Return of Mount Hua Sect

“This is insane!”

Hong Dae-Kwang’s face contorted horribly as he read the letter the beggar brought.

“What is it?”

“It-it is a mess, Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon!”

“So what is it?”

Unlike Hong Dae-Kwang, whose face went dark, Chung Myung remained calm and nonchalant.

The beggar who delivered the news frowned as he looked at the two very different people.

‘No, why are you here, leaving your place?’

Although Mount Hua was under Hong Dae-Kwang’s branch, wasn’t there a beggars’ union branch here, too? If one was a beggar, they belonged to it and could come to the branch to handle business. Why was this person in a place encamped with bandits and pirates…

No, before that, why was the Hwa-Um village Branch leader here?

“Nanjing, Taizhou, Huang-gang, Yueyang, Tianhu are all at war!”

“… what does that mean?”

“It is a war! It seems like the Justice faction and the Evil faction have broken into war over the Yangtze River cities!”

“Eh?”

Because the situation was serious, Hong Dae-Kwang’s face became dark.

“It isn’t just that they are skirmishing; they are fighting till the bitter end!”

Hyun Jong, who was listening next to him, frowned and asked.

“Branch leader. Is that true news?”

“I-I am sure, sect leader. This is a message from our main base.”

“… if the information came from there, it must have been verified for sure, but strange, this suddenly…”

Hong Dae-Kwang gulped and said,

“As you know, in cities with many people, Justice and Evil sects coexist to some extent.”

“Yes.”

“Evil faction bastards cannot set foot in Hunan regions, where the Justice factions are strong. But this is not the case with others. There are quite a few Evil sects in the place where Mount Hua is located, too, right?”

“Yes.”

“There are similarly Evil Sect bastards in Shaanxi, where Southern Edge and Mount Hua are located, so how can they not be in other places? Most people don’t like Evil Sects, but since there was no benefit in a war where they killed each other, there was a level of tolerance.”

On the opposite side, it was difficult for Justice factions to establish a strong base in regions where the Nine Great Sects were also not present. In particular, it was no exaggeration to say that Guangxi and Guangdong provinces, where the Ten Thousand People Clan were located, and Zhejiang Province, where the Red Light district was the Center of commerce, were all under the control of the Evil faction.

Even though the Southern Island Sect was located on an island, they joined the Nine Great Sects after Mount Hua fell. There must have been at least half a reason to try to keep other factions in check.

But unless it was a place like that where each side could claim their land, the Justice and Evil sects usually lived in harmony with each other.

“Then why so suddenly?”

“I think it is because of Shaolin and Wudang.”

“Hmm.”

“The Shaolin and Wudang are flocking to the Yangtze River to subdue the pirates, but the problem is that they didn’t inform the other sects of their movements. So, for other sects located around the Yangtze River, this is a…”

Hyun Jong continued from there.

“It looks like the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families are planning to join hands to take down the pirates in the Yangtze River?”

“Yes.”

“Haha… right. I would think that too.”

Shaolin and Wudang were now leading the Nine Great Sects. The Namgung family, who could be called the leader of the Five Great Families, joined forces with the two sects.

Of course, even if the strength of the three were combined, it would only be 30 percent of the power of the Justice faction of the Central Plains. Still, from the perspective of those watching, it would seem like all the Justice factions were joining in.

Chung Myung, who had been listening quietly, smiled.

“Actually, it would be good if they completely took down the Yangtze River. And even if not, would you say that those great sects will take advantage of the fact that they are in the Yangtze River and clean up all the unsightly people?”

“I-it could happen!”

Since not all sects move with one mind and goal, it was impossible to fully understand what would happen. But, looking at the situation, the reason for the move was clear.

Someone mumbled.

“But no matter what, nothing happened till now, and now suddenly….”

It wasn’t just one or two sects.

How many cities did Hong Dae-Kwang mention? This meant that war was happening in at least five places. If they included the small sects that weren’t mentioned because they weren’t important enough for the emergency report, it surely had to be around a dozen.

This meant that the war was spreading like wildfire.

“It’s all so different. They see things entirely differently now.”

“Because Shaolin and Wudang moved?”

“Not just those two, but even the Namgung family, which has not stepped out of their lands for decades till now.”

“… now that you say it.”

“It isn’t normal for a large sect to move. You couldn’t possibly realize how strange it is as Mount Hua decided to explode wherever it went….”

Chung Myung raised his eyes sharply.

“What? Are you saying we should light a fire on our butts and explode?”

“I-I didn’t mean that….”

“It did seem like it.”

Hyun Sang sighed, looking at Hong Dae-Kwang, who was starting to sweat.

“Branch leader. Chung Myung, ignore what he said, and branch leader, just say what you want to.”

“… I want to say, but I am scared of the consequences….”

“The sect leader will stop him.”

In the meantime, it was Hyun Sang who didn’t commit to stopping him.

“Well… since the Demonic Sect war, the major sects have rarely left their lands. Their movement may indicate that the peaceful kangho we’ve known so far will no longer continue.”

“Hmm.”

“Besides, isn’t the target of that movement the Evils Faction, not the Justice faction? History has shown that once the strength is sufficient, Evil factions get subjugated. So usually….”

“Haha. It starts with the bandits.”

“…”

Everyone’s eyes turned to Im So-Byeong. Clear tears flowed from his eyes.

“Just as expected! I knew it! There has already been news about three mountain bandits being attacked! Oh my, it must be so intense that the sect leaders are so driven now…”

“Stop crying and talk.”

“N-No. If you want to cry, cry, and if you want to laugh, laugh.”

“Laugh if I laugh…”

Im So-Byeong sighed as if the ground was sinking beneath him.

“First of all, I told everyone not to fight back and to run to the next mountain if someone attacks. It is a shame because the places where we worked gave advance notice to the surrounding bandits about the Justice factions, and we did some business with….”

“Business?”

“It is life! If you want to make a living, you have to do it!”

“…”

Bandits had come down the mountain and did business in the city?

“… what even is in your head…”

“Sect leader. You spoke out. You need to think.”

“Ahem. Apologies for that.”

Im So-Byeong shook his head.

“Surely I didn’t make transactions with bandits; we entrusted it to the merchants in the city. Anyway, those places will survive, but even those groups will be swept away in this wind, so I wonder how many more will get destroyed before…”

He trailed off and sighed. Chung Myung spoke with a sullen face.

“What are you sighing for? It is good if bandits get destroyed.”

“…I am a bandit, too. A bandit.”

“It is karma. Get rid of it now.”

Hong Dae-Kwang, who was listening to this nonsense, cleared his throat and continued.

“That movement alone would be enough to notice something strange, but there’s another side to this.”

“What now?”

“…Taking down the Evils Faction is the best. But now there are places that can be on par with the Five Great Families and Nine Great Sects, right?”

“Heavenly Friends Alliance?”

“Mount Hua.”

“… that.”

Hyun Young sighed.

“So, to the other Justice faction sects, this looks like the Heavenly Friends Alliance, Five Great Families, and Nine Great Sects are collaborating to take down the Yangtze River 18 families?”

“Who wouldn’t say that?”

It was like that wherever you looked.

The members of Mount Hua and Heavenly Friends Alliance knew that their ties with the Nine Great Sects were probably worse than their ties with the Evils Faction. But no other sect would think that far.

Then, for sure, it would look like they joined forces to handle the Yangtze River pirates.

“Huge sects have an influence on those around them. The reason why a sect cannot set foot in a place that has a large sect isn’t because of its strength, but because it manages the land. This is because the local sects that support the big sects are destroying the major ones that have power over the land. Be it a Justice or Evil one.”

Everyone nodded.

The reason why there was no Evils Faction in the west of Shaanxi, where the Hwa-young clan held sway, was because there was Southern Edge. The sects that operated on the power of Southern Edge cut down the Evils Faction before they set foot close to it.

Wasn’t it because Southern Edge was visiting the place where the armed forces of the Ten Thousand People clan attacked Xi’an in the first place?

“And this is the same with the Evil Faction. In other words, until now, the sects around the Yangtze River were all tilted towards evil acts, riding on the power of the pirates. So, the justice factions endured it till now….”

“And they began to counterattack at the sight of an opening?”

“Yes. At least, I think so.”

“Hmm…”

Hyun Jong exhaled.

‘This is bad.’

The battle taking place there might not be a huge thing now. The problem is if the fight extends.

“Gang-buk, where most Justice faction sects are located, and Gangnam, where the Evil factions are also located, were divided by the Yangtze River.”

“Yes. This is a border between the two sides. But that border… is now being destroyed. They even went so far as to not care about anything….”

Everyone turned their heads to one person.

“Why?”

“….”

“No, who cares if the Justice faction is in the Center and the Evil faction in the Outskirts? They just want to make a living by doing business! In front of money, who cares if you are evil or right!”

Although it was true, it wasn’t something that a Taoist should say.

“Look, branch leader.”

“Yes, sect leader.”

“What do you think will happen now? From the looks of it, it doesn’t seem like it will simply end like this. Maybe…”

Hyun Jong couldn’t even say anything out loud.

He was going to ask if there was a possibility of a major war between the sides, but the words felt too ominous to even be said out loud.

But Hong Dae-Kwang was quick to understand what he was trying to say.

“I don’t think it will go that far.”

“Why do you think so?”

“Because they are the Evil faction.”

“Hmm?”

“If an Evil faction attacks Wudang, Shaolin will help, and if Southern Edge is attacked, Mount Hua will….”

“Join to hit them more.”

“… that was a wrong example. Well, as is natural, Evil factions don’t help each other. If the pirates are attacked, rather than helping, there is a high chance that more will run to rip it down more.”

“Haha. They seem like idiots.”

“And the Evil faction isn’t?”

Hong Dae-Kwang nodded.

“Yes. So, in my opinion, there is a high chance that the bandits will be cleared out in Gang-buk, and the pirates will suffer damage, too. Is there any sect that would stand against the Shaolin, Wudang, or Namgung family?”

“…those are tough names to stand against.”

“Ugh! Why did you blow up Mount Hua!”

Hong Dae-Kwang smiled bitterly at Hyun Young’s joke.

“The problem is that because of that incident, the perception that the Justice Faction and Evil Faction are at war is spreading among people. Once that spreads widely, you never know when or where something shocking will happen.”

“Right. True. They will no longer tolerate things they tolerated in the past. Either this way or that.”

“Yes. That’s the problem… well, I don’t think this will spread further now.”

“Then we are lucky.”

But at that moment, Chung Myung crossed his arms and chuckled.

“You think that will happen?”

“Uh?”

Hong Dae-Kwang, who looked at him, was unsure, but Chung Myung didn’t bother explaining his thoughts.

‘In the end, it is all about the Evil Faction bastards moving…’

If one thought realistically, Hong Dae-Kwang’s words made sense.

But what if there was someone who predicted the entire situation from the start, and everyone just played into their hands?

Then, that person would take advantage of this situation.

“People will never do everything by common sense. Especially that guy.”

“That guy?”

Chung Myung smiled.

‘This is why people are scarier than ghosts or monsters.’

Chung Myung’s gaze turned to the south.

To that place where that person, who was like the embodiment of desires, would surely be watching this entire thing with a smile.