Chapter 1117: I've Already Prepared Everything For That! (Chapter 2)

Just like the Ten Great Sects.

That statement was absolutely unbearable. How disappointed had Hyun Jong been with the hypocrisy of the Ten Great Sects?

But when you think about it, what he said seemed not so different from the behavior of the Ten Great Sects. Suppressing emotions and putting on a polite facade to each other—wasn't that the root cause of the current state of the Ten Great Sects, where accumulated emotions were festering and rearing to explode?

Chung Myung looked directly at Hyun Jong and spoke.

"In the first place, it'd be strange if there were no problems between people, but there is no way that sects can reconcile without any problems."

"...."

"Of course, there are problems. The crucial thing is how to solve them, right?"

"Well, but..."

Wasn't the problem that the solution was completely unreliable?

"Removing pretense is a good thing. However, if all that's left in the end is negative feelings towards each other, wouldn't it be better to endure the pretense?"

Was that why the Ten Great Sects kept up their pretenses? Fundamentally, society was a place where it was difficult to reveal one's true feelings.

The phrase "healthy competition" sounds good, but in reality, it's no different from a dragon or a unicorn. The words exist, but they have no substance. When people compete with each other, isn't it natural for jealousy to arise eventually?

Chung Myung shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, you might think so, but covering it up because it's difficult isn't the best solution, right?"

"Well...."

Hyun Jong suddenly felt that the situation was quite peculiar. Normally, he would discuss principles, and Chung Myung weave sophistry. But now, the words coming from Chung Myung's mouth were surprisingly close to principles.

It was a principle that was difficult to uphold and difficult to practice.

"I guess I'm just concerned."

"Sect Leader."

Chung Myung looked at Hyun Jong with serious eyes.

"If they weren't from the Tang Family, Nokrim, or Namgung, how would you feel?"

"Hmm?"

A firm voice flowed from Chung Myung's mouth.

"If there were a crack between Mount Hua's Baek line and Chung line, would you still advise covering it up and pretending to be friends?"

Hyun Jong tightly sealed his lips.

'Certainly...'

If the Baek line and the Chung line were in a situation where they were hiding negative feelings and pretending to get along, Hyun Jong would have tried to resolve the situation by any means necessary. Yes, by any means. Because it was definitely not a good thing for the entire Mount Hua.

"...Are you saying that I'm putting up a wall against them?"

"I wouldn't go as far as to call it a wall. But... you probably don't really think of us as one alliance, right?"

Hyun Jong's eyebrows twitched. Was that really the case? He wanted to deny it, but contrary to his thoughts, the words didn't easily come out.

Shrugging his shoulders, Chung Myung spoke.

"Well, it's nothing that serious. That's easier said than done, right?"

"...."

"I felt the same way. I thought this would be enough. But... it wasn't."

Looking at Hyun Jong, who remained silent, Chung Myung smiled bitterly.

"If we're talking about being friends or something, we should treat them like one. Until now, the way we've been is telling our kids they have to roll up their sleeves and train hard, while others' kids can grow up in luxury and be praised."

"...."

"It might seem like we're favoring other people's children on the surface, but in reality, it's just favoring out own kids. Shouldn't we stop that from now on?"

Hyeonjong burst into laughter.

The Chung Myung he knew was an individual with an obsessive love for Mount Hua. At times, Chung Myung seems to love Mount Hua even more than Hyun Jong, who was the Sect Leader of Mount Hua. Such a person was talking about not discriminating between Mount Hua and other sects. 

 [Bro is actually becoming the Buddha...unconditional love and all...an evil Buddha...]

"...Chung Myung."

"Yes, Sect Leader."

"Is that the right thing to do?"

"Yes. I think so."

"Even if it causes problems?"

"Yes. Every problem becomes nothing once you solve it. The real danger is not the problems arising, but blindly covering up problems up out of fear."

As a sigh flowed from Hyun Jong's mouth, Chung Myung continued.

"And..." 

"Hmm?"

Chung Myung smirked.

"If we keep fighting and fighting, we won't be able to have fun like before, haha, but at least... on the battlefield, we will be able to trust those standing behind us."

"...."

"Isn't that enough?"

Hyun Jong nodded.

"I thought you wanted friends. But now, it seems like what you want is not friends but comrades in battle."

"No, what I want is real friendship."

"...."

"We don't just pretend to be close on the surface, cursing and tearing each other down, but when faced with a crisis, we run to each other first no matter what."

Tang Gunak, who had been silently listening to the conversation between the two, opened his mouth.

"Until now, Mount Hua has played that role well."

"Yes, that's right. Somehow it ended up like that. But what I hope for is not that. I hope that everyone in the Heavenly Comrade Alliance can have such a relationship with each other."

"It's a difficult task."

"Yes, it's difficult."

Chung Myung said calmly.

"Of course, it will be difficult to maintain. But... if we strive and make an effort, is it not possible for a while?"

"Until we face Evil Tyrant Alliance and Demonic Sect?"

Chung Myung did not bother to answer that question. He just grinned. Seeing that smile, Tang Gunak sighed.

"It's more like a delusion than an ideal... Anyway, I have no complaints."

"Yes?"

"Just being able to reorganize the Tang Family at this opportunity is satisfying enough for me."

Finishing his words, Tang Gunak muttered with a gloomy expression, 'The final winners will be the Tang Family, damn Mount Hua bastards.' Hyun Jong, who saw this, quickly signaled to Chung Myung, as if questioning how such words could come out of his mouth.

 But Chung Myung was still smiling brightly. In the end, Hyun Jong sighed.

'It's not like it hasn't happened before....'

Hyun Jong knew very well that Chung Myung didn't do things without thinking. It was just that this time, it wasn't just Mount Hua's problem but involved other sects as well, making his concerns deeper.

"Chung Myung."

"Ah, don't worry, Sect Leader."

"...."

"There shouldn't be a problem."

Hyun Jong looked at Chung Myung with serious, deep-set eyes.

'It seems nothing has changed.'

In truth, Hyun Jong didn't want to protect the Tang Family and the other sects. He was worried that if a serious problem arose due to something Chung Myung did, the responsibility would fall on Chung Myung and no one else.

However, it seemed Chung Myung had already guessed Hyun Jong's feelings.

"Alright. I understand. If that's your intention..."

Hyun Jong nodded heavily. In the end, he had no choice but to lend his strength to Chung Myung.

"But, Chung Myung, the problem isn't just that."

"What else is there?"

"Your thoughts on fueling... no, bringing about this situation, I understand well. However, can they endure this situation?"

"What do you mean...?"

At that moment, Hyun Sang opened the ledger in his hands and began flipping through it.

"As of today, fifteen severely injured and twenty lightly wounded in Namgung. Twenty-eight severely injured and unspecified lightly wounded in Nokrim..no information on severely injured from the Tang Family. They have ten lightly wounded."

"There was no need to count the injured. The Tang Family can treat that much on their own."

"...I see."

After Hyun Sang and Tang Gunak finished speaking, Hyun Jong furrowed his brow.

"Do you understand?"

"..."

"Recently, the frequency of injuries has increased rapidly. Moreover, the severity of injuries is gradually worsening. In my view, it seems more like a problem of the body not being able to endure rather than an issue caused by intense training."

"Uh..."

This time, Hyun Jong smiled as if to say there was no easy way out.

"Even if it's excellent training, it's useless if the body can't endure. You usually consider this aspect, but it seems you overlooked it this time."

"But we have the Tang Family..."

When Chung Myung glanced at Tang Gunak, Tang Gunak smiled quietly.

"I'm doing my best, but it's not easy."

"Are you really doing your best? Really?"

"Haha. You're saying the obvious. Do my actions make me look like someone who discriminates against others because of a petty competitive spirit?"

It wasn't like that before. But these days, he was starting to get suspicious...

"I swear it's not true."

"Okay."

Of course, he trusted Tang Gunak.

However, Chung Myung couldn't trust the Tang Family that flowed through Tang Gunak's body. After all, the blood of a person who nonchalantly played tricks with a face that claimed to be the most unjust in the world was flowing in that man's body.

"Tsk."

There was suspicion, but no evidence. Chung Myung glanced at Tang Gunak with a skeptical expression, then turned his gaze back to Hyun Jong.

"So, it's probably better to make a reasonable compromise at this point. We've come together with great effort, but if we get hurt and can't fight properly, it would be a shame."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that."

"Yeah, think—eh? What did you say?"

"There's nothing to worry about."

"...Oh, no. Chung Myung."

"So what you're saying is that there needs to be a way for the kids to survive while maintaining the current situation."

"Ri... right?"

"Ugh, Sect Leader. Who do you think I am? I've already prepared everything for that!"

"Huh?"

Was there really a way?

"Well, what are you planning to do?"

The most practical solution would be to reduce the intensity of training, but in reality, it was an impossible task. This was because the training wasn't instructed by Chung Myung.

"What about Mount Hua's kids?"

"Huh? Mount Hua?"

Hyun Jong demanded an answer from Hyun Sang. In response, Hyun Sang gave a somewhat troubled expression.

"For Mount Hua... there are about twenty lightly wounded and no severely injured."

"Why? What's the reason?"

"Well... I don't know. Maybe they're needlessly sturdy?"

Chung Myung chuckled.

"There's no way Mount Hua disciples would be sturdy just for the sake of it. Isn't it the result of continuous improvement in their constitution?"

"..."

"Can't endure? Then make them endure. Are you making excuses to get them out because they're weak?"

"Chung Myung. What on earth have you prepared?"

"Well, it's probably coming soon."

"What?"

"Well, it's both a win and a loss. The Beast Palace and Ice Palace will be coming soon. I conveyed it through Eunha Guild. I told them to bring everything they've gathered over the past three years."

"..."

"If we force them to swallow one Self-Cultivation Pill each, they won't be able to rest even if they want to, right? Besides, we need to mix in the Beast Palace and Ice Palace as well. Those gentlemen have been living comfortably, using the excuse of being far away, but we can't keep seeing them like that, can we?"

"Uh...that..."

Chung Myung. It was quite bizarre how he casually mentioned dealing with the Ice Palace and Beast Palace. Perfect for someone to misunderstand....

"Hehehehehe!"

Chung Myung laughed loudly, holding his stomach.

"We've been the only ones dying and bleeding, so we can't watch that happen forever. Even if we die now, we'll all die together! I'll never let anyone say that they're falling behind because they didn't receive anything later! Hehehehe!"

Ah... it seems like it wasn't a misunderstanding.

Yeah. Yeah...