Chapter 36: A Sect Even Beggars Wouldn’t Pick Up! (Part 1)

Chung Myung: "..."

Gong Mun-yeon quickly composed himself. Even if you're dragged into a tiger's den, as long as you keep your wits about you, you can survive, right?

Gong Mun-yeon: "I-I don't know what you're talking about."

Chung Myung: "Hah? Look at this guy."

Chung Myung sneered.

Chung Myung: "Do you think my eyes are just holes in my head? Do I look like someone who wouldn't recognize the Taiyi Divine Hand?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Chung Myung smirked as he spoke.

Chung Myung: "What a coincidence. A real coincidence. Running a tavern in Huayin, collecting debts from Mount Hua, and now, of all things, you've mastered Zhongnan's martial arts? And not just any technique, but the Taiyi Divine Hand?"

Cold sweat dripped down Gong Mun-yeon's forehead. He was so shocked that he couldn't even feel the pain from the beating he had just taken.

'Damn it.'

He should have held back.

Even if it meant getting his head cut off, using the Taiyi Divine Hand was unthinkable. Especially in front of someone from Mount Hua!

A fatal mistake.

But could this even be called a mistake?

If Chung Myung hadn't pushed him so hard, and if he hadn't suddenly drawn his sword and struck while Gong Mun-yeon was reeling from the blows, Gong Mun-yeon would never have used the Taiyi Divine Hand, even if it meant his death.

If it was a coincidence, it was the worst kind of coincidence. If it was intentional, Chung Myung's cunning was beyond comprehension.

Chung Myung: "Did Zhongnan send you?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Gong Mun-yeon tightly shut his mouth.

At this point, no matter what he said, it wouldn't help his case. If there was even a sliver of a chance to turn the situation around with a flimsy excuse, he would have taken it. But now, that was impossible.

So, rather than clumsily opening his mouth and giving away more information, it was better to stay silent.

Chung Myung: "Oh? You're going to keep your mouth shut."

Chung Myung cracked his neck and stepped closer to Gong Mun-yeon.

Chung Myung: "Well, fine. That's loyalty, I guess. I'd say it's a good choice. But there's one thing you're mistaken about."

Gong Mun-yeon: "...?"

Chung Myung: "Do you know what that is?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "...What?"

Chung Myung: "Why should I tell you?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Zhongnan wasn't a sect to be trifled with. Historically, Zhongnan and Mount Hua had been bitter rivals, and while their relationship wasn't great, no one could deny that Zhongnan was one of the Nine Great Sects.

A sect of that caliber wouldn't handle things carelessly. That was Chung Myung's thinking. The information Gong Mun-yeon had would be extremely limited, and even if he knew more, it was unlikely to be accurate.

All Chung Myung needed to know was that Gong Mun-yeon was connected to Zhongnan. The rest was for Mount Hua to figure out.

Of course, there was no need to tell Gong Mun-yeon that.

Chung Myung: "Ha, these bastards. The martial world of the past was harsh, but at least it wasn't this despicable. A sect like Zhongnan, one of the Nine Great Sects, isn't even using martial arts but money to ruin another sect? And they're doing it through fraud? What a bunch of scoundrels."

Gong Mun-yeon could no longer maintain his composure and shouted.

Gong Mun-yeon: "Hmph. From Mount Hua's perspective, isn't that better?"

Chung Myung: "Huh?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "You should know this too! Mount Hua has no hope left. Wealth? Money? Those are just extras for a martial sect. Mount Hua, having lost its martial arts, can no longer be the Mount Hua of the past. It's just a matter of whether it dies quickly or lingers a bit longer before dying!"

Chung Myung: "Oh?"

Chung Myung listened with interest, as if amused by Gong Mun-yeon's words.

Gong Mun-yeon: "I was just trying to quickly cut off the breath of a dying Mount Hua. If anything, Mount Hua should be grateful. Someone like you should know this, right? Mount Hua can no longer be revived! A sect that has lost its martial arts heritage is destined to wither away."

Chung Myung: "Who said that?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "You don't understand?"

Chung Myung: "No. Who said Mount Hua's martial arts heritage has been cut off?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Gong Mun-yeon stared at Chung Myung with a blank expression.

If anyone else had said this, he would have scoffed. But coming from Chung Myung's mouth, the words carried a different weight.

At the very least, in Gong Mun-yeon's eyes, Chung Myung was clearly a former master of Mount Hua.

Chung Myung: "These bastards are trying to cut off the lineage of a Mount Hua that's still alive and well. And! Whether Mount Hua lives or dies, it's Mount Hua's business. What right do you have to bury a Mount Hua that's still alive? What authority do you have?"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Chung Myung: "Anyway, people who flap their mouths always come up with the most ridiculous logic. Just say you wanted to beat Mount Hua to death because it's a pain in the ass. If you Zhongnan bastards had said that, I might have acknowledged it."

He had beaten him a lot.

The closer the neighbors, the higher the chance of conflict. Just as diplomacy follows the principle of "befriend the distant, attack the near," neighboring sects are bound to clash. Mount Hua and Zhongnan were similar in many ways, both being Taoist sects with strong secular influences and both primarily using swords.

When two major sects of similar styles are located right next to each other, one of them is bound to die out.

Because of this, Chung Myung had often beaten up Zhongnan in the past. To be precise, Zhongnan would pick fights, only to be utterly crushed by Chung Myung.

Gong Mun-yeon: "I'm not from Zhongnan!"

Chung Myung: "Sure, sure."

Gong Mun-yeon: "You seem to be misunderstanding. That technique I used earlier was just something I happened to learn."

Chung Myung: "Yeah, yeah. Sure. Let me tell you something interesting."

Gong Mun-yeon: "...What is it?"

Chung Myung: "I'm not from Mount Hua either."

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Gong Mun-yeon: "That doesn't make sense..."

Chung Myung: "You, you bastard!"

Gong Mun-yeon: "..."

Chung Myung almost spat on the ground but caught himself.

Ah, the mask. That was close.

Chung Myung: "Anyway, since you showed me the Taiyi Divine Hand, I'll show you something interesting. If you recognize it, it'll be really fun. If you don't, it'll be a shame."

Chung Myung slowly extended his sword.

Chung Myung: "Tell the guy who sent you this."

Chung Myung's demeanor changed completely.

The playful attitude from before disappeared. His hunched back straightened, and his slumped shoulders regained their proper posture.

A perfect stance, as if drawn in a painting.

Seeing this, Gong Mun-yeon unconsciously opened his mouth slightly.

A breeze seemed to blow from somewhere.

A refreshing wind carried the faint scent of plum blossoms, blooming like a fantasy.

Chung Myung: "Plum blossoms release their strongest fragrance when they bloom in the snow. Even though it's winter now, Mount Hua's energy hasn't been severed. When spring comes, the plum blossoms will bloom in full splendor across the mountains."

Gong Mun-yeon saw it.

The tip of Chung Myung's sword moved slowly.

A tremor.

A small tremor at first, it soon turned into a large shake, and that large shake transformed into a fantastical sword trajectory that filled the sky.

The sword tip, as if covering the heavens.

From the tip of the sword, vivid plum blossom petals bloomed.

As if the harsh winter had passed and the warm spring had arrived, the plum blossoms drawn by Chung Myung's sword covered the world.

'This is an illusion.'

The wind blew.

The plum blossoms covering the sky, as if fluttering in the spring breeze, began to sway in unison. Soon, the petals flew up as if swimming through the sky and gently landed on Gong Mun-yeon's forehead.

The petals brushed past Gong Mun-yeon, sweeping away his consciousness like the wind. Until the very end, he didn't know what he was seeing.

Thud.

The sound of Gong Mun-yeon, having lost consciousness, collapsing to the ground echoed hollowly. The plum blossoms that had covered the sky had disappeared like a mirage.

Chung Myung, having sheathed his sword, turned his body with a grin.

Chung Myung: "Ptooey!"

Blood surged up to his mouth from the excessive use of energy. Chung Myung, having removed his mask, spat out the blood and grimaced.

'I'm going to die, seriously.'

His ruined body was one thing, but he was still lacking in internal energy. If it were the him of the past, he would have drawn that sword as easily as a joke, but now, even a single sword strike drained all the energy from his body.

'The foundation is good, but at this rate, I'm going to die. Ugh.'

Thinking that he needed to come up with a plan, Chung Myung put his mask back on.

Chung Myung: "Now, then."

His gaze moved past Gong Mun-yeon, who was lying on the ground, to the merchants.

Merchants: "..."

The merchants looked at Chung Myung as if they were seeing a ghost.

Who could blame them?

They had never seen or heard of anyone making plum blossoms bloom in the sky with a sword. Well, they had heard rumors that such masters existed in Mount Hua's past, but they had always dismissed them as exaggerated legends.

And now, a man who had torn through those legends was standing right in front of them.

To the merchants who had tried to swindle Mount Hua out of money, Chung Myung was no different from the Grim Reaper.

Chung Myung: "Who wants to get beaten up?"

Merchants: "..."

Chung Myung: "Who wants to leave peacefully?"

Merchant 1: "Me!"

Merchant 2: "I'll leave peacefully!"

Merchant 3: "Please spare us!"

Chung Myung nodded with satisfaction.

Chung Myung: "Good. Very cooperative."

The merchants scrambled to the side. But of course, Chung Myung had no intention of letting them off so easily.

Chung Myung: "Stop right there."

Merchants: "..."

The merchants froze in place.

Chung Myung: "If you all leave like that, how am I supposed to pull all these carts? Think about it, think!"

Merchants: "..."

The merchants looked at Chung Myung with eyes full of resentment.

Were they supposed to consider the convenience of the bandit robbing them? No matter how twisted the world was, this was going too far.

But no one dared to voice their objections.

Chung Myung: "You."

Merchant 1: "Yes!"

Chung Myung: "From now on, each of you will check how much wealth is in your cart. The slowest one will be lying down next to this guy."

No further explanation was needed. As soon as the words left his mouth, the merchants rushed to their carts and began counting their wealth.

Merchant 1: "1,800 nyang!"

Merchant 2: "2,300 nyang!"

Merchant 3: "I have 8,000..."

Merchant 1: "What? You had that much?"

Merchant 3: "Is that important right now, you idiot?"

They even started bickering among themselves, trying to report first.

Chung Myung frowned as he watched the scene.

Chung Myung: "Hey."

Merchant 1: "Yes?"

Chung Myung: "Did you include the value of the cart and the horse?"

Merchant 1: "..."

Chung Myung: "Recalculate."

Merchant 1: "Yes."

Once the calculations were finally done, Chung Myung nodded.

Chung Myung: "Alright, I'll lend you one horse. One of you go to the nearest market and bring back the money. I'll sell the goods for cash."

The merchants stared at Chung Myung with blank expressions.

They were no strangers to money, but they had never seen anyone like this in their lives.

Chung Myung: "Bring the money in anonymous vouchers. If you mark the vouchers and get caught, there'll be bloodshed today. Got it?"

Merchant 1: "Yes."

He was even meticulous.

Chung Myung: "One of you, go."

Merchant 2: "...Um, by the way."

Chung Myung: "What?"

One of the merchants asked.

Merchant 2: "What if the person going to the market runs away?"

Chung Myung chuckled.

Chung Myung: "What would running away do?"

Merchant 2: "..."

Chung Myung: "Do you have any money?"

Merchant 2: "No."

Chung Myung: "Your assets have been seized, right?"

Merchant 2: "Yes."

Chung Myung: "Then what are you going to do if you run away? If you want to eat even a single meal, you'll have to come back."

Merchant 2: "...What if I report this to the authorities..."

Chung Myung: "Go ahead."

Chung Myung lifted his leg slightly and stomped on the ground.

Boom!

The ground cracked and split.

Chung Myung: "But if you report it, don't ever come back. Run to the ends of the earth. Even if I die, I'll catch that bastard. Don't ever come back. Ever."

Merchant 2: "..."

The merchants gave up on reporting at that moment.

Come to think of it, their families were still in Huayin. They couldn't think of a way to escape from this madman. And it didn't seem like the authorities could catch him either.

Chung Myung: "Get going."

Merchant 1: "...Yes."

Mount Hua, true to its reputation as a prestigious orthodox sect, was benevolent.

Yet, the reason these men were unfortunate was simple. While Mount Hua was benevolent, not everyone who lived there was.

Before the sun had even set that day, a masked man holding a stack of vouchers as thick as a book happily ascended Mount Hua. The wealth created by the sweat and tears of countless people was thus enshrined in the greedy Taoist's storeroom.