Black and White Martial Emperor

“They should have met by now.”

“I believe so.”

Yeon Wi’s face was utterly expressionless as he drank his tea.

He had softened somewhat lately, but Yeon Wi had always been rather taciturn by nature. With him sitting there in silence, drinking tea without the slightest change in expression, the atmosphere in the room became incredibly heavy.

Even Tang Gwan, of all people, found himself clearing his throat for no reason as he looked at Yeon Wi. An ordinary person likely would not have dared breathe.

Je Gal Munho spoke.

“Supreme Commander Yeon’s abilities are exceptional, which is why he so often takes the forefront. Whenever that happened, there was something I always told Clan Lord Yeon. I told you not to worry.”

“......”

“I know full well those words offer no comfort to you as his father. But this time as well, we have no choice but to trust Supreme Commander Yeon. As you know, Clan Lord Yeon, he does not throw himself into a battle he has no chance of winning.”

Yeon Wi remained silent.

Je Gal Munho looked at Tang Gwan with troubled eyes. He was clearly asking him to lend a hand.

Tang Gwan smacked his lips.

“Parents cannot help worrying about their children. But Supreme Commander Yeon is grown now, isn’t he? He is old enough to carry his own weight. You raised him well, and he grew well. Now there is nothing left for you to do but watch.”

Normally, he would have called Yeon Hojeong an insolent bastard, a lunatic, and every other name under the sun. But Yeon Wi’s expression was so grave that even Tang Gwan had no choice but to watch his words.

Still, someone with Tang Gwan’s temperament could hardly offer proper comfort. Je Gal Munho’s expression immediately turned awkward.

Then Yeon Wi spoke.

“I had always been prepared.”

The two men looked at him.

Still staring at his teacup, Yeon Wi continued.

“As Clan Lord Tang said, Hojeong is grown. Even Jipyeong has begun to carry his own share. And it is not only my children. The children of Clan Lord Tang and Clan Lord Je Gal have also grown enough to carry their own share.”

“......”

“I thought about it. What can a parent do for children who have already grown? But no matter how much I considered it, there was nothing more I could do. I could still look after the little things, perhaps, but anything beyond that would be nothing more than a parent’s selfishness.”

“Clan Lord Yeon.”

“Then what more can one do for one’s children—as a parent, and as a martial artist?”

Yeon Wi’s eyes turned cold.

“Vengeance.”

“......!”

“My children are martial artists. So am I. Then, if one of my children dies somewhere out there, there is nothing more I can do for them but avenge them.”

Je Gal Munho and Tang Gwan were taken aback. They had not expected such words to come from Yeon Wi, a man praised as a gentleman.

Yeon Wi calmly took another sip of tea.

With that single sip, much of the turmoil in his heart settled.

“Once a fledgling begins to flap its wings, the mother bird no longer brings food back for it. People are much the same. Yet people and beasts are fundamentally different. That is the only thing I have left to do for my children now.”

“......”

“Forgive me for spoiling the mood. I speak this way, but as Clan Lord Je Gal said, my worry will not fade. I will carry that worry myself from now on, so there is no need to walk on eggshells around me.”

Yeon Wi sighed.

“I only pray that the day never comes when I must fulfill that final duty left to a parent.”

Je Gal Munho nodded heavily.

“I will do everything I can to ensure Clan Lord Yeon never has cause to exercise that final right.”

“Thank you.”

Tang Gwan smacked his lips again.

“Clan Lord Yeon has a point. Once the child of a martial artist has grown enough to carry their own share, all that remains is vengeance.”

Vengeance. Retribution.

Few words could resonate as deeply with a member of the Tang Clan. Tang Gwan’s face grew intensely serious as he turned Yeon Wi’s words over in his mind.

Je Gal Munho said,

“In any case, judging by the Yangcheon Supreme Commander Yeon has seen, he will never be able to harm him. He simply cannot. He may be the Fighting King, but he is also the leader of the Dark Path, commanding tens of thousands of subordinates. He is not in a position to act rashly.”

Tang Gwan shook his head.

“And he is the Fighting King. Not because he is a man of the Dark Path, but because he is the Fighting King, he will not let this pass easily.”

“Of course not. But Supreme Commander Yeon said he has a deal to make with Yangcheon. If that deal is to go through, Yangcheon cannot do anything to him.”

It concerned the Yin Desolation Divine Palm. Je Gal Munho and Tang Gwan did not know the details, but Yeon Wi had already heard enough from Yeon Hojeong.

Even so, he could not help worrying.

“Word will come soon.”

Je Gal Munho’s eyes lit up.

“If it is Supreme Commander Yeon, he will surely bring about the best possible outcome.”

*****

BAM-BAM-BAM! BOOM!

The battle between the two masters only grew more intense.

Incredible.

Shock spread across Buseon’s face.

This has become a real fight?!

One thing was certain: her master was not fighting at full strength.

She had seen her master take a contest seriously before. It had been a very long time ago, but if he drew on only the strength he had shown back then, that young man named Yeon Hojeong would have been on the ground long ago.

But that did not mean he was fighting carelessly.

BAM-BAM-BAM! THUD!

Blood sprayed from Yeon Hojeong’s mouth.

BANG!

A pale wisp of smoke rose from Yangcheon’s forearm, which had blocked Yeon Hojeong’s elbow.

The accumulated impact was on an entirely different level. Every time Yeon Hojeong blocked Yangcheon’s attacks, his aura shook with frightening violence. Yet every time Yangcheon stopped Yeon Hojeong’s attacks, his aura remained as steady as it had been at the beginning.

Even so, they were trading blows.

Yangcheon was not fighting at full strength, but a fighter’s close-range battle had taken shape.

Quite literally, it was a fight. Not a blood-soaked clash between warriors battling for their lives, but a contest of fighting skill between fighters standing on a sparring ground.

Of course, even a spar could end in death the instant one faltered. Still, it was difficult to call it a life-and-death battle.

It was like when the leaders of rival back alleys stepped forward as champions to settle victory and defeat.

The fight between Yeon Hojeong and Yangcheon was astonishingly gripping.

“......Remarkable.”

Buseon looked to the side in surprise.

The young swordsman who had come with the greatest younger-generation master under heaven—the same man she had thought was recklessly full of himself, only to discover that his actual skill surpassed her own—was clicking his tongue in amazement.

“I knew my brother was strong, but I never imagined he could hold a fighter’s close-range battle against the Fighting King.”

As they moved to avoid the fierce clash between the two supreme masters, they must have ended up much closer to one another.

Buseon’s eyes sharpened.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Hm?”

Gangryang glanced at Buseon and answered evenly.

“I was speaking to myself. Do not concern yourself with it.”

“You think he can hold a fighter’s close-range battle with Master?”

Gangryang pointed at the two men with his chin.

“Can’t you see it? They are fighting quite well.”

“Do not be absurd! Anyone can see that Master is conserving his strength. If Master had used his full power, he would have put him down within three moves......!”

“Then what is that, if not a fight?”

“......!”

“Would you be confident in holding a fighter’s close-range battle with the Fighting King yourself?”

For a moment, Buseon had no answer.

Gangryang shook his head.

“Talk of him concealing his strength or merely humoring his opponent is, in the end, nothing but empty theory. All that matters is this moment.”

“He is only playing with him. The moment Master grows bored, that man dies.”

“You do not know that. It has not happened.”

“Do not play games with words......!”

“And look.”

Gangryang smiled.

There was something strange about that smile, something that seemed both amused and bitter. For no reason she could name, Buseon felt an ache in her chest.

“Where exactly do you see boredom on your master’s face? Far from being bored, he looks as though he is enjoying a real fight for the first time in ages even more than my brother is.”

Buseon turned her gaze toward Yangcheon.

......!!

That was right. Gangryang was correct.

Yangcheon’s face was utterly expressionless as he responded to Yeon Hojeong’s fists and kicks.

But Buseon knew. No—anyone could have seen it.

Yangcheon’s cheeks were flushed red. His eyes shone more brightly than ever, and his aura, though steady as it reacted to his opponent’s movements, was steeped in a strange excitement.

Gangryang was right. Yangcheon was enjoying this fight.

“You say my brother would lose if the Fighting King went all out? That is true. The odds of it are overwhelming. But what matters is that the Fighting King is not going all out.”

Even as he spoke, Gangryang’s eyes tracked every brutal movement between the two men.

He would not let a single motion or a single collision pass him by. His eyes carried that resolve.

“To give the Fighting King something to enjoy. To face him in a way that lets him enjoy this fight longer.”

“......!”

“To keep the Fighting King from bringing out his full strength. That is why my brother is extraordinary.”

“You mean he approached him from the start intending that?”

“No one but him knows that. But the brother I know is not the sort of man who throws himself into enemy territory without preparation. He must have had confidence.”

Gangryang’s smile deepened.

“The confidence that he could keep the Fighting King from killing him—and use this as a foundation for his own martial arts to advance.”

BOOOOOOM!

With a tremendous blast, Yeon Hojeong was hurled fifty feet away and rolled across the ground.

“Cough!”

Blood he had suppressed for so long spilled from Yeon Hojeong’s mouth as he looked at Yangcheon with reddened eyes.

Yangcheon had lowered his stance even further. He looked exactly like a lion about to spring upon its prey.

Yeon Hojeong studied Yangcheon for a moment, then grinned.

“I lost.”

“......?”

“Let’s stop here.”

Yangcheon’s brow twitched.

“Stop here?”

FSSSSSH.

Yeon Hojeong steadily settled the Inner Qi he had drawn to its limit. It was a declaration that he would fight no further.

“What are you doing? The fight is not yet......”

“It is over. I have reached my limit.”

“......?”

“But if you want to enjoy another fight like today, I will stop by on my way back once this mission is over.”

“What?”

“Did you enjoy it? Fighting me?”

Yangcheon stared at Yeon Hojeong in silence before relaxing his stance.

A strange look came over his face.

“It was good. Very good. Ever since I stepped into the starlight of Limitlessness, I have never had a martial contest this thrilling.”

“I am honored.”

After a moment of silence, Yangcheon asked as though tossing the words aside.

“Was this what you were after?”

“I do not know what you mean.”

“I could kill an enemy. But it is difficult to kill a worthy rival who is worth trading blows with. Thanks to you, I had a fine time. Yet what was an entertaining game to me must have been a life-and-death contest of timing and reading intent for you.”

Yeon Hojeong shook his head.

“I did begin with that in mind. But as the fight continued, such thoughts vanished from my head. This was not a fight with enough room for idle thoughts.”

“......”

“But if you believe I am a worthy rival worth keeping alive, help me now. Let us destroy the Three Creeds together. Of course, only if you believe you still have a debt to collect from them as well.”

Yangcheon gave a faint laugh.

He really is impossible to hate.

He had not expected matters to unfold this way. Of course, he had never intended to kill Yeon Hojeong from the beginning, but he had not expected it to end so boldly.

“Smart enemies are always at the top of the list for elimination. But you are too good to kill now.”

Yangcheon turned around.

“Come. At least this once, I will receive you as a guest.”

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes gleamed.

“You are inviting me to Ink Dragon Manor?”

“What? Are you afraid I will take you there and kill you?”

“Not at all. If you meant to kill me, you would have done so long ago. I would be honored. Still, I have a mission, so I cannot remain long.”

“Set this body of mine right, then leave. You will receive information about Hong Gwan only after I am whole again.”

Yeon Hojeong grinned.

“A bargain I like.”

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