Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1029

Though he said that, Hoyeon Gwang couldn’t easily rush in.

‘Strange.’

He had received sufficient reports about Yeon Ho-Jeong’s skills.

It was said that Yeon Ho-Jeong’s skills, who was called a hegemon beyond Byeoksan Hojang [a title for a powerful martial artist], were more than enough to be named among the Saintly Heavens [a group of top-tier martial artists].

Of course, almost all of the Three Teachings [referring to Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism] people said that Yeon Ho-Jeong’s skills were somewhat exaggerated. Among them, there were many smart people.

In fact, that was common sense. From the start, Yeon Ho-Jeong was not someone who acted alone. There were countless masters around him, and it was mainly assessed that he had connections with even the same Saintly Heavens, receiving various help at crucial moments.

The results of his battles were certain. But his skills were not the best.

Hoyeon Gwang also thought so, and in fact, after examining Yeon Ho-Jeong’s energy, he realized that the opponent had a slight flaw to be called a divine king-level figure of the continent.

‘I think I can handle him alone.’

It was subtle.

Even among those who had reached the Supreme Extremes [the highest level of martial arts mastery], there were differences in level, but the moment they were careless, their heads could be cut off, similar to masters in other realms. No, it was even more dangerous.

So, it was not uncommon for someone with much lower skills to kill a master several levels above them. Of course, there were not many masters who had reached that level in the first place.

However, you couldn’t completely ignore the difference in level. Naturally, the higher the level, the higher the chance of winning.

‘Strangely, my hand won’t move.’

The energy emanating from Yeon Ho-Jeong’s body was clearly similar to his own or only slightly lower.

At that level, he could handle him alone. He thought so.

But why?

‘I don’t even need to look at that girl.’

The girl who had retreated behind Yeon Ho-Jeong was useful, but she was not at a level to join the fight of the monstrous and divine.

She didn’t have the martial power to use other tricks, nor did she show any signs of it.

‘I do want to fight to the death, though.’

It was difficult to meet a worthy opponent. But this was, after all, a mission.

Hoyeon Gwang opened his mouth.

“This won’t do. That guy is unsettling. You help with a strike.”

The woman, who had been standing silently, approached Hoyeon Gwang and drew her sword.

Srrrk.

The sound of the blade sliding against the scabbard was very sinister.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes sparkled.

‘Familiar?’

She appeared to be in her forties, but the woman was actually older than that.

The woman also seemed to have mastered the Evil Yin Cult’s martial arts. He didn’t know which martial art it was, but her disposition was like that. It wasn’t the familiar scent of the Central Plains martial arts, but an alien, desolate scent of sand.

Yet, it felt familiar somewhere.

Not because it was the Evil Yin Cult’s martial arts, but the subtle sword energy itself felt familiar.

‘Hmm.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had been quietly watching the woman, got off his horse.

“Looks like we have no choice but to clash.”

Twitch.

Hoyeon Gwang’s finger twitched involuntarily.

The movement of getting off the horse was smooth. But since he lowered his head and his posture was disrupted, an attack at that moment would have worked.

But he couldn’t attack. He consciously stopped the Giant Dragon Mace that was about to go out.

Hoyeon Gwang openly frowned.

“You, what kind of trick are you using?”

He had never missed the moment to attack in front of an enemy. Especially in the realm of instinct.

He thought that the opponent must be using a trick he didn’t know.

Wooong.

The Azure Dragon Axe cried out.

The weapon, which boasted a greater presence than the Giant Dragon Mace due to its wide axe blade, was the Azure Dragon Axe. From the start, it was not a weapon made to be easily held and swung by a person, so the thickness of the axe blade was more than two finger joints thick.

It was a weapon for destruction, not cutting. It wouldn’t even scratch a blade even if it collided with the Giant Dragon Mace.

“There are no tricks.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong flicked the Azure Dragon Axe.

“Come on. Considering the time you spent waiting up all night to kill me, it wouldn’t be strange if you charged in right now, would it?”

Hoyeon Gwang’s eyes sank.

“I’ll see if your skills are as good as your mouth.”

Whoosh.

The first charge he had been waiting for.

There was no sound of kicking off the ground, nor the roar of tearing through the air.

Hoyeon Gwang, who charged in like a phantom, powerfully struck down with the Giant Dragon Mace.

Clangggggg!!

The shaft of the Azure Dragon Axe screamed.

‘Oh ho, look at this guy.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes shone.

Heavy.

The weapon itself was a long and heavy weapon, and it was a blow that properly utilized that weight.

Cracks appeared around his two feet on the ground. It was that powerful of a blow.

‘And it’s not just that.’

The movement itself of launching the first attack was simple, but it spread true energy in all directions, thoroughly trying to block the opponent’s movements.

With just one move, he could tell that Hoyeon Gwang’s skills were real.

‘Of course, it won’t end here.’

Hoyeon Gwang grabbed the Giant Dragon Mace with both hands.

At the same time, a proper attack began.

Wham! Wham! Wham!

The heavy weapon cut through the wind and attacked Yeon Ho-Jeong.

From Yeon Ho-Jeong’s perspective, it was the first time he had received an attack from someone using such a large weapon with the power of the Saintly Heavens.

‘I see.’

Clang! Clang! Clang! Bang! Wham! Wham!

After the first blow, he immediately switched to a series of attacks.

It was truly like a wave crashing in. Hoyeon Gwang, who was using his best striking techniques without even warming up, was so powerful that each blow made his bones tingle.

Yeon Ho-Jeong kept moving backward, offsetting the power of the Giant Dragon Mace. The shaft of the Azure Dragon Axe moved as if it would bend.

‘This is what it felt like.’

He had wondered how much pressure the opponent would feel when attacking with a huge heavy weapon.

Now he knew.

Even if a cannonball flew, it would have been better than this. With the power of the Saintly Heavens, he was freely wielding that heavy weapon, and the pressure was truly immense.

Adding to that pressure, he maximized the destructive power of the weapon. As a martial artist who had mastered the Supreme Extremes, their main battle method was to maximize the use of their martial arts and weapons that they had honed.

Hoyeon Gwang was a true master who had been properly trained and had experienced many real battles.

But.

Srrk!

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

Bang!

A short and powerful blow.

It wasn’t the Azure Dragon Axe, but the Golden Dragon True Evil Fist. With that martial art, which was comparable to the seventy-two arts of Shaolin [a famous Buddhist monastery known for its martial arts], Hoyeon Gwang’s momentum was instantly broken.

Yeon Ho-Jeong grabbed the Azure Dragon Axe with both hands.

Wham!

He swung it horizontally, sending Hoyeon Gwang flying.

An astonished look appeared on Hoyeon Gwang’s face as he was pushed back the same distance that he had pushed Yeon Ho-Jeong. He was surprised by the opponent’s skill, who had pushed him back with a short and powerful single blow, unlike himself who had used a series of attacks.

“This kid is just strong!”

Fwoooosh!

Hoyeon Gwang’s left palm spewed fire.

It was a force that was not easily visible, but the emission itself was explosive.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

‘Yin Desolate Divine Palm!’

Yin Desolate Martial Arts, Yin Desolate Divine Palm.

It was not comparable to the Evil Yin Cult Leader, but it was a much more powerful blow than Hoyeon Jong’s Yin Desolate Divine Palm.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s right palm emitted the power of the Golden Dragon Sky Piercing Palm.

Wham!

Hoyeon Gwang’s eyes shook.

‘Offset?!’

The Yin Desolate Divine Palm was skilled in penetrating energy.

It was not a martial art like a hammer that destroyed from the outside to reach the inside, but a hidden force that tore through the outside and exploded from within.

That sharpness could penetrate even the strongest martial arts. If the power was equal, it could not be blocked head-on. It required at least one level higher of energy emission to offset it.

‘Could it be that guy’s martial art?’

Fwoooosh!

Finally, Yeon Ho-Jeong’s proper counterattack began.

The Dragon Form Seven Technique Step was clearly an ancient footwork. With a single, simple step, he entered Hoyeon Gwang’s side, one-zhang [approximately 3.3 meters] distance away.

It was a movement that he couldn’t understand even after seeing it. His speed wasn’t that fast, but he had already taken the space.

Alarmed, Hoyeon Gwang responded with the Giant Dragon Mace in his right hand and the Yin Desolate Divine Palm in his left.

Wham! Wham! Wham!

Hoyeon Gwang’s body shook greatly.

‘What is this.’

The huge axe blade shattered the force of the Yin Desolate Divine Palm and even bounced off the Giant Dragon Mace.

‘Surely, this guy’s energy is……?!’

No matter how strong his physical strength was, unless there was a significant difference in internal energy level, he shouldn’t be pushed back this much?

Flash!

Hoyeon Gwang’s eyes turned to the sky.

Behind Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had already floated into the air, the form of a translucent golden divine dragon flickered.

First move of the Gale Nine Dragon Kill, Ruthless.

The Azure Dragon Axe created a typhoon.

Wham! Wham! Wham!!

The gale that shattered the earth instantly carved a long groove into the center of the left cliff of the canyon.

“Crazy!”

He instantly poured out his internal energy and deployed the Yin Desolate Divine Step at maximum speed.

If he hadn’t, this blow would have decided the match. It was that powerful of a blow.

“Oh? Did he dodge it?”

Thud!

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had pulled out the axe blade of the Azure Dragon Axe that had pierced the ground and slung it over his shoulder, smiled.

He was relaxed. The composure of a strong person.

“It wouldn’t have been easy to dodge. Not bad.”

“You……!”

Anger surged to the top of his head, but caution and bewilderment preceded that anger.

‘It’s an incredible power.’

The power was powerful, but especially the sticky and taut energy that bound his body was more threatening.

Binding the opponent with one’s own energy. If you knew the art of manipulating objects in the air, it was possible to do it strongly or weakly, but if the opponent was also skilled in the same trick, it was meaningless.

‘But still, why!’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s golden true energy repelled his Yin Desolate Evil energy and made his limbs heavy.

With that one experience, he could tell that the opponent’s power was far superior to his own. If he didn’t let his guard down, it was a difference that was not easy to overcome with pure combat power.

‘Am I possessed by a ghost?!’

It was then.

“Ten Thousand Binding Energy Technique.”

A calm yet somewhat melancholic voice.

Hoyeon Gwang shouted.

“You! Why aren’t you joining the fight!”

“It’s similar to the Ten Thousand Binding Energy Technique.”

“What?”

The woman stood next to Hoyeon Gwang.

The woman hadn’t not helped Hoyeon Gwang. She couldn’t help.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s energy, which had taken all of Hoyeon Gwang’s martial arts while never taking his eyes off the woman, had thoroughly blocked this one-on-two battle.

That shackle was now released.

The woman opened her mouth.

“It’s a legendary energy technique passed down in our sect as well. It’s a trick that increases instantaneous output by controlling the amount and quality of energy with only willpower. It aims to increase the density of true energy itself through extremely delicate internal energy control. It’s a legendary study that no one has ever mastered.”

“What?”

“That man is amazing. He’s reached a much higher level than the skills we read about. He was just revealing the right amount of energy to make us mistaken.”

“That’s nonsense!”

What those who had reached the Supreme Extremes read was not just simple energy, but the core of true energy itself.

Furthermore, energy could not be hidden by simply controlling it. If that were possible, assassins would have been rampant in the world.

The woman’s eyes deepened.

“His upper dantian [an energy center in the body] ability is developed to the extreme. To control even the core of energy with that, I have never thought that such a master would exist in the world.”

“……!”

“Who are you? Are you really the hegemon we know?”

“Bota Hermitage.”

“……?!”

Yeon Ho-Jeong pointed the Azure Dragon Axe at the woman.

“So that’s it. That familiarity wasn’t anything else. It was the sword energy of Bota Hermitage.”

The woman’s face hardened.

Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“I remember now. The Lotus Gate of Bota Hermitage went to the Black Dragon Unit, and the successor of the Heavenly Eye Gate has a connection with me. After that, it was said that the last faction, the Heavenly Yi Gate, went to the Evil Yin Cult, so you must be the leader of that Heavenly Yi Gate.”

“……!!”

“Did you abandon the martial arts of Bota Hermitage and learn the martial arts of the Evil Yin? You’re living a very interesting life.”

“Shut up.”

“I was going to shut up anyway.”

Whoosh!

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had casually swung the Azure Dragon Axe, lowered his stance.

“Whether it’s Bota Hermitage or whatever, the result won’t change.”