Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 1066
Chapter 1066
I was never the Patriarch of the Gu Clan.
From the day I was named Young Lord, I held no wish to lead.
Yet my failure to claim that title was not my own doing.
Was it?
Regardless of my own desires—
It should have been my inevitable destiny to become Patriarch. That was the life laid out for me.
Even if I hated it, that seat was meant to be mine. Even if I fought it, no matter how far I wandered, I was always going to be pulled back.
That was the existence I knew.
However wretched it might have been, I would have had to endure it.
I could have rebelled endlessly, run away a thousand times—
But in the end, I would have taken that throne.
I would have become the very thing I loathed—my father.
That was the path I always knew I would walk.
Then the Demonic Cult and Cheonma emerged.
Cheonma—no, she was still the Little Sword Saint then—attempted to assassinate the Divine Sword.
And I… I took her place within the Demonic Cult.
That was how I severed my ties to the Gu Clan.
How I fell from my position as Young Lord, from the path to becoming Patriarch—
And how, ultimately, I came to live a broken and pitiable life.
That was the story of my past.
“Cheonma warped destiny?”
So, is that why I never became a Calamity?
“What absolute nonsense is that?”
I scowled. How did that logic even hold?
I couldn’t process it. My mind rejected it completely.
That claim suggested Cheonma knew everything and intentionally altered my fate.
“Why in the world would she do that?”
To what end?
I had already been told Cheonma was behind my regression, and even that was beyond my comprehension.
Why had Cheonma sent me back?
I still had no answer.
And now, I was being told she also twisted my fate?
“…Why?”
Why me?
What was Cheonma’s objective?
‘…What is she, truly?’
What was Cheonma’s real nature? What were her actual intentions?
I couldn’t fathom what she was thinking back then.
And even if I asked her now, I would never receive an answer.
Because the Cheonma of this life is an entirely different entity.
So then—
‘Did she have a purpose that continues even now?’
Does the current Cheonma’s existence still hold some meaning?
‘Damn it. Why do I always—’
Why am I always buried under a mountain of questions?
Everything unfolding is aimed at me, yet I understand nothing.
Even now, I am only starting to connect the fragments.
Crack.
I tightened my fist.
Should I just blame my own incompetence?
As my thoughts boiled with frustration—
Tap.
Something touched the top of my head. A hand.
Shin Noya had drawn near and was ruffling my hair.
His coarse touch, oddly enough, helped soothe my agitation.
“Descendant.”
Seizing the moment, the Ancestor spoke.
“Forgetfulness can, in certain circumstances, be a form of grace.”
“…What kind of nonsense is that?”
“There are times when remaining unaware of something is the most favorable path for you.”
“That’s a coward’s justification. If you don’t wish to tell me, just say so and stop speaking in riddles.”
“You are correct. It is a justification. But it is not a choice I make alone.”
“Then who does make it?”
Whatever Cheonma had done—
Whatever my fate was supposed to be—
Whatever the will of the Gu Clan entailed—
I had been at the very center of it all, yet I was kept completely in the dark.
My own life was never truly my own.
That was the one, stark truth I could feel in this instant.
“…What is the conclusion?”
What is the end point of this wretched story?
“The bottom line is—you’re telling me I must become a Calamity, aren’t you?”
The collapse of my vessel.
To avoid death, I must absorb the Ancestor.
And I am well aware of what absorbing the Ancestor means.
‘Inheriting the will.’
The Ancestor is bound to the Nine Flames Firewheel—
His idea of absorption is just that.
Absorbing him means taking on the will of the Gu Clan.
And if I do that, I will inevitably become a Calamity.
At that point—
Wouldn’t it be better to just die?
“Do you truly believe I would do that? I told you—just let me die.”
Dying here would be preferable.
I meant it.
Rather than burn everything down with my own hands, I would rather let it all fall apart.
As I hardened my resolve with that thought—
“I told you. There is an arrangement.”
The Ancestor reminded me of his earlier words.
An arrangement.
Right. He said my Mother left an arrangement for me.
‘That’s what he called the Divinity I received from the Divine Tree.’
Even without fully understanding Divinity, I knew something had taken root inside me.
It even triggered the collapse of my vessel. How could I not notice?
The problem was—
“What difference does that arrangement make?”
So what if I received it?
The outcome remains the same.
‘I must become the Master.’
If my vessel collapses and I absorb the Ancestor, I will inherit the Gu Clan’s will.
That will cement my transformation into a Calamity.
So what change does the arrangement bring?
I was fuming as I posed the question.
“Nothing changes. To survive, you must become a Master.”
“…So if nothing changes, then I won’t do it—”
“However, the story differs if you do not become the Master of Zhongyuan.”
“…What?”
I halted at the Ancestor’s words.
If I don’t become Zhongyuan’s Master?
“The Divinity within you belongs to your Mother. That is to say, it is the Divinity of the Myriad Realms (Mangye). The reason the world designated you as Zhongyuan’s Final Fate—your mother played a major part in that.”
“…Are you saying—”
“Your mother was ambitious. She implanted this Divinity within you for a purpose. You must discern what that purpose is.”
Discern it?
Discern what?
What was the arrangement my mother left behind?
‘If I am not Zhongyuan’s Master…’
Becoming a Calamity means inheriting Zhongyuan’s will—the Gu Clan’s will.
So—
‘Even if I become a Master…’
Would it be different if I became the Master of another world?
Then, was my Mother’s arrangement—was the Ancestor’s suggestion—
‘Are they telling me to inherit the Mangye instead?’
Are they asking me to claim this vast and merciless world as my own?
If that is the case—
‘…What of the living beings in that world?’
Becoming a Master entails erasing all life within that world.
That is precisely why I refused to become Zhongyuan’s Master.
But if I become the Master of the Mangye—
Wouldn’t I have to do the same thing?
‘…I could do it if I had to.’
It doesn’t truly matter.
Truthfully, I abandoned any pretense of righteousness long ago.
If I must kill and discard others to protect those I care about—
I would do it without a second thought.
It is merely an uncomfortable thought, that’s all.
“Do not worry.”
At that moment, the Ancestor spoke, as if he had already read my thoughts.
“The Mangye are different.”
“What does that mean?”
“The Mangye are unique. Unlike other worlds, they operate under different rules. You already know this—do you not? The Mangye do not have one Master, but two.”
Ah—
Now that he mentions it, that is true.
Unlike other worlds, the Mangye have two Masters.
While other realms abide by the absolute law that only one Master can exist—
The Mangye are divided into two dominions.
The surface was ruled by my mother.
And the underworld—
‘The Abyssal Pit.’
The source of all death and monsters.
That is what governs the darkness.
“If a Master changes in the Mangye, life does not vanish. The only way for that to occur is if both Masters disappear simultaneously.”
“…So, you’re saying—if I become the Master of the Mangye, the problem is resolved?”
If I absorb the Ancestor and use the Divinity to become the Master of the Mangye—
Would that allow me to defy the fate the world has set for me?
I asked, hoping for confirmation.
But—
“I do not know.”
“…Have you lost your mind?”
The Ancestor gave the most absurd answer possible.
He doesn’t know?
Was he insane? What kind of answer was that?
I stared at him in utter disbelief.
“I do not know,” he repeated. “I only say this because of the arrangement your mother left behind. It is a possibility.”
“…And you want me to make a choice based on a possibility?”
“Yes. That is why I left the decision to you.”
Because even he didn’t know how it would conclude—
He was simply telling me to choose now, as my vessel disintegrated around me.
“Absorb me and restore your vessel.”
His words carried a tone of command, an urgent plea.
I let out a hollow, dry laugh.
“…How am I supposed to trust you?”
How could I possibly trust the Ancestor?
That was the core of the problem.
In the end, the being before me is merely a specter of the Gu Clan.
A remnant existing solely to perpetuate the Gu Clan’s will.
And yet, I am supposed to believe him and absorb him?
I don’t even know if his words are true.
And he wants me to stake everything on this gamble?
That is too much to ask.
Hearing my response, the Ancestor’s form began to shift.
Crackle.
The flames composing his body started to writhe.
Drip.
Pieces of fire dripped away, separating from him.
And then—a new form emerged.
This time, it was entirely different.
Not the reflection of my past self from before—
‘Who… is this?’
It was a face I had never seen.
A man, somewhat slight in build, with piercing eyes.
He bore a faint resemblance to my father—
And, curiously, also to me.
And in that moment, I understood—
This was his true form.
“This is my atonement. A punishment I carry,” he said. “My descendants should not have suffered for my sins.”
Slowly, he knelt before me.
“I only hope the end of this will not be despair. If fate can truly be altered because of this… then I can ask for nothing more.”
His voice was raw with emotion.
Whether it was desperation, or something else—
I couldn’t tell.
But whatever it was, it was genuine.
“I do not know how this choice will end,” he confessed. “But if there is even the slightest chance… I hope you will be the one to see it through.”
“…Ha.”
I laughed.
“So in the end, you’re just asking me to clean up your mess.”
To ensure no one else suffers from the consequences of his own greed—
He wants it all to end with me.
I resented him for it.
But at the same time, I understood.
It was simple.
It was clear.
“…”
I looked at the Ancestor in silence.
If I absorb him—
No matter what, I will become a Calamity.
I am no longer human, but a dragon.
I have severed the attachments that once held me back.
And now, the Nine Flames Firewheel has reached its peak—transcending its limits.
Everything is different from my past life.
And yet—
At the end of it all, the only path left for me is Calamity.
‘You are the Calamity.’
The words of Yeon Ilcheon echoed in my memory.
I fought so hard to reject them.
But—
‘…Was he right all along?’
Had Yeon Ilcheon been correct this entire time?
That thought consumed me.
Should I just let it all collapse?
Or—
Should I take the gamble and accept this fate?
I pondered—
And in the end—
I reached my decision far more swiftly than I had anticipated.
Comments for chapter "Chapter 1066"
MANGA DISCUSSION
Madara Info
Madara stands as a beacon for those desiring to craft a captivating online comic and manga reading platform on WordPress
For custom work request, please send email to wpstylish(at)gmail(dot)com