So Yeonghwa wore an expression brimming with pride.
“Hyang-ah isn’t beautiful just because she’s my daughter. She far surpasses those women commonly referred to as the Three Great Beauties of the World.” Her expression was utterly serious. “The only reason my child’s beauty isn’t known throughout the martial world is because our sect has never stepped foot into it.”
Then she added one more thing:
“And is it only her appearance? She has already reached eight-tenths mastery in the Ice Essence Snow Blossom Art, and she is also accomplished in the four arts—zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. In short, she is a truly perfect talented lady with no flaws whatsoever.”
“N-no, that’s not—”
“It’s fine. So what if you’re a Captain of the Martial Alliance?” So Yeonghwa swiftly cut off Bu Eunseol’s words again and lightly patted his shoulder. “If you’re skilled enough to pass through the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall and reach the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall, then you already meet the qualifications to become a son-in-law of our sect.”
“No, what I mean is—”
“You can throw away that Martial Alliance position right now and come to our sect. It’s no problem.”
Then she spoke with motherly affection: “A man cannot become the sect leader of our sect, of course. But I will grant you the position of Supreme Elder so that you can lead the sect together with her.”
Bu Eunseol felt darkness descend before his eyes.
Where should he even begin to respond?
This chattering, conversation-interrupting Snow Blossom Sect Leader…
He genuinely couldn’t tell whether she was actually listening to a single word he said.
“Hyang-ah, come out.”
At the Snow Blossom Sect Leader’s call, a pale-faced beauty in white opened the door and stepped inside.
It was the young woman of mysterious age whom Bu Eunseol had once rescued—the only daughter of the Snow Blossom Sect Leader, So Eunhyang.
“You two should talk.” She smiled warmly and said, “This mother will go discuss future matters with the elders for a little while.”
“Sect Leader, I—”
The moment Bu Eunseol hurriedly stood up, So Yeonghwa cut him off once again and waved her hand.
“It’s fine. Take your time and talk. I’ll be back soon.”
With the most benevolent smile imaginable, she swiftly left the room again.
While Bu Eunseol stood there with his mouth open, So Eunhyang approached him.
She was exceptionally tall—only half a handspan shorter than Bu Eunseol, who stood over six cheok himself.
Her appearance was as if a god had poured his heart into gathering the most brilliant jewels and flowers to paint her.
The Snow Blossom Sect Leader’s boast that her daughter surpassed the Three Great Beauties of the World had certainly not been empty confidence.
“This young wife, So Eunhyang, greets her husband.”
Perhaps because she took after the Snow Blossom Sect Leader so closely… her personality was frighteningly impatient—she was already referring to herself as “young wife.”
“Young Sect Leader. I cannot possibly accept this.”
For the first time in his life, Bu Eunseol let out a groan of genuine distress.
“I was merely deceived by a middle-aged woman who was guiding me and accidentally disrupted your cultivation. I absolutely, under no circumstances, have any intention of becoming—”
“It’s fine.”
It seemed this household had a hereditary secret art of interrupting others.
So Eunhyang lightly placed a finger on her red lips, then shook her head.
“This is simply my fate.”
“Young Sect Leader.”
“I’m just as flustered as you are. But what can be done?” So Eunhyang bit her red lip and spoke in a low voice. “Since things have come to this, there’s nothing left but to form the bond of husband and wife and live well together.”
Bu Eunseol’s jaw dropped wide open.
What kind of woman had such an impatient personality?
‘Moreover, with my current identity… this is impossible.’
If he were still the Martial Soul Command Lord, he could refuse even if the Demon Emperor himself tried to arrange the marriage.
But right now he was Seon Woojin—a high-ranking figure on the level of a Martial Alliance Hall Leader. He could not simply outright refuse the Snow Blossom Sect Leader’s proposal.
“These are words I cannot bear.”
“Do you not like me?” So Eunhyang asked as if she genuinely couldn’t understand. “Is it because you think I’m plain and it doesn’t excite you?”
“Absolutely not!”
In terms of appearance alone, among all the women Bu Eunseol had ever met in his life, she was by far the most dazzling and radiant.
‘I need to pull myself together.’
“Then why do you speak like that?”
Wiping away cold sweat, Bu Eunseol forced a smile. “I am merely a lowly Captain who does whatever the Martial Alliance orders me to do. There is no question of whether or not I am worthy of the lady’s heart.”
“Don’t say such things. Just the fact that you passed through the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall and reached the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall is more than enough to qualify you as my husband.”
‘There’s no way around it.’
No matter how indirectly he tried to refuse, she simply didn’t understand the meaning of rejection.
That left only one remaining method.
“I…”
After taking a deep breath, Bu Eunseol spoke with a resolute expression.
“I already have a fiancée arranged by my family.”
But the reply that came back was utterly bewildering.
“Anyone can have a betrothal.”
“Pardon?”
“A promise is just a promise. You haven’t actually gotten married, have you?” So Eunhyang said calmly, “In the past, I too had many fiancés. But in the end, every single one of them turned the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall into their grave and became departed souls.”
Bu Eunseol’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.
“The remains found in that place… were your former fiancés?”
“About half of them. Some were even brought by Mother herself.”
“Why did you drive your fiancés to their deaths?”
“Deaths? No… Mother simply tested whether they were qualified to become her son-in-law.”
A chill ran down Bu Eunseol’s spine.
Only now did he finally understand why, even though the Snow Blossom Sect had never revealed itself to the martial world, it was still treated as part of the unorthodox/evil factions.
It wasn’t merely because they practiced strange extreme yin secret arts.
These people simply possessed an entirely different way of thinking from ordinary human beings.
“I have one question I’d like to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
“If I were to refuse this marriage… what would happen to me afterward?”
So Eunhyang blinked.
“What would happen? Nothing, of course.”
“I see. That’s… quite a relief.”
“But the one who would be in trouble is me. Having lost my True Yin and becoming a cripple… what would be the point of continuing to live?”
So Eunhyang blinked her large eyes and spoke indifferently.
“I would simply slaughter the entire Ice Flower Court family who caused this situation… then cut off the heads of all those old fogeys in the Martial Alliance who made you do this to me, and finally take my own life.”
Gulp.
Bu Eunseol swallowed dryly.
He wanted to treat it as a joke, but no matter how he thought about it, it didn’t sound like one at all.
“Why? Are you thinking of refusing the marriage?”
When So Eunhyang lifted her long eyelashes and blinked innocently at him, Bu Eunseol hurriedly shook his head.
“Of course not.”
Throughout his life, Bu Eunseol had never made excuses, nor had he ever avoided someone’s gaze.
But right now he had his head bowed, cold sweat pouring, and was desperately making excuse after excuse.
“It’s just… the talk of marriage came so suddenly that I was flustered.”
“I see.”
So Eunhyang gave a bright smile as she slipped the sharp dagger she had hidden in her sleeve back into place.
“I thought you were being serious.”
The blade of the dagger was pitch black—clearly coated thickly with extreme poison at a glance.
Whether her talk of taking her own life was sincere or not… the part about killing the Ice Flower Court and the old men of the Martial Alliance did not seem to be a lie.
Bu Eunseol forced a smile and said, “The lady has quite an impatient personality.”
“What is there to hesitate about when it comes to matters of life and death?” So Eunhyang said placidly. “If you die, you die. If you live, you live.”
“Wise words.”
With an awkward expression, Bu Eunseol wiped the sweat from his forehead.
‘This situation… cannot be avoided.’
For the first time, the word “resignation” floated into his mind. If he refused the proposal… he couldn’t even imagine what So Eunhyang might do.
‘No, that won’t work.’
If they were to perform the Yin-Yang Great Method containing the principle of dual cultivation for a hundred days, the Face and Bone Shifting Art would be broken.
And once that happened, his true identity would be exposed to the entire world.
Drip, drip, drip.
Wiping away the sweat pouring down like a waterfall with his sleeve, Bu Eunseol cautiously opened his mouth.
“L-Lady So. There is one thing I would like to ask. I beg you not to refuse to answer.”
Normally, even if he stood before the Emperor himself, Bu Eunseol would never have spoken so politely.
Yet right now he was looking at her with the utmost courtesy and seriousness.
Because standing right in front of him was…
A beautiful woman in the form of a bomb that might explode at the slightest touch.
“Go ahead.”
“Is there, by any chance… any other method besides that… whatever-it’s-called Great Method to restore the Young Sect Leader’s True Yin?”
“Besides the Returning Essence Joyful Yin Great Method, a way to recover my True Yin?”
“Yes.”
So Eunhyang pursed her vividly red lips into a small circle and blinked her large eyes.
To most men, the sight would have been soul-stealingly beautiful but to Bu Eunseol, it looked like King Yama hesitating whether or not to write his name in the Book of Life and Death.
“Hmm…”
“Is there none?”
“If I had to say… there is one.”
Bu Eunseol’s face instantly brightened.
Suppressing the urge to bow to the heavens in gratitude, he asked carefully, “What is it?”
“You just have to destroy the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall in a single strike.”
“The Heavenly Yin Ice Wall… you mean the ice wall the lady fell from?”
“That’s right. If you can shatter it in one blow, the prohibition left behind by our sect’s founder will be broken. Then we can use the Snow Antler inside to recover my True Yin and even instantly complete the Ice Essence Snow Blossom Energy.”
“The prohibition, you say…”
“The founder said that only when that wall is destroyed can we finally move freely in the martial world. I don’t really know the reason.”
Bu Eunseol felt something strange.
“If it breaks the prohibition and you obtain a treasure at the same time… why hasn’t anyone tried it until now?”
Even if the ice wall was enormous, a master who had transcended human limits and reached the Limitless Realm should at least be capable of breaking it.
Moreover, wasn’t this sect connected to the Martial Venerable?
If it were the Martial Venerable, whose martial prowess was terrifying enough to imitate the Righteous Heaven Emperor…
With his help, they might be able to shatter the ice wall in one strike.
“We can’t break it.”
So Eunhyang shook her head so vigorously that the white nape of her neck was briefly revealed.
“Even a master who has reached the Limitless Realm cannot shatter the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall.”
“Why is that?”
“I don’t know the reason. I was only told that it cannot be broken through martial arts alone.”
‘Cannot be broken through martial arts alone…’
While Bu Eunseol was deep in thought,
“What are you two chatting about so happily?”
With the sound of footsteps, So Yeonghwa entered the hall again, smiling.
“The sound of your murmuring conversation reached all the way outside.”
The gaze So Yeonghwa directed toward Bu Eunseol was tender and gentle—already looking at him as if he were her son-in-law.
“I was telling my husband about the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall.”
“Heavenly Yin Ice Wall?”
“Yes. He asked if there was any way to restore my True Yin without using the Returning Essence Joyful Yin Great Method.”
The smiling eyes of the Snow Blossom Sect Leader instantly turned icy cold.
“Why?”
The moment her gaze landed on him, it felt as though a bucket of ice water had been dumped over his head.
Afraid he had somehow offended her, Bu Eunseol hurriedly answered politely, “I merely thought… that if there were another way, wouldn’t that be the path that truly cares for the Young Sect Leader?”
“For Hyang-ah’s sake?” So Yeonghwa’s gaze grew as cold as a sheet of ice. “Why would another method existing be for Hyang’s sake?”
In that instant, Bu Eunseol’s brain spun faster than light trying to come up with an excuse.
“Well… performing that Great Method continuously for a hundred days… wouldn’t it possibly harm the Young Sect Leader’s delicate body?”
“Hohoho. Already worrying about your wife-to-be?”
So Yeonghwa’s expression relaxed as she smiled with satisfaction.
“With such a caring heart, this Sect Leader is truly pleased.”
“…Thank you.”
“But that is impossible.” She shook her head. “That ice wall cannot be broken even by a master who has reached the Limitless Realm. Because it is not something that can be shattered with martial power.”
“Why is that?”
“The Heavenly Yin Ice Wall is, in itself, the very essence of the Ice Essence Snow Blossom Energy that contains the power of the Snow Antler. In other words, it instantly annihilates any and all force applied to it from the outside.”
The Snow Blossom Sect Leader spoke proudly.
“Even if you detonated a hundred thousand geun of gunpowder, it would not leave a single scratch on the ice wall.”
The reason the Snow Blossom Sect had been able to establish its unique position in the martial world was precisely because of the Ice Essence Snow Blossom—a force capable of annihilating any martial art and instantly penetrating the human body with glacial energy.
“I understand.”
Having finished thinking, Bu Eunseol nodded with a determined expression.
“Then I will try breaking the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall myself.”
“What do you mean by that?”
‘If I cannot persuade her, then I have no choice—either spend a hundred days performing dual cultivation, or abandon the identity of Seon Woojin entirely and flee.’
“There’s no need to make the Young Sect Leader suffer alongside me for a hundred days, is there?” Bu Eunseol’s tongue moved more smoothly than ever before. “If I can destroy it, then the prohibition on the Snow Blossom Sect will also be lifted—it would be killing two birds with one stone.”
“It’s impossible.” At that moment, So Eunhyang, who had been listening quietly, shook her head. “Every genius who ever stepped forward claiming they would break the prohibition has died.”
“It’s fine.” Bu Eunseol spoke with eyes full of determination. “I will definitely succeed in shattering the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall.”
“Hmm.”
After thinking for a moment, So Yeonghwa nodded.
“Could it really be that he can see the future?”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m talking about the Divine Mountain Sage.” Her eyes narrowed as she continued. “He said that the young man he is sending this time might be able to break the shackles of our sect.”
From So Yeonghwa’s words, Bu Eunseol could infer several things.
‘I wasn’t the first.’
She clearly said “this time.”
Which meant many young men had come here before.
And furthermore…
‘He approached them not as the Martial Venerable, but using the identity of the Divine Mountain Sage.’
It wasn’t the Martial Venerable who had contacted the Snow Blossom Sect in advance—it was done through the identity of the Divine Mountain Sage.
That suggested he was most likely handling matters in the martial world not as the Martial Venerable, but as the Divine Mountain Sage.
The Martial Venerable was one of the Three Venerables of the righteous faction, powerful in martial arts.
But the Divine Mountain Sage was the greatest sage revered by the entire martial world.
“Did the Divine Mountain Sage really say that?”
“He did.” So Yeonghwa spoke in a low voice. “I never believed in that reputation of being the greatest sage in the martial world… but everything he has predicted so far has come true.”
From So Yeonghwa’s story, Bu Eunseol could once again infer many things.
‘The Martial Venerable must have deliberately approached the Snow Blossom Sect Leader using the identity of the Divine Mountain Sage and provided various kinds of help.’
The identity of Divine Mountain Sage came with many advantages.
It allowed natural access even to hidden, mysterious sects like this one, and through the word “prediction,” he could manipulate them.
Being called a sage made it easy to create debt with just a few words of prophecy—enough to brainwash entire sects and masters to follow one’s will.
‘Divine Mountain Sage. Martial Venerable.’
Bu Eunseol bit his lip.
Only now did he truly realize just how terrifying a shadow the Martial Venerable had cast.
Even Namgung Jeong, the head of the Namgung family, had once refrained from sending the family’s experts—and even his own sons including Namgung Un—into the martial world all for the sake of obtaining a single favor from him.
The greatest sage in the martial world.
With just that single title, he could easily manipulate countless sects.
‘In the end, it’s the same thing.’
Just like the Demon Emperor, the Martial Venerable was also arbitrarily manipulating other people’s destinies.
Which meant the probability that the Martial Venerable would become his enemy was extremely high.
‘I must obtain the Ice Crystal Jade at all costs.’
Once he obtained the Ice Crystal Jade, the Martial Venerable would no longer be able to avoid a one-on-one confrontation.
Even if he tried to avoid it, Bu Eunseol would create a situation where they had no choice but to meet alone.
Therefore, what he must do now was clear: Shatter the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall, obtain the Ice Crystal Jade, destroy this absurd marriage talk, and as quickly as possible return to the Martial Alliance to force a private meeting with him.
“I will definitely succeed.”
At Bu Eunseol’s words, So Yeonghwa nodded.
“I’ll be waiting.”
After leaving the hall, Bu Eunseol was guided by So Yeonghwa and So Eunhyang back into the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall.
“Please don’t overdo it.”
So Eunhyang already seemed to think of Bu Eunseol as her husband.
Seeing the gaze filled with affection, Bu Eunseol felt his chest tighten, but he forced a smile and stepped inside the gate.
Whoooosh—
A strange, frigid wind blew, but using the mysteries of the Heavenly Glacial Secret, Bu Eunseol advanced without hesitation and once again, he faced the enormous ice wall—the Heavenly Yin Ice Wall.
‘I’ll unleash the maximum power I can muster.’
Harmony.
It was the most powerful martial art Bu Eunseol could perform—powerful enough to make even the vicious Human Demon, Ak Muryeong, instinctively evade.
However, executing Harmony required far too much time, and aligning the forces perfectly was extremely difficult.
Because of this, it was a technique that could never be used in actual combat.
‘If I had reached the Limitless Realm… could I have unleashed Harmony consecutively?’
The question suddenly arose.
If he had advanced step by step toward the Limitless Realm through the Ascending Steps…
Would he have been able to fire off Harmony repeatedly in the future?
‘No, that’s not right.’
The term Limitless Realm was closer to a word describing the pinnacle a human could theoretically reach.
Even within the Limitless Realm, depending on one’s enlightenment, martial prowess could still vary tremendously.
The only common characteristic was the ability to wield the transcendent power known as Infinite Force.
But Harmony… was a technique that poured out all the mixed powers within Bu Eunseol’s body at once.
It was less about reaching the ultimate pinnacle of martial arts, and more akin to the supreme mystery of simultaneously deploying multiple martial arts.
‘If I had reached the Limitless Realm, I would likely have manifested phenomena unrelated to Harmony.’
Should he feel regret then?
If he could wield Infinite Force, he would be able to compete with other masters of the Limitless Realm.
‘This is something I must be clear about.’
The higher one climbs in martial arts—or anything else—the easier it becomes to fall into delusion and demonic thoughts.
Because with a single momentary choice, the final destination can change completely.
After thinking long and deeply, Bu Eunseol finally reached a firm conclusion.
‘It was the right choice after all.’
If he had reached the Limitless Realm?
He would never have been able to defeat the Three Demons and Three Venerables or the Demon Emperor, who had reached the Limitless Realm first.
Moreover, he couldn’t even guess how much time he would have wasted trying to surpass them.
Of course, the Limitless Realm was the realm of enlightenment. There was no guarantee that even if Bu Eunseol entered the Limitless Realm later, he would never catch up to them.
Still… this path was faster.
Choosing to step onto a new, previously unexplored path of martial arts meant no one could predict what kind of realm he might ultimately reach. In other words—even if he fought against current masters of the Limitless Realm right now, no one could predict the outcome.
Because the place he currently stood was neither the Supreme Heavenly Realm nor the state of Ascending Steps.
‘The Demon Emperor must also have been trying to break through the limits of the martial realm he possessed.’
Otherwise, he would not have immediately realized that Bu Eunseol was not walking an ordinary path of martial progression.
And the reason the Demon Emperor made such a choice was probably one of two things:
Either because it was the way to reach the Heaven’s Will Realm, or because there existed a master even stronger than the Demon Emperor, and he had no choice but to choose this path to catch up.
‘Though it’s hard to believe there’s someone stronger than the Demon Emperor.’
Hwarrrrr—
Erasing the rising distracting thoughts, Bu Eunseol began drawing up the power of Harmony.
Five-colored radiance started to bloom from his entire body.
‘It’s gotten a little faster.’
In the past, aligning the forces within his body required more than half an hour but now he could shorten that time by more than double.
The problem was that the Prajna Great Power was the key.
Only the Prajna Great Power could perfectly align the chaotic forces and since it only activated automatically when danger was detected or when attacked by an enemy, Bu Eunseol still could not freely perform Harmony.
“Uuuugh…”
Even now, despite raising every ounce of power he had, the Prajna Great Power did not manifest.
Because of this, the forces within his body were not perfectly aligned, and the sheer power he had drawn up was on the verge of destroying his own flesh.
Crack, crack—
As his skin split and his bones began to twist under the overwhelming force contained within him—
Ziiing—
Finally, golden light flickered.
At the same moment the Prajna Great Power activated, every force in his body achieved perfect alignment.
Ku-ku-ku-ku—
At the same instant, the entire Heavenly Yin Ice Wall began to tremble as if it would collapse.
The unparalleled, domineering power that had once forced even the vicious Ak Muryeong to take evasive action.
Harmony was about to be unleashed.
Flash!
In that moment, lightning-like sparks flashed through Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
‘I cannot use Harmony here!’
Realizing a fact he had overlooked until now, from within his body—
Uuuung… thud thud thud.
A grotesque sound echoed.
Having resolved himself to internal injury, he forcibly halted the power of Harmony.
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