I Became the Owner of the Heavenly Flower Palace-Chapter 10: The Valley of Heavenly Flame, and the Palace

The woman in martial attire reacted instantly.

Tap.

She dropped to one knee.

Then, she bowed deeply. Her silver hair spilled like flowing water, but she didn’t care.

“Before the Red Dragon’s Wrath...! Huh?”

As she was bowing her head, she suddenly flinched.

And then slowly, she raised her eyes to look up at Jincheon.

Confusion filled her piercing blue eyes.

Jincheon gave a bitter smile. He’d already been through this once before.

The silver-haired woman stammered, her voice trembling.

“Th-this is... What is this...?”

She couldn’t hide her bewilderment.

And her confusion gradually turned to fear—and then to shock.

“This... this means... then, that would mean...”

Her slender shoulders trembled where she knelt.

Jincheon looked at her, eyes wide with disbelief.

Gi Seoran had reacted earlier, too—but not like this. Not to this degree.

The silver-haired woman’s eyes remained locked on the red orb in Jincheon’s hand, as if nailed to it.

Her gaze, which had started with astonishment and confusion, now edged toward sheer panic.

That’s when it happened.

“Get ahold of yourself.”

A low, cool voice cut through the air.

It was Gi Seoran.

Still kneeling, she raised her head and met the other woman’s eyes directly.

“The Red Dragon has not yet entered the Palace. As one of the Heavenly Flame, do your duty, Po Eunryeong.”

The blue-eyed woman flinched.

She bit her lip.

Then, shutting her eyes, she forced down her emotions.

Shh.

The moment of confusion passed.

When she opened her eyes again and looked up at Jincheon, there was no more fear. No more doubt.

“I will escort you to the Palace.”

Jincheon felt like he should say something—anything—in response to that resolute declaration.

“Uh... right.”

He was going to that “Palace” place anyway.

After all, that’s where he had to deliver this orb and finally be done with it, wasn’t it?

The woman—Po Eunryeong—turned toward Gi Seoran.

“Given the situation, we can’t trust anyone. Is there a way?”

Gi Seoran gave a small nod.

“I’ve prepared for this.”

“I figured.”

Po Eunryeong smiled faintly.

“You always had a way. No matter the situation.”

Shff.

She stood up.

Gi Seoran rose with her, and Po Eunryeong turned to face the mist.

Then she moved her hand lightly.

A simple gesture, like sliding something aside.

But the result was astonishing.

Ssshhh.

Gasp!

Jincheon jolted in shock.

That mist just... moved?

Like parting curtains, the fog shifted to the side. As if someone had physically drawn it open.

A formation...?

Originally, a “jinbeop” referred to military formations or spatial arrangements.

But ancient military strategists were said to have created mysterious formations capable of summoning fog and calling down rain to confuse enemy troops.

Could this mist be one of those?

But even more shocking was what was revealed behind it.

As the fog cleared, a man appeared—kneeling on one knee, his head bowed.

Just as Po Eunryeong had done moments before.

“By the authority granted to Po Eunryeong of the Heavenly Flame, this place is now sealed.”

Her voice was cold and calm as she addressed him.

“From this moment forward, no one—outsider or insider—shall pass through here.”

“I receive your order.”

The young man responded in a firm, steady voice.

Then vanished.

What?

Jincheon’s breath caught.

There was no movement—no rise, no step, nothing. He simply... disappeared.

Was it the mist...?

Maybe it was the darkness. Or the dense fog. But Jincheon’s eyes couldn’t track him at all.

“Let’s go.”

A sudden voice made Jincheon turn.

It was the woman in martial attire—Po Eunryeong.

“I will escort you.”

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“Uh...”

Seeing her arms outstretched, Jincheon hesitated.

But then, he gave up.

Rustle.

Her arms were slender, but she lifted him with ease.

Tap.

With Jincheon in her arms, Po Eunryeong and Gi Seoran leapt into the opening in the fog.

As the three of them vanished, the dense mist quietly crept back in to cover the area.

All that remained beneath the moonlight was silence—and a cold, chilling presence.

****

Swish... swish.

The wind brushed past his ears, and a woman’s voice reached Jincheon.

“What’s the plan?”

“Simple.”

Gi Seoran replied # Nоvеlight # to Po Eunryeong.

“We can’t trust anyone because we don’t know who’s on our side. So, we remove the need to tell.”

“And how do we do that?”

“By numbers.”

“...What?”

Gi Seoran said it plainly.

“Even if they’re from Heavenly Flame, White Forest, or even one of the Twelve Generals...”

Tap.

Gi Seoran stopped.

Po Eunryeong also halted, still holding Jincheon in her arms.

“There’s no way they’d take on all of Heavenly Flame Valley, sworn to the Red Dragon.”

Light flickered across both women’s faces.

And at that moment, Jincheon finally noticed.

“Huh?”

He turned his head—and let out a dumbfounded sound.

For a second, he even forgot he was being carried in a woman’s arms.

And no wonder.

“...A city?”

Countless lights sparkled like jewels below.

So dazzling they made the moonlight itself seem dim—they were clearly the night lights of a vibrant city.

Just where... is this place...?

Jincheon briefly wondered if this was one of the cities he’d passed by in the carriage—or maybe something beyond Jiuquan.

But if it were just a regular city, there’d be no need to enter it this way, so complicated and secretive.

More importantly—what kind of city could exist in the middle of Mount Giryeon, hidden deep inside a mountain gorge?

“I’ll pick up the pace,” came a soft murmur.

And the two women resumed their sprint.

Jincheon gripped the woman’s shoulders a little tighter, arms still looped around her neck. Even then, he kept looking around.

That’s... a mountain, right?

Looking closely, he realized the city was surrounded by peaks, like a folding screen.

Which meant this place—this city—was nestled in a natural basin, carved out in the heart of the mountain range.

Whish, whish.

The lights of the streets drew closer in an instant.

And finally, Jincheon laid eyes on what they’d been calling “the Palace.”

Is that it?

A grand structure, built high up like it overlooked the entire city.

Its soft, glowing lights made it look almost like a royal palace—so large and majestic it felt out of place.

There was no doubt: calling it a “palace” was no exaggeration.

A palace, huh...

Jincheon found himself more curious than ever about this place. But also more uneasy.

There was a growing sense that he’d stepped somewhere he shouldn’t have—that he’d done something irreversible.

Grip.

He unconsciously tightened his hold on the woman carrying him.

There was no way she didn’t notice the change—but the blue-eyed woman, Po Eunryeong, said nothing.

She simply kept moving, wind-like, with Jincheon still in her arms.

****

They soon came to a halt.

It was a quiet spot near the edge of the city—where the streets began but the crowd had not yet reached.

Slide.

Po Eunryeong gently set Jincheon down, with the kind of grace that seemed almost ceremonial.

Jincheon stood on his own feet again.

Tap.

Both women knelt once more, heads bowed.

The woman who had first brought Jincheon here—Gi Seoran—spoke softly.

“With humble reverence... the Red Dragon’s Wrath...”

“I understand,” Jincheon interrupted her.

He reached into his robe and pulled out a small pouch.

Slide.

The red orb rolled out, catching the light as it appeared in full view.

Feeling the weight of both women’s gazes, Jincheon smiled faintly.

“You mean to parade this around openly, right? All the way up there?”

He was looking directly at the Palace.

That towering structure at the end of the glittering city streets—looming high like it watched over everything.

“...You’d already figured it out,” Gi Seoran said.

Jincheon shrugged.

He’d known for a while now that this red orb meant more to them than it appeared.

So if they were going to eliminate uncertainty with numbers, there really was only one way to do it.

If some unknown figure was after the orb, then it was better to create a situation where everyone was watching it.

A strategy to make that unknown threat meaningless through sheer exposure.

Jincheon looked down at the two women still kneeling before him.

“Would you mind turning your heads for a moment?”

There was no need to ask why. Without a word, both women turned their heads to the side—as if it had been prearranged.

“I should probably tidy up a bit.”

Giving the excuse like an afterthought, Jincheon stepped back a few paces and turned away.

Then, he checked his appearance.

Of course.

He let out a quiet sigh.

He’d ridden an unfamiliar horse, and then been carried like a child in a woman’s arms—for over two full si-jin.

And that was just part of it.

He’d been cradled across the mountain path like a bundle of laundry. No wonder his clothes were a mess.

Rustle.

Jincheon ran a hand through his disheveled hair and straightened his cloth headband.

Should’ve brought my scholar’s cap.

The formal cap he’d started wearing after passing the civil exam was still back home, left behind when he’d headed out on his trading trip. Now all he had was the cloth he’d wrapped over his hair.

...It doesn’t smell, right?

He lifted his sleeve to his nose—no terrible odor, at least.

Once he’d cleaned up his appearance as best he could, Jincheon turned around.

The two women were standing now.

They weren’t looking directly at him, but their eyes scanned the surroundings like hawks—tense, alert, and dangerous.

Come to think of it...

They’d lifted him like it was nothing. Carried him over a mountain road in the dead of night as if it were flat ground.

No ordinary person could do that. Not even a strong man.

Let alone women.

Jincheon was suddenly struck by curiosity.

Are they... martial artists?

Whenever storytellers talked about the great masters of the martial world, they always said the same things.

That they could split boulders with a single sword. That they could leap over mountains in the blink of an eye.

If anyone could do that... it might be them.

Looking at Gi Seoran and Po Eunryeong, Jincheon couldn’t help but think so.

And then—

Perhaps sensing his gaze, both women turned their heads at the same time.

“Are you ready?”

It was Po Eunryeong who asked—silver hair shining, blue eyes steady.

Slide.

Jincheon carefully extended the red orb with both hands.

He felt uneasy, afraid he might drop it, but if they were going to show it off, he needed to present it openly.

“With your permission,” Gi Seoran said politely.

“Might I suggest you remove your headband?”

My headband?

He’d assumed even a cloth headband would help him look more put together, but clearly, she knew this place better than he did.

Rustle.

Jincheon untied the band.

His hair fell loose naturally—and it felt awkward. He hadn’t worn it down in public since his coming-of-age ceremony.

“...And it would be best to hold it in one hand.”

Gi Seoran spoke as she looked at the red orb.

She wanted him to let down his neatly tied hair and hold a priceless orb with one hand, like it was nothing?

It seemed absurd—but then Jincheon realized something.

Ah...

A bitter smile tugged at his lips.

He couldn’t look like he was afraid of it.

He had to step forward boldly, as if it meant nothing.

In other words—this was about appearances.

About putting on a show.