Monochrome Sovereign (Novel) - Chapter 12 - Activation of the Four Gods (2)
Chapter 12 – Activation of the Four Gods (2)
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Translated by Heavenly Cat
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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One month later.
“Wow! Brother! Look over there! Isn’t that carriage huge?”
“It is.”
“My goodness, I’ve never seen such a large and luxurious carriage before! Surely, the Anhui side is much more pleasing to the eyes than our Jiangsu!”
“Is that so?”
“Heh! Brother! Did you see that just now?! That carriage is so small yet so fast! How can there be such a carriage?”
“Indeed.”
“Let’s try riding that carriage later too! Okay?”
“Shall we.”
“Hehe, it’s a promise! You promised, Brother?”
“Sure.”
Yeon Ji-pyeong’s face was flush with excitement.
It was the first time in his life that he had set foot on foreign soil. Anhui Province is adjacent to Jiangsu Province where the Yeon family is located, but it had many different points from climate to culture.
Looking at his younger brother who had been excited for a while, Yeon Ho-jeong’s face was the definition of dissatisfaction itself.
“Are you that happy?”
“Of course! Are you not, Brother? Isn’t this your first time in Anhui too?”
I’ve probably been here more than a hundred times.
“Actually, I want to travel the whole world. I want to see a wider world. I’ve always been curious about how people in other regions live.”
It’s all more or less the same.
Because the climate is different, the culture is different and the appearance is different, but in the end, people are all the same. A good person endures with a smile even if they are stabbed in the back, and a bad person is bound to get angry even if they are treated well.
The world Yeon Ho-jeong had seen, the people were like that.
“Um… and.”
“Huh?”
“I’m even happier because I came out with you, Brother, hehe.”
The sight of him scratching his head while laughing foolishly was quite cute.
Looking at Yeon Ji-pyeong with a smile, Yeon Ho-jeong’s face gradually crumpled. It was because his father suddenly came to mind.
‘He’s truly a man I can’t understand.’
After hearing the answer in the bamboo forest, his father stared at him for a while and then returned to the Clan Head’s office just like that.
He thought his father might be angry because his way of speaking was rough, but the next day he called him to the office and spoke like this.
‘Upon reconsidering, I feel anxious about sending only Ji-pyeong. Of course, the same applies to you. However, you are already eighteen, and I think you are of an age to fully do your part. If you vow not to cause any conflict, I will send you with Ji-pyeong.’
It was a place he didn’t want to go, but it was certainly uncomfortable to send only Ji-pyeong. Moreover, wasn’t he at the center of the conflict between the two families? He also disliked placing the burden on his brother.
‘If they have no intention of causing conflict, I don’t want to either.’
‘Even if they pick a fight, endure it.’
‘I cannot promise that.’
‘I tell you again. Enduring an insult is not patience but cowardice. However, just because a dog barks, a human should not bark back. Act only after discerning whether the opponent is a human or a beast. Do you understand?’
‘….’
‘Why is there no answer?’
‘How should I say… I am also someone who is not yet a proper human, so my patience is….’
Yeon Ho-jeong spent the next three days in Horse Stance training. If he didn’t have patience, it would have been hard to endure.
And then he had to come to Anhui much earlier than scheduled. It was because of his father’s strict order to go in advance to adapt to the climate and bond with the rising stars who arrived first to learn what harmony was.
‘He is a truly strange man.’
He thought his father was just a stiff person who valued laws, but in this matter, it seemed he had dealt with it somewhat emotionally.
Still, Yeon Ho-jeong understood his father. In any case, it was understandable for him to be angry since his son was trying to go a different path from the image he had hoped for.
‘Well, it’s a good opportunity too.’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes burned fiercely.
‘I can verify it.’
Even if his relationship with his father became a bit strained, he wouldn’t have come if there was nothing to be gained from this meeting. Because he could do many other things during that time.
There was one reason why he obediently participated in the meeting.
‘Can I identify the true identity of the enemy?’
This rising stars meeting was also a gathering where successors who would lead their clans in the future would participate in large numbers.
If the enemy was among the Seven Great Clans, there was a high probability that the successor also knew they were attacking the Yeon family. Even if not, similar points might show in their true qi and martial arts.
‘For now, I exclude Namgung, Murong, and Tang.’
While training with the Orthodox and defeating the Evil Lust Cult, those three families were the ones he had seen especially often. And he had never felt any similarities to the enemy’s martial arts from the experts of those three families.
Then, three families remained.
‘Peng, Zhuge, and Myeong. I must watch these three.’
“Brother?”
“Yes?”
Yeon Ji-pyeong asked with an anxious face.
“Are you perhaps uncomfortable?”
“Uncomfortable? About what?”
“No, just….”
Yeon Ho-jeong smiled. It seemed his expression was not good because he was thinking of the culprits of the extermination.
“I’m not uncomfortable at all. I’m also excited.”
In many senses.
“Hehe, then shall we find our lodging first?”
“Sounds good.”
At that moment, a heavy voice was heard.
“Will you not move further today?”
Yeon Ji-pyeong involuntarily shrank his neck. His abdomen seemed to vibrate from the low and heavy voice.
Yeon Ho-jeong answered.
“I plan to.”
“I understand. Then, we will look for lodging, so please wait a moment.”
The one showing respect with a cupped-hand salute was a middle-aged swordsman who seemed to have just turned forty.
He was precisely the Goshawk Squad Leader, Shin Mo. He was the head of the Goshawk Squad that the Yeon family was proud of and a peak expert known as one of the top swordsmen in Jiangdong.
“No need for that. I’ve already decided where to go.”
“Pardon?”
“We’re going to Tower of the Chu Sound.”
The party was in Huoxian, Anhui Province. The northeast of Huoxian was called Wujiang, famous for the legend of the Overlord of Western Chu being surrounded by Chu songs on all sides.
Tower of the Chu Sound was a restaurant where the Wujiang area could be seen well. It was also a restaurant that people who were not from Anhui didn’t know well.
Shin Mo asked as if it were unexpected.
“Do you know Tower of the Chu Sound?”
“Yes.”
“It’s a place people who are not from Anhui don’t know well….”
“I’ve just heard of it. By the way, Squad Leader Shin, it seems you know the place?”
“Yes, it’s not far from Jiangsu Province, so I remember stopping by a few times.”
“Then let’s lead the way.”
“I understand.”
Shin Mo’s atmosphere was different from Kang Yun in many ways.
His martial arts were higher than Kang Yun’s, and he seemed more cautious. Like a warrior of the Yeon family, he was strict in distinguishing between public and private affairs and was someone who did his best in his assigned tasks.
There are many people with stronger martial arts than him, but not many are as reliable as he is. That was the reason Yeon Wi had sent him along with the brothers.
Thus, the Yeon brothers, Shin Mo, and twenty members of a Goshawk Squad moved to Tower of the Chu Sound.
“Wow!”
Tower of the Chu Sound was quite crowded. Even as the weather turned chilly, there were many people coming and going in all four seasons to soak in the legend of the Overlord.
“Let’s just grab a room and rest. Since we have plenty of time, let’s leave in three or four days.”
“Yes.”
The party unpacked their belongings in the back garden of Tower of the Chu Sound.
However, the Goshawk Squad strictly protected the brothers. A total of twenty-one people, including the Squad Leader, were divided into three shifts to stand guard.
Yeon Ho-jeong, who came out holding an iron staff, clicked his tongue.
“Why don’t you guys rest too?”
“We are fine.”
How stiff.
“Then work hard.”
In any case, they were people who had received the order of the Clan Head. Yeon Ho-jeong did not try to convince them.
“Hmm, around here seems good.”
Vroom, vroom.
Yeon Ho-jeong found the center of gravity of the iron staff and spun it here and there.
Watching such a Yeon Ho-jeong, Shin Mo’s eyes sparkled.
‘He’s familiar.’
Skillfulness was evident in the motion of spinning it with one hand. He looked like someone who had trained in staff techniques for several years.
‘Didn’t he originally use a sword?’
Even while coming here, Yeon Ho-jeong did not stop training. However, all training had only been meditative breathing and slow fist forms; he hadn’t seen staff training.
Thump!
The sound of the iron staff striking the ground was quite fierce.
“Shall we go?”
Yeon Ho-jeong snapped the iron staff with his toe.
Thump!
The iron staff rotated and made a threatening sound.
Holding the center of the iron staff with both hands, he swung it as if creating a whirlwind. The cold and dry air fled from the iron staff.
“Hah.”
Thump!
Along with a strong Earth-shaking Stomp, Yeon Ho-jeong began to unfold his staff techniques in earnest.
Whooooosh!
Watching Yeon Ho-jeong silently, Shin Mo’s eyes gradually widened.
Vroom! Vrooom! Swish!
The staff techniques became faster and more sophisticated as time passed.
He was now skillfully handling the heavy long weapon weighing a bit less than twenty geun. By applying centrifugal force at the right time, he increased the speed, and by snapping and thrusting the necessary parts, it was surprisingly smooth and beautiful.
A smile caught on the corners of Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes.
‘As expected, it works.’
While coming here, he hadn’t trained in staff techniques but had trained in the Yeon Family’s Thirteen Fists, the basic fist technique of the Yeon family. It was because he wanted to firmly instill flexibility and the center of gravity of the body.
It was exactly as expected. Finally, the Cyclone Staff Method was displaying its power. If he could attach it to his body a bit more, it was to the extent that it would be fine to use in actual combat immediately.
‘Good, let’s keep going.’
Swish!
The Jade Gauze True Qi held his body stably. The staff tip piercing the air was sharp, and the staff body pressing down was heavy. The staff technique that sucked in the air while rotating was like a majestic river.
Shin Mo, who was admiring the much better skill than expected, soon ended up being startled.
Thwack! Pang! Paaaang!
The staff technique, which had been flowing smoothly like an unending river, became stiff.
The iron staff was repeatedly snapping at the air. The staff technique that had been like a beautiful dance sequence became crude in an instant.
“It is too stiff.”
Shin Mo looked to his side. It was Yang Woo of Goshawk Squad 1. He, who was supposed to stand guard at dawn, had come out and was watching Yeon Ho-jeong’s training.
“The form is gradually breaking down. He doesn’t seem tired, but it seems he is unfamiliar with that staff technique after all.”
“Does it look like that to you?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes. Although it seems like a high-level staff technique, at that rate….”
“The Eldest Young Master properly understands staff techniques.”
“Pardon?!”
“It looks crude, but isn’t there not a single useless movement?”
Yang Woo couldn’t understand.
“That… strange movement?”
“Can you only see the form of the staff technique and not the true qi loaded in the iron staff?”
Shin Mo’s eyes deepened.
“The Eldest Young Master is now using a staff technique that most effectively destroys the enemy’s body. Even utilizing the characteristics of true qi. So it can’t help but look crude.”
“….”
“Perhaps that staff technique is originally a martial art derived from a fast and passionate cultivation method.”
Adjusting the flow of the staff technique to fit the characteristics of the internal cultivation method?
Yang Woo couldn’t believe it. That was a difficult task even for someone as first-class as himself.
Shin Mo’s gaze wavered.
‘Did he have such talent?’
Even he, who had told Yang Woo, found it hard to believe. Because he was naturally doing something that one wouldn’t even dare to attempt at the Eldest Young Master’s current level.
‘As expected, blood doesn’t go anywhere.’
A moment later.
“Phew, phew.”
Yeon Ho-jeong stopped training.
“Good, this much should be fine.”
“Eldest Young Master.”
“Huh?”
Yeon Ho-jeong turned his head. Yang Woo was there.
“I am Yang Woo of Goshawk Squad 1.”
“And?”
“If it is not a discourtesy, would you like to practice forms with me, excluding internal energy?”
It was a quite bold suggestion.
Shin Mo’s expression hardened.
“Yang Woo! What is this rudeness toward the Eldest Young Master. Return to your quarters at once….”
“That sounds good.”
Shin Mo looked at Yeon Ho-jeong in surprise.
Yeon Ho-jeong smiled and spun the iron staff.
“I was just in need of an opponent anyway, so it’s good for me.”
“It is an honor. Then, I will prepare immediately.”
“Good.”
Yeon Ho-jeong grinned.
“Don’t go easy on me just because I’m the Eldest Young Master, okay?”
* * *
The next day.
An air of admiration rose on the face of Zhuge Ah-yeon as she looked around Tower of the Chu Sound.
“Kyah! Amazing! As expected, it was worth coming early!”
“Si, Sister.”
“Huh?”
“There are many people. Please, your words….”
“What’s wrong with my words? What’s wrong with saying something good is good?”
“Sigh, that’s why you keep getting caught up in incidents. Even those guys yesterday….”
“It’s fine. They don’t know I’m the eldest daughter of the Zhuge Clan.”
“That’s why it’s more of a problem! If only you had finished it properly….”
“Look at this guy being so chicken-hearted. Be a bit more bold, huh?”
“Don’t you think you are too insensitive, Sister? And why are you bringing up gender in that matter?”
“Hey, stop chirping and let’s eat quickly. My stomach is about to stick to my back….”
It was then.
Thump!
“Aaaaaagh!”
A blood-chilling scream echoed from the back garden of Tower of the Chu Sound.
Zhuge Ah-yeon’s eyes rounded.
“You heard that too, right?”
“……N, No.”
“You heard it, you punk!”
“I didn’t hear it! I said I didn’t hear it!”
“Oh, then you stay here.”
“Please! What kind of accident are you going to cause again!”
“This brat? Hey! You say that even after hearing that scream? What if the protagonist of that scream is a kind and beautiful lady? Huh?!”
“It sounds like a voice full of phlegm, what do you mean….”
“Anyway, it seems something unusual has happened! For the sake of chivalry, I must check it myself!”
“Sister! Eh? Are you really going? Sister! Sisteer!!”