“He won.”

“That insane bastard…”

Baek Cheon, Jo Gul, and Yoon Jong looked at the stages with shocked faces.

The image of Chung Myung standing tall and Heo Gong on the ground was clearly engraved in their eyes.

“Oh heavens…”

They did think this was possible.

If this guy, Chung Myung, was really what he had shown till now, there was no reason why he wouldn’t win over the Wudang elder.

But there was a world of difference between just thinking about it and finally witnessing it firsthand.

‘I did think he could win, but this…’

This wasn’t just a win. It was a one-sided victory.

“… sasuk.”

“Uh?”

“Has he gotten stronger or what?”

“… seems like it.”

“But does it make sense…?”

Baek Cheon smiled a bit bitterly at Jo Gul’s complaint.

‘Seriously, that guy is…’

Now that he thought about it, just when he finally caught up to Chung Myung, he was left far behind again. All he could see was the shadow of Chung Myung, ready to vanish at any moment.

But he no longer felt frustrated by these things.

Seeing the shadow of Chung Myung beyond him. Even though the distance didn’t get narrowed as expected, Baek Cheon was steadily following him.

Rather…

“Uh?”

“I think we should do something about them first.”

“…”

At Baek Cheon’s words, Yoon Jong and Jo Gul slowly turned around. Hyun Sang and Hyun Young were standing at the top of the disciples.

‘Seems like their jaws will drop.’

‘Isn’t that a bit dangerous?’

As he looked at Hyun Sang’s mouth, so wide that it couldn’t open any further, he laughed and felt concerned at the same time. It would be so bad if that jaw lost its grip.

“Won…”

“Hohohoh.”

Hyun Sang was being Hyun Sang, but the face of Hyun Young, which showed the absurdity of this and he had nothing more to say, was a sight to engrave in their memories.

“I…”

“Hmm. This is a bit complicated. Confusing.”

Hyun Sang, barely coming to his senses after hearing Hyun Young’s words, looked to the side and said,

“Uh?”

“Think about it, sahyung. Even a famed elder of Wudang got beaten up, so what guarantee do we have that we won’t be? From now on, we need to be wary of what we speak in front of…”

“Ugh, you rotten bastard!”

Before he could finish speaking, Hyun Sang hit Hyun Young on the butt.

“Is that what you say to a disciple who did his best to win?”

“Did I say something wrong?”

“Ugh.”

Hyun Sang glanced at his sajae, who didn’t want to say a word, and then turned his gaze back to Chung Myung.

‘I cannot believe this.’

He won an amazing victory against the elder of Wudang, not just any other person. This was an entirely different story from the wins Chung Myung brought for them.

How good was Wudang? It was a sect considered to be the best among the sword sects.

And even that Wudang, Chung Myung, who was nothing more than a third-class disciple, defeated an elder who was renowned for his strength?

‘Has something like this ever happened?’

It wasn’t like he didn’t know because he was a disciple of Mount Hua.

But Hyun Sang and himself had never heard of such a thing in his lifetime. No, he had never even imagined such a thing.

“He… he is like a goblin.”

An insincere laugh came out of Hyun Sang’s mouth. At the same time, the wrinkles around his eyes began to slowly turn wet.

It might be because he was going against Wudang that he couldn’t think about Chung Myung winning over him.

He was happy to know that Chung Myung went out there and fought, but his eyes were just turning red.

“Clench your teeth and endure it, sahyung.”

“…”

“You are leading this.”

“I know, you bastard!”

Hyun Sang stood tall.

It was a task created by the disciples shedding their sweat and tears. He couldn’t ruin this proud moment with his sad emotions.

At that moment, Chung Myung, who was off the stage, turned his head and looked at him.

‘Come now, bastard.’

How could he not understand the meaning of this?

He reflexively lowered his hand to adjust his wrinkled clothes and stood tall. At that moment, he shouldn’t be seen as just the elder of Mount Hua but as the representative of Mount Hua.

Therefore, one must not show any signs of weakness.

“I will go.”

“Yes!”

An excited voice erupted from Hyun Young.

Hyun Sang desperately tried to calm his trembling heart and climbed up.

“…”

It felt like his mind was suddenly clear.

When a person encountered something they could not handle, their mind became empty, unable to perform any task.

This was exactly the situation Heo Sanja found himself in right now.

A defeat.

It seemed as if the word ‘defeat’ was the only thing stuck in his mind, a defeat with no excuses to be made.

The defeat by the five wins and losses was also embarrassing. He had never expected the first-class disciples of Wudang to falter in front of the third and second-class disciples of Mount Hua.

But that was something that could be resolved.

Unlike the current situation… this was entirely different.

A Wudang elder was defeated by a third-class disciples of Mount Hua. And the opponent wasn’t even significantly injured.

How was he even supposed to fix this mess?

Even if an elder from a lesser-known sect got defeated by a third-class disciple from a famous sect, it would be the ridicule of the century. Then what if the elder of the Wudang sect got defeated by the third-class disciple of another sect? This wasn’t something words could resolve.

‘How… how can this happen…’

This wasn’t even his fault.

No one in the world could have predicted this situation. Venerable Heo Do and his plan were originally built on the assumption that Heo Gong could take down Chung Myung.

This means that even Venerable Heo Do, who sat on the mountain and looked down on the world, didn’t think that Chung Myung could win over Heo Gong.

Then how could Heo Sanja have even thought of this and handled the situation?

“Elder…”

Mu Jin opened his mouth with a trembling tone.

“Elder… Heo Gong needs to be cared for.”

“…”

“Elder!”

He didn’t get any answer back.

Heo Sanja stared at the stage with a shocked look, as if he couldn’t even hear the words of Mu Jin.

And Mu Jin sighed deeply.

‘This wasn’t that shocking.’

Even he was shocked as if his heart would come out of his throat. How horrid was the shock the elder took? But now wasn’t the time to be like this.

“Mu Gak and Mu Gong, head up and bring the elder down.”

“… Yes, sahyung.”

Mu Jin just shut his eyes as he watched the sajaes bring down the elder.

‘Where did all this go wrong?’

There was just one reason for the defeat.

They were weaker than Mount Hua. There was no other excuse for this.

‘We were not as desperate as them.’

He thought that he had never been lazy when it came to training or doing his best. But the moment he came across how dedicated the disciples of Mount Hua looked, Mu Jin had to acknowledge that they were a lot more deep-rooted in their wishes than he was.

Mu Jin asked in a low tone, watching the sajaes carry Heo Gong back.

“His condition?”

“It doesn’t seem like he took any deep injuries to the internal side. But just to be sure, I will show him to the physician.”

“Yes.”

Mu Jin, who took care of the situation on behalf of Heo Sanja, still stared at Chung Myung, who stood tall in the middle of the stage.

“Elder.”

“…”

“It is said that a person’s worth comes from the end and not the start. The same goes for the sect. Defeat is an unfortunate thing, but how you accept that is what determines the status of Wudang.”

“…”

“Elder…”

But Heo Sanja just stood there, dumbfounded.

The same shock reverberated at the back. All the disciples of Wudang were taken aback, unsure of how to process the situation.

‘It has to make sense.’

When had he ever been so thoroughly defeated?

The reason Mu Jin could somehow maintain his sanity wasn’t because he was stronger than the others. Rather, he was less shocked since he had previously encountered Chung Myung and suffered a similar defeat.

‘We have been a bit too arrogant.’

At that moment, Hyun Sang began to ascend the stage.

Witnessing that truly confident stride, a wry smile appeared on Mu Jin’s face. He recognized that his perspective on Hyun Sang had changed.

To be honest, he hadn’t thought much of the Mount Hua elders until now.

Mu Jin, having experienced the shock from Chung Myung, could guess that the changes in the past at Mount Hua were what allowed this to happen.

Therefore, to Mu Jin, the elders of Mount Hua were nothing more than incompetent individuals who had the luxury of accidentally accepting one of the most talented people out there.

But now, Hyun Sang seemed very different.

‘He is the one who trained the swordsman known as Un Geom and the Baek disciples.’

Just by observing Un Geom, anyone could infer the caliber of swordsmanship practiced at Mount Hua. Anyone who has trained such a person deserves respect.

Regardless of being from Mount Hua and Wudang, they were all Taoists and swordsmen at heart.

Hyun Sang, standing beside Chung Myung, quietly observed Wudang.

He walked past a Wudang disciple who couldn’t even meet his gaze and fixed his eyes on Heo Sanja, who was still in shock. And he quietly said,

“It was a good spar.”

“…”

“And it doesn’t matter whether the spar is won or lost. What is important is what we learn and what we gain by pointing our swords at each other.”

His voice was calm yet firm and authoritative.

Mu Jin realized something once again.

‘He is a deeply rooted pine tree.’

A person who lived in Mount Hua, having experienced many years of ups and downs, was as strong and disciplined as a deeply rooted pine tree that silently withstands turbulent times.

That…

‘It was something that we, as Wudang, had to pursue.’

Those who protected Mount Hua were embodying the ideals that Wudang aspired to demonstrate through their swordsmanship.

Mu Jin felt so lost that he began to lower his head and show respect for Hyun Sang. And with that, Hyun Sang continued.

“This time, Mount Hua managed to gain a lot. But the result of the spar that has been shown now is a temporary victory, and the one who develops further through the spar will be the one who deserves to be called a winner.”

Then, he quietly put his hands together and held them out in front of him.

“I learned well. May you all be blessed with the same.”

Heo Sanja’s face contorted.

But, as the representative of Wudang, he couldn’t refuse the courtesy that the other person was showing.

“We…”

He had to bite his lip and face ahead.

“We… learned well. We… we wish you the best.”

His shoulders trembled.

Hyun Sang didn’t bother to watch for too long and just turned his head.

It was true that he was happy about this victory, but he had no intention of rubbing salt into their wounds. This was because Hyun Sang was someone who knew these feelings all too well.

But then a voice rang out, making him turn his head.

“But!”

Heo Sanja was glaring at him with bloodshot eyes.

“Please don’t think that Mount Hua defeated Wudang through this. This is just one spar. And Mount Hua is still…”

“A long way from catching up with Wudang.”

“…”

“We realize that, Taoist.”

Hyun Sang smiled.

“Because of Wudang, Mount Hua makes efforts to grow. We hope that Mount Hua can turn into someone like that, too.”

“…”

“We leave then.”

He turned lightly and looked up to the sky.

‘Such a nice day.’

The sunlight shining down on the stage made him feel more comfortable.

There was still a long way to go. Yet, for this moment alone, he wanted to enjoy the warm sunlight.

Wuhan, Hubei Province.

This was the moment when Mount Hua had achieved a complete victory over Wudang in a place no different than their own home.