Monochrome Sovereign (Novel) - Chapter 9 - What Takes Precedence Over Family Law (3)
Chapter 9 – What Takes Precedence Over Family Law (3)
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Translated by Heavenly Cat
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
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“Clan Head, the Eldest Young Master has arrived.”
“Let him in.”
The door opened, and Yeon Ho-jeong and Yeon Ji-pyeong entered.
As the two stepped inside, it felt as though the temperature in the Clan Head’s office rose. The heat radiating from Yeon Ho-jeong’s body was remarkable.
“Father.”
“Sit down.”
Two cups of warm tea were already placed on the table. The aroma of the tea rising with the white steam was very pleasant.
Yeon Wi glanced at Yeon Ji-pyeong. It was a look asking why he had come when only the eldest had been summoned.
Scratching his head in embarrassment, Yeon Ji-pyeong said.
“I couldn’t offer my morning greetings today.”
It was a poor excuse.
“Sit together.”
Yeon Ji-pyeong let out a sigh of relief and sat beside Yeon Ho-jeong.
Yeon Wi pushed a teacup toward Yeon Ji-pyeong. Distracted, Yeon Ji-pyeong did not notice it.
Scanning Yeon Ho-jeong from top to bottom, Yeon Wi nodded.
“It seems you did it properly.”
“My legs are still shaking.”
Though it was said with a hint of a joke, Yeon Wi’s expression remained unchanged.
“If you work hard and become an expert capable of unifying the Essence, Qi, and Spirit in the future, you will be able to perform the Horse Stance for three days and nights.”
“Once I become such an expert, I won’t spend my time doing the Horse Stance.”
Yeon Ji-pyeong secretly poked Yeon Ho-jeong’s side with his elbow. He thought it was too rude toward their father.
However, Yeon Wi did not take issue with Yeon Ho-jeong’s words.
“By the way, why did you call for me? Did you call to check my homework?”
“I am telling you clearly, that was not homework but a punishment. I thought you had reflected properly, but it seems you only exhausted your body.”
“It doesn’t seem like my character is something that will change even if I die.”
Those were words filled with sincerity. Since they were the words of someone who had once died, it was only natural.
Punishment only holds meaning when one repents for their sin. However, since a punishment once given could not be repeated, Yeon Wi no longer found fault with Yeon Ho-jeong’s words.
“Due to the incident with the Namgung, I could not ask what I intended to ask earlier. You intend to learn the Jade Gauze True Formula?”
“Ah, yes.”
Yeon Ji-pyeong looked at his brother in surprise. He hadn’t known his brother had said such things to their father.
But at the same time, he understood. Since his brother had mastered the Flying Swallow Cultivation Method, it was now time to properly learn the clan’s martial arts.
Yeon Wi said in a stiff tone.
“The Jade Gauze True Formula is a martial art belonging to the Five Great Divine Arts of our clan. However, it is meaningless to learn it if the foundation does not support it. You are aware of this, right?”
“Of course.”
Yeon Wi felt a strong sense of confidence in Yeon Ho-jeong’s answer.
“Have you attained the ninth stage of the Flying Swallow Cultivation Method?”
Without a word, Yeon Ho-jeong held out his pulse point. It was because he thought it was better to verify directly than to speak.
Watching his son silently, Yeon Wi placed his hand on the pulse point.
‘Hmm?’
Yeon Wi’s gaze changed for a moment.
Vigorously flowing true qi. Most of the acupoints in the head and limbs were open.
“When was it?”
“The morning of the day I came out of the Ancestral Hall.”
Yeon Wi checked Yeon Ho-jeong’s interior once again.
And he realized one fact.
“The flow of true qi is unfamiliar. You did not gradually realize and adapt it to your body, but realized it all at once.”
This time, Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes sparkled.
‘As expected, he is amazing.’
Looking at the flow of true qi, blood circulation, and the traces of acupoints, he grasped how the cultivation law was mastered.
This was by no means an easy task. It was a trace that even a high-level expert would have missed if their senses were not sharp.
Yeon Ho-jeong glanced at Yeon Ji-pyeong.
An air of bewilderment hung on Yeon Ji-pyeong’s face. It was confusing to him why his father would bother grasping the pulse and verifying what was obvious at a glance.
‘Pyeong’s senses were inherited from Father.’
Compared to them, his talent was certainly inferior. His sharp senses only bloomed after going through countless battlefields and being constantly under the threat of survival.
He was definitely different from his father and younger brother.
“You have escaped the confusion caused by qi. Did you approach the cultivation law academically?”
“It just seemed to analyze itself.”
“Steadily digging into one path is important, but seeking another path when it doesn’t work is also a good method. Well done.”
“…!”
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes grew as large as lanterns. Yeon Ji-pyeong also stood with his mouth agape.
It was the first time they had ever heard the words ‘well done’ from their father’s mouth.
Even Yeon Ji-pyeong, who was said to have the greatest talent in the clan’s history, had never received praise from Yeon Wi. Yeon Wi was stingy with praise and more inclined toward criticism.
For the brothers, it was a sentence that held great meaning in many ways.
“Good. I will authorize your training in the Five Great Divine Arts.”
“Thank you.”
“However, is there a reason you specifically chose the Jade Gauze True Formula?”
Yeon Ho-jeong nodded.
“Because I felt it suits me best.”
Each of the Yeon Clan’s Five Great Divine Arts had its own characteristics. At the same time, all five were similar in level and difficulty.
Ultimately, which of the five martial arts to learn was a matter of personal choice.
After watching Yeon Ho-jeong silently for a moment, Yeon Wi spoke again.
“There is something I wish to ask.”
“Yes.”
“I have only now allowed you to train in the Five Great Divine Arts. As long as I, the Clan Head, do not permit it, no one in the clan can learn the Five Great Divine Arts.”
“I am aware.”
“However, you told the Twin Guards at the gate to relay that you would learn the Jade Gauze True Formula in advance.”
Yeon Wi was not trying to admonish Yeon Ho-jeong for his arrogance.
“Did you already know the oral formula of the Jade Gauze True Formula?”
That was it.
The Five Great Divine Arts cannot be learned even by blood relatives without the Clan Head’s permission. That meant the oral formulas of the divine arts had not been leaked externally.
Yet, his eldest son had said he would learn the Jade Gauze True Formula in advance.
After a brief pause, Yeon Ho-jeong spoke.
“It is not just the Jade Gauze True Formula.”
“Hmm?”
“I know all the oral formulas of the Five Great Divine Arts.”
This time, even Yeon Wi could not help but be surprised. His slightly widened eyes showed his state of mind.
Of course, Yeon Ji-pyeong looked as if he were about to faint.
“You say you also know the oral formulas of the five divine arts?”
“That is correct.”
“How?”
Because you taught them to me, Father.
It was while the clan was being attacked by a certain group.
While the brave warriors of the Yeon family were bleeding and fighting on the front lines, Yeon Wi had transmitted all the oral formulas of the Five Great Divine Arts to his two sons.
Of course, because there was no time, they couldn’t memorize all those many oral formulas. Yeon Wi had tried to make them escape by handing the five original volumes to Yeon Ho-jeong and the five copies to Yeon Ji-pyeong.
However, Yeon Ji-pyeong was unlucky. He died after a fierce battle with experts who had occupied the retreat path.
Yeon Ho-jeong had fled, shedding tears of blood. At that time, he also wanted to avenge his brother, but the powerless reality and the responsibility of reviving the Yeon family led his feet into the forest.
And three months later.
Yeon Ho-jeong met a master and conquered the Black Path in a few years.
“Did you enter the Martial Library?”
The Martial Library was a library where the martial arts secret manuals of the Green Mountain Yeon Clan were gathered. It was also a place strictly guarded by the most prominent warriors in the Yeon family.
“I have never entered without permission.”
“Then?”
Yeon Ho-jeong stared blankly at Yeon Wi.
“Father showed them to me.”
“What?”
In his heart, he wanted to tell him everything.
That he was the Yeon Ho-jeong who had returned to the past. He wanted to tell him everything about how the future would change and what kind of life he had lived.
He really, truly wanted to tell his father everything.
Yeon Ho-jeong’s fist tightened.
‘Not yet.’
He didn’t know if his father would believe him, and even if he did, now was not the time. That was what he thought.
“I showed you the secret manuals of the Five Great Divine Arts? When on earth?”
“When I was young, didn’t you take me in and out of the Martial Library several times?”
Yeon Wi knitted his brows.
“When you were young… are you talking about when you first entered the path of martial arts?”
“That is correct.”
“And you are saying you still remember the oral formulas of the Five Great Divine Arts that you saw back then?”
“Yes.”
In the end, he had no choice but to make such an excuse.
In fact, Yeon Ho-jeong’s memory was in a state several times better than when he was young. It was only natural since he had deeply refined his brain and Upper Dantian.
He felt sorry for deceiving his father, but he thought it couldn’t be helped.
‘This is better, even for later.’
The best martial art of the Yeon family was not the Five Great Divine Arts.
Rather, one must know all of the Five Great Divine Arts to realize the supreme martial art of the Yeon family.
Yeon Ho-jeong saying he knew all the oral formulas of the Five Great Divine Arts was a move for the future. He planned to learn even the secret technique of the Yeon family after mastering the Jade Gauze True Formula.
Because only by learning even the secret technique could he become the best.
“Remembering the oral formulas of martial arts from more than ten years ago…”
Yeon Wi shook his head.
“Why haven’t you spoken of it until now?”
“What use are the Five Great Divine Arts to someone struggling even with basic techniques?”
“Now that you have mastered the cultivation law, you are saying it is fine to speak of it?”
“Yes.”
It feels a bit uncomfortable.
“The oral formula of just one martial art exceeds one thousand two hundred characters.”
Yeon Wi shook his head from side to side.
“Your memory is quite extraordinary.”
One unexpected point was that Yeon Wi did not tell Yeon Ho-jeong to prove it.
“Even if you know all the oral formulas of the Five Great Divine Arts, was there a reason to learn them in such a hurry? Unless you intended to boast of your memory, there seems to be no reason to be so urgent.”
There is.
It was a cry only in his heart. Of course, this time too, Yeon Ho-jeong could not say those words.
“I simply wanted to learn them as soon as possible.”
“When learning a divine art, a calm mind and a cautious approach are necessary. Keep that in mind.”
“I understand.”
Yeon Wi leaned his back slightly against the chair.
“Good. I will authorize your training in the Jade Gauze True Formula.”
“Thank you.”
“Stop by here tomorrow before breakfast. I will guide the basics of the heart law and the transformation of the Flying Swallow Qi into the Jade Gauze True Qi.”
“I understand.”
Training alone would clearly be faster, but this time too, he followed his father’s words.
In the world, there were things to be kept no matter how urgent they were. For Yeon Ho-jeong, those were the promise with his blood relative and affection.
‘I’ll just get help with the start, and I’ll do the rest myself.’
If he could speak one more word with his father with that little bit of help, that would be enough.
Step by step, slowly approaching each other. At least in this life, he would not leave behind any regrets about things he couldn’t do for his blood relatives.
“You may go and attend to your business.”
“Ah, there is one thing I wish to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Has there been any contact from the Namgung side?”
He asked just in case, but the answer was surprising.
“There was.”
Yeon Ho-jeong furrowed his brows.
“There was contact? Could it be they apologized?”
“It was not an apology from the Clan Head.”
“Of course it wouldn’t be. The distance to Anhui is quite far. It is impossible in terms of time.”
“However, a letter came from the Hall Master personally. It was a letter apologizing on behalf for the incident last night and his niece’s rudeness.”
The Hall Master personally sent an apology letter overnight?
Yeon Ho-jeong’s gaze suddenly turned cold.
‘This is not good.’
A hot-tempered person is also quick to apologize?
It could be so. However, Namgung Dae-san was a Hall Master of the Namgung Clan and, at the same time, the Clan Head’s brother. No matter how much they lacked a justification, there was no way he would apologize this quickly.
“Are they aiming for something?”
Yeon Ho-jeong muttered to himself involuntarily.
The look in Yeon Wi’s eyes as he watched such a Yeon Ho-jeong was not filled only with strictness as before.
“I will handle this matter myself, so you two may step back.”
“Yes.”
Yeon Ho-jeong and Yeon Ji-pyeong bowed politely and withdrew.
Looking at the cold tea water, Yeon Wi emptied all of the teacup that had been at Yeon Ho-jeong’s place.
Yeon Wi’s face, as he leaned his back comfortably against the chair, was still blunt.
“It didn’t take twenty years.”