Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 9

The current Mount Hua Sect Leader, Hyun Jong, looked at Woon-am with a strange look.

“You mean he climbed all the way here alone?”

“Yes.”

“And then he lost consciousness at Okcheon Courtyard?”

“Yes. Judging by his messy and worn-out appearance, he doesn’t seem to have eaten well. If he really climbed Mount Hua alone, it’s no wonder he collapsed from exhaustion.”

“Indeed.”

A faint smile touched Hyun Jong’s lips, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. He imagined the sheer effort it must have taken.

Mount Hua’s paths were a brutal climb even for seasoned warriors, the stone steps rising like a giant’s staircase. For a small child to conquer them alone… exhaustion was hardly the word for it.

“So, where is this little climber now?” Hyun Jong asked, his voice softening slightly. “Is he resting?”

“He’s been moved to the Snow Plum Hall. Just in case, I called Woon-jin to check his pulse, but he said there are no major problems other than exhaustion.”

“That’s a relief.”

Hyun Jong nodded quietly. Whatever the circumstances, anyone who comes to Mount Hua is a guest of Mount Hua. He didn’t want such a person to fall ill within Mount Hua.

“It’s strange that a child climbed Mount Hua alone. Did he mention anything about his story?”

“I was planning to ask him slowly after he paid his respects at Okcheon Courtyard, but he lost consciousness, so I couldn’t ask him anything.”

“I see.”

“But…”

“Hmm?”

Woon-am frowned slightly and explained what had happened earlier.

After hearing the whole story, Hyun Jong tilted his head.

“Did he say something about us selling this place?”

“Yes.”

“Those were his exact words?”

“He did. I thought about ignoring it, but it seemed too strange.”

“Hmm.”

Hyun Jong stroked his beard thoughtfully.

“Of course, I might have misheard him. But Sect Leader, what’s strange is not just that. Before I even said anything, the child asked me if I was a Taoist of Mount Hua. Doesn’t that mean he knew he was coming to Mount Hua?”

“Indeed.”

“Could he be plotting something…?”

Hyun Jong burst into a hearty laugh.

“Are you worried?”

“It’s not that I’m worried…”

“What’s so strange about knowing this is Mount Hua? It was once a famous Taoist sect, following a Chinese philosophy focused on nature and balance. It’s not strange that some people remember it.”

“Yes.”

“And he could be a descendant of someone who left the mountain.”

“Ah…”

Woon-am nodded. As the sect declined, many people left Mount Hua. Those who remained, determined to share its fate, were actually in the minority. If he’s a descendant of those people, it’s natural that he would know Mount Hua is here.

“We should worry when there’s something to steal. What’s left in Mount Hua that he could be plotting for?”

“…Sect Leader.”

A hint of sorrow appeared on Woon-am’s face. But Hyun Jong didn’t see Woon-am’s expression and muttered, making fun of himself.

“Sold it off, you say.”

Hyun Jong smiled sadly.

“Yes… that’s right. Maybe he really is a descendant of someone who left the mountain. That’s the only way he would know what Okcheon Courtyard used to be like. I feel bad for the child.”

“…Sect Leader.”

“It’s alright. It’s true that we sold it off, so there’s no shame in it.”

Woon-am swallowed hard. He decided it was best to stop there. He didn’t want to upset the Sect Leader further.

He wondered what kind of expression the Sect Leader would make if he knew that the child didn’t just say ‘sold it off,’ but,

‘They sold this off, the crazy bastards.’

He couldn’t bring himself to tell him that.

“I understand. Bring him to me as soon as he wakes up.”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

Hyun Jong fell deep in thought.

‘Sold it off, you say.’

It felt like salt had been rubbed into a wound.

‘The ancestors will not forgive me.’

No matter how much he tried to justify it as a means to save Mount Hua, he had sold off the ritual objects of Okcheon Courtyard, which were the very history of Mount Hua itself. How could he face the ancestors?

It was something he had been trying not to think about…

Hyun Jong’s face darkened further.

‘The name of Mount Hua must not end in my generation.’

He wasn’t even dreaming of making Mount Hua powerful again. He just didn’t want to see Mount Hua fall in his generation.

But even that small wish was becoming more difficult with each passing day.

Woon-am, who had been watching Hyun Jong’s mood, quietly rose from his seat and bowed.

“I’ll be going now.”

“Hmm.”

As Woon-am was about to leave after receiving permission, he suddenly turned back and asked Hyun Jong.

“Um… Sect Leader.”

“Hmm?”

“If that child wants to join the sect, what are you planning to do?”

“Join the sect, you say…”

Mount Hua was not currently accepting new disciples. But if he had a connection to the past, it might be different.

“We are not accepting new disciples.”

“I understand.”

Hyun Jong, who had been seeing Woon-am off with a nod, tilted his head slightly and opened his mouth.

“Wait a moment.”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

“What did you say the child’s name was?”

“Chung Myung. He said his name was Chung Myung.”

“…Chung Myung.”

Hyun Jong’s expression became thoughtful.

“I understand. You may leave now.”

“Yes. Then…”

After Woon-am had completely left, Hyun Jong quietly opened his mouth.

“Chung Myung…”

The name of the child who came to Mount Hua at this time was the same as the Taoist name of the Sword Saint of the past.

“How strange.”

It was definitely a strange thing.

“If only he were still alive.”

If only the Plum Blossom Sword Saint Chung Myung, who was famous as one of the Three Great Swordsmen of the World, had survived the Blood Demon Sect, Mount Hua’s fate would have been different now. It was a meaningless assumption, but Hyun Jong couldn’t let go of his feelings that stayed.

“…Amitabha.”

Hyun Jong’s Taoist name alone filled the hall with loneliness. Amitabha is a Buddhist phrase expressing sadness or regret, even though Hyun Jong is Taoist, it can be used more broadly in East Asian influenced fantasy.

“You damned bastards,” Chung Myung cursed.

“You have nothing else to sell, so you sell off the sacred objects? The sacred objects?”

Rage surged from within.

There are things you can sell even if you starve to death, and there are things you can’t sell.

No matter how shabby the Dark Fragrance White Plum Blossoms may seem, and even though those who should have explained the true value of the white plum blossoms to the young ones have all died… still!

Even if Mount Hua is failing, you can’t sell…

“No, it’s better than failing.”

If the ancestor saw the current Chung Myung, he would have scolded him. What’s so important about those external objects? No matter how meaningful they are, a Taoist shouldn’t be attached to objects.

He knew that! He knew it!

“Ugh…”

Chung Myung groaned and looked down. As the open view came into sight, he felt a little relieved.

In the past, whenever he felt frustrated, he would climb Yeonhwa Peak and look at the scenery of Mount Hua. Seeing the peaks that rose sharply like swords and the endless mountain ranges, he would naturally feel a sense of grandeur.

But now…

“Ugh…”

Grandeur, my foot! It just makes my stomach churn.

Every time he caught a glimpse of the Mount Hua buildings below, he felt like his insides were rotting.

“The disciples have decreased.”

To be exact, it’s not just decreased, it’s practically ruined.

“And they’ve sold off everything that makes money.”

If Okcheon Courtyard is in that state, it’s obvious what the other places are like. Okcheon Courtyard is the last place they would touch until the very end.

After seeing the miserable state of Okcheon Courtyard, he could understand why the other places were so old and dilapidated. They probably didn’t have the money to repair them. How desperate for money must they have been to even pull out and sell the bluestones from the training ground?

“…Okay. Everything else is fine! I understand everything!”

But!

Why is the martial art in that state?

Chung Myung started rolling around on the floor.

Rolling off a steep cliff isn’t something a sane person would do, but Chung Myung didn’t have time to think about that now.

He was about to die of frustration before he died from falling off the cliff.

“A guy who’s old enough… is worse than a third-generation disciple?”

He was talking about Woon-am.

Originally, Chung Myung shouldn’t have been able to guess Woon-am’s level of martial arts. No matter how much Chung Myung had built up his supreme realm in his past life, to the point where he was called one of the Three Great Swordsmen of the World, he was now no different from a tenderfoot.

But Chung Myung could clearly see Woon-am’s level of martial arts.

Was it because Chung Myung was so strong in the past?

Not at all.

It’s because Woon-am’s martial prowess is too low now. If they went back to the time when Chung Myung was active, Woon-am probably wouldn’t even have received a Taoist name. He would have become a scholar studying Taoist methods instead of martial arts.

To be at the level of a third-generation disciple at an age where he should at least be a second-generation disciple…

“…What am I supposed to do with this?”

He didn’t even know where to start. It would be better to start from the bottom. Then he could just do whatever Chung Myung wanted without worrying about anything else.

But this is Mount Hua, isn’t it?

‘Should I just tell them that I’m that Chung Myung?’

They would just curse at him.

He would be lucky if he wasn’t beaten up and kicked out.

If he put himself in their shoes, Chung Myung wouldn’t believe it either.

Let’s say they did believe him. Okay, let’s say they were infinitely rational and understood the stories and knowledge of martial arts that Chung Myung told them, and understood that he was the Chung Myung of the past.

That’s not a good thing either.

‘I don’t have the strength to protect my knowledge right now.’

Chung Myung was like a rolling treasure. He had enough knowledge to revive an entire sect, but he didn’t have the strength to protect himself.

Chung Myung knew it.

His senior brother was the perfect Taoist, but not all the Taoists of Mount Hua were equally good and pure. Even Chung Myung himself was about a world away from being good.

What if one of them had bad intentions and tried to subdue Chung Myung?

He would have everything taken from him and end his second life buried somewhere.

‘That can’t happen.’

That means…

“Then I have to revive this Mount Hua without revealing that I’m Chung Myung.”

He had to hide it until he regained enough martial prowess to protect himself.

“…It would be easier to fight the Demonic Sect again.”

The difficulty was so high that he couldn’t help but laugh.

He had to pass on martial arts to save Mount Hua, but he couldn’t let them know that he knew martial arts. Where else would such an absurd situation exist?

He wanted to give up everything out of spite, but…

Chung Myung sighed heavily and turned his head to look down. The figure of Mount Hua, half-covered in clouds, came into his eyes.

“…If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have caused so much trouble.”

He owed Mount Hua a debt.

The reason he could strut around as one of the Three Great Swordsmen of the World was all thanks to what Mount Hua had given him.

But he hadn’t given anything back to Mount Hua. He had only given them the honor of defeating the Heavenly Demon. Thanks to that, Mount Hua had fallen and was on the verge of ruin.

How could he turn a blind eye to Mount Hua?

He couldn’t do that in good conscience.

“Aigoo, Senior Brother…”

Chung Myung raised his head. In the clear blue sky, his Senior Brother seemed to be smiling at him.

– It’s still Mount Hua.

“…Ugh.”

Chung Myung shook his head and stood up.

In order not to be beaten to death by his Senior Brother when he went to the afterlife, he had to somehow make this collapsing Mount Hua fit for human habitation.

“Damn it, what’s impossible in this world?”

In the first place, when he was learning martial arts in Mount Hua, who would have thought that he would become the best in Mount Hua? Everyone thought he would just cause trouble!

Chung Myung had overcome those cold gazes and become the best in Mount Hua! Challenging the impossible was Chung Myung’s specialty. Now that it’s come to this…

“I’m going to make the greatest sect in the world!”

Chung Myung’s eyes blazed. And at that moment, everyone in Mount Hua felt an unknown chill run down their spines.