Return of the Mount Hua Sect

“Life is…”

Chung Myung extended his hand into the wind that was blowing past and grabbed the cold bottle of alcohol.

He gulped down his drink and slightly turned his head to look at the snacks beside him. A smile came to his lips as he looked at the duck which Hyun Young had brought.

Furthermore…

“You don’t seem to understand now. Your legs, your legs can be seen!”

“If you have the strength to curse, then draw the cart more! More!”

“How dare you open your eyes that wide? Squeeze out everything!”

“…”

With Baek Cheon in the lead, Baek Sang, Yoon Jong, and Jo Gul were making the disciples of Mount Hua work. They were holding their swords in one hand and screaming at them… just looking at them is… uh…

After thinking for a moment, Chung Myung smiled.

‘What good will them knowing that bring?’

It worked because their efficiency was good.

Well.

If the upper and lower water were clear, the beautiful system that automatically pulled up the bottom would run smoothly.

Uh?

Isn’t this what was normally done…?

To others!

Chung Myung looked at the sky. Baek Ah wriggled for a moment pressing her head close to his, but now she slowly calmed down.

‘We managed to come this far.’

Looking back, it was quite a difficult time. It took just a year of travel after he was reborn as a beggar to return to Mount Hua.

He led his disobedient young sahyungs and sasuks. He convinced his elders and Sect Leader, who doubted him, with a righteous cause.

After a long battle and difficult times, they had finally come this far.

“Kuak. This is a human-like victory, a human victory. Isn’t that right, my Sect Leader Sahyung?”

-It took a long time.

“You are, seriously…”

Chung Myung gritted his teeth.

Ah, then you do it yourself!

Because I am here, we got here so quickly. If Sect Leader Sahyung were here, then maybe we would be playing GO now!

“Tch, what good will come from telling you.”

Chung Myung, who had been gulping down his drink, touched his stomach and looked at Mount Hua with a calm expression.

Looking at the others practicing on their own and the older ones who had begun to handle their own taste, this seemed like a sect now.

When he thought of the first time he had climbed Mount Hua, the saying ‘mulberry fields become the sea and seas become the mulberry fields’ was correct.

But…

“Still so far.”

That is right, it is just the sect had fallen into the line for now.

The people of the world praised Mount Hua for winning over everyone, but that was just an evaluation full of selfishness. It was meant to emphasize the fact that Mount Hua, wearing the mast of the Justice Faction, had disgraced people from the Evil Faction.

Mount Hua had only done the part where they repulsed the Ten Thousand People Clan. To put it bluntly, that was the limit for Mount Hua.

“We still need to get stronger.”

Even if Mount Hua’s skills with steel were good enough, the use of their new swords would only improve their odds by 30%. It was only to the extent of a small acorn growing a little larger.

Still, compared to the past Mount Hua, this was not nothing.

“Those acorns need some more time to get stronger….”

The problem was that the world would not wait for them. If they could spend as much time as they wanted, what problems would this world have?

“The Heavenly Friends Alliance isn’t enough.”

It was still embarrassing to refer to it as an alliance because the Beast Palace, Sichuan Tang, and Mount Hua were the only members.

Compared to the Nine Great Sects One Union, where the best sects of the world gathered, or the Five Great Families, the Heavenly Friends Alliance fell short.

“It sounds like we need to get more sects to join after all.”

Chung Myung scratched his head.

If quality was lacking, then there was no choice but to make up for it with quantity. The same went for martial sects. If the skills of the Mount Hua disciples didn’t improve, getting more disciples would be one way to increase their strength.

Receiving Myung disciples under the Chung disciples would be one way, and accepting other disciples from the sub-sect as main sect disciples would be another way.

But just one thing…

“… it would be nice if we had more time.”

Roughly, somehow, they had enough cold steel swords to give all the disciples. However, he wanted to make those swords the symbolic plum blossoms swords for the disciples who would come to train here.

However, it would be unreasonable to make swords with large amounts of cold steel mixed in for all the disciples of the main sect once it started to grow. Yet, he wanted to give them all swords, proudly saying, ‘I gave cold steel!’…

“Ugh, why is cold steel so rare!”

Chung Myung pulled out some beef jerky and chewed on it, recalling the talks he had with Tang Gunak.

-But cold steel isn’t the end. Does it make sense for the other steel weapons to get cut down because of one metal like that?

-When did cold steel vanish, then?

-About a hundred years ago?

-Do you know where the cold steel comes from?

-From the ground.

-… it is also called millennium steel. It is made when some metal of good quality has been subjected to extreme yin qi for years, and as a result, its nature changed. Where would such a thing come to pass?

-The North Sea?

-Right. This metal is the specialty of the North Sea’s ice arts. However, trade between our land and theirs was cut off during the last great war.

-…

-That is why we don’t get more.

“Ugh.”

Chung Myung washed his face.

“I should have buried all those fucking officers back then!”

The war had ended long ago, but its effects were still too clear to Chung Myung now. If he could go back to the past, he would snap all of their necks!

“Eh. If we don’t have it, we don’t have it!”

Going all the way to the North Sea to get something like this wasn’t right. Chung Myung shook his head and reached for his bottle.

Huh?

However, no matter how much he went to grasp, he couldn’t grab it.

Where was his bottle…

“Wow! This is a surprise!”

Chung Myung, startled, twitched. Yu Yiseol, who had risen to the top of the peak, took the bottle and stared at him.

“What! What! Why are you going around acting like a ghost?! Making people fall!”

“No Alcohol.”

“Why?”

“Elder Hyun Young is looking for you. He has a task.”

“Eh?”

Chung Myung tilted his head at the sudden news.

“Why so suddenly?”

And he jumped down.

“…no?”

With a shy face, Hwang Jongi nodded his head in response to Chung Myung’s bewildered look.

“… it is like that.”

“But why?”

“It has dried up.”

Uh…

Where did he hear about this?

Chung Myung scratched his head,

“No, you surely said last time that you could get Purple Grass.”

“At that time, we were sure.”

Hwang Jongi sighed like he was frustrated.

“But Disciple, as you know, the supply of goods varies from time to time. That is why the price changes.”

“We can pay any amount! Mount Hua is rich now!” said Chung Myung, pushing his belly out. But Hwang Jongi only had a bitter smile.

“I know. Why wouldn’t I know the wealth of Mount Hua? The problem is, I would try to find it if I could, but right now, I don’t have a thing on me.”

“…”

“Sorry, Disciple.”

“W-Wait.”

Cung Myung’s eyes trembled.

“Why are the Ice Crystals, which were overflowing, suddenly vanishing?”

“… they never were overflowing. It was just to the extent that getting them with a lot of money wasn’t an issue.”

“Anyway, I get it.”

Hwang Jongi scratched his head to apologize.

“As you know, the Ice Crystals are from the North Sea. And they are only found there. In the meantime, it is said that trade between the North Sea and the Central Plains has been banned, but things have been secretly circulating. If the barren North Sea wants to make a living, they have no choice but to sell goods to us.”

“Right.”

Even if cold steel wasn’t sold, they could get Ice Crystals. So they got the crystals. Wasn’t the pill made from Ice Crystals?

“I don’t know if you have heard, but the atmosphere around the North Sea has been odd recently. Perhaps that is why they seemed to have closed their doors to our people.”

“…”

He had heard about this from Shaolin.

“And the people from the North Sea aren’t coming out from there. As a result, we are in a situation where trade has been cut off without even knowing why.”

“Yes.”

Hwang Jongi nodded.

“Unless the North Sea Ice Palace allows for the entry and exit of our people, we cannot provide any more items.”

“…”

Chung Myung stared blankly into space.

“… No… so you cannot do it?”

He had decided to give the pill to the Green Forest King. The problem was that not a single one was left on Mount Hua now.

Even if the last remaining pills weren’t eaten, if any were still left, only a little of its effect would remain.

The reason why he wasn’t worried, though, was because of the alliance.

He thought that with them, he could get any number of Ice Crystals and Purple Grass.

But…

“We are doomed if it is like this?”

Chung Myung’s eyes shuddered.

The Green Forest King?

No, right now, Im So-Byung was so important!

No, be it that man or not, if Ice Crystals were no longer being sold, there was no other way to create the pill. How much had Chung Myung struggled to get that recipe?

But he could only use it once?

“What nonsense is this?!”

NO!

My PILL!

Hyun Young, who was listening to him, asked,

“Then, is this the only way?”

“Yes, Elder. I am sorry, but our merchants aren’t able to do much here. No merchant can bring us Ice Crystals. Just in case, I am checking to see if there are those who bought Ice Crystals and are willing to resell them…”

Iif we start collecting it like that, we will not get an answer.“

“Right, and the price would skyrocket way too much with resale.”

“Fucking hoarders!”

Chung Myung frowned.

“Well, there is no way then. If the North Sea won’t come out, and we cannot move as a person from the Central Plains, just being able to see into the North Sea should be enough.”

“Right.”

A disciple from Shaolin’s sub-sect had come back as a corpse while investigating the North Sea. What could he say then?

At that time…

Baek Cheon, who was listening to this conversation, said,

“But you can go.”

“Uh?”

“Did you forget? Didn’t he say so, the Lord of the Beast Palace told the other palaces about us?”

“…”

Hearing this for the first time, Hyun Young looked at Chung Myung with a surprised face and asked,

“Is that true?”

“Uh… I did hear that…”

Yoon Jong looked at the ceiling with sad eyes,

“As expected… we go again.”

Jo Gul held his head.

“It will be winter soon! If we go to the North Sea now, our bones will get cold.”

But Baek Cheon shook his head,

“Isn’t this something special? This is how things have turned out.”

And the two people in despair nodded their heads and accepted their fate.

But…

There was one who had a different opinion.

“I am against it.”

Everyone turned their heads to one place.

Hyun Jong was shaking his head.

“This job is risky for you.”

“But Yunnan…”

“This is different from that. Yunnan and North Sea aren’t the same.”

This was a natural reaction though. Hyun Jong had said similar words to the Abbot of Shaolin too.

‘The Demonic Sect.’

It was not definite yet, but the Demonic Sect, or a corpse they had tampered with, had been transported from the North Sea to Shaolin. This meant there was a high chance that the North Sea was entangled with the Demonic Sect.

“Of course, making the pill is important for us. But you should take your life seriously too.”

Hyun Jong spoke firmly.

“As Sect Leader of Mount Hua, I will not allow you to go there.”

It was a stern voice, no one spoke back, and silence soon fell.

But then…

“S-Sect Leader!”

Someone knocked on his door, and Hyun Jong frowned.

“What is it?”

“I-I think you should come and see! At the gate!”

“Um?”

In fact, everyone thought this was some serious happening and jumped up.

‘An enemy?’

‘An intruder?’

Maybe it was because they had suffered massive damage during the Ten Thousand People Clan’s raid, but the disciples and Chung Myung ran out.

It wasn’t long before they arrived, and the people standing at the front gate came into sight.

“Uh…”

Everyone stood still and bowed their heads in shock.

“That…”

Chung Myung narrowed his eyes.

The yellow clothes. The shiny head shining in the sunlight.

Chung Myung stared at the person who was there and groaned,

“… why is that person here?”

“R-R-Right?”

Everyone just stared at them, blank faced. Noticing the crowd, the person smiled,

“It has been a while, Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon.”

It was the Abbot of Shaolin, who greeted them with a smile.