Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 208

Silence fell. It was heavy and thick, like a blanket.

Dang Hak had lost.

He was defeated.

The Dang Clan was too shocked to speak because it was unbelievable.

‘He wasn’t even beaten by the Divine Dragon of Mount Hua,’ someone thought.

To lose to someone from his group. Someone who was just part of his team.

Yu Yiseol was from Mount Hua. She was a disciple there. She seemed important, maybe even more important than the Divine Dragon. But she was younger than Dang Hak.

And yet, Dang Hak had been beaten…

People watching were worried. This was very important and serious.

This defeat meant a lot.

There are many fighting families in the world. But few were very strict about men being in charge as the Dang Clan. They were cruel and didn’t share their secret skills to daughters, even if they were family.

And Dang Hak, who everyone thought was the best young fighter, had been beaten by a woman from Mount Hua. It was a big surprise.

Tang Soso made a fist.

“…She won.”

Her eyes shook.

Yu Yiseol had beaten Dang Hak.

It was amazing to everyone, but especially to Tang Soso.

To beat Dang Hak.

She had never thought it was possible.

Of course, things were different for her. She was a daughter of the Dang Clan. They didn’t teach her their skills. She knew she could never beat Dang Hak, even if she lived another life.

But Yu Yiseol had done it.

“…Amazing,” Tang Soso whispered.

Tang Soso kept looking at Yu Yiseol. Yu Yiseol was still weak from the poison. Then, Tang Soso tilted her head.

“Huh? Why is that man walking up there?” she thought.

She saw Chung Myung walking slowly onto the platform.

The fight was over. Why bother now?

Chung Myung stepped onto the platform and looked around.

Everyone looked at him.

Even with everyone’s attention, he paused for a moment, making everyone wait and wonder. He waited until everyone was thoroughly focused on him before speaking.

“To be honest,”

Chung Myung began, his voice neither too loud nor too soft.

“I had high expectations for the famed Sichuan Dang Clan…”

He tilted his head.

“But I’m not sure what you’re all doing?”

Everyone stared at Chung Myung, slightly surprised.

This was a clear insult to the Dang Clan.

“Ah, don’t look at me with such angry faces. Anyone in my position would think the same.”

Chung Myung gestured with his chin towards Dang Hak, who was being carried away.

“Look.”

“…”

Everyone fell silent.

The defeated had no right to speak.

“Knowing your own skills and those of your opponent is the most basic thing before starting a fight. I never imagined the Dang Clan would fail to meet even that basic standard.”

Chung Myung chuckled.

The Dang Clan members naturally felt anger at him softly making fun of them.

But they couldn’t bring themselves to express their anger towards Chung Myung.

They simply couldn’t.

Dang Hak hadn’t been defeated by Chung Myung, but by a member of his party.

If Yu Yiseol were stronger than Chung Myung, she would have earned the title of Divine Dragon of Mount Hua. This meant that Dang Hak had no chance of winning against Chung Myung from the start.

And yet, they pushed for this duel?

It was no different from openly inviting humiliation.

Underestimating the opponent and overestimating oneself. This was something a leader of a group should never do.

“So, I’m asking…”

Chung Myung looked around and said.

“Who was the one who suggested this ridiculous duel?”

Naturally, eyes began to turn.

No one voiced their accusations, but the moment the question was asked, some reflexively turned their heads, and the rest had no choice but to follow their gaze.

Soon, all eyes were fixed on Dang Woe.

“Ahem.”

Dang Woe cleared his throat, looking extremely uncomfortable.

‘This is a bloody mess.’

Dang Hak was no match for Chung Myung. How could Dang Woe not know that? Wasn’t that why he tried to poison Chung Myung in the first place?

But Dang Hak’s defeat against Yu Yiseol had shattered everything.

It would have been unsightly, but if he had somehow managed to secure a difficult victory, he could have become the Young Lord as the Clan Lord had promised. The important thing was winning, not how he won.

But now that he had been completely defeated by Yu Yiseol in front of everyone, all those promises were meaningless.

Moreover…

The gazes questioning the reason for this duel were now fixed on him.

‘Am I supposed to explain this myself?’

That he intended to poison Chung Myung to win?

There was no way he could say that!

All he could do now was take the hit. He would be seen as a fool who hadn’t understood his grandson’s skills and had dared to challenge the Divine Dragon of Mount Hua without a second thought.

Dang Woe glared at Chung Myung, suppressing the fury that threatened to explode within him.

‘All of this is because of that bastard!’

He wanted to jump down and tear that man to pieces. But all he could do was glare at Chung Myung.

He couldn’t allow it to be said that an elder of the Dang Clan had attacked a younger member out of spite.

Chung Myung grinned at Dang Woe.

“Ah, so you’re an elder.”

Chung Myung emphasized the word ‘elder’ and tilted his head.

“But that’s strange. From what I’ve heard, the Dang Clan’s Council of Elders is supposed to advise the Clan Lord… How can someone who doesn’t know his own grandson’s skills, nor those of the enemy, advise anyone?”

“You, you dare!”

Dang Woe blurted out without realizing it.

“Look, the Clan Lord bet on us winning, didn’t he? Who is advising whom here?”

“You…”

Dang Woe’s face twisted.

Chung Myung was hitting him where it hurt the most.

Dang Hak’s defeat could be fixed. It was disappointing, but it was merely a failure to obtain what he wanted.

But having his poor judgment exposed in front of so many people was a big problem.

This was originally his role.

The Council of Elders was there to advise the Clan Lord.

Naturally, the advisor didn’t need to be stronger than the Clan Lord, but they had to be wiser. If those who had grown old and taken over the inner chambers with the title of Elder couldn’t even prove their judgment, it was only natural that they would be pushed to the back.

“Council of Elders, it sounds good, but I wonder if you’re just holding everyone back.”

“You’d better watch your mouth. There’s a limit to how much we can tolerate the arrogance of a Mount Hua whelp.”

Dang Woe, unable to contain his anger, spat out coldly. But Chung Myung, not scared at all, pointed at Dang Woe.

“See?”

Chung Myung smirked.

“I’m telling you, he has no insight. He doesn’t even know who’s tolerating whose arrogance.”

“…What did you say?”

Chung Myung shrugged and looked around.

“Do you know why this happened?”

There was no one to answer.

People who thought they knew the answer were afraid to speak. Those who didn’t know were silent because they were confused.

“It’s simple.”

As if to explain, Chung Myung pointed to the platform.

“Because they’re weak.”

“⋯⋯.”

Dang-oe’s eyes widened.

“They’re so weak they don’t even know how strong the opponent is. And they dare to give the Clan Lord advice when they are so weak?”

Chung Myung shook his head.

“It would be better if they just didn’t stop him.”

“⋯⋯You!”

“It’s the same now. If the Elders hadn’t held him back, this disgrace wouldn’t have happened, and the Clan Lord would have been able to push forward with what he wanted quickly. This is the price of listening to the old fogeys in the Council of Elders.”

It was at that moment.

“Hwasan Divine Dragon.”

Tang Gunak spoke in a slightly lower voice.

“Please be careful with your words. They are the elders of the Dang Clan.”

“Khee. Our Clan Lord is so kindhearted.”

Chung Myung, who had exaggeratedly exclaimed in admiration, hardened his expression for a moment and spoke coldly.

“He still cares for those elders who are holding him back.”

“You scoundrel!”

Dang-oe jumped up from his seat.

“I’ve been listening and listening, but you truly know no end! How long did you think I would tolerate this?”

“See? I told you he has no good judgment.”

“What did you say?”

“I’m doing this so you won’t hesitate. You can’t even understand this simple thing? And you call yourself an Elder?”

Chung Myung looked straight at Dang-oe.

“Prove you can judge things correctly. Prove you are qualified to call yourself an Elder.”

“How⋯⋯.”

What Dang-oe originally intended to say was, ‘How do you want me to prove it?’ But Dang-oe, realizing that uttering those words was Chung Myung’s intention, immediately shut his mouth.

However, Chung Myung’s subsequent words made it impossible for him to endure any longer.

“You keep saying you’re tolerating me. That’s what the strong say to the weak.”

“⋯⋯What did you say?”

“So, I’m saying you have no eyes.”

Chung Myung tapped his scabbard.

“I’m stronger, you see.”

“⋯⋯.”

“Prove you have good judgment. If Elder wins against me, then Elder saw correctly, and if I win, then those eyes are useless, wouldn’t you say?”

“Hah⋯⋯.”

Dang-oe let out a short, disbelieving laugh. It wasn’t a sound of amusement, but of pure scorn. He shook his head slightly, a thin smile twisting his lips.

“Haha⋯⋯. Hahaha! Hahahahaha!”

The forced laughter grew louder, echoing in the tense silence of the hall. Dang-oe finally stopped, wiping a fake tear from his eye, and asked Chung Myung in a tone dripping with disbelief.

“Are you seriously saying you want to fight me? Now?”

“Wow. It took so long to make you understand that one thing. It shouldn’t be that difficult to understand these words.”

“⋯⋯.”

Dang-oe unknowingly rubbed the back of his neck slightly. Every word made him angrier and angrier. Listening to him, he couldn’t tolerate it at all.

“Fame has made you lose your senses. Are you now asking me, the Supreme Elder of the Dang Clan, for a duel?”

“Hey.”

Chung Myung sighed deeply.

“I know you’re old and can’t hear well, but it’s hard for me to keep saying the same thing. What are you going to do?”

Dang-oe gritted his teeth. But when he thought about it, this wasn’t something to get angry about. The situation was already the worst. If he beat that arrogant bastard in front of the Dang Clan’s family, he could at least patch up this situation.

“Clan Lord!”

Dang-oe coldly exclaimed.

“What will you do? Would you understand even if I killed that child?”

Tang Gunak said with an expressionless face.

“Hwasan Divine Dragon is a friend of the Dang Clan.”

“⋯⋯.”

“So, I can’t stop what a friend is doing.”

“Huh?”

Dang-oe, looking at Tang Gunak as if he was dumbfounded, burst into hearty laughter.

“Hahahahahaha! It seems you really look down on me.”

With a roar of anger, Dang-oe launched himself onto the sparring platform, landing with a heavy thud that echoed in the hall.

Before the fluttering hem of his clothes could settle, Dang-oe glared at Chung Myung with a ghostly face.

“You’ve gone too far. You should have been happy with a small victory and stopped.”

“Be careful.”

“Hmm?”

Chung Myung grinned.

“You shouldn’t say things carelessly in front of people. You’re giving people reasons to make fun of you. You’ll have to live in the Dang Clan even after the duel is over, so how are you going to hold your head up high?”

Dang-oe didn’t respond any further. There was no longer any reason to exchange words with that bastard. He just wanted to cover that awful person in poison until he turned black, and then stab him with a hidden knife.

“Ah, I’m just asking in case. Are you going to use poison?”

Dang-oe slightly bit his lip. He specialized in poison techniques. If he couldn’t use poison techniques, he wouldn’t be able to display even a third of his skills.

But⋯⋯ ‘That alone is enough to kill that bastard.’

Before he could say he wouldn’t use poison, Chung Myung spoke first.

“If you’re going to use poison, let’s add another condition.”

“⋯⋯Condition? What condition are you talking about?”

“This is more of a bet than a condition.”

Chung Myung glanced at Tang Gunak.

Tang Gunak quietly nodded. He didn’t know what he was talking about, but he meant that he would trust Chung Myung for now. However, the words that followed shocked even the great Tang Gunak.

“If you win, I’ll grant everything you originally wanted. Hwasan will leave the Dang Clan and never look back, and that idiot earlier, the Young Clan Lord? Yes, the Clan Lord will make him the Young Clan Lord.”

“⋯⋯Eeeh?”

An exclamation of surprise flowed from the mouth of the great Tang Gunak. But he couldn’t take back what he had already said.

Dang-oe glared at Chung Myung as if he couldn’t believe it and asked.

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Don’t worry. I’m completely sane. But we need to change the conditions on this side.”

“⋯⋯What’s the condition?”

“If I win⋯⋯.”

Chung Myung’s smiling face gradually turned cold.

Chung Myung, taking a slight deep breath, coldly exclaimed.

“Dissolve the Council of Elders and step down. The Clan Lord of the Dang Clan has no use for advisors like you.”

Chung Myung’s cold voice clearly pierced everyone’s ears.