Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 1065

Chapter 1065

There was a profound weight to the ancestor’s words.
The plan my mother had set into motion long ago.

Everything I had gathered on my journey to find the Divine Tree and my battles against the generals.

I considered it all and pressed a hand over my heart.

Sssssss…

The vessel that was no longer there.

It was a small mercy that, though my vessel had vanished, my soul was still intact. I didn’t know what was holding it together, but—

My soul hadn’t shattered; it continued to swirl within me.

And within it, I could sense every power I had ever obtained.

The fiery energy of the Nine Flames Firewheel Art.

It lay dormant, but it was still present inside me.

The sword qi I had gained from Mount Hua.

There wasn’t much left, but it, too, remained within my soul.

The aura of Tua Pacheonmu and the demonic energy also persisted.

Different energies, all coexisting without conflict.

I could feel each one distinctly—

But among them, one presence felt entirely unique.

It was not internal energy, not sword qi, not battle aura, nor demonic energy.

Something separate from them all.

The nameless energy I had received from the Divine Tree.

Just as I began to suspect this might be my mother’s arrangement—

“That is Shingeok (Divinity).”

The ancestor spoke, as if answering my unspoken question.

“…Divinity?”

So this energy was called Divinity?

Taken literally, it was the ultimate arrogance. The state of a god?

Could that truly be the name of a type of power?

“What is Divinity?”

Now I knew what the energy from the Divine Tree was called.

But what did that mean?

What was this thing my mother had planted inside me as part of her plan?

“Divinity is, quite simply, Divinity.”

“…That’s the most pointless explanation I’ve ever heard.”

Was he even trying to explain? My patience was thinning.

Did he want a fight? Because right now, I’d welcome it. Combat would be preferable to this nonsense.

But the ancestor, sensing my growing irritation, went on.

“Beings of a low stature are incapable of elevating the grade of their soul and are destined to die as they are.”

Crackkkk.

The sky fractured once more.

In that instant, a tremor ran through my body.

Buzzzzzzzzz.

“Ugh—!”

The pain forced me to my knees.

I had felt nothing before, but now, with every shatter of the sky, agony ripped through me.

I gritted my teeth against the tearing sensation ravaging my body. Ignoring this, the ancestor continued calmly.

“It is the natural order. One’s stature—their level of existence—is predetermined from the beginning. Without a miracle, it can never change. However.”

The ancestor’s gaze shifted.

Toward Shin Noya, who was watching me with an expression of pity.

“On rare occasions, so rare that it might happen only once in an eternity, there are those who try to break through the barrier of Stature.”

Those who defy the order imposed by the world and elevate their very being.

“Individuals born with an exceptional soul, who, in the brief flicker of their lifetime, shatter the immense walls of Stature through endless enlightenment and unwavering conviction.”

Rumble…!

The sky was no longer just cracking—it was beginning to collapse.

Beyond my bent knees, the pain became unbearable.

It was so intense that holding onto consciousness was a struggle.

“The power attained from such a rise in Stature—that is Divinity.”

“Haaah…!”

“It is also one of the prerequisites to become a Master—or what you know as a Calamity.”

“…!”

My wavering consciousness sharpened at the mention of Calamity.

Divinity was required to become a Master?

“Of course, the Master is an existence ordained by the world itself. Even if one raises their Stature, not everyone can become a Master. In the end, the Master is chosen directly by the world.”

Drip…

The ancestor knelt down to meet my eyes.

He was a form of fire shaped like a man, yet I knew instinctively.

The place I was staring into—those were his eyes.

“Now then, descendant. What is your view of Zhongyuan?”

“That’s…”

“The punishment the world inflicted upon Zhongyuan was, clearly, to prevent anyone from raising their Stature. The world disapproved. It despised the notion of someone defying its judgment by elevating their Stature through sheer conviction in a world meant for erasure.”

A monumental achievement.

Raising one’s Stature through one’s own power was a feat of incredible magnitude.

The ancestor continued.

“So then, in a world without a Master, where no one could raise their Stature… who do you believe had to assume that role?”

Hearing that, I let out a weary sigh before answering.

“…The Gu family?”

“Correct.”

“…”

“The world cannot endure without a Master. This is why the Gu family’s role in Zhongyuan is essential.”

Things that only become clear once one leads the Gu family.

Was this what the ancestor meant to tell me?

“What lies beneath the Gu family’s land is another issue, but setting that aside… The reason the direct bloodline of the Gu family is exempt from the restriction on raising Stature—”

Crackle.

The red flames burned, slowly feeding the ashen embers.

“—is ultimately to serve as a substitute for the absent Master, to keep the world from falling apart.”

“…That’s absolute nonsense.”

Even through the pain, I managed a bitter laugh.

So the reason I could transcend Stature—

Was because I was serving as a temporary Master in a world that had lost its true Master?

“…That means.”

I looked at the ancestor before me.

And I thought of my grandfather, who was so like him.

“…Then that old man—he is effectively the Master of Zhongyuan?”

If the Gu family had been acting as a substitute for the Master—

Then, remembering what I felt when I met my grandfather, the answer was clear.

Every Master I had ever encountered possessed an overwhelming presence.

Back then, I hadn’t recognized it.

But now I understood.

The feeling I had when I met my grandfather—

It was not so different from the Masters I had faced.

That meant—

‘My grandfather is the Master of Zhongyuan.’

Or, at the very least, its acting Master.

That was the only conclusion that made sense.

Furthermore—

‘The reason Grandfather ordered Father to fulfill his duty…’

To quickly raise me to Young Lord and prepare me to become the next Patriarch—

‘…Was it because he needed to install him as the next Master?’

Because Father, the current Patriarch, needed to ascend to the role of Master.

If the Gu Clan’s duty was to continually serve as the Master’s substitute, then that interpretation seemed right.

“Master, huh…”

At my words, the ancestor looked thoughtful.

“You are not mistaken. That is not an incorrect assessment. However—”

Though he seemed to agree, there was something he found lacking, and so he offered a correction.

“Not Master—Key. That is a more fitting term.”
“Key?”
“Yes, the Key.”

Key?

It was a vague term. I frowned, as it didn’t seem directly related to the Master.

“The one who becomes the Patriarch of the Gu Clan will come to fully understand the duty of our lineage.”

The ancestor looked at me and went on.

“And when one steps down from the position of Patriarch, it means they have grasped the Key.”
“…What does that mean? Holding the Key— cough!”

I choked on my words, my breath catching.

Crack—!

The same sound echoing around us now came from inside my own body.

With trembling eyes, I looked down at my hands. Cracks had appeared.

Searing heat poured from the fractures.

Blue flames flickered and danced.

I clenched my fists, trying to stop the cracks from spreading by force of will.

Yet even as this happened, the ancestor kept speaking.

“Yes, the Key.”
“What…?”
“You will understand this naturally once you assume the duty of our lineage, so I will not explain it now. What truly matters is the choice you will make.”

Flick.

The ancestor moved his hand as he spoke. A small ember ignited at his fingertip.

The flames rushed forward, wrapping around my body. Then, my breaking flesh began to knit itself together.

No—it wasn’t truly healing so much as being forcibly held together, the cracks prevented from widening further.

“Right now, Divinity is embedded within you. That is what is tearing your body apart.”
“Haaah…”

As the pain eased, I could finally breathe again.

“A tragic thing. Forcibly implanting you with a Divinity that does not suit you—look at the result. It was an excessive gamble.”
“…It’s not like I wanted this. What kind of madness is this?”
“I never said it was your greed. If anything, it was your mother’s. Didn’t I tell you? Something that was never meant for you has been placed inside.”
“…Is it really that serious?”
“The Gu Clan’s soul has always been designed to house only one specific type of Divinity. It has been passed down for generations. Nothing else should ever reside within it…”

Whoosh.

The flames encircling my body wavered slightly.

I could feel my soul resonating with the fire.

“The reckless actions of the Dragon Lord, or more precisely the Dragon Emperor, and the arrangement left by your mother—these two factors intertwined. It seems intentional. And because of that, the timeline has been accelerated.”
“…Accelerated?”
“The moment when you would become a Calamity.”
“What?”
“You already know, do you not? You were always destined to become a Calamity. That was the fate decided by the world—the final outcome for Zhongyuan.”

I had heard this before.

So many times it felt like my ears would bleed from the repetition.

“The original timing was set for the moment you surpassed the position of Patriarch and ascended to the role of Substitute Master. Once that happened, your fate would have been sealed—you would have become the Calamity.”
“…!”

Hearing those words, I gasped.

That was the predetermined timing?

‘So, if I had taken Grandfather’s place…’

That would have been the moment I turned into a Calamity?

The realization was suffocating.

“That was how it was meant to happen. That was the fate that was written.”

The ancestor stated it as an absolute fact.

But the moment I heard that, a question arose in my mind.

‘If it was fate, then why didn’t it come to pass?’

In my previous life, I had never even become Patriarch, let alone taken my grandfather’s place.

The opportunity had never arisen.

“It was supposed to happen, but fate was twisted. A wretched soul, stubborn beyond all reason, tore apart the very fabric of fate. No matter how many attempts were made, no matter how many failures, they persisted with a desperate, tenacious will.”
“A wretched soul…?”
“There is one, is there not? The very reason you never became Patriarch. The one who went to impossible lengths, even to the point of meddling with the flow of time itself.”
“…Ah?”

At the ancestor’s words, I immediately thought of one person.

The reason I had never become Patriarch.

The reason I was sent back in time.

It was all because of one individual.

“…Cheonma?”

The Demonic Cult Leader—Cheonma.

She was the one.