Return of the Mount Hua

That’s the answer. (5)

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All eyes suddenly focused on a single point.

The one who appeared with a thunderous roar wore excessively ornate golden robes, and yet his face was so full of nobility and refinement that it did not appear the least bit absurd.

But in this chaos, mere appearance would not have seized anyone’s attention.

The reason was that this middle-aged man’s aura pressed down on the surroundings. In fact, his energy took on a distinct form of heat that dried the very air.

He was the Lord of the Sun Palace. His Hot Yang Technique* had clearly taken shape, scorching everything around him.

“Such worthless things…”

A voice, as though struggling to contain the fury within, leaked from the Sun Palace Lord’s lips.

How utterly foolish. To leave such riffraff free to run amok! Don’t they realize that if the enemy’s momentum continues unchecked, at some point it will grow beyond anyone’s control?

‘Well, what would someone who has never experienced a real war know?’

Even what they called the wars of the Central Plains’ Evil Sects were probably nothing more than a handful of warriors showing off in small skirmishes. If he looked at it that way, he could understand these foolish antics. Understanding them, however, did not mean he could tolerate them.

But, at present, he found himself in the same boat as those fools. Having already suffered one bitter defeat, he could not simply stand by and watch the situation deteriorate any further.

The Sun Palace Lord’s gaze turned towards the rear. There stood Jang Ilso, draped in his crimson robes.

In the empty air, the blazing gaze of the Sun Palace Lord and the unsettlingly smiling eyes of Jang Ilso clashed.

“Hmph.”

The Sun Palace Lord gave a short, derisive snort.

‘In the end, he’s just a scoundrel of the Black Path [in Glossary]. No matter how grand he pretends to be, his limitations are plain to see.’

He still held fast to the desire to one day break that man’s arrogant nose. The humiliation he had once suffered at Jang Ilso’s hands remained vividly in the Sun Palace Lord’s heart.

The memory of trembling before someone unrivaled under heaven might never fade, perhaps not until the day the Sun Palace Lord drew his final breath. Like a scar from a burn. 

So he must certainly repay this humiliation… but not right now.

If a hole is opened in the ship you are drifting in on a vast ocean, no matter how bitter your enmity, it is wise to bury it for the moment. Only a petty fool who does not know the greater reason would cling to trivial grudges.

The Sun Palace Lord turned his gaze away from Jang Ilso.

Instead, he fixed his gaze on the young swordsmen before him. Those who had suddenly twisted the atmosphere of the battlefield – those bastards. Sparks that must be put out.

A colossal power began to gather in the Sun Palace Lord’s right hand.

Goooooooooo.

“These Central Plains’ bastards are all alike…”

The Sun Palace Lord knew. Humans submit to authority, but ultimately it is power that creates that authority.

Power so immense that it leaves not even a thought of resistance – that is the symbol of perfect authority.

“…they do not know their place!”

The power gathered in his hand was unleashed as an explosive force. It was as if a pure-white sun had been fired forth.

Kwaaaaaang!

A colossal explosion swept across the area.

Formidable force, stemming from overwhelming inner energy. Not just a shockwave, but raw energy itself tore through all directions, instantly scattering the tightly clustered ranks of Cheonumaeng.

Those struck head-on were melted away without even a final scream, and those who barely survived writhed in agony as their entire bodies burned.

“Aaaaaargh!”

“Aaagh! My legs! My leeeegs!”

However, neither these harrowing screams nor their horrific appearances drew anyone’s attention. All eyes were fixed on the ground where the Sun Palace Lord’s force had struck.

Sssssss. 

It was boiling up.

The ground was flowing as if it had turned into red blood. The scorching hot energy that had just struck had melted even the earth with its terrible heat.

“Th-That…….”

Everyone stood agape, stunned, in total silence.

‘How could a human……’

Neither the heat pressing forward as if to scorch their faces, nor the sorrow of having lost their comrades, carried any meaning before such a shocking sight.

The essence of martial arts differs from warrior to warrior.

Some spend their lives honing the sharpness of a single strike to its utmost limit, while others dedicate themselves to cleaving a mountain with a single blow. Yet another pursues severance as their goal, and another seeks to merge with nature.

Each walks their own path, so it cannot be said that any of those ways are wrong. They merely advance along clearly different roads.

Thus, even if they reach the same realm, what they can accomplish with their particular martial art differs from one individual to the next.

The Sun Palace Lord’s martial art is truly extraordinary. There is no waste in calling its might formidable.

Of course, it’s not that there are no warriors in the world who stand equal to the Sun Palace Lord, but who among them could produce such a spectacle?

Power known only through rumors invites doubt. Power passed down by word of mouth through the ages becomes both an idol and a goal.

Yet the power displayed before their very eyes is terror felt in both bone and flesh.

The long robe of the Sun Palace Lord, which had been wildly fluttering because of the air pressure, slowly settled down. For someone who had just created such a horrifying scene, he appeared exceedingly calm.

And that, in turn, added to the intimidation felt by those watching.

“Knowing one’s place is important.”

Slowly and deliberately, the Sun Palace Lord clasped his hands behind his back and looked down upon those before him. Even if their eye level was not so different, there was a clear sense of hierarchy in that gaze.

“Those who don’t know their place end up overstepping their bounds.”

Humans differ from birth. No matter how the lowly ones struggle, they cannot overturn what they were born with. To the Sun Palace Lord, this was close to an absolute truth.

To him, seeing those who lack even the proper qualifications brazenly behaving above their station is a sight too awful to bear.

Even now, his heart simmered with anger, but he tried his utmost to restrain himself as he continued. Raising his voice at these people or venting his pent-up fury would not befit his noble status.

“If you have eyes, if you can feel – then even your pitiful brains should suffice to understand.”

Step.

The Sun Palace Lord took a step forward. At that moment, everything before him began to tremble all at once.

It was like a great resonance, a mighty wave.

Power is sometimes defined by how great a wave can be caused with the smallest effort. If so, the power of the Sun Palace Lord here and now would diminish even that of a king.

This realization excited the Sun Palace Lord beyond measure.

“So then……”

Another step brought forth an even greater wave. As the Sun Palace Lord, flushed with excitement, prepared to take another step…

His foot went no further.

His gaze, which had cast everyone else as trivial, landed somewhere. And so he saw it. Standing on the red-scorched ground, where no one should have been allowed to remain, was a single person still on both feet.

A figure who should, by all rights, have been swept away, but stubbornly endured.

“Hmm.”

A low sound escaped the Sun Palace Lord’s mouth.

It was not admiration, but displeasure. One might even say it was the crumb of his pride, chipped away ever so slightly.

The Sun Palace Lord’s brow twitched in displeasure.

“You’ve held out well.”

Of course, he did not expose any further displeasure. Even feeling such emotion towards someone so insignificant was unacceptable to him.

Yet the words that soon followed were enough to chip away at his patience.

“It’s nothing particularly impressive.”

The Sun Palace Lord’s eyes grew razor-sharp.

“So, you?…”

Such brief words – intended merely to learn the other’s name – were exceedingly rare for the Sun Palace Lord.

“Lee Songbaek of Jongnam.”

Holding his sword horizontally and pressing the flat side of the sword with his palm, Lee Songbaek fixed his eyes on the Sun Palace Lord visible above the sword. They were entirely different from the gentle gaze he’d shown to his fellow disciples.

The Sun Palace Lord snorted.

“How insolent. Perhaps you managed to endure once by sheer luck, but how much longer can you last with such meager skill?”

Lee Songbaek took a long, deep breath.

It wasn’t entirely wrong. Even now, his legs trembled. It was not a matter of technique – it was matter of one’s inner strength. Lee Songbaek’s sword was not well-suited to withstand the crushing explosive pressure of that overwhelming force.

But there could be no question of retreating. Lee Songbaek gripped his sword with both hands and assumed a middle guard stance.

“I cannot say how much longer I’ll last, but I will not step back until I die.”

“…This is why I hate those who do not know their place.”

The Sun Palace Lord’s eyes twitched faintly.

Authority is tarnished the instant someone dares to resist it. It is as delicate and precarious as that.

But the Sun Palace Lord was one who had lived his life while holding onto that authority. He knew very well how to restore authority once it was damaged.

“You will not leave even a scrap of flesh behind in this world.”

That method was punishment. Ruthlessly punishing those who defy him.

Goooooooo!

Once again, inner strength gathered in the Sun Palace Lord’s right hand. Just witnessing it dried one’s mouth and made every hair stand on end.

This was not merely a feeling or impression, or something of the sort. The heat emitted by that inner energy was immense, enough that Lee Songbaek’s very skin felt as if it would begin to sear.  

“Ugh…!”

Lee Songbaek poured all of his inner energy into his sword.

But with such a thin blade, he could not even block the seething heat, let alone the overwhelming force.

‘What should I do?’

Lee Songbaek’s breathing grew labored.

He could block every direction, but if he lacked the strength to do so, what would be the point? Doubt crept into his mind. Was his sword really just this much?

‘No. No!’

Lee Songbaek bit down on his lip.

If something was lacking, it was not the direction his sword was pointing towards. He himself had not reached the proper level. He must not shift the blame elsewhere.

“Melt and disappear!”

Kwaaaang!

A circular pulse of force, unleashed from the Sun Palace Lord’s right hand, surged towards Lee Songbaek.

Almost simultaneously, Lee Songbaek’s sword shot out in all directions.

In every existing direction, his sword left its mark. He swung his sword again and again, and again after that- driving his body to the brink of collapse – until the wall of swords was formed.

This could only be described as the Mandala [만다라(曼荼羅)] of a thousand hands [천수(千手)].

A supreme Defensive Sword [수검(守劍)], so impenetrable it might have touched perfection [완벽(完璧)] – an ironclad wall, perhaps even a flawless one.

But…

Kuguuuuuung!

That nearly flawless wall soon twisted and melted away.

As if to say it was far too early to speak of perfection, the Sun Palace Lord’s overbearing force crushed Lee Songbaek’s wall of swords and continued its advance. Even that iron barrier crumpled like paper before overwhelming energy.

“Disappear!”

Lee Songbaek clenched his teeth so hard it felt like they might break.

Give up? Such a notion did not exist within him!  

He tried once again to unleash his sword. Even if it amounted to futile resistance, he could not afford to stop. Lee Songbaek understood this better than anyone.

It was just as Lee Songbaek opened his mouth to let out a shout that would tear his throat.

Kwaaaaaaang!

Something erupted right behind him and surged forward with terrifying force.

‘What?’

A majestic golden light of Buddhist aura. And sword energy, whiter and more dazzling than the Sun Palace Lord’s own energy.

These two energies collided with the Sun Palace Lord’s incoming force, producing a massive explosion.

Kwaaaaaaang!

“Guhk!”

At the tremendous shock unleashed right before him, Lee Songbaek’s body was flung violently backwards. But before he could be thrown too far, two sturdy hands caught hold of his shoulders.

Lee Songbaek, who had shut his eyes tight, turned around when the impact had lessened.

“Amitabha.”

Before he could fully turn his gaze, a familiar Buddhist chant drifted into his ears.

“You did well, Siju. But there’s no need to do this alone.”

“Uh…….”

“It seems you are not well-suited to face this opponent. Leave this place to us.”

Without needing to look, Lee Songbaek knew who these two were.

If the world had been without Chung Myung, then naturally these two would have competed for the highest peak under heaven. And thus, perhaps one day, they would have become Lee Songbaek’s own targets.

“You two…”

Hye Yeon of Shaolin and Namgung Dowi of Namgung Clan released Lee Songbaek’s shoulders from their hold and stepped forward.

“He looks quite formidable. Be careful, Siju.”

“He does appear so, Monk. Still, well….”

Namgung Dowi smiled faintly.

“Who could possibly compare to ‘him’?”

“Haha. Indeed, that’s true.”

As he watched the two men standing side by side, the Sun Palace Lord’s face finally twisted into a grimace.

Next chapter >>>

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*열양지공 – here is what we have in this chapter (yeol-yang-jigong) with no hanja. Here is what we had previously about the Sun Palace: 열양기공(熱陽氣功) – yeol-yang-gigong – hot yang energy circulation. Where 열양기공 specifies 기 – qi (energy) circulation, it looks like 열양지공 specifies 공 as a skill/power/achievement, as “emphasizing execution” of the skill.

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Sun Palace Lord and Jang Ilso just really like to smash every human being into dirt with their manner of speech. 

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