Unbaek was presumed to be a figure related to Mokmujin.
To be precise, it seemed that her mother, Lady Baengnyeong, borrowed that power and ended up in a lot of trouble.
I asked Unbaek for details about Baengnyeong, and she said she’d think about it and left.
“And today, the official document just arrived.”
“Oh?”
“They said they’ll tell us. I think we can go now.”
It would be a heart-wrenching issue for Unbaek, but if Mokmujin actually influenced Baengnyeong, catching them would be important.
I finished getting ready to move and turned on the broadcast.
[Lilha~]
[Oh]
[Liririri]
[As soon as the broadcast starts, here we are]
[Lirililiriririri]
[Yeah, Yena is here too]
[What are we doing today?]
“I’m going to meet Unbaek. We were supposed to meet before, and I got a reply today.”
“You’re setting off? So, the flying device…”
“No.”
I called Yena to come closer.
Yena approached me, tilting her head.
Eventually, the golden current that extended from my hand engulfed both Yena and me.
Zap…
“Huh?”
Before I knew it, Yena and I had arrived in the middle of Baekmuhyang.
In the center of Baekmuhyang, there were bustling ascetics moving around, and they looked somewhat surprised at our sudden appearance.
It’s understandable since entering Baekmuhyang requires going through numerous procedures and protective magic techniques.
[???]
[Huh?]
[What the heck is this lol]
[Oh?]
[What’s with the space movement?]
“We’ve arrived.”
“What, what?!”
“This is much faster than taking the flying device. Besides, I’ve regained my strength, so there’s no reason to waste time, right?”
I’ve used flying devices plenty of times.
When there’s a much faster and simpler way to move, there’s no need to use another method.
As I looked around at the buildings made of white tiles in Baekmuhyang, someone started approaching us.
It seemed they were ascetics on the level of avatars and record phases, probably the servants of the Archlord Baekmuhyang.
Suddenly, Yena tilted her head in confusion.
“Oh, but weren’t archlords not allowed to go to other archlords? That’s why Heukmuhyang was limited to just one visit, right?”
“That’s not a problem anymore.”
With the current state of Gyeoryu, they wouldn’t be able to criticize me even if I harmed another archlord.
‘Not that I intend to, though.’
“Step back!”
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The ascetics drew their weapons and surrounded us.
Their vigilance was palpable, exuding a ferocious aura as if they would attack us at any moment.
I didn’t respond and just stared at them.
A suffocating standoff continued (though I wasn’t really suffocating), and just before the highest-ranking ascetic among them swung his sword…
The confrontation continued, and just before the ascetic, who had the highest mastery among them, swung his sword.
“Stop it. She is my guest.”
A pure white girl descended from the sky.
Her attire was even more resplendent than the robe I saw last time.
As soon as the servants laid eyes on her, they promptly knelt as if she were a snowflake softly landing.
“…We meet Lord Hyangju.”
“We meet Lord Hyangju!!”
[Oh]
[It’s Unbaek, it’s Unbaek]
[So cute, hahaha]
[Something feels extravagant?]
[Those guys are a bit cocky]
[Are they aiming a sword at Lily?!!!]
[Let’s kill them all]
[Unbaek is adorable]
[Unha~]
“Lady Unbaek.”
“You arrived earlier than I expected. Lord Jeokmu-hyang. I didn’t anticipate you’d come directly to Baekmuhyang.”
“Since we’re set to meet, we should do so quickly.”
“I see. Understood. Please follow me.”
As Unbaek began to guide us, Yena and I followed Lord Baekmuhyang.
Our destination was Lord Baekmuhyang’s palace.
Unlike the dazzling palaces of Jeokmu-hyang and Heukmu-hyang we had seen so far, Lord Baekmuhyang’s palace was quite modest.
It was a pretty garden shaped by white trees and a small stream flowing gently.
And in the center of it all stood a building the size of a small house, which made up Lord Baekmuhyang’s palace.
Of course, even at this size, it was a spacious area for Unbaek, who was small enough to be one and a half heads shorter than me and one head shorter than Yena.
‘It was quite small for an Archlord.’
Unbaek seemed to be aware of this fact and smiled softly as we entered the palace.
“It is a bit cramped. Since I’ve lived so tightly since childhood, large places just don’t suit me.”
“Aha.”
“If it’s uncomfortable, I’ll change the place.”
“No, it’s comfortable, and I like it.”
“Then I’m glad. Who is the person next to you…?”
“Meow?”
Unbaek asked Yena, who was vigorously turning her head.
Had she turned into a cat? Yena was crouched, staring intently at the bright red koi swimming around the water.
Though her mastery was low, she seemed to be rated highly for being with me, giving off an aura almost at my level.
Yena nodded.
“Totally fine, meow. Good, good.”
“Glad to hear that.”
[Hahahahahaha]
[Yena… the cat]
[Fish-loving Yena]
[Yena the cat, hahaha]
[Pretty house]
[So should we kill Unbaek?]
[Nice place, huh?]
“Then please come this way.”
Unbaek led us to the largest of the few buildings in the palace.
The interior was decorated with white wood, which was truly understated, reflecting the personality of Lord Baekmuhyang.
In the prepared room, there was a small table with three teacups on it.
There was a teacup.
The teacup was made of jade and had snowflake-like leaves placed upon it.
“I thought you liked tea, so I prepared some. It’s made from Baekseolcho (White Snow Grass) that grows in Baekmuhyang, so it tastes good.”
“Oh ho.”
I sat down and took a sip of the Baekseolcho tea.
As it entered my mouth, it felt refreshing yet soothing inside.
I could feel the warmth of the tea and the unique coolness of the Baekseolcho simultaneously. It was surprisingly good.
Usually, such teas end up becoming something weird like a ‘hot iced americano’ if done wrong.
But this definitely maintained that balance and captured the advantages of both flavors.
‘It tastes good.’
As I savored the tea and looked to the side, Yena, who had taken a sip, tilted her head.
“Hmm… isn’t there cola?”
“Pardon?”
[Cola? LOL]
[Yena was fine until a moment ago…]
[Great Yena]
[Where is cola in a martial arts world?]
[Yena, oh…]
“Uh, that Kora? What is it?”
“It’s black water, with bubbles popping and a sweet taste. You didn’t prepare something I like while you prepared for Lily, did you?!”
“Um… If you give me some time, the servants will fetch it…”
“It’s fine. Just kidding.”
Hehe. Yena, flustered, looked at Unbaek and finished her tea.
Her mannerisms and actions might change like those of the Myojok, but her intelligence and knowledge didn’t.
Yena wasn’t the kind of person who would make such excessive requests, nor was she bad or lacking.
“…I feel like someone has quite a strange evaluation of me.”
“Oh, no way someone like that exists.”
How amazing Yena is!
I nodded, and as Yena’s eyes narrowed, Unbaek, who had been quietly fiddling with the teacup, lifted his head.
“…You asked for it. You wanted to hear about my mother.”
“Yes.”
“As you’ve already heard, my mother, ‘Baengnyeong,’ was the former lord of Baekmuhyang. She did very well in her role as lord until ‘that incident’ happened.”
The 21st lord of Baekmuhyang, Baengnyeong.
Baengnyeong was a Display Case Practitioner and had quite remarkable talent as the lord of Baekmuhyang.
Like most Display Case Practitioners, she possessed outstanding abilities in the Lower Realm and ascended, but Baengnyeong was exceptional among them.
She achieved ascension at a very young age.
She was put on the Display Case after 20,000 years, which was nearly 13,000 years faster compared to the previous lord of Baekmuhyang.
The owner of Jangmugye, Gyeoryu, naturally chose her as the new lord of Baekmuhyang.
Thus, she continued her happy life as the lord of Baekmuhyang…
“I wish it had ended there. Alas, worldly matters do not resolve so easily.”
“I wish it had ended with a dot. But the world’s affairs do not resolve so easily.”
“……”
“Misfortune began from the moment the proposal for leveling up after the display case failed.”
While Lady Baengnyeong was skyrocketing with successful levels, a downhill path loomed ahead for her like a cruel mockery.
While other archlords rapidly moved up to display case levels two and three, Lord Baekmuhyang was still at the entrance of the display case.
Even the ‘Display Case Level 1’ that should have been easy to reach was constantly being blocked.
Lady Baengnyeong had put in countless efforts for a long time, but her realm did not change in the end.
“At first, it was okay. That person was strong not just outwardly, but also internally. Until that first thousand years, I just laughed it off.”
The sky seems a bit nasty.
Since I rose quickly until the display case, perhaps it’s trying to maintain balance.
Let’s be patient. Let’s refine myself and wait for that day.
“But even as time passed, the sky did not allow my cultivation. Every time, it showed phenomena and incompleteness that I couldn’t handle.”
The realm was sufficient. The lifespan was also sufficient.
‘But why.’
Why does the sky not allow my cultivation?
Baengnyeong cried out to the sky.
“…Things have changed. That person, Lady Baengnyeong, no longer held the position of archlord. Having abandoned everything, she began to seek ancient knowledge like a madman. She even started to reach for other archlords.”
“……”
“The debt owed to Lord Nokmuhyang originated here. Lord Nokmuhyang had piles of ancient books that existed since the birth of Jangmugye.”
Engulfed in vast knowledge, she used any method available to her.
But nothing changed.
‘No (不) Allow (許).’
The sky rejected Lady Baengnyeong’s cultivation.
And among the things she had abandoned, there was also Unbaek, who had just begun to walk.
“…I’ve rambled on. The important part starts here. At that time, Lady Baengnyeong─”
“You worked hard.”
“…I didn’t suffer at all.”
Unbaek drank tea.
Her extremely cold tea became a bit warmer.
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