Chapter 1988 - Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1988. It Would Have Been Nice If You’d Seen This. (3)

Peng Jaho’s entire body instinctively shrank back.

The Plum Blossom...... Sword Saint......

The Sword Ghost of Mount Hua. The one who had turned not just one, but several bishops of the Demonic Cult, beings no different from demons themselves, into wandering souls. No one in the Central Plains other than him had ever defeated a bishop single-handedly. This fact alone was more than enough to prove the extent of his power.

The Greatest Sword Under Heaven. No, the Greatest Man Under Heaven, surpassing even that.

But what filled Peng Jaho with fear wasn’t merely the fact that this man’s martial prowess had reached a realm beyond anything he could contend with.

Frankly, there must have been many people in the world stronger than Peng Jaho. There was no need to check them one by one, but even a rough count would easily put their number above twenty.

But was Peng Jaho afraid of such people?

Not at all. Peng Jaho wasn’t afraid of them. No matter how strong someone was, there was no one who would dare openly show hostility toward him, the Patriarch of the Peng Family.

Jianghu was a place where the collective strength of a group took precedence over an individual’s martial prowess. No matter how powerful someone might be, it was only natural that they wouldn’t even think of harming a man who had the Hebei Peng Family behind him.

But the common sense that applied to everyone else didn’t apply to the man standing before him now.

The Plum Blossom Sword Saint. The Greatest Sword Under Heaven, who had suddenly emerged from Mount Hua, a sect that hadn’t particularly distinguished itself even among the Nine Great Sects.

The man’s reputation was closer to infamy than to an illustrious name.

How many people had suffered misfortune after offending his sensibilities? Among them were even several people whose reputations were so illustrious that someone like Peng Jaho wouldn’t dare compare himself to them.

In other words, the Plum Blossom Sword Saint was someone who wouldn’t pay even the slightest attention to Peng Jaho’s position or background.

And with that very Plum Blossom Sword Saint openly radiating murderous intent as he approached, there was no way Peng Jaho could fail to understand what this meant. If he lacked even that much sense, how could he have survived this treacherous jianghu with his head still attached until now?

Peng Jaho opened his mouth as though he were in pain.

“P-Plum Blossom Sword Saint......”

“Shut your stinking mouth.”

Of course, he was cut off before he could even manage to say anything.

If the Plum Blossom Sword Saint had erupted in fury and poured out his complaints, Peng Jaho might not have felt quite so wretched. But what the man displayed was cold contempt, nothing more and nothing less.

“Just answer what I ask. Start spouting useless nonsense, and I’ll tear your fucking mouth apart right here.”

It was an exceedingly vulgar and crude threat to make to the head of a family, and not just any family, but the head of one of the Five Great Families. Even so, Peng Jaho couldn’t voice even the slightest complaint.

He had already heard of someone whose mouth had actually been torn apart after ignoring a warning and defying the Plum Blossom Sword Saint.

Arrogant and insolent. Looking down on everyone.

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that nearly half of the resentment the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Families, the factions ruling the jianghu of the present day, held toward Mount Hua originated from this one man.

“Spit it out. Why were you late?”

“O-on the way here...... we encountered remnants of the Demonic Cult.......”

Thud!

The Sword Saint seized Peng Jaho by the collar. Then he glared straight into his eyes. It was a fear like standing face-to-face with a starving wolf. Peng Jaho’s body trembled faintly.

“I told you to talk, not bark.”

“......”

“Spit it out properly again. Why were you late? And is this all the force that came to deal with those Demonic Cult bastards?”

“P-Plum Blossom Sword Saint. I.........”

“Didn’t I tell you not to bark?”

The Sword Saint twisted the hand gripping Peng Jaho’s collar and dragged him closer.

“Answer me, you son of a bitch.”

“......”

“Why? Did those self-important idiots of the Nine Great Sects tell you to come and check whether we’d properly fucking died? Or did they tell you to finish off any survivors if there happened to be any left?”

“T-that, that’s......! No, that’s not true!”

Peng Jaho’s pupils trembled violently. Questions whirled through his mind.

‘What in the world was going on?’

How had Mount Hua broken through the Demonic Cult’s encirclement this intact? Considering the number of Demonic Cult members gathered here, at least half of them should have had their throats cut.

And above all...... how was this man still alive?

With his mad-dog temperament, always refusing to give up the vanguard no matter when or where, this bastard should have been the first one to have his head cut off.

What on earth had happened here for this man to still be alive and breathing, let alone have his hand gripping Peng Jaho’s collar?

But Peng Jaho wasn’t given the slightest opportunity to continue pondering. A single wrong answer would be enough to have a sword driven into his neck on the spot. This man was more than capable of doing exactly that.

Peng Jaho, whose earlier bravado had completely vanished, spoke as politely and deferentially as he possibly could.

“P-Plum Blossom Sword Saint. You’ve misunderstood...... W-We truly did everything we could...... Yes. We really came here to help Mount Hua with everything we had. We were merely delayed because we engaged the Demonic Cult on the way here.”

The Sword Saint, who had been listening quietly, smiled, his smile gleaming white.

“Is that so?”

“Yes, certainly.....”

“Right. So those who fought a fierce battle against the Demonic Cult and came all the way here don’t have even a single drop of blood on them. That’s what you’re saying?”

Peng Jaho opened his eyes wide in bewilderment.

“Th-that’s......”

“Impressive. Had I known the Peng Family was that strong, I would’ve put you at the vanguard from the very beginning. If I’d done that, even that vaunted Heavenly Demon would’ve had his head cut off by now. Wouldn’t he?”

Peng Jaho couldn’t say a word.

His excuse had been flimsy from the very beginning. He had never expected to deceive the Plum Blossom Sword Saint with such words. Even so, the reason he had stubbornly continued spouting such shabby excuses was because he had judged that, no matter how recklessly this man might behave, there was still one final line he wouldn’t cross.

“P-Plum Blossom Sword Saint. Wait! Please, calm yourself. This...... this is not something that would benefit Mount Hua!”

Even if the Sword Saint exposed the truth, what would change?

Would the heads of the Nine Great Sects, One Union and the Five Great Families, the ones who established the order of the Central Plains, bow their heads and apologize? Of course not. The moment Mount Hua delved into this matter, nothing but ruin awaited them. Unless Mount Hua intended to turn even the entire Central Plains against itself, the only answer was to turn a blind eye and remain silent, no matter how fiercely its anger might surge.

So he had naturally assumed that this man would choose the same path. No one wanted to bring about their own ruin.

But unfortunately, the mad dog of Mount Hua standing before him seemed to give no consideration whatsoever to such calculations.

“You keep barking without listening to what I’m saying.”

The Sword Saint bared his teeth viciously, a white line appearing across his blood-soaked red face. Before long, accompanied by a chilling shrrk, the sword slowly slid out of its scabbard.

“Fine. Let’s find out. Let’s see just how strong you really are. Just how strong you are that you could crush the Demonic Cult members without a single trace of blood splashed on you.”

“P-Plum Blossom Sword Saint.”

“Oh, and one more thing. Let’s see what kind of expressions those bastards make when I toss your head at their feet.”

“N-No!”

The Sword Saint’s blade shot toward Peng Jaho’s neck without a moment’s hesitation.

Even the members of the Peng Family who had been watching the situation tensely, and the Mount Hua swordsmen who had been suppressing their anger, couldn’t react to the sudden attack.

It was because no one had imagined that Cheong Myeong would actually swing his sword.

But there was one person who had already anticipated exactly what Cheong Myeong would do.

“Stop!”

Seogeok.

Peng Jaho’s face was drenched in cold sweat. The blade pressed against his neck had sunk shallowly into his skin, causing a sharp, stinging pain.

He knew instinctively.

This hadn’t been an empty threat. If it hadn’t been for that voice cutting in halfway, this man really would have cut off his head and sent it flying. Peng Jaho could be certain of that, having been on the receiving end of the attack himself.

With his mind turned completely white, Peng Jaho trembled as though his legs might give way at any moment. But the Sword Saint’s fierce gaze didn’t even allow him the freedom to collapse.

Just then, a voice trying to stop him was heard once again.

“That’s enough, Cheong Myeong-ah.”

“......”

The Sword Saint, who had been silently glaring at Peng Jaho, slowly turned his gaze. His sword was still pressed against Peng Jaho’s neck.

“What are you asking me to stop?”

“Stop.”

Cheong Mun, who had approached behind Cheong Myeong at some point, shook his head.

“Put down your sword.”

“......”

“Now.”

Cheong Myeong bit down on his lips, visibly displeased.

But in the end, perhaps unable to go against Cheong Mun’s words, he irritably withdrew his sword and slid it back into its scabbard.

Taak!

No sooner had the sound of the sword striking its scabbard rung out than Peng Jaho crumpled to the ground.

He, too, was no one who could be casually looked down upon.

“......”

But how many people throughout the entire jianghu could withstand the murderous intent of the Sword Saint head-on, when he had only just fought his way through a bloody path to return?

Cheong Myeong, who had been glaring at the seated Peng Jaho as though he were nothing more than an insect, withdrew his gaze and this time turned to face Cheong Mun.

The disgust had certainly disappeared, but the chill had only grown deeper.

Even as Cheong Mun looked into Cheong Myeong’s eyes, he merely spoke calmly.

“See Patriarch Paeng off.”

“Sahyung.”

“Don’t make things more difficult than they already are......”

“Jangmun Sahyung!”

At last, a furious roar burst from Cheong Myeong’s mouth, but Cheong Mun didn’t even bat an eye. Instead, as though deliberately ignoring Cheong Myeong, he walked past him, reached out, and helped the seated Peng Jaho to his feet. Then he offered him a polite bow.

“I have been discourteous, Patriarch.”

“S-Sect Leader.....”

“It is because I failed to teach him properly. Please, blame me instead, and....”

Cheong Mun briefly stopped speaking.

It was a strange silence. It wasn’t particularly long, but the pressure this pause placed on Peng Jaho was indescribably immense.

“His loved ones...... The foolish actions of my pathetic saje, who lost his reason in the face of his fellow disciples’ deaths, I can only ask that you understand them with a generous heart.”

[tl note: 친인 (chinin) refers to one’s close relations or loved ones. Cheong Mun appears to begin with this broader expression before continuing with the more specific reference to his fellow disciples.]

Peng Jaho nodded frantically.

“O-Of course, Sect Leader. I can only apologize for apparently bringing such a great crisis upon Mount Hua by failing to arrive in time.”

“Think nothing of it.”

A faint smile appeared at the corners of Cheong Mun’s lips as he raised his head. It was undoubtedly a smile, yet to Peng Jaho, it felt colder than anything in the world.

“Isn’t this simply part of the process of learning to trust one another? I can only be grateful.”

“......”

Peng Jaho’s face twitched faintly. What on earth was he supposed to say? Although his own intentions had been somewhat involved in this matter, he was still a person with something called a conscience.

At that moment, Cheong Mun extended a helping hand.

“Patriarch.”

“Yes? Ah...... Yes! Sect Leader.”

“Given the circumstances, I imagine you must feel rather uncomfortable staying here. Please don’t take this as me asking you to leave, but.....”

“I-I shall do that, Sect Leader! Another time.... Yes, let us meet again another time.”

As though afraid Cheong Mun might change his mind, Peng Jaho hurriedly turned around and shouted.

“We’re returning!”

The Peng Family retainers and the Kongtong disciples, sensing the atmosphere thick with murderous intent, silently nodded in response. Peng Jaho hurriedly performed a fist-and-palm salute toward Cheong Mun.

“Then...”

“Travel safely.”

At last, he took off without even looking back.

The remaining Kongtong elder, Ma Seunggyeong, looked at Cheong Mun with an empty expression. He offered a fist-and-palm salute as politely as he could, then turned around.

The word reinforcements hardly seemed fitting. They looked even more hurried leaving than they had been coming here. Surely this wasn’t merely Cheong Mun’s imagination.

Cheong Mun closed his eyes, looking exhausted. A voice that seemed tightly suppressed reached his ears.

“What are you doing?”

“......”

Cheong Mun slowly turned around. Cheong Myeong stood before him, his teeth clenched.

His saje, drenched in blood from head to toe. What Cheong Mun felt upon seeing him wasn’t the same fear Peng Jaho had felt. It was something far more difficult to put into words… a poignant ache.

“I’m asking what the hell you’re doing!”

“......”

“Jangmun Sahyung!”

Looking at Cheong Myeong, who was so furious he seemed ready to charge at him at any moment, Cheong Mun eventually let out a heavy sigh.

Next Chapter

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