Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 553

Song Ha-shinni was flustered.

‘Y-Young Master?’

‘Young Master, my foot. Are you from the Emei Sect?’

His voice was blunt and laced with a hint of bewilderment.

It was as if she was being overwhelmed by his presence.

Song Ha-shinni found herself answering without thinking.

‘Y-Yes, I am…’

Yeon Ho-jeong, who had been silently looking down at her, sighed deeply.

‘You need to be at least a little naive to be suspicious. You’re so pure, it’s practically spotless.’

Though he said that, he had been certain that she was a nun from the Emei Sect from the moment he started following her.

There was no other explanation. The vital energy of the Emei Sect’s highest-level martial arts was emanating from this mysterious nun.

That level of purity in vital energy could never be achieved through half-hearted learning. It wasn’t internal energy gained through elixirs or forced transfer, but pure vital energy born from enlightenment.

If vital energy possessed that level of purity, it was inevitable that the person’s character would also be pure.

However, the vital energy she exuded was clearly that of a supreme master, yet it was too pure, which was the problem.

‘Let’s get out of here first. Make sure you properly block the poison.’

‘But, who are you…?’

In an instant, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes changed.

Song Ha-shinni gasped involuntarily. The young man’s gaze was terrifying.

Whirr! Whirr!

Black hand axes slashed diagonally across the left and right.

Swish!

With a gruesome sound, a rain of blood fell under the moonlight.

Song Ha-shinni was shocked. The masked figures, who had been undetectable by both her eyes and senses, were now visible.

But it was too gruesome. Their bodies, sliced diagonally by the axe strikes, were spilling out large amounts of blood and entrails.

‘What are you doing?! Move now!’

‘Ah!’

Whoosh!

Song Ha-shinni quickly kicked off the roof. She felt like she shouldn’t be doing this, but her body reacted first to the terrifying young man’s voice.

‘Damn it.’

Yeon Ho-jeong, who had been about to attack the invisible assassins, clicked his tongue at Song Ha-shinni’s unstable movements.

Swoosh!

‘Gasp!’

Song Ha-shinni was startled. The young man had suddenly flown to her side and hooked his arm around hers.

‘Relax.’

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes flashed.

Whoosh!

With a tremendous sonic boom, the two disappeared into the air.

It was a truly insane speed. Song Ha-shinni couldn’t even scream at the unprecedented swiftness of their movement.

‘T-This is!’

It was incredible. The surrounding scenery was rushing backward at an alarming rate.

She had never seen or experienced such a fast movement technique before. It was faster than a winged bird. It was the movement of a weightless flame.

How long had they been running like that?

The two, having stepped on more than a dozen buildings in the bustling street, landed in front of a small forest.

‘Hah, hah!’

As soon as she touched the ground, Song Ha-shinni knelt down, gasping for breath.

She felt dizzy to the point of nausea. It was hard to tell if it was because of the poison or the incredible speed of the movement technique.

Then, Yeon Ho-jeong’s hand touched Song Ha-shinni’s Mingmen acupoint [Acupuncture point located on the back, considered vital for energy flow].

‘Calm your vital energy. Don’t be nervous.’

In an instant, the strength drained from Song Ha-shinni’s body.

‘What a strange young man.’

Listening to his voice, she naturally followed his instructions. His voice had an unusually natural persuasive power.

Whoosh!

The Vermilion Bird Fire Qi [A type of internal energy associated with fire] penetrated Song Ha-shinni’s Mingmen acupoint.

Song Ha-shinni was inwardly surprised. To inject internal energy with a different nature was dangerous; a slight mistake could cause severe internal injuries.

However, her surprise was soon overshadowed by an even greater shock.

‘This can’t be!’

Whoosh!

The hot vital energy, which was swirling through her entire meridian system, burned away most of the ink-like poison.

It was an incredible power. A tiny amount of vital energy was suppressing the potent poison in an instant.

Even considering the characteristics of fire energy, this was extraordinary. To burn away the poison that even the Emei Sect’s supreme martial arts could barely contain in an instant!

‘This young man’s vital energy is extremely concentrated! And this sacred fire energy…?!’

After a while.

Fssst!

White smoke rose from Song Ha-shinni’s wounds, and then blue smoke was emitted. The remaining poison was being expelled from her body.

Yeon Ho-jeong removed his hand from her Mingmen acupoint.

‘It’s done.’

‘……!’

‘The internal injuries caused by the poison are unavoidable. I hope you can manage that on your own.’

Song Ha-shinni turned to look at Yeon Ho-jeong.

He had already put away his axe, and only an iron spear was visible in his hand. It looked like a high-quality iron weapon forged by a master craftsman.

Song Ha-shinni bowed her head.

‘Thank you. You saved my life.’

Yeon Ho-jeong chuckled.

Just a moment ago, he had been incredibly frustrated, but receiving such gratitude made that frustration disappear.

‘She’s awfully kind.’

In the brutal world of martial arts, not many people would offer thanks after having their life saved. Most would worry and suspect why they were saved, wondering if there was some hidden agenda.

The world that Yeon Ho-jeong saw and the world that Song Ha-shinni saw were that different.

‘You seem to be from the Emei Sect, and a high-ranking elder at that.’

‘I’m just an elder in name only.’

‘So, you are an elder after all.’

‘My name is Song Ha-shinni. I thank you once again, my benefactor.’

Even though he was a young man, his attitude was very polite.

It was only natural to be polite to the person who had saved her life, but even that seemed unfamiliar to Yeon Ho-jeong.

‘The thanks are enough. I was following Shinni as well.’

‘Pardon?!’

‘A nun from the Emei Sect was walking with excessive tension. I thought something was strange and followed you.’

He was incredibly confident when stating that he had been following her. Song Ha-shinni was momentarily dumbfounded.

Yeon Ho-jeong frowned.

‘But it was a bit odd. You seemed skilled, but you were too clumsy. You seemed to be careful of your surroundings, but your every step had gaps, and you tried to approach secretly but made obvious rustling sounds or didn’t even try to suppress the sonic booms.’

‘……’

‘Did you only practice illegal things in the mountains?’

Song Ha-shinni’s face turned slightly red.

It wasn’t something to be particularly ashamed of. People had different paths they chose. Would Yeon Ho-jeong be ashamed if he had read fewer Buddhist scriptures than Song Ha-shinni?

However, it seemed that she was still embarrassed as an elder of the Emei Sect.

‘I am ashamed. I have lived solely by the teachings of the mountains, without ever experiencing the ways of the world…’

‘Well, that’s quite impressive in its own way.’

‘By the way… may I know your name, my benefactor?’

Yeon Ho-jeong smiled wryly. Even though he was a young man, it was strangely uncomfortable to be treated with such respect by an elder of the Emei Sect.

Yeon Ho-jeong, having put down his spear, clasped his hands in a respectful gesture.

‘I am Yeon Ho-jeong, the eldest son of the Byeoksan Yeon family of Gangdong. I am currently the head of the Martial Alliance’s Righteous Army and a special adjutant of the Mukryong Unit [A special military unit within the Martial Alliance].’

‘Ah!’

Surprise flickered across Song Ha-shinni’s face.

‘The one famous as the greatest prodigy of the younger generation?’

The greatest prodigy of the younger generation. It was a title that sent shivers down her spine no matter how many times she heard it.

‘You are an amazing person. Although I have not ventured into the world, tales of your chivalry and martial arts have reached even the secluded mountain temples.’

‘Is that so?’

‘But… what is this position of special adjutant of the Mukryong Unit?’

Yeon Ho-jeong shook his head involuntarily. Even if she was far removed from the Martial Alliance, he didn’t expect there to be someone who was so unaware of the current situation.

‘Don’t you know that the Martial Alliance has entered a semi-secluded state?’

‘Pardon?!’

‘The Martial Alliance has formed a temporary alliance with the Mukryong Unit to counter a common enemy. Surely you know about the Mukryong Unit?’

‘Ah, yes, I do.’

Song Ha-shinni’s face turned even redder. She felt increasingly embarrassed.

It was then.

‘Hoo, they’re really fast.’

A middle-aged man with a red spear walked towards them from afar. It was Hwang Seok-tae.

Song Ha-shinni tensed up involuntarily. He was a master who exuded an unusual aura.

Yeon Ho-jeong said,

‘He’s with me. There’s no need to be nervous.’

‘……Ah, yes.’

‘Anyway.’

Yeon Ho-jeong, slowly crouching down, asked with a puzzled expression,

‘Why were you going there? No, what is that place that you were trying to enter so secretly, and who were those damned assassins?’

In an instant, tension clouded Song Ha-shinni’s face.

He was the one who had saved her life. She had received his grace, so she had revealed her affiliation and Dharma name.

But when he asked about ‘that matter,’ she suddenly became suspicious.

It was unavoidable. She had come here alone, not trusting even her own sect members. Or rather, it wasn’t that she didn’t trust them, but that she felt she shouldn’t trust them.

In any case, it was not something she could easily tell even her benefactor.

Seeing Song Ha-shinni looking at him with a tense expression, Yeon Ho-jeong nodded.

‘If you don’t want to, you don’t have to tell me. Well, I did suddenly follow you and then suddenly claim to be the eldest son of the Byeoksan Yeon family, so it’s understandable that you’d be suspicious.’

‘Ah…’

Song Ha-shinni felt a pang of guilt.

‘It’s not that…’

Yeon Ho-jeong grabbed his spear and stood up.

‘Judging by how you were guarding your surroundings, it seems like you didn’t want to be seen by others. For now, get your body back in shape here. You’re out of danger, but the internal injuries from the poisoning are quite deep.’

‘I, I…’

Yeon Ho-jeong said to Hwang Seok-tae,

‘Sorry, can you watch over this person for a while?’

‘And you?’

‘Whatever the reason, that place is full of dangerous assassins. Moreover, they tried to kill an elder of the Emei Sect, so as a fellow martial artist, I can’t just let it go.’

Hwang Seok-tae frowned involuntarily.

As a fellow martial artist, he couldn’t just let it go?

‘Why is this guy acting so creepy?’

Yeon Ho-jeong was not someone who would care about the ways of the martial world or the friendship of martial artists. He was not someone who acted out of loyalty or compassion in the first place.

For such a person to say something so embarrassing about being a fellow martial artist?

It was then.

‘Gasp! You don’t mean to go back there, do you?’

‘Of course, I have to go. They’re the ones who attacked the elder of the Emei Sect. I don’t know what’s there, but I have to go and shake them down.’

‘It’s, it’s dangerous!’

‘Don’t worry. I have the ability to survive somehow. You should worry about Shinni instead. The internal injuries from poisoning are harder to treat than normal internal injuries.’

As if that was the end of it, Yeon Ho-jeong turned his back coldly.

Then, Song Ha-shinni stood up abruptly.

‘Please wait a moment!’

‘Hmm?’

Yeon Ho-jeong, turning his head, blinked.

‘Do you have something else to say?’

‘That is…’

Song Ha-shinni hesitated, then sighed deeply.

‘Even so, I can’t just send my benefactor to such a dangerous place.’

‘I told you not to worry.’

‘I will tell you.’

‘Hmm?’

‘What that place is, or rather, it hasn’t even been confirmed that it’s that place yet… anyway, I will tell you.’

‘Oh, will you?’

Yeon Ho-jeong approached with a bright smile.

‘I’m ready to listen.’

Hwang Seok-tae, standing beside him, thought.

‘An assassin who kills people cleanly seems less evil.’

He was a man you should never make an enemy of.