novelraw Chapter 178
Chapter 178
The White-Haired Demon Queen withdrew the jade-tinted Hand-Force surrounding her hands and said,
“Leave now.”
The cold air that had filled the shrine vanished as if it had been washed away.
“Elder, I have yet to reveal the third flaw...”
“Two are enough.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen cut Kwak Yeon’s words as cleanly as slicing through bamboo, then continued,
“Go, before this old one changes her mind.”
For her, seeing Kwak Yeon correctly identify two flaws was enough to acknowledge that he had truly pierced through the weaknesses of the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline.
To insist on forcing him to find a third would only be petty. As befit the dignity of a grandmaster of a sect, she accepted the result cleanly.
“I thank you for your generosity, Elder.”
Kwak Yeon bowed formally, then continued,
“If I may be so bold, before I take my leave, I would say one thing.”
“...”
“Elder’s true qi, after passing the Axillary Spring Point and traveling through the heart, takes a direct route to the Spirit Platform Point, growing stronger along the way. However, in that process, only yin points within the Governor Vessel were taken as the major points, breaking the harmony between yin and yang.”
At those words, the White-Haired Demon Queen’s chest tightened.
“How could you possibly...?”
“In Daoist sect martial arts, there are no flaws of this nature, are there? But the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline of Moonlight Palace, which originates from a Daoist sect, does have them. In pondering why, I came to understand.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen found it difficult to believe.
The method of circulating internal true qi was not something that could be deduced merely by deliberation. And yet, there was no denying it now.
It was certain—this Hermit Taoist knew not only the flaws in the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline, but even the secrets of its internal circulation.
In any sect, knowing another’s inner secrets was enough to be counted as a grave offense.
Ssshh—!
The killing intent that had faded from her eyes began to stir again.
“And why did you feel the need to say this aloud? Are you volunteering to die by my hand?”
Had this Hermit Taoist simply held his tongue and slipped away quietly, there would have been nothing further.
That was why she could not help but ask before killing him.
“How could that be?”
Kwak Yeon shook his head and answered evenly,
“Though it is another household, I could not ignore the sight of a Fire Demon’s spark growing.”
Before the head of another sect, he could not directly speak of that sect’s flaws. Thus, he used a metaphor.
The White-Haired Demon Queen, of course, understood—the “other household” was Moonlight Palace, and the “Fire Demon’s spark” referred to the weakness of the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline.
“I have long known your meddlesome nature, but I did not think it extended to the point of throwing your life away.”
At the word “meddlesome,” Kwak Yeon recalled Seokjangsan’s scoldings and replied,
“I have indeed often been rebuked for meddling. But to say it endangers my life seems an exaggeration, does it not?”
“Hmph.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen gave a derisive snort, her gaze cold.
“That Fire Demon’s spark is already known to its master, and the brazier holding it is a peerless treasure that must never be exposed. By calling attention to it, you’ve only brought calamity upon yourself.”
Kwak Yeon answered calmly,
“But that Fire Demon is no ordinary one. Once it ignites, it will devour not only the brazier but the entire household in an instant. Surely the master of that house knows this better than anyone.”
“...!”
“That is why I presumed—overstepping my place—that I might help pour even a single bucket of water upon it.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen was even more shaken by this.
“You mean to mend the flaws of the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline?”
“How could I dare such arrogance? But since I practice a mental cultivation rooted in the same source, I believe I could serve as your reins-holder, if you would permit it.”
The White-Haired Demon Queen fixed him with a penetrating stare.
“What is your true reason for going so far?”
“It is simply that I wish the matter between you and Elder Danmok to be resolved peacefully.”
“...!”
Seeing her flinch at his directness, Kwak Yeon continued at once,
“Elder Danmok Seong made me promise—never to stop him from going to you to seek forgiveness.”
“...!”
“Elder, I would not presume to tell you to abandon the small for the sake of the great. I only ask that you consider—if the Fire Demon consumes the house, will those within truly remain safe?”
“...”
“Your method of sealing the Danmok Young Lord’s points was so masterful that I could not undo it no matter how I tried. I would be grateful if you would come yourself to unseal him.”
Kwak Yeon’s intention was this: if the White-Haired Demon Queen could forgive Danmok Seong and resolve her grievance, she might then turn to mending the flaws of the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline.
It was impossible to pass on the enlightenment of the Honwonmusang Technique directly—enlightenment could never truly be transmitted.
But he judged it possible to show her the path so that she, as a grandmaster of her sect, could mend it herself.
It was for that judgment that he had challenged her to a duel under the pretext of finding the flaws.
Having said all he wished to say, Kwak Yeon turned away without regret.
That proposal had been the limit he had set before coming.
When helping someone, set a limit—and let them decide for themselves.
As he stepped out of the shrine, it was as if Jang Noya’s voice rang in his ears.
****
Creak—
The shrine door opened, and Ju Yeoryeong entered.
“Master.”
She knelt before the White-Haired Demon Queen, who sat in the darkness.
“Please kill your disciple’s disciple.”
Her voice trembled.
It was impossible to tell how much time passed before the White-Haired Demon Queen opened her closed eyes, and at once a chill swept through the air.
Ju Yeoryeong’s slender body shuddered.
The White-Haired Demon Queen glared at her.
“Why did you disobey my order?”
“I am sorry. I do not know why I did it.”
“Was that Hermit Taoist so cold to you?”
“That’s... not it. He was a little aloof, but never acted improperly. On the contrary...”
“On the contrary?”
“He was courteous to me. Even when I pouted and acted up to draw his attention, he would always apologize first, saying it was his own fault. That would leave me... disarmed.”
When Ju Yeoryeong faltered, the White-Haired Demon Queen asked,
“Did the Hermit Taoist not appeal to your eyes?”
He was no unparalleled beauty, but clean-cut, with a fine figure.
She had judged him more than capable of catching a young woman’s heart, and so had paired him with Ju Yeoryeong.
Moreover, having lived only in the mountains, he would surely be naive toward women, and thus, she had thought, bound to show devotion to Ju Yeoryeong’s dazzling beauty.
“That’s not it either.”
Her answer made the White-Haired Demon Queen’s gaze grow heavy.
When a young man and woman traveled together, was it not natural for feelings to grow?
“Then what was the problem? Did you not say, that day at the tavern window in Deokseong, that you found him agreeable?”
Ju Yeoryeong bowed her head deeply.
“Master, I do not know myself. He truly was a good man, and I was drawn to him. But at some point, he began to feel like an elder brother... no, like family.”
“An elder brother...?”
The White-Haired Demon Queen’s gaze deepened.
Suddenly, she understood the confusion the girl must have felt.
A good man and an elder brother...
Had she not met the Hermit Taoist herself, and witnessed what had just happened, she might not have understood.
He was a man who acted exactly as his heart dictated.
She looked at the trembling girl kneeling before her.
No one could force another’s heart.
She could not blame the child for failing to feel for the Hermit Taoist.
But why—of all people—him?
“Very well, but why must it be the boy of the Danmok Clan?”
Ju Yeoryeong’s body quivered.
Ah...!
The question she had dreaded had finally come.
“I... owed the Danmok Young Lord an unintentional debt. I never wished it, but... in the end, he was hurt because of it.”
“So that scar on his back—that was from this?”
“Yes. I felt sorry... and when things suddenly turned urgent this time, the thought of repaying the debt came first. Master, in any case, your disciple’s disciple has committed a grave offense. Please punish me.”
Hearing the tremor in her voice, the White-Haired Demon Queen read the stirrings of affection and felt her anger rise.
She had hoped it was not so—or at least that she would offer some better excuse.
The Danmok Clan, of all people...
What a twisted fate.
Silence filled the shrine for a long while before a thought came to her.
Perhaps this child has met the more fitting match after all.
If she were abandoned not by a mere Hermit Taoist, but by a man from the clan her master bore enmity with, the venom in her heart would grow all the deeper.
To succeed her as Palace Mistress of Moonlight Palace, she must master the Moon Maiden Mental Discipline.
It had been her destined path since the day she was rescued from Lanzhou in distant Gansu Province.
She was the descendant of a fallen Prince’s household, destroyed by the hands of martial men, and already bore deep resentment.
If she now gained the venom of a woman’s heartbreak, she could return to Moonlight Palace and inherit its teachings.
With that thought, her earlier fury ebbed, replaced by pity—pity for the suffering the girl would carry all her life.
Flames flared in her mind—
She saw again the image of a girl crushed beneath burning beams.
From then on, that girl could not bear the bright light of day, using only the barest light she could not avoid. People whispered, calling her a blood-drinking witch.
When she mustered the courage to look into a polished mirror, she saw only the hideous face of a white-haired crone staring back.
“Will the family inside truly be unharmed in a house consumed by that fearsome Fire Demon?”
Recalling Kwak Yeon’s words, the White-Haired Demon Queen’s gaze darkened.
The Moon Maiden Mental Discipline, with its flaw, truly could become a Fire Demon that would one day ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) burn its master, just as the Hermit Taoist had said.
Even now, she was barely suppressing the surges of that Fire Demon within herself.
If this child one day faced the fury of wanting to burn the world, could she endure it? And for a lifetime?
Long ago, she herself had been saved by her master, and thus barely managed to suppress it.
But by then, her hands were already steeped in the blood of hundreds—even infants, though they had been the enemy.
That was when she had earned the name “White-Haired Demon Queen,” which bound her fate for life.
She shuddered at the thought of this beautiful girl transforming into a fearsome witch.
If it can be stopped, it must be stopped.
That was her duty as master.
It was time to end the life of hiding in the shadows as assassins.
It was time to raise the signboard of Moonlight Palace under the sun, to speak its name openly and proudly.
To do that, she had to stand.
Rising abruptly to her feet, she spoke to Ju Yeoryeong.
“Stand.”