I Became the Owner of the Heavenly Flower Palace-Chapter 25: Soft and Sweet

It happened while Jincheon was quietly watching the Oracle.

“Why are you staring at me?”

At some point, she had turned her head and was now looking straight at him.

Jincheon pretended not to be fazed.

“It’s nothing. It’s just, before that man—no, the former Palace Master—gave me this orb, he said something.”

“What did he say, I wonder?”

She didn’t seem to care about his slip of the tongue—or that he’d used former instead of previous.

“He said you need a special kind of energy to touch this red orb without dying. That he passed it on to me. Something like inner energy... well, not exactly inner energy, but something similar.”

“A special kind of energy?”

“Yes. Do I have it? And does such a thing even exist?”

“You said he gave it to you.”

“...Honestly, I don’t know.”

“You don’t know whether you received it or not?”

“No.”

All that man had done was hold Jincheon’s hand and fondle it for a while.

He hadn’t felt anything unusual pass into him—no change whatsoever.

“Let me see your hand.”

Jincheon hesitated for a moment but then obediently held it out.

The Oracle’s pale hand took his.

“Hmm.”

Her soft fingers began to feel his hand.

But something about the way she did it—it wasn’t like a physician taking a pulse. It just felt like... she was playing with it.

Jincheon looked at her suspiciously.

Then, out of nowhere, she said,

“May I take a look at your face?”

“...Sure.”

He delayed answering because he didn’t fully trust her.

Rustle.

Her cold, white hand gently traced his face again.

Hmm. This feels a little...

He hadn’t noticed earlier, but now her touch felt strangely sensitive, making him uncomfortably aware of her fingertips.

She examined his features with delicate attention, running her fingers over his lips, nose, and eyes—eyes that seemed neither open nor shut.

“...So? What do you think?”

“...Haa.”

Instead of replying, she let out a soft sigh.

Then, almost to herself, she muttered,

“Lovely.”

“...Excuse me?”

Instead of answering, she changed the subject entirely.

“You should fall in love when your skin’s this good... It’s moments like this that make being alone feel so sad.”

“Hey—”

“Oh! Yes?”

“What’s the result?”

“The result?”

Jincheon clenched his teeth.

“I’m talking ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) about the energy that guy mentioned. Is it there or not?”

“I don’t know.”

She said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Just as Jincheon was about to snap, the Oracle shrugged her delicate shoulders.

“I’ve never heard of such energy in the first place.”

Jincheon was speechless.

“...What?”

He barely gathered himself and asked again.

But she simply smiled, still gently holding his wrist and face.

“You’ve never heard of it? Not even something similar?”

“Nope.”

Jincheon was dumbfounded.

That man had said it.

That if anyone else touched the red orb, they’d die. But there was a special energy that neutralized it.

And he’d spent a long time rubbing Jincheon’s hand, saying he was transferring that energy to him.

Now here they were again—Jincheon asking the Oracle to check whether that energy was present by handing her his hand and face.

And after all that rubbing, she just says she’s never even heard of it?

“So what—you’re saying that energy never existed in the first place—? Just stop touching me.”

Jincheon lightly pushed her hand away from his face, which she was still stroking.

He pulled his wrist from her grasp too.

“Ah!”

A flicker of disappointment crossed her beautiful face.

It was so pitiful that Jincheon actually felt a pang of guilt.

“You’re so mean. It’s not like touching you wears you out or anything.”

She pouted, but Jincheon ignored her protest.

“Nothing even remotely similar? That energy?”

“If you mean something that lets you touch the Wrath without dying, then no. Nothing like that.”

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Jincheon gave her a long, hard look.

But with no visible pupils in her eyes, he couldn’t read her expression.

Not that being able to see her eyes would guarantee anything...

“Oh. Actually, there is something.”

She suddenly spoke, as if the thought had just occurred to her.

Jincheon quickly asked,

“What is it?”

“To be precise, there’s a mantra that’s said to draw out energy.”

“A mantra?”

Jincheon frowned.

“You probably don’t know this, but it’s a kind of sacred sound that lets you understand the truth of the world. It’s common in Tibetan Vajrayana or Buddhist sects...”

“I know.”

Jincheon cut off her long-winded explanation.

“It’s not the meaning of the sound that matters, right? It’s the sound itself. The sound resonates with the universe and leads to enlightenment.”

“Oh, exactly! They say the world responds to sound.”

She didn’t bother to hide her admiration.

That delighted expression of hers was almost too cute, and Jincheon cleared his throat to shake it off.

Even a moment’s distraction and he’d forget what they were talking about.

“So, you’re saying there’s a mantra that draws out energy?”

“Yes.”

She puffed out her chest a little, proud.

“It’s a one-hundred-forty-four-character mantra and sword art passed down to priestesses. If you recite it, they say you can attain the truth of the world, slay dragons, and shatter the heavens.”

What?

Suddenly, he remembered the nightmare from last night.

That violent, obnoxious dragon pressing down on his head.

“You can slay dragons?”

“That’s what the legend says.”

“So it’s not actually possible? I mean—not that dragons even—”

He caught himself mid-sentence, realizing how stupid it sounded.

Dragons were mythical. Creatures that appeared in dreams. Talking about whether they could be slain in real life was ridiculous.

“Well, who knows if it’s real. But either way, who would dare raise a sword against the Red Dragon?”

Even as she said that, the Oracle gently brought the edge of her hand to Jincheon’s throat.

That guy did get stabbed...

Jincheon muttered internally as he took her hand and moved it away.

Even if it was the hand of a delicate woman, having it at his neck didn’t feel good.

“So, what’s it called?”

“That power is called Yongcheonki.”

“Yongcheonki?”

“It’s short for The Energy to Slay Dragons and Shatter the Heavens.”

So originally it was Dorongpacheongi, and Yongcheonki was just the abbreviated name.

Wait. Then—

“Oh, I think I know what you’re thinking.”

The Oracle smiled.

“You were thinking of Do-ryong-gi, weren’t you?”

“...Yeah.”

Jincheon admitted it honestly.

Do-ryong-gi literally meant "the art of slaying dragons."

It came from an ancient parable—about someone who went through immense hardship to master a technique for slaying dragons, only to find there were no dragons in the world at all.

It was originally meant to illustrate how the world, obsessed with practicality, fails to understand the transcendent value of truth.

But nowadays, Do-ryong-gi had come to mean something entirely different—“a grand name for something utterly useless.”

“In a way, that interpretation isn’t wrong either,” the Oracle said. “Aside from ceremonies and rituals, it’s pretty much pointless. Even though it’s technically a sword art, it’s basically just a dance...”

She trailed off, her eyes suddenly gleaming.

“Still, this must be fate. Want to learn it?”

“...What?”

The suggestion came out of nowhere—and at that moment, a voice echoed in Jincheon’s memory.

—Stop wasting time and at least try doing something.

And that wasn’t all.

The nightmare that had tormented him the night before, the one crawling with dragons, came flooding back.

Still, now wasn’t the time to let that get to him.

“Thank you, but I’ll pass...”

But it was too late.

The Oracle’s red lips were already reciting the mantra.

...Huh?

It sounded like a quiet song, or perhaps an indecipherable scripture. Maybe even just aimless muttering.

But the problem was—Jincheon had heard this exact chant before.

Incredibly, it was the same eerie voice he’d heard in last night’s dream.

What the hell?

No matter how he thought about it, this was the first time he’d ever heard this mantra.

And yet—it was the same as the one in his dream. Identical. Even... familiar.

Did someone chant this into my ear while I slept?

That was impossible.

And yet it was so uncannily similar that the thought wouldn’t go away.

Jincheon stared blankly, just listening to the chant.

The low, song-like incantation ended shortly after.

The Oracle smiled brightly.

“It’s shorter than people expect. I bet you’ll memorize it quickly.”

Jincheon considered it, just for a moment.

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They said mantras could drive away malevolent energy. Maybe it would help with nightmares too.

“...Maybe later.”

As someone who’d studied the teachings of sages, he couldn’t go chasing superstitions.

Besides, learning a chant over one bad dream felt downright ridiculous.

“So anyway—does that power have anything to do with the Wrath?”

“What power?”

She’d already forgotten.

Jincheon stifled his frustration.

“No, I mean that Yongcheonki, or whatever it was. The energy to slay dragons. Is it related to the Wrath or not?”

“Oh, Yongcheonki?”

She nodded.

“No idea.”

“...What?”

“It’s called Yongcheonki, sure. But no one’s ever actually manifested it. The priestesses only chant the mantra and perform the sword dance once a year—during the Celestial Dragon Festival.”

She continued in a light tone.

“So of course it doesn’t have any special power that lets you touch the Wrath without dying. If it did, then no one in the Heavenly Valley would be dead, right?”

Sigh...

Jincheon was exasperated.

Just when he thought he’d found something—turns out it wasn’t anything at all.

“So I guess it’s not Yongcheonki.”

“Right. Assuming such a power even exists.”

She wasn’t wrong.

Had that man really passed on some kind of energy to Jincheon?

Did that energy even exist in the first place?

Then why didn’t I die?

Jincheon frowned as he stared down at the red orb.

No matter how he looked at it, it was just a pretty gem. Expensive-looking, sure—but dying just from holding it? That was absurd.

I really can’t believe this.

He couldn’t trust it.

No, he refused to believe it.

The red orb—the Wrath—was certainly unusual.

But what was even stranger was how everyone here reacted to it.

They all believe touching it means death...

The way everyone had recoiled in fear didn’t seem like an act. That said, Jincheon still couldn’t accept it blindly.

In fact, accepting it blindly felt even more bizarre.

And it’s not like I can just hand it to someone to find out.

If touching it really did kill people, he had no way of testing it safely.

As Jincheon mulled this over—

“Do you dislike the Heavenly Flame Palace?”

The Oracle’s voice made him look up.

She was smiling.

“Do you find it unbearable to hold the lives of the Heavenly Flame, Baekrim, the Twelve Cloud Generals, and the Commander of the Four Winds in your hands? To sit on a throne where you can have every luxury and any woman you want—is that really so distasteful to you?”

Jincheon let out a sigh.

“That’s not what this is about. I just...”

“What are you afraid of?”

Her crimson lips shimmered enticingly.

“Why not just accept it? That seat was always meant to be claimed by someone. That power was always meant to be wielded. Why shouldn’t it be you?”

Every time her vivid red lips moved, a soft, sugary breath escaped them.

“So enjoy the fortune that’s found its way to you. Spend your days however you please, surrounded by the beautiful blossoms of the Heavenly Valley. That’s what being the Red Dragon truly means.”

Her sweet voice crept into his ears like a whispered lullaby.

Jincheon already knew.

Their loyalty to the Red Dragon was so blind, they looked ready to carry out any order he gave without question.

“B-but still...”

His weak protest was drowned out by her whisper.

“Think about it. How soft and sweet this hard life of yours could become. Doesn’t it sound... tempting?”

Her voice had an almost irresistible pull.

The delicate scent of her skin and her gentle tone were enough to make his mind go hazy—

—Don’t end up like me.

Suddenly, that man’s voice echoed in his ears.