Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1155. Well, if it's absolutely necessary (5)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
In that atmosphere, even Chung Myung looked at Im Sobyeong with some anticipation.
The reason he had called for this meeting wasn’t because he didn’t know what to do next. He had already figured out what to do first.
Still, there were two reasons why he decided to hold the meeting anyway.
One is that they can no longer stick to the method of thinking alone and leading alone.
As he told Baek Cheon earlier, each of the people present here would need to make decisions and lead others during the war.
If they get into the habit of waiting for someone else to make decisions, they will inevitably find themselves unable to make a good decision when it comes time to do so.
So, at the very least, they needed to be people who could find the best course of action on their own. And to do that, Chung Myung needs to step back and reduce how much he imposes his opinions.
Even if the outcome of that meeting was different from what Chung Myung thought was best, he trusted that it would ultimately lead to the best results.
The other reason was...
'I can't do it alone.'
Chung Myung wasn’t omnipotent.
No matter how many times he had survived through the horrors of war and faced countless life-threatening situations that others couldn’t even imagine, his experience and understanding had their limits.
Up until now, his way of thinking had been right, but his strength alone was not enough to deal with the formidable enemies of Jang Ilso and Magyo.
That’s why he wanted to gather their opinions. These were people whose advice he respected and who could offer valuable insights.
At that moment, Im Sobyeong opened his mouth.
“What’s important if you want to win?”
"…Yes?"
When Namgung Dowi asked back blankly, Im Sobyeong tapped his head with the closed fan.
“I guess that was a bit of a difficult question. When two people fight, who wins?”
“Well… the one who’s trained a bit harder.”
“No, no. The one who understands their opponent better.”
“I think the one who knows their own limits clearly has a higher chance of winning.”
They each offered their opinions.
At that time, someone who couldn’t stand obvious answers blurted out with disbelief.
“Isn’t it just the stronger one who wins?”
There was a moment of silence. As everyone's eyes turned to him, Jo-Gol's face turned bright red.
“N- No, what I meant was…”
“That’s right!”
“…Huh?”
Chwaaaak!
Im Sobyeong spread out his fan.
“No matter how many times you beat around the bush with all sorts of fancy word, there’s only one conclusion. The stronger one wins. Isn’t that the only truth in Kangho?”
“S- See! I was right!”
“Did anyone say otherwise?”
“Why are you getting worked up by yourself?”
“Aigoo, you did a great job.”
“T- These yangban!”
Everyone turned their cold gazes away from Jo-Gol. There are some people you just don’t want to praise, no matter how well they do.
“Then what must we do to win the war, Namgung Sogaju?”
Namgung Dowi, suddenly burdened by the weight of everyone’s attention, leaned back slightly.
“Well….”
He had never imagined that such an absurd answer would come out of his mouth, but the atmosphere was forcing him to give only one answer.
“We, we just need to be stronger.”
“Aigo. You’re starting to use your head now.”
“….”
He gave the most stupid answer he had ever given in his life and received praise. This realization plunged Namgung Dowi into an inexplicable sense of self-loathing. Of course, he didn’t even notice how oddly pleased he felt to be praised by the likes of Im Sobyeong, a member of Evil Sects.
“So, what are the ways we can become stronger?”
“Well….”
Even Im Sobyeong didn't seem to expect an answer until this point, so he wrapped it up neatly.
“There are exactly two ways. You can either improve your quality or increase your quantity.”
Baek Cheon protested at those words.
“No, then what about the small and medium sects…?”
“In case anyone’s unclear, increasing quantity means adding to the force with those who actually contribute to our strength. Surely there is no one here who thinks that gathering all the idiots together will make us stronger?”
“O- Of course not.”
“….”
A sharp gaze poured out on Baek Cheon, who instantly changed his words. He lowered his head, grinding his teeth in frustration.
“But that….”
Tang Pae slowly opened his mouth.
“Are those really the only two ways? What about strategy, tactics, and…?”
“Oh, you mean strategy?”
Im Sobyeong chuckled.
“Ah, that could be possible. If you use your head well, you could fight an opponent twice as strong as you.”
“It wouldn’t be easy, but…”
“Then what about an opponent three times stronger?”
“….”
“Five times? Ten times?”
Tang Pae suddenly found himself speechless. If you can defeat someone ten times stronger by using your head, why would people be afraid to climb a mountain at night? They’d just go tiger hunting with their bare hands.
“Do you understand? In the face of overwhelming power, strategy and tactics become meaningless. If you can win without thinking, why would anyone waste their brainpower figuring out how to win? When the body fails, the mind has to work harder.”
“N- No…. even Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu.”
“He would’ve been beaten to death in a one-on-one fight! Didn’t he just rally every possible force to gang up on him?”
“….”
Now that he thought about it, that was true too.
“So, who’s stronger right now, us or Evil Tyrant Alliance?”
“Well….”
They don’t even have to think to answer this.
“It’s Evil Tyrant Alliance.”
“Yes. They are stronger.”
It is still not easy for Heavenly Comrade Alliance to deal with Evil Tyrant Alliance alone. Of course, the situation will change depending on how well the members who have joined forces move in unison, but based on the revealed forces alone, Evil Tyrant Alliance clearly has the upper hand.
“If you are a person with some sense, you won't waste time devising a strategy to overcome a stronger force with a weaker one. Instead, they would focus on ways to increase their own strength.”
Everyone began to be captivated by Im Sobyeong's words.
“But the quality of the troops!”
Im Sobyeong turned his head and looked at Chung Myung.
“There’s a yangban who takes care of everything here. Even though that yangban has a bad temper and is useless in any other way, he has top-notch ability in regard to this-… Hey heyy, Eheiii! Let’s put that down. If I get hit with an inkstone, I'll die. I'll really die!”
Chung Myung reluctantly put down the inkstone he had picked up. Im Sobyeong wiped the cold sweat off his brow with his sleeve and continued speaking.
“So, that leaves us with the option of quantity.”
"But…."
Tang Pae made an ambiguous expression upon hearing those words.
“If the small and medium-sized sects can’t help, we have no choice but to bring in the large sects, but in the current situation, there aren't any willing to join us in the current situation, right?”
“And it’s not like there are any spare forces lying around. Besides, most of them have already formed alliances.”
“Hmm.”
As everyone spoke with a puzzled look on their faces, Im Sobyeong smiled meaningfully.
“So, we all agree that we need large sects?”
“…If it's possible, yes.”
“Of course, it would be ideal if possible, but isn’t the problem that it’s not realistic?”
Im Sobyeong's comment hit their sore spot exactly.
The reason Heavenly Comrade Alliance is working so hard to understand each other and strengthen their connections boils down to two things. One is to reduce casualties, and the other is…
‘Because if we don’t, we really won’t stand a chance.’
Baek Cheon looked at Im Sobyeong with a serious face. The most painful thing Im Sobyeong had said so far was, “People feel reassured just by doing something.”
That was a perfect fit for Baek Cheon. Even though he was aware that there was a clear gap between Heavenly Comrade Alliance and Evil Tyrant Alliance, he devoted all his energy to training each day. Rather than solving the fundamental problem, he tried to do what he could.
‘Is this the difference in perspective?’
Perhaps this is the difference between Im Sobyeong, who thinks and tries to solve things on his own, and Baek Cheon, who was still waiting for someone to present a solution.
Baek Cheon etched this moment deeply into his heart.
Im Sobyeong said, folding his fan with a loud clank.
“Alright. Bonchung!”
“Yes, Nokrim King!”
“Open the map!”
"Yes!"
Bonchung spread out the large map he had been holding. Given his massive size, he could easily handle a map that would normally require two people to hold open.
‘Did he prepare this in advance?’
Tang Gun-ak looked at Im Sobyeong with a bewildered expression. Now that he looked at it, it seemed that Nokrim King had anticipated that this kind of conversation would take place here.
“There are currently four sects in Jungwon whose affiliations are unclear.”
“Four sects?”
“Yes. Two of them are ones you're already familiar with. They’re the Southern Sea Sun Palace (남해태양궁(南海太陽宮)) and Budala Palace (포달랍궁(布達拉宮)), two of the remaining Four Outer Palaces.”
"Ah…."
Those who heard those words blinked. And when the words Budala Palace came out, Chung Myung's eyes sparkled for a moment.
“And the other one… is Blood Palace, which is included when referring to Five Outer Palaces.”
“B- But Blood Palace….”
“Yes, yes. I know. But for now, let's set aside the issue of feasibility and focus on discussing the forces that aren't aligned with anyone."
“Hmm. In that case….”
To begin with, Blood Palace was a mysterious sect whose headquarters were not even clearly known, and its disciples were known for their malevolent tendencies, so they did not get along with Heavenly Comrade Alliance.
“They say that Outer Palaces and Jungwon don’t get along, but that doesn’t apply to Heavenly Comrade Alliance at least. And fortunately, we have the leaders of two Outer Palaces here, so it might be a bit easier to persuade them."
"…Why didn't we think of that?"
"I know…."
Everyone looked at each other as if they were dumbfounded.
Of course, there is no guarantee that Beast Palace and Ice Palace will side with Heavenly Comrade Alliance just because they are members of Heavenly Comrade Alliance. The Five Outer Palaces doesn't really have a representative sect, and its solidarity is looser than one might think.
But isn't it also obvious that those two sects have the potential to make up for the weaknesses of Heavenly Comrade Alliance?
"Among these, the most likely to provide reinforcement would be Budala Palace, but…"
"No."
Chung Myung immediately shook his head.
"They'd end up at war before they even made it here from Tibet."
“That is correct.”
Im Sobyeong smacked his lips as if disappointed.
“Besides, it is known that Budala Palace rarely leaves its territory and does not intervene in other sects’ disputes unless something really big happens. So the chances are slim."
Five Swords nodded, recalling Bansol Lama they had met in the past.
In fact, it seemed impossible to even ask that person to fight alongside them. That brief meeting was enough to understand that their mindset was vastly different from that of typical martial artists.
"Then the only place left is here."
Bam!
The moment Im Sobyeong lightly tapped a spot on the map, everyone's eyes widened.
"…You intend to go that far?"
“N- No, do people live there too? Is Jungwon that vast?”
“Ugh.”
Maeng So scratched his head as he looked at the place that Im Sobyeong pointed to.
"Southern Sea Sun Palace."
“Yes, that’s right. It’s a major sect that currently doesn’t have any affiliation.”
“But… Haa. This won’t be easy. In the first place, isn’t… Southern Sea Sun Palace located in Linyi (임읍(林邑))?"
“Yes.”
“To begin with, their language and writing are different from ours. It won't be easy to merge with them."
"That's something we'll have to deal with."
"And… more importantly, the Southern Sea Sun Palace isn't just the kind of sect that wields imperial power in their region, as you might know."
"Huh?"
"They're actual royalty. The leader of Southern Sea Sun Palace are royalty."
“…What?”
Even Im Sobyeong blinked, apparently unaware of this.
“Really?”
"…Why would I lie about something like this? So they… wouldn’t even think about coming to a foreign country to fight in the first place. How would the offer to join Heavenly Comrade Alliance sound to them?”
“Well….”
"Wouldn't it sound like we're asking the royalty to become wanderers in a foreign land and fight in a war that's none of their concern?"
"Uh…."
"If you're thinking of sending an envoy, count me out. I don't want to be dismembered in some faraway land."
Im Sobyeong became dumbfounded and looked at Maeng So blankly.
And then Chung Myung opened his mouth.
"You started off all grand, but what? In the end, you're saying we can't bring anyone in, right?"
"And you went ahead and looked down on everything as if you were so smart."
"What? No point in doing anything?"
As the atmosphere gradually became tense, Im Sobyeong nervously took a step back. In particular, the eyes of Namgung Dowi and Baek Cheon were unusual.
“Wa- Wait! Not yet! There's still one more!"
"What other nonsense do you have now!"
"Stop resisting pointlessly and just take your punishment quietly!"
“No, I said there are! I told you there were four places! This one is for sure! Right here!"
Tak!
When Im Sobyeong pointed to another spot on the map, everyone's gaze followed his fingertip.
"…What?"
“Are you in your right mind….”
"Is this guy really insane?"
Everyone simultaneously reacted with shock and disbelief.
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