Return of the Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1153: Well, If It’s Absolutely Necessary. (3)

“…Abbot.”

Beop Jeong tightly closed his eyes.

‘Is it Heart Demon?’

Lately, whenever he thought of Mount Hua’s Sword Saint, his heart often churned. Even though he knew he shouldn’t feel that way.

“Amitabha.”

He recited the Buddhist chant out of habit to calm his mind as much as possible. After regaining composure, he opened his eyes and met the worried gaze of Jong Ri-Hyung.

“I understand what the sect leader is worried about.”

“…”

“I fully understand that leaving the main sect unattended for a long time is not good. I also understand that you are anxious because it seems like time is being wasted here without any significant results.”

“That’s not necessarily the case, though…”

Jong Ri-Hyung, feeling awkward, subtly shifted his position. Beop Jeong spoke.

“But in the current situation, it is difficult for us to withdraw from here first.”

“Abbot, I understand your feelings, but staying like this won’t gain us anything either.”

“…”

“To be frank, we have already lost the people’s support at the Yangtze River.”

Jong Ri-Hyung sighed and continued.

“It’s not just about the main sect. The attitude of the locals toward us and toward the Heavenly Friends Alliance is noticeably different. As a result, the morale of the young disciples is steadily declining.”

“…Amitabha.”

“I’m worried that this won’t just be a waste of time, but that we might lose something we must not lose. Lost time and benefits can be somehow recovered, but once pride is broken, it is not easily restored, as you well know, abbot.”

Jong Ri-Hyung’s point was valid. He too was a sect leader of a martial arts sect. He was not someone who could not discern right from wrong.

From his perspective, what the abbot was doing now was nothing more than stubbornness.

“Abbot, they say victory and defeat are the way of soldiers. Even if we lose this time, isn’t it the one who wins in the end who truly wins?”

“…That’s right.”

“This place is already a battlefield we have lost. A great general does not cling to defeat. Rather, we should use that time to establish a new battlefield and focus our energy on reversing the defeat.”

The abbot’s lips twitched slightly. He did not like the word ‘defeat’ that Jong Ri-Hyung used.

Nothing pleased him.

He disliked the word defeat, disliked that the defeated opponent was not even the Four Sects Alliance but the Heavenly Friends Alliance. Moreover, he disliked hearing the word defeat when in reality they had not even exchanged a single punch with anyone.

But the most uncomfortable and frustrating part was that even hearing those words, he did not dare to refute them.

A war not lost, yet lost.

That was how Beop Jeong viewed this Yangtze River Battle.

“Several sects that have received your position have already expressed their willingness to support.”

“That is correct.”

“They too must have thought they could not just stand by in this situation. But abbot, where would you have them come? To this Yangtze River? Would you have them come here when no war is even breaking out?”

“…”

“Do you intend, as the Shaolin’s abbot, to receive guests here like a guesthouse? What would they think if they saw you here? Would they truly admire you, the abbot, who burns yourself to keep the Four Sects Alliance in check?”

Beop Jeong’s lips twitched again, but Jong Ri-Hyung did not stop speaking despite that reaction.

“A person’s authority comes from their position. Position can mean rank and status, but literally also means the place where one is. An emperor sitting on the throne in the imperial palace and an emperor sitting in a tent on the field cannot look the same, can they?”

He was not wrong.

“The place where you should welcome them is not here. The place you should be is none other than Shaolin. Am I wrong?”

A rare sigh escaped from Beop Jeong’s mouth.

Everything was correct. All correct. But the problem was that Beop Jeong was not here wasting time because he was unaware of all this.

‘A defeated battlefield…’

Perhaps those words were right. There is nothing more foolish than clinging to a battlefield already lost. Trying to regain momentum in a lost battlefield only increases damage.

But…

“It isn’t that I do not understand what the sect leader is saying. However…”

Seeing Beop Jeong hesitate slightly, Jong Ri-Hyung tactfully asked first.

“Is it because of the Heavenly Friends Alliance?”

“…”

“Abbot… I understand that you are concerned about them. But since the front line has already become fixed, what can they do?”

Jong Ri-Hyung quickly continued, sounding frustrated.

“I also do not know why they continue to stay here. But why should that be a reason for us to stay together? If they stay here to block the Four Sects Alliance and voluntarily become a shield, let them do so. How is that our loss? It is a gain, not a loss. Right now, abbot, you are ignoring that simple…”

Beop Jeong’s eyebrows twitched momentarily.

“You said ‘simple’?”

At his icy voice, Jong Ri-Hyung tightly closed his mouth.

Beop Jeong, realizing he had overreacted, quietly closed his eyes and recited the Buddhist chant. Then, with a softer voice free of harshness, he spoke slowly again.

“Sect leader, then I will ask. Do you think I have made any decisive mistakes since arriving here at the Yangtze River?”

“That is…”

Jong Ri-hyung could not answer easily. His first thought was ‘yes.’ Looking back, everything Beop Jeong did after getting involved with the Yangtze River was a mistake.

But Jong Ri-hyung was not someone who thought so simply.

‘Did the abbot really make a bad move?’

That was just hindsight. At the time, Beop Jeong made the best judgment. In fact, when others were swayed by emotions, he was the only one who remained calm.

The problem was that all those calm and sensible judgments turned out to be bad moves. No, the Heavenly Friends Alliance forcibly turned all those judgments into bad moves.

Was it really the right decision to advance to Plum Blossom Island where the enemy was entrenched and waiting in ambush? At the time, even he was disgusted by Beop Jeong’s coldness, but any three-year-old would know what would have happened if they had advanced to Plum Blossom Island.

Wasn’t it Jong Ri-Hyung himself who said one should not cling to a lost war? It was just that Mount Hua overturned that already finished battle, making Shaolin and Kongtong mere bystanders.

‘The Demonic Cult was the same.’

Is it really a sensible and normal decision to head to Hangzhou, which is essentially the stronghold of the Four Sects Alliance and the Black Ghost Fortress, to stop the demonic cult?

It was also Jong Ri-Hyung who said a great general must choose a winning battlefield. Even he thought Hangzhou was not a battlefield they could fight on. That judgment was absolutely correct.

If Mount Hua had not alone invaded the south and beheaded the high priest, reducing Shaolin and Kongtong to cowardly cowards.

“Abbot…”

“No matter how much I think about it, I don’t know. What mistake did I make? Ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times I reconsider, and the judgment I should have made is clear.”

Jong Ri-Hyung nodded. Even he could not deny this.

“But what is the cost of that correct judgment? The momentum of the Heavenly Friends Alliance has risen beyond comparison, and they have taken all the credit for the events at the Yangtze River. Everyone in the world points fingers at Shaolin and praises Mount Hua. Even!”

Crunch.

Beop Jeong grabbed the wooden table in front of him. His fingertips dug into the wood.

“Even the Four Sects Alliance is being said to be better than Shaolin, who stood idly by, because they contributed to stopping the Demonic Cult.”

“…”

“It’s a lamentable matter.”

Beop Jeong let out a hollow laugh.

“By the natural order, they should have already been ruined. But did that happen? They won on the battlefield they should have lost and gained benefits where they should have lost. In ways unimaginable.”

“…”

“I ask again, sect leader. Is it really wrong for someone who has been bitten by a snake to be wary of it? Is that really such a foolish thing?”

“Abbot…”

“No. In my opinion, nothing is more foolish than repeating the same mistakes after suffering enough. If you cannot understand with your head, at least do not repeat the same mistake.”

“…So you remain here because you cannot let your guard down, not knowing what the Heavenly Friends Alliance might do?”

“…”

“Do you think there is a reason they do not leave this Yangtze River?”

Beop Jeong removed his hand from the table without answering. His palm was soaked with sweat. Looking at his own palm, he finally let out a bitter laugh.

“I understand that I may seem frustrating.”

Jong Ri-Hyung could not bring himself to say no.

“Amitabha. But if we make one more mistake, we might be driven to an irreversible situation. We must prevent that, mustn’t we?”

Jong Ri-Hyung closed his eyes tightly and spoke. He realized that no matter what he said here, he could not change Beop Jeong’s mind.

“Since you say so, abbot… I will no longer try to persuade you. But, abbot, you must consider one thing. What you are saying now will not be understood by anyone.”

“…”

“Depending on how it is heard… yes. Depending on how it is heard… that…”

Jong Ri-Hyung hesitated slightly, bit his lips tightly, and then spoke vehemently.

“It also seems as if you are simply afraid of that Mount Hua’s Sword Saint.”

At that moment, a blade-like glare flashed from Beop Jeong’s eyes. Startled, Jong Ri-Hyung immediately bowed his head deeply and muttered.

“Of course, I do not think so… but those with short-sighted minds will only perceive it that way.”

“…”

“So, abbot, please consider once more. As a leader from above, you know well that sometimes the best choice is not the best. Thoughts that are too far ahead for others to understand only alienate followers and cause division.”

Jong Hi-Hyung left those final words and stood up.

“I will not coerce you. But, abbot, please think of the best result, not just the best process. Farewell.”

Jong Ri-Hyung left the room. Beop Jeong watched his back silently.

He knew.

Though he said those words, Jong Ri-Hyung was desperately trying to soothe the disciples and defend Beop Jeong. Even while struggling, he would probably try to help Beop Jeong somehow.

But knowing that, before gratitude, a sense of emptiness overwhelmed him.

“…I am afraid…”

It’s ridiculous. Such a ridiculous story.

Who is he? Beop Jeong, the current abbot of the thousand-year-old Shaolin. And now he is afraid of someone who is merely the third class disciple of Mount Hua? Not because of strength, but because he cannot understand his thoughts?

How could this not be laughable?

“Maybe that’s really the case… hahaha.”

Beop Jeong’s hollow laughter filled the room.

And for a long time after, no sound of chanting or beads rolling was heard from that room.