Chapter 1855 – Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1855. I don’t see myself that way. (5) ❀ ❀ ❀

“Ah…”

Tang Soso let out a blank exclamation.

In her field of vision were two contrasting figures: Jang Ilso, who had fallen through the air, and Hye Yeon, standing confidently before him.

The shock hadn’t yet worn off.

Who didn’t know of Hye Yeon’s outstanding talent?

He was a prodigy acknowledged even by the thousand-year-old Shaolin, who had poured all their resources into nurturing him. If that man named Cheong Myeong hadn’t suddenly dropped into Mount Hua out of nowhere, Hye Yeon would have been all but guaranteed the title of the future strongest in the world.

Sure, prideful people like Namgung Dowi and Jin Geumryong might not have admitted it easily, but even they couldn’t deny that Hye Yeon was ahead of them.

That’s how well known Hye Yeon’s talent was. And even Tang Soso, who knew this well, couldn’t help but be utterly shocked right now.

‘His opponent… is Jang Ilso, of all people.’

If Hye Yeon was a contender for the future best under heaven (in the world), then Jang Ilso was currently the best among the evil faction—and the one closest to the title of strongest in the world.

Yet, that very Jang Ilso had been disgraced by Hye Yeon’s attack. Even having seen it with her own eyes, it was hard to believe.

“Monk…”

Was Hye Yeon’s ability really this great?

Tang Soso stared in astonishment. But Hye Yeon’s eyes weren’t on her. He wasn’t even looking at Jang Ilso.

With eyes closed, he continued to chant scripture in a whispering tone.

Standing in Shaolin’s unique half-bow posture, Hye Yeon chanted sutras for quite some time. Then, slowly, he half-opened his eyes. His gaze shifted to Jang Ilso, who lay collapsed on the ground.

“You’re exaggerating.”

Even though Jang Ilso was down, Hye Yeon showed not a hint of carelessness in his eyes.

“I know Siju wouldn’t be shaken by something this minor.”

At those words, Jang Ilso slowly lifted his upper body. His disheveled hair fell down smoothly.

He pulled one knee up and rested an arm on it, striking a relaxed posture completely at odds with the battlefield. He even looked drowsy. With a soft sigh, he let out a dry chuckle.

But it wasn’t a laugh of disbelief or self-mockery for being beaten by a greenhorn. It wasn’t that simple.

“Why are you laughing?”

“Hmm, I’m not really sure either. Why am I laughing?”

Jang Ilso slowly brushed back the hair that had fallen forward.

“Hmm. Well, if I had to explain, I suppose… it just hit me again, all of a sudden.”

“What do you mean?”

Jang Ilso stood up fully. Then, holding his hair with both hands, he tied it tightly and gave another dry laugh.

“Even if I explained it, would you understand?”

Hye Yeon’s brow twitched slightly.

“Well… we’re not exactly on terms to share deep thoughts, are we?”

“Don’t take offense. I meant it literally.”

Jang Ilso chuckled quietly. He slowly clenched and unclenched his fist. Despite this, the pressure radiating from Hye Yeon was so intense it made even the mighty Jang Ilso come to his senses. It was a force that numbed the scalp.

Hye Yeon spoke.

“It’s hard to understand.”

“It’s nothing much. I just thought it was a little unfair.”

“…Unfair? What do you mean?”

Jang Ilso let his arms hang down. As he fiddled his fingers, the rings on them clicked softly.

“Think about it. Out of all times, in this situation, some unexpected guy pops up to block me. Of course I’d feel a bit wronged.”

As he said this, Jang Ilso exaggerated a pitiful face and let out a deep sigh. It was oddly grating.

Yet even amidst this, Hye Yeon’s resolve remained firm as a mountain.

“That is not something to feel wronged about.”

“…Hmm? You say it’s not?”

“Yes. All of this is merely the karma for what you’ve done. Even if it wasn’t me, someone else would have stopped you. The Central Plains is vast, and there are plenty of chivalrous warriors.”

Jang Ilso looked up at the sky with slightly darkened eyes. The rain still fell from the overcast sky.

And Hye Yeon, watching this, suddenly thought the scene before him looked like a painting.

A black sky, falling rain, and Jang Ilso standing alone beneath it.

In truth, this wasn’t accurate. Jang Ilso had countless subordinates with him. Just turning one’s gaze slightly would reveal people willing to lay down their lives at his command.

Yet for some reason, in Hye Yeon’s eyes, Jang Ilso always looked as if he were standing alone.

Then it happened.

“Heh…”

A quiet laugh escaped Jang Ilso’s lips. In that moment, a cold shiver ran down Hye Yeon’s spine. It wasn’t out of threat or being overwhelmed.

‘What is this…?’

A residue of emotion, impossible to describe, hidden within that short laugh, shook even Hye Yeon’s imperturbable mind.

“Siju…”

“Chivalrous warriors, huh…”

Jang Ilso lowered his head, then looked at Hye Yeon with a radiant smile. A clear, spotless smile completely out of place in this battlefield.

“I see. So something like that existed... on this land.”

His voice sounded different from usual—oddly so.

Hye Yeon’s eyes trembled slightly.

What Jang Ilso was showing now was clearly mockery. He always mocked the world. But how should we interpret the bitterness and fury lurking beneath?

“Ahahahahahaha!”

Suddenly, Jang Ilso burst into loud laughter. That much was familiar. The sound quickly pulled Hye Yeon back to reality.

“That was a funny story.”

Jang Ilso smirked. Between his crescent-shaped eyes narrowed like a waning moon, a chilling coldness lingered.

“But… do you really believe that?”

It was strange.

Hye Yeon had built mental walls against Jang Ilso. None of his words should have affected him. No temptation or doubt should hold power before a firm mind.

“Truly?”

Yet, strangely, Hye Yeon couldn’t answer easily. His lips refused to part, as if glued shut.

Jang Ilso gave a low chuckle.

“That’s why you’re still a child. How long will you keep shouting what even you don’t believe?”

“…Amitabha.”

“The Central Plains you speak of—where exactly is that?”

Step.

Jang Ilso began walking toward Hye Yeon.

“On this land? Chivalrous warriors?”

“….”

“This is a place where demons (hungry ghost) live, my dear. It’s teeming with those who, at the slightest crack, sink their teeth in and suck the blood dry. If the Avici Hell your Buddhist teachings speak of truly exists, it must be referring to this place.”

Jang Ilso’s red lips parted, revealing gleaming white teeth in a disturbing grin.

“Chivalrous? That can’t exist. In this rotten world, it’s worthless. And any sacrifice made to protect what’s worthless is meaningless from the start.”

Hye Yeon couldn’t understand. Not Jang Ilso, nor his thoughts. Above all, the contradictions in his words were unbearable.

“You’re not making sense.”

Hye Yeon spoke before he even realized it.

“If nothing in this world holds any value, then why are you so obsessed with this Central Plain, Siju?”

“……”

“Isn’t it you, Siju, who speaks of what you do not believe in?”

At last, Hye Yeon saw it.

The face of Jang Ilso, twisted in excessive laughter, suddenly hardened—cold and emotionless.

It was a reaction even Hye Yeon hadn’t expected.

Jang Ilso was a rational man. There was no way he was unaware of his own contradictions. Even if he had been unaware, he was not someone who would let others see that.

That was why the sight before him felt even more unexpected.

Jang Ilso tilted his head slightly.

“…You’re not wrong.”

He smiled again, as if his face had never hardened at all.

“Yes. Maybe it’s not that I wanted to possess it.”

“What do you…”

“I just wanted to burn it all down with my own hands. All these hateful things.”

A suffocating feeling overcame Hye Yeon. As if something thick and sticky was creeping over him. The ground beneath his feet kept sinking, and he felt himself being endlessly drawn into a bottomless abyss.

‘I must snap out of it.’

Hye Yeon bit his lip until it bled. He quickly recited a sutra in his heart. But his shaken heart could not easily return to peace.

Why was he so overwhelmed? After all, this was merely a wicked man. A deceitful being who bewitched people with treacherous words.

“If you still don’t understand, then I suppose I’ll have to make you understand.”

Jang Ilso slowly raised his hand.

“That dreams are nothing more than just dreams.”

Fwoosh.

With those words, Jang Ilso suddenly appeared before Hye Yeon. Startled, Hye Yeon’s eyes widened.

‘The Vajra Immovable…?’

Shaolin’s Vajra Immovable Body Technique. A method of moving while remaining still. The pinnacle of illusionary displacement turned into a martial form, one of Shaolin’s secret arts. [금강부동신법 (金剛不動身法)]

And Jang Ilso had just demonstrated the profundity of Vajra Immovable Body Technique—more precisely than even Hye Yeon himself.

Hye Yeon’s heart sank. But his body, honed to its limits, responded with practiced movements. Even in the shock and urgency, it counterattacked using a move from the Arhat Fist, aiming directly for Jang Ilso’s body.

The concentrated punch, infused with inner strength, shot toward Jang Ilso’s solar plexus. But in that instant, Jang Ilso’s hand flowed in like water, pushing Hye Yeon’s fist to the side.

Whoosh.

Realizing his punch had struck only air, Hye Yeon instinctively tried to withdraw, but Jang Ilso’s hand slithered up his arm like a snake and clamped down on his elbow as if biting it.

Crunch.

His fingers pierced through the flesh of Hye Yeon’s elbow.

Even as excruciating pain coursed through him, Hye Yeon saw an opportunity in this moment. At such close range, where fists collided—this was his territory.

Golden light radiated from Hye Yeon’s body.

Woooooom!

His feet anchored to the ground, and golden inner strength gathered in his fist. To focus energy at this range was nearly equivalent to leaving oneself open to an attack—but Hye Yeon had already accepted that risk.

To strike bone, you must sacrifice flesh. Facing Jang Ilso, that kind of resolve was essential.

Hye Yeon’s outstretched fingers curled inward, forming a singular point.

It was neither a fist nor a claw, but a bizarre form—like the beak of a bird.

But that strange, childlike hand shape was a vessel for one of Shaolin’s most deadly and intense techniques.

The intent to gather all energy into a single point and annihilate the enemy. A killing intent shaped into form, permitted only to the utmost limit in Buddhist martial arts.

The Lion’s Roaring Mudra. [사자모니인(獅子牟尼印)]

The golden energy gathered at the tips of his five fingers, radiating a cold, metallic light as it shot toward Jang Ilso’s throat.

‘If not me!’

Then who would descend into hell?

The Lion’s Roaring Mudra, imbued with slaughter, was just about to strike Jang Ilso’s neck.

“Hmm.”

A familiar and chilling nasal laugh pierced Hye Yeon’s ears.

Whoosh.

Suddenly, three Jang Ilsos appeared before him, each taking a different stance. Hye Yeon’s mouth fell open in disbelief.

“An… afterimage…?”

His Lion’s Roaring Mudra pierced through the image of Jang Ilso before him. But there was nothing there. No—there had never been anything there to begin with.

All he saw was empty air. And in the distance, Tang Soso stood, dazed, staring at him.

“What’s got you so startled?”

Hye Yeon froze.

Because the gentle voice came from directly behind him.

His instincts screamed in alarm.

“Jang Ilso!”

Hye Yeon twisted his body with all his strength.

At the same time, Jang Ilso’s hand pierced toward his solar plexus. A chilling, demonic hand wreathed in blue flames.

‘I have to dodge…!’

But despite what his mind screamed, Hye Yeon’s body stood rooted in place as if held by invisible chains.

CRACK!

Blood splattered across Jang Ilso’s pale face. Hye Yeon stared blankly at that face, knowing it was his own blood.

At a distance so close he could see the shadow of the man’s eyes, he saw Jang Ilso’s faint smile—like a sorrowful moon.

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[tl note: What intrigued me a bit in this chapter is how JIS refers to people in the Central Plains. Initially, Hye Yeon first mentioned ‘Chivalrous Warrior’ (협의), and JIS mocked him, saying that everyone in the Central Plains are ‘the demons’ (아귀들이). Interestingly, ‘chivalrous’ is the exact title JIS gives to Cheong Myeong, and ‘demon’ is the title Ho Gamyeong gives to CM. It’s chivalrous (hyeop, 협) and demon (gwi, 귀). Btw, I said this— not that I meant to imply they were related or anything, it was just funny because part of what they were talking about was in Chung Myung's title.]

[another note: I read that 'A-gwi', the term mentioned by JIS, specifically discusses the beings that roam the Preta Realm in Korean Buddhist teaching, and it can be translated as Preta too. Preta Realm is a realm of extreme hunger and thirst, symbolizing insatiable desire. If you are interested in this, just search for 'Six Realms of Existence']

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