Let’s Do a Job Together, You and Me (4)
The cold mountain wind slipped into their robes and bit at their skin.
Hyun Jong’s gaze drifted toward the distant horizon, past Mount Hua, past Hwaeum, all the way to the far-off land of Namyang.
Behind him, as he stared wordlessly into the distance, Hyun Young spoke up in a hushed voice.
"Shouldn’t we have heard something by now?"
"……Hmm."
"Honestly, those thoughtless brats. If something happened, they could at least send word properly."
At Hyun Young’s complaint, Hyun Sang gave a wry smile.
"They didn’t go there to play. They went on a mission. How would they have time for that?"
"That’s exactly why I’m frustrated! Frustrated!"
Hyun Young mimed pounding his chest. Hyun Jong’s brows drew together a little at that.
"How can you call yourself an elder if you have so little patience?"
"Is that really something you should be saying, Sect Leader? You come up here a dozen times a day to do the exact same thing."
"……."
Hyun Jong shut his mouth and turned his head away slightly.
He simply hadn’t been able to settle his restless heart, and today alone this was already the third time he had climbed the mountain. Now even Hyun Sang and Hyun Young were following his example and coming up after him.
"They’ll do well."
Hyun Sang quietly sided with Hyun Jong. But Hyun Young didn’t seem satisfied with that, either.
"You’ve got a pretty easy heart for a man in charge of the finances. No matter what, those kids are facing Wudang all by themselves. Aren’t you worried? How can you sound so calm?"
"Aren’t they children no one could possibly look down on? They’re different from us. They’ll do fine."
Hyun Young’s face twisted faintly.
"They should be different. Those brats absolutely must never end up like us."
There was a wound hidden beneath those words, one shared by the Hyun generation.
They had watched Mount Hua collapse with their own eyes and endured it with their own bodies. They had seen those they trusted turn away, and those they had once thought of as sworn brothers abandon the main sect, time and again.
Amid all that chaos, they had not even been able to properly master their own martial arts.
And the humiliation they had suffered because of that—who could say how bitter it had been?
"Those brats have to be different. They should live like kings. They shouldn’t have to scrape by like we did."
"The honor of Mount Hua…"
Hyun Sang tried to say something, but Hyun Young cut him off.
"Honor, my ass. What’s so important about that? As long as those kids don’t go hungry and don’t get looked down on anywhere they go, that’s enough for me."
Hyun Sang could say nothing and closed his mouth.
Of course honor and reputation mattered to any sect, but those words carried the sincerity of Hyun Young, who had overseen the Finance Hall for decades. So no one could rebuke him lightly.
"Those children will become Mount Hua’s new name," Hyun Jong murmured softly.
"We’ll be enough as the fertilizer. If that fertilizer can still be useful, that is."
Just then, Hyun Jong slowly turned his head. From below, Unam was running up the mountain.
Having hurried all the way up, Unam bowed politely to them.
"What is it?"
"A message has arrived from the Hwaeum merchant group leader in Namyang."
Hyun Jong’s eyes widened slightly.
"Oh, the merchant group leader!"
With a face mixing hope and anxiety, Hyun Jong looked at Unam. He wanted to tell him to speak at once, but he was also afraid it might be bad news.
And so he couldn’t bring himself to urge him on.
But Hyun Young had no such hesitation.
"Then hurry up and tell us!"
"Yes. According to the report, in place of Hwayeongmun and Jongdogwan, Mount Hua’s children and Wudang’s disciples held a sparring match. And Mount Hua won, so Jongdogwan has decided to leave Namyang!"
Hyun Jong’s eyes flew wide open.
"Is that true?"
"The merchant group leader apparently checked several times already. So it must be true."
"A match with Wudang? You’re saying they won a match against Wudang?"
"Yes, Sect Leader."
"Hah. Hahaha. Hahahahaha."
Hyun Jong burst out laughing, unable to continue for a moment.
Hyun Sang smiled warmly and said, "You see? Didn’t I tell you those children were different?"
Hyun Sang knew the abilities of everyone who had gone to Namyang, so he could not imagine them losing to their peers.
The only thing that had troubled him was that he couldn’t judge Wudang’s disciples accurately—but now even that concern had been resolved cleanly.
"Then what about Hwayeongmun?"
"It seems Hwayeongmun remained in Namyang and started receiving new disciples again."
"That’s wonderful."
Hyun Young, too, finally broke into a bright smile.
"I knew they’d pull it off! Of course, what kind of brats are they?"
"Good heavens. They beat Wudang."
"That’s an incredible feat. Those children will truly bring glory to Mount Hua’s name. And one day…"
Hyun Sang started to say something, then shut his mouth again.
It was too sensitive a matter to voice aloud.
If the second- and third-generation disciples continued to grow like this, then one day Mount Hua might truly return to the Nine Sects and One Gang.
It was such a dreamlike thought that he could not put it into words.
"Yes. Are the children coming straight back?"
"I didn’t receive a direct message, so I’m not sure. But if there’s nothing left for them to do in Namyang, wouldn’t they be returning soon?"
"Hmm, yes. That would make sense."
Hyun Jong smiled warmly and turned to Hyun Young.
"Finance Hall Leader."
At the different address, Hyun Young straightened at once.
"Yes, Sect Leader."
"Shouldn’t we prepare to welcome the children back after their hardships?"
"Don’t worry. I’ll make the arrangements properly."
"Good. They should be back in about three days."
Hyun Jong turned his gaze once more toward the far-off land of Namyang, his eyes overflowing with warmth.
You’ve suffered well, you little brats.
Then Hyun Young spoke again, sounding puzzled.
"Still, it is a little strange."
"What is?"
"That brat Chung Myung doesn’t seem to have caused any trouble. If he had, we’d have heard about it first."
At that, Hyun Jong let out another hearty laugh.
"Was that fellow not a Dao vessel too? If it leaks from the inside, does it have to leak from the outside as well?"
"Well, I suppose that’s true."
"Through this matter, the world will clearly know that Mount Hua has not yet fallen. And that Mount Hua’s disciples are no less than anyone in the world. Now it is we who must work even harder."
"Of course, Sect Leader."
"Yes, yes."
Hyun Jong smiled faintly.
His gaze was clear and bright beyond compare.
But…
Those standing here did not know.
They had no idea what that Chung Myung was doing right now.
One can never expect the world to unfold as one wishes. That was especially true when Chung Myung was involved.
* * *
"So…"
Heo Sanja, an elder of Wudang, stared ahead in silence for a moment before turning his head to look at Jin Hyeon.
"If I’m remembering correctly what you said before…"
"……Yes."
"There’s no proper sect in Namyang besides Hwayeongmun."
"Yes."
"And Namyang itself is practically a backwater, so there aren’t that many eyes watching it, is that right?"
"That’s correct."
Heo Sanja looked forward again. After shifting his gaze back and forth a few times, he finally spoke in a sour voice.
"Then what exactly are all those people supposed to be?"
"……Well."
Jin Hyeon also stared blankly ahead.
How should he even describe this?
A crowd?
Or a swarm?
The entrance to Namyang was packed solid with people. The problem was not that those people were occupying the entrance to Namyang, but that they were all currently going into Namyang.
In other words, the multitude they could see before them was only a fraction of the people heading there.
And judging by the fact that each and every one of them had weapons at their waists, they were undoubtedly all martial artists.
"……Ah."
Jin Hyeon knew it instinctively.
That bastard definitely did something again!
There was no other explanation. The image of Chung Myung’s grinning face flashed through his mind.
Crk.
Grinding his teeth, Jin Hyeon said in a low voice, "It seems those Mount Hua bastards have stirred something up."
"……Stirred something up?"
"Didn’t they leak the treasure map?"
Heo Sanja’s pupils trembled slightly.
"……T-they leaked that? What on earth were they thinking?"
The value of the Sword Tomb was impossible to measure precisely. That was why Wudang had staked everything on this matter, was it not?
And yet they had leaked the treasure map containing that precious information?
What kind of sane person does something like that?
Heo Sanja was left speechless as he stared at the entrance to Namyang. Even though he was regarded within Wudang as one of the calmer old men, right now he could not keep his composure.
He had heard countless times during the journey that the fellow called the Mount Hua Divine Dragon was completely out of his mind. But who could have imagined he would be this wildly reckless?
"Even if they leaked the treasure map, how could so many people gather here in just three days?"
"It seems information also leaked that the Sword Tomb is near Namyang. Looking at this, wouldn’t you say every martial artist around Namyang has come swarming here?"
"Hmm."
Heo Sanja’s brows twitched.
This was exactly what they had wanted to avoid most. The Sword Tomb was the kind of place that could invite bloodshed simply by existing. That was why they had intended to handle matters discreetly.
This is almost malicious.
Heo Sanja understood the situation at once.
This was not an act taken because someone wanted the Sword Tomb for themselves. This was an act taken to make sure Wudang could never enter the Sword Tomb alone and excavate it on their own.
"Was the child who took the treasure map called the Mount Hua Divine Dragon?"
"Yes."
What on earth is that kid?
The more he thought about it, the more absurd it became.
That child can use such a vicious scheme?
If I can’t have it, neither can you. No, more than that—if you’re going to have it, then you’d better suffer for it first.
Feeling the thick malice hanging over Namyang, Heo Sanja clenched his lips tight.
"What do we do, Elder?"
At Jin Hyeon’s helpless question, Heo Sanja’s eyes sank heavily.
They may have been caught off guard, but they could not keep standing here in shock forever.
"If they’re heading toward Namyang… that means they haven’t yet managed to spread the map, right?"
"It would seem so."
"Hmm."
A low hum escaped Heo Sanja’s mouth.
Malice… malice, is it?
It was a clever enough thought, to try to trip them up, but Wudang was not a sect that would simply allow itself to be tripped.
"Then nothing changes. Our plan to avoid drawing attention has been thrown off, but that doesn’t matter so long as we can get into the Sword Tomb first."
The eyes of Wudang’s disciples sharpened with resolve.
"Look."
He gestured subtly ahead. There were people glancing their way. Some were even openly looking over while talking among themselves.
"We’ve already attracted attention. If we move now, they’ll try to interfere with us somehow."
"Yes."
"But that is all. Never forget it. We are Wudang. If we set our minds to it, no one in the world can stand in our way!"
"Yes, Elder!"
The name Wudang set fire to their chests.
"We only wanted to avoid unnecessary trouble. We never meant to hide because we feared the world. Now everyone will know that."
Heo Sanja swept his gaze over them all and barked in a cold voice, "Prepare yourselves. We’re going to the Sword Tomb."