Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 730

Day One.

Baek Cheon frowned, watching the Sect Leader and elders. “Martial Uncle,” he said quietly, “is it rude to ask… are they really going to be okay?”

“What do you mean?” Yoon Jong asked, turning to him.

“Like… are they really going to become stronger like *that*?”

Baek Cheon watched Hyun Jong and the elders going down the mountain. Their faces were pale and tired. He couldn’t help but feel pity.

The difference was huge. The Sect Leader and elders’ faces were pale and grey, while Chung Myung behind them looked bright and full of energy.

“Is Chung Myung… taking all their energy?” Baek Cheon wondered. It really looked like Chung Myung was getting stronger by making the others weaker.

“They look even worse than yesterday… shouldn’t we stop them?”

“Stop them?” Yoon Jong repeated, sounding like he couldn’t believe Baek Cheon even asked. He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling helpless.

Chung Myung causing trouble on his own was terrible, but at least it was something that ended when they stopped him. Even if that was as hard as digging a tunnel through a mountain with a spoon, they could at least try.

But this was different. They could somehow try to stop Chung Myung, but they couldn’t lift a finger against the Sect Leader and the elders.

Stop the Sect Leader and the elders?

Who? The Five Swords?

‘It’s impossible,’ Yoon Jong thought. ‘We can’t stop the Sect Leader and the elders. We’re just disciples.’ He felt a knot of worry in his stomach. ‘But what if something really bad happens to them?’

“Let’s just watch a little longer for now.”

“But if this goes on, something terrible will happen.”

“I know… I know.”

Baek Cheon sighed deeply.

“The Sect Leader and the elders want to do it; we can’t just stand in their way, can we?”

“Don’t you think they might have changed their minds by now?”

Baek Cheon looked at the three men’s pale faces and slowly shook his head.

“Let’s just wait a few more days.”

“Yes.”

Of course, worry remained in his eyes.

‘Nothing bad should happen.’

Looking at Chung Myung’s proud face as he followed from behind, his anxiety only seemed to increase.

Day Four.

“Now, Sect Leader! Are you alright?”

Hyun Jong blankly lowered his gaze. The chopsticks he had been holding a moment ago were scattered on the table. And the hand that had been holding the chopsticks was shaking terribly.

“I’m… fine.”

‘He’s not fine?’

‘He’s really not fine?’

‘Good heavens, he doesn’t even have the strength to use chopsticks?’

The disciples of Mount Hua all stopped eating and stared blankly at Hyun Jong.

“You can’t be doing things with so little energy.”

Then, Hyun Sang, sitting next to him, chuckled. But his chopsticks, picking up rice, were also shaking violently.

‘All the rice is falling.’

‘He’s dropping more than he’s eating,’ one disciple whispered to another. ‘Is he even getting any food?’

‘Is he really alright? Is this okay?’

Still, Hyun Sang was at least trying to maintain his dignity as an elder. Hyun Young, on the other side, had given up on chopsticks completely. He was just using his hands to scoop rice into his mouth. The disciples stared. It was definitely… practical. But seeing an elder eat like that was still shocking.

“Um… shall we feed you?”

“It’s alright.”

“I can do it.”

“It’s good to eat with your hands! Eat with your hands, eat with your hands.”

The gazes of everyone, who had been blankly watching the truly miserable sight, suddenly turned to one side.

Chung Myung attacked his food like he hadn’t eaten in days. *Crunch, crunch, crunch!* He tore apart a chicken leg with his teeth. *Gulp, gulp!* He swallowed a huge mouthful of soup. “Ahhh!” he roared, “This soup is amazing! Who made it? They deserve a medal!”

Since the Sect Leader and the elders couldn’t eat properly, the disciples of Mount Hua couldn’t possibly pick up their rice bowls. Before worrying about being noticed, everyone was filled with concern for the three men.

But…

“What? Why aren’t you eating? Are you already full?”

That devilish bastard.

The only one in the dining hall without a human heart tore a leg off the chicken in front of him and began to eat heartily.

“Keeuh. The meal after training is the best! I’m going to gain weight at this rate.”

Everyone watching his boisterous eating cast pitiful glances at the three dying men again. Looking at their emaciated figures, their eyes kept getting moist.

Day Seven.

*Thud!*

The sound made everyone jump.

“Huh?”

Then they saw it. Hyun Jong had suddenly fallen to the side, collapsing onto the ground. A wave of screams went through the disciples. “Sect Leader!”

“The medical hall! Someone from the medical hall! The Sect Leader has collapsed!”

“Sect Leader! Please come to your senses, Sect Leader!”

He wasn’t a mayfly; why would he suddenly collapse to the side while walking!

Baek Cheon, who was sweating, laid the Sect Leader’s head on his lap, wiped away the sweat with his sleeve, and shaded him with his hand.

After a moment, Hyun Jong slowly opened his eyes.

“Sect Leader! Are you feeling better! Sect Leader!”

A bloodless face, cracked lips, and unfocused eyes. He looked half-dead to anyone.

His unfocused eyes slowly wandered around before landing on Baek Cheon’s face. His pale lips trembled and opened.

“Ah…”

“Yes, Sect Leader! It’s Baek Cheon…”

“Master…” Hyun Jong whispered, his eyes unfocused. Baek Cheon frowned. “Master? Sect Leader, it’s me, Baek Cheon.” Hyun Jong’s eyes wandered around as if he didn’t see Baek Cheon. “…You’ve come for me, Master,” he mumbled. “I’ve tried my best…”

“Aaaaargh! What are you looking at! Sect Leader! Sect Leader! It’s me, Baek Cheon!”

Then, a flustered Jo Gul punched at the air and shouted.

“Shoo, get away! Get away, you evil spirit! The Sect Leader can’t…”

“Hey, you crazy bastard!”

Yoon Jong’s kick struck Jo Gul’s face.

Jo Gul yelped and stumbled back, clutching his nose. “Hey! Why did you hit me?” he cried, blood already dripping down. “I was just saying! Maybe it’s a ghost! Trying to steal the Sect Leader’s soul!”

“Evil spirit? Evil spirit? Hey, you bastard! If he’s the Sect Leader’s master, then he’s our grandmaster! How can you call our grandmaster an evil spirit!”

“Huh?”

Does that make sense?

Even as Jo Gul and Yoon Jong argued, Baek Cheon was busy trying to wake Hyun Jong.

“Sect Leader! Sect Leader! You must come to your senses!”

“Ah… Master… Mount Hua… If you could see Mount Hua now…”

“Step aside, Martial Uncle!”

Suddenly, Tang Soso pushed past Baek Cheon. She held something in her hand – a needle. But it was huge, more like a small sword than a needle. She raised it high. *Whack!* She slammed the needle down into the top of Hyun Jong’s head.

Baek Cheon gasped in horror.

“Eeeeeek!”

Pfft!

A little blood spurted from Hyun Jong’s head. After a moment, his pupils, which had been blurry all along, finally began to clear.

“Hmm? Did I perhaps collapse?”

“Did I just… collapse? How embarrassing.”

Hyun Jong stood up like he was fine. The disciples of Mount Hua were shocked and tried to stop him.

“Grand Sect Leader! Please, don’t get up!” one cried.

“You have to rest!” shouted another.

“You’ll really hurt yourself if you keep going!”

“Heh heh heh.” Hyun Jong chuckled, like his disciples were making too much fuss.

“We have training this afternoon. I can’t rest. If I rest one day, I have to work double the next day. Don’t forget that, any of you.”

Hyun Jong finally stood up, waved his arm, and started walking. As he walked so calmly, a small, red stream of blood was coming from the top of his head.

“So So.”

“Yes?”

“Quickly, take that needle out of him.”

“Yes.”

Baek Cheon put his hands over his face.

‘Mount Hua is doomed.’

It’s too late to stop this now.

Day Fifteen.

“I think…” The Five Swords were sitting close together in the Plum Blossom Hall, their faces determined. “We need to do something special.”

“Big change!” The others repeated Baek Cheon’s words right away.

“If this keeps going, Mount Hua will lose its Grand Sect Leader.”

“That crazy Chung Myung is really…”

Hyun Jong, Hyun Sang, and Hyun Young were getting worse every day. Hyun Jong, who used to be round and kind, is gone. Now, he’s just a very thin person walking around Mount Hua like a ghost.

“His clothes are too big for him now, they just fall off…”

“I screamed when I saw him early in the morning going to the toilet. I thought he was a ghost.”

“He might really die and go to heaven soon.”

“But what can we do? Chung Myung is so stubborn, he won’t listen even if we beg him.”

Then, Yoo Iseol, who had been silent all along, suddenly rose slowly from her seat.

“Huh? Sa-mae?”

Without a word, she grabbed the sword hanging from her waist and drew it.

Creak!

“The Grand Sect Leader’s enemy. I’ll kill him.”

“Hey! Stop her! Someone stop her quickly!”

Tang Soso and Yoon Jong threw themselves at Yoo Iseol, who was trying to bolt out of the room, and clung to her.

“Calm down, Sa-go!”

“You can’t fight him alone! It’s Chung Myung!”

“He’s hurting the Grand Sect Leader!”

An angry vein showed on Yoo Iseol’s forehead.

For her, Hyun Jong was more than just the Grand Sect Leader. He was her father’s teacher, like a grandfather, and the person who saved her when she was a child. This made her really angry.

“Rude! Mean! Terrible!”

“You’re right, but calm down for now, Sa-mae.”

Baek Cheon pulled Yoo Iseol back to her seat. Yoo Iseol looked annoyed.

“I am calm.”

“Then put the sword away!”

I almost got stabbed, you crazy person!

Baek Cheon sat back down and sighed. “First, talking to each other won’t help. If we want to solve this problem, we have to go see Chung Myung directly.”

“Yes?” Baek Cheon’s eyes shone brightly. “Let’s go talk to Chung Myung! If we all go together, even that jerk will have to listen!”

“Him?” Everyone looked at him, thinking, ‘*Why would that work, Sa-suk?*’ But Baek Cheon, not giving up, said firmly. “Jo Gul!”

“Yes! Sa-suk! Just tell me what to do! I, Jo Gul! Have been waiting for this. I’ll get that jerk…”

“Go get Hae Yeon, too!”

“Yes?” Baek Cheon looked serious, stood up straight, and said surely. “We need to bring everyone we can.”

“…”

“What? Why?”

“No, never mind.” Everyone shook their heads. Baek Cheon had changed, but they still weren’t used to him being like this.

Chung Myung was lying on the floor, drinking alcohol and looking bored. He stared at the Five Swords who rushed in, and Hae Yeon, who looked like she was thinking, ‘*What’s going on?*’

“What?”

“Nothing.”

“Why are you all here? Don’t you have anything else to do?” The others stood in a half circle around Chung Myung and pointed to Baek Cheon. They meant he should speak since he was the Sa-suk. Baek Cheon thought angrily, ‘*Jerks.*’ They never treated him well normally, but they were always so polite when they wanted something.

“Ahem. Chung Myung.”

“What.”

“We… well… we don’t really have big problems with your training… Okay, we always complain, but we know it works.”

“And?”

Baek Cheon finished his introduction and then carefully started talking about the real problem, watching Chung Myung’s face. “It looks like the Grand Sect Leader and the elders are really struggling… Could you maybe make the training a little easier?”

“Yes. It’s too hard.”

“We’re young, so we can handle it, but the Grand Sect Leader and the elders are old!” Yoon Jong and Jo Gul agreed, and Baek Cheon felt braver, so he spoke louder. “If they get really hurt, they might never get better.”

“Lower it just a little, Sa-hyung. Please? Just a little!”

“The Grand Sect Leader’s enemy! Mmph! Mmmph!” Yoo Iseol, who had tried to draw her sword, was grabbed by Jo Gul, Yoon Jong, and Tang Soso and dragged away.

Chung Myung watched them and chuckled. “So, you’re saying the training is too hard for them?”

“No, well, it’s not really that…”

“It’s like a small, weak mouse worrying about a big, strong cat.”

“Huh?”

Chung Myung chuckled and drank his alcohol quickly. “Aah.” Then, he jumped up and sat up straight. “Talking won’t help. You’ll see it for yourselves.”

“What does that mean?”

“The training should be starting to work now.”

“Huh?”

“Just don’t be surprised when you see it. Hee hee hee!”

Baek Cheon made a worried face as he watched Chung Myung laugh happily. ‘*What is that jerk planning now…?*’ Why can’t this sect have one peaceful day? *At this rate, I’ll die before anyone else!* His heart started to beat fast with great worry as he watched Chung Myung grinning.