Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1216. Who would help? (1)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Hainan Island. A massive island at the southernmost tip of Jungwon.
Located at the far southern end of what the people of Jungwon call 'Central Plains (Jungwon)', it was a place used as an exile destination in the past. Its scorching heat and humid climate made it difficult for people to live there, in a way different from the northern regions.
Nevertheless, those who were born and raised in Hainan lived their lives day by day in their own kind of peace.
But now, the atmosphere dominating Hainan was heavier than ever before.
Hainan, being a remote place, and no bigger than half the size of an average province, tends to leave a faint impression on outsiders. Yet, its name often surfaces in conversations because of a single martial sect located halfway up the rugged Mount Ojis of Hainan. (사실 해남은 외딴곳에 있는 데다 일반적인 성의 절반 크기 정도밖에 안 되어 세인들에게는 인상이 흐릿하다. 그럼에도 그 이름이 자주 거론되는 이유는 그 해남 오지산 중턱에 자리한 한 문파 때문이었다.)
Hainan Sect. The place that filled the spot left by Mount Hua and newly became a member of Ten Great Sects.
Although in terms of history and generations, it may pale in comparison to the traditional powerhouses of Ten Great Sects, still, Ten Great Sects are Ten Great Sects. And just the fact that it held even the lowest position among them was enough to affirm the prestige of Hainan Sect without further explanation.
The center of that Hainan Sect, the sect leader's quarters. From that place that should be most reverent, a gloomy voice was now leaking out.
"....Perchance."
The voice, which had momentarily paused, continued with difficulty.
"Has there been any communication?"
Geum Yangbaek, the sect leader of Hainan Sect, asked the elders. But strangely, though he was asking, there was no real sense of inquiry in his voice.
A question posed with no expectation of an answer—people call this we call self-mockery.
"Not yet..."
Even the answer was incomplete. Ending the sentence vaguely, as if too ashamed to voice it fully, this answer clearly reflected the dire situation Hainan was in.
"I suppose so."
Geum Yangbaek let out a short laugh. The cold sarcasm in that laugh only made the elders feel more suffocated.
"Sect Leader... It's not yet time to give up hope. Considering the situation, it’s possible the communication simply hasn’t gotten through yet, isn’t it?"
"What difference does it make?"
A bitter tugged at the corners of Geum Yangbaek’s mouth.
"Whether they have the will but can’t reach us, or they have no will and therefore haven’t tried—What difference is there? The result is the same."
"...Sect Leader."
"If there are those who want to contact us? If there are those with the will to save Hainan, what difference does it make? They won't be able to help anyway. Am I supposed to take comfort in the fact that someone might feel sorry for Hainan’s annihilation?"
The elder who had spoken earlier lowered his head and fell silent.
He too knew well that his words were nothing more than empty consolation.
Geum Yangbaek heaved a long sigh. Although he had snapped due to his frustration, it wasn't right to blame them in the first place.
What could the elders possibly do in this situation?
"How are the movements of Evil Tyrant Alliance?"
“They haven’t shown any notable movements yet.”
“...Is it not because we haven’t been able to detect anything?”
Once again, there was no clear response.
To put it plainly, how could they possibly grasp the movements of Evil Tyrant Alliance? They couldn’t even send a single disciple to the lands of Gangnam, beyond the sea.
The intricate information network they had painstakingly built had been completely shattered, and Beggar Union, which once shared information with them, had long since withdrawn from Gangnam.
Isolated and helpless.
The only thing they could know now was the situation on this island.
No people, no information, not even birds flying in the sky came to this island. Only news that shook the world would eventually circulate to Hainan after a significant delay.
"Sect Leader... Even if we haven't received word, surely, when the situation becomes dire, there will be sects willing to aid us. Shaolin wouldn't merely stand by and watch all this......"
“Is that so?”
Geum Yangbaek interrupted, laughing hollowly.
“Ah, I see. Bangjang must have thought long and hard, choosing to leave our Hainan untouched all this time. Yet here I am, a narrow-minded man, complaining without understanding Bangjang’s grand intentions.”
"......"
“When the time comes, they’ll surely come to our aid. I've been worrying for nothing, am I not?”
In the end, the elders could only close their eyes.
Originally, Geum Yangbaek wasn't someone who spoke with such sarcasm and mockery. Rather, he had always been a kind and easy-going person.
But after suffering under the pressure of Evil Tyrant Alliance for the past few years in an isolated and helpless situation, his words became rougher day by day, and his personality couldn't help but become sharper.
Noticing the discomfort on the elders’ faces, Geum Yangbaek heaved another deep sigh.
"....I'm sorry. It's not right to blame the elders."
"No, Sect Leader. How could we not understand how much you’ve been suffering?”
The elders' faces were also tinged with a miserable light.
Their feelings were no different.
How could they not harbor resentment towards Ten Great Sects?
Ten Great Sects was not simply a symbol of authority. Although they usually fought each other and competed for power, when external enemies or evil forces emerged, they united as one heart and one purpose to fight back, which was the reason Ten Great Sects was able to gain the reputation it has today.
But since the recent Gangnam Non-Aggression Pact, Hainan had not received any support from the other sects of Ten Great Sects.
That's why they had no choice but to endure the threat of Evil Tyrant Alliance, which bared its sharp teeth right in front of them like a wolf, all by themselves.
"Have Beggar Union not sent anyone yet?"
"....They haven’t, Sect Leader."
"When was the last time someone from Beggar Union visited?"
"A year... Yes, a year ago."
Geum Yangbaek stared at the ceiling with a blank face.
"Has it already been that long?"
After muttering and remaining silent for a while, he slowly continued.
“No matter how sharp the swords of Evil Tyrant Alliance or how overwhelming the influence of Jang Ilso may have... can it really be that Beggar Union, of all sects, cannot send even a single person?”
"Sect Leader...."
"Kukukuk."
Geum Yangbaek let out a low, hollow laugh. His hollow laughter spread sadly through the not-so-large main hall.
"It's laughable. They say a dog abandoned by its master waits endlessly, unaware it has been forsaken. Aren't we exactly in that situation? Even in this dire situation, we're still waiting for news from Ten Great Sects, not knowing when, or if, it will come."
It was truly a pitiful and sorrowful form of self-mockery.
No matter how dire the situation was, he was still the sect leader. And not just any sect, but one that belonged to Ten Great Sects. For someone of his stature to compare his sect to a dog was unthinkable.
But no one could blame him. Geum Yangbaek was someone who loved Hainan more than anyone else here.
"What do you think?"
"......"
"Do you really think those Ten Great Sects will send support when Evil Tyrant Alliance extends its evil claws?"
"Th- They will. Of course, they must. It’s the way of virtue and the principle of Chivalrousness, isn’t it?"
One of the elders opened his mouth again.
“A sect as prominent as Shaolin can't not send support, even if only because of others' eyes."
Hearing those words, Geum Yangbaek nodded slightly. But there was no strength in that action. Because there was no conviction behind it.
“Then let me ask again. Do you believe that Shaolin’s help will arrive in time?”
"That's...."
This time, no one could answer with certainty.
No, it wasn’t that they lacked confidence. On the contrary, they were certain. Shaolin would indeed send aid.
But that aid would never arrive on time, whether it was sent with sincerity or merely as a show of effort.
“What Shaolin seeks is an appropriate justification and a reasonable gain.”
Geum Yangbaek chuckled bitterly.
It was all too obvious.
"They’ll issue a stern warning and may even attempt to punish with force. But… will those sent for such punishment truly make their way deep into Gangnam?"
"......"
"They'll probably just make a show at the mouth of the Yangtze River." (H: IF they could do that against Namgung vs Water Fortress, why wouldn’t they do the same with Hainan vs Evil Tyrant Alliance? This only made it clear again how ridiculous that decision was.)
“Se- Sect leader... Surely Shaolin wouldn’t go that far...”
"For them, is our Hainan worth saving at the cost of harming their main force?"
Geum Yangbaek gritted his teeth.
“If Mount Hua hadn’t collapsed so quickly, if they hadn’t needed to fill the void so urgently, do you think we could have ever truly become part of Ten Great Sects? We, Hainan Sect, who have always been subtly looked down upon as outsiders?”
At his words, everyone fell silent.
If Mount Hua had not collapsed, Hainan breaking into the ranks of Ten Great Sects might have remained an impossible dream. Everyone here knew that fact all too well.
"In the end, even as part of Ten Great Sects, we were just a sect thrown in to make up the numbers."
"Sect Leader...."
"Am I wrong?"
Undisguisable anger rose on Geum Yangbaek's face.
"Are you telling me that Shaolin, with all its power, couldn’t manage to send a single message to Hainan for over a year?"
“…."
"That's a truly disheartening thought. It means that the power of Evil Tyrant Alliance far exceeds what we imagined, to the point where even Shaolin is helpless!"
"Sect Leader! Please calm yourself. Shaolin wouldn’t want the structure of Ten Great Sects to collapse. They…"
"Now, that’s an amusing statement. I guarantee, if Mount Hua had heard you say that, they would have laughed until their sides hurt."
No one could refute that statement.
Even if a sect crumbles without leaving even its foundations, the solid system of Ten Great Sects doesn't collapse. Another renowned sect simply fills the vacancy.
Wasn't Hainan itself the beneficiary of such a situation? Now, after a century, the roles were reversed. What was so strange about that?
"Ten Great Sects will surely face some criticism. People will point fingers and hurl insults. But will that last forever?"
"......"
"In the end, if Evil Tyrant Alliance is stopped, it will be written off as an unfortunate but necessary sacrifice, and the decision not to waste resources on Hainan will be praised as a tough, flesh-cutting choice by Bangjang. Isn't that right?"
"Sect Leader..."
"That's how the world's sentiment ultimately is."
Geum Yangbaek let out a low chuckle.
"In the end, it will all be forgotten. Just like the world forgot Mount Hua. No, perhaps even faster."
Geum Yangbaek closed his eyes.
He had already seen it. How thoroughly those who committed sins could erase their sins. What Mount Hua experienced in the past, Hainan will now experience.
What pained him the most was that Hainan, once a key participant in those past events, now had no right to complain or criticize this situation.
As everyone sat in somber silence, a voice, almost like a lament, reached Geum Yangbaek's ears.
"At this point... it might have been better to join Heavenly Comrade Alliance."
Suddenly, all eyes focused on the one who spoke.
The elder who opened his mouth hesitated with a slightly bitter expression, then spoke as if pouring out his resentment.
"If it’s Heavenly Comrade Alliance—who even charges into Evil Tyrant Alliance's domain in Gangnam because of the appearance of Magyo... would they leave a sect of the same affiliation to perish with the excuse of distance?"
With that final remark, the atmosphere inside the main hall sank even deeper into an overwhelming gloom.
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