Chapter 553: Chapter 553

As soon as Jeong Yeon-shin seized full control of Yeoklu Fortress, he marched on Chi Geuk Fortress. It lay half a day to the northwest.

Moving the troops wasn’t difficult.

Killing the Flameblood King with his bare hands had earned him the admiration of the martial ranks. A feat both deceptively simple and overwhelmingly difficult. It was said to be the kind of thing only a Yozoku would dare attempt.

By now, the northern sentinels had spread word of the event in great detail. Thanks to that, the monsters of Yeoklu Fortress had become willing to follow Jeong Yeon-shin.

And so, in the land of the Queen of Chi Geuk, where fortress walls were built of packed earth—

Thunder crashed for two days straight.

All of it born from Jeong Yeon-shin’s unfinished Fist-and-Leg Method.

The resistance was fierce.

The Yozoku guarding the fortress wielded deep martial arts, and the elderly priestess overseeing Chi Geuk Fortress’s rituals was an especially formidable obstacle.

—Who are you! Do you dare defy the will of the War God? If a Northern King is to attack another, he should send a Grand Warrior in his stead, not move himself...!

She alone wielded a unique martial-sorcery style. But she wasn’t truly alone.

She used every sacred artifact and formation at her disposal and sacrificed countless civilians in the process. Extracting their innate energy to empower her defense.

Climbing the fortress walls proved difficult.

Whenever Yeoklu’s martial troops leapt into the air, they were met with countless incoming blades of wind and slammed back down into the ground.

Only after unleashing Final Thunderstrike was Jeong Yeon-shin able to kill her.

With movements that split seconds into fragments, he burst her heart.

Before she could even utter her final words, eyes wide, his right hand—wreathed in colorless, transparent petals—struck her down.

No sword invocation. Yi Gi Yu Geom should be suppressed. As for overwhelming techniques like Final Thunderstrike... they must only be used after scanning allies and enemies alike—within one-hundredth of a blink.

He was only acting as the proxy of the Singeom Master, posing as Northern King Yaryul.

His true identity must never be exposed. The moment it was, all the Northern Kings would be drawn in—because of his rank.

Each of them a hardened general and master of northern martial traditions. Each, a true king.

There were said to be at least a dozen.

In southern terms, their threat level would compare to Grandmasters of the old factions, the Thirteen Heavens, or at minimum, Lords of the Eight Great Families.

And there was no guarantee none of them were as exceptional as Namgung Clan Leader. They were, after all, another martial world unto # Nоvеlight # themselves.

A demonic mirror realm.

The northern sovereigns, even if they were at odds with one another, would not hesitate to join forces if it meant killing Jeong Yeon-shin.

There was no one in the world who could survive that alone. Perhaps no one in history ever could. Who could face the most powerful martial world in existence by themselves?

Jeong Yeon-shin would die if his identity was revealed.

That was why this mission had to be perfect.

It was something only the Singeom Master could attempt.

If it succeeded, then the war-torn and famine-stricken world might finally taste peace—at least for a while.

“Playing Northern King isn’t so bad.”

Wearing his mask, Jeong Yeon-shin murmured to himself quietly.

He was inside a hastily erected barracks, shrouded in a translucent energy veil. They were already moving toward their next destination, having departed Chi Geuk Fortress.

Just then, there was a faint stir.

It was Shin So-bin, seated beside him in a meditative pose. Her breath hit the silver mask, making a dull, muffled sound.

Jeong Yeon-shin asked calmly,

“What are you upset about this time?”

“This situation, of course. It’s a time to lie low, yet you’ve drawn the attention of the entire northern martial world. I’m just a ragged Blue Rank who’s used to dying nameless in the mountains, but what if something happens to you, Master?”

Words fired like a lark’s chirping.

She was like the little sister Jeong Yeon-shin never had. Lately, Shin So-bin had grown more talkative, and Jeong Yeon-shin let her speak—only correcting what truly couldn’t be ignored.

“Not Commander, it’s Master.”

She acknowledged what needed acknowledgment. But the rest, she wasn’t letting go.

“Who do you think is outside right now?”

"Lord of Hocheonseong. Former Lord of Yeoklu Fortress. The Northern Gatekeeper. And farther out, likely Bukdo, watching us.”

Jeong Yeon-shin answered immediately.

“See! You know perfectly!”

Suddenly, Shin So-bin stretched both legs out. She’d broken her meditative pose.

“If those four join forces against us, do you think we’ll survive? Three top-tier masters and one outright Five Heavenly Swords-level powerhouse...”

“I could still escape. Bukdo’s horsemanship technique, Human-Horse as One—it’s not outrageously fast. It’s just powerful.”

Jeong Yeon-shin had been considering how best to fight Bukdo and his monstrous steed.

In a head-on clash, he might lose. Bukdo’s horseback martial art combined the Yozoku’s brutal strength with the power of a divine beast mount—it was extreme.

If we fight, I’d have to send most of my attacks in curved lines, avoiding direct routes.

If he could batter the horse's flanks with arcing counters, an opening might emerge.

But if he were struck by a retaliatory charge, that would be the real problem.

Still, Bukdo would not move until the War God appeared. That much was certain.

Jeong Yeon-shin spoke evenly.

“All I have to do is blend into the northern martial world. That’s the only safe path.”

“You’re saying war is the method for blending in?”

“They say the voices of the Northern Kings echo across a thousand leagues. I’ve already killed the Flameblood King—if I run now, suspicion will only grow. And I’ll be taken down in the end.”

A long conversation flowed gently. Shin So-bin didn’t interrupt, and Jeong Yeon-shin kept speaking calmly.

“Even if I cut down one or two chasing Northern Kings, that’s the end of it. In the end, I’d be caught in a net of supreme masters. Once they attack together, it’s over. Better to show them I’m one of them—same in spirit.”

As the Singeom Master, Jeong Yeon-shin saw his situation clearly.

The Northern Kings were like the Thirteen Heavens—but not entirely.

Though they fought over territory and profit, they would unite as one when faced with war against Ming.

Veterans of countless battlefields.

—Each possesses their own unique style, yet most don’t hesitate to attack together. I had to run through Dragon Vein Bloodfields just to survive those bastards—whether they’re called Imperial Three Grandmasters or Tri-Army Generals. Every damn Yozoku is a warrior, a raider, and a general all at once.

The advice of Grand Marshal Jeon U-rip. The most terrifying aspect of the North.

Even just thinking about what happened in Hangzhou...

Jeong Yeon-shin reflected.

If he’d faced the Dark Heaven Emperor and the Blade of Heresy without the help of Abbot Beomheo, Yulha Nangnang, the Drunken Beggar King, and Cheongsu Jin-in...

Or if in Sichuan, he’d faced the Master of Gold City, the Lord of Sunmaren, and the Master of Ten Gates all alone—without Baekyak Satae or Cheongsu Jin-in...

“So-bin. Let’s be careful.”

Shin So-bin parted her lips, as if about to argue, but in the end, closed them again.

Jeong Yeon-shin sensed her inner thoughts. The words of the real Singeom Master had no flaws.

Perhaps he had come one step closer. Even if he sometimes seemed sly or careless, he always produced the best result in the grand scheme—just like Yong Hui-myeong.

“Focus on your training. The day will come when you’ll have to reveal your own martial prowess. Sooner than you think.”

That was the end of the conversation.

Suddenly, a surge of energy struck the barracks. The qi wasn’t polite. It felt rough—but its density rivaled that of the great family lords of Ipwang Fortress.

Jeong Yeon-shin immediately unraveled the energy veil.

A gravelly voice shook the tent. It was loaded with immense internal force—and belonged to none other than Lord of Hocheonseong, the one Yeoroe had failed to cut down even when charging alone.

Yeoroe vibrated faintly at Jeong Yeon-shin’s waist. Ever since failing to pierce Lord of Hocheonseong’s defensive qi, it occasionally trembled . Clearly, it feared becoming as powerless as the Flame Dragon.

“I’ll pretend I’m asleep.”

Shin So-bin, now back in a meditative pose, snapped her eyes shut the instant she spoke.

“King! I’m coming in!”

A massive figure shoved aside the tent flap and entered without hesitation.

In that instant, Jeong Yeon-shin lazily hooked one foot over the chair. He leaned back, reclining at a slant, gazing downward at the uninvited guest from a low vantage point.

“State your business.”

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

It was a pose straight out of the Demonic Cult’s So Cheonmujuk. Somehow, it exuded calm. No one could possibly guess Jeong Yeon-shin’s true identity from it.

The large figure halted the moment he saw that posture. Perhaps because he instinctively sensed that moving further might lead to death.

“...Morale is low. In this land, the most important thing for an army camp is plunder. Until now, no king has ever directly forbidden it. At least, not until you stopped the sacking of Chi Geuk Fortress.”

He was a man so large, he reminded one of the Yozoku.

Like Jeong Yeon-shin and Shin So-bin, he wore a plain mask to conceal his face—understandable, since he was a southern defector who had taken refuge in Hocheonseong, near the Long Wall.

Strapped to his back was a massive blade as big as his own body. Rumors followed him, whispering that he’d committed a grave crime during childhood and had been exiled from the Hebei Peng Clan.

But no one in Yeokluseong knew what that crime was.

He looked to be in his forties.

He was the uncle of Peng Ya, one of the Five Luminaries of Hwanmyeong, and likely a close relative of the current Peng Clan Leader. But what mattered to Jeong Yeon-shin wasn’t his lineage.

“I need to make him mine—as one of North King Yaryul’s own. But he’s unpredictable.”

He was absolutely necessary.

—How many famed experts are under your command?

It was a question directly tied to the authority of a North King.

And it would also determine how the other North Kings moved.

Jeong Yeon-shin needed to fully secure his place as one of the pillars of order in the northern martial world.

At the same time, he had to ensure that no other North King acted rashly against him. In battle with supreme masters, it would eventually become impossible to keep his ultimate techniques hidden forever.

The blade-wielding man before him could be more than useful in that regard. At least in terms of power and reputation.

“You should give it some serious thought. The forces you dragged from Yeokluseong are grumbling over the lack of proper supplies. As a North King, you’re in danger of being seen as unfit.”

Who knew what the Northern Gatekeeper had said to him? Though he had followed Jeong Yeon-shin here, the Lord of Hocheonseong had offered little in the way of cooperation.

Clearly, he saw North King Yaryul as just another rock that had tumbled into place.

Jeong Yeon-shin tilted his head slightly.

“Are you always this dissatisfied with everything?”

“No. Not at all. Not until that damned Sword Corps Master standing tall by the Long Wall decided to blast me and Hocheonseong to bits with his Yi Gi Yu Geom.”

“Oh, so you lost your stronghold as Lord of Hocheonseong?”

“It happened while the war between the War God and Emperor Gunreung had paused. No one in the northern martial world thought that someone from Ipwang Fortress, wearing violet, would unleash such an insane sword strike out of nowhere. A move worthy of his ridiculous nickname. Yes, the Wasteland...”

Shin So-bin’s small sneeze cut him off mid-sentence. Thanks to that, Jeong Yeon-shin was able to preserve his identity as North King Yaryul.

“Is this guy really necessary?”

Just as he was mulling that over, the Lord of Hocheonseong added,

“And here, this too. It’s from the North King of Chi Geuk... You’d better take it seriously. Calming the warriors of Yeokluseong is one thing, but this—this is something else entirely.”

He tossed over a letter.

Jeong Yeon-shin immediately unfurled the scroll, and bold, intense characters met his eyes—a fierce warning.

To the one drunk on their own vigor,

You seated yourself upon the throne of a North King, then shamelessly trampled my land as if you knew nothing.

You have defied the law set by the War God.

If you seek to crush the southern martial world, then you must do so without squandering strength.

Have you forgotten how many of our kin were lost to the selfish southern strong? Had we not lowered our axes against each other, every battle would have been a certain loss.

Send a Champion Warrior to fight in your stead. Whether it be a retainer or someone you’ve subdued, it matters not.

A North King must not fight another North King directly.

If you have no one who can fully represent your dignity, martial arts, and title—then you have no right to sit the throne.

You, who took the place of the fallen Flame Sovereign, may not act so recklessly again.

Should you repeat such disgrace, all the kings of this land shall ride the wind and descend upon you.

Are you truly of the Northern Winds?

Or just a breeze from the southern sea, still reeking of salt?

You will answer through action.

If you fail to present a Champion Warrior, you shall be deemed unfit to rule. Then we shall either turn you into a Champion Warrior—or come ourselves to strip you of the throne you seized.

Not just I, the North King of Chi Geuk. But all who follow the War God.

As Jeong Yeon-shin’s eyes landed on the final line, the Lord of Hocheonseong caught his reaction with uncanny precision.

“This is bad. Anyone can see it.”

He gave a breezy chuckle, clearly watching to see how this supposed North King would respond.

But inwardly, Jeong Yeon-shin was struck by a fresh kind of shock. He had never been threatened by letter before.

And the handwriting—it was refined, dignified, even more elegant than his own.

“They say he was close to the War God.”

North Guardian was the War God’s left arm.

But in terms of both power and cunning, Chi Geuk’s North King might as well be his right.

In truth, he was now likely the most powerful figure in the northern world.

Yet clearly, he wasn’t alone.

There was Shin Tu, who rivaled even Zhu Guangshin in lightness techniques. And now this Chi Geuk North King, who dared to threaten Jeong Yeon-shin outright.

North King of Chi Geuk.

A monstrous being whose protective inner energy was said to turn her body transparent.

“If she challenges me directly... can I kill her without using Hwan-gang?”

Jeong Yeon-shin muttered inwardly. This... this was going to be difficult.

For the first time during what might be his final mission, that thought entered his mind.

Had the fifteen-year-old loner from the Jeong family grown strong enough to carry an entire nation?

Jeong Yeon-shin murmured.

The Lord of Hocheonseong burst into laughter, the force of his power rippling through the tent and lifting its edges slightly.

For a brief moment, a gust of pale winter wind brushed Jeong Yeon-shin’s ankle.

“Surely, Your Majesty won’t name that insignificant girl as your Champion Warrior. Try bargaining with me using that Fist Law of yours. I’ll consider it favorably.”

“Listen—Four Kings of Dragon Resonance’s Champion is rumored to be half-dragon like the Sword Corps Master. And the new Champion of the upcoming Ice Palace North King? She carries the full weight of Ice Palace’s expectations...”

Because in that fleeting breeze brushing his ankle, Jeong Yeon-shin sensed something familiar.

Perhaps it was the spiritual connection from a past encounter. Or perhaps it was due to the vast expansion of his Baihui Acupoint’s transcendent capacity.

There was the presence of a sword within the wind.

It was unlike the overwhelming tide that had come from the Sword Master of Chi Geuk Gate.

This was a single sword—one with a chipped edge and a vagabond’s air.

Jeong Yeon-shin instantly knew.

A star in human form had entered the north. In the south, they called him the Sword Star.

Hyeon So-baek, Leader of the Central Plains Martial Alliance.

“Yes, I like the name Endlessly Blue Sword. May its azure never break—like the river’s long flow. May I gift you the name Nine Blues Become a River?”

He had once named one of Jeong Yeon-shin’s sword techniques.

A sword sovereign recovering in Hangzhou after being struck by the Dark Heaven Emperor’s attack.

Jeong Yeon-shin couldn’t guess what had brought him north of the Long Wall.

So he tilted his head slightly.

What’s happening in the south right now...? I haven’t seen him in too long—will he still treat me like an old friend?

Suddenly, he turned to the Lord of Hocheonseong and asked,

“Do all North Kings resolve disputes through champions now? Because they didn’t want the War God to fall?”

That was all he said.

The Lord of Hocheonseong’s eyes belatedly filled with confusion, but Jeong Yeon-shin didn’t continue the conversation.