Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 80

When Yoon Jong finished his story, silence filled the room. No one spoke. Everyone looked at Yoon Jong, their faces serious as they thought about what he had said. The silence stretched out, long and heavy, before Baek Cheon finally spoke.

Baek Cheon started slowly, “So, this young child…”

“Yes, Martial Uncle,” Yoon Jong replied.

“He found the sect’s hidden treasures and martial arts?” Baek Cheon asked, his voice still quiet.

“That’s right.”

“And he found the record book, paid off Mount Hua’s debts, and even took control of the businesses?” Baek Cheon continued, a hint of disbelief in his voice.

“Yes, he managed the businesses,” Yoon Jong confirmed.

“And he even healed the sickness of Hwang, the head of the Eunha Merchant Guild?”

“Yes, he did.”

Baek Cheon paused, then said, “And because of that, the Eunha Merchant Guild will now manage Mount Hua’s money… Mount Hua’s money.”

Yoon Jong just nodded.

Yoon Jong remembered feeling something was different on their way back to Mount Hua. The town of Harmony was much busier, full of new shops and merchants he didn’t recognize. He had thought maybe the town had just gotten richer while he was away. But now, he knew that wasn’t it.

“…I see,” Baek Cheon said slowly. He started to speak, then stopped, thinking. “I understand.”

“Yes, Martial Uncle. I should go now.”

“Alright,” Baek Cheon replied.

As Yoon Jong left, Baek Cheon stared into the empty space, his face very serious. The other disciples looked completely shocked.

“Wait, what is going on?” Baek Sang asked, sounding confused. “Are you saying that young boy fixed all of Mount Hua’s problems by himself?”

“…” Baek Cheon didn’t answer, because it was true. Baek Sang’s voice was full of amazement.

Mount Hua’s biggest problem wasn’t weak martial arts or few students. Mount Hua had become poor very quickly because they had no money. *It wasn’t just being poor,* Baek Cheon thought. *They were deep in debt.* When Baek Cheon had left for his training, he was most worried that Mount Hua would be destroyed by debt when he came back. That was how bad it was. But Chung Myung had fixed everything perfectly.

“Now I see why the elders are protecting him so much,” Baek Cheon murmured.

Baek Sang chuckled, surprised. “I thought Elder Hyun Young was eating well because that kid was from a rich family and giving Mount Hua money. But it’s not like that at all… He’s actually feeding all of Mount Hua!”

Baek Cheon shook his head, smiling a little. *There’s no arguing with this.* *If I were Elder Hyun Young,* Baek Cheon thought, *I would carry Chung Myung everywhere!* This child had solved Mount Hua’s money problems, problems that had seemed impossible for years, in just a few months. And now, money was flowing in like a river. *People say you cherish someone so much you want to keep them in your eyes – that’s how it is with Chung Myung.* It was lucky Elder Hyun Young had no children. If he did, and if his child and Chung Myung ever argued, Hyun Young would probably throw his own child out in a flash. You can always have another child, but you can’t just find someone like Chung Myung anywhere.

“Senior Brother, this is…” Baek Sang started, unsure how to put it.

“Ummm,” Baek Cheon hummed, thinking hard. “If he had just fixed one thing, we could say, ‘He did a good job.’ But he’s now connected to the Eunha Merchant Guild. As long as they manage Mount Hua’s money, and Mount Hua keeps making money because of it, Chung Myung will become more and more important every month.”

“Will it just become normal after a while?” Baek Sang asked.

“Maybe,” Baek Cheon said. “But will that happen soon? Think about it. It’s like…” He searched for the right words. “It’s like gold suddenly falling into a place where beggars live. Just seeing the gold is amazing. Just touching it feels good. Even if you don’t spend it, wouldn’t you feel full just knowing you have gold?”

He continued, “Chung Myung is the one who threw gold into Mount Hua, which was like that beggar’s den. No matter how good I am, I could never have done something like this.”

*Baek Cheon thought about the Sect Leader.* *Even the Sect Leader is paying special attention to that child.* Baek Cheon bit his lip lightly, a little worried.

*Baek Cheon’s thoughts turned to himself.* *He had thought when he came back from his training, he would be the one the elders focused on. But now, this boy, who appeared out of nowhere, had taken all the attention that should have been his. This was a problem he couldn’t ignore.*

“What’s so amazing about what he did?” Baek Moon interrupted, his voice showing he was unhappy. “Finding those treasures was just luck, and healing that merchant was just a lucky chance too, wasn’t it?”

“Baek Moon,” Baek Cheon said, his voice a little sharp.

“Senior Brother,” Baek Moon continued, ignoring the warning. “Mount Hua is a martial arts school. We shouldn’t be praising a child just for making money. It’s wrong for a martial arts sect to care so much about money. It’s like Mount Hua is going in the wrong direction!”

Baek Cheon spoke more firmly to Baek Moon. “You should watch what you say. That sounds like you’re criticizing the elders.”

“That’s not what I meant,” Baek Moon mumbled.

“But,” Baek Cheon said, his voice calmer now, “you’re not completely wrong.”

“Really?” Baek Moon looked surprised.

Baek Cheon nodded slowly. “You’re right. Mount Hua is a martial arts sect. Money is good, but this isn’t a merchant group. In the end, martial arts are what truly matter.”

“Exactly,” Baek Moon agreed quickly.

“Yes, that’s right,” another disciple echoed.

Baek Cheon nodded, pleased with their agreement. “So, we need to focus on what’s most important: martial arts. The elders might be interested in Chung Myung now because of the money. But soon, they’ll remember the Hwajong Tournament is coming. Then, they won’t have time to worry about the younger disciples.” The Hwajong Tournament is a very important competition for all martial arts sects.

“Yes, Senior Brother. That’s right,” Baek Moon said.

“So, let’s focus on our training for now,” Baek Cheon said. “We can deal with the younger disciples’ bad habits later.”

Baek Sang looked at Baek Cheon thoughtfully. “But, Senior Brother.”

“What is it?”

“We’re not the only ones going to the Hwajong Tournament, are we? The younger disciples will be competing too.”

“Of course, everyone knows that,” Baek Cheon said, a little impatiently.

“It’s not enough for just us to train hard,” Baek Sang explained. “We need to make sure the younger disciples don’t embarrass Mount Hua at the tournament, right?”

Baek Cheon looked at Baek Sang, a thoughtful expression on his face. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Baek Sang said, “if we only cared about ourselves, we’d just train ourselves. But the younger disciples are also part of Mount Hua. How can we only think about our own group? Even if it’s extra work, if we help the younger disciples with their martial arts, even for a little while, it will really help us at the Hwajong Tournament.”

Baek Cheon smiled, a hint of something hidden in his smile. “As always, you’re thinking about Mount Hua more than anyone else.”

“Oh, Senior Brother, don’t say that,” Baek Sang said, looking slightly shy.

“But it’s a good idea,” Baek Cheon continued. “I’ve been away for a year, so I’ve probably lost touch with the younger ones. It might be good for us to train with them for a bit.”

“Yes, Senior Brother. That’s a great idea,” Baek Sang agreed, pleased.

Baek Cheon and Baek Sang smiled at each other, both thinking the same thing. *In the end, respect comes from strength.* People might be polite to someone who is kind, but real respect comes from power. Even in a family, someone needs to be in charge. If things kept going as they were, the younger disciples might start to think they were equal to them, or even better. They needed to show them, before that happened, who was in charge. They needed to remind them why they were the older generation, and why the younger ones should listen to them.

“It would be good if that Chung Myung also had talent in martial arts,” Baek Cheon said, pretending to be thoughtful. “Then Mount Hua would have someone to lead the next generation, wouldn’t it?”

“Senior Brother, you are the one to lead the next generation,” Baek Sang said quickly, trying to flatter him.

“I can’t do everything myself,” Baek Cheon said, waving his hand dismissively. “If Chung Myung is smart and listens to me, I can get him to do a lot of things.” He smiled slightly, a sly look in his eyes.

“He looks like he hasn’t even had enough to eat,” Baek Moon said coldly. “How could a child like that have any martial arts talent?”

Baek Cheon shrugged, pretending to agree with Baek Moon. “Well, then we’ll just have to teach him and guide him more, won’t we? It might be a bit too hard for him, but he’ll have to learn.”

“Yes, I understand,” Baek Moon said, nodding.

The three men looked at each other and smiled, feeling satisfied with their plan. *I need to show those younger disciples who is in charge,* Baek Cheon thought, his smile disappearing. A coldness entered Baek Cheon’s eyes. *They need to learn their place.*

“Are you sleeping?” Yoon Jong asked, annoyed.

“Yes,” Chung Myung mumbled sleepily.

“Ugh! I got pulled away by the Martial Uncles because of you, and you’re just lying here, sleeping?” Yoon Jong’s face turned slightly red with frustration. *My dignity…* he thought. He knew he couldn’t expect Chung Myung to be polite to him as the youngest disciple anymore. He had given up on being treated like the respected Great Senior Brother a long time ago.

But today, Yoon Jong felt especially upset. It was because he had seen how the other disciples of Baek Cheon’s generation treated Baek Cheon. *That’s how a real sect should be,* he thought sadly. Seeing them show so much respect to their Senior Brother made him feel even worse about his own situation. *There was a time when I was respected like that,* he remembered wistfully. But ever since Chung Myung arrived, even the other younger disciples had started acting disrespectfully. If it was just Chung Myung, it would be one thing, but bad habits spread quickly, and now everyone was like that…

“Senior Brother, what are you thinking about so seriously?” Jo Gul asked, interrupting his thoughts.

“…Nothing,” Yoon Jong mumbled. *This one is a problem too!* he thought angrily. *Even this one!* In the past, even when they were being rebellious, there was still some respect. But now, Jo Gul didn’t even treat him like a slightly older friend from the neighborhood! Yoon Jong sighed heavily. He looked at Jo Gul and said, “Geol.”

“Yes?”

“Do you even think it was a good thing that Chung Myung came to Mount Hua?”

“Don’t say weird things,” Jo Gul replied casually. “Just tell me what happened. What did they say?”

*Weird things, he says!* Yoon Jong thought, feeling even more put out. *Is that how you talk to your Senior Brother?* *Oh, what is going to become of me?*

Yoon Jong, feeling defeated, glanced at Chung Myung, who was still asleep on the bed. He said, “They asked me to tell them everything that kid has done.”

“So, you told them?” Jo Gul asked.

“…Why would I hide anything?” Yoon Jong replied, sounding tired.

“Yeah, I guess not,” Jo Gul agreed. *They’d find out anyway.*

“What did they say?” Jo Gul asked.

Yoon Jong just looked at him, raising an eyebrow. “You know what they said.”

“…Ugh,” Jo Gul groaned, finally understanding. Yoon Jong and Jo Gul both sighed heavily. They looked at Chung Myung, who was lying on the bed, patting his stomach in his sleep, and sighed again.

*That crazy kid,* Yoon Jong thought. *That little troublemaker.* No matter what, Baek Cheon wasn’t just a Senior Brother, he was a Martial Uncle! Where else would someone cause such trouble at their first meeting with a Martial Uncle? Baek Cheon wasn’t usually very strict with the younger disciples. But now that they had started off on the wrong foot, there was no telling how Baek Cheon would act towards Chung Myung from now on.

“This isn’t going to be good,” Yoon Jong said, worried.

“…I’d probably react the same way if I were Baek Cheon,” Jo Gul admitted. *No one likes Chung Myung when they first meet him,* he thought. Hadn’t he and Yoon Jong tried to fight Chung Myung at least once in the beginning? Luckily for them, they had only been beaten lightly. But if Baek Cheon decided to really come down hard on Chung Myung, the situation could become much more serious than they expected.

“We’re going to get caught in the middle of this for no reason,” Yoon Jong complained.

“Exactly,” Jo Gul agreed.

Yoon Jong sighed again, feeling like the world was ending. He looked at Jo Gul with a serious expression. “Anyway, we knew something like this would happen when we heard the Martial Uncles were coming back, right?”

“Yeah,” Jo Gul said.

“Go tell the others to be extra careful from tomorrow,” Yoon Jong ordered. “Even if we do everything right, they’ll find something to criticize us for. And now, after this, they’ll definitely be looking for trouble.”

“Okay, I understand,” Jo Gul said. He turned to leave, then stopped suddenly. He looked back at Yoon Jong. “But, Senior Brother…”

“What?” Yoon Jong asked, a little impatiently.

“I’m just wondering…”

“Wondering what?”

“If Baek Cheon and Chung Myung actually fought, who do you think would win?”

“…Don’t be stupid,” Yoon Jong said sharply. “Just go do what I told you.”

“Tch,” Jo Gul clicked his tongue, annoyed at Yoon Jong’s scolding, and left the room.

Yoon Jong was left alone in Chung Myung’s room. He looked at Chung Myung, still asleep, lost in his dreams. *Who would win?* he thought, repeating Jo Gul’s question in his mind. *Are you even asking?*

“…He’s sleeping soundly,” Yoon Jong murmured, looking down at Chung Myung. “You little troublemaker.” *The quiet days of Mount Hua are over,* he thought. *There’s going to be chaos now.* Yoon Jong watched Chung Myung’s peaceful face for a moment, then a small, knowing smile touched his lips. He turned and left the room, leaving Chung Myung to his sleep, unaware of the storm brewing.