Return of Mount Hua Sect - Chapter 684

“What? You don’t know?”

“….”

“No one knows?”

In life, everyone faces crises at some point.

Im Sobyong, of course, has had his fair share of difficult times. He has overcome countless minor crises and even several life-threatening ones.

However… it was a strange thing.

This situation felt at least ten times more brutal than any crisis he had ever faced before.

“Ha… hahaha…….”

Im Sobyong tried his best to laugh brightly. However, his already tense muscles failed to produce the natural laughter he wanted.

“F- For now, please calm down…”

“Calm down?”

Chung Myung’s eyes flickered. Looking at his restless energy, it seemed like something was definitely wrong.

Fundamentally, a Taoist is different from a monk.

While the purpose of Buddhism in Jungwon is to save the people, the purpose of a Taoist is to cultivate life. Therefore, while monks do not cut off their connections with people even when confined to a temple, Taoists focus on cultivating their Tao in remote mountains and valleys, ultimately aiming for transcendence.

So to put it bluntly, Taoists don’t necessarily need to have a compassionate spirit.

But is the world like that?

Even though their basic goals may be different, people tend to expect warmth and high morals from Taoists. Thus, Taoists also try to treat people with kindness as much as possible.

But….

‘What the hell is this bloodlust…’

How should he interpret this situation where bizarre bloodlust like nothing he’d ever experienced before was emanating from not even a wicked person of the Evil Faction, but a Taoist?

‘No, it’s not a matter of interpreting!’

He might end up with a Plum Blossom Sword stuck in his throat or a fist in his face before he could even finish interpreting,

“Do- Dojang, please calm down…….”

“…Calm down. Yes, calming down isn’t that difficult.”

“R- Right….”

Chung Myung fiercely narrowed his eyes, which were filled with swirling energy.

“I feel like I could calm down if I just snap the neck of that rat in front of me. Or, at least, make that smug face of yours swell up twice its size!”

“…Then please do…”

“I’m telling you to die, just die!”

Chung Myung grabbed Im Sobyong by the collar and shook him violently.

“What? No one recognizes you? Are you saying that Jang Ilso or whatever that punk is have disguise master within his eyes? Huh?”

“….”

This was unfair. Extremely unfair.

If he had gathered all the geniuses in the world and asked them to put their heads together, not a single one of them would have predicted that Jang Ilso would barge into Mount Hua.

Not being able to anticipate the actions of a sane person can be a mistake and a failure, but it’s not a crime to not anticipate the crazy actions of a madman, is it?

That’s why Im Sobyong felt justified in his own way.

However, there was one tiny problem… The person in front of him could not be reasoned with.

“That… hehe. Dojang… Sometimes, unexpected things happen in life.”

“…So?”

“Hehe. That’s what makes the world interesting…”

Wham!

Chung Myung’s fist spun Im Sobyong’s jaw neatly before he could finish his sentence.

“Aaargh!”

Im Sobyong, who had been hit hard, rolled miserably on the floor. After rolling and tumbling, he ended up in a corner and raised his head with swollen eyes.

“B- But I’m still the Nokrim King….”

“Haven’t you thought that you’re still alive since you’re the Nokrim King? Do you know what happened when I took the position out of the picture and hit you?”
“…No.”

He absolutely did not want to know. Not at all.

“Die, die! No! You shouldn’t die now, you should have died earlier! Why are you alive and causing trouble!”

“That… Dojang saved my life.”

“Right! I saved your life, now I’m taking it back! Get your head off!”

“Hiiik!”

Im Sobyong flipped over in fright and quickly crawled away. Then Chung Myung’s Dark Fragrance Plum Blossom sword flew into the place where he had been sitting a while ago and embedded itself deeply.

“A- Are you really going to kill me?”

“Is there such a thing as fake death?”

“Dojang! This is a misunderstanding!”

“Misunderstanding?”

Im Sobyong quickly added as he watched Chung Myung’s eyes flip over.

“As, as I mentioned before, Paegun Jang Ilso is no ordinary person!”

“So?”

“Even if I weren’t here, he would have definitely prepared someone else! I can assure you of this!”
“….”

“Hehe. So, this situation isn’t necessarily because of me…”

“Oh? Is that so?”

Chung Myung snickered.

“Huh?”

“What?”

Im Sobyong and Five Swords’ faces were all filled with anxiety at his snicker.

Soon after, Chung Myung swiftly pulled out the sword embedded in the ground. Five Swords, including Baek Cheon, ran toward Chung Myung without looking back.

“Chung Myung-aaaaaaahh!”

“Calm down, calm down!”

Of course, it’s praiseworthy for a member of the Righteous Faction to kill a leader of Evil Sect, but Chung Myung’s mood at the moment was not quite normal.

Sensing that a real disaster would happen if they just let him be, Baek Cheon hung onto Chung Myung’s leg, and the rest of the Five Swords desperately grabbed onto each of Chung Myung’s limbs.

“Why won’t you let go? Let me go! Ah, I’m so pissed off! I just want to smash that snout!”

But Chung Myung’s anger didn’t diminish at all. His frothing mouth and bloodshot eyes were so ferocious and terrifying that it seemed as if his neck would detach from his body to bit Im Sobyong at any moment.

“No, he’s the Nokrim King!”

“I’m doing this because he’s the Nokrim King! Didn’t you hear what I said? If that man wasn’t the Nokrim King… No, I would have killed him anyway! If he’s the Nokrim King, he should die even more!”

Yoon Jong focused on calming Chung Myung down first.

“Still, let’s calm down and talk. It’s not really the Nokrim King’s fault, is it?”

“What?”

Then Chung Myung’s head turned sharply towards Yoon Jong.

“Sahyung.”

“Y- Yes?”

“I know.”

Chung Myung loosened his body, which was full of energy and nodded.

“A guy like Jang Ilso wouldn’t miss this opportunity. As that man said, there must have been someone there to play a similar role. Whether they came willingly or were sent by Jang Ilso.”

“That’s, that’s true.”

“Moreover, Jang Ilso didn’t even know that he could recognize that man. It couldn’t be helped.”
“Yes. That’s what I’m saying!”

Of course, it was a fact that Im Sobyong caused trouble, but when considering the circumstances, there were some unfair aspects for him as well. . Examining those aspects and judging them calmly is the duty of a Taoist…

“How-E-Ver!”

Chung Myung breathed fire from his mouth.

“Circumstances or whatever the hell that is! If something pisses me off, it pisses me off!”

“….”

If I’m going to understand their circumstances, they should understand mine too! I’m considering all that, so why can’t they consider why I’m pissed off! Shouldn’t they understand my feelings too!”

Even Confucius would have applauded this logic at this point. But no matter the logic, it was enough to move the Five Swords.

“Ugh, what did I do in my past life… No, I did have committed sins, but do I really have to face this?”

Chung Myung gritted his teeth. Then, Im Sobyong, who had been watching the situation, awkwardly opened his mouth.

“Um… It’s not like you only have to be angry, Chung Myung Dojang.”

“…Huh?”

“Of course, the situation has become a bit ambiguous, but there were also good effects beyond that.”

“What good effect?”

“Hahaha!”

Seeing Chung Myung showed interest, Im Sobyong smiled triumphantly and stretched his shoulders.

“At least, thanks to Jang Ilso blabbering, everyone who came here found out that there’s some kind of relationship between Mount Hua, Heavenly Comrade Alliance, and Nokrim, right?”

“…That’s right.”

“Hehehe. So, it’s a good thing.”

He declared with both hands on his waist.

“Now we don’t have to worry about how to explain the good relationship between Heavenly Comrade Alliance and Nokrim. They’ll figure it out themselves. Since we’ve saved ourselves some trouble, we can officially make Nokrim a part of Heavenly Comrade Alliance and become brothers…”

Paaaat!

Chung Myung’s body turned into a beam of light and flew.

And none of the Five Swords had the guts to catch such him.

“Die! Die, you bastard! Just die!”

“Argh! Ahhhhh! Ahh! Somebody stop… Ahhhhhhh!”

Chung Myung’s waist, which climbed on Im Sobyong’s back, spun vigorously.

Seeing that sight after a long time, the Five Swords all smiled with satisfaction.

“He’s getting beaten well.”

“Ah, so refreshing.”

“Can I go and help him?”

“…Let’s just hold back on that.”

“Yes.”

In this world, some people deserve a beating.

* * *

“….”

Hyun Jong looked at Im Sobyong with a pale face.

The guests were all gone, and now all that was left was the Heavenly Comrade Alliance. At the suggestion of Tang Gun-ak, he invited Norkrim King and Chung Myung together.

But… Im Sobyong’s face when he entered the room was somewhat, no… it’s very strange.

“That….”

Hyun Jong tried to say something but slowly shifted his gaze toward Chung Myung instead.

When he saw Chung Myung’s face clearly delivering the meaning, ‘I did beat him, but I only beat him because he deserved it, and if he weren’t the Nokrim King, I would have hit him much harder!’, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything.

‘But he’s still the Nokrim King…..’

No, but on second thought, it was rather a good thing.

No one would believe it if they said that their disciple got angry and beat the Nokrim King, turning his face into a swollen dumpling.

Yes, it’s rather fortunate…..

“Ahem.”

Hyun Jong cleared his throat and quickly averted his eyes.

But unfortunately, his gaze landed on Tang Gun-ak, who was trying to suppress his laughter with a flushed face, so he quickly looked away.

“Um… well, yes.”

Naturally. Naturally. As if he hadn’t seen anything.

“It’s fortunate that the event was concluded without any major problems.”

At Hyun Jong’s calm words, Maeng So couldn’t help but speak.

“…It looks like the Nokrim King took quite a beating. A lot.”

“Anyway, without any major problems, it is.”

“….”

The world famous Maeng So lost what to say and looked back and forth at Chung Myung and Im Sobyong.

“Well… it seems that the standards for problems in Jungwon are a bit different from mine.”

“I think so, too.”

Listening to the conversations of the leader of Outer Clan, Im Sobyong just silently wiped the corner of his eye.

“Are you crying?”

“…No.”

“Right. Since you’re not crying, it can’t be that sad. Go on. For I will tell you what true sadness is.”

“….”

With Chung Myung’s mettle, all the leaders turned their heads away.

“Ahem.”

Hyun Jong, once again, cleared his throat and skillfully changed the subject. Now was the time to say something else for the sake of Im Sobyong, who was in tatters.

“The reason we gathered everyone here is to discuss future matters. I’d appreciate it if you could speak frankly.”

Hearing that, Tang Gun-ak nodded his head. His laughter subsided as if nothing had happened, and his face returned to its usual seriousness.

“It’s a good thing that the event concluded without any major accidents. You all must have had a hard time.”

“Our disciples were the ones who had a hard time. What hardships did we go through?”

“That’s true, too.”

Tang Gun-ak smiled at Maeng So’s blunt speech.

“We may have declared the founding to the people gathered here, but in effect, we have declared Heavenly Comrade Alliance’s founding to the whole world. They will begin to share what they saw and heard with the world.”

“Hmm.”

Everyone nodded at his words.

“It’s a good thing that the purpose of Heavenly Comrade Alliance’s founding was properly conveyed. However…”

Tang Gun-ak’s eyes narrowed slightly. Everyone could guess his next words from his increasingly sharp gaze.

“We can’t help but discuss Myriad Man Manor and Jang Ilso.”

As Jang Ilso’s name was mentioned, tension began to fill the room.