Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1483. Why are you suddenly here? (3)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
"Come play for a bit!"
“Hyung-nim! I see fortune in your face today! Wouldn't you like to confirm that luck here?"
"A royal cook who worked in the imperial palace has come to our tavern today! It is a chance to eat the same cuisine as the emperor himself!"
A narrow street lit up with brilliant lights, filled with people standing close together, desperately trying to attract customers.
And at the center of the street, a group of martial artists walked around with innocent expressions, completely out of place in this scene.
"Wow..."
“There was a place like this?”
Mount Hua disciples blinked rapidly as they busily looked around. The buildings surrounding them emitted colorful lights, each showcasing its own brilliance.
The fragrance of sweet wine and the scent of rare foods wafted from all directions. None of it was something one could easily encounter.
"Oh my, this person looks so cute!"
One of the women watching passersby saw Hye Yeon and clapped her hands with a bright smile. Hye Yeon's face instantly turned red as a persimmon.
“A- Ami....”
Smack!
Jo-Gol reached out his hand like a flash of lightning and covered his mouth. Hye Yeon, rolling his wide eyes, quickly nodded and unconsciously swallowed the Buddhist chant that had half escaped his lips.
“I, I told you to be careful.”
"So- Sorry..."
Jo-Gol shook his head and became absorbed in looking around again. An exclamation escaped him.
"But this really is another world, Sahyung."
"That's what I'm saying. To think there were places like this in the world."
"If it's like this here, how extravagant must Hangzhou have been?"
Just as the Mount Hua disciples were looking around with equal parts admiration and curiosity.
“Don’t look around, just keep your eyes ahead.”
“...Sorry.”
A voice full of killing intent was heard from behind. At the same time, everyone broke into a cold sweat and turned their gaze forward.
Isong Baek, who had been gritting his teeth, let out a deep sigh.
It was really incomprehensible. Originally, the role he had envisioned was clearly just to pretend not to know about their misconduct...
'Really... How did it end up like this?'
But somehow he had ended up becoming companions with these immoral villains (?) impersonating Southern Edge Sect. He couldn't help but groan.
The best course of action was clearly to not associate with them. That's obvious. But that doesn't mean he can just let these reckless bastard loose on the night street.
In the end, he avoided the fate of being tied up tightly on the condition of accompanying them, but he was anxious as if walking on thin ice.
“Huuft.”
Taking deep breaths to calm himself, Isong Baek spoke while suppressing his emotions as much as possible.
"Don't cause any trouble. Don't even exchange words, and don't make eye contact. Just accomplish your purpose and return immediately."
"Yes."
"How could we object?"
"We're sorry."
"...If only words could..."
Isong Baek pressed his pounding head.
“Tsk, tsk. Kids these days."
But Chung Myung clicked his tongue and then placed a hand on the shoulder of Isong Baek standing next to him.
"Now, now, don't make such a tearful face. We're all doing good work here. Right?"
"...Dojang."
"Geez, for a man to have such a small vessel. Don't worry. I'll make sure to strictly control things so no one causes any trouble."
Just as Chung Myung spoke big words and boasted confidently.
“Aigoo, Great Hero! I'm only telling you this, Great Hero, but a good liquor has just come into our tavern! The rare Shaoxing wine that was only available in Hangzhou, we now have three bottles! How about it? It seems like the perfect drink for heroes like you!”
"What? Really? Can we go now?"
Chung Myung stealthily moved his feet toward the soliciting waiter. Isong Baek seized his arm in a panic.
“Dojaaaaang!”
"...Can't we just buy some alcohol?"
"Stop talking nonsense!"
"Ah, that stuff really sticks to your mouth..."
“Today, at our establishment’s Go game tournament, the winner will receive a bottle of the hard-to-find High Peak Emperor's Wine (ê³ ë´‰í™©ì£¼(高峰皇酒)) from Beijing as a prize.”
"What? I can't pass that! I'm going now!"
“Ah, I told you to look straight ahead!”
"No, listen. That is really to die for, I tell you! It's because you haven't tasted it yet! I know because I've tried it, we can't miss this!"
"I understand, so turn your head forward!"
He kept smacking his lips as if it were a pity. Isong Baek rubbed his face so hard it was like he was about to tear the skin off.
‘If the Sect Leader finds out, he’ll kill me.’
No, it wouldn’t even need to go that far.
Just by it being known that he agreed to the scheme of Baek Cheon disguised as Jin Geumryong, Jin Geumryong will peel off Isong Baek's hide and use it as a doormat in front of the Ancestral Shrine.
Now that it had come to this, the only way Isong Baek could survive was to somehow quickly end this absurd situation and desperately pretend ignorance. That was the only way Isong Baek could survive.
“Is it still far?”
"Tsk. Just a moment."
Chung Myung lightly tapped his chest. Baek-ah poked his head out once again and twitched his nose.
Kii!
With a movement full of more conviction than any other time, his small paw pointed in one direction.
“He says this way.”
“You sure?”
“Man, you’re so doubtful. Just so you know, this guy is only being treated as emergency rations at Mount Hua, but in Southern Beast Palace, he was recognized as a mystical creature, alright? Even if I sold him somewhere right now, he would fetch more than a thousand gold..."
Chung Myung trailed off mid-sentence and looked down at Baek-ah.
"That's right? Come to think of it, this guy..."
Of course, a strong resistance followed.
Kiiiiiiii!
"Get a grip!"
“Are you even human, you bastard?”
"There are other things to sell, where do you sell out a comrade!"
"Who said I would actually sell him? I was just saying!"
Chung Myung smacked his lips as if it were a pity. Then he trudged his steps towards the place Baek-ah pointed to.
"Let's go. At this rate, we'll spend the night on the street."
“But Chung Myung-ah.”
"Yeah?"
Baek Cheon asked Chung Myung as if he couldn't understand.
"Usually, a pleasure district doesn't really form around a great sect, does it?"
“Usually yeah? Since they would be conscious of what others think."
"But this place seems huge?"
"Hmm, well... Maybe because it's a beggar den? It’s probably less noticeable than running a brothel next to a Taoist priest or monk.”
“Hmm. That could be true.”
Jo-Gol, who had been quietly listening, slyly added his words.
“Hey, Sasuk. Why is that strange? It's not easy for even beggars to get food from ordinary houses, so they probably get leftover food from tavern. To feed this many beggars, the taverns would naturally need to be big. It's obvious."
"...Sometimes I remember you come from a merchant family."
“Is that a compliment?”
“You can think of it that way.”
While Jo-Gol and Baek Cheon bickered, Chung Myung's eyes, which had been looking around, slightly darkened.
'Come to think of it... was this place originally like this?'
In the past, he had almost never stopped by Kaifeng. Therefore, he doesn't have any particular memory of its appearance at that time.
'But I don't think it was to this extent.'
Chung Myung scratched his head vigorously after brief contemplation.
Well, what did it matter to him whether Kaifeng's pleasure district had grown or not?
What was important is not that Kaifeng's pleasure district became larger than his memory. It was that the person he sought was right here. That was what concerned Chung Myung more.
"Somehow... it seems to get more extravagant as we go."
“...To be honest, it's a bit scary now.”
"Really scary-looking big brothers have been appearing since earlier. Aren't they actually Evil Sects people?"
Mount Hua disciples, who had earned the entire Kangho's recognition as Evil Sects crushers, shrank back at the sight of shady figures moving through back alleys. Isong Baek shook his head as if dumbfounded.
But at that moment.
Kii!
Baek-ah, who had jumped out suddenly, twitched his nose and looked up at Chung Myung.
Kii!
“Did you find it?”
Kii!
“Oh!”
Chung Myung was delighted. Though it took many detours, they'd finally found their destination of the Thousand-Li Golden Dove.
"Where is it!"
As he asked forcefully, Baek-ah without delay stretched out his front paw and pointed forward.
"Here?"
Kii!
“Right, it’s here?”
Kiiiii!
Everyone's gaze moved toward the place that small paw, filled with conviction, was pointing.
"...Uh..."
"...You're saying it's here?"
The group’s faces all distorted at once.
It was a pavilion that reached a whopping seven stories. It was so extravagant that it made the other buildings they had passed by look shabby.
"...Heavenly Ascension Tower?"
"The name is quite ordinary."
“But the appearance isn’t ordinary at all.”
Even at first glance, it was a high-class brothel that seemed like average people couldn't even set foot in.
"Uh... here?"
“Baek-ah. Is this really the right place? Something seems strange."
Kiiik!
"Huh? You're saying no?"
Baek-ah's crying was mixed with a strange annoyance. Upon hearing that this wasn’t the place, everyone felt slightly relieved. Of course, it couldn’t have been here...
But Baek-ah’s paw was raised higher.
“Huh?”
Why are your paw going up….
Tup.
What the finally stopped front paw was pointing at was none other than the highest part of Heavenly Ascension Tower. It was the top floor that looked much more splendid than the other floors.
Only silence flowed among the group.
The disciples of Hwasan, who had been silently looking back and forth between Baek-ah's front feet and the top floor of Cheon Sang-ru, finally came to their senses and opened their mouths after a long time.
"...The very top."
"Yeah, it's the very top."
“Why the top of all things?”
Baek Cheon let out an awkward laugh, wiping away the cold sweat that was beginning to drip down his face.
“It’s just a brothel no matter how splendid it is. We're not people without money anymore either, so let's go in and see..."
Baek Cheon's words did not continue until the end.
Because his eyes met with a woman in a splendid palace dress who was leaning halfway out of the brothel's open window. She gestured at them as if beckoning them to come quickly.
As soon as he saw those elegant and alluring gesture, Baek Cheon turned around to face his group. He smiled brightly and said.
“Wasn’t our goal in the first place just to figure out where the bird is going?”
“Yes, yes! We confirmed it. Confirmed!”
“Isn’t the goal accomplished? Let’s focus on that.”
"Right. Now, then let's go back. Hurry."
As everyone was about to turn around, Chung Myung reached out and grabbed Baek Cheon by his scruff.
“Where are you going?”
"Let go, you bastard! How can we enter that place? Anyone can see it's not just an ordinary brothel!"
The other disciples also resisted fiercely.
“We’ve only seen women in palace attire coming in and out! If we go in there, Sect Leader will tear us apart!”
"No matter how much we are Taoist practitioners in shell only, we have to keep the minimum principles!"
“A- Amitabha. Just burn me to death instead. I can't go! I can't go!"
“Have these guys all gone mad!”
Chung Myung kicked Hye Yeon's butt.
"Coming all this way just to turn back? Say something that makes sense!"
"Do- Dojang! But this really doesn't seem right."
"Whether it's right or not is not for you guys to decide. And why are you worrying so much? Even if we go in, it’s just the guys from Southern Edge Sect entering.”
"Huh?"
Isong Baek turned pale and shouted something, but Chung Myung paid no mind as he strode decisively toward the tower. The splendid red light leaking from that place cast itself upon Chung Myung's face.
"The top floor....”
He had thought it would at least be hidden in some building's basement, but wasn't this practically at the level of openly shouting 'come find me'?
"If they welcome us to this extent, we must certainly check. Let's go and see. Whether a ghost will show up or a monster.”
Chung Myung spoke briefly to the group.
"Let's go."
“Chu- Chung Myung....”
Baek Cheon, who couldn't bring himself to grab the striding Chung Myung, swallowed dryly and looked up at the high tower. All the blood drained from his body.
'Uh...'
We have to enter here?
"Sasuk, what do we do? This..."
“...I’m Jin Geumryong though?”
"No, have you gone crazy too?"
As everyone was stamping their feet, Chung Myung shouted again with a voice full of irritation.
“What are you waiting for? Come quickly!”
Finally resigned, Mount Hua disciples covered their faces and followed behind Chung Myung.
“...O Yuanshi Tianzun.”
“Mom. I think I’m going to faint.”
“Amitabha, Amitabha, Amitabha....”
Left alone behind them, Isong Baek murmured vacantly.
"...How did things come to this?"
The sad voice, as if his soul had departed, was pushed away by the sounds of laughter flowing from all directions and faded away.
|Note
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