The Terminally Ill Young Master of the Baek Clan

Around the Emperor, there was only death.

The elite warriors of the imperial army who protected him had also died.

The Guardian, trusted to protect the Emperor even if the outlaws of the martial world invaded, was easily slaughtered.

Although it was unthinkable that a mere commoner was reaching into the Emperor’s mouth, no one dared to intervene.

The royal guards, who arrived belatedly at the grand hall, were no different.

The soldiers, cautiously raising their crossbows, lowered their arms again at the urgent gaze of the colonel.

In front of the reckless demon holding the Emperor’s life in his hands, there was nothing they could do.

The Heavenly Demon sneered.

“He has wet himself.”

His trousers were soaked with a warm, yellowish liquid.

It was from extreme fear.

The ministers and the imperial army averted their eyes from the scene.

They couldn’t bear to witness the Emperor’s humiliation.

“You might have thought yourself a dragon hidden in the clouds, but this is your reality.”

Then, a snapping sound came from the Emperor’s mouth as the Heavenly Demon inserted his hand.

“Uuuuuugh!”

Screams echoed through the grand hall.

“Stop it! Stop!”

“Your Majesty, Your Maaajesty!”

It was unclear whether those weeping and wailing were truly loyal or just pretending to be.

What was certain was that all they did was wail; no one dared to attack.

Crack!

And then another scream.

“Remember. It would be best to remember.”

Whether the Emperor struggled to break free or bit Heavenly Demon’s finger, it was useless.

The Heavenly Demon laughed softly.

His eyes swirled with a sinister vortex.

The Emperor tried to avoid his gaze, but…

“Look at me.”

He found himself unable to resist that command.

The Emperor’s eyes slackened. His face, unfocused, dripped blood and saliva from his mouth.

“Do not forget today’s pain. Your descendants must not forget either. Everyone except those from the Jo family who covet your throne should remember this, daring not to forget.”

It was a quiet threat.

Or it could also be called a curse.

“If you aim to rule over everyone in the Central Plains, always remember that I can come for you.”

These words were not just directed at Emperor Jing.

They were also meant for the imperial lineage that would continue, and for anyone who would rule these Central Plains.

Crack—

He pulled out the last of the three molars.

The Heavenly Demon held the three teeth in his hand and clenched his fist.

From between his clenched fingers, the powdered teeth trickled down.

Even without a breeze, the powder scattered in all directions.

“Do not even think of baring your teeth at me, and just squirm like the insects you are.”

With those words, the Heavenly Demon disappeared.

It was thought that even the Heavenly Demon would find it difficult to easily break through the human barriers surrounding the grand hall.

But the Heavenly Demon did just that.

He did not create a bloody path by slaughtering all who blocked him.

Instead, as if refusing to follow the paths made by humans, he simply broke through one of the walls of the grand hall and walked out.

By the time the imperial army followed, no trace of the Heavenly Demon could be found.

He had vanished like a ghost, just as he had once appeared suddenly on the steps of the Imperial Palace.

It was a chilling affair.

If the Heavenly Demon decided to, no one in the Central Plains could escape death.

Historically, the greatest enemy of a ruler has been an assassin, and the Heavenly Demon was not only the best martial artist in the world but also the best assassin in the world.

Emperor Jing did not regain consciousness for several days.

He merely screamed in nightmarish terror, sweating profusely for a full fortnight.

His first imperial edict upon awakening was an order not to pursue Heavenly Demon.

Thus, the chaos that was about to unfold in the martial world was halted.

The disaster that occurred that day was left unrecorded.

Though it was nearly impossible for such a tremendous event to remain undocumented, too many were involved.

Too many would have lost their heads had they been held accountable.

Thus coerced and after much coercion, the records were deleted.

Emperor Jing languished for years afterward and then died.

Although it wasn’t the sole cause, it was clear that the downfall of the Song dynasty began then.

Thud—

The official who went mad by Emperor Jing’s side but luckily survived.

The journal he left was discovered by a woman, Seong Ji-an.

The orange light from the lamp cast wavering shadows on her face.

She bit her red lips firmly.

“Could it be…”

The fact that the Heavenly Demon invaded the Song imperial court and caused a riot was clearly kept under wraps.

The absence of any mention even in the official annals and archives was proof of its secrecy.

But how could there be a complete secret in the world?

The truth was whispered among the high officials who survived that incident.

They realized that the power protecting them was as futile as a candle in the wind in the face of overwhelming force.

Although hundreds of years had passed and the details were lost, Seong Ji-an at least knew a fragment of that status.

Considering this, something even more difficult to understand emerged.

‘How could such a person have been killed?’

When the Song fell and the Yuan took over the Central Plains.

The Heavenly Demon and his followers from the Demon Cult had invaded the Central Plains.

And the great army led by Khan of the Yuan achieved victory.

It was said that they cut off Heavenly Demon’s head and pickled it in salt.

But after seeing this record, it was unclear how even a great army could have captured the Heavenly Demon.

What really was the truth…

She tucked the journal into her embrace.

And with a cold, hardened expression, she left the archive building.

The scholar waiting outside seemed eager to ask many questions.

However, Seong Ji-an said nothing and did not mention that she had taken the journal.

It was a rightful act, given that she was the niece of King Gye-yeong Ju Won-jae and the daughter of the highest chancellor, Seong Yeok-ju.

Considering her father was the Senior Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat, Seong Ji-an’s status was exceptionally high.

As proof, there were almost none in the Forbidden City who could stop her.

Seong Ji-an walked out of the imperial city at a steady pace.

In the great capital, Beijing, there were countless grand tile-roofed houses.

Among them, the house she headed to was not the largest but was the most beautiful.

It was not flashy or glittering.

The slightly faded tiles bore the graceful and refined taste of time, befitting a house where a high official of the Grand Secretariat lived.

After the abolition of the Central Secretariat by the Hongwu Emperor, the Grand Secretariat became the center of power.

Her father was the Senior Grand Secretary, the highest authority in such a Grand Secretariat.

Seong Ji-an went to see her father.

And she handed him the journal.

“…”

Seong Yeok-ju possessed the remarkable ability to speed-read hundreds of pages a day.

He quickly speed-read the journal, then fell silent for a moment.

Then, after thoroughly reading the journal again, he finally spoke.

“A curse. A curse has been cast upon the imperial family.”

“Could it be… Is that true?”

Seong Yeok-ju looked extremely weary.

Although he held a position close to the pinnacle of power in the Great Ming Empire, he was not omnipotent.

The reason why the Grand Secretary held great power relative to his rank was because of his closeness to the Emperor.

But what if the Emperor was a tyrant?

What if he indulged in lust and dark sorcery and neglected state affairs?

What if he was cruel and lawless, disregarding procedures and the national law, and never left the specially prepared Huangtian Palace?

The Grand Secretariat would run the state affairs properly if the country were functioning, but that was not the case now.

“The Emperor’s debauchery has exceeded all bounds. Perhaps the curse that demon planted is finally manifesting.”

Did this mean the curse Heavenly Demon placed on Emperor Jing had reached the current imperial family?

Seong Ji-an could not comprehend her father’s thoughts.

“The Hongwu Emperor had opened up the Great Ming and ordered the extermination of the remnants of the White Lotus.”

The Demon Cult and the White Lotus Religion were fundamentally the same.

Zhu Yuanzhang received assistance from the Demon Cult during the founding of Ming.

There was a time when the Demon Cult almost stood tall in the Central Plains.

But once the foundation of the Great Ming Empire was solidified, he used a large army to push them far into the Xinjiang region.

“If there had been a curse, the imperial lineage would have been in jeopardy long ago.”

That was Seong Ji-an’s argument.

If even the Hongwu Emperor was safe, what could possibly go wrong during the reign of the Gyeongmun Emperor later on?

Besides, even the Heavenly Demon, who was so confident, eventually died surrounded by a large army…

“Do you think so?”

“Yes.”

“Yes. It’s clear that hidden forces are blinding the Emperor and clouding his mind.”

Her father did not fully disclose everything, not even his own daughter. It was the nature of those in power.

“King Sohyeon’s death was not due to illness.”

“Really?”

“It is suspected to be poisoning.”

Seong Ji-an was shocked.

King Sohyeon was King Gye-yeong’s father, making him her great-grandfather.

She had just learned a secret that a member of the royal family had been poisoned.

“The previous Senior Grand Secretary before me also fell victim to the same people. The County Princess and the Crown Prince are also targeted by them.”

The situation was becoming increasingly complicated.

Did this mean the reach of the shadowy forces extended this far?

“What about the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard! Surely, the Admiral Grand Eunuch hasn’t…”

It was a critique of their inaction up until this point. For a moment, she suspected that the eunuchs of the Eastern Depot, specifically the Admiral Grand Eunuch, might have orchestrated this.

“It’s not their doing. However, they too are suffering.”

“Even them…”

The two direct military institutions under the emperor, known for their efficiency, are the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot.

If they were struggling, it’s clear they haven’t fully grasped the identity of these shadowy forces.

“If things continue this way, the imperial family will be overturned.”

“…”

“If heaven collapses, it will be the end for us.”

“What should we do?”

They were like birds flying above the clouds, and the countless commoners lived on the ground.

But if the sky falls, birds and commoners alike will all be crushed.

Seong Ji-an realized that the danger she had noticed was bigger than she thought.

“There are two ways to survive.”

Seong Yeok-ju spoke while writing something with his brush.

“Firstly, we must identify and thoroughly investigate the group that is deceiving the Emperor and rectify the laws of the Great Ming Imperial Family.”

He did not mention the second method.

That he mentioned there was an alternative was also because Seong Ji-an was his daughter.

“Since we cannot rely on the power of the Embroidered Uniform Guard or the Eastern Depot, we need external assistance. Who do you think would be suitable?”

Seong Ji-an responded to her father’s test, “I have read the records of the Imperial Physician who examined His Majesty. His Taiyang acupoint is sunken, and he often feels hunger, so it was said that the Nine-Stem Nine Leaf Herb was prescribed.”

“Good.”

“We need experts in Qigong. Mere proficiency is insufficient; we need a master from the Murim.”

“Taoists or Buddhist monks from Shaolin are not suitable. You know why.”

“They will oppose it, claiming that Taoists will disrupt the royal duties.”

“Yes, for similar reasons, it’s also impossible to involve multiple foreigners.”

“We’ll need a legitimate reason to enter the imperial household.”

Seong Ji-an understood her father’s intentions.

And she was inwardly very surprised.

As expected, Seong Yeok-ju finally made a decision.

“I need to send this letter… to where my grandson… is.”

At that moment, it was clear that Seong Yeok-ju swallowed the words ‘in-law.’

A daughter may become an outsider once married, but for those in power, it worked the opposite way. Alliances formed through blood relations were the thickest.

Yet Seong Yeok-ju had severed relations with the powerful Baek Noble Clan.

Seong Ji-an knew the reason.

“Send a letter… to Baek Ryu-san.”

The Baek Clan Head, Baek Ryu-san, was a monster who had devoured his daughter, so thought Seong Yeok-ju.

“I will do so.”

Seong Ji-an faintly remembered her older sister.

Hye-ran, much older than her, felt more like a mother than a sister.

Seong Hye-ran, her father, when drunk, would occasionally lament that she had been a truly smart child.

Though she had been dead for a long time, Seong Yeok-ju had never once interacted with the Baek Clan.

He disliked even meeting his grandchildren, unwilling to be reminded of his deceased daughter.

“If he is sensible, he will not refuse my proposal.”

Seong Yeok-ju typically did not use rough language casually. But now, he seemed unaware of his own words.

“Tell him we need someone who has reached the evolutionary, the Creation Realm in Qigong. Preferably, have him come in person.”

The fact that he was prepared to meet the son-in-law he so detested showed how grave the situation was.

Seong Ji-an sent an urgent dispatch that very day.

It wasn’t long before a response arrived via dispatch.

The message stated that they would send the most suitable person as a priority.

Either the clan head himself would come, or perhaps one of the esteemed elders, he surmised.

And as time passed—

Seong Ji-an and Seong Yeok-ju welcomed a visitor from the Baek Clan.

The face of Seong Yeok-ju, the Senior Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat who had been maintaining his composure, contorted.

Ever since he had come to influence the state affairs of Great Ming, his iron mask, which had never been broken, shattered into pieces.

“You, you are…”

Before him stood a strikingly young man.

Uncharacteristically delicate for a martial artist, with a fair face and pale skin.

It seemed he suffered from meridian blockage disease, a curse often befalling his family, and not just any ordinary case…

“Nice to meet you.”

Yi-gang bowed with a fist salute.

“Grandfather.”

He addressed his maternal grandfather, meeting him for the first time.