Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 24

“Young Master, are you alright?”

“…….”

“Young Master?!”

“Hmm? Ah, were you calling me?”

“Yes. I was wondering if you were feeling okay…”

“I’m fine. I haven’t even warmed up properly.”

“Oh, I see.”

Shino’s face showed a hint of bewilderment.

Yeon Ho-Jeong spoke with a hint of apology.

“I’m sorry for causing trouble and putting you all in a difficult position.”

“Oh, no! How could you say that?”

“I have a lot to think about today. I’ll buy you a drink of apple wine tomorrow.”

“Apple wine? That’s out of the question.”

Shino bowed her head.

“I’m relieved to hear you’re alright. Please rest well.”

“You rest too.”

“Just in case, I’ll deploy Chang-eung guards near your lodgings.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong was about to say it wasn’t necessary, but he nodded. If he didn’t set up some kind of guard, Shino would be even more anxious.

He didn’t want to make others worry any more.

“Thank you.”

“Then, I’ll take my leave.”

As Shino left the room, Yeon Ho-Jeong turned his gaze to the window.

The banquet, which had started shortly after noon, was canceled in less than half an hour. So, it was still bright outside.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes, looking out the window, were filled with a chilling darkness.

‘Is it the Myeong Family?’

He had acted as if nothing was wrong to smooth over the incident, but his senses were still focused on Myeong Ho-Rim.

‘It’s the same. It’s not at the stage where I can be sure like with the Jeagal or Peng families. But…’

It was a bit premature, but Yeon Ho-Jeong trusted his intuition. He trusted his instincts.

He felt a strong sense of incongruity from Myeong Ho-Rim’s inner energy [a martial artist’s life force or spiritual energy].

To be precise, it was different from the inner energy emitted by the family’s assassins. Considering only the degree of similarity in nature, it was right to consider it a completely different martial art.

However, Myeong Ho-Rim’s inner energy was on a different path from the martial arts of the Central Plains [the heartland of Chinese martial arts]. It was as if a wolf had put on a sheep’s skin and introduced itself as a sheep.

It was as if they had refined a rough and ominous energy to fit the sentiments of the Central Plains. Although the color of inner energy changes depending on the personality of the one who cultivates it, Myeong Ho-Rim’s inner energy felt fundamentally different from that of the Central Plains.

‘It’s a shame. If I had pushed him properly, I could have seen his true skills.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong sighed, then suddenly tilted his head.

“But how did the Myeong Family fall?”

After learning martial arts from his master and descending the mountain, when he had pacified the Black Road [a term for the underworld or criminal society] and turned his eyes to the world.

At that time, the Myeong Family was already gone. Unlike the Yeon Family, which was destroyed by someone, their family’s power declined rapidly and they collapsed in less than three years.

Yeon Ho-Jeong stroked his chin with a puzzled expression.

“How on earth?”

If a family like the Guju Myeong Family had fallen, he, who had begun to shake the history of the Black Road at the time, would not have ignored it. To be precise, information about the Myeong Family should have reached his ears.

But he had not received any information about the Myeong Family. He had been too busy laying the foundation for the Black Emperor Castle, but still, wasn’t this a bit much?

“Did someone control the information?”

The information network of the Black Road’s heretical sects is sharper and faster than that of the White Road’s orthodox sects.

In the early days of the Black Emperor Castle, Yeon Ho-Jeong had also held the important position of chief of information. At least, among those who played with information in the Black Road, there was no one who could escape Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes.

‘Could it be from the orthodox martial world?’

Thoughts kept piling up.

He couldn’t shake them off. The important thing was whether the Myeong Family were assassins or not, but his thoughts kept drifting in that direction.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was pondering that point for a long time.

“Young Master.”

Shino’s voice was heard from outside the door.

“Yes?”

“The eldest daughter of the Jeagal Family has come to see you. What should we do?”

Shino, who drew a clear line even with personal acquaintances. Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“Let her in.”

Thud.

As if she had been waiting, Jeagal Ayeon entered.

She had changed from her vibrant green clothes to more active attire, and she looked even more lively.

“What are you doing alone? Sitting by the window like that.”

“Why did you come?”

Jeagal Ayeon grumbled.

“Even if a guest comes, you should at least tell them to sit down, right?”

“Sit.”

“Tea?”

“Make it yourself.”

“You’re so prickly.”

Jeagal Ayeon sat down with a ‘heave-ho’ sound. She seemed to feel tired.

“How’s your body?”

“I’m fine.”

“I see. You look so fine that I feel embarrassed for worrying. Well, I never thought you had the skills to play with that fool from the Dang Family.”

No matter how ignorant of the world he was, Dang Yang-Seon was the eldest son of the Dang Family. There was no way the Dang Family would have taught their eldest son, who would later represent the family, lightly.

Jeagal Ayeon looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face.

Yeon Ho-Jeong was still looking at the window with an expression that made it impossible to know what he was thinking.

She had many questions she wanted to ask Yeon Ho-Jeong.

How he had become so strong, why he was so fixated on Myeong Ho-Rim, and what he was thinking.

‘Hoo.’

She sighed inwardly and smiled brightly.

“If something happens later, I can hide behind you.”

“So, what’s your business?”

“You’re as stiff as the stick my father used to carry when I was young. I just came to see your face.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong frowned.

Just as Jeagal Ayeon was preparing to grit her teeth, thinking another blunt remark was coming.

“Thank you.”

“……Huh?”

“I said thank you.”

Jeagal Ayeon blinked.

“Thank you? For what?”

“For defending me when you did. Thanks to you, I was able to settle the incident. It’s all thanks to you.”

“……Well, why are you suddenly acting like this? It’s cold, you know.”

“Your skill in catching the tail end of words is excellent. You are a true Jeagal.”

“Tail end of words? I’d prefer you call it rhetoric.”

“You could even aim for fame and fortune with your silver tongue.”

“Is that a compliment or an insult?”

“It’s gratitude.”

“Ugh, never mind! Spit, spit! You should have just not said thank you!”

“Then, pretend you didn’t hear it.”

“I don’t want to?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong turned his head away. He made it very clear that he didn’t want to talk to her.

Jeagal Ayeon’s face flushed slightly.

She had blurted it out in embarrassment, but in fact, she felt good. She knew he wasn’t someone who easily said thank you to others, which made it all the more so.

She had come to comfort him, feeling unnecessarily frustrated, but she received an unexpected greeting. She hadn’t intended to mention it, but in this atmosphere, she thought she could say a word.

“Be a little more careful in the future.”

“I will.”

“……Hehe.”

“What’s with that sly smile?”

“Sly!”

She flared up, then let out a weak sigh.

“Tch, you’re stronger than me, so I can’t even give you a punch… Ah!”

Jeagal Ayeon’s face became a little serious.

“I have one question to ask.”

“What is it?”

“At the Choseong Tower, you know. That guy who was the leader of the Thunder Flame Clan.”

“What about him?”

“I’ve been wanting to ask you this for a while, but how did you injure him?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong tilted his head.

“Is there a special way to injure someone? I just hit him with the intent to kill.”

“That’s not it…”

Whoosh.

A strong inner energy rose from Jeagal Ayeon’s hand. At the same time, the scent of boxwood began to circulate in Yeon Ho-Jeong’s room.

“The Jeagal Family’s Hyeonwon Jeondan Divine Art is considered one of the few secret techniques. And my attack hit his abdomen properly.”

Even without loading inner energy, the abdomen is a dangerous area. All those internal organs are crumpled up inside, so if you hit it wrong, you can become incapacitated, or even die.

“But he didn’t even fall, let alone show any signs of pain. It’s not like his inner energy was several times stronger than mine.”

“It’s the difference in the nature of the energy.”

“Huh? Nature?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong said as if it was nothing.

“The Heat Yang Art he has mastered is very high in level. That is, the inner energy itself contains fire energy. But your inner energy is centered on wood energy.”

“……?!”

“If you throw a piece of firewood into a blazing bonfire, will the fire go out? It will only burn more strongly.”

Jeagal Ayeon was dumbfounded.

“Even if the fundamental nature of inner energy is different, the difference in martial arts is clear…”

“His martial arts are not just simple tricks. It’s a martial art that was once discussed as the best under heaven.”

“What?”

“The Yin Fire Crimson Flow, which was famous as one of the two great techniques of the Yin God along with the Yin Cold White Flow, is the martial art he has mastered.”

Yin God? Yin Fire Crimson Flow?

Jeagal Ayeon frowned.

“I’ve never heard of such martial arts?”

That was inevitable. Yeon Ho-Jeong himself had only learned about the existence of the Yin God after becoming the Lord of the Black Emperor Castle.

The Yin God was the king of the assassination world.

The Yin God during the time of the Black Emperor Castle was the Yin God after a generational change, so his achievements were ambiguous. However, the previous Yin God was a mythical figure who had succeeded in all but one of his ninety-nine assassinations.

And after that one failed assassination, he disappeared until he could raise a successor.

“Even so, not receiving even a little shock is…”

“That’s because both of your achievements are low.”

“Huh?”

“Even if you reach the extreme, it’s difficult to ignore compatibility. That’s why there can be the best under heaven, but there can’t be an absolute invincible. Heaven never allows for absolute dominance.”

“…….”

“Well, it seems like that guy hasn’t even mastered three tenths of the Yin Fire Crimson Flow, let alone the Yin Cold White Flow.”

“Three tenths…”

Jeagal Ayeon’s face became serious.

“He’s that strong with only three tenths.”

“Whether it’s three tenths or ten tenths, it’s important to master what you’ve learned as deeply as possible. Both he and you have only licked the surface of the divine arts.”

“I feel like I’m being lumped into the same category, which doesn’t feel good.”

“That’s not my problem.”

“Tch.”

Jeagal Ayeon sighed deeply. She had come to comfort and worry, but she only ended up feeling unsettled.

“There can be the best under heaven, but there can’t be an absolute invincible? That’s true.”

“If you’re done with your business, now…”

“But isn’t there one person?”

“What?”

“I’m talking about the one who was called absolutely invincible in the history of the martial world.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong tilted his head.

“If you’re talking about Bodhidharma, the founder of Shaolin…”

“No, not Bodhidharma. I’m talking about the legendary martial artist who pacified the Blood Cult Rebellion three hundred years ago, during the peak of the martial world.”

“Three hundred years ago? Who?”

“You don’t know?”

“I don’t. I’m busy enough just trying to survive, what do I care about three hundred years ago.”

“You’re really a strange guy. I thought you knew the ways of the world like a ghost, but you don’t know that famous person?”

“I hate studying history.”

“That explains it.”

“So, who is that great person?”

His tone was no different from before, but to Jeagal Ayeon, it somehow sounded sarcastic.

She snorted and said.

“You’ll be surprised when you hear it.”

“So who is it?”

“The Four Directional Martial Emperor.”

“The Four Directional Martial Emperor?”

“You really didn’t know? You’re amazing, too.”

“What a childish title.”

“Don’t say that. He’s a person who is valued more highly than Bodhidharma by us in the White Road martial world [the orthodox martial arts world]. If he hadn’t pacified the Blood Cult Rebellion back then, the world would be hell by now.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

“The world is hell enough as it is.”

“Ugh, you’re so dark. You’re a really dark guy.”

“Shut up.”

“Anyway! Don’t live your life so bleakly. There will be many interesting things in life…”

“…….”

“Jeong-ah?”

Jeagal Ayeon was flustered.

She had never seen Yeon Ho-Jeong with such a blank expression.

‘The Four Directional Martial Emperor? He wielded a golden dragon?’

Perfect offense and defense, and evasion. And the Yin and Yang energies.

And a golden dragon?