Chapter 180
It doesn't have to be our Hyeonjin Sect.
Hyunheo Zhenren's voice rang out through the gathered hall.
He shifted slightly toward Baek Cheong, unable to hide his satisfaction.
"The eye that can read formation glyphs at a glance is a natural gift worth more than a mountain of gold. Even if you don't join Hyeonjin Sect, what of it? You are surely a prodigy for the ages, destined to leave your mark on the formation world as a formation master."
There was no praise more lavish than that.
And he had poured it out openly in front of so many people.
Everyone present was left speechless.
He was the sect master of the mysterious Hyeonjin Sect and a Nascent Soul grandmaster.
Yet such a heavyweight was lavishing praise on Yeonha Baek Clan's genius.
All around the hall, only the sound of dry swallows could be heard.
Among them, Baek Sang was the one most shaken.
As a disciple of Hyeonjin Sect in name, he had personally brought his master here.
Yet his master was praising the youngest one and setting him aside entirely.
"M-Master, why is he acting like that?"
Baek Sang stared blankly, his mouth opening and closing.
With that, everyone's attention gathered in one place.
It was Baek Cheong, the one at the center of the praise.
Baek Cheong herself was cringing inwardly.
'No, seriously, why is he doing this?'
The more praise poured down, the more on guard she became instead of pleased.
That didn't mean she could openly make a disgusted face in front of a Nascent Soul grandmaster.
Outwardly, she only blinked, pretending to be surprised.
Of course, at first she'd wondered whether she might learn something from him.
The title of quasi-5th-rank formation master was admittedly tempting.
But after she'd examined his robe earlier, she'd already given up on that hope.
The glyphs covering his collar were still a total mess.
Easy and difficult ones were mixed together haphazardly, with no coherent pattern at all.
It was obvious he'd just picked them up wherever he could and written down the glyphs as he went.
'How is there supposed to be anything to learn from that?'
By Hyunheo Zhenren's own standards, he might be stringing glyphs together to build formations, but there were too many flaws.
With no system to speak of, she wouldn't be short on instruction to give.
Rather, she would be the one with plenty to teach.
Of course, scattered across the robe were a few difficult glyphs that made her tilt her head.
'I still haven't figured that one out either, though.'
There was still some room for mutual help.
But no matter how she did the math, it was a hundred-percent losing bargain.
She couldn't take on another master just to get a few hard-to-understand glyphs.
If they actually started lessons, she'd only end up with even more maddening studying.
'I'm already swamped with alchemy; what do I need formation work for?'
There was no way she'd find it appealing.
Baek Cheong quickly gathered all the humility she could to back out at once.
"Hyunheo Zhenren's words are far too generous."
And she put on the most dignified expression she could manage.
"Pacheon Sword Sovereign is my only master. With Grandpa Yak-seon, I just act spoiled like a granddaughter and learn little things here and there."
She drew a line as if she were a principled disciple.
That should have left no opening for even Hyunheo Zhenren to pry further.
Yet Hyunheo Zhenren didn't even blink.
Instead, he nodded with obvious satisfaction.
"Very well. Then I'll just be your real grandfather too."
It was far too casual a thing to say.
Baek Cheong almost lost control of her expression.
'A real grandfather?'
She was so dumbfounded she had nothing to say.
She had never once met someone this unreasonable.
She already had a grandfather.
On top of that, there was Grandfather Yak-seon.
And now Hyunheo Zhenren was claiming to be her grandfather too.
At this rate, she'd end up with three grandfathers.
'Why on earth does Hyunheo Zhenren want to teach me so badly...!'
Baek Cheong was utterly at a loss.
Even so, she didn't have any clever solution.
What could a mere Foundation Establishment cultivator do against a Nascent Soul grandmaster pushing this hard?
Just as she wondered whether she should accept the fate laid before her...
"Heh heh, Hyunheo Zhenren is pushing our Cheong too hard."
Baek Cheong turned toward the voice.
Before she knew it, Yak-seon was strolling over at an unhurried pace.
'Ah, Grandfather Yak-seon!'
He was a rescuer who had appeared like a ghost—no, like a comet.
Her face lit up at once.
Soon Yak-seon stood beside Baek Cheong and cupped his hands toward Hyunheo Zhenren.
"The child is practically my granddaughter, yet she's being put in such a difficult spot. Please step back for now."
The tone was courteous, but there was no backing down in it.
Facing Yak-seon, Hyunheo Zhenren couldn't immediately continue.
In terms of cultivation alone, Yak-seon was only at the Golden Core stage.
Compared with Hyunheo Zhenren, a Nascent Soul cultivator, he was undeniably far lower.
Yet as an alchemist, he had already reached 5th rank.
He held a status that even a quasi-5th-rank formation master like Hyunheo Zhenren couldn't take lightly.
For that reason, the two had no choice but to respect each other.
Sure enough, Hyunheo Zhenren couldn't ignore Yak-seon.
"Grr... If Elder Gok insists, then I suppose I must."
With a face full of regret, he reluctantly stepped back.
Baek Cheong cheered inwardly.
'It really had been worth preparing the Longevity Pill for him.'
So this was what filial piety got her in return.
Of course, simply getting past the current hurdle wouldn't make things easy.
As soon as the schedule ended, a hellish session of alchemy to learn a 3rd-rank pill formula would be waiting for her.
But that sort of thing no longer mattered.
Right now, it was enough to shake off Hyunheo Zhenren, who was clinging to her like a leech.
Inside, she cheered Yak-seon on with all her might.
'Grandfather, just a little more! Please settle this decisively here!'
Yet Hyunheo Zhenren suddenly fell silent.
He seemed to sink into deep thought over something.
Before long, as if he'd made up his mind, he carefully spoke to Yak-seon.
"Elder Gok, if you don't mind, I have something I'd like to discuss in private."
Baek Cheong went cold at the unexpected suggestion of a private talk.
'...He has something to say in private?'
An ominous premonition slowly crept up on her.
She prayed that Yak-seon would just refuse firmly.
Yet Yak-seon nodded obediently, as if it were only natural.
"Let's do that. I happen to have something I'd like to discuss with Hyunheo Zhenren as well."
In spite of her desperate plea, Yak-seon and Hyunheo Zhenren left side by side.
Baek Cheong stared blankly at their receding backs.
Then, for some reason, a familiar sense of déjà vu washed over her.
'This looks like something I've seen somewhere before...'
As she searched her memory, her face gradually went pale.
It had been just like this when Pacheon Sword Sovereign was chosen as her master.
Even though she hadn't witnessed it herself, there had clearly been signs that the Sword Sovereign had spoken in secret with Yak-seon before suddenly declaring himself her master.
The Sword Sovereign had apparently persuaded Yak-seon somehow and then secured the public role of master.
And now Yak-seon and Hyunheo Zhenren had just disappeared to have a private talk.
'No way, surely not.'
Baek Cheong forcibly swallowed the unease rising inside her.
Meanwhile, the others left behind were each in an uproar.
Baek Sang stared endlessly in the direction where his master had disappeared, like a half-mad man.
He had served that master for more than ten years.
Yet he had never once seen him act like he was clinging to a person like this.
Shocked out of his wits, he could only gape, his mouth opening and closing soundlessly.
Seo Joo-ah and the junior disciples were bewildered because they didn't know why.
There was no way for them to know the details.
They could only tell that Baek Cheong's talent was extraordinary enough to make a quasi-5th-rank formation master go that far.
'I-I have to work even harder so I don't get outdone...!'
Seo Joo-ah swallowed hard without realizing it.
And Baek Woo alone remained composed.
He had long known something like this would happen.
He wore a pleased smile, proud of his younger sibling's brilliant talent.
Then, after making up his mind, he quietly left.
No one knew where he was headed.
.
.
.
After that uneasy silence had lingered for a while.
Yak-seon and Hyunheo Zhenren, who had left their seats, finally returned.
Baek Cheong immediately studied their expressions.
Yak-seon looked unusually grave for some reason.
Hyunheo Zhenren, by contrast, looked utterly satisfied.
Seeing those opposite expressions, dread surged over her all at once.
'Grandfather Yak-seon, surely not...?'
But before she could even finish the thought,
Hyunheo Zhenren strode over and looked down at her.
"From now on, think of me as your third master—no, your real grandfather."
Baek Cheong froze in place.
She hadn't even once brought up taking him as her master.
Yet somehow, a third master had been decided on out of nowhere.
'Just what in the world had they talked about...?'
She turned to Yak-seon with a resentful look.
Yet Yak-seon couldn't bear to meet her eyes and quietly looked away.
That awkward refusal to meet her gaze told her everything.
'Grandfather Yak-seon!!!'
It meant he'd been talked into something, and she had no say in the matter at all.
And yet the one who should have been offering jerky to beg for instruction was Hyunheo Zhenren himself.
In the end, the problem was that her cultivation level was too low, and it was making her want to cultivate a little.