Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 387

People in the room started talking to Sect Leader Hyun Jong.

“Sect Leader, a message from Seoan. Hwayoung Gate is now set up and cannot take any more students.”

“Oh, when did the message arrive?”

“About two days ago, I think.”

“Hahaha. I see. Very good.”

A wide, happy smile lit up Hyun Jong’s face.

‘I thought it would be hard.’

But then again, had these young people ever done anything easy? They always solved problems that seemed impossible.

“They said it cost a lot to move to Seoan, so it’s hard to give the full amount of money now. But they think they can send some money starting next month.”

“Money is not important. What matters is that Hwayoung Gate is now in Seoan.”

“Indeed.”

Hyun Jong turned his head slightly towards Seoan, even though he couldn’t see through the walls.

‘They worked hard.’

Hyun Young, the students, and Hwayoung Gate – they all must have had a tough time.

And Cheong Myung…

No, wait.

Cheong Myung must have had a tough time too. Surely… he suffered…

‘Did he really suffer?’

This is worrying…

“Sect Leader?”

“Ah.”

Hyun Jong cleared his throat and looked at Hyun Sang.

“Yes. What else?”

“As I said before, there was the problem with Maninbang.”

When Maninbang was mentioned, Hyun Jong’s kind face became a little serious.

“Has there been any problem?”

“Just in case, I asked them to contact me if they saw anything suspicious, but there have been no signs yet.”

“Hmm.”

Hyun Jong sighed in relief.

“Maninbang… It’s too early to fight them.”

“But wasn’t it necessary?”

“I’m not blaming the students. I’m just worried. Those guys aren’t easy to deal with.”

“Our young people defeated those enemies. We should still be careful, but we don’t need to be too worried.”

Hyun Jong nodded slowly.

‘That’s right.’

He looked at Un-geom.

“Un-geom.”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

“What do you think about sending more young people to Seoan? If Maninbang attacks them again…”

“I am against it.”

Un-geom shook his head.

“To be honest, the young people still at Mount Hua are a little less skilled than those who went to Seoan.”

“That’s right.”

“So, the young people here must train hard every day to catch up to the others. If the difference in skill between older and younger students gets too big, it could cause groups to form and make them lose confidence.”

“…Groups? In Mount Hua? Isn’t everyone equal before Cheong Myung?”

“…Well, yes.”

Un-geom stopped talking.

Was it wrong to talk about Cheong Myung when we are talking about rules?

“Anyway, it is hard to only train in Seoan. I want to use this chance to help the young people here improve.”

Hyun Jong nodded.

‘He is so kind.’

A master usually pays more attention to those with more talent. But, Un-geom paid more attention to those who couldn’t achieve as much as others through hard work.

Maybe it was because he was naturally kind.

Or maybe it was because he liked all of the young people.

Hyun Jong thought it was lucky that Un-geom was their master.

Even though he had a lot of responsibility, he taught the young people without complaining. He also kept improving himself.

Not everyone can do that.

“The young people in Seoan have everything they need. And since Maninbang has already lost a lot, they will be careful, right?”

“Hmm. That’s true.”

“Still, just in case, I will tell them to strengthen their defenses and be more careful.”

As Un-geom finished, Un-am, who had been quietly watching, added something.

“This happened because no one thought they would go to Seoan. I will ask the Beggars’ Sect to watch what Maninbang does. Is that okay?”

“Oh, that’s a great idea.”

Hyun Jong smiled.

‘So much has changed.’

In the past, meetings at Mount Hua were annoying.

People often got stuck and worried about problems that had no answers.

But now, Mount Hua is different. Everyone is thinking and giving ideas for a better future.

All of this will help Mount Hua improve.

“Listen.”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

“If Hwayoung Gate does well in Seoan, it will be like Mount Hua is complete. This is something to celebrate, but also to be careful about.”

“Yes.”

“To make Mount Hua truly Mount Hua, I will need your help in the future. Please, everyone, help me.”

“Of course, Sect Leader!”

“We will help you.”

Hyun Jong nodded proudly.

‘This must be joy and happiness.’

Of course, there are still things to worry about.

‘The world is not easy.’

Good luck and bad luck come together.

Someday, Mount Hua will have as much bad luck as the good luck it has now.

But, Hyun Jong hoped that time would be far away.

“Amitabha.”

So that everyone can be happy for a little longer.

“Is everyone here?”

A cold, low voice cut through the air. It was a harsh voice, but no one seemed surprised.

“Why call us when we are busy?”

“You are talking to the Strategist. Don’t speak carelessly, or I’ll tear off the only good side of your face you have left.”

The man with a long scar on his mouth turned his head coldly.

“Oh? Poison Blood Hand seems to have indigestion. You’re acting like you want a hole in your stomach.”

“I said be quiet.”

“Huh?”

The man called Poison Blood Hand answered coldly. The man with the scar slowly stood up. The room became tense.

But then…

“Continue.”

Hoga-myung, the Maninbang’s strategist, spoke calmly.

“If I report that you were fighting before carrying out the Lord’s command, it will be the end of you.”

“Ahem.”

“Hmm.”

At the mention of ‘Lord,’ the men who looked ready to kill each other quickly shut their mouths. A few cleared their throats, trying to hide their unease.

Hoga-myung continued, “Son-wol.”

“Yes?”

Son-wol, also known as the Death-Reaping Short Spear, answered, smacking his lips.

“This is a place to receive the Lord’s orders. Don’t be reckless.”

“Yes, sir.”

Son-wol raised a hand and gently touched the scar on his lip. The others knew this meant his anger was rising. But no one said anything.

“And Poison Blood Hand.”

“Yes.”

“You will be working together on this mission. Don’t provoke him.”

“Understood.”

Hoga-myung, who had been watching them silently, asked, “Where is Yado (Wild Blade)?”

“He’s a little late.”

Just then, a man burst into the hall. He wore a tight martial uniform with animal furs and carried a large, unsheathed sword at his waist.

Hoga-myung’s gaze swept over the three men, cold as ice. “You know what has happened, I assume?”

“What story?” Son-wol sneered, a cruel grin twisting his lips. “The one about Crimson Death getting his limbs chopped off by those weaklings from Huashan? Turned him into a proper cripple, didn’t it?”

Even though they were talking about a comrade’s serious injury, no one showed any sympathy.

“Crimson Death this, Crimson Death that,” Poison Blood Hand chimed in, even though he often fought with Crimson Death. “I knew he’d end up like that, showing off his empty reputation.”

Yado tilted his head. “Huashan? You mean the Huashan Sect, one of the old Nine Great Sects?”

“That’s right,” Hoga-myung said curtly.

“Someone in Huashan beat Crimson Death?”

Hoga-myung replied, “I heard he was defeated by a second-generation disciple of Huashan called Hwa-jeong Sword.”

“That’s surprising,” Yado said. “Very surprising.”

The three men frowned. Crimson Death wasn’t the strongest, but he wasn’t weak either. In the fighting world, reputation and skill didn’t always match, and Crimson Death was a good example of that.

But he shouldn’t have been defeated by some young kid.

“He was careless,” Son-wol said.

“Then he deserved to die,” Yado added.

Yado chuckled. “That’s the problem with youngsters. You know you shouldn’t be careless, but you do it anyway.”

Hoga-myung snapped, “Be as careless as you like. But if you are, you die. If you come back alive, you’ll face the Lord’s full wrath.”

“We’ll keep that in mind.”

At the mention of ‘Lord,’ the three men flinched.

Defeated Monarch, Jang Il-so. To the Maninbang, and to everyone in the Demonic Sects and the fighting world, the Defeated Monarch’s name was a symbol of terror.

Even those who had served him for years were nothing before the Defeated Monarch’s name.

“Tsk, tsk. The Lord must be really angry to call us all in, even now,” Son-wol said.

“If I had more time, I would have brought back the head of at least one of those debt collectors,” Poison Blood Hand added.

“Your head would have been the one to fly,” Son-wol retorted.

Hoga-myung frowned as the argument started again. “Save the small talk for later. You’ll be seeing each other on the way to Shanxi anyway. I have one order: Lead your squads to Huashan. Kill everyone and burn everything. We will erase Huashan from the fighting world.”

“That far?” Son-wol, who had seemed relaxed, was the first to react.

“Huashan may have been kicked out of the Nine Sects, but they’re still part of the Orthodox Faction. Can we really destroy them and deal with the consequences?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Hoga-myung said, his lips twisting.

“The Nine Great Sects don’t like Huashan anyway. They’ll pretend to care, but no one will seriously fight us to avenge them.”

“Still, you never know…” Son-wol said.

“Even so, it doesn’t matter,” Hoga-myung repeated coldly.

“It wouldn’t be bad if someone tried to fight us. It’s time to shake up the power structure.”

Son-wol nodded. “This is the Lord’s order, I presume?”

“That’s correct.”

“Then we must follow it.”

Everyone knew the Defeated Monarch didn’t act without a reason. There was a deeper meaning they couldn’t understand.

“However,” Poison Blood Hand said, breaking the silence, “are you saying we need three squads just to deal with Huashan? Even though the Crimson Death Squad was defeated…”

“It’s not three squads. The Black Claw Unit will also be participating.”

“Are you out of your mind?” Son-wol exclaimed.

“Of course,” Hoga-myung replied.

A man wrapped in black bandages walked up from behind. “Black Jackal.”

The three men frowned, a mix of fear and displeasure in their eyes as they looked at Black Jackal. They didn’t hesitate before Hoga-myung, but Black Jackal was different.

“Is this too much? Even the Black Claw Unit…” Son-wol asked.

“It’s the Lord’s will,” Hoga-myung said coldly, cutting him off.

“Therefore, no mistakes. Kill every ant in Huashan.”

“Understood.”

Black Jackal turned and left the hall. The other three bowed slightly and followed.

“The Lord is very angry,” Yado said casually as they left. Son-wol nodded.

“If we mess this up, we’re dead. I don’t want to face the Lord when he’s angry.” Son-wol scratched his neck roughly.

“There will be no mistakes,” Poison Blood Hand said, gritting his teeth. “We’ll erase Huashan completely.”

“Heh heh. It’s been a while since I tasted blood,” Yado chuckled.

“It’ll take four days to get to Huashan. Don’t be late,” Poison Blood Hand said.

“Why? Scared without me?” Yado teased.

“You can be late as long as you don’t complain about having no one to kill,” Poison Blood Hand retorted.