ROTMHS Special Spin-off - Chapter 5

Chapter 5. Uh, There... (5)

There’s a saying, ‘three-day determination’.

No need for a long explanation. It means a person’s resolve rarely lasts more than three days. Baek Cheon agreed with that. Human willpower isn’t as strong as people think, and keeping up what you’ve set your mind to is extremely difficult.

But even so…

“Forget three days, you should at least last three shijin, you lunatic!”

[시진 (時辰 / shijin): A traditional time unit; 1 shijin ≈ 2 hours, so 3 shijin ≈ 6 hours.]

“Well, things like that can happen in life.”

“Why is it that there are so many things that ‘can happen’ to you?”

And why that generosity never seems to apply to other people.

“Anyway, that’s how it turned out, so I’ll see you later. I’ll be right back.”

“Wait!”

“Ah, what now?”

Suppressing the boiling anger inside him, Baek Cheon spoke.

“Just in case I’ll ask. You do know that disciples of the main sect need the sect leader’s permission to leave the mountain gate, right?”

Hearing that, Cheong Myeong beamed.

“Come on. How many years do you think I’ve lived eating and sleeping at Mount Hua? You think I wouldn’t know that?”

“Right?”

Nodding with satisfaction, he continued,

“That’s why I’m asking you to take care of it for me.”

“Like hell that’ll happen, you crazy bastard!”

As Baek Cheon shot up from his seat, Cheong Myeong smirked and casually raised a hand.

“I’m asking so politely, though.”

“I think your idea of ‘polite’ and mine are a bit… different?”

“Then mine’s the correct one.”

Grit.

Baek Cheon’s teeth ground together on their own.

“So what, you think you’ll catch me? You won’t be able to anyway, so why make this a big deal? Even if Sasuk’s gotten a bit more experienced, you are still not at that level.”

“Yeah. I’m definitely not at that level yet.”

“You know it well.”

“That’s why I prepared.”

“Huh?”

“Get him!”

The moment the words ended, the table flipped over, and something burst in through the window.

“Uwaaah!”

Cheong Myeong reflexively drove his heel into Jo Geol’s solar plexus as he charged.

“Gehk!”

“Ah, that startled me!”

He grabbed Yoon Jong rushing from behind and threw him, then rammed Yoo Iseol—who leapt down from above—with his shoulder and sent her flying. Cheong Myeong shouted in outrage, wildly pointing fingers.

“You don’t trust people and even set traps? People should have some basic sense of loyalty!”

“And whose fault is it that ‘loyalty’ has hit rock bottom, you bastard?!”

“Even so, a Sasuk should still trust me! It wasn’t like this back in my day!”

Seeing how genuinely wronged he looked, Baek Cheon almost started to wonder if he was the one in the wrong.

But then—

“Soso!”

Shwaaaak!

“Huh?”

Something pitch-black spread out before Cheong Myeong’s eyes. A net woven from black chains flew out and covered him in an instant.

“Hah. Look at these cheap tricks.”

No matter how old(?) and worn down(?) he might be, he wasn’t someone who’d fall for something like this. Just as Cheong Myeong was about to put strength into his toes and kick off the ground—

“Now! Monk!”

At that instant, something bright, clean, and round… something almost sacred-looking appeared before his eyes like an illusion.

“A bald monk?”

“Ooooooh!”

Hye Yeon suddenly lunged forward and hugged Cheong Myeong tightly.

“Has this monk gone insane?!”

If anyone else had tried such a crude grappling move—barely even worth calling a technique—against Cheong Myeong, their head would’ve been smashed open instantly. But the one clinging to him now was none other than Hye Yeon, a once-in-a-century prodigy even within Shaolin.

If a cat bites you, it might just draw a little blood—but if a tiger does it, you’d be left thinking, ‘Huh? My hand was definitely here just a moment ago?’ Such is the way of the world.

So the act of grabbing and holding performed by Hye Yeon ought to be named something like “Guanyin Embrace Fist” or “Heavenly King’s Great Might.”

[관음옹포권 (觀音擁抱拳): “Guanyin Embrace Fist.” 觀音 (Guanyin, Bodhisattva of compassion) + 擁抱 (embrace) + 拳 (fist/technique). A comedic technique name.]

[천왕대능력 (天王大能力): “Heavenly King’s Great Power.” 天王 (Heavenly King) + 大能力 (great power). Another exaggerated, humorous name.]

And indeed, Hye Yeon’s Guanyin Embrace Fist successfully restrained Cheong Myeong—right up until the pitch-black net completely covered both of them.

“Oh!”

“Got him!”

But even for Hye Yeon, things weren’t exactly going well.

“Let go! Are you letting go or not?!”

Smack! Smack!

“You octopus-headed idiot! Where do you think you’re suctioning?!”

Smack! Smack!

As Cheong Myeong repeatedly smacked Hye Yeon on the head, it turned bright red—just like an octopus. Still, more than the physical hits, it was Hye Yeon’s feelings that were hurt.

“I-I think your words are a bit too harsh…”

“What are you even saying, you boiled octopus! Aren’t you going to let go quickly?!”

For a moment, it almost sounded like someone muttered, ‘Octopus? Huh? Now that you mention it…’

“Uraaaaaah!”

At that instant, Cheong Myeong flung Hye Yeon away and simultaneously tore apart the net that had wrapped around him.

“Whoa.”

“He tore that.”

“At that point, isn’t he basically a bear?”

“Huff. Huff. Huff!”

Panting heavily, Cheong Myeong wiped the corner of his mouth with a look of admiration.

“To think a bunch of brats… could actually make me short of breath.”

“……”

“But this isn’t enough to stop me. If you want to stop me, you’d have to stake your lives—huh?”

At that moment, Cheong Myeong’s vision swayed violently. His body staggered sideways as well.

“Huh? What’s going on….? Alcohol…. did I drink too much? I didn’t even have that much….. gurrrk.”

Thud!

Cheong Myeong collapsed forward.

“W-we got hi—”

“Hwaaaaaaah!”

Before Jo Geol could finish speaking, Cheong Myeong sprang back up.

“Kiiieeeegk!”

Flop.

He immediately collapsed forward again. Everyone stared at Jo Geol—who had somehow ended up stuck to the ceiling—with exasperated eyes.

Tang Soso, wearing a triumphant smile, picked up the torn chain net.

Drip.

At that, black liquid dripped off the net in clumps.

“If you want to hide a tree, you hide it in the forest.”

“Brilliant, Soso!”

“As expected of the Tang family’s precious jewel!”

“You’re the only one we’ve got!”

Everyone gave her a thumbs-up, tears streaming down their faces. Without a method like this, they wouldn’t have even dared try to capture him.

“But didn’t you say you wouldn’t use poison anymore?”

“I don’t use it on people.”

“Ah…”

Right. That’s not a person. That checks out.

“We don’t have time for this. Tie him up quickly right now. It's a potent poison that could put a bear to sleep for ten days, but for Sahyung, it's a struggle to even hold out half a gak.”

[각 (刻 / gak): A traditional time unit; 1 gak ≈ 15 minutes, so half a gak ≈ 7–8 minutes.]

“O-Okay!”

The disciples rushed in and began wrapping Cheong Myeong tightly with thick iron chains.

“The effect is undeniable.”

“This is why people praise the Tang family. Without their special elixirs, how could we ever take this guy down?”

“Seriously. If money could buy it, I’d like to get some too—”

Mid-sentence, Yoon Jong suddenly paused as if realizing something.

“Wait… this stuff… didn’t just hit Cheong Myeong, did it?”

“Huh?”

“I mean… the monk too…”

Yoon Jong slowly turned his head.

And then he saw it—Hye Yeon collapsed on the ground, foaming at the mouth and convulsing intermittently. It might’ve been less terrifying if he were just shaking, but instead, he twitched in irregular beats, as if keeping time.

The sight was beyond bizarre, downright horrifying.

“Uh…”

“He’s… gone, right?”

“Feels like he’s already halfway across.”

As if on cue, everyone pressed their palms together in prayer.

“May you rest in blissful rebirth, Monk.”

“Yuanshi Tianzun.”

“We won’t forget you.”

The one who had fainted had nothing to say.

✿ ✿ ✿

“So… where exactly were you planning to go?”

Cheong Myeong’s eyes darted around.

He was a bold man, so bold that even at the very moment of dying, his neck had remained stiff with pride.

Of course, that excessive boldness had once led to the catastrophe of his single body being split into two—but since even the Heavenly Demon who cut off his arm had experienced something similar, it wasn’t really a problem.

In other words, neither the Heavenly Demon who nearly ruined the world, nor the greatest sect leader in Mount Hua’s history, nor even the current abbot of Shaolin—the most powerful figure in the martial world—had ever managed to strip Cheong Myeong of his boldness.

And yet…

Even Cheong Myeong couldn’t help but squirm like a fish on a grill under Hyeon Jong’s gaze that seemed to say, ‘Yes, yes, it’s all my fault. What could you possibly have done wrong?’

“Well, that is…”

“Yes. Where were you going?”

“Shan…dong. Just for a bit.”

“Shandong?”

“……”

“You mean that far eastern end? Why not just say you’re taking a trip to Japan instead? You’ve already seen Yunnan in the south and the North Sea in the north—what, are you planning to cover east and west next?”

“It’s not exactly like that…”

“What kind of wanderlust has possessed you that you’d go all the way there without even telling me?”

Cheong Myeong scratched his head awkwardly. Well, since his hands were tied, he did it with his foot.

“I can get there and back quickly.”

“Quickly?”

“……”

“Quickly? Did you just say ‘quickly’? To Shandong?”

With no excuses left, Cheong Myeong ground his teeth and turned his head.

In his line of sight were those despicable wretches who had dared trick him into this situation—now subtly avoiding his gaze.

“…I raised a bunch of tiger cubs.”

He had expected a coordinated attack. After all, he was someone tempered by war. Facing an unbeatable opponent and attacking together wasn’t cowardly or dirty—you win first, that’s what matters.

But using poison while grappling with fellow disciples?

That crossed the line. Even the Heavenly Demon in the afterlife would probably go, ‘Ah… that’s a bit too much,’ and spin his severed head in disbelief.

“Where are you looking now? Can’t you even see the sect leader anymore?”

As Cheong Myeong’s lips started to jut out, Hyeon Jong shot him a sharp glare.

“Your mouth.”

Cheong Myeong immediately pulled his lips back in.

Though his tone was calm, Hyeon Jong’s expression made it clear he was genuinely angry.

Honestly, it wasn’t hard to understand. A disciple of the sect packing up and trying to leave for a place that would take at least ten days—without saying a word? Hyeon Jong was a benevolent man, so he was handling it with words, but if Cheong Myeong were in the opposite position, he wouldn’t even bother listening—he’d smash heads first.

Frankly, locking him up in the repentance chamber right away and feeding him nothing but fasting pills for three months and ten days would still be considered lenient.

But that’s only if the roles were reversed.

“So.”

“Yes.”

“What were you planning to do in Shandong?”

“Well… it’s really just something trivial.”

“You’re saying something trivial requires you to go all the way to Shandong? Do you expect me to believe that? At least say something that makes sense.”

“It’s true…”

Hyeon Jong narrowed his eyes.

“Cheong Myeong.”

“…Y-yes.”

“It hasn’t even been that long since you returned from the North Sea. And you know better than anyone that there’s still much to be done, don’t you?”

“…That’s true.”

“I cannot permit it.”

“No, Sect Leader!”

“If it’s something trivial, then this time you should let it go. This is an order as the sect leader. Understood?”

“……”

“Your answer?”

“Th-that…”

Cheong Myeong’s face twitched like a broken machine.

An order from the sect leader should be obeyed. That was the proper way.

But this matter…

“Answer!”

“…Underst—”

Just as Cheong Myeong was about to nod weakly—

“Sect Leader, are you—”

The closed door burst open, and someone poked their head inside.

“What’s going on here? Why is everyone gathered like this?”

“Ah, Elder. It’s just that—”

“Well, that’s quite the— huh?”

Hyeon Yeong, who had leaned in, froze mid-sentence, his gaze locking onto something.

At the same time, it felt as though time itself had frozen.

“…You bastards.”

“Pardon?”

“Which damn bastard wrapped my kid up like dried fish? Untie him this instant!”

Flames of fury blazed in Hyeon Yeong’s eyes.

Next Chapter

✿ ✿ ✿

If anyone wants to donate to motivate me (I'll use the money to buy the RAWs from Naver Series too). Thank you so much!

- Buy Me a Coffee

- Patreon

- Trakteer (this one for Indonesian)