Monochrome Sovereign [EN]: Chapter 90

Creak.

The muscles in the arm pulling the bowstring swelled taut.

Thump.

Thick veins popped out on the arm that was choking the old man’s neck.

It was a tense standoff. With Baek Gung-Cheon’s skill, he could aim at any part of Yeon Ho-Jeong’s body that was exposed behind the old man.

The problem was that Yeon Ho-Jeong was no ordinary fighter either. If he missed even slightly, the old man’s neck would snap immediately.

“……”

A heavy silence fell.

Baek Gung-Cheon, who had been glaring at Yeon Ho-Jeong with fierce eyes, slowly lowered his bow.

Yeon Ho-Jeong smiled.

“You made a wise choice.”

“Release the hostage.”

“So, he was useful as a hostage after all. I definitely shouldn’t let him go.”

Baek Gung-Cheon’s face contorted.

Yeon Ho-Jeong opened his mouth.

“What’s your name?”

“I have no name to give you.”

“I figured as much. Then let me ask you just one thing.”

“……”

“Are you a fellow disciple of Muk Bi?”

Baek Gung-Cheon still didn’t answer.

It seemed he had no intention of answering at all. Yeon Ho-Jeong put more strength into his arm.

Thump.

“Gurgle.”

The old man’s face turned blue.

Baek Gung-Cheon’s eyes trembled.

“Who is Muk Bi?”

“You don’t know Muk Bi?”

“I don’t.”

“The stance for your archery, your movement, even the way you lower your aiming stance by half to one inch.”

“……!”

“And you even used the Dragon Fang Shot. Yet you don’t know Muk Bi?”

Horror washed over Baek Gung-Cheon’s face.

“You know the Dragon Fang Shot, who are you?!”

Yeon Ho-Jeong was momentarily speechless.

‘An interesting fellow.’

The destructive archery he had shown yesterday was truly remarkable. That level of archery combined with his efficient movement was enough to earn him the title of a master. [A master in this context refers to someone who has reached a high level of skill in martial arts.]

But he was too honest. He was naturally taciturn, but his honest nature was clearly written on his face.

“I asked the question. I’ll ask one last time. Do you really not know Muk Bi?”

“……I don’t. There is no ghost archer with that name.”

He had unconsciously used the term ‘ghost archer.’ But he didn’t even realize it himself.

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes deepened.

‘Was it a pseudonym?’

That was possible. After all, there weren’t many martial artists in the Jianghu [The martial arts world] who used their real names.

“What is a ghost archer?”

Baek Gung-Cheon closed his mouth. Only then did he realize his mistake.

Yeon Ho-Jeong continued.

“You killed a beggar. The situation has become serious enough. If you don’t want to escalate things further, you better answer me honestly.”

“……Let that man go.”

“If I was going to let him go, I wouldn’t have captured him.”

“Don’t you have any pride? Using your skills to take a helpless old man hostage, you should be ashamed.”

“Save your useless provocations. This isn’t a duel, it’s a fight.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong glanced at the old man.

“And a helpless old man?”

“……?”

“You’ve sealed away some decent internal energy. Even though his skin is sagging, his muscles are quite firm. It takes a lot of training to maintain a body and internal energy like this.”

“What……?”

“Looks like you didn’t check properly.”

Thump.

Yeon Ho-Jeong touched the old man’s vital point. The old man’s body became stiff with paralysis.

“Even when touching his vital point, the rebound is considerable. If he hadn’t used more than half of his true energy, I wouldn’t have been able to touch it.”

Baek Gung-Cheon’s eyes wavered.

He had seen the process of touching the vital point directly. Clearly, the opponent’s finger had hesitated. He had felt a strong resistance from the pressure point.

To unconsciously create that level of resistance required first-class internal energy.

‘That level of internal energy? How?’

Baek Gung-Cheon looked at the old man, Go Pyeong’s eyes.

Go Pyeong’s eyes were shaking as if there had been an earthquake. It seemed that his speech point had been touched along with his vital point, as he couldn’t even open his mouth.

“……Old Go?”

The Go Pyeong he knew was an ordinary man who had not cultivated even a speck of internal energy. He was a renowned physician who had devoted his life to medicine, unknown to the world.

“The Heart-Piercing Red is the same.”

Baek Gung-Cheon looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong again.

He had touched the hostage’s vital point and sealed his speech point. Yet, there was no opening. He had wrapped his arm around Go Pyeong’s neck, and with just a little force, the carotid artery would be pressed.

“Since when did the Heart-Piercing Red become a poison that sucks away a person’s life force? Such a poison is extremely rare even among Gu poisons.” [Gu poisons are a type of venomous poison made from insects and other creatures.]

“……You mean it’s not?”

“Of course not.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes, as he glanced down at Go Pyeong, were terribly cold.

“The Heart-Piercing Red is a type of settling poison. It sticks to the internal organs and causes degeneration. It has a particularly strong effect on the heart, which is a characteristic that comes from modifying a poison obtained from minerals.”

“……!”

“But it doesn’t work on those with strong bodies and a certain level of internal energy control. The true energy expels the poison before it can settle in the organs. In other words, it’s a low-grade poison that doesn’t work on masters who have cultivated internal energy to a certain level.”

The Heart-Piercing Red was a poison used by only a few people in the back alleys of the underworld.

In other words, it was not easy to find out about it even if you tried. Moreover, not many people tried to find out about it.

There were countless poisons stronger than the Heart-Piercing Red. It might work on third-rate thugs or the forces of common underworld sects, but it wouldn’t work on masters.

Yeon Ho-Jeong had even been doused with a bucket of Heart-Piercing Red before.

But he was fine. As soon as he inhaled it, the Hongcheon Qi [A type of internal energy] expelled the poison. Moreover, the Vermilion Bird Qi [Another type of internal energy] prevented it from even touching his heart and it was destroyed.

That a master like Baek Gung-Cheon would be poisoned by such a low-grade poison? It was absurd.

“In other words, I don’t know if this guy is a doctor, but he’s not the weakling you think he is, and you’re not poisoned by the Heart-Piercing Red.”

Baek Gung-Cheon’s expression twisted.

He asked Go Pyeong.

“Is what that young man said true?”

He was unable to speak because his speech point was sealed.

Baek Gung-Cheon said to Yeon Ho-Jeong.

“Release Old Go’s speech point.”

“No.”

“What?”

Yeon Ho-Jeong spat out cold words.

“I’ve stripped away the illusion and revealed the truth. But I’m not the kind of person who shows kindness to people I have no connection with for no reason.”

“……?!”

“What is a ghost archer? Explain that first.”

Tsutsutsu.

Killing intent rose from Baek Gung-Cheon’s body.

It wasn’t just simple killing intent. There was an honest urgency mixed in with that killing intent. He was desperate for time.

“This is not the time for wordplay! Release him now!”

“You’re not in a position to order me around. If you don’t want to waste more time, answer my question.”

“Tsk!”

“Now.”

He told him to speak quickly, but Yeon Ho-Jeong’s face showed no sign of urgency.

His cold expression and the way he urged for an answer put strong pressure on his opponent. Even in a similar situation, he showed a completely different demeanor from Baek Gung-Cheon.

In the end, Baek Gung-Cheon opened his mouth.

“A ghost archer is a candidate for the new Yi God of Gwanil Valley.”

“Gwanil Valley? What is that? Is it a group that has archers like you?”

Gwanil Valley was a name that should not be known to the world.

But Baek Gung-Cheon was in a hurry. If Go Pyeong was not really the doctor he knew, he had to find another doctor as soon as possible.

“That’s right.”

“A sect I’ve never heard of.”

“Gwanil Valley is not a sect of the Jianghu. It is a cult that worships the Sun God and exists to kill him at the same time.”

A cult, that is, a religion that kills gods.

Yeon Ho-Jeong frowned.

‘A cult……?’

He recalled Muk Bi’s words from the past.

‘Their god is vile. That’s why I hate the Saeum Cult.’

It was a rare moment when Muk Bi, who didn’t talk much and didn’t show his emotions well, showed anger.

“It seems they teach great archery even though they are not a martial arts sect.”

“Of course. The only way to kill the Sun God is through archery. Just as the mythical Hou Yi shot down nine suns with his bow, we are also those who try to reach the sky with archery.” [Hou Yi is a legendary archer in Chinese mythology.]

Yeon Ho-Jeong shook his head.

‘I have no idea what he’s talking about.’

Muk Bi had never told him about this. Either way, they seemed to be a kind of religious group.

‘Hmm?’

A thought suddenly occurred to him, and Yeon Ho-Jeong asked again.

“It seems like there aren’t many of you?”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about the archers in your group, Gwanil Valley. And what is this Yi God thing?”

The urgency on Baek Gung-Cheon’s face grew deeper.

“Haven’t I told you enough! Release him now…!”

Thump.

Go Pyeong’s face turned bright red.

Baek Gung-Cheon gritted his teeth.

“……To become the Yi God of Gwanil Valley, the ghost archers must compete against each other.”

“Compete?”

“I’m talking about a battle to the death.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes flashed.

“The one who survives becomes that Yi God or whatever?”

“That’s right.”

“Don’t tell me you’re still in the middle of that competition?”

“That’s right! So release him now!”

A battle to the death to become the Yi God.

‘Then Muk Bi?’

Was he the one who survived?

But why didn’t he go back and become the Yi God or whatever? Was there a reason?

“I’ll ask one last question.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes sank.

Even in his urgency, Baek Gung-Cheon realized. This question was the most important to that guy.

“His current age is probably around mid-twenties. He’s a tall man, just under six feet, and he mainly uses a horn bow, not a large bow like yours. His main martial art is……”

“Baek Hyang?!”

Yeon Ho-Jeong’s eyes widened.

“Baek Hyang, you say?”

Baek Gung-Cheon, who had been speechless for a moment, stammered.

“You, do you know Hyang?”

It was a friendly tone. As if he were calling a brother, cousin, or close friend.

“I wouldn’t say I know him… well, from what I hear, it seems like it.”

“If it’s the age and height you mentioned, it can only be Hyang. Among the ghost archers who participated in this competition, Hyang is the only one in his mid-twenties. And Hyang uses a horn bow.”

“……Okay. Then where is Baek Hyang?”

“I don’t know.”

“You don’t know?”

“I don’t know his exact location. But he’s likely to be near Mount Palgong. He hasn’t moved once since the competition began.”

Yeon Ho-Jeong, who had been staring at Baek Gung-Cheon, released Go Pyeong.

Baek Gung-Cheon’s eyes flashed.

Thwoom!

“Cough!”

Go Pyeong coughed roughly. A fierce finger wind had released his speech point.

It was a high level of internal energy mastery. He was not just good at shooting arrows, but his knowledge and training in martial arts in general were at a first-class level.

Baek Gung-Cheon lifted Go Pyeong up. It was almost like grabbing him by the collar.

“Is what that young man said true?”

“Cough! Wh-what are you doing! Surely you don’t think I’ve been deceiving you!”

“……Okay, I don’t need anything else. I’ll ask you just one thing.”

Baek Gung-Cheon’s eyes were blazing.

An indescribable emotion was overwhelming the person he was facing. Go Pyeong’s face hardened.

“You can cure Ga Ryeong’s body, right?”

“…….”

“Why can’t you speak! I asked if you can cure the Seven Yin Severed Meridians!”

At that moment, Yeon Ho-Jeong spoke.

“Seven Yin Severed Meridians?”

Baek Gung-Cheon looked at Yeon Ho-Jeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong tilted his head.

“Seven Yin Severed Meridians? Not the Nine Yin Severed Meridians?”

“……What?”

“Where is there a Seven Yin Severed Meridians? Isn’t it the Nine Yin Severed Meridians, where excessive Yin energy accumulates, freezing all eight extraordinary meridians, and eventually even taking life?”

“……?!”

“Only seven of the eight extraordinary meridians freeze? Is there such a delicate disease?”

Baek Gung-Cheon glared at Go Pyeong.

Yeon Ho-Jeong frowned.

“Isn’t that guy a complete fraud?”