If Cheng Kun was not busy gloating...

[tape]

....he could have just blew up the whole Ming Cult! Granted there was an excellent opportunity for him to strike all the masters at once, there was no real need to do that. He could have just kept bringing more and more gunpowder, and eventually he'd have enough to blow up the whole damn place with everyone in it. Whether or not he subdued them was a moot point -- theyd die whenever he lit the gunpowder up anyway. Pretty silly !

[aniking_8]

He could have kill all ming cult people, but waste time telling his past.

[tape]

I mean he could have done it with no danger at all...not even risking fighting in anyway.

[Snafu3721]

It's the classic villain syndrome.

But it's understandable... If I were to harbor hatred for so long and my evil plan was finally coming to fruition, I'd gloat too. Especially to the people about to suffer, it makes the revenge that much sweeter.

Kind of like when you trash talk with friends before a competition. And Right when you're about to win, you savor the moment by giving your friend even more sh*t as you take the victory.

[shortsight]

If Cheng Kun was not busy gloating ... then HSDS ends at chapter 20. The Ming top fighters die, Wuji die, Brightness Peak blown up, Cheng Kun then commit suicide. 6 major sects on the way were blown up too, unavoidably Zhao Min's entourage would get tangled in and blown up too by the massive explosion.

In the end, not much story left for JinYong to continue, HSDS brainfarted!

[jiang bao]

His purpose is vengeance. It's his sole motivation. When that critical moment is at hand, it makes perfect sense for him to enjoy it as much as he can. What fun is it if he devotes years of his life focused on just one goal, and then just accomplishes it in obscurity.

[hyoyatika]

His purpose is vengeance. It's his sole motivation. When that critical moment is at hand, it makes perfect sense for him to enjoy it as much as he can. What fun is it if he devotes years of his life focused on just one goal, and then just accomplishes it in obscurity.

Yes indeed. Although it seems stupid to us, we are likely to do the same if we were in the same scenario. Remember the scene DGSD scene where Sweeper "killed" MRB? What was XYS' reaction?

I used to laugh at this villain syndrome, but as I grew up, I realized that if I were to be in the same scenario, I would most likely do the same.