Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1271

Then, Gi Cheon-Woong’s mouth opened.

“It’s been a while.”

Gi Woo-Hee paused.

But only for a moment.

“Yes, it has.”

Gi Cheon-Woong still didn’t turn around. He couldn’t face her with a smile.

At this moment, he thought of Tang Gwan.

‘Didn’t they say that he and his father hadn’t seen each other for twenty years?’

When he was resting at the Tang family after the Sichuan battle, he had overheard some of the Tang family members talking.

He didn’t know the details, but he heard that the two fathers had reconciled only when Sichuan was in chaos due to the schemes of the Blood Demon Sect and the family was about to fall into the hands of the enemy.

And Tang Hyeong had fought against the Blood Demon Sect leader for his son and family, for Sichuan, and had died.

Although he hadn’t seen it himself, he could tell how sad Tang Gwan must have been, even if only half of what he heard was true.

‘He lived for twenty years without seeing his father, whom he loved so much. I heard it was because of pride, but it couldn’t have been just pride.’

Gi Cheon-Woong knew. He had to know.

Because his feelings towards his daughter now were similar to that. Even Tang Gwan, who had a bad relationship with his own daughter, had finally reconciled with her in the Martial Alliance and returned to a normal father-daughter relationship.

‘That man, who had lived at odds with his adoptive parents and his own child, has now changed so much that he sheds tears for his parents and hands over the family to his daughter.’

What on earth had happened to make him change so much?

The Tang Gwan he had met was a man with more pride and determination than anyone he had ever seen. In a way, he was also a narrow-minded person.

Yet, he had accepted his estranged father and daughter. He didn’t know if he had apologized, but even such a stubborn person knew the value of his own flesh and blood.

Then what about himself?

Were guilt and shame, pride and fear, greater than his affection for his daughter?

Am I the leader of the Divine Flame Church now, or Gi Cheon-Woong? Am I a father, or a tyrant who abandoned his daughter?

Who am I, really?

“I will be going now.”

“……”

“The fighting is very intense. Please don’t get hurt.”

Those were the words he managed to utter after hesitating and fumbling.

Gi Cheon-Woong closed his eyes.

Gi Woo-Hee bowed her head.

“Then…”

“I heard your skills are so great that they shake the continent.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m talking about your medical skills.”

“Ah… yes.”

Gi Woo-Hee was flustered. Normally, she would have denied it with modesty, but the praise was so sudden that she couldn’t even do that.

Then, for the first time, Gi Cheon-Woong turned his head and looked at Gi Woo-Hee.

In that instant, Gi Woo-Hee’s eyes trembled.

Just making eye contact was enough to bring tears to her eyes. Even with such a large and solid upper dantian [energy center], she couldn’t stop the emotions that made her heart ache.

“You’ve grown up so well, even though I couldn’t take care of you.”

“……!”

“You’ve suffered a lot because of your incompetent father.”

In the end, Gi Woo-Hee couldn’t hold back her tears.

Gi Cheon-Woong’s face also became sad.

His daughter was crying, unable to control her emotions at just the words that she had suffered. He regretted hesitating to say even a single word to such a child, because he was ashamed and didn’t want to be a hypocrite.

His worries were gone, and words began to flow out.

“What can I say to you? It’s too late to say sorry after so many years of neglect, and it’s not right to say thank you for growing up well when I haven’t cared about my own flesh and blood. No matter what I say, it will only hurt you.”

“Father.”

“As an incompetent father, even standing before you makes my legs tremble and my heart ache as if stabbed by a knife. My guilt is as deep as the sea, and I can’t even lift my head in shame, but still, I’m happy to see my daughter again, so there’s no greater hypocrite than me.”

Gi Woo-Hee shook her head without answering. Her mouth wouldn’t open easily.

A sigh escaped from Gi Cheon-Woong’s lips.

“After entering the continent, I could have come to see you anytime. But I didn’t look for you. It’s an excuse to say that there were too many pressing tasks, as there was also quite a lot of time.”

“……”

“In the end, I was afraid to meet you.”

It wasn’t easy for a parent to say that they were afraid to meet their child.

If it wasn’t sincere, he couldn’t have said such words. Just those words alone made Gi Woo-Hee feel her fear and resentment towards her father vanish in an instant.

There was no need for grand words or actions. What moves a person’s heart is a single sincere word. It becomes closer to the truth as the relationship deepens.

Although they hadn’t cared about each other for a long time, there was no closer relationship than one bound by blood. This was why Gi Woo-Hee couldn’t answer and cried at Gi Cheon-Woong’s sincere words.

Of course, it was also because Gi Woo-Hee’s nature was pure and kind.

“Seeing you like this, I regret again why I didn’t come sooner. Even if you don’t forgive your father, I should have come to see you before anyone else.”

“No, it’s not like that.”

“I don’t know how much time I have left. But when this battle is over, I will come to see you again.”

“……”

“This promise, which I’m making for the first time in my life, I will keep it even if my body is shattered.”

These words were filled with affection and apology for his daughter, the urgency to get her out of the dangerous area, and the desire to see her a little longer even in such a situation.

Gi Woo-Hee, who had wiped away her tears, looked at Gi Cheon-Woong.

There, she saw the face of her daughter, who had grown into an adult with a firm gaze, neither smiling nor sad.

“It doesn’t seem like the right place to have a reunion with my father. There are many people waiting for me, so I think I should leave now.”

“Yes, you should.”

“Please don’t get hurt. Never overdo it. Even if you come back injured, I will definitely treat you.”

Gi Cheon-Woong smiled.

“Thank you for saying that.”

“Then, I’ll go first.”

Gi Woo-Hee turned around and hurried towards the place where the doctors had retreated.

The smile disappeared from Gi Cheon-Woong’s face as he watched his daughter’s back.

‘She’s grown up so reliably.’

He had wondered what she would look like. But he didn’t know she would have grown into such a dependable adult.

That’s why he felt more regretful, proud, and sorry.

‘I came to the continent with everything on the line. But seeing you like this, I selfishly want to live for another ten or twenty years.’

Gi Cheon-Woong forced himself to turn his head. If he kept looking at his daughter’s receding figure, he felt like he would follow her without realizing it.

He had finally met his daughter, whom he had not seen for a long time and had wanted to meet.

Now, it was time to move towards another child, who was clear in his memory and whom he had to meet.

Flash!

Blue flames surged in Gi Cheon-Woong’s eyes.

With Ya Heon’s head crushed, the power of the Three-Stage Explosive Flame Art had been reduced to less than half. Furthermore, he had temporarily recovered his stamina by absorbing Ya Heon’s pure fire energy.

‘I will settle this battle with my own hands.’

Gi Cheon-Woong ran towards the battlefield.

And ten miles away on a mountain path.

Guma Ha, the general of the thousand troops who had crossed over to the continent with Gi Cheon-Woong, met with Chal Geuk-Pyeong and began their march.

* * *

“What kind of crazy bastard is this… !”

Kwaaaang!

Cheol Mok-Hu’s face contorted as he blocked the descending blade.

It was fortunate that he had blocked it with his internal energy first and retreated using a momentary gap. If he had just pushed through with force, his head would have been cut off.

“Is that all you’ve got!”

Hwaaaak!

It was an incredible spirit.

His complexion was pale, and blood was pouring from his nose and mouth. Yet, the aura of a tyrant was rising from Jongli Baek’s body as he wielded the Tyrant Blade and advanced.

Chiririring!

Namgoong Seung, who was slaughtering the cavalrymen while moving left and right of Cheol Mok-Hu, shouted.

“Jongli Musang! Fall back! Now!”

“Euhahahaha!!”

He didn’t listen to Namgoong Seung’s words.

No, it seemed like he couldn’t even hear them. His figure, chasing after Cheol Mok-Hu with a resilient footwork and wielding the Tyrant Blade horizontally and vertically, was like watching the history of a matchless warrior.

“Master!”

O Gu-Mun, terrified, also chased after Jongli Baek.

Kwaaaang!!

With an explosion, the surroundings became a sea of fire.

Cheol Mok-Hu’s Scorching Yang Energy was formidable, but the attacks of the Divine Flame Church members, who were charging in from the side at an angle, were also formidable. It seemed they no longer felt the need to use fire energy, as they were advancing while wielding various fists and weapons, and that alone was a great threat.

O Gu-Mun gritted his teeth and swung his sword.

Peobeobeok! Jjeojeojeojeong!

Three wrists were cut off, and five weapons were broken.

It was a martial art that was growing rapidly through combat. He had not yet reached the level of his master, but his fully bloomed talent was showing the world that he too would become a great warrior no less than his master in the future.

But for O Gu-Mun, such a fact was meaningless.

“Master!!”

Peopeopeong!

There was a limit to overwhelming an opponent with spirit alone.

Cheol Mok-Hu’s fist, which had finally broken through the Tyrant Blade, struck Jongli Baek’s chest. Jongli Baek spat out blood and flew backward.

Kwadeudeuk!

Even in that situation, he planted the Tyrant Blade into the ground to control his speed.

Cheol Mok-Hu’s face hardened at the actions of the tenacious old warrior.

‘What the hell.’

Jongli Baek’s face, which was smiling, was clearly that of a person facing death.

Yet, his spirit did not falter. No, rather, his killing intent grew stronger and his presence became more immense as time passed.

It was the true spirit of a swordsman who was determined to do his part in this place, on this battlefield.

‘He’s completely insane. The fire energy has already penetrated his meridians, and he’s ignoring it to fight.’

Kwang!

Jongli Baek charged forward, kicking off the ground.

By now, three arrows were embedded in his body.

He was not someone who would be defeated by the arrows of mere cavalrymen. It was proof that the internal energy that controlled his entire body was being cut off, yet the sword he wielded was filled with the strength of ten thousand pounds.

Kwaaaang!!

Five cavalrymen spat out blood and collapsed from the earth-shattering blow.

He had knocked down the cavalrymen with just the shockwave, not a direct hit. It was a monstrous force, and the vanguard of the cavalry unit, which was stained with madness, began to falter.

They were feeling fear at Jongli Baek’s power.

‘This won’t do.’

Perhaps it was fortunate that the old swordsman wasn’t interfering.

But that wasn’t necessarily a good thing when looking at the overall situation.

The old swordsman was only targeting the cavalrymen and the cultists to widen the distance with the retreating troops. If he wasn’t careful, he would lose the fish he had already caught.

‘Damn it! Why isn’t the support coming?!’

Far in the rear were the new leader, the Fire King, and the former master, Red Dragon.

If only one of them joined the battle, the fight wouldn’t be this difficult.

‘Are they trying to test me? Even though the battlefield is in this state!’

Cheol Mok-Hu bit his lip.

‘They’re so carefree…’

It was then.

Hwaaaak!!

A tremendous wind blew from the south.

Everyone who felt the wind froze. They instinctively realized that this wind was not just an ordinary wind.

Buaaaang!!

There was someone tearing through the air like a gale.

A man with a huge axe on his shoulder, running as if he was flying.

“Rearrange the ranks!!”

The voice that echoed so loudly was so powerful that everyone within fifty yards had to cover their ears.

“There will be no more retreat! You didn’t come here to be protected! Charge!”

The incredibly loud voice was filled with passion and trust that strongly captivated the hearts of those who heard it.

The master of the Black Emperor Fortress, the Black and White Supreme Yeon Ho-Jeong, had finally entered the battlefield.

“I will be with you! Advance!”

Uwaaaaaa!!

With a powerful shout, the Martial Alliance troops, as if possessed, ran forward with shining eyes.