Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1366

“Well then, I should get going,” Hyeong-uk said, a little awkwardly.

“Yes, safe travels!” Baek Cheon replied warmly. “Thank you again for everything.”

Hyeong-uk bowed deeply, his back bent sharply, almost in half. His hands were clasped tightly in front of him.

Many things had happened, and it was clear that Hyeong-uk was truly thankful. So, the Cheonwu Alliance also showed him great respect.

“Ah, that…”

Having finished his greetings, Hyeong-uk scratched his head awkwardly.

“Um… if you don’t mind me asking, where are you guys going?”

“Yes?”

Baek Cheon looked at Hyeong-uk, a little confused. Hyeong-uk quickly waved his hands.

“Ah, it’s not like that! I wouldn’t dare ask where you esteemed warriors are headed. I just wanted to advise you to be careful if you are heading north along the mountain range.”

“Careful, you say…?”

“Even though this is a remote mountain village, we still hear news from the outside world. I’ve heard that things are a bit chaotic up north these days. If you are heading to Gangbuk, it might be better to choose another route…”

Baek Cheon smiled at Hyeong-uk’s cautious words.

“Ah, is that what you meant? You don’t have to worry. We plan to head towards Nanjing.”

“Ah…”

Hyeong-uk quickly nodded.

“I’m sorry. You already have plans. I was being unnecessary…”

“Don’t say that. I am grateful for your concern.”

Baek Cheon bowed politely.

“There are many stories I would like to share, but… time is short, so I must be going.”

“Yes! Of course! You absolutely must.”

“Then.”

Baek Cheon smiled gently and clasped his hands in a formal greeting.

As he turned, the others also nodded to Hyeong-uk and turned away together.

Hyeong-uk stood there for a long time, watching until everyone had disappeared into the distance.

Whoosh!

The Mount Hua disciples leapt forward, streaking through the trees like arrows loosed from a bow. The steps that had been so heavy when leaving the village were now much lighter.

Baek Cheon ran ahead, with Jo Gul following close behind. Jo Gul’s gaze was fixed on the sack of grain that Baek Cheon carried on his shoulder.

Baek Cheon was carrying the grain himself, grain that would amount to no more than a handful if divided among so many people. It was as if it were a treasure that could never be lost.

“…It’s quite strange when you think about it.”

“Hmm?”

Baek Cheon turned around as Jo Gul muttered. Jo Gul’s eyes seemed deeper than before.

“I’m talking about that man, Hyeong-uk.”

“…Indeed.”

“Wasn’t he the one who distrusted us the most when we first came to the village?”

“Was he?”

“Yes, he was. The other villagers were more friendly, but Hyeong-uk treated us like thugs who had come to show off their strength.”

Baek Cheon looked up at the sky for a moment, recalling when he first met Hyeong-uk.

“Yes, I suppose that’s right.”

Come to think of it, Jo Gul was right. Hyeong-uk had certainly not hidden his distrust of them when they first arrived in the village.

“But to see that man acting like that now…”

“Does it seem strange?”

“More than strange…”

Jo Gul trailed off, as if he found it difficult to put into words.

Fortunately, Yoon Jong expressed what he wanted to say in a slightly more refined manner.

“I think I understand a little of what Chung Myung meant earlier.”

Baek Cheon looked at Yoon Jong with interest. Yoon Jong shrugged his shoulders and said,

“Of course, just because someone shows us malice doesn’t necessarily mean they are evil, and just because someone shows us kindness doesn’t necessarily mean they are good.”

“That’s obvious.”

“Yes. But… what changed that man’s attitude was the goodwill we showed him earlier.”

Baek Cheon nodded silently.

Of course, there were concerns. To call it a positive change just because they were showing goodwill towards them might be arrogant. So, both Baek Cheon and Yoon Jong were cautious.

But the important thing wasn’t whether it was ‘right’ or ‘wrong.’ It was the ‘change’ they had caused.

As Chung Myung had said, chivalry wasn’t just about making their lives more comfortable… perhaps it was changing something.

Something that was still small and weak, but would one day grow and become bigger.

Perhaps they had just witnessed that possibility with their own eyes.

“I thought chivalry was about changing the world. That’s why I was momentarily downcast and speechless at the attitude of the villagers.”

“Yoon Jong…”

“But now that I think about it, that’s right. Chivalry and goodwill may not directly change the world. But perhaps they can change people, even just a little.”

Jo Gul nodded.

Because he had seen it himself. He had directly witnessed a person changing.

“In the end, it is people who change the world. It is still difficult, but if one person changes, one day the world may be filled with goodwill.”

“That’s difficult.”

“Isn’t that what the Dao is? If it were easy, there would be no need to seek it for a lifetime.”

Baek Cheon glanced at Yoon Jong. His face was more relaxed and refreshed than ever before. Baek Cheon only felt comforted by Hyeong-uk, but Yoon Jong seemed to have seen something he hadn’t.

If that was the case, then that was enough for now.

“Let’s pursue the Dao a little later. Now is the time to hurry.”

“Yes, Martial Uncle.”

“Although we didn’t get supplies as we had planned… let’s deal with that as we see fit.”

“Yes!”

Baek Cheon increased his speed. The wind quickly brushed against his face.

The villagers who had turned away from them, the figure of the old man Hyeong who had politely pressured them until the end, and even Hyeong-uk’s apologetic expression were still vivid in his mind. It seemed like they would not be erased for a long time.

But now, all that remained was the weight of the heavy grain sack on his shoulder.

‘Let’s not try to come to a conclusion.’

Perhaps he and his martial siblings were still too young to come to a conclusion. No matter how famous they became, no matter how important the task they were given, they were still just young Daoists.

How they should live to uphold the Dao they believed in was something they would have to contemplate for the rest of their lives. So, instead of judging, they should just remember. One day, these memories and everything they had seen here would all become a part of them.

However…

‘Who could it be?’

Baek Cheon became newly interested in the ‘person he knew’ that Chung Myung occasionally mentioned.

In the past, he thought that Chung Myung was using someone who didn’t exist to convey his intentions, but recently he had come to realize that there was a profound energy in the words Chung Myung used when referring to ‘someone’. Even a profound energy that was hard to find in Chung Myung himself.

“Respect…”

As he muttered, Chung Myung, who had been running silently, tilted his head.

“Huh?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

“How boring.”

Baek Cheon gave a wry smile as Chung Myung lost interest as if he was dumbfounded.

‘Someday…’

And he kicked off the ground with all his might, gripping tightly so as not to miss anything that had arisen within him.

❀ ❀ ❀

“It’s gone.”

Yugong flinched at the quiet words. He forgot to look around in a panic and stopped dead in his tracks. Cold sweat began to form on his forehead.

He turned around and saw Hogamyeong’s indifferent face. Hogamyeong asked as their eyes met,

“Isn’t it?”

Yugong’s fingertips began to tremble.

Hogamyeong was right. The sect’s markings were no longer visible. He was desperately searching, but there wasn’t even a trace.

He thought that he might have misinterpreted the markings he had passed and taken the wrong direction, but the possibility was extremely low. Hogamyeong had already completely grasped the markings of Hainan. It was impossible for Yugong and Hogamyeong to have come up with the wrong answer at the same time.

“The fact that the markings have stopped means that the rearguard has completely joined up.”

“Ah, perhaps we haven’t found it yet. If you give me a little more time…”

“Give you time?”

Hogamyeong asked calmly.

“Are you saying you can find it?”

Yugong couldn’t bring himself to answer confidently. He knew very well that he was being unreasonable.

Hogamyeong narrowed his eyes. At the same time, Yugong shrank back.

But fortunately or unfortunately, Hogamyeong didn’t care about Yugong at the moment. His head was filled with the question of why the Hainan and Cheonwu Alliance groups had suddenly changed.

‘If I think about it, it means they realized we were chasing them.’

There was no reason for them to suddenly join up like this otherwise.

However, what bothered him was that he couldn’t figure out how they had noticed the pursuit. Yugong was doing his best to chase after them, but from Hogamyeong’s point of view, he was keeping a reasonable distance.

They shouldn’t have noticed already if there hadn’t been any other variables.

“Hmm.”

Hogamyeong, who had been lost in thought for a moment, glanced at Yugong.

“What do you think?”

“…Yes?”

“Why do you think they stopped leaving markings?”

“How would I know…”

Hogamyeong narrowed his eyes.

“I’ve suddenly become curious.”

“…What?”

His lips were clearly curled into a sneer.

“Didn’t you become my dog? But I wonder if you can guess what the other wolves are thinking.”

…”

“But it seems like it was a waste of time. Yes. A dog is just a dog.”

Yugong bit his lip in humiliation and anxiety. Hogamyeong shook his head coldly as he looked at him.

“It’s become clear. Your role is over.”

In fact, Hogamyeong’s words were spoken without any special meaning. It was just a way of summing up the situation.

But Yugong couldn’t accept it that way. The moment the words ‘dog’, ‘hunting’, and ‘end’ were combined, what came to his mind was ‘discarding a hunting dog after the hunt’.

The blood drained from his face in an instant.

“So, step back…”

“So, something! Something!”

Hogamyeong, who was about to tell him to step back, closed his mouth and looked at Yugong. Yugong was desperately racking his brains, and he poured out words as if he was afraid that he might be cut off.

“There must be something they want to hide! Something that must never be discovered! Something that no one should ever find traces of in the future!”

…”

“They don’t want to leave artificial traces. Whatever it is! Because there’s something they need to hide and must never be discovered, they don’t want to hide themselves, but something else! So that’s…”

It was a rambling, incoherent jumble of words, but Hogamyeong understood what he was trying to say.

“Something they want to hide.”

A meaningful light appeared in his eyes.

“There’s something to it.”

Snap!

Hogamyeong snapped his fingers, and the adjutants quickly approached from left and right.

“Search the area. Even if it’s something trivial. Report anything that catches your eye. The time limit is one hour. Don’t waste any more than that.”

“Yes, Military Advisor!”

As Hogamyeong’s orders were issued, the Maninbangdo soldiers moved and scattered in all directions.

Drip.

The sweat that had been running down Yugong’s face pooled at the tip of his chin and dripped down in droplets. Anxiety seemed to be gnawing at his whole body.

Before the sweat could cool, some of those who had scattered returned.

“There is a small village about ten miles to the northwest.”

“A village?”

“Yes!”

Hogamyeong stroked his chin for a moment and repeated,

“A village…”

Was that village the place they wanted to hide at all costs?

It was something he couldn’t understand. If he were chasing after another being, he would have ignored it without a doubt. But…

Hogamyeong, who had been staring intently at Yugong, slowly nodded his head.

“We’re moving.”

He would know when he got there. Just what was being hidden.