Chapter 1283
As Bu Eun-seol passed through the Meridian Gate and headed toward the Gate of Supreme Harmony, the vast plaza of the Hall of Supreme Harmony gradually came into view.
The deeper he ventured into the heart of the palace, the tighter the security became.
Yet the gazes of the imperial guards who watched him were filled more with reverence than wariness, and none moved to stop him.
Though holding the title of Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard did not grant him unrestricted access to the imperial palace,
he possessed the privilege of prioritizing his own judgment over standard protocol whenever he deemed it necessary for the Emperor's safety.
'Not here.'
Bu Eun-seol did not pause his steps.
Passing through the Hall of Supreme Harmony and the Hall of Central Harmony, he briefly turned his gaze toward the Golden Water Bridge, which separated the Inner Court from the Outer Court.
The Inner Court was where the Emperor, his consorts,
and—in the past—the Empress Dowager resided. In principle, access for external military officials was strictly restricted.
Yet when he took a single step forward,
the Embroidered Uniform Guards and imperial guards stationed at the Golden Water Bridge silently parted to let him through.
Though Bu Eun-seol was not formally part of the imperial military hierarchy,
he was the Emperor's personally appointed Commander of the Imperial Guards and the sole individual who had thwarted the Empress Dowager's treasonous plot.
Everyone knew he enjoyed the Emperor's absolute trust.
Bu Eun-seol walked slowly along the palace corridors, observing the layout of the halls, the movement of troops, and the flow of energy.
'I'll start searching where people rarely tread.'
He examined the small auxiliary halls on the outskirts of the Northern Three Palaces.
These were minor structures once used as temporary residences for low-ranking palace servants,
now either sealed off due to neglect or showing almost no signs of human activity.
'Not here either.'
He then turned his attention to the older, smaller halls of the Western Six Palaces.
The Palace of Eternal Longevity and the Palace of Universal Happiness were somewhat removed from the palace's center and had rapidly fallen into disrepair after years of disuse.
"Commander."
Just then, a low voice echoed from the air, and a black-clad Embroidered Uniform Guard bowed in greeting.
"What brings you here?"
"I received intelligence of a potential threat to His Majesty's safety and am conducting an inspection."
"A threat?"
"It's not confirmed, but one must account for possibilities."
Although Bu Eun-seol held the Emperor's trust as Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard,
he was not an officially ranked military officer, so he still addressed the Embroidered Uniform Guards with appropriate deference.
"We are guarding this area diligently. There's no need for concern."
"This area?"
Bu Eun-seol frowned.
Why would the Embroidered Uniform Guards be stationed at halls that had long been abandoned?
"These halls house imperial consorts who have fallen out of favor and members of the imperial family who have committed crimes."
Depending on the circumstances,
the imperial family would confine disgraced consorts or royal criminals to empty palaces, outer halls, or neglected buildings.
Thus, this arrangement was not entirely unusual.
"Therefore, no one is permitted entry without His Majesty's explicit permission."
The imperial family's secrets were the Emperor's secrets.
For a mere imperial guard—not even a member of the royal bloodline—to freely come and go was unthinkable.
The Embroidered Uniform Guards' intervention was both reasonable and justified.
"I see."
Moreover, with the Emperor invoked, Bu Eun-seol had no further grounds to press the matter.
"Understood. Keep up the good work."
Turning away immediately, he headed toward the Guard's Duty Station beside the Palace of Great Benevolence.
The Emperor had specially granted him
a private office in the Palace of Tranquil Peace, designated for the Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard.
Swish.
Once inside, Bu Eun-seol began writing a report.
Even as Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard,
the Dragon Scale Guards themselves remained unseen unless summoned.
His position was effectively a temporary one, subject to replacement at any time.
Nevertheless, Bu Eun-seol carried himself like a full-fledged military official,
drafting a memorial to the Emperor detailing suspicious areas within the palace
and outlining the duties the Dragon Scale Guards could perform.
Swish, swish.
—The security around the Western Six Palaces and the outskirts of the Northern Three Palaces is lax, leaving them vulnerable to infiltration by unsavory elements...
After writing for some time, Bu Eun-seol spoke wearily.
"Gate guard."
A soldier's voice answered from outside the door.
"You called, my lord?"
"Go to the tea chamber and bring me a cup."
"At once."
Not long after, the door opened,
but instead of the soldier, a young palace maid carefully entered, carrying a steaming cup of tea, which she placed on the desk where Bu Eun-seol worked.
"Thank you."
Bu Eun-seol sipped the tea as he continued writing.
How much time had passed?
Tap.
Suddenly, his brush stopped.
'So I'm being watched.'
His gaze, fixed on empty air, turned razor-sharp.
'Even me.'
After conducting an unannounced inspection of the palace,
Bu Eun-seol had remained there—uncharacteristically—fulfilling his duties as Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard.
While his true purpose was to gauge reactions while inspecting areas for potential threats under the cover of the Emperor's trust,
he had also been devising a way to re-enter the suspicious Western Six Palaces.
And the result?
Even Bu Eun-seol, who had single-handedly thwarted treason and earned immense merit, was under surveillance.
'She had no martial training but was a palace maid professionally trained in espionage.'
Every martial artist in the imperial palace
knew that Bu Eun-seol's martial prowess could shake heaven and earth.
Sloppy surveillance would inevitably be detected,
so they had placed palace maids around him—women untrained in martial arts but rigorously drilled in intelligence-gathering.
Every single movement had been under observation.
'They must have deliberately approached the desk and instantly memorized the contents of the letter I wrote before reporting it.'
When a palace maid served tea, she only needed to carefully and respectfully place it on the desk.
But the one who had just entered—
She had deliberately drawn close, pressing herself against the desk as she set down the tea.
Trained as a spy, she would naturally be able to read upside-down text.
She had swiftly scanned the letter's contents and would surely report them to her superiors.
'Of course, since I'm not an official military officer, they can justify closely monitoring my movements. But—'
To surveil the leader of the Emperor's personal guards—the very man who had single-handedly thwarted a rebellion and earned His Majesty's trust—
Using a palace maid trained as a professional spy, one who knew no martial arts?
This wasn't mere observation—it was reconnaissance against an enemy.
In the end, the Emperor did not trust Bu Eun-seol to an extreme degree—he was a target of restraint.
'And if I attempt to investigate the Western Six Palaces again? That would turn suspicion into certainty.'
A chillingly calculated scheme.
Truthfully, the Western Six Palaces were not a place important enough to station guards.
There was no reason for the Embroidered Uniform Guard to patrol halls housing disgraced palace servants.
But when Bu Eun-seol began scrutinizing every corner of the Imperial Palace—
They had deliberately stationed guards around the Western Six Palaces at once, as if to block access to something hidden there.
And if Bu Eun-seol were to secretly approach that area in defiance of the Emperor's orders?
That alone would be grounds not only to revoke trust in him but also to pin additional crimes upon him.
'Then that place cannot be where the Primordial Dragon is.'
It was merely a test.
If the Primordial Dragon—or any secret place—were hidden there?
They would never have carelessly stationed guards in a way that invited suspicion.
'If the Primordial Dragon were in the Imperial Palace...'
It would have existed there for a long time.
Far more likely, it would be in a hall whose name lingered in obscurity—or one erased from the royal records entirely.
Or perhaps a place marked on official maps but sealed off in reality.
'In the end, there's only one way.'
Setting down his brush, Bu Eun-seol stepped outside once more.
The most intelligent man in the world was Heavenly Secret Star Chu-so.
But it would be no exaggeration to say Bu Eun-seol was the greatest solver of mysteries under heaven.
He had experienced adventures beyond the imagination of ordinary martial artists—
Locating places deemed unfindable, breaching countless traps and secret caves thought impassable.
In short, when it came to uncovering and infiltrating hidden places, calling him the best in the world would not be an overstatement...
And now, that skill was being demonstrated to its fullest.
'Hm.'
Returned to the guard quarters, he held two aged, near-crumbling maps in his hands.
One was a copy of the Imperial Palace's original blueprints, the other the current patrol routes of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
As a martial artist, obtaining these would have been impossible—
But thanks to his position as Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard, tasked with the Emperor's utmost protection...
And, more crucially, thanks to Princess Hui-jeong, whom he had pleaded with upon her recovery—
He had gained temporary access to the Hall of Literary Profundity and the Grand Cabinet Archives, barely managing to secure these copies.
"This would normally never be permitted... But consider it recompense for my unintended harshness toward you."
Once, ensnared by the Empress Dowager's scheme—
She had fallen under the spell of a man wielding the True Demon's Secret Arts.
But after Bu Eun-seol rescued Yeon So-ha and eliminated that man, her senses had finally returned.
And so, at his request, she had granted him brief access to the Grand Cabinet Archives.
Normally, even the Emperor's permission was required—
But Princess Hui-jeong had been granted special authority to counter the Empress Dowager's schemes.
Overseeing imperial decrees, secret edicts, and vital records, she had been able to discreetly admit him.
'Everything was sheer luck.'
Had he abandoned Yeon So-ha, Princess Hui-jeong's mind would never have recovered—
And he would have had no way to obtain the clues needed to locate the Primordial Dragon within the palace.
'Hmm.'
But then, something unexpected happened.
If it were truly a place erased from records—
He had assumed some irregularity would be detectable in the patrol routes.
Yet he found nothing.
'Wait.'
A strange thought flickered through his mind as he scrutinized the maps.
'It's drawn inverted.'
Whoosh.
Activating his movement technique, he clung to the ceiling like a bat.
Then, faintly overlapping the two maps—
'There.'
The underground depth was marked three times deeper than the height of the surface structures—
Yet the patrol records omitted any mention of this subterranean space.
Moreover, the palace waterways had been deliberately rerouted to avoid this area—
Proof that something underground had necessitated even water being diverted.
'The Court of Tranquil Peace.'
No such palace existed in the Imperial Palace now.
But in records from its earliest construction, the name and location of the Court of Tranquil Peace were clearly documented.
'They intentionally erased the hall's layout and purpose.'
Swoosh.
Bu Eun-seol stealthily activated his movement technique, heading toward the marked location.
'As expected—nothing.'
According to records, the Court of Tranquil Peace should have stood deep in the northeastern sector—
But in reality, it was absent.
'They designed the palace's pathways to make access impossible.'
Bu Eun-seol expanded his Empty Mind Spirit Communion and Wind & Cloud Divine Qi.
Walking along the nearby paths, he attuned himself to the land's energy veins—searching for the slightest disturbance.
'Dragon Qi.'
The dragon's energy, originating from Hall of Supreme Harmony, flowed through Hall of Central Harmony and reached this place.
And there was a point where it split—ever so faintly—in the northeast direction.
'A place where human footsteps have ceased, yet the energy remains unbroken.'
Bu Eun-seol took a deep breath.
'As expected, it's the Absolute Boundary.'
In all the world, the only method capable of perfectly concealing one space within another was the Absolute Boundary.
'The fact that even the Imperial Palace employs the Absolute Boundary...'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes narrowed.
The fact that the Imperial Palace had hidden a hall created in the primordial era using this technique meant—
Ultimately, it was not unrelated to the Baekri Clan or the True Demon Palace.
Everything... was connected.
'I must return soon.'
Bu Eun-seol glanced up at the night sky.
If he stayed away for too long, he might draw suspicion from the maids.
'But I can't afford to delay any longer.'
The excuse of investigating the dangers lurking within the Imperial Palace would only hold for today.
If he wandered the palace grounds again without reason or lingered here on official business?
Suspicion would solidify, and he might never again lay eyes on the place where the Primordial Dragon resided.
'I'm going in.'
The moment Bu Eun-seol resolved himself and activated the power of World and Realm Annihilation—
Ziiing...Drip... drip...
Something faint and indistinct rippled before his eyes.
As expected, the Absolute Boundary was in place.
Drip... drip...
Under the influence of the Domain of World and Realm Annihilation, the Absolute Boundary slowly dissolved.
'In the past, I wouldn't have been able to enter.'
Had it been before, he would have had to continuously use Harmonization to break through the Absolute Boundary.
But in the end, the resulting light would have exposed him.
Ssshhh...
Finally, as the Absolute Boundary wavered, an ordinary hall revealed itself.
Faded in places, it looked like an aged detached pavilion.
Thud.
The moment he stepped inside, the very flow of air seemed to halt.
Time itself felt as though it had slowed.
"There's... nothing here."
The interior was shrouded in darkness, devoid of anything at all.
But this situation, too, was all too familiar.
"Impossible."
Without hesitation, Bu Eun-seol crouched and placed his palm on the floor.
As expected, it wasn't cold—rather, like a living creature breathing, the floor held a faint warmth.
'A living Formation Study, then.'
When he had encountered Myeong-myeol, who once acted as the Blood God Heaven Lord in Immortal Valley—
He had already experienced a living Formation Study like this, allowing him to easily find the answer now.
'None of it was in vain.'
Every journey he had taken through the Martial World, every experience he had accumulated—they all shone in moments of crisis.
Ssshh...
Bu Eun-seol closed his eyes, neither releasing his internal energy nor exerting force.
He simply aligned his breathing with the pulse flowing through this space.
Creak...Ssshhh...
At some point, the boundary between floor and ceiling vanished.
The depth of the hall expanded, and the inner chamber was no longer rectangular.
And within it, there now stood—
A door that existed not as stone or wood, but as a concept.
Closed yet not locked, open yet not revealed...
A door that existed solely in the mind.
'This is even easier.'
Without hesitation, Bu Eun-seol thought of 'entering' it.
Whoosh.
Instantly, his body was sucked into somewhere else.
His entire form dissolved into points of light, tearing through time and space endlessly, his soul traversing millennia in an instant.
Flash.
When he opened his eyes again, he stood inside an infinitely vast Grand Hall.
Hiss...
The moment he stepped inside, pale mist began to rise around his entire body.
Dragon Qi.
An immense energy that only the Emperor and the imperial family could possess filled the space to the brim.
'A place only the Emperor may enter.'
The reason no guards or gatekeepers had been stationed here—
Only those unharmed by the overwhelming Dragon Qi, like the imperial family, could set foot in this place.
Shooo...
But the mist soon faded, and a clear light flowed from Bu Eun-seol's pupils.
Thanks to the Dragon Token he had obtained from the Imperial Palace Secret Repository—one that only the Emperor should possess—his body was no longer damaged by the Dragon Qi.
Ssshhh...
As the mist fully dissipated, Bu Eun-seol slowly advanced deeper into the Grand Hall.
At its far end stood a massive iron gate.
And before it—
A warrior clad in rusted armor from head to toe.
The armor was so worn that it looked as though it belonged to a general who had returned defeated from the battlefield decades ago.
Clang.
The warrior looked at Bu Eun-seol and immediately drew the great sword at his waist.
"Turn back."
His voice boomed through the vast hall, resonating like thunder.
"None but the Emperor may pass beyond this point."
"I am Bu Eun-seol, Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard."
Bu Eun-seol bowed in courtesy.
"I have come to investigate matters related to treason."
"With that single statement, you have forfeited both your position as Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard and the authority granted to you as a warrior trusted by the Emperor."
Astonishingly, not only did the warrior clearly discern that Bu Eun-seol was lying—
He outright declared the revocation of the Commander's authority.
'No mere general would be left to guard such a place alone.'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes flashed as he sensed something.
"Are you, by chance, the bearer of the Heavenly Emperor Command?"
Despite the respectful inquiry, the warrior coldly cut him off.
"Leave, or I will cut you down."
"I mean no harm to the imperial family."
Bu Eun-seol clasped his hands and bowed deeply.
"I wish to speak of my own origins. I beg your understanding."
He was no longer addressing the warrior as the Commander of the Dragon Scale Guard, but as a mere martial artist of the Martial World, seeking his forbearance.
Yet the warrior's gaze remained frigid.
"I will not repeat myself. Turn back."
"Then I have no choice."
Shing.
At last, Bu Eun-seol drew the Ink Soul Sword.
From the very beginning, he had steeled his resolve when entering the Imperial Palace.
Even if the Emperor himself stood in his way, he absolutely had to meet the Primordial Dragon.