Chapter 100: “You Said You Were Going to Raise Me!”
Becoming the Shrine Maiden of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult isn’t something one can achieve simply by wanting it.
Baek Seolhwa was the younger sister of the Cult Leader. However, it wasn’t something she could attain by bloodline alone.
The reason she could rise to the position of Shrine Maiden was simple.
She had the talent for it.
She possessed a predictive ability that could almost be called prophetic.
In particular, her precognitive dreams were so accurate that they had never once been wrong.
Her sister, Baek Yeonyeong, also had a degree of that power.
However, Baek Yeonyeong focused on her natural martial prowess and became the Cult Leader, while Baek Seolhwa concentrated on her abilities and became the Shrine Maiden.
Baek Seolhwa had a lot of duties within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
The most representative task was cleaning up the messes caused by the wayward Cult Leader.
In truth, this task had little to do with the duties of the Shrine Maiden and was mostly due to the fact that she resembled Baek Yeonyeong.
Aside from that, her most important responsibility was to use her prophetic power.
The power of the Shrine Maiden was used for the benefit of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
And most of it was dedicated to finding the Heavenly Demon.
However, at some point, her powers began to weaken.
The decline had started in earnest about three months ago.
Though still potent, the efficacy had decreased compared to before.
Especially when it came to obtaining information related to the Heavenly Demon, it had become nearly impossible.
Currently, the only information the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult could utilize was one thing:
The Heavenly Demon would be born in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
This was the extent of their abstract information.
But to even call it a prophecy was questionable since the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains were the birthplace of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
It might have been something as obvious as saying poisoners are made in the Sichuan Tang Clan.
Her prophetic power had weakened.
Yet, strangely, if it wasn’t about finding the Heavenly Demon, her abilities still worked perfectly.
Baek Seolhwa couldn’t understand it no matter how much she thought about it.
Even using the horn of the One-Horned Beast or the materials from the Immortal Palace might be meaningless.
But wasn’t it worth trying anyway?
So, she personally ascended the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains and encountered the One-Horned Beast.
Although she had prepared for a fight, for some reason, the beast simply offered its horn on its own.
Thanks to that, she didn’t even need to summon the Left Guardian, who was hiding in the shadows, and was able to complete the task.
Although it was anticlimactic, there was nothing she could do about it.
She wasn’t reckless enough to call the docile One-Horned Beast back just to fight.
When she first saw the horn of the One-Horned Beast, she realized that it had nothing to do with her abilities.
Her prophetic power might become stronger. But she instinctively knew it wouldn’t help in finding the Heavenly Demon.
She felt frustrated.
What on earth was the problem?
These were the thoughts Baek Seolhwa had.
And at that moment, she sensed a presence from somewhere.
Something was rustling through the bushes, approaching rapidly.
It was small.
But the internal energy it contained was no joke.
At least at the Peak level.
No, if the internal energy that hadn’t yet been refined was included, it was close to the Pinnacle level.
Though Baek Seolhwa wasn’t someone who enjoyed hunting, she wouldn’t leave a spirit beast that was charging at her alone.
After all, before being a Shrine Maiden, she was also a martial artist.
It was like a target had appeared to relieve her frustration.
Finally, the spirit beast that reached her leaped toward her at a great speed.
But, to her surprise, it was something different from what she expected.
It was a small lizard.
It didn’t seem to have any hostility.
It simply climbed onto her finger.
Baek Seolhwa observed the lizard closely.
Its face was strangely insignificant.
Contrasting that was its beautiful black scales.
The lizard only focused on the finger in front of it.
Opening its mouth wide, it tried hard to gnaw on her finger.
Could it be that this tiny creature was attempting to swallow her finger with its little body?
Baek Seolhwa smiled slightly.
She wanted to see how far this lizard would go, so she didn’t stop it and just watched.
In the meantime, the lizard raised its head and met Seolhwa’s gaze.
The lizard, as if realizing it had made a mistake, jumped down to the ground.
Baek Seolhwa then realized what kind of creature it was.
It was the lizard Baek Yeonyeong had bragged about so much.
To be honest, she still couldn’t understand why it was said to be handsome.
How handsome could a lizard be?
Of course, its shiny scales and its fierce but sleek face were reminiscent of a mythical dragon.
But that was all.
Fundamentally, it was a lizard, and it wasn’t something you could call handsome.
Yet, for some reason, she couldn’t take her eyes off its face.
Not as the martial artist Baek Seolhwa, but as the Shrine Maiden of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
The frustration she felt had somewhat lifted.
When it came to finding the Heavenly Demon, this lizard would be far more effective than the horn of the One-Horned Beast.
Baek Seolhwa instinctively realized this.
*
A white hand with a reddish tint.
It wasn’t at all an exaggeration to say that she and Baek Yeonyeong had jade-like hands.
Like Baek Yeonyeong, she had blue eyes, but unlike her, those eyes weren’t indifferent.
There was a small mole under her eye.
Its position was the exact opposite of Baek Yeonyeong’s.
To describe her face, I had to compare her to Baek Yeonyeong.
The most beautiful woman I’d ever seen was Baek Yeonyeong, and the woman before me could rival her.
Her chest was amazing.
Baek Yeonyeong wasn’t small by any means.
But this woman was simply grand.
Moreover, whether it was because of sweat on her chest, she was wearing a garment that didn’t cover that area.
Whoever thought of that design, I applaud them.
Her overall impression was similar to Baek Yeonyeong’s.
But there was a different vibe.
She even called me a handsome lizard after seeing me.
Finally, someone who had some sense.
…I wanted to think that, but unfortunately, that’s not a normal reaction.
There were only two people who would use such words.
The suspiciously suspicious Tang So-yeong and Baek Yeonyeong.
Not just because of her appearance, but because of other things as well, it was clear that this woman had some connection to Baek Yeonyeong.
There was one important thing.
This woman didn’t show hostility toward me.
Which meant communication might be possible.
“Is it okay to talk to a lizard?”
Moreover, she had some level of common sense.
Better than Tang So-yeong.
“Should I call it a lizard?”
Maybe not.
I should answer her appropriately.
“Geck geck!”
“Or should I call you Hui?”
Hui.
The name Baek Yeonyeong had given me.
Knowing that, she must be related to Baek Yeonyeong.
Judging by her internal energy reservoir, she might be the older sister.
The white Baek Yeonyeong reached out her finger toward me.
As if drawn in, I walked over to her finger.
There were some differences from Baek Yeonyeong, but her finger was also quite tasty to bite.
“Geck geck.”
Someone who lets me bite their finger.
You seem like a good person.
I grabbed her finger with both hands and started chewing on it.
There was a reason I focused on the finger.
Biting the finger was a kind of ritual.
As I was training to surpass Baek Yeonyeong, it was a sacred ritual to see how much I had grown.
This woman’s hand was pleasantly soft and firm, making it a good training material.
Munch munch.
“Your scales are tougher than I expected.”
The white Baek Yeonyeong stroked my dragon scales.
I’ll overlook that, since you’re letting me bite your finger.
“Your belly is soft and squishy.”
“Geck….”
It’s a bit uncomfortable when you touch my belly, but I’ll tolerate it.
“Your tail is plump and… tasty… I mean, it looks pretty cool.”
I’ll even let you admire my sleek tail.
“Your claws are sharp, but your paw pads are soft and squishy.”
“Geck!”
Enough touching.
You might even reach my reverse scale at this rate.
I let out a displeased “geck” sound.
I’d been biting the white Baek Yeonyeong’s finger for quite a while, but nothing had changed.
If I released my miniaturized form, my teeth might be able to sink in, but then I’d be in danger.
This woman’s goodwill towards me might only be because she thought I was just a tiny lizard.
It was highly likely that Baek Yeonyeong had simply introduced me as a small lizard.
So far, things had been fine.
I didn’t know what this woman’s intentions were, but she seemed content just touching me.
And I was also using her finger as a kind of training.
But I couldn’t keep biting her finger forever.
I didn’t come here to gnaw on a finger.
I came for the horn of the One-Horned Beast.
And to negotiate with the human who
took it.
I bit the finger initially because I mistook her for Baek Yeonyeong, so I did it as a bonus.
“The internal energy within you is also impressive. It’s no wonder she bragged about you.”
In fact, there was another reason why I kept biting her finger besides training.
What kind of stupid lizard would just walk up and cling to a finger like this?
I’m an intelligent and clever lizard.
What might seem like a foolish action was actually intentional.
There was another reason why I kept biting this woman’s finger.
To gauge the power of the white Baek Yeonyeong.
When I first bit her, I realized that this woman was strong.
I had assumed she was on Baek Yeonyeong’s level, but not even a scratch appeared on her.
Her durability was at a level where my miniaturized state’s teeth couldn’t even make a mark.
I tried biting in different directions to see if she had any weak points, but there was no change.
In other words, even if I made threatening “geck” sounds, it wouldn’t have any effect.
Threats wouldn’t work.
My only option was negotiation.
“It was worth coming all this way.”
Fortunately, this woman had taken a liking to me.
Given that she was related to Baek Yeonyeong, that was to be expected.
I should use this momentum to negotiate for the horn of the One-Horned Beast.
“Geck.”
“Your cries are quite unique.”
She had some common sense and seemed to like me.
“If it were up to me, I’d take you and raise you.”
Drawing on my experience with communicating with humans, I should try to have a conversation.
Even if conversation doesn’t work, gestures might be enough for us to communicate.
First, I had to escape this grasp so I could move my body.
“Geck.”
Now, let me go.
“…Geck?”
Something was strange.
The white Baek Yeonyeong’s grip tightened.
It was as if she intended not to let me escape.
“I think this lizard might be able to find the Heavenly Demon.”
The white Baek Yeonyeong mumbled something incomprehensible.
“Yes. You’d be perfect to use as a material for the Immortal Palace.”
…The Immortal Palace?
“Gegegegegek!”
No, I don’t care how much you resemble Baek Yeonyeong.
How can you think the same way she does?
You lured me in with that soft yet firm finger, only to hand me over as material for the Immortal Palace?
You said you were going to raise me!
You said you were going to raise me!
“But that’s okay, right, Hui?”
Baek Yeonyeong once said that normal people don’t talk to lizards.
It made sense that Tang So-yeong would, as she originally communicated with spirit beasts.
She probably didn’t even realize that talking to a lizard was strange behavior.
But who on earth was this woman?
She knew that talking to a lizard was strange.
Yet, she still used honorifics.
Wiiiooooong.
The danger and killing intent detection alarm blared in my head.
This was an emergency.
She was even stranger than Tang So-yeong!
“Gegegegegek!”