Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 609

Whispers rippled through the Geumseon Merchant Guild, like wind through dry leaves.

“A challenge?” someone breathed.

“Well… yes, it sounds like it. Does this mean Wudang Sect is challenging Mount Hua?”

“Hey, come on,” another voice muttered, a bit louder. “Does that even make sense?”

“Huh? Did I say something wrong?” the first voice replied, defensive. “Isn’t that what’s happening? If Wudang didn’t care about Mount Hua, why ask for a martial arts exchange at all?”

“True,” a third voice agreed, quieter now. “But… it’s Wudang, still!”

The merchants tried to whisper, keeping their voices low, but Heo Sanja heard every word. His ears were sharp, missing nothing in the crowded guild hall.

‘Damn it.’

Heo Sanja unknowingly gritted his teeth slightly.

He went to the Geumseon Merchant Guild on purpose. He wanted to create a situation they could not avoid. He brought up the matter in front of the merchants.

He thought the Mount Hua elders, who didn’t have much experience in the martial world, would never escape this trap.

But…

‘That minnow-like bastard!’

That young Taoist had completely twisted his plan.

Of course, with a little thought, anyone could come up with such an impromptu response.

But Wudang directly leading their disciples to request a martial arts exchange in person, and then instantly finding the words to counterattack while calmly assessing the situation?

‘Nonsense.’

Not to mention the younger disciples, even elders of most sects would tense up at the mention of Wudang.

Even those who usually boasted that Wudang was nothing would surely be overwhelmed in front of Heo Sanja and the Wudang disciples.

But what kind of creature was that guy, so calmly turning the tables on Wudang?

‘I thought he was no ordinary fellow since the Sword Tomb.’

Heo Sanja quietly clicked his tongue.

Words were like water; once spilled, they could not be gathered again.

No matter what he said to excuse himself now, the word “challenge” stuck in the merchants’ minds would not be erased.

“Challenge…”

Just as Heo Sanja was about to open his mouth to somehow salvage the situation, Chung Myung interrupted him again.

“Yes, well, it’s a natural thing. Actually, Wudang is famous, but its history is a bit short, isn’t it? Since Mount Hua is older in Taoism, we can help with that much… Mmph! Mmph mmph! Mmph! What, what… Mmmph!”

In the end, the Baek Cheon group, who had been holding Chung Myung, panicked and quickly gagged him.

Baek Cheon even frantically stuffed a cloth he had prepared from somewhere into Chung Myung’s mouth, and then wrapped the rest around his mouth.

“Ha… Haha. I’m sorry. I think he’s got heatstroke… Ah, it’s hot, so hot.”

As if on cue, a still-cool breeze blew.

But Baek Cheon kept fanning himself as if it were still hot.

Heo Sanja’s face, watching the scene, finally twisted.

It wasn’t very noticeable, but the smile he had been maintaining, trying to appear friendly, slowly disappeared.

‘That bastard…’

If there was one thing Wudang didn’t want to hear from Mount Hua, it was talk about history.

Mount Hua was the Jeonjin Sect, one of the direct lineages of Taoism in the Central Plains. Among them, it was the place that inherited the lineage of Hak Daetong, one of the famous Seven Masters of Quanzhen.

Now that all the schools founded by the other Jeonjin Chilja had declined, Mount Hua could be said to be the direct lineage of Taoism that inherited the Jeonjin lineage.

On the other hand, Wudang was founded by Zhang Sanfeng in his later years, so its history was not that long.

It was something that could be ignored if one wanted to, but it inevitably left a bitter taste, so it was something they didn’t want to mention. But that damned bastard had pinpointed that part and started blathering about it.

And that too, where everyone could hear.

“Haha… I’m sorry, Elder. I took him in as a disciple but didn’t teach him properly…”

“……”

He felt like people often blame someone who tries to help a little more than the person causing the problem.

Looking at Hyun Sang speaking with a face that seemed to say he was terribly sorry, Heo Sanja felt a fire blazing inside him. If that damned bastard had openly ignored Wudang or if these elders had been acting proud, he wouldn’t have felt so upset.

But those bastards were slowly bringing up the things they hated to hear the most, making people angry inside. Heo Sanja’s long training was slowly crumbling under this subtle trickery.

“It’s… alright. I’m not foolish enough to get angry at the words of a young disciple who doesn’t know any better.”

“Thank you so much for understanding…”

“Puaaaah!”

At that moment, the cloth that had been gagging Chung Myung was torn apart mercilessly and scattered into the air.

“What? What? Did I say anything wrong?”

“Aaaargh! Shut your damn mouth, you bastard!”

Baek Cheon tried to gag Chung Myung again with both hands, but Chung Myung opened his mouth wide and bit his hand.

“Aaaaargh!”

As Baek Cheon stepped back clutching his hand, Chung Myung quickly seized the opportunity to open his mouth again.

“No, it seems Sajuk doesn’t know well, but there’s nothing wrong with what I said! You need to know the history of the sect! I didn’t want to say this, but actually, Zhang Sanfeng is also a disciple of Mount Hua, if you think about it! Zhang Sanfeng climbed Mount Hua and was taught by Hwaryong Jin-in, and based on that, he founded the Wudang Sect…”

“Mouth! Mouth! Mouth!”

Now even the disciples who had been grabbing Chung Myung’s arms and legs panicked and blocked Chung Myung’s mouth.

Yoon Jong and Jo Gul gagged Chung Myung, and Yoo Iseol tapped his head. Even Baek Ah slapped Chung Myung’s cheeks with his small front paws.

“Mmph! Mmmph! Mmph!”

Chung Myung glared and resisted, but this time the other disciples were more desperate than ever.

Once Chung Myung was somewhat subdued, Hyun Sang looked up at the sky, took a deep breath, and apologized again with heartfelt regret.

“…I’m, I’m sorry. That child doesn’t know anything… I will make sure to teach him properly.”

Heo Sanja didn’t answer at all.

It was said that when a person was too angry, they couldn’t even speak, and that was exactly how he felt now.

The reason he was so furious now wasn’t because Chung Myung was talking nonsense. It was because those words were somewhat true.

They also didn’t know all the details of their founder’s actions. But among the rumors circulating in the world, there was definitely a story that Wudang’s founder, Zhang Sanfeng, had been taught by Hwaryong Jin-in on Mount Hua.

‘Damn it.’

That was why he didn’t want to mention it even more. In the end, it was almost the same as admitting that the roots of Taoism were in Mount Hua.

Heo Sanja’s eyes scanned the merchants again. Seeing the subtle expressions on their faces, a sigh of helplessness came out of him.

‘I thought only swords were scary.’

Considering the amazing skill he had shown in the Sword Tomb and his performance in the martial arts competition, there was no way not to recognize Chung Myung as the best talent in the Central Plains.

But as a result of what he saw today, the scariest thing about Chung Myung was his three-inch tongue.

Heo Sanja glared at the Mount Hua elders and gritted his teeth inwardly.

‘This…’

Unlike Hyun Sang, who was at a loss for what to do, Hyeon Young’s face, standing a step behind, clearly showed a sense of relief.

He didn’t know if he couldn’t hide his expression or if he was doing it on purpose to show him, but either way, it was equally infuriating.

Crack!

At the sound from behind, Heo Sanja flinched and quickly came to his senses.

‘What a fool… What am I going to do, falling for such an obvious trick!’

If it were his usual self, he would never have gotten angry over such a thing. Certainly, there was something about that young Taoist Chung Myung that made people upset.

This showed that the way someone said something, their face and voice, changed the meaning of the words.

“Hoo.”

Heo Sanja, calming his mind with a short breath, looked at the Mount Hua elders again calmly.

If he engaged in a martial arts exchange with an angry heart, it would be difficult to obtain the desired result. For now, he had to calm down first. That way, the disciples would also calm down.

“Hahaha. That’s right. That’s why I came wanting to learn a thing or two. What do you think? I know Mount Hua hasn’t had many chances to meet with other Taoist sects, so wouldn’t it be a great help if we could mingle with our Wudang disciples on this visit?”

“Hmm.”

Hyun Sang seemed to think for a moment before speaking.

“I am truly grateful for the offer.”

Heo Sanja’s eyebrows twitched at the unexpected words.

‘Are they backing down here?’

That couldn’t be possible, could it?

“However, this is not something that can be easily decided without the sect leader here.”

“Even if the Mount Hua sect leader were here, he wouldn’t object. Above all, isn’t this for the sake of the disciples?”

Hyun Sang shook his head at Heo Sanja’s words, which were slowly cutting off their escape.

“That’s not it. Mount Hua is a sect that doesn’t decide anything alone. I understand the offer you’ve given us, so please give us time to discuss it with the disciples.”

“…Are you saying you’re going to discuss such a matter with the disciples? As far as I know, you are the only two elders of Mount Hua…”

“That’s right.”

“But is there really a need to do that?”

“I don’t know about Wudang, but that’s how Mount Hua is. Just because you’ve lived longer doesn’t mean you know more, and just because you have a higher position doesn’t mean you’re wiser.”

Heo Sanja was speechless.

‘Which sect in the world has elders asking disciples to decide the major and minor affairs of the sect?’

This was something he had never heard of in his life.

“So please give us some time.”

“Yes. Do so if necessary.”

Hyun Sang briefly clasped his hands and stepped back. As Hyun Sang approached the back, the Mount Hua disciples gathered around him as if they had promised to do so. It seemed that his words were not empty.

“Heh heh.”

Heo Sanja watched the scene and burst into a hollow laugh at the extreme strangeness. And he also turned around and approached his disciples.

“Elder.”

Moo-jin stepped forward and cautiously opened his mouth. There were many things he wanted to say, but Heo Sanja had only one thing to say to him.

“Moo-jin.”

“Yes.”

“They will eventually have no choice but to accept this martial arts exchange.”

“Yes.”

“So…”

He bit his lip slightly and continued.

“Don’t end it at the level we initially planned. Crush them completely!”

Moo-jin flinched at the determined voice.

“…To that extent?”

“That’s right.”

“But they are still second-generation disciples. Of course, there is a first-generation disciple, but even so…”

“You don’t understand.”

“…Yes?”

“Don’t bother with reason or morality, just crush them.”

Moo-jin couldn’t find any words to reply and closed his mouth.

‘I’ve never seen the Elder’s face like this before.’

Heo Sanja’s face, which was always full of composure and gentleness, was hardened like a general who had gone to the battlefield. Seeing that face, he couldn’t think of anything more to say.

“I understand.”

Hearing the answer, Heo Sanja glanced at the Mount Hua side. The Mount Hua disciples, huddled together, were chattering noisily.

– Can you stop the flowing water?

‘Sect Leader.’

He couldn’t know exactly what those words meant until he saw it with his own eyes. But Heo Do-jin was sitting there and seeing what he couldn’t see.

‘I don’t know if that’s flowing correctly.’

But it was certain that the momentum of that flow was not insignificant. He knew Mount Hua had started to change, like a small stream beginning to flow. He didn’t know where it would lead, but it was gaining power.

‘I’ll stop it here, even if I have to see blood.’

A cold murderous intent flickered in Heo Sanja’s eyes.