The Regressed Martial God Monopolizes Everything - Chapter 36

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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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Episode 36. Exchange Tournament (1)
The roiling gale was fierce and razor-sharp. As if the wind itself had become a blade, it tore through the Mana that lay heavy over the area with tangible force.
Crash!
Another thunderous explosion erupted from the summit of Neung Gyeok Peak.
The clash of the leaders of the Top 10 Guilds—hunters at the absolute apex—was nothing short of a Mana Storm, a natural disaster unto itself.
Whoosh!
“I think that’s enough for now, everyone.”
Yeon Cheong-ha cut through the aftermath of that Mana.
A Crescent Moon Blade brimming with tempestuous force. Against it, condensed Hellfire.
Clang!
It was a single swordsman’s stroke that perfectly canceled both forces.
Jeong Cheol stood between Park Young-soo and Ji Sang-wook, his sword still drawn in the posture of a blade-draw.
Click.
His blade returned to its scabbard, and silence settled over Neung Gyeok Peak once more, the air now perfectly still.
‘As expected of Jeong Cheol.’
Though widely regarded as the lowest-ranked among the Top 10 Guild leaders, the Hunter Association’s internal assessment held that his individual martial prowess rivaled the very best among them.
More precisely, it was because of that Owang Mu—the signature skill of Garam—that he was utterly unpredictable in actual combat.
“Tsk, the moment’s been spoiled.”
Park Cheol-hwan’s face suddenly turned indifferent, and he thrust his Crescent Moon Blade casually into empty air as if he hadn’t just conjured a tempest.
Then a smirk played across his lips.
“Well, well, our lovely branch director!”
Park Cheol-hwan was a man who couldn’t resist a young, beautiful woman.
Especially one who subscribed to the philosophy of taking talented women as secondary wives to produce offspring of the highest caliber, he was the Ranker-class Hunter most despised by Yeon Cheong-ha.
“Good to see you, President.”
“I’m doing well, well indeed. So when do you plan to visit my villa? The guest room’s been gathering dust waiting for you.”
“I’ve had so much work lately.”
“Then I suppose I’ll have to give our Association Chairman a call. Would it help if our lovely branch director had less on her plate?”
“I can manage.”
Park Cheol-hwan let out a raucous laugh at Yeon Cheong-ha’s refusal.
“Well, if that’s what you say. But do call me if you ever need anything. You still have that Business Card I gave you, don’t you?”
She’d torn it to shreds long ago, but Yeon Cheong-ha gave a terse reply.
“Yes.”
“Good, good. Well then, I should be heading off. Getting old makes everything feel like a chore.”
Park Cheol-hwan let out a groan and plunged his hand into empty air.
His hand disappeared into thin air—from the Subspace Pouch he possessed, a single scroll emerged.
A Teleport Scroll, worth tens of millions of won per sheet.
The destination was naturally Park Cheol-hwan’s residence.
Before his feet touched the magic circle, Park Cheol-hwan glanced back at Jeong Cheol.
“Chairman Jeong, give it careful thought.”
“Safe travels.”
“Business isn’t about emotional rifts—it’s about seeing the future.”
With that final remark, Chairman Park Cheol-hwan vanished.
“Goodness, what a fuss.”
“Branch Director, you’ve had quite the ordeal.”
Yeon Cheong-ha bowed slightly to Chairman Ji Sang-wook, whose composure was so impeccable you’d never guess he’d been locked in combat with Park Cheol-hwan moments before.
“Have you been well?”
“Well enough to keep living this way, I suppose. You look quite busy today.”
“…I wonder whose fault that is.”
Yeon Cheong-ha’s gaze fell upon Jeong Cheol.
“No one’s injured, and you haven’t been subject to any illegal coercion, have you?”
A purely formal question.
No one present would have suffered such a thing, and even if they had, there was no one who would speak of it.
“None at all, so you’re free to go.”
“…Chairman Jeong, could you spare some time soon?”
“Of course.”
“I’m notifying you now that Witness Investigation regarding your son will begin from here on.”
“Understood.”
“Branch Director! Breaking news just came in!”
Yeon Cheong-ha frowned as her aide came rushing over belatedly.
“What now?”
“Park Young-soo from Mirae Guild submitted his resignation, and they’ve issued a statement confirming it’s been processed!”
Park Cheol-hwan—the chairman who had cast his countless children into the arena of a battle royale, demanding they prove themselves through sheer hunter prowess alone.
And here was his swift, clean severance of Park Young-soo, the product of that crucible.
“That old man’s like a bulldozer, I’ll give him that.”
Ji Sang-wook’s observation found agreement in Yeon Cheong-ha as well.
“I should take my leave now.”
Yeon Cheong-ha turned back toward the Teleportation Magic Circle, while Ji Sang-wook, remaining atop Neung Gyeok Peak, lifted himself skyward with casual grace through Flight Magic.
“Chairman Jeong.”
“Yes?”
“What you said earlier—you meant it.”
Jeong Cheol caught the implication: Jeong Hyun-soo as son-in-law material.
“Of course, I see things differently than that old eugenicist. Hyun-soo’s rough around the edges, but he protects his people—that much is clear. And his potential is a given on top of that.”
Shortly after, Ji Sang-wook vanished.
The fact that he’d come at all—uninvited—spoke volumes: that meeting with Jeong Hyun-soo had left quite an impression.
“…That reckless bastard.”
Though Jeong Cheol said nothing aloud, he found himself nodding to Kwon Gang-pal’s muttered assessment.
Just when he’d thought the boy had gotten his head on straight, the scale of what he was doing kept expanding.
* * *
At that same moment, Jeong Hyun-soo faced Yeon Cheong-ha, who had brought Hunter Knights with her.
“…You’re invoking your right to silence?”
“The footage speaks for itself, and the audio recording of the full exchange is there too. The judgment will ultimately rest with the proper authorities.”
Jeong Hyun-soo was suppressing a murderous rage that threatened to boil over.
Seon-woo Hyun’s dogs.
But that reckoning would come later—only when Seon-woo Hyun himself finally began his iron-fisted reign.
There were Hunter Knights composed of outright fanatics rather than mere followers, but at least the Korea branch wasn’t among them.
‘Yeon Cheong-ha.’
Standing against Seon-woo Hyun’s faction—a neutral voice within the Association, and in the future, one who would be purged.
“So that’s how you’ll play it?”
“There was no other choice. Is there more to investigate?”
Jeong Hyun-soo appeared remarkably composed. Was he simply used to these situations?
Whatever raw nerve he possessed, being directly interrogated by a branch director among Hunter Knights would normally psych out someone his age—but he showed no sign of it.
“…From the footage, yes, your Hand Technique was excessive. But Hyun-soo cannot be charged.”
“I understand—the opponent ambushed me first and released lethal intent. But severing his arm and putting it on display……”
“He could’ve cut his neck. Still not guilty.”
“Tch. You’re really not factoring in what Mirae Guild will do next? Don’t you know that when superiors act recklessly, innocent subordinates die? Hah.”
A Hunter Association executive worried about low-ranking hunters.
‘How long has it been since I’ve seen someone like this?’
He truly felt as though he’d returned to the past.
At the very least—
for Jeong Hyun-soo and Garam Guild to survive, for the Tower’s conquest and Gate eradication to succeed, the Hunter Association would need countless executives like her.
People who stayed in their posts and faithfully carried out their duties.
“Shouldn’t the Association do its job? You need to monitor and restrain Mirae Guild so they can’t retaliate over this incident.”
“Hey! You’re the one who caused this mess—why should the Association bend?”
“Because that’s what the position is for.”
“You have a real habit of making correct points sound obnoxious, don’t you?”
“If there’s nothing else, I’ll go.”
As Jeong Hyun-soo stood, the Hunter Knights moved to block his path.
“Ah. Step aside.”
Yeon Cheong-ha pinched the bridge of her nose.
In the brief aftermath of this incident, she’d been fielding calls—quite frantic ones—from multiple directions.
Not just Mirae, but Ilseong, which was hosting the Exchange Tournament they’d organized, was in an uproar as well.
“He’s done what needed doing, so let him through. But the Association’s people will be present as observers and fully involved.”
She had no idea what retaliation Mirae Guild might attempt, and besides, Jeong Hyun-soo was a dangerously unpredictable asset.
“Ah, overtime again?”
“You can eat all you want from Ilseong’s premium chefs in exchange.”
“Really?”
“Even if it’s Ilseong, they won’t be petty about it.”
Yeon Cheong-ha found herself thinking of the grilled mackerel she’d left over yesterday.
Crispy outside, tender within.
She’d started from the back, never flipped it, and waited until the far side was just barely kissed by heat before delivering a sharp, decisive sear to that back panel at precisely the right moment—an exquisitely perfect technique.
“So what time is dinner supposed to start?”
“After the opening ceremony of the Exchange Tournament, they’re doing a buffet.”
“I mean when is that, you idiot! Good grief, you low-rank bastard! How many years in, and you still don’t have a shred of common sense!”
He could only kick at his hapless adjutant.
* * *
The Exchange Tournament began amid the turmoil caused by the Mirae Group’s heir losing an arm to the sacred treasure of Garam.
“I earnestly beseech our honored guests to strengthen the bonds between us without any major incidents or accidents.”
With Seon Byeong-hee’s opening address, the Exchange Tournament officially commenced.
Truth be told, despite the name “Exchange Tournament,” it rarely involved the fierce, exhausting matches seen in national hunter selections.
Especially after the incident where someone lost an arm, the direct heirs of the Top 10 Guilds were being cautious in their hearts.
“Because of you, I’m about to get reamed by Father. What am I supposed to do?”
Jeong Hyun-soo regarded Seon Byeong-hee, who was approaching with considerable cheer.
“All the money spent, all the events we prepared. Sigh. The Friendly Match especially — we’ve scrapped it entirely.”
At that, Jeong Hyun-ah, who had been savoring an orange juice beside him, startled.
“Cough! Huh? No, so how’s the Exchange Tournament champion decided then?”
“The champion of the Exchange Tournament was never determined by the Friendly Match winner in the first place. We just had it marked down that way, and it happened the Friendly Match winner came out on top.”
“But isn’t that the same thing……?”
“It’s different. In the end, the champion is decided by a final vote according to the rules.”
Jeong Hyun-ah glanced sideways at Jeong Hyun-soo.
‘He said he’d win.’
Jeong Hyun-soo had said he’d be getting the Bijou created through joint investment by the Top 10 Guilds as an Exchange Tournament special privilege.
But now that he’d severed the Mirae Guild heir’s arm from the very start, whether that would actually happen was unclear.
“Still, with hunters all gathered here, we can’t skip a little friendly competition of bodies, right? Ha-ha.”
At Seon Byeong-hee’s words, the Exchange Tournament participants’ eyes gleamed.
“The Hunter Knights and Korea Hunter Association branch chief Yeon Cheong-ha!”
“Huh?”
Yeon Cheong-ha, who had been eating acorn spaghetti roasted in Hellfire made from appetizers, had blank eyes at the sudden spotlight.
“Under the branch chief’s observation, let us compare our respective martial arts and magic without crossing the line.”
“Ack, so suddenly?”
Yeon Cheong-ha thought this was ridiculous, but then glanced at her subordinates, who were equally stuffing three-star Michelin-quality food into their mouths.
“…….”
Yeah, when else would these poor bastards get a chance to eat their fill?
“Everyone keep it moderate, moderate. Just draw a little blood. I’ll arrest you on the spot if things get out of hand. Especially.”
Yeon Cheong-ha shot a look at Jeong Hyun-soo, but he showed no reaction whatsoever.
However.
“So, shall I step forward first? I’d like to exchange Hand Techniques with the sacred treasure of Garam.”
Led by Seon Byeong-hee, the other direct heirs of the Top 10 Guilds were gradually creeping toward Jeong Hyun-soo.
Continued in the next chapter ▶
The Monopolist Regression Warrior
Author
Cheon-ya
Publishers
Kim Seok-hwan, Choi Se-ra
Publishing House
Grae Publishing
Inquiries [email protected]
Publication Date
May 26, 2026
UCI
G720:N+A327-20260515012
※ This e-book is protected under copyright law. Unauthorized reproduction and copying are prohibited.
Violation may result in criminal and civil liability.
※ Pentagram is awaiting your precious manuscripts.

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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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