Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 56

Myeong On-ji was flustered.

‘What is that?’

Wooong! Wooong! Wooong!

A semi-transparent blue aura, flickering repeatedly, formed the shape of a snake piercing through a tortoise shell.

It was an astonishing sight. When the density of qi [life force or energy] is strong, its color becomes visible to the naked eye when internal energy is released, but this form was something different.

‘Intent!’

That’s right. It wasn’t just simple qi. It was a sight where qi was shaped by a strongly trained intent.

Myeong On-ji was genuinely surprised. For qi to manifest a form according to intent was nearly impossible even for a master of the highest level.

“You… what is your true identity?!”

It was then.

“Kaat! You bastard!”

A faint golden light emanated from Myeong Do’s body.

Myeong On-ji’s eyes wavered.

“Myeong Do! No!”

Paah!

Blinded by rage, he rushed at Yeon Ho-jeong.

Yeon Ho-jeong grinned.

Thud!

Myeong Do’s fist was blocked by Yeon Ho-jeong’s palm.

‘He’s quite something.’

The power transmitted through his palm was considerable. He had easily blocked it by channeling Xuanwu Qi [Black Tortoise Qi, a powerful defensive energy] into his hand, but it was a force that could shatter a thick tree.

Crack.

Myeong Do’s eyes twitched. The fingers wrapping around his fist felt like they would crush it at any moment. It was an immense grip.

“You fiend!”

Thwoong!

He struck his lower arm with his palm, freeing his fist, and then wildly swung his fist.

Pow pow pow!

Myeong Do’s eyes widened.

The martial art he was using was the Iron Chain Eight Fists of the Guju Myeong family.

It was a martial art that improved upon the Iron Chain Strike, a form of Sanda [a type of Chinese kickboxing], and was a powerful fist technique that overwhelmed opponents with a barrage of attacks.

Surprisingly, Yeon Ho-jeong was blocking all of those attacks with just one hand.

“It’s similar to the martial art that the third young master used.”

Paah! Crack!

Myeong Do’s eyes became bloodshot. After blocking sixteen punches, Yeon Ho-jeong had grabbed his wrist like a ghost.

‘Kuk!’

His wrist was twisting. Soon, his entire body was bent to the right.

The grip was so strong that he couldn’t break free. No, far from breaking free, the force was tightening, and his forearm felt like it would break.

Crack crack crack!

“Kuaaaak!”

Just as Yeon Ho-jeong was about to completely break his arm.

Swish!

The swordsmen, who had spread out in all directions, unleashed their sword techniques. They were more cautious than before, but the sharpness of their blades remained the same.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes flashed.

Thud!

Yeon Ho-jeong’s foot struck Myeong Do’s lower abdomen. Myeong Do’s mouth gaped open as he fell to his knees.

At that moment, the swords of the assassination squad members were inches away.

Kooong!

He lowered his stance and swung Myeong Do.

‘Huk!’

He never expected someone to grab a person’s arm and swing them around like an object. And with such incredible speed.

The surprised assassination squad members retracted their swords.

Yeon Ho-jeong released Myeong Do. Three assassination squad members caught the flying Myeong Do.

Myeong On-ji’s eyes flashed.

‘Now!’

Thwoong!

She instantly charged towards Yeon Ho-jeong. Her speed was incredibly swift.

At the same time, Yeon Ho-jeong’s body blurred like mist.

‘Huk!’

Myeong On-ji was horrified. As if he had expected it, Yeon Ho-jeong was also charging towards her.

The speed of their approach was beyond imagination. The moment she pushed off, Yeon Ho-jeong was already half a jang [a traditional Chinese unit of length, approximately 3.3 meters] away.

Kwaang!

Myeong On-ji’s body flew backward.

The impact wasn’t significant. Her martial art focused on the technique of transferring force. It was difficult to inflict damage with ordinary attacks.

However, what surprised Myeong On-ji wasn’t Yeon Ho-jeong’s strength but the attack itself.

‘A body slam?’

To send someone flying with such a reckless charge?

‘What kind of power…?’

Not only that.

Thwoong!

After sending Myeong On-ji flying, he turned his body again and charged towards the assassination squad member at the end, his movements as smooth as flowing water.

Yeon Ho-jeong closed the distance in an instant.

He finally swung his massive axe.

Jjeoeoeong!

The sword shattered with a single blow.

The panicked assassination squad member dropped his sword and tried to use a fist strike.

Bang!

“Kuk!”

The assassination squad member collapsed on the spot. His bones were broken by the shockwave that exploded from his shoulder.

It was the Yeon family’s martial art, the Yeonhwan Biyun Jang [a powerful palm technique]. How he managed to use it with a broken stance while wielding a heavy weapon was beyond comprehension.

“Grab him!”

Swoosh!

The movements of the assassination squad members rushing towards Yeon Ho-jeong were smooth and agile. They moved so quickly, yet there was no sound of their footsteps.

The assassination squad members charged again.

Myeong On-ji gathered her true energy from the rear. She was waiting for the decisive moment.

It was then.

‘……!!’

Myeong On-ji’s expression changed as she glanced at Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes.

‘That guy…?’

Wooong! Bang!

The blow that broke the sword wasn’t his full power.

In the midst of everyone rushing in, he was swinging his axe with ruthless speed, and the shockwaves spreading in a circle were preventing the assassination squad members from getting close.

‘He knows the tactics?!’

Paah!

Not only that.

After making everyone hesitate, he charged towards an assassination squad member who was at a moderate distance and thrust his axe.

The axe was a weapon for swinging and splitting. It wasn’t a weapon for thrusting like a spear. However, since it was a heavy weapon weighing eighty geun [a traditional Chinese unit of weight, approximately 48 kilograms], it was a terrifying attack in itself.

Kwajik!

The assassination squad member was sent flying, spitting blood without even being able to scream. Judging by the weight of the axe, three or four of his ribs must have been broken. It was fortunate that he didn’t lose his life right there.

However, that single blow revealed an opening. The assassination squad members swung their swords at Yeon Ho-jeong’s back.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes emitted a blue glow.

Jjeojeojeojeong!

It was like a typhoon had struck.

With a single swing, ten swords were broken like straws.

Myeong On-ji felt a chill run down her spine.

‘This can’t be!’

It was a martial art that surpassed imagination, an overwhelming power.

Usually, the scions of prestigious families or high-level martial artists didn’t use axes. It wasn’t just about the appearance, but because they could deliver powerful attacks with a single sword.

In other words, there were few skilled martial artists who used heavy weapons or large weapons. It was more like a weapon used by bandits who had learned a little martial arts.

But Yeon Ho-jeong was different.

Thud! Thud!

He pressed down and crushed, pushed with the shaft and sent them flying. He thrust like a spear to break bones, and in between, he threw fist strikes to knock them down.

He freely changed the center of gravity of the axe, and if necessary, he even threw kicks. He didn’t kill by striking with the axe blade, but rather by hitting them with the broad side of the axe to render them incapacitated.

It was truly a whirlwind.

It was as if Yeon Ho-jeong himself had become a giant tornado. The assassination squad members who had rushed in as if possessed were sent flying and collapsing like fallen leaves by Yeon Ho-jeong’s heavy weapon techniques.

‘Ik!’

Myeong On-ji, who was about to jump in when she saw an opening, flinched for a moment.

The moment she tried to move, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes turned towards her.

She didn’t know how many times it had happened. It was as if he had completely seen through her tactics.

‘What is his true identity, this guy?!’

It was then.

“You son of a bitch!”

Paah!

Myeong Do charged with a ghostly expression.

“I’ll tear you apart and kill you!”

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes blazed.

After sending one of the assassination squad members flying with a punch, he poured Byukra Jinqi [a type of powerful internal energy] into his axe.

Woo woong!

A clear blue aura rose from the axe blade.

Myeong On-ji shouted.

“Myeong Do!!”

Yeon Ho-jeong’s axe moved like lightning.

Thud!

Myeong Do’s body was split diagonally.

Thud!

Unable to withstand the force, his upper body flew and crashed into a tree before falling to the ground.

Thud.

The lower half of his body, having lost its upper half, wobbled as if trying to take a step, then collapsed.

Puhwaaak!

A large amount of blood spurted out. Internal organs flowed out from the split torso and scattered on the ground.

“……!!”

Silence fell.

Yeon Ho-jeong frowned.

‘It can’t be helped.’

He had tried not to kill if possible. But he couldn’t just let a guy who was attacking with the intention to kill live.

Myeong On-ji’s eyes shook violently.

“Do you… do you know what you’ve just done?!”

Kwaang!

One of the assassination squad members flew through the air and was left dangling from a tree branch.

Now, there was only one assassination squad member left. Including Myeong On-ji, there were only two remaining forces from the assassination squad.

Yeon Ho-jeong, with his axe casually resting on his shoulder, spoke coldly.

“Shall we start round two?”

Tsutsutsu.

Murderous intent finally arose in Myeong On-ji’s eyes as well.

Yeon Ho-jeong had crossed a line that should not have been crossed. It was one thing to incapacitate someone, but he had killed a person. And he had brutally killed a member of the Myeong family.

However, even in the midst of this, Myeong On-ji was thinking as the leader of the assassination squad.

‘He’s strong. If I use that martial art, maybe, but otherwise, a head-on fight is impossible.’

But this was a forest. There were no trees around the bonfire, but if they moved just three jang further, the trees were dense.

Myeong On-ji made a decision.

“Amchil! Connect with the remaining five and go to the branch!”

Paah!

The remaining member headed west.

At the same time, a golden light emanated from Myeong On-ji’s body. It was a much higher level of energy than the true energy that Myeong Do had emitted.

Kooong!

She unleashed a palm strike with a powerful step.

Bang!

With a loud explosion, Yeon Ho-jeong’s sleeve was torn off.

It was an incredible power. It was a martial art several levels higher than Myeong Do’s fist strike.

Thwoong!

Myeong On-ji charged.

Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes flashed.

‘She’s fast, as expected.’

The assassination squad’s tactics were simple yet efficient.

The entire assassination squad would rush in to subdue the target. But if they were unable to subdue them, they would create an opening by distracting them. At that moment, Myeong On-ji would launch a surprise attack.

It was a simple but effective tactic. It was even more effective because of Myeong On-ji’s gentle expression and aura.

However, as an individual, Myeong On-ji displayed greater skill in one-on-one combat than when coordinating with multiple people.

That fact had been proven through several clashes.

Pow pow pow! Jjeoeong!

She was fast.

With graceful movements like a peacock, she unleashed lightning-fast fist and palm strikes, each strike carrying the power of a fatal blow.

Yeon Ho-jeong gripped the shaft of his axe with both hands.

Bang! Kwaang!

The speed of Yeon Ho-jeong’s axe was the same.

The fierce strikes he delivered like a storm were a threat to life itself. What was even more impressive was that there were no openings even when wielding such a large weapon.

Bang!

‘Hup!’

Myeong On-ji’s staggering back hit a tree.

‘He broke through!’

Her left hand was stained with blood. She had tried to deflect the iron axe strike, but the destructive power of the energy was so great that she had been injured.

It wasn’t an attack that could be easily deflected. In terms of attack, he possessed a skill that was a level above her.

“Tch!”

Myeong On-ji jumped into the forest.

Yeon Ho-jeong followed Myeong On-ji.

Myeong On-ji’s eyes sparkled.

‘Good, follow me.’

She had been pushed back in the open, but it was different in the dense forest.

That iron axe was not only heavy but also long. It was a heavy weapon and a long weapon. It would be difficult to exert its full power in a forest where trees were densely packed.

Moreover, the opponent had also depleted his stamina by defeating the assassination squad. It was a fight where the odds were in her favor.

Thwoong!

After entering about thirty jang, Myeong On-ji finally turned around. She intended to launch a surprise attack from behind the largest tree nearby.

‘You foolish fool! I’ll end it here…’

At that moment, Myeong On-ji’s eyes widened.

Hwaaaak!

The view was blocked by the trees.

However, she could see a blue aura spreading like lightning from the left and right of the trees.

Kwaang!

The huge tree exploded as if it had been hit by a cannon.

And through that, Yeon Ho-jeong, holding up his massive iron axe, appeared with a terrifying gleam in his eyes.

“Is this the best tactic you could come up with?”