Chapter 242: Chapter 1130: This is Hell, This Place (Part 5)
The rampaging Chung Myung was finally subdued with Hyun Young and even Hyun Jong stepping in. Watching Chung Myung tied tightly with ropes in a corner, cold sweat dripped down the backs of the disciples.
Hyun Jong looked at everyone as if he had a headache.
"Why are they so out of control?"
"...."
"I understand fighting during sparring sessions, but isn't it a big problem when they fight each other outside of that?"
Everyone nodded in agreement with his words.
But Hyun Jong seemed displeased with their response and furrowed his brows.
"Then, each Sect Leader should sort out the situation. Why does this keep happening?"
"Well..."
"Speak up clearly."
"No... well..."
Despite Hyun Jong's urging, the Sect Leaders only coughed awkwardly. When Hyun Jong showed a frustrated expression, Tang Gunak finally spoke with a smile tinged with bitterness.
"This seems to be a problem stemming from differences in understanding...."
"Differences in understanding?"
What kind of nonsense was that?
"You think it would be easy for us to control them if we just set our minds to it, but in reality, our authority is not as strong as you think."
"...What?"
Hyun Jong blinked with a dumbfounded expression upon hearing those words.
What absurdity was this?
"Places like Namgung or Tang Family don't have strong authority? What kind of nonsense is this? I thought Lords of prestigious families and palaces had even stronger authority than Sect Leaders."
Tang Gunak let out a deep sigh.
"That's the problem."
"What?"
"The perception of that authority is the problem. Who do you think has the strongest authority in the world?"
"Well... the Emperor, of course."
"Even the Emperor can't ignore the opinions of the people, right?"
Hyun Jong was at a loss for words. Because what he said was true.
In the vast empire, even the Emperor, possessing the greatest authority, paid attention to the sentiments of the people and strived to win their favor.
"Of course, with our power, we could easily handle it once or twice. However, if dissatisfaction accumulates and we can't resolve it, and the same issues repeat, eventually our authority will weaken."
"Ah, no, but that's..."
Hyun Jong looked at the other Sect Leaders as if he couldn't understand at all. However, the other Sect Leaders nodded as if acknowledging the truth of the statement.
"Are you seriously saying this?"
When Hyun Jong asked again, Tang Gunak let out a deep sigh.
"That's why it was difficult to explain. It's not something that the Maenju-nim would easily understand."
Hyun Jong fell into a brief silence, scratching his head. It was a somewhat sensitive issue to simply sweep away, which was why he hesitated.
"…However that may be, the fact that you find it uncomfortable to even order your disciples not to fight..."
"Sect Leader."
"Yes."
"Does the authority of the Sichuan Tang Family Head surpass that of the Shaolin Sect Leader?"
"Well..."
Hyun Jong couldn't easily answer that question.
While it might be an unpleasant thing for Tang Gunak to hear, comparing the authority of the Tang Family Head to that of the Shaolin Sect Leader was quite a different matter. Wasn't the Shaolin Sect Leader not just the head of Shaolin but also recognized as a representative figure in the martial world?
Naturally, the authority within that Sect would also be strong.
"Have you heard before? Disciples of Shaolin opposing the Beopjeong's orders and leaving for their hometown."
"...I have heard."
He thought it was quite unexpected... No, that... Some people in Shaolin had thoughts like that.
"Think about it, Sect Leader. Even the Shaolin Sect Leader, who has the strongest authority in the martial world, faces such situations. Isn't it natural for disciples to rebel and return to their hometown if they don't like a few choices?"
"...Hmm."
"In such a situation, do you think we, with just a wave of our hand, can control our disciples as if we have some remarkable power?"
Hyun Jong's mouth slightly opened.
Listening and thinking about it, it seemed to make sense... No, it still seemed unreasonable.
Watching Hyun Jong, who looked perplexed, Tang Gunak smiled bitterly.
"So, Maengju... No, Sect Leader, I said I thought it would be difficult for you to understand."
"...Why?"
"The reason is simple. It's because Sect Leader and our positions are different. The Mount Hua Sect that I know is a sect where Sect Leader's authority is unparalleled in the martial world."
"Mount Hua?"
"Yes."
"Mount Hua?"
"...Yes."
"Mount Hua?"
When Hyun Jong made a face as if to say, 'What kind of nonsense is this?' the sect leaders all burst into laughter.
Of course, to Hyun Jong, it might have sounded like strange talk. He certainly interacted with his disciples more like friends than other sect leaders did. That's why sometimes, the disciples of Mount Hua, thinking of Hyun Jong as a friend, engaged in behavior that was hard to imagine in other sects.
However, familiarity and strong authority were entirely separate matters. In the eyes of Tang Gunak, Mount Hua was a sect where the Sect Leader's authority surpassed imagination.
Suppose each sect leader were to deploy disciples to a front where victory seemed impossible. It would be a fight without justification or strength. Would the disciples of the Tang Family willingly sacrifice their lives according to Tang Gunak's orders?
Well, Tang Gunak was skeptical. Perhaps, at that moment, they would prioritize their own lives over Tang Gunak's orders. Tang Gunak's power came from position and authority, not from trust and faith in the sect leader.
Even though others might not know, the thoughts of the other sect leaders present here would likely be no different.
But Mount Hua was different.
If it were Hyun Jong's command, the disciples of Mount Hua would risk their lives even knowing they could die.
'That's what authority is.'
Authority was precisely that. Despite appearing unyielding most of the time, if it could not be demonstrated at crucial moments, it was not true authority.
Hyun Jong found it challenging to understand, but for now, he nodded somehow.
"Hmm. So, you mean... you can't easily stop your disciples because you're afraid of them rebelling?"
"Well, it's a bit embarrassing."
"What's embarrassing?"
At that moment, Im Sobyeong opened his mouth with a face as if to say, 'This is why righteous sects bastards are like this.'
"You guys, at worst, get cursed at and endure scornful glances. When I sleep when I'm a bit drunk, knives come flying at me, knives!"
"..."
"And you guys, being the strongest in martial arts, might be able to suppress the kids even if they revolt, but someone like me becomes a corpse in an instant! A corpse. Do you know what that means?"
"Aren't you already half a corpse?"
"...Still, being half a corpse is better than being a complete corpse."
Im So Byeong grumbled and sighed heavily.
"From the start, there were only two factions in the world where the leaders could make their disciples do something they dislike with just a flick of their fingers. One is Mount Hua, and the other is..."
"Shaolin?"
"What? Shaolin would freeze to death. It's the Evil Tyrant Alliance, the Evil Tyrant Alliance! If I were to add one more, it would be the Demonic Sect."
As Hyun Jong listened, his expression contorted oddly.
"Well... Depending on how you hear it, it might sound like Mount Hua is a place like the Evil Tyrant Alliance or the Demonic Sect..."
"To be honest, what's so different anyway? Everyone, as soon as Sect Leader gives the order, glares with bloodshot eyes and starts running regardless of whether to the Yangtze River or to Gangnam. What kind of sane people would do that? It's not normal."
Hyun Jong fell silent. Something felt very unfair, but it was very difficult to refute it with words. This kind of feeling hadn't occurred since Chung Myung spouted sophistry a while ago.
He sighed and asked Im So Byeong again.
"So, um... the conclusion is, it's difficult for the sect leaders to stop it as well?"
"Even if you try to stop it, someone will pour oil on the fire as soon as it cools down a bit. How can you stop that with any method? If you casually interfere, everything will burn."
"Even the person who brought the spark got burned."
"Yep, they burned up thoroughly."
The sect leaders nodded in agreement, glancing at Chung Myung tied up in the corner. In their view, what he did was an act of smearing oil on his body and setting himself on fire, screaming in pain.
"Well, then how on earth..."
At that moment, Han Yi Myung opened his mouth with a face that showed he couldn't understand at all.
"I honestly don't know why we're having this meeting. If the sects were so easily mixed, why bother dividing them with different names and distinguishing disciples by attire? Why go through meaningless joint training, especially training disguised as mock fights?"
Everyone looked at Han Yi Myung with hopeless eyes.
'We're wondering about that too.'
'When did we ever understand and agree? We just did what we were told.'
'That gentleman came from somewhere far away, so he doesn't seem to understand the situation at all.'
Han Yi Myung, unable to read the expressions of the other sect leaders, spoke with frustration.
"I don't dare say this in a place where many sect leaders are present, but why don't we just stop this training and separate each sect's residence? Wouldn't that solve the problem...?"
"Eurachaaaaa!"
At that moment, Chung Myung, who had cut the rope binding him, stood up in one go.
"What? Separate?"
"...."
"Where are you talking about!"
The sect leaders all nodded in admiration. The one suffering the most from this situation was none other than Chung Myung. But now, he was adamantly refusing to take the easy way out.
Before them was truly drive behind Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword, who had led Mount Hua to this point...
"Then I would lose! Damn it!"
....Not drive...He just had a bad personality.
"Ugh. Mount Hua's Chivalrous Sword."
Tang Gunak sighed deeply.
"I understand your feelings, but the current situation is not that simple. Hasn't the situation that was barely settling down completely twisted with the arrival of the Beast Palace and the Ice Palace? I understand the enthusiasm, but sometimes excessive enthusiasm can be poisonous. Let's calm down a bit first..."
"Calm down?"
"..."
"Who? Them? Or me?"
"Uh..."
Originally I was going to say that we need to calm them down...but it seems like you need to calm down too...
"Okay. I understand what you mean."
"Hmm?"
"So, this isn't the right way, right?"
"..."
"Well..."
That's right...That's true, but...It seems like you misunderstood my words in a completely different way...
"I get it. You're right. Change of plans."
Chung Myung's eyes began to gleam with madness.
"So let's really do it right."
"...What are you going to do?"
"What do you think I'm going to do?"
"..."
"Do you really want to know?"
No. I really don't want to know.
Tang Gunak stepped back.
Chung Myung began to laugh like a person who had lost his mind.
"I was crazy. Since when did I hold myself back?! This is not it!"
"..."
"Don't worry! I'll perfectly unite those guys for real!"
"..."
Cold sweat began to seep down the spines of the sect leaders.
There was a creeping premonition that they might see something unbearable.
Creeping...
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