Ha-yoon is a high-ranking resentful soul who became a Blue Spirit after over a hundred years of lingering in the world. Unlike most vengeful spirits driven by hatred or revenge, Ha-yoon’s grudge comes from deep regret - he failed to protect someone he deeply cared for, and that guilt kept his soul bound.
Background[]
Ha-yoon became a resentful spirit because despite sacrificing his own life and giving it all his might he failed to fulfill promise made with Sima Chak. He failed to protect descendant of legendary Jin Woon-Hwi during the Great Calamity, decades after The Best Sword in the World went for good to the Dohwaseon.
His grudge only grew with time, especially because the Woo family destroyed his shrine and grave, which had stood on the hill for over a hundred years. They dug up his tomb and built their estate on it, erasing the place where villagers had long honored his soul. These villagers are descendants of the local civilians who survived thanks to Ha-yoon's heroic sacrifice during the Great Calamity. Although he failed to save the person dearest to him, his death was not entirely in vain.
But the true source of his deep hatred runs deeper: years ago, during a famine and plague, Woo In-yeom, the estate owner and a military officer, led troops to massacre innocent villagers - even those not infected - drowning thousands to prevent the plague's spread. To make matters worse, the Woo family also destroyed the altar meant to honor the drowned souls.
History[]
After realizing that Ha-yoon could read the memories of those he possessed, Mok Gyeong-un offered him a deal: command to the evil spirit under his command to leave Monk Imun-hae’s body and use the estate lord’s body to control the boat and guide them across the stormy river. In return, Mok vowed to help him take revenge on the Woo family.
Despite the Woo family’s protests, Mok stood firm. Ha-yoon agreed, saying that with the aid of other resentful souls, he could safely steer the boat through the heavy rain. Using a horde of evil spirits, he transformed the Woo family’s ship into a ghost vessel, a phantom craft that sailed endlessly through storms, sustained by the very spirits that kept the rotting hull afloat and shielded it from the raging tempest.
That same ghost ship, now under Ha-yoon’s command, arrived during the final battle of the great war to aid the Heavenly Demon’s forces. With every ounce of his strength, he fought alongside the Blue Spirit against the Avatar of the Mokgan, seeking vengeance for the atrocities committed against him during the Great Calamity. The battle nearly cost him his very existence - he teetered on the brink of annihilation - but the Heavenly Demon, grateful for his heroic stand, gifted him a portion of his demonic energy to save his ''life''.
Yet Ha-yoon’s heroism did not end there. In the battle’s next phase, when the Three Great Yokai emerged and Jin Ye-Rin - the descendant of the one he had failed to protect - stood moments from death at their hands, he threw himself into harm’s way, shoving her beyond the killing strike. Whether this final act erased his existence entirely or whether saving Jin Woon-Hwi’s descendant at last granted him peace, allowing his soul to escape annihilation and return to the cycle of reincarnation, remains shrouded in mystery.
Trivia[]
His Ghost Area and Ghost Powers are related to lighting similar in view as Jin Woon-Hwi while using his ultimate martial art - Cheondun sword technique.