Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 1766

1766. “Who are those people again?” Guard 1 asked, frowning at the figures in the distance.

“Do we really have to keep following them? If this is all we’re doing, I’d rather be back at the base, eating lunch,” Guard 1 grumbled, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“Quiet,” Guard 2 snapped, his eyes fixed on the figures ahead. “It’s an order.”

Even when told to be quiet, the complaining guard kept talking.

“No, if we’re going to escort them, wouldn’t it be better to do it up close? We’ll be entering a dangerous area soon, and at this rate…”

“It is the Merchant Guild Leader’s command. We must not cause them any inconvenience.”

The complaining guard sighed.

“Isn’t our mission to protect the main base of the Heavenly Union in the first place? Strictly speaking, the Silver Sea Merchant Guild Leader isn’t even our superior.”

“So, you’re saying you’ll ignore him?”

“It’s not that, but…”

It’s true the Merchant Guild Leader is not part of the Heavenly Union. But they still cannot ignore him. Although he held no official position, it was clear that the Silver Sea Merchant Guild Leader was in charge of all the major and minor affairs of the main base in the absence of the Union Lord.

That was why those who guarded the main base had set out to escort them.

“Wouldn’t it cause problems later?”

“Enough with the nonsense. What problems could there be?”

The guard who had been grumbling sighed heavily when his words failed to get through.

In fact, he knew very well that his words were nothing more than meaningless complaints. Nevertheless, there was a separate reason why he was so annoyed.

His gaze turned to those who were far ahead.

‘What on earth?’

They didn’t eat, didn’t sleep, didn’t rest. They simply moved forward relentlessly. Thanks to that, even at a slow pace, they had already reached the border between Hubei and Henan, which was their goal.

Coming quickly was good, but the problem was that even those escorting them couldn’t eat, rest, or sleep.

‘Why are they doing such a bizarre thing?’

Looking closely, even if the young man walking ahead didn’t, the one following behind clearly showed traces of martial arts. In that case, wouldn’t it be better to use their lightness skill and go quickly?

“I’ll say it again, you must never lower your guard. If even the slightest problem arises for them, no one can handle the aftermath. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

Those in charge of the escort nodded heavily.

Eyebrows, white like snow, twitched slightly. Liquid came from the eyes beneath the eyebrows.

Those eyes were fixed on the one walking ahead… or, more precisely, on his feet.

One step, then another. With each step taken silently, the ground became wet. As much as the blood flowing from his feet soaked the earth, the Vice-Sun Lama’s worries deepened.

Even if the Dalai Lama was a Buddha who had not left this impure world, his body was, after all, no different from that of an ordinary child. Surely the pain must be considerable, yet that pace never seemed to stop.

It was a grueling march, continuing without eating, resting, or drinking. What meaning could there possibly be in this? Even if there was a lofty purpose that he couldn’t dare to guess, he couldn’t help but feel distressed watching it.

“Master.”

“Master.”

Only after the Vice-Sun Lama’s cry was repeated did the Dalai Lama’s pace briefly halt. However, the Dalai Lama did not bother to turn around to face the Vice-Sun Lama.

“At this rate, your body will be harmed. If there is a reason why you must go so urgently, I would rather carry you.”

Finally, the Dalai Lama turned to face the Vice-Sun Lama.

The freshly shaven head looked awkward on his still youthful, rosy face. However, his deep eyes, which always seemed to draw one in, sat in the middle, creating a strange atmosphere.

“No one can bear your worries about life for you.”

“Therefore, no one can walk for you.”

“But… Master.”

“If you believe there is an end to the road, then the current pain must be endured. But if you know there is no end to the road, then the word ‘endurance’ is useless.”

The Vice-Sun Lama deeply clasped his hands.

In fact, he did not fully understand what the Dalai Lama was trying to say. His question and the Dalai Lama’s answer did not quite match up.

But he was used to such answers.

To someone who saw what he could not see and knew what he did not know, the same world would look different. Even the principles of the world.

“But, Lama. Then why are you in such a hurry?”

If life was an unavoidable sea of suffering, then the pain experienced by the children living in the world would also be inevitable.

If suffering stemmed from worries about life and no one could bear those cares for another, then what meaning was there in the Dalai Lama’s current walk?

What reason was there to steadfastly continue a walk that had no meaning, even shedding blood?

The Dalai Lama’s eyes, upon receiving the question, held a different light than before. He moved his lips and opened his mouth.

“That is…”

A brief silence descended.

Perhaps in that brief moment, what the Vice-Sun Lama saw was not the living Buddha Dalai Lama, but a single human living in a world full of suffering.

“That is because it is my karma.”

“Karma.”

The Vice-Sun Lama unknowingly let out a deep sigh.

How much was contained in that one word, ‘karma’?

That answer was the answer to all questions, yet at the same time, it revealed nothing.

The Vice-Sun Lama had not yet reached enlightenment, so he could not offer any rebuttal to the Dalai Lama, who spoke of karma. It was the same as a person who had not escaped the human body discussing immortals and the Dao—futile and empty.

Normally, the conversation would have ended here, but today it continued a little longer.

“In the end, karma is like being caught in a net.”

A gleam appeared in the Vice-Sun Lama’s eyes.

“Entanglement, you say?”

“It is painful because it is entangled, and therefore it must be severed. But severing it is also painful.”

“Liberation, as people say, is about letting go of worries about the world. It is escaping the sea of suffering full of human affairs.”

“So it is, Master.”

“But is this the right thing to do?”

“We can only hope so.”

“Is it truly… the right thing to do?”

“Master?”

A moment of doubt flashed across the Vice-Sun Lama’s eyes.

“I ask you. Was escape truly the right thing to do?”

“What on earth…?”

Soon, the Vice-Sun Lama’s face, as he looked at the Dalai Lama, was covered in astonishment.

A practitioner must question everything and break what they believe to be right. Those who do not destroy their own world cannot move forward.

People who focus on their bodies try to push their limits and see beyond what seems real.

But the question that the Dalai Lama had raised now did not remain at such a simple level.

He had questioned ‘liberation,’ the final goal of practitioners.

“What do you mean by that? I… I cannot dare to comprehend.”

The Dalai Lama did not answer. He simply gazed at the Vice-Sun Lama with sunken eyes.

It was truly a strange thing.

In the Vice-Sun Lama’s eyes, those eyes looked terribly sorrowful. Even though the Dalai Lama had long since transcended human emotions such as joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.

“So, I am going to find out.”

“Master.”

“As the Lama said, perhaps I will not be able to do anything. No, it will certainly be so. Therefore, this is not his karma, but mine. The karma of regret.”

“Master.”

“I may just… want to hear it. I may just….”

With those incomprehensible words, the Dalai Lama turned his head again and began to walk.

The Vice-Sun Lama let out a deep sigh.

‘My karma….’

Liberation originally meant escaping worries about the world and the sea of suffering. Did this mean getting rid of even the karma that connects people?

But the Dalai Lama spoke of his own karma.

Did this mean that even those who had become Buddhas themselves, transcending the process of liberation, could not escape karma? Or did it mean that with an incomplete liberation that remained in the human body, one had to endure the pain of karma’s weight without change?

He could not know. But that was why his curiosity grew.

‘The Mount Hua Sword Saint.’

What was the Dalai Lama trying to ask him? And what would the Mount Hua Sword Saint answer to that question?

Perhaps he would soon know.

In his sight, a towering mountain came into view far away.

‘Wudang.’

The one they were looking for was there. The one who held the key to all of this.

With a shout, Jo Gul ran into the village. Flames roared from the houses, painting the sky orange and black with thick smoke. The air burned his lungs and stung his eyes. He could hear the terrible crackling of fire and smell the sharp scent of burning wood and something else… something sickening.

However, the sword trembled in the air and lost its way. Jo Gul could not swing his sword anywhere.

“This…”

There was nothing.

Not just the enemy. Nothing alive existed. Not a single person, let alone a dog, had survived.

Jo Gul roughly ground his teeth. A pile of corpses stacked in the middle of the village came into view. The tower of corpses rose like a small burial mound.

He knew as soon as he saw it. It wasn’t stacked for convenience. It was stacked solely to be shown.

To mock those who had arrived here late.

Jo Gul took a rough breath.

“Where are they…”

Blood vessels began to appear in his eyes, which flashed with anger and self-reproach.

“Where are you! Where are you! You sons of bitches! I’ll kill you all!”

“Calm down, Gul!”

“Let go!”

Jo Gul shook off Yoon Jong’s hand.

If they had come just a little earlier, everyone would not have died like this. Why didn’t they know that those people could attack the commoners at any time?

“I’ll kill them all… every single one of them!”

Jo Gul trembled with anger and looked around. He was trying to find traces of the enemies who had already left.

“This way. Here! The bastards headed this way, Senior Brother!”

It was then that Jo Gul was about to kick off the ground without looking back.

“Wait a moment! There are footprints here too. It seems the villagers fled this way.”

“What?”

Jo Gul paused.

Pursuit was important, but they could not neglect the protection of survivors.

“Then let’s divide the personnel…”

“Wait a minute. You guys, come over here for a moment.”

“Yes?”

Baek Sang, who had been silently surveying the situation from the front, gestured. His expression was quite serious. Everyone ran towards where he was standing without a word.

“This is?”

What Baek Sang pointed to was a corpse. Of course, there were corpses everywhere here, so it wouldn’t seem strange at first glance.

However, everyone’s face hardened, just like Baek Sang’s.

“The Four Evil Sects?”

“It seems so.”

The style of clothing of some of the decapitated corpses was the same as those of the Demonic Sects.

“Someone fought the bastards here?”

“But who? We should have been the first to arrive…”

“There’s no one nearby.”

Doubt lingered in the eyes of the Mount Hua disciples as they looked down at the cold corpses. Yoon Jong, who had been lost in thought for a moment, said.

“Let’s pursue the enemy first. If we delay, the bastards might attack another village.”

“Alright.”

“We must!”

“So So. Take a few people and look for survivors.”

“I will.”

“Hurry!”

“Yes!”

Jo Gul ran towards the direction where the enemy’s traces remained without looking back. The other Mount Hua disciples also began to move quickly according to Yoon Jong’s instructions.

But Yoon Jong himself could not easily take a step from that spot. There was something that caught his attention.

A common iron sword, which could be seen anywhere, lying on the ground. For some strange reason, it kept bothering him.

“Senior Brother!”

“I know.”

At the urging coming from afar, Yoon Jong quickly picked up the sword that had fallen on the ground.

‘It can’t be.’

Yoon Jong, who had placed the sword on his waist, briefly looked around and quickly moved towards Jo Gul.

Only a desolate wind blew in the place where they had left.