Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1249. That’s That (4)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
Gwak Hwanso thought.
'What crazy nonsense is this?'
At first, he was surprised, then dumbfounded, and finally, utterly bewildered.
Chung Myung criticized him for being stupid, but Gwak Hwanso was Hainan's eldest disciple. He couldn't possibly be stupid by nature. He couldn’t possibly have failed to understand the meaning behind their words.
“S- So....”
He began to speak, stumbling over his words.
“Your task as a special envoy of Heavenly Comrade Alliance has come to an end, so they won’t discuss….”
"That’s right."
"Are you saying you'll set aside all those positions and join Hainan as mere martial artists?"
“Yes.”
Gwak Hwanso looked at Heavenly Comrade Alliance and the group with his mouth agape. Watching them calmly shovel food into their mouths as if nothing extraordinary had been said made any sense of reality he was trying to grasp slip away.
Gwak Hwanso, who had been desperately trying to control his words, finally blurted out the most appropriate words he should have said.
“You crazy?”
Excessive? No, not excessive at all. From Gwak Hwanso's perspective, this was the mildest response imaginable. After all, what could be gentler than asking if someone throwing their life away is in their right mind?
“Slurp, look at this punk tone? To Mount Hua Acting Sect Leader!"
“Chung Myung, be patient!”
“You’re the one who disrespects the acting sect leader the most…”
Chung Myung was angry, but Baek Cheon just smiled.
“Do we seem crazy to you?”
"...This isn't something a person in the right mind would say."
"Well, that's hard to argue against since it's not entirely wrong."
Baek Cheon shrugged his shoulders calmly.
"But what can we do? The decision has been made."
Gwak Hwanso, who had been staring blankly, suddenly seemed struck by a thought and jolted upright.
“The- Then, all of you here?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
At this point, he was at a loss for words.
‘Are they really in their right minds?’
Who were these people?
The acting sect leader of Mount Hua Sect, Sogaju of Namgung Family, Sogaju of Tang Family, and Gungju of Ice Palace. Even Nokrim King was here.
Of course, Nokrim King was in a corner, giving off a look of 'How did I get involved with these lunatics like this? I would rather bite my tongue and die,' but the truth was that they were together.
Gwak Hwanso scratched his head furiously, completely at a loss.
Of course, he was thankful. How could he not be? When everyone else had abandoned Hainan, these people had not only come to this distant land but also chosen to stay after the negotiations fell apart
If he could follow his heart, he would have thrown himself to the ground, crying tears of gratitude.
But at this moment, Gwak Hwanso realized something anew. That he was such a rational person. No, perhaps, he realized how many people in the world were far more irrational than he could have ever imagined.
“Do you not understand the position you’re in?”
“....”
“You are the future of your respective sects. Why on earth would you come to this distant land and throw your lives away?”
“That’s precisely why.”
"Huh?"
Baek Cheon spoke calmly.
“As you said, we carry the future of our sects on our shoulders. Therefore, every step we take, every decision we make, sets an example for our sects to follow.”
“No, if you’re aware of that…”
Baek Cheon cut off Gwak Hwanso's words in a firm voice.
“And what would those waiting for us back home think if we returned like this?”
“....”
“Should we tell them that we went all the way to Hainan, couldn’t resolve anything, and then fled before Evil Tyrant Alliance’s forces arrived?”
Baek Cheon quietly shook his head.
“That cannot happen. All that would do is set a precedent that when faced with a powerful enemy, it’s acceptable to abandon your comrades and run.”
“....”
“That’s why we must fight. Not because the enemy is weak, but precisely because they are strong. That is the bare minimum obligation for those who have benefited from the principles of Chivalrousness and Righteousness.”
“But Heavenly Comrade Alliance....”
"Yes. Of course, the positions of individuals, sects, and alliances must differ. At times, an alliance must suppress individual convictions for the greater good. However…”
Baek Cheon paused then chuckled softly.
“But what does it matter? Maengju-nim isn’t here. Sure, we’ll get scolded later, but for now, there’s nothing he can do about us.”
“...Huh?”
As soon as Baek Cheon said those words, the faces of those around him, especially the disciples of Mount Hua, turned gloomy.
“If Sect Leader finds out, he’ll kill us.”
“He’s no longer Sect Leader. It’s Grand Sect Leader now.”
“No, Sect Leader will still kill us, Sahyung.”
"...Ah, that..."
"Sahyung, haven't you seen Un Am Sasuk angry?"
"I don't think I have..."
“I saw it just once. That... When I saw it, well..."
Just thinking about it made Jo-Gol tremble as if he was afraid.
"The sect leader shouldn't have changed... We're all so dead."
The faces of Mount Hua’s disciples instantly turned dark, but Baek Cheon remained composed.
“We’ll deal with what comes later when it comes. For now, let’s focus on the task at hand.”
At that moment, Gwak Hwanso realized clearly.
'He's really crazy.'
Inside this seemingly upright and trustworthy man lay something utterly bizarre.
His speech was polite, and his face was extremely trustworthy, but inside was something truly Mount Hua-like. It made sense—only someone like this could serve as Mount Hua’s acting sect leader.
His logic was arbitrary and nothing he said was coherent. Gwak Hwanso couldn’t even figure out where to start pointing out the inconsistencies.
However, Gwak Hwanso could not bring himself to point that out. Not because it would be advantageous to have them join.
Comrades.
That single word "comrades" that Baekcheon had casually mentioned had forcibly sealed Gwak Hwanso's lips.
“We....”
Gwak Hwanso forced out the words that wouldn't come out.
"Rejected Heavenly Comrade Alliance's proposal."
"Yes."
“We clearly stated we wouldn’t join.”
“I’m aware.”
Gwak Hwanso stared straight at Baek Cheon with strength in his eyes.
“And yet, are we comrades of Heavenly Comrade Alliance? Are we really worth risking your lives for, to fight alongside us?”
“...Yes?”
When Baek Cheon heard that, he looked genuinely perplexed.
“No, it’s not like Hainan didn’t join Heavenly Comrade Alliance to become Evil Sects. You're still a righteous sect, so what reason is there not to fight together?"
“....”
“Of course, I admit that the relationship between Ten Great Sects and Heavenly Comrade Alliance is somewhat strained. But speaking frankly, that's because of poor relations between Heavenly Comrade Alliance and Shaolin. Is there any reason for us to harbor ill feelings toward Hainan?"
Gwak Hwanso couldn't answer and kept his mouth shut. Baek Cheon continued with a faint smile.
“What matters isn’t any of that. What matters is that Hainan is currently standing alone against Evil Tyrant Alliance and that we are here right now.”
His tone remained calm, as it had been from the beginning. It was as if he were stating the simplest and most obvious facts, things that required no debate.
"So we fight. I don't understand why any other words are needed."
A moment of silence passed.
Gwak Hwanso's head drooped down. Emotions surged within him. He didn’t want to show the expression he must be wearing right now to those before him.
Head still lowered, he spoke in a slightly suppressed voice.
“...Mount Hua doesn’t exactly have reasons to feel warmly toward Hainan, don’t they?”
“Of course, to be honest, it’s not a pleasant feeling. Given our entangled history."
“Then....”
“But that’s no reason for us to abandon Hainan.”
Gwak Hwanso bit his lip. He didn't know what to say. Where and how to even begin...
“And there seems to have been some misunderstanding… The stance of the alliance and that of individuals aren’t the same. But that doesn’t mean that Heavenly Comrade Alliance, knowing this situation, would have abandoned Hainan."
“....”
“We simply came here without fully understanding the circumstances. If we had known, even if Hainan chose not to join Heavenly Comrade Alliance, the alliance would have done everything in its power to aid you."
Gwak Hwanso bit his lip hard and asked.
"Is that... Heavenly Comrade Alliance's way?"
"No."
“...Yes?”
“This isn’t the way of Heavenly Comrade Alliance. It’s the duty of those who wield the sword.”
Gwak Hwanso's heart swelled.
Words like this are easy to say. Gwak Hwanso had heard them countless times and spoken them just as often in his life.
But how many people in this world would truly be willing to stake their lives on those words? Yet those few were right here now. Right before his eyes.
“...Thank you.”
For now, Gwak Hwanso set aside his position. These words weren't from the eldest disciple representing Hainan, but from just one of Hainan's disciples.
"Even if it's just words, thank you for saying that. For saying you'll die with us..."
"Who said that?"
An utterly displeased voice cut off Gwak Hwanso's words.
“...Yes?”
"Who said anything about dying together?"
“...N- No. Just now...”
“Aish, is this bastard’s out of his mind?”
Chung Myung spat out curses with a twisted face.
"Who's dying, you son of a beast! Am I crazy? To die in some far-off land? I ought to be carefully laid to rest in Mount Hua’s Plum Blossom Forest and praised for generations! Why the hell would I die here?"
"…I rather not live to see that happen."
"A curse, that's a curse."
"They should toss him off a cliff."
"Wouldn't burying him on Mount Southern Edge Sect be better? hat way, he could be cursed for generations?"
When Chung Myung suddenly turned his head and glared, the disciples of Mount Hua hurriedly shrank their necks.
"Who's dying for anyone, you punk."
“N- No… isn’t that the situation?”
“Situation? What situation?”
“Evil Tyrant Alliance....”
"Hey!"
Sparks flew from Chung Myung's eyes.
"So Evil Tyrant Alliance shows up, and what, we’re just supposed to stick our necks out and beg them to kill us? They're not even all coming, just some of them, and here are the so-called Ten Great Sects members acting like a bunch of old men got their death dates set! Hey, you bastard! Instead of standing around yapping, you should be thinking about how to kill every single one of those bastards who come!"
"But, the forces..."
"To hell with forces! Battles aren't won by the stronger side. The winner is the stronger one. If everyone just cried about forces, Jungwon would’ve been obliterated a hundred years ago!"
“That’s true too.”
"Those Magyo bastards were really strong."
“...I hear they were even stronger back in the day. I still don’t know how they managed to defeat them."
"Compared to them, Evil Tyrant Alliance is nothing."
Gwak Hwanso, who was dumbfounded, looked at everyone blankly. Chung Myung’s sharp voice broke his trance.
"Listen carefully, kid."
“....”
"Fighting to death and going to die are two completely different things. Who said anything about dying here? Don't talk nonsense. I'm here to fight those Evil Tyrant Alliance bastards, not to die."
“Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword....”
Chung Myung glared at Gwak Hwanso with slightly narrowed eyes.
"So instead of babbling about useless crap and wasting time, why don’t you go prepare? Once we’re done eating, we’ll have a proper discussion."
"...What discussion?"
"What else?"
Everyone's eyes were fixed on Chung Myung.
"How to kill every last one of those Evil Tyrant Alliance bastards."
A twisted smile formed on Chung Myung's lips.
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