Chapter 1649
Find It Quickly, Quickly (3)
Baek Cheon, who had been staring blankly at Chung Myung's rampage, suddenly snapped back to his senses.
"We have to stop this! Now!"
"…Uh…"
"What are you doing, you idiots! Hurry up and—"
"Sasuk."
"…Huh?"
"It's already too late."
"…What?"
Baek Cheon looked again.
"Oh."
Too late. That phrase couldn't have been more accurate.
What unfolded before him wasn't just the worst outcome he had imagined—it went far beyond it.
Crack!
Chung Myung's foot slammed mercilessly into the face of a Moyong swordsman.
"Kuaaaack!"
With a shriek like a slaughtered pig, the man was sent flying straight into the crowd. The onlookers froze, unable to process what they were seeing.
Chung Myung's gaze immediately shifted.
"And you—useless beggar!"
"G-General! I didn't say anything—!"
"If a beggar can't even read the flow, he deserves to get smashed, you little shit!"
Wham!
Chung Myung ripped the staff from the beggar's waist and brought it down in a single brutal arc. The staff cracked against the crown of the man's head.
The beggar collapsed without a scream, convulsing on the ground.
"What? The Alliance rules?"
Chung Myung scanned the surroundings, eyes hunting.
"I haven't seen a single bastard ask to see the Alliance statutes since I arrived. You keep yapping about rules—do you even know what they are?"
Silence.
"Fine. One person. Just one."
He spread his arms.
"If anyone here actually knows what's written in the Alliance rules, step forward. I'll stop."
No one moved.
Of course not.
Cheonumaeng didn't even have properly codified rules. The people who should've written them never did. How could anyone claim to know something that barely existed?
"…No one?"
Chung Myung's eyes flared again.
"Ah. Then I get it now."
Bang!
Another body was sent airborne.
"Hi—hic!"
"Come back here! Where do you think you're running!"
"G-General! If you keep this up—!"
"If I do what? What exactly are you going to do about it?"
Chung Myung tore through the training ground like a rabid beast.
Namgung Dowi broke out in a cold sweat.
"…Shouldn't we really stop this?"
"At this point?"
"Well… still—"
Jo Geol stroked his chin, oddly calm.
"This was common back in the day."
"…True."
"It's been rare lately."
"That's right."
Jo Geol and Yoon Jong spoke as if they were reminiscing. Namgung Dowi stared at them, stunned, before turning to Baek Cheon.
"Vice Sect Leader, we have to stop him—"
"Hm."
Baek Cheon nodded slowly.
"I've been thinking."
"Yes?"
"Stopping something before it starts is best… but since it already started, maybe it's better to let it finish properly."
"…What?"
"There must be intent behind this. He's not a child."
"That's insanity—!"
"Aaagh!"
Another man was launched screaming through the air.
"So refreshing. I feel cleansed."
Namgung Dowi went pale.
These Hwasan people are insane…
"This is the General of the Alliance beating Alliance members," Namgung Dowi protested.
"That should never happen."
"Well," Yoon Jong replied mildly, "someone waving Alliance rules like a sword probably shouldn't lecture about that."
"I-I'm in a different position—"
"Is it wrong for a third-generation disciple to crack a second-generation's skull?"
"…What about Hwasan beating Namgung members?"
"At least it was only Namgung. There was a time Monk Hye Yeon got mocked with drawings on his head. By comparison, Chung Myung's being gentle."
Namgung Dowi blinked.
…That's true.
He had forgotten, briefly, exactly what kind of person Chung Myung was.
"Still… I think he's going too far—"
"Really? It'd be stranger if he didn't."
"…Well."
Reluctantly, Namgung Dowi nodded.
But not everyone accepted this calmly.
Zhuge Yeon staggered up, clutching his ribs.
"What is the meaning of this!"
Chung Myung glanced at him while punching someone else.
"Hm?"
"The General of Cheonumaeng using violence! Is this acceptable?"
"Yeah."
"…What?"
"It is."
Zhuge Yeon froze.
"Who decides that?"
"I do."
"…What?"
Chung Myung shrugged.
"I decide. Got a problem?"
Before Zhuge Yeon could respond, Chung Myung flung the man he'd been beating straight at him.
Thud.
"You should've caught him. No principles."
"Y-You threw him!"
"I'm the General. I decide. Or do you want to?"
Zhuge Yeon looked around.
No one backed him.
Arguments meant nothing. Authority meant nothing. Strength meant nothing.
Facing someone who embodied all three—
"…So the General can do whatever he wants?"
"That's what I'm doing."
Chung Myung approached.
Zhuge Yeon stepped back instinctively.
"Cheonumaeng is a coalition of Just Sects! A superior can't beat subordinates on a whim!"
Chung Myung snorted.
"Idiot. I'm not a street thug. That's not why I'm hitting you."
"T-Then why—"
"Disobedience."
"…What?"
"Disobedience to a wartime command."
Zhuge Yeon's eyes darted to Hye Yeon.
"We only questioned an unreasonable order!"
"That is disobedience."
Chung Myung vanished.
In the next breath, his hand was around Zhuge Yeon's throat.
"Ugh—!"
"You seem confused."
Chung Myung's eyes were ice-cold.
"Do you know what wartime means?"
"…!"
"In war, minor dissent kills armies. That's why wartime law exists."
His killing intent bored straight through Zhuge Yeon.
"You hate being ordered by someone younger? Think you're smarter? Then prove it."
Bam!
Zhuge Yeon crashed to the ground.
"Cough—!"
Chung Myung looked around.
"You're all the same."
Silence.
"You thought ganging up would make it easy to crush one young leader."
No one denied it.
"Wake up."
Chung Myung's voice dropped.
"Division leaders exist to cut heads when needed. Not to listen to whining."
His gaze swept the vice-leaders. They flinched.
"Indulgence ends here."
"From now on, defying a division leader or vice-leader—no matter the reason—means punishment."
"The sect no longer exists. Which means—"
His voice growled.
"No one will shield you anymore."
"If anyone wants to test whether this is a threat or reality—step forward."
Silence crushed the ground.
Then—
Clomp.
A path opened.
Tang Gunak, the Poison King, stepped forward.
He surveyed the scene, eyes cold.
"I want an explanation."
His voice sliced through the air.
"Everything.
Leave nothing out."
Several people closed their eyes.
They already knew—
This had only just begun.