Almighty God of War - Chapter 109

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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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109

Fifteen days passed like an arrow.

Princess Myeonghwa was perfectly cured and had regained a more vibrant appearance than before.

And in the back garden of Jaseon Hall.

The Crown Prince was taking a walk with light steps under the sunlight.

The shadow of death that had weighed him down for thirty years had disappeared, and his entire body radiated the dignity and vitality befitting a monarch.

The eyes of the ministers watching him from afar were complexly intertwined with awe and fear.

Guyang Cheongang was still in a state of semi-confinement, unable to leave the Imperial Palace.

The Emperor wanted to protect his most precious sword from external threats by confining him.

During that time, Guyang Cheongang was recovering his depleted internal energy while analyzing all information about the Empress’s backers together with Akasha.

That night, the Emperor secretly summoned Guyang Cheongang to his bedchamber.

“Reports have come in that meetings between the Empress and the Second Prince are becoming more frequent.”

The Emperor’s voice was low, but there was taut tension within it.

“Right now, I am mobilizing all the Eastern Depot and Embroidered Uniform Guard to root out the rebel forces, so they must be lying low. But if this atmosphere loosens even slightly, the Empress will target you first.”

Guyang Cheongang asked.

“How far has the investigation into the Empress’s backing forces progressed?”

The Emperor shook his head.

“It seems related to Murim, but we haven’t caught their tail yet. They’ve been deeply rooted in the Imperial Palace for so long that tracking them isn’t easy.”

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes sank deeply.

“Your Majesty, unless we cut off the snake’s head, its tail will continue to revive and torment us. We need a fundamental method that goes beyond simply catching the tail – one that pulls out the venomous fangs themselves so the snake can never raise its head again.”

The Emperor’s eyes flashed.

“Such a method… exists?”

Guyang Cheongang closed his mouth for a moment and looked straight at the Emperor sitting on the Dragon Throne.

It was an impossible thing, but the Emperor tolerated such irreverent posture from Guyang Cheongang.

This was because the trust between the two had grown so deep.

Guyang Cheongang finally opened his mouth.

“Your Majesty, what I am about to tell you… may disturb Your Majesty’s heart and shake the foundation of the Imperial family. Nevertheless, I want to know if you are prepared to face the truth.”

The Emperor let out a quiet but hollow laugh devoid of any mirth.

“Haha… Yes, speak. Could there be anything worse than what I have experienced this past month?”

Guyang Cheongang caught his breath for a moment.

He looked straight into the Emperor’s eyes without avoiding them.

There was no turning back now.

He spoke carefully, but with weight in every word, resolutely.

“His Highness the Second Prince… may not be Your Majesty’s biological son.”

The Emperor’s expression, having received a tremendous shock, hardened like stone.

But that emotion disappeared in an instant, leaving only the cold, ruthless gaze of a monarch that could freeze everything.

“Can you prove it? If you cannot, even you will not be able to escape death.”

Guyang Cheongang’s expression also hardened.

‘Akasha’s analysis is never wrong.’

He spoke in a resolute tone.

“I can prove it, Your Majesty.”

“Hmm…”

A groaning sound flowed from the Emperor’s mouth.

“Please have Her Majesty the Empress, Their Highnesses the Princes, and the highest-ranking ministers including the Left Prime Minister and Minister of War present at the proof.”

The Emperor’s voice grew cold.

“You’re telling me to expose the Imperial family’s shame before the ministers?”

“Even if the shame is exposed, Your Majesty has nothing to lose. It’s not something they would dare speak of outside.”

“But there is much to gain?”

“Yes. If it’s proven that His Highness the Second Prince is not Your Majesty’s biological son, the justification of those who gathered to support him will disappear.”

“The Crown Prince’s position will be solidified, and the Imperial family will be stabilized.”

“That is correct, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor kept his eyes closed for a long time.

He was torn between the humiliation of exposing the Imperial family’s shame and the hope of being able to root out the rebel forces with this opportunity.

The Emperor opened his eyes.

There was no anguish there, but intense will.

“Good. I’ll do as you wish.”

Three days later, at Munyeong Pavilion.

Munyeong Pavilion was originally a space filled with the fragrance of brush and ink, and the wisdom of ancient books.

But today, this place was filled with more deadly tension than a battlefield where thousands of blades clashed.

This was because the Empire’s highest power holders had gathered at the Emperor’s summons.

To the left and right of the Dragon Throne sat Guyang Cheongang and the Empress dressed in splendid palace robes.

Her beautiful face appeared calm, but deep in her eyes lurked anxiety and wariness.

And beside her sat the Crown Prince, who had completely recovered his health, in a dignified posture, while the Second Prince sat a little further away, staring ahead with an expressionless face.

In the ministers’ seats were Left Prime Minister Jo Mungyeong and the Right Prime Minister, Grand Scholar Mun Hongseo, Minister of War Muk Cheolgang, and the Left and Right Military Governors of the Five Armies Command.

They sat in heavy silence, not knowing what was happening, only watching each other’s reactions.

The Emperor lifted his teacup and took a sip.

That brief moment of silence choked the breath of everyone present.

The Emperor opened his mouth in a heavy tone.

“Xiahou Divine Physician told me a very interesting story. That the Second Prince may not be my biological son.”

At that moment, the silence of Munyeong Pavilion shattered completely.

The Empress’s face instantly turned pale, and the Second Prince trembled while clenching his fists tightly.

The Empress cried out in a trembling voice.

“Your Majesty! How can you speak such devastating and absurd words… The Second Prince is certainly Your Majesty’s biological son!”

The Second Prince also jumped up and shouted.

“Father! I am Your Majesty’s blood! How must I endure such humiliation!”

Only the Crown Prince looked at his father with a calm expression.

“Your Majesty! How can you cloud your sacred judgment with the ravings of a mere physician!”

Muk Cheolgang’s face turned bright red with anger, and the Left and Right Military Governors clenched their fists so tightly their knuckles turned white.

“That man’s head should be cut off immediately, Your Majesty!”

The fierce anger emanating from their entire bodies seemed ready to evaporate the air in the hall.

In contrast, the Left and Right Prime Ministers and Mun Hongseo had faces drained of blood as they kept swallowing dry saliva.

They trembled unconsciously, sensing the enormous bloodbath this bombshell declaration would bring.

If the Emperor’s words were true, it would be a mega-incident that would shake not only the Imperial family but the entire Empire.

Only two people remained calm: Guyang Cheongang and the Crown Prince.

The Emperor raised his hand to silence everyone’s outcries.

“Xiahou Divine Physician said he could prove it.”

His following voice was frighteningly calm.

“If he cannot prove his words, I will personally cut his head off for the crime of insulting the Imperial family. So everyone watch until the proof is completed.”

As the Emperor finished speaking, Chief Eunuch Jang In Sang-on entered as if he had been waiting.

In his hands was a tray decorated with seven treasures, on which four white jade cups each containing a few drops of blood were neatly arranged.

The deep red blood reflected the candlelight, glowing softly like jewels.

Sang-on carefully placed the tray on the table and stepped back.

Guyang Cheongang spoke in a calm tone.

“What is in the cups is the blood of His Imperial Majesty, Her Majesty the Empress, His Highness the Crown Prince, and His Highness the Second Prince.”

An hour ago, the Emperor had ordered the court physician to collect blood from the Empress, Crown Prince, and Second Prince.

Though the Empress and everyone else were reluctant, no one could refuse the Emperor’s command.

Mun Hongseo frowned and asked Guyang Cheongang.

“Doctor, surely you’re not planning to perform the Blood Mixing Method?”

The Blood Mixing Method was a paternity verification technique passed down from ancient times among the common people.

It involved dropping the blood of father and child together—if the blood mixed, they were related; if not, they weren’t.

Though it was a superstitious method with no scientific basis, surprisingly many people in this era’s common folk believed in this approach.

Minister of War Muk Cheolgang added with an incredulous expression.

“How can someone called a divine physician attempt to use such absurd methods employed by commoners in the sacred Imperial Palace! This would drag the Imperial Family’s dignity to the ground!”

The Empress added hopefully.

“Your Majesty! How can we discuss the Imperial bloodline with such superstitious methods!”

The Second Prince also shouted with visible relief.

“Father! Something like the Blood Mixing Method is completely meaningless!”

The faces of those present were filled with disbelief and anger.

They were individuals who had received the finest education of their time.

Despite the era’s limitations, not a single person in this place believed in folk tales like the Blood Mixing Method.

However, Guyang Cheongang shook his head with a calm smile and spoke in a composed tone.

“The ministers seem to be misunderstanding. What I intend to perform is not the Blood Mixing Method. How could I discuss the noble Imperial bloodline with such crude methods?”

A moment of silence passed.

The court ministers’ eyes wavered with surprise, and shadows of anxiety once again fell across the Empress and Second Prince’s faces.

Guyang Cheongang continued.

“What I wish to use is a secret technique called the Blood Lineage Origin Tracing Art.”

“Blood Lineage Origin Tracing Art?”

Moon Hongseo asked back.

Even with his vast knowledge, this was a term he had never heard before.

“That’s correct. This is a Taoist secret sorcery that traces the source of life contained in a person’s blood to follow the lineage back to its origins.”

At Guyang Cheongang’s explanation, the atmosphere in the hall subtly changed.

Unlike the crude Blood Mixing Method, this gave an impression of something mysterious and sophisticated.

“Blood contains all of a person’s life information. The traces of vital energy inherited from ancestors, the context of bloodline, and even the fundamental qi inherited from parents—everything is there.”

Left Prime Minister Jo Mungyeong from the Crown Prince’s faction asked cautiously.

“Then… can that sorcery truly distinguish paternal relationships clearly?”

“That’s correct, Left Prime Minister. The blood of father and son resonates with vital energy flowing from the same source. Just as branches grown from the same root recognize each other.”

Guyang Cheongang’s eyes deepened.

“I can reveal the truth of bloodline as clearly as the blue sky with this sorcery.”

Minister of War Muk Cheolgang still countered with a suspicious expression.

“The doctor’s words sound plausible, but how can we believe them? Does such miraculous sorcery truly exist in this world?”

“It exists. That’s why I can perform it.”

Guyang Cheongang’s answer was resolute.

Muk Cheolgang’s face reddened.

“What if your sorcery proves to be false!”

“His Majesty has already said he would take my head in such a case. But that won’t happen.”

Guyang Cheongang looked toward the Emperor on the Dragon Throne and bowed deeply.

“Your Majesty, please permit me to perform the Blood Lineage Origin Tracing Art.”

The Emperor nodded and spoke.

“Permission granted.”

As his words fell, Munyeong Pavilion fell into tomb-like silence.

The Empress sat with a pale face, hands clenched tightly, while the Second Prince watched the situation unfold, breaking out in cold sweat.

Only the Crown Prince gazed at Guyang Cheongang with a peaceful expression.

Guyang Cheongang slowly approached the table where the white jade cups were placed.

Every eye focused on his every movement.

‘Akasha, are you ready?’

[Yes, Doctor. Based on the DNA analysis results, I can visualize the minute compositional differences in the blood. I’ll use nanobots to create a resonance phenomenon with specific proteins in the blood.]

A faint smile appeared on Guyang Cheongang’s lips.

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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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