The Way of Heaven
In the Guannei Circuit—present-day Shanxi region.
Nak-an County.
One spring day.
Jin Gahan arrived at Gwangbul Temple with his wife and daughter.
He walked briskly but paused just before the mountain gate, waiting for his lagging wife and only daughter to catch up.
A breeze swept down from the mountain at that moment, brushing across his body.
The blue sky, white clouds, the fresh green mountain covered in new leaves, and the serene mountain gate standing within it made him think once more that he had done well to retire to the countryside.
After passing the civil service exam and rising to the position of Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, the sudden death of a close friend had made him keenly aware of life’s impermanence, so he had set everything aside.
His clan hoped he would rest briefly and return to office, but he had no such intention.
‘How wonderful!’
He could not say it aloud in front of those who still held expectations, but lately Jin Gahan’s interest was entirely focused on the newly learned Immortal Path.
Some might ask, “If you want to become an immortal, why visit a Buddhist temple instead of a Taoist temple?”
But that was a question asked by those who knew nothing of Gwangbul Temple.
Gwangbul Temple taught not only about the Buddha and immortals, but also mysterious knowledge concerning the gods of the Western Regions.
‘The Buddha, immortals, and the gods of the Western Regions are all branches from the same root…’
Come to think of it, it made perfect sense.
If they truly existed, how could the world of the Buddha, the world of immortals, and the world of Western gods exist separately?
The abbot of Gwangbul Temple had explained the Buddha, immortals, and Western gods using the metaphor of water.
“It is like water. As the saying goes, when things reach their extreme, they must reverse. In winter it becomes ice, but when boiled it turns to steam and rises to the heavens. Water, ice, and steam have completely different forms and uses, yet their origin is the same. A Buddha who has attained enlightenment is an immortal, and an immortal is none other than a child of the gods. Therefore, do not be tormented or fight simply because your beliefs differ. There are many paths up the mountain; one need only focus on reaching the summit.”
Jin Gahan was nodding with a pleased expression when his wife and daughter finally approached.
He stood in a sunny spot until their sweat had dried, then strode briskly into the temple grounds.
Gwangbul Temple.
The Dharma Lecture Hall.
That day, the conversation between Abbot Mak Jung-an and Jin Gahan stretched on longer than usual.
“…Immortal Lu Dongbin called that naturalness the Dao. The Dao is a single, formless, nameless original nature and the primordial spirit that governs life. This invisible original nature and primordial spirit rely on the light of heaven. If we circulate that heavenly light within our bodies again and again, it becomes the Preheaven Taiyi True Qi.”
Carried away, Abbot Mak Jung-an even taught him the cultivation method for Preheaven Taiyi True Qi.
They say one loses track of time while playing among immortals; the lecture on Preheaven Taiyi True Qi only ended deep into the night.
Jin Gahan left the Dharma Lecture Hall late at night and hurried toward the guest quarters where his wife and daughter waited.
His excitement over the newly acquired cultivation method lasted only a moment. The instant he saw his wife’s deathly pale face in front of the guest quarters, an ominous feeling sank heavily in his chest.
“What happened? Where is Eun-seol?”
“She… she said she was going to the privy and left, but she hasn’t returned even after a full sikgyeong (about thirty minutes).”
“Did you check the privy?”
“I checked every single one, but she wasn’t there.”
“Good heavens! What are we to do? If a wild animal has taken her, it will be disastrous.”
Jin Gahan hurriedly sought out Abbot Mak Jung-an and informed him that his daughter had gone missing within Gwangbul Temple.
Startled, Abbot Mak Jung-an immediately dispatched his disciples to search every corner of the temple grounds.
Fortunately, the midnight commotion did not last long.
Jin Eun-seol had been found asleep inside a woodshed not far from the guest quarters.
When the disciples woke her and brought her back, Jin Gahan, who had been anxiously waiting, exploded in anger.
“You said you were going to the privy! Why would a grown girl fall asleep in a woodshed!”
“I don’t know… After I met some porter… when I opened my eyes, I was in the woodshed.”
“A porter? Abbot, does Gwangbul Temple employ porters?”
Abbot Mak Jung-an thought for a moment before asking Jin Eun-seol carefully.
“Miss Jin, did the porter perhaps have thick eyebrows and a slender face?”
“Yes… I think so.”
Jin Eun-seol, still flustered, nodded.
Abbot Mak Jung-an immediately instructed his disciples.
“It is the porter named Seok who lives in the village below. He couldn’t have gone far yet—find him and bring him here!”
The abbot intended to ask Seok what had happened.
However, despite searching not only the area around Gwangbul Temple but all the surrounding towns, the vanished man was never found.
From the circumstances, it appeared Seok had caused trouble and fled.
Abbot Mak Jung-an apologized profusely to Jin Gahan and his wife, and strictly ordered his disciples to keep silent.
Thanks to their efforts, the secret was kept—but even they could not defy the will of heaven.
Jin Eun-seol, who had not yet been married, gradually began to show signs of pregnancy. The following year, in the first lunar month, she gave birth to a baby boy.
Jin Family Villa, separate quarters.
“A-bu-bu… ma-ma-ma…”
When the child babbled, Jin Eun-seol reflexively turned her gaze away.
Looking at the small, fragile child, she sometimes felt a surge of affection.
But those warm, fuzzy feelings never lasted long.
Her once-gentle expression would suddenly twist into something hideous, like an entirely different person.
After giving birth, Jin Eun-seol had gone from being a cherished daughter to the family’s shame.
As her belly grew, she was essentially exiled to the separate quarters, and that confinement continued even after the birth.
Two years of living locked away.
To her, the child was a shackle for life, a curse.
Grinding her teeth, Jin Eun-seol covered her ears with both hands as the babbling continued.
When it still did not stop, she screamed, “Shut up!” and grabbed the child’s throat.
Only when the child’s face began to turn blue did she finally let go, gasping for breath.
“Haa! Haa! Stop it… please, just stop…”
When evening came, a maid entered the separate quarters to collect the accumulated laundry.
But Jin Eun-seol, hollow-eyed and exhausted, merely lay beside the child, staring blankly at the ceiling.
The maid, who had been about to pick up an armful of diapers, glanced unconsciously at the child.
The child’s neck was covered in fingernail marks.
The little one who had been smiling brightly froze like ice the moment their eyes met.
‘Tsk tsk…’
Clicking her tongue inwardly, the maid quickly stood up, afraid Jin Eun-seol might notice.
She closed the door carefully behind her and shook her head with a sigh.
There was no worse karmic tie than this.
The young mistress had even taken strong medicine to abort the child, but ultimately failed and gave birth.
Ever since, she had been like this.
The young mistress drifted in and out of her senses, while the child barely clung to life in her dangerous hands.
‘Aigoo… at this rate, someone’s going to die…’
Life, surprisingly, has a stubborn way of persisting.
Four years had passed since the birth of a child no one had wanted.
The child’s neck was hideous with fingernail scars, yet he was still alive.
Jin Eun-seol, who had lived like a criminal in the separate quarters for a full five years since becoming pregnant, looked worse than haggard—she resembled a walking corpse.
Within the Jin family estate, the separate quarters were strictly forbidden.
The walls were high, and the gate to the quarters—except when servants came and went—was always firmly locked.
Jin Family Main House.
A summer night.
Jin Gahan, seated before his desk and counting the days, suddenly muttered.
“It’s already been four years.”
His wife, Shin Ye-wan, cautiously replied.
“He’s old enough to start wandering around now. Shouldn’t we at least give him a name?”
She did not specify who.
In the Jin family, the child in the separate quarters was a disgrace simply by existing.
“…”
When her husband did not object, Shin Ye-wan gained courage and pressed further.
“We should also remove the bolt on the separate quarters’ gate. Eun-seol isn’t a criminal…”
“Hmph! One could hardly say she isn’t.”
Jin Gahan, who had remained silent until then, suddenly flared up as if he could not accept that much.
“It wasn’t Eun-seol’s fault.”
“If someone gets their nose cut off while their eyes are wide open, it’s the fault of the one who got their nose cut. Who else is there to blame?”
“Even the abbot said that man Seok seemed like a hidden master from the martial world.”
“That’s the only reason I haven’t driven her out. If not for that, I would have severed ties long ago.”
Despite Jin Gahan’s firm stance, the very next morning the bolt on the separate quarters’ gate was removed.
But that only made things worse.
The four-year-old child from the separate quarters, whom no one had paid any attention to, disappeared.
Jin Gahan and his wife only realized the child was missing that afternoon.
Yet neither the grandparents, Jin Gahan and his wife, nor the child’s own mother, Jin Eun-seol, went looking for him.
Early summer.
Around one o’clock in the afternoon, a mild-looking man in his early forties slowly entered the marketplace.
It was Dan Bul-wi, a Munwi—a low-level manager—of the Amun branch of Haomun, the human trafficking organization.
“Let’s see… I wonder if there’s anything worth picking up today.”
There had better be.
If not, he would have to buy some, but the situation was unfavorable.
Perhaps because it had been a bountiful year, no one was willing to sell even if he raised the price.
As he waded through the crowd, his eyes suddenly lit up.
A child who looked three or four years old was staring intently at the wares displayed on a street stall at the entrance of an alley.
Judging by his plain clothes, he did not seem to be from a noble family.
Dan Bul-wi quickly scanned the area around the child, but saw no accompanying adult.
‘Jackpot!’
Cheering inwardly, he casually approached the child.
“My, my, whose son is this? What bright, clever eyes you have. Hey, little one, how old are you?”
The child lowered his head deeply and held up four tiny fingers like fern fronds.
“Four years old, huh.”
Suddenly, Dan Bul-wi’s gaze fell on the child’s neck.
Around the delicate nape, still covered in fine baby hair, were countless scars.
It looked as if someone had pressed down with fingernails and gouged at it.
Even a dog kept on a leash didn’t usually look this bad. He couldn’t imagine what kind of misfortune this was.
“Where are your mom and dad?”
The child flinched and shrank his shoulders.
Dan Bul-wi gently stroked the child’s small head and said kindly.
“Aigoo, your mom and dad are too much. Leaving such a young child all alone like this. What’s your name, little one?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know? That’s alright. You don’t have to know. You’ll learn those things gradually as you grow older. Let me see… it’s lunchtime. Have you eaten?”
“…No.”
“Oh dear, our baby hasn’t eaten yet. You must be starving. I’ll buy you something delicious. Want to come with me?”
The child, who had been looking down, suddenly widened his eyes in shock.
There were such kind and gentle people in the world!
His mother only ever cursed at him, and whenever their eyes met, she would beat him as if she wanted to kill him…
The child’s hand unconsciously rose to his neck.
He could feel the bumpy scabs left by his mother’s fingernails.
Suddenly his heart pounded wildly, his ears rang, and he couldn’t do anything.
When the child hesitated, Dan Bul-wi grabbed his small hand without warning.
“Uncle will go over there and buy you some delicious sweets. The sweets there are really good, you know? So good that even if two people eat them and one dies, the other wouldn’t even notice.”
The man he had just met had already become “uncle.”
Since the child did not resist, the corners of Dan Bul-wi’s mouth curled upward.
‘This easy? Today must be my lucky day.’
Holding the child’s hand tightly as they walked, Dan Bul-wi’s steps were light as if he were flying.