The Second Eunuch Regains His Manhood

188th Episode: Uncle?

After Jeoksawol departed.

Wi Soryeon sat down on the floor, cradling Sosumahu in her arms.

“Mom, where did that pretty sister go earlier?”

Sosumahu’s question came back to Wi Soryeon. She gently stroked the girl’s hair and whispered in her ear.

“She’s gone to save Dad.”

“Dad, is he okay?”

Sosumahu’s eyes sparkled with curiosity as her gaze landed on Wi Soryeon.

Baek Rijiak.

Wi Soryeon still couldn’t accurately determine her identity.

But she wasn’t foolish either. So, she had made some assumptions. Cheonma Mound. If the girl had awakened from the coffin enshrined in the Heavenly Horse Mound, was she not obviously the reincarnation of Cheonma?

Since the current Cheonma was alive and well, it was highly likely she was a Cheonma from a past era, perhaps even older than Lord Ryun.

Yet, Wi Soryeon couldn’t treat Baek Rijiak as the old legend.

With pure, sparkling eyes, a childlike face and stature, and finally the way she called her “mom” and Lee Cheol-soo “dad.”

In the span of seven days, Wi Soryeon had completely grown attached to Baek Rijiak.

Even now, holding her, an inexplicable feeling, a maternal love, was welling up.

“Uh-huh. He’ll be okay.”

Moreover, during the past week, her feelings for Lee Cheol-soo had also been steadily increasing. Thump-thump. Just thinking about him made her heart race.

Lee Cheol-soo.

He really felt like her husband, like Baek Rijiak’s father. Sometimes, she even had outrageous thoughts like that.

Even if it couldn’t be realized, she wanted to dream.

“Yeah! Ji-yak believes Mom! Dad will be safe!”

Baek Rijiak beamed brightly as she smiled.

Hearing her words, Wi Soryeon patted her gray hair while mumbling to herself.

‘Brother, you mustn’t get hurt.’

At that moment, as she worried about Lee Cheol-soo inside, she sensed a presence approaching. Wi Soryeon’s hair stood on end. She started to scan her surroundings.

From far away, someone broke through the thick fog.

A strikingly handsome man with black hair that perfectly matched his black robes.

It was Yujinhwi, Lee Cheol-soo’s disciple.

Thud.

Yujinhwi landed quietly in front of Wi Soryeon.

Their gazes met in the air.

Yujinhwi’s eyes lacked focus. Her expression was astonishingly cold and expressionless.

‘Disciple, disciple, disciple, disciple, disciple······.’

Disciple.

She wanted to see her disciple. It had already been seven days. Was something wrong? Was he eating well? Why hadn’t he appeared?

Countless thoughts raced through her mind.

Gradually, Yujinhwi’s mental state had been crumbling, and now it had reached its limits.

Wi Soryeon shuddered at Yujinhwi’s vacant, bottomless gaze that felt like a bottomless pit.

Two years ago, during the Orthodox Faction Competition, his appearance resurfaced in her mind.

Right after he had injured Lee Cheol-soo in the contest.

Yujinhwi’s expression when he stepped onto the stage had been like that. Expressionless, as if he were staring at an otherworldly being.

The expressions back then and now were identical. Chills ran down Wi Soryeon’s spine. She stepped back.

Lord Ryun had instructed her to cooperate with Yujin Gongja. But Yujin Gongja’s current state was far from a condition for discussions of cooperation.

“Black Dragon Wi Soryeon······.”

A chilling voice poured from Yujinhwi’s lips as he stared at Wi Soryeon with unfocused eyes.

It was a sight utterly unbefitting of the Post-Stimulation Indicator. In that moment, Wi Soryeon took another cautious step back.

“Brother?”

Sosumahu’s innocent voice rang out. She entered Yujinhwi’s line of sight.

With her bright smile.

But in Yujinhwi’s vision, which could read the flow of energy in the universe, he saw the overwhelmingly high amount of magic swirling within Sosumahu’s body.

The density of magic was far too thick. There was more magic coiling inside that girl than any creature moving in the magic mist.

Yujinhwi’s gaze narrowed.

“······Why are you here? Who is this suspicious girl?”

“Waaaaaah! Ji-yak thinks the handsome brother is scary.”

Sosumahu burst into tears and burrowed into Wi Soryeon’s embrace.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to be scared. Yujin Gongja is Dad’s brother, so he’s your uncle!”

Wi Soryeon gently stroked Sosumahu’s head.

That memory resurfaced. The nightmare from the Orthodox Faction Competition, when Yujinhwi first etched a wound into her heart, but it was in the form of a not-so-human being.

It was terrifying.

But she couldn’t back down.

She had a duty to protect Ji-yak. Brother told her to leave as safely as possible. Lord Ryun had instructed her to entrust Yujin Gongja.

No matter how scary it was, she couldn’t turn back.

That was her maternal love.

“Uncle? Yujin Uncle!?”

Sosumahu’s eyes sparkled.

Her gaze met Yujinhwi’s.

‘To have such a gaze, while holding a dense amount of magic that spans more than a full cycle of reincarnation, and all the energy above the Dantian, yet he carries such gaze…’

But it didn’t seem like he was faking his expression.

‘Could it be due to the unidentified energy above the Dantian?’

To her eyes, she clearly saw all of Sosumahu’s energy flow. The unidentified energy on her head, even the Gold Restriction was visible.

The aged skilled fighter, who had been hit with the Gold Restriction, and the Black Dragon, whom she called Mom.

Referring to Yujin Gongja as her dad indicated they were connected in some way.

Piecing it all together, the figure referred to as her dad was her disciple.

‘A disciple… is… Dad?!’

Yujinhwi reached an unbelievable conclusion, a whirl of thoughts filled her mind.

Dark energy began to rise from her body.

‘A disciple being called Dad, it’s impossible.’

She was a stone woman who couldn’t bear children.

A stone woman could never become a wife; she could only be a concubine.

That’s what she believed.

Yet if he was the disciple’s child, she could care for the child even if another woman gave birth to them.

That was Yujinhwi’s resolution.

But now, standing before a girl who claimed to be a “daughter,” even though she wasn’t truly one, her heart felt complicated.

‘I also want to be called Mom, not just an uncle.’

She wanted to receive love from children, not fear.

Though she couldn’t give birth, she still wanted that.

Yujinhwi bit her lips.

It had been seven days since she last saw her disciple. Negative thoughts flooded her mind.

‘I must have my disciple with me.’

She couldn’t afford to be apart from her disciple. Not even for a moment.

She had known that fact long ago.

Seven days.

Except for the time she had decided to dominate the Martial World, it was the longest she had been away from her disciple.

Her mouth was parched; her whole body trembled. Her heart raced like crazy.

The time without her disciple was unbearable. It felt hard to breathe.

Above all, the longer the time without her disciple dragged on, the more her humanity thinned away.

This couldn’t go on.

Her disciple might resent her. So she had to find him. That’s why she had chased after Yeon Sowol here.

And finally, she found it. Black Dragon Wi Soryeon. She knew the connection with her disciple, and she knew about the seven days she was unaware of.

So she had to ask.

“I came here following the traces of Yeon Soja. But I have no idea why you are here.”

Yujinhwi’s icy voice rang in her ears.

Yeon Sowol was indeed suspicious.

Her achievements known outside were renowned. But the moment she used her full power in the Movement Skill, Yujinhwi found it impossible to follow.

Yujinhwi had already reached the apex of transcendence. If she wasn’t a master of Hyeongyeong, no expert existed who could catch up to her speed.

For her to not be able to catch up to such a beginner-level Post-Stimulation Indicator was an unimaginable event.

The only conclusion that could be drawn from that was one.

Yeon Sowol.

She was confident that her identity was that of a master of Hyeongyeong. Yeon Sowol’s disguise was almost certain, and she was now a master of Hyeongyeong.

In that case, her identity had to be one.

Yeomwang Jeoksawol.

The woman who had made her jealous with her affectionate interaction alongside her disciple when they first met as Jin Soso during the Yongbong Society.

The one who mastered the Reverse Transformation Technique and the Bone-Wasting Technique, and who had no chance of being recognized in disguise, could only be her.

Thinking like that, she managed to follow the traces and arrived at this location when she finally encountered Wi Soryeon.

Wi Soryeon’s body trembled and then paused.

“Y-Yeon Soja? I was… with Lord Ryun…”

Wi Soryeon’s words trailed off. Only now did the image of Lord Ryun and Jeoksawol come to her mind clearly.

When she had met Jeoksawol, she hadn’t been in her right mind, and she had brushed past the part that was pressed down by Lord Ryun’s aura.

Jeoksawol.

Lord Ryun was wearing Yeon Sowol’s clothes. The garments didn’t fit, revealing her voluptuous figure in an indecent display.

Thinking back now, it felt strange. Why would Lord Ryun be here? And why would she wearing Yeon Sowol’s clothes?

Could it be that…

“Could it be…”

“It seems you’ve realized. And your words just now turned my suspicion into certainty,” Yujinhwi said with a cold smile.

“…Jeoksa Wol being Yomwang Jeoksawol is the truth.”

“…!!”

Yujinhwi’s gaze turned eerily cold.

She believed she had finally surpassed the mastery of Hyeongyeong, having surpassed Geumhu.

But the world was vast. Once she surpassed Geumhu, now Yomwang Jeoksawol stood in her way.

Yujinhwi bit her lips.

It was obvious where Jeoksawol had gone. She must have heard from Wi Soryeon that Lee Cheol-soo was in danger.

Given the state Wi Soryeon was in, anyone could see she was gripped by fear of some peril, and with the presence of an unknown being calling her a uncle, it seemed they had traveled together.

Thus, she came to find him.

To protect Lee Cheol-soo.

‘The one who must protect the disciple is me.’

For Yujinhwi, it was unacceptable. She had given up her place as the disciple’s true wife. However, she had promised to guard her disciple with the dual-edged sword of her cursed heavenly body for her entire life.

But now, the master of Hyeongyeong, Yomwang Jeoksawol, had appeared as a Post-Stimulation Indicator and was rushing to protect Lee Cheol-soo, acting completely out of line for her age.

She felt utterly disheartened. A wave of self-loathing hit Yujinhwi, and she bit her lips.

‘I must become the best in the world, or I will never rest.’

Her yearning for the title of the best in the world grew stronger. The frustration toward the unyielding Hyeongyeong wall grew as well. Yujinhwi’s chilling gaze turned towards Wi Soryeon.

She said,

“Speak. Black Dragon. Everything.”

The atmosphere grew heavy. As overwhelming energy surged from Yujinhwi, pressing down on her surroundings.

“Uncle! Mom, don’t bother him! Dad said Uncle is a good person!”

The magic emanating from Sosumahu, cradled in the Black Dragon’s arms, countered Yujinhwi’s pressure. A look of shock crossed Yujinhwi’s face at Sosumahu’s words.

*

Eight Great Hells.

The Mind’s Martial Arts that granted the title of Yeomwang began to fade as my vision turned hazy.

“Ugh.”

I sank to the ground. My consciousness dimmed. I had endured with various tricks. Though incomplete, facing a master of Hyeongyeong was a tough task. The backlash hit me all at once, leaving my head spinning.

I had bought time well. Now it was time for me to exit.

“…!!”

I couldn’t hear what Jeoksawol yelled at me as my vision slowly faded. Jeoksawol had arrived, so Gangsimajon would come to an end. The next thing would be…

I could think about it after taking a nap.

That was the last thought I had before losing consciousness.

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