Chapter 1836 – Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1836. This Is Why It’s Not Fun. (1) ❀ ❀ ❀

“…Cheong Myeong-ah?”

Yoon Jong’s voice pulled Cheong Myeong back to reality. As if frozen in place, he turned around, his hardened expression locking onto Ho Gamyeong once again.

“You…”

Cheong Myeong’s slightly parted lips shut firmly. His expression was as cold as if the north wind and snow were about to blow. Yoon Jong knew. This was the look Cheong Myeong only wore when he was truly furious.

However, the one facing that icy gaze, Ho Gamyeong, remained composed.

People tremble in fear because they have something to lose. But Ho Gamyeong, having abandoned everything, had no reason to fear anything anymore.

Even if the world-renowned Plum Blossom Sword Demon was now radiating killing intent at him.

“When did it start?”

Cheong Myeong asked in a chilling voice. Ho Gamyeong smirked slightly, the smile carrying a hint of self-mockery.

“Are you asking when I started planning this?”

Cheong Myeong simply stared at him without a word. After a brief silence, Ho Gamyeong responded.

“Well… when did it begin? Perhaps just a moment ago. Or maybe from the very start. No, perhaps it’s both.”

Ho Gamyeong’s gaze was empty. A faint smile crossed his lips, but it carried no trace of mockery.

“But what meaning does that have now?”

Ho Gamyeong murmured. Cheong Myeong closed his eyes tightly. Ho Gamyeong was right. There was no meaning in debating such matters at this point.

But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t question it.

“The value of life is relative. If necessary, one can throw it away. If necessary, one can use it as bait.”

Cheong Myeong had seen it. Those who threw away their lives without regret. Those who died like trampled ants yet bore not a trace of hesitation.

“But that only applies when what they seek to achieve holds value.”

Cheong Myeong’s gaze bore into Ho Gamyeong, pressing him further.

“Answer me. Was this foolish act worth it?”

“……”

“You should know better than anyone how foolish and fleeting the goal of conquering the world is. You know how dangerous someone is when they only crave power but never consider what comes after.”

Ho Gamyeong’s eyes darkened. Cheong Myeong continued.

“Even if you achieve that dream, in the end, all that remains is the fact that you briefly held it in your hands. Was that worthless scrap really worth throwing your life away for?”

“……”

“What value is there in fulfilling such a wretched desire?”

A strange light flickered in Ho Gamyeong’s eyes.

‘Plum Blossom Sword Demon…’

He had always thought of him as someone difficult to understand. But he had never expected him to view the world in this way. Perhaps Ho Gamyeong himself had never truly understood the Plum Blossom Sword Demon.

Ho Gamyeong finally spoke.

“For some, life may be about pursuing value.”

“……”

“But for others, life may simply be about repaying what they have already received.”

As he spoke, he let out an unconscious chuckle.

Repayment… Repayment, huh? The words felt somewhat ridiculous to him. What he had received from Jang Ilso was far beyond what such a simple phrase could capture.

Jang Ilso had saved Ho Gamyeong’s life, helped him seek revenge, and fulfilled his desires. He had also opened the path for him.

And yet, Ho Gamyeong called it ‘repayment.’ Perhaps, even he had not fully accepted everything Jang Ilso had given him.

‘Lingering attachments?’

If so, where did they stem from?

Ho Gamyeong did not know. No—he didn’t want to think about it. It was meaningless anyway.

“I didn’t live my life thinking I had to repay something… I truly believed that.”

It was meaningless. And yet, Ho Gamyeong continued speaking meaningless words.

It wasn’t because he suddenly wanted to confide in someone in his final moments. It was simply because, at this moment, there was someone in front of him—perhaps the only person in the world who could understand him.

“If I must… yes, if I must give a reason.”

Ho Gamyeong’s gaze drifted into the distance. Not to the sky. Not to where Jang Ilso was. What he was seeing was a moment from the past—the place where someone had stood on that day when everything burned.

“….Because it was brilliant. At least, to me, it was.”

That was all. Any other words would be mere excuses. So there was no regret.

This was the path Ho Gamyeong had chosen for himself.

Cheong Myeong silently stared at him.

Kagak.

His sword scraped against the ground.

He could neither acknowledge nor accept this. No matter what was said, Ho Gamyeong had ultimately aided Jang Ilso in massacring countless lives. He was nothing more than a villain. There was no reason to pity him, nor was he worth pitying.

And yet, Cheong Myeong slowly closed his eyes, as if mulling over the words.

“Brilliant, huh… I suppose I can understand that.”

It felt like he might scoff. But at the same time, he understood.

Because he had felt the same.

Cheong Myeong had also wanted to chase something blindly—to follow in the footsteps of someone so great that he could hardly even dare to dream of reaching them.

What he had pursued as greatness, Ho Gamyeong had seen as brilliance.

That was the only difference between them.

A faint smile spread across Ho Gamyeong’s lips.

“…I see.”

The more he thought about it, the stranger it was. He had never once thought that anyone would understand him. Even he himself had struggled to understand his own heart.

And yet, in this moment, he had unknowingly sought understanding from Cheong Myeong. And Cheong Myeong had understood him.

Life and the relationships within it were absurd things.

“That’s enough. Thank you.”

Ho Gamyeong quietly bowed his head to Cheong Myeong. He knew that this brief conversation had only been possible because of Cheong Myeong’s mercy.

After all, Cheong Myeong must have wanted to cut him down immediately and turn away.

Ho Gamyeong offered a final remark in return.

“The Ryeonju of today is not the Ryeonju of the past. I’ve sensed it for some time now. I don’t know why, but he has become twisted—almost as if he is being chased by something.”

Watching Jang Ilso over the years, Ho Gamyeong had long sensed that this was how it would all end. Though, of course, he had never imagined it would take precisely this shape.

Ho Gamyeong gazed steadily at Cheong Myeong.

“But to my eyes... you look the same as well.”

Cheong Myeong’s eyes became heavy at these words.

“Finding that answer is your burden. Now, just end it. I’m exhausted.”

Ho Gamyeong finished speaking.

Cheong Myeong silently gazed at him. A man who was utterly worn out stood before him.

A mere human, struggling to maintain a dignified stance until the very end. The very enemy who had relentlessly tormented Heavenly Comrade Alliance and driven him into a corner. A villain so detestable that even in his dreams, he had longed to tear him apart.

And yet, the emotion that overwhelmed Cheong Myeong at this moment was neither enmity nor rage.

Tap.

He took a step toward Ho Gamyeong. Then another. The distance between them closed, neither too fast nor too slow.

Everyone stared at the sight without even being able to breathe properly.

Ho Gamyeong was no exception. He met Cheong Myeong’s gaze head-on, without looking away—this was the price of his deeds, the end he had chosen.

Cheong Myeong came to a stop just before him and coldly spoke.

“No matter what nonsense you spew, it won’t change the fact that you’re a wretched bastard. So...”

Crunch.

A chilling sound rang out as a pure white blade pierced Ho Gamyeong’s chest.

The sword buried itself deep into his heart, delivering an overwhelming sense of foreignness and searing pain. His blood began to cool.

Even as his body staggered, Ho Gamyeong didn’t utter a single groan. Instead, he merely looked down at the sword impaled in his heart. When he lifted his head, his eyes met Cheong Myeong’s—eyes as cold as death itself, leaving no room for mercy.

“The only place you’re going is hell.”

The words were spat out with venom.

“So go and wait. Someday, I’ll be there too.”

Blood trickled from Ho Gamyeong’s parted lips. At the same time, the sword in his chest twisted. Blood gushed violently from the wound.

“When that time comes, I’ll kill you again.”

Ho Gamyeong tried to smile. But the excruciating pain and his fading senses reduced it to nothing more than a weak twitch of his muscles.

“You... truly know nothing.”

“......”

“If you’re coming... then hell is not where it will be.”

His strength failed him, and his knees buckled.

Thud.

Kneeling, he desperately tried to steady himself, tilting his head back. Through his blurred vision, he saw the ashen sky above.

‘It looks just like that day.’

His consciousness wavered, and an endless cold swallowed him like a rising tide. The world around him darkened.

As he sank into the abyss, the last thing Ho Gamyeong saw was a memory—Jang Ilso, smiling brightly as he spoke of dreams.

A time when everything had shone so brilliantly.

A faint laugh escaped Ho Gamyeong’s lips. To think that, in the end, this was what he would see. Foolish to the very last.

“Ryeonju...”

His head, once tilted back, slowly drooped forward. Kneeling, head bowed, Ho Gamyeong’s breath faded away.

Cheong Myeong gazed down at his lifeless body in silence.

A military strategist of the Myriad Man House. A right-hand man of Jang Ilso. The second-in-command of Evil Tyrant Alliance. Words alone could not define the man he was.

And yet, his end was miserably pathetic. Almost unbelievably so.

A surge of unexplainable frustration rose within Cheong Myeong.

Cheong Myeong bit his lips until they bled.

 Even though he had been an enemy, Ho Gamyeong was not someone who should have died like this. At the very least, not as a mere disposable pawn.

For whatever purpose, if you are a human being... at least if you are wearing the skin of a human being, you should not abandon someone who would risk his life to follow you like this.

“Cheong Myeong-ah.”

A voice called him back.

Cheong Myeong turned, and the sight made Yoon Jong involuntarily take a step back. It was the chilling intensity in his saje’s eyes—something he had never seen before.

“Sahyung.”

“......Cheong Myeong. Are you okay?”

Doubt flickered in Yoon Jong’s eyes. Cheong Myeong looked precarious—more than ever before.

“We have to go.”

“......Go? Where?”

“To where that bastard is.”

Cheong Myeong’s gaze bore into Yoon Jong. Understanding the meaning in his eyes, Yoon Jong gasped.

“Jang Ilso?”

Cheong Myeong nodded. Yoon Jong clenched his fists without realizing it.

“That bastard...”

“We have to kill that bastard.”

“......”

“Let’s go, Sahyung. Let’s end this hell.”

Yoon Jong hesitated only for a moment before nodding.

Cheong Myeong immediately kicked off the ground. Yoon Jong prepared to follow but suddenly halted and looked back.

Ho Gamyeong’s lifeless body lay still. With a faint sigh, Yoon Jong murmured a short prayer.

“Let’s go.”

Only then did he turn and chase after Cheong Myeong, along with the other disciples of Mount Hua.

And so, after they had all departed. Ho Gamyeong’s body, left alone on the empty field, swayed briefly as the wind blew. Then, it toppled over onto its side.

Thud.

The fallen corpse was swallowed by a deep silence.

Drip. Drop.

Raindrops began to fall upon his cooling body. The rain grew heavier, as if to wash the world clean.

And in that downpour, Ho Gamyeong’s face was slowly cleansed. The blood and dirt washed away, leaving behind an expression strangely at peace.

Next Chapter

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