Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1004

“Haa… haa… Haa… Haa!”

The sky was yellow.

Namgung Dan thought maybe he was imagining things, but the sky really was yellow. The sky he saw now was truly yellow.

No, it wasn’t just the sky.

“Haa… haa…”

Everything he saw was turning yellow. It wasn’t just the sky. Everything around him seemed to be losing its color, turning pale and yellow.

“Kuh…”

At that moment, Namgung Dan’s foot hit a stone. His foot hit a stone. He stumbled and almost fell.

Or rather, almost pitched forward.

“Oof!”

Before he could fall, someone rushed to his side, grabbed his shoulder, and pulled him upright.

Namgung Dan stared blankly at the person beside him. Was his name Yoon Jong…?

He smiled a little, like saying ‘You almost fell!’

“You seem to have some strength left, so you shouldn’t fall already. Come on, let’s keep running.”

“…”

“Hmm? Is there a problem?”

“…Kki.”

“Pardon?”

Namgung Dan’s foot moved forward weakly.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Like a puppet with messy strings, he moved forward again, but his steps were weak and shaky.

‘How did it come to this?’

Yes, it had started simply enough…

“A wager?”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung smiled brightly.

“You want to be treated, but simply demanding it doesn’t seem very persuasive. Let’s see if you deserve to be treated.”

“…”

“If you win, I’ll return all the money I’ve taken, and I won’t lay a finger on you in the future.”

“R-Really?”

“But if we win, you’ll do as I say without complaint. Simple, right?”

Namgung Dan looked at Chung Myung with a serious expression.

“But the head of the family…”

“Ah.”

Chung Myung waved his hand dismissively, as if he knew what Namgung Dan was going to say. He looked like he was shooing away a bothersome fly.

“I know what you mean. I have a conscience too, you know. Do you think I’d ask you to fight me?”

“T-Then what?”

“These guys will do it.”

Chung Myung pointed to the Five Swords behind him.

“And if we do something like a martial arts contest, the result is too obvious, so let’s do something fair. Something fair.”

“…Fair?”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung clapped his hands together.

“Running.”

“…”

Namgung Dan’s face went blank for a moment, but Chung Myung said easily, as if it was no big deal.

“The rules are simple. You start running first, and our guys will chase you. The ones who get caught are eliminated. If even one person isn’t caught by sunset, you win.”

“But, that’s…”

“But!”

Chung Myung cut him off before Namgung Dan could say anything.

“Since that’s a bit uncertain, our side will wear twenty-geun weights on each of our arms and legs.”

At those words, the faces of the Namgung Clan swordsmen twisted in dismay.

“…Are you looking down on us?”

“Hmm? Was that too much? Then let’s add another thirty geun or so to our bodies.”

“Head of the family!”

Namgung Dan shouted without realizing it.

“Geez, why are you yelling?”

Chung Myung picked at his ear with his little finger and blew on it.

“Don’t do it if you’re scared.”

“We’ll do it!”

“Dan-ah!”

“Brother!”

Namgung Dan gritted his teeth.

“But you must keep that promise!”

Chung Myung grinned.

“You’re saying what I was going to say. You better keep your end of the bargain.”

The Namgung Clan warriors looked at Namgung Dan with worried expressions.

“Are you sure about this?”

“This is…”

“Enough!”

Namgung Dan cut off the others.

“Even if the Namgung Clan isn’t known for its footwork, how can we have any excuse if we’re caught by those wearing weights? Especially when we only lose if everyone is caught?”

“…”

“Are you going to endure this insult?”

The faces of the Namgung Clan swordsmen hardened.

Namgung Dan watched them make their decision, gritting his teeth and glaring at Chung Myung.

‘There’s a limit to arrogance.’

He wouldn’t have been so angry if they had suggested a sword fight. But they had chosen to compete in stamina and endurance, not swordsmanship.

Wasn’t that the very area the prestigious Namgung Clan was most confident in?

“I know you are a great man, Head of the family, but you were arrogant this time.”

“Kuh. The world is wide, indeed. There are even people who will point out my arrogance.”

“…”

“But you should say that after you win, shouldn’t you?”

Namgung Dan gritted his teeth and nodded at Chung Myung’s sly face.

‘That’s how it was…’

The first hint that something was wrong came when they stood at the starting line.

He overheard the Mount Hua Divine Dragon asking the Mount Hua Sword Saint as they walked up, wearing iron weights on their arms and legs.

– What should we do?

– Destroy them.

– Understood.

It was a strange feeling.

Even if the Mount Hua Sword Saint was someone you shouldn’t joke around with, the Mount Hua Divine Dragon certainly was. But hearing him casually say those words sent a shiver of foreboding down his spine.

But Namgung Dan tried to push the thought away. He couldn’t believe they could catch them while wearing over eighty geun of weights.

Eighty geun was the weight of an average person. How could they catch someone while carrying a person on their back?

Therefore, Namgung Dan didn’t hesitate. He saw it as a chance to make the Mount Hua Sword Saint look foolish. And an opportunity to show Namgung Dowi, who had remained silent throughout the whole affair, what was right.

Even when they first started, he hadn’t changed his mind. Nor when the Mount Hua disciples began to chase them a little later. The Five Swords couldn’t close the distance Namgung had initially created; they were simply chasing after them.

But…

A short while later, Namgung Dan realized why the Mount Hua Sword Saint had insisted on the condition of ‘until sunset.’

After only half an hour, the pursuers began to pick up speed.

Being caught by those wearing eighty geun of weights? His pride wouldn’t allow it.

The swordsmen of the clan, feeling a sense of crisis, ran as if their jaws would fall off.

And from that moment on, hell began.

– Hey! You’re too slow.

– Come on, hurry up.

– Did you eat snails or something?

The crazy Mount Hua disciples stuck close behind them and began poking them in the back.

It was maddening.

How could they keep their sanity when those who were practically carrying another person on their backs were sticking to them and casually making comments?

– No, you can’t give up already!

– You can do more!

– Keep going!

He would have preferred them to laugh and curse, those damned bastards.

Thanks to the Mount Hua disciples’ consideration(?), the Namgung Clan ran until their legs were about to fall off. This was no longer a competition; it was a matter of pride.

But after an hour, people started to fall down, completely exhausted.

“Glug, glug.”

“Oh dear. Another one bites the dust.”

“Ugh, ugh!”

“Ack! Don’t throw up!”

What drove them the most crazy was that the Mount Hua disciples chasing them looked perfectly fine, without a hint of exhaustion.

Namgung Dan shook his heavy head and forced himself to look up. He saw people sprawled out everywhere.

They were all losing. Everyone was losing.

The proud descendants of the Namgung Clan, who had survived even the war with Surochae, were now lying in this training ground like sick chickens.

‘H-How could this…’

Namgung Dan tilted his head back and staggered forward.

They were the Namgung Clan.

He was confident that their inner strength was second to none in the world. They were known for never giving up, because they trained so hard for so long. Why was this happening?

“Ugh, ugh…”

Vomit surged up. Without thinking, Namgung Dan covered his mouth with both hands.

He couldn’t show such a disgraceful sight.

‘I-I’m going to die…’

He couldn’t even think about the sky being yellow anymore. With every step, his limbs felt disconnected, and every time his foot hit the ground, his body felt like it was folding in half.

Then, he heard a voice clicking its tongue behind him.

“Looks like this one’s done for too?”

“No. I think he can go a little further, don’t you?”

“Then let’s bet, Senior Brother. Whether he lasts another quarter of an hour or not. I’ll bet he doesn’t.”

“…I’ll bet he doesn’t either.”

“Hey! What’s the fun in that!”

“You have to be objective when betting.”

Those words almost shattered Namgung Dan’s last remaining will.

But even so, he ran and ran. There was a reason he had to keep running.

“Come on, put some effort in!”

A familiar face appeared in his vision, which was blurring with every step.

‘So… Soso…’

The sight of her clicking her tongue at him scrambled Namgung Dan’s mind.

‘How… Soso…’

The Tang Soso he knew had little to do with martial arts. Every time he saw her during exchanges with the Dang Clan, she was the very image of a noble family’s daughter in elaborate attire.

But here she was, running right beside him, looking completely calm and relaxed, offering encouragement.

‘Crazy…’

Plop.

In the end, Namgung Dan’s body gave out and met the ground.

He collapsed, burying his face in the dirt, and gasped for breath. Air rushed in, bringing with it a cloud of dust, but he couldn’t even bring himself to turn his head.

It felt like his whole body had been beaten with a hammer. This wasn’t just difficult or painful; it was beyond description. Had he ever been reduced to such a state by training alone?

“What, can’t even last two hours?”

“…And he wasn’t even running that fast.”

“Soso, what’s going on?”

“Why, why are you blaming me! The Dang Clan isn’t this weak!”

The bickering voices beside him didn’t reach Namgung Dan’s mind.

His head was as muffled as if it were underwater. If he closed his eyes now, he felt like he could sleep forever.

But…

Incredibly, even in this state, Namgung Dan could clearly hear something. The sound of someone’s footsteps approaching him.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

He struggled to lift his eyelids.

“Oof.”

He felt someone nudge him with their foot, and then his eyes were filled with the blue sky. The sun was high in the sky.