Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1105

With a heavy *thud*, Dang Pae collapsed face down onto the dusty ground.

He gasped, “Kheuugh…” Exhaustion squeezed his chest, making each breath a painful effort.

The gritty taste of dust filled his mouth, and the smell of earth stung his nostrils. He didn’t even have the strength to turn his head.

“Tsk.”

Soon, Chung Myung’s disapproving click of the tongue reached his ears.

“So weak…”

His voice seemed to pierce through his ears and body.

“What? You think poison and hidden weapons handle themselves delicately?”

“Nonsense! Poison doesn’t move on its own. Hidden weapons don’t dance by themselves. People use them! Weak people can’t use hidden weapons well. What’s the point if you tremble with fear?”

He gasped, “Kheuugh…”

“It’s not that you don’t need to train your body because it’s a delicate martial art, but the more delicate the martial art, the better your physical condition should be. Dang Family’s martial arts can be completely ruined by even the slightest tremor. I know that from the outside, so why don’t you who use it know that?”

Chung Myung looked around at those who had fallen and turned his body.

“We’ll start again when the sun rises tomorrow. Anyone who comes out late will die.”

Dang Pae, who had finally glanced at Chung Myung’s back as he strode away, slammed his face back into the ground. A worried voice came from beside him.

“Brother.”

“…”

“Brother… Are you alright?”

“Do I look alright?”

“…”

“Ugh…”

Dang Pae struggled to move his legs and returned to his quarters. Dang Pae dragged himself to his simple room. Even the sight of his bed, usually a welcome comfort, felt daunting tonight.

“I’m going to die, I’m going to die.”

“Me too.”

“Eek!”

Dang Pae, startled, shouted. Soon, he saw Dang Zhan lying on the bed. Dang Pae grabbed his pounding chest and snapped.

“What are you doing? Coming into someone else’s place without a word!”

“Kkeueung.”

Dang Zhan struggled to get up. The arm supporting him on the bed was trembling, indicating that he, too, was having a hard time.

“It’s not that, but…”

Dang Zhan frowned deeply as he began.

“The complaints from the younger siblings and uncles are beyond measure.”

“…”

“It seems everyone is reluctant to speak directly in front of you, Brother, but these days, as soon as they get a chance, they are pouring out their grievances behind your back.”

“Well…”

Dang Pae sighed deeply.

“What kind of grievances?”

“Well… We know that this training is necessary, but… isn’t the appearance just too bad?”

At Dang Zhan’s words, Dang Pae frowned silently. In fact, he understood what Dang Zhan was saying. Even necessary training should have the proper form. It certainly didn’t look good for the members of the Sichuan Dang Family to be rolling around at the direction of a third-generation disciple of the Mount Hua Sect.

“It seems their pride is greatly hurt every time they hear passersby whispering. Especially the uncles.”

“Hmm.”

“So, I was wondering…”

Dang Zhan glanced at Dang Pae. The way he was cautiously watching him, it seemed Dang Zhan hadn’t come here of his own volition either. He must have been pushed by his uncles.

“Couldn’t you speak to the Lord?”

“To the Lord?”

“Yes.”

Dang Zhan nodded.

“Most of the training that Chung Myung Daojang is implementing now is something the Lord can also do. Of course, we understand that the Lord is busy with official duties, but even so…”

“Impossible.”

Dang Pae cut him off before Dang Zhan could even finish speaking. As if there was no room for consideration.

“It’s not even worth mentioning, so don’t bring it up in front of me again.”

“Brother.”

“I said don’t say it.”

“But…”

Dang Pae shook his head firmly.

In fact, forbidding mention of specific matters was not something a Young Lord should do. Listening to words that could not be said to the stern Lord and conveying those matters to the Lord was also one of the Young Lord’s duties.

But he had no intention of yielding on this matter.

“Are you now doubting Father’s abilities?”

“Th, that’s not possible! I’m just…”

“Then, do you think Father doesn’t understand the complaints of the members and is just watching?”

“That’s…”

Dang Pae’s eyes narrowed.

“There is a suitable person for every task. If Father thought that the Mount Hua Sword Saint was the right person for this, then the members should just follow his words.”

Dang Zhan nodded silently for now. Objecting to these words would be challenging the Lord’s authority. He didn’t know about other places, but it was unimaginable in the Sichuan Dang Family.

He had become much gentler since meeting the Mount Hua Sword Saint Chung Myung, but originally, Poison King Tang Gunak was a symbol of absolute authority within the Dang Family. Especially after dissolving the Council of Elders and completely seizing control of the Dang Family, no one dared to deny his authority.

But even as he nodded, Dang Zhan’s expression clearly showed that he still didn’t understand.

Seeing that, Dang Pae slightly hardened his expression.

“Zhan-ah. You don’t understand.”

“It’s not that I don’t, but… Brother.”

“Is that ridiculous pride really that important?”

“Brother?”

Dang Pae looked at Dang Zhan with cold eyes.

“Does being pointed out in front of people and rolling on the dirt floor damage the family’s reputation? Does running around at the direction of a third-generation disciple of Mount Hua make your face burn with shame?”

“I…”

“You have grown soft and lazy.”

Dang Zhan closed his mouth. The cold gaze Dang Pae was giving him made him unable to move.

“Pride is not maintained by wearing good clothes and swaggering arrogantly. You feel ashamed when your clothes get dirty and you look a little ridiculous, but why don’t you feel humiliated when Mount Hua, whom you once didn’t even consider as an opponent, is overtaking us?”

Dang Zhan couldn’t say anything.

“Our family is Mount Hua’s top priority ally.”

“Yes, Brother. I know. So…”

“But the Dang Family couldn’t accompany them on this trip to Jiangnan. It wasn’t us, but Namgung and the Green Forest who stood by Mount Hua. Do you know what that means?”

“…”

“Of course, the Lord could have stepped in directly. But… do you really think it was right for the Lord to assist that Mount Hua Sword Saint and head to Jiangnan? Really?”

“Th, that’s not true!”

“Right. That should never have happened. Then I’ll ask you. What is the reason why the Dang Family couldn’t participate in this trip to Jiangnan, in this more important task than anything else, protecting the Central Plains by stopping the Demonic Sect?”

“That’s…”

Dang Zhan couldn’t answer this time either. He knew the answer, but he didn’t have the courage to say it out loud. But Dang Pae said firmly, as if pouring salt on a wound.

“Because you and I are weak.”

“…”

“Isn’t that so?”

“That’s right.”

Dang Zhan lowered his head.

Of course, the elders of the Dang Family could have stepped forward. But the talent that the Mount Hua Sword Saint wanted wasn’t just someone who was strong. It was someone who could work with his disciples and match their pace.

If Dang Pae or Dang Zhan were as strong as that Baek Cheon, would Chung Myung really have left them behind and headed to Jiangnan? No, he wouldn’t have.

Dang Pae and Dang Zhan were already feeling it. They couldn’t go to Jiangnan together because they hadn’t given him faith.

“Having suffered that humiliation… now you’re saying your pride is hurt? Is that something that the direct line of the Sichuan Dang Family dares to say?”

“Brother…”

“Today, Namgung received the same training as us. But they finished the training much earlier than us and returned looking perfectly fine. You saw it too, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“You saw that and those words still came out of your mouth.”

Dang Pae’s cold voice now seemed to pierce Dang Zhan’s heart. It was rare for Dang Pae to show such anger.

“Is your pride hurt?”

“…”

“My pride is also hurt. But the reason why my pride is hurt is not because of that trivial face. It’s because I’ve clearly confirmed with my own eyes that the Sichuan Dang Family of all families! And the martial artists of the Sichuan Dang Family are falling behind other sects.”

Dang Pae gritted his teeth.

“Is there anything more shameful for a martial artist than being weak?”

“B, Brother. But the martial arts we use are different from theirs… We…”

“Shut your mouth.”

A chill settled in Dang Pae’s voice.

“There is nothing wrong with what the Mount Hua Sword Saint said. We have always been making excuses like that. If our skills are lacking, we just need to develop stronger poison and create more deadly hidden weapons. Yes. So, has our Dang Family ever reached the top spot in the world even once?”

Dang Zhan was speechless.

“If you are too proud to learn from Chung Myung, you will never become stronger. You don’t have to come to training from tomorrow. No, not just you, tell everyone who wants to skip training to skip it. I’ll take responsibility.”

“B, Brother.”

Dang Pae opened his mouth firmly.

“But I will follow this training to the end. Rolling on the floor is nothing. I don’t care if I have to stuff mud in my mouth. I will definitely become stronger. Despite his pain, a fire of determination burned in Dang Pae’s eyes. Even if I die, I will never hear that I, who will one day become the Lord of the Dang Family, am weaker than that Young Lord of Namgung or Mount Hua’s Baek Cheon.”

“…”

“Convey that. However!”

Dang Pae twitched his thick eyebrows and glared at Dang Zhan. He seemed to resemble Tang Gunak in his face.

“If anyone in the Dang family is ungrateful and disrespectful to Chung Myung, I will punish them harshly. If anyone from our family is rude to Chung Myung, I will treat them harshly.”

“…”

“Do you understand?”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“Go.”

“…”

“I said go!”

Dang Zhan lowered his head and went outside. Dang Pae, who was watching him, sighed as soon as the door closed.

He wondered if he had gone too far, but it couldn’t be helped. It was time for Dang Zhan and the others to know the reality.

“It’s not easy.”

Another long sigh escaped from his lips.

“Hmm.”

A low sound leaked from Chung Myung’s mouth, who was lying on the roof.

“Tsk.”

He lifted the bottle with a face that said he was annoyed by everything. But unfortunately, it had been empty for a long time, and not a single drop of alcohol fell even when he shook it.

“Tch.”

He was about to get up, tasting his lips bitterly, when.

“Here you are.”

“Huh?”

Chung Myung turned his head at the voice he suddenly heard. Tang Gunak, who had appeared next to him, smiled as he held out a bottle.

“You shouldn’t have.”

“May I sit?”

“Of course.”

Tang Gunak sat down next to Chung Myung.

“Let’s drink together. I want to drink a little today too.”

“I’m happy to drink with the Lord.”

“Is that so?”

Tang Gunak chuckled and took a sip from the bottle. Then, looking at the night sky, he opened his mouth.

“You must be having a hard time too.”

Chung Myung quietly looked at Tang Gunak at the unexpected words. Tang Gunak appeared at the end, offering comfort and understanding to Chung Myung. This shows he is observant and cares about Chung Myung’s well-being.