Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Chapter 320: Ironclad (4)

Woong.

The moment Cheol Jiseon sensed a presence, a barrier formed around him.

He steadied himself, suppressing his trembling as he turned around.

The one he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

“You must have waited for a long time.”

“Not at all…”

Cheol Jiseon turned toward the voice behind him.

A handsome man with a gentle smile stood before him.

The Meteor Sword, Jang Seonyeon.

He came for Cheol Jiseon.

Cheol Jiseon remained still, silently staring at Jang Seonyeon.

From a distance, Gu Yangcheon observed the two of them.

******************

Hmm…

I watched, but the barrier kept me from hearing anything.

I would try to listen if I could.

To hear anything, I’d need to get closer, but using my Qi to break the barrier would alert Jang Seonyeon.

His personality may be shitty, but I can’t deny his talent.

As far as I was concerned, he was worse than trash, but his talent was undeniable.

I sat beneath a tree, and observed Cheol Jiseon and Jang Seonyeon.

When Cheol Jiseon confessed earlier, he mentioned that he had to meet Jang Seonyeon afterward.

Hmm…

Cheol Jiseon’s earlier expression lingered in my mind.

For some reason, he looked at me with a face full of fear.

Why though? I told him that I would let him go.

I didn’t lie.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

I had told him I’d let him go, even though I planned on killing him.

So why did you get scared then?

If that wasn’t the issue, maybe it was when I told him to obey Jang Seonyeon’s orders.

That was possible.

Cheol Jiseon was smart, but he probably didn’t expect me to say such a thing.

Perhaps he thought I had no real intention of letting him live, and that he should take Jang Seonyeon’s side regardless.

That’s his problem if he took it that way though.

It wasn’t something I needed to be concerned about.

Still, I hoped Cheol Jiseon would follow Jang Seonyeon’s orders.

If Cheol Jiseon really wanted to stand by my side,

There is a way I could make use of his power.

But for now, I needed more time to think.

It wasn’t something I expected.

If Cheol Jiseon really was indeed the future strategist of the Murim Alliance, as I remembered from my past life, then his power was truly dangerous.

Though I didn’t know if the current Cheol Jiseon had the same power he had in the future.

The important part was that it was a dangerous power.

It could definitely be useful, but I had to decide if it was worth the risk to accept his power.

What if I turn him into a Demonic Human and put a Shackle on him?

That was the first thought that crossed my mind when I considered making him my servant.

If I turned him into a Demonic Human, I could control him completely.

However,

Just… not yet.

I didn’t want to.

I was reminded of Yeon Il-Cheon calling me a calamity.

I also didn’t want to do the same thing that the Heavenly Demon did in my past life.

“…”

I didn’t think for long.

I shouldn’t even be hesitating.

I was letting my emotions cloud my judgment when I should have been using every tool at my disposal.

However, this was the last line I was willing to cross.

The one that would either transform me into a Demonic Human once again or allow me to remain a normal martial artist.

There was no going back if I crossed it.

I knew it instinctively.

I rubbed my left arm as an ominous feeling settled in my stomach.

It was where the bandage was.

Please wake up now.

The old man appeared and helped me in a crucial moment, but he had fallen silent again, with no response when I called.

Elder Shin’s words lingered in my mind because of that.

-Trust in yourself.

To trust in myself.

It was a very difficult thing to do.

If it were easy, I wouldn’t have lived the way I did in my past life.

“What a pointless thought.”

It was a bitter regret.

I was no different in this life.

Just focus on the future. That’s what matters now.

I needed to organize the information I gained back in the secret vault.

And I still needed to figure out the mystery behind the bandage on my arm.

I wasn’t able to gain anything special from the secret vault, so I had to find the fastest path to reach the Fusion Realm.

Is it the White Demonic Stone, after all?

I considered the method of explosively increasing my Qi capacity to achieve the Fusion Realm.

If I could get the White Demonic Stone buried deep beneath the ocean, I could ascend to the next level.

If that wasn’t an option…

I’d need the legendary herb from Shaolin.

The herb was less potent than the White Demonic Stone, but it could still make the leap possible.

How nonsensical.

The thought left me speechless.

Where would I be able to find a legendary herb like that in the first place?

In the end, the real answer was that I needed to strengthen my mind.

When I considered the conditions to reach the Fusion Realm, I had enough Qi, and though my physique was slightly lacking, that wasn’t what held me back from advancing.

This meant that my mind was the problem.

I have so many problems regarding this, so I don’t know where I would even start tackling it.’

It wasn’t just one or two problems plaguing me, so I didn’t know where to start.

But I had to do it.

I had to begin now if I wanted to surpass the Fusion Realm and even consider aiming for higher levels.

If I relied on the White Demonic Stone to reach the Fusion Realm now, I’d hit my limit far too quickly.

If I chose that path, no matter how many Demons I hunted, I’d never reach the next stage.

Starting from that level, it wasn’t just Qi that mattered after all.

There is no way, seriously.

There was a shortcut, but I knew I wouldn’t reach my ultimate goal if I took it, so I found myself back at square one.

That’s why martial arts could be so frustrating.

There were no shortcuts, but I needed to reach my goal quickly—yet there wasn’t enough time.

There simply wasn’t enough time for me to train properly.

After thinking for a while, I stood up.

Yes… that’s the only way.

Reaching the next level through normal means while saving time.

The problem is, I’d need that bastard to use this method.

Though the problem is that I needed that bastard if I wanted to use this method.

I thought about it while staring at Cheol Jiseon.

Originally, I would’ve given up on this method after killing Cheol Jiseon,

But he’s more useful than I thought.

Cheol Jiseon’s willingness to side with me over Jang Seonyeon gave me reason to consider giving him a chance.

A little more.

I wasn’t certain yet, though.

I still planned to observe him further… but my opinions of him were slowly shifting.

The Heavenly Dragon Academy was a sanctuary for me.

Once I left this place, I’d need to kill whoever stood in my way, gather the important people, and make preparations for what lay ahead.

If I couldn’t trust anyone and had to act alone, then I needed to get rid of the people who were potentially going to become my enemies in the future.

That was the simplest and fastest way.

I kept rubbing my left arm while watching, and it seemed that Cheol Jiseon and Jang Seonyeon’s conversation had come to an end.

I couldn’t see Jang Seonyeon’s disgusting smile anymore since he left the scene.

Seems like there were no issues.

I only had one reason to watch Cheol Jiseon despite already knowing everything.

If something went wrong between them and Jang Seonyeon tried to harm Cheol Jiseon, I’d have to intervene.

Jang Seonyeon wasn’t the type of bastard to kill Cheol Jiseon just because his plans went wrong, but I had to come just in case.

Thankfully though, nothing seemed to have gone wrong.

Once Jang Seonyeon and Cheol Jiseon left, I stood up as well.

“How long is left I wonder.”

In a few days, Jang Seonyeon would likely reach his limit and begin to act.

All I had to do was wait.

I felt excited since I was finally able to get rid of him soon.

I forced that excitement back down.

Tingle.

“…!”

I quickly scanned my surroundings.

“…What was that?”

It felt like something had just brushed past me.

I sharpened my senses, but there was no presence to detect.

“Was it just my imagination?”

I would’ve looked harder if it was a stronger sensation, but it was faint.

Shaking off the thought, I made my way back to my room.

******************

The next day arrived.

Morning sunlight streamed through the windows.

While the other students were making their beds and preparing for the day, I remained in bed, disheveled and dumbfounded, my hair a mess from just waking up.

“…Hmm?”

I wiped the drool from my face, still questioning what had just happened.

The others had stopped what they were doing, all staring in my direction, their faces frozen in shock.

Following their gaze, I saw someone kneeling on the floor, staring right at me.

Their white hands on their knees and their golden eyes staring right into my soul, wasn’t something that belonged in this room at all.

“What did you… just say…?”

“I like you.”

Just as I was about to ask again, wondering if I had misheard, their elegant voice repeated the words.

The same words as before, the ones I thought I had misheard.

“…Uh… Wha?”

I pinched my arm, wondering if I was dreaming, but the sharp pain told me otherwise.

It wasn’t a dream then?

Maybe I could actually feel pain in my dreams.

That seemed more plausible than this bizarre reality.

As I stood there, unsure what to do, the lady continued to stare at me with those same, unwavering eyes.

The woman who had come to me early in the morning to say something so unexpected was none other than Wi Seol-Ah.