Black Peony
"Uh…?"
He hadn't seen exactly what the strange old man did. His shoulder had moved, so he guessed he must have swung his sword.
But the result was clear. The swordsman's head rolled across the ground, and blood spurted from the headless body.
This was the first time he had seen the skill of a high-level martial artist firsthand.
There was no reason for a disciple of the Cheongseong Sect to flaunt his strength in front of a Tang family physician, nor would a member of another sect dare cause trouble in Cheongseong's territory.
The old man's movement had been incomparably fast. A level that easily surpassed an ordinary person, even an average martial artist.
"What's wrong? Do I look a little different now?"
Tang Mujin answered a bit dazedly.
"A little unexpected… No, more than that, how did you even know to come here?"
"When you didn't return even after treatment, I asked Wirip, and he said you'd gone toward the stream. You didn't seem to go downstream, so I followed it up."
"Ah."
Tang Mujin blankly glanced around, then looked at the collapsed Ma Jeonggae.
His heart suddenly sank.
He rushed over and tore open Ma Jeonggae's upper garment. There were eight wounds from the axe. He had embraced his enemy and endured that pain eight times.
"…"
The bleeding had been so severe that now, no blood even flowed out.
Still, with a desperate hope, Tang Mujin held his fingers to Ma Jeonggae's nose. No breath, no pulse.
But if it was this old man… maybe he could do something. Tang Mujin looked at him and cried out:
"Sir! Please, do something!"
"He's already dead. Not even the Great Immortal could bring him back."
Instead of treating him, the old man gently turned Ma Jeonggae's body.
His eyes were still wide open. The old man brushed the dirt off his face and closed his eyes with a calm hand.
Even the world's greatest physician could only do that for one who had passed too long ago.
The old man stood up, raised his sword, and pointed the tip toward Physician Yeom.
"I have a question. What is that man? Is he with the ones who made the corpse pit?"
Tang Mujin answered, full of rage.
"With them? No. He's the mastermind. The one who caused all this."
"The mastermind, huh."
Sensing the dire mood, Physician Yeom immediately turned and tried to flee.
But no ordinary man could escape the speed of a master.
The old man ran as lightly as if gliding over grass and caught him in just a few breaths.
He threw Yeom down roughly.
Thud—
"Ow!"
Tang Mujin rushed over and kicked him hard in the ribs.
"You filthy bastard! A so-called physician spreading a plague just to rob villagers?!"
"Ghk!"
Watching from the side, the old man shook his head.
"No. That's only part of what he was after. His real goal must be something else."
"Something else?"
When Tang Mujin asked back, Yeom staggered to his feet.
His eyes still burned with will to live.
"Hehh… it seems you know a thing or two, elder. How about we make a deal?"
"A deal?"
"If you spare my life, I'll give you an incredible elixir. Something far beyond the wealth of these mountain villagers. Have you heard of Black Peony?"
"Black Peony!"
Tang Mujin was a physician. Naturally, he knew of elixirs as much as any martial artist.
The Black Peony was an elixir infused with strong yin energy.
As its name suggested, it had a tremendous effect in boosting internal energy, though it ranked below the highest-tier elixirs like the Everfrost Ginseng or the Grand Return Pill. It was also rarely seen in the world.
Still, the Black Peony was almost as famous as those supreme medicines. Many heroes who had made their mark in history were said to have taken it.
It always appeared in times of chaos.
It sprouted among corpses after the Great War of Righteous and Demonic, or in corners of battlefields after great wars.
And inevitably, it always ended up in the hands of the heroes who ruled those troubled times.
That was why the Black Peony was nicknamed the Flower of Heroes. Not because it made them heroes, but because only heroes could ever obtain it.
"You mean you actually have a Black Peony?"
When Tang Mujin showed interest, Yeom pointed to the side of the corpse pit.
"Yes. Right there."
There bloomed a flower with dozens of layered petals.
But unlike peonies of red or white, its petals were darker than the night sky.
Is he an idiot?
Even if Tang Mujin took the Black Peony now, Yeom was in no position to stop him. Tang Mujin strode toward it.
At that moment, it was not Yeom but the old man who stopped him.
"Stop."
"Who said I'd eat it? I just mean to keep it so that bastard can't mess with it."
"No. The Black Peony kills anyone unprepared who touches it."
"Kills them?"
"Yes. The Black Peony is an elixir that grows by feeding on hundreds, thousands of deaths. That man didn't gather corpses just to kill villagers. He did it to raise the Black Peony."
"That's…"
"The evil energy within it is beyond what an ordinary man can endure. Touch it rashly, and you'll be consumed and die."
Yeom sneered.
"You know well. Indeed, one must follow the proper procedure to avoid disaster when taking the Black Peony. I know how to harvest and refine it. Shouldn't we work together?"
The old man folded his arms and looked at him. Then answered curtly:
"No."
He strode toward the Black Peony.
Yeom's face showed intrigue. He thought he held the winning card. Whether the man tried to take it and died, or agreed to cooperate, he would survive either way.
Just die already!
But contrary to his expectations, the old man easily plucked the Black Peony. With a completely calm expression, he dusted the soil off its roots.
Yeom cried out.
"Impossible! Just touching it barehanded is instant death!"
"For ordinary people, yes."
"Even martial artists! I've confirmed it myself!"
"For ordinary martial artists, maybe. But I'm different. Do you know what my title is?"
The strange old man walked up to Physician Yeom, resting his hand on the sword hilt at his waist. A faint, sinister smile played at his lips.
"I am the eccentric physician, Lee Chung. My knowledge of medicine and elixirs is not inferior to yours."
Physician Yeom froze stiff. It was the look of a man who had lost his final bargaining chip, a man who now sensed death itself.
The next moment, the old man's shoulder blurred.
One strike. This time, even Tang Mujin saw the movement.
It was a perfectly clean motion—without an ounce of excess, without the slightest hesitation.
Yeom's head flew up into the air, blood spraying forth.
For one who had sought wealth by sacrificing an entire village, the end could not have been more pitiful.
The old man wiped the blood from his sword tip on Yeom's clothes, then sat cross-legged beside the corpse pit.
The Black Peony now rested upon his knees, cradled in his folded hands.
"…What are you going to do?"
"I will absorb the miasma of the corpses and the Black Peony. Best you stay away—it will be dangerous if you come too close."
Half-closing his eyes, he sank into circulation.
Ordinary martial artists would never dare channel their energy with an outsider like Hong Geolgae so close, but this old man was an exception.
Around him, the black miasma from the corpse pit and the Black Peony swirled violently.
It was so thick that just approaching it would be lethal for an ordinary man.
Such dreadful miasma…
After a long session of circulation, the old man rose to his feet.
The corpses in the pit had withered, their stench fading somewhat.
But the most dramatic change was in the Black Peony itself. Once pitch-black, its color had now turned to a pale gray.
"Take it."
He tossed the Black Peony to Tang Mujin. Startled, Mujin instinctively caught it, terrified something might happen—but nothing did.
"You won't die. I told you, I absorbed the poison."
"Then… why not just throw it away?"
"Idiot. That's what other people's Black Peonies look like when they use them—stripped of miasma, leaving only the unique spiritual energy behind."
Tang Mujin stared at him in shock.
"Why are you giving this to me?"
"Of course it's for you to take."
"…But this is priceless, isn't it?"
"Of course it is. Even if you worked your whole life as a physician, you wouldn't be able to buy even a single petal."
Greed stirred within him. In a low voice, he asked again:
"Then why…?"
"Because you were the one who discovered that physician and found the Black Peony. Besides, the miasma alone is enough for me."
"…But even without the poison, won't it kill me? I've heard taking elixirs recklessly is dangerous."
"With most elixirs, yes. But a processed Black Peony is fine. It won't explode your internal energy like others do, but it will help you—slowly, steadily, without side effects."
Tang Mujin looked down at the pale Black Peony.
Countless thoughts flooded his mind.
His repeated self-justifications when he abandoned Ma Jeonggae and Hong Geolgae to flee down the mountain.
His memory of trembling in fear, unable to act while watching the two martial artists in danger.
And yet, in the end, throwing that single stone at the enemy as if possessed, for Ma Jeonggae's sake.
For someone who had run away… could such a precious elixir truly be given, just for that one stone?
Hesitantly, he handed the Black Peony back to the old man.
"I don't think I should take it."
"Why not?"
"I don't deserve it. I ran away in fear—how could I take something like this?"
"You were there at the scene, weren't you?"
"I only came back after fleeing. All I did was hide behind a tree, shaking, until I threw that one stone."
At his words, the old man gave his usual mischievous smile.
But within that smile was a pride he could not conceal.
"That is enough."
"Huh?"
"Harder than never running is to run away, then return. That means facing your duty, and accepting even your own failures."
"…But if it happens again, I think I'll just run away once more."
"And what of it?"
"…"
"If you truly doubt yourself, then ask Hong Geolgae whether you are worthy."
Tang Mujin lifted his head and looked at Hong Geolgae.
Sitting beside his master's corpse, Hong Geolgae met his eyes and nodded.
There was not a trace of resentment in his gaze.
The old man placed a hand on Tang Mujin's shoulder.
"Run away again. And then return again. At the final moment, do not turn away from your duty. That is all that matters."
Tang Mujin nodded and swallowed the Black Peony.