Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 351

‘I heard that Gyujeok and Yorae are dead.’

‘That’s right.’

The young man, who had been sitting in a relaxed posture, frowned.

His usually languid face changed to one full of annoyance for the first time in a while.

‘Who was it?’

‘We haven’t been able to identify them exactly yet. However, the probability of them being from the orthodox sects is low.’

‘Didn’t they all die in Henan Province? The Martial Alliance is in Henan. Then aren’t they from the Martial Alliance?’

‘I thought so at first too.’

‘What makes you think otherwise?’

‘The Martial Alliance, or rather, the orthodox sects, would never move like this. Unless you guys were exposed.’

‘Hmm.’

‘Besides, the marks on the corpses themselves were not from orthodox martial arts. I’m not an expert in martial arts, but all the informants I use are first-rate. If they say so, then it is so.’

The young man chuckled.

‘You have quite the impressive informants.’

‘…….’

‘Was it the Beggars’ Sect? The best information organization among the orthodox sects?’

‘That’s right.’

‘Your informants, they wouldn’t have been caught by those Beggars’ Sect guys, would they?’

‘They would move if they wanted to wage war against the government.’

‘Hmm!’

‘Believe me. I dislike you, but what I dislike even more is uncertainty. I’m working hard to figure out who they are.’

‘Haaah!’

The young man, who had yawned grandly, smacked his lips and said,

‘This has become quite a mess. Those useless bastards, getting taken down so easily by those morons in the Central Plains. That’s why those who try to make up for their lack of talent with age never succeed.’

There was a sneer in his voice.

Listening to that voice, Yeo Sang-do thought. These guys are not normal.

No matter how bad their relationship was, weren’t they on the same side? If they had joined hands for a single purpose, they should have been angry at the death of their comrades.

But there was none of that. Not even the slightest bit of mourning for their fallen comrades.

‘So? When will you be able to find out who they are?’

‘I can’t guarantee how long it will take. But, I have secured the location of the suspects.’

At that moment, the young man’s eyes sparkled.

‘Location?’

‘That’s right.’

‘Interesting. They dare to move openly even after touching our people?’

‘That’s why I’m judging that they are not from the Martial Alliance. The Martial Alliance would never do that.’

‘That’s just your opinion. You should keep the possibilities open.’

‘That’s true.’

‘Enough, where are they?’

‘Near Xuchang.’

‘Xuchang… Xuchang, huh.’

The young man stroked his chin. His jawline, smooth without a single hair, was very sharp.

‘How many are there?’

‘Two, or maybe three.’

‘You don’t know for sure.’

‘They are skilled enough to kill Yorae and Gyujeok. It’s not easy to approach them.’

‘Replace some of the guys you’re using. The eyes and ears of the great Provincial Commander are blocked because you’re using small fry.’

It was a ridiculous thing to say.

Moreover, although he said that, the young man’s eyes were burning with anticipation.

‘Two, or maybe three….’

Yeo Sang-do, who had been quietly watching the young man, asked as if throwing a question.

‘Are you planning to go?’

‘Well? Unfortunately, I have to hold down this place. Even if I wanted to move, I can’t move easily.’

‘I see.’

‘Anyway….’

Whoosh!

Yeo Sang-do’s eyes shook for a moment.

The young man, who had been sitting on a chair quite far away, had appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye.

‘……!!’

Yeo Sang-do felt an impulse to close his eyes for a moment.

The young man’s eyes, right in front of his nose. The wild madness emanating from those two eyes was so fierce that it could utterly devastate a person’s mental strength.

‘Old man.’

‘…….’

‘I can understand me doing this, but you shouldn’t be like this, should you?’

‘……What do you mean?’

‘You’re the Provincial Commander, and even if we ignore Gyujeok, if Yorae died, shouldn’t you mobilize the government troops on a large scale? A Deputy Provincial Commander being killed by a martial artist, isn’t this a major incident?’

Yeo Sang-do said in a calm voice.

‘It was you who told me not to make a big deal out of it.’

‘That was when we weren’t exposed. If we do it right, we could even create a pretext to stir up the Martial Alliance with this incident, but you didn’t do it?’

The young man smiled.

The sharp fangs that protruded were shining particularly white.

‘Do you want to become beast food, old man?’

A terrifying killing intent was transmitted.

Yeo Sang-do maintained his composure even in front of that. His heart was pounding like crazy from the pouring killing intent, but he maintained a blank expression with his superhuman mental strength.

‘Do you want that?’

He even asked back boldly.

The young man, who had been staring at Yeo Sang-do quietly, soon grinned.

‘As expected of the Provincial Commander. Your guts are quite extraordinary. I like courageous people.’

‘…….’

‘But that’s that, and this is this. I’ll let it slide this time, but there won’t be a next time. Do you understand?’

‘I will keep that in mind.’

‘Release the government troops. Release them and stir up the Martial Alliance first.’

No matter how you looked at him, he was not normal.

He was definitely not normal, but he was not stupid either. Rather, his ability to strategically resolve conflicts between forces was as good as that of a veteran.

Yeo Sang-do asked.

‘If that happens, the suspects might run away.’

‘That’s why you should release them after catching them.’

‘……?!’

The young man returned to his seat.

‘Whether it’s the Martial Alliance, those cute guys from the Mukryong Unit [a fictional military unit], or even a sudden act by a hidden hermit, it doesn’t matter. There are rules here, right?’

‘…….’

‘They should know that if they act recklessly, their lives will be in danger.’

‘Are you going to dispatch experts?’

‘Of course.’

‘Who….’

It was then.

Slap!

Yeo Sang-do’s face turned sharply to the left.

Even though the distance was quite far, he had been slapped on the cheek. He didn’t know how he had been slapped, or when he had returned to his original position.

‘Tuh!’

Blood was mixed in the saliva that Yeo Sang-do spat out. His mouth was torn.

The young man said with his characteristic languid expression.

‘If you ask useless questions too often, it annoys me. I told you that before, didn’t I?’

‘…….’

‘Enough, keep a close watch on those guys. We need to catch them and tear them apart.’

‘We will need to send quite a few troops.’

‘That’s for me to take care of.’

‘I’ll take care of it.’

At first glance, it was an answer that would make one think he was the highest commander who had infiltrated this place.

But Yeo Sang-do knew. That this young man was not the highest leader dispatched by the Shin Hwa Cult [Divine Flower Cult].

In this Henan Province, there was a true master whom that young man feared. That master was the highest authority that the Shin Hwa Cult had dispatched to Henan.

‘I will inform the subordinates.’

‘You can go now.’

Yeo Sang-do left the residence without a word.

The young man, who was sitting with his chin propped up with a listless face, chuckled as soon as Yeo Sang-do left.

‘There should be this much fun in a boring daily life. Good.’

Yorae, and Gyujeok.

The two of them had stayed in one place for too long. Unless they had the potential to rise above that, they had been sitting in the position of the Eighteen Martial Generals for too long.

‘It’s good. The stagnant upper water needs to be swept away so that the clean lower water can rise.’

In fact, there were more than five people waiting to become the new Eighteen Martial Generals. Perhaps there were ten by now.

And among them, there were guys who would jump into a burning oil field if he ordered them to.

‘Anyway, if it’s not the Martial Alliance, then who could it be? Even though that old man Yeo Sang-do is a sly fox, he wouldn’t lie about something like this.’

Currently, Yeo Sang-do’s hands and feet were completely tied. He had no means to ask for help from the outside.

Of course, a secret intelligence organization existed. He had been given that much breathing room, which was why this investigation was possible.

Even those intelligence chiefs were being monitored by the Shin Hwa Cult.

‘Interesting.’

The young man’s pupils flared golden.

‘In any case, since they killed a martial general of our cult, shall we take a look at their faces?’

* * *

‘Boring.’

Tang Gwan yawned widely.

He had already spent ten days in the mountains, spending the night in various places. He thought that if they waited in one place, the enemies would become suspicious.

Yeon Ho-jeong said.

‘How about you train?’

‘Is moving your body all there is to training?’

‘Seeing how bored you are, it doesn’t seem like you’re doing any mental training either?’

‘It’s not like meditating is all there is to training.’

‘Then does staying still count as training?’

‘Of course.’

Unexpectedly, Tang Gwan was serious.

‘Just by stepping on the ground, feeling the wind, and looking up at the sky, you can feel new things. Martial arts are scattered everywhere in the world.’

It was not something that would easily come from someone who mainly dealt with poison and hidden weapons.

Yeon Ho-jeong said with an unexpected look.

‘Do you know the principle of Martial Arts Belonging to Nature?’

He had asked out of curiosity, but Tang Gwan was more surprised to hear those words.

‘Do you know Martial Arts Belonging to Nature?’

‘I do.’

‘Huh!’

Tang Gwan was dumbfounded.

‘How do you know the principle that can only be reached at the ultimate of enlightenment?’

Tang Gwan also learned about the principle of Martial Arts Belonging to Nature thanks to his father, Tang Hyeong.

And it had not been long since he had actually tried to blend into nature. He knew it in his head, but it was not at a level where he could actually try it.

It was only now that he was gradually touching it, so how could this impudent guy know about it?

‘I just happened to overhear it.’

‘……Hmm.’

Tang Gwan, who had been looking at Yeon Ho-jeong with a displeased look, nodded.

‘Anyway, when you think you’ve trained to some extent, turn your eyes to nature. In the process of seeing, feeling, realizing, and experiencing, martial arts can grow once again.’

Yeon Ho-jeong grinned.

‘Thank you for the advice.’

‘Well, even if you know it, it’s useless if you can’t feel it properly.’

Tang Gwan, who had been grumbling, asked in a sharp voice as if he wanted to change the mood.

‘So, where should we move next?’

‘We don’t need to move anymore.’

‘Hmm?’

Yeon Ho-jeong kicked the ground with his foot.

‘We’ll fight right here, in this place.’

Tang Gwan looked around with sharp eyes.

‘……It’s a pretty decent terrain, though.’

It was not a bad terrain to face the approaching enemies. The mountain range was gentle, but the entrance was small, and there was a large cliff at the rear.

It was a terrain with both advantages and disadvantages. It would be advantageous to fight at the entrance, but if they were pushed to the cliff, there would be nowhere to escape.

‘Our allies will come to help too. Don’t worry too much.’

‘I’m not worried. By the way, allies?’

Tang Gwan glanced at the top of the cliff.

‘Are you talking about that girl?’

Muk Bi had already been sitting on a rock that protruded like a railing on the cliff, camouflaged by the bushes. It was the perfect place for sniping.

Yeon Ho-jeong smiled.

‘There’s that.’

Tang Gwan turned his head away as if he was displeased. He was not the type to tell him even if he asked.

Time passed like that.

The night passed and the morning sun rose, and as the sun passed its zenith and began to set in the west.

Flap flap flap!

A black bird flew towards Yeon Ho-jeong.

Yeon Ho-jeong, who had received the carrier pigeon and checked the letter, shouted.

‘They’re coming! They’ll arrive here in an hour to an hour and a half!’

‘How many troops?’

‘The number is one hundred, and there are at least three or more at the martial general level.’

‘Hoo.’

Yeon Ho-jeong shouted towards Muk Bi.

‘Don’t attack until the melee starts!’

There was no reply. However, Yeon Ho-jeong was certain that Muk Bi had heard him.

Whoosh.

Yeon Ho-jeong raised the Gwangryong Sword [a fictional sword].

‘Shall we start warming up?’

‘Sounds good.’

Tang Gwan loosened his shoulders.

‘It’s been a while since I’ve had a good time.’

An hour later.

Whoosh!

A group of people emitting a tremendous killing intent approached.