Almighty God of War - Chapter 106

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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106

The bedchamber of Jaseon Hall.

While the Eorim County soldiers stood guard like an iron wall, Guyang Cheongang had reached the final stage of surgery.

It was the moment when the thread-thin sword energy rising from his fingertips touched the surface of the foreign object embedded in the Crown Prince’s heart.

Kiiiii-

The foreign object vibrated violently with an unpleasant bursting sound.

[Doctor! The malevolent energy of the foreign object is amplifying and going berserk. It seems another blood sorcery is being performed somewhere.]

Dark red malevolent energy spurted out like blood vessels, trying to contaminate the Crown Prince’s heart.

Guyang Cheongang’s sword energy couldn’t advance forward, like metal being repelled by the opposite polarity of a magnet.

“Kugh…!”

As the tense standoff continued, a low groan burst from Guyang Cheongang’s mouth.

The cold energy of Nine Yin Severed Meridians, suppressed by extreme internal energy depletion, flowed backward as if it had been waiting, bringing pain as if his meridians were being torn apart.

His face was covered in cold sweat and turned pale, and his fingertips controlling the sword energy began to tremble finely.

[Doctor’s remaining internal energy has dropped below 10%. Your pulse is rising rapidly. At this rate, you will collapse first.]

‘I must endure…!’

Guyang Cheongang gritted his teeth.

If he gave up, the Crown Prince would die.

Guyang Cheongang gathered all his remaining internal energy together with Akasha and desperately suppressed the rampaging malevolent energy of the foreign object.

And finally, the sword energy succeeded in cutting out the blood clot from the heart.

Thud-

With the sound of the blood-colored foreign object falling away, Guyang Cheongang felt his body about to collapse sideways.

He was exhausted.

His nerves were on edge.

‘I can’t collapse now. There’s still work left to do…’

Though every bone in his body seemed to be screaming, his spine remained motionless like a great tree rooted in the ground.

[Doctor, your internal energy is almost depleted. If you don’t perform energy circulation and breath control immediately, irreparable damage may come to your meridians.]

Guyang Cheongang took out a supreme-grade Yang Dragon Pill with a brilliant golden glow from his chest and put it in his mouth without hesitation.

The moment the pill dissolved, hot energy filled his dantian like lava and flowed through his dried meridians, spreading throughout his entire body.

He squeezed out his mental strength and began circulating the Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art.

One of the greatest advantages of the Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art was that one could perform daily actions while circulating qi.

The internal energy depleted by surgery was instantly recovered by about thirty percent.

It was roughly forty to fifty years’ worth of internal energy.

Guyang Cheongang steadied his rough breathing and looked down at the Crown Prince’s open chest.

The cool blue Pure Yin True Energy that had been wrapping his fingertips disappeared, and in its place, golden Pure Yang True Energy as hot and intense as the sun flowed out.

Guyang Cheongang gently traced the Crown Prince’s wounded area with that hand.

Sizzle-

With a subtle sound, the opened flesh and muscles sealed together.

Simply put, he had cauterized the wound shut.

A scar would remain, but it was the best he could do now.

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes sank deeply.

‘Akasha, what exactly is their ultimate goal? To kill the Crown Prince and have the Second Prince succeed him?’

[No. As a result of simulating the Empire’s power succession structure, that scenario does not guarantee optimal benefits for the shadowy forces.]

‘Then…?’

[The optimal scenario is the Crown Prince’s death, the Second Prince’s neutralization amid the resulting chaos, and the Emperor’s sudden demise. In that case, the Empress would ascend to the position of regent.]

Guyang Cheongang gritted his teeth.

He recalled the Crown Prince’s eyes that had sunk as deep as an abyss when he saw him in Thunder Prison.

“Because the Empire would become dangerous.”

Remembering the Crown Prince’s words, Guyang Cheongang unconsciously sighed.

The Crown Prince’s words and attitude at that time were not about great cause for the Empire, but a blood-vomiting cry that a son could not bear to accuse his mother.

In an era where loyalty and filial piety were the highest virtues.

The Crown Prince had been dying while embracing alone the terrible truth that his mother had tried to kill him.

‘The master of the shadowy forces hidden in the Imperial Palace’s darkness was the Empress…’

[I simply didn’t mention it, but I reached the same conclusion as you long ago.]

At Akasha’s calm answer, Guyang Cheongang was momentarily speechless.

Complex emotions about her, who had remained silent considering even his feelings, crossed in his chest.

He smiled bitterly and said.

‘You should have told me.’

[It was still at the hypothesis stage with 68% probability. I was concerned that if I spoke rashly without evidence, you might act emotionally and fall into greater danger. The Empress is a dangerous opponent.]

At her answer, Guyang Cheongang smiled bitterly once more.

‘Next time, share even hypothesis-stage information with me. I’m not as emotional as you think.’

* * *

A moment ago, inside Gyotae Hall, the Empress’s quarters.

Though expensive dragon-flame incense was thick in the air, the atmosphere was heavy.

The moment the report from the figure kneeling in the shadows ended, silence flowed.

Chae Geum had failed, and Guyang Cheongang was inside the Crown Prince’s bedchamber.

Crash-!

The teacup in the Empress’s hand scattered into powder.

Hypocrisy peeled away from her beautiful face like a snake’s shed skin, and her delicately painted lips twisted as if convulsing.

Failure meant destruction.

The moment the Crown Prince survived and Guyang Cheongang’s mouth opened, everything built up over the past thirty years with blood and betrayal would turn to bubbles.

All because of a mere young physician.

She could wait no longer.

Her gaze turned toward her palace maids who would be waiting outside, beyond the tightly closed door.

There was no time to obtain other sacrifices.

“Loyal servants… willingly offer their bodies for their master’s great cause.”

The Empress’s voice was cold enough to chill to the bone.

She secretly commanded the final blood ritual toward the shadow.

“Capture all the palace maids of Gyotae Hall. Tonight, their blood and souls will become sacrifices for our great cause.”

“Yes, Grand Commander.”

This time the sacrifices were the palace maids who had served the Empress right by her side.

The Empress intended to use their screams and despair as nourishment to make the Sealed God Blood Fragment embedded in the Crown Prince’s heart go berserk at all costs.

This was her final gambit.

* * *

Guyang Cheongang took a deep breath while pretending to stitch up the Crown Prince’s chest.

His internal energy was depleted and his mental strength had reached its limit, but his eyes were shining with frightening intensity.

Now was the only opportunity to strike the head of the snake that had deceived the Imperial Palace for decades.

Guyang Cheongang felt the Crown Prince’s pulse and spoke through sound transmission to Chief Eunuch Jang In Sang-on who had approached nearby.

[Chief Eunuch Jangin, just listen. His Highness the Crown Prince’s surgery has ended successfully.]

Sang On’s mouth fell open and his eyes widened as if they would tear.

But befitting someone who had served the Emperor for a long time, he didn’t utter a single word aloud.

Guyang Cheongang continued speaking.

[The dangerous crisis has passed, so from now on it’s a battle against time. But please keep this fact secret from everyone for the time being.]

Sang On was puzzled, but since it wasn’t a situation where he could ask questions, he simply nodded.

[I am now planning to strike those who conspired to assassinate Your Majesty. I will report the detailed circumstances to His Imperial Majesty after the situation concludes, so please follow my words for now.]

Sang On gazed briefly at the Crown Prince’s peaceful sleeping face.

He nodded again with a resolute expression.

[When I send the signal, please send troops to that location. The place where a loud sound like an exploding fire bomb occurs will be exactly where those villains’ den is.]

The Empress’s quarters, Gyotae Hall.

Speaking that name to Sang On now would be dangerous.

Even if he was the Emperor’s loyal retainer, could he bear to hear that they would point a blade toward the nation’s mother?

Until evidence was secured, it was right for Guyang Cheongang to bear the weight of this secret alone.

Sang On left the bedchamber with a face full of determination.

And after he closed the bedchamber door and ordered the guards outside that ‘absolutely no one should be allowed entry or exit,’ he ran without delay to where the Emperor was.

Confirming this, Guyang Cheongang silently opened the ceiling beam.

The Crown Prince’s faint breathing tickled his ears, but Guyang Cheongang launched his body without hesitation.

His form, deploying the Heavenly Meteor Movement Technique, crossed over the rooftops soundlessly like a streak of meteor.

Whiiiish-

His target was the Empress’s quarters, Gyotae Hall, located about two hundred zhang away.

Under the moonlight, Gyotae Hall was quiet and beautiful like a painting.

The elaborate dancheong and elegant curved rooflines displayed the dignity befitting the nation’s mother’s residence.

But within that perfect beauty, Guyang Cheongang felt an inexplicable sense of unease.

A faint fishy smell mixed at the end of the flower fragrance, and an unnatural silence as if it had swallowed all sounds.

‘Akasha, search the interior of Gyotae Hall.’

[Understood, Doctor. Using nanobots to scan internal structure and personnel deployment.]

After a moment, perplexity was evident in Akasha’s voice.

[This is strange. The scan results of the entire Gyotae Hall show no abnormalities. However, slight spatial distortion phenomena are detected at specific points. It’s shielded so the interior cannot be seen through normal methods. Changing exploration mode. I will track the disappearing life.]

Guyang Cheongang held his breath and waited for Akasha’s next report.

Soon, a cold voice that made his heart seem to stop echoed in his mind.

[…Underground secret chamber discovered at the back of Gyotae Hall. Scanning interior… One humanoid biosignal, rapidly declining vitals. Cardiac arrest. …Life response, completely lost. Determined to be deceased.]

Intense divine light blazed in Guyang Cheongang’s eyes.

He did not hesitate.

His internal energy, which had recovered to about three seong, had been reduced to one seong after rushing here with full power.

But he still had a trump card remaining.

The foreign substance he had just extracted from the Crown Prince’s heart pulsed ominously in his embrace.

‘Your evil power… I’ll borrow it briefly now.’

He forcibly drew out the massive demonic energy contained in the foreign substance.

And he purified it with the Transcendent Impermanence Divine Art while condensing it in his right hand.

His meridians screamed, but he did not stop.

‘Akasha, find me a building I can collapse in one strike.’

[Doctor, the northern second floor beam of the pavilion at 3 o’clock direction. That is the core support bearing the building’s load. Striking that location will allow you to collapse the entire building with minimal force.]

Guyang Cheongang launched his form toward the location Akasha indicated, drawing up all twelve seong of internal energy to unleash the Explosive Thunder Flame King Hammer.

Screeeeech-

Boom!

With a tremendous explosion, the second floor pavilion’s beam shattered, and the massive building began to lose balance and collapse.

Crash crash crash crash boom-!

It was a roar that anyone within ten li would be unable to ignore, even in broad daylight.

Moreover, it was now night when sound traveled even better.

The Imperial Palace awakened all at once, and torches were lit everywhere, instantly transforming it bright as day.

Thousands of elite guards rushed toward the source of the sound with battle cries.

The Emperor’s orders seemed to have already been given, as the soldiers’ movements were large-scale, swift, and perfectly coordinated.

Gyotae Hall was also thrown into complete chaos.

About fifty eunuchs and palace maids lined up in formation in front of the Gyotae Hall Pavilion.

In the midst of that confusion, Guyang Cheongang deployed the Heavenly Meteor Movement Technique and slipped like a shadow to the back of Gyotae Hall.

It was the tactic of feinting east while striking west.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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