Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 200

Ga Deuk-Sang glanced at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was calmly drinking his tea.

“Third Brother.”

“Yes, speak.”

“I feel like I’m saying this too often, but… you’re really amazing.”

“Is that so?”

“Hah.”

Ga Deuk-Sang clicked his tongue and looked down at the center of the tavern’s first floor.

There, a dozen Blood Sparrow Gate warriors in blood-red uniforms were lying on the ground. Each of them had been struck by a hidden weapon, and they looked like they would be crippled if they didn’t see a doctor immediately.

And standing in front of them was Dang Sang-A.

Jeagal Ayeon swallowed hard.

“She’s really amazing.”

“Hmm?”

“I was too out of it when we arrived to notice, but her hidden weapon skills are incredible.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“She might lack some experience, but my martial sister is so skilled with hidden weapons that she can hit her target accurately at any time. Since hidden weapons are dangerous even to masters of equal skill, those guys are no match for her.”

“That’s true, but she’s incredibly fast, too?”

Jeagal Ayeon said, looking at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“Her speed is almost comparable to an arrow.”

The arrow she was referring to wasn’t just any arrow, but the arrows shot by Muk Bi.

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

“She’s not quite as fast as an arrow.”

“Really? They look almost the same to me.”

“That’s because you haven’t seen her shoot with full intent. Of course, the difference isn’t that big.”

“Heh.”

Jeagal Ayeon gaped at Dang Sang-A. In truth, both Muk Bi and Dang Sang-A were so outstanding in their ability to use projectile weapons that it seemed meaningless to try and determine who was superior.

They were simply amazing. They were people who clearly displayed a talent for martial arts that Jeagal Ayeon lacked. There were so many geniuses in the world.

Ga Deuk-Sang asked Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“Should we wait here a bit longer?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong looked down at the Blood Sparrow Gate warriors without answering.

Ga Deuk-Sang’s gaze slowly turned to Pae-Yul.

“…You? Martial Uncle?”

Pae-Yul looked at Ga Deuk-Sang with a dumbfounded expression.

“Are you asking me now?”

“Of course. You’re the oldest here.”

He was the oldest, but not the leader.

Pae-Yul sent a telepathic message to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

[What are you going to do?]

[We should wait a bit longer. We sent one of them away unharmed, so the real ones will come in less than half a day.]

Pae-Yul opened his mouth.

“We’ll wait for another half day.”

“Ah, yes.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s predictions were, once again, eerily accurate.

Bang!

The beginning was the same as with the Blood Sparrow Gate. The ones who burst in, roughly opening the door, were the masters of the Yama Chamber.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes sparkled.

‘They’re quite something.’

They were of a considerable level. Although they each held different weapons, more than half of them possessed first-rate martial arts skills.

There were also quite a few of them, about twenty, and their controlled movements, despite the murderous glint in their eyes, were impressive.

‘They’re good enough to be at the tail end of the Thirty-Six Sects [a group of influential martial arts sects].’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s judgment was accurate.

“It’s the Yama Chamber.”

Ga Deuk-Sang’s eyes flashed.

“They’re a sect that hasn’t been in the Thirty-Six Sects for long. They took the place of the Yin Evil Sect after it lost its power.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong chuckled.

‘The Yin Evil Sect, huh?’

The Yin Evil Sect was the first target the soldiers of the Myulsa Army [a military force] had faced in actual combat.

He was once again reminded of how weak the dark forces were. There were only a handful of sects with a long history, and hundreds of sects rose and fell every day.

‘Yang Cheon knows what he’s doing.’

What was the most important thing to focus on when gathering such a crude dark force?

It was law and history. They had to establish strict rules and laws, and punish anyone who broke them, regardless of the reason.

It was cruel and extreme, but it could produce definite results in the short term. And it was from the moment they became accustomed to that kind of life that they began to build a long history.

That was how the Black Emperor Castle was built, and it was also the method Yang Cheon used before the Black Emperor Castle even took shape.

‘But I don’t know if he came up with it himself, or if he received help from someone.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong rose from his seat.

Ga Deuk-Sang’s eyes showed a hint of doubt.

“Is Third Brother going to do it?”

“It’s a bit much to leave it to the youngest, and I can’t just let my martial sister do all the work.”

Ga Deuk-Sang looked at the Yama Chamber members with pity. They were clearly the enemy, but for some reason, he felt sorry for them.

Pae-Yul tossed out a single remark.

“Try not to spill too much blood.”

“Understood.”

Whoosh!

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had descended from the second floor to the first in an instant, stood in front of Dang Sang-A.

Dang Sang-A, who already had a dagger in her hand, looked puzzled.

“Martial Brother?”

“I’ll take care of these guys. You’ve worked hard. Go upstairs and rest.”

“Ah, should I?”

Dang Sang-A glanced at Yeon Ho-Jeong, then went upstairs to the second floor.

The leader of the Yama Chamber group, Ho-Geuk, glared at them.

“Are you the ones?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“We are.”

“…Your arrogance is sky-high. Do you even know who we are?”

“Do we need to?”

“What?”

“Let’s skip the pointless posturing and talk. Why were you following us?”

Ho-Geuk hesitated.

“Following you? Who was following whom?”

“Are your ears clogged? As soon as we entered Honam [a province in Korea], your dark force guys started following us. We killed them all because it was annoying, and that’s why these blood-soaked guys came, right?”

At that moment, surprise appeared on Ho-Geuk’s face.

“You killed them?”

“Should we have let them live?”

His voice was filled with arrogance.

It was quite provocative, but Ho-Geuk couldn’t find fault with Yeon Ho-Jeong’s words.

‘They were following us? Who? Surely it wasn’t the Blood Sparrow Gate…’

Ho-Geuk suddenly realized.

‘It’s from that person’s side!’

That’s right.

The residence of the martial god who had integrated nearly half of the dark forces in a short time and had already formed a huge power.

They must be informants sent by the strongest warrior in the martial world, who proudly called himself a member of the dark forces, yet was different from any other master of the dark forces.

Ho-Geuk’s face turned pale.

On the other hand, Yeon Ho-Jeong frowned.

“What’s wrong? Did you suddenly get scared?”

“D-did you say you killed them all?!”

“Yes.”

Ho-Geuk turned around and shouted.

“You! The guy from the Blood Sparrow Gate! Come here!”

As soon as he finished speaking, a man in blood-red uniform stepped forward.

Ho-Geuk’s eyes became as sharp as a tiger’s.

“You guys, were you secretly making connections with the government behind our backs?!”

“Huh?!”

“Can’t you answer properly!”

“I-I’m sorry! I didn’t know…”

Of course, he wasn’t part of the sect’s leadership, so there was no way he would know about such things.

But that was that, and this was this. Ho-Geuk was already convinced that the Blood Sparrow Gate under the Yama Chamber had been making separate connections with the government.

“You bastards!”

Thwack!

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes deepened.

The head of the Blood Sparrow Gate member was shattered by the spiked club that Ho-Geuk had swung down. It was an extremely violent act of murder.

Ho-Geuk panted.

“Did you think you could ignore our sect and act as you pleased just because we were being lenient with you?”

“Hey.”

Ho-Geuk turned to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“What is this ‘government’ you speak of?”

“…?!”

“Is it the place where the Fighting King is the master?”

“…You.”

Whoosh!

An enormous murderous aura poured out from the eyes of the Yama Chamber members.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was quite surprised. The swirling murderous intent was as sharp as a treasured sword.

“How dare you utter that person’s title so carelessly, you must be eager to die.”

Their voices, which sounded like growls, were filled with lava-like rage.

Ga Deuk-Sang, who was watching them from the second floor, had a deep look in his eyes.

‘Impressive.’

He wasn’t referring to the intense murderous intent. What was truly impressive was the presence of Yang Cheon, who had made them unleash such a fierce murderous aura just by hearing his title.

‘That murderous intent isn’t born from fear. Their loyalty to Yang Cheon is genuine.’

And that wasn’t all.

Although he hadn’t told the others, the fact that an informant had followed them so soon after they entered Honam was an incredible feat.

‘Honam Province itself is already like Yang Cheon’s empire. He has spread the dark forces’ immense intelligence network everywhere, and he’s investigating every suspicious person one by one.’

Ga Deuk-Sang’s cheek twitched.

‘This is much more dangerous than I thought.’

The size of Honam Province, and the number of dark force informants dispatched to various locations.

It was an undertaking that required a truly astronomical amount of money. Yang Cheon had unleashed that enormous amount of money and human resources without hesitation.

He still didn’t know what Yang Cheon was aiming for. However, it was clear that he was a much more terrifying figure than he had thought.

‘Damn it, can we really charge into the center?’

Ga Deuk-Sang’s eyes turned to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

“In any case, it seems that you are also connected to someone called the Fighting King, judging by the situation.”

“…Huh!”

“Good. I wanted to meet him anyway.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong arrogantly raised his chin.

“Lead the way. I’ll see with my own eyes just how great a person he is.”

Ho-Geuk’s patience snapped.

“Stop talking nonsense and die, you brat!”

Whoosh!

The oppressive force of the spiked club that came crashing down, tearing through the air, was truly immense. It felt like it could split a rock in one blow, let alone a person’s head.

Yeon Ho-Jeong took a short breath.

Clang!

Horror appeared on Ho-Geuk’s face, which had been covered in murderous intent.

“You’re quite strong?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong blocked the spiked club with just his left hand.

Not only was he strong, but he had grabbed the sharp protrusions of the spiked club with his bare hand, yet there wasn’t a single scratch on it.

“You!”

Ho-Geuk, who was trying to pull the spiked club back with a shout of surprise, was surprised once again.

Shudder.

The spiked club, which he was holding with both hands, trembled faintly. He had pulled with all his might, but the spiked club wouldn’t come out of the opponent’s hand.

It was a truly terrifying grip.

“Since you seem to be the leader of this pathetic group, I won’t completely crush you.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s foot moved like lightning.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

The tip of his foot accurately pierced the center of his abdomen.

Ho-Geuk, who had been staggering, knelt on the spot. The pain was so intense that he couldn’t even pass out.

The Yama Chamber members looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong with shocked eyes.

Yeon Ho-Jeong flicked his fingers.

“You’re not going to retreat quietly, are you? Come on. Let’s get this over with quickly.”

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The Yama Chamber members unleashed their murderous intent once more.

Ho-Geuk, who was trembling, opened his mouth. He wanted to shout at them not to attack, to retreat for now.

“…!!”

But no sound came out. He was struggling to even breathe.

“Kill him!”

“Tear off all his limbs!”

The Yama Chamber members rushed at Yeon Ho-Jeong all at once.

Ho-Geuk’s face twisted.

‘No!’

Thwack! Crack! Thud! Thud! Bang!

With gruesome sounds, the members fell like leaves.

Crack! Rip!

Bones were broken, cartilage was torn, skin was ripped, and hip joints were dislocated.

They were brutal methods that showed no mercy. Instead of finishing them off with a single blow, he deliberately added three or four more attacks to shatter every bone in their bodies.

Ho-Geuk’s face turned pale.

‘T-this madman!’

It was hard to find a member of the dark forces who wasn’t cruel, but this was completely beyond the pale.

He was deliberately breaking only the parts that would leave them with lifelong disabilities, even after they recovered. That was something that even the most notoriously cruel guys could do, but the problem was that guy’s eyes.

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who was smiling brightly as he knocked down the members, looked like a demon. His expression was like that, but his eyes were as cold as ice. They were definitely not the eyes of a madman who was obsessed with destruction.

The unknown dissonance and his skillful destructive abilities made those who watched him feel a chilling sense of fear.

“Cough! Ugh! S-stop it, you madman!”

Thwack!

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had broken the last member’s sternum and sent him flying out the door, took a deep breath.

Ho-Geuk’s hands trembled.

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who was looking up at the ceiling with a satisfied smile, even seemed to feel refreshed.

“Yes, this is it.”

This feeling of returning home.

A world filled with pure white violence, where he fought covered in mud, and thoroughly crushed those who dared to resist.

“It’s been a long time.”

The grand master of the dark forces had descended upon the dark martial world.

It was the glorious return of Yeon Ho-Jeong, the Black Emperor, not the eldest son of the Byeoksan Yeon family.