Mistaken for a Fairy

[A Friend I Know Well]

The crowds at the Shaolin never ceased. They came to pray for blessings or offer donations.

However, the atmosphere lately was a bit strange. Even though the Abbot was in Seclusion, the number of visitors had increased by at least 20 to 30 percent compared to previous years.

The problem was that the faces of the visitors were filled with a strange sense of disappointment, not satisfaction.

"Hmm, it still doesn't measure up to that divine object."

"The expectations were too high."

"Can human skill truly not catch up to the realm of the immortals?"

Visitors who had seen Shaolin's pride, the main Buddha statue in the Grand Hall of the Great Hero, all left with such sighs, leaving the monks bewildered and restless.

Unable to bear it any longer, some monks cautiously asked the reason, and the story that came out of their mouths was shocking.

At the Carving Arts Competition held in Luoyang, a fairy had carved the Three Divine Buddhas, and after seeing that mysterious Buddha statue, Shaolin's main Buddha statue looked like a mere ordinary sculpture.

Except for the Eighteen Arhats and the Four Great Vajras of Shaolin, the other monks were not allowed to leave the temple grounds without the Abbot's permission.

Therefore, since there was no way to directly confirm the truth of the rumors, it was only natural that they were tormented by the sighs of visitors and engulfed in worries for days.

If it were just one or two people, they would have dismissed it, but everyone who came was talking about fairies and immortals, making it difficult to ignore.

Today was no different. Even though it was early dawn before the sun had even risen, the outside of the temple gate was filled with noisy activity.

The Arhats guarding the gate raised their eyes and looked ahead, and saw Martial artists wearing plain cloth carefully escorting a carriage.

It was quite common in the Martial World for people of high status to dress their escorts in ordinary clothes to hide their identity, so the Arhats were not flustered. However, the moment they confirmed the face of the Martial artist at the very front of the group, the Arhats could not help but be astonished.

It was Geum Byeok-san's younger brother, Geum Byeok-un, the head of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild.

Although he was called the younger brother, he was practically the real owner who operated the Golden Dragon Escort Agency.

"What brings the head of the Golden Dragon Escort Agency here?"

"My brother urgently requested that I come. He said it was urgent."

It meant it was a very urgent matter.

The only urgent matter for an escort agency was to safely transport a great consignment to its destination.

If the head of the Golden Dragon Escort Agency was personally involved, it must be no ordinary consignment. They even thought that it might be a person rather than an object.

Reading the complex expressions on the faces of the Arhats, Geum Byeok-un said.

"You must have heard the rumor that my brother held the Carving Arts Competition. The masterpiece that won first place unanimously is inside the carriage."

The Arhats frowned without realizing it. They were already sick and tired of the Carving Arts Competition story that they had been hearing for days.

'Are they planning to come all the way here to brag?'

Just as they were about to become enraged by the shameless behavior of the Golden Dragon Escort Agency, or rather, the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild behind it, Geum Byeok-un hurriedly continued.

"Originally, the work belongs to the creator, but she said that it would be good to deliver it to Shaolin, so I came here. I'm not sure, but it seems like she has a deep connection with the Abbot of Shaolin."

"You're saying something that's hard to accept."

Geum Byeok-un turned his head in the direction of the voice. It was the head of the Arhat Hall of Shaolin.

"I've heard a lot about what happened at the Carving Arts Competition. I've heard that a woman who barely looked over twenty years old created the Three Divine Buddhas. It's obvious that she has great skill, but it's hard to believe that someone of that age has a relationship with the Abbot."

A deep connection was something that could only be called that after a long period of exchange and mutual understanding. And to build such a relationship with the Abbot, one would have to be at least seventy years old.

If that were the case, it would mean that the woman had reached the realm of Rejuvenation, reversing the years of her flesh, as well as reversing the time of the human body, but if such a high-level expert existed, her name would have been known throughout the world long ago.

Geum Byeok-un felt frustrated. But it wasn't something he couldn't understand. If he hadn't seen Seo-yeon's extraordinary actions himself, he would have thought the same thing.

"Let's go inside for now."

The head of the Arhat Hall led the escorts inside. At that time, a sturdy monk appeared.

He respectfully greeted the head of the Arhat Hall with a half-palm gesture, and then greeted Geum Byeok-un and the escorts in turn. One of the escorts exclaimed in surprise.

"Abbot's disciple Mu-yul!"

"That's what I'm sometimes called."

Mu-yul soon approached Geum Byeok-un and said.

"The Abbot said to tell you that he received a truly good gift."

At those words, surprise flashed across Geum Byeok-un's face.

"Does that mean he's finally come out of Seclusion?"

But Mu-yul shook his head.

According to the explanation, he occasionally sent Telepathic Transmission to the heads of each hall and disciples of Shaolin to have conversations.

Geum Byeok-un swallowed a deep sigh and gestured to the escorts. Soon, the door of the carriage opened, and a Buddha statue wrapped in fine silk appeared.

"Then, I'll remove the silk."

He had to get confirmation that the consignment had been properly delivered. Soon, the escorts carefully removed the silk. Geum Byeok-un inwardly admired the Three Divine Buddhas that soon appeared.

'I'm impressed every time I see it.'

Sometimes there are things whose value cannot be measured with money. In Geum Byeok-un's opinion, the Buddha statue in front of him was one of them.

As he was thinking that, he turned his head and saw the head of the Arhat Hall and Mu-yul staring at the Three Divine Buddhas with blank expressions.

Then, they suddenly closed their eyes and chanted Buddhist scriptures for a long time. Amitabha.

That time lasted for about fifteen minutes.

"...Are you okay?"

Unable to bear it any longer, Geum Byeok-un asked cautiously. Only then did the two monks let out a deep breath and lift their heavy eyelids.

Mu-yul barely opened his mouth.

"Could it be that they reside in Tae-sil Mountain?"

He was asking about the residence of the person who made the Three Divine Buddhas. Geum Byeok-un hesitated for a moment whether to tell him this, then slowly nodded. Soon, Mu-yul's voice trembled slightly.

"...I haven't even had a chance to visit yet, but you're giving me such deep teachings."

As soon as he finished speaking, Mu-yul disappeared somewhere without hesitation. The head of the Arhat Hall, as if lamenting his ignorance, said with a face that was more relieved than ever.

"It seems that what the head of the Golden Dragon Escort Agency said was right."

It was true that she was someone who had a deep connection with the Abbot.

Otherwise, how could she have readily given up such a precious object? He even thought that she might be of a higher rank than the Abbot.

The head of the Arhat Hall barely suppressed the countless realizations that flashed through his mind and the joy that came with them, and said.

"Can you tell her that Shaolin has received it well?"

Geum Byeok-un nodded without realizing it at the sudden change in atmosphere.

Later, he heard that both of them had gained deep enlightenment and entered Seclusion.

Seo-yeon continued to stay at Geum Jin-song's house even after carving the Three Divine Buddhas. Geum Jin-song, the third son of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild. She was uncomfortable with the elderly head of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild continuing to be in the same place.

It was only natural for someone who knew etiquette to feel uncomfortable when someone who was at least old enough to be her grandfather treated her like a master.

"Here, I brought some Candied Fruit."

Geum Jin-song occasionally brought sweet Candied Fruit and handed it to Hwa-ryeon. Hwa-ryeon usually acted aloof like a cat, but when he did that, she accepted the Candied Fruit without complaint.

The maid Gyo-gyo inwardly lamented at the sight of her young master. It was obvious that he was trying to win the favor of his master Seo-yeon by first appeasing her disciple Hwa-ryeon.

But what could she do about his awkwardness? She wanted to help him, but she couldn't easily step in because she was afraid that the young master would be hurt by the terrible age difference.

The reason why Seo-yeon couldn't go out of the gate herself to buy Candied Fruit was simple. There were too many people in front of the mansion gate.

"Can you please take a look at my child just once!"

"I've even set out purified water and am waiting earnestly!"

"Fairy, Fairy!"

Geum Byeok-san had thoroughly concealed Seo-yeon's residence, and immediately discarded the personal information he had recorded when she participated in the Carving Arts Competition. However, it was a disaster that he had put Seo-yeon in the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild's carriage to safely get her out of the Carving Arts Competition.

Since then, the common people had flocked to the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild's mansion and started knocking on the door. It was common for people to ask for blessings for their children, and there were also many who wanted to have Seo-yeon as their teacher.

Because of this situation, she couldn't go out of the gate at all. If she went out to repair the Old Sage Buddha in this state, it was obvious what would happen.

No matter how much the officials blocked access to the Longmen Grottoes, there were millions of people living in Luoyang. It was very difficult to get to the Longmen Grottoes through the eyes of so many people.

It wasn't impossible, but there were too many things to consider. She had to take a carriage, find several fake carriages to deceive the eyes of the passersby, and at the same time, find people to secretly carry the materials without being noticed. All of that would only be possible if the government actively cooperated.

Therefore, Seo-yeon guessed that she would have to stay at Geum Jin-song's villa for at least a few months.

But what Seo-yeon didn't expect was that the magistrate of Luoyang was doing an exceptionally good job.

The magistrate soon came to visit Seo-yeon in person.

"Understand that I can't easily use honorifics because I'm an official serving the Emperor."

"I'm more comfortable with you treating me comfortably like this."

"Hmm."

At Seo-yeon's words, the magistrate nodded in admiration. He was moved by her humility.

What kind of person was the magistrate of Luoyang? The magistrate of Luoyang, one of the five capitals, was close to the highest position among the local officials. In some ways, he had more authority than the governor of Henan Province, so you can imagine his power.

The magistrate looked at Seo-yeon for a moment and continued.

"I heard that you didn't ask for anything other than repairing the Old Sage Buddha."

"That's right."

"Are you really not hoping for anything else?"

Seo-yeon was lost in thought for a moment. Was she short of money? No, that wasn't the case. If she had to pick something she was lacking, it was that she wanted to get new carving materials, but she could just get the materials in place of the Carving Arts Competition prize money she would soon receive.

"That's enough."

Seo-yeon's eyes and the magistrate's gaze crossed in the air.

After a short time of about three breaths, the magistrate realized that Seo-yeon was sincere.

"Heo!"

The magistrate had not seen Seo-yeon make the Three Divine Buddhas in person. There were too many things he had to finish.

But he had heard rumors from trusted friends and subordinates and had come to his own conclusions. And through the simple question and answer now, he completely solidified his conclusion.

'She is truly someone who will not ask for any compensation.'

He had assumed that it was a fabricated appearance to show others to some extent, and had prepared all kinds of precious materials, including gold and silver treasures.

The magistrate couldn't help but feel ashamed in the face of Seo-yeon's pure sincerity. Sensing that there was no reason to delay any longer, he immediately decided to get to the point.

"This official has finished all the preparations. All the materials have already been moved, and I've finished talking to the Major. The documents containing the records at the time have also been prepared, so you can leave whenever you're ready."

He had already sent dozens of carriages disguised as those of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild to various parts of Luoyang. He also sent women disguised in similar clothes to Seo-yeon to various places, including Shanxi, to divert attention.

Not only that, but the Major's soldiers were disguised as commoners and surrounded the Longmen Grottoes, so no one would dare to approach for at least a month.

Of course, even so, going out of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild's gate was another matter. Even now, there were many commoners buzzing in front of the gate.

But the magistrate had, of course, taken even that into account.

"All of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild's villas have secret passages that connect to the outside."

It was a fact he had heard directly from the head of the Golden Dragon Merchant Guild himself.

The magistrate got up from his seat and groped through the books that were piled up on one side of the study. Soon, he pulled out one of the books, and a heavy sound like a mechanism being activated was heard, and a passage leading into the darkness appeared.

Expensive luminous pearls were shining brightly in the middle of the passage ceiling, and its length seemed to be at least a hundred feet.

"There's a carriage at the end of that."

Seo-yeon set out with the magistrate.

• -

When she arrived at the entrance of the Longmen Grottoes in a secretly prepared carriage, Seo-yeon could already sense that the atmosphere was unusual.

It was because the faces of the soldiers guarding the Longmen Grottoes were filled with a strange fear. From the well-polished weapons, she could tell that they were elite soldiers, but their eyes were filled with an incomprehensible fear.

Soon, a military officer rushed over. He looked at Seo-yeon and the magistrate alternately, and opened his mouth with a troubled face.

"It seems difficult to go in right now."

At the unexpected words, the magistrate frowned. There were at least a thousand soldiers guarding this place, so why couldn't they go in?

Martial artist? That was absurd. What crazy Martial artist in Henan, especially Luoyang, would dare to defy the control of the government?

The only remaining possibility was that someone higher than the magistrate had forbidden the visit.

"Could it be that a Prince has visited?"

The military officer shook his head.

"Suddenly, the Mountain Lord appeared next to the Old Sage Buddha."

"...Mountain Lord?"

The magistrate let out a hollow breath at the absurd words. It meant that the elite soldiers guarding Luoyang were frightened by a mere beast. The military officer added as if making an excuse.

"It grows to be more than three feet tall, hides in the shadows and disappears, and when you come to your senses, it suddenly pops out in a completely different place, so we can't catch it at all."

Just listening to his words made it seem like the soldiers were having collective hallucinations.

Then Seo-yeon asked quietly.

"Was it a white Tiger?"

He was about to speak informally, but he unconsciously used honorifics because of Seo-yeon's unusual atmosphere.

"I think so."

"Were its eyes blue?"

"That, I think so too."

Soon, Seo-yeon said with a relieved face.

"I think it's a tiger I know well, can I go in and check?"

Was it even possible to say that she knew a tiger well?

"......"

The atmosphere became strange for a moment, but only Seo-yeon didn't realize it.