Seolhwa’s brows knit faintly.

Not an object? Why not?

“May I ask bluntly?”

Beopgong nodded.

“Isn’t the thing Shaolin lost the Jade Buddha’s Palm?”

“It is not.”

“...!”

“Rather, I wish to ask—why did you think it was the Jade Buddha’s Palm?”

“When I was in Hwaoru... I once overheard the Lou Zhu mention having the Jade Buddha’s Palm.”

In truth, she had seen it in her previous life.

Then was the Jade Buddha’s Palm taken only after Beopgong died?

“Unfortunately, you are wrong. The Jade Buddha’s Palm is safely kept in our main temple.”

“That is a relief.”

“Thank you.”

“Then...”

What is it that you lost?

She wanted to ask, but couldn’t.

Even if they had confirmed she carried no blood qi, there was no way they would tell a mere child of a noble clan about something tied to Shaolin’s very fate.

“What do you know?”

“....”

“Depending on your answer, I will consider your proposal.”

It meant that if she offered information equivalent in value to what they had lost, he would accept her offer.

It’s fortunate I wasn’t rejected outright.

She still had a chance to persuade him.

This time, she had to prove she truly possessed valuable information.

If she disappointed Beopgong again, she would lose even the trust she had now.

After a brief pause, Seolhwa spoke.

“The Green Forest Fighting King.”

Beopgong’s expression darkened in an instant.

“I know that he was once Elder Gwangcheon’s disciple.”

Beopgong was the Green Forest Fighting King’s former martial brother.

If there was one piece of information unknown to the public that could shock him, this was it.

“I heard it back when I was there. And I know several other undisclosed facts.”

“....”

“The important thing is that Hwaoru has planted spies not only in Shaolin.”

It was not strange for Hwaoru to know of Shaolin’s internal affairs—after all, a spy had only recently been rooted out there.

But if that influence reached beyond Shaolin into the major powers of the Central Plains, the problem became far more serious.

“Do the other factions know of Hwaoru’s existence?”

“Namgoong Clan and Mount Hua know.”

“Then... is forming the Martial Alliance because of that?”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

Beopgong fell silent for a time.

He wore a face heavy with thought.

Hwaoru, the Martial Alliance, Namgoong Clan.

And Namgoong Seolhwa.

If Namgoong Clan and Mount Hua knew of Hwaoru’s existence, it was because of her.

After betraying Hwaoru and returning to Namgoong, she would have first eliminated their spies.

Mount Hua’s awareness would be tied to the incident of her taking the Great Restoration Pill.

Mount Hua had hunted her relentlessly to reclaim it.

Then came the move # Nоvеlight # to form the Martial Alliance against Hwaoru—a chain reaction. Which meant...

So, in the end, it was Namgoong Seolhwa’s return to her clan that made all this possible.

Beopgong gazed steadily at her across the table.

“Trust.”

Had his master foreseen even this side of her and told him to trust?

“Venerable Monk.”

“Speak.”

“In this martial world, I am probably the one who knows Hwaoru’s strength in greatest detail. If the restriction is lifted, I will tell you everything. So...”

“That is enough.”

Beopgong let out a short sigh.

Having once trusted Mount Hua’s old leader and paid dearly for it, he could not help feeling uneasy.

But Gwangcheon’s reply, and the earnest light in Seolhwa’s eyes, finally swayed him.

“Very well.”

“!”

“But what you hear here must never be spoken anywhere else. To anyone.”

“I understand. I will never speak of it.”

With another long sigh, Beopgong formed a qi barrier around the Abbot’s chamber.

Even Seolhwa could feel how dense and solid it was.

“As I said, what we seek is not an object.”

“Then... what is it?”

“A corpse.”

“...A corpse...?”

Shock swept across Seolhwa’s face.

“Whose corpse?”

“Dharma name Gyewon. The body of the previous Abbot before my master.”

The previous Abbot.

If it’s ‘Gye,’ then...

With Beopgong as the current Abbot, above him was the former Abbot Gwangcheon, and above that was Baebun. Meaning this was the Abbot two generations prior.

The one that disappeared... was the Abbot from two generations ago?

She had never even considered it.

But if it was the body of a previous Abbot, Shaolin’s reactions until now made sense.

To Shaolin, which prized precepts and loyalty, such a body would be as important as—or perhaps even more important than—the Jade Buddha’s Palm.

“Four years ago, the main temple trusted the old leader of Mount Hua, who promised to return the body, and gave them the Great Restoration Pill. But the result—you know it.”

“You gained nothing.”

They could hardly demand the body from Mount Hua now.

“You are still searching for it.”

“That is so.”

Seolhwa nodded slowly.

Now I see why Shaolin was so desperate to recover the corpse in my past life.

In the Blood Demon Cult, there were two main people who dealt with corpses.

One was the Fourth Blood Lord.

The other was one of the Blood Demon’s closest subordinates, Ilwol.

Of the two, the one who turned corpses into jiangshi to serve as subordinates was Ilwol—Wol, the “Vanished Moon,” who dealt with death.

If Shaolin saw their former Abbot turned into a jiangshi, they would have been unable to back down even knowing they were being played.

Perhaps they had been so blinded by rage they couldn’t judge clearly.

Now she understood Shaolin’s reaction.

And if her guess was right—

“Perhaps... you may find it soon.”

“!”

Beopgong’s eyes widened slightly.

“Truly?”

“Yes. I am not certain, but...”

She met his gaze.

“I cannot help you right now, but if I hear anything, I will inform you at once.”

“And I, as promised, will share information with you. Remember—if we can reclaim Gyewon’s body, Shaolin will give anything.”

The fact they had once given up the Great Restoration Pill was proof enough of that.

Seolhwa nodded.

She was just about to shift the topic to the Martial Alliance when—

Wait.

A scene flashed across her mind like a painted image.

Clang—!

“Lady?”

Seolhwa sprang to her feet.

Her face was struck with shock.

Ilwol, a corpse, a jiangshi. And...

Gwangcheon.

Come to think of it... Venerable Gwangcheon... I think I’ve seen him somewhere before.

An old monk... an old monk...

She now knew the source of that faint memory that had stirred for only an instant at the hermitage.

Why... why didn’t I realize?

Gwangcheon, an old monk.

He was there.

Among the jiangshi Ilwol commanded.

An old monk with strength surpassing even a Super Peak master.

His face blackened and shriveled with death, half-covered by a talisman—that was why she hadn’t recognized him right away. But that jiangshi was undeniably...

“Venerable Monk.”

Seolhwa clenched her fist.

“There’s somewhere I must go at once. I’ll explain the reason when I return.”

Beopgong’s lips parted as if to speak, then closed again.

He nodded.

Seolhwa gave him a martial salute, then left the Abbot’s chamber without delay.

She ran straight out of Shaolin Temple.

Tat— tadat—!

Huff— huff—

The scenery of Mount Song sped past her.

Seolhwa was moving faster than ever.

Where should I go?

She regretted not asking persistently where they were going.

Why hadn’t she realized sooner—

The reason why two Hyeongyeong-level masters had not even appeared in her previous life.

Why she had never heard their names.

They died at the Blood Demon’s hand.

Before the Blood Demon Cult even revealed itself—

The two must have fought the Blood Demon, and Gwangcheon’s corpse would have fallen into Ilwol’s hands.

And Guyangdo...

He must have... become the Blood Demon’s prey.

Perhaps drained of all his internal energy while alive, until his life was snuffed out and his body dried to nothing.

To the Blood Demon, a Hyeongyeong-level master was the finest meal.

Tat— tadak, tat!

Seolhwa pulled a mask from her robe and fixed it over her face.

She pressed an acupoint to alter her voice and let her hair fall loose.

The Imugi asked her,

[Where are you rushing off to?]

— To save the two elders.

[Two elders? You mean Gwangcheon and Guyangdo? Are they about to die?]

— Yes. Probably.

Knowing this was her second life, the Imugi grasped the gravity without needing further explanation.

[The one you spoke of will kill them?]

— Probably.

[Then you cannot defeat him either.]

If even two Hyeongyeong masters could not win, how could Seolhwa face him?

She knew it too. But—

— I alone may not be his match.

[And yet you still go? Are you so eager to die?]

— But I have you.

[...What?]

— Even if I’m of no use...

Huff— huff—

The wind sliced past her skin like a blade.

Black qi began to coil slowly around her.

“You, Imugi—can do it.”