Dark and Light Martial Emperor

Chapter 120: The Moment of Resolve (Part 2)

“Hmm?”

“What’s wrong?”

“…”

“Young Master Yeon?”

“Huh?”

“What’s the matter? Is something bothering you?”

Yeon Hojeong shook his head.

“No, it’s just… suddenly my neck feels sore.”

“An assassin?”

“Is that even possible?”

“Why not? From what I’ve heard, the Yeon family is one of the most renowned clans in the martial world.”

“Not the most renowned, but yes, we’re well-known.”

“Being the heir to such a family, you must have many targeting you.”

Yeon Hojeong blinked.

“You’re not wrong… But how did you come to think of that?”

Mokbi grumbled.

“Are you underestimating me?”

“Not at all. Ignorance isn’t a sin.”

“I may not know much about the ways of the world, but I’m not that naive.”

When three people gather, factions form. They vie for superiority, engaging in a battle of wits.

This is magnified millions of times over in the martial world. A clan with high reputation and power inevitably becomes a target for others.

Mokbi learned this at the Yeshin Hapjeon.

“It’s already been a month, hasn’t it?”

“Indeed.”

Over a month had passed since they stayed at Hoseon Daehiru.

Now, the fullness of autumn was upon them. Leaves danced in the wind, which had grown chilly. People’s clothes thickened with the season.

Moyong Woo, who had visited twenty days ago, left that very day. Since then, Yeon Hojeong had completed his market research around the Zhejiang seas.

It was time to return.

“By the way, do we need to meet with him again?”

“Who?”

“That Moyong Woo.”

Yeon Hojeong chuckled.

“Our conversation is over. Now it’s his move. If he accepts my proposal, he’ll contact me again.”

He recalled Moyong Woo’s words.

‘But having made up my mind, I don’t want to act half-heartedly.’

They had just met. There was no need to stick together from the start without having coordinated, nor was it possible.

Relying on others without doing anything oneself leads nowhere. Always, one must be the master of their own life. Moyong Woo knew this well.

‘Take care of it yourself. I believe you have the ability.’

Mokbi asked.

“Then we can go back right away?”

“That’s right.”

“Are we not stopping by Makgansan?”

“Makgansan? Ah, Ji-Pyeong?”

“Yes.”

Yeon Hojeong tilted his head.

“Would he still be there? Besides, Makgansan is a mountain. How would you know where Ji-Pyeong is in such a vast place?”

“If we have nothing else to do for the time being, we might as well scour the entire mountain while practicing our divine techniques.”

“Oh? That’s not a bad idea.”

“Hehe.”

Yeon Hojeong smirked.

“Do you miss Ji-Pyeong that much?”

Mokbi scratched her cheek.

“It’s a first for me.”

“What is?”

“Being approached without ulterior motives, aside from you, Young Master Yeon.”

“My father would be upset to hear that.”

“Ah, it’s different with my father. So, um…”

“Well, your point makes sense. Since there’s nothing else to do but train when we return, let’s take a look around Makgansan… Oh!”

“What’s wrong?”

Yeon Hojeong’s face paled.

Mokbi tensed up. She had never seen Yeon Hojeong look so serious.

Woo-woong.

Having summoned her Hwalgungganghyeonjin energy, Mokbi surveyed the surroundings and asked.

“Is there a problem? Surely not an enemy…?”

“I didn’t send a letter.”

“What?”

Yeon Hojeong swallowed hard.

“I haven’t sent a letter of well-being to my father. Not even once.”

“…”

“Damn it.”

Mokbi spoke with exasperation.

“Sometimes you really are absurd, you know?”

“Hey! You don’t know my father! Do you have any idea how much pain I was in that day?”

Unwittingly, Yeon Hojeong clutched his head.

Silence is more frightening than a barrage of words. That day, his father had simply glared at him in silence until he recited the filial piety section of the Myeongshimbogam aloud.

It was a moment comparable to the shock of his near-first murder. Yeon Hojeong, who had suffered a great blow to his spirit, couldn’t sleep properly.

Mokbi was incredulous.

‘What is this man’s true nature?’

She remembered their first meeting.

The general’s eyes, emitting a red and blue aura, bright yet dark, looking down on her.

Yeon Hojeong’s martial arts, which had overwhelmed her in an instant and driven back Baek Sogyeong, were a shock in themselves.

The chilling dignity of a ruthless general with not a speck of mercy. Later, his comforting presence revealed the shadow of a blunt sage.

As time passed and they grew closer, she saw the playful mischief of a young man, and in conversations with Moyong Woo, the firm strategist emerged.

And now?

‘Is he a complete fool?’

She wondered how many facets he had hidden.

But one thing was clear.

“In some ways, you’re truly honest and straightforward, aren’t you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Never mind.”

Mokbi turned her head.

The faces Yeon Hojeong showed were all shocking, but at least they were not false. He never wore a mask with his own people.

Perhaps that was Yeon Hojeong’s greatest charm.

“Stop standing there like a fool and let’s get going.”

“Fool?”

“I’m leaving first.”

Whoosh!

Mokbi dashed down the mountain path at high speed.

Yeon Hojeong licked his lips.

Seems cold-hearted.

Boom!

In an instant, Yeon Hojeong followed Mokbi.

He caught up from behind, and soon, he was right beside her. Mokbi rolled her eyes.

“You’re getting faster every day?”

“I try to change every day.”

“How many levels have you mastered?”

“That doesn’t really matter.”

“What?”

“In martial arts, especially in divine techniques, counting levels seems meaningless.”

For Yeon Hojeong, divine technique was an endlessly deepening study.

In some ways, it was akin to the cultivation of inner strength and heart method. Measuring one’s depth of internal energy by stages or levels was merely scratching the surface.

‘It’s simply about embodying my enlightenment, aligning it with my body, and that’s all there is to it.’

Whoosh!

Yeon Hojeong’s speed increased.

Despite the acceleration, his posture remained impeccable. He held the grace of a noble crane, yet the readiness to swing an axe in battle was palpable.

Mokbi’s gaze deepened.

‘He’s someone from whom there’s much to learn.’

It’s natural to forget past lessons while acquiring new knowledge.

Yeon Hojeong was different. He retained and honed everything he had learned without forgetting a single thing.

‘It’s not just about being smart or talented.’

Only now did Mokbi understand how Yeon Hojeong’s solid foundation for growth was built.

‘His approach to life is different.’

He carries with him everything he’s realized intellectually and physically. It seemed he believed one couldn’t live in this world any other way.

Regardless of whether it was actually possible, he would confront it head-on. Even if it seemed impossible, he would still face it.

If one doesn’t pursue their ideals, there’s no meaning to it.

Swoosh!

“You’re still slow.”

“You’re just too fast.”

“Hmph.”

Pop-pop-pop!

Mokbi executed an incredible leaping step and surged forward.

It was a formidable technique. Watching Mokbi’s retreating figure, Yeon Hojeong chuckled inwardly.

‘She’s changed for the better.’

When he first met Mokbi, she was like a wall on the verge of collapse.

But not anymore. Within the Yeon family’s embrace, she experienced the warmth of human connection and saw a side of the martial world in Zhejiang.

Despite the potential for confusion, Mokbi maintained her integrity.

Yeon Hojeong found this admirable.

“Hey! Wait up! Slow down!”

“Hurry up!”

“That damned thing!”

Thus, the two traversed the mountain paths and arrived at the foothills of Makgansan before a day had passed.

One was determined not to be outdone, the other to surpass; both unleashed their divine techniques in a frenzy. They knew how to complement each other’s weaknesses.

“Hoo, aren’t you hungry?”

“I feel like I could die.”

“Here, take this.”

“Oh? Is this a rice ball?”

“Yes. It’s filled with seasoned minced pork.”

“…Seems I’m fated never to part from rice balls.”

“What?”

“Never mind. They’re big, though. One should be filling enough.”

They both munched on the rice balls earnestly.

“It tastes a bit stale.”

“It won’t kill you.”

“I suppose not.”

Both Yeon Hojeong and Mokbi had lived rough lives. Eating mice or snakes was commonplace, and they had often dug up tree roots for sustenance.

With their iron-like digestive powers, even the stale rice balls were quickly digested.

Yeon Hojeong stood up.

“Shall we start looking for Ji-Pyeong?”

“Shall we?”

As Yeon Hojeong stretched and prepared to dash off with his axe on his shoulder, his expression changed.

‘…’

His eyes deepened.

Mokbi looked at him, puzzled.

“What’s wrong?”

“…”

“Did you forget something else besides the letter of well-being?”

“Shh.”

Yeon Hojeong’s face was much more serious than expected.

Mokbi’s expression turned solemn as well.

Yeon Hojeong surveyed the surroundings with the sharpness of a hawk.

‘…What’s this?’

The energy of the Byukrajin technique surged, and the three divine energies of the Sashin remained calmly ablaze.

‘There’s nothing triggering my energy sense.’

All that could be seen were trees, soil, grass, and fallen leaves. The flowing mountain ridges were majestic, and the blowing wind was not just cool but cold.

One could feel everything that an autumn mountain had to offer. Beyond that, nothing else was perceptible.

‘But this air…’

Amidst the refreshing air, there was a sharp, razor-like, unpleasant stench.

After surveying the surroundings for a while, Yeon Hojeong spoke.

“How many do you have?”

“What?”

“Arrows.”

Mokbi looked down at her quiver.

“Twenty-four.”

“Twenty-four, huh…”

Whoosh.

Yeon Hojeong, having detached the Kwangryongbu from his shoulder, activated the Byukrajin technique.

His body’s core strengthened, and his senses became extremely acute.

“Save your arrows, just in case.”

Mokbi’s grip on her Hongryeong bow tightened.

“Is it an enemy?”

“Assassins.”

“Assassins?!”

“I can’t sense anyone. But this unpleasant air… it’s probably assassins.”

One of the things that made the dark path superior to the righteous path was the existence of assassins.

Assassins raised with determination in the dark path do not emit any killing intent. Their skills are so great that they can deceive even the most accomplished masters.

So how does one fight them?

There’s no method. One must survive and defeat them. If you don’t notice, you simply die.

After numerous experiences, one begins to detect not the killing intent but something else.

It was the change in the atmosphere.

‘Strange.’

Yeon Hojeong became increasingly certain.

There were assassins here, specifically targeting him. The increasingly stuffy air proved it.

‘Is there something more than just assassins…?’

That’s when it happened.

Mokbi’s eyes flashed.

“I see them.”

“What?”

“Down the mountain, two men dressed in the color of ancient trees.”

She had spotted them from a distance that even Yeon Hojeong would have difficulty seeing.

The eyesight of an archer is superior to that of any warrior. They even learn specialized techniques for it.

Mokbi’s hawk-like vision had detected the presence of the assassins.

‘Then…?’

After examining the surrounding terrain, Yeon Hojeong shouted.

“Go up!”

“What?!”

“It’s a siege assassination formation! They’re trying to overwhelm us with numbers!”

Pararararack!

At that moment, about two hundred assassins charged from the base of the mountain.

It wasn’t an assassination. They had adopted a strategy to sweep them away in one fell swoop.

It was the most aggressive attack method among the assassins’ tactics. Realizing that Yeon Hojeong and Mokbi had detected their presence, they immediately launched their attack.

Papapapak!

They blatantly revealed their presence. The creeping killing intent was just a bonus.

Despite being clear assassins, their behavior was anything but stealthy, causing Yeon Hojeong to grind his teeth.

“What are you trying to do, you bastards!”