Episode 651

“Is everything packed?”

“Did you check the place?”

“Why does the baggage seem heavier now?”

“Who is the bastard who drank here? Turn yourself in, and I will only give you half a beating!”

The disciples of Mount Hua were bustling around, preparing to depart.

Hyun Young watched them with a happy smile.

‘They handle it all by themselves now.’

In the past, when it came to packing, he had to step in and give them instructions for everything. But now, even if he doesn’t do anything, the disciples move quickly and manage on their own.

‘It’s a good thing they are changing.’

Others might consider the victory of the disciples’ increased skills or the creation of a better environment for them to focus on their training as the greatest achievement. Still, in Hyun Young’s opinion, the greatest achievement of this journey was that the disciples could now think for themselves.

A sect that operated smoothly under the direction of one person was surely good. But when the person giving the directions vanished, the sect would become incompetent and collapse.

The best direction was when everyone thought and worried together to move forward together.

“Elder! I have packed it all!”

“Nice… but why are there so many? Didn’t you dispose of the luggage we got from the bandits?”

“That… the Golden Mountain Merchant has given us a lot of money, saying it’s a gift…”

Hyun Young closed his eyes tightly.

‘This isn’t it either.’

In the past, they lived without money in hand, and whenever money came, he would have to run around to make the best of the little money they had. But these days, he was burdened with the bribes that were coming in.

Even if he didn’t have this kind of money… no, because he realized it was worth living, and that if he received something, he knew he had to give something back.

“All of that?”

“Yes… should we take them down?”

“Why ask that now? You should have asked before loading it up.”

“For some reason, I thought loading them would be accepted.”

“…”

“Should I take them down?”

“… No. Let them be.”

“Yes!”

Hyun Young had a bright smile.

‘You know it a bit too well.’

Too much, to be honest.

Hyun Young rubbed her red face and then shouted.

“Finish it swiftly now! We need to start leaving!”

“Yes!”

Gulp.

The sound of alcohol being poured was heard amidst cheers.

“Kuaak!”

Chung Myung pulled the bottle from his mouth and wiped it.

“Sober needles, my ass! Have a drink for the hangover. That is the best!”

He mumbled words that would make a physician lose their sanity, then glanced down under the eaves.

Surprisingly, the sahyungs were packing their luggage well.

“That is it for now…”

It was quite a bit of a rush, but he wasn’t sure if this could be recovered.

Well, he didn’t waste it with the intention of collecting it. In the first place, even if one went fishing, it is a place where one threw a lot of rice cakes for the sake of catching a fish.

‘The problem is from here…’

Chung Myung scratched his head as if he was in pain.

The growth of Mount Hua was happening a lot faster than he expected, and the situation surrounding Mount Hua was more urgent than ever before.

“We are halfway there… but it still isn’t enough.”

Now that it was clear that the Demonic Sect would target the Central Plains, there was no time to rest. Once they arrived at the desired destination, they had to quickly look for their next stop and run.

The only purpose and goal of Mount Hua now was the growth of the disciples.

“Then I guess it is time… ugh, such a pain.”

Chung Myung covered his head.

Effort was important for the process of growth. But trying hard didn’t mean one grew either. Wasn’t that the reason why the famous sects were called ones with honor? It was because when their disciples hit a limit, they could make them further stronger.

A sect renowned as prestigious, Mount Hua was among them. Despite possessing the sacred technique of the 24 Movement Plum Blossom Sword, the Taoists of Mount Hua were not taught this technique.

“Now I need to hand over the plum blossom sword and Purple Cloud Enhanced Qi…”

The disciples clearly felt this during their spar against Wudang.

The 24 Movement Plum Blossom Sword technique was not inferior to the Wudang techniques, and depending on its use, it could even overwhelm them.

But.

‘Not the Taiji Wisdom Sword.’

Although it was a tough realization, the Taiji Wisdom Sword, which could be performed after mastering the Dual Internal Qi arts, was superior to the 24-movement Plum Blossom Sword technique.

Surely, if it were Chung Myung, he would counter the Taiji Wisdom Sword with the Seven Sages Sword, but that was only possible for him. No matter how skilled Chung Myung was, he wouldn’t insist on persevering through a situation where defeat was more likely.

“Sasuk and the sahyungs are all qualified.”

Although it might be difficult to immediately grasp the manner of utilizing it, it could surely be introduced to them now.

So, without much thought, all he had to do was teach it…

“Damn it, what kind of excuse will it be this time to bring that out!”

Dig the ground once and find it, then dig the ground again and find it… meanwhile, if one dug again, then even a three-year-old child would become suspicious of him, too!

No matter how skilled he was, how could one possibly get hit by the same move 3 times?

“Ugh. Should I say I found it on a cliff?”

It was a bit strange.

Although Hyun Jong now knew what Chung Myung was doing was odd, he was just quietly watching it. But it was clear that if Chung Myung brought out a treasure again, he would not simply let it be.

“Ugh! My stomach hurts!”

Why could he not give it even though he had the book! This was an emergency!

“Ugh. If I had known, I would have given it all at once that day!”

But this was also nothing.

In the first place, there were side effects if one proceeded with martial arts all at once.

If a man who could not even move tried to run, then his legs would break, and if a guy who could not even run jumped, he would fall and break his nose.

Even Mount Hua was a strictly controlled sect. It wasn’t known what happened when those who needed to teach martial arts failed after following it. There was no guarantee that those who learned about the existence of this technique would do their best to learn the technique.

So it was right not to give it to them at that time.

“Ughh… I need to think of a way to drop it now.”

Chung Myung, who scratched his head, looked at the sky and pointed his finger.

“See! Why did you have to make a mess out of things! You could have set aside some expenses and things for the sake of emergency!”

-How could I have known!

Chung Myung gritted his teeth.

“And!”

Once the anger broke out, there was no stopping it.

“While I am taking care of the other books, you should have handled some of the merit, too! You left with your arms wrapped tightly around those things and made me wonder what the meaning of being a sect leader is! I will teach the right way!”

-I always told you to learn them, but you didn’t learn it, you brat!

“Ah… is that so?”

Uh.. it did seem like it.

“Hmm. During the war, when did I ever learn a new martial art? I was busy then.”

-You bastard! So irritating!

“… you are turning so foul-mouthed with time.”

He didn’t remember his sahyung being like that before… no, was he always like this?

“Ughhh.”

Chung Myung lay on the roof with his body stretched out to block the sun and quietly looked at the sky and mumbled.

“There is a lot to do.”

To teach martial arts to the disciples and then search for any remnants of the sect left in the world. And if that failed, he should at least attempt to create a martial arts cultivation method to replace the Purple Cloud Divine Arts.

‘It is impossible for now.’

They couldn’t confront the Heavenly Demon by merely reviving their past martial arts. They needed to surpass their former achievements.

To achieve that, something beyond Chung Myung’s current knowledge was required.

“Ughh. I would rather die than endure this. Will there ever be an end to solving something like this? Finally…”

Chung Myung, who had been complaining hopelessly, soon mumbled with an awkward expression.

“Well, sure… even if they aren’t the highest warriors or anything, the kids have grown a lot. And they even got into a fight with Wudang, right, sahyung?”

If it were the Chung Myung of the past, he would have considered this normal. But now, strangely enough, he felt incredibly proud of them all.

“Chung disciples, Baek disciples… and even the Un disciples…”

They were wonderful.

Without making a fuss each time Chung Myung said something unreasonable… no, actually, they told him to go and die, but didn’t they still follow him in the end?

He felt too shy to compliment them out loud.

“I am such a bad person.”

Chung Myung smiled as if the thought was absurd.

People could not live in anxiety all the time. When one achieves something, one needs to rest properly and take any rewards as motivation to move forward.

But unfortunately, Chung Myung couldn’t provide that for these kids. Because he had no idea when the Demonic Sect would decide to attack.

“Hmm…”

Chung Myung, lost in thought for a moment, mumbled.

“Sahyung… I, that…”

Chung Myung stood up again and waved his hand as if someone was in front of him.

“So nostalgic.”

He got up and then jumped down, but then he stopped as if something halted him.

“Ughh.”

He moved back and forth as if he were nervous, and after a while, he raised his hand, turning to the sky as though he had made up his mind.

“Sahyung.”

He spoke slowly.

“I am doing well, right?”

A light breeze ruffled his hair.

Even after he waited for a long time, there was no answer.

It couldn’t be helped.

The voice of Chung Myung was the voice of his heart. There was no way a dead man could respond to something.

“Tsk.”

It was at that moment, when Chung Myung clicked his tongue and decided to jump down for sure.

-You are doing good.

Surprised, he looked back, but as expected, there was no one there.

“…”

He just stared there for a long time, biting his lower lip.

“I am…”

“Chung Myung! Chung Myung! Bastard! Where did you go off to again! Come out now! We need to leave!”

But before he could even savor the moment, a voice called for him.

And yet, Chung Myung looked at the space in silence and sighed.

“You bastard! Will you not come out right now!”

“Ahh! Let’s go now!”

Chung Myung yelled out and smiled.

“What is this for my arms?”

An important thing for him was to get the task done.

One day, when he really met his sahyungs, he would be able to confidently shout to them that he did his best!

So…

“Here I goooooo!”

Chung Myung jumped down without any regrets.

“This is the work of sasuks, but you are all fooling around!”

“Ack! Ear! My ear hurts! Earrrr!”

“When did you get alcohol to drink again, you idiot! You! Bastard! Shameless!”

“ACK! EAR! EAR! EAR!”

The warm breeze moved across the place where Chung Myung rested on the roof.

Someone’s concerns deepened and someone’s will got stronger. Some people look at themselves while others look to the future.

The world flowed steadily in the thoughts of each person.

The sun shining down on them was already stinging the skin.

The plum blossoms, which had fully bloomed, had faded, and the time for the green leaves and fruits to appear was quickly coming.