Monochrome Sovereign (Novel) - Chapter 23 - Windstorm (3)
Chapter 23 – Windstorm (3)
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Translated by Heavenly Cat
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Myeong Ho-rim clenched his fist.
Crunch!
The fragmented cup turned into powder just like that.
This was not an act possible just because one had trained their hands with external arts. Emitting internal energy to turn glass shards into powder was truly a great feat.
“Mistake, you say?”
Yeon Ho-jeong nodded.
Interest arose on Myeong Ho-rim’s face.
“And you are?”
“Focus on the person you were dealing with.”
“What?”
Myeong Ho-rim burst into a hearty laugh.
“What an interesting young man. Are you perhaps a person from Green Mountain of Jiangsu?”
Yeon Ho-jeong brought a new cup and poured wine without answering. Then he slowly drank the wine. He even propped up one leg, looking for all the world like a profligate who frequented courtesan houses as if they were his own home.
Myeong Ho-rim’s eyes sparkled.
At that moment, Tang Yang-seon said without even looking back.
“Trash. If you do something useless one more time, I will kill you first.”
This time too, Yeon Ho-jeong did not answer.
Tang Yang-seon also did not expect an answer in return. This was because Myeong Ho-rim was what was important to him.
He took a step forward.
Fsssss.
A faint haze rose from beneath his feet.
It was the Tang Sect’s Triple Yang Arts. It was also a high-difficulty martial art that, if mastered, would allow one to naturally realize the Tang Sect’s secret art, the Guiding Inverse Triple Yang Returning to Origin Formula.
No matter how much it was Myeong Ho-rim, he could not act leisurely forever. Even before considering skill, he could not ignore Tang Yang-seon because of the characteristic called poison.
Tang Yang-seon gnashed his teeth.
“Into a handful of blood…”
At that moment, the sound of breaking air arose once more.
Phew! Pang!
The powdered cup was scattered in all directions.
Unlike before, Myeong Ho-rim was extending his fist. The wine cup hit by his fist had turned into powder.
Myeong Ho-rim’s eyes deepened.
‘Quite considerable.’
The fist that crushed the wine cup was faintly trembling. It meant that it had a power enough to shake the Myeong Clan’s internal energy, although there was no pain.
Unclenching his fist, Myeong Ho-rim asked with a smile.
“Is it a mistake this time too, friend?”
Yeon Ho-jeong showed his empty hand.
“It was a mistake.”
“Haha! You are a friend with frequent mistakes. By the way.”
“…”
“I wonder if you have not just provoked the jackal’s anger by stepping out for no reason.”
Woooooooooo!!
Murderous intent flowed from the body of Tang Yang-seon, who had lowered his head.
It was not poisonous Qi, but murderous intent. And that murderous intent was directed not at Myeong Ho-rim, but at Yeon Ho-jeong.
“Yeon Clan’s trash.”
“…”
“Do you find me laughable?”
“…”
“Do I look like a person who can be insulted by trash like you?”
This time too, Yeon Ho-jeong did not answer. Even looking around, there were no empty cups, so he was filling Zhuge Ah-yeon’s cup.
Namgung Hyeon, who had calmed the guards from afar, distorted his face upon seeing that sight.
Han Ho-myeong shouted.
“Young Master! Calm your anger!”
Tang Yang-seon turned around.
Zhuge Ah-yeon flinched. Tang Yang-seon’s eyes glaring at Yeon Ho-jeong were stained with madness.
“I will make you pay the price for ignoring me.”
Zhuge Ah-yeon moved.
“Don’t…!”
Pwooooook!
Everyone’s eyes widened at the brutal sound.
Yeon Ho-jeong shook his hand. It was unknown where the cup had gone, and only a few drops of wine were on his hand.
Tang Yang-seon’s expression became blank.
Drip.
Blood flowed down from his torn forehead.
Thud!
Soon, Tang Yang-seon fell backward just like that. He had lost consciousness after being hit by the wine cup Yeon Ho-jeong had fired.
Myeong Ho-rim’s face hardened.
Yeon Ho-jeong, who shook his hand, slowly stood up from his seat.
“It is not polite to release poison in a drinking session.”
A moment of silence ensued.
Everyone watching this place was astonished by the sudden situation. Han Ho-myeong, Tang Yang-seon’s guard, was even more surprised.
Tang Yang-seon had fainted. And that, by being hit with a wine cup.
The Tang Clan’s main martial arts were poison and hidden weapons. The fact that Tang Yang-seon, the eldest son of such a Tang Clan, could not even block a single wine cup gave everyone a great shock.
Zhuge Ah-yeon’s eyes wavered.
“Are, are you okay?”
This time too, Yeon Ho-jeong did not answer. No, in the first place, it was not a situation to answer anyone’s words.
‘Is it similar? Is it not? I do not know yet. But…’
The unpleasant fighting spirit wafting from Myeong Ho-rim’s refined aura.
A sense of incongruity that could not be pinpointed.
A unique temperament lurking behind the stable internal power characteristic of the Orthodox Murim. And the exertion.
The exertion that crushed the wine cup followed a method of operation never seen before.
It was not the internal energy of those who attacked the family, nor was it their exertion. It was a color Yeon Ho-jeong had never seen.
But one thing was certain.
Although the colors of Myeong Ho-rim’s and the attackers’ internal energy and exertion might be different, they had a commonality called ‘darkness.’ There was a point of contact that could not be found in the Zhuge Clan or the Peng Clan.
Flash! Flash!
As the Jade Gauze True Formula was operated, Yeon Ho-jeong’s pupils were stained with a pale blue light.
Zzzzzzz! Zzzzzzzz!
It felt as if a meshed gear was rolling in a corner of his head.
Concentration improved at a terrifying speed. His Qi flowed along Myeong Ho-rim’s aura and struck all the way into the opponent’s dantian in an instant.
‘…?!’
Strength entered Myeong Ho-rim’s neck.
‘He is reading me?’
The opponent’s sharp gaze felt as if hundreds of poisonous snakes had been released to coil around his body.
‘Heup!’
Myeong Ho-rim stopped his breathing without realizing it. By stopping his breath, his Qi was fixed and his internal energy was firmly combined.
Sssshhh!
The poisonous snakes that were groping his entire body flicked their forked tongues and raised their heads.
The reaction was immediate. Since he forcibly stopped the flow of internal energy, the aura of the opponent exploring him also hesitated.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s face distorted.
Ssssss.
The billowing Jade Gauze Qi fluctuated. He was displeased with the opponent’s countermeasure.
‘Heok!’
Zhuge Ah-yeon stopped her breathing without realizing it. Yeon Ho-jeong’s change was being clearly transmitted to her, who was closest.
“Brother!”
Yeon Ji-pyeong ran from afar.
Zhuge Ah-yeon hurriedly stopped Yeon Ji-pyeong.
“Sister?”
“Wait.”
Zhuge Ah-yeon looked at Yeon Ho-jeong’s back with trembling eyes.
“Do not go near.”
“B… but, Brother is!”
Zhuge Ah-yeon intuitively realized. That Yeon Ho-jeong could not be stopped right now.
Yeon Ji-pyeong also knew. That the current brother was something different.
‘With the current skills of me or Ji-pyeong, we cannot stop Ho-jeong. Then…’
Leave him alone because he could not be stopped?
She could not do that. If something went wrong, a flaw could be left in the history of the gathering of the Seven Great Clans. Aside from who would become endangered, the dignity of the Orthodox Murim was also at stake.
Of course, what she was most worried about was Yeon Ho-jeong. While a moderate scuffle might be fine, making an enemy of the Sichuan Tang Clan was by no means a wise action.
Zhuge Ah-yeon said to Zhuge Jun.
“Tell Brother Namgung to stop the banquet! Tell each guard warrior to take the family’s children and return to their quarters!”
“Yes, Sister!”
At that moment, a groan was heard.
Surprisingly, it was Tang Yang-seon. Although he had lost consciousness in one blow, the time he took to wake up was fast. It meant that his recovery ability alone was outstanding.
Wham!
Han Ho-myeong quickly approached Tang Yang-seon’s side.
“Young Master! Are you okay?”
A bewildered look appeared on Tang Yang-seon’s face. He did not even know what had happened to him.
“What? Where did that son of a bitch go?”
“Young Master, this is not the time for this…!”
“Let go!”
The back of Yeon Ho-jeong appeared in the eyes of Tang Yang-seon, who was looking around here and there.
His eyes blazed with fire.
“You, you trash! I will kill you!”
Wham!
Tang Yang-seon, who pushed Han Ho-myeong aside and rushed out, threw his fist toward Yeon Ho-jeong’s back.
No matter how much his eyes had turned, attacking a person who had their back turned was not the way of a warrior. The people who were coming to stop him were once again surprised by Tang Yang-seon’s lack of Dao.
The fist loaded with Triple Yang Qi reached right in front of Yeon Ho-jeong’s Gate of Life acupoint.
A cruel smile appeared on Tang Yang-seon’s face.
‘I will kill you painfully!’
At that moment, Yeon Ho-jeong’s body moved.
Clack!
“Huh?”
Tang Yang-seon’s eyes widened.
His body stopped in the position of throwing a fist. And Yeon Ho-jeong was holding his forearm.
However, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes were still directed toward Myeong Ho-rim. He had only responded to the murderous intent, and in the first place, he had no interest in Tang Yang-seon.
But his instinct was different.
The minimum formality he had been holding as the eldest son of the Green Mountain Yeon Clan crumbled before the instinct of the Dark Emperor, who was called the worst master in the history of the Black Path.
Crunch!!
“Argh!”
Tang Yang-seon collapsed on the spot. His arm bone was broken by the tremendous pressure.
He broke a person’s arm bone with just his grip strength. It was a brutal force.
But he could not comfortably faint like before. It was because Yeon Ho-jeong was still holding onto his broken arm.
“Grrrrk! L… let go of this?!”
Crunnnch!
“Aaaaaaargh!”
Tang Yang-seon struggled in terrible pain.
He could not even think of raising his poison arts. The fracture he experienced for the first time in his life was breaking his spirit.
But he was the eldest son of the Tang Clan. Although this kind of pain was a first, the martial arts he had refined for ten years were not going anywhere.
Ssssss!
Purple smoke rose from Tang Yang-seon’s body. His body realized first that the only way to escape from this pain was to shake off the opponent.
“Eeeek!”
Tang Yang-seon struck Yeon Ho-jeong’s shoulder with his intact left hand.
Thud! Crunch!
“Kraaaaaagh!!”
Surprisingly, Yeon Ho-jeong, who was attacked, was perfectly fine without any injury.
Rather, Tang Yang-seon’s left hand, which had delivered the attack, was fractured. Due to the powerful repulsive force, his right shoulder bone even popped out. It was because Yeon Ho-jeong had held onto his arm until the end.
Wooooooo.
Everyone held their breath.
Translucent hexagonal tortoise shells rose around Yeon Ho-jeong’s body.
The martial art of the Four Gods manifested unconsciously. It was the North Heaven Twelve Walls of the Black Tortoise Arts, famous for absolute defense.
“Uuuuugh! Uhuhuh!”
Secretions flowed from Tang Yang-seon’s eyes and nose.
Flash!
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eye light blazed once more. As the enemy who was emitting murderous intent showed weakness, his hidden ferocity was stimulated.
He looked down at Tang Yang-seon.
“Heok!”
The body of Tang Yang-seon, which was trembling, stiffened as if struck by lightning.
As he encountered Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes, which were as transparent as glass beads, his heart rate instantly soared twofold. His hands and feet turned cold, and both sides of his uvula became hot.
It felt as if his entire nervous system was becoming a mess. Some parts of his body were hot, and some were cold. His pores repeatedly opened and closed at will.
Drip, drip.
Tang Yang-seon’s lower garments became damp. His bladder had let go.
Ferocious murderous intent was contained in Yeon Ho-jeong’s smile.
It was the true murderous intent of the Dark Emperor, shown for the first time since reincarnating into the past. With martial arts at the level of Tang Yang-seon, there was absolutely no way to oppose that murderous intent.
“Grrrrruk!”
In the end, Tang Yang-seon foamed at the mouth and fainted. This time, he would not wake up for a long time.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eye light gradually deepened. He intended to break the opponent’s spirit with this momentum just like that.
It was then.
‘No.’
Cold reason came beyond the instinct of a beast.
‘This should not be the time to care about that fledgling.’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes wavered.
Flash!
His gaze, which was smoldering with murderous intent, regained its former clarity.
Slide.
Only then did Tang Yang-seon’s body gain freedom. His crushed arm was weirdly bent like the torso of a dead snake.
“Yo… Young Master!”
Han Ho-myeong wanted to run to Tang Yang-seon. He wanted to check his safety and swing his iron whip at Yeon Ho-jeong, who had made the Young Master like that.
However, he could only hesitate from a distance. Because a part of the uncontrolled murderous intent had affected him too.
“I have only spoiled my appetite.”
Crack.
Yeon Ho-jeong moved his shoulder as a habit.
Myeong Ho-rim flinched.
“You said you were the Third Young Master of the Nine States Myeong Clan?”
“……?!”
“Would you play with me for a little bit?”