Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 743

Yeon Ho-Jeong stared at Tak Mu-Ja, unmoving.

Tak Mu-Ja also silently gazed at Yeon Ho-Jeong with his deep eyes.

How much time had passed?

‘I didn’t expect the Sword Immortal, the highest elder of Mount Wudang, to say such things.’

Tak Mu-Ja shrugged.

‘Didn’t the White and Black Paths form an alliance?’

‘Is that so?’

‘I heard that a disaster that is hard to handle even with the combined forces of the White and Black Paths is approaching. Wouldn’t it be much more beneficial for you to absorb the Black Path than to have an ambitious man like Yang Cheon, who might draw his sword at any moment, destabilize it?’

‘Is it for the sake of the White Path?’

‘It’s for the sake of the next generation’s world. Of course, if the war ends in victory.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes deepened.

‘Won’t the Sword Immortal step forward?’

‘Hmm?’

‘The Fist God of Shaolin, the Sword Immortal of Wudang. If just one of you were to step forward, both the White and Black Paths would gain strength.’

Tak Mu-Ja smiled.

It was a smile that felt bitter and strangely passionate.

‘If I could have stepped forward, I would have done so long ago.’

‘Is there a reason why you can’t step forward?’

‘That’s right.’

‘Can I know?’

Tak Mu-Ja smiled wryly.

‘If it were a fact I could tell you, I would have told the Sect Leader as well.’

He was referring to the Wudang Sect Leader, the Head Disciple Seung Hyun-Jin.

‘I see.’

‘But.’

The change was instantaneous.

Whoosh!

A clear aura emanated from Tak Mu-Ja’s body in an instant.

The aura was truly strange. It was so soft that it was impossible to gauge how much was being released or its density at that moment.

‘……!’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes widened.

Whoosh…

While being densely packed like a cloud, the divine energy [仙氣, xianqi – a type of spiritual energy], which was difficult to perceive from within, was surging out in all directions.

And what filled that space was not the divine energy of a naturally formed peak, but the ultimate true energy that a human had accumulated.

‘Vast!’

It was abundant, natural, immense, and dense.

The invisible, intangible energy spread out from Tak Mu-Ja with a whoosh! It was like filling the world with water that was neither cold nor hot, but just the right temperature.

‘Completely different from Seung Hyun-Jin!’

Since their realms and enlightenment were different, their true energy was bound to be different.

However, the difference that Yeon Ho-Jeong was thinking of was not of that degree.

They had clearly learned the same Wudang martial arts, but apart from the unique color of Taoist divine skills, there was no part that could be seen as the same school’s training.

Yet, on the other hand, there were aspects that were so similar that it was surprising.

They were different to an excessive degree, yet surprisingly similar. The path to the origin was the same, but the depth and vastness were beyond comparison.

‘Water.’

Tak Mu-Ja had said. Okcheong was like water. And it was Tak Mu-Ja himself who had raised him like water.

If Seung Hyun-Jin was a scattering cloud, Tak Mu-Ja was flowing water.

If Seung Hyun-Jin was lightly flexible, Tak Mu-Ja was heavy yet flexible.

If Seung Hyun-Jin was within harmony, Tak Mu-Ja was one who created harmony himself.

The difference was the same yet completely different. Just by feeling the energy, one could imagine a fantastical scene.

‘To me, who cannot move from this place, the heavens have sent someone like you.’

‘……?’

‘Opening the Limitless means breaking away from the fate and order set in the human world. That realm is such a realm. It’s not just about becoming stronger in martial arts. It’s about shedding the human skin through martial arts, that is the Limitless, the realm of chaos.’

Tak Mu-Ja smiled.

‘In other words, it means that even with the power of the heavens, it is impossible to see inside your head. Unlike me.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘Aren’t you curious about the identity of the divine energy accumulated on this peak?’

He suddenly brought up a different topic.

However, Yeon Ho-Jeong intuitively knew. The current topic was like a path leading to the story he wanted to hear.

‘I am.’

‘This peak has no name. Although there have been many people who like to name things, it has been called the Nameless Peak since ancient times.’

Tak Mu-Ja shook his head.

‘It’s understandable. Even I don’t know what to call this place where the Great Master Samfeng, who became one with nature, attained enlightenment in his later years.’

‘……!’

Samfeng Jin-In. Zhang Sanfeng.

In the Taoism of the Central Plains, there would be no name greater or more famous than this.

If it was the place where the founder of the Wudang Sect and the person who reached the pinnacle of the Taoist lineage attained enlightenment in his later years, it would be like a sanctuary in itself.

‘This divine energy is the energy that the legendary Great Master Samfeng scattered for Wudang after becoming one with nature.’

‘Is that possible?’

‘I don’t know. I haven’t even reached the tip of that realm yet. However, there is no way not to believe it. The owner of this energy, which even the strong of the outer heavens who have reached the Limitless, Infinite, and Chaotic realms are captivated by, cannot be anyone other than the divine being, Great Master Samfeng.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong unconsciously nodded his head.

‘Therefore, it even blocks the gaze of those grotesque beings who watch the world with divine abilities.’

‘Pardon?’

‘There is someone watching me.’

‘Who is it?’

‘Tongcheon.’

‘Tongcheon?’

‘There are eccentrics in the world called the Three Oddities of the Jianghu [江湖, jianghu – the martial world], who are experts in one field. Among them, there is a monster who can foresee the future or look into a person’s inner self from thousands of miles away with his heaven-reaching divination and Taoist power.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes widened.

Tak Mu-Ja’s expression was serious. It was a story that no one could believe, but he was sincere.

‘You must have heard of the name Tongcheon Jin-In [通天眞人, Tongcheon True Man].’

‘I have, but I have never met him.’

‘He is also close to the Dragon Head Chief, but in reality, he is a very dangerous person. He helped the Dragon Head Chief with his heaven-reaching abilities and built a friendship, so even the Dragon Head Chief, who has the Dragon Eye, would not know what kind of person Tongcheon Jin-In is.’

Tak Mu-Ja chuckled.

‘Well, even if they weren’t close, he is not an ordinary person who could easily figure out his true intentions.’

‘……Why is he dangerous?’

‘Because he has been seduced by the evil path [邪道, xiedao – heretical or demonic path].’

‘……?’

‘To be precise, it’s because he abandoned the Tao he had reached the pinnacle of and is now serving a phantom ghost [鬼神, guishen – a spirit or deity] full of bloodshed.’

A phantom ghost full of bloodshed.

Blood, and a god.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

‘Blood God [血神, xueshen].’

An unexpected light appeared on Tak Mu-Ja’s face.

‘Did you know?’

‘It was the origin of the Three Sects of the Outer Lands. I know that the god of that sect is the Blood God.’

‘I don’t know much about the Three Sects of the Outer Lands. But the Blood God you mentioned must be correct. The moment Tongcheon watched me, I was able to watch him as well.’

It was a sound that was impossible to understand.

People talk about divine powers [神通力, shentongli], saying that mysterious legends existed.

But that was just a fabricated story. The ability to see what happened thousands of miles away (千里眼) and hear whispers from hundreds of miles away (天耳通) could not exist in common sense.

As if reading Yeon Ho-Jeong’s thoughts, Tak Mu-Ja gave a strange smile.

‘What about your martial arts?’

‘Yes?’

‘With your abilities, you can move an object a hundred paces away without touching it. You can’t fly in the sky, but you can reach the supreme realm of stepping on the void, running through the air as if you were flying.’

‘……!’

‘To ordinary people, those like you are superhumans. There are those who can lift objects without touching them, and even those who fly in the sky, so why wouldn’t there be a Taoist who can perceive what happened thousands of miles away from his seat?’

‘That is…….’

‘The root of that absolute power in your body is energy [氣, qi]. Depending on how you handle energy, one person can exert the power of a hundred people. And if you put that energy here.’

Tak Mu-Ja pointed to his head.

‘You can communicate with ghosts and predict the future. It is absolutely incomplete because you are not a divine being, but it is not impossible. That is the harmony of energy.’

Shock washed over Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face.

And at that moment, one person came to his mind.

‘Ki Woo-Hee.’

She was born with the ability called the Spirit Eye. Thanks to that ability, she could see the root and origin of people.

What else could that be if not a superpower? What made that superpower possible was the fact that she was born with a large upper dantian [上丹田, shang dantian – an energy center in the forehead], and she used the energy [氣, qi] of that upper dantian to see people.

‘I don’t know when Tongcheon Jin-In abandoned the Tao and started serving ghosts. I guess it hasn’t been long, but the important thing is that he is not the same as before.’

‘Are you saying that he is watching you, Senior?’

‘That’s right.’

‘If you move, will all of that be exposed to Tongcheon Jin-In, and that information will leak to the enemy?’

‘It won’t be everything. Because we are both imperfect. But the fact that my will and thoughts are reported to the enemy you speak of… yes. That is highly likely.’

‘You said that it is impossible for anyone to observe someone who has reached the Limitless. But how can he peek into your mind, Senior?’

A bitter look once again appeared on Tak Mu-Ja’s face.

‘Because he was greedy.’

‘……?’

‘A Taoist should follow the Tao, but he impurely touched the realm of martial arts. He wanted to gain stronger, higher, and more divine abilities.’

‘Is that a problem?’

‘In my case, it became a problem. Because my body could not contain more power, I trained my upper dantian to make it huge. I greedily sought power even though I had not trained the divine energy [神氣, shenqi – divine energy] to completely surround that enlarged upper dantian.’

Tak Mu-Ja closed his eyes.

‘A hole has been made in the flawless wall. A big hole that cannot be filled.’

‘…….’

‘So Tongcheon Jin-In can see me. Not everything, but still.’

‘I see.’

‘That’s why I stay here, filled with divine energy. I can’t reduce the enlarged upper dantian, so I tried to train divine energy to fill the wall… but it didn’t work out well.’

Even if one opens the Limitless, a person is still a person.

Rather, they can become more dangerous than anyone else. Once a path goes astray, it can become an uncontrollable disaster, and with a single enlightenment, a stagnant realm can rise vertically.

Those who have reached the highest realm in the world, but stand in a more unstable area than anyone else, looking at the world.

That is the masters of the Limitless.

‘So.’

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes deepened.

‘So that’s why.’

Yang Cheon had said that there were hardly any rational people among the masters of the Limitless.

This could be seen just by looking at the Yin Master Ha Eun-Gyo and the Dark King Tang Hyeong.

If one thought about it rationally, the Saim Cult would not have kept their child alive. No, there was a much higher chance that the Saim Cult would not have a child in the first place.

Yet, Ha Eun-Gyo said that she would go to the Saim Cult even if it meant death. It was a pointless act, but she eventually went alone to repent for her sins.

What about Tang Hyeong?

He did not move even in the midst of a crisis that overturned his entire family.

Was it because he was stubborn? Of course, that was also true. However, they were trapped by one memory and enlightenment, and they could not escape from it until they gained another enlightenment.

They were supreme but unstable. They had gained monstrous power, but their minds had not gained the power to match it.

The Limitless is such a realm. Because the body is complete, they rely on the upper dantian, which has room for change, and depending on how they use the energy of the upper dantian, they sometimes act in ways that are difficult to understand rationally.

If they do not constantly look back at themselves, they become monsters with human bodies.

‘I’ve said everything I needed to say. At least about me and you.’

‘……I see.’

‘No, there’s one more thing left.’

‘……?’

‘I talked about Tongcheon Jin-In. And although he doesn’t reach Tongcheon Jin-In’s feet, there is one disciple he has raised.’

‘A disciple?’

‘Yes, a disciple.’

Tak Mu-Ja closed his eyes.

‘That disciple is now in the Imperial Palace.’