Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 395

The Mixed Battle (2)

Two days ago.

“Cough!”

So-bang, who had entered a small mountain cave, coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“Damn it….”

The blood that flowed down was incredibly murky. Not only had she suffered severe internal injuries from a sudden barrage of attacks, but the forced use of her inner energy while escaping had filled her entire body with impure energy.

The world may divide martial arts into orthodox and demonic, but that’s just a broad classification based on the characteristics of the martial arts. Even with demonic arts, if impure energy surges through the body, it’s just as dangerous.

So-bang quickly began circulating her energy. Fortunately, the Blood Sound Demonic Art was centered around the principles of standing and moving. There was no better martial art for being vigilant while circulating energy.

Fsssh!

Gray smoke rose from various parts of So-bang’s body.

She had only circulated her energy for a short while, but the impure energy was visibly leaving her body.

So-bang’s skill was impressive, but it also meant that her meridians were filled with a great deal of impure energy. The situation was quite serious.

‘Damn it.’

So-bang gritted her teeth and took out a small pill from her pocket.

‘Do I have to use this now?’

Although she wasn’t recognized as the cult leader’s child, she was still a child of the divine blood, even if only half. Her treatment was fundamentally different from other cult members.

The pill in So-bang’s hand was proof of that.

‘If I use this now, I’ll only have one left.’

The Yin Crystal Pill was one of the rare elixirs that the Yin Demon Sect was proud of.

Like any other elixir, it was excellent for increasing inner energy and recovery. Its effects were especially amplified when the concentration of demonic energy was high, making it a favorite among high-ranking officials.

The problem was that astronomical costs were required to make this elixir. Therefore, the cult didn’t distribute it unless one had made a significant contribution, and it was never given to ordinary cult members, let alone those below the rank of officer.

‘One pill is like my lifeline. I absolutely need it for the final battle. Which means….’

So-bang’s eyelids fluttered.

‘This is the last one.’

She hesitated.

She never imagined that she would suffer such a fatal injury so soon after arriving in the Central Plains, especially from a combined attack by those weaker than her.

Suddenly, So-bang’s eyes turned vicious.

‘That damn bastard.’

She recalled Yeon Ho-jeong’s words.

‘He was right. When you panic, you overthink, making it easier to counter you.’

‘You won’t get out of here.’

Was he right?

When she heard those words, So-bang completely lost focus in the already difficult battle.

Bastard? Who was he talking about?

‘Could it be.’

So-bang looked far to the east.

“……Yaryul Jeok, is it you?”

She muttered in anger, but then So-bang shook her head.

‘No. There’s no way that bastard would betray the cult.’

Although they didn’t get along, she knew that Yaryul Jeok’s loyalty was no less than her own. The reason she provoked him whenever they met was not just because they didn’t get along, but because she didn’t think he was the type to betray the cult.

If she really thought he was a traitor, she wouldn’t provoke him like that. She would quietly investigate him and then cut his throat in one go.

‘……No.’

So-bang’s eyes deepened.

‘He was exiled to this continent. It’s called a dispatch, but a guy with that much skill became a disciple of a mere assassin. There’s no way he wouldn’t be dissatisfied.’

Yaryul Jeok was as proud as he was loyal. He just didn’t know it himself.

‘But would he betray the cult? Really?’

Suddenly, So-bang remembered.

The terrifying martial arts used by Yeon Ho-jeong, the commander of the Martial Alliance’s extermination unit.

His abilities were outstanding, but what was truly astonishing was his method of completely dismantling the Blood Sound Palm technique.

‘How did he know? He clearly knew the Blood Sound Palm!’

So-bang never imagined that such a counter could work against the Blood Sound Palm. She had never even considered that the Blood Sound Palm could be countered.

Yet, he had dismantled it piece by piece? She would never have believed it if she hadn’t experienced it herself.

‘That was no coincidence. He was completely familiar with the Blood Sound Palm. Down to the very roots of its forms!’

Even if you knew the counter, you couldn’t easily respond unless you were at a similar level. But Yeon Ho-jeong had dismantled the martial art of an opponent who was clearly stronger than him with such familiarity.

There were many geniuses and monsters in the world, but that was absolutely impossible unless you had mastered the Blood Sound Palm. Even if you had mastered it, it would be difficult to push that hard in a real fight.

‘How did he know? Could the Blood Sound Palm have been leaked to the outside?’

That made even less sense. No, it was simply impossible.

Then?

“……Someone inside leaked the Blood Sound Palm and the Blood Sound Demonic Art.”

That was the conclusion. It had to be.

But who leaked the Blood Sound martial arts? And why was the leaked Blood Sound martial art in the hands of the Martial Alliance?

“Yaryul Jeok.”

Shudder.

So-bang’s body trembled madly.

“Is it really you?!”

Trickle.

Blood flowed from her nose.

She was already suffering from severe internal injuries, and her excitement made it difficult to circulate her energy properly. So-bang quickly calmed herself and focused all her efforts on extracting the impure energy from her body.

She quickly calmed her excitement, but her mind was working tirelessly.

‘Come to think of it, that prideful bastard didn’t even try to stop me from going.’

She recalled her conversation with Yaryul Jeok.

‘Well, you’re right. Even if we fail, we can learn about the enemy’s strength.’

‘Okay. I’ll leave one to you.’

So-bang’s cheeks twitched.

The guy who had been in a heated argument with her had calmed his rising anger and immediately agreed with her opinion. He hated her as much as she hated him, yet he had changed his mind so easily.

It didn’t make sense. That had never happened when he was in the Yin Demon Sect.

‘Besides.’

So-bang was confident. She was confident that she could win even if she fought Yaryul Jeok to the death.

That’s why she was able to kill his subordinate so openly. She believed that even if the situation escalated to a fight, she could easily subdue him.

And apart from that, Yaryul Jeok should have taken action immediately after his subordinate was killed by her. That was their relationship, and his temper was not ordinary.

Yet, he just let her go. He showed genuine killing intent, but he only ended it with a warning.

Why was that? Was it because he wasn’t confident in winning? He was the type to go wild when he was angry?

‘Is it really you?’

Fsssh.

Gray clouds formed around her body and then disappeared.

Thud!

The stone wall, which had been exposed to a lot of impure energy, crumbled as if it were hollow. That’s how toxic the impure energy was.

‘Did he plan to use a borrowed knife to kill me? Did he really try to kill me? Was he confident in doing so?’

Fsssh!

Red energy surged from her body.

Now that she had roughly extracted the impure energy that had been coursing through her body, the Blood Sound Demonic Art was finally working properly. Now she could really take a breather.

So-bang, who had been biting her lip and agonizing, sighed.

“Damn it, I must be losing it.”

Yaryul Jeok was suspicious, but she tried to dismiss her suspicions.

‘Yeah, come to think of it, it really doesn’t make sense.’

Even for Yaryul Jeok, it would have been difficult to obtain the secret manual of the Blood Sound Palm. It wasn’t impossible, but there was no need to take such a risk.

Moreover, Yaryul Jeok didn’t even know that she would be dispatched. It was too convenient an interpretation that Yeon Ho-jeong, who was proficient in the counter to the Blood Sound Palm, appeared as if he had been waiting for her, and that she was sent to him.

‘It must be a coincidence.’

It was clear that the Blood Sound Palm had fallen into the hands of the Martial Alliance. However, it wasn’t through Yaryul Jeok. She had to believe that for now.

So-bang, who had been staring at the Yin Crystal Pill, put it back in her pocket.

“I need to meet him and talk.”

An hour later.

Once her body was in a state where she could use her martial arts, she carefully used her movement technique and headed east.

That’s when it happened.

‘……?’

So-bang’s eyes sharpened as she looked at the sky.

‘What is that?’

More than ten birds were flying northwest. But the appearance of those birds was somehow familiar.

‘Yaryul Jeok, are those his messenger hawks?’

They were about the size of pigeons, but they were definitely hawks. They were three times faster than ordinary messenger pigeons and could slaughter most flying beasts in an instant.

They were the messenger hawks used by the Dark Bird Unit, Yaryul Jeok’s intelligence organization. She had seen countless such birds coming and going from Yaryul Jeok’s residence.

‘It seems they’re sending information somewhere.’

Usually, when sending messenger birds, multiple birds would carry the same document. This was because there were cases where only one or two birds would fail to reach their destination.

So-bang, who had been walking past, stopped in her tracks as a thought suddenly occurred to her.

“…….”

Her eyes narrowed.

“……It wouldn’t hurt to check. Just in case.”

Whoosh!

She chased after the messenger hawks with all her might. After about two hours, she saw one of the messenger hawks falling behind.

Short distance, she captured the exact moment. So-bang grabbed a stone and filled it with the Blood Sound Demonic Art.

Swoosh! Thud!

Her body wasn’t in perfect condition, but hitting a bird twenty yards away was nothing to her.

The messenger hawk, its head blown off, fluttered and fell to the ground.

So-bang, who had rushed to the spot where the messenger hawk’s corpse had fallen, untied the tube attached to its still twitching ankle and unfolded it.

A moment later.

So-bang’s eyes were bloodshot.

“Interesting.”

The corners of her mouth curled up. Her expression, filled with distrust, anger, and killing intent, was truly like that of a demon.

“Very interesting, Yaryul Jeok.”

The tube contained the following message:

To the Martial Alliance. I will help you capture your primary target. Let us join hands for a while and deal with our common enemy. We also have our own circumstances, so we hope for a quick response.

And at the end of the tube, it was written: The Yin God’s chief disciple, the Dark Bird Unit Leader.

The Dark Bird Unit was the best intelligence organization under the Yin God, led by his chief disciple.

Yaryul Jeok, and his chief disciple, Sama Hyeon.

In other words, they were in cahoots. Moreover, Yaryul Jeok was said to have cast a soul-binding spell on Sama Hyeon. So-bang also knew about this.

In other words, even if this letter was sent by Sama Hyeon, it could be seen as representing Yaryul Jeok’s will.

“Yaryul Jeok.”

Her mind went blank for a moment due to the surging anger.

Even in the midst of this, So-bang did not let go of her slightest doubt. Not her doubt towards Yaryul Jeok, but her doubt about the possibility that Sama Hyeon had betrayed Yaryul Jeok.

But no matter how much she thought about it, that didn’t make sense either.

Sama Hyeon was under Yaryul Jeok’s soul-binding spell. The Yin Demon Sect’s soul-binding spell was completely different from that of the Central Plains’ demonic arts, and it was almost impossible to break it without knowing the method.

In other words, it was reasonable to see this as Yaryul Jeok’s will. The interpretation that he sent it in his chief disciple’s name to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances was not an exaggeration at this moment.

“You really betrayed the cult?!”

Swoosh.

She took out the Yin Crystal Pill from her pocket and swallowed it without hesitation.

An hour later.

Crash!

The mountain near Yaryul Jeok’s residence groaned from the collision of powerful masters.