"It seems restoring her memories is impossible."
The guest hall of the Flower-Dissolving Hall.
Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un were drinking tea as they held a grave discussion.
"I see. So that is how it turned out."
Bu Eunseol's expression could not have been more serious.
The method he had believed would be decisive had ultimately failed.
If this was how she reacted...
Even reminding her of the past would be useless.
"Hmm."
Uncharacteristically, he let out a sigh.
He had faced countless obstacles until now, but never one as troublesome as this.
"Brother Bu, may I speak frankly?"
Namgung Un spoke cautiously.
"Judging by what I have seen, I do not think the Young Palace Lord ever truly liked you."
"What do you mean?"
"If she had truly loved you, then even if she lost her memories, or even if the two of you met again somewhere entirely different... the result would not have changed."
Namgung Un spoke with utmost sincerity, carefully watching him.
"Perhaps you should put an end to it now."
"An end?"
"You have no intention of letting anyone into your heart in the future anyway, do you?"
Namgung Un knew the truth.
Bu Eunseol was merely calculating everything with meticulous care and moving forward according to plan.
All for revenge.
And for the people he had to protect.
From the outset, he had given up on happiness. No, he had even given up on his own life.
That was why he could never share deep feelings with any woman.
"I am not trying to hold on to the Young Palace Lord for my own desire or to gather power around me."
Bu Eunseol stared into empty space.
"If she had met someone she truly loved, I would have already let her go."
Then he repeated in a somber voice,
"But because of me, she has now fallen into the clutches of the True Demon Palace. And what awaits her at the end... will be nothing but cruel humiliation and torment."
"Hmm."
"If I fail to stop what is happening to her, the Empress Dowager will continue targeting everyone connected to me."
Bu Eunseol recalled his grandfather's face and murmured,
"I merely wish to do whatever I can so that this never happens again, and so that she may live a happy and peaceful life."
Namgung Un stared blankly for a moment before giving a faint smile.
"I see."
He finally understood why so many women loved Bu Eunseol.
"In the end... the Young Palace Lord will love you for the rest of her life."
Even if that love was never fulfilled.
Yeon Soha would continue loving Bu Eunseol.
Only then did Namgung Un understand.
His sworn elder brother had always been cold toward women, yet he was pouring all his strength into protecting her for precisely this reason.
"The Young Palace Lord will love me for the rest of her life..."
Bu Eunseol's expression turned peculiar.
Only after hearing Namgung Un's words did he finally realize something.
Pure and unwavering devotion.
Yeon Soha had expressed a purer love than any woman he had ever met, and her feelings had never changed.
Otherwise, he would never have summoned Ak Muryeong and declared that he would marry her at once merely to change her mind.
Yet like Princess Hwijeong...
Yeon Soha had met another man, and her feelings had changed in an instant.
It made no sense whatsoever.
―'Is this fate as well?'
Bu Eunseol recalled what Han Sangja had said before.
While organizing the Heart-Captivating Secret Texts, the Empress Dowager had carried out this scheme, and Han Sangja had said that it drew upon the knowledge of the True Demon.
'Brother Han was wrong this time.'
Han Sangja had been mistaken.
Something like this...
Could never be accomplished through the True Demon's "knowledge" alone.
As Bu Eunseol had read the Heart-Captivating Secret Texts at Han Sangja's manor...
He had thought that winning a woman's heart through false, calculated behavior was not so different from the Mind-Seizing Secret Art.
Then, when he happened to read the method for the Boundless Benevolent Love Art hidden within the Classic of Open Hearts, that belief had become a certainty.
Whether the Heart-Captivating Studies or the Mind-Seizing Secret Art...
A sage who realized that the two shared the same origin must have created such an art.
"Brother Bu."
Namgung Un noticed the sudden gleam in Bu Eunseol's eyes.
"You have figured something out."
"The Young Palace Lord was undoubtedly subjected to the Mind-Seizing Secret Art."
"The Mind-Seizing Secret Art? That cannot be."
Namgung Un shook his head.
"My aunt said she invited all manner of renowned experts, but none found any trace that a mind-seizing art had been used."
"Of course they found nothing."
Bu Eunseol bit his lip.
"If it was a secret art of the True Demon, it would far surpass the Mind-Seizing Secret Art known to the present martial world."
Whether it was the Heart-Captivating Secret Art or the Mind-Seizing Secret Art...
If the True Demon had created it...
It was only natural that those at the present level of the martial world could not detect its traces.
"Then the matter will be easily resolved if we wait for the practitioner to visit the Young Palace Lord again. A Mind-Seizing Secret Art ultimately operates upon the practitioner's own spirit."
"The True Demon Palace must possess a formidable intelligence organization as well. As long as an expert capable of threatening him remains nearby, he will never show himself."
The True Demon Palace had secretly preserved its lineage without ever being detected by any intelligence organization in the martial world.
Its information network could not possibly be inferior to that of the Death Spirit Corps.
As long as Bu Eunseol remained near Yeon Soha, the man would never appear.
"Then our only options are to find his hiding place or forcibly break the secret art."
"Indeed."
"But if it is one of the soul-manipulation secret arts left by the True Demon, I doubt it would be easy even if Pavilion Master Ak came."
Namgung Un's eyes brightened as an ingenious idea occurred to him.
"What if you simply win the Young Palace Lord's heart properly from now on?"
"Win her heart again?"
"Yes. If we can prove that she was subjected to a mind-seizing art... would not everyone in the Divine Maiden Palace, including its Master, take your side and help you from now on?"
The Divine Maiden Palace Master, Yeon Jami, believed that Young Master Dam was merely a prodigy whom her daughter had met by chance.
But what if she discovered that all of this was part of a sinister plot?
The people of the Divine Maiden Palace would naturally help Bu Eunseol, and the two of them could be brought together again.
"Then I suppose we must summon Pavilion Master Ak after all."
The person who had reached the pinnacle of spirit secret arts in the present martial world was the Human Demon, Ak Muryeong.
Only he had any chance of proving that this was an art of the True Demon or breaking it.
"No. I will do it myself."
"You will, Brother Bu?"
"Yes."
Ak Muryeong's desire to test himself was immense. If it meant breaking an art of the True Demon...
He would do anything without the slightest regard for Yeon Soha's safety.
More importantly, even if Bu Eunseol asked him, there was no chance he would personally travel to the Divine Maiden Palace merely to restore a woman's feelings.
"Of course, I will only be finding the cause, not resolving it."
"How will you do that?"
Bu Eunseol explained in detail the method he had seen in Han Sangja's secret vault.
The Boundless Benevolent Love Art.
He intended to use the secret method recorded within the Classic of Open Hearts that allowed one to enter a lover's spirit.
"If the method requires mutual consent and complete trust... I do not think it will work on the Young Palace Lord now that she has forgotten you."
After hearing the full explanation, Namgung Un asked his question, but Bu Eunseol shook his head.
"It is the opposite. The art connects two hearts through mutual trust, so memories have nothing to do with it."
"Then what matters is the sincerity she still holds for you in her heart."
"Indeed."
"Will it work?"
"It will."
Bu Eunseol believed it without reservation.
Yeon Soha's feelings were true, and her trust in him remained steadfast.
Otherwise, she could not have waited for him so faithfully all those years.
With this art, he would surely restore Yeon Soha's memories and seize the trail of the one who had cast the True Demon's secret art upon her.
* * *
In a silent study hidden in the deepest, most secluded part of the Flower-Dissolving Hall, only the subtle scent of ink mingled with orchids lingered in the air.
Bu Eunseol sat there facing Yeon Soha.
He had asked Namgung Sea to allow him one final private meeting with her.
Faint light seeped through the paper doors, illuminating Yeon Soha's elegant profile.
"Why did you call me here?"
Yeon Soha stared at him as he sat with his eyes closed, her expression cold.
Bu Eunseol could not spare the time to explain every detail and seek her consent.
'Even if she has lost her memories, she will not reject me.'
He slowly opened his eyes.
An uncanny radiance began spreading from his deeply settled pupils.
As he quietly recited the method, a vast, warm energy surged up from his dantian.
It was neither internal energy nor physical force.
It was a pulse of the heart that connected one person to another and rewove the severed threads of fate.
Thrum.
The scenery of reality suddenly blurred like an ink-wash painting soaked with water, and Yeon Soha's gaze grew unfocused.
At the same time, Bu Eunseol's consciousness left his flesh and was drawn through her brow into the sea of her spirit.
As he advanced through pitch-black darkness, a gray landscape thick with fog appeared.
It was Yeon Soha's quiet and somewhat still unconscious world.
As he walked across the dreamlike land, fragments of memory buried deep within her heart emerged one after another.
Memories of childhood, the pain of practicing martial arts, small joys and sorrows...
Countless fragments of memory glittered like stars.
Yet among those fragments...
One area alone stood eerily empty.
It was a grotesque void, as though someone had carved it out with a blade.
"Heart Lamp Illuminates the Heart, My Heart Observes Emotion, Observe with One's Own Heart Lamp..."
Using the method of the Boundless Benevolent Love Art as his lamp, Bu Eunseol walked toward the center of that void.
He headed for the deepest place in Yeon Soha's heart: the Spirit Platform.
When he arrived, the tranquil gray fog dispersed, revealing a black, sticky energy coiled upon itself.
"This is..."
It was not mere memory loss, but a restriction bordering on a curse, sorcery wrought by someone harboring malice.
Ziiiing.
As he approached it, a hazy memory flowed into Bu Eunseol's mind.
A black shadow had wrapped itself tightly around Yeon Soha's spirit and was constricting it.
It was undoubtedly the man known as Young Master Dam.
―'Choose. Will you submit to my spirit, or will you lose every memory of him?'
The man was threatening Yeon Soha's spirit.
He had only one objective.
Unlike Princess Hwijeong, he wanted to break Yeon Soha's will and make her betray Bu Eunseol.
―'I will not let a vile man like you steal my heart.'
Yeon Soha answered without the slightest hesitation.
―'I choose to erase my memories cleanly, even if it means I can no longer yearn for him.'
Strangely, her gaze...
Was fixed directly upon Bu Eunseol, who was searching through her spirit.
It was as if she had been waiting with aching longing for the future day when he would enter her spirit in search of her memories.
Booom!
At that moment, the shadow used its secret art and began taking control of her spirit.
'That place...'
At that instant, Bu Eunseol saw a distinct landscape reflected within Yeon Soha's eyes.
'I found you.'
At last, he had discovered where the man called Young Master Dam was hiding.
Pat!
The entire landscape shattered, and the surroundings plunged into darkness.
At the same time, Bu Eunseol's consciousness was flung back into reality.
"What are you doing?"
Yeon Soha stared at Bu Eunseol's face, unable to understand what had happened.
'It was just as I expected.'
Young Master Dam had not stolen Yeon Soha's heart through techniques of seduction.
He had tried to conquer her heart with vile soul-subduing secret arts.
When that failed, he had erased her memories of the man she loved.
Then, shamelessly pretending to know nothing, he had approached her again...
Finally winning even the Divine Maiden Palace Master's favor in an attempt to become Yeon Soha's lover.
"I am sorry."
Bu Eunseol apologized to Yeon Soha once more.
She had not forgotten him.
She had sacrificed herself to protect her profound love.
"What... are you sorry for?"
"For everything."
Bu Eunseol rose and offered her a respectful salute.
"I have committed many discourtesies during my stay."
"Are you giving up now?"
"I am."
Bu Eunseol smiled with relief.
"It is about time I returned."
When he readily gave up, Yeon Soha said something unexpected.
"I feel relieved... but also a little disappointed."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"Your peculiar way of walking... has given me quite a few laughs."
Perhaps his practice of the Heart-Captivating Secret Texts had not been entirely useless.
His postures and gait remained in Yeon Soha's memories as a small source of joy.
"Is that so?"
Bu Eunseol felt a surge of happiness and, for the first time, showed her a completely genuine smile.
"I am glad you enjoyed it."
Yeon Soha's expression went blank.
For some reason, seeing that radiant smile sent sharp pangs through her chest.
After leaving the Divine Maiden Palace...
Bu Eunseol did not immediately seek out the man who had broken Yeon Soha's spirit. Instead, he used the Death Spirit Corps to make several preparations.
He was a master of martial arts, not a master of the Mind-Seizing Secret Art.
He had no immediate means of breaking an art of the True Demon that even Ak Muryeong would struggle to destroy.
―'Would this never have happened if the Young Palace Lord had built walls around her spirit as solid as yours, Brother Bu?'
However, a remark Namgung Un had muttered before they parted...
Had given him a clue to breaking the True Demon's secret art.
'It is time for you to pay for your crimes.'
Now...
He intended to deal with the vicious man who had obeyed the Empress Dowager's command and forcibly violated the hearts of women.
* * *
Deep within a valley in the mountains of Guangdong lay another world, cut off from civilization.
At the valley's center, a waterfall of immeasurable height poured down.
A faint rainbow hovered around the stream where it caught the sunlight, while fine spray gently dampened the valley.
The clear pool below the waterfall was transparent all the way to the bottom, and cliffs rose like folding screens on either side, enclosing the space.
Rare exotic flowers and plants bloomed in every crevice. Merely watching them sway gently in the mountain breeze seemed to breathe life into the valley.
Tap.
After surveying the landscape from the sky, Bu Eunseol slowly descended before a large manor built facing the waterfall.
There was no gate.
Instead, a flight of natural stone steps led into the garden.
Plum blossoms were in magnificent bloom, and carp swam leisurely through a small pond.
Several lotus flowers bloomed gracefully upon the water.
Beyond the garden stood a large pavilion, where a man was playing an ajaeng.
Twing, twong.
The resonant notes held an indescribable sorrow and loneliness.
The melody sounded like the sigh of a man who had experienced everything in the world and resigned himself to it all.
Bu Eunseol quietly approached the pavilion.
The first thing he saw was the musician's hands.
Each time the man's long fingers glided over the strings, a beautiful melody flowed out.
Blending with the distant roar of the waterfall, it seemed to make nature and human art one.
Twaaaang.
After drawing out the final note, the man finally raised his head.
A peculiar light flashed in Bu Eunseol's eyes.
The man's appearance had completely overturned his expectations.
The man Princess Hwijeong had met was said to possess...
Skin like moonlight, eyes that shone like stars, and flawlessly sculpted features: a peerless beauty.
Yet the man before him was so hideous that even calling him ugly would have been a compliment.
His skin was gnarled and deformed, sagging like melted candle wax.
His nose and lips were crooked, and his face was scored with countless fine wrinkles.
Could the man who had conquered Yeon Soha and Princess Hwijeong have been someone else?
'Projection.'
Bu Eunseol soon understood.
The man had mastered an evil demonic art that projected the heart of whoever looked upon him.
Bu Eunseol knew the truth: the man was utterly wicked, a villain who stole the hearts of women. That was why he appeared hideous to him.
Princess Hwijeong and Yeon Soha, unaware of that truth, must have seen a beautiful face reflecting their own blossoming hearts.
"So you found me in the end."
The man looked at Bu Eunseol and shrugged.
"I have been waiting."
As he rose, his long robe fluttered in the wind.
Each of his movements was as elegant as a crane dancing, possessing a grace entirely at odds with his ugly face.
"After all, you disturbed the seed this Herald planted in her spirit."
He had detected Bu Eunseol entering Yeon Soha's spirit and searching her memories.
"How unusual."
The man's eyes turned transparent.
"Firm and unyielding, yet infinitely gentle within."
He possessed the Demon Eye, allowing him to look past Bu Eunseol's appearance and see the shape of his spirit.
"There is no need to bluff."
Bu Eunseol snorted.
"Even a physiognomist can discern the shape of a person's spirit."
If the man could infiltrate another's heart and soul and inspect them at will...
He would have no need to steal the hearts of women. He could simply control everyone under heaven however he pleased.
The man was merely pretending to be mysterious by commenting on Bu Eunseol's nature.
"And since you made a point of calling yourself 'this Herald,' you clearly wanted to reveal that you hold considerable standing within the True Demon Palace."
Bu Eunseol leisurely looked him over.
"Yet you cast aside even your pride to obey the Empress Dowager, stealing women's hearts to weaken another's power... You must have been born with a depraved nature, forever lusting after women from the shadows."
"It seems the true physiognomist was standing before me."
The man smiled languidly.
"But you are wrong. True Law Herald is an authority, not a rank."
"True Law Herald?"
"It is not something an insignificant man of the martial world like you needs to know."
Then he smiled.
"Martial Soul Command Lord."
He was as relaxed as though gazing at prey he could swallow in a single bite.
"Men like you, born beautiful and accustomed to winning women's hearts with ease, imagine their affections are possessions in a money pouch, ready to be taken out whenever you please."
"..."
"I hear you formed ties with women from various factions merely as a means of gathering power."
"Are we competing to see which of us is the better physiognomist?"
"Not at all."
The man's smile deepened.
"Women deserve to be loved, and they are treasures who bring benefit to men. Someone like you, who treats women like stones and only scrambles to clutch them again when he fears his power may falter... never deserved to be loved by them in the first place."
Bu Eunseol could not help laughing.
"Now I understand why, despite learning a secret art of the True Demon, you were assigned to this task."
Bu Eunseol's insight was comparable to the Heavenly Demon Emperor's Mind-to-Mind Perception, which could grasp a person's heart at a glance.
He instantly saw through the man.
The one before him was, in fact, consumed by resentment toward women.
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