Book 11 Chapter 16

What is love?

"How's Jinsun? How are things going with your crush?"

Eun Seol-ran laughed and asked Lee Jin-sul. Eun Seol-ran was the only one of them who talked about romance, love, and men.

That's why Lee Jin-sul liked silver snowflakes. She didn't mind being with Na Yerin and Dokgo-ryung, but they were a million miles away from this topic.

"Men? Useless things!" he said to her one day. It was an implicit description of the way he looked at men. Right now, the group had stopped to rest.

This was a fairly high point on the road from Yangyang in Hubei Province to Gokseong, and just a short distance beyond it was the territory of the Wudangists.

From my vantage point, I had an unobstructed view of the landscape below. The land was golden with ripe grain in late fall. Ripples rippled across the golden sea in the autumn breeze.

"Say it fast, come on, come on!"

Eunsulan urged.

"That's me……."

Lee Jin-sul blushed and glanced over to where Hyo-ryong was, who was busy discussing something with Jang Hong next to him.

"Why is that guy talking so much?

Lee Jin-sul was furious without knowing why, her fine ami soaring.

"I don't know, I guess I like men better than women these days, huh!"

Lee Jin-sul turned his head in annoyance. Lately, she'd been very upset that Hyo-ryong hadn't been treating her well. Hyo-ryong was conscious of what others might think of him, but that reasoning didn't sit well with the vivacious, action-first principled Lee Jin-sul.

Eunseolan smiled as if she didn't need to hear it. Lee Jin-sul was so easy to understand, which made her so cute.

"How's it going with Confucius these days?"

This time, the question was directed at Na Yerin, who had somehow ended up in this position because of Eunseulan, but she hadn't expected to be asked this question out of the blue.

"What? What's that……?"

Na Yerin asked, puzzled.

"Aww, don't try to fool me, I can see through this, and I'm honestly interested, don't you like it?"

It was like a judge telling Eun Seolan to confess because he knew everything.

"Not interested."

Na Yerin replied bluntly, but Na Yerin recognized the agitation hidden beneath the expressionlessness and bluntness. The agitation was very slight, but she knew that it was a huge deal for this ice princess to show this much emotion.

For Na Yerin, Eunsulan was a difficult person to deal with, and her words always had a way of baffling her.

"Wow, they're really interested, in fact, they're dying to know what happened in the darkness during those 44 days after the fall of Fangmadong."

Na Yerin was immediately perplexed at the mention of Fang Ma Dong and denied it outright.

"Who would ever wonder about such a trivial thing!"

"What? You're a million miles off," he said, "and I'm sure there's already more than a third of the men in here who've been wondering about it, and some of them would pay a thousand dollars to know what happened in there."

'If I could pay a thousand gold coins, it would be quickest to find Ryuyeon!'

Na Yerin subconsciously thought. Perhaps the sacrament rate is eleven.

"And there's a little girl right here in front of me who is anxious to find out."

"Hehehe!"

The dreamy girl Eunseolan was referring to was none other than Jinseol, who had joined in on their conversation, scratching the back of her head and clicking her tongue at Eunseolan's point.

Na Yerin shook her head, a look of helplessness on her face.

"Are you sure something really happened in there?"

Eunseulan continued to ask questions in a low voice.

"It never happened in the way that Sojae imagines."

To Na Yerin's surprise, Eunseulan clapped her hands in approval.

"Gee, that means something else happened!"

Naïve to all this, Na Yerin was no match for Eunseulan; she didn't become a Black Blind Investigator for fun.

"Well, that's……."

Without bothering to listen to Na Yerin's excuses, Eunseulan continued.

"So you're saying that on the surface, nothing has happened, but in your mind, something has changed."

Her words struck a chord with Na Yerin. Na Yerin's bewildered gaze met Eunseulan's. "You mean she can read minds like I can?" Eunseulan's gaze met Na Yerin's. Na Yerin's confused gaze met hers.

"That look is like a how-did-you-know look. I've always been unable to read Yerin's expression, but today, emotions show up on her face often, which is rare. I think she's softened a lot since that day, for sure. Just because she doesn't want to admit it doesn't change the fact. Why is it that when someone talks about it? Usually I'm so cold you'd think I was cut from ice."

Na Yerin was flattered that she was being seen as such. Lately, she had been feeling strongly that her emotions were separating her from herself. Why was it that she couldn't feel them, but others could?

"If you ask me how I know, it's simple: when a man and a woman are alone together for 44 days in that enclosed space, it's cognitive that there's going to be a change in emotions, whatever form that takes, and that change is going to happen, especially when it's life or death."

None of her points were wrong. Not satisfied, Eun Seolan delivered the final blow.

"I heard Yerin affectionately call Bi Gongzhi 'Ryuyeon.' Who else could call the cold ice princess Yerin by her first name, and do it in such an affectionate voice?"

A smile of conversion appeared on Eunseulan's face.

"Oh my gosh, Yerin, are you for real? "

Lee Jin-sul replied angrily.

If it was true, she was going to go and cut him down right now. Her protection of her sisters-in-law was over the top, and sometimes a little too much. Even now, to her, Bi Ryuyeon wasn't the first ray of sunshine that had warmed her cold heart, but rather a bug that had led her down the wrong path.

"……."

Ye Lin was silent. The cold ice princess had nothing to say in retort to Silver Snow Lan's polite words. Nor did she intend to interrupt her. It was as if she had been clearing up all of her confused emotions.

I went from wondering, "Is this true?" to "Maybe it is," when I heard everything she had to say.

"But is that really the case?

I'm not sure about that yet.

A small smile curved her lips as she looked at Na Yerin's troubled face. Na Yerin was much more human and personable now than she had been before, cold as a sliver of moonlight, and she found her very cute.

"Believe me, I'm speaking as a woman who was once caught in the throes of a terrible love affair. My first love ended in tragedy, but Yerin is just the beginning. Do love, no matter what grief, pain, and anguish it brings, love is a beautiful thing, and it's worth a try. You may not realize it yet, but one day you'll feel that it's love that's in your heart, a mysterious stranger who has come to your side."

As she spoke, Eunseulan's gaze was not on the present, but on the distant past, and her lips curled into a wistful smile, like an ugly early winter.

"Doesn't your sister have a promised suitor? "

Jinseul Lee, who is still young and not fully aware of the atmosphere, picks a topic that is not a good one to bring up at this moment.

"Ginseng!"

Na Yerin stopped her, but it was too late. A sad, wistful smile appeared on the corners of Silver Snow's mouth.

"There was once a man who meant the world to me, but now I can't find him. He loved to travel, and now he's gone somewhere I can't find him, somewhere very far away, leaving me here alone."

'ouch…….'

For a moment, Na Yerin felt a pang of sadness and regret rush into her chest. What could be causing her cold, frozen heart to ache so deeply? It was clear to her that at the center of it all stood Eunsulan. But she dared not question her about her love. How deep a wound had that love left in her heart? What was she seeing now?

No one answered.

"Huh? What's up with everyone being so somber and dead? Put on your faces. Put on your faces. You look like you're in a portrait."

Suddenly, the atmosphere became very quiet, and Eun Seol-ran, who realized her mistake, tried to take control of the situation. It seemed that the wound in her heart had not yet healed.

Eunseulan spoke in a more cheerful voice, as if to shake off her sadness.

"He might be a nice guy, and it wouldn't take a normal person to move an ice princess to this extent. I don't know if he's a good guy, but I guarantee he's a fun guy."

Eunseulan raised a jade-colored finger and pointed at Bi Ryuyeon, who was looking off into the horizon. She was gazing off into the distance, staring intently at something, and Mo Yonghui could be seen standing alone a short distance away. He was a young man who could still be described as beautiful. The word perfection seemed to exist for him.

"Don't be so sad, big sister, there's Mo Yong Confucius, he's a first-class groom. The age difference of three or four years is nothing, I'm sure he wouldn't be able to refuse a beautiful woman like you."

Lee Jin-sul said cheerfully. It must be her own consolation. Once again, a smile appeared on Eunseulan's lips. This time, it was a gentle, warm smile, like early spring.

"Yeah, he's a class act, what girl wouldn't want to grab a guy like that, I'm sure he's made a lot of girls cry. You're a badass, of course, not on purpose, ho ho ho!"

"Purr!"

Eun Seolan and Jin Seol made the announcement at the same time.

"Hahaha, will you do me the honor of telling me what makes you so happy?"

Their conversation was interrupted by Xin Yu Sheng, the mastermind of the last Volcanic Society's Four Great Forces. His gaze was focused on Eunseulan, and it was clear that she was his tentative target.

"I'm sorry, but this is a place for intimate conversations between women, so I don't think you guys can join us."

Eunseulan smiled without a frown and refused.

"Hahaha, did I make a mistake, and if so, will you do me the honor of talking to that beauty later, Silver Sojae?"

"I'm sorry. I'm shy, but if you find me more attractive than he does, I'll think about it."

"Ho-ho, you mean that guy over there?"

Xin Yu Sheng looked at him with a curious expression. It was Mo Yonghui that the silver snowflake jade was referring to.

"Yes, him."

What was going through her mind right now? Neither Na Yerin nor Lee Jin-sul nor Dokgo-ryung could tell.

"Okay, we'll see. I'll certainly prove to Sojae that I'm a cooler guy than he is."

He seemed confident. There weren't many men in the current powerhouses who could unhesitatingly challenge Mo Yonghui of the Seven Feast Divine Sword.

"I look forward to it! "

A smile that foreshadowed a storm tugged at her red lips.

Koo-koo-koo!

The sound of the earth rumbling vibrated the air lightly. Turning toward the source of the sound, her eyes caught sight of a dust cloud that stretched from the mountains beyond to here.

"I see you're back now."

Bi Ryuyeon turned her head and directed her gaze to the source of the mysteriously beautiful voice. It was Na Yerin.

"That's weird, Yerin getting to me first! "

Bi Ryuyeon said, smiling pleasantly. Honestly, he was very happy right now. He had never been so happy before. Na Yerin quickly changed the subject.

"Will it work this time? "

Na Yerin said in a wistful voice. The members of the Zhu Jia Clan were lucky to have her concern. Right now, a group of people were running furiously toward Bi Ryuyeon and Na Yerin, but the dust cloud was divided into a front line and a second line.

What started out as a group of 16 people had grown by one person to nearly 30. The difference in speed between the skilled and the unskilled split them into two groups. The lead group was 20 men, 16 of whom were the main crew. These were the ones who were now struggling to run.

Those at the head of the pack galloped past them like warhorses. Huge gusts of wind whipped past them in a gale.

At the top of the list was Namgung-san, who upheld the pretense of being the master of the Zhu Jia Clan. Recently, he had been growing stronger and stronger without realizing it. Though he doesn't seem to realize it.

"Hmph!"

Arriving on the verge of collapse, Namgungsang caught his breath and looked urgently at the incense burner.

'Stand, is it a success?

The eyes of the Namgung Sang, as well as the dozens of eyes that rushed in behind him, turned to the incense stand, the incense still burning and burning well.

The remaining flavors were one, two, and a half.

"Ooohhhh!"

A cheer went up.

Tears were in their eyes. They had finally won the battle between themselves and the grumpiness of nature and the Yeomdo. They were so overwhelmed with emotion that tears threatened to fall. Their training had been hard.

"Hmmmm……."

He glanced at his disciples, who were on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, joy, and exultation. The flesh of his cheeks was tinged with color. Was he forcibly restraining his joy? Glancing back and forth between the incense burner and the disciples, Yan Dao spoke in a tone that belied his heart.

"You're finally getting faster, I think you've finally shed the slug."

It was a harsh word. Suddenly, the room fell silent, like a cold shower.

"…But I'll give you a pat on the back. Good job!"

He quickly looked away, wondering if this compliment was too much to ask. If he looked at her any longer, he felt as if he would burst out laughing.

"Woohoo! We did it! We did it!"

The cast members hugged each other and congratulated themselves. They would never have to run at a heart-pounding pace again. Before the three censers were finished, they had made the round trip to the summit of the distant mountain.

On the way to the volcano, they had to keep running whenever they saw a mountain in the distance. The reason for this was to strengthen their physical strength and improve their inner gong. None of the mountains Yin chose were easy, and it was one failure after another. He had used up too much energy on the way to the top and didn't have enough to come back. But giving up was not an option. The challenge continued. And they succeeded.

While the men were rejoicing over their victory in a bloodless battle and singing the victory song, there was a man who gently rose and disappeared into the forest beyond. But no one cared about him, so no one cared about his disappearance. Except for one person.

"Huh? Where is he going?

Ryu-yeon's eyes didn't miss the fact: He was Yoon Joon-ho, who was being teased as a coward by the people around him.