Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1215

The Path of Evil (7)

Ya Yul-Daeguk, glancing back several times, finally picked up speed as he widened the distance.

He was indeed fast. The formless energy captured by the Yellow Dragon’s Divine Eye made it seem as if Ya Yul-Daeguk had a pair of wings on both his feet and back.

‘He’s a peculiar one.’

More than peculiar, he was remarkable.

There are many geniuses in the world. Some are born with a natural talent for martial arts, others are literary prodigies, and still others are masters in the art of brewing, leaving others in awe.

However, it’s rare to find someone like him, who has achieved a high level of enlightenment in both sorcery and martial arts. Even if you searched the entire world, you’d be hard-pressed to find more than five such individuals.

‘Indeed, there was a reason why that madman favored him so much.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s gaze darkened.

‘But why didn’t he use such power before?’

In the past, during the war before his regression, he had no memory of seeing someone like him.

If he were from the Blood Demon Sect or the Divine Transformation Sect, it would be understandable. After all, he had little contact with them.

However, the forces of the Evil Sound Sect had clearly advanced into the Central Plains martial world, and Yeon Ho-Jeong had been at the forefront of the war against them, engaging in countless battles.

He knew almost everything about the Evil Sound Sect. Naturally, he had a grasp of the sect’s experts as well.

Among them, there was no one called Ya Yul-Daeguk, the Evil Sound Emperor.

Despite his youthful appearance, he must have lived for at least sixty years. Given his genius and the Evil Sound Sect’s unwavering support, it was no wonder he had become so strong.

‘The war back then happened much later than now. He would have been well over seventy, but that’s not an age where he would die of natural causes.’

Considering the ages of Mu Heo and Tak Mu-Ja, it was unlikely that someone who had reached the pinnacle would die of natural causes just because they were over seventy. Of course, everyone has a predetermined lifespan, but reaching the peak of inner energy was known to extend one’s natural lifespan.

No matter how he thought about it, Ya Yul-Daeguk’s existence was inexplicable. If he were the Evil Sound Sect Leader, he would have deployed him in decisive battles, even if not frequently, to change the course of the war.

‘Whatever the case… I need to focus on my own task now.’

It was then.

Trickle.

Blood dripped from Yeon Ho-Jeong’s nose.

Even the mystical power of the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art couldn’t eliminate his fatigue. The moment he took another step, a sense of helplessness washed over him, as if all the joints in his body were about to crumble.

Puff.

When he stepped on a pebble, it instantly turned into dust.

‘It’s about time…’

Ya Yul-Daeguk was far enough away.

At that moment, Yeon Ho-Jeong realized. He could faintly sense Ya Yul-Daeguk’s presence, but Ya Yul-Daeguk couldn’t sense his.

The difference in their levels was reflected in the difference in their senses.

Swoosh.

The Yellow Dragon Divine King Art was pushed to its limit.

Whoosh!

Even as he pushed off the ground, there was no characteristic sound of elasticity.

Yeon Ho-Jeong moved without a presence, like a ghost.

If Sama Hyeon were to see this, he would be astonished.

A technique that not only reduced one’s presence but eliminated it entirely, a method that was similar to the assassin techniques Sama Hyeon had trained in. Yeon Ho-Jeong was also using Sama Hyeon’s stealth technique, which allowed him to approach within striking distance without being detected by even a master of the pinnacle.

Of course, there was a difference. Sama Hyeon had learned such martial arts from the beginning, so even if his body was exhausted from extreme internal injuries, he could use it whenever necessary.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was different. Even a master of the pinnacle could not overcome the differences in the martial arts they had learned. The Yellow Dragon Divine King Art, the pinnacle of martial arts, was merely a guide to ultimate enlightenment, not an assassination technique.

The moment he relaxed his tension, the technique of reducing his presence would break. Moreover, in a situation where he was feeling such extreme fatigue, it was not strange for the technique to break at any moment.

‘It’s hard.’

The speed at which he was traversing the mountains and rivers was considerable.

It was about half the speed he would achieve when openly using the Heavenly Thousand Miles Flight. That alone was fast enough, and since he had to maintain stealth while running, it was mentally exhausting, not to mention the strain on his inner energy.

‘Focus. The war isn’t over.’

His senses, which were normally sharp, seemed to be trying to reduce their sensitivity due to fatigue.

Barely managing to catch Ya Yul-Daeguk’s presence, Yeon Ho-Jeong thought about his martial arts. It seemed like that was the only way he could escape this fatigue.

‘The Heavenly Thousand Miles Flight is a peerless divine technique. However, it is only useful for those who have mastered the Yeon family’s martial arts, it doesn’t suit me.’

More precisely, it didn’t suit the ‘current’ Yeon Ho-Jeong.

He had firmly believed that he could never use the Mad Dragon Art with his bare hands. However, after fighting the Demon God Cheon Wi-Ryong, he had transcended his limits and was able to use it with his bare hands.

Even if it was still lacking, once he had broken through one limit, there was no reason why he couldn’t do the same with other martial arts.

To gain even a small increase in efficiency, change was necessary. That small amount would accumulate and become great. It was the same in any field.

‘Even my footwork has changed, so there’s no reason why my divine technique should be any different.’

It was the act of moving the body using two legs. There was a clear distinction, but at the same time, there wasn’t much difference.

‘A light footwork that suits me, a speed that suits me.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes sparkled.

He was indeed a born martial artist. As he focused his mind on martial arts to forget his fatigue, the fatigue that had been threatening to engulf his entire body gradually faded away.

‘Like this… no, is it like this?’

When he changed his movements based on the Yellow Dragon Footwork, his feet momentarily tangled.

He had been confident that he had reached a sufficiently high level, yet his feet were tangling over something so simple. Yeon Ho-Jeong felt ashamed, and soon discarded that shame.

Whether one had reached the pinnacle or just started learning martial arts, those who were undergoing a period of change would always be clumsy compared to their past selves. Whether their feet tangled or their hands tangled, trial and error was inevitable to embrace new changes.

‘The Yellow Dragon Footwork is based on the Dragon Form Seven Step and inspired by Cheon Wi-Ryong’s footwork.’

Twin Dragon Mad Demon Art.

That demonic art, which originated from the Five Colors Hell Art, had a footwork that suited it perfectly.

It was a martial art that a genius like Cheon Wi-Ryong had devoted decades to perfecting. Naturally, its perfection was extraordinary, and its connection to the demonic art was clear.

If that was the case, then the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art, which also originated from the Five Colors Hell Art, could also achieve something similar.

‘That divine technique.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong recalled Cheon Wi-Ryong’s divine technique.

It was a movement technique that utilized a power that was still difficult for the human brain to comprehend, the power of lightning.

The lightning power emanating from the soles of the feet, the Yongcheon acupoint [a pressure point on the sole of the foot], and the lightning power that roamed the ground were different in nature. If one had to categorize them, they would be considered opposing forces.

‘That’s it. That’s where it got faster.’

Opposing forces do not repel each other. Rather, lightning power of the same nature repels each other strongly.

However, such a movement technique created a powerful recoil, which put a great strain on the body. It might be okay to use it once or twice when necessary, but even a master of the pinnacle would find it difficult to use it as a basic light footwork.

‘The key wasn’t to push away. It was to attach.’

Because they were opposing forces, they attracted each other.

Cheon Wi-Ryong’s feet were naturally finding the next place to step. Because the act and the flow of demonic energy were so natural, the movement itself did not appear fast.

‘It just didn’t look fast, but in reality, it was extremely fast and natural.’

The movement that allowed the lightning power emanating from the Yongcheon acupoint to attach to the opposing lightning power laid on the ground.

No, it created a powerful attractive force that was bound to attach, increasing speed. That was why Cheon Wi-Ryong’s divine technique was fast, natural, and did not strain the body.

At the same time, it exerted a force that easily pushed away, even though it was trying to attach naturally.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

‘That’s the moment. The moment it touches the ground, the nature of the lightning power changes.’

Not from my body, but from the earth energy laid on the ground, amplify the magnetic force that will react with the lightning energy and draw it out.

There was a limit to what he could do with his own power alone. It was a new world of martial arts that allowed him to achieve extreme speed while reducing the strain on his body by synchronizing with the surrounding environment, leaving him with nothing but admiration.

‘It was something that was possible because it was Cheon Wi-Ryong. Because he actually manipulated lightning energy, he could choose to synchronize with or repel the lightning power that permeated the heavens and earth at will.’

Although it had the same origin as the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art, the power it possessed and wielded was vastly different.

However.

‘If the Mad Demon Art was possible, there’s no reason why the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art wouldn’t be.’

It wasn’t necessary to use lightning power. The important thing was not to use the same divine technique as Cheon Wi-Ryong, but to find the divine technique that best suited the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art.

Cheon Wi-Ryong used the lightning energy, a characteristic of the Mad Demon Art, to elevate the realm of light footwork to a different dimension.

Then what about himself?

‘The characteristic of the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art is…’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

‘To accept and pass through as it flows, it’s the wind.’

The wind permeates all the forces spread throughout nature.

A return to the extreme natural energy, not binding and fixing the energy, but naturally borrowing and releasing it repeatedly.

‘That’s it!’

Yeon Ho-Jeong exclaimed inwardly.

‘Why did I see the inner and outer as different? In the end, they are all melted into the framework of martial arts.’

Until now, he had focused on mixing different martial arts together. It was an amazing attempt, a genius idea, but now it had to change.

For him, who had properly entered the realm of the Yellow Dragon Divine King Art, martial arts should not be something to be mixed, but something that was naturally one from the beginning.

The goal was not to make it stronger by mixing it, but to find its original color. That was the level that Yeon Ho-Jeong had reached now.

‘In the end, everything is one…’

At that moment, the words of Seung Hyun-Jin, the former head of the Wudang Sect, came to mind.

The warm words of Seung Hyun-Jin, who had passed on the Wudang Tai Chi Fist and the secret teachings of Wonmu Shin for him, who was doing great things.

‘There is a saying that there is chaos before Tai Chi, but in the end, there is no difference between the two. What does that mean? Can we say that there is yin and yang within Tai Chi, and that yin and yang are lower concepts than Tai Chi? No. Yin and yang are also Tai Chi. Then the four symbols and the eight trigrams are all Tai Chi. The beginning of true enlightenment is to know that they were not branched out from one, but were originally all one. That is why Tai Chi Fist emphasizes the circle. The circle that encompasses everything, the principle of power, and the enlightenment of all things in the universe are all contained in that one movement.’

Although he had not reached the pinnacle of martial arts, he was more enlightened about the principles of the world than anyone else.

Even that Gong Gong, and even Tak Mu-Ja, had said that Seung Hyun-Jin was an extraordinary person. And it was true.

The enlightenment that Seung Hyun-Jin had given him, the light of that enlightenment that he had long forgotten, was surging into Yeon Ho-Jeong, borrowing the mountain range of Hubei Wudang.

‘Wind. I will let the impurities flow away in that golden wind.’

Chiiiiik!!

The enlightenment was instantaneous.

The moment he took a step forward, he crossed the air at a terrifying speed, as if he were not receiving any resistance from the air.

At the same time, the fatigue that had settled in his body, and the impurities that had accumulated without him knowing, were carried away by the wind and returned to the embrace of nature.

In that situation, which might have been a gesture of gratitude for protecting Wudang, or perhaps a consideration from Wonmu Shin.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes regained the pride of the Martial Emperor, full of his original spirit.

‘I will see the path to Yeong-Eum Mountain myself.’

Whoosh!

Without a sonic boom, just like the wind flowing.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s figure instantly crossed mountains and fields.