Fabre in Sacheon's Tang

That just left Fruit.

If I collected this one, the Blossoming Tree Venoms set would finally be complete.

As for the Twenty-Four Venoms overall, I had only completed Heaven-Earth-Black-Yellow .

That included:

Those four alone completed the first quartet of the full collection.

But other quartets—like Cloud-Rain-Snow-Hail, Gold-Silver-Water-Fire, and Red-Blue-White-Black—were still incomplete.

Some were missing a single piece. Others, I had barely started.

Now, I had a chance to complete one full set—the Blossoming Tree Venoms.

Any collector knows the maddening rush of finally getting the last piece of a set.

Even if I didn’t have the full Twenty-Four Venoms yet, finishing this group meant I’d have completed the second of six venomous creature quartets.

So yeah... I was basically half-mad at this point.

For me, there was only one choice: revive it, take it—and complete the collection.

But that would also mean becoming the Heavenly Master, and that was where the mental breakdown began.

“Damn it.”

I forced myself to calm down and asked Hwa-eun to check with Ji-ryong.

Hwa-eun was smart, yes—but Ji-ryong was even smarter. Maybe he’d have a different view.

I was already pretty sure they were right... but I needed a sliver of hope.

『“Hwa-eun, could you—could you check with Ji-ryong? I don’t really doubt you, but just in case... it might help to hear his thoughts.”』

“Got it. He’s right next to me, actually.”

A brief pause—and then the reply.

『“Ji-ryong says he’s nearly certain, too.”』

“...Right.”

Sigh.

So much for hope.

I looked down. Dorje met my gaze with a cheerful smile.

And in that moment... that smile looked like hope.

No, wait—maybe they’re wrong?

Even smart people like Hwa-eun and Ji-ryong can be wrong. They might be overthinking it—reading into something that’s not really there, like smart people sometimes do.

Yes. I had to hear it straight from the source.

Who?

Dorje, of course.

I forced a smile and asked with casual awkwardness,

“Um, Dorje?”

His smile brightened even more.

“Yes, Heavenly Master?”

“...So, I was wondering... If I bring this thing back to life, is that, um... part of some test to prove I’m the Heavenly Master or something? Haha.”

Dorje looked genuinely startled and waved his hands frantically.

“W-what!? Of course not!”

YES! I knew it!

I nearly celebrated right there—thinking Hwa-eun and Ji-ryong had finally outsmarted themselves.

But then Dorje began to explain.

“We—how could we possibly test the Heavenly Master? That would be a grave offense!”

Right, right. Of course. How could they possibly... wait... hold on.

Something felt off.

His words weren’t comforting anymore. They felt more like an affirmation—like I was already confirmed as the Heavenly Master.

As I stared at him in shock, he added,

“But... there is a saying passed down from the elders. When he arrives, the withered fruit shall awaken and welcome him...”

Wait, isn’t that just a test in fancier words!?

He said they wouldn’t test me—then described a test.

The moment I heard that last line, my brain just shut down.

“Ha... ha... of course that fruit’s gonna awaken, right? Ha ha...”

I’m screwed.

***

I climbed down from the tree and decided it was time to press Dorje for answers.

He was clearly lying about it not being a test, and yet they were still calling me the Heavenly Master—so none of it made any sense.

If they truly believed I was the Heavenly Master, why test me?

And if they were testing me, why pretend not to be?

They were trying to have it both ways.

“Dorje, I’m sorry, but I really don’t get this. You’re calling me the Heavenly Master like there’s no doubt—but then you’re also acting like this whole thing is a test? These things don’t match.”

“T-test? Of course not!”

He kept repeating the same line.

So I tried bluffing.

“Well... maybe I should just go back to Sichuan. I’m not feeling great about this. It’s starting to feel like you’re not being honest with me...”

In truth, if this was the Fruit of the Blossoming Tree, there was zero chance I was leaving without it.

But bluffing worked.

Dorje looked horrified and grabbed my arm.

“G-go back!? N-no, please! I’ll tell you everything you want to know!”

Now he was finally ready to talk.

He led me to a stone bench nearby. As we sat, he ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked nervously,

“W-what would you like to know?”

“Just this. You’ve been calling me the Heavenly Master with full confidence—but this whole situation feels like a test. So which is it?”

Wiping his brow again, Dorje finally began to speak in a respectful, careful tone.

“Ah, yes... I see. There’s a reason for that, Heavenly Master.

‘Tolku’ is a term for a reincarnated master. And in our belief, to test or doubt a Tolku is a grave sin.

So here at Podarlap Palace, if someone is believed to be a Tolku, we treat them as if they are—until it is definitively proven otherwise.

Even with mere Tolkus, we follow that rule. So how could we possibly test someone believed to be the Heavenly Master?”

“Ah... So you’re calling me Heavenly Master not because you’re sure, but because doubting me before proof is a sin. And so until I’m proven not to be him, I get treated as if I am?”

“Exactly!”

...Okay, that made sense.

He was a high religious figure. Of course they couldn’t risk insulting someone who might be divine.

Blind faith is kind of a thing in religion, after all.

Doubt is a sin—faith is a virtue.

Still, it also made one thing very clear.

If I revived that fruit... I’d no longer be possibly the Heavenly Master.

I’d be confirmed. No ambiguity left.

And so I asked again...

“So then, if I succeed in reviving that fruit, I really will become the Heavenly Master?”

“W-what!? A test? No, no—it's not a test... More like a process that gives the humble believers a sense of certainty, you could say.”

“...Isn’t that just a fancy way of saying it is a test?”

“N-not at all!”

I let out a long sigh and asked the more important question.

“Haah... Alright. Then—do I have to revive it immediately?”

“No, not at all! Take as many days as you need!”

“In that case, I think I’ll rest for today.”

“Understood!”

I left the tree and Dorje behind and made my way back toward the residence. Since it looked like reviving the fruit would indeed confirm me as the Heavenly Master, I needed to discuss it properly—with Hwa-eun, Ji-ryong, and the others.

As I walked through the corridor and arrived at the residence—

Just before I stepped inside, Dorje called out behind me.

“I’ll make sure the tree chamber remains open to you at all times. Feel free to visit whenever you wish.”

“Got it.”

—Creeeak

“It seems So-ryong is really...”

“I think so too.”

I heard the voices as soon as I opened the door and stepped into the shared common area outside everyone's rooms.

Everyone inside turned to look at me the moment I entered.

“So-ryong!”

“Ah, Young Master So! You’re back.”

It seemed they’d all been talking about me just before I arrived.

Seol noona rushed over as if she’d been waiting, dragged me to a chair, and sat me down.

“So-ryong, tell us what happened at the tree. What kind of conversation did you have? Was there anything else?”

Apparently, they were all curious about the follow-up to what I’d told Hwa-eun earlier. And since I needed their advice on how to handle this mess anyway, I recounted everything that had happened with Dorje.

As I explained what I saw and what he said, their expressions gradually changed.

It seemed everyone had noticed the contradictory behavior—treating me as the Heavenly Master while simultaneously placing me in what was clearly a test.

“Alright. Now it makes sense.”

“Yeah, that explains it.”

“So we’re stuck, huh? Can't go forward or back.”

Everyone looked serious... except Gungbong, who had apparently grown close to Seol noona and was now whispering something to her while chuckling.

“Hehe.”

We all turned toward him at the sudden laughter, and Seol noona—giggling herself—was scolded immediately.

“I’m being serious here. Why are you two laughing?”

Gungbong answered with a goofy grin:

“Noona said it’d be funny if Young Master So had to shave his head.”

She must’ve overheard my comment the other day about whether I’d have to become a monk if I ended up as the Heavenly Master.

From beside me, Hwa-eun suddenly barked,

“Unnie!”

Her voice rang through the room like a thunderclap, and after glaring at Seol noona, she turned to me and said firmly,

“So-ryong, let’s just go. Forget the Fruit. We don’t need to collect it.”

She meant, just forget about completing the Blossoming Tree Venoms set.

But... turning back when a target was right in front of me?

That wasn’t in my vocabulary.

“Hwa-eun, people like us don’t have that kind of option.”

Seol noona sighed knowingly and nodded, understanding immediately. But Hwa-eun tried another approach.

“T-then how about we collect everything else first and come back for this later? It’s not like it’s going anywhere.”

It was a reasonable point.

That fruit had been hanging there for hundreds of years—it wasn’t going to run away.

But if it’s in front of you... it eats away at your mind.

That’s how it is for people like us. When a collectible is visible, you take it.

Just as I was agonizing over this, Ji-ryong smiled and said,

“So So-hyeop, why not just become the Heavenly Master at this point?”

“Ji-ryong! What are you saying?!”

Hwa-eun snapped again, but Ji-ryong raised a calm hand and continued.

“You seem worried you won’t be able to marry him if he does. But you don’t need to worry, Dok-hwa.”

“You mean... I don’t?”

Hwa-eun tilted her head curiously.

“Yes. Even the real Heavenly Master had three wives, remember? So even if So So-hyeop becomes the Heavenly Master, you’ll still be able to marry him.”

“Exactly,” added Monk Jaheo, who’d been quietly listening. “It is said that before attaining enlightenment, the Buddha had three wives.”

That seemed to relax Hwa-eun at last, and she gave a relieved smile.

“Oh... well, that’s... good, then.”

So in other words—if we could still get married, she didn’t care if I became the Heavenly Master.

That was kind of sweet, in a way. That she’d love me regardless of what I became.

But I was the one struggling with the idea of becoming the Heavenly Master.

Ji-ryong spoke again,

“And So So-hyeop—if you do become the Heavenly Master, you don’t actually have to worry too much. Don’t you remember what Dorje once said?”

“What did he say?”

“When we were deciding to come here, Dorje told you: ‘From what little I’ve heard, it seems you’ve already been reincarnated and are dedicating your efforts to helping others. How could we dare stand in the way of such a path or ask anything of you?’

So even if they confirm you as the Heavenly Master, as long as you say you’re busy with something important, I doubt Podarlap Palace will demand anything from you.

After all, if testing a Heavenly Master is a sin, interfering with his mission must be, too.”

That... actually made sense.

If being suspicious was a sin, then what could they say if I claimed I was already on a divine mission?

“Then... should I just go ahead and become the Heavenly Master?”

If taking on the title didn’t interfere with my work—and helped me get the Fruit of the Blossoming Tree—maybe it wasn’t so bad?

I didn’t care much about the title anyway.

What I did care about was what came with it.

Like how Gungbong ran in when I got Soto—maybe reviving this fruit would attract another rare creature.

It felt similar.

And so, I thought:

Maybe starting tomorrow... I should just focus on reviving the fruit.

What’s the worst that could happen?