Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 198

Chung Myung blinked slowly. His head hurt. Everything around him was blurry. *Where am I?* he thought, feeling lost. He could smell blood. It was strong in his nose. He felt a cold fear. Something bad was going to happen. This all felt strange and wrong to him.

“Brother!”

Three throwing knives flew from behind Chung Myung, hitting the bad guys in their heads.

Thwack!

The bad guys fell to the ground.

Plop.

Chung Myung stared at them.

The bad guys weren’t moving. They were dead.

Death.

Yes, this is death.

“What are you doing? In a fight, you suddenly stop paying attention! That’s not like you, Brother!”

Chung Myung turned to look at Tang Bo.

Tang Bo came closer to Chung Myung.

“…No.”

Chung Myung touched his head.

He couldn’t focus.

“I don’t know. I must be tired.”

Chung Myung shook the blood off his sword and put it back in its case. Tang Bo smiled and picked up his throwing knives.

“Well, you should be tired. You’ve been fighting for three days.”

“Hmm.”

“You seem really tired, Brother. You’re not talking as much.”

“…”

“Do you want a pill? I can give you one.” Tang Bo asked.

“No, thank you.” Chung Myung said.

“Oh, you always do this! Everyone wants a Tang Family magic pill! Don’t you trust the Tang Family?” Tang Bo sounded surprised. “The Tang Family is the best!”

“I trust the Tang Family,” Chung Myung said.

“Then why don’t you want a pill?”

“It’s you I don’t trust *with medicine*,” Chung Myung said, with a small smile. “You gave me a poison pill last time, remember?”

“Ha. You don’t trust me, Brother! The poison pill I gave you last time was a mistake!”

“You just talk,” Chung Myung said.

Chung Myung turned around quickly.

“I’m going back.”

“Hey, wait! Let’s go together, Brother.”

Tang Bo ran to catch up with Chung Myung.

“Now that we beat those special guys, we should win the war, right?”

“I hope so.”

If not, all this would be for nothing.

Chung Myung felt something cold on his arm and looked down. Tang Bo was putting medicine on his arm.

There was a long cut on Chung Myung’s arm, and Tang Bo was covering it with medicine.

Chung Myung frowned.

“It will heal by itself.”

“Yes, it will. But it’ll heal faster with medicine. Just be still.”

Tang Bo tore a piece of Chung Myung’s sleeve and used it to cover the medicine.

“This Tang Family healing balm is very valuable. You should be thankful.”

“You always say bad things about the Tang Family, but you use their stuff.”

“That’s different. Also…”

Tang Bo’s smile disappeared. His voice became serious and quiet.

“I didn’t understand before, but now I know why the family was so strong. If you don’t have power, you’re nothing. If the Tang Family had more power, we wouldn’t have run away from Sichuan, and so many family members would still be alive.”

“…”

Chung Myung frowned as he listened to Tang Bo.

“I’ve been thinking about something, Brother.”

“What is it?”

“Instead of arguing with the family, maybe I should have helped them. Maybe the family would be stronger… Then… maybe we could have saved more people…”

“Don’t say that. You would have been killed if you fought them with just strength.”

“…I guess so.”

Tang Bo looked down sadly. Then, he smiled again.

“So, after the war, I want to help the old man, the Family Head. I’m just an Elder in name only, and I haven’t helped them much.”

“You just cause trouble.”

“Not as much as you, Brother…”

“What?”

“Nothing. The weather is… gloomy. Why is the weather like this? Ahem.”

Chung Myung smiled a little.

Chung Myung hadn’t done much for his group either.

He had only given the group the reputation of the Plum Blossom Sword Saint. He hadn’t trained students or helped his people.

He had just lived his life as he wanted.

‘If the war ends…’

He would have to change then.

“So, Brother.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s promise something. If I die in this war, please take care of the Tang Family kids for me.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“Even if I’m not strong, you’re more likely to live than me. So, please do this for me and take care of the kids. I’ll even give you a Thousand Poison Pill. You can’t buy this.”

“Stop talking nonsense, or I’ll stab you.”

“Oh, come on! Is it hard to do?”

“If you want to help the Tang Family, do it yourself. Stay alive, no matter what.”

“…Aww. You’re so mean.”

Chung Myung waved Tang Bo away and walked faster.

“Is that a promise?”

“Good grief.”

“I’ll give you the Thousand Poison Pill!”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes?”

“I’m going to hit you.”

“Ha… Haha. Oh dear, I think I’m hurt. Why is my body like this…”

Chung Myung smiled as he watched Tang Bo run away.

“Why would a dead man think about what happens after death? It’s all over when you die.”

“Aww, but it’s not like that. Even if I die, the others will still live.”

“…”

“You don’t understand, Brother…”

Tang Bo scratched his head.

“There’s just something, something that stays, a feeling that doesn’t disappear.”

Chung Myung sighed and turned around.

“Don’t make others do your work. Do it yourself.”

“…”

“Instead.”

“Yes?”

“I’ll end the war. I’ll kill the Heavenly Demon.”

“Hehe. If it’s you, Brother, you can do it.”

“So, until then…”

Chung Myung spoke slowly.

“Fight to stay alive.”

“…Yes.”

Tang Bo came closer to Chung Myung. Chung Myung walked beside Tang Bo.

And.

Tang Bo died in battle less than a month later.

Chung Myung opened his eyes.

‘Huh?’

Chung Myung sat up quickly.

“Ugh…”

His stomach hurt. He looked down and saw a white bandage around his stomach.

‘I didn’t die.’

Chung Myung groaned, his hand going to his side. “Just a little stab? That won’t kill me. Back when I was fighting in wars, I survived even after getting stabbed in the dantian (the center of his energy) with a greatsword! This body is incredibly strong.”

“But where is this?”

Chung Myung turned quickly. His face changed.

“Huh?”

His eyes landed on the disciples of Mount Hua. Baek Cheon, Yiseol, Yoon Jong, and Jo Gul were sprawled on the cold stone floor, limbs tangled like fallen trees.

Ah, they’re just sleeping like the dead. Gave me a fright.

Chung Myung chuckled, looking at his martial siblings.

“Must be used to sleeping anywhere, growing up in poverty.”

Tsk. Those pitiful things.

Chung Myung was about to call out to Yoon Jong to wake him up.

“Let them rest. They haven’t slept properly in three days.”

Chung Myung turned sharply, surprised.

Tang Gunak, the head of the Sichuan Dang Family, stood before the door. The door had opened sometime without him noticing. He was the one who had fought Chung Myung in a duel. His face was calm, but his eyes were serious.

“Ah, you’re awake?”

His face was blank.

Chung Myung tilted his head, looking around again.

“Is this the Dang Family?”

“It is.”

“Why am I at the Dang Family? No, wait, before that! Has it really been three days?”

“Yes, three days. You were out cold.”

Chung Myung’s face twisted.

‘Three days?’ Seriously, just because I got stabbed a little, I was out for three days?

‘So weak.’

Chung Myung gritted his teeth. If it were the old him, he would have brushed it off and applied some medicine, but this body loses consciousness from just this much. Thinking about it made Chung Myung’s temper flare.

“Then why are my martial uncles like this?”

“They refused to leave your side until you woke up. I tried to get them to rest, but they even drew their swords in protest. They were so tense that I thought something might happen, so I knocked them out by striking their pressure points.”

They stayed by my side for three days?

‘Seriously…’ They could have taken turns watching over me. Why all four of them?

Tsk. Those foolish things.

Chung Myung glared at Tang Gunak.

“Then you should have moved them to a more comfortable place!”

“What could I do? They groaned and tried to wake up whenever I tried to move them.”

“The bond between you martial siblings is quite strong. If the Dang Family’s children were like that, my worries would be lessened. I’m almost envious.”

“Envious, my foot…”

Chung Myung glanced at his martial siblings.

‘So foolish.’ They really are foolish beyond compare.

But…

“Ahem.”

Chung Myung cleared his throat softly. He tried to hide the warmth he felt in his chest. Foolish siblings, but… they were *his* foolish siblings.

At that moment, Tang Gunak strode forward and bowed deeply to Chung Myung.

“I apologize.”

“Huh?”

“This entire incident is my fault. I never imagined that Dang Pae would commit such a terrible act.”

“I know that no words of mine can excuse what happened. But I will do everything in my power to appease your anger.”

“Hmm?”

Tang Gunak raised his head, his face utterly grave, and opened his mouth.

“First, I acknowledge that this match was my defeat.”

“As promised, the Sichuan Dang Family will recognize Chung Myung of Mount Hua as an eternal guest and friend of the Dang Family.”

“Oh?”

“And if you wish, I will even offer you Dang Pae’s head.”

Chung Myung’s eyes widened.

“I raised my son poorly. If that will atone for it, I will gladly do so. If that can restore the Dang Family’s fallen honor!”

Tang Gunak spat out the words. He hoped this was enough. He was walking a dangerous line, but he had to protect his family’s name.

Tang Gunak subtly raised his head to gauge Chung Myung’s reaction.

‘Huh?’

Unfortunately for Tang Gunak, Chung Myung’s expression was a lot different from what he had expected.

Chung Myung’s head tilted to the side.

“Is that all?”

“Huh?”

“Is that all you’re offering?”

“Well?”

“Oh, heavens.”

Chung Myung stared at Tang Gunak with an expression of utter disbelief. Tang Gunak flinched at the look in his eyes, as if he were seeing something that should not exist.

“You stab someone in the gut and then what? Friends? Frieends?”

“And if a child does something wrong, the parents should take responsibility! Why are you subtly passing the buck to your kid!”

“Oh, my dear neighbors! This is the Dang Family for you! The Dang Family! Heavens! They call this a prestigious clan. Prestigious! Prestigious my foot!”

Chung Myung shot up from his seat.

“No! Instead of this, I should run out to Chengdu and spread the word about how reliable the Dang Family’s work is. I should tell the beggars. It’ll spread throughout the world in three days.”

“Calm down!”

Cold sweat trickled down Tang Gunak’s spine. If the rumor spread that the head of the Dang Family had lost to the Divine Dragon of Mount Hua in a duel, and that the young master of the Dang Family had even resorted to a sneak attack during a fair fight… the Dang Family would be finished. Wasn’t the Dang Family already being called a demonic sect because they used hidden weapons and poison?

“Eh. No, no. I’d lose my head if I did that. You can throw knives in a duel with a sneak attack, who’s to say you can’t slice off someone’s head?”

“If I were going to do that, I would have killed you already.”

“Pardon?”

“Ah, never mind. I misspoke.”

Tang Gunak wiped the cold sweat from his brow with his sleeve and looked at Chung Myung.

“What do you want?”

“Are you asking because you don’t know? There has to be compensation! Compensation! If stabbing someone with a knife could be resolved with a simple apology, why do we have government offices! Why do wars break out!”

“That’s right. Yes. Of course, there must be compensation. But what should I give as compensation…”

“I’ll think about it carefully. How we can make this a win-win… No, a good deal for both of us.”

“And!”

Chung Myung rolled his eyes.

“First of all, I’m feeling weak.”

“Huh?”

“Give me a Cheondokdan pill first.”

“Cheon, Cheondok?”

“Yes.”

“Now.”

“I understand.”

An unavoidable sense of despair washed over Tang Gunak’s face. He thought, ‘I’ve messed up.’