Chapter 429: I Am Strong Against the Cold

TL: FoodieMonster007

The Ice Empress stood by the window. Her gaze fixed on the distant residences of Geom Mugeuk and the Drunken Demon. She had received reports of a battle commencing there a long time ago, but no report of its conclusion had yet arrived.

Though she yearned to rush there immediately, the Ice Empress deliberately maintained her composure.

Below the Empress's palace, outside the window, the Northern Wind Squad, the Empress's elite direct subordinates, waited. Not only them, but various organizations and masters of the Ice Palace were also on standby at their designated locations. Normally, all of them would have gone to fight.

"Let the demon handle the monster."

Are they handling it well? They aren't being devoured by the monster, are they? What if such a thing were to happen? The Demon King, having lost his child, would come here for revenge. At that time, perhaps no one would be able to stop him.

Han Seol silently watched the Ice Empress. Though her posture, gazing out the window, remained the same, her mother was different from usual.

For one, her attire was different. She wore a martial arts uniform, suitable for movement, and on her arms were items she didn't usually wear. The Great Ice Bangles, bracelets that maximized the power of ice arts, were visible beneath her sleeves.

She was, in essence, fully prepared to rush into battle at a moment's notice.

Han Seol's gaze, which had been on the Ice Empress, shifted to Lee Ahn. Unlike her mother, who exuded urgency, Lee Ahn was the picture of peace.

She was reading a book. It was one from the bookshelf in the Empress's palace. She had asked for permission to read it, and now she sat engrossed.

This was the first time anyone had been seen reading a book here. She had always thought the books on the shelf were merely decorative.

What book is she reading?

Han Seol walked over and sat down in front of Lee Ahn, who lifted her gaze from the book and looked at Han Seol.

"There's a Demon Supreme who loves books," Lee Ahn began. "He reads all sorts of books, so there's nothing he doesn't know. He always says that to be good at martial arts, you have to read a lot of books."

"You mean martial arts books?"

"No, he says to read without discrimination."

With that, she showed the cover of the book she was currently reading. It was, quite unexpectedly, a book about house-building in the northern regions.

"That helps with martial arts?"

"Who knows? Maybe while fleeing, I'll find a place to hide in a house built this way."

Han Seol's face clearly showed her incomprehension.

"Do I seem too carefree? Even with the Young Cult Leader fighting?"

Han Seol nodded honestly again. She knew that if it were her, she wouldn't be able to focus on a book.

"If the Young Cult Leader dies, I'll just follow him in death."

Han Seol's eyes widened as she stared, and Lee Ahn chuckled.

"It's a joke, a joke. I'd have to get revenge first before following him in death."

Lee Ahn smiled at the still-silent Han Seol. "That was also a joke."

"It's not funny."

Though it was no time for jokes, Lee Ahn tried hard to put her mind at ease.

Outwardly, she appeared peaceful and carefree, but a storm raged within her heart. Her heart pounded so hard she couldn't bear it without reading, and in her mind, she kept picturing Geom Mugeuk dying at the hands of his enemy. Situations where he could be saved if she just threw herself in and helped with a single move kept playing out.

Yes, this is a side effect of being a bodyguard for too long.

Before, when Geom Mugeuk left the sect alone and returned, she had vaguely thought he would be fine. Being close to him now, however, her worries had multiplied a hundredfold.

So the Young Master has been fighting battles like this all along.

Just then, Han Seol asked, "Would you like some tea?"

"Yes. I'll prepare it."

"No, keep reading your book."

Han Seol went to brew the tea.

Feeling uncomfortable just sitting, Lee Ahn walked over to her side. As she looked for something to help with, her gaze fell upon the tea set.

On the white teacup, two birds were depicted in flight, their appearance unique.

"Why are you looking at it like that?"

"The birds engraved on this teacup, I feel like I've seen them somewhere before."

Han Seol glanced at the Ice Empress, who stood by the window, then turned back to Lee Ahn. "That can't be."

It was meant to be an original design, but Lee Ahn still tilted her head in confusion.

"I've definitely seen it."

The Ice Empress turned her head towards Lee Ahn. A strange light flickered in her eyes.

Just then, a subordinate rushed up and reported urgently, "The battle has ended."

When the three women, who had rushed there in haste, arrived at the residence where the battle had taken place, they were speechless.

The place was a sea of blood. Dozens of corpses lay scattered everywhere, and the metallic stench of blood was so strong it made them want to cover their noses.

At the center of that bloody expanse were two figures. The Drunken Demon lay sprawled in the pool of blood, while Geom Mugeuk leaned against a broken stone lantern, gazing up at the sky.

The moment she saw them, Lee Ahn's heart plummeted. She had thought the Drunken Demon, lying in the blood, was dead.

However, a snoring sound reached her ears. The robust sound seemed to say, 'I'm fine, don't worry.'

Seeing the three women, Geom Mugeuk made a shushing gesture. He didn't want to wake the sleeping Drunken Demon.

He had also experienced the same state as the Drunken Demon many times, the overwhelming urge to sleep after fighting with all his might.

At such times, one must sleep. Giving in to what the body desperately craves is the best cure. Trust the body of a master.

Upon seeing the scene firsthand, the Ice Empress truly grasped the severity of the battle. If the Demon Supreme had fought to such an extent, she could tell how strong the enemy must have been.

She examined a nearby corpse. These were the subordinates of the Blood King, slain by Geom Mugeuk's hand.

Their trained bodies alone hinted at their martial arts prowess. They were masters. Had they also mastered the Self Destruction Art, many martial artists of the Ice Palace would surely have been sacrificed.

Yet, all their vital points had been severed by a sword.

He severed all their blood vessels before they could use the Self Destruction Art.

The cause of death alone revealed the extraordinary level of Geom Mugeuk's martial arts.

The Ice Empress looked at the Drunken Demon again. Perhaps it was because he lay in the blood? She felt an even greater sense of apology towards him. If not for him, countless martial artists of the Ice Palace would have been submerged in that blood.

"Let's go back."

Lee Ahn and Han Seol turned to follow the Ice Empress.

Before Lee Ahn turned away, Geom Mugeuk first waved his hand with a bright, 'I'm fine' expression.

The storm raging in Lee Ahn's heart subsided. She, too, smiled brightly before turning away.

Liking someone wasn't difficult. The truly difficult part was striving and struggling not to lose that person, not to lose that feeling of affection.

Happiness was constantly challenged by the anxiety that it might shatter at any moment. The storm in one's heart would not cease even by the next morning.

The Drunken Demon opened his eyes, feeling a cold sensation on his cheek. What had fallen on his cheek was snow. Snow was falling from the darkening sky.

He turned his head to the side and saw Geom Mugeuk gazing up at the snowy sky.

"You're awake?"

"How long did I sleep?"

"About six hours."

"Did my mouth twist? In this cold place…" The Drunken Demon stopped speaking.

It wasn't cold. The blood-soaked ground and the surroundings were warm.

He realized that Geom Mugeuk had warmed the surroundings with his Yang energy.

He let out a scream as he tried to sit up. "Oh my! It hurts. It hurts so much."

"Want some alcohol?"

"No thanks. My head feels like it's going to split."

He had drunk so much alcohol throughout the fight that his hangover was immense.

"If I drink again…"

"Hyung!"

"Don't call me hyung, I'm your dongsaeng (little brother). Ugh, my head hurts so much it feels like it's going to explode." The Drunken Demon, clutching his head, inadvertently looked down at the ground. "Ugh! What's this blood? Is it his blood? You didn't seriously leave me lying here, did you?"

"You don't remember anything, do you?"

"Ugh, the smell of blood is awful."

"You were even lying there smiling earlier."

"Were you drunk too?"

Then he looked at the sole of his foot and was startled.

"My foot! What's wrong with my foot now?"

A broken liquor bottle was embedded in the sole of his foot. He had fought while drunk, unaware that his foot was being torn.

The Drunken Demon pulled out the broken piece of bottle embedded in his foot. "Ugh, it hurts. You could have at least pulled this out while I was drunk."

"If I were going to do that, I would have pulled out what was stuck in your shoulder first."

At that, the startled Drunken Demon looked at his own shoulder. Only then did he notice a sharp sword fragment embedded in his shoulder.

"Ugh! What's this now? When did this get stuck in me?"

"There's one in your other arm too."

"Call the Demonic Physician! Tell the Demonic Physician to come quickly! A Demon Supreme is injured!" the Drunken Demon cried out, feigning exaggerated pain.

Geom Mugeuk snorted. Would he have just left the Drunken Demon lying there for a few hours?

He had already confirmed that the external injuries hadn't reached the bone and had secretly infused him with internal energy to check his body's interior. Only after confirming there were no internal injuries did he let him sleep.

"For a martial artist, scars are a badge of honor."

"But these injuries aren't even worth boasting about!" The Drunken Demon looked down at the blood still pooling on the ground. "He looked handsome and cool on the outside, but he was a pathetic bastard on the inside. He hadn't even mastered the Self Destruction Art himself."

Geom Mugeuk was also surprised by that fact. Before his regression, he didn't know much about the Blood King. He only knew of the cruel deeds his subordinates had committed.

"If he wasn't pathetic, he wouldn't have implanted the Self Destruction Art in his subordinates in the first place."

The Drunken Demon nodded, as if in agreement. More and more snow began to fall. The two men briefly looked up at the snow descending from the darkening sky.

"Now the Brewmaster can close her eyes in peace."

The events that began with the Brewmaster not sending alcohol had led to this point. It had started with the Drunken Demon and ended with the Drunken Demon. And at the heart of that incident was the most important task Geom Mugeuk had to resolve.

Fate, intertwined with the people around them, flowed onward.

"Before we go back, let's have a drink on top of the snowy mountain."

Geom Mugeuk chuckled at the Drunken Demon's words. "Alright, dongsaeng."

The Drunken Demon washed up, ate, and then fell asleep again.

The most skilled physician from the North Sea Ice Palace came to examine him and left. He also prescribed medicine to help his body recover quickly.

While the Drunken Demon rested, Geom Mugeuk was meeting with the Ice Empress.

"You've worked hard."

"Not at all. We are truly grateful that you allowed us to handle it."

She had a rough idea, but the Ice Empress was curious about one thing.

"Did you learn his objective?"

"The battle was too urgent for me to hear it directly, but I suspect he intended to neutralize your martial arts, Empress, by using the Extreme Cold Body Constitution."

Geom Mugeuk added another conjecture.

"He has been searching for the Extreme Cold Body Constitution for a long time. If his sole purpose was to harm you, Empress, he would have utilized the Self Destruction Art more aggressively. I suspect there was another reason he needed the Extreme Cold Body Constitution. Do you have any ideas?"

The moment she heard his words, the Ice Empress recalled a reason. Nevertheless, she didn't answer immediately, as it wasn't something to be carelessly revealed to outsiders. She would never have told anyone else, but Geom Mugeuk, at least, had to be an exception.

"It seems he was targeting the Ice Palace Vault."

The Ice Palace Vault was a place accessible only to those who had mastered the unique martial art passed down to the North Sea Ice Palace Empress, or those who possessed the Extreme Cold Body Constitution.

"An ordinary person could never endure the cold there."

"In that case, he was definitely targeting the Ice Palace Vault."

With the enemy's specific objective thus revealed, the Ice Empress's heart grew cold. She deeply regretted not having killed him herself. At the same time, a thought occurred to her.

What if Geom Mugeuk and the Drunken Demon hadn't come to the North Sea? What if they didn't kill Elder Seo, didn't spirit away the man with the Extreme Cold Body Constitution? What if they hadn't uncovered the Northern Blood Sect's alliance with those villains? Could we truly have withstood their conspiracy?

A confident answer that they could have stopped it did not come easily. But if they hadn't stopped it? She and Han Seol would have met their deaths, and the North Sea Ice Palace would have been seized by them.

Therefore, nothing was too precious to hide from Geom Mugeuk.

"Is there anything you desire? I will grant you anything."

After a moment of contemplation, Geom Mugeuk said, "There is one thing."

"What is it?"

"Please allow me to choose one treasure from the Ice Palace Vault and take it."

It was an unexpected request.

"What do you wish for? Tell me, and I will give it to you. Whether it's miracle herbs or a treasured sword, just name it."

"No. I wish to enter and see for myself."

It was because of the Secret Box. He had obtained the Black Orb from the Heavenly Wind Cult and the Green Orb from the Evil Alliance. He hoped he might find something related here as well. This was an opportunity that would be difficult to obtain again if he missed it.

"Didn't I just say? You cannot enter unless you possess the Extreme Cold Body Constitution."

Geom Mugeuk replied with an enigmatic smile. "I am strong against the cold."

Believing Geom Mugeuk was not one to joke about such matters, the Ice Empress cautiously asked, "Do you also possess the Extreme Cold Body Constitution?"

"No, I do not."

"Then you cannot go there. Absolutely not."

Despite her emphatic 'absolutely not,' Geom Mugeuk spoke with confidence. "Please, just trust me."

Could he perhaps possess a demonic art that blocked the cold? Even so, it wouldn't be enough to withstand that level of chill.

"I've endured my father's cold and aloof disapproval."

"This is no time for jokes. You could die if you go."

The Ice Empress was certain Geom Mugeuk could absolutely not go there. Still, it was a request from the man who had saved the Ice Palace. She was also curious about his reason for insisting on going, and she wanted to coldly break his youthful stubbornness.

"Let's go. I'll listen to your regrets and reflections when I revive you."

Geom Mugeuk followed her out, remarking, "Doesn't everyone who comes to the North Sea experience their heart freezing and stopping at least once?"