Chapter 78
“Wow… so the path leads here…”
At the end of the secret passage, when another mechanism was turned, the rock split open, revealing a door.
The large rock right next to the rear gate of Seolga Mansion had split apart. Its intricate design was nothing short of astonishing.
“This is amazing.”
Sogyo also looked quite surprised.
“No, seriously… how did Father make something like this? And it didn’t even take long to construct,” Seoljadan murmured.
Seoljadan was a martial artist of the highest level. Creating a path underground would not have been difficult for him.
But as for this mechanism, it was impossible to know whose help had been involved.
‘Hmm… if we knew someone with this level of skill, we wouldn’t even need to ask Jegal Dam for help.’
Eunyeong thought of Jegal Dam, who was supposed to co-develop the mechanism with Uncheol, and shook her head to erase the thought.
‘No regrets. No regrets.’
It wasn’t urgent, and she needed to maintain connections with the Jegal and Namgung families. Dwelling on something that was already done would be meaningless. Thinking this way made her feel at ease.
Eunyeong shook her head to clear her lingering doubts and examined the mechanism carefully.
She had seen many mechanisms in the past, and this one was also sophisticated. It was a different type from the ones used by the Jegal family.
“So this… you just turn it to block the way, right? Wow, that’s clever.”
When she turned the small groove on the rock with the mechanism, the rock began to move. Eunyeong couldn’t help but marvel at it.
She didn’t notice Sogyo averting her gaze.
“Then, Sogyo. Let’s go.”
“Huh? Yes, Miss.”
Eunyeong stroked the egg, infused it with energy, and began climbing the ancestral mountain.
Sogyo watched her with worried eyes, concerned about Eunyeong’s stamina.
“Miss, if you get tired while climbing, please let me know.”
“Ah, alright. I’ll do that.”
However, thanks to her consistent training, Eunyeong was able to climb the mountain more easily than the last time.
“Phew… still quite tiring. Sogyo, there, over there.”
She pointed to the rock that led into the “eye” and guided Sogyo toward it.
“Sogyo, don’t be surprised. Follow me inside.”
“Yes, Miss.”
Eunyeong’s body disappeared into the rock, and Sogyo followed.
Eunyeong glanced around, checking if anything had changed since her last visit.
Apart from the bird that had been in the center of the eye being gone, nothing else had changed significantly.
Seolwonpyeong and Seoljadan had been there, but it seemed they hadn’t disturbed anything.
Only the poisonous energy inside the eye had grown denser. Eunyeong, with her keen perception, felt this and was pleased.
Jegal Dam had said there wouldn’t be much change in the formation, but one could never be too sure.
Seeing the poison energy accumulating so well, it seemed there would be no problem going forward.
“Sogyo, Sogyo. How is it? Here?”
Eunyeong asked proudly, as if showing off her own home.
Sogyo smiled at her, pleased to see Eunyeong so childlike and innocent at times.
“This… is truly a mysterious place.”
“Right? That’s exactly what I thought too.”
“And it’s beautiful as well.”
“Yes, exactly.”
Eunyeong nodded along as Sogyo spoke, as if encouraging her to continue.
However, Sogyo, being poor at expressing herself, couldn’t think of anything more to say.
“The energy… hmm…”
“Ah, that’s a bit… hehe.”
Eunyeong realized she had gotten overly excited talking about the poisonous energy and felt a bit embarrassed.
“But… hmm, it’s something I need.”
“Huh? The poisonous energy?”
Sogyo asked in surprise. Eunyeong scratched her cheek and continued.
“Hm… it’s hard to explain, but yes. Ah, this is a secret too.”
“Yes, Miss. A secret.”
Sogyo nodded, seemingly understanding, even though the explanation wasn’t clear.
“I’m going to circulate my energy now. Sogyo, please guard me.”
“Yes, Miss. I will.”
“Ah… it might take a while. And… no matter what you see, don’t come near me.”
“Yes, don’t worry, Miss. I’ll stay right here.”
Eunyeong nodded, trusting Sogyo completely. She knew that Sogyo would understand no matter what she witnessed.
“Thank you, Sogyo.”
Eunyeong smiled at her and moved forward.
As she approached the center of the eye, where the bird had been, the poison energy grew stronger.
She stroked the egg. Its smooth surface, which already had a strange glow, now shone even more brilliantly.
“You like being here too, don’t you?”
Eunyeong quietly asked the egg. It didn’t answer, of course.
Yet she could feel the egg’s energy subtly changing after entering the eye. Even without her infusing it with energy, the egg was absorbing it as if it were natural.
“I’m going to circulate my energy now. Let’s do it together. Hm? You like this energy, don’t you?”
Being in a place so full of energy and being able to absorb it freely was exhilarating.
Eunyeong sat cross-legged where the bird had been, placing the egg on her palm, and closed her eyes.
Slowly moving her inner energy from the dantian, she began the circulation. The poison energy in the eye started gathering around her.
The energy in the deepest part of her dantian welcomed the poison energy. Even the newly absorbed poison merged seamlessly with Eunyeong’s own energy.
The immense energy surged through her meridians.
She could have stopped here, but she wanted to push further.
‘I’ll clear some of the poison from my meridians, and combine it with the egg’s energy.’
She moved her energy delicately, stripping away the dense poison. Her meridians expanded slightly, and the energy grew even larger.
‘Alright… now… circulate the energy fully.’
Round after round, the energy circulated seamlessly through her body. She no longer needed to force it.
It seemed to know exactly how to move, rushing through her meridians effortlessly.
Nine rounds… ten rounds…
At that moment, some of the poison energy tried to escape her body.
‘No… you can’t go.’
Even a single particle of energy was not to be wasted. The Harmonizing Formation, a greedy mind technique, reclaimed all escaping energy.
Eleven rounds… twelve rounds…
The poison and natural energy from inside the eye, the toxins in her meridians, and the impurities in her body—all transformed into Eunyeong’s own energy.
Then, as if nothing had happened, it quietly returned to her dantian.
‘I can’t stop here. Alright, now take this.’
It was time to share the energy. Sitting cross-legged, Eunyeong began transferring her energy to the egg.
From a distance, Sogyo watched Eunyeong and couldn’t close her mouth in astonishment.
She was also a martial artist and could vaguely sense the intense flow of energy around Eunyeong.
The energy that had previously pricked her slightly was now drawn into Eunyeong’s body, forming a giant surge like a dragon ascending.
“This… what is this…”
Sogyo should have remained quiet, but she couldn’t help but make a sound. Covering her mouth with her hand, she didn’t take her eyes off Eunyeong.
At some point, the energy began flowing into the egg. The egg greedily absorbed it. Sogyo could clearly feel the energy transfer.
Unintentionally, she took a step forward. She wanted to run to Eunyeong but couldn’t.
‘Miss… what exactly are you doing?’
She forced herself to stay put, anxious.
Then something even more astonishing happened.
“Ahhh…”
The energy leaving Eunyeong’s body began forming into a gigantic bird.
Sogyo couldn’t take her eyes off it.
It was beautiful—a dazzlingly beautiful bird.
The bird flapped its enormous wings and, in an instant, began to be absorbed into the egg. It felt both instantaneous and eternal.
A faint cracking sound could be heard.
No, Sogyo saw it. The egg in Eunyeong’s hand was starting to crack.
“Huh? Are you awakening?”
Eunyeong, who had opened her eyes without noticing, stared at the egg in her palm, bewildered.
