Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 368

Chung Myung was used to winning fights, not losing. He had always been the one giving the punches, not taking them. Well, except for that first time when he woke up in this new body, but he didn’t like to remember that.

But right now, Chung Myung was being attacked, not with fists, but with bags of money.

“Chung Myung, are you okay?” Baek Cheon held Chung Myung up as he stumbled back, hand at his throat. Baek Cheon’s voice was full of worry. Chung Myung’s eyes widened, and he suddenly stood straight.

“I won’t sell! Not even for a thousand gold coins! Leave now!”

“Hahaha. You are too quick to react. And…” The man rubbed his chin, pretending to be thoughtful. “You don’t understand business at all. In just one week, this place will be worth half as much. It would be smarter to take our offer and go, don’t you think?”

“Who said we came here for business?” Chung Myung asked sharply. “Isn’t that right?” the man replied, a smirk playing on his lips.

*Business.* Chung Myung thought to himself. *Yes, we are here for business. But what is so special about it? Business is just about making money.*

“A wise person knows when things have changed,” the man continued smoothly. “You must see that things are different now. Don’t make your losses bigger because of pointless pride.”

“Hmm,” Chung Myung muttered. *He talks too much.* Chung Myung’s fists clenched. *I want to see if he can still talk so much with a fist in his mouth. Just one punch. That’s all it would take…*

Hyun Young saw the anger rising in Chung Myung. He quickly stepped closer and gently took Chung Myung’s wrist. Hyun Young’s smile stayed fixed on his face, though it looked a little strained.

“No punching,” he whispered.

“Then stabbing?” Chung Myung asked, his voice tight with frustration.

“Definitely not,” Hyun Young replied firmly.

“Ugh,” Chung Myung grunted, fighting to control his temper.

They must know Hwasan wouldn’t give up for a little money. But still, they came here throwing money at them, clearly trying to make fun of Hwasan’s troubles. Chung Myung had never let anyone treat him like this before.

“Ugh. You must be very brave to come here and insult us like this,” Chung Myung growled.

“Hahahaha. I would never fight the Divine Dragon of Hwasan! If the great disciples of Hwasan’s main group came, we would be nothing.”

Chung Myung felt a surge of anger. It was so annoying, he wanted to break things.

“So,” Chung Myung said, his voice low, “what do you really want?”

“Hehe,” the man chuckled, a sly sound. “What else? I told you, I’m here to offer to buy this place.”

The man nodded his head towards the others behind him. “Of course, losing this money might not matter to Hwasan. But what about Hwayoung Mun? Wouldn’t it be harder for you?” Chung Myung glanced at Wilibsan, almost without thinking. He wanted to see Wilibsan’s face. Wilibsan’s expression didn’t change. But Chung Myung and Wilibsan both knew the man was right.

“We are all connected groups,” the man said, sounding falsely sad. “It’s really sad to see. How often have you lost out because of what the main Hwasan group does? So, we are offering to help you lose less money.”

Chung Myung just stared at the man, confused.

“No, this is because of…”

“Nam Munju,” Hyun Young said, speaking for the first time. Hyun Young, the elder of Hwasan, stepped forward. Even Nam Jamyeong, who was clearly important, bowed his head slightly to show respect.

“Is there no room for compromise?”

“Haha, Elder. You speak of interesting things.”

The man’s eyes gleamed as he looked at Hyun Young.

“Has the lukewarm word ‘compromise’ ever been uttered in the relationship between Hwasan and Jongnam?”

“…No.”

“Yes. That’s what I know as well. Although Jongnam has closed its gates, and I don’t fully understand their intentions, if the sect leader were watching this situation, he would not order us to retreat or compromise.”

That’s right.

Because it’s Jongnam.

Nam Jamyeong then looked at Hyun Young with resolute eyes.

“Therefore, we will never give Hwasan even a single piece of land in Seoan until the last one of us remains. So, why don’t you acknowledge your shortcomings and return to the peaceful Hwaeum? That small village seems to suit Hwasan perfectly.”

“No, but this bastard is really!”

As Chung Myung tried to roll his eyes back, Baek Cheon and the other disciples, who had been waiting beside him, quietly grabbed him and pressed him down.

“The Elder is speaking.”

“Stay still! Whoa whoa! Good boy! Wait!”

Nam Jamyeong gave a wry smile as if he had seen all sorts of bizarre sights.

“Anyway, I hope the Elder understands. So, we will stop Hwayoung Mun from taking root here by any means possible.”

“We must take root here by any means possible.”

“Elder.”

At Hyun Young’s words, Nam Jamyeong smiled, revealing his teeth.

“You may think we are being excessive, but this is just the beginning. Besides what we are doing now, there are countless ways to harass Hwayoung Mun. Do you think there haven’t been other sects that tried to extend their reach into this Seoan? What do you think is the reason why all those places have been pushed out over the past hundred years?”

“…”

“Let’s not waste our energy on each other. If you retreat nicely, we will compensate you for your losses as much as possible. We can even help you open a sect elsewhere. But!”

Nam Jamyeong said coldly.

“Seoan is not allowed.”

It was a chilling rebuke, completely different from before.

“Especially not Hwasan. If Jongnam were to open an affiliated clan in Hwaeum, would Hwasan accept it?”

“…Hmm.”

Hyun Young hummed lowly. Nam Jamyeong shrugged his shoulders and drove the wedge in further.

“So, please return. This is not Hwasan’s land. If you delay any longer, you will only suffer greater losses. Then.”

With those words, Nam Jamyeong turned his body sharply.

Then, the affiliated clan leaders who had followed him also turned around with sneers.

Chung Myung finally shook off Baek Cheon and the others and dashed forward. He grabbed the moneybag that had fallen on the floor and threw it at Nam Jamyeong.

“You should take your things with you!”

Thwack!

Nam Jamyeong smiled and caught the flying moneybag.

“So, you still have some pride left. Then, go ahead and do as you please.”

And he blatantly mocked Chung Myung as he left Hwayoung Mun.

Watching the clan leaders of Jongnam’s affiliated clans leave in droves, the disciples of Hwasan all sighed in unison.

“Elder…”

At Wilibsan’s worried voice, Hyun Young nodded heavily.

“There’s no need to worry too much. I expected this much resistance.”

But…

‘The situation has become too intense due to Jongnam’s closure. I’m worried about where to even begin untangling this mess.’

Hyun Young subtly turned his head to the side.

Looking at Chung Myung, who was growling like a hunting dog with poison in its veins, he wore a strange expression.

‘Should I just let him loose?’

No. I need to think about this.

Really.

It was late at night, the moon hidden behind clouds. *Creak.* The new wooden door of the manor opened slowly, a soft sound in the quiet night. A figure dressed in dark martial robes slipped out, moving like a shadow. He carefully pulled the strings of his black mask tighter around his face, then leaped silently onto the roof, disappearing into the darkness.

But.

“Freeze.”

“…”

There was a voice stopping him.

The masked man’s head snapped back.

“I knew it.”

“He’s the evergreen tree of the Murim world. He never changes.”

“Hey! You can’t take the Plum Blossom Sword with you!”

The masked man contorted his face. And he spoke in a grating voice, unnaturally low.

“You brats dare to stop me…”

“Chung Myung, your mask is crooked.”

“Ah, really?”

“…”

“…”

The masked man.

No, Chung Myung raised his hand and adjusted his mask.

Watching that, Baek Cheon sighed deeply.

“Didn’t the Elder say you can’t break their heads?!”

“I’m not going to break them!”

Chung Myung shouted.

“But I can break their legs! If possible, I’d like to twist their arms a bit too!”

“…Honestly, it does sound tempting.”

Just thinking about Nam Jamyeong’s slick attitude from earlier in the day made them want to break his head themselves, without Chung Myung even stepping in.

But if something like that really happened, Hwasan would lose all public support in Seoan.

“If it was just a matter of dealing with the affiliated clans, I would do it too. But if we break the affiliated clans with force and occupy Seoan, we won’t be able to gain public support! Then, Jongnam’s affiliated clans will keep popping up!”

“Then we’ll just break them as they appear!”

“…Jongnam’s main sect will eventually lift its closure.”

“Then we’ll just break Jongnam too!”

“…I sometimes wonder why you even joined the Orthodox Sect.”

If he had joined the Demonic Sect, he would have become a talent so outstanding that he would appear only once every thousand years.

What a pity. What a pity.

“Anyway, it’s absolutely not allowed, so take off that mask and go back inside.”

“No, Sasuk. Actually, I suddenly have some urgent business to take care of, so I’ll just go out for an hour. Just one hour, I promise!”

“Don’t talk nonsense and get down here, you rascal!”

But Baek Cheon was not easily swayed. Chung Myung, enraged, turned his head to spit on the floor but flinched.

Ah, I’m wearing a mask.

“I was going to try to resolve this with words, but if you’re going to stop me, I have no choice.”

Chung Myung threatened, tapping the Plum Blossom Sword at his waist.

“Let’s just forget you saw me, okay? No need for anyone to get hurt.”

“No, is this something you need to go to while wielding a sword? Did you leave your humanity in Hwasan?!”

Baek Cheon shouted in disbelief, and Jo Gul whispered softly beside him.

“Sasuk. He never had that to begin with.”

“, Ah, that’s right. Is that so?”

Chung Myung rubbed his forehead, feeling a headache coming on. “You can’t be serious,” he muttered to his disciples.

“We are serious, Senior Brother!” one of them insisted. “If you cause trouble again, we’re telling the Elder. If you want to stay away from alcohol for a few months, keep going like this!”

Another disciple groaned loudly, shaking his head.

Chung Myung sighed. ‘Honestly,’ he thought, ‘my own disciples are no help at all!’

How can I stop those people from Jongnam from getting their heads smashed?

‘If it were the old days, my masters would have happily pushed me along.’

“Senior Brother! Hey, Senior Brother!”

The kids have become strange. They weren’t like this before!

– They were always like that, you crazy bastard!

Aww.

Lies!

“I don’t care. Anyway, I’m going!”

“We won’t let you!”

“If you keep this up, I’m really going to get angry. Now, just let me pass! Pretend you didn’t see anything, right?”

“Nothing might happen here! The problem is what happens elsewhere!”

“Seriously, there’s no reasoning with you… Jeez, why is it so noisy all of a sudden?”

Annoyed by the constant noise coming from somewhere, Chung Myung abruptly turned his head.

“Huh?”

Wait a minute.

Noisy, you say?

“What is it?”

“What’s really noisy?”

Those surrounding Chung Myung also craned their necks to look outside the gate.

“Huh? That?”

“Something’s coming over there?”

Chung Myung narrowed his eyes.

‘Martial artists?’

A group of martial artists moving along the main road came into his view.

“Jongnam’s subsidiary family? No, that’s not it?”

The energy is different.

Jongnam’s subsidiary families are still subsidiary families of a prestigious orthodox sect, so they exude a clear energy.

But the bodies of those coming here now were emitting wild, unrefined power.

‘A demonic sect?’

Yes. If I had to classify, it’s an energy closer to a demonic sect…

“A demonic sect in Seoan?”

“What is that?”

“They’re coming this way?”

The disciples of Hwasan also reacted sensitively to the anomaly and turned their bodies.

“To the entrance!”

“Got it!”

Chung Myung darted forward first, and everyone followed him, moving quickly.

Moving to the entrance of the gate in an instant, they flung open the main gate and watched the main road with slightly nervous eyes.

“They’re coming!”

Soon, over a hundred people appeared at the end of the main road.

They wore robes as red as blood, and their faces were hard and angry. The martial artists walked straight towards the gate.

‘Experts?’

Chung Myung watched them with a slightly strange expression.

Each of them seemed to possess considerable skill, but especially the aura emanating from someone following behind them was enough to subtly stimulate Chung Myung.

‘What’s going on all of a sudden?’

After staring at them blankly for a moment, Chung Myung gestured with his chin while fixing his gaze.

“Senior Brother Jo Gul.”

“Huh?”

“When I signal, jump inside and wake everyone up.”

“…Understood.”

Even though they didn’t know exactly what was going on, they weren’t fools enough to not realize that the atmosphere was unusual.

Everyone tensed up, gathering their inner strength throughout their bodies.

Meanwhile, those who had been riding along the main road quickly approached and stood at the entrance of the gate.

“Is it here?”

Those who were lined up split to the left and right, and a man slowly walked out from behind them.

Yeop Pyeong of the Red Sand Pirates.

He stroked his chin and looked at Chung Myung, who was blocking the entrance of the gate.

“Hmm?”

Sensing an unusual aura from him, Yeop Pyeong smiled without realizing it.

“I underestimated this place, thinking it was just a subsidiary family. What’s your name, young one?”

But upon hearing those words, Chung Myung smirked instead.

“Ha, the world has gotten better. Some demonic sect bastard is even talking to me.”

“Hmm? Hahahahahaha!”

Yeop Pyeong of the Red Sand Pirates burst into laughter.

“You’re an incredibly arrogant one. But I have something to ask you.”

“Ask away.”

“Why are you wearing a mask? In the middle of the night?”

“……”

“……”

Everyone standing next to Chung Myung subtly averted their gaze.

‘Ah, I want to run away.’

‘I’m so embarrassed, I can’t live anymore.’

But Chung Myung himself was as confident as ever.

“I just wore it. Why?”

“Heh heh. As expected of Jongnam’s subsidiary family, who look down on the world, you have a lot of guts. The way you speak in front of this elder is quite impressive. Alright then! Today, we’re going to show everyone what happens when you mess with us!”

Chung Myung, who had been listening quietly, raised one hand and stopped him.

“Wait a minute.”

“Huh?”

“…Do you perhaps not know how to read?”

“……”

The heads of everyone in front of him tilted slightly upwards. Those who checked the letters written on the signboard lowered their gaze again.

Yeop Pyeong closed his mouth and looked back. Then, someone shouted from behind.

“Chief! Chief! This isn’t it! This is the gate, and the place we need to go is the other gate! Why did you stop after going so well!”

“Ah, really? This isn’t it?”

“Keep going! Keep going! You have to go further inside!”

“Ah…”

Yeop Pyeong clicked his tongue as if embarrassed and looked at Chung Myung.

“…We, I apologize for the inconvenience.”

“Ah… Well. No worries.”

“Then, we’ll be going.”

Yeop Pyeong cleared his throat with a “ahem” and turned around with hurried steps.

“Where is the other gate?”

“You have to go further that way.”

“Then you should have said so sooner! Tsk!”

The disciples of Hwasan all stared blankly at the group moving away.

“What the hell? Who are those idiots?”

Chung Myung’s words represented their feelings.

But Baek Cheon’s face was still severely stiff.

“Chung Myung-ah.”

“Why?”

“Didn’t they seem strong?”

“Yeah. They were quite strong.”

“…This won’t do. I need to inform the Elder right now.”

“Why?”

“The other gate is a subsidiary family of Jongnam! For those who are clearly members of a demonic sect to be looking for the other gate in the middle of the night, it must mean they have bad intentions! So, we need to take immediate action…”

Thud!

Chung Myung grabbed Baek Cheon’s shoulder as he was about to run inside while speaking urgently.

“No, why are you grabbing…”

Baek Cheon, who turned around, flinched for a moment.

Chung Myung.

He was smiling sweetly.

“Martial Uncle.”

“…Yes?”

“We didn’t see anything.”

“……”

“And we won’t see anything in the future either. Got it?”

“You, you… Don’t tell me…?”

“Why? They said it themselves. The land of Seoan belongs to Jongnam.”

“Th, that’s right. But…!”

“Then.”

Chung Myung’s face was gentle and innocent.

“Since it’s happening in their land, they’ll take care of it themselves.”

What if they can’t solve it?

Then that’s even better.

“Aigoo. For this to happen when Jongnam is in seclusion. How unfortunate. Hee hee hee hee.”

No, that guy is a devil.

The disciples of Hwasan all squeezed their eyes shut as they watched the devil laughing while clutching his stomach.

‘This side is more like a demonic sect.’

‘He joined the wrong sect. He would have been perfect if he joined those guys from earlier.’

But what could they do?

He was already a disciple of Hwasan.

Unfortunately.