Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1283

“Everyone’s here,” someone said.

“Yes. Almost time.”

Hainan disciples filled the ship’s deck. All eyes stared at the land getting closer.

Gangnam.

Faces tightened. It wasn’t their first time in Gangnam. Before the peace pact, they came to the mainland often. They even passed through Gangnam on the way to the Mount Song tournament.

But Gangnam then was like sunshine. Gangnam now was like a dark night. Everything had changed.

‘In the end….’

Guo Huan-so bit his lip.

They had a long way to go – two thousand five hundred li to the Yangtze River. Evil groups waited for them, ready to attack.

‘Is it really possible?’

He felt cold sweat on his back.

Thinking about it was one thing, but doing it was another. He thought he was ready, but now, seeing Gangnam, his body was tense.

Guo Huan-so turned around. The other Hainan disciples looked worried too. He guessed the disciples on the other ships felt the same.

‘Don’t relax.’

Guo Huan-so opened and closed his fists. If he didn’t move, he felt like he would suffocate.

‘It’s normal to be nervous. It would be strange if I wasn’t.’

Guo Huan-so was about to breathe out when—

“Looks like we’re almost there.”

Im So-byeong walked to the deck, opened his fan, and started waving it. Namgung Dowi asked carefully,

“Did we arrive on time?”

“Kheeugh.”

Im So-byeong groaned and closed his fan. He sighed.

“We’re a bit late, actually.”

“…Is that so?”

Im So-byeong nodded.

“We should have been here three hours ago, according to the plan… Then we could have moved as we wanted to.”

“……”

“Why did the wind have to blow against us? It’s driving me crazy. Even a great planner like me can’t guess the wind!”

“Zhuge Liang could even summon the wind…”

Namgung Dowi’s comment made Im So-byeong’s face twitch.

“If I were Zhuge Liang, would I be standing here like this?”

“Ah, no. I didn’t mean you weren’t able. I just…”

“Then why can’t you do any better? If your father was here, he would have blasted those demons to bits on the coast!”

“Ah…”

“What?”

“I didn’t know you thought so highly of my father. Thank you.”

“…Is this kid serious?”

“Yes?”

“Ahem!”

Im So-byeong cleared his throat and looked away. This guy was becoming hard to deal with.

He looked back at Gangnam, his face serious.

It looked big, but it was a long, narrow area near the sea. Not a good place to land.

The landing spot was easy to see, and to get inland, they had to go through a three-hundred-li path. Only one way to go.

Strategists would hate this place. It would give them nightmares.

“Are we really landing there?”

Im So-byeong answered the question.

“Why? What’s wrong? We swam there before, didn’t we?”

“I don’t know much, but isn’t it different now? They didn’t know we were coming then… and the direction…”

“Hoo-ooo?”

Im So-byeong looked surprised.

“Ah, so you know a little about strategy?”

“……”

“Impressive. You know strategy. I heard that to become the head of your clan, you need to know strategy, poetry, calligraphy, and painting?”

“Not really. Just a little…”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.”

Im So-byeong waved his fan quickly.

“That’s why! People who learn a little are more trouble!”

“……”

“If you didn’t know anything, you’d just be quiet like those guys in the back, thinking, ‘Okay, we’re landing there.’ But people who learn a little always interfere, thinking they know everything!”

“…Ah, no, that’s not it.”

“That’s how rulers ruin countries! They always say, ‘I know about it, so I know! My strategy is different!’”

“I, I was just giving my opinion…”

“Oh? Honestly! If learning it made you good at strategy, why did your father charge to the Yangtze River! Did he skip those lessons or something?”

“D-don’t talk about my father like that! He did it with his heart, not his head! With his heart!”

“Heart? That’s nonsense!”

“Don’t insult my father!”

Guo Huan-so watched, feeling lost.

‘Even now, they’re acting like that.’

He thought everyone would be nervous. But maybe not. Or maybe they just weren’t smart.

“Tsk.”

Im So-byeong clicked his tongue and fanned himself.

“Well, you’re not entirely wrong.”

“Right, so…”

“That’s if you think about it roughly!”

“……”

“Why shouldn’t we land where the enemy expects? Because they can prepare traps and defenses, right?”

Namgung Dowi nodded. Im So-byeong shouted,

“There are no troops to build those defenses! They’re all back in Hainan!”

“Ah…”

“If we wait to land, those defenses will appear! The most important thing isn’t logic, it’s timing! What’s right now will be wrong later. Understand?”

Namgung Dowi nodded like he understood. But he still had a question.

“…Then why did you say you were frustrated earlier?”

“Because I am frustrated!”

“Yes?”

Im So-byeong looked annoyed and glared at Gangnam.

“If we had arrived three hours earlier, we could have burned down the Myriad Man headquarters in Guangdong.”

“……”

“Then Jang Il-so’s face would have been funny! But the heavens are against me. Why the wind at a time like this…”

“…Is this the time for that?”

“Why? I’m still a person! Every time Jang Il-so attacks us, my stomach hurts! He’s half the reason I’m not healthy!”

“What about the other half?”

“The Mount Hua Sword Saint, who else.”

…It was nonsense, but it made sense…

“Kheeugh. What a shame.”

Im So-byeong sighed and complained.

He didn’t just want to burn down the headquarters to vent. Burning a headquarters was a big deal.

Look at Mount Hua.

Even though they lost their leaders, no one said Mount Hua was ruined. It was only after the Demonic Sect burned down Mount Hua’s halls that people said Mount Hua was completely ruined.

The halls were important. They meant something. If they burned down the Myriad Man Clan’s headquarters, it would hurt Jang Il-so’s control…

“Tsk. Nothing can be done.”

It was impossible now. If they tried to burn down the headquarters, everyone would die. He had to give up.

“Listen up!”

Im So-byeong raised his voice, and everyone looked at him.

Guo Huan-so swallowed. He didn’t trust Im So-byeong, who was from an evil sect. He never thought his strategies worked.

But Guo Huan-so listened because Cheong-myeong, Baek Cheon, Namgung Dowi, and the others listened to Im So-byeong.

That meant Im So-byeong was worth listening to.

‘So, a great strategy will come.’

Even though he was from an evil sect, he made the righteous leaders listen to him. He must have a great…

“After we land, there’s no strategy.”

“Uh…”

That wasn’t it… It was supposed to be great…

“Don’t be clever, just run. We need to go as far as we can before those evil guys stop us!”

Guo Huan-so shouted,

“W-wait! If we do that, they’ll know where we are!”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Yes?”

“They’re going to find out anyway, so we should go faster!”

Guo Huan-so was shocked.

‘Is he crazy?’

It didn’t make sense. But when he looked around, he saw despair.

“That makes sense.”

Cheong-myeong grinned.

“It’s simple, which is good.”

Baek Cheon nodded.

“It’s reasonable.”

Even Namgung Dowi agreed.

Guo Huan-so felt strange.

‘Are they really going to do this?’

This crazy plan?

“W-wait!”

“What is it now?”

Guo Huan-so tried to think. He had to say something smart.

“W-what if we get surrounded? We can’t go back!”

“What?”

Cheong-myeong answered.

“Do you think the Evil Sect Alliance is a joke? If we sneak around, we won’t get surrounded?”

“That’s…”

“If you’re going to cause trouble, you should be ready to be surrounded.”

“Ah, no. I can be ready, but what will you do if we get surrounded?”

“What do you mean?”

Cheong-myeong puffed out his chest.

“We’ll think about it when we get there!”

Guo Huan-so felt despair. But the others seemed to agree.

“It’s reasonable.”

“It’s a good plan.”

“There’s no other way.”

The Heavenly Union members nodded. Guo Huan-so wanted to cry. Maybe they should turn back…

“Then, should we land?”

“Of course. But…”

Im So-byeong grinned and looked at the coast.

“Even if they don’t have troops, they’ll have eyes, so we should give them a gift.”

“Huh? A gift?”

Im So-byeong looked evil.