Return of the Mount Hua Sect
Chapter 869: This Is The Land Of Mount Hua. (4)

“… what did you just say?”

“The Evil Sect is coming. Get here right now!”

It was a statement that would make anyone pause and wonder about its meaning at least once. But, looking at the members of the Beggars Union, whose bodies were soaked in sweat as if they had run with all their might, no words came out.

“We must unite the sects in Xi’an and prepare for it now! The others are also communicating with the other sects in Xi’an, so reinforcements will arrive.”

“Around Xi’an…”

The question of whether any sects could help rose to the tip of the tongue, but the Hwayoung clan leader forced himself to suppress those words.

It wouldn’t be polite to the Beggars Union, who were trying to help them.

“Let me ask you something. What is the… strength of the enemy?”

“There is no time to explain in detail. But… they are strong.”

“How do they compare with the Ten Thousand People clan who invaded Xi’an before?”

“If it is the entire Ten Thousand People clan, then they aren’t comparable to it.”

“… right,”

Wei Lishan nodded with a heavy face.

In the past, the sects of Xi’an had been so afraid of a single sect that they fled from there.

Although things had changed since then… the fact that they alone couldn’t handle it was no different from the past. No, it was several times more hopeless.

“Reinforcements will come from Shaolin and the Beggars Union. Just endure until then!”

“Understood.”

Wei Lishan rose to his feet without hesitation.

The Beggars Union warrior looked at him with curious eyes. Usually, when someone hears something like this, their face turns pale, and they rush to find out more information. That way, they can decide if they want to fight or run.

But Wei Lishan didn’t ask any more questions, as if he already knew everything he needed to know.

The man found this odd and asked.

“Are you alright?”

“About what?”

“Is this enough for you…?”

It was a vague question that even the one asking was unsure of. But Wei Lishan nodded lightly as if he understood it.

“It doesn’t matter who the other people are.”

“…”

“When a sect settles in a region, it means to share the joys and sorrows of the place. Unless all the people in Xi’an have fled, there is just one thing we can do now.”

The Beggars Union man’s eyes trembled.

“A disciple of Mount Hua will never back down. I will unite the sects of Xi’an and do my best to block them, so please hurry up and bring support for us.”

“… I will definitely do so.”

“Then.”

As soon as Wei Lishan took a step forward, he shouted.

“So-Heng.”

“Yes, father!”

Wei So-heng, who had been waiting outside, quickly answered and opened the door. The young child had grown quite a lot in the meantime.

“Send the disciples to gather the clan leaders in Xi’an. It is urgent!”

“Yes!”

“And send the remaining disciples to gather all the disciples in Xi’an too.”

“Yes!”

“Hurry up!”

Wei So-heng ran out without answering.

The Beggars Union man watched and exclaimed in admiration.

‘Wei Lishan, the head of the Hwayoung clan.’

As far as he knew, Wei Lishan was a lucky man who received full support because he was the only one who held onto Mount Hua when everyone else abandoned it.

Thanks to that, the Hwayoung clan was now the representative sect in Xi’an. Still, the beggars’ opinion was that Wei Lishan, the clan leader, was nothing more than an ordinary warrior.

But…

‘Does a position make a person? Or is it the Beggars Union that didn’t understand him properly?’

They said that a person’s true value was revealed in a crisis, and the way Wei Lishan showed up now was enough to make all their previous comparisons go down.

“Now, Gul Gae.”

“… Uh? Ah… yes, clan leader!”

“Perhaps…”

Wei Lishan, who had been speaking freely without hesitation, hesitated a bit and cautiously said.

“Did… any news come from Mount Hua?”

The beggar hesitated and opened his mouth.

“No matter what the situation is, visiting a Closed Gate sect is against the rules of martial arts….”

Then, he said with a confident look.

“The situation is so perilous, so the branch leader must have gone to deliver the message.”

Wei Lishan nodded.

“I understand. Then I guess we have to endure a bit.”

“We might get turned down.”

“That will never happen.”

Wei Lishan smiled brightly with a face that had no doubt.

“They will definitely come. It is Mount Hua.”

They were such people.

“Evil Sect…”

Hwang Jongi’s face was filled with deep concern.

He let out a soft sigh after thinking about many things in a short moment.

“They are coming here?”

“Yes. In our opinion, the first place they will aim for when they come to Xi’an is…”

“This place, I guess.”

Hwang Jongi sighed.

The current Eunha was incomparable to the past. The world had become chaotic recently, so their business became difficult. Still, even so, the wealth they had accumulated in recent years will not go anywhere. They have long established themselves as the best merchants in Xi’an and one of the top ten merchant unions in the world.

There was no way that the Evil Sect would leave such a delicious place alone.

“You should get out of here first.”

“…”

When Hwang Jongi remained silent, the beggar bit his lips and urged him.

“Those people are coming, and they are dangerous. I am not saying this because they are of the Evil Sect. They are truly insane beasts.”

“…”

“Merchant lord, you know that the Ten Thousand People clan had invaded Xi’an in the past, right?”

“Yes.”

“It is different now. Back then, the forces didn’t touch the civilians. But they have already annihilated two villages now. If you stay here, you will not live. So please…”

“That cannot be done, Gul Gae.”

But Hwang Jongi shook his head.

“Uh? Y-yes, but…”

“I know. But I cannot run away. A merchant doesn’t abandon his place.”

“…merchant lord. This isn’t a situation where you can be so complacent. Right now…”

“I am not saying this because of that.”

“…”

Hwang Jongi shook his head.

“There are many goods in the warehouse right now. If they are taken, this place would naturally collapse.”

“Why don’t you run away with them?”

“Since most of the members of the Eunha are out on expeditions, there is no one to move the goods. And… would the evil ones who came in after the treasure just go back empty-handed because the warehouse is empty? They will chase you to the ends of hell and try to steal it. They would even kill the workers here.”

“…you have money with you already, right? If you just move the valuables first…”

Hwang Jongi smiled.

“A merchant union that piles up its earned money in a safe is doomed to fail. There are no valuables here that can be easily taken away.”

“…”

“And.”

A heavy voice flowed from Hwang Jongi’s mouth.

“A merchant isn’t in a place where you can make money alone. There are many places that trust us and do business with us. If the goods in their warehouse are taken, we go bankrupt.”

“… isn’t your life more precious?”

“There is something my late father used to say. To a merchant, trust is more important than life. My father always kept his word. And if I run now because I value my life and betray his trust, how can I see my father when I die?”

Hwang Jongi shook his head.

“And most of the goods here are not my property. They belong to close friends who trusted me.”

“…”

“If it were them, I would tell them to just take away the money and leave the people, but… haha, since they are not around, I cannot do as I please with their money, right?”

“Merchant lord…”

Hwang Jongi smiled broadly.

If the person in front of him hadn’t been so open-minded and detached from wealth, he would have explained in detail how difficult it was to entrust all of the wealth to someone else.

And how much trust was required for that?

Mount Hua entrusted all of their wealth to Hwang Jongi and entered Closed Gate. But if he then lost all of his wealth and welcomed those who had come out of the Closed Gate?

Even though he was a merchant who couldn’t live without shame, his face wasn’t that thick-skinned.

“I will evacuate the people around. But I will not be leaving this place. They will not touch a single grain of rice without cutting through me first. That is my responsibility as the lord of the merchant union. So do not speak more of it.”

The beggar bit his lip.

He didn’t think this was reasonable. But what more could he say to someone who was so strong-willed?

“… the Hwayoung clan leader will unite the sects in Xi’an and help us.”

“The clan leader will?”

“Yes. When he heard of the evil bastards coming, he said he would fight without another thought.”

Hwang Jongi smiled at those words.

“What is it?”

The beggar asked in confusion, and Hwang Jongi shook his head.

“No, it is nothing. It is just… I thought of something.”

“What…”

“They are so consistent. I guess it is what they have seen and learned.”

The beggar tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand it, but Hwang Jongi didn’t bother explaining it either.

‘That is why they are close to Mount Hua.’

It seemed like he had been watching the ones who said to get out of danger but run to the front whenever there was danger for others. Even those around the sect didn’t seem to have the slightest intention of running.

Hwang Jongi stood up.

His job was clear. He had to evacuate the innocent people of the merchant union so that they wouldn’t die and guard the place with escorts.

“They seem to be looking down on this place, so we should show them how fierce the people of Shaanxi are.”

“…Merchant lord, why are you doing this…”

“I understand.”

“…Uh?”

Hwang Jongi smiled strangely.

“I’ve thought that way many times too. There were many times when I couldn’t understand why smart people acted foolishly, and it was frustrating.”

“…”

“But now that I think of it, I understand. If I were a young leader, I would have told my father to run without looking back. But now I am the leader. Those who are responsible for others shouldn’t care about profit.”

Just like his father and Mount Hua did.

So now, it was time to prove how foolish he could act.

“Do not worry too much. I am not thinking about messing around. They will surely come.”

“…Mount Hua?”

“Yes.”

Hwang Jongi nodded.

“But Mount Hua is in…”

“If they get word, they will come running. We just need to endure until then.”

“…I understand.”

But Wei Lishan, Hwang Jongi, and even the beggars’ unions were so busy evacuating the people that no one expected it.

Hwang Dae-Kwang, who climbed Mount Hua with all his might, would face an unimaginable situation.