Childhood Friend of the Zenith

While waiting for the second portion of the exam to start, I spaced out as I gazed at the sky in boredom.

There are no stars.

The sun had begun to set, but the stars still hadn’t come out yet.

I kept gazing at the twilight sky as I circulated my Qi inside my body.

While remaining alert so as to not harm my veins, I direct my Qi towards my upper Dantian.

After circulating my Qi for some time…

Tap, tap.

The tip of the flow which was thin like a thread, knocked on the entrance of my upper Dantian.

It was too thin and light to break through, however, the important thing was that I reached it.

It took me a while, but in the end,  I managed to reach it.

The fact that I reached it meant that I had created a path, so all I had to do was keep paving that same path.

However, the amount of time that process takes is rather troublesome.

Unlike my past life, I didn’t have a body that had Qi pour down like a waterfall, and Elder Shin taught me how important it was to be able to compress and control my Qi.

I would have to reinforce this thin thread gradually and it would take me a lot of hard work and pain to break through this sturdy wall blocking that path.

And if I were to attain enlightenment, I could possibly break it in one go…

…But considering that I know everything, there’s no way that’s going to happen…

And I would have to wait until I reached the Fusion realm to attain any further enlightenment.

Or…

I could also consume the White Demonic Stone.

The White Demonic Stone is hidden somewhere deep inside the basement.

If I found it, I could forcefully break through the wall, but my plan was to consume it only after I reached the Fusion realm.

That would be the only way for me to consume it efficiently without wasting it.

“Ugh…”

As I continued circulating my Qi, I could hear someone groaning beneath me.

“Stay quiet, will you?”

“…I’m… trying… my best.”

“Oh, are you talking back to me?”

After hearing his words, I directed my Qi away from my upper Dantian and increased my body weight.

“Ughh!”

Then, my chair, Gu Jeolyub, screamed…

Thud!

And he fell to the ground.

Despite that, I didn’t stop talking.

“Why? Is even this much difficult to endure?”

“…”

Gu Jeolyub looked rather frustrated, but I wasn’t done yet.

“You almost failed because of your lack of spirit.”

“…”

Gu Jeolyub’s expression turned sour as my words hit him right where it hurt.

Of course, they would.

“I worked so hard to get you to where you are today, but what do you do? You almost fail just because you tripped?”

“…Ngh…”

“Why can’t this bastard at least take a real test seriously? How about just getting rid of your surname huh? This old brother can’t even lift his head up because of your embarrassing display.”

“But I’m older than you …”

“Oh, is that so? Then act your age, Master of the Sword of Heroic Flame!”

“…Oufgh.”

Having nothing more to say, Gu Jeolyub lowered his head.

I swear, this crazy fucker…

I barely held myself back as I watched his attempt.

He almost let go of his Qi just because he tripped?

Whether he did some build up before his strike, or if he just struck it, all that counted as a single attempt.

However, he wasn’t allowed to break the flow of his Qi.

That was the only rule.

Yet this bastard almost broke the flow of his Qi flow just because he messed up his movement.

Something similar happened in his last fight too. This bastard always messed up in critical situations because he felt nervous or something.

It’s fortunate that he managed to leave a small mark with his sword without retrieving his Qi.

“I would have destroyed you instead of the pillar if you failed.”

“…”

Being reminded of what happened to the stone pillar during my attempt, Gu Jeolyub’s face instantly turned pale blue.

Even Gu Yeonseo managed to pass without any issues.

Her performance wasn’t outstanding when compared to the others…

But she still passed.

I glanced at Gu Yeonseo who was at some distance.

She was still spacing out, but her eyes held some light in them now.

It doesn’t seem like she’s chasing after her sword.

I was glad.

I just hoped that she would chase after the Sword Queen’s spirit and not her sword. Chasing after the Sword Queen’s sword implied that a blood relative of the Gu Clan was now chasing Mount Hua’s sword.

Though I wasn’t sure if she would succeed.

As for the others … they should be fine on their own.

I wasn’t allowed to move around as I wanted, so I had no clue what they were up to.

I was sure that it was the same for them, but I wasn’t worried.

They would be fine even if I wasn’t there.

However,

Wi Seol-Ah.

Why was Wi Seol-Ah here?

Moreover,

She managed to overcome her wall.

As it had been a long time since I met Wi Seol-Ah, I could see that she was now a martial artist who had reached the Peak realm.

And even though Wi Seol-Ah had no previous knowledge of martial arts, it only took her around two years to overcome her wall.

It wasn’t something that could be simply labeled as talent.

Furthermore,

Is it inevitable?

Wi Seol-Ah ended up wielding a sword, and I wondered if I could do anything about that.

A lot of things had changed, but everything about Wi Seol-Ah remained the same.

Would all my struggles even make any difference?

Stop this nonsense.

After thinking for a while, I smirked.

I saw Gu Jeolyub stare at me in a strange manner, so I increased my weight.

“Agh!”

There were many things that I wouldn’t be able to change in this world …

But I had to change what I could.

After all, it was too late for me to give up.

There must be a reason why I returned.

A reason for me to regress through time.

And with all the things that happened, it would be strange to label it as a mere ‘miracle’.

Lately, I’ve also been feeling like someone sent me through time for a reason.

…

It would be nice if it was just a speculation, but as always, my premonitions were never wrong.

My life was truly filled with misfortune.

“…Tsk.”

“Uh, Young Master… Could you please ge– “

“Shut up. I’m in a bad mood right now.”

“Understood…”

Things I wanted to remain the same, changed.

Yet the things I wanted to change didn’t.

How infuriating.

My life was already on a rather extreme level of difficulty, yet there were no rewards for all my hard work.

What is it that you want from me?

It was obvious that the sky wasn’t going to give me an answer and if I asked someone else, they would treat me like a lunatic. All I could do was just ask myself.

And in the end, I just arrived at one conclusion.

Even if it seemed impossible, it was the only feasible option for me.

First…

Wi Seol-Ah and Jang Seonyeon.

I had to look into the more pressing matters.

I gazed at where the first group was.

It doesn’t seem like they’ve gotten engaged yet.

Wi Seol-Ah was a little over the age of twenty when she got engaged in my past life.

It wasn’t long after I became a Demonic Human.

So that meant that I could still prevent that from happening.

But the problem was…

I wonder if it’ll cause any issues if I prevent their engagement.

As a matter of fact, I wasn’t someone who could put a stop to their engagement, and if I did prevent it, I also had to think about the possible consequences Wi Seol-Ah or I would have to face.

There aren’t any for now.

I’m sure there were one or two things, but those were things I could handle, so if I excluded those things, then there weren’t any major problems.

At least that’s what I felt like.

Despite that, one thing made me hesitate.

Why did the Sword Emperor choose the Taeryung Clan?

Be it in this life or my past life, I still had no clue as to why the Sword Emperor went to the Taeryung Clan.

The Lord of the Taeryung Clan was the current Alliance Leader and being the previous Leader of the Murim Alliance, perhaps the Sword Emperor was sort of dependent on him.

But I feel like there’s another reason.

The reason the Sword Emperor left the Gu Clan and went to the Taeryung Clan.

And that was what I had to figure out.

It was necessary as I didn’t want her to be harmed in any manner.

Only then would I be able to kill Jang Seonyeon without hesitation.

As I continued pondering over the matter…

-The second part of the exam will begin soon, so prepare yourselves.

I could hear the instructors shouting from a distance.

It seemed like the long wait had finally come to an end.

However,  I was a bit disappointed as I wanted to bully Gu Jeolyub for a little longer.

However, I couldn’t help but frown as soon as I heard about the content for the second portion of the exam.

******************Now, back to the present.

The lady in front of me got into her battle stance, while I, on the other hand, remained speechless.

For this part of the exam, we had to fight against one of the instructors.

This just felt nonsensical and it seemed like they didn’t put in any effort while planning these tests, but judging from the amount of time they took for this simple test, they had most probably made this up on the spot.

Too many people must have passed the first test.

They had obviously chosen this method to filter out the large number of successful applicants.

This will only be more work for the instructors, yet they’re still going with it.

If it were up to me, I would’ve just failed people who seemed to be lacking.

Well, they probably didn’t want to half-ass things due to their pride as an Orthodox Sect.

Even so, sparring with an instructor?

Hopefully, there wasn’t some absurd condition like winning against them.

If that was the case, the higher-ups from the Clans and Sects would’ve protested.

Because of this, although the test wasn’t easy, their standards had to be low.

“I understood that much.”

“Then?”

“Isn’t my assigned opponent a bit strange?”

Everything was fine and dandy.

And I would have gladly taken the test, but out of all the people present,  why was she my opponent?

I stared at my opponent with a very unpleasant look.

The person most beloved in the Central Plains, and the person who was handed the title of Sword Queen in the ‘cleanest’ manner.

The Plum Blossom Sword, Soi; my sparring partner for this round.

Yes, but why?

It was understandable that the Sword Queen would be a part of this as she was one of the instructors, but I clearly remember that the notice said that she wasn’t going to be involved in this test.

“So, why are you in front of me again?”

“It seems like you heard a false rumor. Why would I not be? I’m one of the instructors after all.”

Hearing the Sword Queen’s denial, my eyes spontaneously narrowed my eyes.

“…Do you swear on Mount Hua’s honor?”

As I narrowed my eyes and asked her with a look of suspicion, I saw her shoulders flinch for a moment.

“…How can a mere martial artist like me swear on Mount Hua’s pride? You’ve gone too far.”

“Are you changing the subject?”

“…”

So she did lie.

And she indeed came just for me.

It would also be an insult to Mount Hua’s honor if she lied as a Sword Queen.

Hmm…

So, she wasn’t supposed to be here, but she came just to fight me?

“Why?”

“…”

The Sword Queen did not respond.

And seeing by how she kept avoiding eye contact, it seemed like she did not intend to respond either.

As she raised her sword, the Sword Queen spoke to me.

“ Gu Yangcheon of the Second group… Your test begins now.”

“…It’s a bit too late for you to try to act dignified.”

She was telling me to come at her.

While watching the others, who had already started, I wondered if I was going to have it easy …

But they can’t make it too easy.

If one had to satisfy the instructor to pass the exam, it was obvious why the Sword Queen insisted on fighting against me.

She was warning me to not take this lightly.

Hmm…

The Sword Queen’s stance wasn’t anything special.

The tip of her sword aimed at me was steady, and her gaze was clear and her posture calm.

Her seemingly ordinary posture and gaze felt especially heavy because she was a martial artist who reached my ideal ‘Fusion realm’.

So far, I had only fought against a handful of Fusion realm martial artists.

However, if I thought about the assassin from the Hwangbo Clan…

She’s on an entirely different level

Her level was way too high to use a mere bastard like him for comparison.

Moreover, unlike how I killed him by using Demonic Qi while he let his guard down, it was impossible for me to do the same for the Sword Queen.

Not all Peak realms were the same.

This was more prominent in the Fusion realm.

It would’ve been clearer to me if I fought against Fusion realms of different levels, but for now, I had to focus on the Sword Queen in front of me.

Sword Queen…

The Sword Queen.

That title alone was enough.

The fact that she was bestowed that title, meant that she was recognized as the greatest swordswoman of the current generation.

It might have seemed like she was a bit lacking as she was just a mere instructor at the Academy, but she chose to do this.

And that didn’t mean that all her experience as a martial artist went away either.

“One last question.”

“Go ahead.”

“You will hold back a little, right?”

“…Hmm.”

The Sword Queen smiled upon hearing my question and then spoke.

“We’ll see.”

Fuck me.

She has no intention of doing so.

I could only nod my head with certainty on hearing the Sword Queen’s response.

Slam.

Then, I stomped on the ground and charged at the Sword Queen.

Seeing a look of shock on the Sword Queen’s face, I swung my fist full of Qi without any hesitation.

Blaze!

As the flames erupted, Qi and wind mingled to form a storm, and following my will, the burning flames began to engulf the Sword Queen.

In the midst of all this,

Rustle.

Small plum tree leaves began mixing with the flames.

******************Craaack!

At a field behind the forest, the first group taking their exam turned towards the monstrous sound they heard.

It was pretty strange to see dozens of Young Prodigies and instructors participating in the test stop what they were doing and look in one direction.

Being martial artists, a loud noise was not enough to elicit a reaction like this from them.

What drew their attention and forcefully pulled their gazes was the Qi mixed with heat that poked at their instincts as a martial artist.

Just who was it?

Who was capable of producing Combat Qi so dense that it reached this far?

“Cough, cough…”

The horrifying aura made it hard to breathe and the weaker Young Prodigies struggled as they continued to cough.

With the present situation making it difficult for the Young Prodigies to maintain their focus, the exam that finally began was forced to stop.

On the contrary, Tang Soyeol seemed rather cheerful while observing the situation.

“Why do you look so happy?” asked Peng Ah-hee, who was taking the exam along with her.

Being a blood relative of the Peng Clan, she had no choice but to come to the Heavenly Dragon Academy.

In her case, she didn’t want her older brother’s achievements at the Academy to be held over her head, but she couldn’t help it as she was a blood relative of the clan, so she just remained silent and went with the flow

“Just look at their expressions, how can I not be happy?”

“But why are you so happy about it?”

“How can I not? Seeing all of them look down on him was pissing me off.”

Peng Ah-hee just sighed.

Peng Ah-hee couldn’t help but look in the direction of the sharp Combat Qi as she wondered why Tang Soyeol admired him so much.

…Is this really his Qi?

Judging by Tang Soyeol’s reaction, it seemed like her ‘ex’ fiancé was the source of the Qi.

It’s unbelievable.’

Despite feeling it herself, she found it hard to believe.

This can…

‘No longer be considered the level of a Young Prodigy…’

In just a few years.

The troublemaker with the face of a demon who was constantly beaten up by her, was now a master well, over the level of a Young Prodigy.

All it took was a few years.

It might not have been the case for ordinary people, but for a martial artist, it was really a short span of time.

Any martial artist would barely manage to master a single technique in that span of time, let alone reach a new level.

Yet, Gu Yangcheon had managed to surpass that and was now soaring.

He was soaring so high, that she couldn’t even see it.

It’s unfair that he changes so much every time I see him.

She smirked along with that thought.

She did not regret breaking off the engagement, but she was a little disappointed.

It would have been nice if he were like this from the beginning, I would have probably not broken off the engagement.

Though regardless of his talents, she would’ve broken off their engagement if his nasty personality remained the same.

But what about the current him?

Sigh.

She set aside her pointless thoughts.

Peng Ah-hee then asked the still-cheerful Tang Soyeol.

“I get that you’re happy, but where did that sis go?”

“Hmm? Sis? Who?… Oh, Bi-ah sis?”

Peng Ah-hee was suddenly curious about his current fiancée’s whereabouts.

“Huh, you’re right. They told us not to go anywhere… So where did sis go? She’s going to get lost if she goes all by herself…”

“How can she get lost? This place isn’t even that big?”

“…You don’t know her well enough, Ah-hee. She is simply built differently.”

“…”

Peng Ah-hee thought she was joking at first, but Tang Soyeol’s expression showed that she was really worried.

She may have been directionally challenged, but was it really possible to get lost with so many people around?

Still staring at Tang Soyeol, Peng Ah-hee shook her head and began to look around.

The exam had come to a stop.

Slam-! Slaaam-!

Everyone was focused on the endless sounds of explosions.

I thought he didn’t like this.

Peng Ah-Hee found it somewhat unexpected to see Gu Yangcheon, who disliked attention, was now doing something that grabbed everyone’s attention.

It almost seemed like he was trying to draw someone's attention in particular.

Hmm?

Then, Peng Ah-hee’s gaze landed on a handsome young man.

His face was handsome enough to draw anyone’s gaze in an instant, but that wasn’t why Peng Ah-hee was staring at him.

That person…

She knew that person.

Of course, Peng Ah-hee knew most of the people present here as they were Young Prodigies from noble clans, but that person was noteworthy for a different reason.

Jang Seonyeon.

She remembered him by name instead of his title.

For some reason, she felt like that title didn’t suit him.

It was the same for Gu Yangcheon.

To Peng Ah-hee, Gu Yangcheon was closer to a fighting dog or a maniac, rather than a True Dragon.

On the contrary, she didn’t know why the title of Meteor Sword didn’t suit Jang Seonyeon.

Huh?

Peng Ah-hee thought about why she was unable to turn away from Jang Seonyeon.

Jang Seonyeon was also looking in the same direction of the disturbance as everyone else but something felt different.

The reason why her gaze remained on him.

What was that?

“Oh.”

Peng Ah-Hee was able to figure it out after a while.

Compared to how the others were observing the sight with shock and admiration…

Why is he…?

Jang Seonyeon’s eyes were clearly filled with shame, a sense of inferiority, and a look of guilt.

The only son of the Alliance Leader.

His handsome appearance and talent were similar to that of the Harmonic Sword.

Moreover, he was known to have a kind nature, so why did he look like that?

Peng Ah-hee pondered over it, but not soon…

Swish.

She could no longer see Jang Seonyeon’s face as he turned away.

It seemed like he didn’t care as he already passed the exam.

And for some reason, Peng Ah-hee who was secretly observing him…

“Why do I feel uneasy about this…?”

Began to feel uneasy.