At the same time, on the other side of the mountain, another pair was also making their way up the nameless hillside. It was Chairman Jang of Sekang Corporation and his secretary, Chief Kim. Dressed in hiking gear and bucket hats, they were diligently ascending the mountain.
"Chairman, are you alright?" Chief Kim, walking ahead, wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked back.
The pathless, uninhabited mountain was physically demanding.
There was no proper trail. There was a faint footpath leading to the base of the mountain, but it disappeared quickly.
"I'm fine."
It was quite a challenge for Chairman Jang, who was not accustomed to rough terrain. Chief Kim walked a few steps ahead to clear the way. Chairman Jang, now in his later years, had graying hair that showed his age. Chief Kim was busy pushing aside grass and branches to make the path easier for the chairman.
"By the way, we aren't lost, are we?"
Chief Kim had the same concern. He unfolded the note he had meticulously transcribed word-for-word as instructed by Zen Master Yeohye.
"This is not a place just anyone can go to, so listen carefully. It's a deserted mountain with no proper path, so you must pay close attention to your footing. First, you need to find a spring. As you climb up from the entrance, you'll reach a point where the path ends. From there, head in the three o'clock direction. After about ten minutes, you'll see an abandoned spring."
They had followed Master Yeohye's directions exactly. Chief Kim
checked his wristwatch as he wiped away sweat. They had passed the point where the footpath ended more than ten minutes ago, but there was no sign of a spring. The mountain was becoming denser and steeper. It seemed they were lost.
It would have been helpful to call and confirm the directions, but their phones had lost signal as soon as they entered the mountain.
It was a strange phenomenon. There had been a wooden totem pole at the base, and beyond that point, all cell reception was lost.
Chief Kim was becoming increasingly anxious.
"Chairman, do you think Master Yeohye gave us the wrong directions?"
As someone who didn't believe in superstition, Chief Kim found the situation troubling.
However, it was not uncommon for wealthy and influential individuals to believe in superstitions and be preoccupied with fortune-telling. The more one has, the more one fears losing it, so it was natural to be afraid of the future. People often cling to the uncertain realm of shamanism because they couldn't overcome the fear of an uncertain future.
"No, that can't be."
Chairman Jang was one such individual.
Sekang Corporation was a large company with a solid foundation in multiple fields and a steady growth trajectory. Jang Pilyoung, the second son of the founder Jang Jiyong, had taken over the chairman's position after a fierce battle for management rights.
Although he had no prior connection with Zen Master Yeohye, he asked Minister Heo, with whom he maintained frequent contact, to introduce him to the monk.
The reason was his son.
It had been about a year since Chairman Jang's son began experiencing inexplicable chills. Despite being previously healthy, he was now suffering from an unexplained cold that wouldn't go away.
While initially dismissed as a mild cold, the chill persisted. One morning, his son woke up with severe chest pain, coughed up blood, and collapsed.
Bedridden and rapidly losing strength, he looked like he was on the brink of death. Despite numerous hospital visits and extensive examinations, the results showed nothing wrong.
Chairman Jang's son was wasting away day by day, clearly dying, yet the tests found nothing. Chairman Jang couldn't believe it. Then he thought, what if this wasn't a medical issue but something supernatural?
He wondered if a ghost was haunting his son out of spite. This thought led him to consider a ritual exorcism. However, Chairman Jang was reluctant to involve the Naryecheong.
Although it operated in the shadows, it was still a government institution, meaning records would be kept. Revealing such a personal matter to a public institution was risky and foolish. Fearful that it might be used for political leverage, he preferred to consult a private shaman instead, much like how some people prefer private investigators over the police.
Chairman Jang was no exception and deemed it too risky to involve the Naryecheong. He had stepped on many people and committed numerous wrongs to get to his current position. Thus, he worried that his carefully hidden past might be exposed. Thus, with Minister Heo's mediation, he sought out Master Yeohye, a renowned shaman trusted by many prominent figures.
After months of waiting, Chairman Jang finally met Master Yeo-hye and poured out his story, begging for any form of help-whether it be through a ritual or a talisman. The shaman listened silently for a long while, then lit a cigarette and spoke.
"It would be easier if it were just a ghost."
Master Yeohye, after examining Jang's son, made a strange statement.
'What do you mean?"
'This is the work of a living person sending a harmful curse (A%)."
In Korean shamanism, this refers to an invisible, harmful force that brings misfortune, injury, or destruction to people or objects.
Sending 'sal' means directing this malicious energy towards someone, akin to casting a curse.
"If it were a ghost, we could either appease or exorcise it, but this is different. Someone who holds a deep grudge against you has hired a shaman to curse your son."
Apparently, Chairman Jang's son was not possessed by a ghost but was dying from a curse sent by a living person. Chairman Jang, his face turning pale, asked,
"Then what can I do?"
The shaman took a drag from his cigarette and explained,
"It's tricky, but not impossible. To counteract the curse sent by the living, you need to send back an equal force to neutralize it.
Essentially, you fight fire with fire."
The shaman, puffing on his cigarette, offered a solution that matched his diagnosis. Chairman Jang felt a sense of relief, thinking it was worth waiting several months to see this person...
"But that's not something I can do."
But then the other person suddenly withdrew, causing Chairman Jang to panic.
"What do you mean, you can't do it?"
"Sending a curse to a living person is fundamentally wrong. No shaman who serves sacred spirits should do such a thing."
In shamanism, doing that to someone falls into the realm of dark magic, known as black magic or sorcery, which was why he refused.
"Using sorcery for malevolent purposes is sure to anger the spirits. I do not engage in anything that would bring shame in front of the divine. Moreover, it's beyond my capacity. Do you think an old man like me could counteract such a wicked curse?"
Master Yeohye, puffing on a cigarette, narrowed his eyes.
"I'm sorry, but you've come to the wrong person."
Chairman Jang, disheartened by the shaman's firm stance, sat silently for a while before rising to leave.
"Wait a moment."
As he turned to go, Master Yeohye called out.
"Now that I think about it, since you've come all this way..."
Chairman Jang, who was about to leave, stopped and turned around.
"It wouldn't be right to send you away empty-handed. How about I introduce you to someone more suitable for the task?"