Episode 172

The preparations for the Soul Vitality Pill began quickly.

First, it was decided that they would leave the task of buying the ingredients and collecting the materials that were needed to the Eunha Guild. It was because the Eunha Merchant Guild had an extensive information network, as well as a belief that Mount Hua would be able to get things done.

Thanks to that, Hwang Jongi who was in Hua-Um was summoned to Mount Hua.

“All-All of this?”

Seeing the list of all the ingredients needed, Hwang Jongi’s was shocked.

“Where are you even going to use all these items…?”

Hyun Young smiled brightly.

“Don’t be so surprised. Our Mount Hua is slowly building back its foundation, so we are trying to recreate the pills of our sect.”

“By pills you mean…?”

“Can there be anything else other than the Supreme Pill?”

“Ah…”

Hyun Young’s lips twitched. He didn’t think that the Eunha Guild would become hostile to Mount Hua, but that didn’t mean that he was going to treat them like family.

‘If the term Soul Vitality Pill goes out, I can’t even imagine what would happen. For now, we will have to hide it from everyone.’

The people who went to Sword Tomb went to get the divine weapons, so they didn’t know of the pill and the book, but still, if the Beggars Union and the Wudang Sect came to know that Mount Hua had managed to get it, then they wouldn’t stay still.

So, hiding it was the right thing.

“So, procuring these things should be all?”

“Yes. And just one more thing.”

“There’s something else?”

Hyun Young opened his mouth in a calm tone.

“I hope that word of the fact that we are able to get back on our legs doesn’t leak out.”

“Why? Why…?”

Hyun Young licked his lips.

“Kangho is a ruthless place, right? Now Mount Hua is attracting the attention of many sects who have heard about the incident with the Southern Edge sect, and don’t we have a slight problem with Wudang too now?”

“Right.”

Hwang Jongi nodded his head softly.

That was definitely true. The reputation of Mount Hua, which was heightened by rumors of the Southern Edge sect being disgraced at the conference, once again proved their strength in Nanyang.

Not to mention the fact that the disciples of Mount Hua had defeated the Wudang disciples…

“I… can I ask another thing?”

“Yes please ask me what you want.”

“I was wondering if the rumors about some disciples of Mount Hua entering the Sword Tomb was true…”

“It isn’t.”

“Ah…!”

Hwang Jongi nodded his head.

‘It is definitely understandable.’

Rumors about Mount Hua’s work in Nanyang had already begun to spread in Hua-Um.

Rumor had it that the disciples of Mount Hua had rescued the people from a crisis within the Sword Tomb which was collapsing. And another rumor that they defeated many famous people in the Sword Tomb was also going around.

In particular, the name that spread immensely was the name of Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon.

Chung Myung, who had earned the title of one the best youngest martial artists in the world due to his actions in the conference with the Southern Edge sect, had been slowly moving away from the minds of the public because of the fact that it had happened two years ago.

However, thanks to his performance in Nanyang this time, his name was rising up again.

‘It would just be an exaggerated rumor to say that he is on par with the elders of the Wudang Sect, but at the very least it must mean that he showed enough dignity to stand tall in a dire situation.’

If so, he could understand why Hyun Young was trying to be cautious. How much stronger would Mount Hua rise on top of its already rising reputation as a formidable force?

Regardless of whether it was a sect that liked or hated Mount Hua, they would start getting nervous.

“Don’t worry, elder. Trust is the most important thing for a merchant, and I have learned that understanding the wishes of our customers is very important.”

“Huhuhu. That is why I trust the young lord, right?”

“But…”

“Um?”

Hwang Jongi opened his mouth.

“To get all the items that you need… It isn’t small…”

Hwang Jongi, who was someone who knew the financial condition of Mount Hua, had no choice but to ask this.

But Hyun Young’s reaction was unexpected.

“Ah, yes, the money…. Euk!”

Hwang Jongi raised his head in shock at Hyun Young, who turned his head a little to the side.

Had he heard it wrong?

Hwang Jongi tilted his head and asked again.

“Uh, so the money….?”

“Ahem. Money. Right, the money doesn’t have to be a concern. It will be paid right away… Ahem! I’ll pay the money now.”

Hwang Jongi’s face darkened.

Pay it now?

He was going to pay upfront for such costly things?

“Ah, from where did you get that much amount?”

“Huhuhu. The wealth of Mount Hua is far greater than what young lord knows… kuhahaha…”

Hyun Young forced a laugh from his mouth.

‘There is a God of Wealth in our sect, so money is not a problem, hahahah!’

He tried to keep a calm face as much as he could, but he couldn’t shackle the joy that was blooming within him. The corners of his lips were twitching to smile and a laugh escaped from his lips.

“Now, here.”

Hyun Young held out a box to Hwang Jongi. And Hwang Jongi was confused as he took the box.

“This is…?”

“Open it.”

Hwang Jongi carefully opened it, and light shone straight at his eyes.

“T-this?”

Hwang Jongi’s eyes widened at what he saw.

“Aren’t these night stones?”

“Right.”

Hwang Jongi’s mouth which had opened stayed silent for long.

“No… how could you get so many…”

They were the night stones which were in the lamps in the Sword Tomb, and a single one of them was treated to be more expensive than jewels of the same size. How did these people have so many pieces of such a rare item?

Although Hwang Jongi had seen a lot of wealth, it was his first time seeing night stones in such large quantities.

‘Isn’t even one of these known to be a supreme item?’

Looking at his reaction, Hyun Young smiled.

“I don’t think the young lord is someone who wouldn’t know the value of this thing. Please put a reasonable price on them. This should work right?”

Hwang Jongi’s body trembled.

The instinct and morality of a merchant were colliding within him.

‘We cannot let them leave us!’

Hwang Jongi bit his lip slightly and quickly finished his thoughts.

“Not at all Elder. We will do a detailed appraisal first, but I am sure that just half of this is enough to buy the items you requested.”

“Is that so?”

Hyun Young knew the actual value of the night stones, but he wanted to hear it from the mouth of Hwang Jongi directly.

‘I guess they can be trusted.’

Hwang Jongi’s calculations weren’t much different from Hyun Young’s. No, his own thoughts were more generous than Hyun Young.

“Then, take them, pay the price for the items and return the rest to Mount Hua.”

“Y-You are going to trust all of this to me?”

“Hahaha. Mount Hua and Eunha Guild, aren’t we like brothers? If we cannot believe Eunha, then who can we believe?”

Hyun Young and Hwang Jongi exchanged glances. They might have different thoughts behind each other, but their gazes now were full of trust.

“Then the fee…?”

“As conscientiously as possible.”

“…”

“Conscience! Conscientiously!”

Nothing was being extremely stressed on.

“Then I will do it. As soon as the evaluation is done, I will store them safely and as soon as the purchase is done, they will be brought back to Mount Hua along with the items. Do you want them changed into money? Or slips?”

“Money would be nice.”

“Yes, elder!”

Hwang Jongi stood up and quickly picked up the box.

“Then I will head down and get them appraised as soon as possible.’

“Huh. You didn’t drink the tea.”

“If I stay here for tea despite the riches that I can potentially make, then I cannot be called a merchant! We will send you the good news as soon as possible.”

“Don’t forget what I requested.”

“It will not spread out. Of course, the public won’t even know from where I got the night stones either.”

Hwang Jongi quickly understood the intentions of Hyun Young.

“Then, thank you.”

“I will head back.”

Hwang Jongi went out, and Hyun Young covered his mouth and his shoulders trembled.

“Puah!”

Unbearable laughter erupted.

“Euhahahahaha!”

The shoulders showed no signs of stopping.

“Kuahahaha! Thanks to that lucky bastard, I am able to do what I’ve always dreamed of doing!”

Handing over a large sum of money to a merchant who visited Mount Hua and having him buy things he wanted was a lifelong wish of Hyun Young.

However, that dream was being fulfilled on a much larger scale than he had even thought possible in his life.

“Ugh, what a nice child! I think I should go search for a dragon and roast and feed him.”

A dragon couldn’t probably be found so a cow should suffice.

A happy smile spread across Hyun Young’s lips.

Soon, Hyun Young’s eyes, which were joyous, turned a little serious.

‘With this, Mount Hua will spread its wings wide.’

What Mount Hua lacked the most was someone who had great internal qi.

Since they were a martial sect, they did everything they could to recover their internal qi, but there was only so much they could do. Talent and training couldn’t keep up with the gap that had been created by the collapse of the sect.

From Mount Hua’s side, where the second and third-class disciples should be the center, the situation of the Un disciples had been a problem, since they were the ones who had to lead the sect as teachers by giving up on learning.

And now, if they could get a whiff of this pill and feed the disciples, then the problem would be solved to some extent if at all it wasn’t entirely. And with that, Mount Hua would be able to leap once again.

Hyun Young jumped up from his place and headed for the sect leader’s residence. He had to report everything that had just transpired with the young lord of the Eunha guild.

“Sect leader are you in there!”

Hyun Young, who opened the door without even waiting to listen for an answer, suddenly flinched.

“Uh? This?”

“…”

“…”

Hyun Jong gently lowered the towel in his hand. In front of him, there was a box with things which weren’t shiny enough for them to be cleaned.

“… things went well then?”

“Kuehe.”

Hyun Young smiled.

Hyun Jong who tried his best to look dependable in front of the disciples always made sure that his sadness and worries would never be spread or be identified by them. Then how happy should the man be for him to not care about who came in and was still openly wiping that box?

“Hide it somewhere safe! What are we to do if we lose that!”

“Aren’t my hands the safest place in Mount Hua?”

“… shouldn’t it be the hands of Chung Myung that is the safest?”

Hyun Jong went silent.

Listening to it, it seemed right.

“Anyway, the work with the young lord went well. I think we will have the ingredients a lot sooner than we thought.”

“Oh, is that so? Ahaha. It would be nice if everything worked out like this for now. Hahahaha.”

Tears were welling up in the eyes of Hyun Jong and Hyun Young who were looking at each other with smiles.

This was something they wouldn’t have dared imagine a few years ago. Back then, whenever they sat in this very room, they had no choice but to hear things which hurt them the most. They never even dreamt that a day would come when they would look at each other and laugh in the very same room.

In just a couple of years, their situation had changed a lot.

“Such a strange one.”

“This is the relationship between Tao and Qi.”

Hyun Young’s face darkened at it.

“Where can we even find pure Tao and Qi relations?”

“Hehehe. Don’t keep looking from the side lines. The tao doesn’t come because we simply follow the path of a good man. Sometimes, tao comes just by keeping your innate nature.”

“Don’t talk nonsense! And what will you be giving Chung Myung this time?”

“Uh…. Uh?”

“A prize! Reward! Does it make sense for us to not give him a prize after what he did? Even cows are fed to get them to work! Shouldn’t we give Chung Myung a decent reward for him to go out and earn more name for us?!”

“…”

“Last time, we gave him nothing for earning so much, and I remember clearly what happened. This time, I cannot let you give him simple rewards”

Hyun Jong looked at Hyun Young a bit shocked.

“I am not complaining about it. But my curiosity is making me ask. Whose side are you on? Is it my side or that child?”

“Why would you ask me that? Of course I am… ugh, Sect Leader sahyung, my mood is turning sour.”

At Hyun Young’s intense reaction, Hyun Jong’s face softened.

“… sorry. Look at me. After all the years we spent together…”

“Of course, it is Chung Myung! It is that child! What did the sect leader even do for me!”

“…”

Ah? He’s on his side?

“I was in charge of most things for the sake of the Sect Leader, and I couldn’t even get married and I ended up growing old like this! How can I even take your side? I couldn’t even marry; I don’t even have a daughter! So now I can’t get Chung Myung married into my family!”

“Ah, no. Think about the age. If it is your daughter, she’ll be too old…”

“Then granddaughter!”

Hyun Young changed his words right away.

“Anyway, I will not let things pass this time! Make sure to think about what kind of reward he should be given! Shouldn’t that Soul Vitality Pill also belong to Chung Myung!? Why is the Sect Leader constantly holding onto it like it is your own? First, give one pill to him! Then…!”

Clack.

Suddenly, they heard the sound of Hyun Sang coming in and pulling Hyun Young out.

“What! What now! why! Sect Leader! Think about what I said! If you can just let go of my ear… up! Eup! Eup! Euuuuup!”

Thud!

The door slammed shut and a gust of wind rustled Hyun Jong’s hair.

“Hu… huhu.”

Hyun Jong smiled.

“This is good. Ah, it is a good thing.”

‘But strangely, these days, my authority seems to have fallen a bit…’

‘Maybe it is my mood?’