Monochrome Sovereign (Novel) - Chapter 40 - Difference in Class (6)
Chapter 40 – Difference in Class (6)
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Translated by Heavenly Cat
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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“Father.”
“Come in.”
Yeon Ho-jeong entered the Clan Head’s office.
Whoosh.
As soon as Yeon Ho-jeong entered, a thick smell of sweat vibrated in the air.
Yeon Wi’s eyes glinted.
“Were you in the middle of training?”
“It’s fine. I was thinking of calling it a day around now.”
Yeon Wi scanned Yeon Ho-jeong’s body from top to bottom.
He was wearing tight-fitting martial arts attire instead of his usual robe. The sweat-soaked attire revealed the contours of his body as they were.
‘He has grown larger.’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s body had changed beyond recognition.
His legs, which had merely been long, had bulged appropriately and become solid like iron towers. He still had a slender build, but his shoulders, chest, and forearms were much firmer than before, and the quality of his muscles had become distinct.
It was a level of change unbelievable for just four months. It was thanks to training pushed to the extreme, sufficient nutrition, proper rest, and of course, internal energy that made super-recovery possible.
Of course, it was easier said than done; it was difficult for anyone to do this. The fact that he hadn’t skipped training even when he was on the verge of collapsing from running meant his mental strength was extraordinary.
“I remember you were actually thinner about two months ago.”
“I thought I was going to die.”
“And didn’t I try to stop you?”
“If I had listened to you, would I have grown this much?”
In fact, it was the first time the father and son had seen each other in nearly eighty days. It was because Yeon Wi had deliberately not called for Yeon Ho-jeong.
Even so, to not show his face even once… was he not a truly tenacious fellow, even if he was his son?
“It seems a system has been established to some extent.”
“Yes. I think the time has come to slowly make changes.”
Yeon Wi turned his eyes back to his documents and said.
“Drop by once in a while to have a cup of tea.”
Yeon Ho-jeong replied with a smile.
“I understand.”
“Sit down.”
“Yes.”
Sitting down, Yeon Ho-jeong asked.
“By the way, for what matter did you call me?”
‘Must I only call you if there is something to say?’
Though that was how he felt, there was actually a matter for which he had called. Yeon Wi quickly reviewed a few sheets of documents and handed over a letter he had kept to one side.
“This arrived for you.”
Yeon Ho-jeong tilted his head. Was there anything that would come as a separate letter to him?
‘Huh?’
Thinking about it, there was one place.
Yeon Ho-jeong hurriedly opened the letter. Soon after, his eyes sparkled.
— Hand over the commission fee, you thief.
He almost burst out laughing as soon as he read the first line.
— Damn it! I thought I could finish the investigation quickly, but it was much more troublesome than I thought! You knew, didn’t you? Yeah, you knew. Shit, I took on a favor for no reason and only lost a huge amount of my own money!
Money for a beggar? This man seemed to have forgotten the fact that he was the Successor of the Beggars.
— Anyway, I’ve finished most of the investigation. I was going to visit about two months ago, but I’m sorry I’m late. I’ll visit in fifteen days, so prepare some delicious food. If you can’t satisfy my taste buds, know that I’ll cause a ruckus.
Seeing him speak like this, it seemed he had suffered quite a bit.
However, Yeon Ho-jeong could tell. That results were borne more significantly the harder the process was.
‘The investigation is finished.’
He could have sent the contents of the investigation via letter, but he said he would come and talk in person.
‘It’s one of two things. Either the secrecy must be maintained, or the content is excessively vast. Or it could be both.’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes deepened.
‘Fifteen days later… it might be a bit tight.’
If Ga Deuk-sang brought enough information, that would be the moment Yeon Ho-jeong would start to move.
He had to prepare his body as much as possible before then. The Jianghu was a place where no one knew when or what would happen. He had to grow at least one more level than he was now.
“I saw the name Ga Deuk-sang written on the letter.”
Yeon Ho-jeong looked at Yeon Wi.
Yeon Wi asked while still keeping his eyes on the documents.
“By any chance, is he the Successor of the Beggars’ Gang?”
“That’s right.”
“When did you form a connection with the Successor?”
“We formed it during the gathering.”
A smile spread across Yeon Wi’s lips. It was so subtle that one wouldn’t even know it was a smile.
“You did well.”
Yeon Wi knew well how young people viewed the Beggars’ Gang. But seeing that he had even sent a letter like this, it seemed they had built a fairly good relationship.
“There is a reason why the Beggars’ Gang is mentioned alongside the Nine Great Sects. Maintaining a good relationship with the successor of such a sect is very important.”
“He is a good person even without approaching him in that way.”
“Of course he is. Where else would one easily find someone to put up with your tenacious personality?”
Yeon Ho-jeong cleared his throat.
“Anyway, he says he will visit in fifteen days. I would like you to receive him as a guest.”
“He is the successor of the hundred thousand beggars. Furthermore, he is my son’s friend, so of course he is welcome.”
Yeon Ho-jeong put the letter in his robe.
Yeon Wi did not ask about the contents of the letter. He thought there must be a reason why his son didn’t tell him.
“Then I’ll be going…”
“You said you’d end today’s training there?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes.”
Yeon Wi stood up from his seat.
Yeon Wi, who had been looking at the documents until the end as if there were some unsatisfactory content, took off the robe he was wearing.
“Follow me.”
Behind the Clan Head’s office.
It was the place he had visited when he was changing the Flying Swallow Cultivation Method into the Jade Gauze Qi.
‘I felt it then too, but it’s very good.’
Besides the condition of the training ground, it was good because it wasn’t cluttered.
Yeon Wi, standing in the center of the training ground with his hands behind his back, asked.
“Are you still learning spear and staff techniques?”
“That’s right.”
Yeon Wi pointed to the weapon rack with his hand.
“Pick one.”
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes sparkled.
Pick a weapon? Those words meant only one thing.
‘A duel with Father?’
Instantly, Yeon Ho-jeong felt his heart thumping.
He had never had a duel with his father. He remembered receiving instruction from his father when he was very young, but he only had memories of it being extremely difficult.
Going to the rack, Yeon Ho-jeong looked over several spears and asked.
“Is it for real?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you going to go easy on me?”
Yeon Wi’s eyes glinted.
“Would I have called you if I wasn’t going to do it properly?”
As soon as those words were finished, Yeon Ho-jeong picked up a spear.
It wasn’t just a long spear. It was a long-handled weapon with crescent-shaped blades on both sides of the long spearhead, precisely a Halberd.
‘Good.’
Even the shaft was made entirely of iron, so the weight was also enormous. Yeon Ho-jeong swung the Halberd here and there and showed a satisfied smile.
“Then I’ll go with this.”
“Have you by any chance also practiced Halberd-Saber techniques?”
“It is an extension of spear and staff techniques. I think this is the best for now.”
Yeon Wi thought.
‘This is the best? That means he could be better in the future?’
Yeon Wi, who was quietly watching his son, similarly took out a sword from the rack.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes widened.
“Is it a Heavy Sword?”
Yeon Wi paused.
“You recognize it?”
“Yes. The sense of weight is no joke.”
What Yeon Wi held had a similar appearance to any other carried sword in the Central Plains. However, this sword was a Heavy Sword that had been made heavy on purpose by requesting a master craftsman.
Yeon Wi was surprised by his son’s eye for detail.
‘He knows how to see through the nature of a weapon.’
Amazing. This was something that even his second son, who had good senses, couldn’t see.
Screech. Thud!
The scabbard that fell to the ground made a heavy sound.
“Come up.”
Yeon Ho-jeong took a deep breath.
‘This is making me nervous.’
His father was a strong man. He had felt that his father was at the peak among the Seven Great Clans just from the aura he had felt before.
But the reason Yeon Ho-jeong was nervous wasn’t because his father was a strong man.
Step.
Yeon Ho-jeong, who had entered the training ground, rested the Halberd on his shoulder.
Yeon Wi’s eyes deepened.
It was because he felt a solidness without a single opening from his son’s appearance as he slowly lowered his stance and rested the Halberd on his shoulder.
“Do you know the reason why I wanted to check your martial arts?”
Yeon Ho-jeong brought out words different from his thumping inner thoughts.
“I don’t think there needs to be a big reason for a father to check his son’s martial arts.”
“You are right. But today there is a clear reason.”
“What is that?”
Yeon Wi suddenly shut his mouth.
A look of bewilderment appeared on Yeon Ho-jeong’s face.
“Why is that?”
“…I will tell you that after the duel is over.”
“I understand.”
Yeon Wi took a stance.
Hummmm.
The steel sword emitted a faint resonance.
Yeon Wi’s stance was unique. With his back straight, he put his left hand behind him. The steel sword held in his right hand was lowered to a low position, and he even placed his gaze at the tip of the sword instead of at Yeon Ho-jeong.
A stance that exuded elegance. However, no matter how one looked at it, it was not a practical stance.
But Yeon Ho-jeong could face the steel-like aura shrouded within that gentlemanly appearance.
Sssshhh.
A sharpness that made his hair stand on end.
Extremely refined internal energy held his body stably, and the sword tip lowered to the bottom held a mighty power that seemed as if it would cut through the sky in an instant.
Hummmmmmm.
Since when was it?
The intangible aura that flowed out from Yeon Wi began to slowly bind Yeon Ho-jeong.
It was an aura sharp enough to be eerie. It was an aura so sharp that he was even afraid to reach out his hand to it.
‘Sword-Limit Thought Qi!’
One of the Five Great Divine Arts of the Green Mountain Yeon Clan.
It was a peak divine art that increased the temperament by concentrating the energy that had reached the limit, and then inflated it to the extreme once again in the state where the temperament was increased.
‘And that stance… is the Eight Noble Sword Positions.’
If the Sword-Limit Thought Qi was one of the Five Great Divine Arts, the Eight Noble Sword Positions was one of the Three Great Sword Techniques of the Yeon Clan.
In other words, Yeon Wi intended to unfold the best martial arts of the Yeon Clan. Although he would adjust the power himself, the fact that he brought out two secret arts at the same time meant that he would engage in this duel seriously.
A blue light flashed from Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes.
Boom!
Yeon Ho-jeong, who held the Halberd with both hands along with a powerful Earth-shaking Stomp, lowered his stance even more.
A look of curiosity shone from Yeon Wi’s eyes.
‘What is that grip?’
It was a stance that looked as if he would strike the base of a tree with an axe.
In terms of uniqueness, it was not lacking compared to the Eight Noble Sword Positions. It was just that while the stance of the Eight Noble Sword Positions was static, Yeon Ho-jeong’s stance was dynamic.
Whoosh.
A gust of wind cooled the heat between the father and son.
“Come.”
“Here I come.”
Yeon Ho-jeong lunged toward Yeon Wi.
Thud!
The sound of him kicking off the ground was like the sound of a war drum.
Yeon Wi’s eyes glinted.
‘Fast.’
Yeon Ho-jeong, who had closed the distance in an instant, swung the Halberd.
Whoosh!
A blow that sliced in diagonally!
It was truly a merciless blow. As if he were swinging it at an enemy instead of his own flesh and blood, the spine-chilling power and speed made his back go cold.
Yeon Wi’s sword smoothly rose to the middle position.
Clang!
The Halberd was bounced back as it was.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes sparkled.
‘Amazing.’
The weight of the Halberd, whose shaft was made entirely of iron, was more than three times that of the sword held by his father.
Yet it was bounced back lightly. The internal energy loaded into the sword blade was shockingly great.
With this blow, he knew. That a light engagement in the beginning was meaningless.
He had to go with full power. His father’s martial arts, the secret arts of the Yeon Clan, were sufficiently great to handle everything of Yeon Ho-jeong.
Boom!
Yeon Ho-jeong’s Earth-shaking Stomp caused the entire back garden to vibrate.
It was an Earth-shaking Stomp stronger than ever. Yeon Ho-jeong, using the counter-force surging through the ground, drew out a blow like a flash of light.
Whoosh!
Yeon Wi’s eyes widened.
The momentum of the Halberd being struck down as if to split even a great mountain was truly vicious beyond words. Regardless of power, its momentum alone was not lacking to be called an expert under heaven.
Yeon Wi swung his sword briefly.
Clang!
The Halberd was bounced back.
As if he had expected that, Yeon Ho-jeong’s body rotated on the spot. At the same time, the Linked Palm was poured out entirely toward Yeon Wi’s chest.
It was truly a blow that caught him off guard.
A look of surprise appeared in Yeon Wi’s eyes.
Thwack!