Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 456

Chung Myung smirked. “Your information is really fast, isn’t it?”

Beopjeong smiled gently, but his eyes remained serious. Chung Myung didn’t trust it.

“Because of my position,” Beopjeong said calmly, “I hear many things, even when I don’t try to.”

Chung Myung’s smile vanished. “Are you saying you’re like a beggar, always listening for scraps of news?”

“I am not.”

Beopjeong shook his head.

“It’s true the Beggars’ Sect does a lot, but they aren’t the only important group.”

Chung Myung watched Beopjeong closely, trying to see if he was telling the truth. Then, he sighed softly.

‘He probably wouldn’t lie about this,’ he thought.

News always gets out. Everyone knew the Beast Palace Lord had visited Sichuan and that the Tang Family had welcomed Mount Hua. It was impossible to hide.

“But is that a problem?”

Beopjeong quietly shook his head at Chung Myung’s question.

“I didn’t say it was a problem.”

“Then what?”

“I’m just a little disappointed. Wasn’t Mount Hua once a great sect that helped lead the world?”

“Yes. And you kicked us out.”

“To be exact, our predecessors did.”

“Yes. Your predecessors kicked us out.”

Chung Myung and Beopjeong glared at each other.

“Amitabha…” Beopjeong sighed, saying the Buddha’s name as if he was troubled.

“Divine Dragon of Mount Hua, please try to understand my position. Even if our predecessors made a mistake, how can I argue with their decision?”

Chung Myung’s eyes gleamed.

It wasn’t a direct apology, but Beopjeong had used the word ‘mistake.’ That was a big deal. It meant the most stubborn person in the world had admitted they were wrong.

‘That’s pretty amazing,’ he thought.

Beopjeong felt terrible. He hadn’t done anything wrong, but he was taking the blame for what his predecessors had done.

If Chung Myung were in Beopjeong’s place, he would have destroyed the ancestral shrine.

‘Right, Sect Leader?’

– Go ahead and try it, you little rascal! Just try it!

“Why are you so angry?”

“What did you say…?”

“Ah, nothing.”

Chung Myung waved his hand.

Beopjeong stared at Chung Myung, then sighed and continued.

“Anyway… that was a long time ago. We can’t use that as an excuse now.”

“Do we need an excuse? We don’t need Shaolin’s permission to do anything.”

“Of course not. But as I said, the world isn’t that simple.”

Chung Myung chuckled.

“Or do you see it that way, Abbot?”

Beopjeong’s eyes twitched. Chung Myung’s words seemed to bother him more than he expected. Beopjeong’s voice was sharp as he continued.

“Tell me, young man.”

“Yes?”

“How much do you know about the world?”

Chung Myung stared at Beopjeong, shocked.

‘I know more than you, you bald monk!’ he thought.

He felt like cursing. He had been doing well in this life, but Beopjeong had to bring up the past.

‘I should have smashed those monks’ heads back then!’ he thought.

‘Those bastards! Can’t control your people? Do you want the Great Hall to fall apart?’

When Chung Myung didn’t answer, Beopjeong shook his head and spoke gently.

“The world is more dangerous than you think. Do you know why?”

“I wonder?”

“Because people want to protect what is important to them.”

Beopjeong didn’t get angry as he watched Chung Myung tilt his head. Instead, his voice softened, as if he were talking to a child.

“Even though I’m the Abbot of Shaolin, I can’t control everything. Especially now.”

“Why now?”

“Have you forgotten? What’s happening in the Northern Sea?”

Beopjeong said the Buddha’s name with a serious look.

“Amitabha. The Jianghu is still scared from the last war. The sects that almost died are still afraid of the Demonic Sect.”

“Hmm.”

Hyun Jong, who had been listening, spoke up.

“What does that have to do with this?”

“Sect Leader.”

Beopjeong sighed, sounding annoyed.

“The orthodox sects learned that they can’t fight the Demonic Sect alone. They even need the help of unorthodox and foreign sects to win.”

“That means…”

“Yes.”

Beopjeong nodded.

“The leaders of the Jianghu don’t want division. If the Northern Sea wasn’t a problem, it might be different. But with another war possible, they don’t want a new power to appear. They’ll stop it if they have to.”

Beopjeong looked at Hyun Jong, his face bitter.

“And unfortunately, that’s already happening.”

“Ummm.”

Hyun Jong frowned and raised his voice.

“Who are they to interfere in Mount Hua’s business? Who gave them that right!”

“Sect Leader… When it comes to what they want, none of that matters.”

“As long as they can say they’re preparing for a disaster and that a new power will cause problems, no one will back down.”

“The Nine Great Sects?”

“Do you think the Five Great Families are any different?”

“This isn’t as simple as you think.”

Beopjeong stopped talking. A sarcastic voice interrupted.

“You’re not saying what you really mean.”

Chung Myung tilted his head.

“So, what are you trying to say? You didn’t come here just to tell us to stop, did you?”

“Of course not. I don’t have the right to say that.”

Beopjeong shook his head.

“…And you wouldn’t listen anyway, would you?”

“Well, probably.”

Beopjeong squeezed his eyes shut at that casual answer.

There were many people in the world, but only Chung Myung could act so casually around him.

‘He’s always surprising,’ he thought.

‘The Sect Leader is so calm and serious. How did someone like him come from Mount Hua?’

Chung Myung didn’t care what Beopjeong thought. He was thinking.

‘This is obvious,’ he thought.

He had expected the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Families to push back. He had already talked about it with Tang Gun-ak and Maeng So.

People never want to give up what they have.

The backlash was just happening sooner than he thought.

Beopjeong spoke seriously.

“Then there’s only one way.”

“A way?”

“Yes, a way. Everything needs a reason. Mount Hua needs a reason to claim its rights, and I need a reason to protect Mount Hua.”

Chung Myung’s eyes narrowed.

‘Protect?’

“Are you saying you’ll help Mount Hua?”

Beopjeong smiled gently.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

“Hoh?”

Chung Myung looked amused.

“So, what do you need us to do?”

“Didn’t I already say?”

“Yes?”

Beopjeong looked at Chung Myung steadily.

“Go to the Northern Sea.”

Chung Myung frowned.

‘Seriously, is there treasure hidden there?’

‘The Northern Sea again! Why do all problems lead there?’

Beopjeong saw Chung Myung’s face and slowly moved the prayer beads in his hand.

“As I said, the Northern Sea is in chaos. I’ve tried to fix it, but I can’t.”

“Is it too much even for Shaolin?”

“It can’t be solved with power.”

Beopjeong groaned as if he had a headache.

“We could force our way through, but then the Northern Sea and the Central Plains would be separated forever. That’s the worst thing that could happen.”

“Hmm.”

“I heard you’re friends with the Beast Palace Lord. Can you use that to go to the Northern Sea?”

Chung Myung’s eyes narrowed.

‘How much does he know?’

Shaolin’s information network was impressive.

“Divine Dragon of Mount Hua.”

“Yes?”

“Go to the Northern Sea and find out what’s happening. Then I’ll help you as much as I can.”

Hyun Jong frowned.

“Abbot.”

“Yes, Sect Leader,” Beopjeong said, his voice calm but with a hint of underlying tension. He sat across from Chung Myung in a simple room, the scent of faint incense hanging in the air.

“Why are you doing so much?” Chung Myung asked, leaning back in his wooden chair. “In my opinion, Abbot, as the leader of the Nine Great Sects (the most important groups of martial artists in our world), you want the Western alliance to succeed more than anyone.”

“Of course,” Beopjeong replied, nodding slowly and gravely. He maintained a serene expression, but a slight twitch in his fingers betrayed his inner thoughts.

“However, even so, it is not strange. I do not wish for the Western alliance, but even more than that, I do not want the resurgence of the Demonic Sect (a group known for evil and chaos). The position of Abbot of Shaolin is one where, whether one desires it or not, one must strive for the peace of the world. Therefore, he must give up something small to get something big – peace in the world.”

“Hmm.”

Beopjeong finished his words, closed his eyes slightly, and chanted a Buddhist prayer.

Outwardly, he appeared to be anxiously awaiting the other’s reply, but his inner thoughts were somewhat different.

‘This, he will not be able to refuse.’

Mount Hua is staking everything on uniting the Western sects into a new force. If that is the case, they would be most wary of interference from other sects before the matter becomes concrete.

If Chung Myung has even a little bit of sense, this is an offer he will have to accept.

However.

“Well, I’ve felt this since before, but you have a habit of speaking cleverly.”

“Hmm?”

Beopjeong opened his eyes wide. Chung Myung sneered with a surly face.

“A monk shouldn’t be trying to trick people like that. Buddha will be angry.”

“⋯⋯.”

What on earth was he talking about? Beopjeong blinked, at a loss.

Scam?

Was he really calling the Abbot of Shaolin a scammer?

“Wh-what are you saying⋯⋯.”

“Even if you are trying to be clever, you should speak honestly. This doesn’t make sense.”

“⋯⋯What doesn’t add up?”

The Abbot asked, and Chung Myung chuckled.

“A moment ago, you said that even the Abbot of Shaolin can’t do whatever he wants and can’t ignore the opinions of other sects. But now you’re saying that if we just go to the Northern Sea, you’ll solve all that?”

“⋯⋯I said I would try.”

“You are struggling to explain, aren’t you?”

“⋯⋯.”

Beopjeong looked at Chung Myung with a face that betrayed his embarrassment.

“You keep talking about sacrificing for the sake of the world, but isn’t Shaolin the one who will be most troubled by the traces of the Demonic Sect appearing in the Northern Sea?”

“⋯⋯.”

“You’ve already suffered so much disgrace at the World Martial Arts Competition that your reputation has plummeted, and if you show that you can’t do anything even when traces of the Demonic Sect appear, your authority will be hitting rock bottom.”

“⋯⋯Amitabha.”

Beopjeong chanted a Buddhist prayer in a low voice. But unlike before, there was a somewhat hurried feeling in it.

Chung Myung twisted his lips and chuckled.

“So, the place that benefits the most from resolving the matter in the Northern Sea is none other than Shaolin. Moreover, it’s even more beneficial if Mount Hua steps up to solve it.”

“⋯⋯What does that mean?”

“It’s obvious. Look, Mount Hua is uniting other sects, but anyway, didn’t they listen to Shaolin and go to the Northern Sea? Mount Hua is still under Shaolin’s influence. Isn’t that a perfect situation to say something like that?”

“⋯⋯.”

Eventually, Beopjeong, having lost his words, stared intently at Chung Myung.

If others were in this place, they would have criticized Chung Myung’s words as excessive. Or they might have dismissed it as baseless conjecture.

But Chung Myung was already someone who had experienced all of that firsthand.

‘The peace of the martial world is freezing to death.’

You damn monks, if you were the kind to care about that, you should have stopped the Demonic Sect when they attacked Mount Hua. You just stood back and watched then, and now you’re talking about, what? Peace? Peaaaace?

‘What a load of crap.’

Chung Myung snorted.

He doesn’t believe in such high-minded words.

“In the end, the loss of Shaolin’s leadership in the martial world is probably the start of all the problems. Abbot, you want to regain that lost leadership by resolving the matter in the Northern Sea. Resolving the Demonic Sect’s matter would be a great achievement. Isn’t that why you came running here in such a hurry?”

Beopjeong clicked his tongue slightly, with a bitter taste.

“⋯⋯Indeed.”

There was a slight resignation in his eyes as he gazed at Chung Myung.

“Benefactor, you have a rather sharp mind.”

“It’s obvious.”

Chung Myung shrugged.

At this point, Beopjeong, as if he had no intention of hiding his intentions, pierced to the main point with eyes that had become a little sharper.

“So, what will you do? Are you going to refuse?”

“Let’s make it clear. Clear.”

“Hmm?”

Chung Myung curled up the corners of his lips.

“This isn’t Mount Hua listening to Shaolin’s proposal to resolve the situation, but Shaolin commissioning Mount Hua to resolve the situation. We need to make this clear.”

“⋯⋯What’s the difference?”

“Come on, have you only done business once or twice? How can they be the same!” Chung Myung jumped up and glared. “It’s basic that a commission comes with a commission fee! Is the person making the request trying to get away with it for free?”

“⋯⋯.”

“Wow, were you really trying to get away with just a few words? Tsk tsk tsk. Shaolin used to have some sense of fair dealing!”

‘How do you know the old Shaolin?’

No. That’s not important right now.

“So, about me blocking the checks from the Nine Sects⋯⋯.”

“Do you think Mount Hua would even blink an eye if they tried to check us? Anyway, they have eyes too, so they can’t just come at us with swords. So what does it matter?” Chung Myung waved his hand.

“⋯⋯.”

“So, instead of such vague words, offer a proper reward. Anyway, you’re just trying to get away with words like putting us in the Nine Great Sects or blocking the checks from the Nine Sects.”

Sweat began to flow down the back of Beopjeong’s head as he listened to the constant flow of words.

Had he ever been so embarrassed in his life?

“So⋯⋯. No, that’s not it. Then what is the reward that Mount Hua wants?”

At that question, Chung Myung’s body leaned back. Leaning arrogantly on the chair, he opened his eyes slightly, as if looking down on him, and said.

“Abbot.”

“Hmm?”

“How much do you know about the world?”

“⋯⋯.”

Beopjeong’s eyes shook violently.

It was the question he had asked a moment ago.

“There’s nothing much to the world. Even if there are various rewards, in the end, there’s only one thing that’s really certain.”

“⋯⋯One?”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung raised his hand, bringing his thumb and index finger together to make a circle.

That is⋯⋯.

“Money.”

“⋯⋯.”

“How convenient is it to just set the amount without having to haggle over various conditions? Right?”

“⋯⋯.”

“How much are you going to pay?”

Beopjeong’s pupils were now shaking as if they had lost their way.

Until now, no one had ever asked him, the Abbot of Shaolin, to hand over money.

“I, I believe Hwasan has enough wealth?”

“Haha. It seems the Abbot only cultivates Buddhism in the mountains and doesn’t know much⋯⋯.”

“⋯⋯.”

Chung Myung smiled contentedly.

“The more money, the better.”

“⋯⋯.”

“The more, the better, and the more, the even better.”

Beopjeong, at a loss for words, turned his gaze to Hyun Jong for help.

But contrary to his expectations, Hyun Jong simply smiled kindly and avoided his gaze.

Beopjeong felt as if he had been hit hard on the head.

‘They’re working together secretly.’

They’re working together secretly.

Chung Myung grinned.

“If it’s about protecting Shaolin’s face, even a thousand gold pieces wouldn’t be too much, right? I’d like to hear how much the Abbot thinks Shaolin’s value is.”

A groan escaped from Beopjeong’s lips.

But who was he? He was none other than the Abbot of Shaolin. He wasn’t someone who would be easily defeated like this.

“⋯⋯Did you say money?”

“Yes.”

“Then treasures would also be acceptable, right?”

“Yes?”

Beopjeong reached out and lifted the wooden chest that had been placed on the floor. And he took out the object he had seen once before and placed it on the table.

“This may not be everything, but wouldn’t it be possible to reduce the price to some extent?”

The Violet Cloud Divine Sword.

The moment Mount Hua’s sacred object came onto the table, a spark flashed in Hyun Jong’s eyes.

However.

“Ah, that?”

Chung Myung was utterly indifferent.

“I don’t think so?”

“⋯⋯You don’t?”

“Nope.”

Beopjeong was quite flustered and kept examining Chung Myung. He was checking if he was bluffing.

“⋯⋯I’m not saying I’ll pay the full price with this, but just reduce it a bit? Does Mount Hua’s sacred object not have that much value?”

“Well, if it were a month ago, I would have accepted it and given you a discount.”

“⋯⋯What’s the difference between a month ago and now?”

Chung Myung chuckled and pulled out the sword he was wearing around his waist, placing it on the table.

Thud!

Sreung!

And he showed it to Beopjeong, half-drawn.

“Sorry, customer. We don’t need old things anymore. We have something much better now.”

“⋯⋯.”

Beopjeong’s mouth dropped open at the sight of the Plum Blossom Sword of Dark Fragrance, emitting an unbelievably radiant light.

“Keep that and use it, and bring the money.”

“⋯⋯.”

Beopjeong slumped powerlessly in his seat.

Here, there was a Taoist trying to trick a monk out of money.