[{"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-77":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},1240053,1667,"Chapter 76: Cold in the Midst of Summer (2)","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-77",77,"\u003Cp>༺ Cold in the Midst of Summer (2) ༻\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What was that stench?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah had wondered about that ever since she was young.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wondered why she was the only one able to smell the horrible stench while the others couldn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like she was living in an endless hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A life of endless suffering where she couldn’t even comfortably eat, talk, or even sleep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is it even possible to escape?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah lived a life constantly enveloped by the thick putrid stench, seemingly lost inside a thick and heavy mist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But thankfully, even inside the horrible stench that covered her existence, there was one thing that kept her going.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Swinging her sword gave her a sense of freedom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of that, Namgung Bi-ah became obsessed with the sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>By swinging her sword, she was able to pretend that there was nothing bad around her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So she swung her sword every day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet every time her training ended, the stench kept coming back , and the stench her spectators emitted became stronger and stronger,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah wondered since the stench went away whenever she swung her sword, would it go away completely if she reached the ideal peak of her swordplay?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As a result, she made it her mission to constantly seek out sword wielders stronger than her, challenging them one by one, while dedicating the rest of her time training herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As she grew older, the putrid stench in her home grew stronger as well,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And her aversion to talking to people caused her to become increasingly withdrawn from reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The jealousy, greed, and desire of people could all be felt amidst that stench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe that’s the cause of the stench?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah wasn’t certain about that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She felt like there was something more to it than just that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the days went on, she eventually lost the ability to express her emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She couldn’t remember the last time she had smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps, the day her mother died and she lost her for all eternity was the day she also lost her smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was getting tired of the stench she could feel, even while blocking her nose with her hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wanted to live alone on a mountain, but her clan wouldn’t let her be.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the days passed, the foul smell of the people surrounding her only became increasingly worse, her brother, especially, was changing more and more.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was getting more aggressive as the days went on and his eyes held many disgusting emotions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah was struggling to keep herself going because of everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She idly wondered if she would really be able to find peace once she reached the ideal peak of her sword arts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If there would be peace at the end of her path if she just lived on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wondered whether she was merely grasping onto thin strands of hope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While she was living a life where she felt like she was constantly standing at the edge of a cliff.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She met him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the first time for her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The very first time in her life when the rotten stench that tormented her all throughout her life had completely vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As though the mist and fog that covered her existence were being blown somewhere far away… only peace and tranquility remained when she was around him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The person who had sharp eyes, an annoyed tone of voice, and who constantly told her to stay away from him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah found comfort in his presence, free from the stench that plagued her life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t have the greed and desire that she would often spot in others, instead, he would just look at her with guilt and a hint of desperation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wanted to ask the man a question as he kept looking at her seemingly thinking of someone else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who was he searching for?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What was he thinking, for him to look at her that way?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she couldn’t ask, in the end, so Namgung Bi-ah was still unaware of the intention behind that gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It kept reminding her of the question she was asked by Tang Soyeol recently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you perhaps like Young Master Gu?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah, at the time, really thought that she didn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It certainly wasn’t love she felt towards him at that time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘What about now?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it any different now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She asked herself that question, but no answer came back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a question that was harder to comprehend than the identity of the stench. Harder dielemma than the stench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While she was swinging her sword in the mountain her eyes gaze with the eyes of the guy she had been thinking of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first thing she noticed was his hand which seemed to be wounded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Startled by the sight, she rushed towards him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as she did, she noticed a slight bit of stench coming from him at that moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was slight, but it was certainly the stench she knew all too well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah felt like the world was crumbling around her at that moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She kept telling herself that it wasn’t true and grabbed him and smelled him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Begging in her mind for it to not be true.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was the only one who could provide her comfort in this world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was able to eat comfortably,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And she didn’t have nightmares when she was next to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was even able to be around people when he was by her side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was finally learning how to become a proper human,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…So she couldn’t afford to lose him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thankfully,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The slight bit of stench she had felt on him was no more, assuring her that it was just her mistake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she was assured that her peace wouldn’t go away, her legs lost strength, and she collapsed onto the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He came closer to her and carefully wiped away the cold sweat that was flowing down her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She grabbed his arm and pulled it towards her nose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was worried that she would lose her peace once again, which made her do that subconscious action.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘I see.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So that’s what despair felt like.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The peace she experienced had taught her the fear of losing something she adored.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She told herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That she could never let him go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To Namgung Bi-ah, the title ‘fiancé’ that was seemingly meaningless before, now appeared to be a blessing she probably won’t ever find again in her life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She imagined her life without him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A life filled with that horrible stench that she was forced to live in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Could she really return to that life?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah held his hand more firmly after imagining a life she despised with her very being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>* * * *\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Namgung Bi-ah seemed a bit off, so I had no choice but to go back to the lodge with her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why is she sweating so much?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I heard that not even dogs get would catch a cold in the summer… Did she get a flu?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘A flu for a martial artist huh…’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was very hard to get a flu if a person had Qi inside their body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially for a person like Namgung Bi-ah who was a high-level martial artist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was wondering if it was something other than a flu, so I told her to go see a doctor, but she shook her head and just went to go wash herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Master, Young Master!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the time to eat dinner came, Wi Seol-Ah stubbornly stuck by my side.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had to go through the trouble of calming her down because she was about to cry when she saw my wounded hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wi Seol-Ah also looked like she was really into cooking lately, because she kept bringing me food.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though the Mount Hua Sect gave us food already.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, it wasn’t some grand meal being served to us because it was a Taoist clan, but I didn’t care as long as I got to fill my stomach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘…I think it’s been a while since I had a dumpling.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like it’s been a few days since I’d eaten them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I should buy some when I go to the market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Though I don’t think I’ll be going there for a while.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because of Mount Hua’s location, it was a hassle to go down the mountain and then climb back up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a bite of this nameless mysterious food Wi Seol-Ah brought me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was very uncomfortable for me as she was looking at me so excitedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As soon as I had eaten the food, I had to spit it out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Salty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…R… Really?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just because of one word, tears welled up in the corner of her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I knew she worked hard on the food, so I patted her head and revealed that I was just joking.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m kidding, it’s tasty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey… You’re so cruel for joking all the time…!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I can’t help it because your reactions are always so funny.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I now didn’t have a problem with touching her hair anymore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did I become less hesitant?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wi Seol-Ah, who was leaning her head into my hand, was looking at me with round puppy eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Bfefgh!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Woah, it even stretches!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What sensation is this? Now I know why Gu Huibi was so surprised when she touched her cheeks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this is what it feels like.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Beghh…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, sorry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wi Seol-Ah was glaring at me while rubbing her cheeks; I might have stretched it a bit too hard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I then asked her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where is Elder Wi?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I assumed that Wi Seol-Ah didn’t come back to Mount Hua by herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I expected that the Sword Emperor would come with her, but I couldn’t see him anywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wi Seol-Ah responded while rubbing her cheeks that had turned red.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Grandpa said he’ll come back after he takes care of something!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Takes care of something, huh.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What did the Sword Emperor have to do in Shaanxi for him to leave Wi Seol-Ah alone?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wasn’t worried about him or anything but I was curious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why did the Sword Emperor come to Shaanxi, and why is the Immortal Healer here?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And about Zhuge Hyuk being the grandson of the Immortal Healer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Why are there so many?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disappearance of the Mount Hua Sect’s people, and the state of the Plum Blossom Sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each incident would already shake the world on its own, but now they had combined into one and resulted in the creation of a huge problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I felt like there was one thing that was involved with all the problems.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hmm?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your face turned ugly again…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…What did you say?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It’s been a while since I was insulted for my looks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it wasn’t too damaging because I had already been called a mantis before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t go around saying that to people.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Because real ugly people would get hurt by it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But you do become ugly when you make that face…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Right.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I felt like I was getting stabbed in the heart because of her words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Pretty girls, I swear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She probably said that because I was frowning while thinking about all the complicated things, so I should make some time in the future and educate her on the ways of speaking to others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢…I think she said that because you really do look ugly…｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Please stay quiet.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heart is already hurt enough and yet you are still adding more salt to the wound…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I ate some more greens and finished the dinner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I told Wi Seol-Ah to take care of Namgung Bi-ah because she didn’t come out to eat, apparently, she wasn’t feeling well.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was looking around thinking about taking a walk,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>– Hya!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>– Mind your legs!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>– Your arms have been neglected!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I heard the third-generation students training outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I believe that it was due to the upcoming event that concerned them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I guess it’s a tournament that the students of the Mount Hua Sect will be participating in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I believe that I will go back to my clan around the time that event ends.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I asked Yung Pung and he said that it lasts around one to two days, so it wasn’t that long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I prayed in my heart that nothing bad would happen during those days.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘The problem is the demonic Qi I had felt earlier.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flies that belonged to the Black Palace.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But to call it a demonic Qi felt like their inside was too nasty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be more specific, it was low quality and felt imperfect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like a cheap version of the demonic Qi I felt from the demonic cult.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So I believed that it wasn’t related to the Heavenly Demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢Are you thinking of those guys from earlier?｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Yes, something about them is bothering me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢Are they famous?｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I wouldn’t say that they are famous, but they aren’t too secretive either.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The leader of the Black Palace was one of the masters that represented the Unorthodox Faction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when the Black Dragon had been slain by the Sword Emperor, the Lord of the Black Palace remained calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘Was I too careless?’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was because I knew they would be destroyed by the Murim Alliance a few years later, but now I feel conflicted after learning that the Black Palace could’ve been the origin of demonic Qi when I believed that it was the Heavenly Demon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not going to just ignore this since I did let one of them get away.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢They probably know that this was informed to the sect leader of Mount Hua, so they wouldn’t act recklessly.｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I knew that they had received heavy casualties, but I still believed that they wouldn’t just take this lying down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>‘The Celestial Plum Blossom would take care of the rest in this area.’\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had many other things to think about besides this shitty situation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was impossible to find some information about the Black Palace in Shaanxi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While I was making my way back to the lodge, putting aside my complicated thoughts, someone from afar ran toward me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Master Gu!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Yung Pung covered in sweat from head to toe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What the hell…?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master Yung Pung..?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Are you going out for some training after dinner?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh…? No?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The air tonight is quite fresh. I think that you would feel refreshed if you trained tonight!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Oh, I see.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did this guy train non-stop from morning until night?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢I like him the most out of the group, with his talent and efforts, the strongest martial artist of the Mount Hua Sect in the near future will definitely be him.｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Elder Shin had pointed out enthusiastically,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yung Pung would come to represent the Mount Hua Sect in the future as long as history doesn’t change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As long as some crazy maniac doesn’t annihilate Mount Hua all by themselves, that is.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Fuck.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh? Did you say something, Young Master Gu?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No, it’s nothing, really.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh… I see. If you are free, how about you do some after-dinner training?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with that intense training he had conducted in the morning, he still looked refreshed while asking for more training.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wanted to just lay down back at my place because of the many troublesome things that took place today,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But seeing Yung Pung like that stimulated me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s go, then.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yeah, a little bit of training wouldn’t hurt anyone because I would just go to sleep anyways.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…I regretted that after only a few minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>* * * *\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Mount Hua Sect is a crazy place indeed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…Ugh…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The after-dinner training I joined as I had gotten tempted by Yung Pung’s words ended in me running away from it not even halfway in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Putting aside the absurd training regimen, what kind of crazy maniac carries a boulder on their back and climbs a cliff?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet, there were other equally grueling exercises that I had to endure repeatedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My muscles were dying while screaming in pain, but Yung Pung looked like he was enjoying himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could a guy like that face a wall that he couldn’t overcome?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did something happen to him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢Are you sure it’s not because you stimulated him?｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What kind of person changes that much just because of one duel?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>｢You don’t know that.｣\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did the duel we have really change him that much?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If that was the case, I was relieved since he had changed for the better, but it was also scary how he changed that much over such a short period of time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When I told him that I couldn’t take it anymore and that I was leaving, Yung Pung looked disappointed and said that he’ll train a little more and then return to his quarters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I barely listened to him and quickly came down the mountain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My body was at its limit because of everything that happened in the daytime, plus the dinner training I did with an already exhausted body.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I went back to the lodge, washed myself with cold water, and changed into clean clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wanted to sleep immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because I didn’t get much sleep last night, I felt like I’ll be able to have a deep sleep tonight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was my thought before I opened my door,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>– Slide\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Young Mast—!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>– Slide, Tap—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“…?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I quickly closed the door without noticing myself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could’ve sworn I saw Namgung Bi-ah and Wi Seol-Ah inside…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was just a hallucination, right…?\u003C\u002Fp>",2915,"2026-06-05T15:09:38.751Z",1,"novelbin.me","443a409fb497229dd280eef2012699eeaac8589c8c526c9e1bfef4ef27b8a428","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-78","childhood-friend-of-the-zenith-chapter-76",974,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fchildhood-friend-of-the-zenith-cover.jpg"]