Chapter 357
'It's working.'
Bu Eun-seol immediately activated the Heavenly Robe Mind Art.
And then, once again, he deliberately clashed with their sword strikes.
Clang! Clang!
After repeating the clashes about twenty-four times, Bu Eun-seol was finally able to grasp the True Qi Circulation of the disciples unfolding their sword techniques within the Sword Formation.
'So this is how it was.'
The moment their Sword Qi collided, he instantly understood the secret behind the Enemy's Void Annihilation Formation.
'They weren't waiting to unleash their Sword Qi—they had already spread it like threads across my body... predicting my movements and striking precisely where it would land.'
Bu Eun-seol began synchronizing with the True Qi Circulation of the sixty disciples.
Then, the True Qi within his body surged in and out, swirling violently.
And at the very moment the True Qi that had entered his body struck the Hundred Meetings Acupoint and ascended through the Governing Vessel—
'Because they've gathered the Internal Power of sixty people into one, this fleeting gap is exposed.'
The instant the True Qi moved from the Conception Vessel to the Governing Vessel, as the combined Internal Power of sixty people was being channeled—
A brief, almost imperceptible break occurred.
And in that moment, they were utterly defenseless—unable to counterattack.
'Wait. If that's the case...'
Trapped within the Sword Formation, Bu Eun-seol continued his analysis when another realization struck him.
The state of neither death nor life.
Perhaps it referred to losing oneself—synchronizing with the enemy's energy to the point of erasing one's own ego?
Ziiing—
The moment he fully grasped the profound secret embedded in the Blade Essence of Half Living Half Dead, a dark light flowed from the Ink Sword.
Rumble—
With just a light infusion of Internal Power, a thunderous Sword Resonance erupted from the blade.
Swish!
As if sensing the ominous energy, the disciples of Sword Pavilion concealed themselves behind a transparent Sword Curtain and unleashed razor-sharp Sword Strokes.
Slash!
The moment their blades grazed Bu Eun-seol's forearm, the flow of True Qi within the disciples hidden behind the circular barrier momentarily halted.
And in that exact instant—
Slash!
A massive Sword Aura pierced through the transparent wall of True Qi.
Bloody Tears Seven Forms, Third Move—Half Living Half Dead had finally been unleashed.
Whoosh!
The colossal Sword Aura, having passed through the Sword Qi, suddenly scattered into hundreds of points of light—
Crash!
The unbreakable dome of Sword Qi shattered, revealing the figures of the sixty disciples at last.
Boom!
All sixty disciples were left clutching their torn palms, blood dripping freely.
Bu Eun-seol had destroyed every single one of their weapons in a single strike.
'This can't be...'
The disciples of Sword Pavilion were utterly stunned.
A single strike—and sixty weapons wielded by elite swordsmen had been obliterated in an instant?
—He had dispersed a single Sword Aura into hundreds of Sword Rings?!
Had Bu Eun-seol chosen differently—could he not have severed all sixty heads in that same breath?
"Haa..."
Bu Eun-seol's entire body was drenched in sweat.
After transferring his True Qi to A-yeon, he had faced the Enemy's Void Annihilation Formation without even recovering.
On top of that, he had poured every last drop of his Mental Power and Internal Power into executing the Half Living Half Dead technique—standing upright was a struggle in itself.
"This is impossible."
Elder Nun Neung-in stood speechless.
It wasn't just the profound mastery of transforming Sword Aura into Sword Rings.
She had seen it clearly.
The moment the disciples' True Qi was about to be stored anew in their dantians, just as fresh power was about to surge—
Bu Eun-seol's single sword had cut through time and space itself.
Had his Sword Stroke, seizing that exquisite instant, not far surpassed the limits of what could be considered mere swordplay?
"Do you concede?"
At Bu Eun-seol's words—
"This humble nun..."
Elder Nun Neung-in could not continue.
She had made a promise before hundreds of disciples. If she broke it now, she would no longer be worthy of being called an elder of Sword Pavilion.
Step... step...
As if having given up on everything, she walked weakly toward Bu Eun-seol and stood before him.
"This humble nun..."
Taking a deep breath, she took one more step forward—
"—has no intention of sparing a Demonic Path Spawn who would destroy our Sword Pavilion!"
With a sudden, piercing cry, a brilliant sword light erupted from Elder Nun Neung-in's hand.
Elegant Dream Sword—Sevenfold Path of Enlightenment.
One of the highest Sword Strokes of Sword Pavilion had been unleashed in a vicious ambush.
Hummm—
At that moment, hundreds of Sword Rings rose beneath Bu Eun-seol's feet.
He had already anticipated Elder Nun Neung-in's sneak attack.
And now, before the disciples of Sword Pavilion, he would once again clear the false accusation that the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade had murdered the Nine Great Elders.
"You wretch!"
With a face twisted like a vengeful ghost, Elder Nun Neung-in tore through the Sword Rings and lunged at Bu Eun-seol.
The sword techniques of Sword Pavilion were originally meant to be executed with a tranquil mind—like walking the path of enlightenment.
But driven by resentment and Killing Intent, her movements grew sluggish, and her swordplay failed to unleash its full might.
Pah-pah-pah-pat!
In the end, Elder Nun Neung-in failed to pierce through the hundreds of Sword Rings and staggered back, her entire body riddled with wounds.
And Bu Eun-seol, who had stood firm without fully executing the first stance of Life Returns to Death, was now drenched in blood, his body transformed into that of a Blood Person.
Before anyone realized it, Ok Yu-ha—whose Soul Acupoint had been released—was silently weeping as she watched him.
The sight before her was a mirror of Bu Jan-yang, who had once stood unwavering beneath the Blade Rings that tore into his flesh without raising a hand in defense.
Elder Nun Neung-in let out a pained groan.
But it was not from the agony of her wounds—it was the contemptuous gazes of her own disciples that tormented her.
"This Humble Nun—!"
She roared, then fell silent, unable to continue.
After a long pause, she finally spoke with a grief-stricken expression.
"I have only done what an elder of the Sword Pavilion must."
Then, she closed her eyes in desolation.
The only place left for her now was the Wall-Facing Cave, where she would wash away her sins. Worse still, she had committed acts unbefitting an elder of the Sword Pavilion—not just once, but repeatedly.
She had forced Ok Yu-ha to consume the Bright Silver Divine Pill to maintain her cold composure. She had attempted to murder the very man who had saved the life of her successor, A-yeon.
And worst of all, she had resorted to a vile, cowardly ambush—something no righteous faction member should ever do.
If word of this were to spread through the Murim by the mouth of that Demonic Path man—?
She would never be able to maintain her authority as the highest elder. The Sword Pavilion's honor would plummet to the depths.
Fwoooosh!
In that instant, the area near Elder Nun Neung-in's heart split open, blood gushing forth like a fountain.
Faced with the prospect of a disgraceful legacy staining her name for generations, she had severed her own Heart Meridian without hesitation.
Thud.
Her body collapsed like a felled tree.
"Elder!"
The disciples, seemingly unprepared for this outcome, rushed toward her corpse with anguished expressions.
Stagger.
Watching this, Bu Eun-seol finally dropped to one knee.
His Internal Power, his stamina, even his Mental Power—all had been drained to the limit. He could endure no longer.
"You may rest easy now."
A voice, gentle yet trembling with suppressed emotion, reached his ears.
"There is no one left here who would harm you."
At the sound of that low voice, Bu Eun-seol's eyelids grew heavy without his realizing it.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on an extravagant bed.
For martial masters, losing consciousness could lead to the regression of their Internal Power.
Yet Bu Eun-seol felt the opposite—his body brimmed with True Qi, fuller than before.
'A misfortune turned to fortune.'
He realized it was due to the Heaven's Will Secret Art, which he had unconsciously grasped.
Not only did it synchronize with an enemy's Qi Circulation, but it also continuously cycled True Qi even without conscious effort—much like how So Ok-rim had mastered the Star Emperor's Mind-Training Formula.
"You're awake."
Only then did Bu Eun-seol notice the woman in white garments sitting beside the bed, staring intently at him.
It was A-yeon.
"What happened?"
His question carried layers of meaning.
But the first thing he sought to know was the state of the Sword Pavilion.
"Thank you for your concern."
A-yeon bowed her head politely.
"Thanks to the Lord's intervention, our sect has managed to settle the matter without further division. The elder's remains have been laid to rest with proper rites."
Her expression darkened.
No matter her crimes, Elder Nun Neung-in had been a steadfast pillar of the Sword Pavilion.
Her suicide had left not just A-yeon, but all the disciples, in mourning.
"That is fortunate."
At that moment, A-yeon's pupils trembled like rippling water.
She had done nothing to deserve Bu Eun-seol's kindness. Worse, he was a figure of the Demonic Path.
Yet, to prevent the Sword Pavilion from fracturing, he had risked his life to break their Boundary Formation.
As the inheritor of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade, he had fought to protect his pride.
And yet, his true intent had been to spare the Sword Pavilion—to protect Ok Yu-ha.
But from A-yeon's perspective, Bu Eun-seol had been nothing short of noble—a man who had staked his life for her and the sect.
"It's truly remarkable. Our sect's Boundary Formation had never been broken before."
Her eyes shone with admiration, as if gazing upon a heroic husband.
Bu Eun-seol averted his gaze subtly and replied,
"That is likely because you have never faced a true master before."
"That may be so."
A brief silence settled between them.
But then, Bu Eun-seol sensed something strange—an incongruity, a discomfort.
The nape of his neck prickled with cold, as if something lurked in the darkness, watching him.
It didn't take him long to realize what it was—the searing intensity of A-yeon's gaze, which pursued him relentlessly even as he tried to evade it.
"Seeing your original face is much better."
In that instant, Bu Eun-seol touched his own face. Having lost consciousness, his Face-Changing Bone-Shifting Art had been undone.
A-yeon, who had been staring intently at his face, casually tossed out a jest:
"I disliked your previous face—it felt too artificial."
A strange thought crossed Bu Eun-seol's mind.
She was a disciple of the Mystic Path, someone who maintained solemn decorum. Yet here she was, joking about his appearance?
"Because of this incident, I've realized I can no longer ascend to the position of successor in the Sword Pavilion."
A-yeon wore a faint, melancholic smile, as if she had already discerned his unspoken thoughts.
"The successor who must bear the responsibility of the Sword Pavilion must be profound and upright in every action, every thought. But I failed in that. I fell into an Inner Demon and endangered many people."
"Such things happen when one pursues the Martial Way with passion. I, too, have been there in the past."
"Do you think the reason I fell into an Inner Demon was because of the duel in the Demon Hall?"
Of course, Bu Eun-seol knew that wasn't the case.
But he couldn't bring himself to say it outright, so he skirted around the truth.
"Haa—"
A-yeon exhaled deeply and shook her head.
"My Inner Demon wasn't born from the Martial Way. It was because I indulged in delusions unbecoming of a disciple of the Mystic Path."
Then, she lightly bit her rosy lips.
As if steeling herself, she took another deep breath and spoke firmly.
"Ever since returning from the Demon Hall, I couldn't stop thinking about you."
Bu Eun-seol was slightly startled.
The look in her eyes was one he had never seen before—burning with intensity.
A-yeon was confessing her feelings to him, blunt and bare.
"Thinking of someone isn't unusual, is it?"
Flustered, Bu Eun-seol feigned indifference, neatly wrapping up her emotions as if to tuck them away.
But A-yeon tore open those wrappings with startling clarity.
"No. I thought of you as a man."
"The Young Palace Lord of the Divine Maiden Palace provoked me. She asked if I wouldn't accept his heart even if the Lord knelt and proposed."
A bittersweet smile played on her lips.
"After that day, whenever I closed my eyes, your image would appear. The vision of you proposing to me."
Then, she shook her head faintly.
"Don't worry. They say most people my age catch the fever of first love at least once."
A-yeon's eyes brimmed with fervent affection.
It was a heat that not even Mystic Art could suppress.
With her Yang Radiance Body, she was more emotionally rich and forthright than anyone.
"And it seems even I, a disciple of the Mystic Path, cannot escape it."
She was laying bare the feelings she had buried deep in her heart, hiding nothing.
"I've decided to relinquish my position as successor of the Sword Pavilion and return to being an ordinary disciple."
"You're giving up the succession?"
"Yes. And if I can overcome this trial of affection... I'll rise again as someone capable of leading the Sword Pavilion."
Bu Eun-seol nodded.
She had expressed her emotions honestly. What did it matter?
If she had hidden them, they might have festered into a sickness of the heart—just like Ok Yu-ha.
"I have a request, Lord."
A-yeon spoke carefully.
"I wish to spar with you."
Understanding her intent, Bu Eun-seol nodded.
She likely still had much to say. And she intended to convey it not through words, but through the sword.
At the sheer cliffs of Great Sword Mountain's summit,
snow fell in thick silence.
The two drew their swords without a word and began their duel.
Clang! Shing!
With every clash of steel, their gazes locked in midair.
A-yeon poured out her heart not with words, but with her blade—and the fire in her eyes.
Bu Eun-seol was from Langya Pavilion.
He knew full well that if she wielded her sword without variation techniques, he could easily decipher the profound Sword Principles within.
For his sake—
and for the Sword Pavilion's, she was unreservedly displaying the intricacies of the Elegant Dream Sword, to Bu Eun-seol, who had risked his life for her and the Sword Pavilion.
And because he understood her heart, he silently accepted every stroke she unleashed.
That was the best he could offer.
Clang!
In the end, A-yeon's treasured sword was sent soaring into the sky by Bu Eun-seol's Ink Sword—
before embedding itself firmly into the ground.
The match was decided.
A-yeon smiled at him, radiant as ever.
"I am a disciple of the Mystic Path. I will overcome this trial."
Then, she pressed her palms together in a formal bow.
"Thank you."
"Take care, then."
Bu Eun-seol mirrored her gesture, returning the bow.
Without hesitation, he turned and descended from the peak.
A-yeon gazed vacantly in the direction where Bu Eun-seol had disappeared, her eyes brimming with a tangle of emotions.
"May we meet again, even if by chance."
That whispered wish melted away like a snowflake fallen upon her palm, vanishing before she knew it.
Upon returning to the Demon Hall, Bu Eun-seol convened the Lord's Meeting.
He briefly recounted the events he had experienced thus far—though he deliberately omitted matters concerning the Sword Pavilion, as they were personal.
Then, he issued orders to Yu Un-ryong and the others.
The Black-White Witch was undoubtedly affiliated with some faction—they were to track her movements.
Additionally, they were to gather any information on the Eight Emperors and Three Stars, the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade, and the Divine Calculator's whereabouts.
Once the meeting concluded, Bu Eun-seol immediately entered closed-door training.
This time, he had mastered the third form of the Bloody Tears Seven Forms and obtained Heaven's Will Secret Art, an ancient martial secret.
Now, he needed to engrave all of this deeply into his body through relentless refinement.
Crossing his legs into the lotus position, Bu Eun-seol closed his eyes.
An ordinary martial artist would have used brush and ink to study the techniques, then physically practiced to hone their skills.
But he could inscribe countless principles into his mind simply by sitting still with his eyes closed.
Through imagination alone, he could exhaustively rehearse martial forms, sweating as if in actual combat, repeating the process of engraving them into his flesh.
Before he knew it, four days had passed.
Swoosh.
Bu Eun-seol, who had been meditating on his martial progress, slowly opened his eyes.
Rising to his feet, he surveyed the training chamber.
Staring into the pitch-black darkness where not a single ray of light penetrated, a peculiar thought suddenly struck him.
The Seven Fingers Demonic Blade.
No matter how he traveled the martial world, he always stumbled upon traces of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade by sheer coincidence.
And this time, he had uncovered yet another hidden trail—one connected to the Sword Pavilion's former successor.
The more he followed these traces, the stranger it all seemed.
The world knew the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade as the Great Killing Star of the Demonic Path—a figure of cruelty.
But the traces Bu Eun-seol had found painted a different picture—one closer to the Chivalrous Hero archetype typically associated with the Righteous Faction.
In other words, the man's true nature was entirely unlike what the murim believed.
"But... could the Demonic Heavenly Emperor truly have been unaware of this?"
Every hidden record of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade that Bu Eun-seol had uncovered so far had come entirely from the Righteous Faction.
Did that mean the Demonic Heavenly Emperor had no knowledge of these facts?
Bu Eun-seol doubted it.
"The Demonic Heavenly Emperor scrutinized even my movements—back when I was merely a successor candidate—as if reading palm lines."
Long before Bu Eun-seol became the successor, the Demonic Heavenly Emperor had used the Secret Shadow Pavilion to comb through his every action, predicting his future moves.
A man like that would not have been ignorant of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's deeds.
"Moreover, the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's actions this time... aren't they quite different from the personality of the grandfather I knew?"
Grandfather Bu Jan-yang had been wise, warm-hearted, and insightful.
But the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade he had learned of through the Sword Pavilion was passionate—a man who understood even the depths of others' affections.
"Of course, even the most hot-blooded men can mellow with age. But..."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
He couldn't imagine his grandfather—once a Shaolin disciple—roaming the martial world as some romantic wanderer, scattering affection wherever he went.
"The strangest thing is the name."
If Bu Jan-yang had truly wanted to conceal his identity as the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade...
He would never have continued using the name Bu Jan-yang while working as an undertaker—let alone registered it with the constabulary.
No matter how careless a man might be, such a mistake was unthinkable.
"From now on, I must consider every possibility."
When he first learned of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's deeds, Bu Eun-seol had been certain the man was his grandfather.
But as time passed, he began to wonder—could they have simply shared the same name?
"For now, there's only one conclusion I can draw."
Walking toward the chamber's door, Bu Eun-seol pushed it open with force.
Creak.
As light gradually spilled in, he murmured softly:
"Now, I must examine the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's deeds from the perspective of the Demonic Path."
Though fragmented, he had confirmed some of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's records among the Righteous Faction's high command.
Now, he needed to thoroughly investigate what kind of man the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade had been—from the Demonic Path's standpoint.
Stepping out of the hall into the dazzling sunlight, he squinted against the glare.
As Bu Eun-seol emerged, passing unit members and attendants all bowed their heads.
Normally, he would have exchanged light nods before taking a casual stroll.
But today, as if resolved to something momentous, he immediately left the Hidden Demon Pavilion and headed toward the East Gate.
His destination?
The foremost intelligence network of the Demonic Path.
An organization whose leader's very identity remained shrouded in mystery.
The master of the Secret Shadow Pavilion—Hwa Jung-cheon.
Bu Eun-seol intended to meet this enigmatic figure once more.