Martial God of the Sun and Moon - Chapter 294

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 294
The Dokgo Household’s leadership was in absolute chaos.
“We’ve received reports suggesting this isn’t merely a fever, but internal injuries caused by penetrating qi attacks.”
“Traces of sorcery have been discovered as well. The whereabouts of the Turtle-Shell Brigade, which was holding our right flank, remain unknown.”
“The Burning Heaven Annihilation Squad has been decimated. Fortunately, Lady Yeon survived, but….”
“Word of a retreat. The Moyong forces are currently advancing with unstoppable momentum.”
The Jeongheol Sect’s entry into the war.
Or rather, they had already entered—they simply hadn’t been noticed.
The Dokgo Household had become far too intoxicated by the sweet wine of successive victories.
The martial commanders at the front lines were equally poisoned by arrogance, seeping deep into their very meridians, making them nothing more than appetizing prey for the Jeongheol Sect.
As troubling reports poured in day after day, there was at least one saving grace.
“It proved beneficial that we prepared medicinal materials in advance. Our supplies of poison-neutralizing elixirs and detoxification pills are sufficient.”
“Jeongheol disciples were spotted at Cheon I-gak. Commander Dokgo Gun’s left flank successfully launched a counterattack.”
“A message arrived from the main house. The Overseer and Elder Council Leader have dispatched fresh provisions and dried rations as a first measure.”
There was one who had foreseen all of this, and the Dokgo leadership had not entirely dismissed his warnings.
Because of this, the initial chaos was quickly suppressed, and the battle remained in a stalemate.
Among the gathered commanders, Dokgo Un-hak let out a laugh and spoke.
“If I had my way, I’d lock him somewhere and have him continue spilling out everything that’s about to happen. He’s like a fortune teller.”
No one present was unaware of whom Dokgo Un-hak was referring to.
Dokgo Un-hak continued.
“Send word to the main house to summon the Cheonma Sect Leader. To face madmen, we need madmen of our own.”
It was on a day when the rain that had been steadily soaking the earth began to finally clear.
Dokgo Un-hak summoned Dokgo Myeong to the battlefield, ignoring the objections the leadership had raised until then.
Thus Dokgo Myeong and Dokgo Un-hak faced each other.
“The Moyong forces are tightening their encirclement. And on top of that, Jeongheol disciples keep appearing.”
“So it turned out exactly as I said. Didn’t it?”
Dokgo Myeong and Dokgo Un-hak walked side by side, surveying the fortifications.
“Don’t be sarcastic. You know this was the best option.”
“The best… I suppose so. The kind of best that only becomes clear after the blood of those loyal to the family has been spilled.”
This too had been what Dokgo Myeong had advocated for.
Though the front-line martial commanders who ignored his words didn’t know, Dokgo Un-hak had clearly committed the Records of Factional Strife and the Theory of Blood Debt to memory.
….
Dokgo Un-hak did not elaborate further. His face was heavy with concern.
“Whether for power or for anything else, I suppose I’ll spend the rest of my life atoning.”
“You speak of this now?”
“But even if I could return to the past, I would not have made a different choice. Of that I am certain.”
It was the logic of necessary sacrifice—the reasoning of those in power.
Yet Dokgo Myeong could not condemn him. He had spoken the same words himself.
Dokgo Un-hak spoke with unwavering conviction.
“Let me be clear on one thing. I didn’t summon the Cheonma Sect. I summoned you personally.”
“Are you still saying such things?”
“If the enemy’s key masters reveal themselves, you can step forward. But now is not yet your time.”
“Then speak plainly.”
“Serve as a strategist here. It would be better for accumulating merit toward victory.”
“I must refuse.”
When Dokgo Myeong refused outright, Dokgo Un-hak nodded as if he had expected this.
“Then tell me. What do you want?”
“The battlefield. The Cheonma Sect has made all necessary preparations.”
Dokgo Un-hak turned his gaze toward the Cheonma Sect disciples.
“Are you confident you possess sufficient martial strength?”
Martial strength? Truthfully, I couldn’t be certain of that.
If we held one-on-one duels, quite a few of them would lose to the masters of the main house.
But when it comes to combat power, it’s different.
“We’ll be absolutely devastating.”
These were the ones we had repeatedly tested and refined against the Twin Horse Alliance and the Moyong Family. Now all that remained was to forge them through the flames of war.
At my confident words, Dokgo Un-hak nodded.
“Good. I’ll entrust you with the strike force directly under the acting family head, left vacant by the departure of the Beoncheon Myeol Division.”
“I have one more condition.”
“What is it?”
“We will move independently without receiving orders from above.”
Dokgo Un-hak’s expression hardened.
“Do you think that makes sense? Are you blinded by desire for merit?”
“No matter how much I explain, it won’t matter. Just trust me and grant independent command authority. In return, I promise to restore victory.”
Dokgo Un-hak exhaled a long breath.
“Communication about the battle situation will be necessary.”
“I said we wouldn’t receive orders, not that we wouldn’t communicate.”
“You’ll choose the battlefield and objectives yourself? We just handle our own affairs?”
“Yes.”
Dokgo Un-hak nodded.
“When can you begin?”
“Immediately, if needed.”
“Good. I grant it.”
Dokgo Un-hak’s eyes gleamed.
“By the authority of the acting family head, I hereby grant the Cheonma Sect Leader a rank equivalent to Division Commander effective immediately.”
It fell short of the Sect Leader or the generals of the left and right armies, but it was the highest rank one could hold while fighting on the front lines.
“Once you’ve completed all necessary preparations, go ahead and rampage. Just as you always have.”
“Understood.”
I saluted and departed for the battlefield.
* * *
Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang Province.
The Moyang Sect Warriors gathered in one place.
“Proud warriors of the Moyong Family, descendants of the Xianbei people!”
“….”
“We are the descendants of Yan, which dominated the era of the Sixteen Kingdoms in that distant past, and we were once heroes who conquered the Central Plains.”
In the solemn silence, only the voice of Muyong Gaju Muyong Tae resonated through the air.
“Though long ages have passed and we have set aside our ambitions, living under the banner of righteousness to contribute to the world, the greedy Central Plains has rejected and shunned us simply because we are not of Han descent.”
His authoritative voice made the air vibrate. Muyong Tae’s bearing did not falter even before countless masters.
“Behold. In the end, they have leveled absurd accusations against our clan and branded us as villains. Have we accumulated wickedness?”
“No!”
“Yet when we sought peace and made reasonable proposals, when we desired dialogue, they issued declarations of war. So I ask—has our clan ever once spoken of war?”
“No!”
The masters of the Moyong Family cried out in unison.
After surveying them once more, Muyong Tae spoke.
“But since they desire it, we shall oblige them. The time has come at last, after ages of endurance, to finally show the world the power of our clan.”
Clang!
Muyong Tae drew his sword.
The falling sunlight split across the blade’s edge. The sword energy seemed ready to cleave the heavens in two.
“The highest seat in all the world shall belong to our clan! Advance with all your strength!”
“Waaaaaaaah!”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sound of stamping feet and a roar that seemed to shake the earth itself echoed through the air.
Muyong Tae gazed upon the masters of the Moyong Family with eyes brimming with pride, then descended from the platform, his robes trailing behind him.
Thud, thud.
The path from below the platform leading into the hall.
All expression vanished from Muyong Tae’s face, and emotion drained from his eyes. It was as though he had donned a mask of ice.
“Overseer Wi.”
“Yes, yes, Gaju.”
“Ensure there are no errors in the preparations for departure.”
The man who followed with a timid expression was Wi Jang-chun, the Overseer of the Moyong Family.
With trembling eyes, he gazed upon his lord and former close friend, now so utterly transformed.
“…Gaju. It is not yet too late. Our clan still lacks the strength to wage war against the entire world.”
“Will you continue speaking such weak words?”
“B-but….”
“Water already spilled, words already spoken. If that is the case, then focus on your duties as Overseer.”
Wi Jang-chun flinched but could say nothing more.
After accumulating such karma, did he truly intend not to stop?
Then it happened.
Clap, clap, clap!
The sound of applause came from somewhere.
“Hehehehe, truly a lord without peer in this age. What an inspiring speech worthy of recording in history.”
It was Ji-myeol Magoon.
From some point onward, Muyong Tae had drawn him closer than the Moyong Family’s other subordinates, and the leader of his most devoted followers had approached.
Muyong Tae opened his mouth.
“You’re still here?”
“Yes, sir. I thought I should pay my respects before departing.”
As he spoke, Ji-myeol Magoon’s gaze shifted slightly.
Wi Jang-chun, whose eyes met his, felt his liver shrivel within him.
‘Again, that look again.’
Ji-myeol Magoon always regarded everyone except the Gaju and the disciples with those eyes.
Two eyes as dark and hollow as the opening of a well. Eyes that his master Muyong Tae was increasingly coming to resemble.
“Overseer Wi, you should attend to your duties.”
At his master’s frigid voice, Wi Jang-chun flinched.
Soon after, he squeezed his eyes shut.
“…Understood.”
Once the Overseer had departed, Ji-myeol Magoon smiled broadly again.
“Have you heard the war reports?”
“I hear them every day.”
“What do you make of them? It seems we’ve finally demonstrated our sect’s true strength.”
“True strength, you say.”
Yes, if that could be called strength, then it was strength indeed.
Ji-myeol Magoon continued.
“Martial artists are truly peculiar creatures. They say they disregard means and methods, yet by our sect’s standards, they have far too many scruples.”
“…”
“So in truth, it wasn’t difficult. They call themselves the greatest family under heaven, yet they proved far softer than expected.”
If you think of killing masters, it feels difficult. But if you think of facing people, it becomes remarkably easy.
Even masters possessed of earth-shaking martial prowess are ultimately human. They eat, sleep, drink, and breathe.
Look here. How many weaknesses have already revealed themselves?
Moreover, the people of the Central Plains had minds that were themselves targets for exploitation. They lost their composure at the mere sight of a few horrors before their eyes.
“Compared to them, aren’t our sect’s disciples, tempered through faith, truly capable? We concern ourselves with only one thing—merit through blood. We disregard all other trivial matters.”
Ji-myeol Magoon let out a low laugh.
After a moment of silence, Muyong Tae spoke.
“Still, I hear they haven’t inflicted damage severe enough to overturn the war situation. The Dokgo clan merely hesitated.”
“Hmm, yes. Their response was quite good, better than expected.”
It was truly regrettable. By his calculations, they should have already claimed thirty percent of the Dokgo clan’s forces, yet even at best they’d managed only ten percent in casualties.
They must have made some preparations. It was likely the work of that man again—Dokgo Myeong’s doing.
“But we’ve gained sufficient time, haven’t we?”
Time for all of the Moyong Family’s preparations to be completed.
Muyong Tae nodded.
“I won’t deny it. Thanks to this, we’ve finished the necessary preparations.”
The Moyong Family’s main force is six thousand strong? That’s not wrong. However, they are merely the forces known to the world.
Their hidden weapon is those departing now. The fruits of the divine technique achieved together with the Jeongheol Sect have finally completed their preparations.
“Who will take command of this operation? Surely the Muyong Gaju himself?”
“The Alliance Leader will assume command.”
“That incompetent man? You mean Muyong Cheol?”
He was the one who had created the Samgeuk Gwiwon Technique, originally Muyong Tae’s right hand alongside Wi Jang-chun.
But after failing to obtain the martial arts of the Namgung Family and having the Jeongheol Sect prepare their grand technique, he had been pushed to the background.
“What is lacking can be compensated with overwhelming force.”
“Hmm. Well, there’s little I can say about that.”
At that moment, Ji-myeol Magoon’s eyes gleamed as if he had recalled something, and he spoke.
“Ah, you wouldn’t have heard this yet. It’s news that just reached my ears.”
“What news?”
“It seems Dokgo Myeong and the woman of the Namgung Family have finally entered Jiangxi Province.”
Muyong Tae’s eyes widened.
A flash of fury and greed crossed his gaze.
“Those two belong to the main family’s share. You haven’t forgotten, have you?”
“Hehehe, of course not. I trust we won’t deviate from the plan by becoming distracted with those two.”
Muyong Tae’s lips twisted upward.
It was an extremely unnatural smile.
“See that you all execute flawlessly without failure.”
“Have no concerns. The Grand General intends to move personally.”
“How many times have you made such declarations only to fail? And didn’t you say the Sect Leader would also move together?”
“There were circumstances. And I say again—do not speak of that person so carelessly.”
Whether Ji-myeol Magoon’s voice turned cold or not, Muyong Tae responded with utter indifference.
“Circumstances. Not my concern, but this must proceed without a hitch.”
“You need not worry about that.”
Ji-myeol Magoon let out a laugh.
“It is truly regrettable that I cannot witness my Muyong Gaju’s magnificence firsthand. That I cannot personally behold the completion of this great enterprise.”
Muyong Tae turned and walked away as he replied.
“First, we shall eliminate the traitors and small fry of the main family who aid the Dokgo clan.”
Muyong Gaju, Muyong Tae, had also taken to the battlefield.

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