Swish.
As he stepped inside, an entirely different scene from the forest unfolded.
The sky was dyed a dull gray, and the interior was filled with buildings painted pitch black.
The moment he entered, the thick stench of blood pierced his nose.
Bu Eunseol examined the silent black buildings before pushing open an iron door made of steel.
What greeted him was a scene straight out of a painting of hell.
The empty space was littered with animal limbs, eyeballs, entrails, and more. Even human body parts and byproducts were mixed among them.
‘Could it be…’
Stepping back out, he checked the interior of another building. It too was crammed full of what appeared to be byproducts from both beasts and humans.
While carefully inspecting the contents, Bu Eunseol’s gaze fixed on something.
‘That’s…’
Among the pile of remains, he spotted what looked like human arm skin.
Branded into that skin was a flame-shaped fire mark—the symbol of Extinction Palace.
‘So they were using people from Extinction Palace as experimental subjects?’
Sensing something deeply wrong, Bu Eunseol spread his Wind-Cloud Divine Qi widely, extending his Void Heart Command. Soon he detected traces of human presence inside some of the black buildings.
One structure stood out—it was three or four times larger than the storage buildings for the remains.
Stepping inside revealed a wide corridor lined with tightly shut iron doors on both sides.
‘So that’s how it is.’
Quietly peering deeper, he saw a large bed soaked in blood. Lying atop it was a wretched, mangled form too horrific to look at directly.
The shape was unmistakably human.
Yet one person had an animal’s eye and right leg grafted in place of their own.
Another had their bones and organs brutally torn apart and rearranged.
Along one wall stood shelves packed with elixirs and spiritual treasures so rare that money alone could never buy them.
Body modification.
They were conducting experiments—using elixirs, spiritual objects, and beasts to alter and reconstruct human muscles, bones, and more.
‘So that’s why he changed so drastically.’
Only now did Bu Eunseol finally understand.
The reason the gaze and aura of Shin Do-unhwi, the one he had glimpsed briefly in the Crimson Yellow Cult, had felt so alien and grotesque…
His explosive growth in martial prowess had come through body modification.
The strangeness and unfamiliarity stemmed from most of his body having been replaced with beast parts.
‘Then this place isn’t where the Hundred and Eight Stars are being experimented on… but rather a successor to the Infinite Realm’s legacy?’
Until now, such extreme body modification had been the exclusive practice of the Infinite Realm.
But they had vanished. Even the people of the Three Realms acknowledged that fact.
So who exactly was carrying out these cruel experiments now?
Twitch.
At that moment, the body lying on the bed stirred faintly.
Astonishingly, the person was still clinging to life in that state.
Bu Eunseol, lost in deep thought for a long while, had sharp glints repeatedly flashing in his eyes.
No matter how many miraculous elixirs and medicines one consumed, an ordinary human could never endure such experiments.
But in the martial world, there existed those whose powers and physiques were so extraordinary that they could hardly be called human to begin with.
The Hundred and Eight Stars.
Only they could possibly withstand experiments like these.
Creak.
Just then, the building’s door opened.
A black shadow appeared in the corridor where Bu Eunseol was hidden.
With every step, the ground trembled, and a dark heat haze rose from his entire body.
It was none other than the Young Palace Lord of Extinction Palace—Shin Do-unhwi.
“Enjoying the show?”
Shin Do-unhwi bared his long, beast-like fangs and stared directly at Bu Eunseol’s hiding spot.
“I wonder if it suited the taste of the Martial Soul Command Lord, who always sticks his nose into every affair under heaven.”
It wasn’t particularly surprising that Shin Do-unhwi had discovered his concealment. If body modification had granted him bestial super-senses, detecting this much was entirely possible.
“Why.”
Bu Eunseol spoke only that single word.
Why.
Within that one syllable lay grief and bewilderment over why the Young Palace Lord of Extinction Palace, whose future had once seemed so bright, would ruin his own life.
Why he had turned himself into an experimental subject destined to end his bloodline.
“Shouldn’t questions like that wait until after you’ve defeated me?”
Shin Do-unhwi grinned and turned around.
“Come outside.”
When Bu Eunseol stepped out, the surrounding buildings began slowly collapsing.
It seemed they had detected his infiltration and were immediately erasing all traces inside.
“Pity.”
Watching the structures sink into the earth like they were being swallowed, Shin Do-unhwi shrugged at Bu Eunseol.
“Guess I grew attached after spending so long here.”
Then he added one more line.
“It was a place that gave pain worse than death.”
Hearing those words, Bu Eunseol understood.
There was only one thing Shin Do-unhwi truly desired.
‘The target… was me all along.’
He had sacrificed his entire life just to fight him.
Even abandoning the chance to become the Palace Lord who would lead Extinction Palace—or the supreme leader who would command the Demonic Path.
Just like Seok Woo-haeng of the Ten Demon Warriors, who chose a duel to the death over anything else…
‘Why.’
Just like the meaning of the name Seok Woo-haeng (“Foolish Conduct”), he had committed the foolish act of staking his entire existence on a single confrontation with him.
And Shin Do-unhwi had made the exact same foolish choice.
Bu Eunseol let out a heartbroken sigh.
“Am I really worth all that?”
“Isn’t that how all martial artists are?”
Shin Do-unhwi gazed at the distant sky and exhaled heavily.
“Betting your entire life on just one duel…”
The breed called martial artists…
From the beginning, they are people who train with gritted teeth their whole lives just to defeat someone.
Some even use their Primordial Qi and sacrifice the rest of their lifespan for the sake of a single victory.
One single win. One single duel.
For those who live by the sword in the martial world, perhaps that is simply their fated choice.
“I see.”
Bu Eunseol nodded.
Since he was not truly a martial artist, he could not understand throwing away one’s entire life for the sake of a single confrontation.
But now he understood.
Martial artists would rather emit a blinding light that illuminates the world for even a single moment… than spend their whole life flickering dimly.
“Fine then.”
Bu Eunseol nodded once more.
This was the duel Shin Do-unhwi had craved—enduring the agony of tearing his own body apart, bones grinding and flesh ripping.
There was no stopping it now.
“Let’s begin!”
Swish!
With lightning speed, Shin Do-unhwi closed the distance in an instant.
His palm—large as a pot lid—unleashed crushing force.
Before Bu Eunseol could even draw his sword, layer upon layer of palm pressure slammed into him.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
With explosive sounds, Bu Eunseol was driven back six full steps.
Rumble!
Accompanied by thunder that shook heaven and earth, Shin Do-unhwi unleashed palm strikes without pause.
His force was sometimes like mist, sometimes like razor-sharp sword energy.
No matter what evasion Bu Eunseol attempted, no matter how he countered, Shin Do-unhwi had reached a realm where he could instantly adapt and change his palm techniques.
‘He understands Harmony, doesn’t he?’
Moreover, it was as if Shin Do-unhwi deliberately guarded against Bu Eunseol using Harmony.
He poured relentless pressure from ultra-close range, leaving no opening.
To deploy Harmony, one inevitably needed a brief moment to align internal energies and a somewhat grand, intense stance was required as well.
BOOM!
Another palm strike crashed into Bu Eunseol’s shoulder, blasting him back one full zhang this time.
Swish!
With a triumphant smirk, Shin Do-unhwi pierced through the rising dust cloud, aiming for a killing blow.
“…!”
But he had no choice but to freeze mid-motion.
Despite being hit by more than a dozen strikes of the Annihilation Palm, Bu Eunseol stood there completely unscathed, gazing back at him with a calm expression.
Though he had not reached the golden immortal body of Supreme Heavenly Realm masters like the Dharma Heaven Golden Thread, Bu Eunseol’s physique—having attained the pinnacle of both internal and external cultivation—surpassed sword-and-spear invulnerability even without exerting special power.
“Impressive.”
Shin Do-unhwi nodded.
Realizing that Bu Eunseol’s martial level far exceeded his expectations, he actually looked delighted.
—As expected, my eyes did not deceive me.
His gaze seemed to say exactly that.
The young grandmaster before him… was worth staking his entire life on.
Crack. Crunch—
As Shin Do-unhwi poured every ounce of his energy into his dantian, his body began to grotesquely transform.
Long, beast-like fur sprouted across his skin.
Half his facial skin turned a deep purple.
His entire body swelled outward as though badly burned.
One pupil narrowed into a vertical slit like a snake’s.
He looked exactly like a forced hybrid of human and beast.
“Huu…”
A deep sigh escaped Bu Eunseol’s lips involuntarily.
The monstrous form Shin Do-unhwi had become…
Did it not closely resemble Seok Woo-haeng—the one who had accepted the Heavenly Evil Sect’s Ghostly Essence and turned into a monster just for the sake of defeating him?
“What’s with that look!”
Having become half-man, half-beast, Shin Do-unhwi roared, unable to stand the expression on Bu Eunseol’s face.
Because those eyes were filled with boundless pity.
“You dare pity me?!”
BOOM!
With a deafening explosion, a round, transparent aura spread around Bu Eunseol’s body.
Shin Do-unhwi had unleashed invisible fist power.
Struck by it, Bu Eunseol’s body instinctively deployed his protective gang qi.
Sssss.
Even so, he was shoved back five full zhang.
Considering his internal energy had reached the level of ten jia… the casual strike Shin Do-unhwi had just thrown contained unimaginable, overwhelming power.
‘He’s strong.’
With just that one fist, Bu Eunseol instantly grasped Shin Do-unhwi’s level and capabilities.
Especially that beast-like body.
It bore a striking resemblance to the physique of Ak Muryeong, the supreme master of Nangyang Pavilion who had forged his body entirely through actual combat.
To rapidly increase his martial power in a short time, to gain faster, stronger force, to maintain tenacious vitality against any attack, Shin Do-unhwi had completely restructured his skeleton and body into something beast-like.
With a physique like that?
Even without special insights or breakthroughs in martial arts, one could wield razor-sharp senses, incredible resilience, and amplify martial techniques several times over.
“Come on—counterattack!”
BOOM!
Roaring like a beast, Shin Do-unhwi swung his arm and charged again.
Without even using proper techniques, mountain-splitting power poured forth.
“Have you broken through the Limitless Realm? Then show me your Infinite Reversal Power too!”
He didn’t bother displaying the Annihilation Palm.
From claws as black and sharp as carved darkness, power faster than lightning and capable of cleaving the sky erupted.
Even if a Limitless Realm master unleashed Infinite Reversal Power, against this frenzied onslaught—this rock-solid body, this beast-like acuity, relentless attacks from point-blank range—the body would be crushed before Infinite Reversal Power could even manifest.
‘He’s certainly prepared against Infinite Reversal Power. But…’
The one manipulating Shin Do-unhwi—the mastermind behind all of this—had made one miscalculation.
The reason Bu Eunseol had survived countless battles against powerhouses until now was not because he wielded overwhelming force like Infinite Reversal Power, but because he had endlessly researched martial mysteries capable of countering transcendental power.
And not long ago… through the Natural Sword of the Sword Venerable, hadn’t he even found a clue to turning the power of supreme experts into mere martial technique?
Swish-swish-swish-swish!
Millions of strands of force roared like a storm, caging Bu Eunseol’s body.
Yet with an utterly serene expression, he executed Swift Beyond Shadow and evaded every attack.
Drip. Clack.
Stepping back, he quietly sheathed the Silent Tiger Soul Sword once more.
“Giving up?”
Shin Do-unhwi, who had been pouring attacks like a madman, smirked as he looked at Bu Eunseol—blood now trickling from various wounds.
“…”
In contrast, Bu Eunseol simply gazed at him in silence.
That gaze overflowed with boundless compassion.
“You still have the leisure to hold back?!”
Swish.
Instead of answering, Bu Eunseol lowered his stance.
A strange energy immediately began spreading around his body.
Seeing it, Shin Do-unhwi gave a faint smile.
He assumed Bu Eunseol was finally unleashing his strongest art.
“I know you may have surpassed Infinite Ascension Steps… perhaps even reached Limitless Realm.”
Black mist rose from Shin Do-unhwi’s own body as well.
“But I can defeat you!”
His body had not merely enhanced strength, reflexes, and vitality.
It had been implanted with an extremely unique and powerful Harmony—one capable of blocking even transcendental power like Infinite Reversal Power.
It was close to the Harmony that Bu Eunseol’s ultimate secret art achieved by uniting every force within the body.
Swish!
But something strange happened.
The currents flowing from Bu Eunseol’s body began to envelop and cage Shin Do-unhwi instead.
“No way…!”
Shouting as he tried to attack, he suddenly felt inexplicable sensations, as though he had sunk into warm water.
Comfortable. Warm. Cozy. Peaceful.
It was the ultimate sense of security a fetus feels inside its mother’s womb.
‘Why…’
A strange thought crossed Shin Do-unhwi’s mind.
Whether Infinite Reversal Power or any other force was used, his beastly body should defend against anything an enemy unleashed.
His mental barriers had become even stronger than Spiritual Penetration.
So why did he feel this overwhelming warmth?
How could Bu Eunseol’s energy merge and harmonize with the energy inside his own body?
Could it be… he had surpassed Infinite Reversal Power and entered the Heaven’s Will Realm?
Saaaa—
When the mist finally cleared, Shin Do-unhwi felt a drowsy sensation as though waking from a dream.
Then reality hit him.
The feeling of lying in warm water… was the scorching blood pouring from his throat soaking his entire body.
Bu Eunseol, who had spread the mist, had shattered the beastly body of Shin Do-unhwi in one stroke and severed his neck almost completely.
“So that’s how it was.” Shin Do-unhwi murmured with a lonely expression.
A martial artist can convey hundreds of words’ worth of meaning in a single move.
Looking down at his blood-soaked body, he instantly understood the realm Bu Eunseol had reached—and the goal he pursued.
“You didn’t want to become strong… you wanted to become endlessly weak.”
Shin Do-unhwi laughed hollowly.
“How absurd.”
“Humans are like that from the beginning.”
Bu Eunseol replied calmly.
“A human who flies through the sky and cleaves mountains is not normal.”
“Hahaha…”
Shin Do-unhwi shook his head and laughed softly.
“So the reason you were so strong… was because you were pursuing weakness all along…”
Gush.
Spitting a mouthful of blood, Shin Do-unhwi spoke in a low voice.
“What’s the name of that technique?”
“Martial Mist and Waves.”
“Martial Mist and Waves…”
Gazing at the distant sky, he murmured quietly.
“It really was a sword move as soft and warm as gazing at nature itself.”
Thud.
Shin Do-unhwi collapsed flat on his back.
Gush-gush-gush.
Blood poured endlessly from his throat.
A normal human would have died long ago but because his body had been remade with beast parts, even after losing more than five times the fatal amount of blood, his life still clung on.
“You left my head attached because you’re curious who did this, right?”
Lying spread-eagled, Shin Do-unhwi stared emptily at Bu Eunseol.
“But I don’t know exactly either. Only that he was a young man.”
“A young man?”
“Yes.”
Shin Do-unhwi spoke with fading vision.
“He was an extraordinary person. He knew everything—what I was thinking, what I desired.”
Letting out a weak sigh, he continued.
“So I couldn’t refuse. If someone knows everything about me, he will surely turn my longing into reality.”
‘Heavenly Mechanism Star.’
Bu Eunseol intuited it instantly.
No—he had suspected it all along.
The one who had orchestrated this entire plan through Shin Do-unhwi… was none other than Heavenly Mechanism Star, Chu So, who had been targeting him from the very beginning.
He had come here even knowing it was a trap.
Because he wanted to see exactly how that man schemed, how he manipulated people.
“The Palace Lord approved all these plans even though he knew?”
“The Palace Lord doesn’t care.”
A brief flicker of pain crossed Shin Do-unhwi’s eyes, but he soon shook his head with a calm expression.
“And that person gave my half-brother an incredible secret art—one that will let him stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the strongest experts of this generation within a few years. Probably… a supreme expert who can surpass even you will soon appear in our palace.”
Taking a deep breath, he continued.
“Because what that man says always comes true.”
Only then did Bu Eunseol fully understand the situation.
Shin Do-unhwi.
In the end, he had been abandoned by his ruthless father and believing the words of someone who promised to make him endlessly strong, he had modified his own body.
“Don’t look at me with those eyes.”
Seeing pity rise in Bu Eunseol’s gaze, Shin Do-unhwi gave a hollow smile instead.
“The Demonic Path is the Demonic Path. Since my body became useless anyway, being discarded is only natural.”
Shin Do-unhwi.
He had been the Young Palace Lord of Extinction Palace and possessed outstanding talent.
But in the current martial world, there were far too many peerless prodigies his talent could never surpass.
Realizing that effort alone could never make him a supreme master who ruled the martial world, he had tried to prove his worth once more through body modification.
And the reason he could make such a choice without hesitation… was not merely the temptation of Heavenly Mechanism Star, but rather the disappointment and contempt of his heartless father—the Palace Lord of Extinction Palace.
“You really are a strange guy.”
Looking at Bu Eunseol, whose eyes brimmed with compassion, Shin Do-unhwi murmured softly.
“You possess the talent and ability to dominate the Demonic Path… yet for some reason you walk a completely different path.”
For the first time, Shin Do-unhwi’s expression became peaceful.
He even showed a shy smile.
“If there had been a chance… I would have liked to become friends with you.”
Drip.
Dark blood mixed with fragments of organs flowed from his mouth.
Thanks to the beastly body he still hadn’t died instantly, but his vision was already blurring and his breathing grew labored.
Judging from the violent convulsions racking his body, unimaginable pain was spreading through him.
Hummm.
Suddenly, a low vibration came from behind, accompanied by warm energy.
His vision slowly cleared again and he saw eyes filled with compassion.
Eyes that were utterly cold and merciless yet they would never turn away from someone in need.
That hand could take a life in an instant like the hand of a death god… yet it was also the compassionate hand of a bodhisattva that aided the weak.
All at once, a hot emotion surged in Shin Do-unhwi’s chest.
He wanted to say thank you.
“Don’t pity me.”
But perhaps because of pride… different words came out instead.
“Do I look that hideous?”
“You don’t look hideous.”
Bu Eunseol replied with a calm expression.
“Rather… you’re shining brightly.”
In that instant, a radiant smile, like that of an old, close friend, spread across Shin Do-unhwi’s lips.
Because he realized Bu Eunseol truly acknowledged and understood everything about him.
—As expected, my eyes were right after all.
Once again he felt it:
The young grandmaster before him… was a person fully worth devoting his entire life to.
“I burned everything I had… so of course I could shine like this.”
A proud yet peaceful smile bloomed on his face.
And that… was Shin Do-unhwi’s final expression.
😡 We gotta kill Chu So NOW 😡