“Did you really want the head of the family seat that badly?”

Murong Sang-ah had her suspicions about why her father collapsed, but hearing about her brother’s treachery so plainly left her at a loss for words.

“Can you not detoxify him yourself?”

The captain of the Spearwind Guard, seeing his lady too stunned to speak, asked the physician on her behalf.

“I know a thing or two about poisons. But with this one, attempting to detoxify it without absolute certainty could worsen the patient’s condition. It’s better to have someone more skilled in poisons handle the treatment.”

“If that’s coming from someone who served as the royal physician, it must be true.”

When Murong Sang-ah, now composed, replied with a touch of trust, the physician looked apologetic but continued.

“When it comes to poison research in the Central Plains, no one rivals the Sichuan Tang Clan. I don’t know much about Jianghu affairs, but I understand the Murong Family is considered a martial family just like them. If there’s any connection, inviting someone capable of detoxifying him wouldn’t be impossible.”

“The Sichuan Tang Clan...”

Contrary to the physician’s suggestion, Murong Sang-ah’s voice was tinged with hesitation.

“Perhaps, as the physician suggests, it’s worth sending someone to the Sichuan Tang Clan?”

“But that would mean revealing that my father has been poisoned...”

Murong Sang-ah cut herself off and looked at the physician cautiously.

This was a family matter. If an outsider heard it, it might spread. Her gaze was wary.

“Those who served long as royal physicians know how to forget everything they’ve seen and heard once they step out of the room.”

Could anywhere be worse than the palace for scheming and deceit?

Murong Sang-ah decided to trust him, as he seemed to care only about his patient and had no interest in the politics of the Murong Family.

“We’d have to reveal my father’s poisoning to the Tang Clan. And when they ask how it happened, answering would be... difficult. And even then, there’s no guarantee they’d help.”

If word of the Demonic Sect reached the Tang Clan, the internal affairs of the Murong Family could leak outside. Murong Sang-ah didn’t want the current situation getting out.

The Murong Family’s involvement with the Demonic Sect wasn’t just a few bad actors.

The heir had joined hands with the Demonic Sect. Its members had infiltrated the family. People of the Murong Family, knowingly or not, were entangled with them.

And the Murong Family wasn’t the Tang Clan.

They weren’t a dominant martial family claiming power in Sichuan, the heartland of the Nine Sects and One Gang. They were barely clinging to power in the outskirts of Liaodong.

If the Murong Family’s ties to the Demonic Sect were exposed, the family’s fate would be annihilation.

Murong Bi didn’t want to destroy the Murong Family by clashing with Sang-ah in a mutually destructive war.

Murong Sang-ah didn’t want the family destroyed by exposing Murong Bi’s actions.

That’s why this strange power struggle between the siblings continued.

“Lord Tang Baek-ho, the current head of the Sichuan Tang Clan, is famous for his righteousness across the entire Central Plains, not just Sichuan. You’ll have to be careful about what you reveal, but I’m sure he’ll help.”

“...”

Will he really help without asking too many questions? Murong Sang-ah had heard of Tang Baek-ho’s reputation, but it wasn’t easy to accept.

“Even if you send for someone from the Tang Clan right now, it’ll take more than a year and a half to bring them here. If you want to save the head of the family, you must decide quickly.”

The Murong Family was in Liaodong, just north of the Joseon Peninsula. The Sichuan Tang Clan was at the far western end of the Central Plains.

Even with forced marches, the round trip would take over a year. And this wasn’t like borrowing a tool from a neighbor.

Formally inviting someone capable of saving the head of the family required an official delegation, sent with the highest-grade ginseng and gifts. A year and a half was probably optimistic.

Should she take the risk and send someone to the Tang Clan? Murong Sang-ah hesitated, unable to decide.

— Reclaim the Murong Family while you still breathe.

What ended her hesitation was the words left in her heart, forever lingering like a curse.

He had given his life for her. How could she hesitate over a mere risk?

“Can my father survive a year and a half?”

After much deliberation, Murong Sang-ah asked the physician.

“Don’t worry. The poison can’t be detoxified, but I can keep his condition stable with symptomatic treatment. And with the precious Joseon ginseng being used like common licorice here, he’ll hold on for far longer.”

“Understood. Then we’ll organize a delegation from the Changbong Hall and send them to the Tang Clan.”

“A wise decision, my lady!”

------------

A few days after they secretly began organizing the Sichuan Tang Clan delegation.

The captain of the Spearwind Guard visited Murong Sang-ah with urgent news.

“The Elder Council has been convened. The elders say you summoned them.”

“They’re quick, aren’t they? What about the delegation?”

“Preparations are nearly complete. We’ve selected trusted men from Changbong Hall for the mission. They’ll carry the finest ginseng and gifts—we’re sure to receive good news.”

“You’ve done well. Let’s head to the Elder Council together.”

Murong Sang-ah hurried to where the elders had gathered.

‘Disgusting old bastards.’

She kept her face blank as she looked around, suppressing the revulsion rising inside her.

All the elders were there, along with her brother, glaring at her with obvious displeasure.

Murong Bi couldn’t be pleased about this. Murong Sang-ah had strengthened the Elder Council just to undermine his authority.

Normally, Murong Bi, as the heir, would make decisions for the family, with the Elder Council merely advising him.

Murong Sang-ah, however, had thrown money at the elders, given them a taste of power, and stirred up their greed.

Now, the Elder Council was nothing more than a bunch of greedy pigs, eager to feast on the scraps from the siblings’ power struggle.

“Murong Sang-ah. Why have you summoned the Elder Council?”

The head elder asked why she had called the meeting.

Murong Sang-ah glanced around, making sure all eyes were on her, then calmly stated her reason.

“I ask permission to search the Seongmu Library.”

“The Seongmu Library?”

“You mean the lost martial arts archive, the Seongmu Library?”

“What madness is this?”

Seongmu Library.

At her words, the elders instantly erupted.

The Murong Family, with over a thousand years of history since the Yan Dynasty, was once so powerful it was called the greatest family under heaven.

There were rumors that the Murong Family had collected all the martial arts of the Central Plains, or that they had techniques capable of breaking any martial art. The supposed location of these secrets was the Seongmu Library.

Whatever the truth, during the family’s golden age, the Seongmu Library was said to house the Murong Family’s most precious martial knowledge.

But it also marked the beginning of their decline.

“Even the previous heads of the family searched for it and found nothing. Don’t you know that?”

The Murong Family had lost both the head and the heir in a tragic accident long ago. The location of the Seongmu Library, secretly hidden, was lost forever.

“They didn’t find nothing. The area was just too vast.”

Murong Sang-ah corrected the head elder.

“Over several generations, we searched every clue and still found nothing. Do you not know how much money and manpower we wasted, leading the family from dominance into decline?”

Losing the Seongmu Library wasn’t just about losing a martial archive.

The Murong Family lost countless secret techniques and ruined themselves trying to find it.

“I know.”

“And the hall where the clues and research on the Seongmu Library were kept burned down five years ago.”

“I know that too.”

“If you truly intend to search from the start, you’ll need endless funds. It’s a bottomless pit.”

“I have endless funds.”

“...”

Her bold statement left the elders speechless for a ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) moment.

“Even if you find it, only the head and heir of the Murong Family may enter.”

Murong Sang-ah had no right. The elders reminded her of this crucial fact.

“Strictly speaking, only those who’ve mastered the family’s core martial art to the minor completion stage may enter.”

She shot back at the head elder without flinching.

“Are you saying you’ve reached minor completion at the age of twenty?”

“....”

Murong Sang-ah stood tall and nodded without hesitation.

“Impossible.”

“Don’t lie! No one’s ever achieved that at such a young age!”

“Not even the former heads of the family managed that!”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“If you want proof, I can show you.”

Without hesitation, she revealed the internal energy pathways she had kept hidden.

In an instant, the entire Elder Council was struck silent with shock.

“Is this for real?”

“What kind of absurd talent is this?!”

— Clap, clap, clap.

The murmuring was cut short by the sound of slow, deliberate applause—Murong Bi’s.

“My dear sister is quite clever. Find the Seongmu Library, master the lost martial arts of our forefathers, and gain the legitimacy to become the heir. Isn’t that what you’re after?”

The heir was supposed to be appointed by the head of the family. But Murong Bi had taken the title for himself while their father was in a coma.

If Murong Sang-ah entered the Seongmu Library, she’d have undeniable justification to claim the position of heir. Everyone present knew that.

“That is my intention.”

She would find the Seongmu Library and gain her rightful claim. Even if they refused, she’d still find it.

Her voice left no room for doubt.

“Fine. Do as you wish.”

“Heir!”

“The Seongmu Library? The former heads of the family longed for it, yet never found it, and the records are lost. But since my sister wants to squander endless wealth chasing it, how could I, as heir, possibly refuse?”

“But, heir—!”

“The search for the Seongmu Library is the Murong Family’s sacred duty. Only by recovering the lost techniques can we restore our former glory. If my sister spends her life on this task, maybe my son or grandson will find it one day. Let her do it.”

Murong Bi looked at Sang-ah, unable to suppress his smirk.

Foolish girl. After all that scheming, this is the reckless move you make?

Murong Bi knew the truth. It was their father who had burned the hall containing the records five years ago, to stop the family from wasting more wealth on a futile search.

Finding the Seongmu Library wasn’t just like looking for a needle in a haystack.

It was starting over from scratch something that had already drained the family’s fortune.

How could he not welcome his sister’s reckless gamble?

“Very well. The search for the Seongmu Library is approved.”

With even the heir agreeing, the Elder Council had no reason to refuse.

“Sister.”

Murong Bi called out to his impassive sibling.

“Yes, heir?”

“From now on, the search for the Seongmu Library is your responsibility. Once you begin, there is no stopping. If you cease without results, you will be cast out of this family.”

Spend endlessly. The end will be your ruin.

Murong Bi imagined her vanishing into the footnotes of the Murong Family’s long history and could barely contain his glee.

“As you wish.”

Murong Sang-ah, having secured what she needed, turned and left.

------------

“My lady, what were you thinking?!”

The captain of the Spearwind Guard burst out the moment they returned, unable to hide his alarm.

“Everything is going exactly as I planned.”

“What?”

“My brother surely knows our father burned down that hall. He probably thinks I’ll burn through all my wealth searching for the Seongmu Library, which is why he agreed.”

“Then all the more reason not to go through with it!”

“There’s one thing my brother doesn’t know. The hall burned, but the records didn’t.”

“What do you mean?”

“They’re all right here, in my head. Everything my father showed me as a child—about the Seongmu Library—it’s all here.”

Murong Sang-ah tapped her temple and let her mind drift back to her childhood. The stories of the lost martial arts archive, of their ancestors who sought it—it had fascinated her.

“Ah...”

“This is the price I pay for the life my lord gave me. Not a single coin will go to waste.”

She’d pour resources into this, yes, but not endlessly.

The moment she found the Seongmu Library and stepped inside—

No one would dare question her legitimacy again.

Only then did Murong Sang-ah allow herself to relax her expression, a quiet, victorious smile playing on her lips.

------------

Some days later, as she was secretly preparing both the delegation to the Sichuan Tang Clan and the search party for the Seongmu Library—

“My lady. Urgent news from Joseon.”

The message Murong Sang-ah had been waiting for arrived at Changbong Hall.