The general was subdued not long after...
No, it was much longer than expected.
The confident Yi Songbaek and the general seemed to have a good match, as they engaged in a desperate battle that lasted over an hour.
To others, it might have been a tense and gripping contest that made them sweat, but to Cheongmyeong, it was a battle so dull that it made him yawn. 'Maybe I should have just taken care of it myself.' However, seeing Yi Songbaek, drenched in sweat and on the verge of collapse, he couldn't bring himself to say such a thing.
In the midst of it all, Yi Songbaek wore a proud smile, as if he was boasting about having subdued the general.
"Wipe your sweat, will you..."
"Haah, I subdued... the demon beast... cough, cough, I subdued the demon beast."
Hwang Jong-yi nodded with a slightly displeased expression as he looked at Yi Songbaek, who was gasping for breath in front of him.
What could he say? He wanted to shoot a remark, but seeing Yi Songbaek's trembling legs made him feel pity instead.
"You did well. The Eunha Guild will not forget Jongnam's help."
"Th-thank you... th-thank you."
"Take a rest."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Yi Songbaek couldn't even respond and collapsed right there.
Normally, he would have felt some gratitude towards Yi Songbaek for doing his best to subdue the demon beast.
But right now, Hwang Jong-yi couldn't even pay attention to Yi Songbaek's state.
He kept glancing at Cheongmyeong. 'What on earth should I say about this situation?' Had it only been two days since Cheongmyeong appeared here? Hwang Jong-yi had struggled with this issue for nearly a year, yet Cheongmyeong had resolved it so neatly in just two days. 'Was this really such a simple problem to solve?' It couldn't be.
Hwang Jong-yi knew that all matters seem trivial only after they have passed.
If this matter had been that simple from the beginning, why had no one noticed the existence of the demon beast until now? 'It’s as if a cunning old master is hiding within that little child.' But that couldn't be the case.
"It seems like things are roughly settled now?"
"Why on earth did the general target my father?"
"I wouldn't know."
"Did you not cause this trouble because you had some inkling?"
"Not at all."
"......"
Hwang Jong-yi looked a bit dazed.
As if understanding Hwang Jong-yi's feelings, Cheongmyeong spoke calmly.
"Revealing the reason is the magistrate's job, and my job is to solve the problem and receive compensation. In that sense, you have prepared sufficient compensation, right?" Normally, no matter how much merit one had, it was rare to demand compensation so boldly.
After all, people are fundamentally concerned about their face.
But Cheongmyeong had no face left to worry about.
Having fallen to the ground like a plum blossom leaf in the Plum Blossom Sword Master’s domain, what face could he possibly have? It was outrageous, yet Hwang Jong-yi, proving that he was not an ordinary person, nodded without changing his expression.
"Of course. But you seem to have forgotten one thing. The problem has not been resolved yet. I never asked you to capture the demon beast. What I want is for my father to get up and leave. Can you do that?" Cheongmyeong slightly puffed out his belly.
"That's a given."
His voice was filled with confidence.
"Then," Hwang Jong-yi replied firmly, "I promise to mobilize all the power of my guild to support Hwasan."
Cheongmyeong, seemingly moved, tightly grasped Hwang Jong-yi's hand.
Hwang Jong-yi smiled as if he understood Cheongmyeong's feelings.
"There's no need to be so moved. It's only natural..."
"Are you joking?"
"...... Huh?" Cheongmyeong's face twisted.
"Compensation should be given to me, not Hwasan! The bear does the tricks, but the human gets the money, right?"
"......"
Hwang Jong-yi was at a loss for words.
It seemed that Cheongmyeong was crazier than he had thought.
Cheongmyeong smacked his lips as he stood in front of Hwang Mun-yak, who was lying on the bed.
If he could succeed in treating Hwang Mun-yak, everything here would be resolved.
Then he could return to the sect, whistling happily.
Everything was perfectly handled.
There was nothing particularly difficult about it.
He even enjoyed the fact that he had made those Jongnam fellows suffer a bit.
He was thoroughly pleased.
But amidst all this, there was one problem... 'Honestly, I'm not confident.' Up to this point, he could manage somehow.
But curing Hwang Mun-yak was, to put it bluntly, something uncertain.
If it were the Cheongmyeong of the Plum Blossom Sword Master, there would be no need for worry.
No one knew more about demonic energy than him, and he had enough pure energy to overflow.
No matter how severe the demonic energy was, it ultimately stemmed from demonic forces.
With Cheongmyeong's energy, which was as vast as the sea, he could simply erase all the demonic energy.
But the current Cheongmyeong was not the Plum Blossom Sword Master.
What he possessed was only a minuscule amount of energy, now reduced to the size of a chestnut, much purer than before.
There was no guarantee that this would be enough to eliminate all the demonic energy spread throughout Hwang Mun-yak's body.
If he carelessly touched it, the weakened Hwang Mun-yak might not even have the strength to scream and would die instantly.
"Will this work?" It was something no one could know without trying.
Cheongmyeong smacked his lips again and approached Hwang Mun-yak.
If he didn't act, Hwang Mun-yak would die.
No matter how reckless Cheongmyeong's life was, at his core, he was still a Daoist.
He couldn't just let someone who was dying be left to their fate because of his lack of ability.
"Don't blame me if it goes wrong."
If it works out, it would be good for both of them.
Taking a deep breath, Cheongmyeong slowly placed his hand on Hwang Mun-yak's dantian.
Then he began to slowly push his energy into Hwang Mun-yak's body.
The energy that had been sleeping in Cheongmyeong's dantian began to flow out slowly.
In the past, Cheongmyeong's energy flowed like a gently flowing river.
Sometimes it became a fierce torrent, and at other times, it became a vast sea that contained the world.
But now, the energy flowing through Cheongmyeong's body was distinctly different from before.
It was clear.
It was pure and untainted, like the clean water flowing through a secluded valley, without a single impurity mixed in.
That crystal-clear energy surged into Hwang Mun-yak's body, which was soaked in demonic energy.
Wuuuuuuung.
Hwang Mun-yak's body began to twitch slightly.
The foul demonic energy dared not invade Cheongmyeong's energy.
Wherever the energy reached, the demonic energy was startled and hurriedly retreated. 'Oh?' Cheongmyeong gasped inwardly. 'This is amazing.' He had experience in controlling demonic energy with his own energy, but this was the first time he had encountered such a situation.
Why is demonic energy called demonic? Because it flows in reverse, it is called demonic energy.
The demonic energy that has invaded another's body destroys the flesh like poison, opposing and pushing away all energy.
But now, the demonic energy filling Hwang Mun-yak's body was not rushing towards Cheongmyeong's energy; instead, it was fleeing like a beast that had seen fire.
'If this goes well...' It might be possible.
No, wait! 'How much hardship did I go through to gather this? I should at least get this much!' If he hadn't been obsessed with purity and had just acted normally, Cheongmyeong would have already gathered more than ten years' worth of energy.
He had already experienced gathering energy close to this level.
But now, the amount of energy filling Cheongmyeong's dantian didn't even reach a year's worth.
Fortunately, he could fill this much because he had consumed the Spirit Herb.
Yet now, that meager year's worth of energy was pushing back the army of demonic energy like a dragon charging through a narrow path. 'This is something I didn't expect.' Initially, he had only aimed to reach a level superior to his past life by building a perfectly pure foundation.
But as time passed, his obsession with purity deepened, and his progress slowed too much.
He was just starting to think that he should let go of this obsession... 'Thinking about it, this is only natural.' Pure energy is fundamentally the nemesis of demonic energy.
The pure energy contained in the essence of purity has the power to cleanse all unclean things in the world.
Cheongmyeong's energy was fundamentally pure energy, the purest of its kind.
Therefore, demonic energy could not dare to approach it.
The vile demonic energy began to neutralize in an instant.
Cheongmyeong was astonished at how easily the demonic energy lost its power and returned to nothingness.
As Cheongmyeong's energy neutralized the demonic energy in Hwang Mun-yak's body, it began to wash away the meridians.
Not only the demonic energy but even the smallest impurities were aggressively purified from the body, as if it were undergoing a cleansing process.
It was like a complete purification.
'What is happening here?' The process of complete purification was something that could only be attempted with the highest-grade elixirs and the strongest masters.
How difficult would it be to return a body that had accumulated foul energy to a completely pure state, like that of a newborn? There were so many masters that even those at the level of ordinary experts would only be able to sweep the floor, and there were so many elixirs that even if one rolled away, no one would bother to look for it.
This was precisely why such a complete purification was rarely attempted.
But now, Cheongmyeong was performing the miraculous feat of completely purifying the weakened old man from demonic energy all by himself.
It was a problem that this was not the result Cheongmyeong had intended.
Wuuuuuuuuung.
Hwang Mun-yak's body began to tremble slightly.
At the same time, his body started to be stained with both pure white and dark black.
The area where Cheongmyeong's energy had encroached turned white, while the area still occupied by the demonic energy was turning black, as if ink were about to spill out.
The demonic energy was desperately resisting the intruder encroaching on its territory. 'Hold on!' Hwang Mun-yak's body, which had instantly turned into a battlefield, was screaming.
Despite being unconscious, his whole body trembled, and blood surged to his mouth.
The crimson blood soaked Hwang Mun-yak's collar, and seeing this, Cheongmyeong gritted his teeth.
This was not a battle between him and the demonic energy.
The key was whether Hwang Mun-yak could hold on until he completely eliminated the demonic energy.
"I'll finish this in one go!" Hesitating for Hwang Mun-yak's condition would only increase the burden.
It was better to leave everything to fate and take a gamble.
With his resolve firm, Cheongmyeong drew up his energy.
He pushed the last handful of energy into Hwang Mun-yak's body without holding anything back.
Thick beads of sweat began to pour down Cheongmyeong's forehead like rain.
Inside Hwang Mun-yak's body, Cheongmyeong's energy began to heat up the demonic energies.
It absorbed everything in its path, neutralizing it and melting away the surrounding impurities.
At the same time, it expanded the narrow meridians of Hwang Mun-yak like wide roads.
The fiercely resisting demonic energies began to lose their momentum and were pushed to one side.
Cheongmyeong was horrified at what he saw. 'No, no!' The head.
The lost demonic energy was being pushed in the opposite direction of where Cheongmyeong was injecting his energy into the dantian.
In an instant, Hwang Mun-yak's head turned black and began to swell.
It looked like it was about to burst!