Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 963

Chapter 963

I was traveling to Yahwol with Shin Noya.
Something about that felt deeply unnatural.
And the reason was clear.

‘…This old man could have left anytime?’

I had always believed Shin Noya never ventured beyond the Mount Hua Sect. Even though the sect was scorned and mistreated in Yahwol, Noya had never stepped in to address it.

Maybe the disciples had intentionally kept the situation from him.

‘You knew all along, didn’t you?’

Noya had already sensed what was happening. That was why he had asked for my assistance in the first place. But if he was willing to seek my help rather than act himself…

‘I assumed it meant he was unable to leave.’

Now, suddenly, he had chosen to go?
Then why had he waited until now?

That question stayed with me as I left my room.

When Shin Noya and I came out together, Gubong stared at him with a strange look. Then Noya turned and addressed him.

“I am taking a brief journey to Yahwol.”
“What…? S-Sect Leader! What are you saying…?!”

Gubong’s eyes widened in disbelief. His reaction made it obvious that Noya personally going to Yahwol was anything but normal.

“Why go yourself…! Allow me to go in your stead…!”
“Unnecessary. Just an old man stretching his legs—do not trouble yourself over it.”
“But…!”
“Enough.”

As Shin Noya spoke with a furrowed brow, Gubong finally fell silent, his lips pressed into a thin line.

“…Then permit me to accompany you. I beg you, grant me that much.”

His voice was strained with urgency. Hearing this, Shin Noya chuckled softly and nodded.

“Very well. It has been some time since I last journeyed beyond these walls.”

Only then did Gubong release a heavy, relieved sigh. Watching this, I narrowed my eyes.

‘What’s going on?’

Why was he so resistant?

I was curious, but I decided against asking. One glance at Noya’s expression told me that no matter how I worded it, he wouldn’t give me an answer.

‘Tch.’

Clicking my tongue, I started walking again. For now, reaching Yahwol was the priority.

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

After leaving the Mount Hua Sect, we began making our way toward Yahwol. Having traveled this route many times, I knew it well. But this time, there was a specific place I needed to visit first.

A wide, open field.
A place of devastation, the area around it completely ruined.

It was the site where Yarang and Cheonma had battled not long ago.

“Hm.”

Noya let out a quiet sound as he observed the scene.

“They fought like wild beasts.”
“…”

I remained silent, but internally, I agreed.

“How much power did they expend for the remnants to still linger like this?”

Noya gave a dry laugh as he gazed into the air. I understood exactly why he reacted that way.

Even though time had passed since the fight, Qi still hung heavily in the atmosphere.

Normally, it should have dispersed long ago. For this much to remain—just how immense had their output been?

‘…Incredible.’

I wasn’t one to criticize excessive force, but Cheonma’s Qi was downright unreasonable.

‘This isn’t a lack of control—it’s total carelessness.’

No compression. No restraint. Nothing.

The strength of Internal Energy lies in how much a martial artist can produce and how quickly they can cycle it through their body.

The moment I understood rotation and pressure, my destructive power multiplied. The more Internal Energy I stored, the stronger I became.

Rotation.

Compression.

Friction.

If these three principles dictated the efficiency of a martial artist’s techniques—

‘…Then what in the world is this?’

The residual energy left by Cheonma contained none of that.

Which meant—

‘She used none of these methods and still caused this much damage.’

Cheonma hadn’t rotated, compressed, or even managed her Qi.
She had fought using pure, raw volume and brute force.

It was illogical.

‘How does that even work?’

It was like preparing an arrow to shoot, only to throw it by hand instead of using the bow.

How wasteful could one be?
This shouldn’t have been viable power, and yet Cheonma had used it.

Which led to another question—

‘…Was the Cheonma from my past life like this as well?’

Had she fought in such a crude, reckless way back then?

I thought back carefully.

I had rarely seen Cheonma fight in person.
Most of my knowledge came from reports of her victories.

Killing the Three Elders.
Slaughtering another grandmaster.

Dominating battlefields and securing wins.

That was all I had ever been told.

‘…Now that I think about it, I didn’t see her fight very often.’

Not never.

I had glimpsed her killing Maehwa-seon at the Mount Hua Sect.
And I had partly witnessed other battles.

But even then—

‘She didn’t fight like this back then.’

Her Qi had never wavered.
She had wielded her enormous Qi with absolute mastery, constantly adapting and maximizing its potential.

Better than anyone else.

She had to have.

‘You don’t kill the Three Elders without that level of precision.’

No matter how powerful Cheonma was, that alone wasn’t enough.
She had been supremely skilled.

The Cheonma I remembered wasn’t just proficient—she had exceeded everyone in every way. I couldn’t even conceive of a human being able to kill her. She had been so overwhelmingly powerful that the idea of her defeat was absurd.

But now?

‘Everything is messy.’

Her movements.
The enormous Qi she possessed, yet had no idea how to use properly.

Was this really the Cheonma I had once feared?

My understanding of her was starting to shatter.

‘Even if the true emergence of Cheonma is still a few years away in this life…’

Could she really become the Cheonma I knew in such a short time?

Logically, it seemed impossible.

Of course, logic had already been abandoned long ago.
But even so, this was peculiar.

‘What is this?’

Who exactly was this Cheonma?
I couldn’t comprehend it.

Right then—

“So, you’re not bringing that girl with you?”

Shin Noya suddenly inquired about Cheonma.

Hearing that, I bit my lip slightly.

“…No. Even if I brought her, she wouldn’t be of much help….”

Besides—

‘It’s… unsettling.’

For some reason, I found it difficult to look Cheonma in the eye.
Strangely so.

“Anyway, that’s how it is….”

I dismissed the subject.

Since I didn’t offer a full explanation, Shin Noya gave me a puzzled look.
I ignored it.

“…Let’s go.”

I had seen all I needed to.

I hadn’t come to study Cheonma’s remnants anyway.

I had come to sense what was left of Yarang’s power.

‘But there’s nothing here.’

I felt nothing at all.

Unlike Cheonma, Yarang had controlled their Qi flawlessly.

‘Tsk.’

It was a little disappointing, but it didn’t change anything.

After all—

‘I am sure.’

I had already become convinced that Yarang was the Divine Sword.
This was just a way to make that certainty even stronger.

Even finding nothing here wouldn’t sway my belief.

“…Let’s go.”

I repeated myself. At that, Shin Noya began to move, and I followed.

As we walked, Gubong watched the two of us with a concerned expression.

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

We reached Yahwol Palace after some time.

As we neared the gates, the scenery was unchanged from before, but I could feel the security had tightened since our last visit.

Just as we were about to enter—

“Ah, right.”

I suddenly remembered something and turned to Noya.

“Noya.”
“Hmm?”
“That. What are you going to do about the ears and tail?”
“Hm? Ah.”

Hearing my question, Noya finally realized the issue.
Now that I thought about it, Noya had neither ears nor a tail.

“Ah, damn. I forgot. I should’ve stopped by that damned turtle first.”

Scratching his head in mild annoyance, Noya looked bothered.

Watching him, I suggested,

“Should I handle this for you?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“I learned how to do it.”
“…What?”

Hearing my words, Noya’s eyes narrowed.
Was it so surprising that I had learned it?

I smirked and reached out my hand.
My palm pressed against Noya’s chest.

And then—

Saaaah—!

Instantly, ears and a tail sprouted from Noya’s head.

“Huh?”

Seeing his own transformed appearance, Noya breathed out in surprise.

“Kid… When did you learn this?”
“I watched last time and imitated it. It wasn’t difficult.”
“…You copied it just from watching?”
“Yes. You should try it sometime, Noya. It’s actually quite straightforward.”
“…Uh. Sure.”

Noya nodded half-heartedly, seeming somewhat unsettled by my words.

What?

Lately, I had been seeing that look on his face more and more.

Was it just my imagination?
No, it didn’t feel like it.
It definitely wasn’t just my imagination.

Anyway—

‘Well, at least applying it to Noya was simple.’

Compared to the frustrating difficulty of cursing Cheonma, doing the same for Noya was effortless.

What was the difference?
I was briefly curious.

“…Proceed.”

But for now, entering the fortress was the priority, so I set the thought aside.

The gatekeeper allowed us to enter.

His suspicion was evident, but the token I carried easily dismissed any doubts.

A nearly all-access pass.

“…That…”

I sensed Gubong flinch slightly when he saw my token.

Ah, right.

‘That guy… He was the son of that family.’

I had momentarily forgotten.
Pretending not to notice, I tucked the token back into my robes and continued forward.

As we entered, Noya glanced around at the surroundings.

“This place hasn’t changed much.”
“…You’ve been here before?”
“Naturally. What do you take me for?”

Noya frowned as he looked at me.

“The last time was… maybe ten years ago?”
“…”

…Wasn’t that far too long ago?
Ten years was enough for landscapes to change.

Shaking my head, I focused again on the path ahead.

‘First.’

Naturally, I would go to the Black House first.
I needed to collect any useful information there and wait until nightfall.

Also—

‘Where is Yusa?’

I had some matters to discuss with Yusa as well.
But whether that bastard would actually appear was another question.

If I had to guess, he probably would.

Still, it was only a guess.

‘…Let’s go.’

Solidifying my plan, I headed toward the Black House.
My pace was slightly quicker than before.

I needed to get closer to Yarang and Mother as soon as possible.

That thought propelled me forward when—

Swish.

Someone brushed past me.

Their faces were covered with cloth.

But—

“…!”

The moment they passed, my body moved on instinct.

‘What?’

My eyes widened as I spun toward them.
At the same time, I reached out to grab one of them.

Snap!

A dry, aged hand seized my wrist.

“Calm down.”

It was Noya.
Noya had stopped me.

“But…!”
“If you don’t want everyone here to die, stay still. Now is not the time.”
“…”

Shin Noya stared at me, his face emotionless, his voice bearing down with undeniable weight.

The sheer presence in his words and the energy radiating from his arm were enough to freeze me in place.

But my breathing remained unsteady, trembling.

‘That was definitely…’

The two figures who had just passed me.

I hadn’t seen their faces.

But in that fleeting moment, my heart had nearly leaped from my chest.

‘Mother…?’

Just now—

It felt like Mother had walked right by me.