Chapter 137 <You Said to Come at Night>
The White Flower House had decided to close its doors.
From the first floor to the ceiling of the top floor, a massive hole had been blown open. How could such a thing be repaired?
No, even if it could be repaired, it wouldn’t be sturdy.
In the end, the pavilion had to be demolished, and the White Flower House had no choice but to suspend business temporarily.
The White Flower House wasn’t just an ordinary courtesan house.
It was a courtesan house, yes, but it was also part of the Hao Clan.
A place like that couldn’t simply halt its operations just because the doors were closed to the public.
That’s why this location had been chosen, or rather, forced upon them.
The Owner of the White Flower House gazed nervously at Byeok Taesan.
The current meeting place was a pavilion located near the main gate of the Golden Wall Manor.
Originally, it was a space meant for guests to stay temporarily, but it had now been designated as the Hao Clan's temporary base of operations.
Inside the pavilion, surviving members of the Hao Clan were resting.
On the top floor of the pavilion, which had been converted into a temporary office, Byeok Taesan and other key figures were gathered.
Naturally, Byeok Taesan occupied the seat of honor, while the Owner of the White Flower House sat politely with her hands clasped on a seat below.
Facing the Owner was Hwaryeong, and next to Hwaryeong sat Seung Doheung.
Seated beside the Owner of the White Flower House were the Heavenly Divine Healer and the Needle Master.
Byeok Taesan swept his gaze over everyone present before settling his eyes on Seung Doheung with a calm expression.
Seung Doheung looked visibly excited.
“I haven’t fully analyzed it yet, but even with what we have, we’ve gained a great deal of information.”
At Byeok Taesan’s slight nod, Seung Doheung continued, his excitement barely contained.
“For now, we’ve perfectly extracted the structure. The gold fragments can be retrieved whenever you wish.”
The Golden Wall was massive, truly enormous. How much gold could be salvaged from its shattered pieces?
It was enough to purchase several major merchant groups outright.
Byeok Taesan shifted his gaze toward Hwaryeong, who responded with a respectful bow.
“I’ll make sure to secure it properly and use it as needed.”
With that matter settled, Seung Doheung began to fidget.
The Heavenly Divine Healer, noticing this, remarked dryly.
“Stop acting like a puppy that needs to relieve itself. If you’ve got something to say, just spit it out. Do you really think our Young Master would bother tormenting you over that?”
Startled, Seung Doheung frantically waved his hands.
“N-not at all! I’d never even consider such a thing!”
The Needle Master frowned and glared at the Heavenly Divine Healer.
“Why do you keep picking on him? Stop projecting your rotten thoughts onto others.”
When the Heavenly Divine Healer tried to retort, Byeok Taesan raised his hand, cutting the conversation short.
If left unchecked, the exchange would drag on indefinitely. To ensure the meeting proceeded smoothly, he had to intervene preemptively.
Once the room quieted, Byeok Taesan looked at Seung Doheung as if urging him to speak.
“Uh... I have something to discuss regarding the new manor.”
After taking a deep breath, Seung Doheung continued.
“What if we alter the design of the manor?”
The others stared at him, perplexed.
Construction on the manor was already underway. Changing the design now would render the money and effort spent so far a complete waste.
“There’s no need to halt construction. I’ve already inspected the site, and with minor modifications and a revised plan, we can proceed seamlessly.”
Hwaryeong asked, “What benefit would that bring?”
“It would allow us to construct a massive formation using the buildings.”
“Wasn’t that already part of the original plan?”
“This would enable us to create a formation on a much larger scale. Not only encompassing the manor but extending beyond it as well.”
“Beyond the manor?”
“We have to rebuild the White Flower House anyway, don’t we? If we construct it close to the new manor, we could even develop the entire surrounding area.”
Hwaryeong stared at Seung Doheung, incredulous.
“Do you realize how much money that would cost?”
“I do. But once it’s built, it will be unparalleled in defending against any intrusion.”
And funding could be arranged somehow—after all, they had plenty of gold.
The Needle Master interjected.
“What about the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion? Isn’t it quite far from the new manor?”
“That would also have to be taken into account. Wouldn’t it be better to construct the manor in a more efficient manner? Honestly, given the expected growth of the faction, the pavilion will need to be relocated eventually.”
“Which means more expenses. Do we have enough gold to cover it?”
The Owner of the White Flower House spoke up: “If we scrape together every last coin the Hao Clan has, we can make an attempt.”
After saying this, she turned to Byeok Taesan.
“We’d also need to allocate all the funds entrusted to us by the Young Master.”
She was referring to the wealth accumulated through their battles, looted treasure, spoils from conflicts with the Nameless Sect, and more. It was a significant sum.
Byeok Taesan nodded.
“Use it all. It wouldn’t hurt to claim an entire street for ourselves.”
It wouldn’t be just any street. It would effectively create a town in Wuhan under Byeok Taesan’s control.
The village, covered entirely in a formation, was the topic of discussion.
Byeok Taesan pondered for a moment before looking at the Heavenly Divine Healer.
“Is there no branch of the Heaven Guard Corps with substantial funds remaining?”
The Heaven Guard Corps members all had their own unique professions. Some, like the Heavenly Divine Healer, were physicians, while others, like Jang Gakwoo, operated security bureaus.
If they could pool the spare funds held by all branches of the Heaven Guard Corps, it would be of considerable assistance.
After all, those branches would eventually need to be brought into the fold anyway.
“I will look into it.”
Recently, the Heavenly Divine Healer’s disciples had been diligently visiting the various branches of the Heaven Guard Corps.
Some progress had been made, so it seemed likely they could obtain useful information soon.
The meeting continued afterward.
There was also a discussion about the identity of the attackers from the recent assault, but since Byeok Taesan had killed them all without leaving a single survivor, there was little information to be gleaned.
In truth, he had intended to spare two of them, but they had self-destructed, leaving him no choice.
Recalling the incident caused Byeok Taesan’s expression to darken slightly.
The meeting only ended when the sun was high in the sky.
Since the incident, they had hastily dealt with the aftermath and immediately convened the meeting, spending several hours talking without rest.
As the meeting drew to a close, the Owner of the White Flower House spoke up.
“I will compile a report on the situation regarding the Hao Clan and deliver it later. The damages have yet to be fully assessed...”
Byeok Taesan nodded indifferently, signaling it didn’t matter to him.
The Owner of the White Flower House bowed politely, and the meeting concluded.
Left alone in his office after everyone else had departed, Byeok Taesan quietly sank into thought.
He reflected on the moment when those two men had self-destructed.
They had reacted specifically to the word “extract.” Until that point, they hadn’t planned to self-destruct.
That implied they had confidence in enduring any form of torture, as well as confidence in resisting the Hao Clan’s specialized interrogation techniques.
But the fact that they self-destructed at the mention of “extract” meant they knew what it entailed.
“Am I overthinking this?”
Byeok Taesan tilted his head slightly in contemplation.
Those men had clearly witnessed the true power of the Heavenly Demon. If not directly, then they had at least received a vivid description from someone else.
That much was certain.
And if they had truly reacted to the word “extract,” it meant they had seen the former Heavenly Demon extracting spirits in person.
In the past, the Heavenly Demon didn’t extract spirits as calmly as he did now.
He would kill everyone and absorb the spirits in one swift action.
Back then, it didn’t matter if things were indiscriminate, it was faster and more effective than extracting spirits individually from the crown of the head.
However, there were occasions when he extracted spirits directly, and that was when he intended to interrogate them.
Extracting and burning a spirit allowed the lingering thoughts imprinted on it to surface.
These thoughts often centered around the most vivid memories, and when paired with interrogation, it yielded valuable information.
“Who could have witnessed that...?”
Byeok Taesan began carefully tracing through his memories from the past. It seemed it would take him quite some time.
“Young Lady, what are you doing here?”
Soso asked with a startled expression.
Yeon Harin raised her weary eyes to look at Soso.
She was sitting in a crouched position in front of Byeok Taesan’s bedroom, hugging her knees.
She couldn’t find the words to explain.
How could she admit that she had been sitting there since last night, waiting for Byeok Taesan to return?
He told her to come at night!
Tears threatened to well up in her eyes.
Soso widened her eyes further upon seeing Yeon Harin’s state.
“Don’t tell me you were waiting for the Young Master? Since when?”
Yeon Harin hesitated before answering.
“S-since last night?”
Soso’s expression of surprise only deepened.
“Young Lady, didn’t you hear the news?”
“News? What news?”
“Last night, bad men attacked the White Flower House.”
“Bad men attacked the White Flower House?”
Yeon Harin jumped to her feet in shock.
“What happened? What was the outcome?”
“Many people died.”
“Oh...”
Yeon Harin knew that the White Flower House was associated with the Hao Clan. She had met the Owner of the White Flower House several times.
She also knew that many of the courtesans and workers there were affiliated with the Hao Clan.
“So then...”
Soso nodded.
“Yes, the Young Master was occupied dealing with the incident, fighting and holding meetings through the night. I only heard bits and pieces, so I don’t know the full details yet.”
“I see. Thank you for telling me.”
Yeon Harin thanked Soso and quickly walked away.
Despite the major incident that had occurred, she had spent the entire night crouched in this place, indulging her personal desires. A wave of self-reproach suddenly hit her.
"Young Lady! Where are you going? Do you know where the Young Master is?"
Yeon Harin froze mid-step. Her face flushed, and she hesitantly turned around, shaking her head.
Soso, noticing this, smiled gently and spoke.
"Try heading to the pavilion next to the main gate. I heard everyone is gathered there."
Yeon Harin averted her eyes from Soso's gaze and stammered.
"Th-thank you."
She quickly dashed toward the main gate.
Soso watched Yeon Harin’s retreating figure for quite some time.
Byeok Taesan was lost in deep thought before snapping out of it.
It was due to the faint presence that had been lingering near the door for some time.
He already knew who it was. Yeon Harin’s aura was strikingly vivid.
If she wanted to come in, she could’ve just asked for permission. Instead, she was pacing outside, likely influenced by something she’d overheard.
With a wave of Byeok Taesan's hand, the door swung open.
Through the open door, Yeon Harin stood frozen, her eyes wide with surprise.
She clearly hadn’t expected the door to suddenly open.
"If you’re going to come in, then come in."
Yeon Harin quickly composed herself and pursed her lips.
"You told me to come."
She understood that he had been busy. She also understood that there was no other choice. This was just a small complaint she wanted to express for no real reason.
Of course, she knew this grumble would go nowhere.
Glancing around briefly, Yeon Harin stepped inside and closed the door.
She approached Byeok Taesan and cautiously observed him.
"Are you alright?"
At her question, Byeok Taesan nodded. What reason would there be for him not to be?
He gazed quietly at Yeon Harin.
"Become stronger."
"Excuse me?"
Yeon Harin looked up at Byeok Taesan, her eyes wide with confusion.
At first, it seemed like a random statement.
But upon reflection, she began to understand his meaning.
Her eyes sparkled as she met Byeok Taesan’s gaze.
"I’ll become strong enough so I won’t hold you back. Don’t worry. Not just me, everyone is working hard. So..."
Yeon Harin couldn’t finish her sentence.
It was because Byeok Taesan suddenly smiled.
Now that she thought about it, she had never seen him smile so brightly before.
That’s why it felt so unfamiliar.
"I’ll look forward to it."
Yeon Harin felt a sense of warmth and comfort wrapping around her with those words.
A smile, similar to Byeok Taesan’s, formed on her lips.