Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 933

“Everything is quiet on patrol!” a guard announced.

Namgung Myung simply made a sound in his throat, “Hmm.”

Namgung Myung nodded importantly. Beside him, Namgung Dowhi, acting as a guard, scanned the area with sharp eyes.

“You can’t be too careful. Try your best to see everything, even small things,” Namgung Myung advised.

“Yes!”

Namgung Myung nodded slightly and moved to the next area, with Namgung Dowhi following.

“What do you think, Young Lord?” Namgung Myung asked.

“Yes, Uncle,” Namgung Dowhi replied.

Namgung Dowhi looked around Mae Hwa Island with fresh eyes before speaking.

“We’re lucky the island isn’t too big. If it stays this size, defending it from bandits shouldn’t be too hard.”

“I think so too.”

The Azure Sky Sword Squad wasn’t the only group defending Mae Hwa Island. By Namgung Hwang’s order, other martial forces guarding the Namgung Clan had also come to Mae Hwa Island. Almost all of the Namgung Clan’s forces, about eighty percent, were here.

With that much power, they should easily handle the Jang Gang Water Bandits.

“The small size of the island will actually help us.”

“The Water Bandits have many people, but they are not strong fighters one by one. Our island is small, so their big numbers won’t help them much here, right?” Dowhi asked.

“Exactly.”

Namgung Myung smiled, pleased with the answer.

His nephew, who would one day lead the Namgung Clan, was indeed a prodigy. He was great at martial arts and also understood battle strategy.

“Learn well from your brother.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

“To be a good fighter, you just need to train hard. But to lead our family, you need more. You must be brave and think big,” Namgung Myung said.

“I always remember that.”

“Good.”

Namgung Myung nodded quietly.

‘I should thank the Mount Hua Sword Saint.’

In the past, Namgung Dowhi was often arrogant, which worried Namgung Myung. It was partly because of the Namgung Clan’s nature and his father’s influence. Confidence is good, but arrogance is not.

Luckily, after losing to the Mount Hua Sword Saint, he realized his weaknesses. And after the Jang Gang Cataclysm, he became a completely different person.

If he kept learning like this, he might even become a better leader than Namgung Hwang.

‘But it won’t be easy.’

Someone like Namgung Hwang couldn’t be made through teaching. He was born with a strong, commanding spirit.

“Do you know why the Clan Head chose this place?” Namgung Myung asked.

“…To be honest, I’m not sure, Uncle.”

Namgung Dowhi looked around with a slightly worried expression. The dark night over the Jang Gang river made him feel uneasy, like something bad was about to happen.

“It’s true we have a big fight with the Water Bandits. But I don’t understand why we have to face them alone. Hasn’t the Namgung Clan already told the world what we plan to do?”

“You are right.”

Namgung Myung nodded quietly.

“By staying on Mae Hwa Island, we will cause them trouble. We might have to fight not only the Water Bandits but also the Four Faction Alliance alone.”

“I think so too. It seems like there are more bad things than good things about this.”

“Yes. That’s a good point. But that’s how ordinary people like us think.”

“…Yes?”

Namgung Myung smiled slightly.

“The Clan Head must have thought about that too. But there’s another reason why the Clan Head chose this hard path.”

“May I ask what it is?”

“If we move back here, it will look like we are following the Shaolin Temple’s orders.”

At this surprising answer, Namgung Dowhi’s face became serious.

“The Five Great Families. It sounds important. But people think of the Five Great Families as being connected to the Nine Great Sects.”

“Uncle, that’s…”

“That’s how it is. When the Water Bandits took Gugang, did the people of Gugang think of us? Or did they think of Shaolin and the Nine Great Sects?”

Namgung Dowhi didn’t answer because he didn’t need to.

“That’s why the Clan Head took the risk. The Five Great Families are not doing well right now. The Tang Clan, which used to be a strong part of the Five Great Families with us, has moved away from us.”

“…Yes.”

“What would happen if we seemed to be doing what the Shaolin Temple wanted at a time like this? We might never escape being seen as under the control of the Nine Great Sects.”

Only then did Namgung Dowhi nod.

Thinking about it that way, this was a good time to act.

Even in Gugang, they had heard that the other Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Families were not fully supporting the Shaolin Temple. Now, the influence of Shaolin and the Nine Great Sects was weaker than ever. So, if they didn’t act now, when would they?

“The Clan Head wants the Five Great Families and the Namgung Clan to become famous in this situation, not the Nine Great Sects and Shaolin. He is willing to take some risks for that.”

“But that won’t be the only reason.”

Namgung Myung, who had been walking faster, stopped and looked at Namgung Dowhi. Namgung Dowhi spoke confidently.

“That must be part of it, but Father wouldn’t do something just for that reason. I believe he also wants to do what is right.”

Namgung Myung smiled with satisfaction.

“You’re saying what’s obvious. Of course, that would be the main reason.”

“If we do what we should and avoid what we shouldn’t, won’t fame come naturally? Like… Mount Hua.”

Namgung Myung nodded.

“Yes. That’s how it should be.”

Mount Hua.

Just a few years ago, people had forgotten about it. But now, Mount Hua’s reputation was even greater than the Namgung Clan, which was known as the leader of the Five Great Families.

Mount Hua had gained what the Namgung Clan wanted so much: fame through righteousness, not just power.

“They are amazing people.”

“Yes, they are amazing. But we can do it too.”

Namgung Myung patted Namgung Dowhi’s shoulder. This young man sometimes made his own old blood feel young again.

“Yes. We can do it…”

Namgung Myung, about to walk faster again with a smile, suddenly looked towards the river. Seeing his serious face, Namgung Dowhi also became serious and looked where he was looking.

But Namgung Dowhi only saw the calm water.

“…Uncle?”

“Hmm!”

Suddenly, Namgung Myung’s sword flashed out of its holder, like a streak of white light in the dark. The white sword energy quickly cut through the water’s surface and into the river below.

Splash!

Water splashed up. And…

Something large floated to the surface where the water had calmed down.

Only then did Namgung Myung relax when he saw what it was.

“…Is it a carp?”

“It looks as big as a person. I can see why you thought it was something else, Uncle.”

“Indeed.”

Namgung Myung shook his head. The carp’s blood spread red across the Jang Gang’s surface, lit by the lights.

“We’ve wasted time. We won’t even have enough time to sleep if we want to check on everyone and inspect the defenses. Let’s go.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

Namgung Myung, leading Namgung Dowhi, walked forward but glanced back at the water.

‘Something feels wrong.’

The deep water bothered him.

“This isn’t a place to stay for long.”

He shook his head and walked faster.

At that moment.

On the surface of the Jang Gang, hidden in darkness, things that looked like fish heads or small balls began to appear.

If you could see through the darkness, you would notice that these were the heads of people wearing special clothing.

“Chief.”

“The enemy ships?”

“Five in total. All docked at the southern pier.”

“Five…”

The one called Chief nodded with a grim face.

“Injuries?”

“Not too bad. But… the Namgung Clan is indeed the Namgung Clan. Who would have thought they’d sense us?”

One of the leaders looked grimly at his shoulder. His skin was torn, and blood was flowing. If he hadn’t quickly cut down a carp that was passing by, their plan would have failed.

“We’re up against the Namgung Clan. We can’t be careless for even a moment.”

“Yes, Chief.”

“We finish this quickly.”

“Yes!”

He gave a few instructions with hand gestures, and those who understood nodded and went deep underwater again. After making sure everyone was swimming underwater, the Chief looked one last time at Mae Hwa Island and began to go down into the water.

Deeper and deeper.

They swam through the dark river where they could barely see anything, moving along the riverbed and touching the bottom. No matter how careful you were, you couldn’t find them moving along the bottom of the Jang Gang.

Because many fish, bigger than them, were moving above them.

But they couldn’t relax.

The closer they got to the island, the shallower the water became, and the more likely they were to be seen. They had to be extra careful at these times.

They moved as if crawling along the riverbed and looked up.

Usually, piers are built where the river and land meet, where the water is deepest and the slope is steepest.

They saw the bottom of a large ship. It was showing its weak spot without knowing it.

‘They’re not completely clueless.’

Several Namgung Clan swordsmen were guarding the ship, swimming around it. This meant they knew how important the ship was.

But it was darker in the water than outside. No matter how carefully they guarded, they couldn’t find them in this water.

The Chief sneered at the Namgung Clan swordsmen who didn’t know they were below.

‘Namgung Clan?’

Of course, they were strong and dangerous.

But this was the middle of the Jang Gang.

They should have known what it meant to have an island in the middle of the Jang Gang.

‘Now it’s time to pay the price.’

The Chief pointed to the ship above.

Then all his men nodded and began to rise to the surface at the same time. The bubbles they made rose like fireworks.

The harpoons in their hands glowed blue.

Wham!

The sharp tips of the harpoons shot out, and sharp energy cut through the water.

Wham!

With a loud explosion, they all hit the bottom of the ship.

The thick wooden bottom of the ship broke, and black water rushed in.

“Wh, what’s going on!”

“It’s an attack! Damn it! It’s a night raid!”

The Namgung Clan swordsmen, seeing the ship tilting, screamed with pale faces.

“St, stop them! We must protect the ship!”

Screams, shouts, and chaos filled the night on Mae Hwa Island.

The long wait was over; the attack had begun.