"You are the hope of Shaolin."
This was the phrase Yu Yeon had heard all his life while living in Shaolin.
From the day he first displayed his talent, up to the present.
By the time he realized it, he was already being called the hope of Shaolin.
"A mere ten-year-old has mastered the Divine Fist!?"
"Not just the technique... his speed of improvement is on an entirely different level."
"That child is heaven-sent. Surely, he will become the greatest in the world someday."
Yu Yeon learned later that the elders of Shaolin had repeatedly held meetings about him.
He didnât know what decisions had been made by those above, but Yu Yeon had received the Great Elixir three times so far.
An elixir so rare that most wouldnât receive it even once in their lifetime.
He received one at the age of twelve, after mastering the Divine Fist.
The second came at fifteen, when he reached the Peak Level.
The final one was at eighteen, when he ascended to Hwagyeong.
The Martial Alliance promptly assessed Yu Yeonâs state and spread the news across Zhongyuan.
They declared the birth of the youngest Hwagyeong.
They called it the emergence of a comet that would lead Shaolin into the future.
And so, Yu Yeonâs name spread throughout the martial world.
The Divine Dragon (Shinryong).
Before he realized it, Yu Yeon had been named the Divine Dragon.
He had become the pinnacle of the Six Dragons and Three Peaks, a representative figure of his era.
When Yu Yeon heard the news, he immediately went to the abbot and asked why he was being called the Divine Dragon.
With doubt in his voice, he posed his question, and the abbot Cheonan responded:
"I dream of a future that cannot yet be seen. This is a choice made for the future that must change."
Yu Yeon found it an incomprehensible statement.
Yet, he didnât bother to argue; if it was the will of the abbot, it was something he had to follow.
Still...
He couldnât help but feel regret.
That grand stage of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering he had once witnessed.
What meaning was there in holding the title of the Divine Dragon when he hadnât even stood on that stage?
Yu Yeon regretted this deeply.
What worth could there be in fame built on falsehoods?
Yu Yeon knew the name bestowed upon him carried a lie.
How could he not know?
He had seen it all with his own eyes.
"The victor of Shanxi: Gu Yangcheon."
At that Dragon-Phoenix Gathering,
The one who had dominated the stage with overwhelming force.
The one who claimed victory and stood tall with a noble presence.
"Waaaaaaah!"
The cheers he had heard from afar burned into Yu Yeonâs memory.
That was what Yu Yeon remembered of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering.
The sights and sounds were engraved in his mind through his eyes.