Free Web NovelThe Hall of Punishment was filled with the scent of incense.
With every breath, her body grew languid—it was incense meant for sleep.
This Hall of Punishment did not seem to be the same one where she had first faced the Sagye Hall Administrator alone.
The inner doors had been removed completely, and the desk and chairs cleared away. The air needed to circulate freely with the incense burning.
In the pavilion where even the walls were gone, only a golden bed and a small side table remained.
There, in that wide space, lay a single young man.
Sohwa sat in a small chair before the golden bed. It was likely where the Divine Physician had been sitting, pressed close to the side table with his medical instruments.
Sohwa examined Tang Hak’s condition.
The hand that lay outside the blanket was wrapped in clean cloth. The bandage was loose enough for blood to circulate and tight enough to prevent bleeding and infection.
His shoulders and neck were uncovered, exposing the wounds directly. The injuries had dried well, and the surrounding skin tone was even—no sign of necrosis.
The stiffness in Sohwa’s face eased, and her red lips parted slightly.
She exhaled softly.
It was a relief.
She had feared that, in this life, she might lose Tang Hak even faster than before. Though she had vowed never to repeat regressions like the Alliance Leader, the moment she saw Tang Hak, she realized she could not be certain of that choice.
'If you had died...
She would have killed Namgung Hyun without hesitation and turned back time.
And she would have lived through a time even more dreadful than before.
Sohwa laid her hand atop the back of her brother’s—his hand twice the size of hers.
'Thank you for living.'
The Divine Physician had said that treatment while awake would cause too much pain, so it was best to keep him asleep and let him recover. Sohwa knew why he had kept Tang Hak asleep for so long.
It was because of the poison buried deep within his body. Even with years of resistance built up, the accumulated toxin had become too heavy to endure.
He had used so much poison that his sleeves were empty. Even the poison smoke she had smuggled from Gujeong Pavilion for him to use only in emergencies was gone.
Her younger brother was steeped in toxins that paralyzed the internal organs and twisted the blood flow. His survival was a miracle; that alone told her Tang Hak had fought ready to die.
She understood what state he had been in, and what kind of heart had driven him to such recklessness.
It was all her fault.
The Alliance Leader’s warning—one she hadn’t wanted to admit—filled her mind.
[Even if you try, all you’ll see is a faster, more tragic end.]
She turned her gaze toward the Han Cheol resting on the side table. A plate the size of a fist lay inside a wooden box.
She had obtained the Han Cheol with surprising ease—so easily that Namgung Hyun, who had come to deliver the mold, had been startled.
It was pure luck.
One could even call it divine providence.
But she felt no joy at all.
The better things went, the heavier her unease became.
The words of the Prophet, that this second life lay in the Divine Physician’s hands, felt increasingly true.
[If you wish to test the Divine Physician’s creativity, I won’t stop you—but I wouldn’t recommend it.]
Was this life truly hurtling toward its end—more cruelly, more painfully than before?
Sohwa had lost her reason the moment she faced Tang Hak that day. She was pushing herself too far.
Even if she went to the Northern Sea, there was no guarantee she would meet the Ice Palace bloodline—and outside, Blood Cult agents still swarmed everywhere.
But she could not simply sit and watch the Blood Demon achieve his wish, nor the Tang Clan perish because of it.
The Blood Demon must die. freewebnovel.cσ๓
The Blood Cult must vanish.
It had to be so.
Better to strike first and eliminate them than to live each day gnawed by this anxiety. That suited her temperament better.
Sohwa reaffirmed her resolve once more.
Before the Tang Clan was sacrificed, she would destroy the Blood Cult.
Yet again, she fell into contradiction.
'If going to the Northern Sea is another punishment the Divine grants me...'
Could this stroke of luck be the trap that would bring ruin to the Tang Clan?
She felt as if her soul were being gnawed by endless unease and confusion.
She was sinking into a darkness like an abyss when—
Her gaze dropped to the golden bed, and a low groan brushed her ear.
“...Sister.”
Sohwa looked up.
Tang Hak’s eyelids, heavy as if weighed with lead, opened and closed several times.
Closing the lid of the box, Sohwa leaned toward the bed.
“You’re awake?”
At her voice, Tang Hak’s eyes regained focus in an instant.
The lantern flame swayed in the wind. Each time the light touched, his pupils narrowed, reacting naturally. Seeing that the pupils were normal, Sohwa let out a long breath.
It had been a wise move to have the Divine Physician accompany them to Hubei. The Yeonjuda troupe’s medical skill specialized in internal injuries. Even what she’d learned from him was enough to give her peace of mind—and knowing that the Divine Physician would remain close by made her heart settle.
When Tang Hak suddenly tried to rise, Sohwa placed her hand on his shoulder.
“Slowly. You’ve been lying down for a long time—getting up too fast is dangerous.”
Supporting his shoulder, she helped him up at a measured pace.
Then she filled a cup from the side table and handed it to him.
“You’ve lost a great deal of moisture. Wet your throat first. I’ll fetch the Divine Physician soon.”
But Tang Hak did not take the cup. Staring at her, he suddenly threw his arms around her.
The motion was so desperate that she heard the sound of stitches tearing.
As blood trickled from the reopened seam, Sohwa’s face hardened. More than surprised, she was angry—but she said nothing.
“Never again...”
The faint, broken voice nearly disappeared into the air.
“Never again... do that. If you do, I won’t forgive you.”
A threat so quiet it hardly qualified as one.
Still, Sohwa could not answer.
The arms around her waist tightened further.
With a hoarse voice, Tang Hak continued,
“I... have awakened the formula of Recovery.”
“I heard.”
Tang Hak’s back heaved as he let out a sniffling breath—hardly fitting for his size.
“I’ll soon awaken the Secret Tang Heir Technique, too.”
Sohwa said nothing, but feeling self-conscious, Tang Hak began rambling.
“Not right away, of course—not immediately, but I’ll start training soon, and, well, it won’t take me that long, maybe not that long, but I’ll master it quickly, and it shouldn’t take too long to—well, perhaps not right away, but still—”
Sohwa let out an involuntary laugh.
Awkwardly lowering the hand she had let hover, she gave his shoulder a light pat.
“Be confident. You’re already fast enough.”
After a pause, Tang Hak spoke again—his voice of a different color, as though it carried what he truly wanted to say.
“I can protect you now, Sister. So don’t ever do something reckless alone again.”
He tightened his arms further, as if to forbid her from leaving anywhere.
Sohwa moved the hand she had resting on his shoulder.
Thinking she meant to push him away, Tang Hak flinched—yet her hand only rose to his head.
Silently, Sohwa stroked his hair.
Then came advice sharp as blood.
“Don’t say things like that in front of the Grand Elder. He’s already restless; if he hears it, he’ll drag you up Mount Emei to train before your wounds have even closed.”
Flinch.
Tang Hak froze.
Sohwa suppressed her laugh and brushed over the back of his neck, which the Divine Physician had treated with such care.
But she felt something wet. When she lifted her hand, blood stained her palm.
Seeing the wound reopen, Sohwa sighed.
“Your shoulder’s split again.”
A shoulder wound was a serious injury for a martial artist.
“It’s fine. I didn’t even feel it.”
At his words, Sohwa’s expression creased.
“...You didn’t feel pain? You’ve lost sensation?”
Pushing him back, she pressed directly on the open wound.
“Agh!”
When Tang Hak screamed, Sohwa exhaled in relief. She had feared something was wrong, but apparently not.
“If you can feel pain, that’s good.”
“Of course it hurts! You worked in the Medical Division so long—how can you not see these wounds?”
Though Tang Hak looked at her with full resentment, as always, his complaints went ignored.
Sohwa forced the cup into his hand and rose from her seat.
“Drink that. I’ll go bring the Divine Physician.”
“Already?”
He looked up at her with displeasure, but Sohwa’s reply was firm.
“Now that you’re awake, it’s time to return to the Tang Clan.”
“......”
Tang Hak closed his mouth.
For the first time in so long, something like a faint smile touched his sister’s face.
Anyone else would call it expressionless, but just as one can tell how the sky shifts from indigo to green-blue by watching long enough at night, Tang Hak could tell the difference in his sister’s blankness.
As he watched her back move away, Tang Hak narrowed his eyes.
Apparently, notions like “moving family reunion” did not exist in his sister’s mind.
He nodded gravely.
“This sister of mine definitely isn’t a Blood Cult imposter.”
The real Tang Sohwa.
'I’ve brought my sister back.'
Overcome, Tang Hak wiped his eyes, struggling to contain the swell of emotion.
He closed his eyes and offered silent thanks to the heavens for watching over him—and for letting him reclaim his sister once more.
