concealed her conspicuous hair with a reed hat. Thanks to her neatly braided and coiled hair, she managed to hide it somehow.

She headed to a nearby inn. The bustling crowd in front of the entrance indicated that it must be a great restaurant.

Seo-yeon sat near the entrance, so she could escape quickly if anything happened.

As she waited, a waiter who looked slightly younger than Ji-hak hurried over.

"What would you like? Our inn is famous for Kung Pao Chicken and Oyukhyangjangyuk!"

Kung Pao Chicken is stir-fried chicken, and Oyukhyangjangyuk is cold duck slices. However, Seo-yeon wasn't drawn to dishes full of meaty flavors, so she ordered noodles and dumplings.

As expected of noodles costing a few coins, the broth was naturally vegetable-based.

'Delicious.'

Although it didn't contain a single drop of oil, the clean taste lingered on her tongue. It was good enough to empty the bowl, broth and all.

"...So, it's true that a Celestial Mandate Sword grunt did that?"

"That's what they say. The Crimson Blood Unit leader recklessly charged and got his head chopped off. It didn't even last twenty moves."

"Ha! If it's the Crimson Blood Unit leader who recently appeared, it must be Poryeokgwi. Even if it's someone from the Celestial Mandate Sword, is it possible for a mere grunt to break his tyranny? That's hard to believe."

"But it's definitely true. The Beggars' Sect has already spread the story several times. It seems the news hasn't reached here yet... but the truth will be revealed soon."

It was a conversation between customers sitting not far away. Judging by the heavy bundles placed next to them, they seemed to be traveling merchants acting individually.

Celestial Mandate Sword. It was a name that even Seo-yeon, who had no interest in the martial world, had heard of.

A martial force directly under the Crown Prince, a sect established under the pretext of punishing the martial world.

Receiving full support from the imperial family, its power was said to overwhelm even major sects. It was predicted that when the Crown Prince ascended the throne, the Celestial Mandate Sword would be absorbed into the government like the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot.

It was irrelevant to Seo-yeon. She had not committed any crimes, and since she was not a martial artist in the first place, she had no reason to get involved with the Celestial Mandate Sword.

'Still, it's quite interesting.'

It was an era with few things to enjoy. Just listening to such stories was quite enjoyable.

There was no need to feel guilty for eavesdropping a little. After all, they were talking so loudly with the intention of being heard by others.

The inn door opened, and people wearing black robes appeared. At that moment, the chattering merchants simultaneously fell silent as if by agreement.

A blood-chilling silence.

"......"

They conspicuously wore swords on their waists. They were martial artists.

Judging from their unique aura and the pressure felt on the skin, they were not insignificant third-rate figures.

Seo-yeon quietly swallowed.

'I should have left earlier.'

She had been too focused on the story, and her ears had been drawn in. She had missed the opportune moment to escape.

All eyes in the inn naturally focused in one direction. Then, a woman wearing a black robe stepped forward.

"I want to eat in a quiet place."

The owner, who had rushed out, bowed deeply and said,

"Yes, yes! There happens to be a room available upstairs. Boy! Hurry up and guide these great warriors!"

"T, this way!"

The flustered waiter hurried his steps while trembling.

Reaching the end room on the third floor, the waiter inhaled.

"H, here it is! W, what would you like to order?"

"Anything. Enough for this number of people."

"Yes!"

The waiter bowed deeply and quietly retreated with his hands clasped.

Thud.

The sound of the room closing echoed like thunder throughout the inn.

As if that sound was a signal, the people downstairs sighed in relief. Seo-yeon immediately left the inn. She had originally planned to stay here for a day, but she changed her mind.

It felt like something was about to happen any minute.

'I knew it. What city life is there in my fate?'

What good is delicious food? She couldn't live here, too scared. Carving wood in the mountains was a hundred times better.

Seo-yeon hurriedly packed her belongings and left.

Wi Hwa-ryeon, the Great Miss of the Mount Mao Sect, quietly put down her chopsticks.

She had no appetite at all.

'......There's not much time left.'

It had already been two months since the sect leader had collapsed, consumed by evil energy. No matter how much the Mount Mao Sect leader was called one of the Three Great Sorcerers of the World, there was bound to be a problem if he was exposed to the aura of death for so long.

The last thing she remembered was the sect leader's complexion turning black and his skin turning as white as that of a Jiangshi.

Originally, it was a closed-off sect. If the influential sect leader died like this, the Mount Mao Sect would be thrown into great chaos.

The magic that protected the sect was about to break down immediately. Leaving aside the issue of succession, they had to worry about external invasions right away.

The lost secret arts and spells of the sect were also a problem.

Even she, the Mount Mao Sect's de facto successor, had not even entered the Samrahwansangihwan Magic, the secret art of the sect leader.

At this rate, it would not be strange if the history of the Mount Mao Sect was cut off in her generation.

I have to catch that Spiritual Creature no matter what......!She had poured a fortune into the Haomun and jumped into the martial world, trusting only the information she had obtained.

It was information that a tiger with both yin and yang energy had been discovered in the mountains near Anhui Province.

In fact, tigers are creatures with strong yang energy. However, the tiger discovered in Anhui Province was said to be a white tiger, not an ordinary tiger.

Then, it would naturally have both yin and yang energy at the same time.

It was said that it avoided the eyes of martial artists and even rescued lost herbalists, never harming the people. Haomun also obtained information through the herbalist.

The Namgung Clan controlled the area, so they couldn't dig any deeper, but the Haomun member who sold the information added that it must be a Spiritual Creature.

The martial arts of the Mount Mao Sect are based on the harmony of yin and yang. Due to the nature of their innate martial arts, they would be consumed by ghosts or go crazy the moment the harmony of yin and yang was broken even slightly.

However, elixirs with both yin and yang energy were rare in the world, especially one strong enough to purify the sect leader's body.

At best, it would be Gongcheongseokyu or Manyeonhasoo, all of which were considered legendary treasures. Would such elixirs fall from the sky?

[TL: Gongcheongseokyu is a mythical power-granting liquid from caves, and Manyeonhasoo is a legendary life-extending ancient root.] So, there was no other way but that white tiger.

Of course, the Namgung Clan had blocked off the entire mountain, but it was not a problem. Even if they were the greatest sword family in the world, how could they stop the Ghost Souls that could not be seen?

It had been a few days since she had used the Ghost Soul Art, the secret art of her sect, to search every inch of the mountain range.

But she couldn't find a trace of the white tiger. She had barely found traces that it had disappeared somewhere.

'If only I had come three days......no, four days earlier, I would have found it......'

She had missed it by a hair's breadth.

Wi Hwa-ryeon bit her lip without realizing it.

Hoo!

Suddenly, the man sitting quietly next to her raised his head. It was a bizarre movement, as if someone was grabbing the back of his neck and pulling him up.

Soul Separation Art.

It was a secret method of the Mount Mao Sect to expand one's vision by separating the soul.

The man coughed for a moment, then stared at Wi Hwa-ryeon with bloodshot eyes.

"Great Miss! I found it!"

"Where?!"

"It's about ten li west of here. I don't know if it's waiting for someone or just resting, but it was sitting quietly on a rock on the top of the mountain." [TL: A li is about 0.5 km]

Wi Hwa-ryeon's eyes flashed.

Heaven was trying to help her.

"Well done. If what you say is true, I will reward you greatly after we return."

She immediately took out a red talisman from her pocket. The one using the Soul Separation Art was not just the man who had just woken up. All the people who had come with her were sitting in a daze with their souls released.

If she recklessly touched their bodies in that state, it would disrupt the return of their souls and cause disaster.

'But I can't just wait.'

There was no choice.

Having made her decision, Wi Hwa-ryeon shot the talisman containing the aura of Ghost Binding into the chests of the people in her group.

Chwaarruk!

The writing on the talisman trembled, and blue magical energy soared. The following incantation flowed lowly.

"Ghost Binding Soul Manipulation.""

The moment the magic was activated, the eyes of the group sitting blankly flashed, and they stood up like Jiangshi.

Soul Manipulation Art that made the body move without a soul. It was fundamentally different from the method used to create Jiangshi, but because its trajectory was similar, it was often dismissed as a heretical path among ignorant martial artists.

However, the Mount Mao Sect was a proper Taoist internal alchemy sect that controlled ghost energy based on the scriptures of the Three Purities.

Although they dealt with magic that controlled ghosts and disasters and commanded Jiangshi—

Although they performed rituals that could appear sinister and evil—

Although they had a precedent of colluding with the Blood Sect a hundred years ago due to unavoidable circumstances—

Anyway, the current Mount Mao Sect was a righteous sect.

It meant that they were a legitimate lineage of the Taoist world in the Central Plains, who spoke of the Dao and could not tolerate injustice.

Thinking so, she left the room and met the waiter who was coming up to the upper floor.

"D, daehyeop?(TL: righteous hero) Have you already finished eating?"

"......"

Wi Hwa-ryeon frowned at the suddenly appearing waiter.

Come to think of it, had she even picked up her chopsticks twice.

The group that came with her was so focused on the Soul Separation Art that they hadn't even picked up their spoons once.

She had ordered five bowls, but it was a waste of money to pay the full price for eating only two bites.

She was already running low on silver coins because her travels had been prolonged.

"......"

After a moment of contemplation, Wi Hwa-ryeon took out a few coins from her pocket and placed them on the waiter's palm.

"Thank you for the meal."

The waiter blinked. She had clearly ordered five dishes, but what he had in his palm was the price of just one dish.

Just as he was about to open his mouth, he met the eyes of the men behind Wi Hwa-ryeon. Their eyes were blurry and strangely turned, and it seemed like his head would be cut off if he said the wrong thing.

'......I hope all the heretical bastards die.'

He would have to fill the empty money from his own pocket, but how could money be more important than his life?

The waiter muttered a thousand curses inwardly, but on the outside, he put on a bright smile and clasped his hands.

"T, thank you. Daehyeop."

Wi Hwa-ryeon only nodded slightly.

She had a face that admired herself, but the waiter, who turned away as if running away, had no way of knowing.