Bu Eunseol asked with an expression of utter disbelief.
"What crime did my father commit exactly?"
"They said he colluded with the True Demon Palace and nearly brought the main family to complete ruin. It took a long time to recover from that."
"Colluded."
Bu Eunseol bit his lip.
"Then, it was because he married the Holy Maiden of the True Demon... they pinned a false charge on him."
"That's probably not it."
The woman in white spoke unexpected words.
"I heard that he committed the crime of treason long before he ever married."
Bu Eunseol's eyes widened.
Did that mean his father, Baekri Muha, had traveled the martial world since his youth and committed the crime of colluding with the True Demon Palace?
"Then, was my father expelled from the Baekri Family, and after that, he married my mother and built the Saha Manor?"
The woman in white spoke with an apologetic expression.
"I'm sorry. I don't know the circumstances surrounding that."
"If my father committed treason."
Bu Eunseol, pressing a hand to his forehead, asked again.
"There's no need to bring back the son of a traitor to the family and make him the young master, is there?"
"As I said before, Baekri Muha's bloodline is noble, and from the main family's perspective, that lineage absolutely had to be continued, and..."
She added in a low voice.
"Because there was a prophecy from a divine being that Baekri Geomha must become the family head. Otherwise, reaching this generation, annihilation... everything would completely disappear."
'Great Monk Wooden Buddha.'
Bu Eunseol intuited.
The divine being who left that prophecy was none other than Great Monk Wooden Buddha.
'The Great Monk might have looked far into the future and left such a prophecy.'
The blood calamity at Saha Manor, and even his parents' deaths...
The thought crossed his mind that it was ultimately part of a massive conspiracy meticulously designed by someone.
Having organized his thoughts, Bu Eunseol asked the woman in white.
"Then where exactly is the true seat of the Baekri Family?"
If he could hear that answer.
Not only would one of the grand plans he had been progressing so far be completed... but the answer to the mystery he had constantly been searching for would also be unraveled.
"It is everywhere."
She raised a long finger and stroked the empty air. A mysterious light then hovered at the tip of her finger.
"People of the main family can return to the main family at any time."
Bu Eunseol realized the meaning of those words and his eyes widened.
"Do you mean that, like the Land of the Limitless or the Myriad Phenomena Tomb, the entrance and its location change from moment to moment, and only designated people can enter?"
"That's correct."
The woman in white spoke confidently.
"The time and place it opens differ according to the heavenly secrets, and only permitted ones can enter."
"Then naturally, wouldn't I be able to enter as well?"
"It's impossible."
She explained.
"Because being a permitted one doesn't mean anyone who inherits the blood of the Baekri Family."
The woman in white shook her head side to side.
"If one could enter solely on the condition of inheriting the main family's blood... they would have been endlessly attacked by the True Demon Palace."
"Then."
"Acknowledgment is needed."
The woman in white explained a unique concept that Bu Eunseol had never thought of, one he had never heard even once until now.
"In order for a person not born in the main family to enter the main family, they must receive the acknowledgment of the Three Rectitudes who oversee the bloodlines."
"You mean the permission of the gatekeepers is required."
"That's correct. It is a concept that unless someone was born in the main family, they possess a deficiency."
She said.
"Even if you find the Three Rectitudes and receive acknowledgment from one person, it is useless if you do not receive the acknowledgment of the remaining two."
"I see."
Bu Eunseol could not hide his surprise but nodded his head.
"Indeed, with such a method, the family could be perfectly protected from the True Demon and his kin."
Even if those born outside possessed the Profound Divine Technique Qi.
If they were not acknowledged as kin by the Three Rectitudes and had that deficiency supplemented, they could not enter the Baekri Family.
This concept... could be called a mysterious security measure that only the Baekri Family, who possessed the mysterious power of the Profound Divine Technique Qi, could employ.
"If you tell me the whereabouts of the Three Rectitudes, I will take the test."
She shook her head side to side.
"After Baekri Geomha entered the main family, the whereabouts of the Three Rectitudes became a top secret. Now, even if you want to take that test, you cannot."
It was an obvious sequence of events.
If a fake had seized the true position?
The very first thing they would do would be to completely block all routes by which the real one could return.
'There is a high probability he is a fake created by a certain faction.'
Bu Eunseol let out a deep sigh welling up from his lungs.
The fake Baekri Geomha would have formulated meticulous plans over a long time to become the young master of the Baekri Family... There was undoubtedly a formidable backer.
However, as long as there was no way to enter, there was no way whatsoever to pull down the fake young master.
"Then there is no way for me to go to the Baekri Family at all."
At Bu Eunseol's words, the woman in white, who pondered for a moment, said,
"No, there is one way."
She took out a single bead from her bosom, and it was transparent and had no light at all.
It was exactly the Boundary Prosperity Jade.
Squeeze.
As she grasped the Boundary Prosperity Jade, countless lights began to gather, and soon a white light lingered within the bead.
Profound Divine Technique Qi. This power, which was involved in creation, truly exerted functions like mysterious Taoist magic.
"Try going to the place this bead points to. And if you give my name, they will surely find a way for you to enter the Baekri Family."
After hesitating for a moment, she took out one half-cut hemispherical jewel she had been carrying in her bosom and held it out.
"If that person refuses to the end, please show this."
The hemispherical bead split in half looked like a considerable treasure even at a glance.
"It seems like a precious item, how should I return it to you later?"
"Just keep it."
The woman in white smiled.
"And when you enter the Baekri Family, return it to me then."
Within that single sentence were contained the meaning that she trusted Bu Eunseol, and the conviction that he would surely enter the Baekri Family someday.
"Thank you."
Bu Eunseol bowed his head respectfully.
She believed him to be the real one, even when no one in the Baekri Family would believe him.
Even taking into account their fateful meeting at the Ten Thousand Dragons Cave, this could by no means have been an easy decision.
"Ah."
Only then did Bu Eunseol recall the black bead that was in his bosom.
He had clearly refused it adamantly, yet the woman in white had exerted a mysterious power to slip it into his bosom at some point.
"I almost forgot this."
It had clearly been a dark, murky bead, but at some point, it had turned transparent like the Boundary Prosperity Jade.
'As expected.'
The woman in white looked at the bead with an expression containing an enigmatic smile.
The Genesis Sun and Moon, called the pre-taking of causality, disappears in an instant when it exerts its function.
In other words, that mysterious Five-Colored Dragon was the future figure that the man before her eyes would manifest in the distant future.
Because it took on a new form of the Heavenly Lord Dragon Descent that could not be found even in history, she believed that Bu Eunseol was Baekri Geomha.
"I don't need it."
She shook her head side to side.
"Its utility is exhausted, so it will break soon."
Even before those words finished, with a crackle, the transparent bead turned into powder and scattered in all directions.
"I'm sorry."
Bu Eunseol, having grasped the situation, spoke with an apologetic expression.
"It seemed like an incredible treasure, but I ended up using its power."
"If you think you are the real Baekri Geomha, there is no need to be so polite."
"Pardon?"
At Bu Eunseol's question, she let out an 'ah' sound and shook her head.
"No, it's nothing."
As the woman in white seemed flustered, Bu Eunseol naturally changed the subject.
"However, I am worried about your safety, young lady."
He pointed at the masked men who had turned to dust.
"Is the leader of those men not a person with great power and authority in the Baekri Family, enough to turn this sacred place of ritual into a den of evil?"
She showed a faint smile.
The fake Baekri Geomha in the Baekri Family was affectionate and calm, but in reality, he was deceitful and cold-blooded, trying to kill her.
However, the man before her eyes not only maintained an upright heart but was also worrying about her safety first.
"I'm fine."
The woman in white spoke calmly.
"Because I won't just sit and suffer anymore."
Even if the fake Baekri Geomha considered her a risk factor.
If she merely changed her mind.
It was because she had a solid base of supporters enough to threaten him at any time.
Now that she knew the young master was a fake and had a certain sinister plot, she had absolutely no intention of suffering quietly.
"I will eagerly await the day you enter the main family."
The woman in white spoke with a resolute expression.
"And I will prepare so that you can fight a battle on equal footing with him."
"Thank you."
The way for Bu Eunseol to help her.
Was to receive the acknowledgment of the Three Rectitudes and enter the Baekri Family even a day sooner.
"Ah, I haven't heard your esteemed name yet, young lady."
The woman in white blushed for a moment, then spoke in a low voice.
"Yeha."
"Baekri Yeha..."
It was a beautiful name, just like her heart.
"I am Baekri Geomha, but..."
Bu Eunseol politely brought his two hands together.
"I am Bu Eunseol, a disciple of Nangyang Pavilion. Now, and in the future as well."
With this single sentence.
He clearly expressed that the reason he was heading to the Baekri Family was not to reclaim the rights the name Baekri Geomha possessed.
But merely to set right what was wrong.
"Bu Eunseol."
The woman in white, who muttered it low, spoke in a low voice.
"It seems that name suits you better than the name Baekri Geomha."
In an instant, Bu Eunseol revealed his white teeth and smiled brightly.
"Because it is the name my grandfather gave me."
That smile was bright and warm like an innocent child.
Watching that, Baekri Yeha, too, unknowingly smiled along.
And she felt a premonition that somehow everything would flow according to reason.
* * *
Bu Eunseol, who unleashed Swift Beyond Shadow with all his might, was cleaving the night sky like a meteor.
Inside his palm, the bead Baekri Yeha handed him was emitting a faint yet clear light, throbbing like a living heart.
'What a truly wondrous object.'
Like a spirit creature guiding the way.
The bead ceaselessly changed direction and guided him.
The afterimages of light that flashed by occasionally.
Looked surprisingly similar to the small bead that had informed him of the location of the Clear River Realm in the past.
'Is it natural since it's the family that is the root of the Three Realms?'
The mysterious grand method of the Clear River Realm too.
The bead that indicated the experimental location where the Clear River Realm's grand method was being executed too.
In the end, it was possible because they were a branch of the Baekri Family, which harbored the secrets of the primeval era.
How long had he run?
The fierce light of the bead gradually softened and slowed its pace.
The place he finally arrived at was an abandoned rural village, where even a dreary aura lingered under the moonlight.
'There's nothing here.'
Bu Eunseol heightened his senses to the maximum and swept the surroundings.
There was no barrier distorting the flow of qi, nor any traces of a hidden array method.
Only collapsed mud walls and empty house sites swept by the wind kept silence like a graveyard.
'This is strange.'
Let alone the warmth of people, even the faint traces of living life were scarce.
'Was the village itself not the destination?'
The moment he harbored a doubt, the bead in his hand spewed a long streak of light in one direction as if using its last bit of strength.
The place the light touched was a single thatched cottage slightly away from the village, looking as if it would collapse at any moment.
Ssk.
Bu Eunseol held his breath, unfolded his qinggong, and approached the place soundlessly.
Then he climbed up a giant tree overlooking the thatched cottage.
In the yard covered with dry grass, an old man with a bent back was drying medicinal herbs relying on the moonlight.
And a bitter herbal scent spread faintly to the surroundings.
Bu Eunseol, hiding his body in the giant tree, carefully observed the old man.
A wrinkled face, rough hands, and even an expression that seemed indifferent to worldly affairs. He looked exactly like an ordinary herb gatherer.
'Hmm.'
Just as he was about to turn his body without lingering attachment, thinking he had made a wasted trip,
His gaze was drawn to the finger movements of the old man carefully sweeping down the leaves of the medicinal herbs.
'Was it like that.'
Bu Eunseol, whose eyes flashed with a gleam, slowly descended from the giant tree and approached the old man.
Sensing a presence, the old man turned around in shock.
"Who are you?"
After pondering for a moment, Bu Eunseol,
"Baekri Geomha pays his respects to you, elder."
Answered with a heavy voice that rang low in the empty village.
The old man bowed and scraped with a terrified expression.
"What are you talking about. There is nothing to give you in this old man's house."
"You made one mistake, elder."
Despite the old man's natural acting, Bu Eunseol let out a sigh.
"You perfectly embodied the rough and coarse hands that have dug and dried medicinal herbs for a long time, but you couldn't do anything about the habits ingrained in your body."
"What exactly are you talking about."
"Your finger movements were not precise."
His grandfather Bu Zhanyang was an outstanding corpse examiner and herb gatherer.
He had kept numerous medicinal herbs stocked inside the Pyeongan Funeral Home, and thanks to that, Bu Eunseol had dried medicinal herbs and stored medicine since childhood.
The old man's hand movements were clever, but.
It contained the clumsiness of someone who had only handled medicinal herbs for a few years.
"An expert applies just the necessary amount of force to brush off the dirt."
Bu Eunseol explained calmly.
"But a beginner grasps too hard and tears the leaves, or holds them too long, causing the scent of the medicine to rub off on their hands."
His explanation flowed like a river.
"Also, there was a lot of hesitation in the motion of grabbing the medicinal herbs. An experienced person discerns the state of moisture or ripening just by the texture of the stem or the hardness of the root, and cuts or twists them precisely."
In an instant, the old man's eyes changed.
His pupils, which had been trembling in terror, sank coldly.
"...Are you originally a herb gatherer?"
As his crouched body straightened, his bent back became straight like steel, and his seemingly frail physique swelled with a solid spirit.
Even his voice threw off the tone of a servile old man and changed to a low, metallic baritone.
"Even the old herb gatherers couldn't notice this old man's strange signs at all. To think a young fellow would catch on."
"It's not that they didn't know, but they pretended not to know."
"What?"
"Among herb gatherers, genuine ones who have lived as herb gatherers since childhood are rare. So it is their unwritten rule not to dig deeply into others' stories."
A herb gatherer is the most common profession chosen by fugitives or sinners to hide their identities.
That is why they turn a blind eye even if they know others' secrets.
"It seems you really were a herb gatherer."
The old man looked at Bu Eunseol sharply, as if piercing through him.
"You are Baekri Geomha?"
"That's right."
The old man showed a fishy smile.
"If you truly think so... bite your sword and kill yourself."
Then he turned his body and began trimming the medicinal herbs again.
"Elder."
Only then did Bu Eunseol recall Baekri Yeha's request and spoke carefully.
"I came here because the young lady Yeha sent me."
"The young lady?"
The old man's expression suddenly turned solemn.
Just looking at that attitude.
One could guess how high a status Baekri Yeha held in the Baekri Family.
"Speak exactly. Why did the young lady send you here?"
At the old man's question, Bu Eunseol briefly explained everything from his coincidental meeting with Baekri Yeha to the circumstances of how he came here.
However, since he did not yet know the old man's identity, he did not bring up the story of the Ten Thousand Dragons Cave.
When the whole story ended, the old man wore a despondent expression.
"In the end, will this old man never escape from the curse of Baekri Geomha forever?"
"What do you mean by a curse?"
"It seems the young lady didn't tell you properly."
The old man spoke with an utmost agonized expression.
"This old man was a servant of the Baekri Family."
His name was Yeom-wi.
Originally, he was a master of pursuit techniques with no connection to the Baekri Family, and a mercenary who chased bounties.
But one day past forty, he contracted an unknown serious illness and was slowly dying.
By chance, a figure from the Baekri Family who recognized his talent appeared, cured his illness cleanly, and even elevated his martial prowess.
Yeom-wi, having gained a new life, belonged to the Baekri Branch Family, and became a messenger handling various matters of the martial world.
He served loyally until his hair turned white.
Then, starting ten-odd years ago, people calling themselves Baekri Geomha began appearing endlessly.
Eventually, an organization was formed in the Baekri Family to track the whereabouts of the fake Baekri Geomhas and verify their authenticity.
He, who was well-versed in the affairs of the martial world, came to carry out the missions handed down from that organization.
For over ten years, he chased the traces of numerous people who knocked on the door of the Baekri Family and uncovered the truth.
But just once.
He committed a fatal mistake of not recognizing the real one.
Due to that crime, he incurred the wrath of the young master, and all his martial prowess was sealed.
However, on the grounds that he had been loyal to the Baekri Family, he only kept his life, but receiving an order not to breathe a word about what happened until now.
He was living like this as an old man digging herbs in a deep mountain valley.
And the one who cured his serious illness and brought him into the Baekri Branch Family was none other than Baekri Yeha's father.
"So that's how it was."
Bu Eunseol, having heard all of Yeom-wi's words, nodded.
Because of the fake Baekri Geomha, Yeom-wi's life, which had been loyal to the Baekri Family, was completely ruined.
"The fakes disguised coincidence and approached the blood kin of the Baekri Family. Just like you now."
The old man, Yeom-wi, continued speaking with a lonely expression.
"After countless trials and errors over ten-odd years, the Baekri Family found the real Baekri Geomha, and appointed him as the young master. But you want to claim you are Baekri Geomha now?"
"It doesn't matter if you don't believe me."
"What did you say?"
"If I am a fake anyway, won't I be severely punished by the people of the Baekri Family?"
Bu Eunseol respectfully bowed his head.
"However, if I don't set things right, young lady Baekri may also fall into danger due to that fake's schemes."
"What do you mean by danger?"
Bu Eunseol eventually explained everything that the ritual at the Ten Thousand Dragons Cave was a conspiracy.
While listening to the story, Yeom-wi's complexion changed constantly.
"To think he tried to kill the young lady."
Whether the Baekri Geomha in the Baekri Family was real or fake, it was certain that he was trying to harm Baekri Yeha.
Bu Eunseol looked at Yeom-wi with a stiff expression and asked carefully.
"Why on earth did they create a fake Baekri Geomha?"
"If you are the real one, wouldn't you know the reason better."
"I have lost my memories. My father..."
"Yes. Most of the fake Baekri Geomhas were like that."
As Bu Eunseol's face stiffened, Yeom-wi waved both hands.
"I am not reprimanding you. Literally, most of the Baekri Geomhas who came to the main family were in a state of amnesia."
Yeom-wi wore a depressed expression.
"Did you ask why fake Baekri Geomhas were created? Young Master Baekri Muha died at Saha Manor, and his son Baekri Geomha went missing. Since his whereabouts became unknown after that... anyone could easily become Baekri Geomha. Isn't that obvious?"
"Who attacked Saha Manor?"
"This old man doesn't know that far. However..."
He stopped speaking for a moment, then continued lowly.
"After that incident, countless fake Baekri Geomhas made contact with the figures of the main family disguising it as coincidence. The Baekri Family filtered them over and over, and finally found the real one."
At the time, Yeom-wi had judged him a fake, but the Baekri Family had ultimately determined the current young master Baekri Geomha to be real.
"How did they determine he was real. Was it the power of the two great families?"
In this generation, there is an existence called the Holy One that mixes the powers of the Baekri Family and the True Demon.
It could never be determined by just the powers of the two great families.
"Infinite personalities."
Yeom-wi spoke shocking words.
"He could create infinite personalities, which only the bloodline of Baekri Muha and Holy Maiden Saha can."
In an instant, his mind turned stark white, and he received a shock as if hit on the back of the head with a hammer.
'My father clearly said only I could do it.'
His father in his lost memories.
Said that figures of the Baekri Family are born with dual personalities, but only he could create infinite personalities.
Furthermore, due to the dharma gate of that personality.
Wasn't a personality of Baekri Geomha created, containing all the unhappy emotions along with the painful memories of Saha Manor?
―'Think about it.'
'If you create countless personalities to divide your mind into multiple zones, and make a personality with specific traits and abilities in each zone?'
'If each personality processes information separately, and merges the results in real-time through the channel of consciousness?'
'You could become a being capable of intervening in all objects and phenomena existing in the universe, that is, the myriad things in nature...'
The young Baekri Geomha at that time said this.
―'In the end, to defeat the transcendent archenemy called the True Demon, the Baekri Family is developing by mimicking his abilities?'
But a person who could do such a thing again?
'It doesn't make sense. Then a being like me...'
He, who had been standing with a blank expression.
Received a shock as if his heart was freezing.
He thought of one terrible possibility.
'The True Demon!'
Other than himself, there was only one person who could create infinite personalities.
It was none other than the True Demon, who had thrown away his own chains and was wandering the world even having lost his memories.
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