Laughter
It took a long time before I finally came back to myself.
When I opened my eyes, an unfamiliar ceiling greeted me.
“He’s awake! He’s really awake!”
It was Yakseon’s voice. He seized my hand and began jumping up and down in excitement. The commotion drew countless presences from all around us.
“You absolute idiot…”
Sister Seung-gyeong’s voice trembled with tears.
Even Mong Yeo-rin let out a soft sigh of relief.
“Young Master, can you see me?”
Muyoung’s eyes were swollen, his face a mess of exhaustion and worry.
I pushed myself upright and looked at them all.
“What is it?”
“……”
At that exact moment—
Thwack!
A heavy blow landed squarely on my skull.
“The first thing this bastard says when he opens his eyes is… ‘What is it?’ What is iiit?”
Sister Seung-gyeong was huffing, fist still clenched and shaking. So that blunt instrument had been her fist.
Still, the impact cleared my head remarkably well.
“How much time has passed?”
“You suddenly charged into the Uigakjeon and vanished without a trace. Then, three days later, you popped back into existence and spent the next full month lying there like a corpse.”
“A… month?”
Thirty entire days.
“Yes. But thank the heavens you’re perfectly fine.”
“Haa…”
Sister Seung-gyeong exhaled in relief, then looked me straight in the eyes.
“Do you remember who I am?”
“Of course I do. So you can stop now.”
I rose from the bed. My body felt surprisingly normal. For someone who had been unconscious a whole month, my muscles hadn’t atrophied and my dantian remained undisturbed. The memory of entering that formation felt almost like a dream.
“What happened to the formation inside the Uigakjeon?”
“I don’t know if it was a formation or something else, but nothing unusual occurred. The Mount Hua disciples who had been corrupted by demonic energy also gradually regained their senses.”
“Did you cure the demonic energy?”
“It wasn’t me. They recovered on their own. I have no idea what kind of bizarre harmony this is.”
Yakseon’s words instantly brought to mind the entity I had encountered inside the formation.
Did that being destroy the formation?
I couldn’t even begin to measure his realm. The way he had seized control of his opponent’s inner energy and looked down upon everything… If I had to name it, the only word that fit was god. Yes. Nothing else came close.
“The family…”
“The family head has been here for more than ten days already.”
I shot up from the bed. I couldn’t leave the family vacant any longer. Ignoring Yakseon’s shouts to not rush my recovery, I hurried out of the room and headed straight for Zihagung. If Father had come, that was surely where he would be.
“Huh? Young Master Woo-jin!”
“Wait, Young Master Woo-jin? Wasn’t he still bedridden…? He’s up?”
“Young Master Woo-jin has awakened! He’s awake!”
The moment the Mount Hua disciples spotted me, they erupted in shouts. Before I could even register my surprise, they had already swarmed around me.
“Thank you, Young Master! It’s all because of you!”
“We’re truly grateful you saved our lives. From now on, if the Ju family ever needs us, we’ll come running even if it means facing expulsion… Ow!”
“Watch your words, you fool. Expulsion? Anyway, Young Master, we cannot thank you enough.”
What on earth was going on? What exactly had I done?
Then, from far away, an overwhelming presence descended.
In the blink of an eye, that presence stood before me.
“I greet the family head.”
I quickly bowed to the towering aura that was my father.
“Are you all right?”
“Yes.”
I answered briefly, then unconsciously studied his face.
I drew in a sharp breath.
At first I thought I must have seen wrong.
“Why? Is something wrong?”
Father stepped closer, bringing his face fully into view. It was no illusion.
“Your face… looks terribly worn.”
“…That can’t be.”
He deliberately turned his gaze away. But there was no hiding it—Father’s face had become gaunt, his skin dry and lifeless, his entire body drained of vitality.
“Have you awakened?”
Another familiar voice rang out. It was Mu-geuk.
“Ah, Elder. I was just about to ask what happened…”
“That is what I wish to ask. You entered the Uigakjeon, and now everyone has recovered. So tell me.”
“……”
“To you, who risked your life to save our disciples, I offer Mount Hua’s boundless gratitude.”
Mu-geuk bowed deeply, offering a formal fist salute. An elder of one of the great sects lowering his head before a mere young master—and doing so in front of every disciple.
The rest of the Mount Hua disciples followed suit without hesitation.
“The disciples of Mount Hua express their boundless gratitude to Young Master Ju!”
Their thunderous voices shook the entire mountain.
Something hot surged in my chest.
“Thank… you.”
I returned the gesture with an awkward fist salute of my own.
“Waaaaah!”
Leaving the cheers behind, I followed Mu-geuk and Father into Zihagung. The palace had been thoroughly cleaned during the past month. All secret chambers were sealed, and the bone dust had been given a respectful burial on a quiet slope of the mountain.
But what shocked me most was something else entirely.
“What? You’re saying… he is now the sect leader of Mount Hua?”
Mu-geuk had ascended to the position of sect leader. When I thought about it, there truly was no one else qualified. Only four elders had survived the Blood Messengers incident—the three who had been away on external duties, plus Mu-geuk himself. The sect was far too large to run with so few elders and no leader. In desperate haste, Mu-geuk had taken the seat.
“Now, tell us what you witnessed inside the Uigakjeon.”
Mu-geuk’s question was joined by Father’s sharp gaze. After a brief hesitation, I spoke.
“There was a formation. A massive blood formation. It drained the disciples’ blood and used it to condense enormous power… Essentially a demonic array.”
“It is clearly the work of the Demon Cult,” Mu-geuk declared.
I considered mentioning the entity I had encountered but ultimately kept silent.
It might have been a dream.
I had never heard of such a being. No matter how powerful, an existence that only appeared inside a formation made no sense.
“What should we do moving forward, Sword Venerable?”
“We must prepare, of course, but…”
There was a problem.
“The other families and sects will not listen easily.”
Only Mount Hua and the Ju family had faced the Demon Cult directly. Everyone else remained the issue—those who would rather cling to peace than acknowledge the threat. They would only move once they confronted the horror themselves.
“The two of you must continue working closely together.”
I broke the silence.
“What are you planning?”
“The Demon Cult will move. I intend to provoke them, make them rampage even more fiercely.”
“Isn’t that too dangerous?”
“No. The longer we wait, the more dangerous the Central Plains martial world becomes.”
Only those who had witnessed the Demon Cult’s power could truly understand the threat. A single force capable of suppressing the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families, then shattering even the Black Pavilion. Who could have imagined it? And yet it had happened.
Mu-geuk would once have scoffed at such words. Instead, he listened with grave attention.
This is it.
Yes. Only after experiencing it firsthand would they truly listen.
“You plan to provoke them and drag them into the open martial world?”
“Yes.”
“But how?”
“I already know what they will do next. I’m preparing the bait as we speak.”
“Haha.”
Mu-geuk laughed. Father offered a faint smile as well.
“Even the Zhuge family’s Gongmyeong could not prophesy about an enemy that refuses to move. Yet you claim you can predict their actions?”
“Haven’t I already shown you?”
I turned my gaze to Father instead. His expression stiffened momentarily, then he gave a slow nod.
“I see.”
He had realized it too. This journey to Mount Hua had originally been my own request. The timing had simply coincided with the Invincible Zhenren’s invitation, but in truth I had already been preparing to come.
“How did you know such a disaster would strike our sect?”
To Mu-geuk’s question I simply smiled and shook my head.
“Trade secret.”
“……”
“……”
Mu-geuk closed his mouth. What an interesting child, his expression seemed to say. He must have wondered what sort of thoughts lived inside that small head. Predicting the future was no ordinary talent.
“The Sword Venerable must be pleased,” Mu-geuk murmured. “After the Sword Dragon, now you have a child aiming even for the seat of Heavenly Observer.”
“You flatter me, Mu-geuk.”
The conversation ended there.
The Ju family decided to remain one more day before returning home. After leaving Zihagung, I walked slowly, lost in thought. Before I realized it, I had arrived at Manmae-won.
“Young Hero!”
A welcome voice called out. It was Byeok Gong. He waved enthusiastically as he approached. I returned the greeting with a quiet bow.
“What brings you here?”
“I simply walked until I arrived. And you, Daoist? What were you doing?”
“Ah, I was here with my senior brother, discussing the future…”
Before Byeok Gong could finish, another person approached. It was his senior brother, Byeok Ryu Dojang.
“I heard you had awakened. Truly… thank you.”
With his usual gentle smile, Byeok Ryu took both my hands. Warmth flowed from his palms.
This is what it means to be alive.
The Mount Hua Sect that existed only in death within my memories was gone. I had saved them, and in doing so, the future had once again changed dramatically.
“I’m glad you’re all safe.”
At my words, both Byeok Gong and Byeok Ryu smiled. That smile moved something deep inside me. Before I knew it, I was smiling back—small, but genuine.
“Come visit us again! You must!”
“Young Master! If you ever have business in Shaanxi, please remember this Mu-gak…”
“Kyaaak, he’s so handsome! Young Master Ju!”
Hm?
The last remark was strange, yet somehow the most pleasing to hear.
“I will visit the Ju family myself next time, Young Hero.”
“Come whenever you like. Understood?”
I nodded at the farewells from Byeok Ryu and Byeok Gong.
I had learned and seen so much during my time on Mount Hua. Their fierce will to survive. The spirit of their senior brother who had thrown away his life to protect everyone. Yes, they were tenacious. No matter what injustice befell them, these were the pillars of the future who would never fall and would make the spirit of Mount Hua bloom.
So that’s why they say the plum blossoms of Mount Hua fall again and again… yet ultimately bloom once more.
Only now did I truly understand the meaning behind the words Byeok Gong had left me before his death in my previous life.
Before my eyes, the plum blossoms in full bloom fluttered down gently, as if blessing the path ahead.