Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1165

The group, having passed Bunyang, headed straight for Pyeongyo.

The speed of the group, which ran in an almost straight line across mountains and fields, was beyond imagination. Since they had no intention of moving cautiously from the start, they were able to reach Pyeongyo before nightfall.

Even while running, Yeon Ho-Jeong received a lot of information.

[The Cheonggeom Bureau’s [Blue Sword Bureau, a secret intelligence agency] informants have begun their search.]

[Currently, the strange men are moving towards the highlands. It is speculated that they will avoid the main roads and head to Pyeongyo.]

[The approximate number of strange men has been determined. Fifty to seventy, their martial arts level is unknown.]

[A group of over one hundred and fifty bandits attacked the strange men. The result was the annihilation of the bandits. It took less than half a quarter of an hour for them to be wiped out, and it is said that the actual number of strange men who fought the bandits was less than ten.]

[All the strange men have reached the vicinity of Pyeongyo! It is believed they will cross the fortress walls at night!]

[A message has arrived from a Cheonggeom Bureau informant! Two Jongnam-specific codes [Jongnam is a famous mountain known for its martial arts sects] were found in a forest east of Pyeongyo!]

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

“Stop.”

The group that entered Pyeongyo scanned their surroundings.

The sun, which had begun to move west, was dyeing the world red. It was still a time when there were many people moving about, and as such, many people glanced at the group.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s merciless axe was one thing, but the Black Blood Demon was so huge. With a woman in her thirties riding such a large horse, it was inevitable that people’s attention would be drawn to them.

“Senior, are you alright?”

Ha Eun-Gyo’s complexion was particularly pale.

“I’m fine. Are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine too.”

The poison from the Gu [a type of venomous insect used in dark arts] was still being eliminated, and the residual poison was still being neutralized. Her physical and mental fatigue was also extreme, and she had come all this way without rest.

She was still a person of the Limitless Path [a high level of martial arts cultivation]. The natural energy outside her body was constantly giving her strength, but the consumption of her mental power was so great that she even felt dizzy.

Still, she would move. It was her disciple’s life that was at stake, not anyone else’s. Even if her arms and legs were torn off, she would grit her teeth and move.

“Gang Ryang, Jin Yang. The two of you are to contact the underworld network inside Pyeongyo and immediately confirm the movements of the Spirit Gu.”

“Understood.”

Unlike Gang Ryang, who answered immediately, Jin Yang asked a question.

“Did you say those guys are currently waiting outside Pyeongyo?”

“Yes.”

“Then shouldn’t we catch them outside? If we’re going to kill them all anyway, there’s no need to bring them into Pyeongyo, where there are so many people.”

He meant that unnecessary damage could occur. Yeon Ho-Jeong also agreed with his words.

“But we can’t fight right now. If there are fifty to seventy of them, the two of you might not be enough.”

Jin Yang frowned, but he did not doubt Yeon Ho-Jeong’s judgment.

“Even if there’s no problem dealing with them, if a fight starts, some of them might take advantage of the chaos and cross into Pyeongyo. Even if we can fight, if they decide to run away, you two alone won’t be able to stop them, right?”

“Well, that’s true.”

At that moment, Ha Eun-Gyo spoke.

“I will join the fight.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked up at her.

“Senior.”

“I’ll be honest. My condition is not normal right now. I don’t know if I can even use half of my original martial arts properly.”

The Yin Flame Demonic Dance was a martial art that was particularly affected by the upper dantian [an energy center in the body]. Even if the lower and middle dantians were strong, it would be difficult to exert its full power if the upper dantian was in a devastated state.

In other words, she had lost her ability as a Limitless Path practitioner.

“Still, due to the nature of sound-based martial arts, I am skilled in fighting against multiple opponents. It will be difficult to fight head-on, but it will be more than enough to snipe the ones coming over the fortress one by one.”

After a moment of thought, Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“In one hour, Gang Ryang and Jin Yang will attack the Spirit Gu. After that, Senior, please observe the situation and join the fight if you think the enemies are crossing into the fortress or if the two are in danger.”

“I will do so.”

“Currently, the Cheonggeom Bureau informants have found the code left by Miss Ji. Considering the location of the Spirit Gu, they must have been ordered to eliminate anyone who might be chasing Miss Ji. In other words, Miss Ji is not currently with the Spirit Gu.”

Gang Ryang’s face was filled with worry. Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face, who was speaking quickly, was as pale as Ha Eun-Gyo’s.

Yeon Ho-Jeong continued.

“The strongest expert will be by Miss Ji’s side. It is possible that the most senior of the Spirit Gu, or even a ‘Demon King’-level expert, is with her. If that’s the case, this fight will be quite difficult.”

“……”

“The side that finishes the fight first will join the other. The underworld network in Pyeongyo is currently operating at full capacity, so there shouldn’t be any major problems finding each other even if we are far apart.”

It was then.

“Brother!”

“What is it?”

As he was speaking, Yeon Ho-Jeong suddenly felt his philtrum getting wet.

‘Oh no!’

Blood was streaming from his nose.

His senses were not normal. He should have noticed as soon as the nosebleed started, but he could only feel the blood flowing after recognizing the situation.

It was a side effect of using too much Divine King Energy. His divine energy was not normal, and his upper dantian was shaking, causing problems with his five senses.

‘Damn it.’

The right thing to do in this situation was to rest. He needed to sleep for a long time or purify his mind and body by circulating his energy while lying down to fix his upper dantian.

‘It’s a mountain of troubles. My body was in better condition during the war at the Imperial Palace.’

The Yellow Dragon Energy was writhing uneasily. It was worried about its master’s body.

‘I need to seal the Mad Dragon.’

The Mad Dragon Art was a miraculous martial art that could control its power with willpower. In this state, with his upper dantian devastated, he could not exert its proper power.

He was in a situation not much different from Ha Eun-Gyo.

Wiping the blood from his nose with his sleeve and stopping the bleeding by pressing on his acupoints, Yeon Ho-Jeong cleared his throat and said,

“Let’s move right now. I’ll contact Cheonggeom through an informant, so the two of you should get the information right away and find the Spirit Gu.”

Gang Ryang, who was about to say something, closed his mouth and nodded.

Jin Yang said as if throwing it away.

“Don’t die.”

“You take care of yourself, you bastard.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked at Ha Eun-Gyo.

Ha Eun-Gyo had nothing to say. Knowing that Yeon Ho-Jeong’s condition was as bad as her own, she couldn’t tell him to rest because of Ji So-Hyun, and the current situation was so cursed.

“Senior.”

“Ho-Jeong.”

“Don’t overdo it.”

“You be careful too.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong took a deep breath. For a moment, his vision was dizzy, but he didn’t show it to the group.

“Well, then, I’ll move first.”

With that, the group split into two.

* * *

Surprisingly, the place where he moved with the informant was where the head of the Cheonggeom Bureau, the Clear Water Sword, Wi Eon, was.

“I greet the Black Emperor Lord. I am Wi Eon, in charge of the Cheonggeom Bureau.”

Despite being nearly fifty years old, he was a swordsman with a sturdy body and clear eyes. It was clear that he had not missed a single day of martial arts and mental training.

“I am Yeon Ho-Jeong. It’s nice to meet you.”

In terms of age, he was much younger, but he was the leader of the Black Alliance. It wouldn’t be strange if he spoke down to him.

Wi Eon spoke quickly.

“The situation is urgent, so let’s talk as we go.”

“Let’s do that.”

Whoosh!

The two of them started running, leaving the informant behind.

The two ran along the forest outside the western wall of Pyeongyo.

“So far, a total of two codes have been found. If even one more is found, we will be able to know for sure where the disciple of the Yin Emperor is moving, but as of now, it is ambiguous.”

“It’s alright.”

It was enough to get a rough direction of movement. His upper dantian was in this state, so he couldn’t exert the same senses as before, but even so, his current senses were above that of a supreme master.

“It would be good to aim for the direction of Munsu and Gyoseong for now.”

“Is there a reason?”

“The fact that Miss Ji So-Hyun left codes twice in a short period of time means that she rested again in a place not far away. In other words, the kidnapper is currently…”

“Re-identifying the route of movement.”

“That’s correct. There are far more people in the direction of Taegeuk and Jinjung than in Pyeongyo. This is because it is the direct route to Shanxi Taiyuan, the capital, and thanks to that, the terrain is also well maintained.”

“What about Munsu and Gyoseong?”

“That place is also a road leading to Taiyuan, but the waterways and mountains in the area are more rugged. From the kidnapper’s point of view, it would be advantageous to take that route.”

There was a time to use the ‘hiding in plain sight’ strategy.

They could naturally blend in with the crowd and move, but since they had kidnapped someone, it was a method they should never choose. If Ji So-Hyun was unconscious, she would be viewed with suspicion, and if she was not unconscious, she would shout loudly to let people know she had been kidnapped.

They could block her acupoints, but it would be difficult to eliminate the awkward atmosphere between the kidnapper and the victim.

In the end, they had no choice but to take the rough road.

“I heard that the skills of the strange men wearing bamboo hats are amazing. Their current location is to cut off any pursuers, so they will definitely head to Taiyuan.”

“I agree.”

“There are informants from the Bureau scattered around Gyoseong. I will guide you up to that point, and just in case, we will check other routes.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. She is the disciple of the Yin Emperor, not just anyone. Shouldn’t we save her for the sake of the world?”

He was a righteous person to the bone. Yeon Ho-Jeong liked Wi Eon.

Whoosh!

Surprisingly, Wi Eon’s movement technique was not much inferior to Yeon Ho-Jeong’s.

Having such skills, he must have intervened directly in this situation. It was to facilitate the sharing of information with his fast movement technique.

In that way, the two of them quickly passed Munsu.

“If we go a little further…”

It was then.

“Quiet.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong immediately stopped his movement technique.

Wi Eon, who had quickly stopped, turned to look at him.

“What…?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had put his index finger to his lips, looked around.

Splash!

The sound of water could be heard from afar.

It was the sound of a river. But Yeon Ho-Jeong felt a strange aura that even erased the sound of the majestic river.

Yeon Ho-Jeong quietly raised his Yellow Dragon Energy.

When his whole body was filled with Yellow Dragon Energy, his senses, which had been a little blurry, quickly sharpened.

‘I definitely felt it.’

An alien energy completely different from the martial arts of the Central Plains.

A unique evil energy that could only be emitted by a different kind of evil art from outside the Central Plains, not the evil martial arts of the Central Plains.

‘Where is it?’

The Mad Dragon Armor trembled faintly.

‘Where is it?!’

It was then.

Flash!

A faint evil energy was caught by his senses. He had caught it by pouring even the small amount of divine energy in his devastated upper dantian.

‘Found it!’

Whoosh!

The Thousand Miles Cloud Flight [a high-level movement technique], which had been stretched to its limit, instantly moved Yeon Ho-Jeong’s body over the river.

Wi Eon, who was about to follow him without realizing it, doubted his eyes for a moment.

Swish swish swish!

Yeon Ho-Jeong was running across the river.

It was a miraculous feat of lightness skill, running on water. One of the highest levels of lightness skill, the Water Surface Flight, had manifested.

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who was carrying an axe weighing over eighty pounds, was running across the river so naturally.

‘Is it there?’

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had pinpointed the source of the evil energy, increased his speed.

‘I’ve got the direction, but I don’t know the exact location.’

At that moment, Yeon Ho-Jeong used his wit.

Whoosh!

The Yellow Dragon Energy emitted a murderous aura full of malice.

In an instant, an astonished evil energy surged from the forest on the right. It was an instinctive reaction.

‘There!’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s feet burst into flames.

Whoosh!

At the same time, the surrounding bushes began to move in a straight line.