Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 521

In a moment that shattered time into fragments.

‘This is a serious problem.’

He was severely injured, a hole pierced through his side. Moreover, the iron chain that had pierced him was now tightly wrapped around his upper body. His arms were free, but he was still bound by his enemy.

And then there was the long spear, thrusting forward with chilling intent.

‘His spear technique is incredibly sharp.’

There were masters in the Divine Flame Church who had mastered spear techniques. However, none of them wielded a spear as unorthodox and deadly as Yeon Ho-jeong.

In many ways, he was quite a remarkable opponent.

The immediate problem was this very moment.

‘Is he planning a follow-up attack?’

Judging by the murderous intent of the spear flying at terrifying speed, it was a move meant to kill in one strike.

However, Beonjak looked not at the spear, but at Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes were utterly clear, impossible to read. It was impossible to discern his emotions.

One thing was certain.

‘This guy knows how to seize the moment when a fight must be decided. At least, it’s not now. If that’s the case…’

Beonjak’s eyes flashed.

‘I’ll concede this round.’

Pa-a-a-a-a-ak!

Releasing the Flame King Fist, his hands moved in the pattern of the Fiery Divine Palm, grabbing Yeon Ho-jeong’s spear shaft.

Puh-uk!

The pain that shot through his hands felt like it was tearing through his spine.

Beonjak’s cheek twitched slightly.

‘It’s beyond imagination!’

Even though he grabbed the shaft, not the blade, the skin on his palms was torn. The explosive power, amplified by the rotation and torque on the shaft, was unleashing tremendous destructive force.

Chi-i-i-i-ik!

With a hiss of white steam, the spear’s rotation stopped. Acrid smoke rose from Beonjak’s hands that were gripping the shaft. His blood was evaporating.

The corners of Yeon Ho-jeong’s lips curled up.

He quickly twisted his upper body. Thick veins bulged on the hand holding the iron chain.

In that instant, Beonjak realized his mistake.

‘The iron chain?!’

He quickly activated the Thousand-Weight Drop technique to resist Yeon Ho-jeong’s force trying to pull the chain.

But that was also wrong.

Yeon Ho-jeong twisted his body not to pull Beonjak, who was bound by the Coiling Dragon Chain.

Thud!

“Kuh!”

A groan finally escaped Beonjak’s lips.

‘Damn it.’

The twisted upper body moved with tremendous elasticity, pushing the spear in even harder.

Half of the spear blade was embedded in the opposite side of his torso, where the iron chain had pierced through. If it weren’t for the constantly activated golden barrier, the spear shaft would have gone all the way through.

“Uwaaaah!!”

With a fierce shout, a huge flame erupted from Beonjak’s body.

Pa-a-a-ak!

Yeon Ho-jeong, who had pulled the spear blade out of Beonjak’s body, quickly retreated. He had already gained an advantage in the fight. There was no need to push it and try to bring him down.

Chi-i-ik!

Even in the midst of all that, he didn’t release the Coiling Dragon Chain. He had increased the length of the Coiling Dragon Chain itself by pouring out the Black Tortoise energy.

‘He’s definitely amazing.’

Even though he poured out as much Black Tortoise energy as he could, his left hand and entire left arm, which were holding the Coiling Dragon Chain, felt as if they were in a blazing fire.

The Golden Barrier Purification Art, the highest-level martial art of the Divine Flame Church. Unlike Yeon Ho-jeong, who had refined four energies according to their characteristics, the power of the martial art that had put everything into only one fire energy was that great.

However, Yeon Ho-jeong neither released nor loosened the Coiling Dragon Chain.

‘Never let go…’

In that moment, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes wavered.

“Kuaaaah!”

With a scream close to a roar, Beonjak pulled the end of the Coiling Dragon Chain that had pierced his side out.

Puhwaaaak!

The torn flesh of his side dangled.

It was a truly gruesome sight. Although the length of the chain that had pierced his side wasn’t long, the idea of sacrificing his side to remove the chain, rather than cutting it, was something no one could easily conceive.

‘Is that guy crazy?’

Even though the opponent was one of his mortal enemies, a warrior of the Divine Flame Church, he felt more bewildered than angry.

It was then.

Hwa-reureureuk!

Beonjak was drawing in the remaining flames even more intensely.

The heat was so intense that even with a barrier of Black Tortoise energy around his entire body, it was difficult to approach. The ground around them was bubbling, and the grass and trees five yards away were suddenly bursting into flames.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes wavered.

‘Could it be?!’

Hu-u-u-u-ung!

It was a terrifying sight.

A sphere brighter than flames appeared near Beonjak’s solar plexus, and then the abdomen pierced by the spear and the side mangled by the Coiling Dragon Chain began to heal at a terrifying speed.

In that moment, Tang Gwan’s voice flashed through Yeon Ho-jeong’s mind.

‘You didn’t know? Damn it, and you tore that Gyujeok guy to pieces?’

‘That guy is funny too. I wondered why they didn’t tell me beforehand that those guys don’t die easily, but it turns out they didn’t know either.’

That’s right.

The masters of the Divine Flame Church were said to refine something called Fire Essence (火精) to maximize their recovery power.

That recovery power surpassed common human sense. They couldn’t reattach severed body parts, but they could recover from most internal and external injuries just by taking a few breaths.

In fact, during the battle with the Eighteen Warriors, the group, having learned that fact, made sure to cut off the warriors’ heads completely.

‘I forgot about that.’

It was Yeon Ho-jeong’s mistake.

‘Damn it, why am I being like this lately?’

Normally, he would never have forgotten such an important fact. Especially since he already knew that his opponent was a master of the Divine Flame Church.

Yet, he had forgotten.

It was related to a recent change in him, where he couldn’t read his surroundings when he focused on one thing.

Kwaang!

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes, having taken a powerful step with the White Tiger Descent, were once again burning with fighting spirit.

‘I’m in the middle of a fight. No distractions.’

Flash!

Beonjak’s pupils were dyed golden.

“It’s been a while since I’ve activated the Fire Essence.”

Yeon Ho-jeong clicked his tongue.

“You guys know a lot of studies that deviate from the norm.”

“Deviate from the norm… It’s a theology that your pea-sized brain cannot comprehend.”

“You’re good at making things up. By the way, that Fire Essence thing, it’s not infinite, is it?”

It wasn’t a question that particularly needed an answer. After unleashing the Descent, Yeon Ho-jeong had been constantly watching for an opening in Beonjak’s defenses.

Beonjak’s voice became calm.

“Fire Essence is the power of God. We have only received a part of it. There is only one person who can freely control this Fire Essence.”

It was an unexpected answer.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes lit up.

“The Divine Flame Church Leader?”

“Shut your mouth!!”

The flames that had filled the surroundings were pushed back by the resounding voice.

A sudden outburst of anger. Beonjak’s face contorted like a demon.

“How dare a foreign whelp with no blood on his head call the Church Leader by name!”

Oh, look at this?

Yeon Ho-jeong chuckled.

“Isn’t it said that you can badmouth the king when he’s not around? Especially since we’re enemies, what does it matter if I curse, chew, tear, taste, or enjoy him?”

“You bastard!!”

“Still, I understand one thing.”

The clear gaze, which had been difficult to read, was instantly filled with murderous intent.

“The best way to provoke you guys is, as expected, to bring up your Church Leader.”

Pa-a-a-a-a-ang!

Beonjak charged.

He was moving slightly faster than before. His Fiery Divine Palm instantly crossed the void.

Kwa-kwang!

It was a terrifying power. The concentrated power of the Fiery Divine Palm exploded three trees and created a pit in the ground.

At this level, it was no different from a moving cannon. The actual power was also comparable to a cannon.

‘And he’s fast.’

Kwa-kwang! Kwang!

Even though he was bound by the Coiling Dragon Chain, his movements were free.

The reason was clear. Beonjak, who had been trying to seize an opportunity by exploiting an opening, was now planning to turn Yeon Ho-jeong into ashes by unleashing his maximum power.

It was fortunate that Yeon Ho-jeong had also been preparing, otherwise he would have lost an arm if he hadn’t read the moment of movement.

Pa-a-ang! Pa-a-a-a-ang!

As he wildly swung his hands as if to tear him apart, the air screamed.

It was neither a palm technique nor a fist technique. It was a reckless attack closer to a claw technique (爪法) [a martial art focused on grabbing and tearing], a method of grabbing and tearing.

However, the simplicity of the movements meant that it was that much faster, and being fast meant that if one had the durability to withstand the impact, the destructive power would also be superior.

Moreover, Beonjak even had the firepower that the Black Tortoise energy of the Four Divine Weapons couldn’t properly penetrate.

Kwa-kwang! Kwa-kwa-kwang!

Even though he hadn’t unleashed a wide-range attack with explosive power, the ground was cracking and the rocks in the distance were scratched.

It was a shockwave. The collision of pure power, the collision of energy created by the fire energy of the Golden Barrier Purification Art, was generating a powerful shockwave.

The edges of Yeon Ho-jeong’s clothes were torn to shreds. Even though his energy was enveloping his entire body, the shockwave was scattering it.

But it was okay.

‘More.’

Pa-pa-pa-pa-pang! Kwa-reureureung!

The forest was collapsing.

The more it did, the more flexible and natural Yeon Ho-jeong’s movements became. He was quickly adapting to Beonjak’s martial arts.

‘Just a little more.’

Peo-peo-peo-peong!

In front of the consecutive explosions of flames, even the sky was dyed red.

“Hoo-uk!”

Beonjak, who had been unleashing indiscriminate attacks without taking a single breath, took a breath for a moment.

At that moment, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes blazed.

Kwa-a-ang!

Yeon Ho-jeong, who was shot out with a roar, unleashed the Azure Dragon Art, the Dragon Group Three Forms (龍群三形) [a series of three consecutive attacks], in succession.

Puh-uh-uk!

The spear blade that was thrust out tore through Beonjak’s side.

Kwajik!

The spear shaft that swept in shattered Beonjak’s collarbone.

Puh-uh-uh-ung!

The fist that flowed in smoothly struck Beonjak’s abdomen.

Puhwaaaak!

Beonjak spat out blood and flew away.

The Azure Dragon Art was a martial art focused on evasion and counterattacks. The stronger Beonjak’s martial arts were, the more fatal the consecutive attacks would be, crushing the opponent the moment an opening appeared.

It was then.

Chi-ri-ri-ring!

Beonjak, who had been flung away, rotated his body.

It was a martial art so powerful that he almost lost his mind for a moment, but Beonjak held onto his sanity with the power of his fanatical faith.

That wasn’t all. The rotation of his body wasn’t just to disperse the impact.

Ti-i-ing!

The end of the Coiling Dragon Chain fell from Beonjak’s body. He had completely broken free from the Coiling Dragon Chain that had been wrapped around his torso.

Pa-a-a-ang!

Even while spitting out blood, Beonjak ran.

He wanted to turn Yeon Ho-jeong into a pile of ashes, but he had a mission.

He had amplified his anger and shown an opening for this one opportunity.

‘It stings.’

The Fire Essence was shaking unstably. The torn side, the broken collarbone, and the concussed internal organs were quickly recovering, but that was the limit.

‘The internal injuries aren’t healing anymore.’

After only two or three recoveries, the Fire Essence was no longer functioning properly.

That meant that Yeon Ho-jeong’s attacks had tremendous destructive power.

Pa-ba-ba-bak!

Beonjak’s figure rapidly moved away.

And.

“I knew it.”

Kwaang!

Yeon Ho-jeong’s left foot took a powerful step.

A white whirlwind wrapped around the long spear. From the moment Beonjak began to flee, the Azure Dragon energy had been converted to White Tiger energy, drawing out power close to its limit.

In that short time, Beonjak had already run over thirty yards away. The entire forest was a mess, so Beonjak’s figure was clearly visible.

“Perfect.”

A white light exploded from Yeon Ho-jeong’s hand.

Flash!

The White Wind (白風) Lightning Spear (雷槍) [a spear technique that combines wind and lightning] that was shot pierced Beonjak’s thigh.

Puh-uh-uh-uhk!

“Kuh!”

It was an unimaginable blow.

It was fortunate that his leg wasn’t completely blown off. However, he was unable to use one of his legs right away.

‘Fire Essence!’

Hwa-reureureuk!

He ignited flames, setting fire to a distant giant tree. He recovered the fiercely burning fire energy to amplify his power.

However, his leg did not recover easily. He had avoided having his bones destroyed with a moment’s judgment, but the muscles inside his thigh had been completely ruptured.

“As expected, that was the limit.”

Beonjak’s eyes wavered. Yeon Ho-jeong was already approaching him from behind.

“Even though I lost my awareness of my surroundings, I could clearly see what was happening inside your body.”

If you lose one thing, you gain another.

Yeon Ho-jeong had seen through with his divine eyes that Beonjak’s Fire Essence was not working properly.

It was then.

Peo-uh-ung!

Paeyul, covered in blood, appeared with an explosion.

Paeyul spat and asked.

“What’s with this yellow bastard? He looks damn strong?”

“He’s an arsonist.”

“I see. This beautiful forest.”

“I’m planning to ignore any trial procedures. I’ve decided to be the judge.”

“So, what’s the verdict?”

Cha-a-a-ang!

Yeon Ho-jeong’s face, as he drew the White Dragon Blade, was like that of a fierce god.

“The verdict is the death penalty, and the type of punishment is dismemberment.”