Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 245

The Hall of Medicine.

This place was for treating disciples hurt in fights or who had Qi Deviation while training.

Martial artists get hurt in ways normal people don’t. So, big sects that wanted to be respected studied medicine. They built Halls of Medicine to treat these special injuries.

In other words, respected sects needed a Hall of Medicine, even if it wasn’t very important.

Ah.

Except for Mount Hua, of course.

People called Mount Hua’s Hall of Medicine beautiful, but it was useless. To be honest, it was like a useless mouth to feed, just eating resources.

Think about it.

Where would they go to fight and get hurt? But Mount Hua had been half-closed for a long time, not going outside the gates. So the disciples didn’t have any chance to get hurt.

Also, Qi Deviation only happens with too much training. But Mount Hua was in a situation where each disciple was precious, so they didn’t make them do training that could hurt them.

So all the Hall of Medicine did was give medicine to the healthy disciples when they had a stomachache.

What good was a Hall of Medicine that had no one to treat and couldn’t even make elixirs?

Because of this, the Hall of Medicine was one of the main reasons why Hyun Young, the Chief of Treasury, had stomach problems.

But!

Even something useless can become useful one day, and that day had finally come for the Hall of Medicine.

Strange groans came from inside the busy Hall of Medicine.

“Keeeuh.”

“Ughhhh.”

“Shh, don’t stop. Never… never stop! Never!”

The Hall Lord, Un-gak, had bloodshot eyes.

Veins stuck out on his arm as he stirred the cauldron with an iron ladle.

But his face looked barely human. The dark shadows under his eyes almost reached his chin, and his beard looked like it was ready to greet bandits.

His dark face was hard to look at, and dried sweat left white streaks, like salt on a rock.

The only part of Un-gak’s face that seemed alive were his eyes. You might have called for an undertaker instead of a doctor.

“I will… succeed! I must!”

His eyes gleamed with a scary light.

He looked terrible, like he hadn’t slept in days. But his eyes were bright and sharp, showing he was still determined.

“Don’t let your inner strength get weak! Keep the heat up! Sect Leader! Elders!”

“Keeeuh.”

“I… I think I’m going to die.”

Hyun Jong and Hyun Sang were in no better shape.

They held onto the cauldron and were practically skin and bones.

Hyun Jong, now skin and bones, groaned. He held onto the cauldron with arms that looked like sticks.

“How much longer do we have to do this?”

“One more day.”

“Ah, one more day…”

Hyun Jong’s face twisted in a strange way.

They were burning themselves out.

They had been putting their inner strength into the cauldron all day. They took short breaks to get their energy back. Other elders helped them sometimes. But then Hyun Jong and Hyun Sang had to go back to the hard work right away. They had been doing this for nine days.

The reason they couldn’t get more help was simple: no one else in Mount Hua could keep up their inner strength as well as they could.

The other elders couldn’t even last an hour. So the two of them had to use their inner strength until they were completely exhausted.

“Keeeuh.”

A quiet voice spoke to Hyun Jong as he groaned.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. What’s so hard about it?”

…”

Hyun Jong and Hyun Sang turned their heads, looking angry.

“Here. Ah, open wide!”

“…Ah.”

Hyun Jong opened his mouth, and Hyun Young poured porridge into it. Since he couldn’t leave, Hyun Young was cooking porridge every day so they could eat something.

“Sect Brother, you too, ah, open wide!”

“I’m, I’m alright…”

“Quiet and open your mouth!”

“Keuh.”

Hyun Sang also took the porridge that Hyun Young poured into his mouth like a baby bird.

He was old enough to be feeding his great-grandchildren baby food, but he was being fed porridge like a child. He felt sad.

But Hyun Young didn’t seem to feel sorry for his Sect Brothers.

“Don’t say it’s hard! If you think it’s hard, remember three years ago! It’s much better than being out on the streets!”

“…That’s right!”

“That’s right!”

The two men’s eyes, which had been almost dead, were filled with anger again.

Yes, no matter how hard it was, this was for the future. It was nothing compared to trying to borrow money because they didn’t have enough grain to feed their disciples.

‘I must succeed!’

‘Even if I die standing here, I will complete the Elixir!’

Blood ran down Hyun Sang’s nose. But Hyun Young, used to it, roughly wiped Hyun Sang’s nose with a cloth.

“Concentrate! Sect Leader! You must concentrate!”

Un-gak stirred the cauldron, glaring. He looked crazy as he moved the ladle at the same speed, without stopping.

“Just one day left! You only have to suffer for one more day!”

“Yes! One day!”

“Just one day! Just!”

They had endured for nine days. How could they not endure for just one more?

The Hall of Medicine was burning hot. The adults of Mount Hua, ready to sacrifice themselves for the future, began to pour their energy into the Elixir, not caring about their own bodies.

‘It’s definitely becoming something.’

The good thing was that they could see the Elixir getting closer to being done.

Inside the big, black cauldron, a white liquid bubbled. It looked like milk, but smelled much stronger.

The things they had put in at the beginning were gone.

“Hmm. The scent is definitely getting stronger.”

Each day, the liquid in the cauldron smelled stronger and clearer. This meant it was becoming something.

The three men stared at the cauldron.

Screeeech.

Screeeech.

The sound of the iron ladle scraping against the cauldron never stopped. After hearing this sound for nine days, it felt like they would hear it in their dreams.

“Elder! Your inner strength is getting weak!”

“Keeeuh. I’m doing it!”

Hyun Sang poured his inner strength into the cauldron with a dark face. Sweat poured down his face like rain.

After doing this for nine days at his age, he was completely worn out.

Just as he was trying to stay strong, a casual voice spoke.

“Are you having a hard time?”

The three men turned their heads at the same time.

Cheong-myeong, who had been sitting in the chair, watching them, picked up a piece of jerky and started eating it.

…”

…”

Cheong-myeong, ah.

Of course, uh…

Yes, you’ve done a lot of good work. You’ve done too much good work. So I understand you want to watch the Elixir being completed, but…

‘Why are you eating here! Why!’

As the Sect Leader and Elders stared at the jerky, Cheong-myeong smiled.

“Want some?”

“…No.”

He was a very kind child, but he had a fatal flaw: he had no tact.

Hyun Jong cleared his throat and carefully spoke.

“You don’t seem to have anything to do, so do you really need to be here?”

“Ah, I want to leave too, but…”

“Huh?”

The answer came from beside them.

“Absolutely not!”

Hyun Young glared.

“Do you even know how hard this task is? We can’t do it alone!”

“What is it now…?”

“Frankly, has anything good ever come from working with those senior brothers and that Yun-gak fellow? We always mess things up and waste money!”

Hyun Jong and Hyun Young remembered their painful past experiences and couldn’t bring themselves to speak.

“It’s not like having that guy around will help anyway!”

“Do you think we use Taoist talismans for nothing? It’s not for nothing that wealthy families keep golden toads around! (They are said to bring good luck). We need him here to feel safe and sure we will succeed. So don’t even think about getting rid of him.”

Hey, you. You’re a Taoist. (Someone who uses special writings called talismans for power).

How can someone who should be writing talismans himself rely on a person as if he were one?

Hyun Jong couldn’t shake the feeling that Hwasan was turning upside down. However, he didn’t try to force Chung Myung out.

‘Actually, I’m a bit uneasy too.’

This task is so important that it feels unsettling to handle it ourselves. Besides, what if Chung Myung causes trouble while our hands are tied like this?

It’s more reassuring to have him nearby.

Chomp chomp chomp chomp.

Except for the fact that he was incredibly annoying.

Chung Myung, chewing on jerky with gusto, narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Head of the Medicine Hall, your hands seem to be slowing down a bit.”

“D-Do they?”

“Elder, your inner strength is weakening too. (The power inside you that helps you do this work).”

“I-Is it, now?”

“If you’re so inconsistent, the medicine’s effectiveness will drop! We’ve gathered all these good ingredients. Can we really afford for it to lose its strength?”

“Keeeugh.”

All true.

Which made it all the more irritating. He understood why those who spoke the truth were often the first to lose their heads.

“Just one day left! Don’t hold back! Put your whole heart into it until the very end!”

“Uuuuuuugh!”

It was at that very moment, when everyone was renewing their determination.

“Uh…?” Yun-gak’s voice was strained.

His arm, holding the heavy iron ladle, started to shake. At first, it was just a small tremor, but it quickly grew worse. Sweat dripped from his forehead.

“W-Why… is this happening?” he gasped, his breath coming in ragged bursts. “Haaah!”

His hand was now shaking wildly, like a leaf in a storm. He squeezed his fingers tight around the ladle handle, but his grip was failing. He couldn’t hold on anymore.

“N-No!”

Yun-gak cried out, his face ashen.

To create the Honwon Dan, you must stir the ingredients all the time. The stirring must be at the same speed. Also, power from inside the pot rises up. This power must be pushed back into the ingredients with the right force.

Failure in this process would render these ingredients nothing more than expensive garbage!

But no matter how hard he tried to clench his hand, it would no longer obey him.

Yun-gak, realizing the situation immediately, shouted with a pale face.

“S-Someone! Someone take over!”

“What?”

“S-Stir this! I can’t do it anymore!”

“Should we call a member of the Medicine Hall?”

Hyun Young said urgently, but Yun-gak shook his head strongly.

“They won’t do! It needs to be at least the elders! We need someone with abundant inner strength!”

“Then, what about me?”

“I-Isn’t there another elder?”

Wasn’t it common knowledge that Hyun Young’s martial arts were not at the elder level?

“Quickly! A-Ah, no! At this rate, the ingredients will be ruined!”

At Yun-gak’s desperate cry, Chung Myung finally jumped up from his seat.

“Blast it!”

Then, he rushed over and snatched the ladle from Yun-gak.

“Already exhausted after stirring for just a few days!”

“N-No, that’s not it…”

Yun-gak, trying to make some excuse, collapsed on the spot. As soon as the tension was released, strength drained from his entire body, and his consciousness faded.

“Ugh…”

As one person got weaker, problems started happening one after another, like dominoes falling.

“Krrrr.”

Plop.

“Oh no! Senior Brother!”

Hyun Sang spat blood from his nose and fell backward.

Hyun Young was horrified and rushed to Hyun Sang. He had been injecting inner strength along with Hyun Jong to hold on until now, but it seemed he couldn’t take it anymore.

“Hy, Hyun Sang… Ugh?”

Thud.

Hyun Jong also slumped to the ground. Sweat poured from his entire body like a waterfall. He could somehow replenish his inner strength, but his age was catching up to him, and his stamina was failing.

Hyun Young stared blankly at the collapsed Hyun Sang and Hyun Jong.

‘T-This shouldn’t be happening…?’

There was only one day left, but what would happen to the Honwon Dan if everyone collapsed? Was this truly the end?

It was just then, as Hyun Young was about to fall into despair.

“Agh! Seriously!”

A sight that made his eyes widen in disbelief entered his view.

“I’d rather die than suffer! I would!”

Chung Myung roared and grabbed the edge of the cauldron with one hand. Then, he began to stir furiously with the ladle in his other hand.

“How do you think I got this! I won’t fail even if I die!”

Hyun Young, eyes wide, thought he saw multiple hands extending from behind Chung Myung as he injected inner strength into the cauldron with one hand and stirred the ladle with the other.

He abandoned his senior brothers without hesitation and rushed to Chung Myung.

“Ch, Chung Myung-ah! Are you going to be alright?”

“Even if I’m not, I have to make it alright!”

“Yes, that’s right! Good! That’s our Chung Myung!”

“Stand back for a moment.”

“Alright!”

Hyun Young immediately retreated backward. He no longer questioned Chung Myung’s words.

“Haaah!”

With a shout filled with strength, Chung Myung drew up as much spiritual sense as he could.

The ingredients inside the cauldron were caught in his senses.

The ingredients appeared to be completely melted on the outside, but Chung Myung’s senses did not miss the subtly scattered energies. Some areas had too much, others not enough. He had to make these energies perfectly uniform.

Perhaps that was the secret of the Honwon Dan.

“Alright. Now that it’s come to this! I’ll do it properly!”

What if the Honwon Dan of medicinal herbs was a perfect harmony?

‘I’ll add my energy to it.’

What would happen if he added the purest energy in the world to that perfect harmony?

Chung Myung slowly entered a state of trance and began to stir the cauldron.

And, at that moment, Hyun Jong saw it clearly.

The energy coming from Chung Myung’s back shone with iridescent colors.

Chung Myung-ah.

Don’t overdo it.

You’ll ascend to immortality at this rate.