Chapter 1725. You Can't Help But Lose. (5)
A gust of wind brushed against his clothes. Chung Myung, with his eyes closed, felt the wind travel across his body.
It’s cold.
Although not as cold as Mount Hua, the wind in the Wudang Mountains was not very kind either. Perhaps this chill was the mountain’s warning to those who lived in a place where humans should not be.
If you long for what you shouldn't, in the end, you will lose what you can't afford to lose...
Sensing a slight distortion in the flow of air, Chung Myung slowly opened his eyes. In front of him, familiar, was Yoo Iseol looking at him.
"Thinking?"
"How obvious."
At her brief words, Chung Myung glanced sideways. The blue rooftops and the blue sky filled his view.
On the roof of the building. It’s true that at some point, Chung Myung had stopped climbing up here.
Why?
Although he didn’t need to think much to know the reason, Chung Myung didn’t want to admit it. If he did, he would have to accept why he was here now.
Instead, he asked quietly.
"What’s up?"
Yoo Iseol looked at the landscape of Wudang visible below the eaves without answering. Even though the silence prolonged, Chung Myung didn’t rush her.
Finally, she spoke.
"I had a lot to say."
"......"
"But..."
She glanced at Chung Myung, who was lying on the roof.
"I think I can't."
Chung Myung's eyebrows briefly twitched. As if something bothered him.
"Then why did you come...?"
"Is there really no solution?"
Yoo Iseol interrupted Chung Myung.
Chung Myung closed his mouth. Something seemed to block his throat.
"Baek Cheon Sahyung."
"......"
"Can’t you do anything either?"
For a moment, their gazes met in the air. But it was Chung Myung who looked away first.
"I... can’t do everything."
Yoo Iseol’s long hair fluttered in the wind. Unlike her unchanged face, her fingers couldn’t hide her emotions.
As Yoo Iseol silently observed Chung Myung’s back looking at the distant sky, she spoke.
"You're not yourself."
"......"
"You’re right. But..."
A dark shadow appeared in Yoo Iseol's eyes.
"The old you would have said if there is no solution, create one."
"......"
"And we would have believed in that, though with doubts."
The sound of fabric moving as Yoo Iseol turned reached Chung Myung’s ears. It sounded rough.
"I’ll look for a solution. Because I haven’t grown up like you yet."
Soon, Yoo Iseol disappeared.
The feeling of emptiness that followed felt not only hollow but bitter. Chung Myung let out a brief sigh.
"Sahyung..."
In the sky, Chung Mun's face appeared. He was looking at him with a small, sympathetic smile.
"It's really difficult..."
-------------------
The wind was blowing at the mountain peak.
Baek Cheon's sleeves fluttered violently due to how thin his arms had become.
"It's cold."
Baek Cheon smiled wryly.
His body had weakened so much that he couldn’t even withstand this. The wind, which once seemed refreshing, now felt colder and sharper than the wind from the North Sea.
Despite everything, Baek Cheon felt at ease in this place.
He preferred this cold and challenging place, far from the eyes of others, rather than the warm places where others’ gazes reached him.
Suddenly, he thought of Chung Myung.
Perhaps that’s why Chung Myung used to climb to the rooftop whenever he had the chance. To avoid the eyes of others. So as not to worry about his confused thoughts being discovered.
"He too..."
Would Chung Myung have felt like Baek Cheon in those moments?
Baek Cheon let out a hollow laugh.
No, they couldn’t be the same. Regardless of the problems Chung Myung had back then, at least he had a future. He wasn’t trapped in a hopeless abyss like Baek Cheon now.
Below him, the mountainside stretched out. Burned black, it looked horrendous.
Of course, it wouldn’t stay like that forever. Although it looked like this now, over time, plants would grow back, and trees would rise again. The mountain would eventually regain its original form.
But Baek Cheon couldn’t do that. He was like the collapsed cliff seen in the distance. Once broken, there was no way to restore it. He was shattered rock.
But...
"Is it really like that?"
Though he tried not to think about it, the words from yesterday’s conversation surfaced in his mind.
-------------------
"What are you saying?"
When Baek Cheon asked, Jin Geumryong looked at him steadily. His eyes were clear and determined.
"Are you saying there’s a way?"
"Yes."
Baek Cheon murmured, dazed, as if he had been struck hard.
"Are you saying there’s a way to heal my body?"
Jin Geumryong nodded seriously.
"That’s right."
Baek Cheon’s face twisted with pain.
"Don’t talk nonsense. Both the Mount Hua Sect and the Tang Family said it was impossible. How can the Southern Edge Sect... If you want to mock me...!"
"Regain your sanity."
Before Baek Cheon could finish speaking, Jin Geumryong interrupted him coldly.
"Since when were the Mount Hua Sect or the Tang Family so great?"
"......"
"Do you really think that just because they can't, we can't either? You know well that the Southern Edge Sect is much bigger and more powerful than them."
He couldn’t deny it. Baek Cheon’s eyes trembled violently.
"If you need confirmation, I'll tell you again. Even if they can't, the Southern Edge Sect can. If we use all our resources, we can fix your body."
Baek Cheon's dry, cracked lips bled. A burning desire consumed him. That desire was so intense that even the pain that seemed to tear his body apart and the humiliation of facing Jin Geumryong in such a miserable state seemed to disappear.
"Can you really... fix me...?"
Jin Geumryong sighed briefly.
"It might not be completely possible."
"......"
"You might not return to your perfect state immediately. I'm not a doctor, so I can't guarantee it. But... from what I know, it’s possible you could practice martial arts again."
Jin Geumryong looked at Baek Cheon's emaciated arms. Those arms, unable to even hold a brush, looked pathetic.
Baek Cheon’s finger twitched, as if the mere gaze was too much to bear.
"You could hold a sword again... and practice martial arts again."
"......"
"If you abandon your position as a disciple of the Mount Hua Sect and join the Southern Edge Sect."
Jin Geumryong's voice was cold, but even Baek Cheon could feel the sincerity in those words disguised as coldness.
"This doesn’t mean you abandon the Mount Hua Sect. You're just returning to the place you truly belong. You are..."
"Stop it."
"What?"
At that moment, Baek Cheon bit his lower lip hard.
"If you’ve said all your nonsense, leave."
"......"
"I am the Deputy Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect. Even in this state, that won’t change."
Jin Geumryong’s face, which had remained calm, finally twisted into an expression of pain.
"Jin Do...!"
Just when he was about to shout, he restrained himself. His face, flushed with anger, returned to its usual paleness.
Instead of shouting, he sighed deeply and approached Baek Cheon, gently placing his hand on Baek Cheon’s shoulder.
"Leave me alone. What are you...?"
"Stay still. You can't even resist!"
Jin Geumryong lifted Baek Cheon and helped him sit against the bed, then stood up without another word.
Looking at Baek Cheon, who was breathing heavily, Jin Geumryong spoke coldly.
"I admit I was reckless."
"......"
"But all my words are sincere. If you decide to do it, the Sect Leader will also welcome you."
"I...!"
"Shut up and listen more!"
Jin Geumryong growled through clenched teeth.
"I’m not belittling your loyalty to the Mount Hua Sect. I just want you to know that the Southern Edge Sect is also sincere with you. We’re willing to offer everything we have to help you recover."
"......"
"The decision is yours. If you return, the Southern Edge Sect will take care of everything."
With that, Jin Geumryong turned and left the room, closing the door slowly but firmly.
A moment later, Jin Geumryong's voice was heard through the closed door.
"Baek Cheon."
"......"
"I am your brother, and we are related by blood. And the Southern Edge Sect is also your family."
Baek Cheon unknowingly clenched his emaciated hand into a fist.
"Don’t forget that."
With that, Jin Geumryong's footsteps receded.
Baek Cheon looked at the closed door for a while before lowering his gaze.
The brush he couldn't hold, which had lost its value, still lay on the floor.
A bitter laugh escaped Baek Cheon's lips.
"Haha..."
A sad, weak laugh.
-----------
Recalling the conversation from the night before, Baek Cheon squinted against the cold wind.
The burned and devastated mountain stretched before him, while the fields beyond remained green and vast. He felt small lamenting his situation in comparison.
His heart wavered.
Perhaps... could he have such an opportunity?
"I am the Deputy Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect."
Whenever his thoughts strayed, Baek Cheon repeated those words.
That was his pride, his everything. But also something that would soon disappear.
That position would soon be taken by Yoon Jong or Baek Sang... maybe even Chung Myung would take the lead.
Thus, Baek Cheon would gradually retreat. Voluntarily or not.
He never considered it a pity. It was what he desired and what should happen.
He only felt bitterness.
The wounds would eventually heal, and the feelings would numb over time. The sadness of those who looked at him now would eventually fade. He would become someone who was just there.
And the light he had lost would shine through others: Yoon Jong, Jo Gul, Yoo Iseol, Tang Soso, Hye Yeon, and...
Baek Cheon looked at the sky.
It only hurt knowing he would have to watch that brilliance from the shadows, where the light didn’t reach.
He too had dreamed of that. A bright future with them. Perhaps an even brighter future than theirs.
Hadn’t he let it go of his own will?
Yes. If he hadn’t, he would have fewer regrets. It’s because he chose that he felt so distressed.
Baek Cheon smiled softly.
He knew it. If he said he was going to the Southern Edge Sect to heal, his companions would be happy for him. They would say his affiliation didn’t matter and support him. Because they were like that.
But Baek Cheon also knew that decision would eventually separate them. Even if it didn’t, he could never live as a brother among them again.
What is right? No, what does he want?
As he looked at his thin arms and the sky alternately, he heard a voice behind him.
"Ahem. I didn't mean to interrupt..."
Baek Cheon, surprised, turned and saw a familiar figure.
"This is my place."
"Ah..."
Confused, Baek Cheon let out a small sigh as Heo Gong smiled kindly at him.