Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Bijuu the Dishonored Venerable.

One of the Heavenly Venerables who was known to be the absolute of the Central Plains and despite having reached the Transcendence realm, he never let go of his defeat.

He was known to be the peak in the art of close combat and many people called him a monster who reached the peak of martial arts through experience in real combat.

I could feel the clear difference between us when I fought against him in my past life.

Be it his gaze or the movement of his hands or feet, I was truly able to understand why the Dishonored Venerable was called the peak in the art of close combat.

He truly was a monster.

It wasn’t a random compliment people usually gave prodigies, but instead, the Dishonored Venerable was a martial artist who showed just what a human could achieve.

If the Demonic Sword had arrived even a little late back then, I would’ve surely died at that spot.

The injury I received that day was so bad that it couldn’t be healed without help from the Heavenly Demon.

Moreover, I was able to understand just how powerful he was when even the Heavenly Demon, who I thought of as inhuman, complimented the Dishonored Venerable after seeing him.

With one step, he could make the earth move, and with one strike of the fist, he was able to break an entire mountain.

He didn’t refuse any challenge nor was he hesitant to experience defeat.

Back when he used to be a Young Prodigy, the Dishonored Venerable said this; that even if he is defeated, as long as his breath remained, he would win one day.

His words were full of confidence and arrogance, yet the man born in the Bi Clan, who was called the Iron Dog of Defeat back then, proved himself by defeating three out of the Four Emperors and Eight Kings all by himself, changing their epithet to the Four Emperors and Five Kings.

And with that, the man has bestowed a title, the Dishonored Venerable.

The Dishonored Venerable who reached the summit, spent the rest of his life in the west, and then around 10 years ago, he hid himself from the rest of the world one summer.

It was around then when he surrendered everything and received a younger body.

I controlled my emotions and gazed at the young man right before me.

The young man had long, messy black hair and black eyes that no light could enter.

He’s certainly different compared to my past life.

He definitely looked much younger.

However,

Gulp–

Was it because I knew he was the Dishonored Venerable?

Or was it because of this sensation that kept poking my back?

I kept gulping nervously.

Bijuu…

Compared to when I met the Sword Emperor of this time period, it felt different.

The Sword Emperor was truly a powerless old man.

When I tried to observe him or see what was inside him, I was unable to feel anything.

That meant that the difference in strength between us two was really great, which was obvious since there were probably around 10 people in the entire Central Plains who were powerful enough to do so.

And one of those ten people that I was talking about was right in front of me.

However, I wasn’t sure if that was still the case.

I can’t see anything.

I wasn’t able to observe the Dishonored Venerable’s level at my current level?

Was it because of the difference in strength?

I didn’t think so.

It was most likely because the Dishonored Venerable was doing a good job hiding his Qi.

That either meant he was very skilled in hiding and controlling his Qi.

Or it could’ve also meant that perhaps the price he paid for gaining eternal youth was a decline in his level.

But judging from what I saw in my past life, I don’t think that’s the case.

The Dishonored Venerable from that time was comparable to other Heavenly Venerables despite gaining Eternal Youth.

His body had gotten weaker and all of his Qi must’ve scattered away and disappeared, so how was he able to recover it all in just a few decades?

I couldn’t even imagine it.

That meant that he was already working hard in order to achieve what he once had.

In order to do that, he would need to have that much talent and encounter enough miracles to recover all of his Qi though.

As I was thinking hard about the Dishonored Venerable…

Step.

“…!”

The Dishonored Venerable, no, the young man who was now called Bi Eejin, took a step forward.

Step.

He walked slowly, but his gaze and footsteps were headed towards me.

What the fuck?

I held my breath.

Seeing that man appear randomly out of nowhere, I was already feeling conflicted enough that that man, but did he have something to do with m–

-I will come visit you one day.

Oh.

Only then did I remember the letter the Dishonored Venerable had sent me.

…He didn’t come here to see me, right?

Surely not. The great Dishonored Venerable definitely wouldn’t be that free to come all the way here for such a thing.

Did the Dragon Warrior attend the Heavenly Dragon Academy in my past life?

I couldn’t remember.

Dragon Warrior or whatnot, I didn’t even care about him until I heard that the Dishonored Venerable was the Dragon Warrior, so how would I know?

Maybe he doesn’t know who I am?

I hoped for an instant.

He didn’t even know what I looked like, so I could just pretend that I was–

“Ah, Young Master Bi! Over here! This person is Young Master Gu I’ve been telling you about!”

“…”

Thanks to Tang Soyeol cheerfully shouting next to me, my master plan fell to pieces before I even had the chance to implement it.

Not knowing how I was feeling, Tang Soyeol continued speaking with a bright smile.

And she even whispered in my ear, as if she was proud.

“I bragged a ton about you, Young Master.”

“What… did you tell him?”

“I told him that you looked amazing in the tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes, that you look extremely handsome… and that you are super strong?”

“…”

What should I do?

I was fucked.

It would be fine if I just ran away, right?

Ever since I became aware of Bi Eejin’s presence, I already started looking for escape routes,

Tap.

But by the time I could act on it, Bi Eejin was already standing right in front of me.

It was too late.

Even if I charged my Qi, it was impossible to run away from this distance.

I could perhaps charge right at him?

That might honestly be better.

“…”

His pupils were heavy.

His eyes looked dark and empty, and I couldn’t tell what he was thinking.

With my body completely tensed up, I sharpened my senses to the maximum as I looked at Bi Eejin.

It was so that I could react immediately, no matter what happened.

Then…

Shift.

As if he was waiting to do so, Bi Eejin made his move.

******************Bibi, the youngest of the three children of the Bi Clan, had a strange thought as she looked at her second older brother.

How fascinating, for older brother to show interest in someone.

For some reason, her older brother who only seemed to be interested in resting at his place or taking a walk outside was now showing interest in an outsider.

Though it wasn’t that he didn’t have any interest in others as he left to go see his friend from time to time, as she never saw it herself, Bibi always believed that her older brother was lying to her.

She didn’t believe that he could find a friend with that nasty personality of his.

Her older brother, who was three years older than her, was a very strange person even to her.

While others risked their lives to fight for the position of Lord in their clan, her second brother let the first brother have the Young Lord position, and neither did he show any interest regarding that matter.

Even though second brother should be much stronger…

It seemed like he was keeping it a secret, but a few years ago, Bibi saw it all. Back then, her first brother was beaten up by her second brother in the middle of the night.

She didn’t know the reason but believed that her first brother must’ve annoyed him.

After that day, she also knew that her first brother became quiet for a while.

Moreover, her second brother was one of the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes while her first brother failed to earn a spot.

Bibi was proud of that fact.

It was she who forced her second brother to participate in the tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes, when he himself said that he didn’t want to do so.

She wanted the world to acknowledge her brother’s strength and after earning himself the Dragon Warrior title, he gained the attention of the world for a while, but since then, the man didn’t seem to have any intention of leaving the clan.

Father is also strange.

The Lord of the Bi Clan, her father, also seemed strange.

The difference in treatment was completely different.

Her father did his best to make her first brother work hard, yet he paid no attention to her second brother, it was like he gave up on him.

No, it seemed like he did care a little, because he sent letters to her from time to time, asking about how he was doing.

Though she didn’t understand why he asked her and not to him …

Anyway, her father didn’t look for her second brother.

In fact, it was her second brother who visited her father when he needed to, and every time he did, Bibi noticed that her father’s expression worsened.

…Is he being scolded?

She even had a funny thought; where her brother was scolding her father.

However, believing that couldn’t be the case, she erased that thought immediately.

Like back when he participated in the tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes, their trip to Henan had a similar goal.

Bibi wanted her second brother to leave the clan.

Taking advantage of her weak self, she made a bunch of plans…

But weirdly enough…

-Let’s go.

He agreed to accompany her without saying anything.

Because of that, she felt a bit suspicious.

And just in case he tried to run away, she even tied him up with ropes on their way here.

How strange.

Bibi found it strange that the man, who despised the idea of going outside, followed her to the Heavenly Dragon Academy without complaining.

She even planned to starve for a week to convince him.

It was also a miracle that we ran into Young Lady Tang midway.

Bibi also found it fascinating that they coincidently ran into the famous Poison Phoenix during their trip.

Bibi directed her gaze at Tang Soyeol.

She’s so pretty…

She had hair with a pretty color, big round eyes, and even a dot underneath her eye which was charming.

Moreover, she even seemed talented enough in martial arts for her to earn herself the title of Poison Phoenix.

To Bibi, Tang Soyeol was a fascinating person.

It was a completely new experience for her to travel with someone she respected.

However, there was one strange thing.

I didn’t think that her personality was like this.

She thought of Tang Soyeol as the daughter of a noble clan, quiet and cold, passionate but had respect…

But then how come…

“Young Master, you see, I ran into a Demon on my way here, and…”

The manner in which she was chatting with the unknown man next to her was completely unexpected.

Bibi wasn’t necessarily disappointed by it, but she definitely wasn’t used to it.

Shortly after, Bibi turned her away from Tang Soyeol to another person.

It was the person Tang Soyeol was talking to.

That person…

It was the martial artist who seemed to have piqued her brother’s interest, and the man that Tang Soyeol kept talking about on their way here.

The True Dragon, Gu Yangcheon.

He was the last martial artist to join the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes.

He looks so scary.

That was her first reaction.

His face was decent, but his eyes were sharp and he always had a frown on his face, as if something made him feel unpleasant, which made it hard for her to approach him.

Even my second brother doesn’t look like that.

Even Bi Eejin, who people called cold and expressionless, didn’t seem that bad.

From the way Tang Soyeol described him, she wondered just how handsome Gu Yangcheon was…

…?

Yet after seeing him, Bibi only felt more confused.

He wasn’t ugly, but he wasn’t that handsome either.

Furthermore…

…!

Bibi accidentally gasped as she glanced around.

It was because of the people sitting next to Gu Yangcheon.

What the— how can a human look like that…?

A cold-looking lady with bluish-white hair was sitting next to him.

Her gaze was only fixed on Gu Yangcheon, but it also seemed like she was aware of her surroundings.

Dribble–

After refilling Gu Yangcheon’s cup right after it became empty, she glanced at Tang Soyeol who was talking to Gu Yangcheon.

Because of how beautiful she was, even her very appearance looked like a painting.

The lady beside her was incredibly beautiful as well, but she felt diff–

Wait, isn’t she the Snow Phoenix?

Bibi observed the lady with narrow eyes.

The lady was wearing a light blue outfit and had glossy black hair.

She had a beautiful body, and her pupils looked like they contained the light of the sky.

That outfit of hers definitely belonged to the Moyong Clan, and from what Bibi heard, the Snow Phoenix was the only person with such characteristics.

…The Poison Phoenix and the Snow Phoenix… what is going on?

Why does the True Dragon have such ladies around him?

Bibi felt like her mind was getting more muddled due to the situation.

In an inn, which barely had any people, were four of the Dragons and Phoenixes.

Almost as if this was the tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes…

As Bibi’s mind was about to overheat due to the uncomfortable situation she was in…

Perhaps this isn’t so bad?

She also felt that it was fine as it was a fascinating situation.

When would she ever get to experience something like this?

I need to remain positive.

Bibi nodded her head.

She had to observe how her brother would handle the situation.

I wonder what he’s up to.

Bi Eejin walked slowly and stopped right in front of the True Dragon.

She felt a bit nervous seeing that.

Whenever he did something like that, he either broke someone to fix them, or he would fix someone who was broken.

…You aren’t going to beat him up, right?

She knew that her brother was a crazy person, but surely, even he wouldn’t punch another Drago–

Maybe not?

Considering how he beat up everyone, whether they were Dragons or not during the tournament of Dragons and Phoenixes, she believed that he might actually do it.

Then, Bibi noticed that Bi Eejin’s hand started to move.

Fuck, it’s all over. It’s really happening, isn’t it?

It seemed like he would slap him.

Bibi moved quickly.

She planned to pull Bi Eejin away…

“Broth…!”

But before she could reach him, Bi Eejin spoke.

Bi Eejin’s hand quickly went towards Gu Yangcheon…

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Eh?”

And then he asked Gu Yangcheon for a handshake.

Seeing that, Bibi came to a stop.

“I am Bi Eejin from Bi Clan.”

“Huh?”

That rock of a person was greeting someone?

As if proving her wrong, Bi Eejin continued to speak while staring at Gu Yangcheon.

“Are you Brother Gu, who is also known as the True Dragon?”

It seemed like Bibi wasn’t the only one who was surprised, because she saw Gu Yangcheon was also staring at Bi Eejin dumbfoundedly.

It almost seemed like he didn’t expect this either.

However, the silence lasted only for a moment as Gu Yangcheon nodded his head slightly in response to Bi Eejin’s greeting.

“I see.”

Then, Bi Eejin smiled after receiving a response.

Bibi started to sweat.

Whenever her brother smiled like that…

“It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you from my master.”

He was bound to wreak havoc.

Though the strange thing was that Gu Yangcheon also made a weird expression after hearing Bi Eejin.

How do I say this? …It looks like he’s personally informing him that he’s fucked?

That’s what it felt like.

It was just a simple greeting, was there any need for him to react like that…?

That question only bothered her for a brief moment.

Wait, brother had a master?

Bibi pondered over what Bi Eejin just said.

She had never seen him learning martial arts from someone else.

Father didn’t assign any mentor to her second brother, and Bi Eejin grew stronger without needing one.

But then…

Master?

Bibi was unable to understand who he was referring to.

As the situation slowly continued to flow…

Pitter-patter.

Patter.

Bibi turned her head and looked outside the window as she heard an unexpected sound.

“Rain?”

It was raining outside.

It wasn’t heavy, but it wasn’t normal for it to rain like this during winter l.

Snow seemed to be more fitting for this cold weather, but as if that wasn’t important, it started raining outside.