Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1060

Mak Won called him ‘Senior Brother.’

His sect was the legendary Mujong Clan, and the Mujong Clan relocated its residence according to the new sect leader.

There’s a legend that the Mujong Clan was formed by masters of various martial arts.

In fact, Mak Won, who belonged to the Mujong Clan, was able to master all kinds of martial arts within it. Although he didn’t learn and master many, he achieved great accomplishments just by witnessing them.

Later, he left the sect like a seeker and secluded himself in the mountains to complete his own martial arts. That was Mak Won’s unique martial art, the Heavenly Martial Divine Weapon Qi [a technique focusing on channeling inner energy into weapons] and the Heavenly Martial General Art [a martial art focused on commanding and leading].

Although Mak Won had established his own school, he never returned to the Mujong Clan.

Since he didn’t return to his hometown, the people of his hometown came to find Mak Won. However, this meeting wasn’t what Mak Won had hoped for.

“It’s been a while.”

The already cold winter air became sharp and heavy, like shattered pieces of iron.

Mak Won intuitively realized.

‘He’s become stronger.’

The old man held a black spear with an arrogant air.

He was like looking at a lion. Indeed, there was a fierce killing intent and majestic dignity, as if a lion were right in front of him.

“It has been a while, indeed.”

“Your impudence hasn’t changed.”

Despite reaching a high level of mastery, he had no dignity at all.

The old man continued in a cold and fierce tone.

“You’re still as stiff-necked as ever, even when facing your senior brother after all this time. You haven’t changed a bit.”

Mak Won smiled.

It was a bitter smile.

“You haven’t changed either, Senior Brother. You’re still as rigid as ever, even after all these years.”

“Do I really need to put a few holes in your body to fix your manners?”

“I’ve been injured a lot since coming out into the world. If I’m still like this, it seems to be my nature.”

“Indeed, with such a lack of respect, it’s no wonder you’ve become a mere wild man wandering the world.”

Mak Won looked behind the old man.

There were at least fifty mounted riders. Strangers were glaring at him, holding spears in the same posture as the old man.

“Your personality is the same, but you’ve become very corrupt. Did you teach the Mujong’s teachings to such rabble? You’re still the same coward who needs a gang to feel secure.”

It was an unusually harsh tone for Mak Won.

Whoosh!

Even though the old man was still, a powerful killing intent emanated from the spearmen lined up behind him.

It was an astonishing force. Each one wasn’t even worth three moves from Mak Won, but the military spirit they emitted together was as fierce and powerful as a storm.

Mak Won’s eyes turned cold.

Crack!

The cracks that appeared beneath his feet swept past the red horse the old man was riding and under the feet of the fifty mounted riders.

Neigh!

The killing intent that had been pouring out like a wave disappeared without a trace. The faces of the spearmen, who couldn’t control their agitated horses, showed signs of panic.

Mak Won spoke in a chilling voice.

“Who do you think you are, glaring with those eyes when you’ve only just started wielding a spear? Before you run wild relying on your leader, develop some decent skills.”

Whoooosh!

Mak Won’s aura rose like a cloud.

It was a powerful force, different from the old man’s solid and sharp aura, with a hundred different forces felt within it.

Strong among the strong. Mak Won’s martial arts, which had advanced through countless battles, were so heavy that even fifty mounted riders couldn’t handle it.

Even as his disciples panicked and retreated, the old man’s face remained unchanged.

“Is that it?”

“…”

“Is that what you call the Heavenly Martial Divine Weapon Qi that you created?”

Mak Won’s gaze sharpened.

“How do you know about my martial arts?”

“…Indeed.”

A voice filled with many implications.

“There was a reason why the old men coveted you. That martial art, it’s not yet complete.”

So, it was reported.

Mak Won recalled the juniors who had visited him several times during his mountain training. They were all talented individuals, not interested in worldly fame, but only focused on the pursuit of martial arts.

“It is complete. There is room for improvement, but it is complete.”

“That’s what it means to be incomplete.”

“Senior Brother, you are mistaken. For me, this martial art is complete. Even the same martial art can be interpreted and felt differently by different people. Senior Brother, you have already lost the spirit of the Mujong Clan.”

“Who are you, a bastard who abandoned the sect and ran off on his own, to talk about spirit?”

“Even if I am a bastard, I have not brought ruin to the sect like someone else.”

“It’s getting worse and worse.”

“Why are you so talkative today? Why? Are you scared of your junior brother after all this time?”

The old man’s face, which had been relaxed all along, hardened.

“You scoundrel.”

“Killing intent, eyes, the fingers adjusting the spear. Anyone can see that you’re itching to attack, so why are you just flapping your tongue?”

Chiiiiiiik!

A hazy shimmer rippled from Mak Won, who lowered his stance while holding the White Lightning Spear with both hands.

“This junior brother is ready. You don’t have to give me any advantages, so come at me whenever you’re ready.”

The corners of the old man’s mouth curled up.

“You dare to challenge me in spear techniques?”

“Whether it’s a spear, a fist, or a sword, they are all just weapons to this junior brother.”

“You, who couldn’t commit to one path and played with all sorts of things, dare to say such things?”

Ziiiiiiing!

A powerful cry erupted from the old man’s black spear.

Flap!

The red horse the old man was riding snorted.

Mak Won’s eyes deepened.

The red horse’s pure eyes turned to Mak Won. It was as if he were looking at a friend he had known for a long time.

‘Red Dragon.’

Mak Won opened his mouth.

“Come down.”

“Being on horseback is enough.”

“Red Dragon will get hurt. Come down.”

“This is a place to teach a rude junior brother a lesson. You don’t need to worry about me.”

Flash!

No sooner had he finished speaking than the power emanating from Mak Won’s spear flew towards the red horse’s neck.

Clang!

The red horse staggered and retreated. If the old man hadn’t swung his black spear to block the power, the red horse’s neck would have been severed.

The old man’s eyes flickered slightly. He never imagined that the bastard would genuinely target Red Dragon.

Mak Won’s gaze sank even deeper.

“In a match, personal feelings are unnecessary. Are you going to make excuses for your defeat by using the life of an old friend?”

“…Very well.”

The old man dismounted from his horse.

Red Dragon snorted a few times and then quietly retreated.

Before retreating, Mak Won looked into Red Dragon’s eyes.

Although it was a beast that couldn’t communicate verbally, he felt understanding in Red Dragon’s eyes.

Mak Won didn’t feel sorry for the blow he had dealt to Red Dragon. Red Dragon, who had galloped like a storm across battlefields unknown to the world, would fully understand the killing intent of an old friend.

The old man glared at Mak Won and shouted to his disciples.

“You all, retreat beyond a hundred yards.”

A hundred yards.

Even in a battle between masters who had reached the peak, retreating a hundred yards was difficult to understand.

However, the old man’s actions were correct. Mak Won saw this not as a fight but as a war. A war where anything could be done to win against the opponent.

The old man sensed the aura of life and death in Mak Won’s energy and removed his disciples from the battlefield.

‘He’s still the same.’

Even if nothing else, that thoroughness was the aesthetics of the battlefield.

Mak Won had never understood war. Rather, he hated it. Martial arts inevitably contained life and death, but for him, martial arts were simply a study of the soul that was never enough to pursue in a lifetime.

The old man had never understood enlightenment. Rather, he hated empty words. Martial arts inevitably contained life and death, and for him, martial arts were a proof stained with the pleasure of killing and surviving until death.

The two were so different.

Because they were different, they walked different paths, and because they were different, they hated each other.

Thus, on the vast plain where snow was falling, two senior and junior brothers stood facing each other, glaring at each other.

“Before the match, there is one thing I would like to ask.”

The old man was in a very serious state. The previous bickering was no longer necessary.

The old man allowed the question with silence.

“Did you join hands with the Three Teachings?”

Mak Won’s question surprised the old man in many ways. The biggest surprise was that the once solitary man had become entangled in worldly affairs and had begun to worry about the safety of the world.

“Is there any fool who would join hands with such unpleasant fanatics?”

It was a ten times more negative reaction than saying no.

Mak Won was relieved.

It wasn’t because of the Mujong Clan’s honor.

“Very well. Then I too can approach this with the mindset of a final match of my life.”

If the Mujong Clan had joined hands with the Three Teachings, Mak Won would have tried to escape from this place by any means. Because he had to inform them of this fact.

But if they hadn’t, then there was no problem.

He had to fight the old man to the death someday. Now that the day had come, he too wanted to put his soul into the match.

“Why don’t you ask?”

“…”

“How I found you, why I came to find you now of all times.”

Why now of all times.

That meant that the old man had known Mak Won’s whereabouts for a long time.

Mak Won grinned.

The Heavenly Martial Divine Weapon Qi blazed and became a dragon ascending to the sky.

“I have no more questions for you, So Hyun-rip!”

Whoosh!

Mak Won ran.

A man who was once called one of the three generals of Seongcheon. Now that the Demon Army had disappeared, he was called one of the two generals along with the Ghost Army, or just one of the two generals. The world was changing every moment, and Mak Won wasn’t the Mak Won of the past.

However, the enlightenment that Mak Won possessed was so firm and true that even as he moved forward, his center didn’t waver.

The Hundred Weapon Divine Lord [a title given to a master of many weapons].

The ultimate master who wielded a hundred weapons was now charging towards another general of Seongcheon and his senior brother from the same sect, the Spear King [a title given to a master of the spear] So Hyun-rip.

The White Lightning Spear spat fire.

Flash!

It was like a bolt of lightning exploding.

The white, elastic spear shaft stretched out, aiming for So Hyun-rip’s neck. It was a killing move from the start. There was no deep power or efficient form within it.

It was a martial art solely for killing the enemy, a killing technique.

The White Lightning Spear of the Divine Demon, filled with the will to kill, aimed for So Hyun-rip’s throat.

The shaft of So Hyun-rip’s black spear, the Black Demon Spear [a spear imbued with dark energy], rotated.

Clang!

The blade of the White Lightning Spear was deflected just before it pierced his neck.

It was a truly close call, but So Hyun-rip didn’t even blink. His martial arts, built up from a hundred battles, and the immovable mind honed by that experience, wouldn’t be shaken by such an attack.

Mak Won’s White Lightning Spear spat fire once more.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

It was as if the spear shaft had multiplied into dozens. The blades of the divine weapon repeatedly stabbed at So Hyun-rip’s upper and lower body, and So Hyun-rip’s demonic spear, the Black Demon, deflected Mak Won’s attacks with divine movements.

Crack! Crack!

The two men’s exchanges created invisible shockwaves. Cracks spreading in a circle on the ground could be seen.

Mak Won’s posture, which had attacked So Hyun-rip several times, twisted in an instant.

Clang!

He rotated and attacked the collarbone with the end of the spear shaft.

So Hyun-rip easily blocked even that. He didn’t even dodge. He deflected the blow by lifting the shaft of the Black Demon Spear, and his feet were buried in the ground up to his ankles.

Whoosh!

The black and white spears rotated and struck each other’s blades precisely.

With a deafening sound, the two men’s figures were thrown back nearly three yards from each other.

A joyful smile spread across Mak Won’s face.

So Hyun-rip’s expression was as hard as it could be.

Thus began the life-and-death battle between the two senior and junior brothers who had met after a long time.