Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1086

“Why…?” Jo Gul mumbled. He stirred the porridge slowly, feeling tired.

“Why me…?” he sighed quietly.

He looked back. The Mount Hua disciples, who weren’t being very helpful, had gathered around. They watched him make porridge, their eyes full of amusement.

“Wow, he’s good.”

“Geol has something he’s good at.”

“You shouldn’t speak like that, friends. Everyone has some use, even small. Amitabha.”

“…So, he was born to make porridge?”

Damn bastards.

Jo Gul, grinding his teeth, glared at Tang Soso.

“Why?”

“…No.”

“Why?”

“…”

“What? You think I grew up pampered! When would I have ever done something like that?”

It wasn’t wrong.

Tang Soso was from a very rich and important family in Sichuan. Jo Gul, who also grew up rich, knew he wasn’t as high-class as her.

So, it was possible that she had never made porridge before. It was possible, but…

“…Even so, you burned the porridge? Is that even possible? For a person?”

“Mount Hua disciples are supposed to make impossible things possible, right?”

“Don’t nod, Grand Uncle-Master!”

Jo Gul shouted at Yun Geom, who was nodding as if he were impressed. Why was he nodding there!

“And! Even so, is it even reasonable that not a single person here has ever made porridge before?”

“…Sorry.”

“They do feel sorry.”

Baek Cheon and Tang Soso, Mount Hua’s officially recognized precious children(?), slyly avoided Jo Gul’s gaze.

“No, fine. Let’s say these folks are like that. But why are you guys, who came from the streets, like this?”

Yoon Jong, Yu Yiseol, Cheong Myeong.

Yoon Jong, Yu Yiseol, and Cheong Myeong, who called themselves the ‘street trio’ of Mount Hua, just stared at Jo Gul. They looked like they didn’t understand. Yoon Jong was the only one who showed even a little bit of remorse.

“Sorry. I’m just not good at cooking.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

Yu Yiseol pointed at her face and tilted her head.

“Never.”

“What?”

“Kitchen.”

“…”

“I used to just find berries and dig up roots to eat. I was even thinking about eating bugs when the Sect Leader found me…”

“I, I was wrong! I was wrong, Sago!”

So, stop. I feel like my heart is collapsing…

“Enough, just stir the porridge quickly. But does porridge usually take this long?”

“No…”

Jo Gul sighed as he looked at the huge pot in front of him.

‘Is this food for people? It’s cattle feed.’

He only needed to make one bowl, but this one and that one all rushed in, saying, ‘Will that fill you up?’, ‘What if you want more?’, ‘Shouldn’t we make a lot in advance?’, ‘Are you skimping on grain for a patient?’…!

Adding one scoop after another, the huge pot was filled to the brim with porridge.

‘This pot is so big, even the biggest hospital in Luoyang couldn’t eat it all in one day.’

But what could he do? He should have joined earlier if he felt wronged. Jo Gul took a deep breath and stirred the porridge. He frowned a little.

“The fire seems a bit weak…”

“Really?”

Crack!

At that moment, Cheong Myeong tore off the railing of the ship with an indifferent face. Then, he broke it piece by piece and threw it into the flames under the pot.

“More?”

“No. The fire is fine now, but, uh… Cheong Myeong.”

“Why?”

“…Is this really okay?”

“What? This?”

Cheong Myeong held up the remains of the wood in his hand, something that had been called a railing until just now.

“…Yeah.”

“Who cares? It’s not my ship.”

“…”

“And, logically, isn’t it a good thing if pirate ships break and sink?”

When he heard this, Hae Yeon smiled happily.

“Cheong Myeong is doing a great thing. Amitabha.”

…It seems that even that monk has completely lost it now.

“No, if you’re going to do that, at least don’t do it on the deck. What if the ship catches fire?”

Cheong Myeong looked at Jo Gul with a dumbfounded expression.

“What does it matter if it catches fire when there’s water all around?”

“The ship will burn!”

“It’s a good thing if the ship burns! Can’t you understand what I’m saying, Sago?”

At this point, Jo Gul gave up on further conversation. Jo Gul would rather play a board game with Baek Ah than argue with this guy.

Pushing everyone out of his mind, Jo Gul stirred the porridge furiously. After a while, he put down the ladle and took the pot off the fire.

“…It’s done.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

The street trio, who clearly didn’t like rich people, looked at Jo Gul with suspicion.

“It’s unsettling that a rich kid made the porridge.”

“It’s probably not safe to eat.”

“Will we get sick if we eat this?”

Jo Gul shouted.

“No! Merchants go on business trips often, so they learn how to cook outdoors as a necessity! I learned it too, I did!”

Then, Baek Cheon smiled and put his hand on Jo Gul’s shoulder.

“Geol.”

“Yes?”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. We know you know how to cook.”

“…Then?”

“We just don’t trust *you* to cook well. So, don’t be upset.”

Ah, I just wish they would all die. Really.

At that moment, Tang Soso, who had secretly tasted the porridge, nodded.

“This is good enough.”

“Really?”

“Ooh.”

“Finally, we’ve found something Geol is good at! It took long enough.”

Namgung Dowi couldn’t bring himself to approach the chaotic scene. He stood a little ways off, watching with trembling eyes, and turned to Im So-byeong beside him.

“Um… excuse me…”

“Yes?”

“Actually, I was wondering… I hesitate to ask, as it might be impolite…”

“Please, speak freely.”

“…Is it always this crazy here?”

Im So-byeong smiled gently and patted Namgung Dowi on the shoulder.

“Young Lord,”

“Yes?”

“You’ll get used to it, Young Lord. At first, it seems crazy. But you’ll understand… or just ignore it! It’s not easy, but you are strong, so you can do it.”

“…”

Even amidst this chaos, Dang So-so busily ladled the rice porridge into bowls and hurried towards the cabin. Yu I-seol quickly fell into step beside her.

Dang So-so poked her head back before closing the cabin door, saying,

“Help yourselves to what’s left. We haven’t eaten anything either, you know.”

“We will.”

As the cabin door shut, everyone’s eyes were glued to the pot on the floor. You could almost hear their stomachs rumble.

“Come to think of it, we haven’t eaten anything.”

“…Haven’t we been starving for three days?”

“I hadn’t even thought about it.”

A moment of silence fell.

Glug.

Breaking the silence, the sound from someone’s stomach caused everyone to glance at each other, then slowly approach the pot.

Clink.

Baek Cheon, dipping a spoon into the bowl of rice porridge in his hand, chuckled as if something was funny.

“…They really have everything, even a pot and bowls. Did they really just bring a ship that belonged to bandits until recently?”

“That Jang Il-so is surprisingly kind.”

“He even had rice. I can’t believe he’d even think to provide food.”

“…I wouldn’t have eaten it if So-so wasn’t here.”

“Me neither. How could I trust him?”

Because So-so was here to check for poison, they didn’t worry about it.

It seemed like the bandits had this rice for themselves. But it didn’t matter. They had food now.

Baek Cheon glanced out of the ship. They were currently heading upstream on the right side of the Yangtze River, as close to the bank as possible, so they could get off into Jiangbei as soon as bandits attacked.

At first, they had considered only using the ship to cross the river and then traveling on safe land, but that was not something they could do with a child and a patient.

Therefore, they had found a compromise between a more comfortable way to travel and a safer one.

Fortunately or unfortunately, they hadn’t seen any other bandit ships on the way here. At most, they had passed by a docked bandit ship.

It was almost suspicious, as if Jang Il-so had tied up all the bandits to let them pass in peace.

“Anyway… even if nothing is happening now, the Yangtze River is the lair of the Surochae bandits, so anything could happen at any time…”

“Another bowl.”

“Wow, Geollyeong makes good porridge.”

“Isn’t this rice porridge, not juk?”

“Is there a difference?”

Even as Baek Cheon spoke, the rice porridge in the pot steadily decreased. Baek Cheon’s gaze became a little more urgent. He hadn’t eaten for three days either, had he?

Baek Cheon spoke faster.

“So, let’s be more careful. If it was just us, it wouldn’t matter, but…”

“Is there no soy sauce? Or salt?”

“I think they didn’t add salt because it’s for the patient.”

“I think there was a food storage area. Should I look for salt?”

“It’s okay. I’ll just eat it as is. It’s bland but edible.”

“No, listen to me, you guys…”

Even Un-geom, Im So-byeong, and Namgung Dowi quickly emptied their bowls. In the end, Baek Cheon threw away his sermon and rushed towards the pot.

“Leave some for me, you bastards!”

The deck was instantly filled only with the sound of eating and spoons moving. It was a very serious meal!

“…Is there still no news?”

“No, Sect Leader.”

“Hmmmm.”

Hyun Jong sighed deeply, his shoulders slumped. He stared at the river and the land far away, his face full of worry.

“Should we cross the river now…”

“No, Sect Leader. Didn’t Chung Myung tell us emphatically? If anything happens, we will definitely receive contact. Aren’t they capable enough?”

“…I suppose so.”

Hyun Jong sighed deeply.

If they crossed the river carelessly and something went wrong, the children could be harmed because they couldn’t be reached in time. Because of this situation, Hyun Jong and the rest of the Hwasan disciples were just waiting aimlessly, unable to do anything here.

“Let’s go down a little further.”

“We’ve already come a long way, Sect Leader.”

“I know. I know. But we must also consider the possibility that the children cannot contact us. Shouldn’t we go to the place where we can reach them the fastest when something goes wrong?”

“…That’s also true, but…”

Un-am sighed deeply.

They had already moved far west from Gugang. This was because they simultaneously wanted to stay put and reach the children as quickly as possible if something happened.

Snap.

Hyun Jong suddenly began to bite his fingernails. Seeing the worry and anxiety on his face, Un-am couldn’t bring himself to say no.

“Then, just a little…”

It was then.

“Sect Leader! Just now, a bandit ship passed by!”

“…What’s so great about that.”

Hyun Jong didn’t care. He acted as if he didn’t care about anything except news of the children.

“T-that is, the ship was wrecked! It looked like it had been in a big fight. Smoke was still rising from it.”

“What?”

Hyun Jong raised his head in surprise.

“Who was on board!”

“It was difficult to confirm from a distance…”

Hyun Jong looked around with anxious eyes.

“The only ones who would be fighting bandits in the Yangtze River right now are our children!”

“It’s not necessarily the only thing to think about… No, it’s not, but… It’s not, but…”

Un-am had been calm, but now his face showed fear.

“Let’s go down the river!”

“Yes! That’s right! Tell the children! We’re moving! Immediately!”

“Yes!”

As the Hwasan disciples began to run downstream with a determination to fight to the death.

Later, as night fell…

“But why is the fire still burning?”

“It’s warm.”

“I guess so.”

The Hwasan disciples were gathered around the bonfire on the deck.

“Ah, it’s warm.”

With faces like cats sitting in front of a fire.