Book 21 Chapter 9

Scorching ghosts, screaming binaries

-open(開門)

"Kaaaaaaat!"

Screams erupted from the mouths of some of the women as they saw the giant ears, their eyes glowing blood red.

When it comes to pyrotechnics, it's always best to showcase them at night rather than during the day. Plus, in the dark of night, the sound is amplified three to four times.

His mouth, dripping with blood, looked like it could spit fire at any moment. That's when I thought,

Blah blah blah!

Flames spat out of his muzzle, hot and searing.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!"

When everyone else was taking a step back, there was one person who was taking a step forward. It was Yeonbi.

"Kite Sojae!"

"Yeonbi!"

I could hear the urgency in his voice, but I didn't care about the Yeonbi. I waved and didn't take my eyes off the door. His left eye sparkled with curiosity.

"This is interesting."

She leaned toward the flames and didn't feel hot at all. He kept his hair and hem of his shirt at just the right distance to avoid burning, but he was far more curious about the device than he was worried about Dale.

"It's okay, Rin, come over here."

Yeonbi beckoned to Na Yerin.

"It's puffing out sparks, whoopee. Isn't that cute?"

"Is it cute?"

Ye Lin looked up at the giant ghostly door once more, just in case. The demon's face glared down at her with a pair of murderous eyes. Not so cute after all.

"That seems a little bizarre to me."

It was a cautious rebuttal. But I was already busy watching my Yeonbi.

"Ahhh, is that cast iron mixed with some other metal? Hmmm, I wonder if this flame can be turned into a siege weapon in case of emergency……."

The more I looked at it, the more I enjoyed it. The group stared at her in disbelief, feeling a strange sense of dysphoria. I brought a slender beauty to the stall, hoping to buy her some fancy jewelry, but it was like watching a woman argue with an axe vendor about axe blades and then suddenly pick up an axe and test her firewood prowess.

"Are you… having fun?"

Na Yerin asked.

"Isn't Lean funny? I don't know who made it, but it's quirky. I've never seen such a sincere prank."

"There certainly seems to be malicious intent, but……."

"How badly did they want to scare me, that they went to such lengths to do it? In a way, they're really sincere."

Na Yerin asked, her voice softening as she listened to Yunbi's admiration.

"Are you saying that's what this door was intended to do?"

"Of course, why else would they be making all this noise? I'm sure having them arrive at night was just for theatrical effect. Now that we've seen the show, I'd like them to go inside."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the captain bellowed at the small cotton-like devices protruding from either side of the earhole.

"Open door!"

Yay!

Grrrrrrr!

With a deafening crash, the door swung open. The envoys' eyes widened at the incredible sight before them.

"Well, well, well, I didn't expect such an enthusiastic reception, did I, Gung Sang?"

Hyun-woon expressed his appreciation with a bitter grunt.

"Do people here never sleep?"

The Southern Palace Lord's expression wasn't much better. The spirit beside him grabbed his arm.

"Uh-oh……."

Yeonbi, he said in a whisper.

"This is another spectacle."

Hundreds of fully armed warriors lined the streets like soldiers in an army, with dozens of fires blazing at regular intervals between them. The rugged warriors were separated by a central pathway for the group to pass through.

No one smiled, no one opened their mouths. Only a heavy silence weighed down on them. It was hard to tell if they were showing off their strict discipline or if they were wary of the enemy in a state of alertness.

The group braced themselves for the center passage. It was a fearsome path, where at any moment, iron skewers could come flying out of nowhere.

"Why do you think he's such an asshole, Brother Zhang?"

Cautiously walking down the center aisle, Yun Junho asked Jang Hong in a low voice.

The welcome was obvious, but they didn't look the least bit happy. The forms staring back at them were like snarling beasts.

"Well, maybe it's sleep deprivation, because I must have forced all these sleeping kids together in the middle of the night."

It's a pretty interesting analysis.

"I see."

Yoon was convinced.

Bam!

Hollow footsteps echoed on the stone floor amidst glaring eyes. Just walking down the center aisle is enough to crush you with speculation from all sides.

A few of the envoys seemed to be itching to draw their weapons. I could understand that. It's hard not to be on edge when blade-like flesh is stabbing you in the back of the head or the front of the head. I had to fight tooth and nail to keep from drawing my knife.

"Calm down, Gung Sang. You draw first, you lose."

Don't give the enemy an opening.

"I know, I know."

He was gritting his teeth now. If he gave in to the provocation, he would give them a reason to attack and dispose of the envoys. Such a catastrophe had to be avoided at all costs.

"Damn. Does this road even have an end?

It was almost as if I had laid out some kind of bizarre progression.

They gritted their teeth and strode down the center aisle with dignity. The feeling was shared by all, that this kind of attention was not welcome at all.

However, even in the midst of the hustle and bustle of life, there was one person who was as relaxed as if she was out for a springtime outing, and that was Yunbi. She folded her black umbrella neatly and walked with a nonchalant face. Wherever she and Na Yerin walked together, life somehow seemed to become a little thinner.

Where the central passage ended was a wide open space, a plaza. A tall dais cut out of a massive stone. There was only one person standing on it. There were lights to his left and right, but the shadows made it impossible to see his face, but his mere presence was powerful.

"Who the hell is this guy with this much energy?

As soon as Mo Yonghui caught a glimpse of his shadow, he felt a cold sweat run down his spine.

'I wonder what… I feel like…….'

Even in the Heavenly Martial Academy, where countless masters were gathered, he had never felt such an aura. It wasn't just strong, it was dangerous.

"Welcome to the Great Hall. I am the Lord of the Ten Thousand Pavilions. I'll be brief. I have no use for the weak. Know that once you step through the gates, you are no exception. Weak and strong! That is the law of the land. May you all return home alive."

After a short but powerful speech, the master turned and walked away. It was impossible to see his face because the platform was too high and it was nighttime.

"So that's the man behind the rumors."

There was tension in Qin Xiaolong's voice. Her unattended instincts were screaming warnings at her.

"That's great."

Eunseong Yoo muttered as he rubbed his forearm to see if he still had goosebumps.

"Hmm, smug."

The subject of the sarcasm was Yeomdo, whose personality would not allow him to be treated in such a way.

"Let's not let our guard down, we're already in the middle of enemy territory. Let's not forget why we're here."

Bing'er looked around cautiously. The great responsibility of protecting the disciples of the Heavenly Martial Academy rested on the shoulders of the four of them.

"Don't worry! I didn't forget."

"Then cool your head. You're not going to make a meal out of this."

"I feel like I've walked into a tiger's mouth."

Jang Hong shook his head and said.

"Is this going to be okay?"

Yoon Junho rolled his eyes and looked around nervously.

"Don't be too intimidated. You have to look tough, but if you're not, you'll get cut. This is the jungle, the wild world."

"……."

He hadn't spoken a word since he'd stepped off the ship, and a gleam of pain flashed across his face.

It wasn't all gloom and doom. There were also faces that, while extremely rare, were still happy.

"I'll be using my umbrella a lot more in the future."

Yeonbi looked up at the darkened podium and spoke. The words were enigmatic.

After the pagoda disappeared, the delegation was abandoned in the square for a while without any explanation. Already some of them were complaining of indigestion and migraines to their neighbors. Some were biting their nails. The situation itself had taken its toll.

Just as the crowd was about to descend into chaos, two people walked toward the delegation. A man and a woman, they bore an uncanny resemblance, not only in the clothes they wore, but also in their faces. What was unusual was that they both wore armbands with a black cross on their left forearms. Both, of course.

"Hello, it's Black Day at the Black Cross. Umm……."

The shabby-looking man suddenly flipped through the pages of a book he was carrying in one hand and began to read in a monotone voice.

"We, the Black Cross Society, are the official service organization of the Temple of Heaven, where sharing and peace are our joys. We warmly welcome you here to share in the tomb of peaceful interaction and learning, while the sun shines brightly on your bald head… K, k, k."

While the rest of the group stood as still as pillars of salt, the man named Black Sun looked back at the woman standing next to him and said, "I'm sorry.

"…Black Moon, is this you again?"

"Hoo hoo hoo, that's what I mean about not relying on texting for greetings. So, ladies and gentlemen, this is Black Moon, the fresh-faced beauty sister of the famous Black Cross twins! Last night, in my dream, the Mountain Spirit came to me and said that you would be coming from across the ocean, and you are exactly that, my dear guests, and I wish you well!"

The woman, who introduced herself as Black Moon, was cheerful and waved her hand in greeting.

"……."

The delegation was now descending into utter chaos as the twins greeted them. While Black Sun sighed and Black Moon still waved enthusiastically, there was a murmur among the group.

"The Black Cross?"

"Sharing and peace is joy."

"He may or may not read books, but he speaks the same way, and even when he's angry, it's hypnotizing!"

"Lady Black Moon, you are certainly refreshing, but what kind of mountain spirit did you come from Dongzheng Lake, or rather, our waters?"

Everywhere you looked, it was a suspicious organization, a suspicious brother and sister.

"Anyway, we're honored, and as of today, the two of us are your guides, so if you have any questions, feel free to ask away."

When Black Moon had roughly wrapped up her greetings, Black Sun turned back to the group with an expression that I didn't know whether to feel relieved or pathetic.

"For now, I'm going to take you to your dorms, four to a room. Men, please follow me this way. Room assignments can be found at……."

Without looking back, he strode forward again, his bookshelves flapping, as if to say, follow me or don't follow me.

The dormitory assignments had already been made. The leaders were free to make their own decisions. Of course, Yin Dao's personality and Binggum's status didn't allow him to do such menial tasks, so it was up to Qin Xiaoling and Yue Yun to take care of them. With Qin Xiaoling by her side, Yue Yun was able to accomplish these tasks in a flash, so the staffing and room assignments had already been made before she even arrived at the palace.

But the result was a scream out of one person's mouth.

"Aaahhhhhh! No, no, no!"

It was such a loud scream that everyone around me had to cover their ears.

"What, what, it's a raid!"

There were quite a few people who panicked, but thankfully it wasn't a raid.

"Sis, Sis, Sis, Sis, Sis, Sis, Sis!"

The screaming was still going on.

The source of the deafening wail came from Lee Jin-sul's mouth. Tears welled up in her deer-like eyes. Lee Jin-sul desperately reached out toward the fading vision of Na Yerin, but her hand never reached.

"That's too bad."

Unlike the screaming and writhing in pain, Na Yerin's demeanor was nonchalant.

"No, why am I not in the same room as my sister? This is ridiculous. It's a conspiracy. A devious plot to keep my sister and me apart. This is unreasonable, and I will never accept it, yes, I will!"

I exclaimed, truly indignant.

"I don't think the bosses will change, no matter how much you try. You have good people in your room, don't you?"

Na Yerin soothed his childlike tantrums. But I still wasn't convinced. No, I didn't want to.

My dear sister, Na Yerin, has been thrown into a room with a woman named Yeonbi, who has no idea where she came from, an Iron Jade Sleeping Maharishi, and a punk named Yulan. Yi Yun resented the fact that she was in a room where she didn't belong.

The idea was to keep the new students in the same room as much as possible, with the examiner in charge as a guide. However, Yanbi's examiner was a namgungsang, or male, so Maha-ryung took over that responsibility. Lee Jin-sul insisted that she would teach Yeon-bi instead of Maharyeong, but her claim was rejected.

"I can't take on a new student when you can't even handle your own emotions."

That's what Eun-sung said. There wasn't much of an excuse.

"Yikes."

Yunbi couldn't help but smile bitterly at the room assignment results.

"This is a little confusing even for me……."

"What? Yeonbi. What's wrong with you?"

Na Yerin, next to me, asked curiously. The Yeonbi seemed to be a bit flustered.

"No, I just think things are going a little too well……."

"Yes?"

Na Yerin asked, puzzled.

"I'm going to need a little more normalcy in my life, and I'm going to have to remind myself every day of the meaning of 色卽是空空卽是色."

"……."

Again, Na Yerin didn't understand at all. But the Yeonbi seemed to be enjoyable in its own way. That was enough for Na Yerin.