Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 892

A heavy silence descended upon the group.

Everyone was shocked by Cheon Hyo-Rak’s revelation, but none more so than Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had dedicated his life to eradicating the Three Teachings [a collective term for three powerful, often antagonistic, sects].

The group’s eyes darted towards Yeon Ho-Jeong, a mixture of apprehension and curiosity in their gaze.

They knew him as a man who would relentlessly hunt down and eliminate anyone associated with the Three Teachings, regardless of the circumstances. The information Cheon Hyo-Rak had just revealed, though brief, was incredibly unsettling. Muk Bi, who had fought alongside Yeon Ho-Jeong against the Three Teachings for the longest time, couldn’t hide his worried expression.

However, to everyone’s surprise, Yeon Ho-Jeong remained calm. He was clearly taken aback, but there was no trace of hatred or murderous intent directed at Cheon Hyo-Rak.

“The Shinma Realm is a group that broke away from the Gwanghyeol Sect…”

In terms of sheer hatred, Tang Gwan, whose home of Sichuan had been ravaged by the Gwanghyeol Sect, was second to none. Moreover, his own brother had betrayed their family and joined forces with the Gwanghyeol Sect, not only devastating Sichuan but also nearly destroying the Tang family.

Saaah!

A terrifying aura of murderous intent began to emanate from Tang Gwan’s body.

Chaang!

Reacting to the sudden surge of hostility, Hwa Hyang instinctively drew her sword and positioned herself protectively in front of Cheon Hyo-Rak.

“This is quite an interesting story,” Tang Gwan said, his voice dangerously low.

His hair and clothes seemed to dance as if they were underwater, a visual manifestation of the turmoil within him.

It was fortunate that Tang Gwan hadn’t unleashed his Emperor’s Poison Art [a powerful and deadly martial art]. Had the group not been present, his sudden burst of anger might have caused him to lose control of his poisonous abilities.

“You’re saying you’re a group that broke away from the Gwanghyeol Sect?”

“That’s correct,” Cheon Hyo-Rak replied, his expression as composed as Yeon Ho-Jeong’s.

“…Hehehe.”

Tang Gwan lowered his head and let out a chilling laugh.

The murderous intent radiating from him was sinister and vicious.

He had changed significantly after experiencing numerous hardships. However, the blood of the Tang family, passed down through generations, carried a fierce sense of exclusivity, a deep-seated belief in repaying grudges tenfold, even if they didn’t repay favors.

“Gwanghyeol… Gwanghyeol, you say?”

Buruur.

Tang Gwan’s fist trembled faintly.

Sensing the danger, Muk Bi jumped to his feet, and Pae Yul’s eyes gleamed as he reached for his spear.

However.

“Interesting.”

Whoosh!

The murderous intent that had threatened to turn the area into a poisonous hell vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

Tang Gwan, who had been sitting on a rock, slowly crossed his legs.

He placed his hands, leisurely clasped together, on his knee and said with a chilling smile, “Somehow, I didn’t like your face, and it seems my intuition was right.”

“…”

“Continue with your story.”

Cheon Hyo-Rak’s eyes sparkled with a hint of surprise.

Even if Tang Gwan had decided to attack, he wouldn’t have been killed. Yeon Ho-Jeong, who was maintaining his composure, and Mak Won would have intervened. However, he hadn’t expected Tang Gwan to be able to control his emotions so effectively.

The Gwanghyeol Sect was the sworn enemy of the Sichuan Tang family. Even the most ruthless members of the Black Path Murim [a term for the martial arts world’s criminal underworld] dared not provoke the Tang family, but the Gwanghyeol Sect had attempted to undermine them by colluding with their leaders, starting with the Tang family and trying to destroy Sichuan itself.

Anyone who inherited the blood of the Tang family, who wore their clothes, and who had received their teachings, would surely burn with the desire to destroy the Gwanghyeol Sect.

And Tang Gwan, who was at the pinnacle of that lineage, was displaying remarkable composure.

‘He’s much more impressive than I thought.’

When he had first met Tang Gwan and his brother, he had assumed that Tang Gwan would be more emotionally unstable than his brother.

He had been wrong.

The current head of the Tang family, Tang Yun, who remained in the Murim Alliance [a coalition of martial arts clans], was a resourceful person who had endured years of hardship and finally succeeded in reclaiming the Tang family, even in the face of overwhelming grief.

However, Tang Gwan was no less impressive. In fact, Tang Gwan, who had accumulated terrible experiences, had become a terrifying figure who could even control his own nature.

“Hyang-ah.”

“…Master?”

“Don’t worry. Step back.”

Hwa Hyang stepped back, her eyes fixed on Tang Gwan with a mixture of tension and vigilance. She still held her drawn sword tightly.

Cheon Hyo-Rak nodded and said, “I would like to focus only on the Lim [referring to the leaders of the Shinma Realm], but I can’t help but mention the Gwanghyeol Sect to explain it. That’s why I’ve been hesitant until now.”

“…”

“Frankly, I didn’t want to say it at all. But after pondering the advice of the Murim Alliance Leader and the strategist, I realized that I couldn’t just skip over it.”

Tang Gwan said in a sharp voice, “Your rambling is getting long.”

“I understand. I’ll continue.”

Cheon Hyo-Rak sighed.

“I don’t know about the other two, but the Gwanghyeol Sect has always had few children.”

To be precise, it was the bloodline of the Gwanghyeol Sect Leader, the Cheon family, that was rare.

“The reason has not yet been revealed. It is speculated that it is a side effect of the demonic arts that have been passed down from ancient times and developed to the extreme, but such things are not important. What is important is that each generation had few children, and thus, the sect leader had many demon consorts and demon concubines.”

“…”

“Even then, they rarely had more than four children. At most three, and sometimes only one.”

“So?”

“That phenomenon worsened with each generation. Especially from three hundred years ago, they only had one son.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong thought of the side effects of demonic arts.

Demonic arts have many side effects. The lower the level of demonic arts, the more severe the side effects, and it cannot be said that even the highest level of demonic arts has no side effects at all.

Moreover, the Gwanghyeol Sect, which was closest to the Blood Sect [a powerful and influential sect] three hundred years ago, would have lived with even more severe side effects.

“Originally, the Three Teachings were three branches that made up the Blood Sect, not a single religious group but families of priests. They secretly claimed to be a divided religion, but they dared not express their dissatisfaction in front of the god of the Blood Sect, the supreme leader.”

“I see.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong nodded.

“From what you’re saying, the Gwanghyeol Sect existed even before three hundred years ago, but I was wondering because I heard that the Three Teachings split into the Blood Sect three hundred years ago.”

“Yes. It’s not that they split three hundred years ago, but rather that those three families were originally the priestly and noble families that supported the Blood Sect.”

“So?”

“But two hundred years ago, a problem arose.”

“…?”

“The sect leader, who had one son, had another son twenty years later.”

The corners of Tang Gwan’s mouth curled up.

“Those bastards must have been celebrating with a festival.”

“No.”

“What?”

“Far from a festival, they faced a dangerous situation that shook the sect.”

Bu Seon muttered quietly, “Succession struggle.”

Cheon Hyo-Rak looked at Bu Seon and nodded.

“That’s correct.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong continued calmly, “A twenty-year difference… the first son would have already grown up and been thoroughly educated as the successor.”

“That’s right. The bigger problem was that the talent of the second son far surpassed that of the first.”

It was the worst-case scenario.

In terms of a country, it was as if a decent crown prince had appeared, but then a son born later was found to be a suitable candidate to become a wise ruler.

“The sect leader was troubled. He had no choice but to be troubled. If the second son grew up like this and an internal conflict broke out, the history of Gwanghyeol, which had lasted for hundreds of years, could come to an end.”

Could it really end like that?

It was possible. It wasn’t just about the internal conflict, but also because their rivals, the Saeum and Sinhwa [two other sects], were constantly watching each other.

“After much deliberation, the sect leader eventually drove out the second son. Unable to kill him with his own hands, he sent him out with servants and a small number of troops.”

Tang Gwan chuckled, “Even a demon cares for his own offspring.”

“Of course, the successor did not let it go. He secretly ordered his subordinates to eliminate him at all costs, without his father, the sect leader, knowing.”

“But he failed.”

“If that second son hadn’t been a genius, he would have been captured and killed.”

“…”

“The second son’s talent was beyond common sense. By the age of three, he had already mastered demonic scriptures, and before he was even ten, he had memorized and interpreted most of Gwanghyeol’s demonic arts. By the age of twelve, he had mastered not only martial arts but also sorcery.”

Tang Gwan’s face hardened.

If those words were true, then the second son was truly a gift from the heavens.

“The second son, who had somehow escaped with his servants, settled in Qinghai. After that, he entered the mountains and built a massive formation so that neither Gwanghyeol nor Saeum and Sinhwa could ever find him, completing his own abode.”

“That’s the beginning of the Shinma Realm.”

“That’s correct. That person is the founder of the Shinma Realm, Lim Ju Cheon Yo-Myeong.”

That’s why it was said that the Shinma Realm broke away from Gwanghyeol.

“The Shinma Realm grew quietly but rapidly. The founder knew how vicious and persistent Gwanghyeol was. He was certain that they would search for the Shinma Realm for generations.”

“Hmm.”

“If the Shinma Realm was discovered, but had grown into a force that could not be ignored, then the survival of his descendants would be secured. That was the founder’s idea.”

Cheon Hyo-Rak looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes were still calm. Calm and deep.

“The current Lim Ju, my teacher, and the father I never called father, is the sixth Lim Ju of the Shinma Realm.”

That was the history of the Shinma Realm.

And now began the main point that Cheon Hyo-Rak truly wanted to reveal.

“The Grand Disciple is not a Cheon. Unlike the ancestors of the Lim, my teacher declared that anyone with ability could become his successor. He said that was the true demonic path of Shinma.”

“Hmm.”

“It’s not just the Grand Disciple. My senior sister and my fifth junior brother, who are right above me, are also not Cheons. Only my fourth junior sister and I are Cheons.”

Their culture of addressing each other as master and disciple, even though they were siblings, seemed quite unique.

Tang Gwan’s eyes deepened.

“So? Is there a reason why the Grand Disciple shouldn’t take over the Shinma Realm? You’re not pretending to be crazy to get the Murim Alliance’s forces to help you frame that Grand Disciple to succeed your father, are you?”

Cheon Hyo-Rak shook his head.

“As you can see, my body is not normal. Even if I were to become the Lim Ju with this body, I wouldn’t be able to lead properly. Perhaps my junior sister would be better.”

“Interesting. So, are you saying that the Grand Disciple rebelled and captured the Lim Ju?”

“It would have been better if he had gathered his own forces and attacked. Of course, if that had happened, this situation wouldn’t have occurred. My teacher’s martial arts are absolute.”

“…Then?”

“My teacher has not yet passed away. He is only being held captive.”

Cheon Hyo-Rak’s eyes trembled slightly.

“The Grand Disciple has brought in Gwanghyeol.”

“…!!”

“I don’t know if Gwanghyeol approached first or if the Grand Disciple approached first. What’s important is that the Grand Disciple is aiming for the Shinma Realm with the power of Gwanghyeol as well as the demons who follow him.”

Murderous intent flowed from Tang Gwan’s body again.

At this moment, even Yeon Ho-Jeong couldn’t maintain his composure. Although he didn’t release any murderous intent, his eyes were filled with a terrifying chill, making him look like the Dark Emperor.

Cheon Hyo-Rak lowered his head.

“I don’t care if I can’t lead the Shinma Realm. Please save my teacher, no, my father.”

“…”

“If my father is released… it will only be a matter of time before the Shinma Realm is recovered.”