Bu Eunseol’s eyes narrowed as he stared at the Holy One.
He recalled the situation from that time.
***
“Why did only the young survive?”
Bu Eunseol, who had examined the corpses at the cemetery back then, could not understand it at all.
If the Holy One could absorb the plague and life force, there was no need to go through the trouble of keeping the young alive.
Especially martial arts like the Essence Absorption Great Method, which possessed all the profound principles of absorption, strictly avoided stopping midway. Doing so would cause injury from the rebound or prevent the proper execution of the absorption principles.
The standard was to absorb everything without leaving anything behind.
So why had only the young been spared?
Could it be that he could not take their lives and had shown mercy?
“No, that can’t be.”
Bu Eunseol shook his head.
That was impossible.
If that were the case, there would be no reason to kill only the elderly.
Moreover, the fact that only the young had survived meant there was some deliberate reason behind it.
“I must confirm this first.”
To track the Holy One’s whereabouts, he first needed to clearly understand exactly what the Holy One was plotting and what he was doing.
In the end, Bu Eunseol took the time to thoroughly investigate Sang’an Village once more.
In particular, as he closely examined those who had survived the plague, strange details began to catch his eye one by one.
At first, he had simply thought that “the young” had survived, but upon closer observation, the age ranges of the survivors were clearly divided according to gender.
Some men had reached their forties, but not a single woman over thirty had survived.
The fact that the survivors’ ages were so distinctly divided by gender was strong evidence of intentional selection—that someone had artificially filtered the survivors.
“So he deliberately spared men up to their forties and women only up to their thirties.”
A sharp light flashed in Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
‘If I closely examine and check the survivors’ bodies, I should be able to clearly uncover the cause.’
The human body does not lie.
After careful consideration, Bu Eunseol disguised himself as a wandering physician and returned to Sang’an Village.
In this remote mountain village, there were no proper doctors. Even if there were, treatment and medicine were extremely expensive, so the poor could not even visit one.
However, wandering physicians treated the sick for free or provided medicine at low cost, so the villagers always welcomed their visits.
Buzzing voices.
A long line had formed in front of the small temporary clinic temporarily set up at the entrance of the village.
Bu Eunseol, disguised as an ordinary middle-aged physician, was receiving patients.
Since the plague had already swept through Sang’an Village once, there was a constant fear that it could return at any time. When the rumor spread that a wandering physician had opened a clinic, the villagers rushed there in droves.
‘Although I could not determine why the survivors’ ages differed so drastically by gender…’
After carefully taking the pulses of the villagers for several days, Bu Eunseol was able to discover one astonishing piece of information.
‘I have definitely found the reason they were able to survive the plague.’
Strangely enough, inside the bodies of all the survivors, there resided a powerful energy that someone had forcibly injected.
It was a transcendent and alien power—the Sealed Demon Fragments.
‘So the reason they could survive was because of the Sealed Demon Fragments.’
If he had not acted as a physician and closely examined their bodies, he would never have been able to detect this energy.
The energy the Holy One had injected was so subtle that even physicians with outstanding senses or martial artists could not perceive it.
If Bu Eunseol had not encountered the energy of the Sealed Demon Fragments and the Mixed Demonic Magic Energy multiple times before, he would never have been able to sense it.
‘But why on earth?’
Injecting such energy into ordinary people would bring no benefit to the True Demon.
So why had the Holy One planted energy similar to the Sealed Demon Fragments inside the bodies of ordinary civilians who were not even martial artists?
‘Let me examine it once more with the Heavenly Mirror Heart Sutra.’
Jiiing.
To uncover the origin of that power, he pretended to take their pulses while deploying the Heavenly Mirror Heart Sutra. Then something astonishing happened.
The energies entered through his fingertips and began digging into his meridians.
As if they possessed will like living creatures, the moment their presence was detected, they immediately attacked Bu Eunseol as if they had discovered him.
‘How dare you.’
Bu Eunseol’s eyes flashed.
Before he knew it, the power had changed form infinitely and was trying to shake and sever his meridians.
Woooong.
He immediately raised his internal energy to push the power out.
But the energies continued to resist by endlessly changing their form and attributes.
‘Good.’
Whiiiing.
When he aligned the energy inside his body with full power, a five-colored radiance momentarily burst from his form.
Harmony.
He enveloped his body with the Harmony that could annihilate all existence and burned away the bizarre power digging into him.
Psss.
In the end, the invading power turned into a wisp of smoke and scattered in all directions.
Drop.
A bead of sweat formed on Bu Eunseol’s forehead.
‘If it hadn’t been for the power of Harmony, it would have been truly dangerous.’
The Sealed Demon Fragments planted in these people were on a completely different level from the previous ones.
They possessed an unpredictable nature that constantly changed attributes.
If he had not suppressed them instantly with the power of Harmony, completely eradicating them might have been impossible.
“Doctor, didn’t something just flash brightly?”
When the man lying down asked, Bu Eunseol shook his head.
“You are still seeing things due to the aftereffects of the illness.”
He gave a vague excuse, sent the patient away, and bit his lip.
‘So every survivor in Sang’an Village has this kind of power embedded in their bodies.’
To remove the energy embedded in the survivors of Sang’an Village, he would need to stay here for at least three more days.
For Bu Eunseol, who had only one month left under the Demon Emperor’s orders, it was extremely precious yet painfully time-consuming.
But he did not hesitate.
‘I will save the villagers first.’
He never turned a blind eye to those who needed help.
If he pretended not to see in such a situation, he would not even be qualified to avenge his grandfather.
It was because of this firm conviction that he had been able to run toward his goal for so many years without giving up.
In the end, while continuing to take the villagers’ pulses, Bu Eunseol used Harmony to erase the alien and bizarre powers planted inside them.
It was quite a grueling and difficult task, but he devoted himself fully, absorbing and burning the powers inside their bodies again and again.
Thanks to this, Bu Eunseol not only shortened the time required to release Harmony a little further, but its power also grew stronger…
However, because he was frantically saving the civilians, he did not even realize this change.
***
“You removed it?”
The Holy One, upon hearing Bu Eunseol’s words, wore a somewhat dazed expression.
The power he had injected was not something that could simply be removed.
Yet this man spoke as if he had casually crushed a bug and gotten rid of it?
“Hahaha.”
After thinking for a long while, the Holy One suddenly burst into clear laughter.
His expression was one of immense joy, as if he had found a hidden treasure.
“If you can annihilate that power, then you certainly qualify.”
The Holy One nodded with an extremely delighted face.
“I will tell you. The True Demon’s purpose that you were curious about, and my own identity.”
It was an unexpected statement.
Bu Eunseol had thought the only thing left was a bloody battle with the Holy One.
But the moment he heard that the alien energy similar to the Sealed Demon Fragments had been removed from the villagers’ bodies, the Holy One was willingly answering all his questions?
“Will you listen?” The Holy One showed a refreshing smile again. “To that answer?”
“Of course.”
He had only intended to gauge the Holy One’s martial origin and internal energy through battle.
In the first place, he had no means to forcibly open the Holy One’s mouth.
If the Holy One was going to speak willingly, there was no reason to refuse.
“Then I should prepare some tea.”
The Holy One smiled gently and pointed to the table in front of the cottage.
“Please sit for a moment.”
Without waiting for a reply, he immediately turned and headed to the kitchen inside the cottage.
Since the door was wide open, Bu Eunseol could clearly watch the Holy One preparing the tea.
The Holy One slowly reached out and opened a wooden box inside the kitchen.
Inside the box were old tea leaves that seemed to have silently endured the weight of long years.
He picked up one leaf with his fingertips, brought it to his nose, and took a light breath.
Strangely, Bu Eunseol could also smell it—the scent of earth on a rainy mountainside, the warmth of sun-dried meadows, and a cozy, comforting fragrance.
Clack.
The Holy One took out an antique teacup and instantly boiled water using his internal energy.
As the dried leaves steeped in the hot water one by one, they unfolded as if small spirits regaining life were stretching.
Clack. Swish, swish.
Every movement the Holy One made while brewing the tea was refined and restrained, without any waste.
It looked as if he were pouring all his life force into making a single cup of tea.
Bu Eunseol could only watch the sight with reverence, as if entranced.
‘This man…’
It was merely the act of brewing tea, yet it had a suction force that seemed to draw in the soul.
Each and every action seemed to reflect the life he had lived.
‘He is definitely not a middle-aged man.’
The movements of masters could elevate even a single action into art and contain their soul within it.
Watching the Holy One brew the tea, Bu Eunseol could guess that he had lived a life incomparably longer than ordinary people.
“Try it.”
When the tea was finally ready, the Holy One placed the teacup in front of Bu Eunseol.
In truth, whether the Holy One brought tea or not, Bu Eunseol had no intention of drinking it.
But after witnessing the brewing process, he could not refuse.
It was a single cup that seemed to contain a soul.
Swish.
The moment the tea entered his throat, Bu Eunseol felt a ringing in his head.
It was merely hot tea entering his mouth, yet an indescribable thrill and lingering sensation spread throughout his entire body.
“Hehe.”
Seeing this, the Holy One smiled with satisfaction and carefully drank his own tea.
Then he closed his eyes tightly, keeping all his senses open to fully enjoy the aftertaste for a long time.
“What is this tea made from?”
Bu Eunseol had drunk tea personally brewed by many masters.
Among them were supreme experts who encompassed the world and great figures who had devoted their entire lives to creating delicious tea leaves.
But he could declare without hesitation that compared to this single cup he had just drunk, all the teas he had ever tasted felt like plain water with no aroma whatsoever.
“If you ask what it is made from…”
In response to Bu Eunseol’s question, the Holy One kept his eyes closed for a long time, savoring the taste, then let out a deep sigh and slowly opened his eyes.
“It could be called a long, long, and resentful span of years.”
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“You will soon find out.”
The Holy One smiled.
“Because I will now tell you the reasons.”
“……”
“Were you curious about the True Demon’s purpose?”
When Bu Eunseol nodded, the Holy One spoke in an extremely low voice.
“Simply put, he is trying to create a new world.”
“A new world.”
Usually, the phrase “new world” was used when plotting rebellion.
But the True Demon would not bother with something like rebellion.
The True Demon, who had ruled the world while carrying memories of reincarnation for generations—his purpose could not possibly be something as trivial as ascending the throne.
No, considering his mysterious knowledge and lives of reincarnation… there was no position as empty and useless as the imperial seat.
“To easily understand what the True Demon means by a new world… it would be solved by hearing the purpose of the Baekri family.”
The Holy One spoke in a calm voice as if to resolve Bu Eunseol’s curiosity.
“The purpose of the Baekri family is to preserve the current world.”
He continued calmly,
“And the True Demon is trying to create a new world. Do you understand what that means?”
Will the world be preserved?
Or will it be newly created?
As the two contrasting meanings were imprinted in his mind, Bu Eunseol could faintly guess what the Holy One was trying to say and what it signified.
“The thing left in the bodies of the young, like the Sealed Demon Fragments.”
Thump. Thump. Thump.
His heart pounded as if it would tear apart.
Bu Eunseol widened his eyes in disbelief and said, “Surely you don’t mean that creating a new world involves making new people?”
“That is correct.”
The Holy One wore an extremely solemn expression.
“The True Demon has always had his subordinates kill those born weak so that the next generation would be born even slightly stronger.”
Then he said something unbelievable.
“His true purpose is for all people in the world to become like himself—in mind and in body.”
“Mind and body… like himself.”
“It would be easier to understand if I say he is spreading seeds.”
The moment he heard those words, something flashed through Bu Eunseol’s mind.
He finally clearly understood the meaning behind the Holy One’s words.
“Since the current generation of humans cannot be changed, he will start changing them from the next generation?”
“Exactly.”
Bu Eunseol took a deep breath with a dumbfounded expression.
Only now did all the secrets unravel.
The reason the Holy One had left something like the Sealed Demon Fragments inside the bodies of the young was not to immediately change their minds and bodies, but to turn the next generation they would give birth to and raise—that is, the children who would be born in the future—into seeds that could become the True Demon’s subordinates.
“So if the True Demon infects the young people of the current generation, that influence will extend to their descendants?”
“That is correct.”
“Then he… could be called a god.”
Bu Eunseol stared at the Holy One with unfocused eyes.
To touch the young people of the current generation and pass down that harm and curse for generations?
Such an ability was truly something only a god could do.
“Not at all. It is not that difficult.”
The Holy One said calmly.
“Techniques like the Innate Reverse Creation Great Method or the Reverse God Body Exchange Technique… methods or arts that turn unborn children into exceptional martial artists are commonly passed down in the martial world, aren’t they?”
“But those are great methods performed at least in the fetal stage.”
“It is the same. The Innate Reverse Creation Great Method ultimately originates from ancient secret arts that change the body.”
The Holy One spoke as if it were nothing special.
“The True Demon has accumulated enormous knowledge through repeated reincarnations over generations… so transforming ancient secret techniques is not particularly difficult for him.”
An absolute evil that had existed since the beginning of time, and the True Demon who carried memories and reincarnated repeatedly—for him, not only using ancient secret arts but even creating superior ones was not difficult.
“Then one of the conditions for planting that seed… must be contracting a serious illness like the plague.”
“Exactly.”
The Holy One nodded.
“Only when the body is weakened by such a major illness can it finally accept the seed. It is like evolving in the face of death.”
“But I still don’t understand.” Bu Eunseol asked, “Such a great being who can freely create ancient secret arts… why was his soul torn apart by the Baekri family, and why has he still not properly revealed himself?”
“As with the laws of nature, every power comes with restrictions. Since he too is a human made of blood and flesh, he could not escape those limits.”
The Holy One looked at the distant sky.
“So he researched a way to transcend those restrictions. With an ingenious idea that no one could have predicted.”
“What is it?”
“He decided to use the power of a hostile force that approaches his own strength.”
Then the Holy One once again told a shocking truth that even Bu Eunseol could hardly endure with a clear mind.
“If he could use the Baekri family’s Manifestation Divine Technique and his own Mixed Demonic Magic Energy at the same time? Wouldn’t he be able to perform a great method that transcends those restrictions?”
“Then…”
“Exactly. He captured people from the Baekri family and turned them into puppets capable of wielding techniques that surpass human limits.”
The Holy One lowered his gaze, which had been fixed on the sky, toward Bu Eunseol and said,
“That is the true identity of those you call the Holy Ones.”
Thud.
Unable to withstand the enormous shock, Bu Eunseol’s head dropped.
The Holy One, whom he had thought was merely a subordinate of the True Demon who drained the life force of young civilians and spread a bizarre plague to exterminate the elderly, was actually a puppet created by capturing people from the Baekri family so that he could perform forbidden great methods to turn all the children to be born in the future into the True Demon’s subordinates…
How could such a thing be possible?
At that moment, Bu Eunseol realized something and opened his mouth.
“The Sealed Demon Fragments… is that why you were encroached upon by the True Demon?”
“You know.”
The Holy One nodded.
“The Baekri bloodline is vulnerable to the Sealed Demon Fragments. The deeper one has cultivated the Manifestation Divine Technique, the more vulnerable they become.”
“Then does that mean you are also a person from the Baekri family?”
The Holy One gathered a lonely smile.
“I was, in the past.”
“What do you mean?”
“I have lost most of my memories.”
His eyes repeatedly blurred and then became clear.
“Nevertheless, I am one of the lucky ones.”
The Holy One continued calmly.
“Most of the Holy Ones merely move like puppets of the True Demon. There are no cases like mine, where one retains clear consciousness and remembers parts of the past.”
“Did you regain them yourself?”
“No.”
He sighed and continued,
“About thirty years ago, I fought someone and reached the brink of death. When I barely survived and regained my senses, a portion of my memories had returned.”
The Holy One’s eyes were dyed with deep darkness.
“Now… I can only recall the name of that person left in the fragmentary memories I recovered after that battle.”
“Who is he?”
With endlessly sunken eyes, the Holy One said,
“The greatest in the martial world, Baekri Muha.”
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