Chapter 201: Jaseung, Pressures

Lee Jaseung and Baek Seolyoung turned around.

Yeo Su-in was glaring at Lee Jaseung with a terrifying gaze. It was the kind of look that truly suited the expression that a gaze alone could kill a person.

Lee Jaseung stared back at him and spoke.

“Lower your eyes before I pluck them out.”

Yeo Su-in’s pride surged violently. At first, he thought he had misheard. He never imagined that Lee Jaseung would use such foul language typically reserved for bottom-tier thugs of the back alleys.

However, Lee Jaseung glared at Yeo Su-in with a fearsome intensity that suggested he was entirely serious.

Yeo Su-in clenched his fists tightly.

‘This Unorthodox bastard who is lower than a third-rate hoodlum! He dares to do this even though he knows exactly who I am!’

An intense killing intent welled up inside him.

‘To hell with the consequences. I’m going to tear him into ten pieces and destroy him!’

Flames of rage rose in Yeo Su-in’s eyes.

He debated whether or not to draw his sword. His hand moved toward the hilt.

‘With the Northern Sea Demonic Sword, I could shatter him… Huh?’

Suddenly, Yeo Su-in was startled.

His gaze was fixed on the hilt of his sword.

Without even realizing it… he had lowered his eyes.

In other words, his subconscious had avoided the opponent’s gaze by pretending to draw his sword. He had done this at the very moment Baek Seolyoung was watching.

Yeo Su-in couldn’t understand it.

‘Is it a Dark art?’

That couldn’t be right. There was no way that he, who had mastered the Northern Dark Demonic Art, would fall for a mere Dark art.

‘Could it be that I was actually afraid of that man?’

In truth, Baek Seolyoung was just as surprised.

She really didn’t know Lee Jaseung could use such crude words as threatening to pluck out someone’s eyes. It wasn’t the kind of thing the leader of the Murim Alliance, who was facing a meeting, should say to the successor of the Demonic Cult.

However, when she saw Yeo Su-in lower his eyes at those words, she felt a sense of catharsis deep in her heart. It felt as if he was showing her the correct way to handle Yeo Su-in.

Because she lacked strength, she had tried to handle him gently, but Lee Jaseung showed that dealing with someone like that roughly was the answer.

Regardless, Yeo Su-in was no ordinary figure.

He hid all his embarrassment and smiled broadly.

“Let me introduce myself formally. I am Yeo Su-in from the Demonic Cult.”

Yeo Su-in was smiling brightly with a kind face, as if he had never glared at Lee Jaseung in the first place.

Baek Seolyoung felt the same emotion she had felt earlier. Of course, because Lee Jaseung was beside her, it was a sense of doubt rather than fear.

How could a person’s emotions change so quickly?

He felt different from the villains she had seen until now. He was an opponent where the normal and abnormal were jumbled together, making it impossible to predict how he would act.

Baek Seolyoung reflexively looked at Lee Jaseung.

Aren’t you afraid of that strange madness?

Then, in the next moment, Baek Seolyoung’s trembling heart settled.

She saw it.

A cold smile was playing at the corners of Lee Jaseung’s mouth.

That smile contained a very clear emotion.

Contempt.

The contempt of a person who is never off guard.

The composure shown by a stronger being.

That gave her an incomparable sense of cozy relief.

Lee Jaseung’s attitude also changed accordingly. He spoke in a soft tone as if they had just met for the first time.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“You are much younger and more handsome than the rumors suggested.”

“Thanks. Let’s have a drink this evening, why don’t we.”

“I’m unfortunately busy today. I’ll see you formally next time.”

“Sounds good.”

Yeo Su-in left the area.

The expression on Yeo Su-in’s face as he walked away was the coldest it had been since he descended the mountain.

Lee Jaseung and Baek Seolyoung went back into the house.

Mook Young and Ma Young-gi withdrew far to the outskirts of the manor to allow for their reunion.

Once they were alone, Baek Seolyoung’s tension vanished. She lay down on the bed.

“I’ll lie down for just a moment.”

Truly, she had been so tense that she felt like she might collapse. It would have been different if a fight had broken out, but these matters had nothing to do with the level of one’s martial arts.

This was a battle of will. She felt once again that she still had a long way to go.

“That guy tried to kill Captain Ma. For sure.”

She felt a bit odd as if she were tattling, but she thought Lee Jaseung needed to know.

“He probably wanted to kill everyone.”

At those words, Baek Seolyoung sat up abruptly.

“Really? How did you know?”

“I can tell by looking.”

“You can feel things like that?”

Lee Jaseung nodded.

“They look and act normal, but their mental worlds are desolate wastelands.”

At Lee Jaseung’s words, Baek Seolyoung said something.

“They said he was the only one to survive among nine disciples. Do you think he became like that during that process?”

“No.”

“No you say?”

“He was that kind of person from the beginning. That’s why he killed all his fellow disciples.”

She trembled with an unknown fear.

“Ah, for some reason, it’s scary.”

“Me too.”

Then Baek Seolyoung made an absurd face and imitated what Lee Jaseung had said in a deep voice.

“Lower your eyes before I pluck them out. Is that something a person who is scared would say? You are scarier!”

“Hahaha.”

Lee Jaseung laughed loudly because Baek Seolyoung’s imitation was quite plausible.

She felt good, strangely proud that she had done a proper imitation.

In contrast, Lee Jaseung had a firm expression as he thought of Yeo Su-in. Although he was joking and talking comfortably with her, Yeo Su-in’s first impression was unique.

The reason he treated him roughly was that he felt the man was an opponent that should never be underestimated, so he wanted to break his momentum from the start.

Baek Seolyoung asked cautiously while watching Lee Jaseung’s expression.

“By the way, how did your trip go?”

“It went well.”

“I’m glad you returned safely… Mmph.”

Lee Jaseung’s mouth blocked hers just as she was about to say she was happy.

She was flustered by the sudden kiss, but his sweet lips made her feel good. She felt that he was alive, and that made her excited.

When the kiss ended, she spoke with a slightly red face.

“How embarrassing.”

Lee Jaseung whispered in her ear as he hugged her tightly while she tried to pull away.

“That embarrassing part is just the beginning.”

* * *

After spending a dreamlike time together, the two sat facing each other on the bed.

Even between husband and wife, she felt one must maintain etiquette, so she had put back on the clothes she had taken off.

In comparison, Lee Jaseung was lightly wearing only his martial robe, and his solid muscles were visible through the open top.

Normally, it would have caught her eye, but now something else was capturing her attention.

“Is this the Demon Restoration Pill?”

Baek Seolyoung’s eyes went round as she saw the Demon Restoration Pill in person, which she had only heard about countless times. The Demon Restoration Pill felt more novel than any other pill.

“You take it.”

She was startled by the unexpected words.

“Me? No, you should eat it.”

“I’ve already taken it.”

“Really?”

Of course, she couldn’t even imagine that there were thirty of them. Lee Jaseung didn’t bother to tell her that.

Medicine usually changes its effect depending on the mind of the person taking it, and if she knew he had taken thirty, this single Demon Restoration Pill would look far too insufficient in comparison. That sense of relative deprivation would not have a good effect on the medicine’s efficacy.

“But are there any side effects to this?”

“There aren’t.”

“Isn’t it just that you don’t have them because you are strong?”

“Why? Do you not feel like it?”

“I was wondering if I really need to take another pill. My inner Qi is already at one hundred and eighty years worth, so wouldn’t it be a case of too much being as bad as too little?”

“Is that so? If you don’t want it, I’ll just give it to someone else.”

As Lee Jaseung tried to take the Demon Restoration Pill back.

“Wait!”

Baek Seolyoung quickly snatched it away, fearing she might lose it.

“Didn’t you say too much is as bad as too little?”

“The more, the better is also a thing.”

Lee Jaseung couldn’t help but chuckle because the way she smiled while saying that was so cute.

Having a lot of inner Qi doesn’t mean you automatically win. Sixty years worth of inner Qi can certainly defeat double or triple that amount. What’s important is the technique performed based on that inner Qi. If you’ve learned proper martial arts, sixty years is enough.

Even so, the more inner Qi, the better.

If he didn’t think that, he wouldn’t have brought the Demon Restoration Pill for her.

Before she took the Demon Restoration Pill, Lee Jaseung taught her a new way to dissolve it. He had realized something based on the method Ho Yeonbaek had left behind.

Baek Seolyoung didn’t say she would give it to someone else. Ma Young-gi could have been in danger because of her again this time.

She felt once again that becoming stronger was the way to help all of them. Because they were people who would never run away and leave her in danger.

“Phew.”

After taking a deep breath, she consumed the Demon Restoration Pill.

A burning heat wrapped around her blood vessels.

She managed her mental cultivation method exactly as Lee Jaseung had taught her. She felt a similar sensation, but she couldn’t tell the difference between her own method and the new one. She just followed Lee Jaseung’s instructions faithfully.

It was only a single Demon Restoration Pill, but the feeling was much more powerful than the Taiyi’s Divine Pill or the Great Desert Divine Pill she had taken before.

In that way, she succeeded in dissolving the Demon Restoration Pill into her Dantian.

Baek Seolyoung, who had completed a full circulation of her true Qi, slowly opened her eyes. The fact that she had done it properly was already evident in her changed gaze.

“Check it.”

Baek Seolyoung checked her Dantian with a slightly nervous heart.

Sixty, one hundred twenty, one hundred eighty, two hundred forty, three hundred!

“Gasp! My inner Qi is at three hundred! It increased by one hundred and twenty years.”

If she had just taken it normally, Baek Seolyoung’s inner Qi would have reached two hundred forty years worth.

However, by dissolving the pill in a new way, she had exerted the maximum effect.

Baek Seolyoung’s face was flushed. Since she knew well that the more inner Qi you have, the harder it is to accumulate, she really hadn’t expected that one Demon Restoration Pill would increase it this much. Moreover, she had taken it while already having one hundred and eighty years worth.

On the other hand, she was also worried.

“Is this okay? Is it alright to increase inner Qi so monstrously with pills?”

“Yes, you should worry. As you know, inner Qi increased through training is much higher quality than inner Qi increased through pills. In a purely mathematical calculation, if the same inner Qi collides, the energy built through training will exert much stronger power.”

Baek Seolyoung nodded as she also knew this well. The important part was the words that followed.

“But does that mean increasing inner Qi with pills is bad? Absolutely not. An increase in inner Qi is always a good phenomenon. As long as you are careful about one thing.”

“What is it?”

Baek Seolyoung concentrated on every single word Lee Jaseung said. She alone knew how precious and important the experiences he shared from time to time were.

“The carelessness and arrogance that inner Qi creates.”

“Ah!”

She was just feeling it. A strange confidence provided by a full Dantian. She felt it even if she tried not to. A solid sense of confidence.

But Lee Jaseung was warning her.

The moment that overflowing confidence spills over, it becomes arrogance. And so…

“Because of that carelessness and arrogance, people end up dying without even being able to use all that inner Qi.”

“Scary, as I thought, you are the scariest.”

“I’m just saying don’t be careless.”

They were scary words, but they also cut to the core.

When she had asked him before if she could use Sword Qi, he had given an answer with a similar point. He told her not to use it in actual combat until she had practiced hard and could use it freely.

She was grateful to him for teaching her like this.

She was so happy and joyful to become strong together with him.

“You don’t have to worry about that! I am far from being careless… Mmph.”

Beginning with Lee Jaseung claiming her careless lips, the two of them became heated once again.

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