The sky was remarkably blue.
Mount Hua was always close yet unfamiliar, and more challenging than any other mountain. Jong Ligok took a deep breath as he gazed up at the clear sky from atop Mount Hua.
Had he ever imagined a day like this, where he would stand alone on Mount Hua, gazing at the distant sky?
His gaze naturally drifted to the far west. The vast expanse of the world's end extended in the familiar form of the mountainside he knew.
"Strange."
He had never gone a single day without glimpsing the Southern Edge. Yet, looking at the Southern Edge from afar felt oddly unfamiliar. And he realized anew.
Being someone who lived on that mountain didn't necessarily mean he knew it the best. Sometimes, those who observed from a slight distance could see more.
Then, a presence was sensed nearby.
"Hmm."
Jong Ligok's gaze turned in that direction just as something flew into his chest.
Thunk.
Reflexively catching it, he found it to be a sturdy and white bottle. Without needing to open it, he could guess the nature of the liquid inside.
"Alcohol?"
"Do you happen to dislike it?"
Jong Ligok shook his head. It wasn't particularly his preference, but neither had he strictly abstained from it. However...
"During broad daylight?"
"Are you the type to nitpick about such things?"
Chung Myung replied with a chuckle to Jong Ligok's question. Hearing that, Jong Ligok couldn't help but smile too. Indeed, he had come far from trying to maintain appearances.
"Well then, I'll gratefully accept."
Jong Ligok uncorked the bottle and took a sip. It was just ordinary alcohol, but today, its scent felt different.
Perhaps because there might be more than just alcohol in this bottle.
"Good liquor."
"It's cheap wine."
"Good liquor."
Chung Myung nodded vigorously, then took out a bottle he had brought separately and drank heartily.
"Ah."
Taking a sip, Chung Myung glanced at Jong Ligok. Ironically, Jong Ligok's attire, the white Southern Edge robe, seemed to complement the scenery of Mount Hua perfectly. It was an absurd degree of irony.
After all... who could be said to be more fitting or less fitting for a mountain? The mountain simply existed there.
"I didn't expect you to be so at a loss."
"I misjudged. I'm a very cautious person."
"I didn't think you had such a bad personality."
"I've heard that kind of talk often. Maybe not from your perspective, though."
"...Still, it's hard to get a word in edgewise with you."
"My ears are always open. That's the duty of a sect leader."
Watching Chung Myung effortlessly deflecting every jab, Jong Ligok felt a moment of dejection. But then, he asked again without a hint of hesitation.
"Why did you do that?"
"What do you mean?"
"...You could have just let it go."
Instead of answering directly, Jong Ligok sent a meaningful glance. Whether it was due to feeling pressured by that gaze, Chung Myung added a comment that wasn't asked for.
"No, well... it's not that I feel sorry for the Southern Edge or anything like that. It was something that had to be done, of course. It was something that naturally had to be done, but... well..."
"Did you not urge him?"
"That's right. That's correct. But... "
Chung Myung scratched his nose with a self-deprecating grin.
"The timing wasn't right, was it? Now we're in a position where we have to fight together."
"...Timing, huh."
Jong Ligok muttered absentmindedly, gazing into the distant sky before taking another sip of his drink.
"You're right about that. But..."
Before long, a small smile graced Chung Myung's lips as he looked at Jong Ligok.
"No matter how you think about it, there never seems to be a 'right' time."
"...Do you know?"
"What?"
The corners of Jong Ligok's mouth softened a bit.
"There's always a reason why it's not the right time."
"..."
"Right."
As if affirming his own words, Jong Ligok nodded. Yes, this statement wasn't meant for Chung Myung but for himself.
"There's always something. Always."
At his small laugh, Chung Myung's expression twisted strangely.
"Sigh."
A deep sigh escaped him. Jong Ligok was right. Once you let opportunities slip away with various excuses, everything would just fade away.
"But that didn't necessarily result in something bad for the sect leader, did it? I mean, just last night, wasn't he the one insisting that everything had to be cleared out?"
"Is that the same person who silenced everything you had to say?"
"You... have a talent for leaving people speechless."
Chung Myung clicked his tongue. Jong Ligok held back a smile.
The more you looked, the stranger he seemed.
So cold and serious, difficult to understand and full of immense anger one moment, yet once Jong Ligok made up his mind, he tried to consider Chung Myung's perspective.
To put it nicely, he was a complicated person; to put it bluntly, he was quite unpredictable.
Yet, currently, Jong Ligok didn't particularly feel resentful towards Chung Myung. Maybe because he could sense the resentment lurking behind his seemingly frivolous actions.
"So... are you really okay with this?"
"If I'm not okay, what's the alternative? The deed is already done."
"...You really have no solutions."
Chung Myung chuckled incredulously. Could anyone have imagined Jong Ligok being like this?
Southern Edge had lost a lot in this incident.
Not many dared to speak ill of Southern Edge at that moment, but once a stigma was engraved, it wouldn't easily fade away.
While they might have been able to gloss over it when Southern Edge was flourishing, once they lost power, it could become an indelible punishment.
No, maybe even amidst the fight for their lives, they might have to endure chilling glares. They might build great achievements only to be buried under the sins of the past.
Jong Ligok wasn't unaware of this. He knew that Chung Myung wanted to bury the matter for now, fearing what might happen next.
Jong Ligok smiled as he spoke.
"And you're wrong. Now is actually a very good time."
"Really?"
"Without Shaolin, this is an opportunity. With the illusion of the Nine Sects gone, there might not be a better time to avoid expulsion from the Nine Sects."
"...Is this supposed to be funny?"
"Is there any reason not to laugh?"
"...I'll go crazy, seriously."
He wasn't just saying that. Indeed, Jong Ligok didn't exude the same stiffness and tension as before. Instead, an unknown detachment and ease filled the air.
Though it might mean he was now burdened with more responsibilities, Jong Ligok's shoulders seemed much lighter.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm human too, I had my doubts."
"Doubts?"
"When you were trying to stop me."
Jong Ligok's gaze softened.
"For a moment, I thought this might be enough. I showed my courage, and you acknowledged it. So maybe we could just leave it at that, I thought."
"...But why did you insist then?"
Jong Ligok smirked. The reason...
"Burden is not carried on the shoulders, but in the heart."
Chung Myung silently stared at Jong Ligok. It was difficult for him to grasp the enlightenment sought by Mount Hua's Taoists.
But sometimes, even those who have devoted their lives to cultivation can utter words they never thought they would.
Chung Mun had said so. Everything in the world has its Dao, and we are merely followers of it.
Jong Ligok chuckled softly again.
"You seem to misunderstand."
"But even so, I spit on a smiling face."
"But I won't wield a knife."
"...I'll really go crazy."
Chung Myung scratched his head vigorously. Even if a person changes overnight, there's still a degree to it. This was too much...
"Ugh, I don't know. I'm not your nanny!"
Chung Myung abruptly got up and turned on his heel.
"Leaving?"
"Yes, I'm leaving. There's a mountain of work to do. Sect leader, don't waste any more time here and come down quickly to work."
"Indeed."
"...Ugh. I can't get used to this, really."
Chung Myung shouted as if bugs were crawling all over him, then strode down the mountain. As Chung Myung's figure disappeared, the smile slowly vanished from Jong Ligok's face.
"That person..."
His voice carried a truly heavy sense of resignation.
He knew. From now on, he would have to bear even more burdens. But Jong Ligok had no intention of avoiding the burden he had taken on. Because by doing so, he would not pass on the burden he carried to future generations.
It would be difficult. But if he could overcome this difficulty, his disciples could stand tall in the world without any hesitation. They would be able to face others directly, unlike him.
In his eyes, he could see Chung Myung, who had jumped down the mountain far below.
Jong Ligok's smile was slightly different from before.
"Why so many people follow that person, I wonder."
Chung Myung had forced him to become nourishment for Southern Edge. Instead of shedding blood due to mutual resentment, he had pushed him to bear all of it.
That was the duty of the one who stood above.
But when Jong Ligok tried to fulfill that promise, he found himself being protected instead. As if he were trying to become the nourishment for him.
A small laughter escaped from Jong Ligok's lips. Perhaps it should have felt insulting. Treating him as a naive youngster who still needed protection as the Southern Edge sect leader under heaven.
However, Jong Ligok didn't feel that way at all.
In the endless expanse of the blue sky, a single cloud drifted by.
The conversation he had shared with Hyeon Jong came vividly back to him.
"...Lift your head, sect leader."
When Jong Ligok lifted his head, Hyeon Jong was gently nodding.
"Although you are the ceremonial sect leader of Mount Hua, you are no longer the sect leader of Mount Hua. So it's difficult to see you as representing Mount Hua. However... if someone has to respond to what the sect leader said, regardless of position, it seems most appropriate for me, who has the closest connection to the sect leader, to do so."
He reached out and took Jong Ligok's hand.
"Please, let the atonement be made not just to Mount Hua but to the world. If we uphold the righteousness now that we failed to uphold back then, no one will blame Southern Edge."
"Ceremonial sect leader."
"Can you do that?"
Jong Ligok slowly opened his eyes.
He still... seemed frustratingly simple and naive.
If he were in Hyeon Jong's position, he would have seized this opportunity to literally dismantle Southern Edge. Even if Hyeon Jong demanded everything Southern Edge had, Southern Edge would have had no grounds to refuse.
But all Hyeon Jong did was make a simple plea.
The slopes of Southern Edge were visible under the endless expanse of the blue sky. The familiar yet unfamiliar ridgeline kept blurring.
"...Not bad."
Yes, not bad at all. The Southern Edge viewed from here. The sky spread above it. And... even this mountain he was stepping on.
Perhaps this world, where future generations must live with someone else, isn't as bad as he once thought.
It seemed clearer and a bit... gentler than the world he saw yesterday.