Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1247

The Great War Hall was silent after the Heavenly Union Alliance left. The remaining elders were in stunned silence. Dust motes danced in the faint light from the high windows. The banners of Hae Nam, once proud, now hung limp and faded.

It wasn’t just sadness that weighed them down. It was the loss of all hope. What they had just seen – the Alliance leaving without a fight – had crushed even the smallest spark of hope. They were truly alone.

“Haaah…,”

Breaking the silence, a sigh escaped from Geum Yang-baek.

“As soon as the storm subsides, order the disciples to descend the mountain.”

“…Haven’t you already done so?”

“Some disciples still care about Hae Nam. When they truly see what is happening, some will want to leave.”

“⋯⋯.”

“The same goes for the elders.”

Geum Yang-baek turned to face the elders as he spoke.

“Just because you have been with Hae Nam for so long doesn’t mean you have to stay until the end. If you want to leave, you can. No one will blame you.”

At those words, several elders grumbled.

“Where can we go? We’re as good as dead anyway. Without our martial arts, we can’t even weave nets. Going home would just make us a burden.”

“That’s right, Sect Leader. Even our grandchildren wouldn’t want a Hae Nam Sect member in their homes. They’d be afraid of the Firestorm Squad. How could we go back to our families?”

Geum Yang-baek chuckled sadly.

“Maybe you should have behaved better before.”

“…You should have given us time to behave better before saying that.”

The atmosphere was less heavy than one might expect.

Before, when they thought they could fight, everyone argued and showed their anger. But now, they know there’s no hope left. Even their anger seems to have disappeared.

“What should we do with the martial arts of those who want to leave?”

“…They have to be crippled.”

“Is that really necessary…?”

Geum Yang-baek shook his head.

“It’s not because I hate them, but because I’m worried about them. The Firestorm Squad, that Jang Il-so, is attacking Hae Nam first because he doesn’t want to leave any threats behind. Do you think he’ll just let those who know our martial arts go?”

“⋯⋯.”

“Jang Il-so won’t bother hunting down those who are kicked out and can’t use martial arts. He may be cruel, but he’s not stupid. He knows the value of men who can work.”

The elders’ eyes were sad. It made sense, but if that happened, no one in the world would know Hae Nam’s martial arts anymore.

They couldn’t forget what they knew, but they knew it was almost impossible to teach martial arts without showing any moves. They could see what would happen to Hae Nam after they were gone.

“Let’s not have false hope.”

Geum Yang-baek spoke to himself, understanding how the elders felt.

“If the heavens are watching, they’ll find a way for our teachings to continue. Who knows? Maybe one day, Hae Nam will be even greater than it is now, like Mount Hua.”

“That is right, Sect Leader.”

“It will be so.”

Geum Yang-baek smiled bitterly as he listened to the elders.

He said those words, but he knew it was unlikely to happen.

Rumble.

The sound of thunder made Geum Yang-baek look at the window. The wind and rain were still strong.

‘I wish the storm would never end.’

With a sad look, he gazed out before turning away, forlorn.

“…So, it just ended like that?”

The disciples, soaked to the bone, stared at Gwak Hwan-so, not even wiping the water off.

“No, Senior Brother. We came all the way from Gangbuk, and you’re saying there was no plan? What was the point of…”

“Why are you blaming Senior Brother?”

Lee Ja-yang snapped irritably.

“If you want to complain, go complain to those Heavenly Union Alliance guys. You don’t have the guts to do that, so why are you picking on Senior Brother?”

“No, that’s not it…”

“What do you mean, that’s not it! It’s obvious…”

“Enough.”

Gwak Hwan-so gently grabbed Lee Ja-yang’s shoulder to stop him.

“They’re just frustrated.”

Gwak Hwan-so sighed and said.

“It seems even the Heavenly Union Alliance didn’t expect the Firestorm Squad to attack so quickly.”

“No, how could they…”

“We’ve been watching the Firestorm Squad and the coast, but it’s hard for those in Gangbuk to know what’s happening here, right?”

“⋯⋯.”

“They were probably surprised by the Firestorm Squad gathering on the coast. But they still came, so we should be grateful.”

Gwak Hwan-so chuckled.

He didn’t usually defend others. He might have been the first to criticize them. But he didn’t feel angry at them now.

It wasn’t about reason. It was just that the wine they had shared the night before stayed in his heart.

‘How strange.’

How long had it been since he felt this way?

He had been hurt by the Central Plains’ neglect for so long. That’s why he felt affection for those who had come all the way here.

“There’s no point in being angry at them. Didn’t they do what they could?”

“Frankly, I don’t know what they did! If this was going to happen, they shouldn’t have come at all. They just got our hopes up…”

“Let’s not say that.”

Gwak Hwan-so said sadly.

“Your father was a sailor, right?”

“…Yes.”

“Then you know that sometimes, a father takes his son on a ship to show him the sea, but they get caught in a typhoon and never return.”

“I know.”

“The sea is cruel, not the father. Even if they both die, can you say the father was foolish and blame him?”

“…I understand, Senior Brother.”

He said that out of frustration, but the other Hae Nam disciples didn’t really hate the Heavenly Union Alliance. They were grateful.

After all, they were the only ones who had come to them after everyone else had ignored them for three years.

They had told Hae Nam, who had been abandoned by everyone, that they would join them.

When they felt that no one needed the Hae Nam Sect, they had said, ‘We need you.’

“Ja-yang.”

“Yes.”

“When the storm stops, find a strong ship and get it ready. So they can leave right away.”

“…Do we have to do that much for them?”

Lee Ja-yang grumbled, but after seeing Gwak Hwan-so’s face, he sighed.

“We’ll do it. We just have to do it.”

“Yes. I’m asking you a favor.”

The person who usually complained the most was acting like this, so Lee Ja-yang couldn’t complain anymore.

“And, just in case, prepare two or three more ships.”

“What? There are only ten of them, why do we need more ships?”

“There will be those who don’t want to die, but don’t want to leave Hae Nam and live in Hae Nam.”

“…Senior Brother.”

“Just prepare them. That’s all.”

Lee Ja-yang bit his lip.

“…I understand.”

“Good.”

Gwak Hwan-so closed his eyes.

‘Those who want to run away….’

Maybe he was talking about himself. If he could, he wanted to run away right now.

To a place where he could live.

But he couldn’t. He was Hae Nam’s eldest disciple. If someone had to die for Hae Nam, it had to be Gwak Hwan-so.

“Everyone, think carefully.”

“Senior Brother. We…”

“Don’t say anything you’ll regret.”

Gwak Hwan-so got up and went outside.

The other disciples watched him and left, sighing.

“…It’s just like Senior Brother said.”

Go Hong was amazed.

Yoo Gong was right that there was nothing they could do. Even the Sect Leader and the elders hadn’t given up hope.

“You’re amazing.”

Yoo Gong was calm about the situation, which made Go Hong feel relieved. If he was leaving the sect, Go Hong’s choice must be right too.

But Yoo Gong didn’t show any emotion, unlike Go Hong.

“…So that’s what happened?”

“Yes. The Sect Leader said that when the storm stops, he’ll kick out those who are leaving the sect. But they have to cripple their martial arts.”

“That’s the right thing to do.”

“It’s sad to lose our martial arts… but what can we do? It’s better than dying.”

Yoo Gong nodded.

He had expected this. If they went home with their martial arts, it would be more dangerous.

They had to become unimportant. They had to become nobodies so the Firestorm Squad wouldn’t bother them.

They had to live first, so they could do something later, right?

“But how did you know? Those important people came, but they didn’t have any plans.”

“It’s not that they don’t have plans.”

“What?”

“It’s just that the Firestorm Squad is too fast and scary.”

Go Hong tilted his head, confused, but Yoo Gong was staring at the rain.

It was as he had expected. Nothing had changed.

He couldn’t hope for anything, so he thought it would turn out this way.

So it was a good thing. Unnecessary things could mess things up. If they had brought even a small army, the Sect Leader might have had hope and made everyone fight the Firestorm Squad instead of letting the disciples leave.

It was good that things were going as planned.

‘I don’t know. Why am I so bitter?’

– You’ve held on well, kid.

Those words kept ringing in his ears. The young man’s words were stuck in his mind.

“What are those Heavenly Union Alliance guys doing?”

“They’re hiding in their rooms. They must be ashamed.”

“…I guess so.”

Yoo Gong nodded slowly.

Nothing had changed. Everything would go as planned.

The storm would stop tomorrow, and they would leave, and the Firestorm Squad would destroy Hae Nam. Those who stayed with Hae Nam would die, and those who chose to live, like Yoo Gong and Go Hong, would ignore the screams and leave.

The Hae Nam Sect would disappear forever.

“Stupidly…”

“Yes?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

Yoo Gong shook his head.

“Prepare now. The Sect Leader isn’t in a hurry, but we are. We need to leave right after the ceremony so we don’t have any problems.”

“Yes, that… Brother.”

“…Call me Senior Brother for now.”

“Ah… Yes, I will.”

Go Hong scratched his head.

That night, the storm was even stronger than before, as if it was trying to hold on to Hae Nam.

But when the sun rose the next day…