Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 50

“Ugh…”

“I really can’t do this.”

The younger students of Mount Hua groaned as they walked through the main gate. The air felt heavy with the dust of the town, a stark contrast to the crisp mountain air they longed for.

For them, talking to worldly people was harder than training in the mountains. They preferred peace and quiet. They were Taoists, monks who believed in finding peace and inner strength through practices like meditation and martial arts. Dealing with the busy, everyday world felt very difficult for them.

“Everything else is fine, but…”

Of course, Yoon Jong understood their feelings.

They also knew how important money was and how hard it was to earn. Just recently, they had been living on thin porridge because they had no money.

Just because someone trains in Taoism and martial arts in the mountains doesn’t mean they can live on tree bark. Whether in the mountains, fields, or cities, money is needed to live.

So, they didn’t complain about that.

The problem wasn’t that, but…

“Why can’t we just stay in Hwaeom? This is crazy!”

“Going up and down the mountain every morning and evening is going to kill me, Senior Brother…”

Yoon Jong closed his eyes tightly.

Normally, Yoon Jong would have scolded him for exaggerating, but he couldn’t do it now. He was also out of breath.

“Think of this as training.”

“What kind of training is this…”

“Or you can go and argue with the senior teachers directly.”

Everyone shut their mouths.

They weren’t scared of their teachers. They knew their teachers were working even harder than them.

They only had to endure today, but the senior teachers hadn’t even returned to Mount Hua yet because they were preparing for business the next day.

“Senior Brother, we don’t have time to train these days.”

“We came here to learn martial arts, not to do business. If this was going to happen, I would have just worked as a clerk in my hometown instead of joining Mount Hua.”

Yoon Jong sighed deeply.

“I know what you all want to say. But things in the world don’t always go the way we want, do they? This is the same. It will be resolved soon, so let’s just bear with it until then.”

“Yes, Senior Brother.”

“Understood.”

Still, they nodded as if his words had worked.

Yoon Jong sighed inwardly.

‘I said that, but when will this situation improve?’

There was no telling.

No, it wasn’t just that there was no telling. In Yoon Jong’s view, the situation was only getting worse day by day, not better.

If it hadn’t been for the merchants who had sided with Mount Hua this time secretly helping them, it wouldn’t have been strange if the business had already failed.

For the situation to improve, there had to be elements that would make it improve, but all that was visible were bad elements.

‘The Sect Leader must have a plan.’

Yoon Jong was startled as he continued his thoughts.

‘I’m actually worrying about Mount Hua.’

Until recently, that had rarely happened. Although he was the eldest of the younger students, he had never worried or pondered about the future of Mount Hua. He had thought that if Mount Hua were to collapse, he could just leave.

But before he knew it, Yoon Jong was seriously worrying about Mount Hua.

This was all a change that had occurred after that guy appeared…

“Senior Brotheeeeer!”

Yoon Jong squeezed his eyes shut.

‘All the changes seem good, but why does that guy seem to become more immature as the days go by?’

Yoon Jong stared at Jo Gul, who was running towards him with a pale face.

“Senior Brother! Senior Brother! Something terrible has happened!”

“Calm down. How can you be so frivolous when you’re supposed to be a Taoist…”

“C-Chung Myung…”

Chung Myung?

The moment that name came out of Jo Gul’s mouth, Yoon Jong’s face also turned white. It was truly amazing that he could make someone feel so exhausted even before hearing what had happened.

“N-No! Come and see for yourself! Quickly!”

As Jo Gul started running ahead, Yoon Jong followed him without a word.

‘What kind of accident did this guy cause this time?’

There was no time to think. Yoon Jong, who had entered the main gate at full speed, followed Jo Gul and ran into their shared dormitory, the Hundred Flowers Hall. Soon, Jo Gul burst through the door of Chung Myung’s room, it slamming against the wall with a loud crack.

“He’s not here?”

But Chung Myung wasn’t in the room.

“Where did he go in such a short time?”

“No, that’s not it! Look at that, Senior Brother.”

“Huh?”

That?

Yoon Jong’s eyes narrowed slightly as he turned his head to where Jo Gul was pointing.

‘Paper?’

A piece of paper was placed on Chung Myung’s bed. Yoon Jong, who went closer to the bed, read the words written inside.

“Gone for a few days on urgent business. Handle things here. Don’t slack off on training – or else! – Chung Myung.”

“This crazy bastard.”

Yoon Jong’s hand, which was holding the paper, trembled.

What? He’s going away for a few days?

No, does this crazy bastard think it’s okay for a younger student to leave the main sect for a few days because he has something to do?

“W-What do we do? Senior Brother?”

Yoon Jong sighed deeply.

“First, tell the kids to keep their mouths shut.”

“There will be trouble if we get caught.”

“It’s the same amount of trouble whether we go and tell them right away. He said he’ll be back in a few days, so we have to hide it somehow until then.”

If it weren’t for things like today, the leaders wouldn’t care about a younger student like Chung Myung. If they were lucky, they might not get caught.

“I wonder why he’s doing this if he’s worried about getting caught…”

“Is that what you’re worried about?”

“Yes? Aren’t you worried, Senior Brother?”

“…I’m not worried about that, but about something else.”

“About what?”

Yoon Jong let out a heavy sigh, his shoulders slumping. “It’s not him leaving that worries me,” he muttered, his voice low. “It’s *what* he’s gone to do. What kind of mess will he make this time?”

“…”

Jo Gul strongly agreed with Yoon Jong’s words.

“Huff! Huff! Huff! Augh. Let me catch my breath!”

Chung Myung sat down on a tree stump next to him and took a breath.

He had run all the way from Mount Hua to Xi’an in one go, and he was completely out of it, with a metallic taste in his mouth. It seemed like he had overdone it.

“Augh! Back in my day, huh?”

He could leap over mountains in one step, huh? And cross the Yangtze River with a couple of strides!

If it were him in the past, it wouldn’t have taken him even an hour to get from Mount Hua to Xi’an. And that would be walking leisurely as if taking a stroll.

But Chung Myung didn’t have that kind of ability now, and he had no choice but to run like crazy until his feet were sweating.

“Aigoo… I’d be happy if I could just have a glass of cold water.”

Chung Myung couldn’t hide his age whenever this happened.

Chung Myung, who had caught his breath, raised his head and looked at Xi’an.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been here too.”

Hwaeom was a relatively developed place, but it couldn’t be compared to Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi.

Xi’an was the largest city closest to Mount Hua. As a result, Xi’an was the first place they considered whenever they had to visit a city in the past.

Chung Myung smacked his lips and got up from his seat.

“So many things happened here.”

Originally, the disciples of Mount Hua didn’t like visiting Xi’an.

The reason was very simple. The most famous martial arts group closest to Xi’an was Namgung. Namgung was another famous martial arts group, like Mount Hua, but they were rivals.

Mount Namgung, where Namgung was located, was not far from Xi’an. As a result, the disciples of Namgung appeared in Xi’an whenever they were bored.

What happens when a Mount Hua disciple meets the Namgung disciples in Xi’an?

‘One of them gets wrecked that day.’

Namgung and Mount Hua didn’t get along.

No, it wasn’t just that they didn’t get along. Mount Hua and Namgung were almost like enemies.

How many groups in the world don’t get along with each other?

But even the Namgung Clan and the Habuk Peng Clan, which were famous for not getting along, would click their tongues and point their fingers when they saw Namgung and Mount Hua growling at each other.

Why do they not get along so well?

You should ask the opposite. What is there to get along with?

Just like countries that are close to each other don’t get along, large groups that are close to each other can’t get along. First of all, there are interests at stake, and they also compete to recruit disciples.

And above all, the moment the question of who is stronger arises, there is nothing left to do but draw swords. This is a matter of pride.

Moreover, Mount Hua and Namgung were both Taoist groups. They were similar in that they had a strong tendency for secularism among Taoist groups, and even their main martial art was similar in that it was swordsmanship.

The immortals who founded Namgung and Mount Hua may have thought,

‘Hehe. Since their tendencies are similar, if we build groups close to each other, the descendants will get along well like brothers.’

But in reality, the descendants regarded each other as mortal enemies, let alone brothers.

As a result, Mount Hua couldn’t help but be reluctant to meet the disciples of the Namgung Sect, and naturally, they were reluctant to go in and out of Xi’an.

Until Chung Myung appeared.

As everyone knows, Chung Myung had a personality that he had to do things that others were reluctant to do, and the more his senior brothers tried to stop him, the more he went in and out of Xi’an.

Trouble?

Of course, he got into trouble.

Unfortunately for them.

‘I beat them up a lot.’

This is something that must be excused, but Chung Myung has never gone to find the Namgung disciples and beat them up. Chung Myung is not that idle. He needs to eat one more piece of meat and drink one more glass of alcohol during that time.

He doesn’t even have enough time to enjoy drinking and singing while avoiding the Sect Leader’s eyes, so how can he have time to go find those guys and cause trouble?

But the Namgung disciples seemed to enjoy fighting more than drinking and singing. After being beaten by Chung Myung once or twice, they would foam at the mouth and run at him whenever they heard that Chung Myung had appeared in Xi’an.

Of course, he beat them up every time they came.

When he thought about it, Chung Myung was amazing for beating them up every time they came, but the Namgung disciples were also amazing for stubbornly rushing at him again even after being beaten so badly.

Chung Myung acknowledges Namgung’s tenacity. These guys seemed to have a hobby of getting beaten up. They would get beaten to death and then run at him again with their eyes turned upside down when they met him again.

Perhaps that tenacity is what made Namgung what it is today.

Even while Mount Hua is collapsing, Namgung is threatening the position of the greatest swordsman group in the world, isn’t it?

Of course, that will only be for a short time.

“So, um…”

Chung Myung glanced at his clothes.

He couldn’t take off his Taoist robe because he was in a hurry. The bright red plum blossom pattern embroidered on his chest stood out more than ever today.

“If I run into them, there will be trouble…”

Should I buy some clothes and change?

Chung Myung shrugged his shoulders after thinking for a while and shook his head.

“Nah, no way.”

What are the chances of running into the Namgung disciples in this wide Xi’an? It’s not like the Namgung disciples are looking for Chung Myung with their eyes wide open like before.

“Nothing will happen, right?”

If he goes to the Eunha Merchant Guild quickly, he won’t run into the Namgung disciples.

“Then I get to keep that money.”

Chung Myung smiled slyly and crossed the gates of Xi’an, unaware of the storm that awaited him.