Return of Mount Hua Sect

Hyun Jong’s face was extremely serious as he looked at the disciples who were training.

The demon-like Chung Myung was surrounded and attacked by his disciples, who were like dogs.

It was an extremely violent scene.

Although they used wooden swords, if one had struck an ordinary civilian, it would have been normal for them to lose their life immediately. The attacks were repeated several times in a short period. Not just Chung Myung, but the other disciples facing him were giving out sincere killing intent.

‘The killing intent…’

Who wouldn’t know that a sword was ultimately meant to hurt an opponent? But the sight of the disciples giving out killing intent couldn’t have been good in Hyun Jong’s eyes.

“… isn’t that too violent?”

As expected, Un Am, who was next to him, expressed his concern.

“It is violent…”

Hyun Jong was thinking the same thing, so he couldn’t deny it.

This wasn’t so much cultivation as it was fighting one another. It wasn’t so violent at first, but with each day, it was getting worse.

“Shouldn’t we stop them?”

Even the strictest of training wouldn’t have this, and concern came out of Hyun Sang’s mouth.

’No matter what, Mount Hua is a Taoist sect. Those who follow the Tao cannot be…“

“Enough.”

“… sect leader.”

But Hyun Jong, who had been worrying, shook his head.

“It wasn’t because he doesn’t know it, right?”

Then, with sunken eyes, he looked at Chung Myung moving among the disciples.

“It might be unpleasant to urge someone who is pulling a cart slowly. It might also be annoying to criticize someone fast. But in any case, those are things that can be said. Do you know what words you shouldn’t say?”

“I don’t know.”

“It is nagging someone because their training isn’t right.”

Hyun Jong turned to Hyun Sang and said,

“What kind of words would you say to someone who forgets to eat and pushes themselves to reach their destination as quickly as possible?”

“… I know. Sect leader, but if this continues…”

“I know.”

Hyun Jong let out a deep sigh.

“If the disciples get hurt, then it is meaningless.”

“… yes.”

“Chung Myung isn’t the type of person who doesn’t understand this.”

Hyun Jong looked at Chung Myung with sad eyes.

“Maybe he cares for the disciples more than we do. We cannot help him when he is suffering so much, right? Let us just trust him for now.”

“… I understand.”

Hyun Jong sighed.

He knew that Un Am and Hyun Sang were also speaking out of concern for their disciples.

But it wasn’t Chung Myung who should be blamed. If they were to blame anyone, it would be themselves for not leading the disciples properly.

‘Or, perhaps it is greed.’

The best way to keep Mount Hua’s disciples from getting hurt was to relinquish all influence in the world of murim and remain in seclusion for a long time without leaving Shanxi.

In the meantime, even if the Four Sects Alliance forces their way into the mainland, Shanxi would be the place farthest from the war in terms of location.

But that method could not be used. It was by no means the right path. And the moment Mount Hua gave up its involvement in the world of murim, everything the disciples built with their blood would collapse.

How ironic.

If Mount Hua had been nothing more than a small, nameless sect like it was in the past, the war that would have engulfed the world would have avoided Mount Hua. The fallen sect of Shanxi, whether it was the Justice Faction or Evil Faction, no one would care.

But not now.

The current Mount Hua was a sect with great influence in the world. And it was a sect that must shoulder the responsibility for that influence.

‘Responsibility…’

Hyun Jong closed his eyes.

If Hyun Jong were the only one to take responsibility, he would be able to laugh even in the pit of flames. Revitalizing Mount Hua was his lifelong wish, so he wouldn’t care about giving up his life for it.

Which was why his heart ached so much.

Because he realized that it wasn’t he but the disciples who would pay the price for what Mount Hua gained.

‘I don’t know.’

Was this right or wrong?

The roots, which were deeply embedded in the ground, were what produced gorgeous flowers. In that way, the revival of Mount Hua, which he had wished for his whole life, might only be achieved by consuming many things as nutrients.

‘The one true goal.’

Even when he opened his tightly shut eyes, Chung Myung was swinging the sword as usual. That image felt engraved in his eyes.

The training, which he couldn’t bear to see, continued for several days.

As the days passed, the faces of Mount Hua’s disciples became noticeably emptier.

It was understandable.

Even disciples of a sect that was learning murim didn’t devote all 12 hours of their day to training.

Mount Hua was a Taoist sect, so they had things to do as Taoists, and there were times when they had to exert themselves to hold such a large sect. Even if they didn’t have such obligations, they didn’t have to strain themselves all the time.

But everything changed from the moment Mount Hua closed their gates.

From the moment he opened his eyes to the moment he fell asleep, he kept pushing people without resting for a moment. But what was more difficult than the physical pain was the fact that he had to maintain tension every moment his eyes were open.

It felt like his mind was being constantly cut with a sharp knife.

A sparring match where they released all their killing intent to somehow cut each other down. No matter how close they were to each other, ill feelings would build up. That would be normal.

However, Mount Hua had no problems. It wasn’t because they were extremely close, but because they weren’t even given the time to brood over ill feelings.

In an extreme battlefield, emotions tended to vanish.

A mind pushed to the limit.

And a body pushed to its limit.

At a time when everyone was confused by the question of whether this kind of training wouldn’t improve one’s skills but rather weaken the body.

That happened.

Tak!

“…”

“….”

A loud sound rang out, and silence fell for a moment.

Yoon Jong’s eyes shook.

The one who was bleeding profusely forgot to stop the blood flowing down his nose and stared at the scene, and the one who had been hit and collapsed jumped up and opened his mouth wide.

The one who had rushed in froze in that position, and the one who collapsed in exhaustion clenched his fist.

“Uh…”

Yoon Jong’s eyes were fixed on one spot.

His wooden sword.

His wooden sword, dented here and there from intense training, was touching someone’s side.

“… it touched?”

The eyes of Yoon Jong shook violently.

Some might ask, wasn’t it obvious that the attack would succeed when they were training?

But this was by no means obvious.

Because the owner of the body where the wooden sword touched was Chung Myung.

“Uh?”

Yoon Jong, who had been blinking his eyes in shock, slowly opened his mouth and then realized something new.

He had been training with Chung Myung for years now, but this was the first time his sword had touched Chung Myung’s body.

No.

This was the first time among the Mount Hua disciples.

“I-it touched! Damn it! It touched!”

The moment a loud scream burst out of Yoon Jong’s throat.

Kwak!

Chung Myung suddenly kicked Yoon Jong on the forehead. Yoon Jong rolled back without even making a sound.

But he didn’t even feel pain, as he was jumping up from the floor and screaming.

“UHHHHH! I stabbed him! AHHHHH! I STABBED HIM!”

At the same time, a huge cheer erupted from the surrounding Mount Hua disciples.

“HE DID IT! HE DID IT! UHHHHH!”

“He finally got that damned bastard!”

“How is it, you bastard!”

It was amazing where they all found strength. Those who had been struggling to stand a moment ago were now grabbing their heads, jumping up and down, and screaming.

“UHH! Sahyung!”

“Yoon Jong, that brat!”

“HHH! That guy is earning his keep!”

It wasn’t a big deal.

It shouldn’t be a big deal.

Dozens of people rushing at him simultaneously and barely managing to hit one person with a single sword strike was actually something to be ashamed of, let alone be happy about.

But that obvious common sense meant nothing to them at that moment.

The distance that seemed unreachable, so far away that it was uncomfortable to even look at, had clearly narrowed at this moment.

“Tsk.”

Chung Myung lightly rubbed his side with his hand.

He felt a dull pain on his side. That feeling was so familiar yet strange.

But…

Funnily enough, he didn’t feel bad. Rather, the corners of his lips kept going up, and his lips trembled slightly.

Chung Myung opened his mouth, controlling his expression.

“To be happy just because we were lucky enough to touch each other once. Pathetic.”

With a cold rebuke, Yoon Jong approached Chung Myung with a stiff face.

And then he straightened his back and stood there.

“You.”

When Yoon Jong pointed with his finger, Chung Myung frowned a bit.

Yoon Jong, who was looking straight at Chung Myung, pretended to cut his own neck with an extended finger.

“Just died once.”

“….”

“HAHAHAHAH! How is it?”

“NO….”

“Woah! The corpse is talking now! Corpse! People look! The corpse is talking!”

“Call a Taoist already!”

“We are the Taoists, you insane bastard!”

“Hahahahah! There is a Jianshi here!”

Euk.

Chung Myung’s grip tightened around the wooden sword. A vein was throbbing visibly on his forehead.

“But these sahyung bastards are…”

“Sigh.”

At that moment, Jo Gul covered his face with one hand and shook his head.

“Damn it, I should have been the first. Sahyung took this.”

“It is alright. The neck is still there. I won’t die from being hit on the side.”

“That is right. Sago! The head is mine!”

“Ahem.”

Baek Cheon, who had been listening quietly, coughed loudly and said,

“Even the cold water has its ups and downs, but I have to give in to sasuk this time.”

“Does our Mount Hua have ups and downs?”

“… that isn’t so wrong, but it sounds different when you say it, Soso.”

Right, youngest one?

Everyone couldn’t contain their excitement and jumped around.

People didn’t get tired when they were having a hard time. It was when there was no hope.

To those who were getting exhausted, Yoon Jong’s sword definitely showed them hope. It was very small and weak, but it was absolutely certain.

‘That bastard has said that countless times.’

Baek Cheon approached Chung Myung with his sword in hand and a smirk.

Then, the other disciples of Mount Hua also began to chuckle and surround Chung Myung.

“Anything is difficult the first time.”

“It isn’t a big deal for the second time.”

“Right?”

“Ah, right.”

Chung Myung looked at the sahyungs who were closing in on the circle with wild eyes. They were slowly closing in on each other, like a pack of dogs surrounding a rabbit.

“Sigh…”

Chung Myung opened his mouth with the corners of his lips twisted.

“If you mistake luck for skill….”

But before he could finish speaking, shouts erupted.

“Luck is skill!”

“What? After getting stabbed on the battlefield and dying, you want to go to the king of the dead and complain about your bad luck?”

“Who would even listen to the excuses made by a corpse? Uh?”

“…”

You reaped what you sowed.

That was what Chung Myung said to them.

“Amitabha.”

At that moment, Hae Yeon, who had been quiet for a long time, chanted a Buddhist chant with a solemn look. Maybe he didn’t like this atmosphere at all…

“My tongue is tingling, Taoist. If you are tired, lie down. I will chant some Buddhist chants for you.”

“Heheheheh.”

“Uhahahaha!”

“Wow! With so many monks and Taoists, our Chung Myung has secured a rebirth in paradise. He has secured it for sure!”

Laughter erupted from all sides. Blood vessels stood out on the forehead of Chung Myung.

“Okay…”

His two eyes blazed now.

“Let’s die again today! You damned sahyung bastards!”

“Die!”

“Push him!”

“His head is mine!”

The disciples of Mount Hua shouted and charged at Chung Myung.

Their bodies looked like they would collapse at any moment.

They felt excruciating pain all over their bodies.

But, even in the midst of all those hardships, there was a distinct smile on the lips of the Mount Hua disciples.