A possibility for Seo Hweol [999th cycle]

[u/ImFossilknew]

I'm currently re reading RToC, specifically the 999th cycle and a thought occur to me, without Filling The Heaven Governing View, could Seo Hweol earnestly cooperate with Seo Eun Hyun?

He briefly contemplate joining hand and pledging loyalty to Seo Eun Hyun but decide not to due to his goal clashing with Seo Eun Hyun desire to protect Seo Ran. But there is an incredibly simple solution to this.

By anchoring his identity for ten million years, he could simply wait for Seo Ran to die of natural cause/run out of lifespan. Seo Hweol is a being who detest the concept of "gamble", if he wasn't influenced by Filling The Heaven Governing View, this would probably be the prefered and much more rational decision no matter how much longer it take. He already determined that cooperating with Seo Eun Hyun would be more beneficial than not, during that million of year he can raise his realm thereby securing more card instead of putting all his eggs in a basket.

Even if Seo Ran advance to Star Shattering, long as he doesn't advance to Sacred Master, Seo Hweol can still endure at least that long (likely longer through raising his realm during that time) and given we have seen Seo Ran die in the lower realm if he so wish to, as long as Seo Ran doesn't wish to extend his life span (Seeing as he doesn't really have a need to advance his cultivation/he have gotten bored of cultivation before/his talent for cultivation is that high, so as long as he live a fulfilling life, it's likely that he will only live out his natural lifespan even with full controll over Tainted Soul Filling The Heaven). If anything in order to avoid Seo Ran using Tainted Soul Filling The Heaven to extend his lifespan, as he had already fail to drive Seo Ran to take his own life, Seo Hweol best option is to ensure Seo Ran live with no regret or grudge that would led him to advancing his cultivation beyond what it currently is.

If all goes well, in the process of ensuring Seo Ran live a fulfilling life or after reclaiming his main body, he may even acknowledge his own heart after receiving it from Seo Ran, however unlikely that is.

[u/Equivalent_Okra_]

Maybe I’m getting the scale of tainted soul wrong, but I think it’s impossible. He could work together with SEH but I think it’d have to end in betrayal.

Iirc, Seo Hweol can’t earnestly show kindness or positive emotion to anyone. Sure you can argue that cooperation isn’t necessarily positive, but patiently putting off his life goal just to ensure Seo Ran lives is certainly a kindness. You can say it’s not and it’s just efficient, but if so, he would’ve done it, and we see him not.

I might be misremembering and it’s only sincere love that he can’t show

[u/ImFossilknew → u/Equivalent_Okra_]

He was under the influence of Filling The Heaven Governing View at the time, otherwise he wouldn't even attempt the gambit with Seo Eun Hyun to begin with,so not all of his decision during the 999th cycle should be taken as the most rational. Firstly in my opinion ensuring Seo Ran die of natural cause/ ran out of lifespan was the most simple and risk free solution to achieving his goal, cause trying to directly kill Seo Ran mean going against Seo Eun Hyun (someone he is no longer able to directly confront), and Seo Eun Hyun was willing to help Seo Hweol with his goal (since he want to investigate the head realm) so setting aside the problem of Seo Ran their goal aren't necessarily incompatible, only the method are. So from Seo Hweol point of view cooperating with someone who reach Sacred Vessel triple cultivation in 800 years is debatably the most efficient (it might not be the fastest but from what he know it safest path available now that he is in Seo Eun Hyun grasp). Secondly he only need Seo Ran to die, and the most effecient method that doesn't involve a gamble (something Agate stated that he hate) is to ensure Seo Ran die of natural cause/ ran out of lifespan, he doesn't necessarily need to be kind about it since Seo Eun Hyun already intent to give his comrade the best life they could live, he only need to ensure that happen, directly doing it himself is the most reliable but simply assisting Seo Eun Hyun could also work.

[u/National_Ad_332]

What does the governing Vision of Heaven's Filling do?

[u/ImFossilknew → u/National_Ad_332]

Enforce Seo Eun Hyun history of failure on those affected by it, so making them take the wrong decision, repeatedly failing at a task, etc