Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1279

Swoosh! Rough waves hit the ship, splashing white foam.

Chung Myung watched the sea with tired eyes.

How frustrating.

If he was running, he could run faster. If he had a horse, he could make it go faster. But the ship moved only with the wind. He couldn’t make it speed up.

So, until he arrived in Gangnam, he would have to waste time like this.

This just doesn’t suit me.

Being slow on a ship was normal. But Chung Myung felt annoyed. Maybe he was not patient enough to be a Taoist.

“Thinking hard?” a voice asked.

Chung Myung turned. Im So-byeong, the Green Forest King, was walking towards him with a sly grin.

“Or maybe you’re not thinking at all.”

“…”

“Which is it?”

“More like this, I think?”

Chung Myung pointed to his fist, and the Green Forest King stepped back a little.

Chung Myung chuckled and looked at the sea again. He gazed at Gangnam, far away.

“How long will it take?”

“Well, at this speed, we should arrive by midnight.”

“That’s longer than I thought.”

“Well, you could swim, since you are so good at it, but…”

Im So-byeong looked at the deck. The Hae Nam disciples were sitting in groups, resting. They looked like tired horses.

“That would completely wear them out.”

“Hmm.”

Chung Myung sighed softly. Im So-byeong watched him with a strange smile.

“Are you really okay with this?”

Chung Myung didn’t answer. Im So-byeong continued as if he didn’t expect one.

“Of course, I just do what I’m told, but aren’t you the one who is responsible?”

“Anyone listening would think you don’t care about dying.”

“If a leader is bad, it’s normal for a strategist to die. That’s just part of being a strategist.”

“…Is that something the Green Forest King should be saying?”

“Green Forest King or whatever, what does it matter? That’s the role I think suits me in the Cheonwoo Alliance.”

Chung Myung chuckled. He really was unique.

But, from Im So-byeong’s view, Chung Myung was the strange one.

“Of course, I know you have a reason for everything, but…”

Im So-byeong looked at the Hae Nam disciples with a cold look.

“I don’t know. Will bringing these weak people really help us?”

“…”

“If we can bring Hae Nam, one of the Nine Great Sects, into the Cheonwoo Alliance, it would look good. But, you know, a cause is only good if it makes us stronger in the end.”

Im So-byeong’s expression was strange as he went on.

“I don’t think people who want quick wins over long-term goals are wrong.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Nothing really.”

Im So-byeong shrugged.

“I’m just wondering. Is it really helpful to save these clumsy people? They can barely use a sword, and they are already tired like they fought a huge war.”

Chung Myung looked at the Hae Nam disciples. They looked completely worn out.

It made sense. These people had never seen blood before. Now, they had seen people’s heads cut off and body parts flying. It would be strange if they were not shocked. This world is scary.

But Chung Myung knew Im So-byeong was right.

Making excuses didn’t change things. Chung Myung had to get through Gangnam with these young people who didn’t even know what the fight was about. Gangnam, where the Four Evil Sects are strong.

“If you’re going to argue, argue now.”

“Have you ever listened to me when I argue?”

Im So-byeong scratched his chin with his fan.

“Strategists hate wasting time. Arguing when it won’t change anything is pointless. It just makes your throat sore.”

Chung Myung stared at Im So-byeong.

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No…”

Chung Myung shook his head.

“It just feels like I’ve heard those words before.”

“How many times could it have been?”

“That’s true.”

What’s the point of saying anything? You’re going to do whatever you want anyway! I’d have better luck talking to a wall!

Chung Myung chuckled. He remembered Cheongjin, his face red with anger.

It seemed Chung Myung hadn’t changed much. He thought he had changed a lot.

“Still, maybe things would change if you spoke up.”

“Maybe.”

Im So-byeong looked at Chung Myung with a strange look.

“If it was just stubbornness, maybe that would be the case.”

“…”

“But it doesn’t seem like simple stubbornness.”

Chung Myung smiled and shook his head.

“You think too highly of me.”

“Of course, maybe you’re right. Actually, I know you probably are.”

What’s with this guy? Chung Myung glared at Im So-byeong, who looked at the sea and pretending to be innocent.

Then he spoke quietly again.

“Even so, I can’t stop you.”

“Why?”

Im So-byeong paused, then suddenly changed the subject.

“When I was young, I always wondered about something when I read old stories or history.”

“What is it?”

“The smartest people would suffer under foolish leaders, and then die.”

“…”

“Strategists are the smartest people. Shouldn’t their ideas be the closest to the truth?”

“That’s right.”

“But leaders always ignored them, which led to disaster. Then they would say, ‘I should have listened to that advice.”

“Are you criticizing me now?”

“Tsk. Just listen to the end.”

Chung Myung glared, but Im So-byeong went on.

“The biggest question I had was this.”

“…Why don’t the leaders listen?”

“That’s not it. Leaders are just foolish people who don’t listen. That’s how they become leaders. Why blame them for being foolish? They’re just stupid… Ah, no! I’m not insulting you! Put your fist down!”

“…Be careful.”

Chung Myung was not happy, and Im So-byeong grinned.

“Anyway, that’s not what bothered me. I couldn’t understand why the smartest people would suffer under them, doing illogical things. They could just start their own groups.”

Chung Myung chuckled.

“So?”

“So, I thought I shouldn’t do that. I should create my own group that listens to me and defeat all the groups led by those foolish people!”

“Is that why you became the Green Forest King?”

“Well… I kind of inherited it.”

He did inherit it, but he could have avoided it if he wanted to. But he didn’t. He wanted to do something himself.

“So? Then you should have done what you wanted.”

“Yes. I did. But I soon realized how silly my dream was.”

Im So-byeong clicked his tongue, annoyed.

“What’s the point of saying the right things? They don’t listen. Even if you tell them the right way, they say it’s nonsense from someone who only reads books.”

“…”

“Persuasion? I can do it. I’ve tried. But people don’t think they might be wrong. Even if you tell them nine right things, they’ll focus on the one thing that’s wrong and say everything you say is wrong. I swear, I just want to…”

“You can’t win, can you?”

“…So I put up with it.”

Chung Myung patted Im So-byeong’s shoulders.

“You’ve suffered.”

“…You have no idea.”

Chung Myung chuckled at Im So-byeong’s pale face.

Im So-byeong was a good fighter. But he wasn’t as good as you’d expect from a Green Forest King. Also, he had been sick and couldn’t use his full strength.

In the Green Forest, where only the strong survive, more than anywhere else, how much power did Im So-byeong have?

It was clear he had gone through hardships. At first, only the Green Corps, who were loyal to the old leader, would have treated Im So-byeong like the Green Forest King.

“But as you got older and stronger, your voice would have been louder, right?”

“If I just wanted to live well in the Green Forest, maybe. But what would change? I’d just be a foolish Green Forest King who was worse than the old one.”

“I guess.”

Im So-byeong stared at Chung Myung.

“That’s when I saw you. Someone who said nonsense, made foolish choices, took crazy risks, and was just a fool who was going to die in the streets… Ah, no. I meant in the past! Cough! Cough! Oh dear, I’m getting sick…”

“…”

“And yet!”

Im So-byeong grinned.

“There was someone who made foolish decisions and walked into danger, but the people around him followed him.”

“…”

“That’s when I realized. Ah. That kind of person exists.”

Chung Myung shook his head with a bitter smile.

“You’re still overestimating me.”

“Of course, probably.”

What’s with this guy?

“But you know.”

“Yeah?”

“It seems I’m not the only one who overestimates you?”

Im So-byeong pointed to the Hae Nam disciples. Chung Myung looked at them.

“They were living well in Hae Nam, but now they are leaving and walking into danger because some guy they don’t even know showed them a path. They want to die there.”

“…”

“Do you think that makes sense?”

“Because that’s the right thing to do.”

“That’s what’s important.”

Im So-byeong chuckled.

“If people only did the right thing, there would be no wars. If people knew the right thing, the world would be good. But what is the world really like?”

“…”

“You don’t show people a great path that they don’t know.”

Im So-byeong grinned.

“You make people walk the path that everyone knows but no one dares to take.”

Im So-byeong looked past Chung Myung towards Gangnam.

“Even if that path leads to death.”

Chung Myung’s face hardened.