Meanwhile, Bing Hanpung could hardly be said to have held proper authority as palace lord.
Due to the ambush on Han Jawook, Han Woosang, who should have pledged loyalty, turned against him, and the other families, as if waiting for the chance, refused to acknowledge the palace lord’s authority.
In this situation, Bing Hanpung entrusted most palace affairs to Baek Jinyu, the head of the Baek family, who had wide connections with the five families. But when Bu Eunseol revealed that the ambush on Han Jawook, the young lord of the Han family, was not the palace lord’s doing, the situation changed entirely.
‘The palace lord knew everything but didn’t offer a single excuse for the sake of the Han family head.’ Out of loyalty to his friend and a sense of responsibility as palace lord, Bing Hanpung had silently endured misunderstandings and criticism.
His generosity and loyalty moved and earned the respect of all the disciples.
Moreover, it was revealed that the one who attacked Han Jawook was a high-ranking figure in the North Sea Ice Palace.
And they had mastered an internal energy method that doesn’t exist in the palace.
‘Surprisingly, it’s said to be a technique that can wield both yin and yang energies.’
‘And it’s likely someone from the leadership, since they could deduce the secrets of the Ice Thunder Palm.’
Normally, such revelations would lead to rampant speculation about the culprit. But the disciples of the North Sea Ice Palace, shocked by this fact, were preoccupied with another thought.
‘Has our palace been too closed off all this time?’
The North Sea Ice Palace has numerous martial arts texts and exceptional masters.
But they had only focused on mastering the martial arts secrets passed down through generations. As a result, the palace’s supreme techniques hadn’t advanced significantly and remained stagnant.
But when it was revealed that a traitor within the palace used a fabricated Ice Thunder Palm with yin-yang energy, it was a great shock.
‘The sects in the Central Plains frequently exchange and study martial arts. Shouldn’t we do the same?’
‘I heard the lord from Majeon proposed an alliance and even suggested exchanging martial arts knowledge.’
The opinion of the North Sea Ice Palace, which had clung to its isolationist stance, was beginning to shift.
This was something that couldn’t be achieved through martial prowess or force. Bu Eunseol had not only swiftly resolved the ambush incident but also changed the perspective of the palace’s insular martial artists.
In the meeting room of the Frozen Ice Pavilion.
Yoo Unryong and So Okrim were engaged in a serious discussion.
With the palace’s opinion on an alliance turning favorable, what remained was to find the traitor colluding with the descendant of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars, who had caused the palace’s division.
Rumble.
At that moment, a commotion and the sound of numerous footsteps came from outside.
Clank.
The door suddenly opened, and heavily armed martial artists from the North Sea Ice Palace stormed in.
It was the head of the Law Enforcement Hall along with its members.
“What’s going on?” Yoo Unryong shouted.
The head of the Law Enforcement Hall, standing at the forefront, glared and said, “The palace lord has been ambushed.”
“What?” Yoo Unryong leapt to his feet.
Everything was proceeding smoothly, and now the palace lord had been ambushed?
“Then why are you storming in on us?”
The head of the Law Enforcement Hall said, “Because the martial art used by the culprit wasn’t from our palace.”
Yoo Unryong’s body flinched.
‘Damn. I didn’t think of this.’
It was a logical sequence when you thought about it.
The traitor hiding in the shadows wouldn’t just sit idly by as the five families united. Using the fact that Bu Eunseol’s group were outsiders, they had created an inescapable trap.
“We came as guests of the palace lord. Why would we harm him?”
“We’ll need to investigate, so come with us.”
Yoo Unryong looked at So Okrim.
What if they had set an inescapable trap?
During the investigation, they would likely have created a trap from which there was no escape.
In the worst case, even if Bu Eunseol could escape, the other two might not.
‘I need to take them out in one go and secure an escape route.’ Yoo Unryong, gathering his energy, gripped the Ten-Section Staff hidden in his sleeve.
But at that moment, So Okrim casually nodded.
“Let’s go.”
“Go? Where?”
“We didn’t do it, did we?” So Okrim’s demeanor was so relaxed that it even calmed Yoo Unryong’s flustered heart.
‘If she doesn’t cooperate, I can’t escape alone.’
Missing the chance to escape, Yoo Unryong sighed and slowly loosened his grip on the Ten-Section Staff. Following the head of the Law Enforcement Hall, they were led to a deep underground prison used for interrogating criminals.
‘Are they planning to torture us?’ Yoo Unryong’s eyes widened.
Underground prisons are typically used for torture, as sounds don’t carry outside. But So Okrim’s demeanor was as relaxed as if she were on a stroll.
‘She’s not completely thoughtless, is she?’ Yoo Unryong shook his head.
Even if So Okrim acted simple and brash outwardly, she was likely quite intelligent.
To master supreme martial arts, one needed an exceptional mind. Given that she had mastered martial arts capable of crushing the Primordial Gate with one hand, her intellect was surely remarkable.
Clang.
The head of the Law Enforcement Hall opened a large iron door and said to Yoo Unryong, “Place your weapons on that table and enter.”
“Hmm.” With no choice, Yoo Unryong placed his Ten-Section Staff on the iron table.
“I don’t have any weapons.” So Okrim raised her large hands, and the head of the Law Enforcement Hall, with no other option, pointed to the prison.
“Enter.”
“Together?” Yoo Unryong said with a bewildered expression. “Men and women are different. You’re putting us in the same cell?”
The head of the Law Enforcement Hall frowned.
“This is the only cell in our palace.”
“Even so, really?”
“It’s just temporary detention before the investigation, so bear with it.” Then, looking at So Okrim, he said again, “Since nothing has been confirmed yet, we won’t suppress your internal energy. So go in quietly.”
“Hmph.” So Okrim snorted and strode into the cell.
Seeing this, Yoo Unryong had no choice but to follow.
Clang.
As the iron door closed, So Okrim sprawled out as if the cell were her own bedroom.
‘Strange.’ Yoo Unryong stroked his chin.
If they were detaining them, they should have not only taken their weapons but also sealed their qi points to prevent the use of internal energy. Moreover, the prison warden should have thoroughly searched them for hidden weapons or concealed tools.
Yet the North Sea Ice Palace, far from a mere local dojo, was detaining them so carelessly?
‘I see.’ Yoo Unryong’s lips curved into a smile.
He finally understood why Bu Eunseol had brought him instead of Myo Cheonwoo.
‘If it were Myo Cheonwoo or another captain, they’d have immediately used force to escape.’
Being detained in a cell without reason would make anyone furious.
The only one who could notice such carelessness and remain calm was Yoo Unryong.
‘He must want me to keep her in check.’
If So Okrim lost her temper and caused a commotion, the entire plan would collapse. Finishing his thoughts, Yoo Unryong looked at So Okrim, sprawled out, with an exceptionally gentle gaze.
“What? Why are you staring like that?”
“Oh, nothing. Just checking if you’re uncomfortable.” Knowing her fiery temper, Yoo Unryong asked softly, wary that she might pretend to sleep and then break out of the cell.
“Uncomfortable? Of course a cell isn’t comfortable.” Seeing So Okrim’s relaxed demeanor, Yoo Unryong tilted his head.
‘She mastered supreme martial arts, so she can’t be unintelligent. Does she have some other plan?’ Clearing his throat, Yoo Unryong subtly probed So Okrim.
“Do you have any plans?”
“Plans?”
“Any strategies or plans for what’s next.”
“Nope.”
“So you just let yourself be caught willingly?”
As Yoo Unryong’s eyes widened, So Okrim scratched her cheek and said, “I’m innocent, so they’ll let me go soon.”
Yoo Unryong’s mouth fell open.
It seemed So Okrim wasn’t intelligent but had forcibly mastered martial arts through sheer strength.
Snore.
Exhausted, she soon began snoring.
Upon closer inspection, she was truly fast asleep, completely passed out. Seeing So Okrim not throwing a fit and sleeping quietly, Yoo Unryong let out a sigh of relief.
‘I need to keep her calm and prevent any outbursts.’
With the meticulously laid plan nearing its climax, he shook his head, sat cross-legged, and entered deep meditation, contemplating what lay ahead.
***
Inside the Heavenly Glacial Pass.
Ripple, ripple.
The pond of Divine Cold Spirit Water inside the cave trembled incessantly.
As Bu Eunseol stored cold energy in his dantian using the Heavenly Glacial Secret for four days, the Divine Cold Spirit Water rippled in sync with his energy circulation.
‘Ugh.’ The cold energy stored in his dantian surged like a ferocious dragon, racing through his governor vessel to the crown of his head and back down repeatedly.
If he couldn’t stabilize the cold energy, his meridians would either freeze or tear apart.
‘Is it not working?’
Ice began to form around Bu Eunseol’s dantian. Unable to control the cold energy, his blood vessels were starting to freeze.
‘I won’t give up.’
Pop, pop, pop.
Thick veins bulged on Bu Eunseol’s forehead.
Though he felt as if his blood vessels were being torn apart, he relentlessly circulated the Heavenly Glacial Secret.
Suddenly, the words of Blood Vajra, who taught him the Ban-geuk Method, flashed through his mind.
-‘The Ban-geuk Energy encompasses all the forces of nature. Nature is ever-changing, cycling endlessly, like the four seasons.’
-‘Spring gives birth, summer nurtures, autumn harvests, and winter rests to give birth to life again. The Ban-geuk Energy creates all things and transforms them into energy.’
‘Seasons… cycles.’
Bu Eunseol had been solely focused on storing cold energy in his dantian using the Heavenly Glacial Secret. But the fundamental method stored in his body was the Ban-geuk Method, which embraces all energies of nature.
Like the cycling of seasons, he just needed to naturally accept the cold energy into his body.
‘The Heavenly Glacial Secret is merely a part of the Ban-geuk Method.’
Crack.
With this realization, a breaking sound came from Bu Eunseol’s body.
At the same time, formidable Cold Ice True Energy flowed from his dantian, pooling in his governor vessel. It naturally passed through the Jade Pillow acupoint and cascaded down his conception vessel like a waterfall.
Sssss.
The water in the pond, which had been seething, began to cool, becoming ordinary water and slowly evaporating.
All the cold energy of the Divine Cold Spirit Water had been stored in Bu Eunseol’s dantian.
Hummm!
A white aura flowed from Bu Eunseol’s body, and his hair began to turn white like snowflakes.
The Glacial Great Emperor.
Bu Eunseol looked as if the founder of the North Sea Ice Palace, the Glacial Great Emperor, had been reborn.
“Phew.” Finally finishing his energy circulation, Bu Eunseol opened his eyes.
A deep blue hue lingered briefly before his snow-white hair, dyed by the cold energy, returned to its original color.
At the same time, a blue light shimmered from his left hand.
“Did it work?” Looking down at his left hand, Bu Eunseol used the Heavenly Glacial Secret to release Cold Ice True Energy into the pond.
Crackle.
In an instant, the entire pond froze solid. It was so firmly frozen that the surface turned a vivid blue.
“It’s done.” Bu Eunseol looked at his left hand with a satisfied expression.
Having mastered the Ban-geuk Method, he could already freely wield yin-yang energy.
But by mastering the Heavenly Glacial Secret, he could now unleash not just yin-cold energy but extreme yin energy capable of freezing an ocean.
“What… what happened here?” Bing Hanpung, entering the cave, gaped.
After four days, he had come to check on Bu Eunseol’s progress.
If he hadn’t mastered the ice technique properly, he was prepared to share some of his own Cold Ice True Energy. But wasn’t Bu Eunseol’s body emanating cold energy as if dozens of thousand-year ice crystals had been poured into it?
And the Divine Cold Spirit Water, a treasure of the North Sea Ice Palace, had completely dried up?
“I’m sorry.” Bu Eunseol pointed to the pond with an embarrassed expression. “I absorbed the extreme yin energy from there, and it seems to have turned into ordinary water.”
“You absorbed… all the extreme yin energy from the pond made of Divine Cold Spirit Water?”
Bing Hanpung’s mouth fell open.
If he hadn’t seen the pond frozen solid, he would have thought Bu Eunseol was bluffing.
‘If that’s true, it’s as if he absorbed extreme yin energy dozens of times stronger than a thousand-year ice crystal.’
In the meantime, Bu Eunseol quickly dried himself and dressed.
“Has it already been four days?”
“Yes.” Snapping back to his senses, Bing Hanpung replied, “As you instructed, I had your companions detained. But it’s becoming difficult to keep refusing visits from the family heads.”
“Of course.” Taking a deep breath, Bu Eunseol’s eyes gleamed.
Humm.
As he gathered his energy, a faint light shimmered in his right hand.
Looking down at his right fist, Bu Eunseol said with utmost seriousness, “Are you prepared, palace lord?”
“Of course.”
“Understood.”
Boom!
With a thunderous sound, Bu Eunseol’s fist, tearing through the air, relentlessly struck Bing Hanpung’s body.
***
Rumble.
The tightly shut prison door opened.
Inside, Yoo Unryong was circulating energy, and So Okrim, just waking up, was yawning.
“You may come out.” At the head of the Law Enforcement Hall’s words, Yoo Unryong’s eyes lit up.
They had been locked in the cell without any interrogation.
Moreover, every meal came with fine food and wine, and the head of the Law Enforcement Hall visited multiple times to ask if they were uncomfortable.
What was surprising was So Okrim.
Not once did she throw a fit, sleeping like a sick puppy for three days.
‘She must have been told.’ Yoo Unryong gave a wry smile.
With a personality like So Okrim’s, there was no way she’d stay calmly locked in a cell for three days. Bu Eunseol must have tipped her off beforehand.
‘Wait? Then why didn’t he tell me?’ Yoo Unryong felt something was off.
If this was all part of Bu Eunseol’s plan, there was no reason not to tell him.
‘It must be a plan he executed on the spot.’ Yoo Unryong looked down at So Okrim, who was soundly asleep. ‘Did he think she’d figure out the situation like I did?’
But all she did was sleep without a care. Even with his trust in Bu Eunseol, shouldn’t she have at least circulated energy like him, preparing for unexpected situations?
“You may come out.”
As the head of the Law Enforcement Hall called again, “Mmm.”
So Okrim stretched, got up with bleary eyes, and stood.
“Follow me.” But instead of retracing their path, the head of the Law Enforcement Hall repeatedly touched a wall blocking the innermost part of the underground prison.
Creak.
With the sound of a mechanism, a hidden passage appeared.
‘What’s this now?’ Yoo Unryong’s eyes widened, but So Okrim casually stepped inside. After walking a winding path for a while, they arrived at none other than the pavilion where Bing Hanpung resided.
“Well then.” The head of the Law Enforcement Hall clasped his hands toward Yoo Unryong and So Okrim and turned away.
“What’s going on? What’s all this about?” Entering the room, they found Bu Eunseol sitting calmly in a sealed chamber. “What have you been doing for four days?”
At Yoo Unryong’s question, Bu Eunseol said calmly, “I just made the first move.”
“Huh?”
“If we really managed to unite the five families, they’d be in trouble. They’d definitely come up with a scheme like this.” Bu Eunseol continued calmly, “I arranged with the palace lord beforehand to pretend to interrogate us under the pretext of finding the culprit.”
“Then you should’ve told me!”
As Yoo Unryong made a wronged expression, Bu Eunseol explained, “There were circumstances. I didn’t expect it to take this long… I only came out after four days myself.”
Bu Eunseol explained that he had secretly learned ice techniques from Bing Hanpung during that time.
“I see. But why keep it a secret from me alone?” Yoo Unryong subtly pointed at So Okrim and whispered, “You told her.”
“I didn’t tell her.”
“What?”
“I never told her anything.”
“No way.” As Yoo Unryong’s eyes widened, So Okrim, quick to catch on, snorted.
“What? You totally thought I was an idiot, didn’t you?”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Not it? It’s obvious just looking at you.”
‘She was pretending to be brash on purpose.’ Yoo Unryong had felt a sense of unease about So Okrim’s demeanor all along.
He knew being locked in the cell was part of Bu Eunseol’s plan and trusted him implicitly, so he could wait patiently. But for someone known to be simple and brash like her to figure out Bu Eunseol’s plan and wait calmly?
‘So she was disguising herself too.’
If Bu Eunseol hid his brilliant mind behind cold detachment in Majeon, So Okrim was hiding her intellect behind brash and simple behavior.
‘I need to sharpen my eye for people.’
Yoo Unryong sighed inwardly and said, “But will they fall for such a shallow trick?”
So Okrim frowned and said, “It’s not a real injury, right? Even if the five families with their sharp eyes are somehow fooled, the descendant of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars infiltrating the palace won’t fall for it.”
“I really attacked him.”
“What?”
Bu Eunseol said calmly, “And the traitor will want to confirm it themselves. Whether the palace lord is truly injured.”
“Will only the traitor come?” So Okrim furrowed her brow. “With the palace lord injured, won’t they all come at once?”
Bu Eunseol smiled at her sharp observation.
“That’s why we’re here.” He pointed to the wall of the sealed chamber. “On the other side is where the palace lord is recuperating. We need to observe their conversations and behaviors to identify which one is the traitor.”
“You can tell from their conversations or behaviors? How?”
“I’ll handle that.” At Bu Eunseol’s explanation, even So Okrim looked dazed.
Though she possessed keen intellect, she couldn’t fathom what plan Bu Eunseol had or what he was thinking.
“But even if we’re here, why is the palace lord going this far?” Yoo Unryong asked, unable to understand.
For someone of the North Sea Ice Palace lord’s stature to harm himself for this plan?
There were surely many other ways.
“Because this method is faster than any other.”
“Faster…”
“If the five families of the North Sea Ice Palace had united, the martial world’s dynamics would likely be very different today.” Bu Eunseol’s eyes deepened. “The palace lord wants to unite the North Sea Ice Palace as soon as possible. To restore its past glory.”
Bing Hanpung needed to quickly mend the rift among the five families to restore stability to the palace.
That’s why he willingly risked injury to participate in this plan.
And it was rooted in his trust in Bu Eunseol as a person.
Now, Bu Eunseol had to live up to that trust.
By listening to the conversations between the palace lord and the family heads in this sealed chamber…
He had to definitively identify the culprit who divided the North Sea Ice Palace.
