Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1496

Chung Myung felt his emotions rise quickly, unable to hide them. He looked at his hands, noticing they were shaking. He closed his eyes. The words he had just spoken echoed in his mind, making him feel uneasy.

“Hoo.”

Chung Myung took a short breath, forcing back his emotions. He looked at Hyeonpung Singae, his eyes now calm.

“How did you know? It couldn’t have been easy.”

Hyeonpung Singae slowly raised his head, his eyes filled with tears.

“At first, how could I have even imagined it?”

There was a hint of complaint in his tone. Chung Myung didn’t bother to respond to it.

“I thought it was impossible. I thought it was nonsense. But the more I watched, the more I had to believe it. Even if the spirits of Mount Hua in the Immortal Realm were watching, it would be impossible for such a young swordsman to do so much…”

It was a natural thing to say, but also unnatural.

Many people had wondered who Chung Myung really was, but no one else had figured out the truth like Hyeonpung Singae.

“I tried to deny it. I tried to dismiss it as a ridiculous fantasy. But, Sword Saint… They exist in this world. People who have defied death and achieved something beyond natural limits (逆天). Haven’t you already met one, Sword Saint?”

“…The Dalai Lama?”

“Indeed.”

The Dalai Lama of Seojang. The leader of the Potala Palace has led it for hundreds of years by repeating death and reincarnation. This is well-known in Gangho.

However, few people believe it because it seems so absurd.

Chung Myung smiled bitterly.

“Why would you go through endless cycles of suffering (삼아승지겁), which is like living in hell?”

The words he had heard in the past flashed through his mind. Hyeonpung Singae’s dry cough broke the memory.

“And… *cough*, as you might have guessed, Sword Saint…”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung replied calmly.

“There’s probably one more.”

“…I think so too.”

Neither of them said the name out loud, because it was frightening to both of them.

“Perhaps, Sword Saint, you may also be reborn like them. Once I thought that, all my questions were answered. All the time I spent trying to understand the identity of Mount Hua Sword Master Chung Myung felt foolishly clear…”

“Why did you think it was *me*? Couldn’t you have just thought I was one of the old Mount Hua swordsmen, back then?”

“…How could I not know?”

Hyeonpung Singae’s eyes clouded over again.

“I still see it clearly. I vividly remember the Sword Saint wearing the Mount Hua uniform and fearlessly cutting down the evil members of the Demonic Sect (악도) with that sword. How could I think of anyone else?”

Hyeonpung Singae shook his head.

“The many things that the Sword Saint showed in that child’s body convinced me, because it’s something no one but the Sword Saint could do. It’s not because I’m the Beggars’ Sect Leader that I know this. Anyone who experienced that war would have come to the same conclusion.”

A short sigh escaped Chung Myung’s lips.

“So it was.”

With Chung Myung’s words, silence fell between them.

It was an unexpected encounter. Because they were facing each other without preparation, words did not come easily.

“When exactly was it? When did you become convinced that I was the Sword Saint?”

“I couldn’t be sure… Even though everything was clear…”

Hyeonpung Singae’s hands trembled.

“I only had a strong suspicion, but I couldn’t be completely sure, even while receiving reports about the events in the Northern Sea, hearing about the events in Hangzhou, and watching the entire journey to Hainan. I couldn’t dare to be sure.”

“…”

“Perhaps I was just afraid. I wanted you to be the Sword Saint so much, but at the same time, I prayed that you would never be. I longed to see you like this, but I prayed that this moment would never come.”

“…”

“Please forgive me, Sword Saint. Please, forgive me…”

Tears welled up in Hyeonpung Singae’s eyes, tears of regret that seemed to have been held back for decades. They streamed down his deeply wrinkled face, each drop a tiny river carving a path through his aged skin.

“How can I ever repay the sins I have committed against the Sword Saint? How can the Beggars’ Sect repay the sins it committed in the deadly battle at Mount Hua (Great Mountain’s 결사)? How can I even dare to mention the sins that the world has committed against Mount Hua…”

Chung Myung’s lips were tightly shut.

“Just… Just…”

Although he wasn’t wailing, Hyeonpung Singae was clearly screaming. Chung Myung could tell.

The one lying here was neither the great hero who had revived the Beggars’ Sect, nor a powerful figure who had secretly controlled the martial world for many years (흉수).

He was just a weak and pathetic human, groaning under the weight of his sins.

Chung Myung, who had been watching his struggles, slowly opened his mouth.

“It’s in the past.”

“Sword Saint…”

“There was nothing you could have done. It was just my foolishness that caused it, so you don’t need to feel responsible.”

Hyeonpung Singae’s shoulders trembled slightly.

The old man probably knew it too. This wasn’t forgiveness. It was just Chung Myung’s consideration to make Hyeonpung Singae a little more comfortable.

But even this small consideration was just a matter of gratitude to Hyeonpung Singae.

“So that’s why…”

A bitter regret was etched on Chung Myung’s face as he realized the truth.

If someone else had done something like this, Chung Myung would never have forgiven him. He might have even tried to punish him with his sword.

But he couldn’t bring himself to do that to this withered old man.

“You didn’t want to go through it again.”

Hyeonpung Singae trembled and remained silent.

Even after a long time, it was as vivid as yesterday. The light didn’t fade, and the air and smell of that time were still clear when he closed his eyes.

The moment when everyone was dying like bugs. A fragment of that hell that had descended upon the world.

“I believed, Sword Saint.”

Hyeonpung Singae’s eyes, swirling with countless emotions, followed Chung Myung.

“That all these sacrifices would not be meaningless, that the lives of all the sacrificed beggars would surely open up the future.”

“…”

“But… In the end, it was meaningless. The deaths of the beggars, the will of those who died in Daesan, and…”

“My sword too.”

Chung Myung threw out the words he couldn’t bring himself to say. Hyeonpung Singae clenched his fist.

“Even my sword was meaningless. Yes, when I look back on it.”

A brief regret flickered in Chung Myung’s eyes as well. Hyeonpung Singae said in a bitter voice.

“After the Sword Saint returned… No, after you left, those vile bastards took control of Gangho. They intentionally neglected the remnants of the Demonic Sect and thoroughly erased what they had done.”

“Of course, that act would have required the cooperation of the Beggars’ Sect.”

“…That’s right. I…”

“You couldn’t do anything. You couldn’t let the Beggars’ Sect disappear into history like Mount Hua.”

Instead of answering, Hyeonpung Singae bit his lip until it bled.

The leader who revived the Beggars’ Sect. That was the assessment of those who only saw the surface.

Until he stepped down from the position of leader, Hyeonpung Singae had no choice but to live as their puppet.

“Still, one question has been answered.”

Chung Myung muttered bitterly.

“I couldn’t understand it all along. If the Nine Sects really wanted to erase Mount Hua, they wouldn’t have been satisfied with just the Demonic Sect attacking Mount Hua. They’ve already dirtied their hands, and there would have been plenty of ways to silently cut off Mount Hua’s breath.”

“…”

“Even so, Mount Hua didn’t completely collapse. Even though it was bleeding, it was still breathing. It was as if someone was trying to keep the lineage going.”

Chung Myung’s gaze, as if piercing through him, reached Hyeonpung Singae.

“Was it you?”

Hyeonpung Singae chewed on his lips.

“I dare not say it was an act of atonement. It wasn’t just my strength either.”

“…I see. So it was.”

A short sigh escaped Chung Myung’s lips. A faint sense of futility was added to his eyes.

It’s funny. Even if I want to resent someone, there’s no one left to resent.

Those who took the lead in doing everything have already died without paying the price.

All that’s left in this world are those who don’t even know what they’re standing on. What will change if I ask them about their sins?

Of course, this is also something I’ve already thought about and concluded, so it’s not new.

It just hurts to hear something I’ve been digesting alone from someone else’s mouth.

“So you made it impossible for the Beggars’ Sect to cooperate with them?”

“…”

“At least to avoid becoming a tool of the Nine Sects again?”

Hyeonpung Singae’s pupils trembled faintly. He desperately shook his trembling head.

“No, Sword Saint. It’s not like that.”

“…It’s not?”

“Don’t look at me like that, Sword Saint. I’m not worthy of receiving such a comfortable gaze from the Sword Saint.”

Hyeonpung Singae grabbed his face.

“If I were such a spirited person, how could I have held on to this dirty life until now? I can’t be that kind of person. I’m just a pathetic guy.”

“…”

“I’m not the Sword Saint. I couldn’t be like the Sword Saint.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Didn’t you see it? Didn’t you experience it? And don’t you know?”

Hyeonpung Singae’s face turned pale. The sense of guilt that had been eating away at him receded, and an emotion that Chung Myung also knew well poured into the empty space.

“Him!”

Suddenly, a scream-like voice erupted.

The old man’s expression was unfamiliar but familiar. It was the face of a human being consumed by an unbearable fear. His whole body convulsed as if he had malaria.

“Ah, I couldn’t help but know. They ignored and turned away, but I couldn’t help but know. I’m someone who handles information. Everything was pointing to one thing, so I couldn’t help but know…”

“…The Heavenly Demon?”

“Hoo…”

Hyeonpung Singae rolled his eyes back, as if his soul was being torn apart just by hearing the name. He stammered and quickly spat out the words.

“He’s coming back. That cursed demon is coming back to this land with the Demonic Sect!”

“…”

“And we can never face him again. It’s the end. The end of Gangho and the end of the world. An inevitable, predetermined ending is coming.”

Hyeonpung Singae gasped for breath. It was hard to believe that he had been talking calmly for a while; he became a pathetic old man like a half-corpse again.

“It was just a sandcastle. No matter how much Gangho regains its former glory, it’s just a sandcastle loosely built on the beach. The moment a huge wave crashes onto the shore, it will collapse helplessly and be swept away…”

“…”

“Knowing this, how can I tell everyone? How can I tell them to sacrifice themselves for that sandcastle? It’s meaningless anyway. Wouldn’t it be better to live a peaceful, insignificant life without knowing anything?”

Chung Myung sighed without realizing it.

In the end, Hyeonpung Singae was the same. He had lived his life without escaping the terrible war and the existence of the Heavenly Demon.

A survivor, a remnant, and…

A sinner.

Yes, just like Chung Myung.

“So I…”

“Enough. No need for that.”

Chung Myung firmly cut off Hyeonpung Singae’s words.

“Sword Saint…?”

“I’ve heard enough of your whining.”

Chung Myung glared at Hyeonpung Singae.

“You may think the ending is set, but I don’t. No, even if I can’t change the ending, I won’t just sit and wait.”