Chapter 1189: The Path We Will Continue To Walk (Part 4)

Beopjeong's indifferent gaze remained fixed on Hye Yeon for a long time. Hye Yeon deliberately avoided meeting that gaze, not out of fear or embarrassment, but simply because he knew that facing Beopjeong now would be too harsh for him.

"Ha..."

After a moment, a despondent laugh escaped from Beopjeong's lips.

"Haha... Hahaha..."

"..."

"Hahaha."

Beopjeong finally shifted his gaze away to look at others. Everyone's eyes reflected firm determination. Beopjeong shook his head.

"Now that I think about it... In the first place, this was a meaningingless even to begin with. I was merely clinging to those who had no intention of joining me, with no thought of being together."

"Bangjang." 

"Deputy Sect Leader."

Beopjeong spoke with a tone that no longer held enmity or anger. 

"You won."

Baek Cheon couldn't discern what was hidden in Beopjeong's calm gaze.

"I have no confidence in refuting your logic. How can I defeat someone who speaks with such conviction even in the face of reasoned argument?"

His gaze moved beyond Baek Cheon to Hyun Jong, who wore a complex and subtle expression.

"If young ones boldly speak words that even the elderly would find difficult to utter, how can the elders cope with the frightening reality of the world? How can those pushed aside handle it?"

"Bangjang, we..."

"Deputy Sect Leader."

Beopjeong's gaze returned to Baek Cheon, revealing a bitter undertone.

"This lofty ideal, this noble righteousness, and this unwavering doctrine might one day strangle Deputy Sect Leader and lead to the destruction of the Mount Hua Sect."

"..."

"Those who proclaim justice kneel before power, those who cry mercy are trampled by malice, and those who negotiate righteousness have their throats cut by deceivers."

Baek Cheon closed his eyes tightly.

"Life is suffering, and the world is a hell beyond hell. While that lofty ideal may be a force to withstand that hell, it may not be the power to change it."

Beopjeong let out a deep sigh. His face seemed unusually weary.

"This is neither a curse nor a slander. It's just a fact, a harsh truth."

Baek Cheon felt a weight on his chest. How could he not know? Mount Hua had already experienced enough.

Beopjeong asked again.

"Is it really okay with that? You spoke grandly, but in the end, isn't it just Mount Hua sacrificing itself at the forefront, shedding blood as always."

"..."

"How can someone who doesn't know how to cherish those around him think about the well-being of the common people? On the contrary, how can someone who cares for those around him sacrifice his precious life for those who have no sense of gratitude? Can you walk the thorny path, the hellish road, illuminating it with the torch of righteousness? Can you praise those who died following your orders?"

This was not a statement made out of ill will.

Wasn't there a time that Beopjeong dreamed of such days of glory? Wasn't there a time when passion burned in his heart? Where in the world could one find someone who would willingly wear down? Even as the body aged, people wanted to keep their hearts fervent.

This was the advice given by someone who had already passed through what those who had not yet come could not see, and it was concern conveyed to those who insistently tread the thorny path he had once walked back and forth upon.

However, Baek Cheon merely laughed at those words.

"Those who follow my orders and die, is that what you're saying?"

"Yes."

This time, Baek Cheon looked around at those present.

"Bangjang, do you see?"

"..."

"Do you see these people as those who would risk their lives to follow orders they don't consider right?"

Beopjeong turned his head. There, the disciples of Mount Hua stared at Beopjeong with determined faces.

"As the Sect Leader, my duty is simply to jump into the fire pit before them."

"You?"

"Yes."

Baek Cheon nodded. Beopjeong, looking puzzled, asked.

"Are you telling me that the one who will become the leader will throw himself into the most dangerous place?"

"Why would I not?"

"Deputy Sect Leader..."

"Bangjang. Does Bangjang believe that there is no one who can replace the position as a leader?"

At this question, Beopjeong remained silent.

"Among the disciples of Shaolin, let alone other sects, it is likely that there is no one who could replace Bangjang in the position of the leader. It's because Bangjang is so outstanding. However..."

Baek Cheon lowered his head.

"Not me. I believe that anyone from Mount Hua can replace me. Right now, it is simply my turn to step forward. Someday, someone better than me will naturally take my place."

Beopjeong's lips trembled slightly. Looking at him, Baek Cheon smiled.

"That's why a sect exists. To do what one cannot do alone and to pass on the will discovered over a lifetime to future generations. That's why a truly outstanding leader..."

Baek Cheon turned his head and looked at Hyun Jong before continuing.

"...is someone who can be trusted by future generations. And someone who can guide future generations to a better path."

At those words, Chung Myung's shoulders trembled slightly.

'Sect Leader Sahyung...'

The sight of Cheon Mun laughing seemed to be right in front of his eyes. Everything he said about doing it for the sake of future generations and the future was truly moving. 

"So, I will jump without hesitation. I will accept the blood that spills because of it. I believe without a doubt that this blood, that will, and that sacrifice will make Mount Hua even more like Mount Hua."

"..."

"And the actions of me and other disciples of different sects will prove that Mount Hua has walked the right path so far."

"Deputy Sect Leader."

Beopjeong sighed.

"I'm not sure if I can dare to say this, but being shameless, I have one more question."

"Please ask, Sect Leader."

"I understood the meaning well. Somehow, I understood why. But still, there is one thing that just doesn't make sense."

"What is it?"

Beopjeong looked at Baek Cheon, Hyun Jong, and the disciples of Mount Hua.

"Is Mount Hua okay with that?"

"..."

"Does Mount Hua, the place that knows best what results that lofty will and unceasing righteousness have brought, think it's okay? Mount Hua, the place that may face the same results again this time. Is Mount Hua really okay with that?"

Baek Cheon smiled gently.

"Sect Leader. The answer to this question should be given not by Mount Hua's Deputy Sect Leader but by Baek Cheon, a second-class disciple of Mount Hua."

"As a second-class disciple?"

"Yes."

Baek Cheon took a deep breath and continued.

"Bangjang, the part you mentioned has been the longest contemplation for me. Whether repeating the actions of the past and facing the same results is truly the right thing to do."

"..."

"No. No, that's not it."

Baek Cheon shook his head.

"The reason people do good is because it brings good to them. It is good in itself."

"..."

"The reason Taoism emphasizes ethical conduct and Buddhism emphasizes compassion for sentient beings is not because ethical conduct and compassion lead to good results. Even if the results are not good, it is right for people to do good because they are human."

Baek Cheon's eyes looked firm with straight determination.

"You, Bangjang, are a Buddhist, and I am a Taoist. So why should we judge our predecessors and discuss the results? Even if the whole world blames their choices as wrong, at least you and I shouldn't, right?"

"..."

"If people criticize good intentions for not bringing good results, there will be no one left in the world who does good. Instead of doing good to be good, people will only do things that bring good results to themselves. Then, as you said, the human world will be no different from hell. Bangjang, did the previous generation create an inheritance that is like hell, as you said? Or is it us?"

Without words, Beopjeong looked at Baek Cheon with slightly trembling eyes.

"The people who must pay for their mistakes are not the predecessors who did good deeds with their lives. Those who should receive punishment are the later generations who did not properly inherit the high intentions of those predecessors, and those who let go of those lofty intentions. If we all had inherited the will of our ancestors and implemented it properly, things would not have been the same as they are now."

"..."

"Would I regret the same result?"

Baek Cheon smiled.

"The intention left by Mount Hua will continue as long as Mount Hua continues. Perhaps as long as the two characters 'Mount Hua' remain in the world, it will continue forever."

"Deputy Sect Leader."

"If I have one wish, it is only one. I want to be a descendant who does not shame the path of my predecessors but follows it. And someday, I want to be like them, fulfilling my intentions and passing them on to the later generations."

"..."

"You said the world could collapse because of my choice, Sect Leader. We had already defeated the Demonic Sect, stopped the invasion of the Evil Sects. But this time, we are facing a similar situation again. Why is that?"

Baek Cheon's eyes were resolute.

"Because foolish people who cannot truly practice the intentions and inherit the intentions of the predecessors repeat foolish acts. If we keep compromising and retreating in front of the name called reality, whenever we will face another Demonic Sect, face another Evil Tyrant Alliance, one day, we will be defeated by them."

"Deputy Sect Leader."

"I have one conclusion."

Baek Cheon straightened his shoulders. The will he inherited from Mount Hua was with him.

"To avoid repeating this deep foolishness, I am determined to learn and practice self-improvement. That is the will of Mount Hua's second disciple, the will of Mount Hua's Deputy Sect Leader, and also..."

Baek Cheon spoke the last words to end the conversation.

"The will of Mount Hua."

While everyone looked at Baek Cheon with moved faces, only one person lowered his head.

Chung Myung. His shoulders were faintly trembling.