Book 10 Chapter 6

Write a memorandum

Three more days until the exam!

After three days and three nights, the trials of Hwanmadong will begin.

Unfortunately for the street vendors, there was no colorful, festive eve celebration.

Perhaps Bi Ryuyeon had hoped for that, but this was no spring flower festival, this was walking into a trial that could mean life or death. It was likely that everyone was steeling their resolve, polishing their weapons and preparing for tomorrow.

The gaze of the prodigal son, Bi Ryuyeon, upon his return was not kind. Everyone had practiced tremendously in her absence. In order to show their determination to defeat Wolf Qi, they had trained the Black Sword Swallows as if they were demons from hell.

"What's he doing back here, he's just lying in bed the whole time…ugh, an eyesore!"

One of the guards grumbled, and another quickly nodded in agreement.

"You are right. How can he possibly know what we've been through while he's been gone? How can he possibly know what we've been through? Only those who've been through it can feel it! He doesn't deserve to be here!"

His words were filled with hostility. The training they had been undergoing was a grueling one that could not be told without tears. Day after day, buckets of sweat poured from their bodies as they swung their swords under the scorching sun. The training was so hard and vicious that you could taste the salt in your mouth. But the grueling labor didn't stop. Injuries were common during training.

"Wushu is no joke, so you have to train like it is!

… was Goyakhan's theory. Once you were under his thumb, you had to do what you were told. There could be no rebellion.

He couldn't count whether he had swung his sword ten thousand times or a hundred thousand. Only Zhu Zhaodan, Na Yerin, Dokgo Ling, Hyorong, Yun Jun, and Jang Hong were able to keep up with the rigors of the training. Except for Zhu Zhaodan, the five of them had all been through the grueling training at Shaman Mountain, so they could afford to relax.

The Zhu Zhaodan did this training with a smile on their faces; they were very familiar with harshness and gore, so this was nothing to them.

It wasn't an exaggeration to say that there hadn't been a single training session that wasn't a hell of a training session since their entanglement with Bi Ryuyeon. Now, Zhu Zhaodan had heard the monstrous sounds from those around them. To the people around them, they seemed like tireless superhumans.

With the exception of Zhu Jiaodan, the others had tasted the rigors of the so-called Hell Training. While Bi Ryuyeon languished in a hospital bed in her glory!

Of course, it was hard enough to be seriously wounded and languishing in a hospital bed, but they didn't have the heart to care about that now. The harsh training had left them with nothing but evil and hardness.

So it was no wonder that Bi Ryuyeon, who had been lying in bed for a long time, slowly got out of bed as the exam period approached. He hadn't neglected his training either. Everyone wanted to chant in unison that he shouldn't be allowed to take part in the exam, but alas, as the winner of the Samsung Muje, he was fully qualified.

"Can you do it?"

"Sure."

"You've missed all the training you've ever had, and you don't care?"

"Sure. You don't survive in the big leagues if you're attached to that."

"Great. Enter!"

The Black Sword Master in charge of the Black Sword School was very displeased with Bi Ryuyeon's absence from most of the training sessions, but at the request of the Bing Sword Master, he allowed him to participate in the test without saying a word. As a result, Bi Ryuyeon was able to take part in the examination without any obstacles.

And labor and management had their work cut out for them on the life-or-death issue of the unknown portion of the test that was to take place three days later.

Three days later, as he assembled the students for the examination, he pierced the hearts of each of them with a sharp, pointed, halberd-like gaze. The power in his gaze was so intense that some of them flinched in response to its aura. His glare had a way of triggering people's defensive instincts.

"……."

He didn't say anything about it, didn't explain anything, just handed out two pieces of paper per person.

"Huh?"

"Huh?"

"What is it?"

"What?"

One question after another erupted from the mouths of those who accepted the paper. It was clear that what they had just received was not a simple piece of paper. This paper contained a very unpleasant and dreary aura. The subject matter of the paper… it seemed to be imbued with a sense of foreboding. It was clear that it had some sort of purpose.

"What is this, boss?"

Unable to suppress his curiosity as a native of the open-air-one of the rules of the open road was to die knowing, even if it was right on the money-Nohak raised his hand and asked, summoning up the courage to ask. The words that came back were cold.

"Write!"

That was all the old man had to say. The old man, who had always been unhappy with the shortness of his words, chose this day as his auspicious day and exploded.

"What the heck am I supposed to write if I don't know what I'm writing about, when it tells me nothing?"

The nasty old man whipped his head around and looked at him with a glare. The old man was stunned for a moment, but the water had already been spilled, so he held his nerve. Did he think he had already crossed the river of no return?

"If you don't tell me, I won't write it, no, I won't!"

The old man's back arched, and his posture was perfect as he stood on his full belly. His eyes narrowed even further, and the power in them grew even more formidable.

The Black Sword Clan members all exchanged nervous glances between the two of them, but Bi Ryuyeon's gaze was the most intriguing.

'I see he's still risking his life for nothing. He's always been like that, never making it home.

There was a sinister aura about him that threatened to slice the old man's belly in half at any moment.

After a moment, the nasty thing spat out two words.

"Memorandum!"

As he uttered these words, several scars on his face twitched at the same time, giving people an even more grotesque impression. When the words Memorandum came out of the old man's mouth, they became even more ominous.

"What memorandum?"

Nohak was dumbfounded.

"A memorandum stating that if I should die in an accident during this examination, I will not complain to the Tianmu Academy and will quietly pray to them, hehehe."

Suddenly, the room fell silent, as if cold water had been thrown on it.

Nohak suddenly felt his blood run cold.

"No… you've got to be kidding, right?"

As he spoke, a cold sweat broke out on his forehead. For the first time today, he heard a bad joke, he thought to himself. It was a very unfamiliar experience, but it was a joke that he couldn't help but find unfunny. Probably the entire lecture hall would agree with him.

"And the next piece of paper?"

There were only two pieces of paper handed out.

"Hmph, that's a will, and if you die and don't say anything, your parents will be very sad. As a child, you should have the last word, don't you think?"

The old man's face crumpled like a piece of paper thrown in the trash. It was as if he'd rather not have heard them, as if he was enjoying mocking them. What a bad-tempered inspiration, he cursed to himself.

"You mean this place, Hwanmadong, is that dangerous? If it's that damn dangerous, I'm going to have to think differently."

It was not beggarly to take things for granted. Neither was life.

"I don't know!"

Nasty replied.

"Then who knows?"

The gerontology was amazing.

"Who am I to say what I know about a place that even Nobu hasn't been to. You'll find out for yourself. It's none of my business. Do you know of any teachers who can tell you the exam questions in advance?"

"No!"

It was a battle of who dares to be angry. In truth, Gao Yan had only heard rumors of it, but had never experienced its existence. There was nothing more to say.

"Then I'll give you three days to give up if you're a scaredy-cat, and I'll even accept waiver requests. You can give up if you're a coward."

Only the scions and disciples of the most prestigious families gathered here. No one dared to be shy and give up.

They knew. They knew that if they gave up here, they would die, not in the pavilion, but at the hands of a fiery father or master of their clan or school. For they would never want their reputation to be tarnished.

"Preparing for death is one of the most important things a living person can do. Those who live for a limited time must always think about what comes after their death, so… don't waste time!"

And then, as if the kids weren't bad enough, he added one more thing.

"This may be your last rest… so take it easy and enjoy it for the rest of your lives."

If it was a joke, it was a pretty bad one. It was the most effective way to get people high, and he seemed to instinctively know how to do it.

A three-day break was scheduled. For the very, very unlucky, it could be their last break.

Everyone around me tried to reassure me that deaths were rare, but rare is rare. And the fact that it had been closed for 18 years was enough to make me realize the risks involved.

Even here at the Heavenly Martial Academy, where we are so intent on defeating the Heavenly Pavilion, we decided to seal it because of its dangers. The seal was now about to be broken again after 18 years.

It was a moonlit night, and the wind was blowing lonely.

"It's been a while, Chun!"

"Yeah, it's been a while, Cheung-Heon, has it been half a year since we last met?"

It had been a long time since Qing Shui had last visited Wei Zichen's room, and there had been a long period of silence.

Qing Shui glared at Yu Zichen with an uncharacteristically sharp gaze. He hated to see his friend becoming more and more corrupt. And he was angry.

"How long are you going to do that?"

"I can't understand what you're saying."

"You mean you don't know, really?"

Qing Shui's voice rose; he couldn't help but be angry with Wei Zichen as a friend. There was no trace of his old gun Qi and Yue Qi in him now.

"Now forget about it and give up."

He couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Hmph……. I will kill him, I must kill him, such a vermin is a blight on the world and on her to be alive, I must… I must… I must… I must kill him."

Madness flashed in Wei Zichen's eyes. He was about to chew Bi Ryuyeon to pieces.

'I never thought it would be like this…….'

Cheonghun had a grim thought.

Wei Zichen's mind was now so devastated that he felt sorry for him, but he also knew that he couldn't advance the conversation any further at this moment. When a person becomes obsessed with one thing, they lose sight of their surroundings. Such was the case with Wei Zichen.

"Get a grip, it's never a good look when you're crazy about a woman!"

"What, what did I just say, that I'm crazy about anyone?"

Wei Zichen bellowed. Once again, madness flashed in his eyes. Qingfeng didn't want to offend him any further with a wasteful argument. The reality was that today's visit had been enough.

"I recognize that I spoke harshly, and I apologize. But don't forget that I still can't agree with your words, and I can't support your behavior. This is the last piece of advice I can give you as a friend. I hope to see a changed you!"

Qingfeng rose to his feet.

Bam! Bam! Bam! Bam!

Yu Zichen slapped the tabletop roughly.

"That's enough, that's enough, that's enough, that's enough!"

He shook his head vigorously and yelled. He plugged his ears as if he didn't want to hear anymore. Qingfeng looked at him with a pitying gaze.

"I miss the days when the three of you were kicking ass and taking names, and I hope you're back to your old self soon. Don't be foolish enough to throw your whole life away for one woman. Now, I'll leave you to it. Wish each other the best in tomorrow's test."

With those words, Cheng Heng opened the door and walked out, but he was well aware that the chances of his words coming true were very slim indeed.

On What Love Is……. Of all the loves, unrequited love is the most heartbreaking. Waiting for an unanswered echo is an unpleasant task that requires great patience. Some have gone so far as to overturn mountains for the sake of it, but that doesn't make the echo come back. It only makes the mountain desolate!

Once he was sure that Qing Shui's traces were far away, Wei Zichen relied on the small flickering light to take out the one item he had kept in his bosom and held it up to the light. His hand was extremely careful, as if he was touching a precious piece of porcelain.

"Do you want power?

The voice that still rings in his ears today was given to him by the owner of the voice who answered his most urgent wish.

"If it's this, it must be this!

He eyed the object cautiously, then carefully moved it back into his arms.

"I will kill……. I will kill you!"

The only way to be safe is to remove the eyesores and make them disappear completely.

"By all means!"

With a glint in his eyes, Yu Zichen clutched the item he had received from the man tightly in his hand.

"Here we go."

The Archduke said, looking at the report as it flew through the winds of heaven.

"Yes, it's finally tomorrow."

Bending at an almost right angle at the waist, Qi Sahan replied.

The topic of their current conversation was the Hwanmadong Examination, the selection test for representatives of the Political Party's Volcano Covenant Branch. No wonder their attention was focused on it.

"In that case, I'll have to send you a coffin as a congratulatory gift."

The words were eerie. A coffin was never a recommended gift for a funeral, but when Qi Sahan heard the words, he smiled savagely.

"Kehehehehehe. You'd better, because tomorrow they might have to clean up a lot of corpses……. I suppose it's only human decency to send them a coffin or something, kkkkkk."

He chuckled at what was so good about it.

"Things are going well, right?"

"Of course. All arrangements have been made perfectly. All things are according to His will……."

"Great, then I look forward to tomorrow's good news."

Qi Sihan bowed again, then quietly retreated. He still had work to do.

"I can't wait to hear what's to come, and how much I'm going to pleasure this body……. Hoo hoo hoo."

He left the Great Hall with an eerie smile on his face.