Childhood Friend of the Zenith

༺ Misty Mountains (2) ༻

I let out a sigh as I looked at Namgung Bi-ah standing behind me, avoiding eye contact.

Despite knowing the correct path, her insistence on taking a different route had given me a headache.

And to add to that, the route she suggested was in the opposite direction.

If I had really listened to Namgung Bi-ah and followed her, I would’ve likely ended up on some random mountain in the middle of nowhere.

“Seriously, I told you this is an urgent matter.”

“…Sorry.”

“If you’re gonna keep causing trouble, then just go back home and wait.”

I pointed in the direction of the Gu Clan, but Namgung Bi-ah shook her head.

“…I don’t want to.”

She murmured, with a rare frown adorning her face.

At such an appearance, I let out a sigh and spoke.

“I told you. You won’t be that much of a help even if you went.”

Those words might have been cold, but they were also necessary.

“…”

At my words, Namgung Bi-ah quietly drew her sword, as if she was about to fight me.

Sensing the Lightning Qi passing by my cheek, I lowered my head.

How had I ended up in this situation? What a joke.

All I could say was…

‘…Fuck me.’

This was just my karma.

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

Even after two days of running through the Misty Mountains while drenched in the cold spring rain, I still continued, trusting my knowledge of the path.

‘How many more mountains do I have to cross?’

I hadn’t counted, but there were probably at least five more to go.

This land was too vast; it really shouldn’t be this insanely big.

‘Is the marble… not ready yet?’

I glanced at the Marble of Celestial Captivation, but its light had not fully recovered since I used it yesterday.

If one was to wonder the reason for checking on the marble’s light, it was because I had learned a few things about the marble after researching.

The Marble of Celestial Captivation could only be used once a day and once used, it lasted for a short amount of time.

Its color determined whether I could use it again or not.

I had to wait until it shone in an orange color again.

After checking, I put the marble back in, and looked up at the sky.

‘Hah, it won’t be easy to camp in all this rain.’

I had left in a hurry and brought nothing to aid me on my journey.

In fact, I hadn’t even brought a Demonic Charm, which signaled if a Gate of Demons had opened in my vicinity.

I alone was responsible for any danger that would come my way.

I had already encountered a few demons that had tried to ambush me, but it didn’t matter as they were only Green-Grade Demons.

‘Well, even they were hard for me to deal with last year.’

The Green Gate was the lowest grade among all the Gate of Demons.

And unlike last year, when I had to use a lot of my strength to deal with them, I was now at a level where I could simply summon flames around myself and burn them all to ashes.

Of course, it would be a bit harder if demons above the Green-Grade appeared.

But Blue-Grade Demons almost never appeared.

From that point onwards, they were basically considered a natural disaster.

At my current level, I could probably take care of Blue-Grades by myself, but…

‘A Red Gate is still beyond my level.’

Well, besides the True Gate of Demons, a Red Gate hadn’t appeared in a few centuries, so it should be fine.

Even when a Red Gate of Demons appeared in the future, it only happened after the Heavenly Demon appeared in the world.

‘I need to increase my speed.’

I still had a long way to go.

And more than anything, time was running out.

Gu Huibi might have been sitting in jail doing nothing, just a moment ago, but something could have happened to her in the hours I wasn’t looking.

Furthermore, this was the Black Palace, so I had to be even more vigilant.

After all, those bastards were certainly related to the Demonic Cult.

I had no time to spare.

As my thoughts raced, I roused my Inner Qi and increased my speed.

I leaped through the air, moving much faster than before.

[Do you have enough Qi left?]

Elder Shin asked.

‘I’m still fine, as of now at least.’

I had absorbed so many things that there was probably no martial artist in the same realm, who had more Qi than me.

In fact, there were probably very few even in realms above mine.

[Still, you should leave some remaining just in case of an emergency.]

‘Don’t worry, do you think I don’t know that?’

[Oh! Is that why you empty your dantian every time you get into a fight?]

‘…’

[You will end up dead if you continue to do that.]

I knew that as well, but I also knew that if I were to open my mouth, he would scold me, saying things like I was an idiot for doing such a thing even after knowing.

So I kept my mouth shut.

‘…I hope that we come across a town.’

[Look at you changing the subject… tsk tsk.]

He wasn’t wrong, but it was also true that I was in need of a town.

I couldn’t afford to keep hunting beasts or demons to fill my stomach.

Although my body had reached the Peak Realm and thus could get by without eating for a few days, it was still better for me to eat something.

And more than anything…

‘I need to get a Demonic Charm.’

The Charm, made by the Wudang Sect, signaled if a Gate of Demons was about to open.

It was an essential item to bring on any trip nowadays, be it long or short.

Not only did it allow the user to prepare for the gate, but it also lets them escape from danger.

Thus, making it an essential item for everyone to bring on a trip.

‘Though, that’s not why I need it.’

I actually wanted to come across some Gates of Demons.

‘I must absorb more.’

I needed to stockpile even more Demonic Qi.

In the past, I had tried to refuse and avoid it because it was the Heavenly Demon’s power, but now, I wasn’t in a position to do so.

I needed it to calm the different energies colliding within my body. And since I had decided not to refuse Demonic Qi anymore, the amount I had was too little to use my strength properly.

[Just be careful not to break the vessel that is your body.]

‘Yes.’

Although Elder Shin taught me how to compress my Qi and use it effectively, my martial arts still consumed an immense amount of Qi.

Thus, without the use of Demonic Absorption, I couldn’t prepare for the calamities that would soon come.

Moreover, I wasn’t even capable of dealing with the Black Palace as I was now.

‘I don’t think my strength would increase by much, just by absorbing a few demons’

I had absorbed so much energy up until now that absorbing a Demonic Stone of a Green-Grade Demon would barely change anything.

Still, it was better than nothing.

Even after running through the rain for a long time, I still hadn’t come across a town.

There were countless mountains, and few people ventured here.

Numerous demons roamed freely as well, making it hard for people to live in.

In the end, it seemed that I wouldn’t be able to find anything.

‘I need to build up my strength, though.’

Tsk.

It seemed like I would have to hunt and eat some demons.

Despite my sour expression, I honestly didn’t care too much.

‘At least I have that option. In my past life, it was far worse.’

I knew how much of a blessing it was to come across an edible demon in my past life.

So, something like this didn’t affect me at all.

After running for much longer, I finally crossed a mountain.

Even after crossing a whole mountain, the rain still fell.

The only difference was that the sun had set, and the night had arrived.

Yet, I continued on, while using an immense amount of Qi.

After jumping over a tree, I landed on the ground and took a breather.

‘Phew…’

I still had a good amount of Qi and strength to spare, but I ran into a different problem.

‘Who is it?’

I felt the presence that had followed me ever since sunset.

It was barely noticeable when I didn’t have my senses sharpened, but after sharpening and widening them, I could clearly sense it.

Someone was coming toward me.

Very rapidly at that.

‘It’s not… a demon.’

It wouldn’t have such flexible movements if it were a demon.

Demons were no different to beasts.

‘Then who is it?’

If it wasn’t a demon, then it had to be a person.

They were still far away, so it was hard for me to know who it was.

‘Perhaps, is it one of the guys from the Black Palace?’

If not, maybe it was the ones that ambushed me.

The First Elder may have died, but it was still possible that the plan wasn’t over.

Squeeze.

I gradually roused my Combat Qi.

Although there was an option of losing them by getting further away, I decided it was better to get rid of them sooner rather than later.

I compressed Inner Qi into my fist, intending to attack when the presence got close enough for me to figure out who they were.

Right as the mysterious figure was about to step into my territory, the bastard suddenly accelerated at a rapid speed.

‘Wha…!’

Their speed doubled in an instant; it was as if they knew where I was.

They were at a higher level than I had expected.

I got into my battle stance right away.

Not only did they hide their presence so I couldn’t figure out who they were, but the one coming at me at such a speed, was definitely a Peak Realm martial artist.

I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.

Blaze-!

Heat formed under the rain.

My hair turned red, and I got into a stance where I could summon flames at any moment.

Despite their flexible movements, their trajectory was practically a straight line.

They didn’t even bother to hide their presence, and blatantly charged toward my direction.

However, I couldn’t even think before they had already arrived in front of me, making me shoot my flames at the presence by instinct.

Zap.

“…?”

If not for a familiar Lightning Qi passing by my eyes, that is.

Step.

Contrary to their speed, their landing was smooth.

With shocked eyes, I looked at the figure that had appeared in front of me.

Perhaps because they had been rained on, their clothes were stuck to their body, showing their bodyline.

Their wet bluish white hair, perhaps shining ever so brightly because of the rain, was somehow alluring.

Shortly after, her gem-like blue eyes met mine.

“…You.”

“Hi.”

Namgung Bi-ah, who was standing in front of me, should’ve been in the Gu Clan right now.

I looked at her incredulously.

It wasn’t because of my surprise at her appearance.

Though, of course that was shocking as well.

But there was something far more important.

“You overcame your wall?”

The Qi I felt from Namgung Bi-ah, was definitely that of a Peak Realm martial artist.

Furthermore, it seemed to not have been that long since she broke through her wall, as a little bit of her Qi leaked from her middle dantian.

This was a characteristic of a martial artist who had just overcome their wall.

“Yeah.”

Namgung Bi-ah nodded to my words.

“…I did.”

She responded with an expressionless face, but something like this was impossible.

How was she able to do it?

‘I thought for sure it’d be Yung Pung or Muyeon first.’

Well, it had been quite a while since I saw Yung Pung—the greatest prodigy of Mount Hua and the Sword Dragon—so I didn’t know his current state.

But I had expected at least Muyeon to overcome his wall before Namgung Bi-ah.

Muyeon was on the brink of overcoming his wall; extremely close to it, in fact, so I obviously expected him to do it first.

“…What happened? How did you overcome your wall so suddenly?”

Namgung Bi-ah hadn’t been that close to the wall like Muyeon.

She was definitely getting closer thanks to the enlightenment she got, but at the very least, I expected her to take a year to overcome her wall…

‘But she overcame it all of a sudden?’

Did she get another enlightenment?

Because I don’t think she was given any additional Qi.

Namgung Bi-ah tilted her head at my question.

“It just… happened?”

“…”

Just hearing her response gave me a headache.

If it were that easy, then others wouldn’t struggle so much, you dimwit.

I responded, hiding my thoughts.

“…I see, congratulations.”

“Eung.”

Acknowledging her immense talent once again, I congratulated her.

And after dealing with that matter, I had to deal with another.

“How did you come here?”

“…”

Namgung Bi-ah became silent. By that point, I felt like I knew her current expression.

‘She’s angry.’

Her eyes had become slightly thinner, I could feel a serious emotion emanating from her stare.

“…Did you come looking for me?”

She nodded.

Of course she had, since there was no other reason for her to be here.

But, just how?

“How were you able to know?”

“I just did.”

It was an absurd response.

Not only was there the factor of distance, but there was also no way that she could have known the correct direction with her extraordinary sense of direction.

I searched around my body, just in case she had hidden something on me like Gu Huibi, but couldn’t find anything.

But then, all of a sudden…

Zap.

I felt a sensation of Qi, making me look towards Namgung Bi-ah.

Lightning Qi covered her sword.

It wasn’t the translucent Lightning Qi I saw before; It was a perfected Lightning Qi that was clearly visible.

It was another piece of evidence that confirmed that she had reached a new realm.

Letting out the dense, unique aura of the Namgung Clan, Namgung Bi-ah spoke to me.

“Take me with you.”

Why I had gone alone…

And why I had left her…

Putting aside the reason behind those decisions, all she did was request me to take her with me.

No this wasn’t a request, but rather an order from her.

While passing over such a gazy, I asked.

“…Do you even know where I’m going right now?”

“I don’t… and honestly… I don’t care.”

“What do you mean you don’t care? It’s dangerous so you should-“

Thud-

Before I could even finish, Namgung Bi-ah roused her Qi, as if getting ready to fight me.

“Take me with you.”

Her words were the same as before, but this time, her sword was pointing at me.

“If you won’t, then I will not let you go.”

I could see how serious she was. If I were not to take her with me right now, she might actually swing her sword.

The Lightning Qi that had reached the Peak Realm gradually dominated the forest.

Namgung Bi-ah seemingly did not have any intention of moving an inch.

Furthermore, I had no time to spare, so I had to make a decision right away.

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

And that’s how this situation came to be.

As I looked at Namgung Bi-ah standing behind me, spacing out, I regretted my decision back then.

‘Sigh. I should’ve just overpowered her and left.’

Namgung Bi-ah, who had reached a higher level, was definitely someone who would give me trouble, but she wasn’t at a competency where I couldn’t overpower her if I fought seriously.

It would just take a bit of time.

But even if I were to do that, I couldn’t just leave her in the middle of a forest at night.

And even then, she would just chase after me again. So, in the end, I just had to listen to her.

“…I can’t see… anything.”

Unaware of my thoughts, Namgung Bi-ah only seemed fascinated by all the fog surrounding us.

Despite reaching Peak Realm, her personality didn’t seem to have changed at all.

“Don’t get far. We might not be able to find each other.”

This was a dangerous area.

The Alliance prohibited entrance here as people had actually gotten lost and disappeared here.

The fog surrounding the place wasn’t ordinary.

So, it wasn’t possible to scout the area by enhancing one’s senses.

At my warning, Namgung Bi-ah paused for a moment…

Sniff sniff.

Then, started to sniff all around.

“…What are you doing?”

After repeating it a few times, she nodded.

What was wrong with her?

“…I won’t lose you.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because of your smell.”

I shook my head at her response.

Did she think of herself as a dog or something? Finding me with her smell…

Going back a bit, I grabbed Namgung Bi-ah’s arm.

After all, I couldn’t afford to lose her even for a second.

Namgung Bi-ah with her impeccable sense of direction, would in no way be able to find me in this fog.

‘Sigh. My priorities are messed up, this is not what I should be paying attention to.’

Uncertainty filled my mind.

I had come all the way here, but it was doubtful if I would be able to find the Black Palace with all this fog.

‘Hmm. Though the fog does provide protection, I doubt they didn’t take any other measures, and just left their palace to be visible.’

It was highly likely that they had cast a few formations on top of it, so it wouldn’t be easy for me to find it.

“What should I do…”

If the Marble of Celestial Captivation was showing me the correct location, then it was definitely located somewhere on this mountain.

However, though the mountain may not have been that big, it was hard to look for something in this curtain of fog.

‘If only I could get rid of this…’

With a frown etched on my face I looked around for a long time, my hand holding on to Namgung Bi-ah’s arm.

Ring-

Then suddenly, I felt a vibration from my waist.

It came from the charm pocket that held the Marble of Celestial Captivation inside.

I took the marble out, expecting it to be ready to use.

“…!”

But the marble suddenly flashed brightly in my hand and shot a beam of light towards a certain direction, pointing somewhere through the fog.

While looking at the orange light, I pondered.

“Is this…”

Perhaps, it was telling me Gu Huibi’s location?

Before I could even finish thinking the question…

My feet were already following the light.

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