Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 92

If we lose to those jerks, we’re all dead.

The Mount Hua disciples, panting and sweating, stopped suddenly. They had been sprinting up the dusty path, but now they stood still. Too still. They had stopped too close to the Jongnam disciples, who were just a few steps away and clearly listening.

Beside his gasping friends, Chung Myung tilted his head and looked at Sama Seung.

“Huh?”

His face looked completely innocent. Sama Seung sighed, rubbing his temples. He felt tired of dealing with children.

“What was that you said?”

“Ah, that.”

Instead of answering, Chung Myung kicked Jo Gul, who was wobbling on his feet beside him, hard in the shin.

“Ack!” Jo Gul yelped.

“You wanna die! Run properly!” Chung Myung snapped.

“I’m your senior, you brat!” Jo Gul complained, rubbing his leg.

“Ah, I forgot for a moment,” Chung Myung said, scratching his head roughly. He grinned at Sama Seung.

“Looks like you heard me. Oops, embarrassing.”

Sama Seung glared at Chung Myung. His eyes narrowed, and his jaw tightened. He looked like he wanted to explode.

Sama Seung knew exactly who Chung Myung meant. There was no need to play along with this act.

“This…” Sama Seung started to say angrily.

Just then, someone gently tugged at Sama Seung’s sleeve. He stopped his anger and looked back.

Jin Geum-ryong whispered softly.

“Elder, we shouldn’t argue with a child.”

“Hmm.”

Sama Seung grunted and nodded. Even though he was very angry, he was an elder of Jongnam. It was beneath him to argue with a child. If people heard that a Mount Hua disciple and a Jongnam elder had argued, it would be a big shame.

Jin Geum-ryong stepped forward, trying to smooth things over for Sama Seung.

“Who is the young Taoist?”

“Me? Why do you ask?” Chung Myung replied.

Jin Geum-ryong stared blankly at Chung Myung. His smile vanished. He had never met anyone so rude. It was shocking, like a bucket of cold water thrown on him.

Jin Geum-ryong chuckled, forcing a smile back onto his face. He tried to sound kind.

“Maybe I know you? Why don’t you tell me?”

“It’s no trouble at all. I’m Chung Myung.”

“Chung Myung?” Jin Geum-ryong’s usually gentle face hardened.

That name sounded familiar.

“Chung Myung?” Jin Geum-ryong thought. “Wasn’t he the Mount Hua disciple who caused problems for Jongnam at the Eunha Merchant Guild?”

Jin Geum-ryong narrowed his eyes, staring at Chung Myung. He looked so young.

“Unbelievable,” Jin Geum-ryong thought. Because of Chung Myung healing Hwang Dae-in, the Eunha Merchant Guild had stopped trading with Jongnam and started trading with Mount Hua instead. Losing trade with one of the Ten Great Merchant Guilds was a huge blow. It was a humiliation they hated to even think about. The sect leader had been furious, and all the elders were angry. And this young boy, who looked too young to be so clever, was the one who caused it all.

“Yes, Taoist Chung Myung,” Jin Geum-ryong said, his voice tight. “It seems to me that you have not learned proper manners.”

It was a clear insult. Chung Myung pretended not to hear. He wiggled his ears and blew into them, like he was cleaning them out.

“Sorry, I can’t hear very well,” Chung Myung said loudly. “Could you come closer and speak louder?”

“…What did you just say?” Jin Geum-ryong asked, his voice dangerously low.

“Are you deaf?” Chung Myung said, even louder. “I said come over here and speak! Can’t you hear?”

Jin Geum-ryong’s face hardened. His smile disappeared completely, replaced by a cold stare.

What was this brat relying on? Jin Geum-ryong wondered, his fists clenching. If the rumors were true, Chung Myung wasn’t even a strong fighter. Lee Song-baek had easily beaten him in a fight. So why was he acting so brave? Did he want to die? Jin Geum-ryong felt a surge of anger. He wanted to draw his sword and cut down this rude kid right now. But he couldn’t. This was Mount Hua territory, not Jongnam. He had to be careful. Jin Geum-ryong gritted his teeth, trying to control his anger.

He spoke in a low, controlled voice.

“Are you a third-generation disciple of Mount Hua?”

“Yes, I am,” Chung Myung replied.

“Mount Hua and Jongnam have been like family for a long time,” Jin Geum-ryong said. “So, I am like your senior in the sect. You should come to me, not the other way around, right? If you know anything about manners.”

“Ah, is that so?” Chung Myung grinned. “Then how about we ask the Jongnam elder about that? It seems more polite for me to call my senior over than for the Jongnam elder to call our sect leader, don’t you think? Or am I wrong?”

Jin Geum-ryong realized he had made a mistake and quickly stopped talking. He had wanted to scold Chung Myung, but instead, he had almost blamed Sama Seung.

“I messed up,” he thought. No, it wasn’t really his fault. That young brat had tricked him. Without saying much, Chung Myung had made Jin Geum-ryong trap himself.

“This…” Jin Geum-ryong started to say, frustrated.

Just then, Sama Seung, who had been watching everything, spoke.

“That young one is very mouthy.”

“Elder,” Jin Geum-ryong said, stepping back quickly.

“Step back,” Sama Seung ordered.

Jin Geum-ryong bit his lip, glared at Chung Myung, and stepped back without another word.

Sama Seung smiled slightly.

“It’s good that you care about your sect leader,” Sama Seung said to Jin Geum-ryong. “So, I won’t blame you this time.”

“Yes, thank you,” Jin Geum-ryong replied, relieved.

“But remember this,” Sama Seung said, turning to Chung Myung. “Your rudeness and my rudeness are not the same. Do you know why?”

“…Why?” Chung Myung asked, pretending to be curious.

“Because of power,” Sama Seung said in a low voice. “Rudeness is only rudeness if someone powerful says it is. If no one powerful says it’s rude, then it’s nothing. And the right to say what is rude comes from power. Your rudeness, because you have no power, is rudeness. But my rudeness, because I have power, is not.”

Chung Myung made a face.

“Forget manners,” he said. “You should learn to speak more simply.”

“He’s crazy,” Sama Seung muttered. He turned and slightly bowed his head to Hyun Sang.

“I apologize for my rudeness earlier.”

“Ah, no, Elder! Why are you apologizing?” Hyun Sang stammered, confused.

“That child said I had no manners, so now it’s rudeness, isn’t it?” Sama Seung said, still smiling. “So, I must apologize.”

Hyun Sang was at a loss. He didn’t know what to say. Sama Seung was apologizing, but it felt wrong. It made him even more uncomfortable than being insulted.

Sama Seung smiled at Hyun Sang’s discomfort and turned to Chung Myung.

“A young man’s boldness is easily forgiven,” Sama Seung said, his smile fading. “But one day, that boldness will get you killed. Remember my words.”

With those words, Sama Seung turned away sharply.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, Elder,” his disciples replied.

Guided by Hyun Sang, Sama Seung led his disciples away. As they walked, Lee Song-baek slightly bowed his head to Chung Myung. Chung Myung nodded back. Lee Song-baek gave a small, faint smile and then walked away.

In the dusty training yard of Hwasan, as the disciples of Jongnam moved away, Jo Gul gasped, his face pale.

“Are… are you crazy? What on earth are you trying to do?”

“What?”

Chung Myung kicked Jo Gul in the shin again, in the same spot as before. Jo Gul clutched his shin and rolled around on the ground.

“Aaaargh!”

“You disciples of Hwasan, eh? You’re telling me to stand by while some rude man insults the Sect Leader?”

“It’s not like we want to stand by and watch,” Yoon Jong said, stepping forward with a grim face. “We’re angry, but he’s right. Those without power have no right to point out the rudeness of others.”

Yoon Jong thought to himself, “(He hated to admit it, but it was true. Hwasan was weak now.)”

“Who says we don’t have power?”

“…Huh?”

Chung Myung whipped his head around, glaring at the retreating disciples of Jongnam. ‘Those bastards dare.’

It was annoying enough that thieves had walked into Hwasan of their own accord, but they dared to insult the Sect Leader? No matter how much Chung Myung couldn’t accept the current Sect Leader as the real Sect Leader, Hyun Jong was still the representative of Hwasan. So, Chung Myung had to protect him.

Insulting the Sect Leader was the same as insulting Hwasan.

Chung Myung’s eyes flashed like fire.

“I was trying to be nice, but these bastards are ignoring all respect from the beginning. Fine. So that’s how it’s going to be, is it?”

“…No, calm down a bit….”

“Chung Myung, please. I’m begging you. Please think before you act.”

The Third-Generation Disciples were horrified and grabbed Chung Myung. The air around them felt thick with worry. They knew better than anyone what he might do once he lost his temper.

Then, Chung Myung turned his head sharply.

“You saw that, didn’t you, Sasuk?”

“…Saw what?”

“The way those bastards are acting. There’s a limit to how much they can look down on Hwasan. Can you stand to see that, Sasuk?”

“…No, we don’t want to stand for it either. But what can we do…?”

“Listen carefully, Sasuk.”

A fierce light burned in Chung Myung’s eyes.

“If we lose to those bastards, we’re all dead.”

“…”

The faces of the Third-Generation Disciples, including Yoon Jong, simultaneously crumpled.

Chung Myung’s eyes gleamed with fury.

“We can lose everywhere else. I’ll even let you get beaten up somewhere else. But I can’t stand to see us lose to Jongnam! Anyone who makes me see something I can’t bear had better be prepared. Those who make others suffer will suffer themselves one day!”

You’re making us suffer right now.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

Chung Myung licked his lips with a wild glint in his eyes. Just watching him sent shivers down their spines.

“N-No. It’s not that we don’t want to, but we’re not confident…”

“What? Confident?” Chung Myung glared at the Third-Generation Disciples, his eyes bulging.

“You don’t have the confidence to win?”

“W-Well, it’s not so much that as…”

“You must have the confidence to die, then?”

“…”

“Go ahead and lose. Just try it. Good, great. Let’s all die together. You die. I die.”

“…”

The Hwajong Assembly, an event to solidify the friendship between Hwasan and Jongnam, was now being stained crimson by the fury of one man.

“That young pup…” Jong Seohan glanced back. Jin Geumryong walked up to him and asked quietly, “Does he bother you?”

Jong Seohan whispered softly, so that Hyun Sang, who was walking ahead, couldn’t hear. “It’s not that he bothers me, but I’m just dumbfounded. He doesn’t know his place.”

“Let him be,” Jin Geumryong said in a stiff voice. “Weak guys can act tough because they don’t know better. Like a baby horse that doesn’t know how high the sky is.”

“That’s true, but…”

“There’s no need to be disappointed. Since he’s acting so presumptuously, he’ll naturally come to the Hwajong Assembly. There will be opportunities to punish him in the future.”

“I’d like to see if he can still talk like that even after I’ve torn his mouth apart.”

Jin Geumryong smiled faintly.

“That’s not something a righteous person should say.”

“They started the trouble first.”

“Yes. That’s right.” To be precise, they were the ones who started the trouble, but Jin Geumryong didn’t bother to point that out.

“There’s no need to pay attention to it.”

At that moment, Sama Seung, who had sent Hyun Sang ahead, spoke in a low voice. “In the end, martial artists speak with their swords. No matter how much you chatter with your mouth, nothing will change.”

“Yes, Elder.”

“Strength isn’t everything in the martial world, but the martial world is also a place where you can’t do anything without strength. You must not forget this fact.”

“We will keep that in mind.”

Sama Seung narrowed his eyes.

“This Jonghwa Assembly will be very interesting. Seeing them act so presumptuously, they must have something to believe in. Thoroughly crush that belief. Do you understand?”

“Yes! Elder!”

Sama Seung chuckled and nodded. ‘He’s a very interesting fellow.’

Still, there was something admirable about him. Even the elders of Hwasan were afraid to speak carelessly, but that young pup stepped forward without fear…

Sama Seung stopped in his tracks and turned around sharply. The disciples who were following him stopped in surprise.

“Elder?”

“What is it?”

Sama Seung, who had been glaring back with a terrifying look, relaxed his expression and shook his head. “No, it’s nothing.”

Then, he waved his hand lightly and turned back around, but his face was now grim and serious.

Chung Myung had clearly pointed out Sama Seung’s mistake. He had said that he was rude to the Sect Leader.

‘Then, did he hear what I said from that distance?’ From a distance where even Sama Seung couldn’t perceive Chung Myung’s presence?

‘No, that can’t be.’ There must have been some mistake.

‘I must be nervous. I’m even having such ridiculous thoughts.’

A cold feeling went through him. His steps, which were confident before, now felt heavy and unsure.