Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1270

Ya Heon’s face contorted in a grimace.

“You have a nasty way of talking. Well, a woman should have some bite to her.”

It would have been easier if he had just gotten angry. In the past, she might have thought it was a good sign that the enemy was careless.

But now she knew better.

True masters only pretend to be careless; they never show any real openings.

And this Golden Thread Ya Heon was a true master. Not just because he had reached a high level of martial skill, but because he was known as the most combative and destructive master under the previous church leader, her grandfather.

‘So that’s why he followed me all the way here. Because he can fight. I never thought he’d still be alive.’

The masters of the Divine Flame Church either retire when they get old, die from upper dantian runaway [a dangerous condition caused by uncontrolled energy flow], or become useless after passing on their fire essence to their successors.

The man who had completely rejected that tradition was now standing before Gi Woo-Hee.

“Did any other former masters come besides you?”

He wasn’t being careless, but it seemed he thought of this as a game. Ya Heon answered honestly.

“Yes, do you remember Go Ma-Han (孤馬恨)?”

Gi Woo-Hee gritted her teeth.

‘Red Dragon Go Ma-Han.’

If Golden Thread Ya Heon was the most crazed master of that era, Red Dragon Go Ma-Han was considered the most ruthless.

Golden Thread and Red Dragon, despite having completely opposite personalities, strangely got along well. For those two to still be alive, and to be participating in the war against her brother, it was a disaster of disasters.

Ya Heon smiled slyly.

“Well, there’s no need to think about anyone else. The air of the battlefield has me all fired up after so long. From now on, your life belongs to this Golden Thread.”

“I’m sorry, but that won’t happen.”

Gi Woo-Hee’s foot pushed off the ground.

Swoosh!

With the sound of a string snapping, her figure shot towards the south.

Ya Heon’s eyes sparkled.

“Not bad!”

Whoosh!

With a tremendous sonic boom, Ya Heon instantly closed the distance to Gi Woo-Hee.

She had the Immovable King Divine Art, a powerful upper dantian, and the Wudang Secret Yin Divine Art for balance, but in front of Ya Heon, she was like a skilled child.

Gi Woo-Hee felt the world darkening. A huge shadow was covering her body.

“Be a good girl and get caught by this old man…”

At that moment, Gi Woo-Hee, who had folded her arm and extended it towards her opposite armpit, pressed the firing pin of a small cylinder.

Bang bang bang bang!!

With an explosion, countless needles poured out.

The distance was too close to dodge or block. Ya Heon’s eyes widened.

Thwack thwack thwack!

Dozens of needles pierced Ya Heon’s body.

‘Success!’

It was the Medical Dragon Poison Needles, a self-defense hidden weapon developed by the Martial Alliance, inspired by the Sichuan Tang Clan’s Rain of Pear Blossoms Needles [a famous hidden weapon technique].

It was one of the self-defense weapons carried by the leaders of the Medical Immortal Pavilion. The needles inside were coated with different drugs and poisons, each with its own effect.

On their own, they were harmless to the human body, but if even five of them pierced the body, a synergistic effect would create a potent poison within. Even a supreme master could die from poisoning if hit. It was a synthetic poison developed by the Medical Immortal Pavilion.

Thwack thwack thwack!

Gi Woo-Hee, who had quickly retreated a few steps, turned around.

Her eyes widened in that instant.

Grab!

Ya Heon, who had already closed the distance, grabbed her by the collar.

“You’re doing some pretty cute things.”

Ya Heon wore a cruel smile.

There was no sign of poisoning. He had taken more than half of the Medical Dragon Poison Needles, yet there wasn’t even a trace of any abnormal symptoms.

‘How?’

That’s when it happened.

Fshhhhh!

The needles that had pierced his body all became limp and fell to the ground. A hazy smoke rose from the wounds.

“You’re definitely not one of our church members. Don’t you know that our church’s Scorching Yang Art is the best in the world, the strongest yang-based martial art that can burn away any poison?”

Gi Woo-Hee’s wavering eyes quickly regained their original light.

“That can’t be.”

“…I don’t know about anything else, but that attitude is quite strange. At this point, you should be scared or angry, or have some kind of reaction, but what are you relying on to be so relaxed?”

“It’s not relaxation, it’s resignation.”

“Hahaha! Resignation? That’s good too. If you satisfy me, you can live the rest of your life comfortably as my concubine.”

“I’d rather die.”

Ya Heon, who had been laughing heartily, suddenly became cold.

Gi Woo-Hee felt a chill in her heart. He would laugh like a madman, then become serious, smile slyly, then get angry like a ghost.

His personality was unpredictable. Before any outside evaluation, Ya Heon, as an enemy, was a person she never wanted to see, even in her dreams.

“I’ve changed my mind. I should get permission from the young church leader first, but… since you’re a spoil of war anyway, what does it matter when I take you?”

The corners of Ya Heon’s mouth curled upwards. It was an expression that belied his nickname, the Golden Lion.

“Let’s enjoy ourselves right here.”

That’s when it happened.

Flash!

Deep green light emanated from Gi Woo-Hee’s eyes.

Ya Heon, who was about to tear her clothes off, froze.

“Let go.”

“…?!”

“Let go of this hand.”

Whoooooooom!!

Her voice drowned out the screams of the battlefield, the sounds of swords and spears, and the pounding of hooves on the earth.

Ya Heon’s ears were filled only with Gi Woo-Hee’s voice. Her beautiful yet dignified voice echoed endlessly, like an explosion in a confined space, tightening around his head.

“Let go!”

The veins on Ya Heon’s forehead bulged.

Fshhhhh!

A hazy shimmer rose from his body.

It was the Saintess’s command, directly attacking his upper dantian. To block that terrifying spiritual power, he was drawing out the full power of the Golden Thread Divine Art.

‘What is this?’

He opened his divine art to activate his upper dantian and tried to break free from the command.

But surprisingly, it didn’t work. He was still holding her by the collar, but he wanted to let go and retreat immediately.

It wasn’t because he was afraid of his opponent.

It was just that he felt like he had to. For no reason, he felt like he had to obey her words. It was an incomprehensible phenomenon.

Whoooooooom!!

Golden flames surged from Ya Heon’s body.

The Golden Thread Divine Art was created by incorporating his own enlightenment into the Divine Flame Church’s Golden Purification Art. Since its foundation was the Golden Purification Art, the true energy it emitted contained terrifying heat.

Fshhhhh!

Gi Woo-Hee gritted her teeth.

She was blocking the heat with the Yin Divine Art, but the heat that was slowly penetrating was causing her excruciating pain. It felt like her whole body would burn away at any moment.

She shouted in a stronger voice.

“Didn’t I tell you to let go!”

Clang!

Would this be the sound of a spoon hitting a brass bowl?

At the sound that momentarily stunned him, Ya Heon’s right hand opened on its own.

At that moment, a look of relief appeared on Gi Woo-Hee’s face.

Wham!

With an explosion, her body flew more than ten yards away.

“Cough!”

Her already pale skin turned as white as paper.

The amount of blood she coughed up from her nose and mouth was considerable. The power that had turned her whole body’s energy flow upside down was truly terrifying.

“You… you damned witch!”

Ya Heon staggered, holding his head with his left hand while his right hand was still outstretched.

The Divine Flame Church’s holy power, the supreme spiritual power that could only be obtained through bloodline, had dealt a great blow to his mind.

In fact, if his training had been proper, it would have been impossible for Gi Woo-Hee’s still immature holy power to do this. He had gained immense power through physical training and desire, but his mental training was lacking, so he was struck by the command that was given with all her might.

“You’re a dangerous woman! If I take a woman like you, my body won’t be able to handle it!”

Whoooooooom!

As he unleashed the Golden Thread Divine Art to its limit, it felt like the whole world was covered in flames.

“I’ll kill you!”

His growling figure was truly like a giant lion.

Gi Woo-Hee, who had tried to get up but fell again, gradually felt the heat rising from her toes.

‘This is the end.’

As her upper dantian sensed the danger, she unconsciously defended herself with the Yin Divine Art and the Twenty-Eight Yin Techniques.

If she hadn’t, she would have surely died. Even now, her whole body’s energy flow was in turmoil, she had suffered severe internal injuries, and she had twisted her ankle, making it impossible to get up.

‘This is the Limitless Hand…’

He hadn’t even used his full power, he had just swung his hand with true energy, and yet it was this powerful.

Gi Woo-Hee closed her eyes.

‘Well, this kind of end isn’t so bad.’

It was ten thousand times better to die cleanly than to become the plaything of such a madman.

‘I have many regrets in my life… but I’ve met good people and lived diligently until now.’

She accepted death calmly.

Ya Heon, towards her who had given up everything, roared and swung his palm.

Whoosh!

With an explosion, a golden fireball flew towards her. It was a super-hot flame that seemed like it could melt even solid rock in an instant.

‘I’m sorry, Alliance Leader.’

That’s when it happened.

Whoosh!

With a strange sound, the heat that had been spreading throughout her body disappeared in an instant.

“…?”

As the heat disappeared, a cold wind swept through the area.

Gi Woo-Hee slowly opened her eyes at the sudden change in temperature.

And at that moment, she could see.

The back of someone standing in front of her.

He was a very tall man. His mountain-like, broad back was covered with golden hair that was free of any blemishes, swaying gently.

His clothes looked a bit baggy. They seemed to be from the Central Plains, but also from beyond the borders.

His bare white feet were neither dirty nor injured. His hands were also just as white.

Just like her own skin.

Whoooooooom!

The wind rising from the man’s feet conveyed a subtle warmth.

It wasn’t the rough heat that Ya Heon had been emitting. It was hot, but also warm. It was a strange heat that added a subtle warmth to the cold ground, accompanying the wind.

Swoosh.

Gi Woo-Hee, who had been staring blankly at the man’s back, turned around at the sudden feeling of someone’s presence.

Her eyes widened as if they would tear.

“Gasp! Lord Seongju?!”

The impression of a scholar was now much fainter.

A sharper impression, a face that had changed from countless battles, housed a fighting god blessed by the golden dragon. The huge axe on his shoulder looked even bigger than before, and the aura that emanated from him was truly awe-inspiring, as if a god had descended.

“It’s been a while, Gi Woo-Hee.”

“H-How did you get here…?”

“Even though your upper dantian has been trained so much, you didn’t know about my and the Church Leader’s arrival?”

“Huh?!”

“As expected, you’re still lacking. That power of yours is not something to be wasted or left to rot. I hope you will work hard in the future to use it properly.”

As always, he pointed out her shortcomings and reprimanded her.

But she was more surprised by the word ‘Church Leader’ than by his appearance and reprimand.

‘Then…?!’

Gi Woo-Hee’s gaze turned back to the man with golden hair.

At that moment, the man spoke.

“Golden Thread.”

His voice, which was low and heavy, was filled with suffocating anger.

“You dare to defile my daughter with your ugly eyes and tongue.”

Gi Woo-Hee’s mouth dropped open.

Whoooooosh!!

In an instant, a huge gust of wind rose, and crimson flames erupted from the man, Gi Cheon-Woong’s body.

His bloodshot eyes and murderous intent made him a god of fire, the most furious he had ever been since coming to the Central Plains.