Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Bedwetter.

Was it because I saw the face I dreaded to see?

My inadvertent response to his arrival,

Crack-

Was more than enough to put a crack in his mask.

“…I’m not… sure what you are talking about.”

“Maybe you should say that after relaxing your face?”

Just look at this bastard.

As soon as I mentioned him wetting himself, his expression showed he clearly remembered what happened.

I guess he surprisingly was somewhat conscious?

If so, that probably wasn't good for him.

As expected, Namgung Cheonjun’s expression began to rot away as his mask crumbled.

From his reaction, he seemed to believe it had been a dream or hadn't happened at all.

“I even dried your pants so you don’t get humiliated, so shouldn’t you thank me first?”

“…Crack.”

I only did it so that it didn’t embarrass his sister, Namgung Bi-ah, but such a reason would only make him angrier.

“…You bastard…”

See that.

He got angry right away.

That relieved me because it showed he hadn't matured yet.

Not that I intended to go easy on him even if he had matured.

“…I could never be fond of you no matter how many times I see you.”

“I’m the savior of your image, yet the way you speak to me is rather rude.”

Zap.

In the middle of our conversation, I felt a sensation of Qi pass by my cheek.

It was Lightning Qi.

Lightning Qi was flowing out from Namgung Cheonjun’s shoulders.

It was on a whole different level compared to before.

Though it’s not enough.

Even if he had improved, it didn’t matter.

He may have improved, but he still was a young prodigy, and all young prodigies, except for the top two or three, were weaklings to me.

Just as i considered breaking off his Qi that flowed towards me,

Crack.

A larger wave of Qi stormed and devoured his Lightning Qi.

It was also Lightning Qi, but it was much denser and felt more powerful.

After devouring the Lightning Qi that aimed towards me, someone stepped in front of me.

It was Namgung Bi-ah.

“Cheonjun.”

Her cold voice was filled with anger.

It was the first time in a long while I had heard her speak like this.

“What are you doing?”

“…Sister?”

“I asked… what you're doing.”

She didn’t have her sword out, but sharp Qi emanated from Namgung Bi-ah.

It was the Qi of a swordswoman at the beginning stage of perfection after reaching Peak Realm.

She stabilized her Qi and gained control of it only after a year of her overcoming her wall.

…I get surprised every time I see it.

All I could do was be impressed by her.

Watching talents soar higher than the sky from the closest seat was fascinating.

In my past life, I felt jealousy and shame when I saw things like this, but I didn't feel that way anymore.

As thick Lightning Qi enveloped me for protection, Namgung Cheonjun frowned while staring at Namgung Bi-ah.

“I only came to greet him.”

“This isn’t… a greeting.”

Obviously.

What kind of a bastard greets someone like that?

Of course, I was the one that started the heat, but there was no way I could’ve been nice to him since it was obvious what he came here for.

Ha-

Hearing Namgung Bi-ah, Namgung Cheonjun let out an incredulous laughter.

His sigh sounded rather deep.

"So you're still on his side, sister. The bastard isn't your brother, I am."

“…Cheonjun.”

Hearing Namgung Bi-ah respond with an uncomfortable tone, Namgung Cheonjun’s Lightning Qi faded away.

He himself stopped releasing his Qi.

With his threat gone, Namgung Bi-ah also withdrew her sharp Qi. Namgung Cheonjun, still gazing at her,

“…If I knew that this would happen, I wouldn’t have held back.”

Said those words and turned around to walk back into the darkness.

Does it really end here?

Did he come here just for that?

There’s no way.

I frowned slightly and watched Namgung Cheonjun walk away.

I wanted to learn how the bastard ended up like this.

Did he receive Blood Qi again?

When I saw him in the banquet earlier, I thought nothing special had happened since I didn't sense any Blood Qi from his Dantian. But after looking more carefully just now, that wasn't the case.

It wasn’t only his Dantian I should’ve observed.

Blood Qi hadn’t disappeared from Namgung Cheonjun’s body.

The Blood Qi that should have been in his Dantian was instead spreading throughout his body.

The state of one’s Qi being stored in their Dantian with only Blood Qi flowing around their body was a mess I’ve seen many times in my past life.

Though it was Demonic Qi instead of Blood Qi.

Moreover, Qi turning into Demonic Qi made it different, but considering how Demonic Qi naturally merged with the body like Qi in a Peak Realm martial artist, there was only one reason for his condition.

Transformation to a Demonic Human.

Namgung Cheonjun was no different to a Demonic Human right now.

If that was Qi given by the Blood Demon, it was hard to call him a Demonic Human, but he didn’t seem much different in my eyes.

I also didn’t know if he had gone mad after being consumed by madness.

There was a chance that his madness wasn’t noticeable since he was already a crazy bastard before.

If that wasn’t the case, there was a chance he hadn't gone mad at all.

For example, one of the masters of the Demonic Cult, the Sword Demon’s personality didn’t change too much despite being turned into a Demonic Human, because he was a maniac that was obsessed with killing in the first place.

Or perhaps

Blood Qi might not have any relations to madness.

I had to consider many possibilities since I didn’t know much about Qi.

Besides that,

How did the bastard end up that way?

Is it because I neglected him after the Dragons and Phoenixes tournament?

Didn’t I do my job by drying his pants though?

I took care of a full-grown man pissing his pants, so what more could I have done for him?

He should already feel grateful.

Even if Namgung Cheonjun turned into a Demonic-, wait, do I have to call him a Bloody Demon since it’s Blood Qi?

Anyway, even if he turned into one, I had no intention of helping him.

The only thing I knew for sure,

Was that the Blood Demon is making their move.

I didn’t know their goal, but Namgung Cheonjun ending up in such a state probably wasn’t completely his fault.

More importantly

It feels fishy.

The bastard’s body was changing, and it looked very unsettling.

It almost made me want to grab him and pull the Qi out of his body.

My desire to absorb… is it because of the bastard’s hunger?

Was it because there was a pig inside me that ate literally anything?

Or was it because the bastard was fully hostile towards me?

Moreover, no one else seemed to notice this.

Was it because I had received the same Blood Qi from the Blood Demon?

“Sigh.”

A sigh escaped naturally.

Couldn’t they just live peacefully in the afterlife?

If they were troublemakers from centuries ago, they should rest peacefully in their graves.

Why do they have to stay in the world just to cause trouble for me?

I already feel like I’m going insane with other things you know.

It wasn’t just the Blood Demon; many other things kept my life busy every day.

I’d rather not have the calamity of the past add to my problems.

As I sighed with my head in my hands, a cold, white hand reached out and touched my forehead.

It was Namgung Bi-ah’s hand.

“…Are you okay…?”

Her careful voice tone had nervousness mixed within it.

Namgung Bi-ah was worried that I was offended by what Namgung Cheonjun did.

How dull.

She’s still young.

I placed my hand over Namgung Bi-ah’s, and responded.

“I’m fine.”

“…Okay.”

Namgung Bi-ah probably still didn’t understand why I was acting this way.

I probably only looked exhausted in her eyes.

Then what should I do?

If the bastard became corrupt after becoming drunk to his Qi, I honestly didn’t want to care.

I didn’t want to waste my time on someone who became a mess after getting drunk on his Qi.

Though I am concerned since it relates to the Blood Demon.

I didn’t want to get myself involved.

If I hadn’t seen his eyes and heard what he said at the end, I probably wouldn’t have cared all that much.

-…If I knew that this would happen, I wouldn’t have held back.

His eyes were corrupt when he said those words, and I could feel his emotions too clearly. I had to put a Qi barrier around Namgung Bi-ah to shield her.

I didn’t want such toxic emotions to reach her.

I thought about Namgung Cheonjun’s face.

I just hope that he doesn’t cross the last line.

How many times has it been?

It felt like it’s been at least three times.

I fulfilled the Water Dragon's dying wishes and found reasons to hold back many times, so it was hard to hold back now.

It means that there are no more chances.

This warning won’t reach him.

I also didn’t have the kind personality to be patient with him either.

I thought to myself while looking in the direction he disappeared, controlling my killing intent to avoid affecting Namgung Bi-ah.

I prayed that the bastard wouldn’t make any stupid decision, but in my eyes it seemed inevitable.

After staring into the darkness for a moment, I spoke to Namgung Bi-ah next to me.

“First.”

“Hmm…?”

“Go on without me, I have something to take care of.”

“…”

Namgung Bi-ah looked around with clear eyes, wondering if I was searching for something, then nodded as I started to leave her behind.

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

His steps towards the garden were fast.

He went deeper into the forest, so dark it felt like he was stepping into the abyss.

The few trees he saw were so tall and thick they blocked even the moonlight.

This meant the forest was devoid of light.

As Namgung Cheonjun hurried through the forest, a voice echoed in his ears.

-I told you not to overreact.

The voice sounded like telepathy.

It was the voice of a calm lady, but Namagung Cheonjun frowned demonically upon hearing it.

“I told you not to mind my business I recall?”

-Lightning Dragon, I don’t know your history, nor your goal, but I told you that it isn’t time yet.

“Whether it's time or not, will be decided by me.”

-…If you are going to continue being this way, I have no choice but to take away the blessing that the great one has given you.

Namgung Cheonjun stopped in his tracks upon hearing her words.

The lady wondered if she had angered him, but Namgung Cheonjun’s face wore asmirk rather than anger.

“And you have the right to do so?”

-…Lightning Dragon.

The lady’s voice became angrier which was a rare sight.

However, Namgung Cheonjun didn’t care.

"The great one calls you the Dancer, so you think you're worth something. In reality, you're just a parrot delivering the great one's words."

-Watch your words. Even if you’re not completely in the right mind due to being drunk with power…

“I am being careful right now. Like you said, I was given a blessing from the great one.”

It was power that only he received when even the mighty Peng Woojin and the annoying bastard Meteor Sword didn’t.

After losing to the bastard in a humiliating way, Namgung Cheonjun followed Peng Woojin into a basement and was given power after meeting with a great existence.

This meant that he was the chosen one.

He realized this power wasn't a lie as his unstable Lightning Qi grew stronger and his Dantian expanded and solidified.

He even felt like he could so easily overcome the wall to Peak Realm, something he once thought impossible.

A little more.

So a little more.

Until his new power smeared completely into his body, he had to wait just a little more.

According to the great one, once his body becomes one with the power and the Qi returns back to his Dantian, then he would experience a whole new world.

Once that happens, that bastard will finally be…

Namgung Cheonjun planned to tear his limbs apart and burn them.

Then… his beautiful sister will be his once and for all.

After that…

“…Sigh…”

Namgung Cheonjun calmed down his boiling desire and exhaled.

His sister was still beautiful.

She had become much stronger than before.

He remembered when her immense Lightning Qi devoured his own Qi.

His sister was growing powerful, her beauty blossoming along with her strength.

Could she be any more perfect?

As expected from my sister.

Which was why he couldn’t let an insect like him have her.

His sister was being deceived by the bastard.

She was pushing him away because she was manipulated by that insect.

Which was why Namgung Cheonjun had to make her return back to normal.

That’s what the power was for.

“…How much longer do I have to wait?”

Namgung Cheonjun asked the Dancer how much longer he had to wait for the whole process to be finished,

-…

But the Dancer only replied with silence.

The woman with the calm voice was never fond of Namgung Cheonjun's treatment of her, but she had never responded like this before.

Namgung Cheonjun asked again, dubiously,

“Why aren’t you respon- “

“What response?”

Then a response came from elsewhere.

Namgung Cheonjun suddenly felt chills down his back.

He hurriedly charged his inner Qi and turned around,

“…Kughh…!”

But a hand came out in an instant and choked Namgung Cheonjun’s neck.

“I asked, what response?”

Namgung Cheonjun struggled, but it felt like his whole body was immobilized despite only his neck being grabbed.

As Namgung Cheonjun looked, unable to breathe,

“Aren’t you going to respond?”

Radiant red eyes glared up at him with killing intent, illuminating the dark forest.

***

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