However, it was not something that could be perfectly exercised on just anyone.
It was only at a faint level—enough to peer dimly into the heart of someone whose martial prowess was far inferior to his own, like Ok Jeong, and whose heart was filled with deep resentment and sorrow.
‘I myself must have been an easy person to peer into back then.’
When Bu Eunseol first stepped into the martial world, he had been consumed by vengeance.
That was why the Demon Emperor had been able to see straight through his mind so clearly.
The blazing flames of fury had illuminated every hidden corner of his soul.
“You did it on purpose?”
At that moment, Ok Jeong spoke in a voice sharp as thorns.
“What do you mean, on purpose?” Having read her heart, Bu Eunseol showed a calm smile. “It seemed like something was weighing heavily on you.”
It was an innocent, malice-free gaze and the comfortable smile one might give an old friend.
“In times like these, I doubt there’s anyone living without at least one deep regret or grievance buried inside…”
Looking at Ok Jeong as tears began to spill from her eyes, he let out a soft sigh.
It was a sigh of empathy.
“If it’s a relationship we’ll never see again anyway, wouldn’t it be fine to pour it all out—like getting drunk and singing one’s heart out?”
Bu Eunseol’s voice grew thin, as though he himself were intoxicated.
“A passing connection. Nothing to be ashamed of, nothing to regret…”
Her suppressed sobs immediately grew louder.
He had touched her heart once more—deliberately.
‘Am I trying to become like the Pavilion Lord?’
In truth, for Ok Jeong—a master of heart-manipulating techniques—to fall into such a state was because Bu Eunseol had intentionally evaporated the alcohol he drank, filling the entire room with wine qi, causing her to feel intoxicated, and second, because—imitating the Demon Emperor—he had shaken her soul, drawing out the pent-up rage and pain that had long lain dormant within her.
‘Though it was only an imitation.’
The fundamental principle of Nangyang Pavilion’s martial studies was to turn the enemy’s long suit into one’s own technique and strike the enemy with the enemy’s own strength.
Bu Eunseol had personally witnessed the Demon Emperor’s psychological warfare and had been exposed to Ak Muryeong’s Illusion Upon Illusion Technique multiple times.
As a result, at some point he had naturally become well-versed in techniques that struck directly at the spirit.
Drip, drip.
She, who had been silently shedding tears, finally broke into anguished wailing.
“Mother! Mother died so tragically!”
They were words of long-buried grievance that Ok Jeong had never been able to voice until now.
Bu Eunseol said nothing, merely lowered his head.
Just showing that he understood would be great comfort to her.
After time passed and her crying gradually subsided, Bu Eunseol spoke warmly.
“Are you feeling a little calmer now?”
Having steadied her heart, Ok Jeong nodded.
“Thank you.”
Then she let out the deepest sigh imaginable.
“You really are incredible.”
Ok Jeong was the young pavilion lord of Morning Mist Hall and had mastered outstanding heart-manipulation martial arts.
Yet the technique Bu Eunseol used to seize control of the soul was completely different from ordinary heart techniques or the soul-subduing secret arts scattered throughout the martial world.
With just one cup of wine and some reminiscing about the past, he made her pour out every tormenting memory she had kept locked away, releasing the resentment, rage, and regrets she had hidden deep in her heart.
“What do you mean?”
When Bu Eunseol feigned ignorance, Ok Jeong shot him a sidelong glance.
“First with a single cup of wine, then with your own story… step by step, you dismantled this pavilion lord’s wariness and the walls around her heart.”
She gave a faint smile.
“And then you reached into my heart, drew out the wounds, and helped me so they would torment me no longer.”
Bu Eunseol no longer pretended and simply nodded.
“I merely thought the pavilion lord seemed to carry a pain similar to my own, so I hoped speaking freely might bring some relief.”
“I see.”
Ok Jeong gave a sad smile.
“It seems tonight, for the first time, I’ll actually be able to sleep peacefully.”
She rose from her seat and offered the deepest courtesy.
“You pass, My Lord.”
“Thank you.”
Bu Eunseol returned the salute.
Then, with an impassive expression, he turned and walked outside.
‘Did she already fall to heart technique and spill her secrets?’
Elder Hyang was puzzled to see Bu Eunseol emerge so quickly, even though not much time had passed.
‘The one I expected to hold out the longest came out first?’
Because of the strong qi barrier, he could not hear what had transpired inside.
Thus Elder Hyang had no idea by what method Bu Eunseol had earned a pass.
Creak.
At that moment the pavilion door opened and Ok Jeong stepped out.
“I forgot to say this earlier.”
Wiping away her tears and giving a bright smile, Ok Jeong bowed deeply toward Bu Eunseol in thanks.
“Thank you.”
It was gratitude mixed with genuine feeling.
Seeing this, Elder Hyang’s eyes nearly popped out in shock.
Among Wind God Palace’s disciples, Ok Jeong was known for having the coldest personality; she never showed emotion in any situation.
And yet here she was, eyes still wet with tears, thanking a man?
‘What in the world happened in there?’
Elder Hyang felt like jumping up and down from curiosity.
“No need for such words.”
Bu Eunseol returned the courtesy calmly.
Looking at him, Ok Jeong showed the most peaceful and gentle smile imaginable.
Then she turned and went back inside.
“Martial Soul Command Lord.”
Finally unable to hold back, Elder Hyang approached Bu Eunseol and asked, “What exactly did you do to make Pavilion Lord Ok become so gentle and soft like that?”
“We simply talked.”
“You… talked?”
Elder Hyang frowned.
Ok Jeong was not only cold by nature; she extremely disliked long conversations.
A woman who spent every spare moment in seated meditation or reading—how could she have talked at length with Bu Eunseol and emerged wearing a smile as warm as spring wind?
‘Surely not seduction through beauty?’
Impossible.
Ok Jeong was a master of soul-subduing secret arts and cultivated the Cold Heart Method; even a man a hundred or thousand times more handsome than Bu Eunseol would not move her in the slightest.
So how could she show such a smile?
Thud, thud.
Just then, as if on cue, men began emerging from the various chambers they had entered.
Some wore defeated expressions while others strode out confidently as though nothing had happened.
“Brother Bu.”
Among those with proud expressions was, fortunately, Hyeok Sojin.
But he looked utterly exhausted, his complexion pale.
“You passed?”
“Yes. You passed as well, Brother Bu.”
“Indeed.”
Hyeok Sojin wiped his nose and said, “Fortunately, mine was relatively easy. She had a gambler’s temperament.”
“I see.”
Bu Eunseol gave a faint nod.
Just as he had expected, this test was designed so that only those who opened their hearts to the masters of soul-subduing arts—and proved they would not harm Wind God Palace—would pass.
“Those who passed, follow this elder.”
Once again Elder Hyang led the young men deeper into Wind God Palace.
At that, Yeo Mungi spoke irritably.
“How long do you intend to keep putting us through these tests?”
Elder Hyang shook her head.
“This is the final test.”
Then, in a low voice, she continued, “From here on, the place you will go is the hidden chamber where one can obtain this palace’s Wind-Cloud Qi.”
Wind-Cloud Qi.
Unlike the divine Wind-Cloud Divine Qi of the Four Gods, this was the natural energy that flowed spontaneously within Wind God Palace. The palace’s disciples cultivated this Wind-Cloud Qi like an internal cultivation method to refine their martial arts.
With a solemn expression, Elder Hyang went on.
“You may absorb the Wind-Cloud Qi to your heart’s content there. Depending on the amount each of you absorbs, we will select the Great Duke—the one who will become the Young Palace Lord’s consort.”
In that instant Yeo Mungi’s eyes flashed.
Obtaining Wind-Cloud Divine Qi would allow one to stand as one of the Four Gods of the martial world.
But even Wind-Cloud Qi alone could dramatically increase one’s martial power.
When fused with martial techniques, it produced terrifying might.
And now there was a hidden chamber where one could absorb it freely?
“Follow this elder.”
Elder Hyang once more led the group forward.
“We’re finally at the end.” Hyeok Sojin whispered excitedly, “Do you think Wind-Cloud Qi might be able to heal you as well?”
“We’ll have to see.”
Bu Eunseol’s expression held little expectation.
Even the Divine Energies existing within his body had failed to eliminate the light energy affliction. The odds that Wind-Cloud Qi—a lesser power compared to Wind-Cloud Divine Qi—could restore his body were almost nonexistent.
“This is the place.”
The hidden chamber Wind God Palace spoke of was an artificially excavated cavern that seemed to pierce an entire mountain.
The interior was vast, with countless branching paths like a maze.
Numerous doors could be seen everywhere—presumably cultivation chambers designed for quietly absorbing and refining Wind-Cloud Qi.
Rumble.
As Elder Hyang approached, the entrance door opened on its own.
The dark, blackish door forged from North Sea’s dark iron was nearly five feet thick.
With such thickness, unless one wielded Infinite Reverse Power, breaking out would be impossible.
“The door will open again in six days.”
Elder Hyang spoke calmly.
“Cultivate to your heart’s content until then.”
Boom.
When the door finally closed, the faces of those who had entered the Choseo Conference brightened.
All of them had lived while suppressing sorrow so they hungered for martial advancement and outstanding fame. Even if they failed to become Wind God Palace’s Great Duke, simply obtaining Wind-Cloud Qi here would be enough to satisfy them.
“It doesn’t seem to have as much spiritual pressure as the rumors claimed.”
At that moment Yeo Mungi looked at Bu Eunseol and spoke coldly.
“I heard you had built martial prowess great enough to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Bullet King. But seeing you now… it’s just so-so.”
Though arrogant, his observation was quite sharp.
Bu Eunseol’s body was far from normal at present, and the internal energy remaining to him did not even reach one jia’s worth.
“Ahh, I see.”
A violet gleam spread through Hyeok Sojin’s eyes.
“Then shall we have a taste of the Divided Light Severing Moon Sword said to be the true attack style of the Jiangnan Martial Alliance Leader?”
As he wrapped his body in Divine Rift Demon Energy, a terrifying aura spread outward.
Yeo Mungi merely shook his head as though dead inside.
“Your subordinate has quite the presence.” His words seemed to mock the fact that Bu Eunseol himself did not step forward, leaving it to Hyeok Sojin. “The successor of the Heaven and Earth Severing Sect has deeper internal energy than the Command Lord whose name shakes the world?”
Yet he lacked the courage to actually fight; he turned away and muttered under his breath, “I’d better hurry and find a place where Wind-Cloud Qi flows strongly so I can absorb it.”
Once Yeo Mungi left, the remaining few glared at Bu Eunseol and Hyeok Sojin before scattering in all directions.
The only demonic path figures here were Bu Eunseol and Hyeok Sojin.
Aside from the unknown smiling man, everyone else belonged to the orthodox sects—so their reaction was understandable.
[I wish you luck.]
At that moment Zhuge Seoun sent them a transmission.
[Let us compete fairly.]
Then he too disappeared somewhere into the cavern.
As both a young master of one of the Eight Great Families and a competitor in the Choseo Conference, he seemed intent on setting personal familiarity aside for now.
“That friend must have felt deeply ashamed of his own skill back then.”
Watching the direction Zhuge Seoun had gone, Hyeok Sojin grinned.
“He used to look like such a bookish scholar, yet now he’s become a proper martial world warrior who stakes his life on a single sword.”
“He even rebelled against that strict family head and left the clan—he must have truly wanted to become strong.” Bu Eunseol let out a low snort.
Back then, the young masters of the Eight Great Families could not even compare to Hyeok Sojin, let alone Bu Eunseol himself.
But the matter of the Mad Soul Physician had instead become a powerful catalyst, and now they were finally walking the true path of martial artists.
“Brother Bu, shall we start cultivating as well?”
Nodding, Bu Eunseol surveyed the cavern.
Though laid out like a maze, cultivation stone chambers with closable doors were placed like signposts throughout.
There was little risk of getting lost, and one could train in silence.
After looking around for a while, Bu Eunseol fixed his gaze on a small cultivation chamber and nodded.
“This one should do.”
It was the spot inside the cavern where Wind-Cloud Qi rose most densely.
Because he carried Divine Energies within his body, Bu Eunseol could sense the flow of Wind-Cloud Qi more clearly than anyone.
“Let’s cultivate here.”
The chamber wall bore inscriptions explaining how to absorb and store Wind-Cloud Qi within the body.
After studying the method text for a long time, Hyeok Sojin widened his eyes and turned around.
“What about you, Brother Bu?”
“I’m not going to be Wind God Palace’s Great Duke, am I?”
Uncharacteristically, Bu Eunseol wore an apologetic expression.
“Even an ordinary martial artist can greatly increase their power by mastering Wind God Qi, so work hard at it.”
What Wind God Palace wanted was a live-in son-in-law but Hyeok Sojin was the next lord of Heaven and Earth Severing Sect. Even if he passed every test, it would be difficult for him to actually become the palace’s Great Duke.
“No way. I mean it.”
Having seen through Bu Eunseol’s true intention, Hyeok Sojin spoke gravely.
“The Heaven and Earth Severing Sect is a small matter. If you cannot recover your body, Brother Bu… then the sect, and the entire demonic path, will collapse.”
Bu Eunseol was one of the grandmasters who currently dominated the martial world.
If someone of his caliber failed to recover?
Not only would the board he had painstakingly set up collapse—the demonic sects and Martial Soul Society that followed him would eventually fall as well.
“I understand.”
Bu Eunseol smiled.
In any case, even if Hyeok Sojin became Great Duke, he had no intention of taking any Wind-Cloud Divine Qi for himself.
Rather, through this Choseo Conference, he had secretly prepared a second-best plan.
He had simply run out of time to resolve a certain matter.
Preparing fallback plans was, for him, the most natural thing in the world.
But how could he have known?
Before he could even use that second-best plan, he would become entangled in an unimaginable conspiracy.
***
After leaving the cultivation chamber where Hyeok Sojin was, Bu Eunseol looked around.
Finding a very spacious and comfortable cultivation chamber where almost no Wind-Cloud Qi emerged, he walked toward it.
Slide.
A small stone lay in front of the chamber and stepping on it automatically opened the stone door.
Staring at it, Bu Eunseol suddenly felt something strange.
Was it really necessary to build so many large-scale cultivation chambers in such a massive hidden complex, each fitted with mechanical devices?
‘The scale doesn’t make sense.’
Thinking about it, for a mere chamber meant to cultivate Wind-Cloud Qi, it was odd.
From the outside it clearly looked as though an entire mountain had been hollowed out, and structurally it should have multiple levels.
Yet in reality there was only a single cavern?
“If that’s the case, then this place is—”
Just as Bu Eunseol was about to examine the surroundings of the chamber,
Slide.
Once again a door opened, and a young man appeared—eyes curved into crescents as he smiled.
It was the very same unknown young man Bu Eunseol had been watching all along.
“Oh my, so the Martial Soul Command Lord was here.”
The young man wore a playful expression.
Though his face was full of jest, Bu Eunseol could tell this person was far from ordinary.
“If you want to use this place, go ahead. I’ll step aside.”
“No, no—I’ll leave.”
The young man turned to go.
“Oh, by the way.”
“…”
“Why would the renowned Martial Soul Command Lord—whose name shakes the world—bother participating in a Choseo Conference he wasn’t even invited to?”
The young man scratched his head.
“I heard Wind God Palace was conducting it in utmost secrecy… I happened to hear about it by chance. It was so strange and intriguing that I had to see for myself.”
“Personal reasons. I’d rather not say.”
“I see. Sorry about that.”
Smiling lightly, the man walked out of the chamber again.
“But did you know?”
Turning back once more, he wore a meaningful smile.
“While it is true that Wind God Palace is holding the Choseo Conference to select someone… there is a reason they suddenly summoned so many prospects and rushed the whole thing.”
Bu Eunseol furrowed his brow.
That very point had already puzzled him.
Even if they truly couldn’t find a suitable son-in-law despite searching the entire martial world, for a colossal sect like Wind God Palace to gather people on such a small scale and hold such an awkward competition—it made no sense.
“In truth, there are two reasons. Would you like to hear them?”
When Bu Eunseol nodded, the man spoke in a low voice.
“The first is that the previous palace lord was suddenly assassinated by the supreme master of the demonic path—the Demon Emperor. Because of that, Wind God Palace had no choice but to prepare in a somewhat hasty and sloppy manner.”
In that instant Bu Eunseol’s eyes widened.
The previous palace lord had been killed by the Demon Emperor?
Then they surely harbored enormous enmity toward him as well—the successor of Majeon.
‘So that’s how it was.’
Only then did Bu Eunseol realize why Elder Hyang had insisted on bringing him—someone with none of the Five Elements Qi—into the Choseo Conference.
She must have some scheme in mind to harm him.
“The second reason is…”
The young man paused, then shook his head.
“I’m giving you valuable information, yet you’re glaring at me so fiercely. How am I supposed to keep talking like this?”
When the man kept teasing, Bu Eunseol replied coldly, “If you don’t want to say it, then don’t.”
“Hahaha. Just kidding. Don’t look so serious.”
He continued, “The second reason is that, internally, they have already decided on the Young Palace Lord’s consort. That’s why the conference was started on such a pathetic scale.”
“If a candidate is already decided, why bother holding the Choseo Conference at all?”
“Call it a form of comparison?”
The young man smiled faintly.
“Rather than suddenly announcing they found a husband for the Young Palace Lord, it’s far more convincing to hold a competition, have many excellent men participate, and then say ‘among them, this outstanding one remained’… that sort of thing.”
A sharp glint passed through Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
The fact that such persuasion was necessary for the Young Palace Lord… did that not mean Wind God Palace had already been infiltrated by external forces?
“That pre-chosen person is you?”
“Correct.”
The man gave a soft chuckle.
“Heartless Shadow, Yong Hoe. I belong to the Returning to One Realm.”
Instantly flames blazed in Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
The Returning to One Realm—the ones who had taken his grandfather’s corpse—was the group he hated most in the world.
‘Heartless Shadow?’
But he quickly regained his composure.
If he lost control here, he might miss crucial information about the Returning to One Realm.
“I’ve never heard of a ‘Heartless Shadow.’ Are you an Emissary?"
“It’s less of a position… and more like an existence?”
Yong Hoe laughed in circles as he spoke.
“I’m more like a consumable. Whenever a mission requires it, I act accordingly.”
His expression was so playful it was hard to tell whether he was lying or telling the truth.
“And we have already secretly embedded our faction’s forces inside Wind God Palace. More than half of their core elders have come over to our side.”
Bu Eunseol clenched his fist tightly.
Before he knew it, the Returning to One Realm’s demonic hand had reached into Wind God Palace as well.
Moreover, they had already won over more than half the palace’s core members in advance and orchestrated this affair…
Yet by sheer coincidence, Bu Eunseol had gotten involved.
“Why tell me all this?”
Yong Hoe’s eyes curved into crescents once more.
“Let’s have a proper match, shall we?”
Comments