Chapter 614: I Can’t Win Against Someone Who Won’t Listen
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 614: I Can’t Win Against Someone Who Won’t Listen
"……"
Faced with Sun-woo’s biting rebuke, the leadership fell into a trembling silence.
They could offer no rebuttal to his stinging words, for they cut straight to the bone. As he said, if they truly feared the sacrifice of life, they could simply call off the war. Their reputations would plummet, but if they truly cherished their people, they wouldn't care. A moment of humiliation could prevent a massive loss of life.
However, not a single one of them intended to follow his suggestion. To them, their honor and pride were far more important than the lives that would be lost.
Sun-woo had ruthlessly exposed that fact—the truth that everyone knew but desperately tried to ignore.
Thus, they had no choice but to remain silent. Their hypocrisy had been laid bare in its rawest form.
"Do you have nothing left to say?" Sun-woo asked the leadership in a calm tone.
"……"
No answer came. They simply maintained their silence.
"If you have nothing to say, I shall take my leave."
Having finished his piece, Sun-woo turned away without a hint of regret. He felt that staying any longer would be a complete waste of time.
"Stop right there!"
Just then, a voice that provoked immediate irritation reached his ears.
Sun-woo’s brow furrowed deeply. The annoying voice grated on his nerves. He turned back toward the source and stared at the owner of that repulsive voice.
"What brings you here, Alliance Leader?" Sun-woo asked, looking at Lee Jae-won with a face full of displeasure.
"Is there anywhere I am forbidden from going?"
"It’s not that you’re forbidden, but… it’s hardly a place you’d go out of your way to visit, is it?" Sun-woo replied sarcastically.
"I heard the leadership had gathered here. How could I possibly stay away?" Lee Jae-won responded with a composed expression.
"I’m afraid you’ve come for nothing. My business with them is already finished."
"It is not for nothing. I, too, have something to say to you."
"Speak, then."
Sun-woo looked at him, his expression neutral. Just speaking to the man made a wave of revulsion rise within him, but he intended to hear him out to see what he was plotting.
"I am asking you as a favor. Please, participate in the Great War of Righteousness and Demons."
Lee Jae-won met Sun-woo’s gaze with a steady look.
"I refuse. I have no obligation to participate."
"If you do not join, countless martial artists will be sacrificed in vain."
"If you’re so worried about sacrifices, shouldn't you have avoided starting a war in the first place? Instead of trying to persuade me, you should retract the declaration of the Great War."
"I cannot do that." Lee Jae-won shook his head with a solemn expression.
"Are you afraid that retracting it will tarnish the honor of the Cheonmu Alliance?" Sun-woo asked with a mocking smile.
"It is not that. The Great War of Righteousness and Demons is a necessity that must be carried out for the stability and peace of the Murim."
"I do not agree with that statement." Sun-woo flatly denied Lee Jae-won’s claim.
"Did you feel nothing after seeing the Blood Massacre that occurred in Shandong?" Lee Jae-won continued, his tone shifting to one of reprimand. "People died… countless people! How can we leave the curs who caused such a scene alone? If we leave them be, the entire Central Plains will fall into the hands of demons! As a human being, how can you stand by and watch such a thing happen?"
Lee Jae-won spoke with impassioned fervor.
"How ridiculous," Sun-woo remarked, as if finding it genuinely funny.
"What is so ridiculous?"
"When the Tang Clan was half-destroyed by the Demonic Cult, you couldn't be bothered to lift your heavy backside. Now, seeing you spout such passion for the 'peace of the Murim,' how could I not find it ridiculous?"
Sun-woo’s voice was dripping with sarcasm. When the Sichuan Tang Clan was nearly wiped out by the Demonic Cult, the Cheonmu Alliance had only sent a small guard force. They hadn't even breathed a word about a Great War of Righteousness and Demons back then.
Seeing them now use the peace and stability of the Murim as their grand justification made him want to laugh. They only realized the severity of the situation once the sects in their own home base of Shandong Province were slaughtered. With what face did they dare spout such nonsense?
"In the case of the Tang Clan, we felt the need to be more cautious; we couldn't move recklessly. We certainly didn't neglect or ignore them," Lee Jae-won argued, sounding as if he were making excuses.
"You are a truly contradictory human being, Alliance Leader."
"What!?" Lee Jae-won raised his voice slightly, showing his offense.
"A 'cautious' man starts a Great War of Righteousness and Demons based on nothing but circumstantial evidence?" Sun-woo stared at Lee Jae-won with sharp eyes.
"It is not circumstantial; it is a certainty! The scene of the incident was filled with Demonic Energy!"
"That is exactly what 'circumstantial' means. 'Certainty' is a word you can only use when you have identified the culprit directly. You haven't caught the culprit, and there are no witnesses, so how can you claim certainty based on mere speculation?" Sun-woo began to berate Lee Jae-won in a cold tone.
"You are truly impossible to talk to! The evidence is so clear, yet you insist the culprit isn't the Demonic Cult?"
"The only 'evidence' you have is Demonic Energy. Why should I believe that?"
"How can you deny that Demonic Energy is the sole and decisive proof?" Lee Jae-won asked, looking frustrated.
"The Demonic Cult isn't the only group that practices demonic arts. Why are you being so stubborn?" Sun-woo countered, refusing to back down.
"Who else besides the Demonic Cult possesses demonic arts powerful enough to topple numerous clans in an instant?"
"That, too, is just prejudice and circumstance. It is not proof."
"I’ve listened long enough, and this is truly strange."
"What is?"
"To me, it looks as though you are defending the Demonic Cult." Lee Jae-won looked at Sun-woo with suspicious eyes.
"What kind of nonsense is that?" Sun-woo asked, looking utterly baffled.
"Is it not strange? Everyone else names the Demonic Cult as the culprit, yet you alone are screaming that it isn't them."
"I am simply stating that there is no decisive evidence."
"Haven't I told you several times that the Demonic Energy is the evidence?"
"You really don't listen, do you? I told you that's nothing more than circumstantial."
"No, why are you defending the Demonic Cult so much!?"
Hearing Lee Jae-won’s words, Sun-woo knit his brows as tightly as possible. The man wasn't giving proper answers to his questions; he was just repeating the same thing over and over. Furthermore, whenever he was cornered logically, he resorted to accusations of defending the Demonic Cult.
This bastard is really playing dirty.
Sun-woo felt his irritation peaking. Who is the hardest person in the world to deal with in an argument?
Someone eloquent? Someone highly educated? Someone who knows a lot? A professional debater? A politician with decades of experience?
It was none of those. The hardest person to deal with was someone who closed their ears and only said what they wanted to say. This type of person threw listening out the window and only spoke their own piece, making a real debate impossible. Just like the Lee Jae-won standing before him.
This is pointless.
Sun-woo realized that staying here any longer was a waste of time. Unless one of them broke their stubbornness, they would just repeat the same words forever. He had no desire for that.
"I believe my opinion has been sufficiently conveyed. I will be going now."
"Are you running away now?"
"Further debate is meaningless."
"I have yet to receive a firm commitment from you to participate."
"I am not participating. Make sure you understand that."
"I cannot accept this."
"Whether you accept it or not is none of my concern. I simply act according to what I feel and think."
Sun-woo glared at Lee Jae-won with a defiant gaze.
"If you refuse here, countless martial artists will point their fingers and condemn you. Can you handle that?"
"If I were the type to be scared of such criticism, I wouldn't have spoken up in the first place."
Sun-woo’s sharp eyes flashed. He then turned back toward his quarters.
Step. Step.
He began to walk away with an incredibly confident stride. Lee Jae-won watched Sun-woo’s retreating back intently.
Sigh… that brat… acting all cool. He’s got a real case of 'cool-guy syndrome.'
He soon furrowed his brow. He didn't like Sun-woo’s confident attitude.
Let’s see if you can keep that up once your reputation is dragged through the mud.
Lee Jae-won decided then and there to socially bury Jang Sun-woo.
*
Following the Cheonmu Alliance’s declaration of the Great War of Righteousness and Demons, an inexplicable tension hung over the Central Plains Murim. It was as if everyone were holding explosives that could detonate at any moment.
Amidst this, a certain rumor began to spread through the Murim. It was a rumor regarding the Sword God, Jang Sun-woo.
[The Sword God has declared his refusal to participate in the Great War of Righteousness and Demons.]
This short but incredibly powerful rumor came as a massive shock to the martial artists living through the daily tension.
Who was the Sword God? Was he not the young hero of the Murim who had heroically stopped the Tang Clan Blood Incident? Was he not the strongest martial artist who had defeated the Cheonmu Alliance Leader, Lee Jae-won, to become the new World's Greatest Martial Artist?
How could such a man declare he would not participate in the Great War?
Those who first heard the rumor dismissed it as nonsense. The idea of him not participating seemed impossible. Although he had been expelled from his sect, Jang Sun-woo was undeniably an Orthodox martial artist whose foundations were in righteous arts. How could such a man refuse to join a war to wipe out the Demonic Cult?
However, it didn't take long for the rumor to be proven true to the entire world. The Cheonmu Alliance made an official announcement confirming it.
Upon learning the truth, the public was aghast. No one had predicted he would refuse to fight. That shock soon began to turn into anger. While everyone else was prepared to sacrifice themselves for the peace and stability of the Murim, they felt he was acting like a selfish opportunist by bowing out alone—especially since he held the title of the World's Greatest.
Voices condemning Jang Sun-woo began to grow louder across the land. They couldn't understand his actions, nor did they want to.
Just as the public's fury was reaching its peak, another shocking rumor began to circulate. It was the claim that Jang Sun-woo had defended the Demonic Cult. The story spread that he had declared his refusal to participate while actively defending the Cult to the Alliance Leader and the leadership who had gone to persuade him.
Hearing this, the people’s rage intensified. Hostility surged against Sun-woo for defending the vile and hideous Demonic Cult. In an instant, Jang Sun-woo’s reputation in the Murim plummeted, and he became an object of ridicule.
*
In front of Sun-woo’s quarters.
"Explain yourself!"
"Jang Sun-woo, explain your remarks defending the Demonic Cult!"
"We want the truth!"
"If you are truly a chivalrous hero of the Orthodox Faction, come out and explain yourself this instant!"
"We demand the truth from Jang Sun-woo!"
A massive crowd had gathered in front of his quarters, shouting at the top of their lungs. These were martial artists who had flocked there in a rage after hearing that he would not participate in the war and had supposedly defended the Demonic Cult. Every single one of them wore an expression of pure fury.
"How can a pillar of the Orthodox Faction defend the Demonic Cult? Jang Sun-woo, show yourself immediately and apologize for your reckless and horrific comments!"
A man with a sly face screamed, his expression twisted with anger.
"Apologize! Apologize!"
"The countless victims of the Shandong Blood Massacre must be cursing you from the afterlife! How can you make such irresponsible and terrible remarks? Explain yourself right now!"
They called out for Sun-woo, their voices shaking the very building, radiating a murderous aura.
"Think of the victims as your own brothers, sisters, or parents! Could you still defend the Demonic Cult then? You are no different from the cultists who caused the massacre in Shandong!"
"He’s right! He’s right! He’s no different from a demon!"
"Jang Sun-woo! Come out this instant! Let us see that sinful face of yours! You immoral bastard!"
"Come out! Come out!"
The crowd joined in the man’s shouting, calling for Sun-woo. There was no hint of fear on their faces.
"We won't move a single inch until you come out and apologize! Jang Sun-woo! Show yourself!"
"Show yourself! Show yourself!"
The voices of the people reached a fever pitch.