Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 625

“Are you alright?” Tang Gwan asked, his tone casual as he entered through the main gate.

Tang Hyeong, having composed himself, replied,

“What do you mean?”

“It seems you’re carrying a terrible illness.”

“It’s nothing much.”

Tang Hyeong’s nonchalant and cool response was quite impressive.

In truth, he was in good spirits. Even if he were to die tomorrow, he had managed to mend his relationship with his son, however clumsily. How could he not be happy?

On the other hand, Tang Gwan’s eyes visibly darkened.

He still didn’t look at his father, afraid his expression might be seen.

“Is it an illness that even a master who has opened the Limitless [a martial arts realm] cannot cure?”

Tang Hyeong detected concern in his son’s voice.

He wished he could dismiss it as nothing, but it seemed impossible.

No parent would intentionally cause their child worry. However, the fact that his son was concerned about him was pleasing. He even felt a little proud.

And to that son, Tang Hyeong didn’t feel the need to beat around the bush. He knew his son wanted an honest answer.

“It’s a side effect.”

“A side effect, you say…?”

“To be precise, it’s because I was greedy.”

Tang Hyeong closed his eyes.

“Though I created it, the Monarch Poison Scripture [a martial arts manual] is undoubtedly a peerless poison art. There’s nothing to add or take away. At least, that’s how it is now.”

“…”

“It’s a disease I got from trying to add something to such a martial art. I tried to create something beyond the Monarch Poison Scripture, something befitting a half-immortal who has opened the Limitless.”

“…”

“It’s a foolish thing. Before gaining my current enlightenment, I had already created something perfect. There was no need to forcibly add annotations to that perfection.”

“…”

“A tiger is the king of beasts, no matter what anyone says. Does it cease to be the king of the mountains just because it doesn’t have wings? But I was dissatisfied with that. So, I tried to fix it again, and I realized when this illness grew that my greed was excessive.”

Tang Hyeong gave a faint smile.

His smile, rarely seen, looked somewhat awkward.

“But it’s alright. That’s life. My lifespan has shortened, but I’ve learned once again that excessive greed is harmful, so I’ve truly learned a lesson.”

“…Is that so?”

“You’ll understand someday.”

He was saying that Tang Gwan would also reach the realm of the Limitless.

Though their years were filled with love and hate, Tang Hyeong had never doubted Tang Gwan’s talent and effort. He had only feared the outcome.

Tang Gwan spoke.

“Is that why you placed a restriction on yourself?”

“You saw that far?”

“…”

“Yes, that’s why I placed a restriction on my body. If I maintain more power than necessary, the illness eats away at my body.”

Tang Gwan stopped walking.

“Put it back on.”

Tang Hyeong smiled faintly.

“It’s alright for now. Isn’t the family unstable?”

“We can handle it.”

He didn’t say ‘I’ll handle it,’ but ‘we can handle it.’

That one sentence showed how much Tang Gwan had changed. He, who had been so self-centered and selfish, now understood the concept of coexistence.

“You’ll handle it well, I have no doubt. But isn’t the world in turmoil? I hear dangerous foreign forces are on the move. It’s better to maintain this state, even for the slightest chance of trouble.”

“Father.”

“Hmm?”

“You need to live comfortably, for a long time.”

“…”

Though he couldn’t see it, he could feel the deep emotion in his son’s voice.

Tang Hyeong, his eyes wavering as he looked at Tang Gwan for a long time, burst into laughter.

“Well, it seems that Yeon Ho-Jeong fellow alone is enough.”

“If necessary, I’ll even borrow that bastard’s hand. So, put the restriction back on.”

“Alright, I will.”

Tang Hyeong brought his index and middle fingers together and pressed them against his chest and abdomen several times.

Chiiiiiiiiik!

Soon, white smoke seemed to rise from various parts of his body, and his faintly spreading presence quickly disappeared. The Monarch Poison Art was beginning to be sealed.

“Is it done?”

“It’s in progress. Let’s walk.”

“Is it alright to walk?”

“We’re not fighting, so it’s not a problem.”

The father and son resumed walking.

Tang Gwan’s pace was much slower than before, worried that his father might overexert himself.

Knowing his concern, Tang Hyeong said,

“It will take time for the dantian [energy center] to be completely sealed. After it’s sealed, I’ll only open it slowly, just enough to minimize the activity of the illness.”

“I see.”

“Don’t worry, as long as I don’t overdo it.”

“I’m not worried.”

Tang Gwan’s short reply was somewhat curt.

Twenty years ago, he might have been hurt by his son’s cold tone.

But now, Tang Hyeong knew. Though they hadn’t met for twenty years, he still knew.

His son was clumsy at expressing his emotions.

Just like he had been in the past.

‘Well, he’s my blood.’

Blood doesn’t lie. Tang Hyeong felt sorry for his son’s personality, and he also resented himself for not being honest with his son because he was bound by family rules.

‘But, it’s alright.’

It was time to do better.

It was far too late for a father in his seventies and a son in his fifties, but they could live each day truthfully. Tang Hyeong truly believed that.

“By the way, who is this bastard?”

“Yeon Ho-Jeong, that guy.”

“I hear you’re quite close.”

“If we were close, he’d be with his father. He’s not relevant.”

“And yet you brought him?”

Tang Gwan said in a disgruntled tone.

“He’s a pain in the ass, but he’s skilled. Now that he’s opened the Limitless, he’ll probably be nagging me to death.”

“He seemed quite bold.”

“He’s just a bastard. I’ve never seen such a bastard in the family.”

“Haha.”

“If you ever have a meal with him, don’t exchange a single word. He’s the type who could kill a person with his silver tongue.”

“Alright, I will.”

He never imagined he’d be able to have such an ordinary conversation with his son.

Looking at Tang Gwan with a pleased expression, Tang Hyeong suddenly noticed his second son and grandson slumped on his son’s shoulders.

“…”

Tang Hyeong’s eyes darkened.

His relationship with his first son had improved, but the fact that he had lost one son remained unchanged. And that son had not only ruined the family but had also killed countless innocent people.

‘Life is truly…’

Not easy.

He didn’t know how many times joy, sorrow, regret, and shock had dominated his consciousness in this short time.

Tang Hyeong tried to calm himself.

The death of his second son would torment him for a long time. He probably wouldn’t be able to forget it until the moment he died.

But he didn’t want to be sad now. He was sad, but he didn’t want to show it.

As he walked silently, Tang Hyeong opened his mouth, a thought suddenly occurring to him.

“By the way, the third son…?”

It was then.

‘…? ‘

Tang Hyeong’s eyes wavered.

‘What is it?’

He was in the process of sealing the energy of all three dantians. His five senses were as dull as a commoner’s.

However, the body of a half-immortal who had opened the Limitless could sense the distorted flow of air and an unknown sense of unease, even without using qi [internal energy].

Kkyaaaaaak!

Tang Hyeong heard a hallucination.

He heard the wail of a soul, as if a formless ghost was screaming.

Looking at something in the air, he was suddenly startled and looked at Tang Ho’s corpse.

‘…!!’

He could see it even though he couldn’t see it. He could feel it even though he couldn’t feel it.

Something had entered his second son’s corpse, or rather, something strange was happening to his second son’s corpse.

Reading the distorted flow of air, hearing the ghost’s hallucination, and even being certain that something was happening to the corpse.

That time was like a fleeting moment. In that short time, Tang Hyeong recognized everything.

And he sensed it.

‘Danger!’

Tang Hyeong quickly reached out his hand. No, he tried to reach out.

‘…!!’

His consciousness had already grabbed his second son’s corpse from his first son’s shoulder and flung it away. If he had been before sealing his power, it would have been possible.

But Tang Hyeong’s body couldn’t keep up with the half-immortal’s consciousness. The hand he tried to extend was still not fully extended.

Tang Gwan opened his mouth.

“Ah, the third son…”

Kwang!

With an explosion, Tang Hyeong’s body flew backward.

Swoosh!

The moment his left shoulder seemed to twitch, Tang Gwan instinctively threw Tang Ho and Tang Yeo-Seon and turned to run towards Tang Hyeong.

“Father!”

“Cough!”

A mouthful of dark red blood poured from Tang Hyeong’s mouth and nose.

Tang Gwan’s face turned pale.

The color of the blood was ominous. The reversed Monarch Poison Qi was mixed with the blood, along with internal injuries.

In addition, his right rib cage was caved in.

It seemed that a broken bone had pierced an organ. He had instinctively avoided having his entire sternum crushed, but this was also a fatal injury.

“Th-This!”

Tang Gwan quickly placed his hand on Tang Hyeong’s chest and used the Monarch Poison Art. It was to control the poison qi spreading through his blood and organs.

Pshhhhhh!

A huge cloud of poison formed around them.

He tried to control it with the Monarch Poison Art, but the poison qi that Tang Hyeong possessed was so dense and enormous that it was leaking out.

Trickle.

Blood flowed from Tang Gwan’s nose.

The moment he poured in his true qi to control it, he suffered internal injuries from his father’s poison qi.

‘Kuh!’

It was truly an immense power. The power of the Saintly Heaven that had begun to run wild was so deadly that it could instantly inflict internal injuries even on a supreme master who was looking towards the Limitless.

At that moment, Tang Hyeong opened his eyes.

The painful expression was gone, and his stern and cold face was exactly like the Dark King, the feared head of the family during his active years.

“I’m alright. Stop him.”

“Father!”

“Hurry!”

Tang Gwan gritted his teeth and turned his back.

Chiiiiiiiiik!

Tearing through the cloud of poison, Tang Ho appeared, glaring at Tang Gwan with bloodshot eyes.

Tang Gwan roared.

“Tang Ho!!”

Kwaang!

Closing the distance in an instant, he struck Tang Ho’s face.

Thwack!

It was neither poison art nor assassination technique. It was a movement created by a human’s extreme rage.

Crack!

Tang Ho’s face, which had rolled on the ground, was truly gruesome. His left face was covered in blood, his cheekbone was sunken, and one of his eyeballs was bulging out.

Even though the Mad Demon Divine Art and Iron Demon Body were being used automatically, his skin was torn and his bones were broken. That was how strong Tang Gwan’s fist was.

He didn’t stop.

Kwaang!

He rushed forward again and swung his fist. The poison arts and assassination techniques he had learned his whole life didn’t even come to mind.

Kugugung!

Tang Gwan’s fist broke through the ground.

Surprisingly, Tang Ho managed to evade Tang Gwan’s attack despite being hit by that blow. It was impossible to understand how such a movement was possible.

Tang Gwan glared at Tang Ho, who had evaded with bloodshot eyes.

“…?!!”

Soon, shock washed over Tang Gwan’s face.

“Cough! F-Father…”

Tang Ho, who had regained consciousness, bit Tang Yeo-Seon’s carotid artery, who was hiding behind him.

Psh! Psh!

The gushing blood was gruesome.

Tang Ho placed his hand on Tang Yeo-Seon’s solar plexus.

Crack! Crack!

Tang Yeo-Seon’s body gradually shrank. He was being drained of his life force.

A father was sucking his son’s blood and life force.

It was a horrific sight that had never been seen or heard of. Even Tang Gwan, who had lost his reason due to anger, hesitated for a moment.

And then.

Buaaaang!

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had flown in like a ray of light, swung his fist at Tang Ho.

Kwang!