Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 1029

Chapter 1029

Kuuuuuuuuung—!!!

A deafening blast echoed from a distance, and I turned my head toward the sound, my gaze sharpening.

It seems they’ve found their target.

So the other side has finally begun.

Before confronting the chieftain, I had requested one thing from Cheonma:

If that mysterious figure from earlier appeared again, she would handle them personally.

When she heard my request, she gave a slow nod and asked—

“Can I kill them?”

Her voice was flat and devoid of emotion, yet carried a chilling intensity. But I didn’t hesitate—I simply nodded in response.

After all, I was curious.

I wanted to see whether anyone she decided to kill could possibly withstand her fury.

And now—

Kuaaaaaaaa—-!!!

A pillar of dark energy shot into the sky, and I clicked my tongue.

Just that aura alone is overwhelming.

That black haze—it was pure magi.

A deep, ink-like darkness without a trace of any other color.

It was so devoid of light it felt unnatural—sinister and imposing, yet somehow sacred in its absolute purity.

No matter how much Cheonma may have changed in this life—

That aura remains unchanged.

That ominous, crushing energy of hers was exactly as I remembered.

Kwaaaaaah—!!!

The surge of power reached me even from this far away.

Goosebumps prickled across my skin, and I forced myself to look away.

That side is her responsibility.

I have my own battle to focus on.

“Grrrrr—!!!”

Kugugugung–!!

The ground shook under the beast’s guttural roar.

Kyaaaaaaa–!!!
Kwaaadeudeuk–!!! Kugugung–!!!

The air thundered with the impact of countless bodies clashing in a chaotic struggle.

The demonic beasts I summoned using my authority fought viciously against the enemy’s monstrous horde.

There was no hesitation—only raw, brutal instinct.

They tore into one another, indifferent to their own flesh being ripped apart.

Crunch—!!

Jaws clamped onto throats. Flesh was shredded.

Bones shattered as claws pierced through bodies, yet neither side yielded.

Sssssssss—!!!

The longer they fought, the more my energy drained at an alarming rate—like a dam breaking inside my heart.

Summoning these creatures is terribly inefficient.

I knew this from last time.

While it might look impressive, summoning in such numbers isn’t a practical strategy.

Raising my hand—

Hwa-reuk.

A shimmer of heat bloomed at my fingertips—

Kuaaaaaaaa—!!!
Kyaaaaaaa–!!!

A wave of black flames surged forward, swallowing everything in front of me.

The beasts let out short, piercing screams before turning to ash, incinerated in an instant.

If wiping them out is this easy, why bother with summons at all?

A single motion had erased the entire horde.

And honestly, the beasts weren’t all that powerful.

Well… not exactly weak, either.

Judging by their strength, the weakest were on par with first-rate warriors, and the strongest could match peak grandmasters.

In terms of demonic beast ranks, they ranged from blue-grade up to red-grade.

The me from the past could never have faced them head-on.

But now? Now was different.

Wuuuuuuuung—!!!
Giiiiiiiing—!!

Behind me, a ring of fire ignited and began to spin, scattering embers that hung suspended in the air.

The embers wavered, then stilled—condensing into orbs that hovered in the void.

‘Blazing Star Constellation.’

A constellation of flame orbs illuminated the night—though their darkened hue bore no resemblance to actual stars.

With a flick of my hand—

The chain of orbs shot forward—

Kogogogogogogo—!!!

A full bombardment.

In an instant, my summoned flame-beasts were obliterated, wiped out by the very fire I had unleashed.

This was why, in my previous life, I had been called a battlefield reaper.

A power built for mass slaughter.

No need for precision—only total, devastating coverage.

As a weapon of war, nothing could match it.

But—

Now, the quality of my flames has reached a new height.

Through compression, pressure, and internal friction—

I learned to harness every aspect of the flame.

This wasn’t the power I once wielded.

I could feel it even now—

The flames responding freely to my will.

This is good.

It wasn’t about control anymore—

The flames moved as I did.

It wasn’t manipulation—it was motion—

A difference as vast as heaven and earth.

Even as I continued the bombardment, I adjusted their paths—smooth, precise shifts that would have been impossible before.

The orbs swept across the battlefield in a devastating wave, annihilating everything in their path.

This was why summoning felt pointless.

But…

I had no doubt—

The one on the other side must be thinking the same.

“KuoOOOOOO—!!”

Kwaaaang—!!!

A thunderous roar erupted as something broke through my barrage.

A figure burst forward, cutting through my flames.

This fire wasn’t the same black inferno as mine—

It was a bright, crimson blaze.

“KuoOOOOAAAA—!!!”

Thud! Thud thud thud—!!!

There he was.

The chieftain, his massive form wreathed in roaring crimson flames, swinging his enormous axe in wild arcs that shattered everything in his path.

His skin and fur had turned a smoldering red, his body radiating intense heat.

Whenever he took that form, his presence seemed to vanish—

And now was no different.

But his presence wasn’t the only thing that had changed—

His speed and power are on another level entirely.

This wasn’t just a visual change—he had surpassed his previous limits.

With a single sweep of his axe, entire waves of my summoned beasts were wiped out.

Even though my creatures were red-grade, the highest tier I could summon—

They couldn’t even slow him down.

“You wretch—!!”

The chieftain roared, his voice thick with fury as his eyes locked onto me, the source of the flames.

Boom!!

He stomped down, and the earth shattered, debris flying everywhere.

His body coiled low, joints bending—

A predator ready to strike.

But before he could leap forward—

Another wave of my beasts swarmed toward him.

Kruaaaaah–!!!
Krrrrr–!!

Towering creatures enveloped the chieftain, piling onto him in a frenzied assault—

But—

“Begone—!”

Kugugugung—!!!

With a single burst of his aura, the beasts were thrown back, flung through the air like ragdolls.

And then—

Thud—! Kwaaaaah—!!!

The chieftain charged at me with relentless fury. In an instant, he was upon me, his axe swinging down with all his might—

The blade, sheathed in fire, cut through the air, aimed straight for me—

In that moment—

«Block.»

I whispered the word.

“—!!”

Something materialized before the chieftain’s eyes. With a grunt of surprise, he twisted his axe mid-swing, altering its path.

The blow veered to the left—

And—

Screech. THUD—!!

The axe slammed into the ground with devastating force—

Kwagagagang—!!!

A deafening shockwave erupted, and the earth to his left splintered, cracks spreading like a web across the shattered ground.

“What—?!”

The sudden interference ripped a startled growl from the chieftain.

His confusion was understandable.

Because I wasn’t the one who stopped his strike.

“Kirurururururu.”

A sound. A distorted, unnatural cry—unlike any beast that had roared before.

«Kyarrururururu.»

The figure that had intercepted him was grotesque—

A gaunt, humanoid form covered in withered flesh, with folded, jagged wings sprouting from its back.

It stood taller than a human, yet was too small to be a typical beast.

But—

«Kyarrururururaaaa—!!!!»

When it shrieked, the aura it released was far stronger than any red-grade beast.

So potent that even the chieftain flinched involuntarily.

Yes—

This was my authority.

The power known as the Summon—a technique that allowed me to call forth only creatures I had personally hunted and absorbed.

And this one—

This was a white-grade beast I had hunted in Hanan.

«Handle him.»

«Kyaaaah—!!»

At my command, the beast lunged at the chieftain, who grimaced and braced himself.

Its razor-sharp claws slashed through the air—

The chieftain met the attack with a sweeping strike of his axe.

Screeeeech—!!!

Claw and blade collided, the force of their impact exploding outward.

Behind my mask, my expression tightened.

This… is harder than I expected.

Truthfully—summoning a white-grade beast had been beyond me until now.

The energy cost was staggering, and I had never been able to fully manifest one before.

But now—

After reaching Transcendence—

It’s finally possible.

I summoned it immediately to test its strength.

And—

This thing is insane.

Its power exceeded my expectations.

Was it truly equal to a natural white-grade beast? Maybe not.

But—

Close enough.

At the very least—

This thing could easily destroy a Hwagyeong-level martial master.

It might not be strong enough to challenge the Top Ten Grandmasters—

But—

Any lesser master would be crushed.

It was undeniably a monster to be feared.

And even now—look at it—holding its own against the chieftain.

Though—

Crunch—!!

Victory was beyond its reach.

«Kiaaaaaah—!!!»

The beast let out a horrific shriek as its arm was severed by the chieftain’s axe.

Yet it felt no pain—pain meant nothing to these beings.

And—

Before the chieftain could press the advantage—

Shlrrrrrp—

The arm regenerated instantly, flesh knitting back together in a blink.

The beast lunged again, claws poised to strike.

This regeneration—

The hallmark of white-grade beasts, preserved even in its summoned form.

But—

…Damn it. My energy.

Every bit of power it used to regenerate—

Was draining directly from me.

The summoning alone had already consumed a huge portion of my energy—

And now, with every attack, every injury, it fed on my life force to sustain itself.

I can’t keep this up for long.

The strain was mounting—this battle couldn’t be prolonged.

I needed to end it quickly.

But—

Not yet.

There was still one thing I had to confirm.

«You bastard—!!»

THUD—!

The chieftain’s fist punched clean through the beast’s abdomen.

«Grrrhh… Are you going to keep hiding behind your puppets like a rat?!»

He shouted at me, voice thick with frustration.

But I—

I chuckled softly, a smirk forming behind my mask.

«Wasn’t it you who brought those other beasts here first?»

«Grrrrr—!!»

A snarl of rage burst from him at my taunt.

With a growl, he flung the beast aside.

This time, it didn’t get up. It lay motionless—no more regeneration.

«Enough games. You’re not escaping me this time.»

The chieftain bent low, muscles tensing, ready to spring—

But—

I raised my hand.

And pointed—

Toward the sky.

“……?”

His eyes followed my gesture—

And widened.

«We’re not done yet.»

«I’ve prepared one last gift for you.»

And there—

In the sky—

A second rift had torn open.

Vast—far larger than the first.

Because, as I mentioned—

The power of Summon—

Allowed me to call forth only those I had personally hunted and absorbed.

And—

I hadn’t absorbed just one white-grade beast.

“Devour, Mang.”

Kugugugung—!!!

With a sound like the heavens splitting—

Something enormous descended from the rift.

A behemoth, its body as large as a hill—

Its maw lined with massive, jagged fangs—

Plummeting straight toward the chieftain—

To devour him whole.

Kwuuuung–!!