Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1380

1379. The preparations are now complete.

A thick darkness dropped over the riverside, swallowing the last light of day. The air was cool, but sweat beaded on the foreheads of the men waiting there. They were strong men, dressed in worn, patched clothes, and they paced back and forth like caged animals. Their feet tapped a nervous rhythm on the ground.

“Could they be lost?” one muttered, wiping his brow.

“Lost? Impossible!” another replied sharply. “This information came straight from the main branch itself!”

A third beggar shifted his weight, glancing upriver. “It’s just… the Shaolin left ages ago, didn’t they? Even if they’re fast, they shouldn’t be *this* late.”

“There has to be a reason,” a fourth voice said, quieter this time.

“Reason? Isn’t this about saving the Mount Hua Sword Saint?” the first beggar exclaimed, his voice rising. “What could the Heavenly Union Lord think is more important? Even if Mount Hua itself was on fire, he’d rush to save that Sword Saint first! Why is he taking so long?”

“Just wait,” the second beggar said, though his own voice was tight with worry. “Wait a little longer!”

“Ugh,” the first beggar groaned, kicking at a loose stone.

The beggars craned their necks, peering upriver.

It was then.

“T-there they come, the Heavenly Union!”

“Bloody hell, what took them so long!”

Spotting the approaching group in the distance, the beggars hurried towards them.

“Where are they?”

“Not in the front, I don’t think… There, there! Branch Leader!”

The beggars, upon spotting Hong Daegwang amidst the group, began to shout loudly.

“Hua-eum Branch Leader! Here! Over here!”

Hong Daegwang scanned his surroundings at the loud noise.

“What is it!”

He saw the group of beggars waving their hands wildly from the riverside. They were all shouting the same thing to Hong Daegwang.

“Branch Leader, the report…!”

“I don’t have time to stop and listen! You lot come here, you bastards!”

Hong Daegwang snapped, cutting them off. The beggars flinched and hurried towards him.

“Branch Leader! Situation report!”

“I know, just spit it out!”

“H-here? But this place…”

The beggars glanced around nervously, troubled expressions on their faces. The Heavenly Union members who had come with Hong Daegwang filled the area. If they didn’t move, they would have no choice but to reveal the information.

Hong Daegwang noticed their hesitation, but instead of understanding, he grew even angrier.

“Are you beggars always this slow? You’re so useless you’ll starve! Are you going to speak or what?”

“T-there are people listening…”

“If you’re not going to talk, then get lost! Don’t waste my time.”

“Ugh… I’ll tell you!”

In the end, the beggars reluctantly opened their mouths, as if in pain.

Normally, a branch leader from a small place like Hua-eum wouldn’t speak so loudly to members of the main branch.

However, Hong Daegwang was no ordinary branch leader. He was a key figure being considered as the next Beggar Clan leader, and also the only beggar who could easily talk to Mount Hua, the most talked-about sect in the world.

Therefore, even those from the main branch had to give way… No, several steps back.

“First, this is an order from the Clan Leader: do not act with the Heavenly Union, and…”

The beggar, unsure of what to do, rolled his eyes back and forth before finally squeezing them shut and speaking.

“T-to move towards the Nine Sects…”

He tried his best to keep it from the others, but it was no use.

“What? The Nine Sects? He wants me to side with the Nine Sects?”

“B-Branch Leader, please, keep your voice down…”

“Is that old geezer really losing it? Sending people to deliver such ridiculous nonsense? Forget it, next!”

“B-but this is an order from the Clan Leader…”

“I said next!”

A quiet sigh escaped from the beggar’s lips as he reported.

Hong Daegwang was never an ordinary Beggar Clan member, but ever since he started hanging around with that Mount Hua Sword Saint, he seemed to have lost all common sense.

“H-currently, the Waterway Band is heading towards Nanjing…”

“Hey, you beggar bastard!”

Hong Daegwang reached out and smacked the back of the reporter’s head with all his might.

Thwack!

“Aaargh! Why, why did you hit me…”

“Does the Yangtze River split into several branches? Is there another direction? Do those ships have another way to go!”

“…”

“Don’t say useless things, just tell me the important information! Before I kick you away.”

“Yes! T-there’s also intelligence that the remnants of the Black Ghost Squad, who were stationed east of the Jiangnan region, are also moving towards Nanjing!”

“…Black Ghost Squad?”

“Yes.”

Hong Daegwang’s face twisted for a moment.

The Black Ghost Squad, once known as one of the Five Supreme Powers of the Divine Land, was now a loyal servant of Jang Il-so.

‘The Waterway Band, the Black Ghost Squad, and even Jang Il-so himself leading the Myriad Man Manor towards Nanjing?’

The forces of the Myriad Man Manor that had headed to Hainan would also be moving north, meaning that at least sixty percent of the entire Evil Faction Alliance’s forces were gathering in Nanjing.

In terms of scale alone, it far surpassed the number of people gathered at the Black Dragon Stronghold during the Yangtze River Catastrophe. In the last hundred years, there had never been such a large force gathered in one place.

“That madman… Is he really going to do it?”

If things turned out this way, it was no longer a question of whether or not the Mount Hua Sword Saint could be rescued.

The orthodox sects based in the north of the river and the Evil Faction Alliance based in the south of the river could clash head-on with the great city of Nanjing in between.

War.

That was the word that flashed through Hong Daegwang’s mind.

Two forces clashing around the great city of Nanjing?

‘It definitely won’t end with just a short clash!’

Starting a fire is always the hardest part. But once it’s lit, spreading it is easy. During the Yangtze River Catastrophe, the Jiangnan Inviolability Treaty had been water thrown on the flames, but this time, no sect would accept such humiliation.

In the end, there would be no choice but to fight until one side was reduced to ashes.

‘Was this… Was this supposed to get this big?’

What on earth had started it all?

The ships of Gugiang being attacked? Or Jang Il-so moving himself?

‘No… It was before that.’

In the end, all of this had clearly been caused by the Mount Hua Sword Saint’s trip to Jiangnan. If he hadn’t gone to Hainan, Hainan might have been reduced to ashes, but it would have taken much longer for such a war to break out.

It wasn’t unheard of for a small thing to grow endlessly, but this was far beyond that level.

“What about us? What are the main branch beggars doing?”

“The main branch has also dispatched support troops to Nanjing!”

“Wait a minute. There are beggars on the Yangtze River right now.”

“That’s not enough, so they’re sending the Red Squad and the Blue Squad as well.”

“…This is insane…”

Hong Daegwang’s face turned even paler.

The information held by the Beggar Clan’s main branch was far more extensive than what a single branch leader could possess. The Beggar Clan used this information to understand the world.

The fact that the main branch was sending support meant that they believed there was a very high probability of a clash between the Evil Faction Alliance and the Nine Sects in Nanjing.

“A call for reinforcements has been sent to all the other Nine Sects. It’s a full summons. At the same time, they’re gathering people from the small and medium-sized sects around Nanjing.”

“Bloody hell, do they think they’ll actually come!”

If they were the kind of people who could easily arrive just because they received a call for reinforcements, they wouldn’t be struggling so hard to gather them.

Those who were always excluded from the center of the Jianghu because of the distance were probably watching the current situation with a sneer. Telling them to try and stop it with their precious center.

“So? Are they going to provide support?”

“The call for reinforcements probably hasn’t even arrived yet. At least a day or more…”

“Hey, you bloody bastard! Then by the time they finally arrive, everyone will be dead! What’s the point! They should have sent it sooner!”

“W-we couldn’t help it! The Overlord moved too suddenly…”

“Isn’t preparing for that the main branch’s job? What are you beggar bastards doing after eating alms!”

At Hong Daegwang’s harsh words, one of the beggars grimaced and made an excuse.

“W-well, we have something to say too, there was no other way.”

“Go find reason at the village school! Why are you looking for reason in this situation!”

“No, that’s not it. Normally, in this kind of situation, Shaolin, Wudang, and Jongnam buy time for the other sects to arrive, right?”

“…Huh?”

“Wudang and Jongnam! Wudang and Jongnam! No matter how hard you try, how can you fill the void left by those two sects! How much influence do those two sects have in the Nine Sects!”

Hong Daegwang shut his mouth.

The center of the Nine Sects was Shaolin, no matter what anyone said, but the sects that perfectly supported Shaolin were Wudang and Jongnam. But now, those two sects had entered seclusion at the same time.

“W-well, that’s true…”

Hong Daegwang awkwardly trailed off.

If it were any other time, he would have cursed those damned bastards for going into seclusion for no reason and creating this situation, but now, Hong Daegwang couldn’t say those words.

Because it was an undeniable fact that Mount Hua had a significant influence on the seclusion of those two sects.

‘Bloody hell! Things are going wrong!’

Hong Daegwang raised his voice for no reason.

“No, is that a reason to stand idly by! You should send someone to tell them to lift the seclusion! Are those madmen going to lock their doors and just watch everyone else die!”

“It seems the main branch has already sent someone.”

“And?”

“They couldn’t even get inside, let alone deliver the message. They were chased out without a word.”

“…I’m going crazy, really.”

Seclusion should depend on the situation! What are they thinking, insisting on it even in this situation? Anyway, those damned Nine Sects always ruin things because of their pride. Because of their petty pride.

“That’s all for the report. Because of the reason I mentioned earlier, the Clan Leader told the Branch Leader to join the Nine Sects…”

“I’ll take care of that myself! That’s enough!”

Hong Daegwang gritted his teeth.

Even if Wang Geo-ji himself led the elite and joined the Nine Sects, he had no intention of going under them. In fact, his affiliation was not with the Nine Sects, but with the Heavenly Union.

“As you’ve heard, the situation is…”

“Is the Black Ghost Squad coming to Nanjing from the east right now?”

But at that moment, Tang Gunak, who had been silently listening to the conversation, suddenly asked.

“Th-that’s right.”

The beggar glanced at Hong Daegwang before nodding.

“And half of the Myriad Man Manor led by Jang Il-so is heading to Nanjing from the west.”

“You’re stating the obvious…”

“The remaining half of the Myriad Man Manor is moving north.”

Hong Daegwang’s face slowly hardened.

“And the Waterway Band is controlling the Yangtze River, blocking the river.”

He understood. He knew what was coming next.

Tang Gunak muttered in a chilling voice.

“You’re saying our children are heading to Nanjing. To the center of where the three sects of the Evil Faction Alliance are gathering from all directions.”

They cannot survive.

Hong Daegwang’s face turned pale.

Until now, the Mount Hua Sword Saint had repeatedly made the impossible a reality. General common sense did not apply to him.

But no matter how great the Mount Hua Sword Saint was… He could never survive heading to that Nanjing.

“N-no way…”

Hong Daegwang’s gaze hurriedly turned to the other side of the river.

The world beyond the river was simply dyed black, silently and quietly.