Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1126

The Beast Palace was not a friendly place like Mount Hua or the Ice Palace. The air felt tense and angry.

Mount Hua and the Ice Palace were known for being friendly and lively places. But here, among the Beast Palace disciples, the feeling was very different. It was not friendly at all.

They had to step back because the Ice Palace Lord of Gyeongguk was in charge. But they were not happy about it. They were being told what to do by someone young enough to be their son!

What made it worse was how differently the young man treated them compared to Mount Hua. He was nice to Mount Hua, but rude to them! This made them even angrier.

They felt this was a clear sign of disrespect to their Beast Palace. They were the ‘Southern Barbarian Beast Palace’, and they expected to be treated with respect.

Were the Ice Palace and Beast Palace really friends just because they were both called ‘Outer Five Palaces’? Maybe the only thing they shared was that people from the ‘Central Plains’ often treated them badly.

But now, the ‘Cheonwu Alliance’ was trying to fix these problems. Because of this, the Beast Palace and Ice Palace started to see how different they really were. Differences they hadn’t noticed before were now becoming clear.

“Wow, that was really mean, wasn’t it?”

“Didn’t he just say we were his enemies?”

“How can people who kill animals just for their skins be good people? We can’t be friends with them.”

“The absolute worst.”

The Beast Palace disciples exchanged their opinions in hushed tones. Their animosity toward the Ice Palace only continued to grow.

“He’s so full of himself for someone so young.”

“He’s a ‘Lord’ in the Ice Palace? In our Beast Palace, he’d be nothing at his age.”

“He doesn’t even look that strong.”

“I just don’t like him. Something about him…”

What they really didn’t like was that the Ice Palace Lord didn’t seem very strong. Okay, he had a powerful presence for his age, they admitted that. But the people *behind* him looked much stronger. In the wild, where they came from, the strongest person was always the leader. It just didn’t make sense to them that someone who wasn’t strong or experienced could be in charge just because of his title.

“Look at him with his fancy hat. Thinks he’s so important.” Suddenly, a cold voice cut through the air.

“What did you just say?”

“Huh?”

The Mount Hua disciples were loud and cheerful, but the Ice Palace disciples had been watching quietly from behind. They must have heard what the Beast Palace disciples said. Suddenly, several Ice Palace disciples stepped forward, their eyes like ice, glaring at the Beast Palace group.

“I heard you. What exactly did you say?”

“…Do they think they can just walk all over us?”

“Look at these barbarians! Can’t even dress themselves properly, and they’re talking about us? Did they say we lack ability?”

And of course, the Ice Palace disciples were furious. They would not let these insults stand.

The Beast Palace believed in the law of the jungle – the strongest survive. But the Ice Palace was different. They believed in fighting *against* the wild, harsh world. They thought it was wisdom and cleverness that helped people survive, not just strength. Seol So-baek was their Lord, chosen and respected even by the oldest members of the Ice Palace. To insult him was to insult everything they believed in.

“Did you just call us barbarians?” Suddenly, the air crackled with anger. Just moments ago, before this ‘Cheonwu Alliance’ started, they had been friendly, even allies. Now, they were ready to fight. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. And then…”

“ENOUGH!” Maeng So, the Beast Palace Lord, had been watching silently. Now, his voice boomed like thunder, stopping the fight instantly. As soon as their Lord spoke, the Beast Palace disciples bowed their heads and retreated. The Ice Palace disciples looked angry, but they also stepped back. They knew they had to respect Maeng So’s word, or it would look like they were agreeing with the Beast Palace disciples who had insulted their own Lord earlier.

“Hmm.”

Maeng So frowned as he looked at his subordinates.

“You were wrong this time. Apologize to the Ice Palace Lord.”

“But Lord!” one started to protest.

Maeng So cut him off with a wave of his hand. “Enough! What do the Central Plains people call us?”

Silence.

“Well? Answer me!” Maeng So’s voice was sharp.

One of the disciples mumbled, head bowed, “They say we’re uncultured barbarians who don’t know how to live properly.”

“And what do we say to *them*?” Maeng So pressed.

Another disciple spoke up, louder this time, “We say, ‘If they lived in Yunnan or Naman, they’d have to live like us too!’”

“Exactly!” Maeng So nodded, but his eyes were still hard. “People live differently in different places. We hate it when the Central Plains people judge us by *their* rules, right? And now, you’re doing the same thing to the Ice Palace! You’re judging them by *our* rules, without even trying to understand them.”

He leaned forward, his voice dropping but becoming even more dangerous. “If you’d been any ruder, I would have broken every bone in your bodies myself.”

“We… we’re sorry,” one stammered.

“Not to me,” Maeng So said, gesturing towards Seol So-baek. “Apologize to the Ice Palace Lord.”

At those words, the Beast Palace disciples bowed their heads toward Seol So-baek.

“We apologize, Ice Palace Lord.”

“We were rude.”

Seol So-baek glanced at the Beast Palace disciples. In the past, Seol So-baek would have immediately accepted the apology, but this time, he didn’t say a word. It wasn’t that he was in a bad mood, but that the North Sea had been disrespected.

“I also apologize, Ice Palace Lord. Please understand.”

“Ah, no. Lord. Of course, I understand.”

But even that thought melted away as Maeng So slightly lowered his head. Seol So-baek knew very well how difficult it was for someone of Maeng So’s stature to bow to others.

Seol So-baek scratched his nose, looking embarrassed.

“From the beginning… um… I was a little sensitive, too.”

“I understand. You must have heard similar things as well.”

A sigh escaped Seol So-baek’s lips. They, too, had been ignored for living differently from the Central Plains people. That was why they had no choice but to be sensitive to such remarks.

“When you think about it, the Central Plains bastards are the problem.”

“That’s true.”

“There’s no reason for us to fight each other, is there?”

“Yes. You’re right, Lord.”

Cheong-myeong, who was listening to them, scratched his ear with a sulky face.

“I don’t think those are words you should be sharing in front of a Central Plains person.”

“Haha. You’re a special case. You’re not the kind of person who distinguishes between the Central Plains and the Outer Regions.”

“Yes. That’s right. I completely agree.”

“…Is that an insult?”

“Ahahahaha! How could that be? If anyone valued their life, they wouldn’t dare insult the Mount Hua Sword Saint.”

“That’s right! Who dares insult our Taoist Master! I’ll personally throw them to the bottom of the North Sea lake.”

“Senior Brother Sect Leader.”

“I don’t like these guys… Uncomfortable…”

Cheong-myeong sighed deeply. What could he do? Embracing all these people was the path he had chosen with his own hands.

“Then what shall we do now?”

“Huh?”

“Give us your orders! We are ready.”

Cheong-myeong, who was becoming overwhelmed by the approaching Seol So-baek, took a step back, sweating.

“Well… your enthusiasm is good, but you must be tired from the long journey, so wouldn’t it be better to rest first? You should see the Sect Leader first, right?”

“Yes! We will!”

Seol So-baek nodded vigorously, almost to an overwhelming degree. Then, he quickly began to lead the Ice Palace disciples into the manor.

“Be careful not to damage the gift carts!”

“Yes!”

Cheong-myeong wiped the sweat from his forehead. Maeng So, who was standing next to him, said quietly.

“…It seems he’s grown in a strange direction.”

“Y, you think so too?”

“It doesn’t seem bad… But it’s a little odd anyway.”

Maeng So wore a wry smile. A sigh escaped Cheong-myeong’s lips.

The situation had somehow been resolved, but even as they retreated, the Ice Palace disciples and the Beast Palace disciples still harbored resentment, sending unpleasant glances at each other.

Cheong-myeong, who was watching the scene, clicked his tongue softly. And then, he said in a serious voice.

“Thank you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m sure you weren’t feeling good either, Lord.”

Maeng So chuckled.

“What’s there to feel bad about?”

Of course, that was what he said, but there was no way he could have felt good. In the first place, Maeng So’s way of thinking couldn’t be too different from that of the Beast Palace disciples. The fact that the disciples were displeased meant that Maeng So couldn’t help but be displeased as well.

No, he might have felt even worse than the average disciples. Maeng So was none other than the Beast Palace Lord.

But he suppressed those feelings and scolded his disciples first.

Seol So-baek was someone who, although he was the lord of the same Outer Five Palaces, could not even be compared to him yet. If he had tried to suppress him with force and authority, it wouldn’t have been difficult, but he apologized first and bowed his head. That was why Cheong-myeong rarely said thank you.

“It’s nothing compared to what you’re doing.”

“…Yes?”

“Aren’t you, a quick-tempered person, suppressing your anger and holding back?”

“No… I’m not as bad-tempered as you think…”

“If it were the old you, the moment the disciples started baring their fangs at each other, you would have beaten them both up without a second thought.”

“Oh? Now that I hear it…”

“But wouldn’t it be ridiculous for me to step in and get angry?”

“…”

“More than that… it won’t be easy.”

“What do you mean?”

Maeng So stared at Cheong-myeong as if asking why he was asking when he clearly knew the answer.

“We can’t have me or Lord Seol running over to mediate every time something happens. If that were possible, I wouldn’t have asked for your help when you came to Yunnan in the past.”

“…I guess not.”

“The disciples acknowledge and revere the strong, but that’s why they can’t understand having to endure. Especially when they have difficulty enduring situations they don’t understand.”

“They’re so free-spirited.”

Maeng So wore a bitter expression.

He hadn’t even imagined that such a problem would arise as soon as they met. He had come to be helpful, but he felt sorry for only handing over things that would cause headaches.

“There might be a few problems, are you going to be okay?”

“Eh, what problems?”

“Huh?”

Maeng So asked with a puzzled look when Cheong-myeong’s reaction was so indifferent.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you’ll find out soon enough.”

Instead of answering, Cheong-myeong curled up the corners of his lips and smiled.

“More than that, you cleaned up the Beast Palace neatly before coming, right?”

“I took measures so that you wouldn’t have to return for several years, as you said. That’s why it took so long.”

“That’s good.”

Cheong-myeong nodded.

With this, the existing power of the Cheonwu Alliance was fully gathered here.

‘Now that I’ve gathered them, it’s really no joke.’

Mount Hua, the Tang Family, the Namgoong Family, and the Green Forest, along with the Ice Palace and the Beast Palace.

Six of the most powerful sects in the world were gathered here. Considering that the Nine Great Sects were treated as the rulers of the Jianghu with only ten sects, this was by no means a small force.

‘But it’s still not enough…’

Crack. Crack.

Cheong-myeong twisted his neck from side to side.

“Well, that’s something we can fill in from now on.”

It wasn’t that difficult. Just as Mount Hua had grown, they could grow these sects as well, couldn’t they? Of course, there was no time to grow them slowly, so it would be a little extreme, and it would be a painful experience for those who were on the receiving end…

“It’s all for their own good, so they should understand. What are they going to do if they don’t understand?”

“Huh?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Cheong-myeong chuckled as if he was already enjoying himself.

He looked like a child who had gotten his hands on an interesting toy, which made Maeng So feel uneasy for no reason.