Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 460

The wooden wheels of the cart rattled quickly over the rough stones of the main road, making a steady “thud thud thud” sound. Dust puffed up from the dry ground with each turn of the wheel.

The young students from Mount Hua pulled the heavy cart with all their strength, like animals that never got tired. Even though they were carrying much more luggage than on their trip to Sichuan, the cart seemed to fly along even faster, urged on by their shouts.

“Heave-ho!”

“Hup!”

Yoon Jong and Jo Gul, pulling the cart at the front, shouted as if competing with each other.

“Pulling like that won’t even help you train, will it?”

“Well, *you* look like you’re about to fall over already, older brother!”

Yoon Jong and Jo Gul glared at each other and gritted their teeth again.

Baek Cheon frowned slightly as he watched the two running ahead like angry bulls.

“You two.”

“Yes, teacher!”

“Yes!”

“It’s good to be energetic, but if you use up all your energy now, you’ll be too tired to even reach the Northern Sea.”

Yoon Jong tilted his head, looking slightly puzzled.

During the trip to Sichuan, Baek Cheon had repeatedly said that it was better to suffer quickly and rest quickly. In fact, his personality was more suited to getting things over with quickly rather than avoiding what had to be done anyway. So why had his stance changed this time?

“Is the Northern Sea such a distant place?”

“It is far.”

“How far is it?”

“Hmm. Let me see…”

Baek Cheon pondered for a moment before opening his mouth.

“Master Hwang said it’s about six thousand *li*.”

“……Pardon?”

Yoon Jong tapped his ear lightly and rubbed it vigorously.

“How many *li*? I think I misheard.”

“Six thousand *li*.”

“……”

Yoon Jong’s eyes widened considerably.

“S-Sichuan is only a little over a thousand *li* away, isn’t it?”

“That’s right.”

“But how many *li*? Six thousand *li*?”

“That’s what I said.”

At that moment, Chung Myung, who had been riding on top of the luggage cart, suddenly sat up.

“How many *li* did you say?”

“……Are you all deaf? Six thousand *li*, I said!”

Chung Myung’s eyes shook like an earthquake.

“The hell! You wouldn’t even travel that far going around the entire middle part of the country! No wonder that bald monk gave us so much money!”

“……”

Then, Hae Yeon, who was riding next to him, cried out in horror.

“S-Siju! Even so, calling the Abbot a bald monk…”

“Hey! What did you just call him?”

Chung Myung kicked Hae Yeon without hesitation.

“Aaaaargh!”

Hae Yeon, who had fallen off the pile of luggage, crashed to the ground.

“This bastard hasn’t pulled the cart once since we started, just sitting comfortably, and now he’s nitpicking! I’ll pluck out all his hair!”

“……How can you pluck out hair that doesn’t exist in the first place…”

Hae Yeon’s eyes stung, and tears began to well up, blurring his vision as he lay sprawled on the ground.

‘Where is Buddha?’

At this rate, he would die of frustration before he could even find enlightenment.

Baek Cheon asked Chung Myung, looking slightly surprised.

“You didn’t know where the Northern Sea was either?”

“I wasn’t born there, why would I ever go there?”

Chung Myung gritted his teeth.

Chung Myung had roamed all over the middle part of the country like his own home during the war with the Demonic Sect, but he had never been outside the borders.

“I thought the Northern Ice Palace was somewhere around Yunnan at most. What’s with this six thousand *li* nonsense? Why is it even associated with the middle part of the country!”

“……Well, isn’t that why they call it ‘outside the borders’?”

Chung Myung made a sound of annoyance and scratched his head hard.

“How long will it take to travel six thousand *li*?”

“If we run like horses all day, we can probably cover about two hundred *li*… so it’ll take a full month.”

“……A month?”

Chung Myung’s expression momentarily blanked.

“I’m busy every single day, and you’re telling me I have to spend a month traveling like this?”

“Chung Myung, calm down first…”

“No, what the hell are those crazy Demonic Sect villains doing going all the way out there to cause trouble! They should just huddle together and die in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains!”

Seeing Chung Myung start to rant, Baek Cheon quickly asked.

“Does anyone here know where we can buy some sweets?”

“……Do you think there would be?”

Of course, there wouldn’t be.

Baek Cheon sighed deeply.

They had only just started, but seeing Chung Myung already acting up, he knew this was going to be a difficult journey.

“Anyway, all those Demonic Sect villains should be beaten to death!”

Chung Myung was practically spitting fire from his eyes.

Baek Cheon, who was quietly pulling the cart, gestured to Jo Gul with his chin.

“Jo Gul, put Hae Yeon back on the cart.”

“Yes.”

They loaded Hae Yeon back on and started again, but the cart’s speed was slightly slower than before. Yoon Jong glanced at Baek Cheon and opened his mouth.

“By the way, teacher.”

“Hmm?”

“Now that we’re on the topic, what exactly is the Demonic Sect?”

“……The Demonic Sect?”

“Yes.”

He scratched the back of his head with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“Actually, the stories I’ve heard about the Demonic Sect so far have all been a bit vague… like they’re incredibly strong, or they’re a group of evil villains who kill people without a second thought, or they suck the blood of innocent people, things like that.”

“Hmm, that’s right.”

“But now that we might actually encounter Demonic Sect members, I think we need to know more about them.”

Baek Cheon hummed and frowned.

“Now that I think about it, I don’t really know much about the Demonic Sect either.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s a bit strange. Stories about the Demonic Sect are so widespread that there’s no one who hasn’t heard of them, but I’ve never heard a precise account of who they actually are.”

Baek Cheon looked up at Hae Yeon, who had been placed back on top of the luggage pile.

“Hae Yeon, do you know anything about the Demonic Sect? You are a Shaolin monk, after all.”

“……Why do you say ‘after all,’ Siju?”

“……My apologies.”

Hae Yeon looked up at the sky and sighed forlornly. Then, he spoke slowly.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know much about the Demonic Sect either.”

“Not even you, Monk?”

“When I was training at Shaolin, I didn’t really pay attention to outside matters…”

He blushed slightly, embarrassed by this fact.

He realized once again how much of a frog in a well he had been when he lived in Shaolin. Just stepping outside of Shaolin allowed him to see and feel so much.

But…

Why did he also feel that the well had been a happy place?

“That’s strange. Why do so few people know about the Demonic Sect?”

Chung Myung, who had been listening to their conversation, answered indifferently.

“Because there’s no need to know.”

“Hmm?”

The disciples of Mount Hua turned to look at Chung Myung.

“Why is there no need to know? Don’t they say you need to know yourself and your enemy to win?”

“……Knowing yourself and your enemy.”

Chung Myung chuckled.

“The Demonic Sect is a religious group made up of seventeen different branches.”

“Huh?”

The disciples of Mount Hua looked at him with surprised eyes as information about the Demonic Sect suddenly poured out. They had no idea that Chung Myung would be so interested.

“Wait, seventeen? That’s a lot!”

“Well, that’s how it used to be. I don’t know about now.”

Chung Myung had personally destroyed most of those branches.

“But how do you know that? No one else knows.”

“……Just because *they* don’t know, doesn’t mean *I* shouldn’t!”

“It just seems like you wouldn’t know.”

“Why, you!”

Chung Myung glared.

“What do you think my ears and eyes are for? Of course I know! *They* don’t know because they’re too lazy to find out!”

“Just because you know a little, you act all high and mighty.”

Chung Myung yelled, sounding like he was in pain.

Chung Myung moved around angrily, as if he was going to get mad again. Hae Yeon quietly pressed down on his shoulder.

Even though he was still annoyed, Chung Myung sighed deeply and continued his explanation.

“The Demonic Sect are fundamentally a religious group. If you look at their roots, they’re not that different from the Shaolin, which is based on Buddhism.”

Hae Yeon’s grip on Chung Myung’s shoulder tightened. Just as he was about to shout about how he could say such a thing, Chung Myung quickly put his hand over Hae Yeon’s mouth.

“Listen before you speak! This blasted monk gets more impatient by the day.”

“I might understand if other people said that, but how can you, of all people, say I’m impatient! Have you forgotten what’s right!”

“Threw it into the Shaolin donation box, why?”

Hae Yeon gasped.

Chung Myung clicked his tongue.

“In that sense, they’re not that different from Mount Hua either. Mount Hua is also a sect that reveres Taoism, after all.”

“That’s true.”

Baek Cheon, who had stopped the cart some time ago, nodded slowly, his face thoughtful.

However, the other disciples looked confused and worried. “But… the Demonic Sect is evil, isn’t it? Mount Hua is good!” they seemed to think.

“No matter what, does it make sense to compare the Demonic Sect to Mount Hua?”

“I’m saying the roots are the same, the roots.”

Chung Myung clicked his tongue.

“People always say it’s important to understand your enemy, but when I actually tell them, they roll their eyes and say it can’t be. This is pointless!”

“No. That’s, that’s not it⋯⋯.”

“Quiet!”

Jo Gul closed his mouth tightly and said nothing.

Seeing Chung Myung’s displeased expression, Baek Cheon chuckled softly, seeing Chung Myung’s annoyed face. He knew Chung Myung was just trying to teach them. He urged him on.

“Keep going.”

“Okay.”

Chung Myung scratched his head and opened his mouth.

“Just because the roots are the same doesn’t mean the results will be. The Demonic Sect has a decisive difference from other religions.”

“What’s that?”

“They follow a person.”

Jo Gul tilted his head at Chung Myung’s words.

“Follow a person? Like a king?”

“No. Like a god.”

Chung Myung frowned, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice.

“The Demonic Sect is a religion that worships the Heavenly Demon as a god.”

“Worship a person as a god? A living person?”

“Yes. That’s the key.”

Chung Myung continued.

“Taoism and Buddhism respect wise people, but they don’t think of them as gods. Sometimes people say someone is like a god, but no one really believes it, right?”

“They don’t.”

“But the Demonic Sect truly believes that the Heavenly Demon is God himself.”

Chung Myung’s voice lowered slightly.

“You asked earlier why information about the Demonic Sect hadn’t spread to the world, right?”

“Yes.”

“It’s because it’s meaningless. Well, religions have books and rules to tell people what God wants. But if God is right there in front of you…”

“The doctrine becomes unnecessary.”

“Exactly.”

Chung Myung narrowed his eyes.

“What if someone who insisted that you shouldn’t kill people until yesterday suddenly says that it’s okay to kill people from today onwards?”

“Wouldn’t that cause confusion?”

“That’s normal. But that doesn’t happen in the Demonic Sect. Because it’s the word of God. They just have to follow it.”

“⋯⋯.”

“The Demonic Sect worships the Heavenly Demon as God. The Heavenly Demon is alive. Every word he says is like a god’s law. They don’t doubt, they don’t hesitate, they just follow.”

“How can people do that?”

Chung Myung chuckled.

“That’s why the Demonic Sect is so scary. Because it’s full of people who can do that.”

“⋯⋯.”

“There’s nothing scarier than a human who doesn’t doubt and isn’t afraid of death. They think dying for God is an honor, so they are not afraid to die.”

Baek Cheon’s face became serious. He started to understand how truly dangerous the Demonic Sect was.

Fanatics who aren’t even afraid of death, following the orders of someone they think is God?

The thought alone sent shivers down his spine.

“In other words⋯⋯.”

“Hmm?”

“The Demonic Sect is an organization that can change drastically depending on what that Heavenly Demon is like.”

“That’s right. But… actually, it’ll probably be pretty similar.”

“Why?”

“Because the Heavenly Demon has never been in his right mind.”

“⋯⋯.”

Then, Yoon Jong raised his hand. Chung Myung nodded for him to speak.

“Yes, yes. Speak your mind.”

“According to you, the Demonic Sect is a place that worships the Heavenly Demon as a living god, but there’s no Heavenly Demon now, right? So how is it maintained?”

“They wait.”

“Wait?”

Chung Myung nodded.

“Until a new Heavenly Demon appears. To them, the Heavenly Demon is both God and human. He is absolute because he is God, but he can die because he is human. But even if he dies, he will return…”

Chung Myung stopped talking and looked towards the south, his eyes far away. The south, where the huge Ten Thousand Great Mountains stood.

“They believe he will return. As the new Heavenly Demon, the reborn Heavenly Demon.”

“I think I understand.”

Chung Myung frowned at Yoon Jong’s muttering.

“You don’t understand at all.”

“Huh?”

“There’s only one thing you need to know after hearing this.”

Everyone, noticing that Chung Myung’s voice was lower than usual, waited for his words with serious eyes.

“What is it?”

“You asked earlier, how can humans revere humans as gods and not doubt them?”

“I did.”

“The Heavenly Demon makes that possible.”

“⋯⋯.”

“What is a god, really? It’s someone who can do things humans can’t. So, even if they look like a person, if they have powers that are impossible for humans…”

Yoon Jong closed his mouth.

“It’s not that people are stupid for believing in the Heavenly Demon. It’s because he is so strong, they can’t even question him. He makes martial arts look like magic. That’s the Heavenly Demon.”

Chung Myung tightened his jaw.

He always believed he was one of the strongest fighters in the world. People called him ‘One of the Three Best Swordsmen’ and ‘The Best Swordsman of Mount Hua.’ He could have easily been known as the *absolute* best.

But… the Heavenly Demon was different. He was so strong, even Chung Myung couldn’t defeat him alone. A group of the strongest fighters from all over the land fought him, and many of them died. They *barely* managed to defeat him.

Chung Myung understood the Demonic Sect’s belief only after fighting the Heavenly Demon himself. Even for the best fighters, the Heavenly Demon’s power seemed like magic, not just fighting skills.

“Then does that Heavenly Demon still exist in the world?”

“I don’t know.”

Chung Myung shrugged his shoulders.

“That’s what we’re going to find out now.”

“⋯⋯.”

The Mount Hua disciples’ faces became serious. They finally understood this was not just a simple trip to the Northern Ice Palace.

“But can you find out?”

“Yeah.”

“How?”

“I’m an expert in that area.”

Chung Myung shrugged his shoulders.

“Fanatics or not, everyone talks if you… persuade them enough. Again and again.”

“⋯⋯.”

At Chung Myung’s confident and slightly scary words, Baek Cheon smiled faintly. *You’re even scarier than the Heavenly Demon*, he thought.

“Anyway.”

Chung Myung’s gaze moved towards the north.

“I need to check. Whether the Heavenly Demon has really returned.”

His eyes were sunken in an uncharacteristic gloom.