Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 411

Chung Myung clicked his tongue, looking at the White Plum and Azure Plum disciples gathered in front of the White Plum Hall. The hall, with its simple wooden doors and white plum blossom carvings, had seen many generations of Mount Hua disciples.

“Honestly,”

The disciples of Mount Hua, looking very sick from hangovers, were heaving and shuddering, constantly on the verge of vomiting.

“… Martial Uncle.”

“Hmm?”

“Where did you pawn your sword again?”

Baek Cheon glanced down at his waist. Baek Cheon felt his ears turn red with shame, avoiding Chung Myung’s gaze. His real sword was gone, and only a wooden sword, of unknown origin, dangled there.

“Don’t tell me you pawned it again?”

When Baek Cheon couldn’t answer, Chung Myung slowly shook his head, his lips twisting into a look of exaggerated pity.

“That’s just great. Really great.”

After fighting the Yado, his sword was almost in tatters. Of course, it wasn’t completely broken like last time. But even though it wasn’t broken, the blade was chipped in places, turning it almost into a saw, and it had lost its function.

“I wondered where you cleverly got a sword from, and you pawned it again. Again!”

Baek Cheon flinched and subtly averted his gaze.

The problem was that Baek Cheon wasn’t the only one feeling guilty.

“Raise your hand if you’re carrying a wooden sword.”

At Chung Myung’s words, those who had been cautiously looking around slowly raised their hands one by one. When nearly half of them raised their hands, Chung Myung rubbed his forehead hard, as if trying to erase a headache.

“Wonderful. Just wonderful.”

Chung Myung’s face slowly flushed. And soon, he started shouting.

“You’re swordsmen! And you break your swords after a little fight? Even swords specially made by the Tang Clan? Huh? You can’t even earn a penny!”

“… We got them for free, though.”

“Quiet!”

Jo Gul, who had butted in unnecessarily, flinched and shut his mouth.

“If you’d fought for another hour, you’d have lost your swords and died! Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk.”

The Mount Hua disciples’ lips protruded in discontent as the sound of his tongue-clicking threatened to draw blood from their ears.

‘Well, it could happen!’

‘Why is that so important!’

Of course, they had excuses too.

The members of the Myriad Man Clan who had invaded this time mostly used heavy weapons. Greatswords, massive axes, and heavy spears, among others.

On the other hand, Mount Hua’s Plum Blossom Swords were made to be lighter than ordinary longswords, to facilitate Mount Hua’s unique, flamboyant, and swift swordsmanship.

They had faced the Myriad Man Clan’s heavy weapons with thin, light swords, so wouldn’t it be stranger if the swords were intact?

But Chung Myung kept stroking his chin as if he didn’t like it.

‘I didn’t think of this.’

In the past, those who were around the current level of the White Plum and Azure Plum disciples didn’t need to risk their lives against the full force of other sects. With Chung Myung and the Azure Plum disciples of his generation frothing at the mouth and rampaging, where would disciples not even thirty years old have had a chance to step in?

That’s why Chung Myung had overlooked it. That they weren’t yet at the level to fully infuse their swords with internal energy.

If the battle had gone on a little longer and the swords had started breaking en masse, the casualties would have increased dramatically.

“Ugh.”

Chung Myung scratched his head vigorously.

‘I need to come up with some kind of solution.’

It was at that moment, as Chung Myung was pondering a solution, that Jo Gul raised his hand and opened his mouth.

“But….”

“Yes?”

“Why are you standing there? It’s training time now.”

“Huh? Didn’t you hear?”

“… Hear what?”

Chung Myung chuckled and was about to say something when the door of the main hall behind them opened, and Un Geom walked out.

Instantly, the Mount Hua disciples tensed up. The disciples held their breath, wondering what Hall Master Un Geom would say next.

“Has everyone gathered?”

“Yes! Hall Master!”

A resounding voice erupted.

In the past, the disciples of Mount Hua had relied on and followed Un Geom. Even though they had learned more from Chung Myung than from Un Geom since Chung Myung’s appearance, they had never ignored or turned their backs on him.

But the way the Mount Hua disciples looked at Un Geom now was different from before.

Hadn’t they all seen it?

The scene of Un Geom throwing himself to protect them.

Anyone with eyes and feelings would naturally have a different attitude than before.

“Your spirits are very high.”

Un Geom smiled lightly.

His complexion was still pale, but he seemed to be moving with less difficulty, indicating that he had regained some of his health.

He looked around at the disciples and quietly opened his mouth.

“As you all know, my body is not fully recovered.”

At those calm words, the disciples couldn’t help but wear sympathetic expressions.

“Originally, I was in charge of the White Plum Hall’s training, but with my current condition, it’s difficult for me to teach you.”

“It’s alright, Hall Master!”

“Don’t worry about anything and rest! We will never slack off!”

“Your health is the most important thing!”

The disciples’ hearty encouragement poured out like thunder.

Un Geom smiled gently.

“Thank you.”

But he couldn’t just do as they said.

“However, I can’t just leave the training to your discretion. You’re already doing enough autonomous training. So….”

Un Geom subtly turned his head.

“Until I recover….”

The Mount Hua disciples, seeing where Un Geom’s gaze was directed, began to stir and become agitated.

“… Why is he looking over there?”

“It can’t be, can it?”

“Nah… Surely not.”

But Un Geom neatly betrayed their expectations.

Yoon Jong’s face fell. *This is going to be chaos,* he thought.

“Until my body is completely healed, I will appoint Chung Myung as the instructor of the White Plum Hall and entrust him with the training of the White Plum and Azure Plum disciples for the time being.”

“Hall Master!”

“No, why would you do that!”

“Are you crazy?!”

“Ack!”

Yoon Jong’s punch twisted Jo Gul’s jaw. Jo Gul, who had gone too far in his shock, was mercilessly punished and collapsed on the floor like a frog.

Yoon Jong, who had taught Jo Gul a lesson in manners with one blow, opened his mouth with a flustered expression.

“Ah, no, Hall Master. Please reconsider!”

Of course, it was true that Chung Myung had been training the White Plum and Azure Plum disciples. But that was only applied to additional training after the basic training of the White Plum Hall was finished.

But Chung Myung running the White Plum Hall itself?

This wasn’t just letting go of a colt’s reins, it was releasing a tiger freely from its cage.

“Ahem.”

Then Chung Myung clicked his tongue and spoke with a solemn expression.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. If the sect’s discipline is like this! How can disciples complain about what the Hall Master has decided!”

“Who made the sect’s discipline like this!”

“Did you lose your mind?!”

“… No, Martial Uncle. You should say it right… Discipline? We never had that!”

Even though it was still noisy in the main hall after the fight, Un-geom spoke calmly.

“This might worry you, but please understand. I will come back as soon as I am healed.” His voice was quiet, but everyone listened. His smile was gentle but a little sad.

“Ah, no, Head! What are you saying?! You gotta rest! You need to get better, or your wounds will get worse!”

“Yes! Rest well and slowly… No, as quickly as possible… No, that’s not it, slowly… Haa, I don’t know.” Jo-gol covered his face with his hands.

Un-geom smiled lightly, as if he had expected this reaction.

“We haven’t talked about something important. We didn’t want to cause trouble or be disrespectful. But now I understand something after this fight. What matters most is skill.”

Everyone nodded as if they couldn’t deny those words.

“Work hard.” With those words, Un-geom met eyes with Cheong-myeong. Then, he nodded slightly and went back into the main hall.

The remaining disciples of Mount Hua watched him leave, their faces showing many different feelings.

“It is true that our Senior Uncle needs to rest…”

“That’s right. It is true, but…”

“…Why does it have to be that guy?”

They said that, but they understood why.

There are not many people in the Un group. No one else can do Un-geom’s job as well. And the others in the Un group, except for Un-geom, are not very strong fighters.

So, the only person who could take over the Plum Blossom Hall was Hyun-sang, but Hyun-sang was badly poisoned in the fight and still needed to recover.

In the end, the only one left was…

“Why is that bastard so unnecessarily healthy?”

“That’s what I’m saying. Why is he already so lively after being so badly injured!” Jo-gol glared.

“This is So-so’s fault!”

“What about me?”

“Isn’t this what happened because you healed him too well! You should feel responsible…”

“Jo-gol. Please shut up before I turn your mouth back around.”

“Yes, sir.”

It seemed necessary to stop this noise. But just as Cheong-myeong took a breath and was about to speak…

“Quiet!”

Baek-cheon frowned and looked at the disciples. They all flinched and closed their mouths when they saw his serious face.

“What are you unhappy about?” Baek-cheon scolded.

“Are you getting too proud?”

“No, sir!”

“Do you think you’ve become something special after defeating the Myriad Man House?”

“Ah, no, Senior Uncle!”

“Absolutely not!” His eyes flashed, sharp and cold like steel.

“What did you feel while fighting the Myriad Man House?”

“I felt how much I still need to learn and how far I still have to go. Do you still not understand? We are too weak to punish that Myriad Man House! If we were strong enough, the Sect Leader would have already led us to Guangxi!”

To be precise, it would be Cheong-myeong, not Hyun-jong.

“And yet you are not ashamed and just complaining? Instead of training harder to improve your skills! Since when have you been so great!”

The disciples of Mount Hua lowered their heads, ashamed after his angry words. The pride they felt after defeating the Myriad Man House quickly disappeared.

“Cheong-myeong!”

“Huh? Yes?”

“Don’t be easy on them!” With a fierce look in his eyes, Baek-cheon said firmly.

“We are still not good enough. We know that we just got lucky in that fight! So, don’t be easy on them and train them hard! But make sure no one gets hurt or dies!”

Cheong-myeong opened and closed his mouth, surprised. Those were the words he was going to say.

It’s strange. It’s really strange.

It wasn’t much different from what Cheong-myeong was going to say. But why does it feel like this when I hear those words from Baek-cheon’s mouth…

‘Why is he so annoying?’

Ah… So this is how other people feel when they hear my words?

Cheong-myeong didn’t know what to say for a moment. Baek-cheon told him again, “What are you doing!”

“Ah! I understand!” Cheong-myeong, who was about to push them but was instead pushed back, frowned and cleared his throat.

“Senior Uncle is right about everything. Everyone was just lucky this time. And we have to fight even stronger enemies from now on.”

“As everyone felt this time, in the end, the only thing that protects you is your skill. We have to become stronger!”

Cheong-myeong drew his sword.

“To do that, we have to start from the beginning. We’ll start with the Six Harmonies again.”

Real swords and wooden swords were drawn at the same time.

Looking at the disciples’ eyes, which had become serious, Cheong-myeong smiled.

‘Now I feel like I’m being pushed on instead.’

Well, good.

Where shall we make those cries of anguish come from?

“Begin with the Formation Posture!”

Two men looked at the towering Mount Hua.

“So, this is Mount Hua.”

One man stood a step ahead, and the other man quietly stood behind him. It was a strange sight.

The man in front seemed to be of higher status, but his clothes were plain.

“Gye-hyung.”

“Yes, Young Sect Leader.”

“Are you sure that the one who has the Sect Leader’s Seal is on this Mount Hua?”

“Yes, it is!”

“Hmph.” The Young Sect Leader glared at the steep mountain with a dissatisfied face.

“I don’t understand it at all. If it’s Mount Hua, they should be a righteous sect! How can they steal another sect’s Sect Leader’s Seal and order people around like this!”

“As I said, the disciples of Mount Hua are not what you think…”

“Enough!” The Young Sect Leader shouted, and Gye-hyung flinched.

“I heard that Mount Hua defeated the Myriad Man House. Now that they’re strong, it’s natural that they act so arrogantly. But I’m not going to listen to them! I will ask them about this!”

The Young Sect Leader of the Youling Sect, Youling Ghost Hand Do Woon-chan, began to climb Mount Hua with a determined face.

Gye-hyung, who followed behind him, covered his face with both hands and said nothing.

‘You’ll understand once you experience it.’

Once you experience it.