Fist Demon of Mount Hua - Chapter 140

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 139. The Wind Ceaselessly Shakes the Branches of Ancient Trees—2
Hua Shan held within it seventy-two peaks, and cradled two great lakes. With three massive waterfalls and sixteen mountain streams, its scale was truly immense.
Among these, the most famous was Feicui Valley. Named for waters the color of jade, the aptly christened valley lived up to its reputation—the emerald waters formed a great pool and stretched on without end.
Dam Ho and his companions had entered a small village at the edge of Feicui Valley. The place barely deserved the name—only some fifty households with perhaps two hundred souls.
Still, the village had a modest inn where travelers could rest without hardship.
Dam Ho and his party decided to take a brief respite at the humble, unnamed inn.
As they arrived at Hua Shan, smiles blossomed on the faces of Hwang Hye Ryeong and Mook Il Gwang.
Hua Shan loomed near, visible in all its grandeur. This place was practically the inner courtyard of the mountain itself.
“Miss!”
The innkeeper approached with a warm smile and greeted Hwang Hye Ryeong.
Though it appeared at first glance to be an ordinary inn, its owner was connected to the Paeking Dojo.
Many such establishments dotted the surroundings of Hua Shan. They served as the eyes and ears of the Paeking Dojo, reporting at the first sign of suspicious arrivals.
The inn where Dam Ho and Hwang Hye Ryeong rested was one such place. Naturally, the innkeeper and Hwang Hye Ryeong were well acquainted.
“It’s been too long, uncle.”
“Ha! I heard you’ve run away again. Are you well?”
“Who’s been spreading such stories?”
“The rumors are flying all around Hua Shan.”
“Tch!”
At the innkeeper’s jest, Hwang Hye Ryeong pouted her lips. Yet her face still bore a smile.
“Is all well at the Paeking Dojo?”
“Ha! Of course. Who would dare lay a hand on the Paeking Dojo? The Master is in good health, so you needn’t worry about a thing.”
“Is that so?”
“I hear the Master worries greatly. You should head up soon.”
“I will, if you make us something delicious for lunch.”
“Ha! How could I refuse such a command? I’ll prepare it at once.”
The innkeeper laughed heartily and made his way to the kitchen.
Hwang Hye Ryeong leaned back in her chair and swung her legs gently. Her whole manner overflowed with ease.
Beyond the open window, the magnificent Hua Shan rose into view. Though clouds shrouded the summit, to Hwang Hye Ryeong’s eye it seemed perfectly clear.
She had lived here nearly twenty years. Every stone, every blade of grass, she remembered with crystalline precision.
“Returning home is a good thing, isn’t it.”
Her voice thrummed with vitality.
Dam Ho listened to her tone while his gaze remained fixed on the landscape outside.
The jade-colored waters reflected fragments of light as they flowed on, unhurried. That emerald hue settled in Dam Ho’s eyes as well.
The Demonic Cult’s emergence into the open had thrust the world toward chaos.
The countless sects that had long sustained the Jianghu were now preparing for war. They gathered resources and recalled disciples from abroad, and throughout the Jianghu a war atmosphere hung heavy.
Because of this, the lives of common people had grown much harder. With martial artists’ nerves stretched taut, one wrong step could mean execution by decree.
Faced with such circumstances, the people grew deeply averse to outsiders, and the streets grew quiet.
Even those who gathered in small groups worried about the Jianghu’s future.
The future they saw was bleak, filled only with darkness.
During his journey here, Dam Ho had witnessed much and heard countless tales.
The Jianghu was turbulent and confused.
Dam Ho regarded it all with a cool gaze. Yet he was not entirely cold.
That night, something shifted within Dam Ho.
He could not pinpoint exactly what had changed, but change there had been.
The transformation puzzled him somewhat. Yet deep in his heart, one conviction took root.
‘No matter how fierce the storm, a steadfast heart is enough. I will not waver before any wind.’
Now Dam Ho believed he possessed the resolve to meet Hyun So Zhenren. Once the matter at Hua Shan was settled, he meant to travel to Hua Shan to seek him out.
He wanted to meet the Zhenren and speak with him.
About how he had lived.
He wanted to ask.
How he should live going forward.
And he wanted to share a cup of wine with Hyun So Zhenren. Now, at last, he felt he might understand why his master drank so.
“Brother!”
Dam Ho’s reverie broke at Bang Jin Bo’s voice.
“What is it?”
“The meal’s ready. Please come and eat.”
“All right.”
Dam Ho nodded.
Bang Jin Bo tilted his head as he watched Dam Ho pick up his chopsticks.
“What?”
“No, it’s nothing. You just seem a bit different, that’s all. Hehe! I think I’m just imagining things.”
Bang Jin Bo scratched his head with a characteristic laugh.
Hwang Hye Ryeong spoke up from beside him.
“When you really look at it, Jin Bo seems to genuinely like your brother.”
“What?”
“You’re so caught up in every little thing he does and says.”
“Is… is that so?”
Bang Jin Bo’s face flushed slightly.
“Like a real younger brother.”
“Really?”
“Absolutely!”
“Hehe!”
“What could be so wonderful about that? Ha!”
In the end, Hwang Hye Ryeong burst into laughter as well.
It was then.
“What brings you such joy?”
A gruff voice suddenly rang out through the inn.
Hwang Hye Ryeong spun around in surprise, and the moment her eyes fell on the man standing before the inn’s threshold, her entire face bloomed with a radiant smile like sunlight breaking through clouds.
“Father!”
“Tsk, tsk! What a troublemaker you are.”
An elderly man in his sixties stood before Hwang Hye Ryeong, his tongue clicking in mock reproval. Despite an age where one might contemplate the twilight of life, his towering frame and his bearing—solid as a cliff face—unmistakably belonged to Hwang Gyeong Moon, the master of Paeking Dojo and the supreme authority standing atop the Nokrim 18 Dojo.
Hwang Gyeong Moon spread his great arms wide, and Hwang Hye Ryeong bounded toward him like a butterfly, settling into his embrace.
“Ha!”
“Father! How did you come to be here?”
“How? That fellow arrived at the foot of the Mountain Estate, and when he didn’t come up for some time, I came down personally to fetch him.”
“Hehe!”
Hwang Gyeong Moon ruffled his daughter’s carefully arranged hair with one massive hand, and though her locks grew tousled, her smile never wavered.
The reunion of father and daughter drew smiles from those who witnessed it. Yet there was one exception—Dam Ho.
His gaze had grown deeper still.
‘You are Hwang Hye Ryeong, not Hwang Hye Ryeong the servant of the household.’
Now he could finally accept that truth completely, and strangely, his heart felt lighter.
Hwang Gyeong Moon’s gaze turned toward Dam Ho.
“And who might this be?”
“Oh! This is my older brother, Dam Ho of the권마 alias.”
“권마?”
For a moment, Hwang Gyeong Moon’s eyes flickered with recognition.
He did not know the name Dam Ho, but the alias권마 was familiar to him—indeed, it would have been strange if it were not.
Dam Ho was that celebrated a figure in the Jianghu.
People regarded him not merely as a master far above those of the Nine Dragons’ generation, but as one of the supreme masters of all Jianghu, transcending simple rankings of age and experience.
Hwang Gyeong Moon raised his fists in salute toward Dam Ho.
“What an honor to receive such a distinguished guest without knowing it. I am Hwang Gyeong Moon of Nokrim.”
“Dam Ho.”
Dam Ho returned the salute in kind.
“Ha! Delighted to make your acquaintance. It is an honor to meet Dam, the great hero whose name resounds throughout the Jianghu. And to think you’ve brought my beloved daughter home safely—I scarcely know how to repay such kindness.”
Hwang Gyeong Moon laughed heartily, yet his eyes gleamed with a sharp light.
‘So this is the famed권마—the name does him justice.’
One who stands atop a towering mountain peak can easily perceive other peaks around it.
What some call the Realm of Ascending the Peak and Reaching the Zenith.
The Martial King, Hwang Gyeong Moon, had ascended to that height—standing at the summit of a great mountain, surveying the landscape below.
In his eyes, Dam Ho appeared as another mountain peak, one formed of solid stone and granite.
The mere fact of standing atop such a summit was enough for Dam Ho to command respect.
“I do hope my daughter has not caused you any trouble.”
“Father…”
Hwang Hye Ryeong shot him a reproachful look.
Even that expression appeared endearing to Hwang Gyeong Moon, who broke into a broad, unguarded laugh—the very picture of a doting father.
“Come now, let’s not stand about here. Let us ascend to the Mountain Estate. I have some fine wine laid down last year—it should be quite palatable.”
Hwang Gyeong Moon seized Dam Ho’s arm and pulled him along.
His manner was so unassuming that one could hardly believe him to be the absolute sovereign of Nokrim. But Dam Ho understood his bearing.
It spoke of absolute confidence in his own martial power, the kind of ease that only true strength could afford.
As they stepped outside, dozens of Nokrim’s martial artists stood waiting. They were the fighters tasked with protecting Hwang Gyeong Moon.
“Miss!”
They lit up at the sight of Hwang Hye Ryeong, and she greeted them with a warm smile in return.
“Master Song, Master Yun—you’ve come too.”
“Ha! We couldn’t wait to see you, so we came at once.”
The Nokrim martial artists chattered and laughed around her. Though their voices were loud enough to fill the air, Hwang Hye Ryeong answered each one without losing her smile.
It wasn’t a forced grin, but something genuine that shone through naturally. You could see how deeply loved she was by everyone at the Mountain Estate.
Hwang Gyeong Moon furrowed his brow at them and bellowed.
“You should be minding the Estate! What’s the meaning of rushing out like there’s some grand spectacle?”
“Come now, don’t be like that. The young miss has arrived—of course we had to come out.”
“That’s right, Estate Master. She is our daughter as well. You mustn’t monopolize her all to yourself.”
The Nokrim martial artists showered Hwang Gyeong Moon with good-natured jeers.
It was a scene no ordinary sect could have imagined. But they were free spirits of Nokrim.
They spoke openly even with the Great Estate Master, their leader, and joked without restraint. The sight of it suited them perfectly.
Hwang Gyeong Moon clicked his tongue.
“Tsk! You rotten dogs!”
Yet his expression showed no displeasure at all.
“Come now, let’s head up. We have an honored guest, so we’ll slaughter pigs and cattle.”
“Truly?”
“Have you been fooled your whole lives? You rotten dogs!”
“Hurrah!”
An enormous roar erupted at Hwang Gyeong Moon’s cry.
“A feast, a feast!”
“After so long, we’ll gorge on meat. What a windfall! And here I thought our stingy Estate Master would never throw one.”
The courtyard soon filled with boisterous chatter and laughter.
A slight smile played at the corner of Hwang Gyeong Moon’s mouth as he watched them.
He’d already been thinking he needed to throw a grand feast to lift spirits and boost morale. His daughter’s return had given him the perfect excuse.
‘A good meal puts strength in a man’s limbs.’
Hwang Gyeong Moon turned his steps toward the summit of Hua Shan.
Then a boy’s excited voice rang in his ears. Turning, he saw the plump youth beside his daughter, fists clenched tight, muttering to himself.
“Meat, meat!”
Bang Jin Bo’s eyes were already glistening with tears.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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