Chapter 408: Next Time We Meet, We Must Have a Drink

TL: FoodieMonster007

Han Seol and Lee Ahn were walking together through the inner gardens of the Ice Palace. Han Seol had been tasked with finding out who the Brewmaster had made the Fragrant Snow Ice Wine for, but she was truly at a loss.

Who should I ask?

This wasn't a matter of intelligence or foolishness. It was a matter of experience. She had never once investigated a case before. Still, she had no intention of giving up. Asking her mother for help was also not an option she considered.

"Let's return to the Hundred Wines Snow Cellar first."

Han Seol's attitude toward Lee Ahn had grown more respectful. Until now, she'd treated her merely as the Young Cult Leader's subordinate, but now she began to see her as the Fist Demon's daughter. Even as an adopted daughter, one couldn't treat the Demon Supreme's offspring carelessly.

"That's a good idea."

"Why do you say that?"

"When I saw the late Brewmaster's room, a thought struck me: 'This person truly loved making wine.' They likely spent more time in the Hundred Wines Snow Cellar than at home. So, wouldn't the answer we're seeking be found there?"

At Lee Ahn's words, Han Seol nodded slightly.

Everyone is so intelligent.

Geom Mugeuk, the Drunken Demon, and Lee Ahn had utterly shattered her preconceptions about demons. She'd always believed demons were cruel, violent, and unashamedly driven by their desires.

These three, however, were nothing like the Young Cult Leader, the Demon Supreme, or the subordinates she'd previously imagined.

Even so, I can't lose to demons.

Since the Drunken Demon had investigated the letter and uncovered a clue, Han Seol felt compelled to produce results of her own, not to impress the Young Cult Leader, but to prove herself to her mother. She yearned to present the image of a daughter who could overwhelm them.

Though she typically harbored no desire to impress others, such feelings still lingered when it came to her mother.

Yet, it wasn't that she liked her mother. No, perhaps her mother was the person she hated most.

"You've returned, Princess."

The Temporary Brewmaster of the Hundred Wines Snow Cellar welcomed them, but Han Seol hadn't come to see him. Instead, she sought out Cho Myang, the individual responsible for wine ingredients.

Cho Myang grew visibly nervous at her visit.

"I have something to ask you."

"Please speak freely."

"You must be busy, so I won't beat around the bush. Did the late Brewmaster ever request ingredients for the Fragrant Snow Ice Wine?"

"N-No, she did not."

Cho Myang's voice trembled, perhaps from nervousness.

"This is important. You must not deceive me."

As Han Seol's cold gaze fixed on him, Cho Myang bowed his head.

Just then, Lee Ahn stepped forward. "I think he likely made a promise with the Brewmaster not to tell anyone."

Cho Myang, still bowed, remained silent.

"We suspect the Brewmaster passed away because of that wine."

The moment she uttered those words, Cho Myang visibly flinched.

"Isn't uncovering those responsible for the Brewmaster's death more vital than upholding a promise?"

Cho Myang's hesitation was palpable. A flat denial would imply a profound relationship with the deceased Brewmaster, and he wasn't the type to deceive without batting an eye.

Cautiously, Cho Myang raised his head and asked, "Did she truly pass away because of that wine?"

"We believe so." The Princess echoed Lee Ahn's assertion. "Opportunities don't always present themselves. If you squander this chance, there won't be another to re-examine the Brewmaster's death."

Though her tone was somewhat cold, her words proved effective. Cho Myang no longer concealed the truth, revealing the facts.

"She quietly summoned only me and asked me to procure the ingredients for the Fragrant Snow Ice Wine. She claimed it was a wine secretly requested by an esteemed person. She asked me to keep it a secret, and so I did. I apologize."

"Who did she say it was for?"

"That, I do not know."

"Was there anyone the Brewmaster was particularly close to?"

"There's no one in particular I can name. She generally preferred solitude."

With no further questions, Han Seol concluded her inquiry.

"You handled the wine ingredients and left no record, so you will be disciplined."

"I am prepared for that."

One could sense his profound respect for the Brewmaster. Indeed, that must be why he secretly provided the ingredients.

Lee Ahn warmly comforted him for his honesty. "The Brewmaster would surely be grateful as well."

With that, the two stepped outside. Lee Ahn felt the words 'don't punish him' rise to her throat, but she held them back. Even if she intended to forgive him, speaking up might inadvertently lead to his punishment.

"You're kind to people, unlike a demon would be."

Lee Ahn then asked, "In this murim, who do you think survives longer? The ruthless or the kind?"

"Well, obviously…" Han Seol didn't voice it. The answer was so clear she wondered if there was any need to speak it aloud.

Lee Ahn's thoughts, however, diverged from hers. "I'm of the belief that kind people survive longer."

Kindness? Han Seol had never experienced such an emotion. She'd never received kindness, nor had she ever treated others kindly.

That was why she disagreed.

Kindness in this ruthless jianghu? Hmph!

Just then, Cho Myang ran back to them. "A moment ago, I was too nervous to think clearly, but I've seen the Brewmaster drinking with Elder Seo a few times. He wasn't someone who socialized much, so it stuck in my memory."

Cho Myang bowed respectfully and then returned.

Lee Ahn smiled and said to Han Seol. "This, too, is a result of kindness."

Despite Lee Ahn's jest, Han Seol's expression had grown serious.

"What's wrong?"

"It's nothing."

Lee Ahn, however, sensed it. The moment she heard Elder Seo's name, something troubled Han Seol.

Lee Ahn calmly addressed her. "Wasn't it the Princess's condition that absolutely nothing should be hidden?"

You wouldn't be thinking, 'Don't you hide anything, while I will?' would you?

When Lee Ahn's gaze seemed to pose the same question, Han Seol finally uttered the words she'd hesitated to speak. "Elder Seo is the person my mother trusts the most."

Elder Seo was an influential figure within the Ice Palace, widely considered the Ice Empress's greatest supporter.

"In that case, the Brewmaster might have granted his request without worry."

He was a suitable person for the condition that the wine would be made for someone trustworthy. Elder Seo was also a man of excellent character. However, if the Fragrant Snow Ice Wine was believed to be connected to her death, and the recipient was Elder Seo, it presented a problem whether her mother knew about it or not.

The kindest people are the ones who survive?

"Elder Seo is also the only person my mother treats kindly."

WHIRRRRRRR.

The wind grew stronger, yet I pressed onward.

Originally, traversing this path was arduous, not only due to the wind's intensity but also the terrifying chill it carried. It was a coldness no human could withstand, demanding immense inner arts to block. Rather, one's inner arts were expended for two reasons, to keep from being blown away and to ward off the chill.

Now, however, I no longer needed to worry about the chill, only the wind's intensity.

Having already achieved Extreme Temperature Immunity with the Heavenly Qi Pill, and then consumed the 10000 Year Snow Fruit, its effects were truly miraculously astonishing.

This biting chill, enough to freeze blood, felt like nothing at all. I'd thought I would reach the end easily.

With every step forward, the wind grew more ferocious. The sound of the wind shifted with each stride.

I could guarantee it: unless one was chosen, they could never pass through this place. I, too, was a chosen person.

After my regression, I'd gained a tremendous amount of inner arts, mastering the Nine Calamities Demonic Art and the Heavenly Demon Defense Art. Moreover, I'd consumed the 10000 Year Snow Fruit.

If even I doubted whether I could reach the end, then who on earth could possibly break through this place?

Why did they seek the Extreme Cold Body Constitution?

I briefly wondered if it was to break through this place, and that was one reason I'd tried to come here.

But having experienced it myself, that was definitely not it. They were clearly plotting something else.

As I advanced a little further, the wind blew so fiercely that I couldn't entertain any other thoughts.

I calculated my remaining inner arts, the distance to the end, and the increasingly strong wind intensity. I couldn't simply push my inner arts to their limit, nor could I conserve them too much, or I'd be blown away. I even calculated the minimum inner arts needed to protect my body if I lost strength and was swept away.

As I walked, using only the calculated amount of inner arts, I began to feel pain.

It hurt. It truly hurt. To think the wind could cause such agony.

I couldn't, however, raise my inner arts further to avoid the pain. Greater suffering awaited me later. I had to endure this pain to reach that place.

As time passed, an unexpected amount of inner arts was consumed. I even had to allocate some qi to protect my eardrums, as the wind's roar was so loud it could damage my hearing.

WHOOOOOOOOOOSH!

Why go there? What if I suffer internal injuries?

The desire to avoid pain endlessly tempted me. Had it not been for my life before regression, I would never have been able to push forward like this.

Back then, I was tormented by so many temptations. 'Give up. How can a human regress? Just give up now and live your own life.'

However, I had overcome those endless temptations and walked that lonely path alone.

I can walk this path too.

I walked and walked. The vast amount of inner arts within my qi center was, before I knew it, almost entirely depleted.

Just a little, a little more.

In the final moments, the sound of the wind vanished, and my surroundings grew silent.

Could it be a hallucination?

It would be disastrous if I fell into qi deviation now. If this was a premonitory sign, I had to give up immediately and turn back.

That was the final temptation.

I steadfastly continued my steps. Overcoming temptation had always been about taking that silent, resolute step forward.

ROOOOOOOOOAR!

The moment I overcame the temptation, a sound of wind I'd never heard before echoed once more.

I had finally reached the source of the wind. Its intensity had reached its peak. Using all my reserved inner arts, I pushed my enhanced qi and the Heavenly Demon Defense Art to their limits.

I'm here! Just this! Please!

Overcoming the pain of my entire body feeling torn apart, I took the final step.

The moment I passed through the wind valley and twisted my body to evade, the pain vanished as if by magic. I had escaped that tremendous wind.

"I did it!"

A gasp of 'I'm alive' escaped me naturally.

Wind still raged into the valley I'd just exited. It blew so strongly that the waves of wind were visible to the eye.

The source of the wind was the sky itself. From far away, wind descended diagonally from the heavens, fiercely blowing into the valley.

It looked as if a demon were sucking all the air from the world into its gaping maw. It was truly a mysterious, unfamiliar, and terrifying sight.

And I realized. Reaching this place itself was a greater miraculous encounter than any other.

Breaking through to this place, I had unleashed all the qi I possessed, every potential a martial artist possessed. After expending every last drop of my potential, I felt as if I could transparently see myself as a martial artist.

My martial arts realm ascended. I also felt as if I, as a person, had grown stronger.

It was a strange experience and sensation. I was certain this experience, felt for the first time in my life, would undoubtedly influence the Nine Calamities Demonic Art.

Leaving the demon's gaping maw that sucked in the wind behind me, I slowly moved forward.

Far behind me, a colossal cliff blocked the way, its top so tall it was invisible. A ridge of snow mountains completely obstructed the opposite direction. It was as if this place could not be entered unless one broke through that wind valley.

Before me, a spring landscape unfolded. Flowers bloomed, and birds flew. Rabbits and deer saw me but did not flee, their eyes holding the look of seeing a human for the first time. A mysterious aura overflowed, the primordial mystery of a place that had never allowed humans entry.

Suddenly, I saw a person standing in the midst of it all. With his hands clasped behind his back, he was an old man.

An old man in a place like this?

He certainly wouldn't be an ordinary person… a familiar figure came to mind.

Surely not? It couldn't be him, could it?

"Elder?" I cautiously called out to the old man.

The old man then slowly turned towards me. To my astonishment, he was the very old man who had regressed me.

"Elder!"

The old man smiled broadly and shook the wine bottle he was holding. "Didn't I say we'd have a drink next time we met?"

Those were the words the old man had spoken just before regressing me. I'd had a premonition that he might appear before me again someday. To think it would be today.

"I'm abstaining from alcohol, you know. Did you come at this exact time on purpose, just to tease me?"

The old man chuckled heartily. "You've become much brighter than before."

"Thanks to you."

The old man, who had been gazing at me with deep eyes, slowly approached and patted my shoulder. "You've suffered a lot, haven't you? You're doing well."

The moment I heard the old man's words, my chest tightened. Though I constantly strove to express myself in every way to others, it seemed I, too, had wanted to be comforted.

I must have yearned for comfort from someone who knew my efforts from beginning to end. Someone who knew I had lived so diligently from before my regression until now. Just to tell me I was doing well. That one phrase was all I needed to hear.

"I'm abstaining from alcohol right now, so let's have that drink another time."

"Are you leaving already?"

"As you know, many people seek me, so I'm quite busy."

Still, the implication that he might come to see me again filled me with a pleasant warmth.

WHIRRRRRRR.

A gust of wind blew, and the old man vanished before my eyes with the wind.

Along with him, the paradise-like scenery around me also disappeared. The trees, grass, and animals vanished with him.

Now, my surroundings were nothing but snow and ice.

He came and went in an instant, making it feel like a dream.

Was that a hallucination?

I'd used up all my mental energy and inner arts to the point of near exhaustion.

But no, it wasn't. The hand that patted my shoulder had been too vivid.

I was so glad and happy to see him again.

I'd forgotten to look up at the sky these past few days, so you came to see me directly? I'll look up often, so please watch over me until the end. Stop pretending to be busy all the time. And… thank you, truly.