Chapter 20

“...What is this? Can a person really change this much? Youngest... you’re still the same youngest I used to know, right?”

“Yes, I am.”

“No, seriously, I just can’t wrap my head around it. Yeonhwa, this kid—he’s really our youngest, right?”

“...I don’t understand it either, Brother.”

“Right? It’s not just me, is it? Damn...”

Trailing off, my eldest brother scratched his head.

It was obvious why he was acting like this.

What I’d said earlier was stuck in his head.

And how did I know that?

“‘A movement pretending to be covert,’ huh...”

He was mumbling that to himself.

My sister and I silently watched him.

Then—

“...A movement pretending to be covert... Youngest.”

“Yes?”

“Then what is true stealth?”

Just as I opened my mouth to answer—

“Ah... Ah-ha, I think I get it. Youngest, you were pointing out that I was only trying to hide, right? That mere sleight-of-hand techniques leave behind traces in the end.”

My sister’s eyes widened, and I simply looked quietly at my eldest brother.

“Leaves a trace... Right, of course it leaves a trace. If you’re making an effort to hide, how could you not leave traces? So true concealment would mean not trying to hide. Just becoming a part of nature itself... That’s real stealth.”

The sudden monologue stopped there.

And it was right that it did.

My eldest brother suddenly sat down cross-legged on the spot in silence.

He had reached a moment of realization.

In an instant, he seemed to slip into a trance—but then his brow furrowed all at once.

He got up again.

“Click... Damn shame.”

“What do you mean?”

“I thought I’d grasped a clue that could push me into the Unity of Heaven and Man, but I guess I’m still missing something.”

He brushed a hand down his face.

Is this man even human?

In my past life, I never knew.

That my brother possessed this kind of talent.

All I did was drop a tiny hint about the nature of stealth.

And now he’d turned that into a possible gateway to the Realm of the Martial God?

“Haha... Still, thanks to our youngest, I gained a clue. Wow... Looks like our youngest’s transformation ended up helping his big brother out too, huh?”

I hadn’t intended that, but since the outcome was good, I let it be. My eldest brother patted my shoulder lightly.

“There’s always a reason why people change. Our youngest, you’ve had your own struggles, haven’t you? Looks like you’ve overcome them.”

“That’s roughly right.”

“Oh, so it’s not the right answer?”

“It’s very close.”

Seol Horyeong burst into laughter.

“Good, good. Youngest.”

“Yes, Brother.”

“I really like who you are now.”

“Thank you.”

“You finally look like a real descendant of the Snow Palace. Until now... to be honest, I wasn’t impressed.”

“I know. That’s why you never treated me like a person.”

“Hey now, don’t say it like that. You’ll make your brother feel bad. But... I hope this change isn’t just temporary.”

“I hope so too.”

“...You’re interesting.”

Seol Horyeong looked at me with an odd expression, then casually gestured.

“Let’s go in. We can’t keep the Sovereign waiting.”

As he said that, Seol Horyeong leaned in and whispered softly by my ear.

“Our youngest... when I step into the Unity of Heaven and Man, I’ll give you a really nice gift. So look forward to it.”

I turned my head to see Seol Horyeong grinning. He looked genuinely pleased as he strode lightly toward the council hall. My sister and I, who had paused for a moment, followed after him.

“...I’ve reached the Manifestation of the Infinite myself, but that man... he’s a real monster. Right?”

“It seems so.”

My gaze remained fixed on Seol Horyeong.

Seol Horyeong.

One of the two prodigies born of the Everlasting Snow Palace.

But unfortunately, he would never become the Palace Sovereign.

No—he wouldn’t even become the Deputy Sovereign.

Exactly half a year from now, he will die.

“Did you... do something to upset your brother?”

I looked at Seol Yeonhwa, who had asked in a quiet voice.

It wasn’t just Seol Horyeong.

Seol Yeonhwa.

She wasn’t quite on the level of the two prodigies, but she was still an extraordinary talent by martial world standards.

She was twenty-six years old and had reached the Manifestation of the Infinite.

And exactly one year from now, she too will die.

Near the Martial Alliance headquarters.

The cause of death: assassination.

The number of attackers: five. Three were captured at the time. Two escaped.

Those two—

Later, I captured them myself. Tortured them for about ten years.

Then I fed them alive to a pack of wild dogs.

“...Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something to you too?”

“I was just looking.”

“...Really strange. What’s gotten into you? Want some pocket money or something?”

“I’m fine. You should go in first.”

Seol Yeonhwa scratched her head and ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) stepped inside the council hall.

I stood at the entrance for a moment.

Across the room, already seated and waiting, was Seol Muryun, arms crossed.

People of the Snow Palace say—

Either Seol Horyeong or Seol Muryun will lead the Everlasting Snow Palace.

Half a year after Seol Horyeong’s death, Seol Muryun becomes Deputy Sovereign.

Then, six months later, Seol Yeonhwa dies.

And six months after that, Seol Muryun dies too.

In the far future, the one who finally sits in the Sovereign’s seat of the Everlasting Snow Palace...

Wasn’t one of the Polar Bloodline.

Over there, in the very back, hands clasped behind his back, wearing a warm smile—

Deputy Sovereign Yang Seoljin.

He will be the one to lead the Everlasting Snow Palace.

I looked at him.

And just then, he looked back at me.

A soft, comforting smile spread across his lips.

I smiled back.

A flicker of something strange passed through his eyes. I ignored it.

Why did my father die?

He wasn’t the strongest in the world, but he was close enough to challenge the title.

How could a man like that just “die of illness”?

Why did all the Polar Bloodline heirs die in “incidents”?

That bastard.

He’s the one who’ll ruin the Snow Palace. A flea drawing out a grand scheme.

Yang Seoljin’s current level is the second stage of the Martial God Realm: Manifestation of the Infinite.

About ten years from now, he’ll reach Dao Transformation and True Authority.

But that’s as far as he’ll go.

No—he won’t even make it that far.

Because I’ll kill him.

Just like I did back then.

****

He was a tall man.

His height was around seven cheok—more than a full head taller than the average adult male. A towering figure sat at the seat of honor.

Though his face looked young enough to defy the mark of eighty years, the faint wrinkles etched between his brows told the story of a long, grueling life.

His silver-white hair was tied neatly behind his head, accentuating a broad forehead, a sharp nose bridge, and firmly pressed lips. The flowing hem of his pure-white robe shimmered faintly as if releasing a subtle spiritual aura with every gust of wind.

Around him, there was always a faint mist of frost, and with each breath, the temperature in the room subtly shifted.

The one who ruled over a thousand years of snow and ice.

Master of the Everlasting Snow Mountains. Sovereign of the Everlasting Snow Palace.

Here, in this palace, he is called the Ice Heaven Supreme.

The Sovereign of the Snow Palace—Ice Heaven Supreme Seol Jungcheon.

His level was the fourth stage of the Martial God Realm—Vast Emptiness Beyond Form.

Undoubtedly, he was only a half-step away from reaching Sovereign of Primordial Oneness, the peak realm reserved for true Martial Gods.

Nothing else could explain his current state.

A man who stood just short of the greatest in the world.

Ranked fourth in the martial hierarchy.

That man was my father.

“Sit.”

At the weight of his voice, all descendants of the Polar Bloodline—including the Deputy Sovereign tucked in the corner—took their seats.

A fundamental question lingered in the air.

Why had this meeting been called?

Though it might appear to be a family gathering, attended only by direct blood relatives, it wasn’t nearly so casual.

This was serious.

Before any major affairs of the palace were decided, there were matters that had to be addressed solely within the bloodline. That was the reason for this meeting.

My father turned his gaze toward the Deputy Sovereign. Receiving the unspoken signal, the Deputy Sovereign gave a nod and stood from his seat.

He began to speak.

“Some of you may already know, but since others do not, I will begin with a brief explanation.”

The Deputy Sovereign paused, then pulled out a small pouch from inside his robes.

He reached inside—and pulled out an ice crystal more than twice the size of the pouch itself.

A situation that made no logical sense—unless you were here.

That pouch was a Storage Sack.

A treasure designed to hold items dozens of times its own size through embedded formations.

It wasn’t something common, of course, but it wasn’t completely unattainable either.

The Deputy Sovereign placed the ice crystal on the table.

Instead of radiating a pure white glow, it gave off a dark, bluish-black hue.

“Exactly ten days ago, martial artists from the Snow Celestial Guard discovered this while patrolling the northwestern ice wall. Since then, the ice along that section has started to discolor... and now...”

Trailing off, the Deputy Sovereign reached into the Storage Sack again and pulled out another crystal.

Its shape was the same as the previous one—but its color was different.

Compared to the dark blue one, this one was pitch-black. Seeing it, I nearly let out a scoff.

I managed to keep a straight face and simply looked toward the Deputy Sovereign.

It felt like I was watching someone perform tricks for a child.

“This crystal was collected from the perimeter this morning. The change took just ten days, and the bigger issue lies elsewhere. This corrupted crystal is polluting the Snow Qi of the Everlasting Snow Palace. Three disciples collapsed during training, and their meridians froze. It’ll take them at least half a month of treatment just to recover. If this corruption spreads further, it will become a true disaster.”

So that’s why we’d been gathered.

This wasn’t just important—it was critical.

The odds that such a phenomenon occurred naturally were close to zero.

Someone was attacking the Everlasting Snow Palace.

Or at the very least—testing the waters.

Great Snow Kirin Seol Horyeong asked,

“Was this the work of the Central Blood Sect?”

To that, my father answered.

“It’s uncertain.”

I remained quiet, just listening.

But in my mind, a memory from the past flashed before my eyes.

The Central Blood Sect—undeniably the greatest sect in the martial world.

Within the sect were five major sub-sects, and the one I recalled was Serpent Valley.

Its Mistress, the Poison Empress, once said to me:

—“Elder, I heard you’re planning to start a war with the Everlasting Snow Palace?”

—“You’re incredible. When you crushed the Martial Alliance last time, I almost lost my mind. Are you going to make me lose it again?”

—“You’re going alone? Why?”

—“That’s disappointing. I don’t think you’ll fail, but if our Elder is going on an expedition, how could I just let you leave empty-handed?”

—“I want to offer you a little something. Will you accept it?”

—“It’s nothing big. This is called Snow-Infused Frost Poison. We developed it after years of infiltration and research inside the Snow Palace. I think it’ll come in handy.”

—“Once you clear out all the weaklings, won’t we have more time to play together at night?”