Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 321

“It’s the finals.”

“Bloody hell. It’s really the finals.”

“…Well, when you think about it, it’s not that surprising, I suppose…”

The disciples of Mount Hua shook their heads, watching Chung Myung doze off in the corner.

“That bloke’s not human, I tell you.”

When you think about it, all the people expected to win have lost.

Namgung Dowi of the Namgung Clan was completely beaten by Chung Myung, and Jin Geum-ryong of Jongnam was even defeated by Baek Cheon and kicked out of the tournament.

The Wudang Sect did okay, but they didn’t make it past the top eight. Even the Peng Clan, who everyone thought would do well, was embarrassed by Yu Yiseol.

In the world of martial arts, these tournaments are a way to prove who is strongest and for new heroes to be discovered. Martial arts tournaments are usually like this.

If the people everyone thought were strong just kept winning, who would care about martial arts tournaments?

Martial arts tournaments are exciting because there are always surprises and new strong fighters appear.

That’s why all martial artists are so excited about them.

In the end, Chung Myung, who was known as the best of the younger generation but was a little underestimated, and Hae Yeon, who was almost unknown before the tournament, were the ones left standing at the final stage.

Who would have ever thought that would happen?

“That bloke’s a real monster.”

“Sometimes I wonder if he’s really human.”

The disciples of Mount Hua shuddered, but they also looked proud.

And why wouldn’t they be?

The monster of Mount Hua was becoming famous around the world.

“The rest of the world needs to suffer a bit too.”

“That’s right, so they can understand how we feel, even just a little.”

Baek Cheon chuckled as he listened to them. He felt the same way.

‘He’s really doing it.’

It’s hard to make what you think should happen actually happen.

But Chung Myung had done it. He had made it to the finals without any big problems.

How much had changed since they arrived?

Before they came to Shaolin, Mount Hua was seen as just a weak, fallen group.

Even after they beat Jongnam at the Hwajong Assembly, they only got a silver plaque, not a gold one.

Even after arriving at Shaolin, no one expected them to do well until the competition started.

But now, all the martial arts groups in the world were paying attention to Mount Hua.

Gifts were piling up in front of the building, boxes wrapped in bright paper and tied with colorful ribbons, smelling of sweet fruits and fragrant teas. People on the street stopped and stared when they saw the Mount Hua uniforms, their eyes wide with respect and a little surprise.

Sometimes, those looks made them feel strange, but they also felt proud.

‘Just becoming famous can change things so much.’

He understood why martial artists would fight for even a little bit of fame.

In the martial arts world, fame is important.

Fame gives you the right to speak up and makes others respect you.

Just like they felt small when they first came to Shaolin, now other groups felt small when they looked at Mount Hua.

“Samae, are you feeling alright?” Baek Cheon asked.

Yu Yiseol nodded slightly.

“I’m fine.”

Bandages were wrapped tightly under her clothes, but Yu Yiseol seemed calm, as if it were nothing serious.

But Tang Soso didn’t seem happy with that answer.

“Fine? The doctor said you need to rest for a month!”

“Quack.”

“He’s the head of Shaolin’s medical hall!”

“A headless quack.”

“⋯⋯.”

Uh…

Could it be that Yiseol now dislikes Shaolin a little after her match with Hae Yeon?

While Tang Soso wondered about this, Baek Cheon nodded and said.

“If you’re alright, that’s good, but don’t do too much. It’s important to heal completely. If you can’t handle a little pain now, you’ll suffer for a long time. You don’t want that, do you?”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Good.”

Baek Cheon stood up.

“Everyone, listen for a moment.”

Everyone in the building looked up at him. He spoke seriously.

“Everyone has worked hard.”

His voice was soft but strong.

“I could say this after the finals, but I think it’s good to say it now, whether we win or not. Everyone has really worked hard.”

“It’s nothing, Sahyung.”

“Sasuk has also worked hard!”

“Yes.”

Baek Cheon smiled and continued.

“We’ve learned a lot by coming here. The finals are still ahead, but the result isn’t the most important thing. What matters is what we’ve learned during this competition. Let’s keep moving forward. If we can become stronger because of what we’ve learned here, Mount Hua can truly become great again.”

“Yes!”

“We will remember that.”

The disciples of Mount Hua nodded, looking determined.

At that moment, Hyun Jong and the elders, who were coming downstairs, stopped. They quietly went back upstairs and whispered.

“It seems like we don’t need to say anything.”

“That’s right.”

Hyun Jong smiled gently.

‘They have grown.’

The disciples of Mount Hua had been motivated before, but it wasn’t the same as now. Now, they seemed to know where they were going.

A good feeling filled Hyun Jong’s heart.

They had grown even more through this competition. Now, they were finding their own way and walking it themselves, without needing to be pushed.

He wiped his eyes a little.

‘I have no regrets.’

They had taken back what was lost, worked hard, and now proven themselves.

If the ancestors of Mount Hua were watching, they would be smiling and praising them.

So now, with a proud heart…

“What are you talking about?”

At that moment, a voice ruined the good feeling.

“⋯⋯.”

The elders, who had been happily patting each other, looked down awkwardly.

“What? Whether we win or not? Or not?”

When they heard Chung Myung’s angry voice, the elders looked at each other and smiled warmly.

“⋯⋯I don’t think I’ve finished sorting the documents yet.”

“Ah, I have something to do too.”

“Hmm. Now that I think about it, so do I.”

Hyun Jong and the elders looked at each other and then quickly left the stairs and went to their rooms.

‘Sorry, kids.’

Hyun Jong looked down with regret, but he quickly walked towards his room.

Downstairs, Chung Myung, who had woken up from his nap, glared.

“Why are you saying such nonsense so seriously?! If we’ve come this far, we have to win! Are you going to work hard just to lose?”

Baek Cheon smiled as he looked at Chung Myung.

Mount Hua had changed a lot during this competition. Everything was different compared to when they first arrived.

‘But his personality hasn’t changed at all.’

He was always the same. The problem was that he was always the same in a bad way.

“Chung Myung-ah.”

“What?”

“I know you can win, but I want to say that even if you don’t, we don’t have much to lose. Isn’t being the runner-up a great achievement too? We don’t want to put pressure on you⋯⋯.”

“Why are you talking such nonsense?”

“⋯⋯Huh?”

Chung Myung rolled his eyes.

“The world doesn’t remember second place! It only remembers first place! Have you forgotten what happened to Jongnam, who came in second at the Hwajong Assembly?”

“⋯⋯Should we even call that second place?”

There were only two people in the competition.

“Anyway, second place is meaningless! Now that we’re here, we have to win no matter what. People think that second place is the same as last place!”

Chung Myung said things that would shock even the most famous runner-up in the martial arts world.

“And!”

“Huh?”

“If those bald monks win, they’ll smile annoyingly and say, ‘You did well.’ I can’t stand that. I’d rather pluck my eyes out than see that!”

Baek Cheon looked at the other disciples.

Everyone was smiling at Chung Myung as if to say, ‘Of course.’

Baek Cheon cleared his throat and looked at Chung Myung.

“Then let me ask you.”

“Huh?”

“Are you confident that you can win?”

“⋯⋯.”

Chung Myung frowned.

“Um, Sasuk.”

“Huh?”

“It seems like you’re misunderstanding something⋯⋯.”

He pushed back his messy hair and said.

“You don’t think that winning here means we’ve achieved something great, do you?”

“⋯⋯.”

“This is just a competition for the younger generation. The real power of each group is with the older disciples and the elders. Even if we win here, we’ll only become famous, and we still won’t be one of the Nine Great Sects.”

Baek Cheon stopped talking.

Chung Myung’s words brought him back to reality.

“The younger generation being the strongest only means that the group might become stronger in the future, but it doesn’t guarantee anything. This is just one step. If you older members don’t become stronger because of this competition, we’ll just be laughed at later, right?”

It felt like a loose thread was being pulled tight.

“This competition is just the beginning for Mount Hua. I’m going to take everything I can and climb to the top.”

“⋯⋯That’s right. You wouldn’t miss the bottles of booze under the table either.”

“Hehe. I’m a little embarrassed when you praise me like that.”

“That’s not a compliment, you idiot.”

Baek Cheon smiled at Chung Myung’s sincere embarrassment.

“Right. This is just a checkpoint.”

There were so many things to do.

They wanted to make Mount Hua the greatest group in the world. This was only the beginning.

‘But⋯⋯.’

Baek Cheon felt worried.

‘Can Chung Myung really beat Hae Yeon?’

He never would have doubted it before.

Because Chung Myung was a monster. Because he was so strong.

But after seeing Hae Yeon’s Great Power of Non-Attachment, he wondered.

‘Is Mount Hua’s sword style strong enough to beat Shaolin’s powerful techniques?’

This was different from just being strong.

If one person has a long sword and the other has a short paper knife, the better weapon will win, no matter how skilled the person with the knife is.

No matter how strong Chung Myung was, if Shaolin’s martial arts were better than Mount Hua’s, he might lose to Hae Yeon.

He remembered Yu Yiseol’s sword energy melting like snow in front of Hae Yeon’s power.

“Chung Myung-ah, this is⋯⋯.”

Just then…

Bang!

The door burst open, and Baek Sang rushed in, his face as white as paper. He looked around wildly and shouted when he saw Baek Cheon.

“S, Sahyung!”

Baek Cheon knew something was wrong.

“What’s wrong?”

“G, guests! Guests have arrived!”

“Huh?”

Baek Cheon was confused.

He ran in as if he had seen a ghost, just to say that guests had arrived. Who were these guests that were making him so upset?

“Who?”

“Th, that’s⋯⋯.”

At that moment, two people slowly walked through the open door.

Baek Cheon stared in shock.

“A, Abbot?”

The person who had opened the door was Abbot Beop Jeong of Shaolin.

And⋯⋯.

“Hae Yeon?”

The person next to him was Hae Yeon.

Chung Myung also widened his eyes.

“Huh?”

Why are you all here?