Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 216

“S-Spare us!”

“We were wrong!”

“If you spare us, we’ll do anything!”

Baek Cheon tilted his head.

“What is he saying?”

“He says if you spare them, they’ll do anything.”

Baek Cheon’s eyebrows furrowed in annoyance at Jo Gul’s answer.

“I told you not to hit them so hard in the face!”

“No, it’s just that they were resisting.”

“⋯⋯.”

Usually, one doesn’t hit someone so hard in the face for resisting, my dear Sajil.

Baek Cheon eventually shook his head.

‘Jo Gul is just as bad as Chung Myung sometimes,’ he thought.

They complain about Chung Myung, but they act just like him sometimes! It’s funny and annoying!

He sighed deeply and looked at the bandits kneeling in a row.

‘They looked pitiful, kneeling in the dust, their clothes torn.’

Come to think of it, there’s no room to feel sorry for these guys.

These guys are the ones who rip off innocent civilians and merchants.

According to Merchant Gwak, people often die at the hands of bandits on this road, so these guys are likely trash who kill innocent people to line their own pockets.

Even knowing all that.

“Hehehehe.”

“⋯⋯.”

But then, Baek Cheon glanced back at Chung Myung, who was grinning in a way that promised trouble, and suddenly, he felt a strange pity for these bandits.

Just then, Chung Myung, who had been grinning slyly, crept closer.

“What are you going to do now?”

“What do you mean, what am I going to do?”

Chung Myung smiled contentedly and looked at the bandits.

“I wonder if these guys know how to eat like horses. They need to be strong to pull the wagons, you know?”

“⋯⋯.”

Oh no, what is he planning now? Just killing them would be kinder than whatever Chung Myung has in mind.

Gwak-gyeong blinked hard and rubbed his eyes, trying to clear his vision. Surely, he wasn’t seeing what he thought he was seeing.

The horses, which should have been struggling to pull the wagon, were now walking lightly beside the wagon.

And instead of the merchant guild’s horses, it was surprisingly people who were pulling the baggage cart.

The bandits groaned and grunted as they strained against the heavy cart.

“⋯⋯.”

‘What do you usually eat to even think of making people pull a baggage cart?’

Is this what a sane person would think?

What’s even more surprising is that the cart pulled by people was moving at least three times faster than when pulled by horses.

Humans can be such excellent baggage animals, so why have we been using horses instead of humans until now… No. That’s not it!

The Taoist Chung Myung, sitting on the wagon driver’s seat, tapped the bandits’ heads with the sheath of his sword.

“Are you slacking off? Looks like you’re losing strength in your legs?”

“N-No, sir!”

“You guys better consider yourselves lucky. I don’t usually let bandits like you live. But I spared you because you were useful, and now you’re trying to become useless?”

“No! That’s not true!”

The baggage carts began to move at an even faster pace. Now, those walking around the carts had to run.

Tears streamed down their faces as they ran, their muscles screaming in protest.

Gwak-gyeong gaped at the unbelievable sight he had never imagined in his life. Then, the head guard quietly approached and said in a low voice.

“Merchant Gwak.”

“Yes, Head Guard.”

“Those people pulling the cart right now…”

“Yes. Hehe. It’s quite crazy, isn’t it? I’m sorry. I know it’s hard for you to understand, but those people over there…”

“No, no. That’s not it.”

“Yes?”

The head guard approached, his face pale and his eyes wide with disbelief.

“Those guys are stronger than me.”

“Yes?”

“I said they’re stronger than me.”

“⋯⋯Yes?”

Gwak-gyeong looked at the head guard with a completely bewildered expression.

The name of the man currently serving as the head guard for this merchant caravan is Sima Hwai. His famous name is Lightning Hands.

He was quite famous in the Sichuan area. Because the road to Yunnan is so rough and dangerous, the Hwapyeong Merchant Guild paid a large sum to recruit him as the head guard.

It would be difficult for anyone who had been around in Sichuan not to have heard of the nickname Lightning Hands.

But such a man is weaker than just those bandits?

“So… those guys are?”

“The bandits pulling the cart right now. I’m saying those guys are stronger than me.”

“⋯⋯.”

Not the Mount Hua disciples who defeated the bandits, but those bandits are stronger than Lightning Hands?

“Look at them! Can’t you see their feet?”

The bandit being kicked by that young man right now?

“Not just one of them, but all of them are stronger than me.”

“⋯⋯All ten of them?”

“Yes. Without exception.”

“⋯⋯.”

The head guard glanced at the bandits again, a truly horrified expression spreading across his face. He looked like he had seen a ghost.

“Didn’t those guys mention Jang Ho-chae last night?”

“⋯⋯I think I heard something like that.”

“If it’s the Jang Ho-chae I know, they’re well-known for being dangerous in this area, like the bringers of death. I heard they’re a rising force that quickly united the bandits in this area.”

“I think I’ve heard that too⋯⋯.”

At this point, only one question remains.

“What on earth are those people?”

“Well, I’m not sure either⋯⋯.”

Gwak-gyeong didn’t receive any specific explanation about the Mount Hua disciples from Tang Gunak. He only heard that they were his guests and to take good care of them.

The only thing he overheard was.

“I heard they’re disciples of Mount Hua.”

“Mount Hua? Did you say Mount Hua? Are you perhaps referring to the Mount Hua in Shaanxi?”

“Yes. As far as I know⋯⋯.”

“There’s been talk that Mount Hua is becoming strong again, and indeed⋯⋯.”

The head guard shuddered.

Isn’t this a bit too much, though?

Those incredibly strong bandits of Jang Ho-chae were beaten down easily by those young ones.

Moreover, it’s not like they all ganged up on them.

One of the younger-looking ones casually stepped forward and beat those bandits without any effort.

‘Tang Gunak told me to take good care of them.’

Gwak-gyeong’s mind raced. ‘Take good care of them.’ Suddenly, Tang Gunak’s words didn’t sound like a polite request. They sounded like a warning. A serious warning.

Merchant Gwak cleared his throat loudly.

He had been too stunned to move, but now, he knew he had to take charge.

‘Um… Head Guard,’ he began, his voice firmer than before.

Guild Leader Kwak hesitated, his eyes fixed on Chung Myung. “Yes?” he finally asked.

Until now, Guild Leader Kwak had only spoken through Baek Cheon, but now his gaze was fixed on Chung Myung. He had watched Chung Myung handle the bandits like animals and knew he must talk to him now.

“I-Is this alright?”

“What do you mean?” Chung Myung turned to Guild Leader Kwak with a bright expression, seeming pleased that the trade caravan’s speed had increased.

“I-Is it really okay to enter Yunnan like this?”

“Huh? Is there a reason why it wouldn’t be?”

This is truly unbelievable! No matter how you look at it, this is strange! A person pulling a baggage cart!

“Ah, you mean these guys?”

“Yes. We can’t avoid drawing attention. Besides, there’s the matter of personnel. What do we say when they ask who these people are?”

“We just say they’re bandits.”

“Yes?”

“If we say we caught the bandits who attacked us and are making them work, surely they won’t say anything? There’s no need to lie, is there?”

“⋯⋯.”

Well, yes, but still…

Chung Myung grinned. “They wouldn’t count the bandits we caught along the way as personnel, would they? I doubt they’re that dense. Even the Wild Beast Palace people are still people.”

“If they ask how we subdued the bandits…”

“Just say the escort over there beat them all up and, as punishment, is making them pull the baggage carts instead of horses. Everyone will love it. After all, we’ve done a good deed.”

“⋯⋯.”

Will they really love it?

Guild Leader Kwak thought to himself, there doesn’t seem to be any reason for them to dislike it.

“What’s not to love? They’re pulling the carts instead of horses, and they’ll prepare the campsite at night. You can use them for anything else that needs doing.”

“I-Is that really alright?”

“Yes. Wouldn’t they prefer that to dying?”

“⋯⋯Yes?”

“If you really don’t want them, Guild Leader, we’ll just bury them somewhere suitable and leave. If we let them go, they’ll just go back to banditry, and we can’t have that.”

At Chung Myung’s words, the bandits tied to the carts like horses burst into tears and snot, shouting.

“We’ll pull diligently like dogs! No! Like cows!”

“Please give us work! We’ll do anything you ask!”

“Please don’t abandon us! We can pull much better than those scrawny horses! Please!”

“⋯⋯.”

It was supposed to be a beautiful sight of people working hard, but it was not at all. It was a desperate scene teetering between life and death. Heartrending cries to sway Guild Leader Kwak’s heart continued.

“Guild Leader!”

“Brother!”

“Mercy!”

Where are you guys going with this?

Guild Leader Kwak squeezed his eyes shut. “I-Is this alright? Taking bandits with us seems a bit dangerous.”

“Dangerous?” Chung Myung tilted his head. After kicking the backside of a tied-up bandit, he chuckled. “These guys?”

“⋯⋯.”

“Ah. I suppose you might be worried, Guild Leader. Then, um…” Chung Myung wore a troubled expression.

“Oh. Then… we need their legs to pull the carts, so that won’t do. Should we just break both their arms?”

The bandits looked at Guild Leader Kwak with the most desperate expressions imaginable. Seeing them shake their heads so strongly, Guild Leader Kwak felt a flicker of sympathy he hadn’t known he possessed.

“Then I’ll take that as permission, and I’ll break their arms so you don’t have to worry!”

“Ah, no! Young Hero! Wait! Just a moment! Even so, you can’t just break people’s arms like that…!”

“Hey. What people? They’re the kind of guys who kill people for money. If we weren’t here, everyone here would be dead.”

“W-Well, that’s true, but…”

“We’re saving the lives of guys who were originally supposed to die, so they should be willing to put up with a broken arm. I’d like to leave them with only one leg, but we have a long way to go. Hmm.”

As Chung Myung picked up his scabbard and stood up from the driver’s seat, Kwak Kyung’s voice grew even more urgent.

“C-Calm down! Please calm down, Young Hero! I’m fine! I won’t be worried at all! They’ll understand if you talk to them!”

“Yes?”

The bandits quickly shouted.

“We understand everything! We really understand, Young Hero!”

“We can work harder if we have arms! I’m good at digging and cooking! Please, let us work!”

“If anyone lays a finger on the trade caravan members, I’ll bite them! I’ll bite!”

“Please spare us!”

Chung Myung tilted his head. “You really understood just by talking?”

“Yes, we did!”

“Really!”

Chung Myung’s eyes gleamed in a scary way. “If you bastards could understand with words, why would you be bandits in the first place, you sons of bitches!”

Whack!

Instead of the broken Plum Blossom Sword, the iron sword he’d snatched from Tang Gunak landed hard on the bandit’s head, scabbard and all!

“You bastards, you have perfectly good arms and legs and even know martial arts, and you have nothing better to do than be bandits! I’m the guy who even took down the Green Forest King! How dare you act like bandits in front of me! You wanna die?!”

Whack! Whack!

All the bandits pulling the baggage carts were sad. But the most miserable bandit was the one tied to the baggage cart Chung Myung was riding on.

“Don’t even think about being treated like people until we reach Yunnan! I am the horse, I am the ox! You’ll pull and pull until you reach the state of Horse-I-Unity! I’ll show you what the Dao is!”

As Chung Myung began to glare, Guild Leader Kwak subtly turned his head towards Baek Cheon.

Baek Cheon smiled serenely with his handsome face. “Give up. You can’t stop him.”

“⋯⋯.”

And the other disciples chimed in. “Wow, Sasuk. Still, Chung Myung has really become much nicer. In the old days, he would have broken their arms and legs first, and then regretted that they had to pull the baggage cart.”

“No, he would have broken their arms and legs and then told them to pull the baggage cart.”

“Ah, that’s right.”

Then, Yuisul said in a low voice. “Head.”

“Yes?”

“He didn’t break their heads. He’s nice.”

“⋯⋯.”

“Don’t worry. Anyway, thanks to him, the journey will be much easier, and those bandits will reform themselves in the process.”

“Reform themselves?”

‘They’ll die if they don’t reform, how could they not?’ Baek Cheon muttered to himself. Guild Leader Kwak couldn’t help but smile faintly. ‘I don’t know anymore. Whatever will be, will be!’

And so, the trade caravan’s journey to Yunnan began to speed along several times faster than expected, without any problems.

Without any problems… Problems…

“Why are those horse bastards eating the food meant for people! Eat your hay, you sons of bitches!”

There was a slight problem. A minor. A very minor problem.