Chapter 167. The Lineage

From the side of the North Sea bloodline, they couldn’t see what Tang So-hwa was doing, and so they paid her no mind.

“It’s fine. We’ve drunk our fill of water—no need to trouble yourselves.”

So-hwa set the teapot down at the man’s words. She opened the window slightly to let the teapot cool, then faced the visitors with her back to the side table.

“We have told you why we returned to the clinic, and you’ve honestly told us you suspected us. Is that the end of your questions?”

“I heard you had Yunhai’s headband.”

“Yes. I returned it to the Great Warrior.”

“It seems Yunhai left you a message.”

Rather than answer, So-hwa drew a sheet of paper from her sleeve. The man who had been standing apart finally stepped closer and read it. His face stiffened.

“Great Warrior Bai Yunhai said this is the clan’s lineage.” (a diagram listing the bloodline’s names in descending order)

His gaze rose to So-hwa.

“He told us this must be delivered only to the Clan Head. He called it an important register for restoring the Bai Clan’s lineage rolls.”

So-hwa felt the man’s agitation. A sudden, cold wind of hostility raked through the room like a snow squall.

She had taken one page of the lineage from the Blood Demon’s records and handed it over—a sheet where the dead Great Warrior Bai Yunhai’s name appeared at the top. It was likely that names of those of a similar generation would appear on that very line.

The man asked in a low voice.

 “… Where are the other pages?”

So-hwa shook her head.

“I could not deliver them to just anyone, so I hid them.”

“Then tell me where you hid them. I am the Clan Head of the Bai Clan.”

So-hwa’s eyes chilled without her meaning to. This man was pretending to be the Clan’s Head with a brazen air.

“You said you suspected us, and you promised to apologize later if you were wrong. I can say the same. I cannot now trust that you are the rightful recipient of this document. If I am mistaken, I will apologize later.”

“Is there any way to make you trust us?”

He sneered—an edge of mockery in his tone.

Could you Central Plains folk really tell who rules the Bai Clan?

So-hwa bristled inwardly at his shameless pretense of authority.

She had already skipped many careful steps to draw the North Sea bloodline’s strength out into the open. Yet this man made no attempt to persuade her; he demanded the whole lineage at once.

‘Does he think it’s merely an heirloom of Bai Yunhai? Why the petulant tantrum?’

He clearly did not understand the value of a lineage record.

‘If he cannot even grasp that, how can he hope to return and discuss this with the clan? How dare he attempt negotiations so recklessly?’

A dark notion crept in: perhaps the real decision-maker of the bloodline was not even present.

So-hwa stared at the North Sea bloodline for a long moment and learned nothing new. What she had confirmed since coming north was only how wretched their situation was.

She forced herself to take a bolder step.

“Bai Yunhai said there is something only the Clan Head would know. He told me to test for it.”

She spoke the name that made the room shift.

“Great Warrior Bai Yunhai told me the Blood Demon’s blood can bind and control both body and mind.”

Silence twisted the air.

Not only the man before her, but the thirty martial artists lined up behind him, stiffened. Namgung Jin’s thumb slid, and he half-drew a sword.

Amid the sudden, fierce alertness, Tang So-hwa continued.

“Bai Yunhai said the owner of the lineage knows how to remove the Blood Demon’s blood.”

The man’s face went blank at her words. She poured out the lie she needed to unsettle them.

“Bai Yunhai told us—before he bled and passed—that agents of the Blood Demon have all but infiltrated the Central Plains. But most who are bound by the Blood Demon’s blood are tied unwillingly; if we could free even some of these poor souls, the Blood Sect would collapse. He told us to give the lineage record to the true Clan Head of the Bai Clan and, in return, receive the method to purge the Blood Demon’s blood.”

So-hwa kept the gentle guise of the Yeonju Group physician, but her voice could not hide its chill.

“We came to the North Sea to fulfill Bai Yunhai’s request. But our greater aim is to protect the Central Plains from the Blood Sect.”

Ignoring the pain of the cold that cut like a blade, she offered her proposal with grave calm.

“If you can teach us how to remove the Blood Demon’s Gu poison, we will believe that you are the rightful head of the Bai Clan—and we will hand over the entire lineage record.”

***

Though she maintained a warm expression, a strange chill radiated from her. It was as if her ruthless nature was concealed behind a smile.

Bai Woon-Hyun did not trust the woman claiming to be a Yeonju Group physician.

It was not surprising that she mentioned the Blood Sect—its resurgence in the Central Plains was already known.

Bai Woon-Hyun, the great master of the North Sea, had never cared for the clan’s lineage record. Perhaps he did not even know it existed.

He could not guess how Bai Yunhai had obtained it, nor how it had been smuggled out.

Yet, hearing that it was something his brother had guarded to the very end unsettled him—even with no guarantee that the woman’s words were true.

Bai Woon-Hyun’s gaze fell on the sheet of paper before him.

Seeing the lineage record filled with the names of his now-deceased brothers clouded all reason.

Finally, Bai Woon-Hyun broke the silence.

“How much do you know about the Blood Demon’s blood?”

“I know that if the Blood Demon’s blood is taken into the body, one cannot resist its will.”

She understood the Gu poison of the Blood Demon.

Bai Woon-Hyun studied her for a long moment before asking,

“Where have you hidden the other pages of the lineage?”

“As I said, there is no guarantee you are the true head of the Bai Clan, so I cannot tell you.”

“I owe you a debt and do not wish to harm you. So I beg you—help me avoid harming you.”

The woman smiled faintly.

“If you harm me, will that help you find the answers you seek?”

Her voice laced with cold irony.

“If you believe that is the right way, you may harm me without concern for the debt.”

Though her words were daring, Bai Woon-Hyun could not respond.

He had no intention of harming her—and if she died, the remaining pages of the lineage would be lost forever.

He swallowed his sigh inwardly.

‘Perhaps it should have been the Fourth Seat who came instead of me.’

The Fourth Seat would know what to do—whether the Central Plains people spoke the truth, whether it was wise to reveal secrets of the Blood Demon’s Gu poison for the sake of the lineage.

That they had survived for three years, hunted by the Blood Sect with nothing to protect them, was thanks to the Fourth Seat.

It was the Fourth Seat who suggested settling in the gorge, where the Blood Demon’s curse prevented anyone from lingering too long, and who had guided them to plant crops in the heated cave. That had allowed the North Sea bloodline to hold the gorge for a time, eluding pursuit.

The Fourth Seat had not been content with mere survival. He had carefully taught the bloodline the systems and martial arts he remembered from the Ice Palace, so that hope would not die.

Recognizing his own desire to rely on the Fourth Seat, Bai Woon-Hyun let out a hollow laugh.

‘They trusted us and left for training, and yet we’ve already reached our limit—how pathetic’

Then—

Kwaaang!

A distant sound of something shattering reached them.

So-hwa and Namgung Jin’s eyes flicked toward the window.

Yet, not a single North Sea bloodline reacted.

So-hwa narrowed her eyes at their calm indifference.

Kwaang!

Another strange crash echoed, and still, they paid it no mind.

Their gazes remained fixed solely on the wagons laden with provisions and the lineage scrolls.

‘How can they just stare at food when the ground itself seems to be breaking?’

So-hwa’s disappointment in the North Sea bloodline nearly made her give up entirely, but she forced herself to speak.

“… Didn’t you just hear that sound?”

At last, Bai Woon-Hyun’s gaze lifted.

“Nothing of consequence. It is the sound of ice breaking in the North Sea.”

“Ice breaking?”

“When the ice thickens, it becomes difficult to navigate. Boats circle the islands several times a day to break the thin ice. Usually, it doesn’t make such a sound, but today the ice has thickened excessively, so they are struggling.”

“Why go to such trouble to break the ice?”

“To prevent anyone from coming from the mainland to the islands.”

So-hwa frowned.

“The islands aren’t far from the mainland. One could swim over if they wished. I do not understand why they go to such lengths.”

The man let out a soft chuckle.

“Those who are meant not to come cannot swim to the islands.”

“Why not?”

“They fear the sea waters.”

So-hwa’s gaze sought the reason, but Bai Woon-Hyun ended the conversation.

“You are curious, aren’t you? Outsiders only need to know that much; do not try to know more.”

“You won’t tell me the method to remove the Blood Demon’s blood, nor will you tell me who fears that seawaters, so I’m afraid to ask any more questions.”

So-hwa said, her patience momentarily cracking as her brows shot upward in a fierce expression.

“I don’t know if you are ignorant or just cowardly.”

Namgung Jin lightly tapped her arm, and she forced a semblance of a smile.

Bai Woon-Hyun let out a small, amused laugh.

“At least I can tell you this: you need not hide your nature. I prefer a forthright Central Plains person to a quiet one.”

For reasons unknown, Bai Woon-Hyun smiled bitterly and glanced behind him.

“Take one bag each,” he instructed.

It seemed he had decided to trust the food and test it for himself.

The young martial artists eagerly sprang forward, each taking a bag, while Bai Woon-Hyun cupped his hands toward So-hwa and Namgung Jin in respect.

“Today, I will consider you guests and benefactors and return. However, I will return soon, so please remain here.”

Then, in a chilling tone, he added.

“If you are not here when I return next time, I will consider you outsiders and enemies.”

So-hwa wanted to ask whether, with such suspicion, they would even dare eat the provisions they had brought, but Namgung Jin tapped her arm again, prompting her to smooth her brows and force a smile.

Bai Woon-Hyun tilted the corners of his mouth slightly.

“I am grateful in many ways.”

Paradoxically, even as he spoke his thanks, he drew his sword.

Swish!

The blade’s wind extinguished every lamp in the room.

“Until the sun rises, remain silent and stay still.”

The sounds of shattering waves drew closer.

So-hwa nodded in the darkness, understanding his meaning.

Soon, the North Sea bloodline slipped away like an ebbing tide, as if determined to leave before the boats arrived.

Through the sliver of the window, So-hwa checked the coast. Yet it lay far away, hidden behind buildings, the sea itself invisible.

Only the eerie sound of the shattering echoed in the darkness.

Taak!

The sound of the door closing made So-hwa glance at Namgung Jin. The glow from the hearth cast his expression in red light.

For reasons unknown, he seemed angry.

Moments later, Namgung Jin revealed the cause himself.

“You didn’t, by chance, administer the poison, did you?”

Before So-hwa could respond, he stepped forward and cleared the cup from the side table.

When the cup with holes in the bottom was removed, the pipe installed in the side table was exposed.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep