Return of the Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 988

They had made a big show of leaving the river, but Mount Hua and the Tang Family hadn’t gone far.

To care for the seriously injured members of the Namgung Family, they needed to find a place to stay nearby. The village the Namgung Family had built in Jiujiang was perfect for Mount Hua and the Tang Family.

“Still, isn’t it too close to the Nine Sects, the powerful groups of fighters? Won’t it be uncomfortable?”

“If anyone’s uncomfortable, it’ll be those bastards standing there with their legs about to break. Why would we be uncomfortable?”

“That’s true.”

And so, Mount Hua settled into the manor where the Green Forest Bandits used to live.

First, they helped the injured. They didn’t even unpack their bags. By sunset, things were calmer.

The injured were starting to feel better.

Mount Hua, however, was still very annoyed.

“I’m still boiling mad! That crazy, bald-headed…” Chung Myung searched for a truly insulting word. “Octopus-brain! Accusing us of plotting with the Demonic Sect? Plotting! The nerve of that monk! He’s just making up lies with his big mouth! I swear, I’ll stuff a wooden gong down his throat!”

Baek Cheon cleared his throat gently. “Chung Myung,” he said calmly, trying to soothe his friend’s anger. “Your words are too harsh for an elder of the Jianghu, the world of martial artists.”

“Are you out of your mind, Sasuk?”

“That’s not what I mean… He might be ill. Perhaps he’s losing his mind.”

“…”

Jo Gul asked Yoon Jong, looking puzzled.

“Sahyung, do martial artists get dementia?”

“I didn’t think so either.”

“But?”

“After seeing what happened today, I think it’s possible.”

“Ah…”

It was an ordinary conversation that any disciple of Mount Hua would find familiar.

However, there was one minor problem: there was a shiny bald head in front of them right now.

Hae Yeon, unable to join the conversation, was sweating a lot.

As he rolled his eyes anxiously, it wasn’t long before the sparks flew.

“Hey. What do you think, Baldy?”

“Ah, Amitabha… Wh-what do you mean?”

“I’m asking what you think about that Abbot bastard seeming to have completely lost it.”

Hae Yeon squeezed his eyes shut.

As someone with eyes, he couldn’t help but see everything that had happened between Mount Hua and Shaolin. When Beop Jeong had accused them of plotting with the Demonic Sect, he had almost cursed the Abbot to his face.

If that had actually happened, it would have been a moment of utter disgrace recorded in the history of Shaolin.

“So, what do you think?”

Hae Yeon was consumed with anguish. Even though he could no longer be considered a member of Shaolin, Beop Jeong had been like a father to him. He couldn’t just badmouth him in front of others!

Of course, Chung Myung didn’t consider Hae Yeon’s circumstances in the slightest. Far from considering, he tilted his head and thrust his face in front of Hae Yeon’s.

“Are you deaf? Your head’s so shiny, are your eardrums shiny too?”

Jo Gul whispered to Yoon Jong again.

“Sahyung, wouldn’t shiny eardrums mean he can hear better?”

“…I’m not a doctor, so I don’t know about that…”

Hae Yeon glanced at the two of them and bit his lip tightly.

I hate those bastards even more, those bastards.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

At that moment, Baek Cheon, who had been watching Chung Myung’s silly behavior in silence, narrowed his eyes.

“Chung Myung.”

“Ah, what now!”

“Hae Yeon is having trouble answering. Stop asking him.”

Chung Myung frowned deeply. But before he could say anything, Baek Cheon spoke calmly.

“People are always like that. His body may be with Mount Hua, but if his heart is with Shaolin, how can we stop him? We must understand even that to be true friends.”

“Ah, is that so? You still like Shaolin more?”

Hae Yeon changed his mind.

That bastard Baek Cheon… No, I hate Baek Cheon Dojang even more.

“Hiyah. I’ve been raising a tiger cub. So, you’re still protecting the guy who said we plotted with the Demonic Sect? Could it be that you’re secretly working together with Beop Jeong and sneaked into Mount Hua as a spy?”

“Hmm?”

“Huh?”

“Heeeuuuum?”

The eyes of the Five Swordsmen all focused on one place. Hae Yeon, who had been blinking, jumped up.

“S-spy? How could a Buddhist do such a thing!”

“Why not, you bastard! Your Abbot looks like he’d sell the country if given the chance! And you can still say that after seeing that? Are Shaolin bastards born without a conscience?”

“Th-that’s…”

Cold sweat dripped from Hae Yeon’s head.

“So, did you see what your Abbot was doing earlier, or didn’t you?”

“I, I…”

“Yes, you.”

“I, I didn’t see anything.”

“…”

At that moment, everyone stared blankly at Hae Yeon. Hae Yeon squeezed his eyes shut again.

“Really? You didn’t see anything?”

Chung Myung, who had risen from his seat, wore a satisfied expression and struck Hae Yeon’s head in one swift motion.

“Kyaaa!”

“Grab him!”

“I knew it would come to this!”

The horrified Five Swordsmen rushed at Chung Myung, grabbing and holding him back.

“Let go! Won’t you let go? I’m going to kill that bald monk! They say you shouldn’t take in black-haired beasts! What? Didn’t see? Since those eyes are useless anyway, I’ll just pluck them out today!”

“Chung Myung! Calm down!”

“You can’t just beat people like that!”

“That’s right, Chung Myung! I don’t know about anything else, but Hae Yeon isn’t a black-haired beast! He doesn’t have any hair.”

“…”

“…”

A moment of silence fell. Chung Myung, who had been charging, and the Five Swordsmen, who had been holding him back, all turned to look at Jo Gul blankly.

“…Why?”

“…Crazy bastard.”

“Amazing.”

“Siju, that’s a bit…”

“You shut up, you bastard!”

Chung Myung rolled his eyes back and charged at Hae Yeon again.

This kind of thing was now so commonplace in Mount Hua that no one was paying attention.

Except for one person.

“…”

Namgung Dowi stared blankly at Chung Myung, who was biting Hae Yeon’s head.

‘What is this?’

Is that the same person I saw?

He watched the scene intently and grabbed Tang Pae, who was passing by.

“Um, Young Lord.”

“Yes?”

“…Is it always like this here?”

At his question, Tang Pae glanced at Chung Myung and the Five Swordsmen. Then, with an indifferent expression, he replied.

“Well… you’ll get used to it soon.”

Then, he patted Namgung Dowi on the shoulder a couple of times as if he felt sorry for him, and went on his way.

Now Chung Myung was outright slamming Hae Yeon around. Namgung Dowi’s eyes trembled at the unbelievable sight.

‘Come to think of it…’

He seems like that kind of person. Yes, the martial arts competition. The martial arts competition… That’s right, the martial arts competition.

‘But still!’

Just yesterday, he had shown heroic feats by defeating the Black Dragon King on Plum Blossom Island! The sword he had shown then still remained in Namgung Dowi’s mind as a thrill.

But that person is…

“Die, die! You bat bastard!”

“I-I’m not a bat!”

“Not a bat? Where’s a bald head wearing a robe! Either grow your hair or take off your clothes! You have to do one or the other!”

“Th-that’s…”

He’s doing that.

Oh, he’s doing that.

His head knew it was the same person, but his heart couldn’t accept it.

“Ah, calm down, you bastard! Why are you taking out your anger on Shaolin on the monk… Huh?”

At that moment, Yoon Jong discovered Namgung Dowi standing there blankly.

“Ah, hello?”

“…Yes. Hello… Dojang.”

Yoon Jong greeted him politely, but Namgung Dowi’s expression was rather awkward.

“What? Isn’t that the injured guy? Why is he crawling out again?”

As Chung Myung’s attention turned to him, Namgung Dowi quickly cleared his throat. It was strange that the human was strange, but he had to do what he had to do.

“Dojang. I’ve come to formally thank you again.”

Namgung Dowi clasped his hands deeply.

Chung Myung, who had been staring blankly at him, turned his gaze to Baek Cheon and asked.

“Sasuk.”

“Hmm?”

“Are all the famous families like this? Do they keep repeating the same greetings over and over again?”

“…Why are you asking me that?”

“Well, Sasuk is from the deeply rooted Jongnam.”

“No, you bastard! I’m a Mount Hua man through and through!”

“Oh, what a terrible, wicked, unfilial child. Tsk, tsk. Betraying the parents who gave him the good name Dongryong.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you!”

Oh, that’s right.

Come to think of it, that person is the Mount Hua Jeonggeom who cleared the way against the bandits in the Yangtze River.

At that time… he was so cool and reliable.

‘But, is his name Dongryong?’

A person’s name doesn’t necessarily have to match their face, but in this case, the face and name didn’t fit.

“Alright. Well. It’s not bad to be polite.”

Chung Myung nodded casually. Unlike his words, his eyes were clearly saying, ‘What am I supposed to do with this useless brat who keeps doing useless things?’ It was obvious even to Namgung Dowi.

“So, are you done with your business?”

“Ah, no.”

Namgung Dowi wiped away the sweat that kept beading on his forehead.

“Ah, now that we’ve become one family, I’ve come to say that I’m in your care.”

Namgung Dowi bowed deeply again.

“I ask for a lot of guidance.”

He was deeply convinced.

‘Mount Hua has become incredibly strong.’

He knew too well what the level of Mount Hua was originally. Just a few years ago, Mount Hua was a sect that didn’t even have a name in the Jianghu, the world of martial artists.

‘And even at the martial arts competition, it was just a sect with good promising disciples.’

But the way they had shown in the Yangtze River this time completely shattered Namgung Dowi’s thoughts. In just a few years, they had become a sect with power equal to the Namgung Family… No, perhaps even more.

It didn’t make sense logically, but there was no way to deny what he had seen with his own eyes.

‘In other words, Mount Hua is now the best at rebuilding a sect in the world.’

So, no matter what, he had to stick close.

To completely rebuild the half-collapsed Namgung Family, he had to learn from Mount Hua, and from the Mount Hua Sword Saint.

‘Chung Myung Dojang will definitely help. Definitely.’

Chung Myung had risked his life to save people he had never met. Considering his deep friendship, he would never turn a blind eye to the Namgung Family.

Namgung Dowi thought so.

The problem is…

“Sasuk.”

“Hmm?”

“What is he saying?”

“He’s saying that he’s joined the Heavenly Union, so please take care of him.”

“So, what does that mean?”

“You said you were giving up the Five Great Families in front of the Shaolin Abbot and joining the Heavenly Union. Weren’t you listening?”

“Ah, that?”

Chung Myung nodded as if he finally understood.

“Yes! That’s exactly it.”

Namgung Dowi stared at Chung Myung with a bright face.

“So, from now on…”

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

Namgung Dowi, who was about to bow again, only slightly raised his head in an awkward posture.

And he saw it.

Chung Myung, with his head tilted to the side, was looking at him with a face that seemed to have crammed all the world’s annoyances into it.

“Join?”

“…Yes. Join…”

“Who said we’d accept you?”

“Yes?”

Chung Myung flicked his ear and blew on his finger.

“We’re not buying.”

“Yes?”

“I said we’re not buying.”

“…”

Yes, the problem was… Chung Myung was an even stranger human than Namgung Dowi had thought.

Very sadly, that is.