Chapter 219
Chapter 219. Threat
As if it were an exceedingly simple answer, the Four Seasons Hall Lord replied at once.
"You only need to trust Young Lady Tang."
“What in the world are you two talking about?”
Swallowing his pride, Zhuge Hyang stepped into the conversation.
The Black Sky Demon, too, seemed to sense that something unusual was being discussed and quietly waited for an answer.
However, the Emei Sect Leader did not respond to either of them. As if childish martial artists were beneath her notice, she fixed her gaze solely on the young lady standing on the dais.
"Does the Emei Sect appear to have anyone afflicted with the Blood Sect's Gu poison?"
So-hwa realized that the question was directed at her. Thus, without delay, she answered.
"It is difficult to confirm with the naked eye, but there is a way to verify it."
In a calm voice, Tang So-hwa explained the method.
"Administer the antidote and observe the reaction. That will tell us whether the Gu poison is present."
At her words, someone's complexion turned deathly pale.
Unperturbed, So-hwa continued.
"If there is no Gu poison, the antidote will naturally flow back out. If Gu poison is present in the body, the antidote will draw it in and pull it all out."
At So-hwa's explanation, the Emei Sect Leader swallowed a hollow breath inward.
From the outset, this was an antidote for which the storage period was not particularly important.
They had planned, here and now, to administer the antidote to everyone present.
'...... Is this what the Hall Lord meant by asking us to trust her.'
So that was what he meant by becoming an example first.
The Emei Sect Leader regretted stepping forward just a little, yet she did not refuse the fox-like Four Seasons Hall Lord's request.
"There is neither a Blood Sect spy nor anyone being blackmailed by the Blood Sect within the Emei Sect. I can guarantee that. We will be the first to receive the needle."
"Sect Leader."
Zhuge Hyang tried to stop the Emei Sect Leader in a flustered voice.
However, the Emei Sect Leader was resolute. She made a proposal to her disciples.
"Rather than be mired in vague suspicion, let us prove it once and for all and free ourselves from this doubt."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
The women with neat features obeyed the sect leader's words.
So-hwa did not delay either. She immediately came down carrying twenty needles and a small container.
At that sight, Zhuge Hyang exploded.
"How dare you use a medicine that isn't even proven! Will you not stay still!”
If this continued, everyone would end up receiving those bizarre needles. As Zhuge Hyang tried to step toward the dais, the Wudang Sect Leader opened his mouth.
"Elder Zhuge Hyang."
The Wudang Sect Leader let out a sigh.
"Young Lady Tang So-hwa did not flee to evade the headquarters."
In a regretful voice, he added,
"She went outside on the orders of the Four Seasons Hall Lord."
"What do you mean by that?"
"You may not know, since you were not present at the time. However, that does not mean I can tell you what I know right now."
The Wudang Sect Leader said, glancing around.
"Whether one knows that matter or not seems to be the very criterion the Four Seasons Hall is seeking at present."
It was incomprehensible.
Zhuge Hyang turned his head toward the Zhuge Clan Head. The Clan Head also seemed not to understand.
In the meantime, So-hwa, having come down from the dais, drove a needle into the Emei Sect Leader's hand.
Thud.
So-hwa proceeded to administer needles soaked in the antidote to the elder and the martial artist seated beside her, one after another.
Returning again to the sect leader, she checked her hand and then pulled out the needle.
She repeated this action.
She administered needles to all of the Emei Sect's martial artists, yet none showed the same reaction as Myungdan.
"It seems no one in the Emei Sect carries Gu poison."
"That is a relief."
So-hwa offered a silent bow to the sect leader and moved to the side.
The Wudang Sect Leader likewise permitted the needles to be administered.
Since it did not take long to place a needle, the verification proceeded swiftly.
Zhuge Hyang felt a growing anxiety, yet the Clan Head himself waited calmly for their turn.
He hoped that there might be some way for the Clan Head to avoid the verification, but it seemed even the Clan Head had not foreseen this situation. The sect leader's ear twitched and tilted several times, as if reacting to something. He was focusing on the sounds of birds outside.
Is there a way to buy time?
By contrast, the other sect leaders displayed an unusually favorable attitude toward Tang So-hwa.
"We're ready as well. Go ahead."
As some even stepped forward to request verification themselves, the sects that had felt uneasy could not bring themselves to refuse. Avoiding the verification would only invite unnecessary suspicion.
"Kuhk!"
One of the Qingcheng Sect's martial artists reacted.
Everyone was aghast, yet Tang So-hwa, the one who had inserted the needle, remained composed. With a calm expression, she pulled out the needle and carefully observed the black liquid flowing out.
After a long while, when red blood finally appeared, she wiped it away with an untroubled look.
"Violate the restriction."
It was the same instruction she had given to Myungdan.
The Alliance Member began trembling violently and suddenly burst into loud sobs. Since no one understood the reason, the Qingcheng Sect Leader could not scold his disciple, and even his fellow disciples did not dare approach.
What was absurd was that Tang So-hwa left the sobbing man as he was and moved on to the neighboring sect.
As if pressed for time, she continued administering needles.
The number of those who had harbored Gu poison exceeded ten.
Those who had initially been frightened were no longer surprised.
"Hk!"
A young martial artist of the Kunlun Sect clutched at his pounding heart, but Tang So-hwa nodded to the panicked sect leader. It meant he would not die, so there was no need to worry.
"Hall Lord......."
In the meantime, one of the Wudang Sect's elders went up onto the dais and whispered something into the Four Seasons Hall Lord's ear.
As he returned, he quietly asked how many antidotes he could take with him. It seemed he intended to verify the people at Mount Wudang as soon as he returned to his sect.
Of course, not everyone wanted the antidote.
Although three people vomited up the Gu poison in the Qingcheng Sect, the Qingcheng Sect Leader did not request any antidotes.
At last, it was the Zhuge Clan's turn.
Tang So-hwa stood before the Zhuge Clan Head and clasped her fists in salute.
Smiling, the Clan Head extended his hand.
"I look forward to your help."
Watching this unfold, Zhuge Hyang felt his insides burn.
If they refused the verification here or tried to flee, suspicion would be unavoidable.
However, they absolutely could not let it be discovered that the Clan Head harbored the Blood Sect's Gu poison.
This was on an entirely different level from a sect retainer falling under the Blood Sect's control.
Caught between impossible choices, Zhuge Hyang froze—just as Tang So-hwa took the Zhuge Clan Head's hand.
At that moment, the Zhuge Clan Head's mental transmission pierced So-hwa's eardrums.
『Not long ago, I heard an interesting rumor about you.』
Tang So-hwa's gaze slowly lifted.
Meeting her eyes, the Zhuge Clan Head curved his own.
『I heard you've been coming and going from the Platinum Pavilion. How did you come to have access there?』
As if trying to grasp his meaning, So-hwa quietly waited for him to continue.
『The Platinum Pavilion belongs to the second son of the Anguk Merchant Group. As you know, the Anguk Merchant Group has deep ties with the Zhuge Clan, and the merchant head's second son is a man whose marriage talks with Cheonga are already underway.』
"......."
『Rumors spread that the merchant head's second son disappeared around the same time you did, which damaged appearances quite a bit. I even considered tearing the Platinum Pavilion down altogether.』
He let out a chuckle and added lightly, as if joking,
『But to think you were carrying out the Four Seasons Hall's orders for a good cause....... I'm quite ashamed of my earlier misunderstanding. Please be generous enough to forgive it.』
He threatened her in a gentle voice.
It was a warning that if the Zhuge Clan's reputation were to fall, the Anguk Merchant Group would be dragged down with it.
In other words, he meant to expose the true nature of the Platinum Pavilion to the Murim Alliance.
It seemed the Zhuge Clan Head knew of her relationship with the Main Blood Hall Lord. Perhaps he had misunderstood it as deeper than it was, but it was true that she had formed an alliance with the Main Blood Hall.
If the true nature of the Platinum Pavilion were exposed now, the Main Blood Hall would be in danger.
They had nowhere left to go. Within the Blood Sect, they had become traitors, and the Central Plains were now preparing in earnest to dismantle the Blood Sect.
If the Zhuge Clan Head admitted to being under the Blood Sect's control and confessed that the Platinum Pavilion was a core institution, the Main Blood Hall would be unable to avoid an all-out confrontation with the Murim Alliance.
Moreover, most of the Main Blood Hall's members carried Gu poison, so they might be subjected to verification using the antidote she possessed.
The antidote had become a weapon that took her allies hostage.
The Zhuge Clan Head's gentle expression felt cunning.
Countless thoughts flashed through her mind, yet So-hwa's expression remained calm.
Placing a needle against the back of the Zhuge Clan Head's hand, So-hwa slowly pushed the long needle in.
She also administered long needles to the hands of those seated beside him. Yet the Zhuge Clan's retainers showed no reaction whatsoever.
Unable to understand what was happening, Zhuge Hyang frowned.
'What is going on......?'
He watched Tang So-hwa closely as she removed the needles. Each time she inserted one, she rubbed her thumb and index finger against her sleeve.
The inside of her sleeve was stained black.
When administering the needles, she had grasped the long needle with her thumb and index finger and wiped the antidote off onto her own fingers.
He did not know how it had come about, but Tang So-hwa had covered up the Clan Head's secret.
'Did he send a mental transmission?'
Zhuge Hyang found himself genuinely curious about what the two had exchanged.
In the end, not a single person from the Zhuge Clan reacted to the antidote.
* * *
Using the excuse of preparing more antidotes, Tang So-hwa immediately followed the Four Seasons Hall Lord and moved to the Four Seasons Hall.
“What are you doing?”
No sooner had they entered than the Hall Lord rebuked her. Yet Tang So-hwa gave an unexpected answer to his question.
“I think I need to go to the Platinum Pavilion right now.”
So-hwa had promised to free the Main Blood Hall.
Confident that it was no great request, she had reassured him and sent him off. But now, she could not allow the Platinum Pavilion to be wiped out by her own hand.
Lowering her voice, So-hwa made her request again.
"I will return before dawn, so please allow me to go to the Platinum Pavilion."