Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1005

“Damn it.”

Gang Ryang, who had followed Yeon Ho-Jeong to the mountain path, cursed.

“What the hell is this situation?! Suicide? Why would he commit suicide, that arrogant bastard?”

Jin Yang shook his head.

“Don’t get worked up.”

“How can I not be worked up right now! It’s not just about us, but if this goes wrong, Brother is going to be saddled with all sorts of infamy…”

“That’s why we informed the people who needed to know about the situation, and that’s why we’re openly running away.”

Jin Yang was more composed than expected.

He was someone who had been at the scene. Although he had a mind as sharp as anyone else, he was actually the type who relied more on his intuition than rational thought.

He could be endlessly emotional, but he also knew when to be calm based on his gut feeling. Right now, Jin Yang’s instincts were telling him that getting worked up wouldn’t help.

Gang Ryang calmed his rising anger and anxiety at Jin Yang’s composed words.

“What happened?”

Gang Ryang had only heard a brief summary, not the full details.

Yeon Ho-Jeong calmly recounted what had happened at the Namgoong Family.

Gang Ryang’s eyes turned cold.

“…That’s a bit strange.”

After hearing the story, he couldn’t help but become calm. It seemed impossible to break through this situation without being calm.

And another thing.

“Something feels off.”

“Yes, I think so too.”

“It was a bold and dangerous act that made even the Deputy Head of the Black Dragon Unit choose to flee. Even without considering Brother, touching the Namgoong Family Head is something that’s hard to attempt without extraordinary guts.”

“You see it well.”

“The deed is already done. The rock is already rolling down the slope, so why would they inflate the rumors even more? Wouldn’t such actions only invite suspicion?”

“There’s no way they wouldn’t think of that.”

“If they knew it was a clumsy act and still did it…”

Gang Ryang tilted his head.

“What could be the reason?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong didn’t answer, instead looking at the Martial Alliance headquarters visible beyond the bushes.

They were boldly hiding in the mountains behind the Alliance Leader’s residence.

Come to think of it, it was natural. Yeon Ho-Jeong, as well as Jin Yang and Gang Ryang, had all reached high levels of cultivation and were skilled at concealing their presence.

However, concealing one’s presence itself puts a burden on fighting. It’s similar to forcefully flattening a protruding belly.

They could maintain it for days with their abilities, but right now, when they needed cool-headed reasoning, they didn’t have the luxury of focusing on unnecessary things.

That’s why they had climbed the mountain behind the Alliance Leader’s residence. There were many supreme masters near the Alliance Leader’s residence, and each of them maintained a unique energy signature. Unless one was a master who had reached the level of the Saintly Sky [a very high level of martial arts mastery], they wouldn’t easily notice Jin Yang and Gang Ryang here.

It was like being in the dark under the lamp. In reality, no one would try to search near the Alliance Leader’s residence. And they couldn’t inform all the leaders, so they had climbed the mountain like this.

“Brother.”

“Let’s rest for a bit.”

Gang Ryang chuckled.

“You have a lot of nerve even at a time like this. If things go wrong, many people, including you, could get hurt.”

“If we don’t rest properly, our minds won’t work. Let’s lie down for a bit and not think about anything.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong lay flat on his back, even putting his hands behind his head.

He looked utterly carefree. Gang Ryang thought that if the enraged public saw this, the Martial Alliance would be completely turned upside down.

“Ugh.”

Jin Yang also placed his greatsword on the ground and sat with one knee raised. He looked utterly relaxed.

Gang Ryang shook his head.

“I don’t know anymore.”

He sat cross-legged with his arms folded, sighed, and looked up at the sky.

How long had it been?

“I feel uneasy for some reason.”

Contrary to his words, Jin Yang’s face was quite calm as he felt the wind.

Gang Ryang grumbled.

“You don’t seem uneasy at all.”

“Well, things will work out somehow. That’s not what I’m uneasy about.”

“Then what is it?”

“Hmm.”

Jin Yang tilted his head.

“Somehow, I have a feeling that this might be the last time I see the sky from the Martial Alliance.”

“Damn it, don’t say such unlucky things!”

“It’s just a feeling.”

“Put that feeling back in its sheath!”

“Why? You hate the Martial Alliance too.”

“I hate it, but I hate dying even more!”

“Not being able to see the sky of the Martial Alliance doesn’t necessarily mean death.”

“Then what does it mean!”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had been closing his eyes, smiled.

It was a slightly bitter smile, but also one that seemed to admire Jin Yang’s intuition.

“Huh? Why are you smiling, Brother?”

“Just because.”

“Never mind, never mind.”

Gang Ryang thumped his chest and then lay down. He seemed to have given up.

Time passed again.

“As expected.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had unfolded his hands, raised his upper body.

“At this point, I can trust and move.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“The letter I sent to the Alliance Leader only had the location written on it. There was nothing else. Why do you think I did that?”

“I wonder. Why would our smart Brother do such a dangerous thing?”

Gang Ryang grumbled and continued.

“Well, isn’t it because you were worried that the letter might fall into the wrong hands?”

“That was one reason, but the real reason is this.”

At that moment, Jin Yang and Gang Ryang’s eyes shook.

They had finally felt it too. A single presence approaching this place.

They had tried to conceal their presence, but a faint, deep Buddhist true energy [a type of internal energy used in martial arts] was leaking out.

It wasn’t Abbot Gong Gong’s energy. But surprisingly, it possessed a sacredness that was no less than Abbot Gong Gong’s.

In some ways, it seemed even deeper than Abbot Gong Gong’s energy. It wasn’t a difference in the quality or density of inner energy, but rather the nature of the true energy itself.

Jin Yang placed his hand on his greatsword. Gang Ryang also gripped his sword hilt. It was to prepare for any possible situation.

After a while.

“You were here. I was told it was a mountain, but not which part of the mountain, so I was wandering around.”

“Is that so?”

“You are indeed bold. You were right here, where you can see the entire Martial Alliance.”

“That’s how you can see the mortal world well.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had risen from his seat, smiled and bowed his head.

“It’s been a while, Monk Beom Oh.”

“Amitabha [a Buddhist greeting].”

Beom Oh, who received the greeting with his unique half-bow, smiled back and said.

“I had heard rumors that Master Yeon’s martial arts had reached the realm beyond the heavens, but seeing it in person, your achievements are beyond imagination.”

“Can you see it?”

“A little.”

“As expected, the world’s assessment that you would become the strongest Arhat Hall Master [a high-ranking position in a Buddhist temple] was correct.”

“If it weren’t for you, I might have become the worst Arhat Hall Master.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong walked over and took Beom Oh’s hand.

“It’s good to see you again. I didn’t expect the Abbot to send Monk Beom Oh, but that makes it even more welcome.”

“Haha.”

Beom Oh’s laughter was truly pleasant to hear.

When they first met, Beom Oh was a martial arts enthusiast whose eyes were filled with a competitive spirit like lava and who was armed with an iron pride.

The current Beom Oh was different. In the history of Shaolin, only a very few people had awakened the Great Wisdom Ability on their own.

Beom Oh, who had achieved that amazing feat, had learned about the world for a long time and had grown so well that anyone would call him a high monk with deep enlightenment.

Beom Oh looked at Gang Ryang.

Gang Ryang bowed his head with a bewildered expression.

“It’s been a while.”

“Master Gang, you look healthy too.”

The two had already become acquainted during the Gwangdong operation.

Beom Oh turned his gaze to Jin Yang.

“And this Master is…?”

Jin Yang bowed his head briefly.

“I am Jin Yang. I am with the Captain.”

The title of Captain clearly referred to Yeon Ho-Jeong. Beom Oh smiled and made a half-bow.

“By the way…”

Gang Ryang nudged Yeon Ho-Jeong with his elbow.

“What is this situation?”

“The Alliance Leader didn’t come himself and sent someone in his place, right? I didn’t expect Monk Beom Oh to be in the Alliance at this time.”

“So what does that mean?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked at the Alliance Leader’s residence.

It was quite far away, but it was a position where they could fly there with a single step.

“Sending the letter with only the location to the Alliance Leader was my own experiment.”

“Experiment?”

“The Alliance Leader shouldn’t move from the Alliance Leader’s residence. But if he came alone, it could be interpreted as a situation that the Alliance Leader couldn’t handle alone, or that he didn’t have the confidence to do so.”

“…!!”

“If he had dispatched warriors instead, it could be seen as an attempt to capture me and resolve the situation. Of course, I would be reading all the warriors’ presences, so that act itself could be interpreted as a request to be captured quietly.”

“…Huh!”

“But the Alliance Leader only sent two people. That means he’s going to try to stop the angry public somehow, and in the meantime, he wants us to resolve this situation.”

Jin Yang and Gang Ryang were amazed by Yeon Ho-Jeong’s brain.

They had never imagined that so much meaning could be hidden in simply giving a location.

“But, did you really need to do that? With your skills, Brother, you could have had a one-on-one meeting with the Alliance Leader, right?”

“Who knows who the spy is, and you want me to have a one-on-one meeting?”

“No, even when throwing the letter…”

At that moment, Jin Yang and Gang Ryang’s eyes shook.

“Don’t tell me, Brother, were you even suspecting the Alliance Leader?”

“The most likely person to orchestrate this situation is the Alliance Leader. Regardless of his personal character.”

“…!!”

“I hope that’s not the case, but you never know with people. The Alliance Leader has reached the Limitless Realm. Even with my current upper dantian ability [a martial arts concept related to energy centers], I can’t see through him. In the end, all I could confirm was his reaction.”

He really is playing in a different world.

Jin Yang clicked his tongue and said.

“Why did he pick up a sword with that brain? If he had started a business somewhere, he could have swallowed the whole world.”

“Wait a minute.”

Gang Ryang tilted his head.

“But you said two people?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong turned his head.

“Come out now.”

Then, a young man fell from the top of a large tree.

Jin Yang and Gang Ryang were startled and turned to look at the young man.

Gang Ryang’s eyes widened as he recognized the young man’s face.

“You are…?”

“It’s been a while.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked at Sama Hyeon and chuckled.

“You’re cutting it close. What kind of training did you do to use stealth techniques that even I’m unsure about?”

“Not really.”

Even though it had been a while since they met, he seemed quite awkward.

“Have you been well?”

“Yeah, so-so.”

“Judging by your energy, you’ve become a real person now. Monk Beom Oh must have had a hard time.”

Beom Oh burst into a hearty laugh.

“It was Master Sama’s effort, this humble monk did nothing.”

“How much trouble did you cause for the monk to say such things?”

Sama Hyeon frowned and said.

“That personality of yours, saying rotten things so openly, is still the same.”

“It’s my nature.”

“That’s quite a great nature.”

Although he said that, Sama Hyeon was quite shocked by the fact that he couldn’t feel anything from Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“Well, anyway, it’s good for me if there’s even one more capable person.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong rotated his shoulders.

“Shall we start now?”

“No, Brother.”

Gang Ryang asked.

“What are you going to do? If we move carelessly and get caught by the spy, things will get complicated, won’t they?”

“I thought about it while lying down. Who is the most likely person to be the spy?”

“…?”

“I narrowed it down to about three. One of them was the Alliance Leader, so there are two left.”

“Huh?!”

“One of them is particularly concerning.”

Everyone looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong in surprise.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes turned cold.

“If that guy is the spy, the other one will be terribly heartbroken.”