Book 14 Chapter 15

Declaration of the opening of the Volcano Covenant Regional Conference!

- Noya Hyuk-jung is here!

"It's finally today."

Yun Junho said as he bathed in the rising morning sun. His face was haunted, and his voice was filled with the excitement of an adolescent boy.

"Is it that good?"

Jang Hong asked. Yun Junho nodded vigorously, as if he had been waiting.

"Of course, it's the greatest tournament in the world, the dream event that every young martial artist aspires to. Alas, it seems like a dream to me that someone like me will be participating in this Volcano Covenant Chapter, and I've been pinching my cheeks so many times that I'm beginning to wonder if I'm dreaming."

This young man still lacks confidence. But it's a lot better than someone who comes to a competition like this and sleeps through it.

"Well, being young is a good thing."

He decided that was a good idea, and shouted out to Yoon Junho.

"Show the black boys the spirit of the white boys!"

Even in the lodgings of the representatives of the Heavenly Palace, a boy was basking in the rays of the rising sun. He was a boy named Soyu, whom Bi Ryuyeon had first met a few days earlier when they entered the Hongmae Valley.

"It's finally happening. The long-awaited Volcano Covenant Chapter! We're going to show the Heavenly Martial Academy guys what they're made of, and the Faction guys who think they're so smart."

"I expect."

A man with a scar on his left arm replied in a blunt voice, the same man who had turned the outfit of Bi Ryul-yeon's group inside out a few days ago, and was known as "Isahyung.

He had something far more important to do. What could possibly occupy the attention of a man who wore ice as a substitute for skin? It was the grooming of the animal he was entrusted with his life.

"And this time, I'm going to prove that I'm a man of my word."

The boy, who had always been dissatisfied with his girlish appearance, said to himself.

"Yeah."

Once again, an insincere reply came back. But the boy didn't care; he looked at the dazzling sun and swore.

"Yes, I'm going to win at all costs, I'm going to take them down and prove myself, I'm going to show the white boys the black boys' mettle, I'm going to make sure of it!"

But at this point, the boy had no idea that his expectations would be shattered in such a spectacular way.

Left white, right black.

The black and white cloth, clearly divided into left and right, black and white, is the vestment, the proof of the Lawgiver.

White on the left is yang, black on the right is yin.

The fact that the garment is made this way symbolizes the harmony and unity of yin and yang.

Black and white harmony.

It was a symbol that reminded them of their duty and mission to stand here and now.

On the dais of the first performance hall in Hongmegok, dozens of rulers wearing the yin and yang black and white robes were lined up in rows to the left and right. Most of them had aged faces that could not be easily guessed, as if they were carrying an immeasurable number of years in their arms. There were a few younger people - basically fifty-somethings - but they were few and far between. But the presence of these elderly people together was so enormous that it felt like they were filling the vast Red River Valley.

"There are so many of them, where have they been hiding all this time?"

Namgung shook his head at the sudden surge of curiosity. It had been three days since they had entered this place, and they could count on one hand the number of spirit beings they had seen.

"I don't know…, maybe they were playing hide and seek."

With a nonchalant tone, Hyun-woon replied, his gaze now focused on one place, unable to be distracted by anything else.

"What's that spot in the middle?"

Rulers lined up to the left and right, and the center of the line seemed to be vacant for someone else. Namgung Sang's gaze followed his friend.

"You mean there's still someone out there?"

That was it.

"Huh?"

The first person I spotted was Bi Ryuyeon, whose head was crooked.

"Huh?"

Standing in front of the eagerly awaiting Guan Dao, his head jerked forward. It was a violent motion, as if an invisible ghostly hand had grabbed him by the throat.

"No, no, no……."

His eyes widened to the size of fire glasses. As if that would allow him to see a little more.

"This is what happens when……."

His gaze pierced through the air, and so did the ice sword, and despite all the training he'd been doing, he was now feeling a great deal of irregularity in his heart.

"Guess what? That old man is……."

Bi Ryuyeon's eyes, half-closed in sleep, flashed open. If the old man's arrival had been delayed by a single step, he would have already been lost in his reverie.

Bam, bam, bam!

A gray-haired old man walked briskly down the aisle, receiving the utmost respect from a line of gray-haired disciples. The old man's face was extremely familiar to Bi Ryuyeon, as well as to Yeomdo and the Southern Palace Lord. Even if it was only for a short time, the time was too short and urgent to bury the old man who had been with them until a few days ago into the oblivion of the past.

There is not a blinkered eye in the world that can deny that what the old man is wearing now is a vividly shining yin-yang black-and-white cloth.

The spot where the old man stopped walking was the empty center of the temple.

The old man's immeasurably deep pupils were filled with deep love and compassion as he gazed at the white and black swords lined up on the stage.

"Welcome, proud prodigies of the Black Sea and the White Sea! You should feel honored and proud to be standing here in the presence of some of the most brilliant young minds of the current generation, regardless of their affiliation or origin, White or Black. And you may admire and marvel at each other, regardless of affiliation or origin. For that is your right and your duty."

The old man's voice was filled with a deep strength that defied time.

"My name is Hyuk-Joong, and I have the honor of serving as the general manager of the Tenth Volcano Covenant Conference. It is a great joy, pleasure, and fortune for this old man of old age to be able to experience your youthful vigor, spirit, and ingenuity at first hand! I hope you will call me simply Hyuk No Ya from now on."

It was a very powerful and vigorous voice that could not be expected to come from the body of such a small old man. The voice was truly filled with joy and delight, and so its soothing tone lifted the hearts of those who heard it and filled them with joy and lively delight.

But the old man's joy was about to begin, and it would be a misfortune to others. The old man's gaze swept across the room, his eyes shining brightly-as few people's do.

How are these kids going to take what I'm about to say? I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious. But it wasn't that far in the future, and we'd find out soon enough.

"It may come as a surprise, and it may be embarrassing, but……."

Finally, Hyuk-jung spoke up.

"Now, Nobu feels it is time to tell you, those of you who have been chosen to gather here, a story that he has been hiding from you. Perhaps it will be very difficult for some of you to accept. They will be very confused. But don't be afraid. Those are natural reactions. But don't reject or deny it, because it's a necessary step toward the future!"

The old man took a breath, as if to give his mind a moment to prepare. Then he spoke a word that would shake everyone to their core, a word that had been decided over the last hundred years.

"It's about the real purpose behind this whole Volcano Covenant thing!"

True purpose?

The purpose of the Volcano Covenant Conference is to bring together the talents of the political factions represented by the Heavenly Martial Academy and those of the Black Sword Academy every ten years to compete against each other to determine the superiority of their martial arts studies in the Sun God image and to cultivate their skills. Behind the scenes, of course, they also compete in the dark to raise their status in the ranks of powerhouses and take the initiative through this decennial tournament.

"Long Long, do you know what that is?"

At Bi Ryuyeon's question, Hyorong shook his head. "Dragon Dragon" was the name Bi Ryuyeon sometimes used to playfully call him.

"How could I know such a thing!"

He looked even more grim today, his scattered haircut even more bizarre. No one could recognize his face except those with truly exceptional eyesight.

"What about you?"

"True purpose……."

Jang Hong shook his head.

"Was there such a thing?"

No matter how much I rummaged through the drawers of my mental memory, I couldn't find anything like that.

"Surely there was no such thing last time……."

His mutterings were true.

"This time, the gateway to the Three Wonders is the same as the centennial……."

Some great will was at work in a place he did not recognize, and at last the old man began to tell its truth, its reality, its identity.

It's a story that even Jang Hong, who's been through the wringer, can't help but marvel at.

"I realize that many of you think of the Volcano Covenant as a contest where black and white meet and fight for martial honors."

"Isn't it obvious?

That's what people thought.

"I am well aware that it is not unreasonable to think so. All of the other conventions have traditionally emphasized force. But we've finally come to realize that Kang Ho's common sense of force as the ultimate standard is a gross undermining of the basic spirit in which this Order was founded. We had been 'shoveling' all along."

Hyuk-joong continued as Jwa-jung held his breath.

"Of course, we don't mean to belittle Wu Gong. In the first place, this Volcano Society also has good intentions for both sides to compete and mutually improve their skills. But!"

The old man paused for emphasis, then continued.

"We found that assuming zero vacancy as the best value caused a lot of harm."

"What is it?"

One participant asked.

"The problem with kung fu is that it can be taken too far and can stir up people's fighting spirit. A sense of struggle that goes beyond a sense of fair play breeds malice, and that's a major problem. And it's something we've all overlooked in the name of mutual promotion."

"Isn't that what non-martial arts competitions are supposed to be about? What does a volcanic association have that gives it an edge besides martial arts?"

The question came again. Hyuk No Ya's voice sharpened a bit. He felt the need to call attention to himself at this point.

"What the hell did you guys think this volcano thing was going to be, a simple contest to see who's stronger on a square paddle, so you could win by hurting your opponent more than they hurt you or knocking them out of the ring?"

It was a tone of voice that said, "This is ridiculous," and it was a tone of voice that didn't tolerate pushback.

"But I'm pretty sure it wasn't until last time……."

Jang Hong muttered in a low voice.

"This isn't a simple contest! Did I really think that such an important contest that shapes the future of the entire Murim would be so nasty and ignorant?"

Suddenly, the universal unspoken rules of martial arts were rendered ignorant. When everyone was silent, the old man spoke again.

"That is a great mistake, and it is also a grave violation of the Three Great Principles of the Volcano Covenant, to not recognize and accept one another, but to reject, ostracize, and seek to defeat. Once we realized this, we felt compelled to right our wrongs. It took us a hundred years to realize it."

Was there such a thing? Not for the first time, but for the second time, even those competing in the competition were asking themselves this question, and rightfully so.

"The Great Three Principles?"

Hyuk-jung said in a determined voice.

"It is friendship, harmony, and peace."

For a moment, time stood still and everything froze. And there was a huge mental panic.

The truth, as the old man declared, was so shocking that it left people frozen in their tracks.

"No way!"

"Of course!

"This is crazy!"

"Well, it looks like it, but I can't do it!

"Such a stupid……."

"I might be considered a fool for doing that.

"That's a lie, I can't believe that!"

"Of course, it's not unreasonable!

"There's no way that's possible!"

"You don't have to say that!

They may have come together in this moment, regardless of where they come from, male or female, to share the same idea.

"That's crazy! That's impossible! There's no way that's possible!"

Almost all of the humans gathered here in the First Theater were in enthusiastic agreement.

The response was just as heated as I expected. A common desire to deny reality. But unfortunately, reality is reality, and truth is truth. If it's something convenient that can be changed by denying it, it's already not true.

Fortunately, the situation did not escalate to the point of mass frenzy, but the amount of psychic energy expended to keep the crucible from boiling over was enormous. It took a lot of energy just to stay calm.

It was an act that shattered a lifetime of values for these participants.

This alone should give you a good idea of the enormity of the effort required to overhaul your values.

He watched for a moment as the young men's youthful energy exploded into a flurry of activity. Waiting for the chaos to settle down naturally. When the atmosphere had settled somewhat, he spoke again.

"I don't blame you for your surprise!"

'I don't think you understand at all…….'

If anything, I felt like I was enjoying their panic and confusion.

"But don't treat this volcano tournament like any other boring unarmed competition. You know, the ones where all you have to do to win is beat the crap out of your opponent and make them bleed? We can never move forward in those contests, and we can never prepare for the terrifying unknown that could come at any moment!"

It was a dire warning. The questions came again.

"I have a question, what is this upcoming untested dread?"

The eyes of the men turned toward the old man's closed mouth in unison.

As if on cue, a brutal answer came back.

"It is the resurrection of the Heavenly Spirit."