Monochrome Sovereign (Novel) - Chapter 30 - Reason for Fighting (5)
Chapter 30 – Reason for Fighting (5)
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Translated by Heavenly Cat
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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Shin Mo’s eyes widened.
‘Incredible!’
He wondered if the sight he was seeing was real. He wanted to pinch his thigh.
‘Such spirit…?!’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s three consecutive attacks.
An invisible, tremendous spirit was embedded in every single one of those attacks.
It was literally spirit. It was not killing intent that contained the will to kill the opponent, nor was it fighting spirit that bloomed a desire for combat.
It was like the massive military aura one could feel from the dash of tens of thousands of troops galloping across the wilderness.
In every strike of Yeon Ho-jeong, an overwhelming presence was embedded. Even with the same attack, the weight was different.
“What’s this? I thought he was the Lightning Hero?”
“Why is he flustered like that?”
“After all that bluster, is Chu Seong really nothing special?”
The voices of a few young martial artists murmuring could be heard.
‘Is it natural?’
In their eyes, Chu Seong’s reaction must have looked ridiculous. They would have thought he blocked what he could clearly dodge, and hurriedly dodged what he could have blocked.
However, Shin Mo could understand.
‘He must be overwhelmed.’
If he felt that much spirit, and right in front of his nose at that, he would have felt a suffocating fear. That was why he couldn’t perform a proper response or showcase his original skill.
‘What if Chu Seong were me…?’
At that moment.
“I-it’s incredible!”
Shin Mo turned his head to the side.
Yeon Ji-pyeong was watching Yeon Ho-jeong as if possessed.
“My goodness… how can he emit such qi?!”
Shin Mo’s eyes flashed.
Yang Heum tilted his head.
“Qi?”
“Pardon?! Di-did you not feel it?”
“…Yes?”
“The qi my brother just emitted! No, I don’t know if I should call it qi, but… anyway, you mean you didn’t feel that?”
Yang Heum had a bewildered look. Not only him, but everyone in the Goshawk Squad had an expression as if they couldn’t understand, just like Yang Heum.
Shin Mo was startled.
“Did you perhaps feel it?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes! Of course! How can I not feel such a tremendous… impossibly massive qi?”
It was normal not to feel it.
Shin Mo was as surprised by Yeon Ji-pyeong as he was by Yeon Ho-jeong.
‘He felt that? With the Second Young Master’s internal energy?’
It was said that Yeon Ji-pyeong’s talent was among the best in the history of the Yeon Clan.
Still, he was a fifteen-year-old boy. Far from blooming, he had yet to even properly taste authentic martial arts.
Had such a boy perceived the Eldest Young Master’s spirit from such a distance?
‘My goodness…’
Just how terrifying a sense was he born with to see through the military aura that only a master of his own level could feel?
Shin Mo looked back and forth between Yeon Ji-pyeong and Yeon Ho-jeong.
‘Both brothers are monsters.’
Yeon Ho-jeong. A martial artist who emitted spirit that could make even the Mad Wind Sword Shin Mo, a peak master of the Way of the Sword, feel fear.
Yeon Ji-pyeong. A genius who felt, as if it were natural, the spirit that was difficult to feel unless one was a peak master at the young age of fifteen.
Shin Mo unconsciously let out a hollow laugh.
“…The future of the Yeon Clan is truly bright.”
“Pardon?”
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
Clearing his thoughts, Shin Mo turned his gaze back to the training ground.
The fight was beginning in earnest.
* * *
Clang!
The long spear and the long sword intertwined, bursting with a rough metallic sound.
‘What?!’
The arm that swung the sword went numb. Normally, he would have carried out a follow-up attack immediately, but because of that brief gap, he couldn’t execute a second strike.
And Yeon Ho-jeong did not miss that gap.
Whoosh! Ch-ch-ch-ring!
Chu Seong blocked sixteen spear strikes with a frantically swung sword.
It was the same this time. The weight flowing through the sword blade was so great that it shook beyond his elbow to his shoulder.
‘What kind of strength is this?!’
Clang!
The forcefully struck sword bounced back as it was.
He had let the spear shaft flow with the strength of his wrist, but the counter-force was so fierce that the sword that hit the spear shaft bounced back.
This was not something to judge by the quantity or quality of internal energy. It was clear that he was born with naturally strong physical strength. It was unbelievable how he could emit such power from a slender body.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s attack continued.
Pah-pah-pah-pang!
The spear strikes that pierced through the air with bloodthirsty intent were as vicious as a venomous snake.
They were attacks that made him not even dream of evasion or counterattack. Chu Seong released his sword techniques according to instinct.
Clang! Ting! Ka-ang!
The spearhead, spear shaft, and sword blade intertwined, bursting with a hair-raising metallic scream.
The sound was telling him. If a single blow landed, he would unconditionally die.
The clashing of spear and sword was telling him. This duel was not a friendly one.
The atmosphere on the training ground instantly became bloodthirsty.
Pah-pah-pah-ak! Clang!
Each of them stomped the ground and swung their weapons, not showing a single inch of a gap.
A pale light appeared on the faces of the young martial artists who had harbored doubts about Chu Seong’s skill.
‘It’s too bloodthirsty…!’
‘Is someone going to get seriously hurt at this rate?’
‘Hurt isn’t the problem… someone might die at this rate.’
But no one tried to stop the two.
No, they couldn’t. The sound of clashing spear and sword, and the bloodthirstiness permeated in that sound, took over the entire outer court.
A one-on-one fight that no one could intervene in. The scent of a fierce battle, as if ancient generals of the Three Kingdoms period were engaged in a duel, rose up.
Crunch!
The spearhead was embedded in the floor of the training ground.
It was a blow struck to blow away the opponent’s ankle. If Chu Seong hadn’t dodged, the match would have been decided within three exchanges.
‘You!’
Chu Seong, who had dodged to the left.
Finally, killing intent appeared in his eyes as well.
‘This brat, just because I’ve been patient…!’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes flashed. He had felt the killing intent that flowed from Chu Seong’s body for a brief moment.
Woo-oo-oong.
The Jade Gauze True Formula surged.
A blue light flickered in his pupils, and thick veins pulsed on the back of his hand holding the spear shaft.
As Chu Seong kicked the ground to approach.
Pah-ah-ah-ang!
He preempted the timing and advanced one step, attacking with a two-step spear strike. It was a movement as natural as flowing water, but there was no mercy in the killing intent loaded in the spearhead.
It was such an irregular rhythm that he could neither block nor dodge. There was only one way to avoid this fierce spear technique.
“Eek!”
Ta-da-dak!
Chu Seong’s body rolled on the floor of the training ground.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes flashed.
Crunch! Crunch!
Yeon Ho-jeong was ruthless. He caught up with Chu Seong, who had rolled to dodge, to the end and drove the spear in frantically; every time the spearhead was embedded, the floor of the training ground was jolted.
He was persistent and bloodthirsty. He attacked venomously, like a predator catching prey.
Chu Seong felt like he was going crazy.
He was dying of anger at having used the humiliating method called ‘Lazy Donkey Roll’ to dodge by rolling on the ground, but even then, he was not given a chance to get up.
He was angry. Rage rose to the very top of his head.
“Aaaaah! You bastard!”
Boom!
There was no formality in Chu Seong’s movement as he kicked the ground and approached. He had moved like a beast, unable to suppress his anger.
Rip!
Was it an unexpected movement? The spearhead tore his shoulder. But it was not a fatal wound.
‘You! It’s my turn!’
Chu Seong’s face was flushed red with shame and anger.
‘Die!’
Flash!
Chu Seong’s sword was thrust toward Yeon Ho-jeong’s Adam’s apple.
“Gasp! Brother?!”
“D-dangerous!”
In the moment of life and death.
Kwah-ah-ang!
Along with a streak of explosive sound, Chu Seong’s body flew to the center of the training ground.
Blood spurted from Chu Seong’s mouth. He had suffered internal injuries from the tremendous counter-force.
‘Wh-what?!’
Even Chu Seong, who was hit, did not see what kind of martial art it was.
In the eyes of Chu Seong, who hurriedly kicked the ground and stood up, Yeon Ho-jeong’s appearance finally appeared.
Woo-oo-oo-oong!
It was truly fantastic.
He couldn’t distinguish whether it was an illusion or if qi actually created such a form.
It wasn’t just Chu Seong. Everyone here was watching.
The two translucent hexagonal patterns slowly revolving around Yeon Ho-jeong’s body.
It was a tortoise shell large enough to cover his upper body. Above both shoulders, something long… whether a snake or a dragon… was writhing.
It was a mysterious sight.
The form itself was bizarre, but no one watching felt it was strange or weird.
“Whew.”
The Black Tortoise writhed according to Yeon Ho-jeong’s breath.
Chu Seong’s face contorted.
“What kind of sorcery is that again!”
Pah-ah-ah-ak!
Chu Seong, whose eyes had flipped, saw a vivid green light blazing on the precious sword he thrust out.
It was the ultimate technique he had mastered with single-minded devotion until now, the Chase Life Three Swords. Since unfolding this sword technique, he had never failed to take an enemy’s life.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s pupils emitted a chilling light.
Boom!
He took one step forward, and that step was different from the previous Thunderous Step.
It was much slower and heavier. Simultaneously, it was soft and natural.
‘…?!!’
Chu Seong’s eyes widened.
The sword that was shot like a lightning bolt seemed to slow down for a moment.
No, it didn’t just seem to slow down; it actually slowed down. Even the sword strike itself, aimed at Yeon Ho-jeong’s heart, was twisted and about to miss as it was.
‘What!!’
Whish! Ch-ch-ching!
It felt as if a flesh-cutting cold wind were blowing from all directions.
It was the illusion of Black Tortoise Qi, welcoming the appearance of the Black Tortoise, the water god of the Northern Heavens and the dark wind of the north.
That illusion-like wind dwelled in Yeon Ho-jeong’s spear and began to engrave the absolute defensive operation of the Four Gods Martial Arts.
The footwork of the Black Tortoise, Mysterious Pillar Immobility.
Following Mysterious Pillar Immobility, the steel secret art, North Heaven Twelve Walls, made its appearance.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
“Ugh!”
Chu Seong felt an impact as if his wrist were going to break.
Since the Chase Life Three Swords was a continuous attack, it targeted three of the enemy’s vital points with three sword strikes. Those three continuous strikes had all been bounced off.
Whoo-oo-oong!
A white mist rose from the tip of the long spear that cut through the heavy and dark wind.
Sss-ss-ss!
The rising mist swayed and lashed out with the Black Tortoise Qi.
It was the Triple Tortoise Wall, the three continuous moves of the North Heaven Twelve Walls. Whether performed with bare hands or weapons, it was a supreme technique with no variation in power.
It wasn’t just the North Heaven Twelve Walls.
All of the Four Gods’ martial arts were like that. The Four Gods Martial Arts was an undefeated martial art and a supreme technique of ages, which did not distinguish between bare hands and weapons.
That wasn’t all.
The martial arts of the Black Tortoise are the ultimate in defense, but like all martial arts, they can also be used for offense depending on the hand of the user.
Whoosh.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s footwork was unique.
The movements were small and slow. Yet, before he knew it, he had already reached right in front of Chu Seong’s nose. It was Mysterious Pillar Immobility.
“You!!”
Pang!
Chu Seong was also persistent. He swung the sword he was holding to the end frantically, with the momentum to hack his opponent to pieces.
Tak!
His left hand, which had not held the spear shaft until now, grasped the lower part of the spear.
And the attack began.
Crunch!
“Aaaaak!”
Chu Seong’s wrist broke.
No one saw how it broke. No one could see whether he was hit by the spear shaft or struck with the flat of the spearhead.
It didn’t end there. No, Yeon Ho-jeong’s attack was only beginning.
Whoosh!
On the long spear over six feet, in the spearhead that contained the weight of the deep sea, beast’s fangs began to grow.
It was the Wild Beast Spear Technique, the martial art that had driven Chu Seong back before he unfolded the Black Tortoise.
Yeon Ho-jeong, wielding the fierce Wild Beast Spear containing Black Tortoise Qi. Many things were contained in that spearhead, but at least mercy was not among them.
The terrifying iron spear began to hack at Chu Seong’s body.
Pah-pah-pah-ak!
“Aaaaaah!”