Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 871

“Haa! Haa! Haa!”

Rough breaths came from Hong Daegwang’s mouth.

He had sprinted up the steep volcano as fast as he could. Even as a branch leader of the Beggars’ Sect, he was panting hard.

He gasped for air, his chest burning. His stomach hurt sharply, but he kept running.

“Kugh!”

As Hong Daegwang reached the top, he finally saw the closed gates of the Mount Hua Sect.

Rushing forward, Hong Daegwang started banging on the gates.

“Volcano Divine Dragon! Volcano Divine Dragon! You son of a jerk!”

Bang! Wham!

The gates shook as if they would break. But there was no response from inside.

“Everyone in the Mount Hua Sect! You idiots! Come out here! This is an emergency!”

Hong Daegwang’s voice, made louder by his inner energy, echoed around. But still, no one answered.

“This… …”

Hong Daegwang bit his lip.

Making noise at a closed sect was rude. But he couldn’t worry about that now.

He looked at the low walls of Mount Hua.

‘I have no choice.’

Going into a closed sect was very disrespectful. Mount Hua could become his enemy for this. No one would help him, not even his own Beggars’ Sect.

But Hong Daegwang did not stop.

‘Volcano Divine Dragon wouldn’t care about small manners.’

If he didn’t tell them the news, the Volcano Divine Dragon would beat him to death when he came out.

He took a deep breath and jumped over the wall of Mount Hua.

“Everyone in the Mount Hua Sect! Right now… …”

Hong Daegwang, who had been shouting as he jumped, stopped talking before he landed.

“What, what is this?”

Mount Hua looked very different from what he expected.

His eyes widened in shock.

It was in ruins.

The training grounds, which had once been neat with clean blue stones, were broken and full of holes, as if giant rocks had fallen from the sky. The buildings nearby were also half-collapsed.

“This is… …”

Hong Daegwang’s face turned white.

Had someone attacked them?

He swallowed hard and tried to think clearly.

‘Now is not the time for this.’

No matter what the buildings looked like, he had to tell the Mount Hua disciples what was happening outside. If they didn’t help right away, he didn’t know what would happen to the people of Xi’an, including the Eunha Merchant Guild.

“Volcano Divine Dragon!”

Hong Daegwang shouted as he ran. He threw open the door of the only building that was still standing.

“Right now, outside… …”

But again, Hong Daegwang couldn’t finish his sentence.

There was no one inside. What surprised Hong Daegwang even more was the dust inside.

The dust showed that no one had been inside for months.

His eyes trembling, Hong Daegwang turned and quickly threw open the doors of other buildings.

Thump.

Empty.

He looked like a crazy man as he opened the doors of the buildings.

Until he opened the last building, he didn’t see anyone in Mount Hua.

“N, no way… …”

Hong Daegwang, speaking in a weak voice, fell to the ground.

Many thoughts raced through his mind.

“Why… …”

What happened here?

‘Did the Myriad Man Clan, a group of dangerous fighters, attack?’

That couldn’t be.

Even if it was the Four Evil Alliances, known for causing trouble, they couldn’t come all the way to Shaanxi and defeat Mount Hua without anyone knowing.

Then.

Then what happened here?

Hong Daegwang covered his mouth with shaking hands.

“If this… … if this is the case, then Xi’an is… …”

His eyes were full of despair. Whatever had happened, one thing was sure: Mount Hua, which should have been protecting Xi’an, was gone.

“Damn it… …”

Hong Daegwang cursed and screamed with angry eyes.

“Damn it! If this happens, the people of Xi’an will all die! Volcano Divine Dragon! Mount Hua Sect, you sons of bitches, raaah!!”

Hong Daegwang screamed as loud as he could and punched the ground.

Wham!

He bit his lip until it bled.

‘I have to go.’

If Mount Hua wasn’t here, he had to go. He had to help, even if he could only do a little. He jumped up and looked back, as if he didn’t want to leave.

He clenched his fist, looked at Mount Hua, and ran forward.

“Damn it!”

His loud voice echoed in the silent Mount Hua.

A heavy silence fell on Mount Hua after Hong Daegwang left.

❀ ❀ ❀

“…Thank you for coming, Sect Leader.”

Hwang Jong-ui held Wi Rip-san’s hands tightly. Wi Rip-san shook his head.

“There’s no need to thank me. This is natural.”

“Sect Leader… …”

“It is natural for the sects of Xi’an to protect the people of Xi’an. And it is also natural for Mount Hua’s smaller family to protect the Eunha Merchant Guild.”

“Easier said than done… …”

How many people would risk their lives to do that?

Hwang Jong-ui was grateful, but he didn’t say it. He thought that Wi Rip-san knew how thankful he was.

“You should thank those people behind Sect Leader, not me.”

Hwang Jong-ui looked behind Wi Rip-san.

“Everyone… …”

The sect leaders of the small sects of Xi’an had come with their disciples. Some were close to Mount Hua or the Hwayoung Gate, but some were from smaller families of Jongnam who didn’t like them.

“…Thank you.”

“Well… …”

Nam Ja-myung, the Sect Leader of the Seowol Gate, scratched his head, looking embarrassed.

The Seowol Gate was the main sect of the Jongnam families in Xi’an. They didn’t have a good relationship with the Hwayoung Gate, which was a family of Mount Hua, or the Eunha Merchant Guild, which was close to Mount Hua.

They weren’t enemies, but there was still some awkwardness.

But.

“As the Hwayoung Gate Leader said, this is natural, so you don’t have to thank us. We can’t let Mount Hua protect Xi’an alone.”

“Sect Leader… …”

“Ahem.”

Nam Ja-myung cleared his throat.

During the Red Death Brigade incident, he had learned a lot.

‘What’s important about a sect isn’t who’s stronger.’

That might be important for a short time. But the future of a sect didn’t depend on strength. The sects that had run away during the Red Death Brigade incident had suffered for years.

Jongnam’s power in Xi’an was destroyed, and they had to watch the Hwayoung Gate become the most important sect in Xi’an. They saw several sects leave Jongnam and join Mount Hua.

But they weren’t angry. That was the price they had to pay for their mistakes.

‘A martial artist who does not protect the powerless is just a thug with a knife.’

Nam Ja-myung and the sects of Xi’an had learned that lesson well.

They were afraid. They knew how scary the evil sects coming here were. They knew that fighting them with only the people here was like trying to stop a big wagon with a small person.

But.

‘Sometimes, you have to stand up to an oncoming wagon.’

They had realized this as they watched Mount Hua, whom they had hated, become famous.

People from other places thought that Mount Hua was famous because it had become stronger, but the people of Shaanxi knew the truth. Mount Hua was able to become famous because it didn’t give up.

“We will fight to the death, even if it’s just the last disciple, so don’t worry.”

“Thank you, Sect Leader.”

At that moment, Dongbang Hwi, the Sect Leader of the Righteous Sword Gate, asked with a sad face.

“But Sect Leader Nam. Why are we setting up camp at the Eunha Merchant Guild?”

“Hmm?”

“I know that if those guys want money, they’ll attack the Eunha Merchant Guild first… … Wouldn’t it be better to close the city gates and defend from the walls?”

Wi Rip-san, the Hwayoung Gate Leader, answered for him.

“That is not a good plan.”

“Not a good plan?”

Wi Rip-san nodded.

“Not many people can climb the walls, and the walls are not high enough to stop experts. If they jump over the walls, can you stop them with only the people on the walls?”

“…Hmm. That’s true.”

“And we can’t defend all of this wall by ourselves. It is better to be here, where we have more people.”

The Eunha Merchant Guild’s manor was one of the largest in Xi’an. If they stayed together inside, it would be easier to fight the enemy.

“I am worried that the enemies might attack the people first… …”

“Then we will have to go and help. But… … that is not likely. They will want to know if the Eunha Merchant Guild has run away first.”

“Hmm, I understand.”

The sect leaders nodded as if they understood Wi Rip-san’s words.

At the same time, everyone became tense. After hearing Wi Rip-san’s explanation, they knew that they had to face those evil sects by themselves.

“…Those damn evil bastards. Why Xi’an again?”

“Isn’t it because Jongnam is gone? Damn it! If Jongnam hadn’t closed its gates, those guys wouldn’t have dared to come.”

“Even if Jongnam had closed its gates, if Mount Hua had been here… …”

The fact that the last words came from Dongbang Hwi of the Righteous Sword Gate, which was a family of Jongnam, showed how much Mount Hua’s status in Xi’an had changed.

It was at that moment, when everyone was uneasy.

“Sect Leader!”

A Beggars’ Sect member ran in from outside, looking pale.

“The evil bastards have arrived outside the city!”

Wi Rip-san’s face became serious.

‘Already?’

They were faster than he thought. That meant they were stronger than people knew.

‘Today will be bad.’

He tried to encourage the worried sect leaders.

“They are aiming for Xi’an.”

“So, we have to protect it. It doesn’t matter how strong the enemies are. What matters is that the people of Xi’an trust us.”

Nam Ja-myung narrowed his eyes.

“We know this very well. Xi’an is our home!”

He meant that Wi Rip-san shouldn’t act like he knew everything when he was just a newcomer. Wi Rip-san smiled.

“I feel better now.”

“Hmph.”

Nam Ja-myung shouted with a determined face.

“Let’s show those evil bastards that Xi’an is a dangerous place!”

“Yeah!”

“Defeat the evil sects!”

It was a shout to get rid of fear, but it worked. As the people were getting ready, Hwang Jong-ui quietly went to Wi Rip-san and asked.

“Are you alright, Sect Leader?”

Wi Rip-san smiled.

“Guild Leader. I don’t know much, but I know one thing.”

“That is… …”

“If someone does you a favor, you should pay them back.”

“I’m happy to have a chance to pay back the favor I received from Mount Hua. Why would I be afraid?”

Hwang Jong-ui saw him smiling and nodded.

“I feel the same way.”

And at that moment.

A group of people with a rough, murderous feeling arrived in front of the gates of Xi’an.