Return to Mount Hua
Shake, shake.
“Seo-Cheon….. Seo-Cheon….. Wake up…..”
My body was shaking like a boat on the waves. The force of the shake rattled my head, forcing my eyes to open automatically. Although my vision was blurry, the first thing I noticed was an older man in his later thirties.
‘…..?’
I, who was a bit older than seven years of age, could not believe that this older man was standing in front of me. Out of shock, I kept muttering in disbelief.
“Master….. How…..?”
“Couple of days ago you were crying your eyes out because you thought I was dead, but now look at you, sleep talking about useless things again.”
My Master was the prime example of someone who had aged beautifully. He had silky black hair that flowed naturally around him, had elegant eyes that radiated warmth and kindness, and although his wrinkles were prominent, they did not diminish or lessen his beauty.
The boy, Joo Seo-Cheon, after hearing what his Master, Yoo Jung-Mok, told him, closed his eyes and became lost in thought.
‘Ah!’
It did not take me long to remember the things that had happened a week prior to this day. In a brief moment, I was able to recollect the situation I was in.
‘Joo Seo-Cheon, almost 8 years of age, Mount Hua’s Fourth Generation Disciple.’
The first things I remembered were important personal information about myself.
‘Yoo Jung-Mok, almost 40 years of age, Mount Hua’s Third Generation Disciple.’
The Mount Hua Sect splits their members into specific divisions starting with the first division known as the First Generation Disciples, all the way down to the Fourth Generation Disciples.
The First Generation Disciples are no longer part of the Martial Force and are instead retired seniors of the sect.
The Second Generation Disciples are Elders who assist the Sect Leader with his duties. Within the Elders, there are also Senior Elders who help govern the sect.
The Third Generation Disciples are Prominent Leaders within the sect. The Third Generation Disciples are primarily made up of young and middle-aged adults, and this division contains the most amount of disciples. It is when disciples reach this division that they are able to take on a disciple of their own.
The Fourth Generation Disciples are young Martial Artists in training, primarily made up of children. It is hard to call these children official Martial Artists, as they are still novices in Martial Arts. This division is also known as the ‘Young Force’.
Although the Fourth Generation Disciples are primarily made up of young children, the oldest disciples are almost at the age of twenty. These older disciples barely qualify to join the Martial Force.
And amongst the Fourth Generation Disciples, Joo Seo-Cheon was a disciple that joined at an older age.
But that did not matter. There was something even more important than this.
‘I have returned to the past.’
This was too good to be true.
In all honesty, I still could not believe this fact. For the past couple of days since I had returned from the past, I kept questioning the situation I was in.
The past Joo Seo-Cheon had lived through the Warring Age, and was fortunate enough to become one of the Great Elders of the Mount Hua Sect. This life he had led previously was not a lie, nor a dream.
In the latter half of his life, he was also able to finally attain the “Unrestrained Realm”, but was unable to overcome the longevity of life, and eventually passed away.
So then what kind of a situation was this. In the midst of my death, I closed my eyes, but when I reopened them the impossible had occurred.
I had returned back to my early childhood days, a time of which I barely had any recollections of.
At first, I questioned if this was all a dream. Then the second thing that came to my mind was if this was some sort of a divine punishment in the afterlife. And then I wondered if I had attained Nirvana, and was able to enter the Heavens.
But I soon realized that all of these speculations were not the case. My predicament did not fit into any of these cases.
It was neither a dream, or a divine punishment, nor was it a blessing from the Heavens. It was hard to believe at first, but after spending a whole week experiencing everything once more, I was finally able to accept the situation I was in.
‘I had returned to an age, where the flowers no longer bloomed during bloodshed. An era before the world was swept into a violent torrent of war.’
I had returned to the peaceful age. I had returned back to the time where my Master was still alive and cared for me.
‘I can face my mistakes once more and fix them.’
I started to clear my mind from unnecessary and negative thoughts, and instead, my mind filled with a burning desire to achieve a greater purpose in life.
‘I have been given a second chance.’
I still do not know why I had returned back to the past. And I still do not know who or what had sent me back to the past, but it did not matter anymore. What mattered was that I had come back. This was the conclusion I had reached after a week of living once more.
I had lived an uneventful life that was filled with regrets and sorrow. A lonely life, where I had no one to cherish and care for. And now I was granted a second chance at life and had returned back to my past.
Another important thing to note was that I had returned back to my past with the full extent of my previous knowledge.
‘I will make sure to live a life that I had always wanted!’
Although my past knowledge wasn’t the best life experiences, even with this knowledge my current self could live a different life than my past. After realizing the reality of this truth, a strong desire to change my future began to blossom in my heart.
Equipped with my past knowledge, I already knew what would come, and what needed to be done in order to prepare myself for the future. I had the knowledge of all the political warfares, the outcomes of all of the battles and wars, as well as the power figures that moved these wars behind the scene.
And because I also became one of the Five Great Elders, I was able to read classified information about the Mount Hua Sect as well as the other Great Factions within the Murim World and learn about their inner secrets and workings.
‘Also, I want to make sure that I get to experience the love of a woman!’
I was extremely depressed that I had died as a virgin. Although my sexual desires diminished in the latter half of my life, before I reached those years of my life it was very depressing and frustrating that I remained without a woman.
Although the Mount Hua Sect was a Sect** , it did not restrict the influences of the worldly desires. Due to these reasons, marriage was acceptable within the sect.
In the case of Sect Leaders, since they held a great responsibility in leading the sect, if the Sect Leader wished to get married, their marriage partner, as well as their sires were heavily monitored and controlled.
Even though the Mount Hua Sect allowed the influences of worldly desires, the Just Faction prohibited these desires. But even though the Just Faction prohibited them, they did not enforce these restrictions strongly.
But despite all this, I, Joo Seo-Cheon, was not only unable to feel the love of a woman, but also unable to even properly hold a woman’s hand. I had always lived my life among boys and men.
Because of the pain and regret from the decision that Joo Seo-Cheon had made in his past life, the seven-year-old Joo Seo-Cheon became excited to experience his newfound life once more.
**TL note: A Sect is supposed to be a secluded temple, similar to Buddhist or Taoist temples. In order to keep the temple pure and spiritual, many sects restricted the influences of worldly desires, such as love, possessions, wealth, etc. They believed that these these desires would harm not only the spiritual mind, but also the person as a whole.**
Translated by: Raining Black
Edited by: Casio
Return to Mount Hua
Shake, shake.
“Seo-Cheon….. Seo-Cheon….. Wake up…..”
My body was shaking like a boat on the waves. The force of the shake rattled my head, forcing my eyes to open automatically. Although my vision was blurry, the first thing I noticed was an older man in his later thirties.
‘…..?’
I, who was a bit older than seven years of age, could not believe that this older man was standing in front of me. Out of shock, I kept muttering in disbelief.
“Master….. How…..?”
“Couple of days ago you were crying your eyes out because you thought I was dead, but now look at you, sleep talking about useless things again.”
My Master was the prime example of someone who had aged beautifully. He had silky black hair that flowed naturally around him, had elegant eyes that radiated warmth and kindness, and although his wrinkles were prominent, they did not diminish or lessen his beauty.
The boy, Joo Seo-Cheon, after hearing what his Master, Yoo Jung-Mok, told him, closed his eyes and became lost in thought.
‘Ah!’
It did not take me long to remember the things that had happened a week prior to this day. In a brief moment, I was able to recollect the situation I was in.
‘Joo Seo-Cheon, almost 8 years of age, Mount Hua’s Fourth Generation Disciple.’
The first things I remembered were important personal information about myself.
‘Yoo Jung-Mok, almost 40 years of age, Mount Hua’s Third Generation Disciple.’
The Mount Hua Sect splits their members into specific divisions starting with the first division known as the First Generation Disciples, all the way down to the Fourth Generation Disciples.
The First Generation Disciples are no longer part of the Martial Force and are instead retired seniors of the sect.
The Second Generation Disciples are Elders who assist the Sect Leader with his duties. Within the Elders, there are also Senior Elders who help govern the sect.
The Third Generation Disciples are Prominent Leaders within the sect. The Third Generation Disciples are primarily made up of young and middle-aged adults, and this division contains the most amount of disciples. It is when disciples reach this division that they are able to take on a disciple of their own.
The Fourth Generation Disciples are young Martial Artists in training, primarily made up of children. It is hard to call these children official Martial Artists, as they are still novices in Martial Arts. This division is also known as the ‘Young Force’.
Although the Fourth Generation Disciples are primarily made up of young children, the oldest disciples are almost at the age of twenty. These older disciples barely qualify to join the Martial Force.
And amongst the Fourth Generation Disciples, Joo Seo-Cheon was a disciple that joined at an older age.
But that did not matter. There was something even more important than this.
‘I have returned to the past.’
This was too good to be true.
In all honesty, I still could not believe this fact. For the past couple of days since I had returned from the past, I kept questioning the situation I was in.
The past Joo Seo-Cheon had lived through the Warring Age, and was fortunate enough to become one of the Great Elders of the Mount Hua Sect. This life he had led previously was not a lie, nor a dream.
In the latter half of his life, he was also able to finally attain the “Unrestrained Realm”, but was unable to overcome the longevity of life, and eventually passed away.
So then what kind of a situation was this. In the midst of my death, I closed my eyes, but when I reopened them the impossible had occurred.
I had returned back to my early childhood days, a time of which I barely had any recollections of.
At first, I questioned if this was all a dream. Then the second thing that came to my mind was if this was some sort of a divine punishment in the afterlife. And then I wondered if I had attained Nirvana, and was able to enter the Heavens.
But I soon realized that all of these speculations were not the case. My predicament did not fit into any of these cases.
It was neither a dream, or a divine punishment, nor was it a blessing from the Heavens. It was hard to believe at first, but after spending a whole week experiencing everything once more, I was finally able to accept the situation I was in.
‘I had returned to an age, where the flowers no longer bloomed during bloodshed. An era before the world was swept into a violent torrent of war.’
I had returned to the peaceful age. I had returned back to the time where my Master was still alive and cared for me.
‘I can face my mistakes once more and fix them.’
I started to clear my mind from unnecessary and negative thoughts, and instead, my mind filled with a burning desire to achieve a greater purpose in life.
‘I have been given a second chance.’
I still do not know why I had returned back to the past. And I still do not know who or what had sent me back to the past, but it did not matter anymore. What mattered was that I had come back. This was the conclusion I had reached after a week of living once more.
I had lived an uneventful life that was filled with regrets and sorrow. A lonely life, where I had no one to cherish and care for. And now I was granted a second chance at life and had returned back to my past.
Another important thing to note was that I had returned back to my past with the full extent of my previous knowledge.
‘I will make sure to live a life that I had always wanted!’
Although my past knowledge wasn’t the best life experiences, even with this knowledge my current self could live a different life than my past. After realizing the reality of this truth, a strong desire to change my future began to blossom in my heart.
Equipped with my past knowledge, I already knew what would come, and what needed to be done in order to prepare myself for the future. I had the knowledge of all the political warfares, the outcomes of all of the battles and wars, as well as the power figures that moved these wars behind the scene.
And because I also became one of the Five Great Elders, I was able to read classified information about the Mount Hua Sect as well as the other Great Factions within the Murim World and learn about their inner secrets and workings.
‘Also, I want to make sure that I get to experience the love of a woman!’
I was extremely depressed that I had died as a virgin. Although my sexual desires diminished in the latter half of my life, before I reached those years of my life it was very depressing and frustrating that I remained without a woman.
Although the Mount Hua Sect was a Sect** , it did not restrict the influences of the worldly desires. Due to these reasons, marriage was acceptable within the sect.
In the case of Sect Leaders, since they held a great responsibility in leading the sect, if the Sect Leader wished to get married, their marriage partner, as well as their sires were heavily monitored and controlled.
Even though the Mount Hua Sect allowed the influences of worldly desires, the Just Faction prohibited these desires. But even though the Just Faction prohibited them, they did not enforce these restrictions strongly.
But despite all this, I, Joo Seo-Cheon, was not only unable to feel the love of a woman, but also unable to even properly hold a woman’s hand. I had always lived my life among boys and men.
Because of the pain and regret from the decision that Joo Seo-Cheon had made in his past life, the seven-year-old Joo Seo-Cheon became excited to experience his newfound life once more.
**TL note: A Sect is supposed to be a secluded temple, similar to Buddhist or Taoist temples. In order to keep the temple pure and spiritual, many sects restricted the influences of worldly desires, such as love, possessions, wealth, etc. They believed that these these desires would harm not only the spiritual mind, but also the person as a whole.**
Translated by: Raining Black
Edited by: Casio
