Return of The Mount Hua – Chapter 1756. Because I made it that way (1)
Editor: Hoamzz
Co-Translator: Xoxo
An ominous dark red glow emanated faintly from within the darkness.
He could feel it up above.
Though very faint, the scent he was searching for was wafting down.
A flash of triumph flickered in those crimson eyes, but it quickly settled back into a cautious stillness. His tongue came out between slightly parted lips and confirmed the tightly wound bandages.
Seureureuk.
The Blood Cult Leader's body melted into darkness.
This mountain was teeming with enemies. From their perspective, it would be no exaggeration to call it a death zone or perhaps the gates of hell.
However, as the Blood Cult Leader seeped into the thick darkness blanketing the entire mountain, there was not a shred of hesitation or reluctance in his movements.
Seuseut.
His gaze, slowly scanning the pitch-black mountain, soon fixed on one spot.
A mountain peak.
Nothing particularly special. Neither the highest, nor the sharpest, nor the most secluded. Just an ordinary peak, no different from the countless others rising everywhere.
However, the Blood Cult Leader's gaze was fixed only on that place.
"...There it is."
The Blood Cult Leader's mouth covered in bandages slowly twisted.
His body completely absorbed in darkness began to move secretly like wind climbing the mountain. Toward a clear target.
Kwadeudeudeuk.
A bone-chilling sound echoed from his bandage-wrapped hands. No matter how cold he tried to become, he was still a demon. His body, steeped in demonic nature, felt its blood boil at the mere thought of the word ‘murder’.
But at some point, the Blood Cult Leader's steps came to an abrupt halt.
His body, which had been submerged in the night, slowly began to reveal itself. Though the stealth technique (마인(魔人)) that had been hiding his body was already unraveling, he didn't even realize that fact.
A shock far greater than his killing intent enveloped his entire being.
His blood-red eyes trembled slightly.
'This is...'
His instinct was warning him.
If he went further, he would die.
It was hard to comprehend with reason or logic. The instinct that had saved him countless times until now was screaming as if tearing itself apart.
Simultaneously, eerie killing intent pierced his skin. The Blood Cult Leader, who had been about to instinctively raise his hands and assume an attack stance, soon shook his head.
'No. Not yet.'
He hadn't been discovered yet. Even if his presence was detected, his exact location probably wasn't known.
But the moment he takes even one more step, it will change. The one emitting such dreadful energy will immediately notice.
The Blood Cult Leader cast a dark, sunken gaze down at his own feet.
One inch... no, barely half an inch.
That alone was enough to make his presence known to the enemy. Perhaps that way was a faster method to achieve the sea of blood and mountain of corpses he had longed for.
However, the Blood Cult Leader quickly shook off that thought.
‘Surely not.’
Paegun wasn't so easy. With what he had already done, he couldn't even guarantee his own future.
The Blood Cult Leader slowly withdrew his outstretched foot.
If he let greed take over, his head would be rolling on the ground. From the start, the enemy was spreading such tremendous energy in all directions to detect intrusion. And the Blood Cult Leader didn't even understand how this was possible.
If he tried to imitate it clumsily, he would collapse from exhaustion before even a moment passed. Even just sensing about half the range of the area covered by the opponent’s spread energy would do that.
But doing this all night long?
'They're not human.'
This wasn't something possible simply by being ‘strong’.
Even with the same amount of internal strength, the capability differs as much as heaven and earth depending on how it was utilized. In that sense, the ability of the one displaying this net of energy must be said to far surpass common sense.
Among the enemies, the one capable of such a feat...
Udeudeuk.
The Blood Cult Leader gritted his teeth for a moment and turned away without hesitation.
An opportunity would surely come again. It was impossible to keep this up throughout the entire war. In other words, there was no need to feel a sense of humiliation just for withdrawing for a moment.
‘But...’
The Blood Cult Leader’s gaze drifted back once more.
This energy made his skin crawl and grated on his nerves. Yet, at the same time, a massive sense of dissonance struck him.
'Is this really the energy of a Righteous Sects bastard?'
If it belonged to one of those Righteous Sects hypocrites, what was this stickiness and gloom? This was almost like...
The Blood Cult Leader's gaze grew even darker.
After staring intently ahead, he once again melted into the darkness without a trace.
* * *
Chung Myung, who had his face buried in his knees, slowly raised his head and blankly stared somewhere down the mountain.
His gaze seemed empty, but even without focus, he was clearly looking at something.
Should he go?
He considered it briefly but then decided against it. He had experienced to the point of disgust in past wars tactics where they deliberately drew attention to lure Chung Myung out while another group aimed for allies' necks as a diversion.
It was better to keep his position here.
He lowered his head again and rested his cheek against his knee.
There was a time when he took nights like this for granted. Even after everyone else had fallen asleep, he couldn't rest for a single moment. It was a long, long sleepless night.
Back then, he was sick and tired of everything. He felt disillusioned protecting those he didn't even know why he should protect, those who didn't know what gratitude was.
Nevertheless, Chung Myung protected everyone while gnawing away at his own soul.
Simply because he hated seeing the face of Cheon Mun the next morning, swallowing his bitter resentment with a mournful expression. For that reason alone.
But what about now?
Everyone had reasons to be protected. Everyone knew gratitude.
Yet, whether that lessens the burden Chung Myung feels….
A ‘kek’ laugh leaked from Chung Myung's mouth.
He was sick and tired of it.
That something he started to take a different path ends up leading to the same conclusion. That struggling for a different outcome only drags him into even deeper mire.
No. That wasn't it.
These foul thoughts (부정(不正)) eroding his mind now were nothing but the demon (마(魔)) that had consumed his heart and was tempting him. There wasn't the slightest reason to be sick of the task of protecting his sahyungs.
The moon was casting a light so pale it felt chilling. Chung Myung stared blankly at the sight and thought.
He felt like he was going mad. No, perhaps he was already mad.
'Damn it.'
It was a terrible Heart Demon (심마(心魔)).
He had overcome such a Heart Demon countless times before. Heart Demons were like gatekeepers at the threshold of new realms. They were like solid iron gates that must be opened to advance, or towering cliffs that must be scaled.
But this... this time was somehow different.
A terrible demon even Chung Myung, who had overcome countless Heart Demons and risen to a realm difficult for a person to climb higher, had never experienced.
Inherently, a Heart Demon gnaws at the human heart. The higher the realm, the deeper the pursuit, the more fiercely the Heart Demon tempts a person.
Knowing this, the reason Chung Myung was now in such confusion...
‘What is the reason?’
Because a Heart Demon shouldn't have come to him yet.
His realm hadn't yet reached that of the past Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign. Although he had recently revived most of his past sensations through various ordeals, coldly speaking, he had not yet surpassed the peak of his previous life.
So why had such a demon, one not even experienced in his past life, come to him?
No, was this even a Heart Demon to begin with?
‘Since when?’
From when he confronted Jang Ilso? Or before that, from when heading to Wudang? Or from when witnessing the horror in Hubei?
No, even that didn't matter. What mattered was why he was suffering from this Heart Demon. There must be a proper reason for everything in this world. Unless Chung Myung’s martial prowess had increased, there must be another reason.
Chung Myung gazed down at his hand. It was still trembling finely.
As if his body were terrified of something his mind didn't yet know, his flesh was betraying his will. Chung Myung let out a hollow laugh and weakly rested his forehead against his knees.
'I just have to overcome it.'
He would. He had to.
But if he couldn't, what would happen?
He suddenly wondered.
When overcoming heart demons and achieving complete Goodness (선(善) to sever attachment to the world, Buddhist practitioners become Buddhas and Taoists become immortals. And those who didn't particularly seek that path are called Deity (신령(神靈)) and remain in the world.
But what about those who don't overcome them?
What happens to one who achieves everything possible as a human but doesn't overcome the final Heart Demon? Those whose realm was so high that they cannot even die, and instead embrace the demon... No, what happens to a human who becomes one with the demon (마(魔)) itself?
The moment his thoughts reached this point, his body began to tremble noticeably like aspen leaves.
'I...'
He thought he knew. No, he didn't know. No. He knew. No, he absolutely didn't know. He didn't.
It was a path he understood yet must not understand, and even if he could guess, he must never glimpse. To Chung Myung, this was the thing closest to pure terror.
But... If that were to happen. If, in the end, that came to pass...
Seureureuk.
Chung Myung, still curled up, flinched at the sudden presence behind him.
He hadn't noticed until they were so close.
It was only natural. Up until now, he had focused all his senses on tracking the traces of the ‘unfamiliar’ intruder. Therefore, he rather couldn't detect the movements of familiar people even at close range.
"...Is that you, Sahyung?"
Chung Myung raised his deeply lowered head and slowly turned around.
"What are you doing in a place like this?"
Tang Soso was looking at him with slightly surprised eyes.
Chung Myung opened his mouth to answer but soon closed it again. He didn't want to let her hear his voice cracked and hoarse to pieces.
“...Are you alright, Sahyung?”
He couldn't keep ignoring her, so he finally forced himself to speak.
"I should be asking you that."
Fortunately, a somewhat normal voice came out.
“What are you doing?”
"I..."
Tang Soso hesitated for a moment before answering. Chung Myung unconsciously let out a short sigh. He didn't need to hear it to know. No doubt she was wandering around looking for traces of Baek Cheon. Since she couldn’t do it openly in front of others, she must have waited until everyone fell asleep.
"...Stop wasting your time and rest."
"What about Sahyung... What are you doing? Do you also think Sasuk is still nearby?"
“...”
"Then why?"
Tang Soso’s last words were close to resentment.
If he wanted to find him, he could. Chung Myung could find Baek Cheon whenever he wished. He didn't even need his abilities. Just by setting Baek-ah loose, he could locate Baek Cheon within half a day.
So why wasn't he looking? That was what she meant.
Chung Myung had no answer to give back to these resentful words.
No, the question itself was wrong to begin with. Chung Myung didn't need to look for Baek Cheon. Because he already knew where he was.
Just… Chung Myung wanted to ask again.
After finding him? After finding him, what could he do?
Should he bind him and force him to eternally live a life he didn't want? Or should he allow him to die miserably on the battlefield as the man wishes?
Which of these was the answer, and which was justice?
Chung Myung stood up from his seat.
He couldn't afford to drain his energy through a conversation with Tang Soso right now. Being who she was, she would soon notice the abnormalities in his body. He wanted to escape this uncomfortable encounter as quickly as possible.
Chung Myung walked past Tang Soso indifferently and headed toward the dense forest.
“Get some rest.”
"Sahyung."
Chung Myung paused briefly at the voice calling from behind.
“Why did things turn out like this?”
“...”
“I don't think this was what we hoped for.”
A bitter question flew at him. Chung Myung glanced back at Tang Soso expressionlessly. Deep shadows cast over his face half-revealed in moonlight.
After a moment, Chung Myung muttered something. After staring at Tang Soso for a long while, he quietly disappeared.
Tang Soso stared at Chung Myung's retreating back with worried eyes.
The voice he had just let flow like a murmur wouldn't leave her ears and kept lingering.
- Because I made it that way.
"Sahyung..."
Tang Soso's large eyes trembled like a shipwrecked boat.
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