Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 434

“Huh?” Tang Gunak stopped, surprised. He frowned and called out loudly, “Pae! Dang Pae, are you there?”

“Yes, Father!” Dang Pae quickly opened the wooden door and stepped into the room. “Did you call?”

“Has anyone come to the Manor while I was gone?” Tang Gunak asked, his voice sharp.

“Come here? Why do you ask?” Dang Pae looked confused, tilting his head.

Tang Gunak’s eyes scanned the room. “The Violet Crow Iron… where is it? It was right here!”

“Well, that….”

Dang Pae frowned, thinking for a moment, then his eyes widened and he gasped.

“Oh? Then, could it be…?”

“Huh?”

Dang Pae’s face showed he understood.

“Well, uh, this morning, Great Grandfather was carrying a load of things toward the workshop… Uh, uh… I definitely saw him around here….”

Tang Gunak’s eyes went wide. He couldn’t believe it.

“Could it be?”

He quickly looked around.

Now that he thought about it, the Dark Iron that had been decorating the left side of the Lord’s Manor was also gone. In addition, several other precious metals had disappeared.

The Lord’s Manor of the Sichuan Dang Family was in the center of Dangga-ta. It wasn’t locked because of the head of the family’s authority. It showed they were confident no one could sneak in from the outside.

But…

“An enemy is inside….”

Tang Gunak’s face turned pale, and he ran toward the workshop.

“Great-Grandfatherrrrrr!”

He arrived at the workshop and burst inside. He threw open the simple door and took a breath to shout.

“Hah!”

But he stopped and couldn’t say a word.

Clang!

The sound of a hammer was clear and pure, like music.

It was a beautiful sound, like music. Tang Gunak had heard hammers his whole life, and this sound touched him deeply.

Clang!

Orange and red flames leaped and danced in the furnace, making the air shimmer with heat.

The rising heat, the trembling air, and the scattering sparks created a strong feeling that was hard to explain.

Tang Gunak was the head of the Sichuan Dang Family.

He wasn’t a craftsman, but he understood the life of one. So, he couldn’t say anything at that moment.

Clang!

The best craftsman of the Dang Family had silently held a hammer in front of the fire his whole life. Now, he was pouring his soul into it.

Tang Gunak looked from Dang Jo-pyeong to Cheong-myeong, who was standing behind him. Cheong-myeong was also quietly watching Dang Jo-pyeong.

Then, Dang Jo-pyeong opened his tightly closed mouth.

“You should see this too, Lord.”

Clang!

It seemed he knew Tang Gunak had come without looking back.

Tang Gunak walked closer as if in a trance and stood behind him.

Clang!

The hammer hit the long piece of iron hard.

Dang Jo-pyeong reached into the furnace and took out the iron, carelessly putting it between the coals.

Then, with sunken eyes, he stared at the furnace. During the short pause in the hammer’s sound, Tang Gunak spoke.

“Great-Grandfather, this is….”

“Quiet.”

“……”

Dang Jo-pyeong, who had been silently watching the iron in the furnace, took out the heated iron with tongs and placed it on the anvil.

Clang!

His hammer began to dance again without stopping.

“I have lived in the Dang Family my whole life.”

“……”

“Sometimes I made swords, sometimes I made hidden weapons, and sometimes I made things that shouldn’t be made.”

Even though the noise was loud, it felt as if he was being drawn into Dang Jo-pyeong’s words.

“I made and made again. I didn’t think I would become a great craftsman. I just made things that were right for my age. As I did, I became the leader of the Dang Family’s craftsmen.”

The old man’s voice, thinking about his past, was calm.

“But as I got older and looked back on my life, I suddenly wondered, ‘What have I made?'”

“Great-Grandfather….”

Dang Jo-pyeong continued, his eyes only on the anvil.

“Take a good look, Lord. I am not a martial artist, so I have nothing to give you. Even if I could teach you something, I’m not good at explaining it with words. All I can show you is this.”

Tang Gunak held his breath.

The old man who had been mentally unstable was gone.

Now, he was just a craftsman who had spent his life with flames and iron.

Clang!

The hammer hit the iron hard.

Swordsmen swing their swords many times, searching for the Dao at the end of their blades.

So, shouldn’t there be a Dao at the end of the hammer of a craftsman who has swung it many times?

A lifetime of skill.

A lifetime of belief.

All of it came together to hit the iron again and again.

Dang Jo-pyeong picked up a piece of iron with tongs and dipped it in a water basin.

Sssssss!

Pure white smoke rose like clouds.

“Iron is….”

Dang Jo-pyeong’s voice echoed softly in the hazy space.

“It must be heated in fire, cooled in water, hammered and hammered again.”

His tone sounded like the path he had walked.

“Looking back, my life has been similar. Sometimes it was joyful, sometimes it was hard, but I kept walking without stopping.”

Clang!

Flames began to spark again on the anvil.

“Sword Saint, do you remember?”

“……Hmm?”

“I didn’t want to be a craftsman. I wanted to be a martial artist of the Dang Family who uses poison and hidden weapons. Like Grandfather.”

“…….”

“When you saw me crying because I didn’t want to handle iron, you said.”

– Hey, you little rascal! What’s so great about wielding a sword? Those who live with blood on their hands are the worst people in the world. And if there’s no one to make swords, am I supposed to fight with a cane? Just do your best in your own way. That’s enough.

A smile appeared on Dang Jo-pyeong’s lips.

“I couldn’t believe the greatest swordsman in the world would say that. Thanks to you, I decided to walk my path.”

Cheong-myeong, who was listening, quietly closed his eyes.

“Now, I can finally repay you for what you said back then. Grandfather would be proud of me, too.”

Cheong-myeong hesitated and barely managed to open his lips, which trembled slightly.

“Elder… I….”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Clang!

The clear sound of the hammer hid the words Cheong-myeong was about to say.

“Whether the one who uses this sword is the Plum Blossom Sword Saint.”

Clang!

“Or a young swordsman of Mount Hua who will lead Mount Hua again.”

Clang!

“What difference does it make? Even if the Sword Saint had used this sword, it would have been passed down to Mount Hua. The Sword Saint’s sword is the sword of Mount Hua. So, if this sword is held by a disciple of Mount Hua, then this sword is the Sword Saint’s sword.”

The forge roared, spitting sparks as the hammer crashed down. *Clang!*

Sparks flew from the hot metal as the hammer crashed down again and again. Steel met steel, being shaped and stretched under the strong blows.

With each strike of the hammer, held in hands weathered by time, Dang Jo-pyeong remembered years gone by, even as he focused on the work in front of him.

His hands, wrinkled and scarred from years of work, moved with practiced ease. Hair as black as night had faded to a snowy white.

Had he achieved anything during that long, long time?

Dang Jo-pyeong, who had been hammering the steel in silence, shook his head.

No. Such things no longer mattered.

The hammer fell squarely on the steel.

He worked tirelessly, heating the steel, hammering it, cooling it, and heating it again. Days blurred into nights as he shaped the sword.

The sword’s blade was so clear it was almost like white glass, without a single blemish.

The sword, about twice as thin as an average blade, seemed light at first glance, but the more one looked at it, the more it possessed a surprising weight, like it held a hidden power.

At the base of the blade, where it met the hilt, a lifelike plum blossom was intricately engraved, and a green tassel, representing the Dang family color, hung gracefully from the end of the leather-wrapped hilt.

“Here,” Dang Jo-pyeong said, his voice raspy, offering the sword. He looked like he had aged years in just days.

Cheong-myeong reached out slowly and took the sword. As his fingers closed around the hilt, a strange feeling washed over him. He closed his eyes for a moment, surprised.

It felt… right. The sword seemed to fit perfectly in his hand, like it had always belonged there. He gently touched the blade with a fingertip. It bent easily, like a willow branch, then sprang back straight in an instant.

“It’s…” Cheong-myeong breathed, opening his eyes, “It’s both soft and strong… incredible.” He could feel the razor sharpness of the edge even with a light touch.

“Here.”

Dang Jo-pyeong handed Cheong-myeong the scabbard.

The scabbard, made of dark iron, was engraved with red plum blossoms, as if one were looking at plum blossoms in full bloom in the darkness.

Cheong-myeong slowly slid the sword into the scabbard.

“Well? What do you think? Do you… do you like it?”

“…”

At Dang Jo-pyeong’s question, Cheong-myeong hesitated for a moment.

What should he say?

Cheong-myeong glanced at Tang Gunak.

He smiled and nodded, as if to say it was alright.

“Well… this is… incredible. I… I don’t even know what to say. I’m not sure I’m good enough to judge such a sword.”

“Do you like it?”

Cheong-myeong nodded.

“More than anything.”

A bright smile spread across Dang Jo-pyeong’s face.

He felt as though all his hard work had been rewarded with that one phrase.

“Then give it a name.”

“…A name?”

“A sword that has found its master must be given a name. Please, give it a suitable name.”

A name…

A name, indeed.

Cheong-myeong quietly gazed at the sword, then gripped the hilt once more.

Slinking.

If the scabbard was like plum blossoms blooming in the dark night, the sword revealed from within was like plum blossoms blooming in the bright daylight.

Cheong-myeong, who had been staring at the sword for a long time, finally smiled faintly.

The name of this sword was as good as decided from the start.

“The Dark Fragrance Plum Blossom Sword.”

“…Dark Fragrance.”

Dang Jo-pyeong repeated, closing his eyes slightly.

Tang Gunak, as if disliking the name, spoke with a slightly dissatisfied voice.

“Grandfather, with all respect… are you sure about ‘Dark Fragrance’? It’s… Hwasan’s style, yes, but this sword is so much more. Wouldn’t something that shows its brilliance be better?”

“Dark (暗)…”

But Dang Jo-pyeong, who had been quietly muttering, opened his eyes and smiled brightly.

More brightly than ever. And more joyfully than ever.

His eyes were glistening with tears.

“It’s a good name. It’s a really good name.”

Tang Gunak closed his mouth.

He couldn’t understand why Dang Jo-pyeong was even shedding tears over this name. But since Dang Jo-pyeong, who had made the sword, had said so, the name of this sword was now decided.

Cheong-myeong couldn’t take his eyes off the sword.

“This is the only name that can be given to a Hwasan sword made by the Sichuan Dang Family.”

“That’s right. Of course, that’s right.”

Dang Jo-pyeong nodded repeatedly.

Memories of the past flickered in his eyes.

A night with a bright moon.

The sight of the Dark Lord Dang-bo and the Plum Blossom Sword Saint Cheong-myeong sitting face to face on a platform, sharing a drink.

This sword would be the Plum Blossom Sword Saint’s sword and a symbol of the friendship between the Sichuan Dang Family and Hwasan.

Just like they were in the past.

“Please, use it well.”

Cheong-myeong nodded silently.

A cold chill emanated from the sword, transmitted through the hand gripping the hilt.

But it wasn’t just cold.

Rather, what should he say?

A little…

–Hey, Taoist.

…Right.

A little warm.

Cheong-myeong, who had slid the sword into its scabbard and fastened it to his waist, took another step towards Dang Jo-pyeong. And with a smile, he lightly tapped his shoulder.

“Thank you,” he mumbled, tapping Dang Jo-pyeong’s shoulder quickly.

Dang Jo-pyeong smiled instead of saying anything.

“That…”

Cheong-myeong, who was about to say something, eventually turned his head and cleared his throat a few times.

“I… uh, I need to see how the other swords turned out. Uh… yeah. I’ll go take a look.”

Cheong-myeong turned abruptly and quickly opened the makeshift door and went out. Dang Jo-pyeong chuckled softly.

Tang Gunak hesitated for a moment before opening his mouth.

“Grandfather, actually…”

“Gun-ak.”

He closed his mouth and widened his eyes. How many decades had it been since Dang Jo-pyeong had called him Gun-ak?

“Yes! Grandfather.”

“I have something I want to make. Prepare my workshop.”

“Ri, right away? Shouldn’t you rest a bit?”

“A craftsman shouldn’t let go of his hammer until the day he dies. I had forgotten that for a long time.”

Tang Gunak quietly studied Dang Jo-pyeong’s face.

A look of utter contentment, which had been absent for so long, had returned to his face. Tang Gunak eventually smiled back without realizing it.

“I will.”

As he quickly went outside, Dang Jo-pyeong gazed out with deep, profound eyes.

“The plum blossom scent…”

And he slowly closed his eyes.

“…doesn’t fade away.”

The dark fragrance of plum blossoms… it was a scent that grew stronger even in the deepest night. Dang Jo-pyeong closed his eyes, breathing it in, a scent that linked him to memories, to the past, and now, to this very moment. A fragrance that would last… for a very long time.