Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 1072

Chapter 1072

The blackness remained.

An oppressive, absolute void where vision was impossible.

The aggravation of being confined in such emptiness weighed heavily upon me. With each passing moment, it wore on my composure, an irritation rising to the surface that I could not contain.

*Crack.*

A fissure formed in the dark.

It looked identical to the moment my master had struck the barrier surrounding the Abyssal Pit.

The crack, extending like a spiderweb, gradually widened until it covered my entire view.

Soon, the fractured surface broke apart into countless pieces, and my sight returned.

*Crackle—*

As if stepping on burnt wood or crushing an eggshell, the whole space fragmented, allowing light to pour in.

«Ugh…»

The abrupt glare was painful. It was so intense that my eyes squeezed shut on their own against the harsh radiance.

«What…?»

Blinking hard, I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand and gradually pushed my upper body off the ground.

As I did, my other hand came to rest on something unexpected.

An unfamiliar texture.

Glancing down, I saw wild grass under my fingers.

The moment I identified it, all my numbed senses rushed back in a flood.

The smell of vegetation filled my nostrils from all around.

The coarse feel of the weeds against my skin.

The subtle scent of the woodland, the calls of birds, and the warmth of sunlight falling through the branches from above.

The overwhelming tranquility of it felt… deeply wrong.

«What…?»

What was this?

I was in a forest all of a sudden. How in the world did I get here?

Where am I?

I was the master of the Myriad Realms. I had just confronted my mother. Her hand had been closing around my throat, moments from piercing it.

But when my eyes opened, I was here.

And more importantly—

This isn’t the forest of the Myriad Realms.

The trees and plants weren’t the strange, distorted shapes found in the Myriad Realms. They were… ordinary.

It was a forest I knew. Far too well.

A forest straight out of Zhongyuan.

Is this an illusion?

Or… the final moments before death?

It was entirely plausible. If not, then—

Just as my ancestor had cautioned, something had occurred.

I remembered the words my ancestor had spoken right before the darkness consumed me.

«A contingency.»

My mother had a contingency plan in place for me.

But wasn’t finding all the Divine Trees supposed to be that plan?

I didn’t know.

I couldn’t comprehend what was happening, but I also knew I couldn’t just stay here.

First, I needed to get up and evaluate my circumstances.

Starting with my own body.

I gently circulated my energy to check my condition—

…What?

A peculiar feeling.

The energy that had once saturated me was now… diminished.

A significant part of it was simply gone.

Some of my power remained, but—

The energy from the Divine Trees has vanished.

Not only that. Even the divine power that had once resided within me had disappeared entirely.

…And my body has been altered.

There was a clear difference in my physical form.

I clenched and opened my fists several times, testing my strength.

I’m weaker.

That much was undeniable. My body had unquestionably grown weaker.

The only consolation was that my cultivation base was still there.

*Vrrrr…*

At least my authorities remain.

The powers I had gathered—

Even those I had acquired upon becoming a dragon—were still present.

…This is unbelievable.

What kind of absurdity is this?

I was still struggling to process it when—

*Crunch—!*

…!

Someone was coming.

I immediately heightened my awareness, suppressing my aura as I hid myself.

Not long after—

«Are you certain this is the spot?»
«Yes. The report said it should be right around here.»

Voices.

And not just any voices—

The Zhongyuan dialect.

Not the language of the Myriad Realms, but the very tongue I knew from Zhongyuan.

My eyes widened as I turned toward the source of the sound.

…Huh?

They were human.

«…There’s nothing here.»
«No, but… I was told someone was found collapsed in this area.»

And not just any humans.

Their attire…

That’s the uniform of the Murim Alliance.

The specific colors and patterns were unmistakable.

Which meant—

…Am I in Zhongyuan?

Had I returned just like that?

I couldn’t make sense of it.

Still reeling, I watched silently as the two men searched the area where I had been lying.

«Tch. There’s nothing.»
«…That’s odd.»
«Probably another false alarm. Damn it, as if we don’t have enough on our plates with those demon beasts already.»

The man who had been complaining was the first to turn away.

«Let’s go. If we waste any more time here, we’ll only catch flak.»
«But, senior…»
«Enough. Let’s head back. Did you forget what’s scheduled for today? If we’re late and the vice leader finds out, we’re finished.»
«…Understood.»

The younger one hesitated, casting one last doubtful look in my direction.

But in the end, the two of them departed.

«…»

Only after their presence had faded completely did I finally step out from my concealment.

«What the hell…»

What kind of ridiculous situation was this?

I had suddenly been sent back to Zhongyuan?

Then what about the Myriad Realms?

What happened to everything I left behind?

Cheonma… Shin Noya… and the Divine Sword?

Could I really just return like this, abandoning all of that?

My face contorted in frustration.

No.

That couldn’t be.

Things wouldn’t just end in such a nonsensical way.

That’s what I told myself.

I looked in the direction the two men had gone.

For now… I need to understand what is happening.

That was the most urgent priority.

**********

I made my way out of the forest.

Even in a weakened state, I had achieved transcendence, so leaving undetected was not difficult.

Tracking the traces of people, I moved forward, and soon a city appeared in the distance.

At that moment, I realized my location.

«Hanam.»

The place I had originally come from.

This was Hanam Prefecture, home to the headquarters of the Murim Alliance.

Seeing it confirmed that I was indeed in Zhongyuan.

And yet—

Something’s off.

As I entered the prefecture and observed my surroundings, I quickly noted several inconsistencies.

The buildings are completely different.

This was undoubtedly the same prefecture I remembered, but it looked wholly unfamiliar.

Hanam had been ravaged once before in an attack by those damned Ze Gal. After that, it had been entirely rebuilt, so the streets and structures had long since changed.

But here…

This place looks like the old Hanam.

No, even older than that—everything seemed ancient.

“Come, try this!”
“Just take a look, it won’t cost you anything!”

The atmosphere was different, too.

Hanam’s prefecture was always a hub of activity, but even so, this place felt… far more calm.

Too many things were not as I knew them.

…Could it be?

Was this another world, like the one Senior Tang had once described?

That possibility seemed increasingly likely. If this place was so profoundly different from my memory, then it made more sense to assume this wasn’t my Zhongyuan at all.

Then what in the world am I supposed to do now?

If this truly is another world, then what is my purpose here?

Mother said this was part of her contingency.

Did she mean for me to find something here?

I frowned, unable to piece it together.

Tsk.

As my eyes swept over the area,

Hmm?

A faint aroma drifted past my nose.

Wait, this scent—

I focused my vision.

It was a smell I knew intimately.

Turning my head, I spotted an inn.

…Huh.

It was a place I recognized.

A place I used to frequent in my original Zhongyuan whenever I wanted dumplings.

This place exists here, too?

Even in this bewildering predicament, I felt a peculiar sense of familiarity.

Maybe that was why—

My feet carried me toward it of their own accord.

I wasn’t especially hungry.

I wasn’t starving, and this didn’t feel like the time to be thinking about food.

And yet, I walked toward it anyway.

Perhaps simply because it was a known quantity.

“Ah! Welcome, young master!”

The moment I reached the entrance, an attendant greeted me with a cheerful smile.

Before I knew it, I had been shown to a table and seated.

Shortly after, the attendant returned and asked,

“What would you like to order?”
«…Do you have dumplings?»
“Of course! Our dumplings are our most famous dish.”
“One order, then.”
“Right away!”

Beaming, the attendant hurried off to put in the order.

I sat there, my mind adrift.

What in the world am I doing?

Am I an idiot?

I had just walked into an inn to order dumplings?

Even if it was a subconscious act, it made no sense.

…Is this really okay?

Of course not.

No matter how I looked at it, this was incorrect.

There were too many questions needing answers, and here I was, squandering time on dumplings.

I came to my senses, ready to stand up and leave immediately—

Until—

“Did you hear? The Divine Dragon was just named a vice leader.”
“Oh? The Divine Dragon?”

I went rigid.

Divine Dragon?

A name I knew better than my own.

If they were speaking of the Divine Dragon…

Did that bald fool become a vice leader?

The Divine Dragon of Shaolin.

It had to be him.

Even if this was a different world, I knew that title.

“That’s right. They say he’s the youngest vice leader in history.”
“Haha, not only did he join the Azure Dragon Unit so young, but now he’s a vice leader? At this rate, he might even lead the Divine Dragon Unit one day.”
“Honestly, that wouldn’t be a shock.”

Vice leader of the Azure Dragon Unit?

Something was wrong.

Why would he be there?

If he is the Divine Dragon, then logically, he should have joined the Divine Dragon Unit.

But they said he was in the Azure Dragon Unit?

From the conversation, the Divine Dragon Unit still existed here.

Then… is it just not the same in this world?

If this is another world, perhaps things are simply arranged differently.

I was about to dismiss it when—

“Well, it’s truly a miracle. For such a phenomenal talent to appear out of nowhere.”
“…?”

Something about that phrasing struck me as strange.

What did they mean, ‘out of nowhere’?

“It’s not exactly nowhere. That place still holds a fairly high status in Shanxi Province.”

Huh…?

The instant I heard that, my head whipped around toward the man who had spoken.

…What in the world did he just say?