Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 736

Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had been silently observing Yeon Ho-Jeong, took a deep breath.

Chiiiiik!

Smoke curled from the cut on his neck and the diagonal slash across his upper body.

“……”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes narrowed.

‘So, that’s what it is.’

Woo-oong! Woo-woo-oong!

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s aura, once fierce and sharp, turned heavy and sinister.

The aura shifted color in an instant, transforming into a dark, viscous energy.

‘A disciple of the Blood Demon Church.’

It was demonic energy.

But it wasn’t true demonic energy. Compared to the genuine demonic energy that emanated from that Sixth Disciple, or whatever he was, from the Tang family, this was much fainter and more subdued.

However, it was clear that his inner energy contained the essence of the demonic.

Flash!

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s eyes turned bloodshot.

Unlike Yeon Ho-Jeong’s red eyes, which burned brightly with the fire energy of the Vermilion Bird Art, the whites of his bloodshot eyes were also red.

An eerie gaze. As his aura and gaze changed, his entire demeanor seemed to transform.

‘That’s why I didn’t recognize it.’

If he had mastered true demonic energy, there would have been traces of it, no matter how fast he moved.

However, Gongson Baek-Ryong’s martial arts were a fusion of divine and demonic arts, something that defied easy categorization.

“I admit you’re impressive. I didn’t expect to be caught off guard by a brat like you.”

Gongson Baek-Ryong took a step forward.

Thud!

The simple step shook the entire area as if an earthquake had struck.

“My pride has been wounded. I wanted to see the end with more varied speeds, but since you seem to possess many talents, I won’t waste any more time.”

Woo-woo-woo-oong.

The short sword in Gongson Baek-Ryong’s hand gradually turned black. The black energy flowing from his palm was staining the blade.

A deep, ink-like black color; it was truly an ink blade.

Flash!

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes blazed.

‘Just as I suspected.’

That killing intent, that demonic energy.

And that bleak, bizarre wind that seemed to suck all the life force from the surroundings.

The martial art used by the Sixth Disciple of the Tang family, the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade, had revealed itself.

Gongson Baek-Ryong closed his eyes and pointed his sword at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“Die.”

In that instant, Yeon Ho-Jeong lowered his upper body diagonally.

Fwoooosh!

With a terrible explosion, the trees behind Yeon Ho-Jeong shattered violently.

Flash!

Gongson Baek-Ryong, having closed the distance, swung his ink blade at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

It wasn’t the speed that defied common sense like before, but it was still incredibly fast. It was definitely a speed that surpassed Yeon Ho-Jeong’s.

Yeon Ho-Jeong raised his crescent blade to block.

Clang!

Even though it was an upward strike, it was a blow that combined the power of the White Tiger Art and the killing intent of the Vermilion Bird Art.

Despite this, Yeon Ho-Jeong staggered back. He had been pushed back by force.

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s ink blade moved like a gale.

Flash! Flash! Flash!

It was as if the night sky had been captured, with thousands of stars twinkling. The scattering of light as the blade flashed and disappeared was truly mesmerizing.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The moment the blade light vanished, several blade marks over a yard long were etched into the ground. Although the length was a yard, the depth was unimaginable. It was clear that the power of each strike was absolute.

But.

‘……!’

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s eyes twitched slightly.

Yeon Ho-Jeong had managed to evade all of the fast and sharp blade techniques, albeit precariously.

He wasn’t confronting them head-on, nor was he breaking them. He had evaded all the moves of the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade using only the flexibility of his upper body and his reflexes.

“How dare you.”

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s left hand moved towards Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Flash!

The moment their eyes met, Yeon Ho-Jeong felt a strange sensation, as if his body had suddenly stiffened.

‘Upper dantian [energy center in the forehead]!’

Kkiiiaaaak!!

A massive energy seemed to gather in the ink blade, and the terrifying image of a ghost was etched into the blade.

‘That’s the martial art from before!’

It was the Soul Summoning Demonic Slash of the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade.

However, it was much fiercer and more complete than the Soul Summoning Demonic Slash used by the Sixth Disciple, who had wielded it with an unstable spirit and body.

Weeeeeeeng! Weeeeeeeng!

He hadn’t even swung the sword, but his mind was dizzy, and he felt like he had tinnitus.

It wasn’t just because of the concentration of energy.

It wasn’t a martial art that ended with the trajectory of the sword, the physical techniques of the blade.

The energy of the upper dantian, released from Gongson Baek-Ryong’s hand, resonated with the demonic energy, creating a terrifying illusion of hell for the enemy even before the attack was launched.

That mental attack through the indelible illusion was the Soul Summoning Demonic Slash. Unlike the Sixth Disciple, Gongson Baek-Ryong, with his complete spirit and body, was the true manifestation of the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade, a martial art created by the Blood God they revered.

‘Indeed!’

This was it.

This was the martial art of the absolute beings who had opened the Limitless [a state of martial arts mastery].

And this situation, this strength.

It did not exceed Yeon Ho-Jeong’s expectations.

Kuh-huh-uh-ung!!

The image of a tiger king hunting its prey was etched like an illusion on Yeon Ho-Jeong’s crescent blade.

The aura of the beast king, running across the endless earth, was there. His crescent blade, drawing on all the energy of the White Tiger Art, washed away the soul-summoning power of the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade and created a complete mental barrier like a steel wall.

Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade, Soul Summoning Demonic Slash.

Tiger King’s Barrier, Hundred Kings’ Heaven Shaking Dance.

A pitch-black demonic blade and a pure white divine blade. A blade that summoned evil spirits and a blade that summoned guardian spirits.

The black and white, the Limitless blades of black and white, collided head-on.

Kwaaaang!!

And at that moment, the area within a radius of thirty yards from where the two collided began to shatter completely.

The clash of hot and fierce energies. The true power of the masters who had reached the Limitless.

The earth cracked haphazardly from the indescribable collision, and countless trees were uprooted and scattered.

All of Gongson Baek-Ryong’s subordinates who had been hiding in the surroundings were unable to withstand the destructive power and evaporated. They didn’t even spurt blood. They simply disintegrated on the spot.

And that wasn’t all.

Kwarururung!!

A hot storm swept through the area, turning everything upside down, and then cold air rushed back towards the center of the collision.

Bang!

A short, intense roar and another shockwave spread like lightning, extending beyond the thirty-yard radius to a range of forty yards.

Kurururung.

A huge cloud of dust rose, announcing the magnificent battle of the gods.

Flash!!

Yeon Ho-Jeong was being pushed back like crazy.

Since the Myunggeuk [a previous opponent], no, including the fight with Myunggeuk, it was a head-on collision of forces that had been unleashed at the maximum output since his regression.

His mind was dizzy from the impact, but his terrifying mental strength and unconventional combat sense had already detected the opponent’s next attack.

‘He’s coming.’

As expected, it was as he had predicted.

Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had moved like lightning with his original inner energy, reaching Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face, was momentarily taken aback, the fierce and hot demonic energy gone.

‘Eyes!!’

The short sword he had already swung was about to cut Yeon Ho-Jeong’s neck.

And that movement, caught by Yeon Ho-Jeong’s Four Divine Ghost Eyes, which had abandoned the name of the Peach Blossom after passing through the Four Divine Artifacts, had slowed down by half a beat.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s foot kicked off the ground.

His two fists, filled with the power of the Limitless, landed a direct hit on Gongson Baek-Ryong’s entire upper body.

Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!

“Keheok!”

Gongson Baek-Ryong coughed up blood and flew in the opposite direction.

Crack!

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s left arm was bent at an odd angle. His arm couldn’t withstand the excessive internal energy he had released momentarily, the speed of Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had moved like lightning, and his physical strength.

However, the damage to Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had been sent flying, was incomparable to Yeon Ho-Jeong’s.

Bang! Kwabang! Bang!

Each time he hit the ground, a roar erupted. Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had rolled on the ground at an incredible speed, finally stopped after smashing two rocks and three large trees.

Kwaaang!

The speed of Yeon Ho-Jeong, who was rushing with Blood Wing Soaring Heaven [a movement technique], was dazzling.

Crack!

He closed the distance in an instant and, at the same time, used the power of the Bright Divine Pill to fix his broken bones. The moment his bones were set, Yeon Ho-Jeong was three yards in front of Gongson Baek-Ryong.

Flash!

Despite having taken all of those terrifying attacks, Gongson Baek-Ryong was not dead.

Rather, he kicked off the ground and soared into the sky, and despite having suffered critical damage, his speed was comparable to Yeon Ho-Jeong’s Blood Wing Soaring Heaven.

‘Escape!’

He thought he had struck at the weak point, but instead, he had waited for the weak point and prepared a counterattack with a solid martial art.

In other words, he had already predicted that he would switch from demonic attacks to swift attacks.

The extreme combat sense he had honed through countless battles had nullified the difference in power between the two.

‘No! At this rate, I’ll be defeated!’

The difference in level, the difference in internal energy, the decisive difference in power.

He was clearly superior to his opponent, but the moment he suffered this much critical damage, the tide had turned. Unless his opponent made a mistake, he would not be able to win no matter what he did.

For Biwang Gongson Baek-Ryong, or rather, the Fifth Priest of the Blood Demon Church, there would be no more terrible and humiliating battle in his life.

But he had overlooked one thing.

The moment Yeon Ho-Jeong dealt a critical blow to Gongson Baek-Ryong with his Extreme Kill Fist, his mind had already envisioned twenty different scenarios of which direction he would escape.

‘……!!’

Gongson Baek-Ryong, who had soared high into the sky and turned his body towards Mount Wudang, felt a chill run down his spine.

Kwaang!

With a fierce explosion, his body fell to the ground.

“Uweeeek!”

An expression of shock appeared on Gongson Baek-Ryong’s face as he vomited a mouthful of blood.

‘Empty Palm?!’

In the Blood Demon Church, there was a palm technique called Empty Palm that unleashed an invisible force without any sign. However, this was not a force release. It was a shockwave caused by a pure vibration explosion.

It was another secret technique of Yeon Ho-Jeong, the Explosive Stillness Bullet, which he had absorbed from the unique technique that Umje had enjoyed using, and then modified to suit the Four Divine Artifacts, thus creating his own unique technique.

Fwaaaah!

Gongson Baek-Ryong felt the threat of death.

Even without looking up, he could tell that Yeon Ho-Jeong was approaching at a terrifying speed.

Faaaah!

The moment he judged the distance to be right, Gongson Baek-Ryong’s right hand sword was swung in a crescent shape from the lower left to the upper right.

Chwaaaak!

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s body stopped just before the slash.

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s eyes wavered.

‘This is it!!’

That’s right. This was it.

He had predicted that he would use speed as a weapon to attack the moment a head-on collision occurred, and he had even predicted that he would escape and use the Explosive Stillness Bullet the moment the fist landed.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

Yeon Ho-Jeong had even predicted that Gongson Baek-Ryong would launch a surprise attack the moment he fell to the ground. He even knew that he would use the Divine Demon Nine Kill Blade in a six-form attack.

It was because he had already seen the Sixth Disciple use it with his bare hand.

Kwaang!

Yeon Ho-Jeong struck Gongson Baek-Ryong’s chest with a Tiger Fist.

Even while coughing up blood, Gongson Baek-Ryong grabbed Yeon Ho-Jeong’s arms with both hands. It was a sign that he would not allow any further attacks.

‘Okay! From here, I’ll use the Demonic Madness…!’

As Gongson Baek-Ryong desperately tried to gather his demonic power, he suddenly had a question.

‘Where did it go?’

It was gone.

He had grabbed Yeon Ho-Jeong’s arms, but where was the crescent blade that this guy had been holding and swinging?

Fwoooosh!

At that moment, the crescent blade that had pierced through the upper back of Gongson Baek-Ryong passed through his lower abdomen and was embedded in the ground.

It was the Sword Control Technique, the Blade Control with Qi [internal energy].

Gongson Baek-Ryong’s eyes lost their light.

The strength left his hands that had been holding Yeon Ho-Jeong’s arms.

“Could it be… from the first collision…?”

“Of course.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong said coldly.

“There’s no one easier to predict than a guy who uses a bunch of random things. You moved exactly as I expected.”

“This is ridiculous……”

“Congratulations. You lasted more than ten seconds.”

Thud!

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s right hand blade blew off Gongson Baek-Ryong’s head.