Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1265

Wham!

How long had it been since the battle, which had subsided, resumed?

Jongri Baek, having pushed back the Shin-hwa Cultists of Hebei and crossed into Shanxi, was crushing the enemy soldiers with his disciple through a possessed swordsmanship.

‘It’s tough.’

Jongri Baek’s eyes deepened.

‘Without rest, all the way here… I’m somehow managing to circulate my energy, but…’

Whoosh!

A massive flame flying from the front obscured Jongri Baek’s vision.

If Jongri Baek were Yeon Ho-jeong, he would have realized that the Shin-hwa Cult had recruited new warriors.

At the same time, he would have also noticed that their martial arts were a step below those of the previous warriors.

Flash!

The Overlord Blade, descending silently, split the flames in half with a single strike.

“Kuaaak!”

The blade, having cut through the flames, still had enough power to slice off the right arm of a Saho warrior. [Saho refers to a specific group or tribe, likely with unique characteristics.]

Though they possessed a chilling regenerative ability, they couldn’t ignore the pain.

Jongri Baek’s feet moved menacingly.

Wham!

After instantly blowing off a head, he leaped high into the sky and unleashed a Mountain-Cleaving strike.

Thwack! Thwack!

He was truly a martial god.

Jongri Baek was proving that the tide of battle could be turned with just one Supreme Master. His possessed swordsmanship, even in his exhaustion, exuded boundless power.

However.

‘The blade’s edge has dulled.’

Just by looking at its size and weight, one could tell that the Overlord Blade was a weapon meant for destruction rather than cutting.

However, the actual Overlord Blade was a well-honed divine weapon, and in the hands of a master like Jongri Baek, it boasted a sharpness that rivaled any treasured sword.

Yet, the Saho warrior’s neck was cut off roughly. The cut was mangled, as if struck with a blunt axe.

‘The movement of my fingers isn’t reaching the blade’s edge. I can’t believe this is happening to me.’

Whoosh!

From afar, several warriors combined their efforts to unleash a Fiery Divine Palm.

At that moment, Ogu-mun flew in like lightning and unleashed a Thunderous Blade strike.

Clang!

The blade energy, sweeping through the surroundings, blew away all that force.

The corners of Jongri Baek’s lips curled up.

‘I didn’t know this guy was so reliable.’

Ogu-mun shouted.

“Master! Are you alright!”

“Who are you asking if they’re alright! Quickly, block the side!”

Swoosh! Bang!

Jongri Baek, having charged at an incredible speed, blew away three warriors with a merciless, powerful attack.

He only blew them away, not killing any of them. The charge was good, but the flow of energy was cut off the moment he tried to use his swordsmanship.

“Hoo!”

He gasped for breath, struggling to gather his energy. Fortunately, his body, having reached the Supreme level, was the perfect vessel for containing abundant natural energy, but the internal energy he had consumed was as deep as the sea, so he couldn’t produce the same power as before.

‘It can’t be helped.’

Namgoong Seung only stepped forward when he needed to while commanding the troops, but Jongri Baek had to swing his sword relentlessly at the front lines.

He had been moving like that for four days straight. When the battle briefly stopped, he either stood guard or taught his disciple, and when the battle resumed, he swung his sword at the front lines again.

Even if it were the grandfather of a Supreme Master, they would be exhausted and grumbling in this situation.

Decisively.

‘Damn it.’

His chest throbbed.

The burning pain momentarily made his vision go yellow. He suppressed the fire energy by releasing his inner energy from his lower dantian [a key energy center in the body according to traditional Chinese medicine] again, but it was only temporary.

‘At least, the good thing is that their numbers have decreased a lot.’

At that moment, Ogu-mun approached Jongri Baek.

“Master!”

“You idiot! I told you to block that side!”

“There’s no need to chase after them when they’re running away.”

Jongri Baek looked far to the left.

Ogu-mun was right. The Shin-hwa Cult troops, who had charged in like wolves, were retreating at some point.

‘Was it this much?’

He should have noticed it before Ogu-mun. Only a master with that level of perception could be called a Supreme Master.

Yet, he hadn’t noticed. His perception had decreased and his concentration had deteriorated due to the massive consumption of his true energy.

“I’ll stand guard, so please circulate your energy.”

“You do it, you idiot.”

“Don’t be stubborn and listen to me. Do you know how rough your breathing is right now?”

Was his breathing rough?

When he focused on himself, it was indeed so. For a master of internal energy at the Supreme level to have his breathing disrupted meant that he had squeezed out all of his internal energy.

“Hoo.”

Jongri Baek, having collapsed to the ground, planted the Overlord Blade into the earth.

“Why aren’t you circulating your energy?”

“I’ll recover my stamina before circulating my energy.”

In fact, he could gain more power if he focused on circulating his energy, but the mental energy consumed by concentrating couldn’t be ignored either.

It was better to let his body rest and allow it to naturally circulate energy on its own. Even in his exhaustion, Jongri Baek’s choice was excellent.

“Those damn bastards. They run away when we think we’ve got them, and they run away when we think we’ve got them. They’re making a fuss.”

“That must be their strategy and tactics. I thought I knew a thing or two about basic tactics, but after actually fighting like this, I realize that knowing it in my head is meaningless.”

At that moment, Namgoong Seung approached him.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine.”

Jongri Baek grumbled.

“Worry about your own head. Is your upper dantian alright?”

Namgoong Seung smiled.

“Thankfully, it’s all healed. It’s at a level where it can recover on its own.”

“That’s a relief.”

Jongri Baek openly flopped down.

Namgoong Seung, who was looking down at Jongri Baek with a smile, suddenly hardened his face.

“Jongri Musang.”

“……”

“Are you perhaps?”

“It’s nothing. I’m fine.”

Ogu-mun’s eyes flashed.

“What is it? Are you hurt somewhere else?”

“No, you idiot. Don’t talk nonsense and go manage the soldiers. We don’t know when we’ll have to fight again.”

“……”

“Aren’t you going? Do you want to die?”

“Understood.”

Before leaving, Ogu-mun slightly nodded towards Namgoong Seung. He was asking him to let him know if there was anything wrong later.

As soon as Ogu-mun left, Namgoong Seung sat next to Jongri Baek.

“When was it?”

“……”

“Hey, Jongri Musang.”

“Don’t worry. I can still rampage until this war is over.”

Namgoong Seung’s face clouded over.

“It looks dangerous at first glance. You could die.”

Jongri Baek chuckled.

“Many people have already lost their lives. In the midst of that, what’s so important about the life of an old man who’s about to die?”

It was true. It was true, but Namgoong Seung couldn’t say it was right.

“Jongri Musang must not fall like this. I will take the lead for the time being, so go to the Physician’s Pavilion and get treatment.”

“……”

“Jongri Musang.”

“You know? It’s too late.”

Namgoong Seung closed his eyes without realizing it.

Jongri Baek grumbled.

“Those vicious bastards. The most heinous bastards in the world. I never imagined I’d see such heinous fire bombs at this age. Seriously, even the Sichuan Tang Clan couldn’t make such things.”

The things Jongri Baek was talking about were the Shin-hwa Cult’s white phosphorus grenades.

Even ordinary grenades, slightly smaller than thunderclap bombs, possessed tremendous destructive power, but the white phosphorus grenades, which were occasionally mixed in, were on a different level of danger.

He didn’t know what principle they used to emit the pure white flames, but those flames couldn’t be extinguished with water or internal energy. Rather, if water was poured on them, they would flare up even more and burn the wounded area.

In the end, if one was hit even partially, they had to amputate the area, and unfortunately, the place where Jongri Baek was hit was his chest.

He had been hit quite badly while trying to protect his allies during the chaotic battle, but he had barely managed to suppress it with his power, which was like a vast ocean.

However, even with the internal energy of a Supreme Master, the fire poison didn’t subside. Rather, it gradually moved towards his heart and lungs, causing internal damage, and its viciousness was like seeing the resentment of a woman with many grievances, scattering frost in the fifth month of the lunar calendar [a traditional Chinese metaphor for something unnatural and ominous].

“At first, I thought I was really going to die. It felt like my blood was boiling. Maybe it actually did boil a little?”

“……”

“But still, I’m still alive. At least, I’ll be able to rampage until this war is over.”

“Let’s at least show it to the Physician’s Pavilion. There might be a way.”

“There’s no way. Except for cutting out my heart and lungs. Besides, the Pavilion Master is so busy taking care of the soldiers that she doesn’t have enough hands even if she had ten bodies.”

“……”

“Isn’t it a relief? That I’m not dying right away.”

In fact, even Namgoong Seung thought it was a miracle that he was alive. And the fact that he could see it was proof that his upper dantian had returned to normal and he was able to maintain his mind’s eye.

“I don’t want to worry my disciple while he’s so busy. How good must his heart be that he still cares for his master, even after all the years he’s been beaten by me.”

“……”

“Don’t ever tell him.”

“……I will not.”

In the end, Namgoong Seung couldn’t break the stubbornness of this old master.

Jongri Baek, having taken a few breaths, stood up again.

“By the way, there are so many Shin-hwa Cult troops, but the cult leader hasn’t even shown up yet. What was it, Fire King? Those guys aren’t showing up either.”

That was the most absurd part.

Even without Fire King-level masters, the battle wasn’t one-sided. It was because the Shin-hwa Cult’s fire weapons were beyond standard.

Since they didn’t know when or what kind of fire weapon would fly at them, the movements of the Hebei martial arts forces and the Martial Alliance forces naturally became cautious. That was why the battle had continued for several days.

“In any case, we’ve driven out half of the more than 20,000 troops. It won’t take long to mop up the remnants.”

“Remnants… Remnants are just remnants. The leaders on their side need to come out.”

It was then.

Namgoong Seung’s eyes lit up as he stood up from his seat.

“Why are you suddenly like that?”

“……”

“Hey.”

“Cavalry.”

“What?”

“I can hear the sound of cavalry hooves.”

Jongri Baek frowned.

“Cavalry? Are these guys riding horses on top of playing with fire?”

“It’s not the Shin-hwa Cult. It’s not fire energy…”

Whoooosh!

The Boundless Sky Divine Art flared up with all its might, opening all three of Namgoong Seung’s dantians.

Soon, Namgoong Seung’s eyes widened.

“Evil energy?!”

Shortly after.

From the distant northern plains, an uncountable army appeared, raising clouds of dust.

* * *

Whoosh!

Cheon Hyo-rak’s greatsword technique was truly brutal.

Its power couldn’t compare to Mak Won’s White Lightning Spear, but his greatsword technique had a boldness that Mak Won didn’t possess.

It was the Solitary Demon Sword, which had naturally become ingrained in his body through short but intense battles. It was the strongest sword technique of the Demon Forest and the best sword technique of the Demonic Path, an absolute martial art that could challenge the best in the world if mastered to the extreme.

However, such martial arts usually consumed a lot of internal energy.

Cheon Hyo-rak skillfully controlled his strength, cutting down enemy cavalry and riders while conserving his stamina and internal energy to the extreme.

Whack! Whack!

Hwa-hyang’s sword technique was also impressive. Although it wasn’t as good as the Solitary Demon Sword, her speed in eliminating enemies was even faster than Cheon Hyo-rak’s thanks to her countless practical experiences.

But that was all.

“Damn it! What the hell is this!”

Whoosh!

Hwa-hyang, having flown up, cut off a rider’s head, and landed, shouted while guarding Cheon Hyo-rak’s back.

“Master! These guys aren’t from the Evil Sound Cult?!”

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

Mak Won, having unleashed his Dragon Spear technique like a barrage, shouted.

“I can feel evil energy from these guys! I thought they would attack after the main force of the Evil Sound Cult, but that wasn’t it!”

“What do we do?!”

“What do you mean what do we do! It doesn’t matter who came first, we have to destroy them!”

“That’s right, isn’t it?!”

Bang!

Mak Won blew away a cavalry and a rider with a palm strike.

Faced with that unbelievable monstrous power, even the faces of the cavalrymen possessed by evil energy showed signs of fear.

But Mak Won didn’t look at their faces.

What he was looking at was the gap between the organically moving cavalrymen.

Flap!

A flag covered in dust rose high into the sky, creating a gust of wind.

On the flag, the words ‘Yin Wasteland’ were embroidered in golden thread.

“Evil Sound Cult!”