Return of Mount Hua Sect - Chapter 489
“Thank you very much.”
“How can I repay this favor….?”
Yoon Jong blushed as he saw people continuing to express their gratitude.
“I’m embarrassed if you keep doing this. What we did are just…….”
“No, it’s not.”
Someone in the front grabbed Yoon Jong’s hand and sobbed.
“This little break and warm food may be nothing to some, but for us, there is nothing more to be grateful for.”
Yoon Jong let out a soft sigh.
The hand that snatched him was too strong. His heart ached because his hands had become as hard as tree bark from the long labor.
“Thank you so much…… Cough! Cough!”
The one who was expressing gratitude covered his mouth and suddenly coughed loudly.
“… I’m sorry. It’s been a while since something warm went in.…. Cough!”
“Are you all right?”
“Yes……. We’re fine.”
Yoon Jong frowned slightly at him with a worried face.
‘They’ve been badly affected by the yin energy.’
Even if you are a healthy martial artist, you will eventually get sick if you are constantly exposed to this environment. Then just how much hardship have they faced with their sealed Dantian?
“Have some warm drinks and relax today.”
“Thank you so much…….”
Yoon Jong sighed as he watched the man return to his seat with his head bowed.
Then he heard Jo-Gol’s voice.
“Sahyung.”
“Hm?”
“Chung Myung wants me to call Sahyung.”
“Why all of a sudden?”
“Well, who knows what’s inside his mind?”
Yoon Jong nodded without realizing it.
In fact, they have been with Chung Myung for quite some time, but it was still hard to predict what Chung Myung would do. By the time they arrived, who knew that Chung Myung would try to give the prisoners alcohol and food?
“Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
The two headed for one of the caves pierced here and there in the valley. The entrance looked a little cramped, but they found a wider space when they went inside than expected.
It didn’t look like a space suitable for people to live in, but it was definitely better than the middle of a valley as long as the cold wind didn’t blow.
Inside, Mount Hua’s disciples were already sitting around Chung Myung, and several prisoners were seen in front of him.
“Sit down.”
“What’s going on?”
“I’d like to talk to you.”
At Chung Myung’s words, Yoon Jong tilted his head and sat down without further questions. It was not polite for them to talk among themselves for a long time while others were in front of them.
“First…….”
As soon as Yoon Jong sat down, the old man sitting across from Chung Myung bowed and opened his mouth.
“Thank you again for the Saviour’s grace.”
Surprised Yoon Jong tried to dissuade him, but Chung Myung was a little faster than him.
“If you are grateful, I hope you will remove the useless courtesy. We are busy people.”
“I see.”
The old man looked at Chung Myung quietly and opened his mouth.
“Are the Savior from Jungwon?”
“Yes, we’re from the Mount Hua Sect.”
“Mount Hua. Mount Hua…….”
The old man frowned, trying to remember something. However, the name Mount Hua did not seem to exist in his mind.
Although Mount Hua’s reputation began to spread in the North Sea now, the name was still unfamiliar to those who had already been imprisoned and worked here for several years.
At that time, Mount Hua had lost its reputation and had fallen.
Baek Cheon helped such an old man.
“It’s a not-so-famous sect, so don’t worry… … .”
“What? Mount Hua’s not famous?”
That if Chung Myung hadn’t cut off his word. Baek Cheon looked back at Chung Myung with a sour face.
“… Mount Hua was only famous a long time ago.”
“I know.”
“Then why?”
“It just makes me annoyed when I hear things like that.”
“…….”
Baek Cheon’s cheeks twitched faintly with irritation.
‘I feel like I don’t know this bastard even after I know him.’
No, he didn’t know before, and he doesn’t even know now, too.
“Anyway, if you don’t know Mount Hua Sect, remember it from now on. You will hear a lot about it in the future.”
“… I’ll keep that in mind. But…….”
The old man smiled bitterly.
“I don’t know how long we will be hearing outside news here.”
Mount Hua’s disciples glared at Chung Myung in unison.
But…….
“So why did you commit a sin?”
“…….”
It was futile to ask Chung Myung to read the air.
The old man shakes his head when the word ‘sin’ comes out.
“We are sinners, but we have never sinned.”
“…….”
“If it is a sin to defend the Clan Leader against the rebellion, there is nothing we can do about it. But how could that be a sin?”
Baek Cheon nodded with a heavy face.
‘As expected.’
At first glance, it seems that these were the subordinates of the former Clan Leader.
Perhaps they rebelled against Seol Chonsang, the current Clan Leader, and were subdued and brought here.
“You’re a sinner, but also not one…….”
Chung Myung scratched his cheek as he murmured and asked.
“How many people are here right now?”
“A hundred or so.”
The old man added words that he didn’t have to.
“It was more than double at first.”
It meant that that many people has died here. Baek Cheon frowned at the situation which was more serious than expected.
“Isn’t that too much….?”
But before he could say anything more, Chung Myung took the lead.
“But why are you telling us that?”
“…….”
“Are you asking for help? You want me to get you out of here?”
The old man shook his head calmly.
“That’s impossible.”
“Why?”
There was a bitter smile hanging around his wrinkled lips.
“To tell that story, I should introduce myself first. My name is Yosa Hon (여사혼(汝思混)). In the past, I served the former Clan Leader as the Great Elder (대장로) of the North Sea Ice Clan.”
“What?”
Baek Cheon looked at the old man again in surprise.
This shabby old man was the Great Elder of the Ice Clan?
Although there may be slight differences in each sect, the title of Great Elder refers to someone who does not exceed at least a fifth in the rank of a sect.
In Mount Hua’s case, Hyun Sang becomes the Great Elder. The oldest among the Elders is Hyun Sang.
But even a person with such a high status becomes a prisoner and is persecuted by the guards… … .
“It’s a thing of the past.”
The voice was calm, but Yosa Hon’s face was filled with indescribable remorse.
“And everyone here was a warrior in the Ice Clan. However, they sealed us so we couldn’t use our internal strength.”
Yosa Hon shakes his head.
“If it’s an ordinary prohibition method, it’ll only take time to solve it, but the people who put sealing us are none other than…….”
“Magyo?”
Yosa Hon, who stopped talking, opened his eyes wide.
“Did you know?”
“Well, it’s not much of a secret.”
When Chung Myung shrugged, Yosa Hon nodded.
“Yes, it’s them. Their martial arts system is different from ours. I’ve been trying to get rid of the seal for years, but I’ve never been able to.”
“Ugh.”
Baek Cheon groaned with a stiff heart.
“We, who cannot use our inner strength, are nothing but burdens. It’s not something you can even try.”
“Then what do you want?”
Yosa Hon said, looking at Chung Myung with a stiff face.
“… … Please tell them the situation here.”
“Yes?”
“Please inform Jungwon that there are North Sea people who are being persecuted here. So they can help us.”
Chung Myung, who was staring blankly at him for a moment, leaked a sound like a deflating wind.
“……What does that mean?”
“The current Clan Leader is a demon.”
Yosa Hon’s hands shook in a mess.
“He put a wall in the Ice Clan. In the past, the Ice Clan was not a place to divide the North Sea people by encircling the walls. It was a place that was cared for by and for the vast entire North Sea. But now the Clan Leader accepts only those who follow him into the walls and ostracizes those who are outside the walls.”
Baek Cheon hardened his face as he recalled the scenery he had seen on his way.
“That high wall…….’
He didn’t know it was for that purpose.
“He gives his followers a comfortable life, and those who do not follow them are severely exploited, and even he let them fall into the hands of that Magyo. All the rebels are brought here and die after harsh labor. How can such a man be the Leader of the Ice Clan?”
Chung Myung nodded.
“It’s a little too much.”
“Yes. So please let them know. The situation of this North Sea to Jungwon! Shaolin or Wudang, anywhere is fine. As long as they can help us.”
At his last words, Chung Myung stopped smirking.
“I see one thing.”
“…Yes?”
“Why did you lose?” (“당신들이 왜 졌는지.”)
Yosa Hon’s narrowed eyes were wide open.
“What difference do you think it will make if we notify Jungwon?”
“I heard that Jungwon is full of Righteousness! No, even if they didn’t have Righteousness, the people of Jungwon who fought the big war with the Magyo will not just sit still when they know that the Magyo is here.”
“Do you really think so?”
“…….”
“Do you think Jungwon doesn’t know what’s happening here? Are you sure?”
A smirk appeared around Chung Myung’s mouth. Yosa Hon ended up in silence.
And Chung Myung didn’t push him any further. A drowning man catches even a straw. W He knew the feeling of wanting to do something when he was in a situation where he couldn’t help it.
But straws are just straws.
“Jungwon does not help the North Sea.”
“…….”
“They’re not so great as to reach out for nothing.”
Yosa Hon bit his lips and lowered his gaze.
“Do you know why they went up to the cliff without hesitation? Even though they know you can say this to us?”
“…….”
“Because they know there’s nothing we can do when we hear that.”
Yosa Hon already knew all about that.
He had no choice but to put his last hope on it even though he knew it. Yosa Hon was devastated to hear from others that it was nothing more than a straw. No, that was not enough.
“Jungwon has no reason to help the Ice Clan. There’s no reason to risk their lives to protect the Ice Clan. Even if everyone discovers that there is Magyo here, no one would want to step up first.”
Because he has already seen it once.
What happened to the sect that tried to protect Jungwon before others.
The price of such foolish act.
There’s no way those who had seen that past would risk their own life to protect others.
Chung Myung said quietly, revealing his teeth.
“Keep this in mind.”
“…….”
At the sudden force of his bizarre atmosphere, Yosa Hon flinched and shut up.
Even Mount Hua’s disciples grasped the thigh under pressure.
“No one is protecting you. No one fights for you. If you want to protect it, you must grab it with your own hands, and if you have to fight, you must shed your own blood.”
“… Sohyup.”
“If you can’t do that, nothing will change.”
Yosa Hon, who looked at Chung Myung and bewildered, dropped his head weakly.
“… But… What can we do?”
It was a voice full of despair.
“We are just half-assed people who can’t use our internal strength. And the disciples of the Ice Clan will no longer try to help us. It’s already in the hands of the Clan Leader.”
Chung Myung clicked his tongue.
“Even if you can’t use your body, you have eyes and ears.”
“…Yes?”
“There is no way that the Magyo would have waited calmly for the Ice Crystals to be moved to the Ice Clan due to their impatient temperament, and they must have received the Ice Crystals here, right?”
“…Exactly.”
‘As expected.’
Chung Myung asked quickly, crumpling his face slightly.
“Have you heard anything? Where is the objective for their Ice Crystals, like the use?”
Yosa Hon tilted his head and traced his memory carefully.
“Ice Crystal…. I don’t know. I have never heard of such a thing.”
Chung Myung’s shoulders relaxed. A sigh burst out automatically.
‘Is it a waste?’
‘I hope I can get some clues… …’
“Tha- That.”
It was then.
Until now, the man who had been sitting behind Yosa Hon and watching the situation raised his hand.
“I don’t know if it’s related, but I’ve heard something similar…….”
“Similar words?”
“Yes, but it’s so absurd that I don’t know if it’s really relevant…….”
Chung Myung nodded quickly.
“Just tell me. Anything is fine.”
“Yes. That… I was assigned to carry the Ice Crystals, and I overheard the demon cultists talking, and they must have said something like this at that time.”
“What is it?”
The man swallowed dry saliva and slowly opened his mouth.
“This brings the Second Coming of Heavenly Demon even closer. At this rate, Heavenly Demon will be back in the world a month later.”
Chung Myung was speechless.
He just stared at her man without moving.
No, in fact, he only looked like that because he did not move in the position of looking at the man, but Chung Myung was hardened as if he were standing in a stopped time.
“……Chung Myung-ah?”
Baek Cheon carefully called Chung Myung.
At that moment.
“……?”
“What?”
“Heavenly Demon is back?”
Chung Myung’s face is distorted. The strangely twisted mouth appeared to be smiling. The word’ Demon of Hell’ was not enough to describe his face.
A terrible killing intent that they had never felt before began to come out of Chung Myung’s whole body.