Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1232. Is that so? (2)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
"No...."
Yoon Jong trudged back, scratching the back of his head with an awkward expression.
"Forget ships, there's not even a wooden plank, Sasuk."
"...Really?"
Baek Cheon frowned, his expression puzzled.
“And what about your side, Tang Sogaju?”
"Same here."
Tang Pae, who had moved into a team with Namgung Dowi, shook his head hopelessly.
"First, we need to see a sip to make contact with locals and buy supplies, but there wasn't a single ship near the shore. Not even a fishing boat in what looked like a fishing village.”
Baek Cheon frowned and was lost in thought.
'What is going on?'
Of course, it’s possible that there’s a shortage of ships.
While this place did serve as a port for heading to Hainan, it had been several years since Hainan and Gangnam stopped trading. It would make sense if they moved any useful ships to places where they were still needed.
But still, isn't it nonsensical that there isn't even a fishing boat in this place that borders such a vast sea?
“Did you ask around for any reason behind it, or…?”
Namgung Dowi shook his head before the question was even finished.
"Didn't Nokrim King strongly advise us to minimize contact with people? If we had spotted a boat, it might have been different, but without that, we couldn’t justify approaching anyone.”
"...You did well."
It was hard for them to accept, but if Im Sobyeong's words were true, Jang Ilso's reputation in Guangdong wasn’t as poor as they expected.
Jang Ilso was utterly merciless to those who practiced martial arts, but he seemed quite lenient toward those who didn't.
Given that, there was no guarantee that the commoners would necessarily side with them just because they were of Righteous Sects.
Moreover, if relatives of those they contacted happened to join Myriad Man Manor, there was a possibility that something truly irreversible could happen.
'Gangnam is definitely not an easy place.'
Even making contact with commoners requires caution....
“…Once we know more about the situation, we’ll figure out a way, but we can’t act rashly, can we?”
Baek Cheon nodded slowly at Tang Pae's words. Just then, Chung Myung, who had been pestering Seol So-baek, threw out words with a bored expression.
"Let's just swim across, I'm telling you."
"...Wait a bit."
“I don’t get why we’re wasting so much time. We’ve got strong arms and legs.”
“…Our limbs are more fragile than you think.”
"That's because you've been lazy with training, training!"
"Ugh."
Baek Cheon shook his head as if fed up.
But then he saw Yoo Iseol and Tang Soso running towards him from afar. Their expressions were urgent even at a glance.
"Sahyung."
"What is it, Samae?"
"Sasuk! You should come and take a look!"
Baek Cheon moved immediately without hesitation.
***
Men stripped to the waist were scorching large logs in the fire. The heat of the flames added to the already hot and humid weather of the South Sea, instantly covering their entire bodies in sweat.
"Hurry up!"
"How's the work going over there?"
“It’s going smoothly, sir. In about three days…”
"Too slow! Finish it in two days! If we're not ready before the Advisor arrives, we're both dead men!"
"We'll definitely finish within two days!"
A burly, hairy man looked around, then shouted,
"Move quickly! There will be severe punishment if preparations aren't completed on time!"
"Yes, sir!"
The men bustled around without a moment’s rest.
Watching from the cover of the bushes, Baek Cheon narrowed his eyes as he took in the scene.
Boats of various sizes were densely lined up along the coast. No wonder they couldn’t find even a single fishing boat—they had seized all the boats in the area.
'But they're building boats here?'
At a glance, there were at least five more boats being constructed. Though they weren’t particularly large, the fact they were adding to their fleets was significant in itself.
Baek Cheon carefully retreated to avoid making noise. Those who had scouted with him exchanged glances with serious expressions.
"It must be Myriad Man Manor."
“That seems most probable.”
"Then those boats...."
Tang Pae nodded with a dark complexion.
"It must be ships to cross to Hainan. They wouldn’t bother commandeering boats for no reason, so they must have gathered them recently.”
Baek Cheon heaved deeply.
However, Jo-Gol, who didn’t fully grasp the implications, tilted his head in confusion.
"Sahyung. What does that mean?”
“…It means those boats have found a purpose. They need boats to reach Hainan, don’t they?”
"That’s right?"
"It means Evil Tyrant Alliance is preparing to advance on Hainan."
Only then did Jo-Gol realize the situation and his face stiffened. He quietly approached the bushes to look at the coast again, then returned with a serious expression and muttered.
“With all those boats?”
"...."
"No, how many armies are you planning on sending...."
Jo-Gol shuddered as if getting goosebumps.
On land, you can't simply guess the size of the army by the number of wagons. But on the sea, it’s different. The number of boats practically reflects the scale of the forces they’ll deploy to Hainan.
“…It doesn’t look like they plan to simply teach them a lesson.”
Im Sobyeong, who had been listening quietly, snickered.
"Aren’t we talking about none other than Jang Ilso? If he had chosen to stay out of it, perhaps they wouldn’t go so far, but once he’s involved, he’ll likely aim to erase the very name of Hainan from existence. That’s just the kind of man Jang Ilso is.”
"...."
"Rather than that, things seem more urgent than we thought..."
Im Sobyeong poked his head with his fan. As everyone watched him with tense faces, he spoke in a resigned tone.
“To be honest, Evil Tyrant Alliance doesn’t need to rush. Their internal consolidation isn’t fully established yet, so they could afford to move leisurely…”
After a moment of silent contemplation, Im Sobyeong nodded thoughtfully.
"If there's a reason, it's one of two things."
“What would those be?”
"The internal consolidation of Evil Tyrant Alliance was completed sooner than we expected."
"...."
"Or, the existence of Hainan Sect irritated Jang Ilso more than we imagined."
"Would Jang Ilso really concern himself so much with Hainan? I mean, even if he does..."
"I thought so too, but after seeing Guangdong's situation, I somewhat understand. To Jang Ilso, Guangdong is no different from a well-kept garden. Even as Evil Sects, he’s secured the public’s trust, and since it's located far enough in the back, there’s little threat of an enemy invasion. It’s essentially the ideal stronghold."
"...That's right."
“Even if the war between Evil and Righteous Sects ends with Righteous Sects’ victory, it will be difficult to advance to Guangdong unless they achieve an overwhelming victory. Do you know why?"
"The Ten Thousand Great Mountains..."
"Correct, Namgung Sogaju."
Namgung Dowi let out a groan.
Having crossed through the Ten Thousand Great Mountains themselves, they understood Both geographically and strategically, it was a natural fortress where advancement was nearly impossible. With such mountains at its side, Guangdong was the safest stronghold possible for Jang Ilso.
"But if Hainan is lurking at his back, it’s a different story. We may view Hainan as a mere dagger aimed at Evil Tyrant Alliance’s back, but to Jang Ilso, it's more..."
"A vicious threat that could torch his garden at any moment."
"Yes. He’ll want to root them out completely, regardless of any complications that may arise, as long as it guarantees Guangdong’s safety."
Baek Cheon furrowed his brow.
"Logically that makes sense, but would Jang Ilso really think that far ahead? The one I know..."
"Do not misunderstand, Acting Sect Leader."
"...What misunderstanding?"
Im Sobyeong said in a serious tone.
"To the world, Jang Ilso might seem like a rising star who achieved his current position through continuous victories. But it’s not like Jang Ilso has always been on top."
"...."
"Before his name gained notoriety, he was barely scraping by, often on the edge of death. That’s how Evil Sects is—any promising sprout is stamped out early."
Chung Myung nodded as if agreeing.
"Jang Il-so rose to where he is now by enduring endless waves of enemies trying to take him down, sometimes fleeing, sometimes losing, sometimes enduring massive losses. He’s no simple war-crazed lunatic. What he wants is to obtain everything he desires, and he knows exactly what to prioritize to achieve that."
Perhaps only Im Sobyeong dislikes Jang Ilso as much as Chung Myung does. This assessment, coming from him, left no room for doubt.
Im Sobyeong tapped his head with his fan.
"Hm. There's little point in figuring out why they're moving hastily now. The critical point is... that soon those boats will be full of Myriad Man Manor bastards dropping on Hainan."
"...."
"On that island with nowhere to run."
Namgung Dowi asked with a visibly anxious face.
"How much time do we have left?"
"Well. By the looks of it, those building the boats seem to be the locals in Guangdong... Those who'll board the ships must be heading this way now. Judging by when these new boats under construction will be completed..."
Tap, tap, tap, tap.
Im Sobyeong, rhythmically tapping his fan on his shoulder, nodded heavily.
"At most, five days. No longer than that."
Baek Cheon let out a groan.
'Damn it.'
According to their expectations, Evil Tyrant Alliance’s forces wouldn't move for at least a few more months. They had predicted they would target Hainan first the moment they finished preparing for war with Gangbuk.
That’s why Baek Cheon led a small group and came to Hainan. To first exchange opinions with Hainan Sect.
But at this rate, trying to convince Hainan to join Heavenly Comrade Alliance would be pointless. If the sect itself might not survive past the next five days, what use would joining the alliance even be?
"What should we do, Acting Sect Leader?"
"Sasuk... What are you going to do?"
Baek Cheon pondered with a hardened face. There were two options: he could accept that they didn’t have enough power and withdraw for now… or he could head straight to Hainan, inform them of the situation, and devise countermeasures together.
"...No need to think too long about this."
In hindsight, he felt grateful for cutting through Gangnam. If they had chosen the roundabout route carelessly, they would have heard the news of Hainan's annihilation before making it halfway.
“First, let’s go to Hainan.”
“…Isn’t that too dangerous?”
“Even so, it’s not as if the people here won’t be able to escape if needed."
Baek Cheon said in a firm tone.
“But Hainan probably doesn’t know that Evil Tyrant Alliance will strike soon. Shouldn't we at least let them know that much?"
Everyone nodded. Even in this situation, there was someone thinking practically.
"But how will we get to Hainan? They’ve taken all the boats. Shall we try stealing one under cover of darkness?"
To Namgung Dowi's question, silently Baek Cheon looked to one side.
“...Acting Sect Leader?”
Namgung Dowi, feeling an ominous omen, asked in a trembling voice.
Baek Cheon, gazing far out at the sea, then turned back and locked eyes with one person.
"...It's doable, right?"
"Ah, I told you it is."
"Really, like really really?"
“Oh, have you only been scammed your whole life?”
Chung Myung answered with a grin.
“It’s only fifty li at most? At that distance, we could practically float over there lying down, and we would still reach there half day.”
Baek Cheon nodded and looked at the others.
"That's what he says?"
“....”
“....”
There was silence.
For the first time, Namgung Dowi felt the urge to poke out those clear, sparkling eyes of Baek Cheon.
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