The Red Dragon Martial Emperor - Chapter 86

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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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Red Dragon Emperor, Episode 86

Chapter 86 — The Curtain of War Rises

A man in light blue robes bowed before Jo Gwang.
“They were indeed martial artists from Yen Kingdom, sir. We pursued them to the end, but they slipped into the military encampment, and I apologize for that.”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. Raise your head.”
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
Jo Gwang sank deep into his chair, his gaze hardening.
“To be so thoroughly bested by merely two men.”
“They were of considerable skill. During the entire pursuit to the Yen encampment, we couldn’t close the distance at all. Moreover, one of them was carrying the other at the waist.”
“Was the intelligence flawed? Weren’t you told there were no martial masters of that caliber in the Yen army?”
“Either the intelligence was wrong, or they’re recent arrivals. In any case, when the battle begins, we should strengthen the protection around our key commanders.”
“Of course we must. Though naturally, only around our commanders. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The martial artists withdrew, leaving only Papa.
“Papa.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“To end this war with minimal casualties, we must eliminate their General-in-Chief as quickly as possible. See that you prepare the most capable men for this task.”
“You need not worry. I have already selected the most able ones.”
“Good. By the way, what’s the mood among the Western King’s commanders?”
“They’re all in disarray over the General-in-Chief’s sudden death, but none of them seem to suspect us.”
“Well done. You should rest now. You’re dismissed.”
“Then sleep well, Your Highness.”
After Papa left, Jo Gwang uncorked the wine bottle that sat on the table and brought it to his lips.
Gulp, gulp!
Clink.
“The board is set. Now we finish this swiftly.”

* * *

The next morning.
Yi Hwan immediately summoned the key commanders to the Command Center. Peng Mun, the master of the Peng Clan, attended as well. Yi Hwan treated him as an equal among the commanders, given the critical role he would play.
Yi Hwan swept his gaze across the assembled officers before speaking.
“The enemy’s General-in-Chief is dead.”
“What?”
The gathering erupted in murmurs.
Peng Wu-wei asked, “How did the General learn of this?”
“I ventured out to scout the enemy position and discovered it by chance. Which is why I’m calling an Emergency Mode starting from this moment.”

One of the commanders asked, “Surely they won’t delay their attack now that their General-in-Chief is gone?”

“The one who was eager to fight us has seized full authority in the General’s place. And yes—he’s the one who killed the General-in-Chief.”
“Who is it?”
“Crown Prince Jo Gwang of Zhao Kingdom.”
The assembly stirred once more.
Yi Hwan turned to Peng Mun.
“Clan Master.”
“Yes, General.”
“I’m thinking of assigning capable martial artists to guard our key commanders. Would that be acceptable?”
“Act as you see fit, General.”
“I’m grateful.”
Yi Hwan turned next to Jeong Cheon, continuing his address.
“The enemy will move first against me and you, Commander Jeong. Therefore, I’ll be posting my own household fighters as your guard, and even in Close Combat or Chaotic Battle, you must never stray far from them.”
“Yes, General.”
Yi Hwan fixed his gaze on Peng Wu-wei.
Peng Wu-wei grinned and spoke. “The Commander here is fine as is.”

“Be cautious. The enemy’s first target will be the General-in-Chief himself. You may well find yourself facing the strongest martial artist in their ranks.”
“Have no fear! I will take the Crown Prince of Zhao’s head and present it to you!”
Yi Hwan appreciated Peng Wu-wei’s bluntness. Ever since he’d killed Yi Hwang-ja’s warriors—men sent to end his life—Yi Hwan had counted Peng Wu-wei as wholly his own.
Clink.
Yi Hwan set down his empty teacup and rose from his seat at once.
“Then take your positions without delay.”
“Yes!”
“Understood!”

* * *

Jeong Cheon left the Command Center and headed straight for the Barracks.
His task was to defend the central line of the camp’s fortifications. More than that, it fell to him to assess the situation and decide when to commit reinforcements to each sector.
Jeong Cheon recalled Yi Hwan as he’d been in the war council and smiled faintly. Then he looked up at the sky and spoke softly to himself.
“Watch over us, General.”
Of late, he’d thought of Hwang Ho often. The general had appeared in his dreams more than once.
“I swear we will aid the Commander and defend the Southern Army at all costs.”
The Southern Army—as vital to Hwang Ho as life itself. Jeong Cheon vowed silently that nothing would break their line. Not for anything. Not for anyone but Hwang Ho.
It was then.
Whoosh!
Two white-robed figures descended behind him on the wind. They were warriors of the Sword King Lineage.
Jeong Cheon stopped and turned to face them.
“The Commander has ordered us to protect you.”
‘Extraordinary men, both of them.’
Jeong Cheon, pleased by their bearing, smiled warmly.
“I am grateful for your service.”

* * *

Hissss!
The rain came in waves, light and heavy by turns.
The warriors of the Southern Army, now in Emergency Mode, took their assigned positions and prepared for the enemy assault.
Peng Mun and the other Peng Clan warriors were stationed on the highest ground within the camp. Yi Hwan’s strategy was for them to observe the battle unfold from there, then commit to action only when the enemy’s martial artists made their move.
Peng Mun’s eyes, fixed on the southwestern quarter, held little hope.
‘This strategy—if it can even be called that—is far too fragile. I question whether it can hold back the enemy at all.’
He still did not trust Yi Hwan.
At that moment, warriors emerged from behind him—those assigned to guard the commanders.
Peng Mun addressed them in a grave tone.
“On the honor of the Peng Clan, see that the commanders you protect do not fall. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Clan Leader!”
“Understood!”
“We wish you fortune in battle.”
“Be careful, Clan Leader.”
The warriors departed for their assigned positions with the commanders. Peng Mun watched them go, then let his gaze settle and harden once more.
‘Why is my heart so unsettled?’
The source of his unease was Yi Hwan.
Had Peng Wu-wei held supreme command, Peng Mun would have voiced his doubts plainly. He was confident that his own strategy would surpass Yi Hwan’s. At least that.
“Clan Leader, look there.”
A warrior pointed to the left. Peng Mun turned naturally and saw Yi Hwan emerge from his quarters, armor clasped about his shoulders.
Peng Mun glanced once at the Red Dragon emblem that stained the dark breastplate crimson, then fixed his gaze on Yi Hwan’s face. A subtle light crossed his eyes.
‘Where does such composure spring from?’
There was one thing Peng Mun found admirable in Yi Hwan: precisely this composure.
It was not something one could feign through effort.
‘I pray it is not mere pretense…….’
Then it came.
Boom! Boom!
Two red signal flares burst across the southwestern sky. Even through the rain, they stained the heavens crimson for a long time.
The signal announcing the enemy attack.
Peng Mun’s eyes kindled with heat.
‘This war is our war as well. I will show the Crown Prince the true strength of the Peng Clan, no matter what.’

* * *

Boom! Boom!
Jo Gwang stared at the traces of the signal flare that had stained the sky crimson. His pupils, reflecting the flare, burned the same color.
“So they were prepared after all.”
“They won’t be able to stop us regardless.”
“Of course they won’t.”
If Yi Hwan wore the armor of the Yen Imperial House, then Jo Gwang wore that of the Zhao Kingdom. Where Yi Hwan’s armor bore the Red Dragon, Jo Gwang’s displayed the Yellow Dragon—each a legendary Divine Beast symbolizing the Son of Heaven in their respective realms.
The Jin Kingdom bore the Blue Dragon.
Jo Gwang gazed down at the Yellow Dragon embroidered across his chest and steeled his resolve.
‘Soon I will crush the Prince of the Southwest, and then rise once more with you.’
Having fortified his will, Jo Gwang called out behind him.
“All forces! Advance at full speed!”
“Full speed!”
“Full speed ahead!”
Boom-boom-boom!
With the sound of the war drums, the speed of Zhao’s great army visibly began to accelerate. Leading the charge were approximately a hundred Martial Artists.
Behind them, two hundred members of the Blood Ghost formed their positions.
It was a deployment that made Jo Gwang’s intent clear—to seize momentum from the very first clash.
Yet among the Martial Artists who had come with Jo Gwang, the leading masters including Papa all flanked him closely.
Perhaps that was why.
Not a trace of anxiety could be found on Jo Gwang’s face.
‘I’ll settle this before tomorrow’s sun rises.’
“Your Majesty! Look at the sky!”
At Papa’s cry, Jo Gwang lifted his gaze to the heavens. His eyes immediately brightened with wonder.
The dark clouds that had blanketed the sky were breaking apart, revealing the brilliant azure of the Blue Sky itself.
By contrast, the northeastern sky still lay shrouded in darkness.
“An auspicious omen, Your Majesty!”
“Don’t put faith in the sky. We will defeat Yen through our own strength alone!”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Though he spoke such words, Jo Gwang’s heart had grown calmer.

* * *

Yi Hwan had climbed to the mountain behind the camp.
From there, his line of sight was wider than from the watchtower, allowing him to monitor the movements of the approaching enemy.
Rain still fell, but from the southwest, the dark clouds were slowly clearing.
Half the sky bore the sun, while the other half lay under shadow—a sight both wondrous and eerie. Usually, the side that receives sunlight first is celebrated as having received the auspicious favor of heaven.
Zhao’s army was likely celebrating just that now.
‘Their morale will be soaring.’
That was when it happened.
Boom! Boom!
Two signal flares burst across the sky. This time they were blue.
“They’ve already reached the Gorge. Their advance is far faster than expected.”
At Cheol Mu-ok’s words, Yi Hwan replied calmly.
“One of two things, then. Either they’re desperate enough to push this hard, or they’re so confident they can overwhelm us. Perhaps both.”
Go Mi then spoke.
“Something I said before… I must take it back.”
“You mean about not killing the Crown Prince?”
“Yes. Since he now leads the enemy forces, if the opportunity presents itself, eliminating him first would be wisest.”
“It won’t be easy. Needless to say, the strongest Martial Artists will be surrounding him.”
“I apologize for the lack of intelligence.”
“Nothing can be done about the inevitable. Don’t trouble yourself.”
Yi Hwan surveyed the northern and eastern approaches to the camp in turn. He could see his own forces emerging from the forest.
The first contingent moving toward the Gorge was led by Peng Wu-wei.
“Let’s head down ourselves.”
“Understood.”

* * *

The Zhao Kingdom forces advanced toward the Southern Army at considerable speed. What struck as peculiar was that the ambush positions Yi Hwan had layered—one atop another, in triple depth—remained utterly still.
Someone voiced his doubt.
“Isn’t it far too quiet? I’d have expected them to have set ambushes by now.”
“If they learned through intelligence that they’re in an utterly hopeless position, they’d never waste manpower on ambushes. They’ll fortify the perimeter of their camp and wait for us—no question about it.”
“Now that you mention it, that makes sense.”
The doubter fell in line.
This same reasoning was taking hold across the Zhao forces. As a result, no commander thought to scout the forests along the road to the Southern Army.
Every Zhao general was bound by a single conviction: even if Yen had laid an ambush, they could simply overwhelm it with sheer force.
Crown Prince Jo Gwang harbored no different thoughts.
Even as he’d passed halfway through the Gorge without a single sign of movement from the Yen forces, suspicion never once crossed his mind.
Papa spoke.
“The enemy is too quiet, Your Highness.”
“All they can do is gather their entire force in one place and make a last stand. The battlefield won’t be mountainous terrain—it’ll be their own camp. Advance with confidence.”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Nearly two hundred thousand strong, the Zhao forces represented a host large enough to commit to a full-scale war. Indeed, if a complete conflict between Yen and Zhao were to begin this very moment, there would be nothing remarkable about it.
It was precisely what Jo Gwang desired.
‘The Southwest King—that cunning devil must not seize complete control of the court. To stop him, I must drive deeper north, not halt at the Southern Army, and force the Yen Imperial Palace to respond.’
He recalled the Southwest King as he had been before coming here.

The Northern Army has suffered an unspeakable disgrace at the hands of Yen’s Southern Army. Go as Crown Prince and restore the honor of our nation.

Jo Gwang had accepted the Southwest King’s words without reservation.
The Southwest King’s true aim was for him to die on the battlefield, but Jo Gwang saw it instead as opportunity—and he had seized it.
‘If this escalates into full-scale war, the Southwest King won’t have time to consolidate military control. Then I’ll bring the regional forces and commanders who haven’t yet swung toward him over to my side.’
That was his calculation.
Jo Gwang had been aiming for full-scale conflict from the start.
“Hehehehe.”

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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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