Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 53

Hwang Jong-ui started to speak, his voice tight with worry, “But… but surely…”

Chung Myung stopped him with a raised hand, looking around the room with a slow, deliberate gaze. “What do *I* think? Hmm…” He paused, letting the silence stretch, before finally saying, “Well, well, well… quite the grand house you have here. Impressive. But you know, even important matters must follow a proper order.”

Hwang Jong-ui’s voice rose in desperation. “But isn’t my father’s health the *most* urgent thing right now?”

Chung Myung shrugged, a playful glint in his eye. “Urgent, yes, important, definitely. But traveling all this way works up an appetite, you know? A long journey on an empty stomach is no way to start anything.”

Chung Myung glanced at Hwang Jong-ui. His eyes were burning with a desperate hope, like a dying fire trying to catch again.

Hwang Jong-ui was like a drowning man grasping at straws. And that straw was Chung Myung. His eyes were filled with the determination to not let him off if he couldn’t cure Lord Hwang.

Chung Myung smacked his lips.

“Then, let’s start with a pulse reading…”

“Hurry!”

“…Alright, alright. Don’t rush me.”

Chung Myung turned his head and looked at the sickbed. A person was lying under a thick silk blanket.

“Hmm.”

Chung Myung slightly narrowed his brow as he checked the face of the person lying down. ‘It certainly looks like the symptoms of demonic energy.’ He needed to take a closer look to be sure. Chung Myung approached and pulled back the blanket.

And he unknowingly frowned slightly. He was wearing clothes, but there was no way to hide his emaciated body. The old man was so thin he looked like a dried leaf, his skin stretched tight over bone, his breath a shallow whisper.

‘His condition is more serious than I thought.’ Chung Myung stroked his chin.

‘It’s demonic energy, but not the proper kind.’ If he had been struck by a high-level demonic art, there was no way he could have lasted a year. Even those who had dedicated their lives to diligent training often couldn’t withstand even three days when demonic energy struck. This wasn’t a symptom that an old man like this could endure. If that’s the case…

“I’ll take your pulse.”

“Yes.”

Chung Myung reached out and grabbed Lord Hwang’s wrist. Then, he gently pushed in his energy. As Chung Myung’s pure internal energy entered Lord Hwang’s body, the stagnant energies that had filled it were startled and retreated.

‘Crude.’ Chung Myung narrowed his brow. The symptoms were definitely demonic energy. But it certainly wasn’t a symptom caused by properly mastered demonic arts.

Chung Myung, having removed his hand from Lord Hwang’s body, rested his chin on his hand and fell into deep thought.

Hwang Jong-ui couldn’t hide his anxiety as he watched Chung Myung. Anyone would feel the same if the person who had taken their pulse made a serious face after removing their hand. Eventually, Hwang Jong-ui, unable to bear it any longer, opened his mouth.

“…How is it?”

“Well, you see…” Chung Myung scratched the back of his head vigorously.

“Is it difficult?”

“No. The treatment itself doesn’t seem that difficult.”

“I knew it. It’s alright. Everyone… What?” Hwang Jong-ui’s body trembled.

“What did you just say…?”

“I said the treatment isn’t very difficult.”

“Re-really?”

“Yes. But I can’t start right now. I need a few preparations.”

“What kind of preparations…?”

“First!” Chung Myung said with a grin.

“Let’s eat first.”

“…”

Chung Myung’s mouth pulverized and sliced everything that entered it. Hwang Jong-ui watched the scene with utterly dumbfounded eyes. He had formed relationships with many sects and seen many Taoists, but he could say with certainty that this was the first time he had ever seen a Taoist tear apart meat so well. Even now, a long strip of duck leg was being sucked into Chung Myung’s mouth and disappeared as if it had never been there. And that wasn’t all.

As soon as he filled his glass with expensive Yantai wine, he hurriedly poured it into his mouth.

“Kroooooh! That’s the stuff! That’s the stuff!”

“…”

This was also the first time he had seen a Taoist enjoy alcohol so much. If the situation weren’t like this, Hwang Jong-ui would have laughed, saying, ‘I’ve met a truly jovial Taoist today,’ but the current situation prevented him from laughing.

“Um… Little Taoist.”

“Huh? Why?” Chung Myung asked back, his mouth full of meat. Hwang Jong-ui took a deep breath and calmed his mind.

“The… preparations for the treatment?”

“I’m doing them now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Ah, it’s nothing much.” Chung Myung put down his chopsticks.

“The treatment requires a lot of stamina, so it’s important to eat well. And the cook here is really good.”

Of course, he’s good. He’s the best cook in Xi’an.

“I’ve only been eating things that don’t even taste like food in Mount Hua, so I’m finally feeling better.” Chung Myung patted his stomach.

“Are you finished?”

“No. I’m just getting started.”

“…”

Does he have a goblin in his stomach? I heard Mount Hua is having a hard time these days, so he must have been quite hungry… No, even if he was hungry, how can all that fit in his stomach? A person’s stomach has a limited size, doesn’t it? He was a Taoist who surprised people in many ways.

“You didn’t come here just to eat, did you?”

“Well, it’s a bit of both.”

“But there’s usually a primary purpose.”

“Taoists believe in going with the flow of things.”

“You’re flowing a little too much…”

“I’m keeping it within reasonable bounds.”

Where? Hwang Jong-ui couldn’t bear his frustration and sighed.

“Little Taoist, I know you’ve come far, but my dad is really sick! Can we focus on that soon?”

“I’m considering them plenty.”

Hwang Jong-ui jumped up from his seat.

“Listen here! Little Taoist! My father!”

“He’s not going to die.”

“…What did you just say?”

“I said he’s not going to die. Sit down.” Chung Myung nonchalantly poured himself some wine and downed it in one gulp. His face didn’t show any agitation, even after seeing Hwang Jong-ui’s angry expression.

“I took some measures a little while ago, so he won’t die. It will take some time to completely cure him, but he’s past the critical point.”

He treated him? When?

“There’s a saying that you should take the long way around when you’re in a hurry. Treating the Lord isn’t that important right now. What’s really important is why the Lord collapsed.”

“…Did you really treat him?”

“Have you only lived being deceived?” Chung Myung shrugged.

“If you’re suspicious, go see the Lord. The dark energy between his brows will definitely have lessened.”

Hwang Jong-ui stared intently at Chung Myung before nodding.

“It’s not that I doubt the little Taoist. But I believe it’s best to be certain about everything, so I’ll go check right now.”

“Go ahead.”

Hwang Jong-ui quickly went outside. After a short time, he burst through the door and looked at Chung Myung with disbelieving eyes.

“W-what did you do?”

“I told you, I treated him.”

“But when?”

Chung Myung didn’t answer and pointed to the seat opposite him with a nonchalant expression.

“Aren’t you going to sit down?”

“…”

Hwang Jong-ui looked at Chung Myung with suspicious eyes. He had seen countless types of people while living as a merchant, but he could say with certainty that this was the first time he had ever seen someone like this. At times, he showed the childishness of a young child, but at other times, he exuded the feeling of a very seasoned and experienced person. ‘It’s as if an old man is inside the body of a child.’ That couldn’t be the case, so it meant that this child had experienced countless things that were not fitting for his age.

‘Can I trust him?’ But he had no choice but to trust him. As he had confirmed, Hwang Mun-yak was clearly showing improvement.

Chung Myung, whether he knew Hwang Jong-ui’s complicated thoughts or not, poured wine into his glass and opened his mouth.

“If you don’t want to sit, answer while standing. There are a few things I want to ask…”

Hwang Jong-ui sat back down.

“Who is the closest person to the Lord?”

“You said the closest person?”

“Yes. The person who protects Lord Hwang’s surroundings. The person who follows him everywhere, from his sleeping quarters to his business trips. Or, at least, someone who wouldn’t be suspected no matter what they did.”

“…Why are you asking that?”

“Let’s just say it’s necessary for the treatment.”

Hwang Jong-ui tilted his head and said.

“That’s naturally me. It’s my job to take care of my father.”

“Aside from you.”

“If not me…” Hwang Jong-ui pondered deeply before shaking his head.

“I don’t know. My father has done so many things. So, naturally, there are quite a few people who assist him. There are at least five people who meet the criteria the little Taoist is talking about.”

“More than I thought. Hmm. Is that so?” Chung Myung scratched his cheek as if he was troubled. But he shrugged and chuckled.

“If there are five, it won’t be easy to find the one among them.”

“What exactly are you trying to find?”

“You’re not asking because you don’t know, are you? Eh. Surely not?”

“…” Hwang Jong-ui’s face hardened. Of course, he wasn’t asking because he didn’t know. He just didn’t want to admit it.

“Are you saying the culprit is inside?”

“I originally thought he was attacked from the outside, but after examining Lord Hwang’s details, it doesn’t seem like he was attacked from the outside. From what I see, it’s the work of an insider.” Hwang Jong-ui’s face stiffened.

“Be careful what you say, Little Taoist! The members of the Eunha Merchant Guild are all like family! They’ve spent their entire lives with the Eunha Merchant Guild, and they all respect my father! They…”

“Or not.”

“…Huh?” Chung Myung nonchalantly patted his stomach.

“It’s good if we suspect and it turns out not to be true, right? Isn’t it?”

“…That’s true, but…” Chung Myung yawned widely.

“So, don’t worry. It’ll all come out if we investigate.” Hwang Jong-ui nodded heavily.

Watching Hwang Jong-ui, Chung Myung inwardly clicked his tongue. ‘For a merchant, he’s quite naive.’ There weren’t many people who knew as well as Chung Myung how vicious people could be. He had watched a monk who preached mercy smash a person’s head and go berserk, and he had also watched a Taoist who cultivated the Tao contemplate how to cut off a person’s neck more cleanly. Humans are two-sided beings. They can be good people to someone, but they can also be bad people to someone else.

‘Well, that’s not what’s important.’ What was important was that there was someone inside this Eunha Merchant Guild who had harmed Hwang Mun-yak. Judging by the condition, it was clear that someone who had crudely learned demonic arts had been continuously channeling demonic energy into Hwang Mun-yak. At first, there wouldn’t have been any problems, but after being steadily exposed for a long time, he had suffered from demonic corruption. Even someone who knew something about demonic corruption wouldn’t be able to know how these symptoms arose unless they had seen it with their own eyes and experienced it with their own body like Chung Myung.

‘The old man must have lived a good life.’ His luck had aligned. If Chung Myung hadn’t seen the contents of the letter… No, before that, if he hadn’t taken an interest in Lord Hwang, Hwang Mun-yak would have been destined to die from his illness.

‘Krooh. This is what you call doing good.’ Saving people and making money. Killing two birds with one stone… Ah, birds aren’t really my thing.

“But how do you plan to do this investigation?”

“I’m doing it now.”

“…Um?” Hwang Jong-ui asked back with a blank face.

“You’re saying eating is the investigation? Perhaps the cook?”

“Eh. That’s not it. The fact that I’m talking to the young head of the family in this room is the investigation.” Hwang Jong-ui tilted his head. He couldn’t understand what he was saying at all.

“Just watch. Interesting things will happen soon. Young head, you just need to watch. Ah, there is one thing you can do for me.”

“What is it? I’ll do my best to help.” Chung Myung picked up the wine bottle next to him.

“Another bottle.”

“…”

“Quickly.”

“…” A deep worry settled in Hwang Jong-ui’s heart.