NOTICE: Many of the novels have been removed because they might cause violations, which we were not aware of earlier.
Chapter 126. The Black Flame Dragon Who Takes Opportunities Away
At the words that they had entered secretly, I was so dumbfounded that I asked back.
“Secretly? There should definitely have been guards posted.”
“It seems they went in during a gap in the guard shift change.”
“…….”
The guards of Murim Academy, of all things, had been breached?
The circumstances before and after roughly drew themselves in my mind, and heat slowly began rising to my head, but the urgent matter right now was not how those bastards had broken through the guards.
No matter how many safety mechanisms had been prepared, if one set foot carelessly inside the Soul-Destroying Formation, one could not leave the Soul-Destroying Formation.
Why had we failed to find the people who had recklessly entered the Soul-Destroying Formation on the Demon Spirit Plateau, even though so many people had been able to survive and come out?
It was because there was no way to find people who had entered somewhere among as many as two hundred thousand formation routes.
“Wh-What should we do?”
Yu Ji-ryang’s voice kept trembling.
Before I came, it seemed he had been held responsible for this matter by the people of the Nine Sects and One Gang.
“Please…… wait a moment.”
I hurriedly looked around.
If the guards had been breached, then the people responsible for that were surely being questioned.
On one side of the Grand Riding Ground, I saw two people being questioned with deathly expressions.
I quickly moved from my spot and approached them.
Yu Ji-ryang chased after me in a fluster.
“May I speak with these people for a moment?”
“…….”
The person who seemed to be the superior of the guards stopped questioning them and abruptly turned away. I asked the guards from last night a few questions.
While I was listening to the guards, someone suddenly cut in.
“Lord Yu Ji-ryang, and Academy Student Jin So-un.”
Yu Ji-ryang was startled and turned his head. There stood an instructor, looking at the two of us with an expression like an evil spirit.
“The elders of the Alliance wish to hear an explanation. Let us go.”
“…….”
For the demonstration, a platform had been erected in the center of the riding ground, and more than thirty chairs had been brought out.
And now, not a single seat there was empty, people were packed tightly into them, and on top of that, all the related personnel had gathered and were standing behind the chairs.
Tremble, tremble, tremble, tremble.
Yu Ji-ryang was trembling so violently that even I, walking beside him, could feel it.
I placed my hand on his shoulder for a moment.
“Great Hero Yu, why not calm yourself a little?”
“……Ah, yes. Yes. I should.”
“If it is too difficult, I will go alone.”
Yu Ji-ryang’s face brightened at my words. He thought for a moment, then soon shook his head.
“In any case, I am the person responsible for this Soul-Destroying Formation, am I not? I should go.”
“…….”
Yu Ji-ryang trudged toward the platform like an ox being dragged to the slaughterhouse.
Unlike when seen from a distance, the platform already held every member of the Elder Hall, including the Murim Alliance Leader Hyeok Mu-gang and Grand Strategist Jegal So-myeong.
“What exactly happened?”
“How was this managed that children were able to come and go as they pleased in such a dangerous ultimate formation?”
“What is there to hear? We must dissolve the formation immediately and punish the person in charge according to the Alliance’s laws.”
The moment we arrived, loud shouts burst from every direction.
Moreover, the members of the Elder Hall seemed unable to control their emotions. As they spat out words, they scattered killing intent recklessly, and those who had gathered to watch the demonstration all closed their mouths at the ominous atmosphere.
A precarious atmosphere continued, as though we were crossing a bridge by stepping on the points of blades.
“How long is the Academy Representative going to keep his mouth shut?”
“Speak at once!”
“This happened because the representative position was entrusted to someone without even the basics. The representative must be replaced immediately.”
And soon, those arrows began pouring toward me as well.
As sharp words like a battlefield filled the space, Jegal So-myeong seemed unable to endure it any longer and opened his mouth.
“Everyone, be silent!”
“…….”
“…….”
At Jegal So-myeong’s shout, the elders closed their mouths, and the area was swept into stillness, as if we had entered the inside of the Soul-Destroying Formation.
“I will ask. How many people entered in total?”
As Jegal So-myeong led the conversation, people’s gazes now began following him.
Receiving everyone’s gazes, Yu Ji-ryang opened his mouth while stammering.
“Fr-From what I was told, th-there were six people in total.”
“From what you were told? Are you saying that is not exact?”
“N-No. Their companions said so, so the number is certain.”
“Good. They entered, and why is that now such a problem?”
“Normally, those who enter the Soul-Destroying Formation should come out within one double-hour. But the people who entered yesterday at the Hour of the Tiger have not come out even now, at the Hour of the Snake. That means they have lost their way inside.”
“If they lost their way, can they not come out again?”
“The Soul-Destroying Formation has no reference point, so they must walk the path according to its laws based on the steps they take. But if that is wrong even once…….”
At Yu Ji-ryang’s words, the elders’ expressions began to furrow deeply.
——————
faqwiki.xyz
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
“Why did the safety mechanism not activate?”
“The safety mechanism exists to stop people who enter from places other than the formation entrance. It was never meant for people who enter through the entrance in the first place.”
“Then are you saying there is no safety mechanism?”
“It is an ultimate formation for which a safety mechanism cannot be created in the first place. That is why, under thorough management, the number of people must be restricted, and they must only enter through the designated Life-and-Death Gate…….”
Just as Yu Ji-ryang was about to blame those who had entered on their own, Daoist Master Myeonghyeon abruptly cut off the conversation.
“In the end, does that not mean our children are trapped inside a dangerous ultimate formation without any safety mechanism?”
“……Ah, that is…….”
Jegal So-myeong furrowed his brow, but Daoist Master Myeonghyeon continued speaking as if he did not care.
“What is the probability that the children will come out in time?”
“……There is none.”
“Huh, truly.”
Wearing an expression of utter disbelief, Myeonghyeon spoke to the Murim Alliance Leader.
“Alliance Leader, this is a grave matter that may take the lives of Academy students who will one day shoulder the future of the Alliance. We must dissolve the Soul-Destroying Formation at once and save the children.”
Murim Alliance Leader Hyeok Mu-gang looked back at Yu Ji-ryang and asked,
“I heard that the Boundless Indestructible Soul-Destroying Formation, as its name suggests, cannot be dissolved. Is there a way?”
“Th-The fifty pillars that form the central axis of the Soul-Destroying Formation were made to break one month later, so it will disappear then, but…… there is a problem.”
“A problem?”
“The flow of time felt inside the Soul-Destroying Formation differs from outside. Because of that, even if they remain inside for only one day, it becomes the same as remaining there for seven days and nights.”
“Even though it is not real, it directly affects them?”
“Those trapped inside the Water Demon Great Square Formation, one of the Jegal Clan’s ultimate formations, die of suffocation…….”
“Huh…….”
“This is also an effect we experienced for the first time while newly creating it this time. The problem is that those who entered without authorization yesterday…….”
“Wait!”
Yu Ji-ryang stopped speaking and looked at Daoist Master Myeonghyeon.
“Do not keep using words like ‘without authorization’ or ‘outside the authorized personnel’ to avoid your own responsibility. This is, after all, the fault of you people for neglecting management.”
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
As if agreeing with Daoist Master Myeonghyeon’s words, the elders nodded.
Yu Ji-ryang went deathly pale and looked stunned.
“Continue.”
“Y-Yes. The people who entered yesterday did not bring emergency rations with them.”
Daoist Master Myeonghyeon shook his head, then looked at the Alliance Leader and spoke.
“Alliance Leader, there is no need to hear more. We must forcibly dissolve it immediately.”
The Murim Alliance Leader also nodded as if agreeing with Myeonghyeon’s words.
“Is there a way to forcibly dissolve it?”
At the Alliance Leader’s words, Yu Ji-ryang spoke with trembling lips.
“If the fifty pillars I mentioned earlier are destroyed at the same time…… it should be possible.”
“Then carry it out immediately.”
At Myeonghyeon’s words, Yu Ji-ryang’s expression became that of a man about to die.
Unable to watch him like that any longer, I stepped forward.
“That is impossible.”
“……This does not seem to be a place for you to step forward right now. We will question you later, so stay out of this for now.”
At Daoist Master Myeonghyeon’s words, I ignored him and spoke while looking at the Alliance Leader and the Grand Strategist.
“To artificially dissolve the Soul-Destroying Formation, fifty people must enter through the Life-and-Death Gate, take control of the exact directions, and break them simultaneously.
However, this is only a theoretical example. You must consider that, if it fails, an additional fifty people may fall into the Soul-Destroying Formation.”
As soon as my words ended, deep sighs flowed from every direction.
“Huh!”
“How could…….”
“Why would they make something like that?”
After hearing this, even the Murim Alliance Leader and the Grand Strategist closed their mouths.
In the end, unable to endure his anger, Myeonghyeon erupted in a shout.
“How will you take responsibility for this? Did this disaster not happen because you pushed yourself too hard to maintain the representative position?”
I slowly turned my head.
And I looked at Daoist Master Myeonghyeon, whose face had turned bright red.
“Why should I take responsibility?”
“Wh-What? You are now…….”
“When I heard from the people who stood guard last night, they said twenty people came and ordered them to change shifts earlier than scheduled. In that process, the name of the Righteous Path Association was mentioned as well.”
“That is absurd…….”
I cut off Daoist Master Myeonghyeon’s words and continued.
“In the Diancang Sect, how do you deal with someone who secretly steals a look at another’s martial arts?”
“What nonsense are you suddenly saying?”
“Due to the limits of funds and space, I set a limit on the number of people and carried out this event. This was to pass on the secret of the Soul-Destroying Formation to those who formally participated in the event. Yet people who did not even participate in the event secretly stole the secret, and this disaster occurred. Naturally, should they not receive punishment rather than reward?”
The faces of Daoist Master Myeonghyeon and the elders turned bright red.
“Of course, I bear no responsibility for this matter. Lord Yu Ji-ryang here bears no responsibility either. They brought the danger upon themselves, and that danger must have been entirely due to their own personal greed.”
I quietly infused internal qi into my voice, so everyone gathered here could hear me.
“As I just said, there is a way to dissolve the Soul-Destroying Formation. The elders among you who can survive for around one hundred days with only the bare minimum of water and food should take the risk and dissolve it. If you succeed, you will be able to save the Academy students who did something foolish.”
At the words “one hundred days,” not a single elder answered.
“If not, then those who conspired to carry out this matter should step forward. I mean the ones who pressured and threatened the guards and forced the matter through.”
I turned my body and looked around the hall.
Among the Academy students, the members of the Righteous Path Association were looking this way with eyes full of killing intent.
“Who will step forward? Will it be the elders and seniors of your sects? Or will it be those who, despite being Academy students, did not listen to a word of the representative’s instructions? Who will it be?”
After my words ended, no one spoke.
Not even the sound of a single ant passing by could be heard in the hall.
Now, without watching anyone’s mood, I infused my voice with internal qi to my heart’s content and shouted.
“Is there no one? Right now, Academy students are dying inside the Soul-Destroying Formation. Is there no one who will risk his life for them?”
I looked toward the place where the members of the Righteous Path Association were gathered.
And I spoke to the person standing at their center.
“Academy Student Il-gak! I do not think you were uninvolved in this matter. Do you have no intention of stepping forward?”
“…….”
It was truly a strange sight.
Monks of Shaolin glaring at me all at once with eyes that looked as if they would kill me.
Perhaps even the Demonic Practitioners from my previous life had not received looks like that.
Just as I was about to press them again, Jegal So-myeong stepped forward.
“Enough.”
Jegal So-myeong swept his gaze once over the members of the Elder Hall as if looking at trash, then continued.
“The important issue right now is not who bears responsibility. It is how we can save them. Is there no way to save them?”
“If we can search all two hundred thousand formation routes, we can save them.”
“Although you say two hundred thousand, the paths you actually taught were only three. If we count the numbers derived from those, there should not be that many formation routes.”
As expected, not just anyone could be the Grand Strategist.
I nodded.
“That is correct.”
“Then the highest possibility is for people who know the Soul-Destroying Formation well to enter and save them.”
Yu Ji-ryang quietly raised his hand.
“My sect’s spell practitioners and I did create the Soul-Destroying Formation, but we are not at the level where we can freely come and go inside it. The one who has been saving people trapped in the Soul-Destroying Formation until now was…….”
Yu Ji-ryang did not finish his words and looked at me.
As if he had expected that, Jegal So-myeong nodded.
“You must step forward.”
Jegal So-myeong, the Murim Alliance Leader, and even the elders were all looking at me and nodding.
As if it were only natural that I step forward.
I shook my head.
“I refuse.”
“What?”
“What the Grand Strategist said is only a theoretical matter. In reality, I would have to risk my life. However, I do not see why I should risk my life for something that may not even be my responsibility.”
“And you still call yourself the Academy Representative?”
At Daoist Master Myeonghyeon’s shout, I answered,
“I am the Academy Representative, but most of the Academy students have never acknowledged me as their representative. I am supposed to take responsibility for such people and even risk my life? Why should I? I refuse.”
“Huh…….”
Daoist Master Myeonghyeon and the elders trembled.
After watching me with an expressionless face for a while, Jegal So-myeong spoke.
“The Academy Representative is right. Those who entered the Soul-Destroying Formation broke the Academy’s rules and ruined an important event funded by the Alliance’s budget. They must pay a grave price equal to stealing another person’s martial arts.”
“Grand Strategist!”
“That cannot be allowed!”
“That must not happen!”
Jegal So-myeong glared at Daoist Master Myeonghyeon and the others, then spoke.
“Then will you watch as your disciples die?”
“…….”
Jegal So-myeong shouted loudly enough for the entire Grand Riding Ground to hear.
“Those who led this matter and those who recklessly entered the Soul-Destroying Formation without fear will be expelled from the Academy, and those connected to this matter will also face disciplinary action.”
Regardless of how the people who heard Jegal So-myeong’s words began murmuring, Jegal So-myeong looked at me and spoke.
“Can the Academy Representative bring back the Academy students so that they may receive their rightful punishment?”
I could watch those Righteous Path Association bastards get expelled?
“I will bring them back without fail!!!”
Even if my life was at stake, I could not pass this up.