Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 1290

In war, especially amidst chaos, no general’s cry can quell the soldiers’ fervor. Not even the roar of a master who has cultivated inner energy can achieve that. However, now, Gi Cheon-ung’s shout pierced through the minds of both armies locked in fierce combat.

It wasn’t just the sheer power of his inner energy. Gi Cheon-ung’s voice was laden with a multitude of emotions: the grief of a father who had lost his son, the anguish of witnessing fellow cult members fighting to the death, and an unbridled rage. It compelled everyone who heard it to turn their heads involuntarily.

*Whoosh!*

Even the raging flames seemed to falter. Faint blue flames emanated from behind Gi Cheon-ung as he walked alone. He hadn’t fully assimilated Gi Woo-hwan’s Azure Flame Divine Energy [a unique form of inner energy].

Yet, the sight sent a strange shock through the onlookers. It was the figure of a giant striding forward, his golden hair fluttering. His perfectly sculpted muscles were exposed, his top having been torn off. His bare feet, which he had always kept covered, also looked extraordinary.

With blue flames swirling around him, he exuded an aura of majesty, as if a true deity had descended.

Gi Cheon-ung spoke, his face etched with sorrow.

“My son is dead.”

It was a shocking declaration.

If he had shouted it with a distorted face and an agitated voice, perhaps some would have scoffed. But everyone present intuitively felt the truth of it. Gi Woo-hwan was truly dead.

In the end, the traitor who had usurped the cult leader’s position was dead, and the rightful cult leader had reclaimed his place.

“The Divine Flame Guard and the Fire Dragon Guard, retreat for now.”

The Divine Flame Guard hesitated. They lived and died by orders. If the cult leader had changed, it meant the one giving orders had also changed. Even if individuals yearned for the past, as a unit, they did not violate the established system.

However, the situation was too complex for them to blindly follow Gi Cheon-ung’s words. Just because Gi Woo-hwan was dead, it wasn’t their place to decide whether to serve Gi Cheon-ung as the cult leader again.

But they couldn’t dismiss Gi Cheon-ung’s words either. After all, he was not someone who had officially relinquished the position of cult leader.

It was then, as the Divine Flame Guard wavered.

“Is it true that Cult Leader Gi Woo-hwan is dead?”

The voice of the Fire Dragon Guard Captain, who was fighting Yeon Ho-Jeong, was calm, which seemed out of place given the circumstances.

Gi Cheon-ung nodded.

“Yes, it is.”

“Then, who is the cult leader?”

Tension rose on everyone’s faces. The Fire Dragon Guard Captain’s words touched upon a sensitive matter.

Gi Cheon-ung’s eyes deepened.

“No one knows yet who the new cult leader will be.”

“……!”

“But… if you understand, I can become the temporary cult leader.”

He didn’t assert that he would, but that he could. In a way, it sounded weak, and in another way, it sounded arrogant.

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain’s eyes narrowed.

“As you know, in the absence of a cult leader, the temporary leader is decided under the authority of the Fire King and the Fire Dragon Guard Captain.”

“I know.”

“But there is no Fire King here.”

At that moment, Chal Geuk-pyeong shouted.

“Where did you learn to speak such nonsense! I am the Fire King! I, Chal Geuk-pyeong, am the first Fire King of the Divine Flame Cult!”

His loud voice was filled with pure anger. He had decided to side with Gi Cheon-ung, but he had not relinquished his position as Fire King.

That wasn’t all.

“It’s a bit awkward to say this in this situation…”

Oh Hwa-wang Cheol Heum-gi said with a bitter tone.

“I am also a Fire King, though I am lacking. I still don’t know what to do.”

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain nodded.

“The two of you have sided with a traitor who has unofficially left the cult. Therefore, it is right to call you traitors to the cult, but Cult Leader Gi Woo-hwan did not remove you from your positions as Fire Kings.”

Chal Geuk-pyeong raised his chin.

“Of course.”

“Even if you have not officially stepped down from your positions as Fire Kings, it is difficult to acknowledge your positions since you have sided with former Cult Leader Gi Cheon-ung. There is no guarantee that you will not make a biased decision.”

“Are you truly insane!”

Chal Geuk-pyeong was angrier than ever.

“That is not for you to judge! We are Fire Kings! Whether it’s biased or not, it’s not something you should say to those who have the authority to decide the temporary cult leader!”

“Is that so?”

“If you don’t like us, then fight us! We will never back down!”

“I am not afraid of fighting. What I fear is that the cult will be torn in two, and instead of regaining its past glory, it will perish without even becoming a common warlord.”

Chal Geuk-pyeong’s eyebrows twitched.

He was blinded by anger, but at the same time, he realized why the Fire Dragon Guard Captain had spoken those words.

‘He’s using his head.’

He wanted to make all the Divine Flame Cult members present aware of their authority.

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain continued.

“There is no one to become the cult leader right now. The reason is that Cult Leader Gi Woo-hwan never appointed a successor. In this situation, it seems reasonable for the former cult leader to take on the temporary position, but since he has a history of betraying the cult by fighting against the current cult leader, we cannot simply entrust it to him.”

“That’s wrong.”

Gi Cheon-ung’s voice was unwavering.

“I did not betray the cult.”

“…….”

“A cult leader betraying the cult is only when they plunge the cult into irreversible internal strife or oppress the cult members, causing irreparable damage to the cult.”

“…….”

“I was the cult leader. I was in a position where I had no need to betray the cult.”

Gi Cheon-ung closed his eyes.

“If you truly want to discuss traitors, bring those who joined hands with my son and tried to usurp the position of cult leader.”

That was the correct response.

Whether one is strong or weak, the person who became the cult leader without going through the proper succession process is the traitor.

They say success is revolution, and failure is treason? In the end, Gi Woo-hwan succeeded in seizing the position of cult leader, but if Gi Cheon-ung had not stepped down, that would not have been possible.

“As the cult leader, I crossed the continent to prevent the cult from splitting in two, along with a thousand cult members who followed me.”

“…….”

“I have no intention of talking about the authority of the cult leader now. Whatever the case, my son has newly ascended to the position of cult leader, so it would be ridiculous to discuss traitors any further.”

“…….”

“However, my son is dead, and I am alive. There is no successor yet, and the Divine Flame Cult is about to engage in a fight where they kill each other.”

Gi Cheon-ung opened his eyes again.

Unlike his face, which was filled with deep sorrow, his eyes were clear.

“I have lost the qualifications to be the cult leader. Therefore, I intend to take on the temporary position of cult leader until a capable new cult leader appears.”

“…….”

“At least in my generation, and in the next generation, I will make sure that the cult members of this cult do not split into factions and fight each other.”

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain said.

“Do the two Fire Kings agree to recommend former Cult Leader Gi Cheon-ung as the temporary cult leader?”

Chal Geuk-pyeong and Cheol Heum-gi answered in the affirmative.

“Then, only my decision remains.”

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain walked towards Gi Cheon-ung.

Gi Cheon-ung, who was looking at the Fire Dragon Guard Captain’s face with deep eyes, clenched his fist for a moment.

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain’s eyes, which had always been expressionless and indifferent, were now shaking with emotion and guilt.

Gi Cheon-ung gritted his teeth.

He was incredibly saddened that his own incompetence had made things so difficult for so many people.

*Thud!*

The Fire Dragon Guard Captain knelt on the spot.

“From this moment on, the Fire Dragon Guard pledges to dedicate their bodies and souls to the temporary cult leader.”

Then, all the Fire Dragon Guard members knelt.

“We greet the cult leader!”

The voices, full of loyalty, echoed across the battlefield.

Although there were only a hundred of them, their voices, filled with indescribable emotions, were more intense and explosive than any fire bomb.

Following them, the Divine Flame Guard Captain stepped forward.

“From this moment on, the Divine Flame Guard will end the battle and collect the bodies.”

He also knelt towards Gi Cheon-ung.

“This is the order of the Divine Flame Guard Captain, who has become the new flame of the temporary cult leader.”

“Understood!”

When even the Divine Flame Guard knelt, the Divine Flame Cult members who were waiting with fire bombs, and the thousand cult members who had entered the Central Plains with Gi Cheon-ung, all knelt.

“We greet the temporary cult leader!”

Even though it was a battlefield filled with the stench of blood, their appearance was magnificent.

Gi Cheon-ung looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had already put away the White Dragon Armor and had the Black Dragon Armor on his shoulder, smiled and nodded.

“From this moment on, the Black Path Martial Alliance will declare that it will establish friendly relations with the Divine Flame Cult. I promise this as the lord of the Black Emperor Castle of the Black Path Martial Alliance.”

Gi Cheon-ung smiled. It was a smile of gratitude.

Immediately, Namgoong Seung shouted.

“Martial Alliance forces, help the Divine Flame Cult members collect the bodies! The Shanxi War is over! They are no longer the enemy!”

“Waaaah!”

The Martial Alliance forces, who were exhausted from the hellish battle, shouted as loud as they could.

Thus, the Shanxi War ended without either side being annihilated.

* * *

Although the fighting was over, there was a mountain of things to sort out.

“Please kill me.”

Ammu Danju Heo Baek immediately knelt.

“I was inadequate and arrived late to the battlefield. I have committed a sin worthy of death.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong did not make a joke as usual.

“Get up.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong personally helped Heo Baek up and dusted off his shoulder.

“Who can punish you for working so hard across the Central Plains for a lacking lord? Just the fact that you came here safe and sound means you have done your job.”

Heo Baek lowered his head silently. But his eyes were shaking with emotion and apology.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s expression hardened.

“I would like to share a drink with you out of joy, but as you know, the situation is not good. The Shanxi War has ended like this, but Shaanxi and Jiangdong are also engulfed in war. Do you have any information about that?”

“Yes, I do.”

Heo Baek took out several letters from his chest.

“It would be better for you to see them yourself than for me to explain. This is information about Shaanxi.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong read the letters in an instant.

“As I thought…”

His eyes deepened.

“A reckless charge by a cavalry unit tainted with evil energy? Then… it means that their operation method was different from ours.”

“I couldn’t find out the exact details. However, since there were members of the Evil Sound Cult [a cult known for using sound-based martial arts and dark magic] there, I suspect that there was another aim besides seizing or destroying Shaanxi.”

“That’s probably right. Those guys have always used unimaginable tricks.”

In his previous life, the Evil Sound Cult had actually destroyed a village and then used blood and corpses to deploy a wide-area spell.

Because of that, countless people died. It was a horrific battle that still made him shudder just thinking about it.

“Still, it’s a relief. The Martial Alliance forces have headed to Shaanxi. And the Alliance Leader himself is leading them.”

“Yes. It seems best to leave Shaanxi to them for now.”

“Then, what about Jiangsu Province?”

“I couldn’t get proper information because of the distance.”

“…I see.”

“However, Shandong is strange.”

“Shandong?”

Heo Baek took out another letter from his chest and handed it to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed as he read the letter.