Chapter 78 When Bang Woo opened his eyes, his entire body was drenched as though he had been caught in a sudden downpour.
"..."
Startled by the unfamiliar sensation, he quickly pushed himself up and scanned his surroundings.
He had confronted the bandits of Nokrangchae in Taihang Mountain—men who bled merchants dry—and their leader for nearly three days before suddenly losing consciousness.
No… it had not been mere unconsciousness.
Bang Woo had fallen into qi deviation.
It must have been the moment he realized the leader of Nokrangchae was the traitor who had driven his father to his death. His memory after that point was blurred.
[Get a hold of yourself.]
The one who had seized him then was clearly—
"Eat."
Yes. There could be no other owner of that voice.
Thud.
Bang Woo stared at the three wild rabbits tossed before him, then began searching for kindling.
The presence that dropped down beside him was Yeonwoo.
Had she stood guard for a long time? The pallor in Yeonwoo's complexion troubled him, and Bang Woo moved more swiftly than ever.
The sun was already setting.
For a long while he stared at the red meat crackling over the fire before finally speaking.
"Senior Sister Yeonwoo, how many days passed while I was unconscious? And the other junior brothers…?"
"One day and half another. The others left earlier."
Yeonwoo spoke bluntly, tearing into the well-cooked meat without hesitation—her gaze never leaving him.
"...Why do you keep looking at me?"
"Because it is interesting. You are the first person I have seen fall asleep right after coming out of qi deviation."
Bang Woo's face warmed slightly.
So Senior Sister has experienced this before.
He felt admiration—yet at the same time, a faint discomfort stirred in his chest.
The thought that she had shared this strange yet intimate bond with someone other than him left him with a trace of regret. It was the childish jealousy he sometimes felt toward Yeonwoo.
Brushing the emotion aside as he always did, Bang Woo straightened and offered a respectful cupped-fist salute.
"Thank you. I will never forget what happened here in Taihang Mountain. I owe you a debt I cannot repay in this lifetime, Senior Sister Yeonwoo."
"Mm."
"..."
"..."
"...Senior Sister."
"You need to recover your strength and return as soon as possible. Eat while you talk."
"Ah, yes. Understood. There is something I wish to ask about when I fell into qi deviation…"
"What. Whether I saw the inside of your mind?"
Chewing on the dense rabbit meat, Bang Woo nodded awkwardly.
It was something he had only heard passed down in words.
The moment one channels inner energy to pull someone back from qi deviation—riding the current of qi like a river—a firm connection forms between the two, difficult to explain in words.
They glimpse each other's past.
Yeonwoo tore off a rabbit leg, her expression indifferent, and spoke in an even more indifferent voice.
"I saw it. Hard to focus, though. Your father kept nagging inside your head."
"...My father?"
"I could see why you are so rigid. You are the spitting image of him."
At that, Bang Woo remembered the day he parted from his father over a decade ago.
He had been born into the Bang family, which for generations operated Cheolmu Workshop.
His father was a renowned craftsman who traded with nearby escort agencies for decades. A rare, upright and honest man. But that uprightness, though a source of pride, could not serve as a weapon.
Bandits in collusion with the escort agency attacked and took everything from them.
[Bang Woo… you must live honestly.]
[Father. Please… please stop speaking.]
[You must not resort to tricks.]
[Father…]
[Heaven sees and earth sees… do only what is right.]
[...]
It was a farewell he never wished to recall.
Senior Sister had seen even that distant memory.
Strange.
If another had spoken of his past merely for helping him escape qi deviation, he might have pretended indifference while inwardly twisting in resentment.
But Yeonwoo was different.
The emotion Bang Woo felt when his past was spoken by her lips was not shame, nor anger—
"When I was young, I heard that often. ...There is no one left now to say it to me."
It was comfort.
To have someone beside him who knew and shared his past brought a warmth he had not expected.
Perhaps that was why. Whenever he looked at Yeonwoo's face, the corners of his lips lifted without him realizing. A thoroughly unfamiliar feeling.
"Did you see Senior Brother Hwa-myeong as well?"
"I did. He had quite a full head of hair."
Hwa-myeong was the first-generation disciple of Mount Hua who had taken orphaned Bang Woo into the sect. Now he had long since departed for the distant heavens.
As Bang Woo understood it, Yeonwoo had also entered Mount Hua through her connection with Hwa-myeong. To Bang Woo, Yeonwoo was the only person in the world with whom he could share stories of both his father and Hwa-myeong.
"Yes, there were such days. What was Senior Brother like when you first crossed paths with him?"
Yeonwoo paused, then answered slowly.
"I do not remember."
She had never been one to dwell on trivial details.
As their small talk continued, a question suddenly arose in Bang Woo's mind.
Why did I not see inside Senior Sister's mind?
As far as he knew, even if only one fell into qi deviation, the two would glimpse each other's inner selves, like faces reflected on the surface of a lake.
Yet Bang Woo had not seen Yeonwoo's inner world. Or rather, there were faint images in his memory—but nothing more.
It must mean the gap between us is that wide.
Though they were both third-generation disciples, he had long acknowledged Yeonwoo's superior skill. It did not shock him.
And yet—
[Is it not truly lamentable, Yeo Il? That in this vast Jianghu, the only one who delights me is you.]
When had she used the name Yeo Il?
[Even after becoming mine, you still scheme to flee?]
Who had dared speak that name?
[It does not matter. Go on—fly as high as you please. When I knock you down from the highest sky, after you have flown in rapturous freedom… the look on your face will delight me greatly.]
What kind of past had she endured?
He was sincerely curious.
Bang Woo wished he could laugh lightly, as Yeonwoo had, and recount the fragments of her past he had glimpsed—but recalling that chilling voice, he could not bring himself to speak.
At the same time, his mind turned cold.
Mine?
Who would dare.
Who would dare utter such words to his Senior Sister?
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