Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 404

When an army loses its leader, even a strong one, its fighters lose hope.

With the Talmaeng Danjang gone, and then Dokhyulsu and Yado falling, the Maninbang warriors didn’t want to fight anymore.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Ack!”

It’s very different to fight when you are only thinking about winning, compared to fighting when you are also thinking about running away.

Like Yado before them, the warriors who stopped focusing on the battle fell to the Mount Hua swords like leaves in autumn.

“Kill them all!”

“Don’t let any of them live!”

The Mount Hua disciples felt strong and attacked even harder. They surrounded the Maninbang warriors, who stood in a circle, back to back, trying to defend themselves.

Every time a Mount Hua sword moved near, the Maninbang warriors’ faces became pale white.

“Enough!”

The Mount Hua disciples all turned to look at who was speaking.

Hyun Jong, the leader of Mount Hua Sect, stood very straight and looked at them.

“There is no need to kill any more people. Let the enemies drop their weapons and give up.”

When he said this, Hyun Young looked angry.

“Sect Leader! They attacked Mount Hua and hurt our disciples! How can you be so kind to them…!”

“So, you want me to kill them all to make you feel better?”

“That is…”, Hyun Young started to say, but then he stopped.

Hyun Jong shook his head slowly.

“I don’t want to be kind to the enemy either. Maybe I am not good enough yet, because I find it hard to use my sword with kindness. However…”

His eyes shone brightly.

“To cut down someone who doesn’t want to fight anymore is not what someone who follows the Dao would do. If we kill every enemy because we are angry, how are we different from them?”

He looked at his disciples with pity and kindness.

Hyun Jong wanted to tear the enemies apart just as much as his disciples did. But he didn’t want this battle to leave darkness in his disciples’ hearts.

The first time is always the hardest.

If they start thinking it’s okay to kill easily, they might one day use their swords without thinking, even when they don’t need to kill.

For Mount Hua’s sake, and for the sake of these young disciples, that must not happen.

But this time, the disciples didn’t listen to him right away.

How could they forget the sight of their friends who were hurt and had fallen?

Those who had seen it all could not hide their anger towards the Maninbang warriors, even though Hyun Jong told them to stop. They didn’t hide it.

The disciples’ swords glowed fiercely, as if they might start fighting again at any moment.

Hyun Jong sighed softly when he saw this.

“I am…”

His voice was slow and gentle.

“I am afraid that you will be hurt even more if you continue.”

His words were completely honest.

Only then did they slowly start to put their swords down, one by one.

He didn’t use his power to force them. He didn’t shout at them to listen. Hyun Jong simply spoke his true feelings, and the Mount Hua disciples, who knew him well, understood.

“Listen to me this time.”

How could they go against the words of their Sect Leader, who was covered in wounds from protecting them?

The disciples looked at Hyun Jong with mixed feelings. Some were still angry, some were still eager to fight. But soon, all of them felt one thing: trust.

Trust in Hyun Jong, the leader of Mount Hua Sect. And trust in his decision.

“Drop your weapons.”

Baek Cheon shouted to the Maninbang warriors in a strong voice.

“Those who give up will not be killed. You may have forgotten the Dao, but Mount Hua has not.”

“Those who surrender will be spared.”

And Yoon Jong helped him.

Unlike the other two, Jo Gul still glared at the Maninbang warriors fiercely, as if he wanted them to fight back.

The last bit of hope in the Maninbang warriors’ eyes disappeared when they saw the reactions of the three disciples.

Clang! Clink!

Weapons fell to the ground one by one.

The Maninbang warriors, having finally dropped their weapons, knelt down.

Hyun Jong made sure everyone had surrendered and then shouted loudly.

“Disable their power points! And put them all in jail!”

After giving the order, he looked at Baek Cheon.

“Baek Cheon!”

“Yes, Sect Leader!”

“After you put them in jail, choose the disciples who are the least tired and have them guard the jail!”

“Yes!”

Baek Cheon bowed deeply and told the other disciples what to do.

The Mount Hua disciples went to the Maninbang warriors and held their swords to their necks.

Some tried to fight back against the order to disable their power points, but it was no use. They knew that fighting would only get them killed, so they gave up and closed their eyes.

As if to show that everything was over, the dark clouds broke apart and the rain started to stop.

Hyun Jong sighed.

“Everyone…”

Just then, a voice called out.

“What? You’ve already caught them all?”

Baek Cheon knew that voice and quickly turned his head.

He froze. He almost screamed.

“Chung Myung!”

His eyes opened wide as he watched Chung Myung walk over, jumping easily over one of Mount Hua’s walls.

The others reacted in much the same way.

“Ch, Chung Myung!”

“That crazy guy…! That thing!”

The rain had washed away some of the blood, but his clothes were still stained red.

The blood and the torn clothes showed how hard he had fought.

“You crazy idiot!”

Baek Cheon ran to Chung Myung without thinking.

“You…”

He stopped in front of him and clenched his fist.

He looked at the large wounds on Chung Myung’s body and felt helpless.

“What have you done to yourself!”

Baek Cheon’s voice was loud. But Chung Myung smirked, as if Baek Cheon was being silly.

“Can’t you tell? I went and fought like hell.”

Chung Myung’s casual reply made Baek Cheon even angrier.

“You’ve turned your body into a mess, and you’re still talking! You damned idiot!”

“Would you feel better if my mouth was torn too?”

“You…”

Baek Cheon bit his lip.

He could see how terrible the battle had been, how hard Chung Myung had fought.

And yet, why was Chung Myung so calm?

“You…”

He wanted to say so much, but he couldn’t find the words. Chung Myung laughed as Baek Cheon struggled to speak.

“I thought you’d be losing badly… Looks like you did well on your own. I’ll praise you this time.”

“Is that what you should be saying right now!”

The disciples started to gather around them.

“Chung Myung!”

“Damn it! Look at those wounds!”

They couldn’t speak when they saw the wounds on Chung Myung’s body.

Everyone knew Chung Myung led the Black Cloud Corps. And everyone thought he was too strong to ever be hurt by them.

But now, they saw it clearly.

Chung Myung, too, could be wounded, just like them.

The wound was terrible. They could see the bone. It hurt the Mount Hua disciples just to look at it.

“Soso! Where is Soso?”

Chung Myung sighed, looking around at Baek Cheon and the other disciples. Their faces were pale.

“What’s all the noise?” Chung Myung said, trying to sound annoyed, but even his voice was a little rough. “Move back a bit, will you?”

“You idiot! Your wound needs treatment!” another disciple cried out.

“I’m not dying!”

Chung Myung said loudly, pushing past the disciples who were crowding him. Usually, they would grab him and pull him to the medical hall without question. But now, they just stepped back, fear in their eyes. They were too afraid to even touch him.

“Where is the Grand Uncle-Master?”

“…He has been taken to the medical hall. The heavy rain made his old injuries worse.”

“Good job.”

Chung Myung nodded lightly at Baek Cheon’s reply.

Now, Chung Myung’s gaze turned towards the Myriad Man Fang disciples kneeling in the center.

The Mount Hua disciples were firmly binding them, the disciples having lost their will and strength to resist.

“Why are those guys like that? Just kill them all.”

“The Sect Leader…”

“Ugh.”

Chung Myung’s face twisted slightly.

He seemed about to say something, his lips twitching, but he soon let out a deep sigh.

“Alright. There’s no need to kill those who don’t resist.”

Because this was different from the era he had lived in. No, in this situation, even Cheong Mun, not just Hyun Jong, would have said the same thing.

They were Taoists.

They must not forget their duty.

The leaders who caused this are already dead.

“Are you really alright? The wound…”

“What? Do you think I’d even blink an eye at this much?”

Chung Myung shrugged at someone’s question. The faces of the Mount Hua disciples surrounding him relaxed slightly at his overly energetic and cheerful response.

But Yoo Iseol, watching from behind, looked even more worried.

‘He’s pushing himself too hard.’

Chung Myung’s injuries were not light. And Chung Myung had climbed up the rugged cliff in one go with such injuries.

He had emitted such a chilling aura that even Yoo Iseol was frightened.

Chung Myung had only loosened up after confirming the safety of Mount Hua.

She wanted to say something. But knowing that it was not what Chung Myung wanted, Yoo Iseol simply pressed her lips tightly together.

“You rascal.”

Hyun Jong, who had pushed his way through the disciples, said with a sigh.

“You rascal. Your wound…”

“Why are you so badly hurt?”

It was blunt.

But there was an unconcealable worry in his tone.

“Is this the time for you to worry about my injuries?”

Hyun Jong could not stay calm anymore and spoke loudly.

“Why do you push yourself so hard! What if things go wrong!”

“Hey. Nothing happened, though.”

“You rascal… You rascal.”

Hyun Jong couldn’t continue speaking and trembled.

“Sect Leader.”

At that moment, Hyun Young, who had approached him, pulled him away.

“Please go to the medical hall. Your injuries are not light either.”

“I’m fine. Rather than that, this rascal…”

“If you don’t move, no one will. Please go quickly, for everyone’s sake.”

Hyun Jong, who couldn’t take his eyes off Chung Myung’s injuries even in the midst of all this, sighed and slowly nodded.

“Alright. I understand.”

“Yoon Jong, escort the Sect Leader.”

“Yes, Elder!”

Yoon Jong supported Hyun Jong and headed straight to the medical hall.

As the Sect Leader moved, the disciples who had gathered also began to move little by little to clean up. Hyun Young, who briefly looked around at the scene, opened his mouth.

“Chung Myung.”

“Yes.”

“Is there anything you want to ask of me?”

Chung Myung, who was also looking around, said.

“Don’t be relieved just because they’re locked up in the dungeon. Even if they can’t fight anymore, they might still cause trouble, so watch them closely.”

“Alright.”

“And we need to check around Mount Hua in case there are any remaining stragglers. Other guys might come again.”

“I understand. I will definitely look into it. Anything else?”

“First of all, Hong Daekwang has gone to pick up the Beggars’ Union members, so they’ll be arriving soon. Please welcome them when they come. We need to check if there are any more medicinal herbs needed for treating the injured.”

“Is that all?”

“Hmm…”

Chung Myung looked around and nodded.

“For now, that’s about it.”

Hyun Young nodded and turned his gaze to Baek Cheon, who was standing next to Chung Myung.

“Baek Cheon.”

“Yes.”

“Take this rascal to the medical hall immediately!”

“Yes!”

Baek Cheon and Jo Gul strode up to Chung Myung’s left and right, firmly locking their arms around his.

Chung Myung flinched and looked from side to side.

“What are you doing?”

He tried to resist, but the two men who had bound his arms were as solid as boulders and didn’t budge.

Hyun Young instructed in a stern voice.

“You said it was all over! You have nothing else to do now. Go to the medical hall now!”

“But…”

“Now!”

Chung Myung flinched at Hyun Young’s shout.

“No, why are you shouting like that…”

As soon as Chung Myung grumbled with a pout, sparks flew from Hyun Young’s eyes. Chung Myung, startled by the terrifying force, shrank back and quickly shouted.

“I, I’ll go! I’ll go!”

“Drag this rascal to the medical hall and throw him in!”

“Yes!”

Baek Cheon and Jo Gul dragged Chung Myung to the medical hall like a criminal. Hyun Young watched them walk away and sighed.

‘That damned rascal.’

Why did he throw himself like that?

Of course, he knew. How could he not?

If that rascal hadn’t pushed himself, there would have been casualties. Knowing that, he couldn’t scold him, and knowing that, he was angry.

At that moment, Baek Sang, who had roughly finished the cleanup, approached and bowed his head.

“Elder. I will carry out your instructions.”

“Alright.”

Hyun Young, who briefly looked at Baek Sang leading the troops, cast his gaze into the distance.