Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1632

The conference room felt strange and quiet. Something awkward was in the air.

Important leaders like Jongli Gok, Tang Gunak, and Maeng So were there. Even people like Pung Young-shingae and Mo Yong-wi-gyung, who were still new to some, were present.

Familiar faces mixed with those still somewhat unfamiliar, yet no one seemed out of place in the Cheonwoo Alliance’s conference room. Even Baek Cheon, Yoon Jong, Jo Gul, and Hye-yeon felt perfectly natural in this setting.

It felt very awkward. You could feel the tension, like everyone was sweating. This was because of a very unusual plan.

Yoon Jong nodded. “Looking forward to working together, Clan Leader.”

Mo Yong-wi-gyung just grunted. “Yeah, me too.”

Mo Yong-wi-gyung knew about the Mount Hua Five Swords. He thought to himself…

‘Yoon Jong… Is this the better outcome, perhaps?’

Mo Yong-wi-gyung breathed a sigh of relief.

“The Namgoong Young Master, who will be working with me, has not yet arrived in Shaanxi, so I will speak with him separately when he arrives.”

“I understand, Former Head.”

“Just call me Elder.”

Pung Young-shingae replied with his usual serious face. Qing Ming stared at him for a moment before suddenly frowning.

“Hmm. Perhaps I should have just made Sa-go the Vice Clan Leader? They would have suited each other well.”

“……I was just thinking the same thing.”

Of course, they would find it amusing. But the clan members who had to serve those two as Clan Leader and Vice Clan Leader would be in agony. There would be two individuals whose emotions were utterly unreadable from their expressions and tone.

Tang Gunak chuckled at Qing Ming and Yoon Jong’s exchange, then turned to his side.

“To think you’re the Vice Clan Leader… I feel a bit burdened myself. I will do my best not to be a hindrance, so please take care of me.”

“Amitabha. I am the one who should be saying that. Vice Alliance Leader… No, Clan Leader.”

Tang Gunak and Hye-yeon smiled at each other. This was certainly a rare combination as well.

However, they were not the ones who made the atmosphere in this conference room so bizarre. The real culprit was…

“……There’s something I’d like to confirm.”

Maeng So, who always spoke in a booming, weighty voice, spoke in an unusually ordinary and hesitant tone today.

Qing Ming grinned and replied.

“What is it?”

“……Isn’t it possible to designate the Vice Clan Leader with the Clan Leader’s authority?”

Qing Ming smiled faintly.

“Would that work?”

“I know it’s not possible… I know, but is there really any way around it?”

“Now that it’s come to this, just put your mind at ease.”

Maeng So sighed deeply and tilted his large head back. His thick neck was revealed. That neck, which would normally have been imposing, looked so frail and mournful today.

“No, Palace Lord? Am I not to your liking? Why? Wow! The betrayal is no joke. I still liked Palace Lord the best.”

“……Yes. Thank you.”

“No…!”

Qing Ming chuckled as he watched Jo Gul, whose face went red, then pale. Maeng So looked like he was about to panic.

“You’re used to animals anyway, right? Just think of it as raising a monkey.”

“……I wouldn’t even worry if it were a monkey.”

Maeng So muttered. Several others nodded in agreement.

“That’s right. Monkeys don’t talk back.”

“They wouldn’t argue.”

“They don’t wield swords either.”

“Wouldn’t it be similar in terms of tormenting people?”

“Isn’t that the same for Qing Ming?”

“These people….”

Jo Gul huffed and trembled. However, he couldn’t grumble any further because Hyun Jong and the other sect leaders were present.

They were all equally awkward, but those who had risen to the position of clan leader were slightly more awkward and embarrassed. Of course, considering only their positions and roles, it would be normal for the Five Swords to feel more uncomfortable…

“Then, everyone except Palace Lord should be fine, right?”

“Yes, Alliance Leader.”

“Tsk. What complaints could we have when we’re traveling with Qing Ming?”

“My thoughts exactly.”

“…….”

The Five Swords, accustomed to enduring the strange actions of Qing Ming, didn’t even know why they would feel uncomfortable around the sect leaders of other factions. At least they could communicate, right?

“Then, um… what’s left…”

And now, only a very uncomfortable combination remained, one that everyone couldn’t even watch without feeling uneasy.

“That… Supreme Elder… No, Alliance Leader.”

Hyun Jong heard a very sad voice. It was like hearing the cry of a rabbit caught in a tiger’s paw.

Hyun Jong looked towards the source of the voice with a truly peculiar expression.

His usually bright and calm face was now pale. Hyun Jong sighed, feeling a pang of sympathy without realizing it. Baek Cheon looked that desperate.

“Is this really… the only… way…?”

But a sympathetic heart was a sympathetic heart, and this was not something he could do anything about.

“Think about it one more time…”

A voice so desperate that even a stone Buddha would shed tears lingered in the air.

“Geol… Jo Gul was supposed to go… but why me…”

“It seems the Deputy Sect Leader doesn’t like me?”

“N, no way, Sect Leader.”

“Then why do you insist on reconsidering?”

The tiger, Jongli Gok, who had firmly pinned the rabbit with his paw, smiled at Baek Cheon. Cold sweat streamed down Baek Cheon’s forehead.

“Th, that’s… I somehow… communication? Such, uh… stories and words from the meal I had yesterday… Uh? During the day? No, at night?”

‘He’s gone mad.’

‘He’s broken down.’

‘He’s going to die like that?’

‘It’s raining on Senior Uncle’s face.’

Jongli Gok chuckled softly.

“If things were different, we could have been friends, right? Maybe even like teacher and student.”

“I remember someone else…”

“It could have been, Deputy Sect Leader.”

“……Yes.”

Baek Cheon nodded with a blank look on his face. Everyone watched him with pity.

‘Honestly, I feel sorry for him.’

‘A man who defected from Jongnam has to travel with the Jongnam Sect Leader.’

‘Is this something a human being should do?’

The others could only pity him, but for Baek Cheon, this was a matter of survival. Baek Cheon, who was pale and sweating, opened his mouth to somehow squeeze out words.

“Th… then, please take care of…”

“No, no, Deputy Sect Leader. *I* should be trying to impress *you*. I won’t let you down this time, like I did before.”

Hic.

“I would like to prove that Jongnam is quite a useful sect this time… It’s a shame. If I could move with Jongnam, I could show it more clearly.”

Hic.

“Ah… Deputy Sect Leader, do you perhaps know that?”

“Know what…”

“The clan leaders can have two or three aides for smooth task performance. Of course, I’m also thinking of taking one or two elders from Jongnam.”

“…….”

“So, I’m planning to bring Elder Jin Cho-baek from Jongnam with me. Is that okay?”

By now, the backs of everyone present were starting to get soaked with cold sweat. At this point, they were worried that Baek Cheon might bite a knife and fall forward.

Baek Cheon, who was becoming empty as if something was gradually leaving his body, slumped on the chair like soaked seaweed. Everyone swallowed their tears as they watched him.

It was then.

“Looks like you’ve gotten a little closer?”

“What?”

At Qing Ming’s casual words, the Five Swords and Tang Gunak jumped up from their seats.

“Is this what you call close, you crazy bastard!”

“Are you even human? Even demons wouldn’t be this cruel!”

“Just switch with me! I’ll go! I’d rather go!”

“Amitabha. Even Asura would bow his head, saying he would learn a thing or two from your wickedness! Ptooey!”

As criticism and curses flew from all directions, Qing Ming widened his innocent eyes as if he really didn’t know what he had done wrong.

“No, I carefully paired up people who were close to each other! These guys are full even when people are kind!”

“……That crazy bastard.”

Hyun Jong simply looked at Baek Cheon with endlessly pitiful eyes. As Qing Ming strongly insisted, it would be best for Baek Cheon to move with Jongli Gok, but this was really… what should he say… a miserable sight that he couldn’t bear to watch…

“Ah, ah. Stop whining. It’s always a little awkward at first. You know, as you spend time together, you build affection and friendship.”

“……Kill me…….”

“No. Die after the war.”

“A bastard more vicious than the Demonic Sect…….”

Everyone here was convinced that even Jang Il-so would have shuddered if he had seen this sight.

Qing Ming chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.

“Anyway, that’s roughly the combination.”

The laughter in his eyes faded a little, and he became serious.

“The command system will be as simple as possible. I am under the Alliance Leader, and the two from the Military Affairs Division will assist me. You can think of it as not listening to anyone’s orders except these four.”

“Hmm.”

The clan leaders and vice clan leaders looked at each other with somewhat uneasy eyes. Maeng So barely mustered the strength to open his mouth.

“……Chief. I understand the method, but… now that we’ve settled into our positions, I’m worried if this is really the right choice.”

“It’s the right choice.”

Qing Ming looked at everyone firmly.

“But make sure you know one thing for sure.”

“What is it?”

“The Demonic Alliance… No, that Jang Il-so bastard has no strategy.”

“……Huh?”

Doubt settled on everyone’s faces.

Not only Shaolin but the entire world had been played by Jang Il-so. But to say that Jang Il-so had no strategy, what on earth did that mean?

If someone else had said this, they would have laughed, but not a single person here showed ridicule. Because it was Qing Ming who had spoken, they believed he had something in mind.

“He doesn’t use tactics. He doesn’t even have the minimum principles for moving troops. He has never fought a war before.”

“……Then what did he do?”

“Fraud.”

At Qing Ming’s answer, people were about to distort their faces.

“To be precise, it’s psychological warfare. He reads people’s minds. And he knows how to use them. So you can’t fight him with tactics. He knows. Whether the opponent is a thousand, ten thousand, or a million, in the end, it’s only a few people who move that army. So if you can read the thoughts of those few people, you can deal with anything.”

As they listened, the crowd nodded, thinking it made sense.

“Is that what we need to know?”

“No.”

Qing Ming shook his head.

“This is just common sense. There’s something else we need to know.”

“…….”

“He digs between people. The small parts that make them go wrong, the subtle boundaries where desires collide. Everyone is on that boundary, so he has been almost invincible until now. Even if there are a hundred or a thousand people, if you separate each one, they are nothing. So…….”

Qing Ming looked at everyone with sunken eyes.

“Trust each other.”

“…….”

“If we can do that… we will win.”

Everyone’s heads nodded heavily.

“Let’s begin. The war where only one of us, him or us, will remain.”

His statement was cold and serious.