Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1363

Spoons scraped against the bottoms of empty bowls. *Click. Click.*

Someone swallowed loudly. *Gulp.*

The sound of spoons grew faster and louder. *Click. Click. Click. Click.*

…*Gulp.* Another loud swallow.

Then, the pots rattled on the fire! *Rattle! Rattle! Rattle!*

“Well…”

The villager, who had been watching the large pot, could not wait any longer. He slowly turned around. The people with spoons and empty bowls were standing there, their mouths watering, swallowing hard as they watched the pot.

“It needs to steam a little longer…”

“We can eat it even if it’s not fully steamed…”

“Still, rice, you know, it needs to steam…”

“We can even eat raw rice.”

The villager’s face twisted strangely.

“Ahem.”

Geum Yang-baek, who had been watching the scene, cleared his throat, looking embarrassed.

“Is it… not okay to eat it now?”

“We can eat it, but if you haven’t had proper food for a long time, you might get sick from eating undercooked rice…”

“Our disciples are martial artists, so they should be fine.”

Hearing this, the villager nodded reluctantly.

“Yes, well, if that’s the case…. Then give me your bowls…”

“We can eat!”

“Get out of the way!”

“I was standing in front! Go to the back!”

“Aargh, who is it! Who grabbed my face!”

The Hainan disciples rushed towards the pot like hungry ghosts. A tremendous amount of white steam poured out of the pot as the lid was thrown open. But the Hainan disciples, instead of backing down from the heat, charged forward even more fiercely, scooping up rice by the bowlful.

“Ah, oh my, what is this….”

The villager, half-thrown aside, blinked and stared at the scene.

They said they were important guests from the South Sea, but they were no different from beggars. No, even beggars would have slowly backed away if they saw this.

“Aargh! I told you not to push!”

“Get out of the way!”

“Hey, who took all of it! Do you want to die!”

Faced with that terrible sight, the villager shook his head with a sad feeling and said,

“Well… we have several pots going, so if you wait a little longer….”

“That’s right! We can eat that!”

“Yes?”

The Hainan disciples soon began running towards the other pots. The firewood was burning fiercely under the pots, but to these people, who could now treat hellfire as a warm fireplace, such fire was no problem.

The lids of the boiling pots opened one after another, and white steam rose throughout the village.

It looked as if they had been attacked by bandits.

Watching the scene, Hyeong-wook blankly turned to Baek Cheon. Baek Cheon cautiously avoided his gaze and coughed awkwardly.

“They were just very hungry….”

“…”

“Please understand. They are not usually like this.”

“…Yes.”

Baek Cheon awkwardly scratched his reddened face. He didn’t know that those Hainan fellows would throw away all pretense so quickly.

Those who had scooped up rice sat down on the spot without even looking for a proper place and shoved the rice into their mouths.

“Ah, this is the taste of living.”

“I almost died from only being able to eat unsalted meat for a while.”

“People have to eat grains to live!”

“It would be perfect with some grilled fish.”

“Why are you talking like you’re full? Don’t you eat!”

“No! Who said they were full! Give me back my rice!”

Lee Ja-yang, who had been watching the scene, sighed deeply.

‘Still, they shouldn’t be sitting on the ground.’

To think that the disciples of the Great Hainan Sect were sitting on the ground in this village, practically eating rice with their hands. He was afraid of who might see this….

“Ja-yang, senior brother. If you’re not going to eat this, can I….”

“Don’t touch my rice! Your hand will fly off!”

“…”

A strange silence filled the air. Lee Ja-yang tried to avoid his junior brother’s gaze and cleared his throat.

…Being embarrassed is one thing, but being hungry is another.

He awkwardly picked up his bowl and was about to eat when Kwak Hwan-so, who still hadn’t scooped up any rice, caught his eye.

“Senior brother, please eat.”

“Hmm. I’ll eat a little later.”

“Later? Will there be any rice left for you by then?”

Lee Ja-yang snapped, and Kwak Hwan-so chuckled.

Kwak Hwan-so’s gaze was fixed on the pot placed in the far corner. Lee Ja-yang, realizing this, sighed softly.

That wasn’t a pot for cooking rice, but a pot for boiling gruel to feed the injured.

“I know how you feel, but you need to eat first and gain strength to treat the injured.”

“I know. I’ll make sure to eat, so don’t worry.”

Lee Ja-yang’s expression became somewhat awkward.

‘I didn’t even think of that….’

He had been worried about the image of the Hainan Sect, but Kwak Hwan-so was taking care of the injured who couldn’t properly eat in the midst of all this.

Even those whom the sect leader hadn’t been able to pay attention to.

Now, there was no need to bother comparing who was the bigger person between him and Kwak Hwan-so. And….

“Senior brother! Try some of this.”

“If you don’t like rice, how about this? The villagers gave it to us, and it’s good for a light meal.”

“What are you talking about! You need to eat a proper meal!”

“Ah, no. It’s because senior brother said he wasn’t going to eat…. You can always eat later….”

The other Hainan disciples, hearing that the senior disciple was not eating, put down their bowls and flocked to Kwak Hwan-so in a hubbub.

“I’m fine, so finish your meals.”

“How can we when the senior disciple isn’t eating….”

“Don’t worry about me. I still have energy.”

“Still….”

It wasn’t simply because his position was senior disciple. Though it was a blasphemous thought, even if the Hainan sect leader, Geum Yang-baek, had done the same thing in this situation, it would not have been easy to get the same reaction.

They had overcome hardships to get here, and now they all knew how much Kwak Hwan-so cared for them, and how much he was giving up for them. So, without anyone telling them, they naturally worried about and cared for Kwak Hwan-so.

Kwak Hwan-so smiled at the people who had gathered around him.

“You guys really have no sense. If you eat rice now, you’ll have to eat the coarse mixed grains later, won’t you?”

“Yes?”

“If you eat what the patients are eating, you can eat fine white rice, so it’s a win.”

“Ah, is that what you were thinking?”

“Wow…. This is what a senior disciple is.”

Kwak Hwan-so’s joke brightened the atmosphere.

“So, everyone, finish what you were eating. And take care of the Cheonwu Alliance people too.”

“Yes. We will, senior brother.”

Baek Cheon, having looked around the yard, entered the village chief’s house and stared at the old man Hyeong sitting before him.

The old man bowed deeply to Baek Cheon.

“First of all… I don’t remember anything, but I heard that you saved and treated someone ignorant like me. I don’t know how to repay this kindness….”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Baek Cheon scratched his cheek, looking a little embarrassed.

“I should have left it at that, but I’m embarrassed to shamelessly show my face again like this.”

“What are you saying! I should be thanking you for giving me the chance to repay your great kindness even a little bit.”

Old man Hyeong repeatedly bowed to Baek Cheon.

Hyeong-wook, watching the scene, frowned slightly without realizing it.

Until recently, his father didn’t seem so friendly to them. Of course, he always said he was grateful for saving his life, but there was a subtle distance in his heart.

But now, the way old man Hyeong treated Baek Cheon was as if he were looking at a god from the heavens. The excessive bowing felt uncomfortable.

At that moment, old man Hyeong, who was bowing as if he would smash his forehead into the ground, cautiously looked at Baek Cheon and opened his mouth.

“So, um… you said you needed grain?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Baek Cheon quietly nodded.

“It would be right to explain the situation in detail, but we cannot stay here for long.”

“…”

“We will pay fairly. So, please give us the grain you have.”

Baek Cheon bowed deeply. Hyeong-wook, who was next to old man Hyeong, was startled and tried to stop him.

“Sir, why are you doing this! Of course, we should give you the grain! What price is needed to share grain with the benefactor who saved our lives? Please don’t do this….”

“You stay still.”

But old man Hyeong subtly stopped Hyeong-wook. Hyeong-wook, flustered, said,

“No, Father. This is naturally….”

“I said stay still!”

Hyeong-wook was quite flustered and blankly stared at old man Hyeong. But his father’s eyes were more determined and cold than usual, so he had no choice but to bow his head. After all, the village chief of this village was his father.

“Ahem.”

Old man Hyeong cleared his throat softly, as if to smooth over the awkward atmosphere.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t mention it.”

“Well….”

The old man opened his mouth, watching Baek Cheon’s expression.

“I understand what you said. We are people too, so of course, we should do that for you.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

“However….”

The old man sighed deeply.

“As you know, this year, everything we farmed has dried up because of the extreme drought, so we are also struggling to survive. If you take the grain, we will have no way to get through the winter.”

“I know. That’s why we are trying to give you fair payment. We will give you a good price for the grain, so you can buy grain from nearby Hyeongyang.”

Old man Hyeong bowed deeply, as if to say thank you for thinking so much about them.

“It’s an act of repaying kindness, and you’re even giving us a price, so I’m truly grateful.”

Baek Cheon’s expression became even more awkward.

In fact, he was not used to such excessive politeness. He now understood what it meant when people said that too much politeness can make the receiver uncomfortable.

At that moment, old man Hyeong looked at Baek Cheon with a strange expression.

“However, sir. There is one thing I would like to ask.”

“Yes?”

“Are you… perhaps being chased by those terrible people?”

Baek Cheon hesitated for a moment before answering. It wasn’t something he could hide even if he tried.

“Yes. That’s right. But….”

“Oh my…! Please save us! I beg you!”

At that moment, old man Hyeong screamed and fell to the floor. Baek Cheon’s eyes widened.

“W-Why are you suddenly doing this!”

“If those ruthless fellows find out that we gave you grain, not a single one of us will survive!”

“Ah…. You don’t have to worry about that. That’s why we completely erased any trace of us being here. And money doesn’t have names on it….”

Baek Cheon said, trying to smile as calmly as possible, but old man Hyeong repeatedly slammed his head on the floor before he could even finish his words.

Thud!

“Please!”

Baek Cheon’s face slightly twisted with shock. The old man’s plea continued.

“Please think of it as saving these wretched people once and for all, and wouldn’t you please take the grain from somewhere else? I’ll tell you about another nearby village. Please….”

“…”

“If, by any chance, the fact that we did such a thing becomes known to others, we will all die. You may be able to erase the traces, but you can’t seal people’s mouths, can you?”

Baek Cheon opened his mouth to say something, but old man Hyeong spoke first.

“Please.”

With tears wetting his wrinkled eyes, the old man looked at Baek Cheon with a desperate expression. The moment he saw that, Baek Cheon felt all his strength leave his body.

The old man bowed his head and said,

“You don’t need to pay for the grain you’ve already eaten. So, please take everyone and leave this place as soon as possible. I beg you!”

Baek Cheon involuntarily squeezed his eyes shut.