Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1176

“……”

The moment he regained consciousness, Sau was able to recall everything at once, from the memory of just before he collapsed to memories from further in the past.

Remembering meant he wasn’t dead, and not being dead meant he had been captured by someone.

‘Internal energy sealed.’

Sau immediately checked his internal state and calmly accepted the current situation.

Of course, he was angry and confused. However, he tried not to act rashly. Even though no one was watching, his ability to remain calm in a crisis was thanks to his harsh experiences and learned behavior.

‘So, I lost after all.’

Sau recalled his last battle with Yeon Ho-Jeong.

His defeat was certain the moment he was bound by chains and dragged into the river. His opponent also looked very tired, but the overwhelming energy he displayed underwater was something Sau couldn’t handle.

‘He wasn’t normal from the start of the fight. That guy was more skilled than me.’

Of course, being more skilled didn’t guarantee victory. Sau was also a true powerhouse who had defeated those stronger than himself dozens of times to reach his current position.

However, there were always warriors in the world who were better fighters than him.

‘It’s amazing that he mastered such great martial arts at his age, but…’

What was truly amazing was his combat skills.

Even though it wasn’t a dirty fight, it felt like they had been rolling around in the mud, fighting fiercely.

It wasn’t a fair and formal fight. He fought by actively using the ground he stood on and the situation around him after perfectly understanding it. It meant he wasn’t someone who fought relying solely on his own strength.

‘Even a genius blessed by the heavens couldn’t fight like that without countless experiences. He also seemed to have a lot of experience fighting masters who had reached the extreme. How was that even possible?’

He wondered if he might be a secret weapon that the Murim [Martial Arts World] of the continent had secretly raised while deceiving the world.

‘He’s probably here too.’

Not only his internal energy but also his body was sealed. It was a thorough sealing technique that even Sau’s unique martial arts and skills couldn’t undo. He could still move his neck, abdomen, and waist, but it was meaningless in the current situation.

Fortunately, thanks to his well-honed body, his five senses were still sharp. Even with the faint light coming through the window and door cracks, he could tell that this place was a huge warehouse.

Sau muttered to himself without realizing it.

“……I’m being treated like baggage.”

It was then.

“I can’t give you better treatment than that.”

Sau was so surprised that he almost gasped, but he didn’t show it and turned his head towards the source of the voice.

A man was sitting in the shadows by the wall next to the window. It was too dark to see his face, but the faintly visible posture and voice revealed the identity of the other person.

“It’s you.”

The man, Yeon Ho-Jeong, nodded.

“Yes, it’s me.”

“Were you waiting there until I woke up?”

“Unlike you, I have a lot of things to do. I wouldn’t waste time like that.”

Sau scoffed, thinking it was a pointless provocation.

“So, you were the one who woke me up.”

“Of course. If I hadn’t woken you up for another three or four days, the nerves in your body would have died, and you wouldn’t have been able to walk for the rest of your life.”

It was a chilling statement. Sau chuckled.

“Should I thank you?”

“It’s too early to thank me. Your limbs are still in the same condition.”

“……”

“It means you’d still become a cripple if left for another three or four days.”

Sau’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“What’s the reason? Why did you keep me alive?”

Swoosh.

Yeon Ho-Jeong got up from his seat.

He opened the closed window wide.

Sau involuntarily frowned. His eyes, which had not seen light for a long time, couldn’t properly accept the intense sunlight.

Yeon Ho-Jeong placed his hands on the windowsill.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s back, as he looked outside, came into Sau’s view as his eyes gradually adjusted to the light.

“You fought well. As expected of the commander-in-chief of the Spirit Turtle Unit. Your skills are still the same as before.”

“……”

“But you’re a hunter, not a kidnapper. The cult leader must know that too. Yet, why did he send you to kidnap someone?”

He wasn’t asking Sau. Yeon Ho-Jeong’s words were closer to a soliloquy.

Sau asked in a heavy voice.

“I was also wondering during the fight. How do you know me? I’ve never seen you before. Of course, I’ve never fought someone like you.”

“……”

“But you acted as if you had fought me many times. You actually knew my martial arts inside and out. If that hadn’t been the case, the result would have been different from now.”

“I don’t know about anything else, but your pride is really not good.”

“What?”

“There’s nothing more pathetic than the word ‘if’ coming from the mouth of a loser. Especially when a seasoned fighter is muttering such meaningless words.”

“……”

“The world is full of monsters that are hard to beat even if you let go of that pathetic pride. You still have a long way to go.”

Sau involuntarily gritted his teeth.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s last words really hurt his pride. At the same time, he was angry. He was furious at the fact that the other person was right, and at the fact that he had shown such a pathetic appearance.

Naturally, Sau’s voice became sharp.

“Stop playing around and kill me if you’re going to kill me.”

“I’m sorry, but I’m not your prey.”

“……?!”

“A defeated hunter either dies by being gored by the prey’s horns or bitten by its teeth. There are several reasons why I kept you alive, but one of them is that the relationship between you and me is not that of a hunter and prey.”

“That’s ridiculous……”

“That’s why I think the cult leader sent you.”

“What?!”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had been looking out the window, took his hands off the windowsill and turned around.

The light coming in from behind obscured Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face. To Sau, Yeon Ho-Jeong looked like a shadowy monster with a faint golden glow in his eyes.

The monster uttered words that defied imagination.

“I know that your life’s goal is the cult leader of the Evil Sound Cult.”

“……!!”

“I don’t know exactly, but I heard that the name of the internal energy cultivation method you created yourself was named to crush the Yin Emperor Martial Arts, is that correct?”

Sau’s eyes shook greatly.

He could interpret the things he had been rambling about so far as having used spies or something. It was absolutely impossible, but he could somehow understand it.

However, the fact that he also knew about the name of his martial art was a completely different matter.

He had never told anyone the name of his martial art until he was sure. If that story were to reach the cult leader, he could be executed as a traitor before he could even figure out his weaknesses.

“You… what the hell are you?”

“That’s not important right now.”

“Tell me! Who the hell are you! How do you know so much about me…!”

“I’ll tell you this much.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s golden glow intensified.

“I don’t hate you as much as I thought I would, even though you belong to the Evil Sound Cult, which I hate the most among the three sects.”

“……?!”

Sau couldn’t understand.

Of course, he wouldn’t be able to understand. He wouldn’t know that Yeon Ho-Jeong had met him as an enemy commander in the past and fought countless times, and that the relationship between the two, who had fought so much without a conclusion, had changed from enemies to something similar to comrades.

Of course, he didn’t feel true camaraderie. It was closer to the joy of a fan who had witnessed the endless artistic endeavors of a master firsthand.

And finally, Yeon Ho-Jeong realized. That Sau was different from the ordinary members of the Evil Sound Cult.

From the perspective of the Murim, he was an assassin as dangerous as the cult leader of the Evil Sound Cult, but at least his combat skills were like a magnificent art beyond simple fighting techniques. At least, that was how it was for Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Furthermore, he realized. That Sau regarded the cult leader of the Evil Sound Cult as his prey. That he was a man who lived with the goal of catching and killing him no matter what.

He also realized that it was not simply because the cult leader of the Evil Sound Cult was an excellent warrior, but because of his deep-seated resentment towards him.

The moment he realized that, Yeon Ho-Jeong found it difficult to hate Sau enough to taint his soul black.

“The important thing is this. Even I, who am not in the same faction, know that you are trying to kill the cult leader. But wouldn’t the cult leader know that?”

“……!”

“That’s why he used a knife for slaughtering cattle to herd chicks.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s lips curled up.

“The cult leader was testing you.”

“Shut up!”

“It seems like you don’t want to admit it. Then let me ask you one thing. How many years have you been playing around, excluding this kidnapping mission? When was the last time you received an order to annihilate or assassinate an enemy as the commander-in-chief of the Spirit Turtle Unit?”

Sau didn’t open his mouth.

There was no need to tell him that it had been over five years, and it was clear that no matter what he said, the other person would try to shake him.

However, his silence gave Yeon Ho-Jeong confirmation.

“You value missions. Even though you hate the cult leader so much. Even though you have reached the pinnacle, no, the extreme, you had to deceive yourself. You had to bow your head, calling the cult leader a god. That way, the cult leader wouldn’t know your goal.”

“I told you to shut up!”

“Then I’ll tell you one unchanging truth.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s smile became as vicious as a demon.

“No matter how you do it, you won’t be able to touch even the hem of the cult leader’s clothes until you die.”

“Shut up!!”

“Even if you devote all your heart and soul to training, the god of martial arts is reluctant to give you even a small enlightenment. If you keep two minds like you, it will be difficult to gain any enlightenment.”

Sau’s face flushed red.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s words were accurately targeting the worries he had been having for years.

The other person was right. It was difficult to improve even if one devoted all their blood and sweat to one path. It would be even more difficult for him, who was only living in the Spirit Sound Mountain while deceiving himself, to improve.

However, Sau found it difficult to admit that fact.

“That’s none of your business.”

“Your words prove that you have been biding your time for a long time to kill the cult leader.”

“……!”

“Having the same goal doesn’t mean we can be friends. But if we have the same goal, we can trade what we need, right?”

Sau’s face contorted.

“You crazy bastard! Do you think I would leak information about our cult to a non-believer from the continent? I don’t even know about this kidnapping target!”

“There’s no way you wouldn’t know. If the cult leader was trying to test you, he would have told you why he was trying to kidnap Ji So-Hyun. Right?”

“……”

“Perhaps the cult leader trusts you to some extent. That’s why he entrusted you with such an important mission. Well, on the other hand, it could be that the existence of Ji So-Hyun isn’t that important.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong squatted down opposite Sau.

“But I won’t ask you about her.”

“……What?”

“I don’t have a hobby of begging for something you wouldn’t tell me even if I knew. If I coax and coax you, would you tell me?”

Sau’s eyes were bloodshot.

“Then what do you want to know from me?”

“Information related to the Evil Sound Cult but not related at all, information that would not be a burden to you in any way.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face turned expressionless.

“The Blood Demon Cult guys dispatched to Sichuan.”

“……!!”

“Which guys came?”