Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 18

Unam looked up as Un-geom entered the room, his face serious. “You’re concerned about the new disciple?” Un-geom asked directly.

Unam grimaced, his face twisting in displeasure. “That child… the one who caused all that commotion?”

Un-geom tilted his head, not expecting such a reaction.

“Didn’t you know?” Un Am asked, surprised.

Un-geom frowned. “Know what? How would I know anything about this child?”

Un-geom trailed off.

The Sect Leader had said he wouldn’t accept any more disciples, but then he took in this child. Un-geom thought there must be some story behind it. Wasn’t that why he had simply accepted it, even when such a disturbance occurred?

But Un Am seemed genuinely unaware.

“Is there something only the Sect Leader knows…?”

“No. He really came on his own.”

“…A strange thing indeed.”

Unam chuckled softly.

‘The more I think about it, the stranger it gets.’

Suddenly, a child comes all the way out here, says he wants to become a disciple of Mount Hua out of the blue, and then he’s causing trouble within a day.

‘It must be an overthinking.’

He wondered if perhaps the child was a spy sent by another sect to cause trouble for Mount Hua, but that was too far-fetched.

Firstly, Mount Hua was no longer a sect worth causing trouble for, and secondly, even if that were the intention, it was nearly impossible for that small child to possess such abilities.

If a child had such abilities, it would be more beneficial to nurture him with care than to send him as a spy to rot.

“Then, shouldn’t we try to stop the child, even now?”

“Let him be.”

“But, Martial Uncle.”

“The reason you didn’t stop him is because you have some expectations for that child, don’t you?”

Un-geom slightly lowered his head instead of answering.

“I know your efforts well. Leading the disciples is a natural duty as a senior, but I also know that you are bearing that duty too excessively.”

“That’s not true, Martial Uncle. I’m just…”

“It’s alright.”

Unam smiled gently.

“Everyone is having a hard time. I don’t know what that child is thinking, but if you think it will help you and Mount Hua, there’s no need to stop him.”

Un-geom raised his head and looked at Unam.

“I don’t know exactly yet. That child…”

“Un-geom.”

“Yes, Martial Uncle.”

“That child is now a disciple of Mount Hua.”

Un-geom’s eyes wavered slightly.

“Why wouldn’t I know that you feel more affection and attachment to the children you’ve had longer? But even the child who came later is a child of Mount Hua, whom we must all care for, now that he has decided to make his home here.”

“…I was foolish.”

Un-geom lowered his head slightly.

“If it seems excessive, you stop him. You know more about the Plum Blossom Sword than I or the Sect Leader, don’t you?”

“Yes, Martial Uncle.”

Un-geom rose from his seat.

“Then I will take my leave.”

“Do so.”

As Un-geom left, Un Am quietly poured tea into his teacup.

‘A peculiar child indeed.’

Certainly, an unusual fellow had entered.

Since he was a fellow who couldn’t hide his presence for even a day, he would surely bring about rapid changes. Whether that change would be a blessing or a curse for Mount Hua, Un Am could not know at this moment.

Only one thing.

‘Change is necessary.’

Mount Hua felt stagnant, like a pond that had stopped flowing. They needed a new breeze, a fresh wind to stir things up and bring life back.

Even if they didn’t know where they were going, they had to set sail.

Even if the end of that voyage was a deserted island, it would be better than withering away on the open sea.

Unam slowly brought the tea to his lips.

He hoped that Chung Myung’s presence would become the wind that moved Mount Hua.

Of course, whether he would remain so calm even knowing that the blowing wind was a typhoon remained to be seen.

“I’m going to die.”

“…I’m already dead.”

Weak groans escaped the lips of the young disciples. Sweat dripped from their faces, and their hands trembled as they tried to eat.

‘What is this, some new kind of torture?’

He knew it was exercise to build strength. And it wasn’t as if Mount Hua had neglected strength training. Even at the Shaolin Temple, the foundation of all martial arts in the Central Plains, strength training was not neglected.

‘But there’s a limit to everything.’

Yoon Jong lowered his head and looked at the table.

Stir-fried vegetables were served as a side dish, but his hands were shaking so much that he couldn’t pick them up properly, and the stir-fried vegetables were scattered all over the table.

“Ugh… I can’t even eat properly.”

“We have sword training in the afternoon, aren’t we going to drop our swords? It’ll be a disaster if we drop a real sword while swinging it, someone’s back is going to get a hole in it!”

“…Fortunately, I don’t think I’ll even have the strength to swing it like that.”

“Is that fortunate?”

Yoon Jong sighed.

‘If you have complaints, talk to him directly. What good does talking behind his back do?’

“There’s nothing I can do.”

“Senior Brother!”

Grumbling voices erupted from here and there. But Yoon Jong just silently picked up the stir-fried vegetables.

With even Un-geom taking Chung Myung’s side, what more could he do?

“Senior Brother! Still, if you don’t say something at times like this…”

“Isn’t that what the position of Senior Brother is for?”

Just as Yoon Jong was about to sigh and speak, someone’s sharp voice was heard.

“You’re chattering way too much.”

The gazes of the Third-Generation Disciples filling the dining hall all turned to one place.

“Jo Gul?”

A moment of silence flowed. Jo Gul, who had been quietly eating his meal in the corner, acknowledged the attention he was receiving and opened his mouth in a sharp voice.

“Is Senior Brother your errand boy? It’s not like the person you want to talk to is hiding somewhere, if you have something to say, go and say it directly.”

“…No, we’re…”

“If you can’t go and argue directly, be quiet and eat your meal. You won’t be able to endure the afternoon if you don’t eat.”

No one could open their mouths after Jo Gul said that much.

Yoon Jong’s eyes took on a strange light as he looked at Jo Gul.

‘Strange.’

If it was the Jo Gul he knew, he should be denouncing Chung Myung in a louder voice than anyone else right now. Wasn’t he the one with the highest authority and the strongest among the Third-Generation Disciples in the first place?

With Jo Gul subtly taking Chung Myung’s side, it became difficult for everyone to speak up.

Clack.

Jo Gul, who had put down his chopsticks, rose from his seat and approached Yoon Jong.

“Senior Brother.”

“Hmm?”

“May I have a word with you?”

“…Let’s do that.”

Yoon Jong also put down his chopsticks and rose from his seat.

The remaining disciples tilted their heads as they watched the two leave the dining hall.

“Maybe I’m seeing something wrong…”

After they had come to a place where there were no people, Yoon Jong spoke first.

“You seem quite refreshed?”

Jo Gul raised his hand and rubbed his face.

“Can you see that?”

“You’re not good at hiding your expressions.”

“I’m just learning that.”

Jo Gul smiled awkwardly.

“You can still smile after rolling around like that?”

“…Senior Brother.”

“Yeah?”

“What do you think of Mount Hua?”

Yoon Jong closed his mouth. It was too serious a question to answer lightly.

“That’s a difficult question.”

“I can just go back to my family if things go wrong. But aren’t you planning to be buried in Mount Hua?”

“That’s right.”

Yoon Jong nodded quietly.

He was already scheduled to receive a Taoist name, a formal name in their sect. The other Third-Generation Disciples had not yet made a choice, but he alone would receive the Taoist name of Mount Hua and become a Jinsan disciple, sharing his fate with Mount Hua.

“Do you think Mount Hua has a future?”

“That’s reckless. Those are not words to be spoken lightly.”

“I didn’t think so.”

He should scold him for saying that. But Yoon Jong couldn’t bring himself to do it. Because his thoughts were not much different from Jo Gul’s.

“To say you didn’t think so, does that mean your thoughts have changed now?”

“…A little bit.”

“Changed?”

“It’s a forced training, but I realized something during this training. I have never pushed myself to my limits like this before.”

Well, that’s probably true.

Yoon Jong nodded without realizing it. He had never done this kind of training either. He always thought he was trying hard, but he had never pushed himself to the point where his hands and feet were trembling like now.

“But that guy was not tired even while digesting twice the amount of training we were doing.”

It’s not just twice.

It’s twice just in terms of the number of repetitions. If you include the weight, the intensity of the training would be much higher. Yoon Jong was also astonished to see Chung Myung training with sandbags heavier than his own weight.

“He can do it because he’s strong. But that guy’s age is definitely not older than me. It’s not because he’s strong, but isn’t it because he’s been doing it that he’s strong?”

“You’re right.”

“Senior Brother. I thought it was impossible for me to get stronger in Mount Hua. I thought I could only get to the point where I could show off my strength somewhere, but I couldn’t become a master who could command the world.”

“Jo Gul.”

“Please listen to me until the end, Senior Brother.”

Jo Gul swallowed hard and continued.

“But after seeing that guy, I realized that I was wrong. Frankly, is there even one person in our age group who can match that guy?”

There wouldn’t be.

There would absolutely not be.

Even though Yoon Jong was not the best among the Third-Generation Disciples in terms of martial arts, he was confident in his own skills. He was also confident that he wouldn’t be pushed back much even if he fought with the disciples of the Nine Great Sects.

But that monster flipped Yoon Jong over with one finger, and sent Jo Gul, who was stronger than Yoon Jong, flying into the ceiling with one blow.

How could there be another monster like that?

“It doesn’t matter which martial art you learn. What’s important is how you learn it. I just thought that obvious truth was a nice-sounding phrase. But after seeing that guy, I realized that it’s true. Senior Brother. I want to try my best.”

“…Me too.”

Jo Gul nodded his head greatly.

“So, please comfort the children, Senior Brother. Maybe this is an opportunity for our generation to change greatly. Even if it’s a little unpleasant and annoying, we have to follow that guy now.”

Yoon Jong looked at Jo Gul with sunken eyes.

Jo Gul was good at martial arts, but perhaps because he was from a merchant family, he had the ability to grasp the flow of things. He was someone who would definitely become a great merchant if he became a merchant. If someone like that was saying this much…

“Let’s do it.”

“Senior Brother!”

“You’re right. We can’t do anything as we are now. I’m someone who has decided to be buried in Mount Hua. I can do anything that can help Mount Hua.”

Jo Gul nodded his head at Yoon Jong’s resolute words.

“But it’s funny when I think about it. Because of the youngest who only came yesterday…”

“He’s not an ordinary youngest, though.”

“That’s true.”

The two people who smiled lightly at each other turned their bodies. The story was over. Now it was a matter of how much they could soothe the children.

“Geol.”

“Yes, Senior Brother.”

“Can we really get stronger?”

“One thing is certain.”

“Hmm?”

“If we don’t get stronger, we can at least train enough to feel wronged.”

“…That’s a comforting thing to say.”

The two people exchanged words and returned to the dining hall. And even until that moment, the two did not realize that there was a gaze watching them. A feeling of being watched lingered in the air.