Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 489

“How is the tea?”

“It’s excellent.”

At Yeon Ho-Jeong’s words, Grand Master Seung-Hyeon smiled.

“I put some effort into preparing it, knowing you were coming. These tea leaves are cultivated at the foot of Mount Wudang.”

“Is that so?”

“The previous Taoist Master cultivated tea leaves as a pastime. These are those very leaves. They’re good for calming the mind and relieving fatigue. They’re a kind of medicinal herb, and the fragrance and taste are quite good, so we only bring out the well-dried ones when we’re entertaining honored guests.”

“I’m honored.”

“Honored, you say. It’s actually ridiculous to distinguish between honored guests. There may be hierarchy among people, but there is no such thing as nobility or lowliness.”

“……”

“However, I wanted you to taste this tea. That’s all.”

My father said something similar. Yeon Ho-Jeong thought that Seung-Hyeon was truly like a Taoist.

“By the way, you’ve grown tremendously.”

Seung-Hyeon looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong with a renewed gaze.

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

“As I always say, I still have a long way to go.”

“Yes, you might feel that way. If you feel inadequate for any reason, you just need to keep striving.”

As expected, Seung-Hyeon’s reaction was different from others.

Most people, when Yeon Ho-Jeong said he had a long way to go, would be amazed and say that he was already great enough. And that was a reasonable reaction according to the common sense of the martial world.

But Seung-Hyeon says that he might be lacking. He says that what you feel yourself is important.

It wasn’t particularly profound, but Yeon Ho-Jeong felt his heart lighten a little as he listened to Seung-Hyeon’s words.

‘It’s comfortable.’

He remembered the first time he met Seung-Hyeon.

At that time, Seung-Hyeon had come to see him without notice, in a state of great excitement. The reason was because of Okcheong’s martial arts.

Seung-Hyeon was excited, but Yeon Ho-Jeong was calm. Rather, Yeon Ho-Jeong felt a liking for Seung-Hyeon’s candid acknowledgment and amazing insight.

That’s right. Seung-Hyeon had that kind of power.

Should he be called a natural-born Taoist? The moralistic Taoist who had not yet abandoned his humanity was a fresh shock to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

‘Will Okcheong change to be similar to Seung-Hyeon when he gets older?’

He might, or he might not.

However, he thought that the reason why Okcheong maintained his pure nature even while wielding the killing sword was thanks to the teachings and environment of these Taoists.

‘Let it flow as it will… just gently guide it so it doesn’t go astray. That’s the atmosphere of Wudang.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

It was a smile that felt a little bitter and a little envious.

‘A school with no discrimination.’

After his regression, Yeon Ho-Jeong had always felt a sense of alienation that he couldn’t tell anyone. That included his father, his younger brother, and Muk Bi.

‘I am an outsider.’

He has family and comrades. But there are things that cannot be filled by those precious relationships alone.

He’s returned to the arms of people he knows, so he can just live his life again?

That’s wrong.

For Yeon Ho-Jeong, who has already lived for decades, to forget his past life and live embraced by this world is an excessively rude demand.

Of course, no one would make such a demand, and Yeon Ho-Jeong himself did not.

However, he is simply aware that he is different.

The more he fights, the more his enemies are amazed by his martial arts, the more someone is shocked by his growth, the more Yeon Ho-Jeong is detached from reality.

Becoming accustomed to life after regression and feeling that sense of alienation were completely different issues.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was clearly an outsider who had come from another world.

“It’s not really my place as a Taoist to say this.”

Seung-Hyeon said with a warm smile.

“You seem to have a lot of worries.”

“Does it show?”

“Haha, I know how busy you’ve been. It’s said that people should live busy lives, but they also need to rest when they need to.”

“I take rests whenever I need them.”

“What good is resting your body if your mind can’t rest?”

“……”

“Look at the character for rest (休) [The Chinese character for ‘rest’ is composed of the characters for ‘person’ and ‘tree’]. It’s the shape of a person (人) leaning against a tree (木), right? That’s what rest is. Resting without thinking anything, leaning against a tree in a place where no one is. That’s true rest.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

“There are so many trees that I don’t know where to lean and rest.”

“It’s not because there are too many trees, but because there are too many people.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong couldn’t say anything. He felt like he had been hit right on the mark.

Seung-Hyeon, who had been quietly watching him, burst into laughter.

“About this mission to be dispatched to the Mukryong Unit.”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know the details of the operation yet, but it must be a difficult task.”

“What mission isn’t difficult? However, I’ll have more mental leeway than when I was dispatched as a spy before. At least, I won’t be as anxious about being discovered as I was then.”

“But you’ll continue to be checked by the Mukryong Unit’s leaders, right?”

He certainly wasn’t an ordinary Taoist. Mount Wudang is one of the most renowned sacred sites of Taoism, but to become the master of such a mountain, one must also be well-versed in worldly affairs.

“That much isn’t difficult.”

“Haha, that’s like you.”

Seung-Hyeon, who had been looking at Yeon Ho-Jeong with a smile, got up from his seat.

“Shall we go to the training grounds?”

“Yes?”

“I’d like to see your martial arts.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled wryly.

“I heard that you would be checking my ideology and martial arts, but I didn’t expect you to bring it up first, Grand Master.”

“Do you think I would want to spar with you because I doubt your martial arts?”

Seung-Hyeon put his hands behind his back and went out first.

“Come along.”

Soon after, the two stood in the center of the training grounds.

Seung-Hyeon said calmly.

“I have no complaints about your work.”

“I’m just grateful that you say so. And it’s not like I’m the one who starts the work. I’m also in a position to receive orders from the military advisor.”

“Formally, that’s true. But I know that your opinions and ideas are actively reflected.”

“The military advisor is very open-minded.”

“He’s not a fool either. No matter how close someone is, if Jeagal Military Advisor doesn’t like their opinion, he’ll ignore it. He’s truly a military advisor worthy of the name.”

He’s sharp as ever.

Seung-Hyeon took a step back and raised his right hand to the middle stance.

“I know to some extent what you’ve been doing. If we were to list the things you’ve handled, you would be called a hero even now.”

“……”

“I’m not qualified to evaluate such a person. However, I can give you some help.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had been quietly watching Seung-Hyeon, smiled and took a stance.

Wudang Tai Chi, a unique form of martial arts that he had transformed while making the enlightenment of Seung-Hyeon his own.

“Come.”

“I’m coming.”

Whoosh!

Yeon Ho-Jeong moved powerfully.

There was not a trace of the soft movements unique to Tai Chi. Before he knew it, the Tai Chi he had refined had become a martial art completely different from Seung-Hyeon’s, filled with his own unique color.

Swish, swish, swish!

Even so, the hand he swung drew a beautiful curve. However, it felt cool and sharp rather than relaxed and soft.

Seung-Hyeon’s two hands moved chaotically.

Swish, swish, swish, swish!

The sleeves of the two people collided repeatedly.

It wasn’t a sparring match where they actually hit each other with their fists or aimed for the opponent’s vital points.

Yeon Ho-Jeong tried to break Seung-Hyeon’s posture and form, and Seung-Hyeon deflected Yeon Ho-Jeong’s moves with soft movements, making them miss.

It was a match that clearly revealed the personalities of the two. Yeon Ho-Jeong’s attacks became faster and sharper, and Seung-Hyeon’s defense became softer and more abundant.

Thud! Thud!

The air vibrated heavily.

The two people’s martial arts sparring was fierce yet beautiful to watch. Yin and Yang, offense and defense, met to draw a Tai Chi. It wasn’t a Tai Chi completed by one person’s hand, but a combined martial art (合武) [A martial art that combines the styles of two or more people] completed by the different tendencies of the two.

How much time had passed?

Whoosh.

The two retreated as if they had been waiting for it.

Seung-Hyeon smiled and shook his sleeves.

“That was a really sharp martial art.”

“Your martial arts were also terrifying, Grand Master.”

“I didn’t know that the Tai Chi I taught you would transform in that way. It’s as fierce as a vortex. If you were to get sucked into it without knowing anything, not a single bone in your body would be left.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

“It’s much softer than it used to be. Before, it was so ferocious and fast that it was embarrassing to even call it Tai Chi.”

“That means your mind has become more relaxed and solid than before.”

Seung-Hyeon shrugged his shoulders.

“I thought I might have something more to give you, but there’s nothing in particular. It’s a little dangerous… but I think you’ll be able to overcome it well enough.”

“Thank you.”

“I should be the one thanking you. I’ve gained enlightenment thanks to you.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

Seung-Hyeon’s candid and simple character was not something that could be easily seen. That was why Yeon Ho-Jeong respected him as a Taoist.

“Then, I’ll take that as permission.”

“Who would oppose your dispatch? I just hope you come back safe and sound.”

“Thank you.”

It was then.

“Sect Leader!”

The person who burst through the door was a Taoist of Wudang.

Seung-Hyeon tilted his head.

“What’s the matter?”

“B-big trouble has happened!”

“Big trouble?”

The Taoist was about to speak but was startled when he saw Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong pretended not to know the Taoist.

The Taoist, turning his eyes back to Seung-Hyeon, sent a telepathic message.

Seung-Hyeon’s face was filled with shock.

“W-what? Deung Bong-Gong?!”

“…Yes.”

Seung-Hyeon, who had been staring blankly at the Taoist, looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Before he knew it, Yeon Ho-Jeong was walking towards the door.

“Hey, Yeon Dae-Su.”

“Grand Master…”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had stopped walking, said with a smile.

“Please just pretend you don’t know.”

“…!!”

“There will be a great upheaval in the Martial Alliance. I’ve prepared myself enough. So, for now, please just watch.”

Seung-Hyeon couldn’t say anything. It wasn’t just that he had heard that Deung Cheon-Gyo had been dragged to the Hyungdang [A place of punishment or interrogation], but he had also heard all the circumstances before and after.

Yeon Ho-Jeong turned his body again.

“I’m just sorry to the Grand Master.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had come out of the Wudang Sect’s residence, turned a corner of a building.

Swoosh.

Before he knew it, Tang Gwan approached him.

“You rascal.”

“Have you arrived?”

“How was it?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong shrugged his shoulders.

“He was amazing as expected. His martial arts are among the best of the Nine Great Sects’ leaders. Although the nature of his martial arts is different, he seems to be evenly matched with Great Master Gong Gong. It’s not easy even for me now.”

“That’s not what I asked.”

Tang Gwan said seriously.

“Did you sense anything strange from that man?”

“I didn’t sense anything. Not in his conversation, nor in his martial arts. Rather, I think he has refined martial arts that are more Wudang-like than anyone else.”

Tang Gwan looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong without saying anything.

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked up at the sky.

Suddenly, the face of Seung-Hyeon, who had taught him the enlightenment of Wudang Wonmu, telling him not to fall into the evil path, came to mind.

The face of the Wudang Sect’s leader, who was gentle, wise, yet full of fortitude.

“…That’s why we need to be even more careful.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who lowered his head again, had eyes that were cold and sharp as if he were going into battle.

“Please keep Seung-Hyeon under surveillance.”

Two people were suspected by the people who analyzed the information.

One of them was Seung-Hyeon.