A Preposterous Proposal

“……Pardon?”

“I said, getting out won’t be easy.”

It was a blatant lie. He simply wanted to see more of this slippery fellow’s desperation.

“I-is it impossible even with your strength, Young Leader?”

As expected, Seol Ah-heon panicked. Baek Geon-ha savored his anxiety with satisfaction. To him, an iron wall like this was a laughable obstacle, but for the sake of tormenting Seol Ah-heon, he was more than willing to play along and stay “trapped.”

“Perhaps.”

“Then what should we…….”

“Do you know what this is?”

Baek Geon-ha reached out and pressed his hand against the iron wall. In doing so, he drew even closer to Seol Ah-heon. At that slight contact, the fellow’s shoulder flinched. Feeling a strange sense of spite, Baek Geon-ha deliberately leaned his body in.

Then, he felt it—the extreme cold energy.

For a martial artist of the unorthodox path, the energy was excessively pure and clear. It was to the point where he felt a primal urge to snatch it away. If he were to seize Seol Ah-heon’s internal energy right here, right now…….

But Baek Geon-ha suppressed his greed. Even though he was the type to get whatever he wanted, there was a fundamental problem.

How could I possibly embrace a man?

He would sooner stew Seol Ah-heon whole and eat him than mix bodies with the fellow. Despite these thoughts, Baek Geon-ha’s hand wandered, fumbling along Seol Ah-heon’s thigh. Though he didn’t realize it himself, it was a touch thick with lingering desire.

“Y-Y-Young Leader.”

“What.”

“You haven’t finished what you were saying…….”

That cautious prompting brought him back to his senses. Though he felt a lingering dissatisfaction, Baek Geon-ha pulled his hand away. To soothe that annoyance, he decided to spin his lie a little further.

“It seems it’s at least no ordinary steel.”

“……Could it be something like Thousand-Year Cold Iron?”

Hardly.

Baek Geon-ha was dumbfounded. He had baited this reaction, but the fellow always managed to show a level of stupidity that exceeded his imagination.

Of course, since the wall was made of Baekryun-jeonggang (Hundred-Refined Steel), it wasn’t ordinary iron. As the name suggested, it was steel forged a hundred times, making it far harder than normal. But it was nowhere near the level of Thousand-Year Cold Iron.

Besides, how did he know of Cold Iron but not Hundred-Refined Steel? Truly, Seol Ah-heon’s stupidity lacked any consistency. That was why he fell for such nonsensical lies.

“Yes. Something like Thousand-Year Cold Iron.”

“Then it won’t be cut even by Sword Qi.”

“Not necessarily. However, if it’s this much…….”

Baek Geon-ha slowly traced the iron wall as if in serious investigation. In the process, his wrist brushed against Seol Ah-heon’s forearm. For once, the fellow didn’t jump as if burned.

“It would be difficult even if I poured in all my internal energy.”

“T-that can’t be……!”

It was getting better and better. Does this guy really think I can’t cut through a piece of refined steel? Even if it were Thousand-Year Cold Iron, Baek Geon-ha’s realm was high enough to cleave it in a single strike.

It was an insult to his pride, but perhaps because the guy was so dim-witted, he didn’t feel offended. Rather, watching Seol Ah-heon fall into despair gave him a wicked sense of pleasure. Right now, the fellow must be imagining a future where they slowly die trapped in this hole. Baek Geon-ha relished that despair.

“Ugh…….”

What was he thinking? Seol Ah-heon bit his lower lip and remained silent for a long time. Wanting to hear whatever preposterous thought was unfolding in that small head, Baek Geon-ha prodded him subtly.

“What will you do now?”

“……I’m thinking.”

“Why not reflect on some happy memories? Soon, everything will return to nothingness.”

Hah. He sensed a sigh from beyond the iron wall. Mu Il-young was likely beyond exasperated. Of course, that was of no concern to Baek Geon-ha.

“Young Leader.”

Finally, Seol Ah-heon spoke. It seemed he had made some sort of decision; his voice sounded as though he were gripping his wavering heart.

“Speak.”

Now, what kind of stupid nonsense will you bark this time?

He felt a surge of anticipation, quite unlike himself. But the words Seol Ah-heon uttered with such resolve were……

“It is alright if you use the Yin-Harvesting Yang-Nourishing Art on me.”

……a bucket of cold water on Baek Geon-ha’s amusement.

“What kind of madness is this?”

“You already noticed that I noticed, didn’t you, Young Leader?”

“Ha.”

He was speechless.

As the fellow said, Baek Geon-ha had indeed realized he knew, yet he had postponed any punishment. Did the guy not realize how lucky he was? He should have stayed quiet, yet he had to wag that tongue and provoke his temper.

“The number of people who know I have mastered that art is extremely small. Do you know why?”

“Ah……. Was everyone else just unobservant?”

“No. Because everyone who noticed is currently under the dirt. Right here, just like you.”

“…….”

“Ah, a few might be in the bellies of vultures. And about a dozen are likely at the bottom of the Yangtze River. Now that I recount, there aren’t many buried in the ground.”

That was the fate of those who learned secrets they shouldn’t know. And here was another one, prying into Baek Geon-ha’s secrets.

Strangely, he didn’t feel a surge of rage. Still, what had to be done had to be done. Baek Geon-ha indifferently gripped Seol Ah-heon’s throat.

“Kgh, gh…….”

A pulse throbbed within his grasp. Ah, how desperate the struggle for life always was. Baek Geon-ha enjoyed crushing that tenacity. He wasn’t a serial killer, but he certainly had those tendencies. Looking at this fellow who had little utility anyway, wouldn’t it be more fun to just kill him?

The man, as beautiful as a demonic flower, licked his dry lips at the sudden impulse. Simultaneously, another impulse bloomed in his heart.

‘It is alright if you use the Yin-Harvesting Yang-Nourishing Art on me.’

What would it truly be like if he did?

Seol Ah-heon’s Yin energy was remarkably pure—reminiscent of a field of white snow. If he could take it, it would be a great help in calming his constantly boiling Yang energy.

“Why of all things do you have to be a man?” Baek Geon-ha muttered irritably.

As he thought again, if he could take that Yin energy by stewing Seol Ah-heon and eating him, he would have done so gladly. If the guy had an internal core like a spirit beast, he would have ripped his belly open right now.

But it was futile. Realistically, the only way to take Seol Ah-heon’s Yin energy was through the Yin-Harvesting Yang-Nourishing Art. And to perform that, sexual intercourse was mandatory. What a disgusting situation.

“H-hic…….”

Without realizing it, his grip tightened. Feeling the pain, the fellow grabbed Baek Geon-ha’s wrist. But those weak hands could do nothing against him. At most, they tickled his skin.

“…….”

In the midst of this, the Yin energy he sensed was so tempting it was infuriating. If Seol Ah-heon had reached his level, hiding his internal energy shouldn’t be difficult—so why was he emitting it so freely? Was this what happened when one was hit by Soul-Capturing Art?

“Are you trying to drive me mad……?”

Baek Geon-ha withdrew his hand from Seol Ah-heon’s throat. In the end, he couldn’t bring himself to snap the fellow’s neck.

Released, Seol Ah-heon scrambled backward. It was a futile effort, as he was blocked by the iron wall and couldn’t go far. After a fit of painful coughing, the fellow—seemingly recovered enough to be brave—snapped back.

“This is too much! Honestly! Even if I’m slow, how could I not notice? Whenever you spend a night with a woman, you bloom like a flower!”

Maybe I should kill him after all. Just as he was about to act on it, Seol Ah-heon spoke rapidly.

“Not just you, Young Leader, but the women as well—every single one of them ends up overflowing with life and vitality. You made no effort to hide it, so I simply noticed!”

“You aren’t wrong. Congratulations on proving you possess a shred of intelligence. But are you complaining that I didn’t care about your opinion?”

“How could I ever dare? I was simply stating the facts.”

“Even if you noticed, you should have kept your mouth shut. Don’t you know that, for someone so afraid of dying?”

Suddenly, everything became a chore. For some reason, he wasn’t in the mood to kill Seol Ah-heon. He would deal with him eventually, but not today.

“I only said it because I thought it might be helpful to you, Young Leader. Since you said you were lacking internal energy…….”

“So. You’re saying I should mix bodies with you?”

“……Rather than mixing bodies, I mean, use the art. Because that’s the rational choice.”

“Absurd. There is no way I would embrace a man.”

“I think you’re misunderstanding something. It’s not like I’m making this offer because I like men. It’s strictly for you, Young Leader…….”

“You mean it’s because you want to live.”

Hit where it hurt, Seol Ah-heon shut his mouth. The silence was nice, but this in itself was insolent. Was he not admitting that he intended to use Baek Geon-ha for his own ends? What was most absurd was that it might actually work, even if not in the way Baek Geon-ha intended.

“Still, isn’t a disciple who offers his body and sacrifices himself for his Master quite commendable……?”

There it was again—the “Master” talk. But there was another word he couldn’t overlook.

“Sacrifice? Sacrifice, you say? How is me shoving my cock into your back hole a sacrifice on your part?”

“What? How is you shoving your cock into my back hole not a sacrifice? No, more importantly…… am I…… am I the one receiving?”

This guy is definitely more tolerable when he’s just quiet.

Baek Geon-ha clenched his fist. Had Seol Ah-heon seen that, he would have prostrated himself instantly, but fortunately (or unfortunately), this was a pitch-black tunnel.

The fellow muttered again, whatever insolent thought he was having.

“I suppose…… me doing that to you would also be…… uuuuugh.”

The sound of him acting as if he were vomiting blood was deeply annoying. Still, killing him over something like this felt like…… it would only damage his own reputation.

Baek Geon-ha let out a sneer. Fine, if he was going to act out this little farce with all his might, he might as well play along.

He reached his hand out toward Seol Ah-heon’s center.