Chapter 261 – Survival of the Fittest (5)
“But there is something I want to mention about the incident involving Heuk Rang Seo Saeng.”
I had a feeling. They haven’t brought up anything about him until now.
Finally, they’re going to talk about it.
***
First, let’s talk about Heuk Rang Seo Saeng’s location. Surprisingly, he was hiding in a nearby place.
Just above Gwangdong Province, in a small village near Honam Province, they were able to find him.
So why haven’t they caught him yet, even though he’s so close?
There’s a reason for that too.
For some reason, the people who discovered Heuk Rang Seo Saeng completely forgot about his existence.
Even though they had already found him, they carelessly forgot about it and resumed tracking him from a further location.
So, it’s no wonder they couldn’t find him.
It was thanks to Geum Uiwi, who had temporarily left the pursuit team due to illness, that they found out about this fact.
After returning and feeling uneasy about it, Geum Uiwi reported it to the Daeyoungban, and Daeyoungban personally investigated and found out.
That Geum Uiwi was the only one who left and wasn’t caught, that no one found out about it, that he felt uneasy afterwards, that Daeyoungban believed him, and that Daeyoungban succeeded in investigating alone.
It was all a series of coincidences upon coincidences.
If luck had been a little worse, they might have never found Heuk Rang Seo Saeng in their lifetime.
Now, they have no idea what principles or level of manipulation is possible, so they can’t touch it recklessly.
Since it’s related to the mind, there might be someone unintentionally playing the role of a puppet. After all, Daeyoungban came alone to find the Wulin Alliance Leader.
Wasn’t there a plan to call Myeongwoljin later for advice?
Anyway, Hong Yeonhwa, who had set the mood, spoke in a serious tone.
“Have you ever heard of Seob Hon Sul? It’s a marriage proposal technique.”
The other women looked at each other and shook their heads at Hong Yeonhwa’s somewhat sudden question.
Don’t they know?
“Hmm. Just as there were no gangsters in your world, it seems there is no Seob Hon Sul in this world either. Well, it can’t be exactly the same no matter how similar it is.”
Hong Yeonhwa nodded to herself as if she understood.
But I know. In the martial arts novels I read in my previous life, Seob Hon Sul would appear whenever it was forgotten.
I can’t say it directly, so I’ll have to sell my master’s name a little.
“I’ve heard of it from my master. It’s a technique that suppresses a person’s psyche and turns them into a puppet. Sometimes it’s used for powerful brainwashing or suggestion.”
“Oh! Come to think of it, your master traveled through many worlds, so he might know. Right. Seob Hon Sul is that kind of technique.”
Hong Yeonhwa clapped her hands with a small smile. Seeing this, Paeng Soso followed suit, but then abruptly stopped.
“Hong Unni? Isn’t that just something similar to Geumje?”
“It’s similar, but a bit different.”
As Hong Yeonhwa said that, she brought her loosely clenched fist to her mouth and coughed.
“Cough, cough. While Geumje can make someone perform specific actions, if it forces them to die afterwards, Seob Hon Sul completely alters their thought process or renders them unable to think at all. It’s even more sinister in that regard.”
“…Thinking about it that way, it does seem even scarier.”
Well, of course. It’s like a hypnotic technique in martial arts novels.
Of course, it’s much more complex, with various constraints… but judging by the results, it feels like that.
“So, are you saying that this Heuk Rang Seo Saeng guy is using Seob Hon Sul?”
“That’s right. It’s a concealment technique that my lady experienced firsthand in her world.”
It was only towards the end of the Jeongma Great War that they were able to recognize the concealment using Seob Hon Sul.
Well, how can they find him when he’s brainwashing everyone around him and even those who come looking for him?
And with the commoners in the vicinity subdued by Seob Hon Sul, they wouldn’t be able to fight properly even if they rushed in.
Unless someone stronger than the Seob Hon Sul practitioner happens to show up, there’s no way they can break free.
“At that time, my lady happened to be nearby and was able to annihilate the hidden individuals.”
Those guys were just unlucky.
Anyway, since it’s the same method as back then, when Hong Yeonhwa confidently stated that Seob Hon Sul is certain, Sama Yeoryeong nodded her head.
“Hmm… I roughly understand. But is there a reason why you’re telling us this now, when we’re alone? Can’t you say it right then and there?”
“Seob Hon Sul was a secret technique belonging to my lady’s world, even in the world you’re in. That’s why only one family monopolized it and never leaked it to the outside.”
“A family? I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed right now…”
“You have a good intuition. The family that monopolized Seob Hon Sul in my lady’s world is the Jeongjeol Clan.”
“Ah.”
The Jeongjeol Clan, a prestigious family even in this world. They must have some knowledge about similar occult practices.
Since they’re claiming to be part of the righteous faction, they probably can’t rely solely on occult practices.
…However, in the corrupted world over there, who knows.
The Jeongjeol Clan monopolizing Seob Hon Sul… It’s a prejudice, but it seems incredibly shady.
“It’s something I felt when I saw your martial arts with the Namgung family before. The Namgung in my lady’s world may have displayed distorted signs while performing martial arts, but fundamentally, they’re not much different from the Namgung here. The same goes for this Heuk Rang Seo Saeng guy.”
There are some differences in the details, and they’re more like beasts who have turned the shell of the righteous faction inside out, rather than true members of the faction. But still, Hong Yeonhwa is Hong Yeonhwa, no matter what.
“Since he won’t be easily caught, we won’t be able to avoid a battle. However, won’t that make both the Murim Alliance and the Geumuiwi aware that he’s using Namgung Se’s martial arts?”
“Well… that’s a bit tricky.”
It’s also because Namgung Se, who fought at the forefront during the Jeongsadaejeon, lost to the Bloodthirsty Black Horse. And to deny the connection between Namgung Se and Heuk Rang Seo Saeng, they have to publicly reveal the existence of the other world. It’s also because the information from the other world that comes out during the interrogation of Heuk Rang Seo Saeng will reach the ears of the Murim Alliance and the royal court.
And as a result, Hong Yeonhwa, who not only has the power to single-handedly face the entire Jeongwon, but also has a record of doing so, is being excessively guarded.
Just thinking about each and every “event that will happen later” is incredibly annoying.
Although the Murim Alliance and the Myeongwoljin already know that Hong Yeonhwa came from a different world, and maybe even the royal court knows too…
Now that they know that Heuk Rang Seo Saeng, who came from the same world, instigated the Jeongsadaejeon, they can’t just sit still.
Everyone vigorously nodded their heads, as if sharing the same thoughts.
“Alright! It’s decided then. Are we going to secretly handle this on our side?”
But everyone looked puzzled at those words.
“Well, that’s going to be difficult, Jin Ga. How can we know which village Heuk Rang Seo Saeng is hiding in and then he disappears a few days later? It’s only natural to be suspicious.”
“Yes. Maybe the Murim Alliance doesn’t know, but at least the royal court will have a rough idea of our whereabouts.”
“Exactly as Mom said. They won’t actively monitor us, but if we buy something somewhere or pass through a checkpoint, that information will be relayed directly to the Geumuiwi or some other royal court organization. We can’t just ignore it, especially when Yeonhwa Unni is so strong.”
“Well… then what should we do?”
With a mouth full of crumbs, Hong Yeonhwa extended her ample bosom, brushing off the crumbs from her lips.
“My dear, why do you make it so difficult? It’s a simple matter.”
“Uh, wait a minute.”
I gently wiped Hong Yeonhwa’s face with my sleeve.
Soft and supple.
Her chubby cheeks squished and molded with my movements. “Mmm.” But thanks to that, I was able to remove all the crumbs.
Now, Hong Yeonhwa regained her confident posture and continued speaking.
“Ahem, anyway, it’s a simple matter!”
“Yeah, what is it?”
“After we say we’ll handle it ourselves, we can pretend to accidentally kill him and quickly dispose of the body, right?”
Hong Yeonhwa revealed her absurd murder plan with a bright voice.
Something… something is off.
“So, you’re saying that you want to secretly dispose of him like a snack that I secretly ate?”
“Oops! Well… um… hehe. Did you hear that?”
“Then what if I didn’t hear it? Even this was heard, so of course it would be heard if we secretly dispose of him.”
“….”
“….”
Hong Yeonhwa avoided my gaze, her eyes darting away. But soon, she started to get angry instead.
“Hey! Are you planning to scold me? Your cute little lady like this?”
Out of nowhere, Hong Yeonhwa placed both of her wrists on her chin, adopting a so-called flower support posture.
The way she blinked her large pink eyes in that position, even if I knew it was a calculated aegyo, it was still cute.
Did she notice my hidden affection?
Now, she started to tilt her head from side to side, slowly approaching me.
And then, she boldly flaunted her plump breasts, how can I resist?
Finally, raising both hands in surrender, Hong Yeonhwa suddenly smiled with a meaningful smile.
“Do you understand? It will be the same as this.”
“What do you mean?”
“If they find out that I intentionally got rid of him, whether it’s the Murim Alliance or the royal court, they won’t be able to say anything.”
“…Because you’re too cute, Yeonhwa?”
Of course, in my eyes, Hong Yeonhwa is the most beautiful in the world, but still…
“No, that’s not it! It’s because they’ve seen my power!”
“Oh.”
That’s right. It’s true that Hong Yeonhwa is too strong to be easily questioned.
There’s still a deep pit left at the place where Hong Yeonhwa killed the leader of the Angaju.
It’s a shame that we couldn’t interrogate him, but at least we killed the guy, so I’m willing to let it go.
Indeed, most problems are solved with strength…
Murmuring to myself, I nodded as I looked down at Hong Yeonhwa’s Hyunkyung-level inner energy pocket.
