Chapter 474
Gwan Hae-geum's expression darkened beyond measure.
Letting out a deep sigh and shaking his head, he fixed his gaze on Bu Eun-seol and spoke.
"If you wish to find that person, go to Shaolin."
After pausing briefly, he opened his mouth again.
"Perhaps the answer lies there."
"Shaolin... you mean?"
"That's right."
Bu Eun-seol couldn't comprehend it.
Shaolin stood as the foremost pillar of the Righteous Faction.
Why would he be told to go to Shaolin to trace the footsteps of his benefactor?
Did this mean that his grandfather, Bu Jan-yang, was the shadow of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade and the one who had passed down the saber techniques to Gwan Hae-geum?
"Under normal circumstances, I would never have been able to reveal that person's whereabouts. But you've mastered all the Bloody Tears Seven Forms, and..."
As if recalling something, Gwan Hae-geum shook his head slightly and murmured.
"This much... shouldn't break my oath."
Bu Eun-seol's mind grew tangled.
Listening to Gwan Hae-geum's words, he couldn't discern whether his grandfather was the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade himself or merely his shadow.
Yet, judging by his expression and the look in his eyes, it was clear he wasn't speaking idly.
Moreover, Bu Eun-seol could sense the deep reverence Gwan Hae-geum held for the benefactor who had taught him the saber techniques.
'If Great Hero Gwan's benefactor is at Shaolin, and his true identity is the shadow of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade...'
Bu Eun-seol's eyes darkened.
Bu Jan-yang had died a gruesome death—poisoned by Extreme Poison, his eyes gouged out, his arms severed.
And Bu Eun-seol had carefully prepared his body for burial before laying him to rest with his own hands.
Unless Bu Jan-yang had clawed his way out of the grave, there was no way he could be at Shaolin.
In the end, the likelihood of his grandfather being the shadow of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade was slim.
'Perhaps he simply lived by ideals similar to Grandfather's.'
"Thank you."
Having sorted through his tangled thoughts, Bu Eun-seol clasped his hands together with utmost respect.
Gwan Hae-geum had spent his entire life being hunted by the Three Realms and the Strange Old Man, all to keep his oath to the benefactor who had taught him the saber techniques.
Yet he had never once complained or resented his fate, steadfastly upholding his vow even now.
That unyielding, rock-like stubbornness alone was enough to earn Bu Eun-seol's respect.
"But why are you telling me this now?"
He had become a man who could trust no one, pursued relentlessly by the Three Realms.
Yet, without the slightest hint of suspicion, he had revealed everything to Bu Eun-seol—so long as it didn't violate his oath.
"Well..."
Gwan Hae-geum offered a bitter smile.
"Perhaps because you are the inheritor of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade's legacy. It's a saber art that cannot be mastered unless one is free—unbound by any constraints."
Bu Eun-seol had observed the traces of the saber strokes Gwan Hae-geum had freely altered by the lake and immediately replicated them.
In other words, he could instantly mimic the Blade Essence of the Bloody Tears Seven Forms as interpreted by a Righteous Faction figure.
He held no prejudice or restrictions toward the orthodox or unorthodox paths.
And that very disposition perfectly matched the mental imagery of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade Bu Jan-yang, the creator of the Bloody Tears Seven Forms.
Though their paths and ages were entirely different... the mere fact that Bu Eun-seol had mastered the Bloody Tears Seven Forms was enough for Gwan Hae-geum to place his unwavering trust in him.
The Bloody Tears Seven Forms.
It was a saber art engraved with the soul of the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade Bu Jan-yang—a legacy akin to his final bequest.
"Once I return from Shaolin, I will surely come back and inform you of what I've learned."
The benefactor who had taught Gwan Hae-geum the saber techniques was, in essence, no different from a master.
Thus, Bu Eun-seol made a promise: after finding the benefactor at Shaolin, he would return and share the news.
"Thank you."
As if touched by Bu Eun-seol's consideration, Gwan Hae-geum also smiled faintly.
"I hope you achieve what you seek."
Whoosh—
In the next moment, he activated his Movement Technique and departed.
Bu Eun-seol's gaze, fixed on the direction Gwan Hae-geum had vanished, trembled intensely.
His mind was still in utter chaos.
Just what circumstances had led to this? Why had the one who taught him the Bloody Tears Seven Forms gone to Shaolin?
And why... had none of this ever been known in the Murim?
'One thing is certain—the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade also had a shadow.'
In the past, he had believed it impossible to deceive the eyes of the Demonic Heavenly Emperor.
Yet Hyeokryeon Eung had boldly concealed his identity, and now even Bu Eun-seol was capable of deceiving the Demonic Heavenly Emperor.
And the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade, too, would have possessed more than enough ability to do so.
'And Grandfather... was a figure of Shaolin.'
Grandfather Bu Jan-yang had trained in Shaolin's martial arts, and within Bu Eun-seol's body flowed two of Shaolin's supreme techniques.
If Grandfather truly was the Seven Fingers Demonic Blade himself...
Then the Deputy Hall Lord of the Demon Hall, the Invincible Saber Master who wielded the greatest martial prowess of his era... was, in truth, a disciple of Shaolin.
"If I go to Shaolin, I will learn the truth."
Exhaling a turbid breath, he slowly turned around.
Once again, fate was sending him to Shaolin.
Deep within a cave in the Tianshan Mountains.
There, Bu Eun-seol, So Ok-rim, and So-yo had gathered once more.
"Ahh, it feels good to stretch after so long."
So Ok-rim swung her arms vigorously with a refreshed expression.
The soulless ones in Tianshan numbered over a thousand.
And the last ones they had encountered were Demon-bound Dry Prison Humans who had mastered various extreme martial arts.
"Can you believe those soulless bastards had learned all sorts of mixed-up martial arts? One of them even used something called the Flea Fist Art—supposedly created by the Founder of the Beggars' Sect! Hahaha!"
For some reason, she found this endlessly amusing. Resting her chin on So Yo's head, she bared her massive teeth in a wide grin.
"And there was one that had stitched its hands and feet together like a spider, right? Right?"
So Yo stood motionless as a doll beneath her chatter, her vacant eyes unfocused.
Bu Eun-seol, ignoring So Ok-rim's rambling, was lost in deep thought.
Fortunately, the Strange Old Man—the Heir of the Blade Emperor—seemed to have given up on pursuing the Southern Heaven Great Hero, as he had not reappeared.
But he was someone Bu Eun-seol would inevitably have to face someday.
'A saber technique that nullifies all martial arts' external force...'
Until then, Bu Eun-seol needed to delve deeper into the Bloody Tears Seven Forms or find a way to completely dismantle the Blade Emperor's technique.
"What's with the gloomy face? Didn't you meet him?"
"I did."
Bu Eun-seol lied to So Ok-rim.
"But after enduring so much hardship, he's lost all trust in people. So I couldn't learn anything."
"Hmm. That's understandable."
Surprisingly, So Ok-rim agreed.
"Even martial artists lose their minds after being hunted by assassins for just three days. Imagine what being chased for so long would do to someone. Of course he wouldn't trust anyone."
"Is that so?"
"Obviously."
She clicked her tongue before continuing.
"So, what now?"
"Since we've gained nothing, we should return."
Bu Eun-seol turned to her.
"Will you come back with me? To the Demon Hall."
"Hmm? Well..."
After a brief pause, she crossed her arms and answered.
"I think I need to train a bit more."
"You said you've already tempered your spirit and mind."
"No, this time it's martial arts I want to refine."
Her eyes swept over Bu Eun-seol's body as she licked her lips.
"You've gotten a lot stronger, haven't you?"
Having witnessed his prowess during their battle at the lake, she had sensed that his martial prowess now far surpassed hers.
"Hmph, don't get too full of yourself. It's not like I can't catch up."
"Right, of course."
For the first time, Bu Eun-seol smiled at her without reservation.
If nothing else, So Ok-rim's pure pursuit of strength mirrored his own—like looking into a mirror.
'What, is he trying to charm me?'
Seeing his grin, she pouted and turned her head away.
'Ugh, why does he have to make my heart flutter like this?'
As if to hide her thoughts, she puffed out her cheeks and deliberately spoke in a rough tone.
"Tch, laugh all you want. I'll catch up in no time."
"Don't push yourself. Return whenever you wish."
Bu Eun-seol exhaled lightly.
"The Great Lords and Unit Members are always waiting for you to come back."
Truthfully, he didn't know much about So Ok-rim.
But some things didn't need to be said aloud to be understood.
Like the fact that she was no villain.
"Hahah! Those brats are waiting for me?"
She laughed brightly, as if suddenly reminded of her status as a Death Shadow War Unit instructor.
"Tell them I'll be back soon. And that I'll train them until they cry!"
Having a place to return to was always a comforting thought.
After laughing for a while longer, she turned to So Yo.
"See you later, little one."
Regretfully, she pinched So Yo's cheek and ruffled her hair.
"Look forward to it. I'll be back before you know it. Hahah!"
With a final boisterous laugh at Bu Eun-seol, she vanished into mid-air.
For a long moment, he stared at the spot where she had disappeared before taking a deep breath.
"So Yo. I'm going to Shaolin now."
"Shaolin?"
"Yes."
So Yo shook her head.
"Shaolin... It's dangerous."
Even the most skilled informants of the Demonic Path avoided infiltrating two places at all costs:
The Martial Alliance.
And Shaolin.
Both were teeming with countless masters and undetectable traps.
No matter how flawless one's stealth was, discovery was inevitable.
"It's fine. I'm not going to fight."
Then Bu Eun-seol handed her the Ice Soul Sword at his waist.
As a symbol of his identity, he couldn't bring it with him to Shaolin.
"Until I return, assist Seo Jin-ha."
"Understood."
"Go back first."
"Mm."
So-yo, grasping the sword, immediately unfolded her movement technique and departed.
Showing any sign of worry would only weigh on Bu Eun-seol's mind, so she left at once with an indifferent expression.
Now alone, Bu Eun-seol took a deep breath.
Truthfully, infiltrating Shaolin alone was an adventure even for him.
The only saving grace was the secret passage he had discovered earlier... At the very least, reaching the inner sanctum wouldn't be too difficult.
"There's no time."
Bu Eun-seol immediately propelled himself forward.
He had too many tasks ahead of him. That meant resolving matters at Shaolin as quickly as possible.
The summer winds blew in full force over Mount Shaoshi.
Bu Eun-seol, disguised as Seol-so, climbed the mountain path leading to Shaolin Temple.
This was an entirely personal endeavor—not the act of the Heir of the Demon Hall.
Moreover, given Shaolin's vehement rejection of the Demonic Path, even if he bore no ill intent,
it was unthinkable to knock on their gates openly.
"The atmosphere is strange."
Shaolin's gates were firmly shut, and no monks from the Guest Reception Hall could be seen.
After a brief hesitation, Bu Eun-seol covered his face with the cloth commonly used by wandering martial artists and stealthily scaled the wall.
Tsk tsk tsk.
Having broken through the sixth layer of the Reverse Extreme Inner Method and achieved the Spiritual Aperture Breakthrough, Bu Eun-seol could now predict the movements of most martial artists with ease.
Combined with the ghostly stealth of the Hidden Stealth Secret Art—an extension of Swift Shadowless—his movements resembled the legendary Shrinking-Earth Technique.
'Something's off.'
As he moved silently, scanning his surroundings, something peculiar caught his eye.
Numerous warrior monks stood solemnly on guard, their expressions tense as if anticipating an intruder.
'There's been a mishap at Shaolin.'
Before setting out, Bu Eun-seol had mobilized his intelligence network to gather the latest movements in the murim.
Yet he had heard nothing about any incident at Shaolin.
Which meant... something serious must have happened, and Shaolin was desperately concealing it to prevent the news from spreading.
"The goal of the intruder is said to be the Repentance Cave, which hasn't been opened in decades."
Just then, a middle-aged warrior monk passing near the Discipline Court spoke to his companion.
"The Greatest Demons Under Heaven—those whom the temple mercifully spared, sealing only their internal energy."
Bu Eun-seol's pupils flashed at the words.
Shaolin's Repentance Cave was known as the Wall-Facing Cave, where monks who had sinned meditated in penitence.
But to hear that it housed demons who once shook the world—what kind of nonsense was this?
"That makes sense."
The other monk replied in a hushed voice.
"The Repentance Cave is where the Great Demons, whose very existence threatens the world, are imprisoned..."
The two monks, murmuring quietly, soon walked off across the grounds.
Bu Eun-seol, still hidden, wore a dazed expression for a moment.
If their words were true, then Shaolin had a prison—disguised as the Repentance Cave—where they confined the most fearsome demons?
'It's possible.'
The one who had taught the saber technique to the Southern Heaven Great Hero, Gwan Hae-geum, was likely a figure from the Demonic Path.
Which meant—what if that person had deliberately allowed themselves to be captured, choosing the Repentance Cave as their final hiding place?
'I need to investigate there immediately.'
Bu Eun-seol immediately headed toward Shaolin's secret mechanisms.
Given the name "Cave," the Repentance Cave was likely hidden somewhere deep within Shaolin's most clandestine areas.
In that case, infiltrating the temple's mechanisms to locate it was the best course of action.
'At least I know the secret passage—that's a relief.'
Moving stealthily, Bu Eun-seol made his way toward the Pagoda Forest, where the relics of past high monks were enshrined.
He had once come to Shaolin due to the Divine Calculator's test and, while investigating with Tang Cheong, discovered a hidden passage here—
one that led to the Scripture Pavilion and the secret underground Scripture Pavilion of the Blood Shaolin.
Sssk.
Approaching a particular pagoda, he shifted a loose stone at its base, and a hidden passage in the Pagoda Forest opened.
After scanning his surroundings, Bu Eun-seol slipped inside without hesitation.
As the interior of the Scripture Pavilion came into view, he immediately prepared to step forward, gathering the Thousand-Catty Drop beneath his feet.
'No—they might have altered the pressure.'
In the past, stepping into the Scripture Pavilion required a weight nearing two hundred and fifty jin to avoid triggering the alarms.
But numbers could always change.
—Answers can shift with the situation. That's why the unchanging truth is what's truly precious.
His grandfather, Bu Jan-yang, had always warned him against fixed rules or answers, teaching him to think twice.
That applied even to the act of encoffining the dead.
At first glance, it might have looked like just another ordinary scar he'd seen hundreds, thousands of times before. But he'd been taught to always think twice and verify.
That was why Bu Eun-seol had always been able to pinpoint the exact cause of death for the deceased.
'If the Scripture Pavilion's mechanism was set to trigger at a pressure lighter than an average person's weight... I'd be exposed immediately.'
Previously, the mechanism had been set at two hundred and fifty geun—roughly the combined weight of three ordinary adult women.
But what if the weight had been changed to something as light as sixteen geun, about the weight of a small dog?
The alarm bell would sound the moment he stepped on the floor.
'There's a way.'
Bu Eun-seol scanned his surroundings, then turned his gaze to the bookshelves.
Even if the mechanism was installed in the floor, it wouldn't have been placed beneath the shelves.
If it had, the weight distribution between the areas with shelves and those without would have to be calibrated separately.
That would make the mechanism far too complex—they wouldn't have gone that far.
Swish.
Bu Eun-seol lightened his body as much as possible and lightly stepped onto the top of a bookshelf.
Tap. Swish.
The wooden shelves were sturdy, but they had aged considerably.
They were at the point where even the slightest misstep could send them crashing down.
But Bu Eun-seol floated like a feather, moving forward with barely a sound.
Tap.
He had passed through the Scripture Pavilion, yet no presence rushed toward him from any direction.
'Hm.'
Bu Eun-seol hesitated for a moment.
Should he continue past the Scripture Pavilion? Or should he take the underground passage to Blood Shaolin, as he had before?
'If they've imprisoned the Great Demonic Persons, they would've locked them away in the most secretive place possible. In that case, this path has a higher probability.'
After a quick glance around, Bu Eun-seol immediately opened the door to the underground passage leading to Blood Shaolin.
Creak.
As the door swung open, he stepped inside without hesitation.
And there, another vast stone chamber came into view.
It was the Scripture Pavilion of Blood Shaolin.
"Strange."
Something unexpected had happened.
The shelves that should have been stacked with the Demon Sect Martial Compendium were completely gone—the entire interior was empty.
Shuffle, shuffle.
Then, from the opposite side, footsteps echoed as if they had been waiting.
Before he knew it, over a hundred warrior monks had poured out, lining up across from Bu Eun-seol.
At the forefront stood an elderly monk with white eyebrows and a solemn expression—none other than Gonggong, the master of the Scripture Pavilion.
"So you did use this passage."
Gonggong's eyes narrowed as he studied the masked Bu Eun-seol before bellowing,
"Now that the Abbot has survived, you've come back to finish the assassination with certainty, is that it?!"
Bu Eun-seol couldn't help but be startled.
From Gonggong's words, it seemed that before Bu Eun-seol had arrived, some master had used this secret passage to infiltrate the heart of Shaolin and ambush the Abbot.
'A trap.'
Bu Eun-seol exhaled sharply.
This was an underground secret passage within Shaolin's grounds.
With the warrior monks surrounding him like this, there was no gap for escape.
'Of all times, this had to happen right before I arrived.'
"Even if I deny it, you won't believe me."
Bu Eun-seol shook his head.
Since he had entered using Shaolin's secret passage, no words would convince them otherwise.
Besides, wasn't he the Heir of the Demon Hall? Revealing his identity honestly wasn't an option.
"Remove your mask and kneel!"
At Gonggong's command, Bu Eun-seol's eyes narrowed as he shifted into a defensive stance.
Seeing him prepare to resist, Gonggong immediately barked at the warrior monks,
"Deploy the Arhat Formation!"
Whoosh—
In an instant, one hundred and eight disciples encircled Bu Eun-seol in a chaotic yet precise formation.
The One Hundred and Eight Arhat Formation.
This was Shaolin's signature battle formation—the very foundation of all orthodox faction formations—now unfolding in the underground passage of Blood Shaolin.
The sheer pressure from the encircling warrior monks was overwhelming, sealing off every possible escape route.
'I'll have to break through the formation and escape, no matter what.'
With no other choice, Bu Eun-seol immediately gathered his internal power and unleashed One Fist.
It was, by all accounts, a basic strike—utterly devoid of any variation.
Yet it carried three hundred years' worth of internal energy, enough to shatter mountains and split the earth.
Boom.
But then, something bizarre happened.
Instead of collapsing under the force of Bu Eun-seol's fist energy, the formation erupted with a blinding white light.
At the same time, the surrounding warrior monks vanished—
And in their place, an illusion unfolded, as if a single colossal warrior monk now stood imposingly before him.
'Remarkable.'
Bu Eun-seol unleashed three consecutive strikes without pause.
Crack-crack-CRACK!
Yet the massive, light-enshrouded monk effortlessly deflected each blow as if it were child's play.
Even with enough internal energy to level a mountain in one strike, the force was batted away like a mere jest.
"All martial arts under heaven originate from Shaolin."
There was a saying that all martial arts in the world began at Shaolin—and indeed, Shaolin's martial arts formed the foundation of all orthodox techniques.
And Shaolin had never rested on its laurels. Alongside the Seventy-Two Supreme Arts, they had refined and evolved every aspect of their martial learning.
Thus, the One Hundred and Eight Arhat Formation, which had once been a means to firmly trap enemies while amplifying the martial prowess of its monks,
Had now reached a level where the combined strength of Shaolin's finest elite monks merged into a single, flawless entity.