Heaven Has No Eyes
The murders at Hwacheong Palace threw the entire administrative district into chaos.
The victim was none other than a royal relative: Lee Deok-myeong, vice commander of the Anseo Protectorate.
The killer was identified as the Blood Emperor, the great demon of the previous generation.
The authorities kept secret the fact that the Blood Emperor belonged to the Thousand Lotuses. Revealing it would have shattered the imperial family’s dignity beyond repair.
Even so, the mere knowledge that the Blood Emperor had slain an imperial clansman was enough to set the capital buzzing.
Security tightened at once. The gates of Chang’an Castle and all one hundred and eight wards were placed under strict watch.
Constables, detectives, and captains prowled the streets, clubs swinging at the slightest hint of suspicion. In the end, it was the innocent commoners who suffered most because of the Blood Emperor.
No one knew that on the same day, a female disciple of Haomun had been murdered by the Blood Emperor near Hwacheong Palace.
The only ones who remembered Baek Yu-hwa’s death were the members of Haomun themselves.
In the inner residence of Son-taek in Seonpyeong Ward.
After Baek Yu-hwa’s funeral, Dan Yeop shut himself inside the annex and refused to come out. Having lost all will to live, he stayed glued to his bed from morning till night, often skipping meals entirely.
One day, Son Yu-baek could bear it no longer and summoned his grandson.
“What exactly happened to Dan Yeop?”
“I don’t know either.”
“You idiot. Aren’t you supposed to be his friend? How can you not know?”
When Son Yu-baek’s voice rose, Son Ji-heon shrank his shoulders.
Gazing at his grandson with a look of utter disappointment, Son Yu-baek said, “What are you standing around for? Go find out at once.”
“Y-yes, I’m going.”
Practically chased from the room, Son Ji-heon headed straight for the annex.
“Brother Dan, what’s going on?”
At Son Ji-heon’s question, Dan Yeop waved a hand as though the topic itself annoyed him. Still, Son Ji-heon refused to back off.
“Come on, tell me. Who knows? Maybe I can help.”
“No one can help.”
“You never know until you try. Just say it already.”
Worn down by his friend’s persistence, Dan Yeop finally spoke.
“The person I secretly loved died recently.”
“Ah… I’m sorry. I’ve dragged up a painful memory.”
At this point, Son Ji-heon still believed she had died of illness.
“The Blood Emperor cut off her head.”
“Gasp!”
The name alone left Son Ji-heon speechless.
“You’re shocked too, aren’t you? We know who the culprit is, yet neither the government nor the righteous sects of the murim can touch him.”
“Heaven will punish a villain like that.”
“No. Heaven won’t punish him. Do you know why? Because heaven has no interest in worldly affairs. No matter what people do, heaven doesn’t care. You know that as well as I do.”
“But the Way of Heaven…”
“There is no such thing! The Dao is something people create! That damned heaven does nothing at all!”
“……”
There was genuine anguish in Dan Yeop’s voice. Son Ji-heon found himself unable to argue.
Dan Yeop continued, tone self-mocking. “The Blood Emperor is simply too strong. No one can punish him—not even the Five Great Sword Schools. Do you understand what I’m saying? It means we have to stand by and watch our enemy stroll freely through the world.”
“Haa…”
Son Ji-heon let out a long sigh. Now that he had heard the full story, Dan Yeop’s decision to lock himself away made perfect sense.
While carefully studying Dan Yeop’s complexion, Son Ji-heon spoke cautiously.
“They say a gentleman’s revenge is never late, even after ten years. In ten years, couldn’t you become stronger than the Blood Emperor?”
“Me, stronger than the Blood Emperor in ten years…? Well…”
Dan Yeop remained skeptical. He had barely escaped the label of complete fool. In both scholarship and martial arts he had always lagged behind his peers. Only the qi deviation caused by his Split Mind Technique had saved him; without it, he would never have even finished reading the Thousand Character Classic.
The same was true of his martial comprehension. Embarrassing as it was, he had simply been trailing after the Heart Demon. Perhaps in a hundred years he might catch up. But in a mere ten? He had no confidence at all.
“You will get stronger. Trust my eye for talent. Among our generation, no one can match your progress. I’m certain you will surpass the Blood Emperor.”
Despite the encouragement, Dan Yeop’s mood refused to lift. Son Ji-heon still didn’t know the truth. Without the Heart Demon, Dan Yeop would have spent his life rotting away inside a fabric shop.
Still, seeing his friend’s gloomy face, Son Ji-heon clapped his hands together.
“Come on, let’s go out for a drink. Nothing chases away worry like good wine. My treat. Let’s go.”
Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed Dan Yeop’s arm and hauled him to his feet. Having lost all motivation, Dan Yeop simply let himself be dragged along.
Seonpyeong Ward. Hwayun Tower.
Son Ji-heon brought Dan Yeop to the famous drinking house in the district. The pair claimed a table by the second-floor window and drank well into the night.
This was the very place where Dan Yeop had once shared drinks with Baek Yu-hwa and Im Song. Tonight, for the first time, he drank himself into oblivion.
Watching him, Son Ji-heon launched into a long, drunken speech.
“…My friend, what is life anyway? We come like the wind and leave the same way. No one’s exempt. Ah, damn—what was I saying? Oh, right. Women. You’re still young. A guy like you can definitely meet a good woman.”
“No. I can’t meet women. I’m not allowed to.”
“Who said that? Your parents?”
“I don’t have parents.”
“Then who told you such nonsense?”
“There’s someone who did.”
“Maybe they just meant you should be careful around women.”
“No. It seems I’m supposed to be practicing something like the Pure Boy Technique.”
“Who? You?”
“Yeah.”
“You’ve been training in the Pure Boy Art?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know? Then who does?”
“That person probably knows.”
“But you don’t?”
“Nope.”
Too drunk to notice the strangeness, Son Ji-heon simply nodded.
“Then there’s nothing to be done. The Pure Boy Art takes a long time to master, but once you reach great completion, they say you’ll have no equal.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. Keep training steadily and you’ll achieve what you want.”
As expected of a prestigious family’s son, Son Ji-heon knew a surprising amount.
The pair, now thoroughly drunk, returned home before the city gates closed. When Son Ji-heon knocked, it was Son Yeon-hwa who opened the door instead of the gatekeeper.
“Huh? Where’s Keeper Jang? Why are you opening the gate?”
“I told him to rest. He seemed to be catching a cold. But how much did you two drink?”
Son Yeon-hwa hurried forward to support Dan Yeop. Son Ji-heon, who had been reaching toward her, quietly withdrew his arm.
“Hey, I’m the drunker one here. Besides, Yeop is an expert in both internal and external arts. He doesn’t need help.”
“Stop talking nonsense. Can’t you see he’s staggering?”
“I’m telling you, I’m staggering more!”
As he spoke, Son Ji-heon’s feet tangled and he collapsed onto the ground. Son Yeon-hwa’s eyes flashed with anger.
“Brother, what if Grandfather sees you acting like this? Get up right now.”
“No, Yeon-hwa. I’m the one who needs help.”
“Then who told you to drink until you couldn’t even stand?”
“Yeop drank just as much as I did.”
“Don’t drag quiet Dan Yeop into your mess.”
Son Yeon-hwa took Dan Yeop’s arm and walked him toward the annex. Son Ji-heon, still waving one hand in the air, suddenly leapt to his feet and shouted.
“Hey, you heartless girl! They say blood is thicker than water, yet you abandon your brother like this!”
“Hmph! I knew you were fine all along! Stop causing trouble and go see Grandfather. He’s been waiting for you.”
“Grandfather was waiting for me?”
“I clearly delivered the message.”
With that, Son Yeon-hwa left with Dan Yeop.
Son Ji-heon stood there blankly for a moment, then slapped both cheeks hard with his palms. After several slaps, his mind finally cleared.
He told me to talk with Dan Yeop. He must be curious about the result.
Otherwise there was no reason to wait this late. Scratching his head, he trudged toward the inner residence. Though he had drunk heavily, he was not completely intoxicated; the closer he drew to the main house, the steadier his steps became.
In the inner residence.
Before his stern grandfather, Son Ji-heon kept his head slightly lowered to hide his flushed face.
Staring at his grandson, Son Yu-baek spoke first.
“You’ve been drinking with Dan Yeop all this time?”
“Yes. While talking with him, it felt like we couldn’t do without alcohol, so we drank a little.”
“It doesn’t look like ‘a little.’ What was the reason you had to drink until you were intoxicated?”
“It’s my friend’s private matter. I’m not sure if I should speak of it.”
When Son Ji-heon tried to dodge, Son Yu-baek gave a cold snort.
“Hmph! Enough with the nonsense.”
“The woman Dan Yeop secretly loved has died. More precisely, she was murdered recently.”
“Explain everything in detail.”
Son Ji-heon straightened his posture and began.
“Do you remember the recent murder of Lee Deok-myeong, vice commander of the Anseo Protectorate, at Hwacheong Palace? On that same day, the Blood Emperor killed a woman who had no connection to the vice commander. Dan Yeop told me she was the person he had been secretly in love with.”
“So he’s in despair because his target for revenge is the Blood Emperor.”
“Yes.”
“Do you know who that woman was?”
“If you mean the woman Dan Yeop loved, then no, I don’t.”
“The Five Great Sword Schools ordered Haomun to spy on the Blood Emperor’s movements. Several Haomun members were killed while following him. That woman was one of them.”
“Ah…”
“And Dan Yeop is also a member of Haomun.”
“……”
Son Ji-heon felt his heart sink. His honor-conscious grandfather had just learned Dan Yeop’s true affiliation.
“From your expression, it seems you already knew.”
“Well… please forgive me, Grandfather. I have been learning Haomun martial arts from Dan Yeop.”
“Was what you learned from Xuanwu Temple and Elder Kwak of the Zhongnan School not enough?”
“Dan Yeop is on a completely different level. He is the greatest master I have ever seen.”
“You’re saying Dan Yeop is stronger than Elder Kwak?”
“I believe so.”
Son Ji-heon’s insight was still immature, so he could not speak with absolute certainty. Even so, it was enough.
“So the grandson of Son Yu-baek is learning the martial arts of Haomun?”
“Although the world does not recognize it, the martial arts of Haomun…”
Son Yu-baek cut his grandson off.
“Isn’t it simply because Dan Yeop’s talent is exceptional?”
“It’s not like that.”
“It’s not? How can you claim that with such confidence? That only because it is Dan Yeop could he become a master even with Haomun’s techniques?”
“Well… Dan Yeop completely reworked Haomun’s worthless martial arts. That is what I have been learning.”
“Dan Yeop revised Haomun’s martial arts?”
“Yes. You already know he is a genius, Grandfather. He transformed them into martial arts of an entirely different dimension.”
“Even if that is true, Haomun is still Haomun. Do you truly believe the status of Haomun will rise because of one man named Dan Yeop?”
“I cannot say for certain. But if someone like Dan Yeop belongs to Haomun, then perhaps one day Haomun too can become a dragon that soars into the heavens.”
“So you will not distance yourself from him after all?”
Son Ji-heon stole a glance at his grandfather’s face. Surprisingly, he did not seem particularly angry. Gaining courage from that…