Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1422

Trouble was brewing for the Tang Clan, a family known for its secret weapons and poisons.

“Where is the Thunderclap Cannon?!”

“But the Thunderclap Cannon is a forbidden weapon! We can’t use it without the Clan Lord’s permission!”

“Are you going to talk about rules while our home burns? Open it now!”

“Understood!”

The doors of the Forbidden Weapon Repository, usually sealed tight, were thrown open. Generations of Tang Clan weapon makers had dedicated their lives to crafting the deadliest weapons.

Even they knew these weapons were too dangerous to use against people. But now, after many years, they were brought out into the light.

“Open the Heavenly Poison Storehouse too!”

“Elder, the Heavenly Poison Storehouse…”

“Do you want to die by my hand?”

The doors to the most important Poison Storehouse of the Tang Clan, which should only be opened with the Clan Lord’s permission, were forced open.

Their eyes showed they were determined. They rushed into the Poison Storehouse, grabbing vials of the Tang Clan’s powerful poisons and stuffing them into their sleeves.

Tang Bi nodded, his heart heavy as he watched them.

There was no one here who could really fight. Against the Wicked Alliance, a normal clan would have no chance. But the Tang Clan was different.

‘We are the Tang Clan,’ he thought.

They could fight because they were the Tang Clan. They had weapons that could kill even the strongest enemies, even if the person using them knew nothing about fighting. That was the Tang Clan, a group dedicated to making such weapons.

“Elders, check the formations to make sure everything is working! We can’t make any mistakes!”

“Understood!”

The elders listened to Tang Bi and hurried to every part of the clan. They had to make sure the Absolute Formation, set up around the Tang Clan to protect it from invaders, was working correctly.

“Everyone who can fight, come forward! No, everyone, even if you can’t fight, come forward! This is a fight to protect the Tang Clan. If the Tang Clan is destroyed, you will be destroyed too. You must protect the Tang Clan with your lives!”

Tang Bi’s voice was desperate. Everyone with the Tang name rushed out.

Even those who spent their lives working with poisons in dark rooms, even those who walked unsteadily because of the poisons they studied, came forward. The women of the Tang Clan, who had the Tang name but were never really accepted as full members, soaked their sleeves in poison and grabbed weapons.

The weapon makers, who never let go of their hammers, did the same.

“W-what’s happening?”

A younger weapon maker asked. An older one answered, spitting on the ground.

“The Wicked Alliance is attacking.”

“T-the Wicked Alliance? Now?!”

The Clan Lord was gone. There were few who could fight. Why would the Wicked Alliance attack now?

“I heard Qingcheng and Emei have already fallen. We’re next.”

“We…”

The young weapon maker’s face turned white.

“T-then shouldn’t we run? How can we fight enemies that Qingcheng and Emei couldn’t beat?”

“Run where?”

“…Huh?”

One of the older weapon makers clicked his tongue.

“If we run, we might live. But this place will be destroyed. The Tang Clan’s workshop, where we’ve spent our lives.”

The young weapon maker looked back, confused. He stared at the huge workshop.

“Do you think we can rebuild this workshop if it’s destroyed?”

“That’s…”

This workshop held all the special skills of the Tang Clan that no other workshop could copy. Could they really rebuild it?

“…It would be hard.”

“Yes.”

They knew how difficult it would be to rebuild this workshop, which held centuries of Tang Clan knowledge.

Some things they didn’t even know how to make anymore. The skills were lost, but the objects remained, and they were still using them. Even if they knew how to make them, they couldn’t find the materials anymore.

So how could they rebuild this workshop?

The destruction of this workshop would mean the destruction of the Tang Clan. It would mean that everything their ancestors had worked for in this workshop would be lost in their time.

Could they allow that? Could they let it happen?

“You can run,” said the older artisan.

“Yes?”

“Young people like you should live. But we’ve lived long enough. We can’t watch this workshop be destroyed. We’d rather die.”

The older weapon maker grabbed a sword that was on display in the workshop.

Clang!

A cold light shone from the sword as it was pulled from its case. It was clearly a special blade. The weapon maker stared at the sword and nodded.

“We must fight. Even if we can’t win, we must fight. It’s our duty as Tangs.”

“……”

“Our ancestors fought to protect the Tang Clan. Now it’s our turn.”

The young weapon maker bit his lip.

“Where would I go?”

“Hmm?”

“I’m a Tang Clan weapon maker too! And even if I’m using a sword, I’d be better than you old folks. I’m at least a year younger! You can barely use anything but small hammers now.”

“Heh heh. You rude kid.”

The young weapon maker grabbed a pile of flying needles he had just finished.

“We must fight. If it’s to protect this workshop, we must fight. This place is the Tang Clan, and this workshop is the Tang Clan. Where would a Tang Clan member go? A Tang Clan member must be in the Tang Clan.”

The older weapon makers looked at the young weapon maker, who was now determined, with kind eyes.

“Yes. That’s how a Tang Clan person lives.”

“Shall we go? Is it that way?”

“Go on ahead. We’ll follow soon.”

“Yes!”

As the young weapon makers rushed out of the workshop, one of the weapon makers who was watching them stood up. He walked to the deepest part of the workshop.

Clang!

Clang!

The sound of a small hammer rang out. It was so quiet it almost disappeared, but it grew louder.

The weapon maker who had gone to the deepest part of the workshop bowed before an old man who was hammering in front of a small furnace.

“Divine Hands, Elder.”

Clang!

The sound of the hammer drowned out his words.

“Divine Hands, Elder.”

He tried again, but the hammer didn’t stop. The weapon maker quietly watched the old man hammering and then spoke again.

“Grandfather.”

The hammer slowed down slightly.

“We will fight to protect the workshop. Grandfather, you should take shelter…”

Clang!

The artisan stopped talking when the hammer rang out again. A small hammer hit the hot metal, sending a spray of bright red sparks flying.

The master craftsman watched the old man work silently, then nodded slowly.

The old man’s eyes were blurry and unfocused. He looked like he didn’t know what he was doing.

Where else could the old man go? Even if he was thinking clearly, he would never leave the smithy. His whole life was here, in this place.

This old man was the very soul of the Dang Clan. Shouldn’t he be where he belonged?

“As you wish, Grandfather.”

The artisan bowed deeply and turned away.

Once the artisan had left, the old man, now alone, turned the iron in the tongs, then plunged it back into the furnace. Sparks flew, dancing into the air.

The old man, Dang Jo-pyeong, stared blankly at the blazing furnace, his eyes clouded.

– Jo-pyeong.

“⋯⋯.”

– Those wretched fools will be buried and forgotten under the name I created. Idiots who don’t know what comes first and what comes after. Those who value what they create with their own hands more than themselves can never walk the right path. If you ever become the true artisan of the Dang Clan, you must change this. Do you understand?

‘Grandfather.’

Those were the words the Dark Lord had spoken to him once, stroking his head.

Dang Jo-pyeong gripped the tongs and pulled the heated iron from the furnace.

‘Did I say I would do that?’

He couldn’t quite remember. All he remembered was the warmth of that hand stroking his head.

So, what had Dang Jo-pyeong done?

Had he truly kept the promise he made to his grandfather? Or had he become the very thing his grandfather had despised?

Clang.

The small hammer struck the red-hot iron.

Melting, heating, cooling, striking.

All those processes were ultimately about excluding the unnecessary and leaving only what was pure and right. And what remained was made even stronger by human hands.

That was the artisan of the Dang Clan. What he had done his entire life.

Clang!

The small hammer struck the heated iron.

Clang!

The hammer, which had been striking the iron without pause, slowly descended. Dang Jo-pyeong, who had listlessly lowered the hammer, lifted his head with a blurred gaze.

The Dang Clan’s smithy.

His everything, where his touch had been on every single thing.

Dang Jo-pyeong watched the smithy in silence, then picked up the hammer again.

Clang!

The rhythmic sound of the hammer. Yet, strangely, the sound seemed as if it would break at any moment, echoing softly.

“All members of the Dang Clan are preparing for battle under the Lord’s command.”

Dang Oe slowly nodded. Then, Dang Byeok cautiously glanced at Dang Oe and opened his mouth.

“Lord. Once you finish this, reclaiming your position won’t be difficult. Even if the Clan Head opposes it, the entire family will support you.”

Dang Oe had lost his martial arts. Under normal circumstances, regaining his past position would be impossible. But this situation was different. If Dang Oe could command the remaining forces and stop the Four Evil Vultures, then the fact that he had lost his martial arts would be of little importance.

In that case, the re-establishment of the Council of Elders wouldn’t be just a dream…

“Lord.”

“…Yes?”

Dang Byeok looked at him, startled by Dang Oe’s sudden voice.

“Don’t call me ‘Lord,’ Byeok. I’m not the Lord anymore.”

“…Yes. Elder.”

“If we are lucky enough to stop them, I will retreat back into the Dang Clan’s chambers.”

Dang Byeok’s eyes widened.

“Wh-what are you saying? Elder! You are the one saving the Dang Clan.”

“Do you think I’m doing this for some petty power grab?”

A chilling aura emanated from Dang Oe’s face.

“Power? It’s important. But what’s more important is the Dang Clan itself. Even that power comes from the Dang Clan. The reason I was dissatisfied with the Clan Head was because I didn’t think he was fit to lead the Dang Clan, not to fulfill my own selfish desires.”

“Elder…”

“Protecting this Dang Clan, even if it costs my life, or everyone else’s. That’s all that matters to me now. What comes after is not the responsibility of an old man like me. Now, even if I’m not trustworthy, I have no choice but to accept it.”

Dang Oe closed his eyes slightly.

He still didn’t particularly like Tang Gunak. No, it would be more accurate to say he regarded him as an enemy. But his relationship with Tang Gunak was insignificant. Before the name of the Sichuan Dang Clan, all of that was meaningless.

“I must protect it. I must protect it at all costs. Because I am a member of the Dang Clan. That is the duty and belief of someone who has lived their entire life with the Dang surname.”

“…I understand what you mean, Elder.”

It was at that moment.

“Elder! A message from the Clan Head!”

“What is it?”

Dang Byeok turned his head sharply.

“It, it came to the Chief Manager, but this…”

“Bring it here! Now!”

“Yes! Here!”

The man who rushed in took out a green letter from his chest and held it out.

“Give it to me.”

Dang Oe stopped Dang Byeok, who was reaching out, and grabbed the letter himself. Dang Oe tore open the envelope, took out the paper inside, and slowly shook his head as he read it.

“May I ask what it says?”

At Dang Byeok’s words, Dang Oe chuckled and showed him the letter in his hand.

“He tells us to abandon the family and run away.”

“…Yes?”

Dang Byeok stared at Dang Oe in disbelief.

“The Clan Head is still too soft. That’s why I can’t rest easy.”

Dang Oe stretched out the letter in his hand and brought it over the lamp. The burning letter slowly smoldered and burst into flames.

“And in the midst of all this, he tells us to send word to the Sahaeshangdan… Who does the Clan Head think he is?”

Dang Oe shook his head and gently released the burning letter. The paper containing the Clan Head’s orders turned to ashes and disappeared in an instant.

“The enemies will be here soon, so finish your preparations quickly. Today will be a long day.”

“Understood, Elder.”

As Dang Byeok bowed and went outside, Dang Oe coughed and sat down on the bed.

‘…The Dang Clan.’

He would not let the Dang Clan fall.

Even if he was to remain a failure, he would remain a failure of the Dang Clan. That was Dang Oe’s final resolve, having dedicated his life to this Sichuan Dang Clan.

‘Ancestors, watch over us.’

He was a member of the Dang Clan until the moment of his death. That would never change.