Chapter 1911 - Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1911. I Wish This Could Last. (1) ❀ ❀ ❀

 “Ugh….”

It felt as if a hundred bells were ringing inside his head, and Lee Danhui instinctively grabbed it with both hands.

“Ughhh….”

It wasn’t just his head. His stomach churned as if something inside it was dancing, and even the sensations in his limbs felt strange and unfamiliar.

‘How much… how much did I even drink?’

His memory was hazy.

He clearly remembered refusing the drinks offered by Mount Hua’s disciples…

What did they say again? ‘As expected of someone from a prestigious orthodox sect, I suppose you don’t even touch alcohol, do you?’

It wasn’t meant as sarcasm or mockery. Perhaps, to them, it was as casual as saying, ‘That dog’s white. That dog’s black.’

The problem was that such a remark happened to prick at Lee Danhui’s pride.

In Yunnan, a man who can’t hold his liquor isn’t considered a proper man. Even without bringing up those beastly savages from the Beast Palace, proving one’s manliness by not refusing a single cup of liquor had long been part of their culture.

So there was no helping it. With no elders around to rebuke the comment, Lee Danhui had no choice but to step up and show the spirit of a true man of Diancang.

Yes, that’s what happened. Right…

‘But why does everything feel so mixed up?’

Lee Danhui groaned, clutching his throbbing head.

“Are you awake, Sahyung?”

“W-water… some… water…”

“Here it is. It’s honey water.”

Honey water?

He wondered where that suddenly came from, but the pounding headache knocked that thought right out of him. He reflexively reached out, grabbed the bowl offered by his junior, and gulped it down in one go.

“Drink slowly, slowly. You’ll choke. Honestly, how much did you drink?”

“Ugh…”

He set down the now-empty bowl with a clatter. He couldn’t even muster the energy to say something like “I feel alive again.” It felt more like he had just barely managed to stick his head out of a grave.

“What on earth… happened last night?”

“You don’t remember?”

“No, I remember… kind of.”

Lee Danhui clutched his head again.

“My memories are weird. I feel like I was drinking with some bald guy I’ve never seen before.”

“…..”

“And he was wearing a pitch-black monk’s robe. There’s no way anyone in the world dresses like that, right? So my memory must be wrong.”

“Uh… sahyung.”

“Hm?”

“That memory’s correct.”

“…Huh?”

“You really did drink with a monk.”

“A monk?”

“Yes. Around the middle of the night, he walked in saying, ‘Haha, this must be the best place to enjoy a refreshing drink,’ and then he drank like it was water.”

“……”

Lee Danhui stared blankly at his saje. When the saje nodded as if to say he wasn’t joking, vague memories started surfacing in Lee Danhui’s mind.

- Is that all it takes to shake a warrior’s body?

- Come, come. Drink boldly. Beyond this lies enlightenment and release. Life is suffering. If enduring pain were the only way to overcome it, how could compassion exist in this world? In the end, isn’t this drink, too, something the Buddha bestowed upon the people?

- Gulp, gulp, gulp! Haha, splendid!

It seemed his saje was right. The memories were becoming clearer.

“A… bald monk? There’s no way someone like that really exists…”

“…They said he’s from Shaolin.”

“What?”

“Venerable Hye Yeon of Shaolin.”

“Wait… Hye Yeon? That Hye Yeon I know?”

“Yes.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me…”

Hye Yeon, the hundred-year prodigy that Shaolin cherished so deeply? What in the world was someone like that doing here, drinking like a fallen monk?

As Lee Danhui’s jaw dropped, his saje swallowed the words he was about to say—’You actually passed out and used that monk’s lap as a pillow.’ That was something better left unsaid. Some things are best taken to the grave.

“What kind of sect… ughhh.”

Lee Danhui groaned again, the pain in his head flaring up. Monk or not, he felt like his skull might split open.

“The other sajes…”

“They’re about the same, Sahyung.”

“What? They drank too?”

“The kids? No, of course not. The Mount Hua guys might be reckless, but not ‘that’ reckless.”

“Then why…”

“They’re just tired, that’s all. Tired. We’ve been hurrying nonstop from Henan to here, haven’t we?”

“……”

“I feel like I could drop dead myself. Imagine how the kids must feel. Their stamina’s not even fully developed yet, and the fact that they managed to stay up past midnight is impressive enough.”

Just as Lee Danhui was about to nod in relief, the saje added,

“Don’t worry, though. The only one who got drunk and passed out at Diancang was you, Sahyung.”

“Ugh…”

Lee Danhui roughly rubbed his face.

‘What a disgrace. Truly.’

It was already bad enough that he’d accepted alcohol from what was practically enemy territory. But to drink until he passed out? And in front of all his sajes?

Cold sweat trickled down his back.

“Damn it, what a humiliation…”

“Haaaap!”

“How can I ever face our predecessors who died tragically, looking like this?”

“Eura-chaa!”

“To bring shame like this, and at Mount Hua of all places…”

“Kkiooooot!”

“Aagh! Why’s it so damn noisy! If they’re tired, they should just sleep! Make those brats quiet down!”

He shot up and barked in irritation. But instead of running off, his saje only shook his head awkwardly.

“Uh… sahyung. That’s not our people making the noise.”

“Huh?”

“Please, see for yourself.”

The saje gestured toward the window at the side of the room. Still tinted with the dim light of early dawn, the window rattled as Lee Danhui approached it with a frown.

Clack.

The moment he pushed it open, his eyes trembled.

“Eura-cha!”

“Haaap!”

“Eujajajajaja!”

“Why’s everyone so loud? Keep it down a little.”

“Ah, sorry. My body feels all stiff.”

Before his eyes was the same large training ground where they had drunk themselves silly the night before. Now filled with countless Mount Hua disciples.

Had the drinking party not ended yet? If that were the case, maybe he could have accepted it. He would’ve cursed them as fools drowning in liquor, but at least he wouldn’t have felt like ‘this’.

But what he saw now wasn’t a drunken brawl. Every single one of those Mount Hua brats who had drunk so recklessly last night was already out in the training yard, swinging their swords.

“Eura-cha! Agh, my body’s not moving right.”

“Then why didn’t you just sleep in?”

“Exactly. I was planning to sleep in, but my eyes just opened on their own. Guess it’s habit.”

“Tsk. That’s a sickness.”

“Then why are ‘you’ out here, Sasuk? You came to train too, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t.”

“Then why…”

“Everyone else came out, so I felt awkward staying alone. Would’ve looked bad.”

“Ah.”

Lee Danhui stared blankly at the scene outside, then closed his eyes tightly and shook his head.

‘How embarrassing.’

He had said it himself. Diancang came here to break Mount Hua. To observe them up close, to study and analyze them.

Enemies. Yes, that’s what they were. Enemies they would one day have to crush with their own hands.

And yet here they were, sitting comfortably in their lodging, watching those same enemies train at dawn.

‘We’re already behind in skill and numbers… if we fall behind in effort too, how can we ever hope to catch up?’

But even saying ‘let’s work harder than they do’ didn’t come easily.

These were people who had drunk themselves into a stupor the night before and were now, just a few hours later, all training as if nothing happened. You couldn’t live like that unless such discipline was completely ingrained in your bones.

Lee Danhui was a disciple of the prestigious Diancang Sect. He had worked as hard as anyone, perhaps harder. But seeing the traces of effort woven into these people’s everyday lives was enough to leave even him speechless.

“…So that’s why Mount Hua has flourished like this,” his saje murmured under his breath, just loud enough to sting.

Lee Danhui bit his lip lightly.

“Then we’ll follow their example.”

“…Sahyung?”

He steadied his voice, making it firm.

“Even if they are our enemies, it’s undeniable that Mount Hua is the perfect textbook for us.”

“Yes, that’s true.”

Wasn’t Mount Hua once expelled from the Ten Great Sects and on the verge of losing even its name, only to rise again and become the sect it is today? If they observed and followed that path, a way forward would surely open for Diancang as well.

“Fortunately, for now, we’re still guests of Mount Hua.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t overlook a single thing. Watch and learn from all of it. And someday, we must work harder, several times harder, than they do. Otherwise, we’ll never catch up to Mount Hua before our generation ends. I have no intention of passing this burden to those who come after.”

“…Understood, sahyung.”

His saje’s voice softened a little. He had answered, but it was clear he thought it would be a difficult thing to do.

But that didn’t matter.

‘As long as I don’t give up, that’s enough.’

A fire blazed in Lee Danhui’s eyes.

‘Deputy Sect Leader. You’ll regret giving me this chance. I’ll steal everything from you, all of it.’

He would exploit every bit of their kindness, every ounce of that victor’s magnanimity. Even if the humiliation made his blood boil, he would endure it.

Lee Danhui steeled his resolve.

But then—

❀ ❀ ❀

“Who said you’re guests?”

“…What?”

In front of Lee Danhui. No, in front of the Diancang disciples who had gathered at his summons, the man standing before them had a face full of puffed-up annoyance.

“So. I’m. Asking. Why do you think you’re guests?”

“…”

Because they were invited? No, that sounded pathetic even to think.

“Since we’re not part of this sect…”

“What? Not part of it? So if you don’t belong here, you’re automatically guests? Then does that mean the delivery guy bringing food from Huayin is a guest too?”

“……”

He could have argued back.

But the reason he couldn’t get the words out was because of the look on the man’s face.

‘No matter what I say, he won’t listen.’

‘He never intended to listen in the first place.’

‘Wait… isn’t that guy the Mount Hua Chivalrous Sword?’

‘Seriously? I thought he was just some random thug.’

‘That…’

As the murmurs among the sajes grew louder, Lee Danhui quickly spoke up. Giving this man an excuse to pick a fight was clearly a bad idea.

“I have no intention of insisting on being treated as a guest.”

“Oh? Really?”

“Then may I ask why you’re bringing this up?”

“Oh, curious about that, huh?”

Cheong Myeong smirked.

“Why do you think? It’s obvious. ‘Guest’ means someone you feed well, give a bed to, and send off happily. You know why?”

“I’m not sure.”

“A proper guest never comes up a mountain empty-handed. At the very least, they bring something worth more than the food and shelter they receive. You get what I’m saying?”

Lee Danhui’s hands stiffened awkwardly.

The other Diancang disciples instinctively drew their shoulders in. Seeing this, Cheong Myeong clicked his tongue.

“So what does that make all of you, then? Not guests, freeloaders! Moochers! You eat, sleep, and waste money without giving anything back.”

Just as Lee Danhui was about to snap, Cheong Myeong went on without pause.

“Do you even know the difference between a guest and a freeloader?”

“…I-I’m not sure?”

“You don’t? That’s fine. You don’t need to.”

“Huh?”

Cheong Myeong grinned brightly.

“Because you’re about to find out.”

And from that moment on, days began for Lee Danhui that he had never once imagined.

Next Chapter

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