Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 664

The False Killing Intent (7)

Dudududu.

The massive horse swiftly crested the ridge and reached the foothills overlooking the canyon.

“Hoo.”

Hwang Seok-tae briefly halted his horse.

Puh-roo-ruk!

The horse, having pawed the ground a few times, vigorously shook its head.

It had run that long distance without rest. Yet, the horse’s stamina remained robust. It was clear how much care the Dangga [a term for a specific group or faction] had put into it.

Hwang Seok-tae looked back.

Flash!

In the distance, a chilling streak of sword light flared and then vanished.

‘They’re fast, as expected.’

On his way here, he had blocked the Jongnam Sect pursuers with near-acrobatic horsemanship and martial arts, breaking trees and sending rocks flying to obstruct their path.

No matter how skilled they were, they couldn’t ignore the terrain itself to close the distance. Moreover, thanks to Hwang Seok-tae’s unique horsemanship and the unparalleled steed, he had managed to create this much distance.

However, complacency was forbidden.

‘At this speed, they could arrive within two gaks [a unit of time, roughly equivalent to 15 minutes]… perhaps even one.’

Hwang Seok-tae stroked the horse’s mane.

“Let’s push on a little more.”

Hee-hee-hing!

As if understanding, the horse neighed softly.

Hwang Seok-tae flicked the reins.

“Hyah!”

Dudududu!

The horse galloped powerfully once more.

It quickly descended the mountain and reached the canyon entrance.

“You’ve arrived?”

Gang Ryang greeted him.

Hwang Seok-tae’s eyes gleamed.

“Where is Elder Paeyul?”

“The senior…”

Gang Ryang unusually hesitated. Upon closer inspection, his face was filled with worry.

“Has something happened?”

“Over there.”

Gang Ryang pointed to a distant spot. It was a forest barely visible due to the long canyon.

“A fierce battle between top experts broke out near there. I don’t know who the opponent is, but it’s certain that one of them is the elder brother.”

Hwang Seok-tae’s eyes wavered.

“What was the result?”

“I don’t know. Nothing can be seen from here. I only know that a fight broke out and ended.”

“Then why are you here instead of going there?”

“The elder brother ordered me to wait here. No…”

Gang Ryang gritted his teeth.

“He told me to retreat in case a fight broke out.”

“…”

“I didn’t think it would happen, but they really fought. Judging by the energy in the air, it seems like the opponent uses unorthodox martial arts… but I’m not sure.”

“Does that mean the opponent could be an Umje [a term for a powerful martial artist, often associated with dark or unorthodox techniques]?”

“Yes.”

If that was the case, it was a serious matter.

“Elder Paeyul said he would go check it out himself. I was worried, but as the elder brother said, I was going to retreat…”

“That man had no intention of doing so.”

Gang Ryang sighed.

Hwang Seok-tae understood Gang Ryang. And he understood Paeyul as well.

But that shouldn’t have happened. If it were Hwang Seok-tae himself, he would have retreated without any hesitation.

It wasn’t that he wasn’t worried about his allies. Worry was worry, and the plan was the plan. If they had agreed to it, they had to act accordingly.

“Let’s go check it out.”

“…Go check it out?”

“You wanted to go too, didn’t you?”

“That’s true, but…”

“Since Elder Paeyul has already moved, our retreat is meaningless.”

“…”

“Besides, it’s not a battle to the death, and he told us to retreat because he was worried about our lives, so the only thing we can lose is our lives.”

It was a clear and terrifying statement.

Gang Ryang, who was dumbfounded by his words, soon grinned.

“You said you wouldn’t risk your life?”

“It just seems better to go that way.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Jongnam is catching up. They seem quite angry.”

“Huh? Jongnam?”

Woo-oong.

Gang Ryang pulled up his Ghost King Energy [a type of internal energy].

“Gasp!”

It was true. His sensitive senses immediately detected the sharp energies rushing from the far rear.

He had been so worried about Yeon Ho-jeong and Paeyul that he had missed who was approaching from afar.

Gang Ryang said, bewildered.

“What? Why are they angry?”

“They started it.”

“No, even so…!”

“Whatever the reason, I told them to bring their forces, so I kept my word.”

“This is absurd!”

“So, are you going or not?”

Gang Ryang sighed deeply and mounted his horse.

“Go slowly.”

“Hyah!”

At Hwang Seok-tae’s short, sharp cry, his horse powerfully kicked off the ground.

Gang Ryang also spurred his horse. He had been hesitating for a while, but now that he was heading towards the battlefield, he felt a little more at ease.

How long had they been riding?

Gang Ryang’s eyes wavered.

‘He’s fast!’

Hwang Seok-tae was already far ahead.

The difference in stamina or speed between the horses would be negligible. Yet, in such a short time, this much distance had been created. It could only be attributed to the difference in the riders’ skills.

‘Even so, this much!’

People had different talents, and he had no idea that he possessed such outstanding horsemanship.

Flash!

At that moment, a fierce sword energy soared from the canyon entrance behind them.

Gang Ryang shouted.

“Jongnam has arrived at the canyon entrance!”

“I know!”

Hwang Seok-tae powerfully thrust his Red Dragon Spear.

Crack! Thud!

Three trees blocking the path were knocked down to the left and right by the fierce spear technique.

Gang Ryang’s eyes widened at the powerful force.

‘What is that spear technique?’

Hwang Seok-tae’s spear strikes didn’t end there.

Whoosh! Crack! Crrrack! Thud!

The moment the red light flashed, the massive trees blocking the way were broken at incredible angles, creating a path.

It was truly a divine spear technique. It was not only delicate but also incredibly powerful.

‘Was he always this strong?’

The Hwang Seok-tae that Gang Ryang remembered was strong enough. He was so strong that he wouldn’t be confident in winning against him now.

But the current Hwang Seok-tae seemed much stronger than he remembered.

Thud! Thud thud!

The trees were shattered by the sharp spear wind like needles.

And finally, a fairly wide forest path appeared. There was no need to break through trees anymore.

Hwang Seok-tae shouted.

“Increase the speed!”

Gang Ryang gritted his teeth and shook the reins, but Hwang Seok-tae was running twice as fast as him.

‘It’s horsemanship.’

Only then did Gang Ryang realize why Hwang Seok-tae’s spear technique was stronger than before.

‘A mounted group… yes, Commander Hwang is strong on his own, but he’s even stronger when mounted.’

Gang Ryang chuckled to himself.

‘A martial art of man and horse as one.’

In battles between top experts, horses were more of a hindrance. Even the sturdiest horse couldn’t withstand the internal energy and explosive power that experts emitted.

But if one was as skilled in horsemanship as Hwang Seok-tae, it was a different story.

No matter how great the speed and weight of a horse were, they couldn’t surpass the internal energy of an expert. But Hwang Seok-tae naturally used spear techniques that maximized the horse’s speed and weight as if he were breathing.

It was certain that Hwang Seok-tae could safely protect his horse while fighting any expert, and at the same time, amplify the power of his martial arts by receiving the horse’s strength. He was convinced of it.

‘Unless it’s an expert of a different dimension, Commander Hwang’s martial arts will be an impregnable force.’

Gang Ryang’s eyes deepened.

‘I still don’t fully understand that man’s power.’

He thought he had gotten closer, but there were still so many things he didn’t know.

What about Paeyul? Did Paeyul still have something he hadn’t shown him?

And what about Yeon Ho-jeong?

Whoosh!

It was instantaneous to fall into thought and come out of it.

The reason was simple.

Hee-hee-hee-hing!

Hwang Seok-tae stopped his horse, and Gang Ryang, who quickly approached him, also stopped his horse.

“…!!”

Expressions of shock appeared on both of their faces.

“T-this, is this?!”

Gang Ryang stuttered. But he couldn’t bring himself to finish his sentence.

Hwang Seok-tae said.

“It looks like a volcano erupted.”

The battlefield they were looking at was in ruins.

Dozens of trees were broken and scattered everywhere. And inside, the open space, more than twenty jangs [a unit of length, roughly equivalent to 10 feet] in radius, was charred and hardened in places, turned black, or covered with an unidentified gray powder.

It was an overwhelming sight.

No one had died, but it gave a strangely gruesome impression.

“Killing intent.”

Gang Ryang looked at Hwang Seok-tae.

Hwang Seok-tae said with a pale face.

“I can feel the lingering killing intent. It’s truly vicious. If it’s this toxic even as a fragment…”

“It’s the elder brother’s.”

“What?”

Gang Ryang’s face became grave.

“It’s so intense that I didn’t realize it… this is the elder brother’s killing intent.”

“How do you know that?”

“I just feel it. If you live together for a long time, you can sense that much.”

That was nonsense.

No matter how long they had been together, it was impossible to deduce someone’s identity from the lingering killing intent. At least, it was for Hwang Seok-tae.

‘This guy.’

Hwang Seok-tae looked at Gang Ryang with a renewed gaze.

‘I knew he was a genius, but what he sees and feels is different from me.’

He was clearly weaker, yet he could sense things that he couldn’t.

What else could that be but genius? Breaking through the wall of the martial arts at such a young age was not only due to his blood-spitting ability but also to the talent bestowed upon him by the heavens.

‘I’m envious.’

Hwang Seok-tae deliberately turned his head.

“I’ve never seen a master of the Supreme Realm fight seriously. But this battlefield… I get the impression that Vice-Commander Yeon also gave it his all.”

“I feel the same.”

“Where did they go? If they died, there would be a corpse…”

It was then.

[Come on up.]

In an instant, the two were startled.

Gang Ryang said to Hwang Seok-tae.

“Did you hear that?”

“I did.”

“…Who is it?”

They didn’t know who it was, but they knew one thing.

The one sending the telepathic message was an expert beyond imagination. Just hearing the voice made their legs feel weak.

Beeeep.

A soft flute sound came from somewhere.

“It’s that way.”

“Right. It seems like they’re telling us to come that way.”

“…It’s not a trap, is it?”

“I don’t know. But judging by the voice in the telepathic message, I didn’t sense any particular ill intent.”

“You never know. We’re no match for that expert.”

The two instinctively knew that the opponent was an Umje.

Hwang Seok-tae took the reins.

“If they intend to kill us, we’ll die even if we run away right now. With an Umje’s skill, we can’t even escape half a gak.”

“…”

“Let’s go.”

“I guess so.”

Gang Ryang looked towards the canyon.

“We have to deal with the Jongnam bastards too. If they don’t kill us, they won’t be able to cause trouble in front of the Umje.”

“Hyah!”

Hee-hee-hing!

The two men’s horses, letting out powerful cries, climbed the well-trodden mountain.

They crossed a mountain, detoured along a valley, and reached a path leading to a cliff.

“You’ve arrived.”

Surprisingly, Paeyul was there. His unusually polite posture was very out of character.

Hwang Seok-tae and Gang Ryang looked towards the hut.

There, a beautiful woman in her early thirties was looking at them with her hands behind her back.

Paeyul said quickly in a low voice.

“Quickly dismount and greet her.”

“Huh?”

“She is Senior Umje.”

“Ah!”

The two quickly dismounted and bowed.

“Gang Ryang greets Senior Umje!”

“Hwang Seok-tae, the Iron Cavalry Commander of the Mukryong Unit, greets Seongcheon.”

Ha Eun-gyo smiled.

“The juniors of the Black Path are much more polite than the elders of the White Path.”

*****************************************************

Distributed by Ajit Novel (formerly Ajitun Novel).

Enjoy conveniently in real time on the web.

****************************************************