Return of Mount Hua Sect

“Why did it end up like this?”

Gal Cheon-rip’s face was filled with confusion.

Clearly, until he had stepped into Xi’an… no, up until he was slaughtering those blocking his path at Eunha, everything was going as planned.

Then why did it end up like this?

The intervention of Mount Hua?

Of course, he expected it. When those damn bastards of the Ten Thousand People Clan invaded Xi’an in the past, it wasn’t Southern Edge but Mount Hua who stepped ahead and stopped them. Just three years ago, Mount Hua was a sect that acted as if the world was small and roamed around the Yangtze River as if it were their home.

There was no way those people would sit back and do nothing because something happened in their town.

But…

Crack.

Gal Cheon-rip gritted his teeth until they broke. What he hadn’t expected wasn’t Mount Hua stepping in; it was the strength of Mount Hua.

“This is impossible.”

How could they get this strong in just three years?

This wasn’t possible by normal means. The Mount Hua that the world knew and the Mount Hua he was witnessing with his own eyes were entirely different sects.

If he had known they had this kind of strength, he wouldn’t have set foot in Xi’an at all.

He had already figured out Mount Hua’s strength three years ago. So, was his assessment back then wrong?

That couldn’t be.

If they had been this strong since then, the Yangtze River massacre wouldn’t have happened. And even if it had happened, the Southern Lands wouldn’t have been abandoned in the treaty.

Even among the great sects, the one who resisted the most fiercely while suffering humiliation from Jang Ilso in order to survive was Mount Hua.

In other words, Mount Hua at the time was a sect that didn’t have the strength to change the world despite its resistance.

Then…

“They really changed this much in just three years? They got this strong?”

Who would believe it?

“If that was possible, who would go through so much trouble!”

If anyone could easily become strong through training and hard work, then where in the world would some weren’t skilled, and where would there be a sect that wasn’t great?

Yet, these people were now completely upending the common sense of the murim world. Those who had barely escaped the status of small or medium sects had returned with the strength of great sects in just three years.

No, in truth, he still couldn’t determine the full extent of their skills. Any ability can be accurately measured with the right benchmark. Still, the skills of those he brought along were far too weak to serve as such a benchmark.

Even though he had brought the strongest of the Evil Sect who had moved north, and even though he was convinced that if he led them to Qinghai, he could build a formidable force that would shake up the murim world!

‘Where did it all go wrong?’

Where did it start to unravel?

‘ACKKKK!’

At that moment, a sharp scream pierced his ears. It was the scream of his younger comrades who had rushed ahead to fight.

Until then, there was nothing they hadn’t accomplished on their own. They could do whatever they wanted in their lands.

But here, even they were being trampled and swept away.

Everything was starting to fall apart.

All his plans to lead them to Qinghai, build a force, and seize the land while the Justice and Evil sects were fighting—his ambitions were collapsing around him.

“This…”

Gal Cheon-rip’s eyes were red with frustration.

“Mount Hua!”

It was all because of them. These people…

Step. Step.

At that moment, the sound of slow footsteps could be heard. Slow and regular footsteps that didn’t fit in with the battlefield filled with screams and clashing weapons.

Gal Cheon-rip turned his head with a terrifying expression.

A man was slowly approaching him.

“….”

The man’s appearance signified several things.

It also meant that there weren’t enough people from the Evil Sect to fight against the Mount Hua disciples, and the remaining ones didn’t even have the strength to stop the Mount Hua swordsmen from moving around.

More than anything…

“How dare you!”

Gal Cheon-rip’s eyes were red with fury.

It also meant that he was underestimated enough that someone decided to face him alone.

Against the ruthless Gal Cheon-rip.

“You…”

It felt like blood was rushing back to his throat.

“…who are you?”

The man held back a small grudge at the question he asked while gritting his teeth.

“I don’t know how to answer. I don’t really have a title to be proud of.”

“A titleless kid?”

“That is how it is.”

Although his tone seemed flustered, his expression looked confident. That only made Gal Cheon-rip even angrier.

“…Not Mount Hua’s Sword Saint, Mount Hua’s Righteous Sword… a nameless swordsman bastard dares to confront me? Not a normal guy, but a one-armed bastard?”

This time, the opponent shrugged his shoulders without getting angry.

“I feel a little sorry for you. Anyway, since you have asked me, I will answer. I am the first-class disciple of Mount Hua, Un Geom.”

Un Geom stretched out his only hand and slowly pulled out the sword at his waist.

“The teacher had to take someone else, so I was bound to end up as a commoner. Don’t blame me too much for being an unknown person.”

Gal Cheon-rip closed his mouth.

He was no longer angry. They say that when people get too angry, they become cold-hearted, and that seems to be true.

“Do you know who I am?”

“I don’t know.”

“…You don’t know?”

Looking at Gal Cheon-rip’s bewildered look, Un Geom calmly answered.

“Don’t look at me like that. Unfortunately, the situation didn’t allow me to hear who you were. I came running as soon as I heard the news.”

“…”

Un Geom shrugged.

“And no one here told me, so I couldn’t know either.”

Gal Cheon-rip burst into laughter.

Was he being treated like this by these guys?

“I am the Ghost Blade Warrior, Gal Cheon-rip. Eldest of the Seven Killers of Jiangxi.”

“Ah, I see.”

Un Geom nodded briefly.

Gal Cheon-rip clenched his teeth at the calm words.

“This fool had never even heard of the name.”

“I know.”

“… what?”

Un Geom looked at Gal Cheon-rip with calm eyes.

“I know. No matter how narrow-minded I am, I am not so deaf as to have not heard at least one of your two titles.”

“And yet you have come to face me?”

“Is there a reason for me not to?”

Gal Cheon-rip’s lips twitched at that.

He reigned over the south of the river like a god. How could he get insulted like this?

“That arm.”

“… hm?”

“Who cut it?”

Un Geom stared at Gal Cheon-rip without answering, as if he wanted to confirm the sincerity of that question.

Then Gal Cheon-rip opened his mouth first with that gaze.

“I heard that when the Ten Thousand People clan invaded Mount Hua, there was a guy who almost died and came back to life. Is that you?”

“Yes.”

“Then it means that you were the man who couldn’t even handle a single leader of the Ten Thousand People clan, and yet you have come to face me? If the Ten Thousand People clan wanted to face me, Jang Ilso would have come to face me!”

The moment those words came out, Un Geom’s face collapsed.

But it wasn’t a face of despair or humiliation. It was, so to say… a face holding back laughter. He, who had been so calm till then, bit his lips tightly, trying to suppress the laughter.

At that reaction, Gal Cheon-rip’s face hardened coldly.

“… what is so funny?”

“Ah, I am sorry. I know it is rude, but I cannot stand it when the name Jang Ilso comes up.”

“….”

“I have a question. When was the last time you saw the Hegemony Lord?”

“… last time?”

Gal Cheon-rip’s eyes narrowed. He didn’t know why he was asked this, but it had to have been at least 15 years since they met in person. No, it had to be more than that.

But what did that mean…

“I guarantee you, if you had seen the Hegemony Lord with your own eyes, you wouldn’t have dared to speak such a thing.”

“This fucking brat….”

Gal Cheon-rip’s face turned red and blue. Un Geom just looked at him coldly.

Even if the opponent was from the Evil Sect, it was not permissible for him, a Taoist, to lose his manners in front of others. But when Jang Ilso’s name came out of his mouth, even Un Geom couldn’t hold back his laughter.

Jang Ilso, who had driven Chung Myung and the Five Swords to the brink of death, was clearly noted by Un Geom.

Gal Cheon-rip was no insignificant warrior. But Jang Ilso was on a different level. Wasn’t Jang Ilso the embodiment of all things that made one’s body shiver in fear at the thought of him?

On the contrary, Gal Cheon-rip, who was from the Evil Sect, didn’t even truly know Jang Ilso.

“Perhaps your words that you can deal with the Hegemony Lord are not groundless lies if that Jang Ilso stayed in the past that you remembered.”

Gal Cheon-rip, who understood the meaning of Un Geom’s words, gritted his teeth.

“This guy dares to insult me….”

“Even though he was an enemy, he was someone who never stopped improving himself. But… What about you? It has been a while since I first heard of the name of the Seven Killers of Jiangxi, but you haven’t really changed much, have you?”

“….”

“Those who are drunk on past glory are dead.”

Those words stabbed Gal Cheon-rip’s heart like a knife.

“And those who are satisfied with what they have achieved and gave up will not stay where they are, but will fall behind.”

Un Geom’s gaze slightly turned to the side. He saw the disciples of Mount Hua standing proudly against their enemies, the Five Swords guarding them.

‘It is difficult to constantly improve oneself.’

However, there were those who had accomplished the difficult task. There were those with great reputations and outstanding skills but who had actually worked harder than them.

So, as their teacher, how could he show himself as inferior?

Un Geom raised the sword and aimed it at Gal Cheon-rip.

“That is good timing. Didn’t you say earlier that I couldn’t even match one of the Ten Thousand People clan’s leaders?”

“…So?”

“Then how about we check it out? Let’s see how much I have changed since I couldn’t fight even one of the leaders of the Ten Thousand People clan, and how much you, who were once compared to that Hegemony Lord, have fallen behind.”

“….”

Gal Cheon-rip stared at Un Geom with a blank look.

The boiling anger had subsided in an instant, replaced by a cold killing intent. No matter the situation on the battlefield, it seemed this feeling would not go away unless he tore this man open and killed him right away.

“That sword…”

Srrng.

Gal Cheon-rip slowly drew his blade. His heart felt colder than ever as he held the weapon that had taken the lives of many people.

“I hope that sword is as sharp as your mouth. If not, you will end up begging me to kill you.”

Even as he received the killing intent of Gal Cheon-rip, Un Geom simply smiled broadly.

“You will not be disappointed.”

Un Geom, who had been performing the Plum Blossom Sword technique in a neat form, stopped and spoke briefly.

“Come.”

“I will tear that mouth open!”

Gal Cheon-rip charged towards Un Geom like a storm.