Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 998

Shaolin and the Mount Hua Sect had quickly found a place to stay near the Yangtze River. It was only temporary.

A cold voice came from inside the room.

“Tell me why this happened.”

Peng Yue, the head of the Peng Clan, spoke angrily. People called him the Lightning Flash Saber. Beop Jeong, the Abbot, sighed quietly inside.

“Abbot,” Peng Yue said again.

“I am listening, Clan Head Peng,” Beop Jeong replied calmly.

“Why is it so hard to explain what happened?”

“Clan Head,” Beop Jeong repeated.

“I have heard many stories on my journey here. But one story is louder than all the others.”

Peng Yue looked directly at Beop Jeong.

“People are saying Shaolin forgot what is right and good. They say you left the Namgung Clan alone on Plum Blossom Island.”

Beop Jeong closed his eyes.

“And while Shaolin and Mount Hua did nothing, the Cheonwu Alliance came and saved the Namgung Clan. They didn’t even lose anyone.”

Peng Yue paused, then spoke again, biting his lip.

“Abbot,”

“Tell me the truth. What does this mean? Is everything I’ve heard true?”

“Amitabha.”

Beop Jeong quietly said the Buddha’s prayer. He seemed to be trying to calm himself. But Peng Yue thought it sounded like he was avoiding the question.

“Just answer!” Peng Yue almost shouted.

“Enough!”

It wasn’t Beop Jeong who spoke loudly, but Jongri Hyung, the leader of the Mount Hua Sect. People called him the Subduing Demon Mountain Man.

Jongri Hyung glared angrily at Peng Yue.

“Do you even have the right to talk like that, Clan Head Peng?”

“Why don’t I have the right to speak?”

“While Shaolin and Mount Hua were trying to figure out what to do here in the Yangtze River, where was the Peng Clan?”

“Even if you are far away, you arrived only now! You can’t criticize us after everything is finished! It’s easy to give advice when the job is done!”

“We had to get permission from the elders in our family. It takes time.”

“Do you think that’s a good excuse?”

Peng Yue glared at Jongri Hyung, his eyes full of anger.

He knew Jongri Hyung was right. They were too late. Everything was already over by the time they arrived.

“If the Peng Clan from Hebei had come sooner, we could have planned something different! What could we do alone when the help we expected never came?”

“So, you are saying we just watched the Namgung Clan die?”

“Watched! That’s too strong!”

“Then am I wrong?”

Their voices got louder and louder.

Beop Jeong watched silently as the two men argued.

Peng Yue looked like he was about to jump up and fight Jongri Hyung. But then, he suddenly sighed deeply.

“I am sorry.”

“…”

Jongri Hyung was momentarily speechless at Peng Yue’s sudden apology. He stared at Peng Yue for a moment, then blushed and cleared his throat.

“No. I was too harsh as well, Clan Head Peng.”

“I didn’t know I would be this late either. The Supreme Elders all opposed it.”

“Hmm.”

A clan is different from a sect. Unlike sects that naturally accept disciples, clans pass down through bloodlines, and succession happens when the next clan head is old enough.

The problem is when that succession happens too early.

Even though they aren’t in charge anymore, the Supreme Elders and the previous clan head still have power. They tend to interfere in everything the current clan head does, like a retired king.

The Namgung Clan didn’t have these problems because Namgung Hwang was born late in his father’s life. But this is common. The Sichuan Tang Clan had similar issues. It’s a chronic problem for clans.

Especially in clans, the Supreme Elders are family elders, so it’s hard to cut them off.

“I understand.”

Jongri Hyung nodded. But he was thinking something else.

‘It’s fortunate that the Peng Clan didn’t arrive on time.’

Would the situation have been different if the Peng Clan had been there?

Well.

Even if the Peng Clan had joined earlier, Beop Jeong wouldn’t have changed his mind. Then there might have been even more criticism. People would say that three of the most powerful groups in the Jianghu were just watching the disaster from afar.

It was better to have the excuse that the Peng Clan arrived late and couldn’t do anything.

“So,” Peng Yue asked, his voice still a little rough, “what are we going to do now?”

“What do you mean?” Beop Jeong asked slowly, his eyes still closed.

“We can’t change the past,” Peng Yue said, gesturing with his hand. “But we need to think about what happens next, right?”

Jongri Hyung nodded quickly. *Finally*, he thought, *someone is talking sense*. He was getting angry at Beop Jeong’s silence. The Abbot had been sitting like a stone statue, saying nothing for so long.

“Abbot.”

At Peng Yue’s call, Beop Jeong finally opened his mouth.

“First…”

“Yes.”

“I must apologize. Because of this old monk’s foolishness, the two sects are experiencing a disgrace that they did not need to endure. I have no face to show.”

Beop Jeong bowed deeply.

“No, Abbot.”

“Why are you doing this?”

Jongri Hyung tried to stop Beop Jeong, but he smiled bitterly inside.

He was tired of seeing Chung Myung and Beop Jeong argue.

But that didn’t mean he could abandon Shaolin. If Mount Hua had another group to rely on besides Shaolin, they wouldn’t have come to the Yangtze River.

They were stuck with Shaolin. They had to trust Shaolin, no matter what. And the Peng Clan probably felt the same way.

The Namgung Clan and the Sichuan Tang Clan, which were important members of the Five Great Clans, have left. That meant the remaining three families would fight for power.

Now they should be called the Three Great Clans instead of the Five Great Clans. But even that small reputation was important in the Jianghu.

In that competition, the Peng Clan needed Shaolin’s power. Even though Shaolin wasn’t as strong as it used to be, it was still Shaolin.

Shaolin’s authority and power were enough to control two groups, not Namgung or the Sichuan Tang Clan.

Peng Yue had gone against the wishes of the Supreme Elders and the previous clan head. To avoid being blamed for failing, Peng Yue had to get Shaolin’s full support.

Peng Yue had to rely on Beop Jeong even more than Jongri Hyung did.

“But the results of everything can only be known when it is over.”

“Does that mean the situation in this Yangtze River is not over yet?”

“That’s right.”

Beop Jeong looked serious.

“Everyone is too focused on small things. We originally gathered the Nine Great Sects because the Unorthodox Alliance was planning to invade Gangbuk, not to save Namgung, right?”

“Ah…”

Jongri Hyung looked at Beop Jeong like he had just realized something. He had forgotten this.

“We gathered because the Unorthodox Alliance was planning to invade Gangbuk. Not to save Namgung.”

“That’s right, Sect Leader.”

Jongri Hyung nodded, feeling hopeful.

It might be a lie, but Jongri Hyung knew that some people would believe it.

“If we forget what we have to do because of criticism, a bigger disaster will happen.”

“Does the Abbot think the Unorthodox Alliance will attack Gangbuk?”

“Yes. I think it’s likely.”

“But really…”

“If not, why would the Surochae fleet stay in the Yangtze River? We can’t attack Gangnam because of the Yangtze River Treaty, right?”

“Now that I hear it…”

Jongri Hyung looked unsure.

There was no reason for them to stay there.

Even if they were used to living on ships, it would be hard to wait on a ship without enough supplies.

“Abbot. If they attack, our three sects will have trouble handling it.”

Jongri Hyung wasn’t sure how strong the Unorthodox Alliance was.

But if a war broke out, the three sects would be the first to suffer.

‘That can never happen.’

Beop Jeong understood Jongri Hyung’s concerns.

“Let’s send a message to the other sects.”

“A message?”

“Yes.”

Beop Jeong nodded.

“The last request was only from Shaolin. But this message will include the names of the Hebei Peng Clan, a leader of the Five Great Clans, and the Mount Hua Sect, an important member of the Nine Great Sects. That will make a difference.”

“Hmm.”

“I don’t know if they will respond, but we can at least tell them what’s happening here.”

“Indeed.”

Peng Yue nodded.

Even if they don’t come to the Yangtze River, it was good to show that these three sects were stopping the Unorthodox Alliance.

“But isn’t the Cheonwu Alliance here?”

Beop Jeong shook his head at Jongri Hyung’s question.

“That’s why we need to send a message.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t trust the Cheonwu Alliance.”

“Abbot.”

“I’m not saying they didn’t do anything heroic. But it’s too strange that they entered Plum Blossom Island and returned without any damage.”

“…”

“I wouldn’t say this if twenty people had died. But did ten die? Did five die? Only the Namgung Clan died. Can you really trust the Cheonwu Alliance in that situation?”

“That’s certainly strange.”

Peng Yue nodded.

Jongri Hyung, who had seen everything, still looked suspicious. But Beop Jeong’s words sounded more convincing to Peng Yue.

In other words, Beop Jeong’s claim sounded more true to those who hadn’t seen the situation.

Maybe that didn’t matter.

People prefer to believe a lie than an uncomfortable truth, so Peng Yue had to believe those words.

His conscience bothered him, but he ignored it, remembering the faces of the family elders when he left.

“So please help me. If you do, everything will be alright.”

“I understand.”

“I will.”

After the conversation, the atmosphere in the room felt strange. The two men bowed and quickly left. Beop Jeong didn’t stop them.

Alone in the room, Beop Jeong slowly took his prayer beads and began to roll them.

Yes. It might be a stretch. But…

‘If the Unorthodox Alliance really attacks Gangbuk, will these words still sound like a stretch then?’

If that happened, the situation would change.

Those who criticized them would start criticizing the Cheonwu Alliance, saying that they could have killed Jang Il-so, but they avoided sacrifices because their lives were too precious. And that’s why this happened.

Sometimes, you have to change the situation yourself instead of waiting for it to change.

‘If not me, who will go to hell?’

He closed his eyes tightly.

In the quiet room, only the sound of the prayer beads spread faintly.