“If you follow this path straight ahead, you’ll come upon the hermitage. There’s only one road, so it shouldn’t be hard to find.”

Early in the morning, Hyeon and Seolhwa departed from Shaolin and entered the deep forest of Sungsan.

After pushing their way through the forest path for quite a while, Hyeon came to a stop at a certain point.

“You’re not coming with me?”

“I can’t go any farther. This area is restricted without the Abbot’s permission.”

“Why?”

“Because it would disturb the one cultivating here.”

Seolhwa looked toward the path that continued to the right.

Near where Hyeon had stopped, there was a tree with a red cloth tied around it.

‘Who could possibly be so important that they can't be disturbed?’

Was it perhaps the previous Abbot, rumored to be one of the Ten Masters Under Heaven?

‘Come to think of it, I know nothing about the previous Abbot of Shaolin.’

Even in her past life, she had never heard any word of the previous Abbot.

Now that she thought about it, it was odd that there had been no news whatsoever about someone considered among the top ten masters in the world.

‘Did he die in the battle against the Blood Demon?’

Hmph.

“Got it. I’ll go alone from here.”

“Amitabha. Safe journey, benefactor.”

Receiving Hyeon’s farewell, Seolhwa entered the forest path alone.

As Hyeon had said, there was only one road, but perhaps because it was rarely traveled, the deeper she went, the thicker the undergrowth became.

After walking some distance, Hyeon’s presence had long vanished from sight.

How much farther did she walk?

[Namgoong Seolhwa. I don’t think I can go any farther either.]

“...What?”

At the Imugi’s words, Seolhwa came to a halt.

“What do you mean you can’t go?”

[If I go any farther, my presence will be detected. The one beyond that point is someone I cannot fully hide my power from.]

‘Someone who can’t be deceived by your power.’

Even Namgoong Mucheon and the Shaolin Abbot Beopgong hadn’t noticed the Imugi’s presence.

But now, someone could?

“You don’t mean... someone in the Hwagyeong realm...?”

[Seems like it. Surprising, isn’t it? That someone else in this generation has reached the realm of Hwagyeong.]

“Someone else? You’re saying there’s another master in Hwagyeong?”

[Yeah. That guy I stayed with for a while at Mount Hua—he was a master in Hwagyeong.]

“...!”

Seolhwa was stunned.

A master in Hwagyeong. It was someone she hadn’t even considered.

She had known the person who had spent time with the Imugi at Mount Hua was a powerful expert, but she had assumed his realm was Hwagyeong at best.

To think... he had reached Hyeongyeong?

Wait. There’s someone at the level of Hyeongyeong? And not just one—but two?

‘No—if I count the Blood Demon, that makes three?’

Even Seolhwa didn’t know the Blood Demon’s exact realm.

But considering that even she, at Hwagyeong in her past life, couldn’t gauge him at all, it was only natural to assume he had reached Hyeongyeong.

‘Three masters in Hyeongyeong...’

Hwagyeong was supposed to be the highest known realm in the Central Plains.

The ones called the Ten Masters Under Heaven.

And yet, here were three who had surpassed even them.

‘Even living this life again, the ways of the world remain unknowable.’

[I’ll stay nearby. If you need me, I’ll be at your side.]

“Alright.”

The Imugi slipped out from Seolhwa’s sleeve and silently disappeared into the bushes.

Though they could never truly part, this was to erase even the smallest trace of the Imugi.

Seolhwa continued down the path alone.

As she walked, a rich, savory scent began to waft through the air.

Her stomach let out a low growl.

Though she had eaten breakfast, the Shaolin meal of mere vegetables had digested quickly, leaving her hungry again.

On top of that, she had been climbing the mountain all morning, and though it was still half a sijin (roughly one hour) until lunch, her stomach was already rumbling.

‘Sesame porridge?’

Why did it smell so good?

Saliva began to pool in her mouth.

As if drawn by a spell, Seolhwa followed the scent.

Pushing through the overgrown foliage, she found that the underbrush on either side of the path had been neatly pressed down.

Someone had tended to the trail.

Lifting her gaze, she saw smoke rising gently from a short distance ahead.

The scent grew even stronger—she was close.

‘I’m here.’

Walking toward the rising smoke, Seolhwa finally came upon a small hermitage built in the heart of the forest.

Two single rooms sat side by side.

In the front yard, someone was vigorously stirring a massive pot with a log as thick as half his own body.

With a cloth tied around his forehead, the man was absorbed in his work, back turned, so she couldn’t see his face—but it was clear he was well-built.

Just looking at his exposed arms, visible beneath the torn sleeves of his clothes, she could tell.

Tightly packed muscles, a height at least a head and a half taller than hers, and even through his clothes, an unmistakably trained body.

‘A martial artist.’

Seolhwa’s gaze shifted toward the large blade (do) leaning against the hermitage’s porch.

It had to be the man’s weapon.

‘Who is he?’

Was this the person? The master in Hyeongyeong?

‘No... he doesn’t feel like he’s at that level.’

There was no pressure—none of the aura befitting a Hyeongyeong master.

Was it because he was stirring a pot?

Seolhwa tilted her head.

Just then—

Grrrrgle—

Her stomach growled again, announcing its hunger.

Seolhwa swallowed dryly and looked at the man.

‘Whoever he is, he must be a Shaolin man, right?’

Maybe she could ask for just one bowl.

She carefully approached the man.

After a few steps, she realized she had instinctively hidden her presence.

That might startle him.

Intentionally releasing her presence, Seolhwa continued walking—

“....”

The man’s movement suddenly stopped.

As expected—she’d startled him.

She should explain she hadn’t meant to, and ask for a bowl.

“Excuse me—”

Just as she opened her mouth—

FWOOOSH—!

“!”

Seolhwa froze on the spot.

A rich, nutty aroma of sesame hit her nose like a sharp arrow.

But that wasn’t what surprised her.

It wasn’t the man’s sudden motion.

Nor was it the thick log aimed her way.

“...Huh...?”

The log lowered slowly.

With a heavy thud, it dropped to the ground and rolled away.

And yet, neither of them moved—they simply stared at each other.

Startled. Elated. Their frozen minds and bodies overwhelmed by clashing emotion.

‘...Yugang...?’

He had grown, changed over the four years—but there was no way Seolhwa wouldn’t recognize him.

Even if his height had shot up and his body changed, those clear, unwavering eyes were the same.

Why did this man always show up at the most unexpected times, looking completely unexpected?

Why was it always like this?

Always...

“....”

“....”

Swish, swish—the wind swept between them.

The sesame porridge bubbled in the pot.

They stared at each other for a long time, until it was Seolhwa who finally averted her gaze.

She was just about to say, “It’s been a while,”—but stopped herself.

‘What if he didn’t recognize me?’

If he had, he’d have said something, wouldn’t he?

Knowing Yugang’s personality, he would’ve made a loud fuss out of joy, not stood here in silence.

So what should she # Nоvеlight # say?

Should she pretend to recognize him? Or act like a stranger?

‘Start with a greeting.’

“Um...”

FWOOSH—

“!”

Seolhwa’s body was suddenly pulled forward, as if sucked into him.

By the time she blinked, she was already in his arms.

‘...He’s fast.’

In the blink of an eye, he had grabbed her and pulled her close.

Incredibly fast.

“I missed you.”

His low voice resonated in her ear, thick with something unspoken.

“I missed you so much.”

“....”

For a moment, Seolhwa doubted.

Did he know who she was?

“Seolhwa...”

His arms tightened around her.

Seolhwa frowned slightly from the pressure.

‘Still...’

He recognized her.

“This isn’t a dream, right? This is real? I’m not hallucinating, am I?”

“Let go of me. You’re crushing me.”

“Haha, it really is you. It’s really you.”

Even as she told him she couldn’t breathe, Yugang only hugged her tighter.

She could hear his heart pounding—thump, thump—against her ear.

It was so loud, so fast, it made her tense up for no reason at all.

Trying to shake off the awkwardness, Seolhwa spoke.

“It’s been a while.”

“Yeah.”

His low voice buzzed against her where their bodies touched.

“...Have you been well?”

“Yeah.”

Mount Hua...

Seolhwa lowered her gaze.

There wasn’t a trace of Mount Hua’s aura left in him.

‘So... he really didn’t go back.’

He had said he left Mount Hua of his own will, so returning wouldn’t have been easy.

Still, it saddened her.

In her previous life, he had loved Mount Hua more than anyone.

Seolhwa pushed him away.

Yugang let her go without resistance.

But his brows sank low, a shadow of reluctance on his face.

Seolhwa took another close look at him.

‘He’s... changed, huh?’

It wasn’t just his height that had shot up over the past four years.

His brows had grown thicker, his features more defined. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Except for those bright, clear eyes, he looked far more mature than before.

What was unexpected was that, even though he now looked like the man she had seen in her past life, the energy he gave off felt completely different.

‘What’s changed...?’

His body looked even better than before.

Had he trained harder than in his past life?

Why did his skin seem so rough now?

Back then, it had been pale as snow.