Gwak Du is the head of the Emei branch of the Beggars' Sect (Kaebang), a rank marked by the three knots at his belt. In the novel Blood Path he is the benefactor who fed, raised, and looked after Han Seojin after he possessed the body of a beggar orphan. Han has never met a worthier man, one who lives by the maxim that he came with empty hands and will leave with empty hands.
Gwak Du is forthright, dependable, and fatherly toward Han Seojin: he will come to see his boy for no reason at all and grumbles good-naturedly at his stinginess. Silent where his comrades banter, he is the first to notice when something is off, sizing everything up with the sharp eye of a seasoned beggar.
Together with his Kaebang comrades Gu Yeong and Ma Childeuk, Gwak Du drops in on Han Seojin again and again, sharing drink and dumplings. As branch head he takes pride that his standing has risen thanks to the fame of Emei's Thousand-Year Flower, and he accompanies Han Seojin on his forays across the murim.
