“Oh my! Disciple!”

“Here, this is a fruit we got just today!”

“You must be busy like every other day! How can we ever thank you?”

Chung Myung smiled at the merchants of Xi’an, who were welcoming him with smiles.

“This wouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“Of course! Of course, Disciple! Since Disciple has taken down those bastards who tried to harass us two days ago, we haven’t found a single one of them moving around. After that, I don’t think they would come back even with their resentment.”

“Ah. Of course, it should be like that. Do not worry, Huayoung Gate will continue to manage the situation.”

“Oh my! We managed to live all thanks to Disciple.”

“Hehe! It was nothing.”

“This! Have this too! It is just before my…”

“Here, our house serves the best gyoza in town!”

“Huh! Mine first!”

Those who saw Chung Myung rushed to him with something in either hand.

Chung Myung smiled as he took gifts from here and there.

“Oh my. I told you not to keep giving things each time I come… mooncakes… I love mooncakes.”

“Oh my! If our disciple likes them, then we should bring more! I will send a separate box over to the Gate!”

“Hehe. If you are going to do that… please put my name on it. Because others might touch it.”

“…”

The faces of the Mount Hua disciples, who were watching this spectacle from behind, contorted at this.

“… I feel it all the time but… isn’t this like a thug collecting money?”

“Definitely… no, the people are doing this with good intentions, so it isn’t a bad thing.”

“No matter how I look at it, it seems like an evil person is managing this area.”

“He suits the role well.”

“…right.”

The fame of Chung Myung was rising without anyone realizing just how much, and he had beaten down the enemies who came to harm the people.

“Ohh. Disciple, our child turned four this year, by any chance…”

“Eh. Let’s teach them when the bones turn a bit stronger. Right now, it will only make them sick, feed the child well and make them strong and then we will accept them.”

The people around immediately chimed in after Chung Myung had answered,

“Huh! You should inquire about that at Huayoung Gate! How can a disciple like him be asked to know about such trivial matters?! He is the one who will be the greatest swordsman in the world!”

“Then! Then! That would be huge!”

“Yes!”

Mount Hua disciples couldn’t understand this heated reaction.

‘No, why is this guy so popular?’

‘Is it because people don’t know what kind of a moron he normally is? If they climbed up to Mount Hua and experienced that place for one day, they would run away without even a single look back.’

This didn’t sit well with the disciples of Mount Hua, but unfortunate as it may be, Xi’an didn’t know the true attitude of Chung Myung.

Because of this, they were more friendly to Chung Myung.

The reason?

Sure, they must have some reasons too…

“Please do look favorably on us! We will try our best!”

“Disciple! Don’t say that! You should be the one looking out for us.”

“Oh my, how humble you are.”

“…”

Baek Cheon was convinced that 90% of the reason was Chung Myung’s current attitude.

It was like that even now. While receiving food and chatting, Chung Myung’s waist would bend into a bow and come up three to four times in the blink of an eye.

And his waist, which didn’t mind bending like a knee, was a hard thing to normally find in a place like this.

‘Especially difficult when the Southern Edge Sect was here.’

Xi’an was like the home of Southern Edge, so often the disciples from Southern Edge would walk around like they owned the place. But this man was showing humility and humbleness to normal people of Xi’an?

Yet they had once sided with Southern Edge, though?

‘It cannot be.’

Thinking back on Jin Geum-Ryong, it was obvious.

It might be embarrassing, but before Baek Cheon had his head broken by Chung Myung, the fact he was a disciple from a prestigious sect had definitely placed a chip on his shoulder.

He believed that as long as he learned martial arts, he couldn’t be compared with ordinary people, and that attitude had almost ruined him.

So what did ordinary people see when they saw Chung Myung bowing to them?

Unsurprisingly, the praises didn’t stop.

“As expected of a prestigious sect. Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon will one day be the most discussed title, but he has such a humble nature!”

“Right! Isn’t this what it means to be a Taoist? I heard that Mount Hua isn’t simply a sword sect that only depends on its sword. Rather, their disciples respect the Tao. Now I know what this truly means.”

“A true disciple! Seriously! A true Taoist! So different from Southern Edge.”

Everyone.

What you are seeing now with your own eyes is the worst example of a Taoist!

If the great Taoist descends to the ground, I am sure that he will run for this man first and kick him!

So please, turn back to reality…

“Everyone is being fooled…!”

“Be quiet, Sasuk.”

“Shhh.”

“…”

But before he could tell them the truth, Jo Gul and Yu Yiseol noticed him, and Baek Cheon sighed with a frustrated face.

But well… it was true that with the name of Chung Myung, even the name and fame of Mount Hua and Huayoung Gate was increasing with each day…

Now, just seeing people wearing the robes of Huayoun Gate made the residents run to greet them first.

‘Well, he is a good one.’

Baek Cheon had no choice but to admit that Chung Myung was the driving force.

And then…

Whisper.

“Uh?”

He heard a commotion behind the crowd.

‘What is it?’

He narrowed his eyes, as the commotion didn’t seem like one caused by the gathering of people. So, being curious, he looked.

“Ah?”

Eventually, his eyes began to notice a couple of things, the faces of strangers.

‘Was it Yu Hae-sang?’

The one in the forefront seemed to be Yu Hae-sang, a gate leader from one of the Southern Edge sub-sects. And behind him were his disciples, walking with their faces down.

“Huh?!”

“Haha. Look at them, being thick-skinned.”

“When they want to run, they run away at night and now come back with their faces shining in the light? Seriously.”

And, of course, the reaction of the people had changed from the past too.

“There, see that knife with them. I don’t know why they hold a knife when you won’t even pull it out.”

“Pull it out? Why would they pull it out for us?”

“Ah, right! Hehe. They only threatened people with their swords because we were normal people, and we made an agreement with them… but the moment those bandits came, they pulled their tails between their legs and ran! Ptoey!”

The voices of criticism grew louder. And Yu Hae-sang’s face twisted as they walked forward.

Of course, this wasn’t their first time being stared at like this.

But so far, only a few people had turned their heads away and clicked their tongues; it was never such a large group that was lashing out at them.

And now, weren’t they simply swearing at their faces?

“… how can they!”

“C-Control yourself, Leader.”

“Ugh.”

Yu Hae-sang suppressed his anger at the urging of the voice which told him to control himself.

He knew he had made a mistake. But it still wasn’t easy for him to accept all this swearing that was being directed right at them, considering how the people were nothing before this.

“Get out of here! You scammers!”

“Those who cannot do anything for us don’t have to be with us! We will do what you did!”

“I don’t know what kind of thoughts they had coming back here in broad daylight! If it were me, I wouldn’t have even stepped into Xi’an!”

However, the criticism didn’t stop, and he couldn’t hold it in any longer,

“You cheeky bastards…!”

In the end, his face was so red it seemed like it would explode from anger. Yet, he was ashamed of the mistake he had made.

He had come back and set foot in Xi’an only because he had to run away in a hurry last night. His manor was almost like a palace for him; even if his enemies fought and the place was set on fire and destroyed, the value of the place stayed the same… so how could he leave Xi’an?

But he was confident enough to come back and endure the cold shoulders he would be shown. He never imagined that such powerless people would curse him.

“Look at them acting out! Who do you think I am!”

He partially drew the sword around his waist, and the people scolding him flinched and stepped back.

“L-Leader!”

“Leader! You cannot do that.”

In response to his violent outburst, his disciples all tried to stop him.

“Let go of me!”

But he was far from being calmed and spoke with an even louder voice.

“Even though I made a mistake, I didn’t do anything that deserved for me to be cursed like this! All that I did for Xi’an all these years! And you ungrateful things! Come at me! If you are going to treat me like a thief and a scammer, then maybe I should act like one!”

The faces of the merchants all distorted at those threats.

“Don’t you dare forget who I am! I am…”

“Who are you?”

“… what?”

At that time, a bored voice came from the background.

And people quickly moved left and right. It was Chung Myung who walked through the crowd.

“… uh…”

Yu Hae-sang went silent.

He was wondering why so many had gathered, so this was the reason, the people from Mount Hua.

‘Why…’

Why didn’t I think of this?

He was yelling at a crowd of people, which was quite unusual in Xi’an, and he should have realized why there had been such a large crowd. But at this moment, he realized he had made another mistake.

“… ah, who are you?”

“Ah…”

Chung Myung looked at Yu Hae-sang like he was bored and clicked his tongue,

“Mister. No matter how high the tower you build is, once it collapses, that is the end.”

“…”

Yu Hae-sang went silent.

“Of course, for you, it might seem like a single mistake. But people say from that one time, they understood that you abandoned them when people with blades came over. The moment you abandoned them in that situation, you are a scammer.”

“I-I…”

“And.”

Chung Myung smiled as he said,

“I don’t know why you came back, but now this isn’t the Xi’an you used to know. You better leave before something worse happens.”

As soon as those words were finished, the crowd began to cheer from all directions.

“Right!”

“How dare you set foot in Xi’an!!”

“Why come back? To run away even faster this time?”

Yu Hae-sang closed his eyes shut. He had expected this, but the reality was even more severe.

The public sentiment had turned against them, and seeing this with his own eyes made him feel defeat a hundred times worse.

“Ah, and one thing more.”

Chun Myung’s eyes finally fully opened,

“If you ever dare draw your sword or even threaten someone in Xi’an with it, I will cut your hands off.”

“…”

“Here is money… ah no, these are the parents of our precious disciples here, and threatening them is like going against Huayoung Gate.”

Those who paid money to the gate.

Ahm.

“You understand?”

Yu Hae-sang lowered his head at those words.

After his reasoning was gone, only skills remained, and he didn’t have skills that could counter Mount Hua’s Divine Dragon.

He hesitated and finally nodded,

“… I understand.”

The disciples also couldn’t raise their heads and continued to leave their heads bowed.

The crowd parted, and Yu Hae-sang and his disciples passed between them like defeated soldiers.

Looking at their miserable appearance, Baek Cheon shook his head.

‘Public sentiment is quite scary.’

Who would have known that people would change like this in just a couple of days? Well, Chung Myung suddenly approached Baek Cheon and said,

“Sasuk.”

“Uh?”

“Keep an eye on them.”

“… why? Think they will do something?”

“No. If they do something, just go and use that as an excuse to throw them out.”

“…”

Baek Cheon was stunned at this.

Chung Myung you… are seriously too much.

“A little more, and it felt like they will have a seizure… should we have let them be cursed a little more?”

“… Chung Myung?”

“Uh?”

“Live like a human.”

“Ah. You think there is someone more human than me?”

“…”

Baek Cheon shook his head.

Well, with this kid… even if he was wrong, check again because he wasn’t wrong.

The disciples of Mount Hua, who had been inspecting Xi’an until late at night, entered the Gate.

“Now, it seems like Xi’an is sorted.”

“A bit too sorted.”

“Then we should start getting ready to head back.”

“Is there really nothing left in Huayoung?”

“We can hold on for a while, but I have no intention of staying here. From now, it is Huayoung Gate’s business to handle Xi’an.”

Wei Lishan And Wei Soheng would do a good job.

Also, the distance between Mount Hua and here wasn’t far, so if something happened, they could always get here quickly.

“Until Southern Edge opens its gates, there is no problem.”

“Really?”

“Hahah. What problem could come up after all this?”

Chung Myung looked proud.

But, after opening the gates to the sub-sect, even he realized new things. Problems constantly come from the most unexpected places…

“C-Chung Myung! Chung Myunggggg!”

“Oh my, Chung Myung!”

“Eik! Baek Cheon Sasuk! Why now?”

“… uh?”

Mount Hua’s disciples and several Huayoung disciples were running over.

“What! Did those evil bastards come back again?”

“I-It isn’t that…!”

“Then?”

“Ghost!”

“… uh?”

One of the Huayoung Gate’s disciples screamed,

“A Ghost came!”

“…”

What bullshit was this now?

Chung Myung’s face contorted.