Receiving a part of the Saha Manor memories from Baekri Geomha, Bu Eunseol faced a deep, resonating emotion for the first time in his life.
Until now, he had thought his only happy memories were the times spent with his grandfather. Everything else, he believed, was a life riddled with hardship and suffering.
Now, when he had not even achieved his grandfather's revenge, he thought his mind was filled with nothing but inescapable grief and sorrow.
But he had been wrong.
Even before meeting his grandfather, his life had been filled with happiness.
'There are still too many memories left to find.'
There were no memories... that should be lost.
Whoosh.
A mysterious wind swirled around Bu Eunseol, who had regained the meaning of his existence.
[This is the only time.]
At that moment, Baekri Geomha's voice echoed from the abyss of his spirit.
[That you may freely use my insights.]
To let Bu Eunseol use the Emperor's Step unsparingly, he had voluntarily lowered his own personality's position.
Flash!
As Bu Eunseol opened his eyes in reality once more, a golden radiance swirled within them.
At the same time, as he took a half-step forward, the demonic force surrounding his body... no, the demonic force wrapping around this entire Moon-Gazing Island... began to bounce off.
"How."
The White Hand Demon Empress opened her eyes wide, her voice trembling.
That which could completely ruin the memories of all martial artists.
The power of the origin filling Moon-Gazing Island, the demonic force.
How could he withstand it alone?
"No matter what great heights of martial prowess he has reached, this should be impossible."
Even if he built a spiritual barrier like diamond, the primordial force could never be blocked.
Yet how could he repel it and regain his senses on his own?
'The Emperor's Step is not a secret art for repelling martial arts.'
The Emperor's Step affected not just martial arts.
It was something that made all forces existing in the world bypass him.
If he reached a realm of Harmony with Nature like his father, Baekri Muha...
The moment he unfurled the Emperor's Step, no force whatsoever would be able to touch his body.
"So the demonic nature cannot be cast away after all."
Looking down at the White Hand Demon Empress, Bu Eunseol wore a look of disappointment.
For a brief moment, he had truly believed.
Because they were born with a demonic origin regardless of their own will.
Perhaps they had truly been forced into harming others against their desires.
But now he realized it.
If one did not possess a wicked disposition?
One could never be born with the power of demonic origin in the first place.
"Do you think you've won just because you overcame the origin's power!"
The White Hand Demon Empress screamed with malice.
Besides the power that stole memories, she could use the origin of demonic palm arts, the White Hand Blood Shadow.
Swish.
Her hands, which had suddenly turned pure white, churned through the empty air.
Then, soft, insidious palm energy flew like butterflies, covering Bu Eunseol's body.
Blood Shadow White Hand.
The origin martial art of demonic palm arts, which could be unleashed even without arms, had unfolded.
Whirl, swoosh.
Befitting the origin of demonic palm arts, thousands upon tens of thousands of hand shadows spread out before Bu Eunseol could even assume a defensive posture.
Even if he employed Infinite Reversal Power, handling all these palm energies was a near-impossible task.
Swoosh.
At that moment, Bu Eunseol took a half-step diagonally.
Shoooosh!
And didn't those countless palm energies lightly brush past his body?
"How!"
The White Hand Demon Empress's eyes widened as if they would tear.
The White Hand Blood Shadow was the most intricately changing palm art in the world.
And if even a single thread of that soft palm energy was touched, all tens of thousands of palm energies would explode.
Moreover, the floor of this giant ship was made of dark iron, and a formidable formation was spread out above.
Even if he soared into the sky or sank into the earth, it was absolutely impossible to evade unless he dissipated the palm energy.
Yet to evade it completely just by moving a half-step?
'I offer my thanks.'
Bu Eunseol muttered inwardly.
'Baekri Geomha.'
The Emperor's Step was a transcendent secret art that only one who fully handled the qi of nature could unfold.
Its core tenets were a profound martial art of over eight thousand characters.
Therefore, he could not perfectly unfold it just from receiving a portion of the memories from the time of its training.
But because Baekri Geomha was now voluntarily passing on his insights from that time, it had become possible to unleash the Emperor's Step.
"Be born as a good person in your next life."
Schwing.
As Bu Eunseol drew the Silent Tiger Soul Sword,
"W-wait!"
The White Hand Demon Empress let out a desperate scream.
But Bu Eunseol mercilessly unleashed the Transcendent Meteor Chasing the Moon.
Whoosh!
At the moment he was about to sever her neck in a single breath,
Clang!
The entire hull shook violently with a clear metallic ring.
"You are."
Bu Eunseol stopped his movement.
The one who had blocked the Transcendent Meteor Chasing the Moon... was none other than a huge humped back.
With lightning-like movements, the hunchbacked old man who had guided him through the Moon-Gazing had blocked the front of the White Hand Demon Empress with his humped back.
"Show mercy in your strikes."
The hunchbacked old man's back was truly like an indestructible diamond body.
Even after taking the strike of the Transcendent Meteor Chasing the Moon, he calmly turned his body without showing any pain.
"If you kill her, chaos will descend upon the martial world."
Bu Eunseol looked at the hunchbacked old man for a long time and then sighed.
Because he could guess his true identity.
"You were one of the Ten Great Immortals?"
Nod.
The hunchbacked old man nodded his head and spoke.
"They call me Unmong Sanin."
"Unmong..."
He could intuitively grasp it from that name alone.
If the White Hand Demon Empress had the power to sever memories?
Unmong Sanin was the figure who protected people's memories through dreams.
For the Seven Great Demon Ancestors and the Ten Great Immortals were connected.
"She is causing immense chaos by severing the memories of martial artists."
"It is only for a brief time anyway."
Unmong Sanin said in a low voice.
"If she dies, people will forget the gift known as oblivion and live on bearing every painful memory."
Unmong Sanin wore a resolute expression.
"And I have absolutely no intention of taking my own life."
"..."
"Spare her. The chaos will not last long anyway."
"I cannot."
"Is that so."
Unmong Sanin let out a deep sigh, then shook his head.
"Then it cannot be helped."
A pure white killing intent was blooming from his body.
He, one of the Ten Great Immortals, was trying to kill Bu Eunseol in order to save the White Hand Demon Empress.
'He hasn't fallen to a Soul-Seizing Secret Art; he is sincere.'
Bu Eunseol sighed deeply.
Because he had guessed why Unmong Sanin was stepping forward at the risk of his life.
Because Unmong Sanin's eyes, looking at the White Hand Demon Empress, were filled with deep affection and love.
"Are you saying that a man bearing the power of the orthodox path's origin would commit evil acts because he could not cross the hurdle of affection?"
"I have nothing to say."
Unmong Sanin spread both his arms.
"If you intend to kill her, strike this old man down first."
"Move."
At that moment, the White Hand Demon Empress stepped forward.
"I don't need your help."
"This is no time for stubbornness."
Unmong Sanin said sternly.
"His skill is extraordinary. So much so that we cannot guarantee victory even if we join forces."
Watching the display between the two, Bu Eunseol found it absurd.
A man titled as one of the Ten Great Immortals had voluntarily played the servant beside a Demon Ancestor, and now he was joining forces with her to strike him?
"So the title of Ten Great Immortals is just a facade in the end."
In the past, after seeing the noble sacrifice of the Red Flame Immortal, Bu Eunseol had resolved never to kill any of the Ten Great Immortals.
But the Unmong Sanin before him was even more narrow-minded and petty than Taoist Heo Mu, who had blocked him from killing the Vajra Demon Ancestor to prevent his own death.
"You will understand too, if you ever come to love someone deeply."
Unmong Sanin said in a low voice.
"That even knowing it is a foolish action, you have no choice but to do it."
"Don't make excuses."
Bu Eunseol shook his head and cast a look of contempt.
"Under the guise of affection, it is nothing but greed and senility. And an inability to let go of your attachment to life. Am I wrong?"
"Think what you will."
Vwooom.
As Unmong Sanin drew upon his internal force, Bu Eunseol's mind went blank, and the strength began to drain from his body.
Standing at the opposite pole from the White Hand Demon Empress, he was an immortal who protected human memories through dreams.
Because the power he wielded was beneficial to people, it was extremely difficult to block.
Just like the Tathagata true energy used by Jeong Myeong, the lay disciple of the Buddha Venerable, who had attacked Bu Eunseol not long ago.
"Die!"
At that moment, the White Hand Demon Empress conjured pure white hand shadows once again.
In the end, she had begun a joint attack with Unmong Sanin.
Boom!
The attacks from the two came from both sides.
It was not any martial move, but almost like Infinite Reversal Power.
It had become a mysterious 'phenomenon' that seemed capable of melting Bu Eunseol's body in an instant.
Step.
Bu Eunseol, with his hands clasped behind his back, took a half-step in a leisurely motion.
A half-step to the left, then a half-step forward.
Then, the destructive forces pouring down on him swept past him like a tide.
Pow!
At the same time, a bizarre explosion erupted, and both the White Hand Demon Empress and Unmong Sanin stepped back.
He hadn't merely unfurled the Emperor's Step to make the two great masters' powers bypass him.
He had even manipulated their flow, causing the two attacks to collide with one another.
Drip.
In that moment, a faint streak of fresh blood trickled down Bu Eunseol's lips.
'The Emperor's Step is the same as the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse.'
His father's martial arts were all based on a perfect Harmony with Nature.
No matter how much of Baekri Geomha's insights he had inherited, he could not perfectly unfold the Emperor's Step without attaining the perfect qi of nature... that is, the Four Divine Energies.
It would even gnaw away at his life force.
Tremble.
Knowing none of this, the White Hand Demon Empress trembled as she looked at Bu Eunseol.
There were profound martial principles in the martial world that manipulated the flow of power, such as Qiankun Great Shift or Grafting Flowers onto Jade.
But Bu Eunseol had not so much as lifted a finger.
Making the Infinite Reversal Power of supreme powerhouses who had reached the pinnacle of martial arts collide with one another this way was simply absurd.
"Emperor's Step?"
Recognizing Bu Eunseol's footwork, Unmong Sanin widened his eyes.
"How does the successor of Majeon unfold the martial art of the Greatest Enigma of the Martial World?"
Amazingly, he had recognized Baekri Muha's Emperor's Step.
And he spoke shocking words.
"Could it be that you are the Leader of the Three Realms?"
"The Leader of the Three Realms?"
"Wasn't he the only one who could unfold the Emperor's Step of the Greatest Enigma of the Martial World?"
Bu Eunseol wore an expression of incomprehension.
He well knew that his father had become the successor of the Three Realms in the past to end the martial world's conflicts.
But the Three Realms had betrayed the Baekri Family, and the three realms were constantly feuding, maintaining different banners.
Yet there was a separate figure called the Leader of the Three Realms, and he could unfold the Emperor's Step? What on earth did that mean?
"Are you saying there is a separate Leader who united the Three Realms?"
"Isn't it obvious."
Unmong Sanin said.
"Otherwise, how could a place where those lunatics gather maintain its form."
"If there is such a Leader, how could the Three Realms not only feud with each other, but also scatter and tie themselves to factions like the United Heart Society?"
"That, this old man does not know."
Unmong Sanin's small eyes darted about restlessly.
"But I do know a bit of information about the Three Realms. If I tell you, will you spare her?"
Finding it ridiculous, Bu Eunseol almost burst into laughter.
Unmong Sanin was struggling with all his might to somehow save the White Hand Demon Empress.
"Even if the sky falls, there is no way she lives."
Not only was the White Hand Demon Empress wicked by nature, but her resourcefulness and schemes were tremendous.
Layering unexpected traps, she had naturally lured Bu Eunseol in.
If it weren't for Baekri Geomha's help?
He would have become a sacrifice for the White Hand Demon Empress's revival, or lost all his memories and become an idiot.
"Is that so. Then it cannot be helped."
Unmong Sanin muttered lowly with an expression of despair.
Since Bu Eunseol had mastered the Emperor's Step, Unmong Sanin knew well that no attack would get through.
"Yeon-mae. I intended to be your servant and protect you for all my life, but it has ended up like this."
Unmong Sanin spoke as he looked at the White Hand Demon Empress.
"Though I could not form a union with you, I am satisfied to die on the same day, at the same hour."
Though Unmong Sanin had obsessively clung to the White Hand Demon Empress his entire life, that heart of his was sincere.
"I, too..."
Only as she reached the brink of death did the times Unmong Sanin had poured his affection on her flash before her eyes.
"I am sorry for all this time."
From the beginning, it was a bond that had started across the uncrossable boundary between orthodox and demonic.
Unmong Sanin harbored a deep affection.
When that heart was not accepted, he had been satisfied simply being by her side.
He had willingly become the White Hand Demon Empress's servant, taking care of her meals and preparing her bed.
Back then, she had not known its preciousness.
Only now, at the point of death, had she come to know that preciousness and gratitude just a little.
Clack.
Realizing that the two had connected their feelings before the threshold of death, Bu Eunseol changed his stance. He held the Silent Tiger Soul Sword in a reverse grip and pulled it back as far as possible, then stretched his left arm straight forward.
Nod.
Unmong Sanin looked at the White Hand Demon Empress and nodded his head.
Realizing that this was the final form that would sever their lives, they prepared for their last strike.
Vwooom!
Meanwhile, a mysterious force swirled like a tornado from Bu Eunseol's body,
Paaaah!
And a brilliant light poured out.
It was a profound power, so much so that one could not even fathom what sword form he had unfolded.
"Haaap!"
At last, the two also poured out their martial arts with all their might.
The White Hand Demon Empress's White Hand Blood Shadow.
And Unmong Sanin's secret art, which forced the enemy's life force to emanate from their body, bringing about death.
The Essence-Seizing Catch was unleashed.
Finally, the moment the two forces collided, a bizarre event occurred.
The sword form Bu Eunseol deployed passed through their bodies without causing any harm,
Bang!
Yet the two martial arts they unfolded struck Bu Eunseol's body dead on.
Boom!
So tremendous was that power that the dark iron floor crumpled, and Bu Eunseol's body was driven a full ja deep into it.
Crack.
Bu Eunseol barely raised his body.
But a thin trickle of fresh blood flowed from his lips, and his eyes had clouded.
Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse.
When the White Hand Demon Empress and Unmong Sanin showed the light of repentance and affection at the very end, instead of killing them he had unfolded the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse and injected brilliant life energy into them.
He hoped it might sever the karma of the origin that they possessed.
Rustle.
At that time, the hair at Bu Eunseol's temples turned white.
Because he harbored an inner core, he no longer aged.
But because he had unfolded the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse without fully acquiring the Four Divine Energies, he had once again exhausted his life force.
"Why did you bestow such a favor, even at the cost of injuring your own body."
Unmong Sanin was one of the Ten Great Immortals and a master of the Essence-Seizing Catch, the method that forced out an enemy's life force.
He had seen through the fact that Bu Eunseol had risked the exhaustion of his life force to pour out beneficial energy upon them.
"This sword form can break the authority planted in the bodies of the wicked Demon Ancestors, that curse-like secret art."
Bu Eunseol said as he wiped the blood from his lips.
"If so, I merely tested whether it could also erase the karma engraved into your lives."
Since the Red Flame Immortal's suicide, Bu Eunseol had sworn that he would absolutely never let the Ten Great Immortals die.
And when the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse worked against Pamyeong, he realized it was the clue to severing their karma.
He had prepared to use it at any time.
Tremble.
As his body trembled lightly, Bu Eunseol clenched his fists so tightly they bled.
For when he unfolded the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse, he felt not the pain of the flesh but a severe agony, as if the very source of his life force were being forcibly gouged out.
"This is..."
At that moment, Unmong Sanin looked at his own palms.
As his body grew lighter, wasn't the power of the origin they possessed vanishing?
"Is such a thing truly possible?"
The karma engraved in their bodies was burning away, incinerated by the life force emitted from the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
Through the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse his father had left behind, Bu Eunseol had severed the power of the origin, which no one in the martial world could interfere with.
He had even saved their souls.
Crack, crackle.
At that moment, golden patterns began to spread from the Silent Tiger Soul Sword.
As he unfolded the Silent Tiger Soul Eclipse, resolved to sacrifice himself to save others... one of the seals on the Silent Tiger Soul Sword had broken.
Vwooom.
At the same time, Bu Eunseol's Naohu acupoint grew hot.
Memories... like faint imprints, impossible to touch or hold, yet accompanied by vivid sensations... slowly unfurled before his eyes.
'Dali.'
He was falling into the abyss of his spirit, where the fragments of his distant past memories lay scattered... memories from before the personality of Baekri Geomha, asleep in his spirit, was ever created.
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