Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1679

The air was thick with tension. You could feel it on your skin.

These two men were opposites, but both were angry. Neither would back down.

Even the Red Scarf bandits, who were feared by everyone, were afraid to breathe. The anger between these two men was that strong.

It felt like Chung Myung would draw his sword any second, and Jang Il-So would attack him with all his power.

Even though they were drinking together calmly, it was clear these two could never be friends. Their conflict would only end when one of them died.

The tension was so strong it felt hard to breathe. Jang Il-So spoke first.

“That foolish belief.”

“Do you really think you can change things?” He paused, a mocking smile on his face. “Well? Mount Hua Sword Saint?”

Chung Myung looked away from Jang Il-So’s face, which showed both anger and mockery. He stayed calm, even with Jang Il-So, the Overlord, standing right there.

He looked towards Wudang. Wudang Mountain was burning.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Saaahyung!”

Screams are always terrible.

But when you hear someone you love scream, it’s more than just terrible.

Moo Jin clenched his teeth so hard, he thought they would break.

Jin So’s body shook as the enemy’s sword stuck out of him. It was awful, but Moo Jin could handle that. They all knew they might die here.

But what happened next was too horrible, even for brave men.

The enemy swung his sword again and again, hitting Jin So’s body. Jin So was already too weak to defend himself. His arms and legs were cut off and thrown into the air.

“Aaaaargh!”

Moo Jin wasn’t the only one. The Wudang disciples who witnessed the scene all roared like beasts, swinging their swords with fury.

Weren’t they human too? Even if they were enemies, they were still people! How could anyone be so cruel?

They were even attacking bodies that were already dead. They laughed as they killed those who were hurt and on the ground. The Wudang swordsmen had never seen such cruelty, even after all their training.

“You bastards! Aargh!”

“Saje! Don’t get excited… Saje!”

A spear was thrust into the body of the man who had lashed out with his sword in excitement.

“Ugh… eugh….”

Numerous weapons flew at the body of the man whose abdomen had been pierced in one blow. The blades, not satisfied with piercing and tearing the body to shreds, dismembered the collapsing corpse.

Where was the honor?

Where was the greatness?

‘No….’

Moo Jin bit his lip until it bled.

Their choice to fight here was by no means wrong. Even if he had to choose again, Moo Jin would choose this path without hesitation.

But it was different. This battle was different from what he had imagined.

This battle had no greatness, no honor in dying for a cause. It wasn’t the glorious death they had imagined.

All that was here was cruelty. A terrible, desperate cruelty that no stories could ever truly describe.

Did those who died even imagine that their end would look like this? Could they have fought like that knowing their end?

“Hold the line!” His voice was shaking. “Don’t break the formation! Didn’t I tell you, stay calm!”

Someone’s voice rang out.

The same words. The same words he had been hearing. But everyone who heard that voice knew. That there was a different kind of anxiety and fear in that voice than before.

It wasn’t just about fighting better in formation. If they broke the line, they would all die. They would die horribly, and no one would even find their bodies.

“Aaaaargh!”

Another life reached its end.

The number of Evil Sect bandits climbing up to Baegan Rock was increasing, and the Wudang disciples fighting them were falling one by one. It was becoming increasingly difficult to hold out.

Everyone must have already sensed it. What the conclusion of this battle would be.

Maybe this would become a legend. That all the Wudang disciples stood strong against the Demonic Sect and died defending Wudang on Baegan Rock. Even that small story would be something.

But…….

‘Was it really here?’

A sense of sorrow filled Moo Jin’s heart.

Was this what they were fighting for? This honor? This glory? Was any pride worth this terrible death? Was anything in the world worth this?

“Aaaaargh!”

A sword was thrust into the chest of someone who was like family. Seeing his death, those who were not even human smiled cruelly. His sword was too powerless to stop that terrible sight.

Moo Jin’s hand shook as he held his sword. Maybe it wasn’t the enemy who made this happen. Maybe it was his own arrogance, his stubbornness, that had created this hell.

That thought, that truth, made tears fill Moo Jin’s eyes.

“Good word. Faith.”

Jang Il-So downed the wine in his glass in one gulp and set it down with a thud. A bitter smile played on his lips.

“But it’s also… another word for irresponsibility.”

“Do you understand?”

The mockery in his eyes pierced Chung Myung.

People who are strong don’t talk about faith. They do what they can, and they make things happen. They don’t rely on empty hopes.

Jang Il-So looked at Heo Do-Jin, who was lying on the ground, almost dead. ‘That fool is the same.’

“Isn’t it funny?”

Jang Il-So chuckled and shook his head.

He used to be good at making choices. If he hadn’t made that choice at the Jang River, more people would have died. But now… isn’t it strange he’s doing something so stupid? It’s like he’s become a fool.

Chung Myung stared at Jang Il-So without a word.

“Do you know what stupid thing he said?”

“He said he couldn’t stop his students. He couldn’t change their minds? Haha!”

Jang Il-So spread his arms wide in an exaggerated gesture.

“Look at this. This is what happens. A disaster because someone stopped thinking clearly and listened to stupid ideas.”

Chung Myung’s eyes turned to Heo Do.

Heo Do-Jin looked as though he would breathe his last at any moment, but his body twitched slightly, indicating that he was still conscious. He must be hearing Jang Il-So’s words.

If you really wanted to do something, you should have taken charge yourself. You should have stayed calm and logical, not acted with foolish pride. A fool who can’t even do that will…

Jang Il-So’s hand drooped loosely.

“End up like him.”

Jang Il-So shook his head slowly.

“But… you’re saying the same thing as that fool. I’m very disappointed.”

Chung Myung had been watching Heo Do-Jin silently. His face showed nothing as he picked up the wine bottle. He slowly poured wine into Jang Il-So’s empty glass.

He poured and poured until the glass was full. Chung Myung put down the bottle and looked directly at Jang Il-So.

“If you’ve said everything you wanted to say, drink.”

Jang Il-So and Chung Myung’s gazes briefly clashed in the air.

Jang Il-So had been watching Chung Myung closely. He reached out and drank the wine in one gulp again. Chung Myung slowly opened his mouth towards Jang Il-So.

“You said that another word for faith is irresponsibility.”

“That’s right.”

“But I see it differently.”

Chung Myung spoke slowly, his voice strong and steady. “I call faith…” He paused, then said clearly, “Earnestness.”

“Draw your swords!”

A cry, like the roar of a beast, echoed across Baegan Hermitage.

Heo Gong shouted until his throat was raw.

“No time for despair!” Heo Gong yelled. “If I can’t fight, my brothers will die! I must fight for them!”

His sword pierced the necks and chests of the charging Death Brigade members in quick succession.

“Regret and despair are for the survivors! Don’t forget why you took up the sword! Don’t fight just to save your own lives! Your brothers’ lives depend on your swords!”

Moo Jin’s eyes wavered.

And at that very moment, something suddenly shot up before his eyes.

A blade, honed to a sharp blue, and the vivid energy swirling around it. Moo Jin stopped moving, fear gripping him.

‘Too late…’ he thought.

Clang!

Moo Jin, unable to close his eyes, vividly saw a sword darting out from the side, deflecting the incoming blade.

“Sasuk! Are you alright!”

“……”

What Moo Jin saw wasn’t Jin Hyun’s sword that had saved him, but Jin Hyun’s shoulder, slashed by the enemy’s blade as he tried to protect Moo Jin while facing the foe.

The blood that splattered from the wound stung Moo Jin’s eyes.

“Not yet! Not yet!”

Moo Jin’s face twisted like a demon’s.

‘I am……’

What was he even thinking?

Heo Gong was right. If he faltered, he wouldn’t be the only one to die. What his sword carried now wasn’t just his own life.

“Aaaaargh!”

Moo Jin’s sword glowed with scary energy as he swung it.

“Sasuk!”

Where the clear, blue energy stretched out, white and black energies swirled.

The sword energy Moo Jin unleashed swept away the Death Brigade members attacking from the front.

A desperate scream erupted.

This amazing sword energy stopped the fight for a moment. Everyone was surprised.

“Come on, you Demonic Sect group! You will not hurt Wudang unless you kill me first!”

Maybe being here was a mistake because they were young and foolish.

But……

‘Even so!’

There was a reason to fight. There was still something to protect. Before this life was extinguished.

“You won’t lay a finger on my brothers!”

Moo Jin’s sword was no longer about showing off or being right. It was now filled with pure desperation.

“……Earnestness?”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung stared at Jang Il-So with indifferent eyes.

“What does ‘earnestness’ mean? Does it mean believing and hoping someone will help you?”

“…….”

“How is that different from just not doing anything yourself?”

“It is different.”

“Tch. You’re stubborn. There’s no difference.”

“It *is* different.”

Chung Myung’s eyes became serious.

“You might be right. But if you are really earnest, you must improve your own skills. You have to do it yourself, not just trust others.”

Jang Il-So’s head nodded slowly. Or rather, tried to nod.

“Hyeodo Jin-in must have known that.”

“…….”

Chung Myung didn’t even glance at Hyeodo. But his words would surely reach Hyeodo’s ears as well.

“But even so, he ultimately chose to believe. Instead of forcing people to do what he wanted, he chose a harder path, one that might even fail.”

“That’s foolishness.”

“No. We call that earnestness.”

The corner of Chung Myung’s mouth twisted. His pearly white teeth revealed themselves like the fangs of a beast.

“Listen carefully, you stupid bastard.”

“…….”

“What you said is right. Everything you said is correct. But that’s why you are missing something important.”

Jang Il-So’s eyes narrowed.

“Stupid?”

“Yes. If your way is to achieve everything with only your own abilities.”

Chung Myung’s voice flew like a blade.

“What will you do when you face something you can’t do alone?”

“…….”

Jang Il-So’s face momentarily hardened.

“Will you give up? Will you let go? Or will you just do what you can and ignore the rest?”

“…….”

“A person will always encounter something. Something they can’t do alone, something they can’t achieve with their own abilities. But something they can’t give up on, something they can’t shake their head at!”

“Heu…….”

Jang Il-So’s head turned.

Hyeodo, who hadn’t shown a proper reaction until now, was squeezing out a voice. A voice that was neither laughter nor tears.

“The earnestness of people who have to do impossible things. The sadness of trying to reach somewhere you can’t, no matter how hard you try. That is… no, *we* call that…”

Chung Myung bared his teeth.

“Call faith.”

“Sasuk!”

“Yes! I, I see it too!”

Moo Jin screamed, his voice filled with a whirlwind of emotions. Perhaps even emotions that were completely out of place on this urgent battlefield.

But no one in the world could blame Moo Jin for it.

He saw it. Below this high Wudang Mountain. Still far away in the distance.

A group of people were rushing towards this place with tremendous speed.

He could tell. Even though they were still distant and he could only see their shapes. Who they were, and why they were coming here!

“Heaven…….”

Moo Jin’s hand trembled.

No, perhaps it wasn’t his hand that was trembling, but his heart.

In contrast to Moo Jin’s face, which was collapsing as if breaking down, the blurry shapes in the darkness gradually, but clearly, became sharper.

“Heavenly Union!”

Moo Jin shouted with all his might. And the three syllables, now filled with so much meaning, echoed, and the atmosphere of Baegan Hermitage, which had been filled with only despair and resignation, changed as if by a lie.

“The Heavenly Union! The Heavenly Union is coming! Reinforcements!”

Those who were fighting with swords. Those who were preparing for their end. Those who were pouring out everything they had left. Even those who were cheering about their attack on Wudang stopped and looked surprised when they heard the words.

They could clearly see beyond the rising peaks.

People were rushing towards them, fast and determined. And the dazzling white robes of the one who led them all at the forefront, sword drawn.

“Baek Cheon! It’s Mount Hua! Mount Hua is leading the Heavenly Union! Reinforcements!”

They would surely come, surely! If it was them.

It was the moment when that earnest wish, called faith, was finally coming true.

Return of Mount Hua