"The young master!!"
Phyllis and Bi Ri felt terrified when they saw Shi Yun Lan struck by the snow attack, his body completely covered in white snow that froze around him.
"Is that the famous Shi Yun Lan?! He was defeated with one strike!"
"Don't trust the rumors."
"I thought he would put up some resistance."
The Fru group showed their disdain and mocked Shi Yun Lan.
"Phyllis, you chose the wrong person to follow, but we can let you back into the family."
The man from the Fru family said that as he approached Phyllis, but she unsheathed her sword and pointed it at him.
"Stay away from me!"
Shi Yun Suan shook his head.
"It sounds like you don't understand your current situation."
"Neither do you."
The deadly voice appeared again.
The snow covering Shi Yun Lan shattered and fell away as he emerged from it.
"Two Pillar Level opponents against me."
Shi Yun Suan sneered.
"Don't act like that! You accepted this challenge, and you must know... everything isn't about justice."
Shi Yun Lan readied himself again.
"I think I have to use my full power."
"What?"
The two men didn't understand what he meant until Shi Yun Lan revealed the power of his second technique.
"(Art of Annihilation: Blood of the Dead)."
Sword intent appeared around him in the form of a malicious bloody aura. Everyone who felt it had the terrifying sensation that their blood was boiling and twisting inside their veins.
"What is this?!"
Shi Yun Suan didn't know about that technique, but Shi Yun Lan didn't give him a chance to think.
He advanced with overwhelming power.
However, the other man from the Fru family blocked his attack, seemingly unaffected by the bloody aura.
Shi Yun Lan didn't care.
He continued swinging his sword, leaving red traces of blood in the air, while Shi Yun Suan held back and waited for the right opportunity to strike.
"Phyllis, who is this guy?!"
Bi Ri couldn't believe that anyone could stand before her master like this.
Phyllis answered,
"He is the eldest son of the head of the Fru family, Fru No Whian. He has the ability to freeze his aura inside his body, preventing any foreign aura from entering."
Fru No Whian stepped back after realizing that Shi Yun Lan was not easy to defeat.
He then gave a signal to Shi Yun Suan.
"(Night-walking Body)!"
Shi Yun Suan's body turned completely black, with darkness radiating from him.
He clashed with his brother, creating an opening that allowed Fru No Whian to retreat.
"Just retreat, little bastard!"
"..."
Shi Yun Lan didn't care about his words.
He continued his bloody attacks, leaving cuts across the Night-walking Body of his brother.
Meanwhile, Fru No Whian prepared his final attack.
"(White-walking Breath)!"
The reason Fru No Whian had remained unaffected by Shi Yun Lan's aura was his special physique.
An illusion of ancient creatures appeared behind him, and they released a terrifying white breath toward Shi Yun Lan.
In Shi Yun Lan's eyes, it transformed into a catastrophic blizzard.
'I think that's the difference between the Pillar Level and the General Level.
I see my defeat.'
Although those thoughts crossed his mind, they didn't appear on his face.
Instead, he readied himself to defend against the incoming chaos.
"This is the end."
The breath swallowed Shi Yun Lan.
Fru No Whian turned his head and saw Shi Yun Suan covered in wounds and cuts.
'Too strong.'
He then walked toward Phyllis.
She showed no expression.
"Phyllis, your young master lost."
Phyllis sneered.
"Against two of you, and you're pretending like this is something to be proud of?! How shameful!"
Although Fru No Whian didn't want to admit it, he couldn't deny Shi Yun Lan's strength.
"The results are the results. Now you have to come with me.
Who told you that our young master had lost?!"
Fru No Whian and Shi Yun Suan instantly turned toward the voice.
It was Shi Yun Lan's personal guard, Leon.
"Our young master will face you again!"
Leon appeared without a single mark on his body despite the overwhelming attack.
He had reached the Pillar Level and learned a physical technique.
He spoke arrogantly and confidently, but then glanced at his master, asking him the chance to say what he wanted.
Shi Yun Lan didn't disappoint him.
"Leon, don't block my way. I will punish them myself."
Leon stepped aside.
However, Shi Yun Suan shouted,
"You lowly guard! How dare you interfere in the battle between masters?!"
Shi Yun Lan calmly replied,
"He is my guard. He saw a foreigner trying to hurt me. That's all."
Shi Yun Lan regained his aura and looked at the two opponents.
"Now it is my turn to defeat both of you."
"Again."
Fru No Whian ordered without giving any consideration to his position within the Shi family.
Shi Yun Suan didn't object and advanced toward his brother.
Shi Yun Lan clenched his fist.
"(Blood of the Dead)."
The cuts on Shi Yun Suan's body suddenly turned red.
The traces of bloody aura spread through his wounds and destroyed him internally, causing him to collapse onto the ground.
Fru No Whian, who had been preparing his attack again, was surprised.
But he couldn't stop his attack in time.
That gave Shi Yun Lan the chance to approach him with his deadly bloody aura.
Shi Yun Lan swung his sword horizontally across Fru No Whian's chest, from left to right.
Blood sprayed from the wound.
Fru No Whian collapsed onto the ground and lost consciousness.
Shi Yun Lan looked at the members of the Fru family.
"Take your master and go back to your house."
"O... okay!"
The Fru family immediately retreated.
Shi Yun Lan returned to the carriage.
"What are you waiting for? Get in."
His group looked at Shi Yun Suan, who still couldn't lift his head.
But Shi Yun Lan spoke calmly.
"He is the eldest son of the Shi family. Who would be foolish enough to hurt him?"
"But still..."
Bi Ri hesitated.
"We can't leave him like that. It goes against the will of our ancestors. We can't leave him in such a miserable condition."
Shi Yun Lan understood her concern.
"Bring him to the carriage."
And so, the journey continued.
However, instead of reading, Shi Yun Lan asked Leon,
"Leon, what is your physique? I've never seen a physique like that before."
Leon proudly raised his chest.
"It's a special technique that the head of the Shi family taught me himself!"
Phyllis heard that and immediately thought about her young master's position within the family.
His father had personally taught a mere guard a special technique.
Shi Yun Lan understood what Phyllis was thinking.
He decided that he would talk to his father about something that had been kept in his heart.
---
Finally, they reached the main residence of the Shi family.
Shi Yun Lan was welcomed by the people with celebrations.
"The Third Young Master has arrived!"
"He reached the General Level!"
"It's a celebration!"
"???"
Shi Yun Lan didn't understand what was happening.
He knew those people well. They had always been more afraid of him than respectful toward him.
Then the head of the family, Shi Yun Han, appeared.
"Ahahahaha! Little Lan! You reached the General Level and didn't tell me?!"
Shi Yun Lan said,
"I—"
Bi Ri suddenly covered his mouth.
"The young master is tired from the journey, so he wants to relax."
Phyllis didn't understand why Bi Ri had done that, but as a newcomer, she didn't interfere.
Shi Yun Han noticed her and asked,
"Who is she?"
Shi Yun Lan freed himself from Bi Ri's hand.
"She is my sword maid."
His father looked at Phyllis.
"I think she is from the Fru family, isn't she?"
Shi Yun Lan nodded, unaware of the strange looks from the angry audience around him.
His father, however, simply smiled.
"Well! You have to treat her very well! She is your woman now!"
Shi Yun Lan didn't catch the meaning behind his father's words, but Phyllis immediately felt embarrassed.
'Actually, I don't have a home anymore.
My family hated me and wanted me back just to use me.
But the young master...'
She looked at Shi Yun Lan, who was surrounded by his family.
A mixture of happiness and embarrassment filled her heart.
For the first time, she began to see herself as a woman beside him.
Several thoughts and fantasies appeared in her mind.
But Bi Ri stepped on her foot.
"Ouch! What is wrong with you?!"
Phyllis felt the pain, but Bi Ri silenced her.
"Our young master isn't like the others."
She continued quietly,
"I also wanted to be seen as a girl and be loved, but he is cold toward everyone."
Then she warned her,
"If you try to seduce him and make him feel annoyed, he will abandon you."
Although Bi Ri didn't have the right to decide such things for her master, as his maid, she felt responsible for warning and helping the others.
Phyllis immediately remembered her life beside Shi Yun Lan at the Northern Academy.
Her warmth disappeared.
"You are right."
Shi Yun Han noticed Shi Yun Suan and secretly gestured for the family members to take him into the mansion.
---
"Shi Yun Lan, you reached the General Level, so I can't stop you from training in your own way anymore. You can ask me for anything."
Inside the old office of the head of the Shi family, Shi Yun Han talked with his son.
He didn't mention Shi Yun Suan because he already knew everything.
"Although you are strong, you have a problem."
Shi Yun Lan, who was drinking tea with his father, looked at him attentively and focused completely on his words.
"You don't act like a human. You must have more feelings."
"...What?"
Shi Yun Han continued,
"Power without a moral compass will become a disaster. You have to establish your own considerations and your own limits."
Shi Yun Lan replied,
"I already have rules, and..."
"I don't mean the ancestors' will."
His father interrupted him.
"I'm talking about your own will."
He explained,
"You use your arts to become stronger, but at the same time, I don't see any limits that can keep you safe."
Then he mentioned what had happened earlier.
"Your brother made a big mistake when he decided to help a foreigner harm you. But you had no measure to prevent yourself from killing anyone."
Shi Yun Lan didn't fully understand what his father was trying to tell him.
Shi Yun Han sighed.
"I think you have to live among the people more."
Then he added,
"And certainly without practicing your techniques."
"..."
Shi Yun Lan nodded.
He decided to obey his father—the only person who could truly influence him.
He then asked for permission to leave the room.
---
That night, in his room, Shi Yun Lan continued studying anatomy.
'I think I will need Leon's help later...'
He wanted to study different physiques so he could create his own technique.
But then he remembered his father's words and sighed.
"I don't want to hurt Leon if my observations could be harmful."
He thought for a moment.
"What about my brother's followers?
I think there's someone who has a special technique for physical enhancement."
He nodded to himself in agreement with this idea.
"Yes. He blocked my way.
And according to the rules, I have the right to demand compensation."
"My young master?"
Bi Ri entered the room with an indifferent expression while setting the dinner table.
Shi Yun Lan noticed her unfamiliar behavior.
"Bi Ri, what is wrong with you?"
Bi Ri trembled for a moment before replying calmly,
"It's nothing, my young master. I just feel unwell."
Shi Yun Lan approached her.
"I think you're tired from the journey. Take your leave and—"
"I can't leave you alone. I have to serve you and—"
Bi Ri noticed Shi Yun Lan advancing toward her.
He closed the distance between them, causing her face to grow warm.
But Shi Yun Lan said,
"Your clothes are too light. You can't endure this weather."
He paused.
"You aren't Phyllis. You can't live in this weather wearing such light clothes."
"..."
Bi Ri felt embarrassed.
Heat spread across her face and down her neck as she remembered Shi Yun Han's words:
'As you can see, he can't feel anything. So, you have to try to awaken his feelings as a human.
And I think I know the best way to do that.'
Bi Ri suddenly found herself being carried by her young master.
A trace of concern appeared on Shi Yun Lan's face.
'...I don't object to this mission at all.'
Shi Yun Lan placed her gently on his bed and then left to continue his studies.
Bi Ri stared at the ceiling.
"..."