Return Of The Mount Hua Sect [EN]: Chapter 997

“My deepest respects, Lord Lian!”

Ho Gamyeong bowed deeply towards Jang Il-so.

“No need to be so formal.”

Jang Il-so waved his hand dismissively, as if it were nothing.

And truly, it was nothing much. Lord Lian was a powerful leader. The Suro Clan was one of the weaker groups in the Four Evil Sects.

The fight was decided when the Sword Demon of Mount Hua beat the Black Dragon King. Maybe it was even decided earlier, when the Namgung Clan went to Peach Blossom Island.

All Jang Il-so had done was guide the flow of events as he wished. Therefore, securing the Black Dragon King’s loyalty was merely a natural consequence.

“Now, the Suro Clan will surely fall under your command, Lord Lian.”

“It took long enough.”

Jang Il-so shook his head as if disgusted.

“It took three years to seize the Suro Clan, the weakest force in the Four Evil Sects. A tiresome affair.”

Ho Gamyeong looked at Jang Il-so with eyes full of respect.

Three years. It might seem like a long time. But if it took three years to completely devour the Suro Clan without leaving a trace, who would dare to belittle that time as long? This was an achievement that even the word ‘great’ could not fully capture.

“The Suro Clan?”

“They are following orders without complaint. Even if they had complaints, they wouldn’t dare voice them in the current situation.”

“Hmm.”

Jang Il-so gazed at the riverbank. The lights from the boats danced on the dark Jang River, like tiny golden threads sewn onto black silk.

“Take a couple of them, just enough…”

“…Yes?”

“Seize a couple of those with positions and make an example of them. In a place where everyone can see.”

Ho Gamyeong hesitated for a moment before speaking.

“There isn’t anyone who has committed a particular crime right now…”

“Tsk, tsk. Gamyeong, Gamyeong. Why are you always so honest?”

“…”

“It doesn’t matter whether someone has committed a crime or not. What matters is that someone who has committed a crime is needed.”

“Yes, Lord Lian.”

“It’s foolish to solve problems after they arise. Truly clever people don’t give problems a chance to arise in the first place. That’s how people are. If someone else does something, I feel the urge to try it too. Once that rebellious spirit is etched in, it may be suppressed, but it never disappears.”

“…”

“The best thing is.”

Jang Il-so slowly traced his finger along his lower lip.

“To prevent even the thought of rebellion from arising in the first place. To do that, you need to instill a bit of fear. Understand?”

“Yes, Lord Lian. I will kill two who can serve as examples and hang them from the mast.”

But Jang Il-so sighed deeply once again.

“Gamyeong…”

“Yes?”

Ho Gamyeong gave him a puzzled look. Jang Il-so shook his head.

“When did I say to kill them? I’m not such a bad person.”

“Then…”

“You have to keep them alive.”

Jang Il-so said in a nonchalant voice.

“Hang them alive. It would be good to peel off their skin. Make sure everyone can clearly see them suffering, neither dead nor alive, for days.”

Ho Gamyeong’s eyes widened slightly.

“Cut out pieces of their flesh from time to time, sprinkle salt on them, let them be infested with insects. Every time you fall asleep to the sound of the dying man’s groans, you should think, ‘Even if I die, I never want to die like that.’ Make them think that it would be better to stab themselves in the neck and sink to the bottom of the river to become fish food.”

The voice, as peaceful and calm as if talking about everyday life, felt several times more cruel than a darkly lowered voice.

“There are many ways to gain loyalty, Gamyeong. But right now, nothing but fear is needed. These are the guys who obey even a fool like the Black Dragon King without complaint, so showing them stronger power and more brutal hands is enough.”

“…I will do so.”

Jang Il-so smiled quietly at the obedient answer.

“Yes, that’s all you need to do.”

Ho Gamyeong swallowed hard.

In fact, Jang Il-so’s methods were not particularly cruel. Killing enemies cruelly was not something to be ashamed of in the Demonic Sect.

The problem was that these were now subordinates whom Jang Il-so had to control.

“Lord Lian, may I ask you something?”

“Hmm?”

“…What do you intend to do with the Black Dragon King?”

“Why the Black Dragon King?”

“Do you intend to keep him alive?”

“Hmm.”

Jang Il-so looked at Ho Gamyeong as if he found him amusing.

“What do you think?”

“I think it would be better to kill him. A guy like the Black Dragon King will never sincerely be loyal to anyone. He will bare his teeth at you again someday, Lord Lian.”

“An untamed wolf?”

“I don’t know if the word ‘wolf’ is appropriate for that bear-like guy, but anyway, he will never be tamed.”

“Gamyeong.”

“Yes.”

“Do you know how to tame an untamable wolf?”

“…I don’t know.”

“Pull out all its teeth.”

Jang Il-so said indifferently.

“Pull out its teeth, pull out its claws, and if it still doesn’t listen, then cut off its legs.”

“…”

“Then, even if it can’t be as loyal as a dog, at least it won’t be able to bite or scratch me, right? If that happens, it will be no different from a dog.”

“But what meaning would the Black Dragon King have if he became like that?”

“Tsk, tsk. Gamyeong.”

“Yes, Lord Lian.”

“The important thing is the fact that I am subduing and using a wolf.”

“…”

“It doesn’t matter at all whether that wolf has sharp teeth or deadly claws. What matters is that the wolf, who wouldn’t listen to anyone, is trapped in my cage, collared and subdued, isn’t it?”

“…I understand what you mean.”

“Anyone can kill the Black Dragon King and take away the Suro Clan. But that’s just the appearance of a new Black Dragon King. It’s different from having the entire Suro Clan under your feet. That’s something no one can do.”

Jang Il-so’s gaze shifted to the side. Not towards the Jang River, but towards the vast Gangnam land on the opposite side.

“Even if others don’t, at least two will understand the meaning. That’s enough for now.”

Jang Il-so smiled bewitchingly. A cold smile, it didn’t reach his eyes. Inside, he felt a thrill of power, but also a flicker of unease about Mount Hua.

Having the Suro Clan in his hands was the same as Jang Il-so having at least half of the Four Evil Sects’ power in his hands.

Originally, even though Jang Il-so was the Lord of the Four Evil Sects, if two or more of the remaining three united and opposed him, there was no way to deal with them. But from this moment on, Jang Il-so had the power to fight against the entire Four Evil Sects.

“It’s a shame I couldn’t pay them back for getting beaten, but I’ve gained quite a bit from this.”

Ho Gamyeong, who had been quietly watching Jang Il-so muttering to himself and smiling, carefully opened his mouth.

“Lord Lian.”

“Hmm?”

“Then from now on…”

“Just leave it be.”

“…Like this?”

“Yes.”

Jang Il-so reached out and picked up the liquor bottle. Then, he took a sip of the liquor and stared blankly across the river.

“There are things in the world that take time, aren’t there? Let’s leisurely wait for those Suro Clan guys to accept me. The existence of the enemy across the river will make that possible.”

“…Isn’t it possible that the Shaolin will pull out first?”

“That can’t happen.”

Jang Il-so waved his hand.

“Shaolin is facing the worst situation right now. If they retreat like this, they won’t be able to stop the fall any longer. Listen carefully, Gamyeong. The world doesn’t revolve around power alone. No matter how strong Shaolin is, once a name is lost, it doesn’t come back.”

“But it’s not like being here will create a solution, is it?”

“Instead, it will create an atmosphere of war.”

“…An atmosphere of war?”

Jang Il-so looked at Ho Gamyeong with a strange smile.

“What was the reason I made a three-year treaty during the previous Jang River Catastrophe?”

“Because you needed time to manage the internal affairs of the Four Evil Sects.”

“Yes. That’s also true. But more importantly, it was to cut off their lifeline.”

“By lifeline, you mean…”

“No matter how dissatisfied they are with each other, they have no choice but to unite when a war breaks out. For example, even those who are plotting against each other in the Imperial Palace will unite once foreign enemies invade, won’t they?”

“That’s right.”

“If we had planted all sorts of seeds of discord and acted as if we were about to invade Gangbuk right away, what would they have done?”

“They would have buried all of that and tried to deal with the Four Evil Sects first.”

Jang Il-so nodded as if satisfied.

“That’s right. So, it wouldn’t have been meaningful, would it? So, I gave them enough time to bare their teeth at each other.”

“…”

“It’s the same this time. If they retreat like this, all the responsibility will fall on Shaolin. That old man doesn’t want that situation. So, he’s shouting from there right now.”

Jang Il-so spread his arms exaggeratedly.

“A war is about to break out! The moment this treaty ends, blood will flow and flow again! So, now is not the time to blame someone!”

“Certainly…”

“A cunning old man.”

Jang Il-so shook his head.

“But… that cunningness is also helpful to us. There’s nothing bad about an atmosphere of war. I’ll get the same benefits that Shaolin gets. In the meantime, I can steadily take full control of the Suro Clan and suppress the complaints that flow out from behind.”

Ho Gamyeong stared across the river with fresh eyes.

It was a strange thing.

As far as he knew, Jang Il-so and Shaolin had never conveyed their intentions to each other since Mount Hua withdrew from Peach Blossom Island.

Nevertheless, they were doing things that benefited both sides, as if they had planned it together. Jang Il-so was pre-positioning the Suro Clan to give strength to what Shaolin had to say, and Shaolin was giving Jang Il-so time to take over the Suro Clan by not leaving the riverbank.

‘Perhaps this is true collusion.’

No need for a treaty or document. They were simply moving tacitly in a direction that benefited each other.

Considering the meaning of the word ‘collusion,’ what situation could be more fitting than this?

“In the end, it means that if we just buy time, everything will flow as Lord Lian wishes.”

“…I wish it would.”

But unexpectedly, Jang Il-so stroked his chin with a slightly ambiguous expression.

“It was dangerous. It was very close. If I had made a mistake, I might have lost my head.”

He didn’t specifically point anywhere, but it was impossible not to know where Jang Il-so was talking about.

“If there’s a variable, it’s Mount Hua. Those guys really don’t know what they’re going to do. Especially that…”

Jang Il-so suddenly stopped talking.

He could somehow handle the variable named Chung Myung. He just had to think of the worst-case scenario he could imagine. Chung Myung would faithfully follow that path.

But…

‘Hyun Jong.’

He had no idea where that old man would bounce. He couldn’t understand his way of thinking at all.

‘He’s out of his mind.’

He could understand pursuing profit, and he could understand pursuing righteousness.

But to cherish his own sect more than the law and at the same time demand the sacrifice of that sect for the sake of others.

Where else in the world could there be such a crazy person?

“I don’t know. If the day ever comes when my head falls… it’ll be because of those damn guys.”

“That will never happen.”

“Yes. It has to be.”

A chilling murderous intent flashed in Jang Il-so’s eyes as he stared across the river.

‘Not yet… not yet.’