What do you know? (5)
Even though it was a late hour, Chung Myung’s room was empty.
“I don’t know.”
“I haven’t seen him since the evening.”
No matter which room he asked, he received the same answers – nobody knew.
Yoon Jong even checked the lodgings of the senior members of Cheonumaeng, just in case, but there was no trace of Chung Myung anywhere.
He frowned and sighed deeply.
Of course, a conversation delayed by a day wouldn’t change much. But he wanted to find Chung Myung right now to somehow ease this frustration.
“Where on earth could that guy be…?”
It was at that moment, as he bit down on his lower lip.
He turned his head absentmindedly and noticed something white peeking out from a corner of Hwasan’s disciples’ quarters. It was a small, white creature tilting its head as if asking if he had come to offer some food.
Yoon Jong’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“You, can you find where Chung Myung is?”
The small, white weasel, Baek Ah, tilted his head to the side. His face quickly lost interest.
“I’ll reward you.”
Only then did Baek Ah step forward slowly. After sniffing the air a few times with his black nose, Baek Ah darted forward quickly as if signaling Yoon Jong to follow. He hurriedly chased after Baek Ah.
The pure white weasel cut through the village. He crossed the newly cleared field and soon delved into the high mountains that emerged behind it.
‘Where on earth are we going?’
Just as Yoon Jong’s breath started to quicken from chasing after Baek Ah, he reached a stop in a dense forest where even the moonlight barely penetrated.
Clang!
Yoon Jong, who had stopped in his tracks as well, soon hardened his expression. Fierce booming sounds came from ahead.
“Thank you.”
With a small voice, he thanked Baek Ah and glanced at him. Taking a deep breath, Yoon Jong strode through the forest.
After a moment, an extraordinary sight came into view.
Boom!
A red sword energy pouring down from the sky not only dug deep into the ground but also shattered rocks.
It was a sword energy devoid of the Taoist principle of saving lives, filled only with the intent to destroy the enemy. The murderous aura emanating from the sword was even more chilling than its power, causing Yoon Jong’s hair to stand on end.
Crash!
The sword energy exploded right in front of him. Then, the thick murderous aura and rough sword energy that had enveloped the area suddenly vanished.
“Hoo.”
There stood Chung Myung, revealed as he exhaled heavily. His back rose and fell with each breath, drenched in sweat from the intense training.
For a moment, Yoon Jong forgot the purpose of his visit, lost in a sudden thought.
If it hadn’t been for the conversation with Jo Geol, Yoon Jong would have been organizing his place and falling asleep by now, preparing for tomorrow’s training.
But Baek Cheon and Chung Myung were pushing themselves to exhaustion at a time when they should be sleeping. As if they were being chased by something.
Baek Cheon was likely being chased by his own condition.
Then, what was chasing after Chung Myung?
Chung Myung only slightly turned his head to look at Yoon Jong. Despite his body steaming from the heat, his eyes were chillingly cold. Yoon Jong felt an indescribable pressure bearing down on him.
“What is it?”
Eventually, Chung Myung clicked his tongue lightly and trudged towards a nearby rock. After wiping the sweat from his face with a piece of cloth draped over the rock, he frowned and looked at Yoon Jong.
“How did you know to come here?”
His tone was as casual as usual. Yoon Jong unconsciously let out the breath he had been holding.
Where should he start?
“Why are you training all the way out here?”
“It’s noisy.”
“That’s true, but still.”
“Besides, if I train near Hwaeum, everyone would come to watch. How could I swing my sword in peace?”
“That makes sense.”
Yoon Jong smiled bitterly.
People would probably line up outside Hwaeum just to spar with Chung Myung. Yoon Jong was certain Namgung Dowi would be at the front of that line.
“But, really, how did you know to come here…”
At that moment, Chung Myung’s eyes narrowed sharply. He had spotted Baek Ah peeking out from behind a tree behind Yoon Jong.
Kiiiii!
Baek Ah quickly hid his head behind the tree.
“That weasel, selling out its master?”
“…”
“Fine. Keep it up. Winter is coming soon.”
A faint squeak, as if complaining, echoed from behind the tree. Chung Myung clicked his tongue and turned his gaze back to Yoon Jong.
“So, what is it? You wouldn’t have come all the way out here at this hour without a reason.”
Chung Myung grabbed the flask he had placed on the rock. It was impressive that the flask had survived the intense training unscathed.
“Sahyeong?”
When Yoon Jong remained silent, Chung Myung called out. Yoon Jong watched him quietly before speaking.
“You know, don’t you?”
“Know what?”
“About Sasuk.”
After saying it, he watched Chung Myung’s face. He expected some reaction, but Chung Myung’s expression remained astonishingly unchanged.
“What about Sasuk?”
“……His condition.”
There was a slight strain in Yoon Jong’s voice.
He didn’t know if it was because he was frustrated with Chung Myung’s feigned ignorance or if he was annoyed by his nonchalant tone.
“Aaah.”
Even though he clearly noticed the edge in Yoon Jong’s voice, Chung Myung remained indifferent.
“You’re talking about that.”
“Yeah… you know, right?”
“I know.”
Chung Myung casually tipped the flask, taking a sip. Yoon Jong’s brow furrowed slightly. Everything about Chung Myung’s actions seemed unusually irritating today.
“So? You came all the way out here at this hour to talk about that?”
“What are you planning to do?”
“What do you mean?”
“What are you thinking? Are you just going to leave Sasuk like that?”
Chung Myung frowned silently. Yoon Jong sighed as he spoke.
“Sasuk plans to go to war.”
“…”
“He will try to lead us from the front as usual. No, given the nature of this war, he won’t avoid even more dangerous tasks.”
Chung Myung faced Yoon Jong with an unchanged expression.
“You know what will happen, don’t you?”
“Sahyeong.”
“Sasuk will die.”
A cold light shone through Yoon Jong’s narrow eyes.
“We’ll do our best to help him. But this is war. It’s hard enough to protect our own lives, let alone keep Sasuk perfectly safe. And he won’t allow it anyway.”
“…”
“Do you understand? Sasuk cannot go to war like this.”
Chung Myung listened to Yoon Jong without replying.
“So if you have any ideas, stop wasting time and do something. I’m sure you have your reasons, as always. But you know, the situation has become such that war could break out any day now. It’s too dangerous.”
Yoon Jong’s voice was more serious than usual.
It had to be. There was no one who could stop Baek Cheon right now. Even Hyun Jong might not be able to completely restrain him. Baek Cheon would drag himself to the battlefield, even if his limbs were cut and his meridians severed.
The only one who could stop him was Chung Myung.
And there was another hope Yoon Jong harbored.
Maybe, just maybe, Chung Myung could find a way not just to stop Baek Cheon but to help his condition.
No, he was sure of it. Otherwise, Chung Myung wouldn’t have left Baek Cheon in this state for so long.
But Chung Myung’s reaction was somewhat different from what Yoon Jong expected.
“Tsk.”
Chung Myung clicked his tongue briefly and picked up the clothes he had carelessly thrown on the rock.
“I thought you came here because you had something important to say.”
“…What?”
Yoon Jong’s face hardened. What could be more important than Baek Cheon’s condition?
Chung Myung put on his clothes, tying them leisurely, and looked at Yoon Jong with an indifferent gaze.
Yoon Jong didn’t take Chung Myung’s words at face value.
“Fine. Saying it’s not a big deal means you already have a solution, right? Like using some kind of elixir?”
“No.”
“…What?”
“You know it too, Sahyeong. Sasuk damaged himself by excessively drawing on his innate energy. In other words, the vessel that holds his energy is broken.”
“…”
“Using an elixir would be like pouring water into a broken pot. To keep it filled, you’d need to use all the elixirs in the world, and even then, it would eventually all leak out. That’s what a broken vessel means.”
He was talking about a shattered dantian, and Yoon Jong already knew this. They hadn’t been sitting idly by all this time.
Their suspicions were confirmed in Kaifeng. Though they hadn’t explicitly discussed it with Baek Cheon, they had repeatedly pressed Tang Soso for answers.
– I can’t fix it. And… neither can the Tang clan.
The response was akin to a death sentence for a martial artist.
– It’s not completely shattered, just cracked, so he won’t lose all his martial arts at once. But… he will gradually lose them. Faster and faster. No matter how hard he tries, it’s irreversible.
It’s unimaginable.
The feeling of watching everything you’ve built over a lifetime slip through your fingers. The agony of witnessing what defines you slowly but inexorably crumble.
Yet, they had endured up to now for one reason.
“I know. But if anyone has a solution, it’s you, isn’t it?”
Because Chung Myung had remained silent.
They all knew Chung Myung was aware of what they had noticed. Yet, since the battle in Kaifeng, he hadn’t changed his behavior.
So they all believed. They believed that this devilish bastard had a miraculous method that they couldn’t even imagine. Up until now… yes, up until now, it had always been that way.
But Chung Myung’s blunt words shattered Yoon Jong’s expectations completely.
“There isn’t one.”
“…What?”
“There is no solution.”
Yoon Jong stared at Chung Myung in silence, as if trying to confirm the truth of his words.
“I’m not a physician, nor an alchemist. Let me ask you, why do you think I would have a solution? Even the Tang clan couldn’t fix it.”
…This was sincere. Yoon Jong could tell. There was no falsehood in Chung Myung’s words.
At that moment, what came over Yoon Jong wasn’t despair but a deep question.
“No solution?”
“That’s right.”
“Is there truly nothing?”
“There isn’t.”
Yoon Jong’s eyes bored into Chung Myung.
“Then… why have you kept silent until now? You, who clearly knew what Sasuk was feeling every day. You, who couldn’t possibly be unaware of the resolve he’s holding onto right now.”
“…”
“Why did you just stand by and watch?”
Chung Myung looked at Yoon Jong and spoke in a calm, composed tone.
“Should I offer some consolation, then?”
There was no boiling rage, no frosty pride, just a flat, emotionless delivery.
“You… what are you saying…?”
“Should I advise you all to just accept it, since there’s nothing that can be done? It’s unfortunate, but inevitable.”
Yoon Jong’s fingertips trembled.
“That’s why none of you have said anything until now.”
“You…”
“This was a choice Sasuk made himself. He must have known the consequences.”
“Chung Myung?”
Yoon Jong couldn’t believe his ears. What was this guy saying?
Why did this happen in the first place? Why was Baek Cheon’s dantian shattered? Why did Baek Cheon have to push himself so hard?
But…
“He decided to take responsibility for his own choices. Why should that be my-“
Yoon Jong grabbed Chung Myung’s collar.
Rip.
The fabric of Chung Myunf’s robe tore under Yoon Jong’s grip.
Yoon Jong, holding Chung Myung by the collar, trembled with the effort to contain his fury and frustration.
“…You.”
Yoon Jong bit his lower lip, struggling to suppress his anger.
“What are you spouting right now?”
The anger and sadness he couldn’t suppress seeped into his trembling voice.
_______
‘kay. that was hard and emotional. but I do not agree with Yoon Jong’s thought process and actions. he is just putting all the responsibilities and burdens on Chung Myung, like he is some omnipotent God. so Chung Myung needs to sort out Cheonumaeng, devise a strategy to stab Jang Ilso, train the others, train himself and also take responsibility for Baek Cheon. but what exactly is Yoon Jong doing? training and going to sleep, as he said himself? like, bro. that’s too much. I really think Five Swords do not fully comprehend what Chung Myung is and what he is doing. yes, they love and respect him(questionable tho), but they in no way understand just how great he is. and I think they keep expecting more and more and more from him, and now even demanding more and more.
“Why did this happen in the first place? Why was Baek Cheon’s dantian shattered? Why did Baek Cheon have to push himself so hard?” – remember what they all said at the Yangtze River. Baek Cheon said it’s not an order and they can go or not go to save Chung Myung. And they all went and that includes Baek Cheon. as Chung Myung said – Baek Cheon has made his choice. as did Chung Myung, prepared to die so they could escape. so Yoon Jong is simultaneously diminishing Chung Myung, who was ready to give up his life for them and Baek Cheon, who was pushing himself over the limit to save Chung Myung. objectively speaking: in that dire situation Chung Myung got lucky to survive and not suffer something irreversible and Baek Cheon did not get lucky and his dantian cracked.
so according to Yoon Jong, what exactly is Chung Myung supposed to be doing?…
________
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Return of the Mount Hua 
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