“Master.”
A-Yeon clasped her hands and bowed deeply.
“Can’t you tell me honestly about everything that’s happened?”
“What do you mean?”
A-Yeon took a deep breath, meeting Ok Yuha’s uneasy gaze. “I heard that because Master loved a man… despite being eligible to become the pavilion master, you abandoned your dharma name and lowered your own status.”
“Who said such things?” Ok Yuha’s eyes sharpened, but A-Yeon spoke cautiously.
“I… no, it’s something every disciple in the pavilion knows.”
“What?”
“They say Master made that choice because the Supreme Elder forced you. And that by being made to take the Bright Silver Divine Pill repeatedly… it worsened your sickness of the heart.”
The Bright Silver Divine Pill forcibly cools the body, producing an effect akin to the Cold Heart Technique. But prolonged use causes delusions and hallucinations, weakening one’s mental strength.
Ok Yuha, visibly shaken, spoke in a trembling voice.
“Where did you hear such things?”
“I overheard the Medicine Stone Pavilion Master and the Seonhwa Pavilion Master talking by chance.” She added one more thing. “Moreover, they said it’s wrong for the Supreme Elder to arbitrarily lead the pavilion while deliberately leaving the pavilion master’s position vacant.”
“They said that?”
“Isn’t it true that there are no secrets in our pavilion?”
A-Yeon’s words were no exaggeration.
The Sword Pavilion was situated in the isolated Great Sword Mountain, cut off from the secular world. Stories that spread within it simply circulated endlessly among its members.
After a moment’s hesitation, A-Yeon spoke honestly.
“To be frank, my demonic affliction stems from a similar reason.”
Silence fell.
As a deathly stillness settled, A-Yeon regretted her candid confession. Beyond the shame, she couldn’t bear to face the disappointment in her master’s eyes.
But an unexpected response came.
“That you fell into a demonic affliction because of a man named Bu Eunseol is something every disciple in the pavilion knows.”
“How did you—”
“There are no secrets in our pavilion, are there?” Ok Yuha let out a small chuckle and said calmly, “You’ve called his name in your sleep a few times.”
A-Yeon’s face flushed.
What she thought was her private secret was already common knowledge.
“Do you like him?” At Ok Yuha’s blunt question, A-Yeon’s face reddened further.
“I don’t know. It’s just that when I close my eyes, his face appears.”
Ok Yuha gave a faint, wry smile and asked, “What kind of person is he?”
“He’s the heir of Majeon. As the rumors say, he’s very intelligent and his martial arts are strong.”
“Not that.” Ok Yuha’s smile softened. “Not what others say about him—tell me what you felt.”
A-Yeon’s eyes wavered.
But under Ok Yuha’s all-knowing gaze, she lowered her head and spoke in a soft voice.
“He’s like a child hiding deep sorrow in his heart. He seems to view the world coldly, but in truth, his heart is warm.”
“How do you know that?”
“I don’t know… it’s just how I felt.”
“That’s how it is.” Ok Yuha let out a deep sigh and said, “When you truly care for someone, you see things in them that others cannot.”
It was her own experience speaking.
“The man who stirred this master’s heart was upright and full of justice.” She gazed into the void and continued. “But his true nature was that of a brutal killer and great demon, wreaking havoc across the martial world.”
Taking a deep breath, she spoke with a pained expression.
“He used this master to set a trap, slaughtering the pavilion’s elders mercilessly.”
A-Yeon covered her mouth. To think that her always cold and composed master had such a painful story.
“Without knowing this, I begged him. I pleaded to abandon everything, to leave the martial world with me… to live in hiding together.” Breathing heavily, Ok Yuha continued, “If he would just do that, I said I’d live for him alone, looking only at him for the rest of my life.”
It was a shocking and sorrowful tale.
To think that Ok Yuha, always as cold as ice, had made such a passionate, fervent confession.
And that the man had used her heart to set a cruel trap…
“But he deceived me until the end. He said the elders were targeting me while I was unconscious and that he would bring proof to the Sword Pavilion.” Ok Yuha’s eyes trembled uncontrollably. “This foolish master believed him again. That he was a man who kept his promises, that he’d surely find that proof.”
“…”
“And that once he brought it, I’d abandon my dharma name, my status as the pavilion’s heir… and follow him.” Her voice trembled as she stared into the void.
“Time passed, and I grew older. But I feared he wouldn’t recognize me when he returned.” Pausing, Ok Yuha gazed into the distance.
“So… I learned the Green Veil Flower Charm Great Method of the Water Moon Palace, sacrificing my inner energy to restore my youth.”
The reason Ok Yuha, the former Sword Empress, had such diminished power.
She had been practicing the mysterious Green Veil Flower Charm Great Method of the Water Moon Palace, which maintained youthful beauty at the cost of inner energy.
Because she believed he would keep his promise and return, she sacrificed her life’s energy to preserve her beauty.
“But he never came.”
Ok Yuha’s eyes wavered.
Believing in that one promise, she had sacrificed her energy and waited thirty years for the man who killed the pavilion’s elders. But that faith was betrayed, and she could no longer endure it, falling into a sickness of the heart.
“I never spoke of this to anyone in my life.” With a desolate expression, Ok Yuha looked at A-Yeon. “Do you know why I’m telling you this?”
“I don’t.”
“So you don’t repeat this master’s mistakes.”
Ok Yuha was filled with regret.
She should never have trusted the words of a demonic man.
Instead of acting on her feelings, she should have suppressed that tender heart and killed the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.
“So that’s what happened?” A low male voice came from outside the door.
“Who’s there!”
Ok Yuha shouted, and—
Creak.
The door opened, revealing a dark figure. It was Bu Eunseol, disguised as Seolso.
“You?”
“I apologize for eavesdropping. But I had to hear it.” Bu Eunseol clasped his hands, and Ok Yuha’s expression turned strange.
“Had to hear it?”
“The man you spoke of—was it the Seven-Finger Demon Blade, Bu Zhanyang?”
Ok Yuha wasn’t particularly surprised.
She had already exclaimed “Bu Zhanyang!” earlier.
The issue was why this man, pretending to have left the Sword Pavilion, was hiding here, eavesdropping.
“What does that have to do with you?”
“If I understand the full story, I might be able to resolve your grievances.”
Bu Eunseol had been tracking the Seven-Finger Demon Blade, Bu Zhanyang, for a long time. Learning that Ok Yuha had a close connection with him, he couldn’t leave without uncovering more.
Thus, after treating A-Yeon and claiming to leave, he secretly returned to eavesdrop on Ok Yuha and A-Yeon’s conversation. This was possible due to his high martial prowess, particularly the supreme stealth technique of Nangyang Pavilion, the Swift Beyond Shadow.
“From what you said, he killed the elders while you were unconscious… to save you, correct?”
“Do you think I’m a fool? Or the pavilion?” Ok Yuha glared at Bu Eunseol with cold eyes and said, “Why were you hiding here, eavesdropping on this woman?”
She referred to herself as “this woman” again. Her shame and anger flared, rekindling her sickness of the heart.
“I said, if I know the full story, I might resolve your grievances and pain—”
“If you spout nonsense, I’ll sound the alarm.”
“No choice, then.” Bu Eunseol drew a short blade from his chest.
It was Journey, the cherished weapon of the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.
“That’s…”
“Can you tell me now?”
“Is he… alive?” Ok Yuha approached Bu Eunseol, her voice trembling.
“Where is he?”
“Pavilion Master, calm yourself.”
“Tell me! How—”
“If you shout like that, the other disciples will rush in, and I’ll have to leave.” Bu Eunseol spoke calmly. “If that happens, you’ll never hear the truth of that day.”
Ok Yuha trembled.
As he said, if Bu Eunseol left now, she would never resolve the pain that had festered in her heart for thirty years.
“What are you trying to say?”
“Everything about the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.”
“You know more about him than I do.”
Bu Eunseol spoke half-truthfully. “It’s true I inherited the Seven-Finger Demon Blade’s supreme techniques. But I, too, am searching for his hidden tracks.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I saved your pavilion’s heir without conditions, and now I’m trying to resolve your grievances. Can’t you trust me on that alone?” Bu Eunseol had never pleaded with anyone.
But to uncover Bu Zhanyang’s whereabouts and hear Ok Yuha’s story about him, this was the only way.
There was no way to force her to speak.
“Didn’t you say you’d tell me the truth about the elders’ deaths?” At Ok Yuha’s words, Bu Eunseol gave a bitter smile. “Ok. If you want to know that first, I’ll tell you what happened.”
Ok Yuha quickly spoke.
“When I arrived at the Guan Temple to meet him, I felt a sting in my back, and my acupoints were sealed.” Taking a deep breath, she continued. “When I opened my eyes again, nine corpses lay brutally scattered in the temple. They were the Nine Great Elders of our pavilion, who had secretly followed me knowing I was meeting him.”
Bu Eunseol, deep in thought, asked, “How were the Nine Great Elders struck down?”
“Their bodies were riddled with countless tiny holes. He must have created hundreds of blade pellets to slaughter them.”
“Was the Seven-Finger Demon Blade unharmed?”
“Not at all. He was covered in blood.” Ok Yuha said proudly, “Our pavilion’s swordsmanship is the pinnacle of orthodox sword arts.”
“I see.” Having heard the full story, Bu Eunseol finally grasped the hidden truth of that day. “The Seven-Finger Demon Blade used his blade techniques to save you. The Nine Great Elders couldn’t avoid it and were slaughtered in a single strike.”
“How can you prove that?” Bu Eunseol reached for his black sword.
But seeing A-Yeon staring wide-eyed, he extended his hand to Ok Yuha.
“Lend me your sword.”
“What?”
“Just lend it to me briefly, and I’ll prove it.” Ok Yuha frowned but, seeing the sincerity in Bu Eunseol’s eyes, drew her precious sword from her waist.
“Thank you.”
Taking the sword, Bu Eunseol gathered his energy and said, “Watch closely.”
He executed the Life Lodges, Death Returns form of the Seven Blood Tear Forms.
Hundreds of sword pellets began to rise around his feet.
Whoosh.
Bu Eunseol deftly maneuvered through the hundreds of sharp sword pellets, sending one soaring toward the roof.
Pop.
It became a streak of light, piercing the roof and flying far into the sky.
“As a sword master, you should understand the truth of that day just by seeing this blade technique.” Watching the technique, Ok Yuha trembled.
Her eyes couldn’t believe it.
The man she thought was a vile demon, the one she could never forget… was actually a righteous person?
“He… truly tried to save only me?” Though her power had waned, she was a master who had immersed herself in swordsmanship her entire life.
She instantly grasped the profundity of Bu Eunseol’s blade technique.
If the Seven-Finger Demon Blade truly intended to kill the Nine Great Elders, he wouldn’t have needed to riddle their bodies with hundreds of holes—he could have severed their necks in an instant.
But he didn’t.
That’s why his body was also torn by countless wounds from the sword pellets.
“The Nine Great Elders had marks of sword pellets piercing their bodies, and Bu Zhanyang was covered in blood. That’s because he used the Life Lodges, Death Returns blade form to force the elders, who intended to kill you, to retreat.” Bu Eunseol sighed. “But unable to fully execute the technique, he stood bloodied yet resolute, hoping the elders would leave.”
Yet the Nine Great Elders pressed forward through the blade pellets to kill Ok Yuha, only to be slaughtered by the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.
“I can’t understand.” Ok Yuha’s eyes widened as she spoke. “Then why didn’t he use this technique on me? That would have cleared his name immediately.”
“He couldn’t.” Bu Eunseol said in a low voice. “If you knew the truth, you would have hated the Sword Pavilion and left immediately. And that… wasn’t the ending he wanted.”
“No way.” Ok Yuha shook her head. “If he had revealed the truth, I would have left with him immediately. How could that not be the ending he wanted?”
Bu Eunseol remained silent.
‘The Seven-Finger Demon Blade wanted you to stay in the Sword Pavilion.’
His eyes conveyed that meaning.
Saying it aloud would be too cruel to her.
“If he revealed the truth, you would have despised your sect. He chose to bear the false accusations to protect the pavilion’s honor.”
“The Nine Great Elders…” Ok Yuha’s eyes dimmed again. “…So that’s how it was.”
She finally understood the full story.
At that time, the Sword Pavilion was subtly positioned to surpass the Nine Great Sects as the leader of the orthodox martial world. But when its heir fell for a demonic killer and threatened to abandon the sect, they chose to kill her to erase the scandal.
“Leaving me alive was to properly train a new heir.” All the elders, except the Supreme Elder Elder Nengyin, died at once.
With most of the pavilion’s martial arts lost in that incident, they had no choice but to keep Ok Yuha, who had inherited their teachings, alive.
Drip, drip, drip.
Tears streamed from Ok Yuha’s eyes.
Even now, thirty years later, understanding everything left her with only disillusionment toward her sect.
“He didn’t betray me after all.”
The venomous hatred in her heart melted into tears.
Deep down, she knew.
He was never a cruel demon. There had to be some reason. That’s why she could wait for the Seven-Finger Demon Blade, Bu Zhanyang, all those years.
She collapsed, sobbing quietly.
Swish.
Bu Eunseol turned away.
There was no need to ask Ok Yuha more about the Seven-Finger Demon Blade.
She loved him, and he willingly became a villain for her sake.
What more was there to ask between them?
Humm.
At that moment, Bu Eunseol’s heightened senses detected a faint presence on the roof.
‘The one who tied the knot must untie it.’
He smiled faintly. Then he slowly walked outside.
“Are you leaving?” A-Yeon, who had been silently standing for a long time, finally spoke. “You saved me.”
She already knew the man who infused her with energy was Bu Eunseol.
His immense power, unimaginable for his youth, and his eyes, burning with a martial spirit yet tinged with deep sorrow.
A-Yeon was overjoyed.
The man she had kept in her heart… had traveled thousands of li to Great Sword Mountain to save her from the Black-and-White Witch. And he had tirelessly infused his energy to save her life.
“Thank you. Truly.” Realizing A-Yeon had seen through his identity, Bu Eunseol spoke in his true voice.
“We’ve had some ties, so I couldn’t just pass by. Farewell.” He opened the door and vanished like the wind.
A-Yeon’s eyes were filled with longing and confusion. She missed the departed Bu Eunseol, and she couldn’t grasp what she should do next.
“So it was him.” Ok Yuha, who had been sobbing quietly, regained her composure and stood.
Her eyes were still red, but they shone brightly, as if her heart’s sickness had been healed.
“I’ve been wrong all this time.”
Ok Yuha finally realized her mistake.
If she truly loved the Seven-Finger Demon Blade, she shouldn’t have waited for his promise. She should have followed him without hesitation, no matter the obstacles or hardships. If she had, he might have opened his heart, taken her hand, and left the martial world together.
But she didn’t, and so she lost the love she yearned for.
“If regrets and pain linger, you’ll never escape a demonic affliction.” Ok Yuha looked at A-Yeon calmly and said, “Follow him and express your heart. Leave no regrets.”
“Master.”
“And save him.”
“Save him…?”
Ok Yuha murmured, gazing into the distant void. “Having cast off the sickness that plagued me, my senses are finally clear.” She looked at A-Yeon and said, “The Supreme Elder was watching everything from the roof. That’s why he left so quickly.”
“Elder Nengyin…?”
“Yes. Knowing he’s the heir of the Seven-Finger Demon Blade, she won’t let him leave quietly.”
“Why? He only saved my life!”
“Don’t you understand yet?” Ok Yuha said with a pained expression. “I became a wreck because I loved a demonic man. And now the same is happening to you… how could she stand by and watch?”
A-Yeon’s face paled.
The Supreme Elder, Elder Nengyin, had harbored resentment over Ok Yuha’s situation her entire life. As her master said, she would never allow the same to happen again.
“She’ll likely send both the Flame Flower Corps and the Lotus Corps to capture him.”
The Flame Flower Corps and Lotus Corps consisted of the pavilion’s most elite disciples, trained to execute the pavilion’s supreme formation, the Silent Void Annihilation Formation.
No matter how skilled Bu Eunseol was, he couldn’t face them all.
“Do you want to save him?”
“Of course… he saved my life, so I must repay the favor.”
Taking a deep breath, Ok Yuha said calmly, “But you’ll have to make a choice.”
“What choice?” A-Yeon asked, and Ok Yuha spoke in a grave tone.
“As you know, more than half the pavilion’s disciples are loyal to the Supreme Elder.”
With a pained expression, she sighed.
“If you try to save that man… the pavilion’s disciples will have to fight each other.”
