Book 14 Chapter 16

Volcano meeting schedule

The fact that the resurrection of the evil spirits was spoken of in public was a sign of their increased credibility. Certainly, even a hundred years after the Ten Thousand Blood Tax, the story of the Ten Thousand Spirits was a surefire prescription that never lost its potency.

"I'm not asking you to understand it right now. I'm not even expecting you to dream about it!"

Hyuk-jung's words were sobering, but they reflected reality.

"I realize that it's impossible to change a lifetime of values overnight without a 'jolt'."

Words with a strange ring to them. It seemed to imply that we should be grateful that we were the ones who made the "big" impact.

"But I have faith that you will soon change your minds."

His words were filled with conviction.

"You're free to believe it or not, but you'll have to wait and see, because you won't learn without it!"

If that doesn't happen, don't worry. We'll make sure you don't have to. It was almost as if the words had a meaningful resonance that lingered in the background.

"Then let's talk about what's coming up! You'll be living in your new quarters for a week. In the meantime, work on your discipline and try to talk to each other."

"There's no way that's possible!

A silent cry rang out. It didn't have to be audible to be perceived. Humans have a much more sensitive sense of perception than they usually realize. Hyuk No Ya had already read their collective consciousness.

"I'm sure a lot of people in here right now are thinking, 'Mi-chin, there's no way that's possible!"

The words hit so close to home that the audience flinched as if their collective consciousness had been stabbed with a pair of chopsticks.

"Conversation is a good thing. It's the best relationship-building tool, helping us understand each other better. Besides, don't we need to know each other better to foster friendships and promote harmony?"

The old man's words were very sensible, but they were not sensible at all to his listeners. It wasn't just unreasonable, it was offensive.

"Who are they!

Gaze met gaze, and sparks flew. For a moment, invisible arrows of malice flew everywhere. White sword or black sword, the thoughts are similar in this case.

Hyuk-jung watched for a few moments in silence. This kind of reaction was already within his expectations, so he wasn't at all deterred or saddened. On the contrary, the old man's will was burning even stronger than before.

"They need to be reminded of their situation.

With those kind thoughts in mind, the old man opened his mouth again.

"I'm sorry, but you're going to have to do that even if you don't want to. Because you have no other choice."

A small smile crossed the old man's lips, for that was the one thing he had taken the most care in arranging.

Forcing people into a situation where they have no choice but to be in friendship and harmony - that was the theme and the heart of the Volcano Covenant meeting.

"I'll explain in detail why this is necessary. Starting today, you will move into your official quarters for a week. It's our way of giving you a chance to get to know each other a little better, because in a week's time, you'll have to organize the Twelve at random, from all walks of life, black and white. There is only one rule. Five to five, half and half."

This meant that there would be five people from the white side and five from the black side. This seemed to be a new rule for the centennial volcano meeting.

The chorus of voices grew louder and louder as they shared their opinions. It's an unexpected situation, and they don't know how to deal with it. The old man doesn't miss this kind of confusion. In this case, shaking them up a bit more will have a double effect.

"Again, I'd advise you to do it for your own good, because… if you don't, it's going to be very, very hard to win the volcano later on."

The confusion grew more and more intense. Hyuk-jung continued to talk.

"With your twelve contributions, you will attempt the gateways of the five themes of the Shu Hua Moxi. We call these five gateways the Five Elemental Gates. We chose the Five Elements as the theme because they are the mysterious laws of the universe, representing the mysterious principles of harmony, unity, and mutual benefit. In the Five Elements Pavilion, each group will have to perform a group action, and each group will be scored."

"Huh!"

The bombshell announcement caught everyone off guard, and you can read about it here: …….

Hyuk-jung nodded and continued his story.

"I'm glad you got it. It's exactly as you think. Since we're scoring in groups, it stands to reason that the more cooperative and harmonious groups will score more points. Of course, if you have some mystical ability to work well in a cacophony of dissonance, I won't ask you to talk to each other to understand each other. But if you don't, I think you'd be better off sticking to your friendships."

It was a truly evil(?) plan. Hyuk-jung struck the final blow, the painting dragon point.

"I can guarantee you one thing: anyone who doesn't do well in the Five Elements will never win the Volcano Covenant. I look forward to your wise judgment."

When the old man finally finished, everyone remained silent; the emotional impact of the story was too great for them to return to their normal state.

"Is that really going to work?"

Bi Ryuyeon raised his hand and asked, but surprisingly, his voice didn't contain doubt. Rather, it sounded like confirmation.

"We're really hoping this will work!"

Hyuk-jung's voice was full of conviction, and there was such a determination in it that failure was not an option.

"We've tried so many things over the last hundred years. But none of them have worked. Instead, the side effects have been so great that they've caused us problems. No matter what we tried, people remained in a state of disharmony, fueled by malicious rivalries. We began to wonder what was causing this disharmony and malicious rivalry. A hundred years was a long time to ponder, but the tediously long hours of contemplation paid off, and we finally arrived at the source. A hundred years of searching is a long time to spend!"

"If it's going to take a hundred years to figure out the cause, that's a pretty inefficient way to operate."

He was a young man who still knew what manners (!) were.

"I won't deny it. But I think it was worth it, because by discovering the cause, we can work toward a solution, and that's not a business I'm willing to put my faith in."

"What was the income in those hundred years?"

This is another one we can't leave unasked.

"The power to drive people into disharmony and perverse rivalry is the poison of poison, group egoism, which is the ugliest form of selfishness."

Hyuk-jung said in a firm voice.

"And by this conclusion we come to another conclusion. That no moderate, good conclusions can be reached as long as we pit my side against yours, as in group against group, organization against organization, organization against organization. I have also learned that the iron spikes of ill-formed values that are driven into the mind like deep hypnosis are difficult to pull out without inflicting some kind of shock."

"Is that what's so scary?"

Mo Yonghui asked, and Hyukjung nodded vigorously.

"Scary, very scary! There is no selfishness in the world so terrifying as collective selfishness. It creates in the individual the illusion of a kind of majestic sacrifice, of a noble mission, not for oneself but for the organization. It's like a martyr's heart……. Furthermore, when people join an organization, they tend to think that the organization's justice is the world's justice. They lose sight of the bigger picture, and they get caught up in the immediate, organizational interests."

It was a poignant statement because it was so accurate.

"It's all futile from a Buddhist or Taoist perspective, but I'm not willing to deny that it's a useful tool for maintaining and developing this world. To do so would be to deny reality."

It was a concept that was not easily accepted by the dyslexic lexicon.

"As long as it's black and white, we know that groups and collectives are more powerful when they are united. But that also means actively excluding other groups. Especially when it comes to something like this. Unless there can be two winners, there's already a loser, a dog with its tail between its legs, and one of the two groups is bound to take its place in the doghouse with the loser's name on it."

"……."

"Besides, you're not just a small group of fifty people! You're carrying the black and white swords of the warlords on your backs, the beliefs and wills of thousands of people. This is no longer a matter of right and wrong."

The room remained silent.

"But we were so focused on the competition that we overlooked one big problem. We didn't see the big picture of the entire forest. We were so focused on the competition that we ignored a greater danger that was threatening us. We felt a sense of crisis, and so we racked our brains until they were fuzzy again. To find a solution, of course. And we finally came up with one!"

His voice was tinged with emotion.

"What is it?"

"Are you curious?"

"Sure."

Mo Yonghui nodded in a graceful motion.

The old man chuckled. Then he spoke in a gravelly voice.

"Sorry, I can't teach you that yet!"

"Yes?"

Mo Yonghui's eyes widened in disbelief. What was all this talk about, then? Was it simple harassment?

"But don't hold your breath. You'll get to experience it soon enough. Just take your time with it, very slowly, and very generously."

Hyuk-jung's once childlike and playful face suddenly turned solemn, and he raised his right hand to declare.

"I, in my capacity as General Manager, fully entrusted by the Black and White Islands to run this tournament, do hereby solemnly proclaim to heaven and earth the opening of the Tenth Volcano Covenant Regional Conference. I call upon all participants to compete fairly and honorably under the three principles of friendship, harmony, and peace. This concludes the opening proclamation!"

The old man announced the opening of the Tenth Volcano Covenant Conference in a low but strong and dignified voice, his black eyes shining with an abstract light.