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8.
My situation was exactly like that right now.
Go to the Black Alliance inauguration ceremony.
Because Jegal So-myeong said it so casually, for a moment I thought Saheukryeon was the name of a new tavern that had opened near the Murim Alliance.
Why would I go there?
The Black Dao Alliance, formed at an even earlier time than in the previous life.
Moreover, since the Demonic Cult has not yet emerged, all the dark sects under the heavens are bound to flock to the inauguration ceremony.
Because finally, the Black Dao Alliance is being formed to oppose the Murim Alliance.
All the top-tier martial arts sects will gather in droves to get a foothold.
“If it is an opening ceremony, all the Black Dao sects will gather, won’t they? I don’t think it makes sense for a mere academy student to go to a place like that.”
To be told to go into such a Dragon Pond and Tiger Cave.
“What are you afraid of? Aren’t you close with those guys?”
“Tch, who are you talking about? I’m being unfairly accused!”
I am already suffering from dog-like rumors, such as being called a successor of the Black Path or a god.
“Me, attending the Black Alliance’s inauguration ceremony?” “That’s pouring oil on a dying fire.” The suspicious glances among the academy students are finally starting to subside.
Moreover, I had only just started to be treated well as a representative.
I had no intention of attending a pointless event and getting glared at.
You’re saying you’re not close?
“yes!”
“Hmm?”
Zhuge Xiaoming stroked his chin and looked at me.
“Then why did that man, the Four Emperors’ Peak Lord, specifically single you out and ask to be sent as an envoy?”
“yes?!”
You crazy!
Isn’t he a lunatic?
“Even if there is no one else to invite, to single me out as an envoy when I will one day become an elite member of the Murim Alliance and a great enemy of the Black Dao… Wait… could it be that they are afraid of my rise and are trying to find a flaw in me?” Facing a task I do not want to do only increases my absurd suspicions.
I quickly came to my senses.
Ah, anyway, I won’t go.
“What?!”
“I am not yet an official member of the Alliance, nor am I affiliated with the Mantong Department. I came to the Mantong Department solely to help Director Alliance with your work.”
Maeng Ju-won, who was squashed to one side with his ears open toward this side, gives a thumbs up.
I’m not doing this because you’re pretty!
“……
It is not to go to the Black Alliance. Moreover, the Commander-in-Chief’s father.
widely.
…I’m also too busy as the representative to accept it, you know.
Although I refused quite rudely and firmly, for some reason, Zhuge Xiaoming spoke calmly.
I’ve told the Dean everything.
“yes?”
“Just because you aren’t here this time, the students won’t form a delegation on their own. Unlike before, a proper order will be issued.”
Then, he takes out a crumpled sheet of paper from the stack of documents and hands it over.
“That is your order. What does it say at the very bottom?”
It says ‘Mengjujeon’.
Why is this document, which looks like someone blew their nose and then unfolded it again, an order from the Alliance Leader?
“Orders issued simultaneously by the Alliance Headquarters and the Mantong Command are absolute. Even if it is a student from the Academy. Or do you intend to go to the Council of Elders and take issue with it?”
Only the Council of Elders can reject the orders of the Alliance Leaders and the Mantong Department.
However, even if you take it to the Council of Elders, those gentlemen are highly unlikely to reject the order.
No, they might even push you to go and die while you’re at it.
Zhuge Xiaoming smiles triumphantly.
“Where, will you be imprisoned in the golden prison, or will you go and come back?”
I answered while clenching my teeth.
It would be better if you went.
“yes.”
Damn it, damn it, damn it.
What on earth did I do wrong that this keeps happening?
Ah! If I had known this would happen, I should have asked the Hyungsan Sect to hold a grand ancestral rite for me.
“But what on earth do you mean by asking me to help build an alliance with the Black Alliance?”
The Black Alliance of the Four Black Paths was originally established as a counter-organization to the Murim Alliance.
If you plan to form an alliance with the Murim Alliance from the start, the backlash is bound to be significant.
Of course, there is no way we would accept the Murim Alliance’s proposal.
Moreover, the Murim Alliance is the same.
Currently, the Murim Alliance’s main enemy is not the Blood Cult or the Demonic Cult, which are believed to have vanished. It is the Black Dao.
What reason would the Murim Alliance have to propose an alliance to the Black Path first?
The war with the Blood Cult is dragging on. We shouldn’t let the Dark Alliance think of this as an opportunity.
“…….”
I calmed myself down and spoke as calmly as possible.
I don’t think I can do it.
“Why?”
“Isn’t it an organization created to keep the Murim Alliance in check? There is no way they would accept me.”
Jegal So-myeong nodded for some reason.
“We do not think we will accept an alliance either. A smooth alliance is probably a matter for the distant future. In that case, war must not break out at the very least until the affairs of Sichuan are resolved.”
“If that happens, we too will have crossed a point of no return.”
Actually, isn’t it a bit of a stretch to view the Blood Cult and the Black Dao as complete enemies of each other?
The sight of the Murim Alliance moving to annihilate the Blood Cult cannot possibly be viewed favorably by the Black Dao.
Moreover, for the Dark Alliance, now is the perfect time to strike the Murim Alliance. ‘They might even intend to behead the delegation to declare war…’ If this mission is completed safely, I will be suspected of being a spy for the Dark Dao, but if things go wrong, a war might break out between the Dark Alliance and the Murim Alliance.
No matter how much I think about it, I don’t want to go.
However, now that an order has been issued, in principle, persuasion won’t work.
In that case, appealing to emotion is the answer.
I bowed my head respectfully.
“However, even for someone like me, could I really conclude such a major agreement with the Black Dao Alliance? It seems you have greatly overestimated me.”
“Do not worry. Your work will be limited to ‘help.’”
I am scared because I don’t know what might happen to me in the middle of the dark sect.
“I know your internal energy amounts to three cycles of sixty years, so what are you worried about? You went so far as to cut off the head of the Blood Cult’s Young Leader, and you’re still whining… tsk.”
*Sob*
To think that showing off to earn some merit has resulted in shackles being placed on my feet like this.
No, and this old man is really not to be trifled with.
Before I knew it, Jegal So-myeong patted my shoulder.
“Do not worry. A figure of formidable martial arts will accompany the delegation.”
I made one last desperate attempt.
“Poison! How can we fight against poison? Those scoundrels of the Dark Path might poison our food…”
Thanks to the Taeeul Jingyeong and immense internal energy, I may be immune to a hundred poisons, but not ten thousand.
Whether or not he knows about my anxiety, Jegal So-myeong nods.
I knew that would happen, so I prepared everything in advance.
What? You prepared it?
Damn, why are you so thorough?
“Student Jin So-un, ensure that there is not the slightest negligence in this mission.”
Jegal So-myeong suddenly speaks in a solemn voice, clears his throat, and leaves his seat.
Maeng Ju-won, who had approached me before I knew it, patted my shoulder as if to encourage me, but I felt no strength at all.
I really don’t understand. Why is it that no matter whether I succeed or not, my fate is nothing but suffering? #The formation of the Black Alliance stirred up the entire martial arts world.
The Black Dao sects began to look forward to this opportunity to get revenge on the Murim Alliance for what they had suffered over the years.
Conversely, the White Dao sects began to find the growing power of the Black Dao sect to be a bother.
A subtle tension began to rise even within the Murim Alliance.
The hardliners argued that warriors should be dispatched immediately to erase the very existence of the organization known as the Black Alliance, but the moderates, on the other hand, maintained that there was no need to be overly sensitive about the establishment of a mere group.
Contrary to the clear will of the public, the higher ups could not take any political stance.
I cannot forgive the organization called the Black Alliance, but I cannot condemn them either, since they did not commit any wrongdoing.
They just want to gather amongst themselves to socialize, so you can’t exactly overturn the table to stop them, can you? Isn’t that the dark side of things?
It’s not like the Murim Alliance is some kind of gang of thugs.
Moreover, fierce battles are currently continuing day after day in Sacheon.
Although victory was in sight, the resistance from the Blood Cult, who faced the path of annihilation, was fierce, so we stormed their headquarters to eradicate them completely.
It still required a lot more time to do so.
Ultimately, regarding the opening ceremony of the Black Alliance, it was decided to send appropriate gifts, a personal letter in the name of the Commander-in-Chief, and a delegation of a few people.
Protests poured in from both the hardliners and the moderates, but when the situation in Sichuan was brought up, they tucked their tails and ran away like puppies that had been told to wash.
Hyeok Mu-gang lifted his teacup and asked.
What did that child say?
He made it absolutely obvious that he didn’t want to go. But what could a nobody like him do?
Jegal So-myeong looked completely relieved, but a slight shadow fell over Hyeok Mu-gang’s face.
I wonder if I have placed too heavy a burden on that child.
“What choice do we have? There is no suitable person to trust with this task.”
A mission that is practically bound to fail no matter who goes.
At least Jin So-un had influenced the formation of the Black Dao Alliance, and since he was acquainted with many Black Dao bigwigs, including the Four Emperors’ Lord, due to the events at the Demonic Plateau, he was giving it a try.
Jegal So-myeong also spoke with a hardened expression.
“I guess I have no choice but to bet on his unpredictability again.”
Zhuge Xiaoming does not like to carry out unpredictable actions in this way.
Because the probability of failure is high and the damage in the process will be massive.
However, just this once, I hoped to succeed, even if it was by luck.
“If we fail… it will be war.”
The grudge of the Dark Path Martial World against the Martial Alliance has been deeply rooted for a long time.
Having just begun to gather strength, they need to extend their power outward, if only to control the internal situation.
The Murim Alliance also cannot readily extend a hand to the Black Dao at this point.
How great has the power of the Murim Alliance and the White Path within it grown over the years?
Wasn’t it for the justification of suppressing the dark side and protecting the order of the martial arts world?
Perhaps war is destined.
I sincerely hope that a situation requiring more bloodshed does not arise.
Hyeok Mu-gang’s voice hung heavier than ever. “Senior Brother, hold out your arm. You need to carry your bundle, don’t you?”
Eunho threaded a rope through my immobile arm and shouldered the heavy bundle on my shoulder.
Oh, and don’t forget a souvenir when you come back.
Do you think I’m going on a wandering exile somewhere?
Eunho continues speaking only about himself, as if he cannot even hear me.
“I hear that there are some martial artists in the Dark Path who create strange objects. If not at a time like this, when would I ever get a chance to see them?”
But Geumpyo, what’s wrong with you?
Geumpyo, with his tattered clothes and bruises all over his body, smiles shyly.
“I heard he’s been practicing external martial arts lately…….”
Right. You’ve worked hard.
“Death penalty. Be careful.”
Saryeon, who was the one most worried about me, stepped forward.
“As expected, there’s no one but you…”
“You shouldn’t just smash heads in recklessly simply because someone picks a fight. That place is practically the heart of the Dark Path martial arts world. I’m telling you not to act like you did at the Iron Sword Sect.”
After saying goodbye to my acquaintances with a tender(?) farewell from the priests, I headed straight for the Murim Alliance. ‘An envoy… … an alliance… …’ An alliance with the Black Alliance is definitely necessary.
For the moment the front lines expand, the blood of warriors will flow like a river throughout the entire martial arts world.
The problem is that there are no people within the Murim Alliance who have a good relationship with the Black Dao.
That is why I was extremely curious about the members of this delegation.
If he went as an envoy for the Black Alliance and forged an alliance, doesn’t that imply he is a figure capable of acting as a bridge between the Black Alliance and the Murim Alliance?
“And if this agreement is successfully concluded, the members of this delegation are highly likely to act as a bridge between the Murim Alliance and the Dark Alliance against the origins of the Demonic Cult in the future. I should keep this in mind.” Upon arriving at the promised location, a small group came into view.
The couriers of the courier agency inspected the carriages to see if preparations had been completed in advance, and the attendants checked the condition of the horses.
“Excuse me… are you the student from the academy who is joining the delegation?”
A peddler asked while bending halfway over.
I nodded lightly.
Yes. That is correct.
Ah, I will guide you this way.
Jangjasu acted cautiously, as if serving an important person.
I looked around and asked.
“Um… by any chance, are the delegation already here?”
“Yes. You are the last one, Confucius.”
I arrived two hours earlier than the scheduled time, but to think you’ve already arrived.
Guided by the cart driver, we went around to where the horses were waiting, where there were people who appeared to be an envoy.
And the moment I saw them.
“Fuck…….”
I had no choice but to stop abruptly, spat out a curse.
The woman turns toward me at the sound of my voice.
Swearing is a bad thing.
Short in stature. Long, ebony hair. Dang Seo-hee, with an expressionless face and a strange way of speaking.
“Welcome, Master Jin. It has been a long time.”
Next to him, Sobul, also known as Il-myeong, bows with his hands clasped.
“How dare a mere member be later than the leader?”
Finally, there was even Ak Byeong-bi, who had tried to torture me for shattering Ak Ju-pyeong’s leg bone not long ago. ‘I’m going crazy.’ I was horrified as I checked the list.
The daughter of the Tang family, whose hand is even more cunning than the Black Sword.
The senior disciple called the next abbot of Taishan Beidou Shaolin.
An ideological interrogator who turns even a perfectly normal White Daoist into a Black Daoist if he suspects them, let alone a Black Daoist. ‘What kind of delegation is this!! It’s a punitive expedition!!!’ It seemed like it would be difficult to organize something like this even if you deliberately selected only the people Black Daoists dislike.
It’s good to see you after such a long time.
Dang Seo-hee waved her hand with an expressionless face. “I’m not doing it! Damn it!” I didn’t want to go to begin with.
I became even more averse to going.
