[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith":3,"chapter-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-431":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Childhood Friend of the Zenith",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1239907,1667,"Chapter 431","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-431",431,"\u003Cp>When the banquet ended, night had fallen deep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The full moon hung in the sky, and I was leisurely walking along the paths of the Tang Clan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wu-hyuk had said the banquet food was delicious and wanted to eat more. Cheol Ji-seon seemed to share the same sentiment, so I left them behind and walked out on my own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hoo…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tonight, the night was exceptionally bright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lamps placed here and there illuminated the streets, and the full moon shone unusually brightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In stark contrast to my mood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The world still seemed only bright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I glanced around with darkened eyes and spoke quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where is the White Lotus Sword?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In response to my question, Tang Deok, who had been following me from a distance, raised his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I figured she would.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That woman was predictable like that. I chuckled slightly and resumed walking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Return to your quarters and wait. I'll take a short walk before heading back.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At my command, Tang Deok glared at me, but before long, he turned and walked away. Keeping him around for too long would also be a problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After confirming that Tang Deok had disappeared, I paused for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I ran a hand over my body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I thought back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To what the Divine Doctor had said about death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Death, huh?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had said my vessel had reached its limit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘That explains it.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The headaches and mood swings I had been feeling recently... It seemed it was because of this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My body’s balance was increasingly off, and the effects were beginning to spread.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Tua Pacheonmu technique had been forcibly stabilizing my body, artificially pushing it through a process of transformation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When one undergoes transformation, one's vessel also naturally grows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But was it possible to keep up with the speed at which it was breaking?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, the Divine Doctor had said that the more I increase my energy, the quicker the vessel would break. In other words, training itself had become a dangerous act.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Paehjon had said that, at my current pace, I would reach that state within twenty years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To master such a technique and undergo transformation in just twenty years... It was an astounding speed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>However, didn’t the Divine Doctor say I had only ten years left?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps I had more time, given I might reach my forties, but still, assuming ten years would be the safest bet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What were the odds that I could complete my transformation within that time?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And, with the looming chaos of the Blood Calamity, could I really afford to focus on cultivation?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I don’t think so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Ten years…’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought coldly, calculating in my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How long until the war? The timeline had accelerated by a few years, so I needed to account for that as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps I could adjust my plans. Was there a way to gather more strength?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I needed to visit the hidden caves and ancient tombs scattered across the land, where treasures like internal cores and magical relics lay.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After amassing enough power, I might have to upend the Martial Alliance as well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>All of this had to be done within five years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining five would be dedicated to the war.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Haha.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I suddenly burst into laughter at the thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Plans are always so precise, yet accidents have a way of happening in the most unexpected places.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing ever flows as expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My death would be one such example.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s not good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Death didn’t frighten me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had always thought it could happen someday.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When one keeps altering the predetermined flow of things, it’s inevitable that abnormalities would occur.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had known this, but now that it was actually approaching, many thoughts crossed my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘The Divine Doctor said he wouldn’t give me the medicine, didn’t he?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the Divine Doctor’s medicine, I’d have ten years. Without it, I might die tomorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not tomorrow, but within a year. Or even in six months. Maybe just a month.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t terrible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not that I was welcoming death, but…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Meeting the Divine Doctor here.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why it wasn’t so bad.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Paejon hadn’t noticed anything wrong with my body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a martial artist, not a physician.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He probably hadn’t known about the issue with my vessel. If he had, he wouldn’t have pushed me so hard in my training…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘…No, he might have pushed me regardless.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With his crazy personality, he might have, but I choose to believe otherwise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meeting the Divine Doctor here was coincidental, but it was fate that he had identified the problem with my body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that he had the knowledge to create a medicine that could prolong my life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Divine Doctor had said he wouldn’t give me the medicine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Judging by his expression, he meant it. He wouldn’t easily change his mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that didn’t matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As my mind cooled, so did my perspective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite his sharp tongue and rough demeanor, the Divine Doctor was deeply compassionate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You could tell by how he acted, even though we hadn’t seen each other for years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And more than that…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘You have too many weaknesses, Divine Doctor.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had a clear weakness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Je Gal-hyuk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the time I spent with him in the Gu household, I had learned one thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The reason he wandered across the Central Plains was because of Je Gal-hyuk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t know the exact reason, but I was certain of this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, what was his purpose in doing so?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wasn’t entirely sure, but I had some guesses, and these guesses were likely the Divine Doctor’s weaknesses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If not, then even further…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Je Gal-hyuk himself was the Divine Doctor’s weakness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Exploiting that wouldn’t be difficult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was surprised at how calm I felt, even as I came up with ways to use this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it because Je Gal-hyuk would play a major role in the Blood Calamity?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘No.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That wasn’t it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was because neither the Divine Doctor nor Je Gal-hyuk was particularly important to me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could discard them both anytime.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disgust and weight of such thoughts almost made me gag.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I clenched my teeth, suppressing the self-loathing, and kept moving my legs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sshh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I kept walking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What, then, is important?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is my death important? No, not that either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t have much attachment to this life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the moment I returned, I had felt that way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A second chance? What was it for?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A chance to atone for the sins I had committed in my past life?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Haha…’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was pointless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if I tried to atone for my actions in this life, could that really be called atonement?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would merely be a form of self-satisfaction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A delusion that I had paid for my sins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then why, when I held no desire for life, did I still seek to extend it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn’t have to ponder that long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I already knew the answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone spoke in a startled voice as they saw me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Wi Seol-ah.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why was Wi Seol-ah here? I glanced around and realized I had arrived at her quarters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Wi Seol-ah was here…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I turned my head slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah was sitting next to her, watching me. I had forgotten they shared a room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah stared at me for a while, then suddenly widened her eyes and approached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wi Seol-ah followed suit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Master? Is something wrong…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two of them approached, concern written on their faces as they looked at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I smiled bitterly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed I wasn’t very good at hiding my emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’d been completely exposed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wish I hadn’t been.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Nothing’s wrong.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…You’re lying.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah clearly didn’t believe me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But there was nothing I could do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Did I walk here without realizing it?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had walked and walked, and my body had instinctively come here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like a dog returning home. What a ridiculous notion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing my state, Namgung Bi-ah and Wi Seol-ah seemed to sense that something was off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, considering I had appeared out of nowhere, it was only natural they would react this way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What should I say?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing came to mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, for now, I decided to speak honestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I just wanted to see you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So I came by for a moment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was all I could say at the moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the two widened their eyes in surprise, I stepped closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their frozen expressions were oddly amusing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I chuckled softly and reached out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sssk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ack…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I embraced them, gently but firmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a brief moment, they resisted, but soon enough, they relaxed and leaned into my arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their hair tickled the tip of my nose. The faint scent of their skin soothed my heavy heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though I had hugged them out of the blue, they didn’t say a word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps they were too shocked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I began to feel apologetic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, I felt a gentle hand stroking my back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren’t scolding me but seemed to think this was more important.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I closed my eyes as I felt the comforting touch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘They’re small.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could feel their thin, delicate bodies in my arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though their energy was immense, they themselves were small and fragile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as I received this undeserved comfort, my mind was still racing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I thought about why I clung to this dull life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Ah…’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then I remembered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man, the Clear Sky Sword, once spoke of peace and tranquility.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had asked where my peace lay.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I recalled his wrinkled eyes as he posed the question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the answer I couldn’t give at that time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Perhaps this is my peace.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>May those who died for my sake find peace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And may the lives of those I hold in my arms now be peaceful from this point forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only those in my arms, but also those who gave their lives for me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If my life is dedicated to them, then this life will have been enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten years, was it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I would end the Blood Calamity within that time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if I couldn’t, I would make it happen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I would find a way. I had long abandoned the option of giving up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For that purpose, I could sacrifice anything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could become anything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kuuuuk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I tightened my embrace and buried my face in their shoulders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘I can do it.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I would not crumble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I repeated this to myself over and over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>******************\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next morning, I met the Poison King as soon as dawn broke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I apologize for coming so early, Tang Clan Leader.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The others were just beginning their morning training.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was still early, before breakfast had even been served.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Poison King furrowed his brow as he looked at me, arriving unannounced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I smiled slightly and spoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The lake I mentioned before. May I see it now?”\u003C\u002Fp>",1810,"2026-06-05T15:09:39.032Z",1,"novelbin.me","d63cc2543c6784a2440cc3d74dbf422220583f4ed5f3e90ce1385f480b7d31db","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-432","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-430",974,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fchildhood-friend-of-the-zenith-cover.jpg"]