Return of Mount Hua Sect

The more you win, the less you increase. (1)

It is often said that the eyes are the windows of the mind.

This is because the eyes are the best way to reveal what a person has in mind.

Therefore, whenever possible, Heo San-ja looked into his eyes whenever possible.

However, I didn't have the courage to look into the eyes of the person sitting in front of me right now.

tock.

The opponent's finger was lightly tapping the table.

tock tock.

The sound that had been constantly resonating began to accelerate little by little. Then, the heartbeat of Heo San-ja accelerated as well.

"okay."

“… … .”

“It means you lost.”

At last, the voice he heard pierced the heart of Heo San-ja as sharp as a dagger. He swallowed his breath as if he had been really stabbed with a knife. The cold voice continued.

“Housan.”

"Yes… … . Jang-min.”

Heo San-ja, who took a short breath and raised his head, stopped breathing again without realizing it.

Huh Do-jin.

It was because there was an expression on the face of the shaman's long storyteller and executioner, Heo Do-jin-in, that he had never seen before.

Although it had been several decades since he entered a shaman and lived with him, San-ja Heo never remembered seeing a cold expression on Heo Do-jin's face.

With a face that seemed to have fallen even if there was frost on his face, Heo Dojin-in spoke again slowly.

“I mean, I lost.”

“… … .”

Sharp eyes pierced the Heo San-ja. Sanja Heo lowered his eyes again and bowed his head.

“I’m sorry, Jang Mun-in. I'm ugly... … .”

“This is not something to apologize for, Heo-san.”

“… … .”

A cold voice echoed through the room quietly.

“Tell me.”

“… … .”

“Why did you lose?”

Heo Sanja swallowed dry saliva.

Even so, all the way back, I thought and thought about how to report the situation to Jang Moon-in. But in the end there was only one thing he could say.

“The volcano… … .”

He could barely spit out the words he didn't want to utter after chewing it over and over again.

“… … The volcano was much stronger than I thought.”

Heo Do-jin did not show any particular reaction. He just looked at Heo Sanja silently as if the answer wasn't enough.

“The skills of the late exponents of Huashan, called the Five Gum, have already surpassed those of the ordinary students of the Bon school. Although the other second and third great disciples do not reach that level... … If it was a match between two great disciples of the same generation, it would be impossible to guarantee the victory of the main faction. and… … .”

"and?"

“The skill of the Volcano Divine Dragon is… … It has made even that pentagon colorless.”

“Did you mean that the air was defeated by skill?”

"Yes."

Sanja Heo bows his head as if he is sorry.

“Even if we compete again, the probability that the air will win will not be high. Even when the match was over, the breath of Cheong Myung was not disturbed at all.”

“… … .”

Heo Do-jin's eyes closed slowly.

Heo San-ja tried to suppress his breathing so as not to disturb his contemplation.

Heo-do Jin-in, who had closed his eyes for a long time and was lost in thoughts, opened his eyes again. The sharpness of a blade that had been seen in his eyes a while ago was gone. But it felt like something much heavier than that.

“Are they just stronger?”

“… … That's right."

Heo Sanji nodded his head slowly. No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn't think of anything else to say other than this.

Reason?

If I were to ask for reasons alone, he could name ten more. If you make up excuses, there will be ten more. But he knew well that that was neither a real reason nor an excuse.

He may appear a little more responsible if he blames himself for just confessing that it was his mistake. However, this was an answer that would push the shaman's position even further, and it was not what Heo Do-jin-in wanted.

So he has to be honest about it.

“Housan.”

“Yeah, long-timer.”

“Think about it.”

Heo Dojinin said in a low voice as if muttering.

“Are we not ready enough?”

“It’s not so, old man.”

To be honest, the preparation was rather overdone.

The people they had to deal with were the second and third great disciples of Hwasan. I brought a great disciple of a shaman and an elder there, so it was too much for me to be thoroughly prepared.

Hearing that he even put his face down, he could not make any excuses.

“If so, was the timing bad?”

“Not that either.”

“Then that means there were no problems with preparation and timing. Then all that's left is luck... … .”

Heo Do-jin-in's gaze gently pressed Heo San-ja down.

“Did you have luck with the volcano?”

“… … Not that either.”

Heo Do-jin looked at Heo San-ja without saying a word. Heo Sanja, unable to overcome the pressure of those eyes, slightly bit his lip and opened his mouth.

“If we fight with the same power, we will fight ten times and lose five times. It may result in victory, but 'real victory' will be difficult.”

"then… … .”

Heo Dojin-in said softly.

“It was me who was wrong.”

“… … Jang-min.”

“It was natural to lose because we sent a general that could not be defeated by sending a general to the battlefield.”

Seeing Do Jin-in Heo's self-helpful smile, this time San-ja Heo tightly closed her eyes.

If preparation, timing, and even luck are correct, there is only one result. Not knowing the enemy properly and underestimating it.

okay. That's it.

one… … .

“Housan.”

“… … Yes."

Heo Dojin-in said with a blank face.

“Do you think this makes sense?”

Heo San-ja couldn't answer. In fact, no one other than him would have been able to answer this question right away.

“As you said, Hwasan has raised their second disciple to be comparable to our great disciple in a short period of time.”

“… … Jang-min.”

“It means that what no shaman’s forerunners have been able to do, and even what no volcanic forerunners have been able to do, the sect that went to the brink of destruction is doing it.”

Heo Dojin-in's voice lowered and lowered.

“It’s not common sense.”

tock. tock. tock.

His fingers started tapping again.

Unlike before, the sound was somewhat unstable. Heo San-ja, who was able to guess the inner feelings of Heo Do-jin from the sound, exhaled a long breath through his nose.

"volcano… … . volcano."

A very faint grinding sound was heard. Even in the midst of this, the sound of knocking on the tea table did not diminish. My breathing was quick and my heart was pounding.

Quad Duck!

Suddenly, a finger that had been wiggling the whole time digs into the datak. The thick wood was pierced at once, and the datak was split in half, and then fell horribly.

“Come on, Jangmunin.”

The teapot on the tea table rolled on the floor and the tea dripped. However, in this situation, it was difficult to even come forward to get rid of it, so Sanja Heo had no choice but to watch the sheep.

Waves of emotion began to hit Dojin Heo's face.

Heo San-ja shrugged his shoulders involuntarily at the pressure that made him unable to breathe.

“It’s disgraceful.”

However, the voice of Heo Dojin-in, which flowed out in comparison, was loosely released.

“Not only did the first disciple go, but he took the elder as well, but he was not able to handle the second and third disciple. Even the elder was defeated by the third disciple. It’s hard to see how much fun the luxuries of Kang-ho will be when they hit the cubicle.”

Heo Sanja clenched his teeth and bowed his head.

Even though it wasn't his fault, he couldn't help but lift his head. He could not have known how much the honor of the shaman had fallen to the ground because of this.

“The word will spread all over the world that there are few days left before the volcano will overtake the shaman and be called the first gate in the world and the first sword in the world.”

“I have nothing to tell you, Jang Mun-in.”

“Do you know what makes me so painful?”

“… … I do not know."

Heo Do Jin-in turned his head and looked towards his window.

The sky outside the window was clear without a single cloud, but now he couldn't see such a sight.

“I thought that maybe it wasn’t just words.”

“Come on, Jangmunin.”

“This is beyond common sense.”

The waves of emotions were all over the place, and Do-Jin Heo's face regained his coolness.

He would be outraged if this had happened by mistake. If it happened because of Sanja Heo's fault, he would have punished him accordingly.

But it wasn't anyone's fault.

Regardless of right or wrong, Heo Do and Heo San did their best for the shaman. Nevertheless, the volcano lightly trampled on it.

“Even when everyone around me said it was excessive, I always kept the volcano in check. There are probably not many people in the world who are as wary of volcanoes as I am.”

“… … .”

“Even like that, I didn’t know the volcano properly.”

“Jang Moon-in… … . This is not the writer’s fault.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

calm voice.

“To deal with the enemy properly, you must first acknowledge the enemy. have to admit The potential of the volcano exceeded both my predictions and common sense. I thought the dagger they aimed at was still far away, but it was already decapitated and bleeding.”

Sanja Heo heard his soft words and his body trembled. Somehow, a creepy feeling seemed to grab hold of the back of his neck.

“I guess I saw the volcano too easily.”

Heo Dojin-in, who closed his eyes for a moment and controlled his mind, slowly opened his mouth.

“The shock the disciples received will not be small, so first, focus on the crackdown.”

"Yes."

Heo Do Jin-in shook his head as he was about to say, 'Sometimes defeat is a good medicine.' The loss was too great to be comforted.

“… … the void.”

"Yes?"

“Did the void regain his consciousness?”

“… … Yes. Just before arrival... … .”

“What did you say?”

Heo Sanja asked this once firmly and answered.

“I was locked up in my place, saying nothing but unknown things that were wrong from the start.”

“… … .”

Heo Dojin-in looked up at the ceiling without saying a word. Then he nodded his head with a slightly calmer face as if he had cleared his mind.

"okay. You go and rest.”

“… … Please punish me, old man.”

“To you?”

Heo Dojin-in smiled brightly.

“Housan.”

“Yeah, long-timer.”

“If you should be punished, how much more do I have to be punished?”

“… … .”

“Stop going out.”

“… … Yes."

“I will give you a separate opinion on how to deal with this matter. Pay attention so that the wounded disciples can safely return to their daily lives.”

“I will keep that in mind. then."

Heo Sanja cautiously got up and went outside.

The remaining Dojin-in Heo looked at the room, which was messed up with pouring tea and broken tea tables.

This miserable situation was like in his heart, and it was like the situation that a shaman is in now.

He slowly got up from his seat and stepped forward and opened the door.

"her… … .”

A peaceful and old-fashioned scene greeted him as usual.

But Heo Do-jin knows. It means that the sweat and hard work of our ancestors is clearly buried in this scene.

How much effort did the shaman put forth to attain the false status of being the first in the world?

However, now that he has reached his generation, his status is about to be shaken.

'Is it fundamentally wrong?'

what.

What the hell was wrong?

"volcano… … .”

Heo Dojin-in's face, who spoke of a name he could not understand at all, was young with deep anguish.

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