Childhood Friend of the Zenith Novel MTL - Chapter 984

Chapter 984

Whoosh—

A sudden rush of air brushed past, raising goosebumps along my skin.
Feeling the cold, I gradually opened my eyes.

“…Hrk.”

Stumbling slightly, I rose to my feet, trying to shake off the mental fog clouding my thoughts.
I attempted to clear my head, but it was strangely difficult.

I began circulating my energy.

Bzzz—!

As the energy flowed through me, my senses heightened and clarity returned almost at once.

“Cough. Ptuh.”

I let out a dry cough and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand.

How had it come to this?

Searching through my memories, the last thing I remembered rose to the surface.

“Oh—!”

The moment it did, I flinched hard, my eyes darting around.

I had been with Yarang.

When I first came to, I was on her back, being carried to some unknown location.

After that, we’d entered a place I didn’t recognize.

And then—

‘The fruit.’

I’d been forced to swallow that damned fruit.

I hadn’t known what it was, and I panicked—but the real issue was—

‘I passed out again.’

Whether because of the fruit or not, a strange energy flooded my system, and I lost consciousness.

Now, I was awake once more.

I turned my head, studying my surroundings.

‘What in the world?’

I narrowed my eyes at what I saw.

The place Yarang had brought me to was entirely unknown.

But now—

‘This is…’

This place was unnervingly familiar.

‘Isn’t this where I collapsed earlier?’

It was the exact location where I’d fallen after escaping from Yahwol Palace.

My mind was clearer than ever after my recent breakthrough, and my memory was sharp.

‘Why am I back here?’

The place Yarang took me wasn’t here.

So how did I end up back at the spot where I first lost consciousness?

‘…Was it all a dream?’

Had everything I experienced been just a dream?

No. I dismissed the idea immediately.

Impossible.

No dream could feel that real.

That left only one possibility.

‘Did she bring me back here?’

Had Yarang carried me all the way back again?

That was the only explanation that made sense.

‘But why?’

If that was true, what was her intention?

She forced that strange fruit into me, knocked me out, and then dumped me back here.

Why?

‘…I don’t understand.’

The more I thought about Yarang, the less she made sense.

“Haaah…”

I released a long sigh and focused on examining my body.

I had no idea what I’d eaten, so I needed to check for any changes.

“Huh?”

The moment I began my assessment, my eyes widened.

“What is this?”

I twisted and moved my body, testing my limbs—

Only to reach the same conclusion.

“…What’s going on?”

Why—

“…Why is my body perfectly fine?”

All my internal injuries were completely healed.

Even the small wounds I’d barely noticed before were gone.

And my energy—

‘Not fully, but half of it has returned?’

The energy that was nearly exhausted was now more than halfway restored.

What in the world?

‘What… is this…?’

How had my body recovered so completely?

It was unbelievable.

Could it be—

‘Was it the fruit?’

Did that unknown fruit do this?

It was the only explanation that made sense.

“Unbelievable…”

It wasn’t a bad thing.

Considering the time it would’ve taken to recover naturally, this was a tremendous turn of events.

But why?

Why did this happen?

And more importantly, why did Yarang make it happen?

‘Why?’

Did Yarang know what the fruit would do?

Did she intentionally feed it to me to restore me?

If that was true—

‘…Does she remember?’

Could she actually remember?

Could she still be the Divine Sword I once knew?

The thought rose in my throat, almost spilling out.

“Tch.”

But I forced it back down.

Clicking my tongue, I pushed the idea from my mind.

‘Not yet.’

I couldn’t afford to be distracted.

Regardless of Yarang’s motives, there was something else I needed to verify.

‘There could still be side effects.’

My injuries were healed, but other consequences might remain.

I needed to inspect myself more thoroughly.

‘Did Noya make it back to Mount Hua?’

Had Shin Noya, who left before me, returned safely?

After a moment’s thought, I took a step forward—

And the instant I did—

Fwoooosh—!!!

“…!!!”

I shot upward into the air.

“What the—?”

I’d only meant to jump, but I launched twice as high as I intended.

The force behind the leap—

The sheer speed of it—

It was nothing like before.

Of course, Mangye’s air was thick with energy, which naturally enhanced my strength.

But—

‘Not to this degree.’

It had never been this extreme.

My body had changed dramatically.

I lost control of my movement and crashed back down.

BOOM—!!!

Dirt and debris flew as I struck the ground.

“Ptuh.”

I spat out a mouthful of soil and clenched my fists.

“Hah…”

What was this?

My body felt like it was bursting with power.

Compared to before—

It felt almost twice as strong.

‘What’s happening?’

It didn’t feel like my cultivation had broken through.

It didn’t feel like my vessel had expanded, either.

It was simply—

As though my raw strength had increased.

‘Is that even possible?’

Could I become this much stronger without advancing to a new realm?

The question burned in my mind.

No matter how much I thought, I couldn’t find an answer.

Which meant—

‘…I need to find someone who knows.’

Someone had to have the answers.

And I already knew exactly who to ask.

*******

Fwoooosh—!
Boom—!

I cut through the air, landing hard on the ground.

Sparks scattered from the impact, glittering briefly before fading into the darkness.

From within the settling dust, I pushed myself up.

“Ugh…”

My legs were tingling.

With my increased speed, controlling my body had become difficult.

Because of that, I hadn’t even landed properly—
I’d absorbed the impact with my body instead.

“My bones are rattling…”

The jolt was strong enough to make my legs ache.

Suppressing a groan, I made myself walk forward.

As I moved, I reached into my robes and took out a small bottle.

A shell fragment from a tortoise.

I sprinkled the fine powder over myself.

Buzz—!

A piercing sensation followed, and the space around me warped.

The barrier opened, and I stepped into the territory of the Mount Hua Sect.

I was familiar with this feeling by now.

The air shifted the moment I entered.

Unlike the overwhelming energy outside, this place felt much more like Zhongyuan.

The magenta aurora that had filled the sky was gone, replaced by an ordinary night sky.

I quietly observed the moon above as I walked.

‘I should find Noya first…’

I was about to leap toward where Shin Noya should be—

Then—

Shffft—

“…!”

I sensed something approaching.

Swish—!
CRAAASH—!

A deadly force swept past where I’d been standing.

The violent shockwave that followed tore through the air, slicing down dozens of trees.

‘What was that—?!’

An ambush?

A cold sweat broke out on my back.

If I’d reacted a second later, I wouldn’t have dodged in time.

Who would attack me like this?

I was about to raise my energy and prepare to counter when—

“Huh? What’s going on?”

A familiar voice rang out.

A figure came into view—

Shin Noya.

“…Why are you here?”

“…Noya?”

Shin Noya stood before me, sword in hand.

The energy still flickering along his blade made me frown.

“Was that you who just swung at me?”

No wonder the attack felt lethal.

It was his sword.

“Noya, have you lost your mind? If I’d hesitated for a second, I could’ve died.”

A joke was one thing, but that was far too close.

If I’d been slower, I would’ve lost a limb—or worse.

The sheer recklessness of it made me stare at him in disbelief.

But—

“What are you talking about?”

Noya actually looked offended.

“I sensed something strange entering the sect and came to check… So why are you here?”

“…Strange? What do you mean?”

I narrowed my eyes.

His wording bothered me.

I glared, and he furrowed his brows in return.

“Kid, do you have any idea what you look like right now?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You’re telling me you haven’t noticed? Your presence is practically exploding.”

“…?”

His words made me tilt my head in confusion.

Exploding with presence? That didn’t make sense.

‘I’ve been suppressing it just fine.’

Even with my expanded vessel and cultivation breakthroughs, I’d always carefully controlled my presence.

Especially here in Mount Hua, I’d been extra cautious.

I’d always kept it restrained.

“So what did you do this time? It hasn’t even been half a day, and you show up like this?”

Noya seemed certain that I’d completely lost control of my presence.

Was that why he attacked?

‘My body healed, my energy surged, and now my presence changed too…?’

Just how much had changed?

I quickly circulated my energy.

Just like adjusting my strength, suppressing my presence was a familiar exercise.

As I focused, I felt it—

The energy that had been spilling out freely began compressing back into my body.

‘Now that I think about it, he might be right…’

Before, there had always been a limit to how much I could suppress my presence.

But now, there was no resistance.

It just kept shrinking.

As I brought it under control—

“Forget your presence. What happened to your face?”

Noya asked abruptly.

“My face?”

What now?

What was wrong with me this time?

I turned toward him, confused.

He raised his sword, angling the blade so I could see my reflection.

It had been polished to a mirror finish.

And when I saw my own face—

“…What the hell?”

My eyes widened.

“What is this…?”

My reflection looked different.

My irises still glowed with their usual blue light—
But my pupils…

They were slitted.

More pronounced.

And my fangs—

They were much sharper than before.

Even my nails—
They looked like claws, as if deliberately sharpened to points.

The face staring back at me—

It wasn’t just beast-like.

No.

It was—

“…Moonlit Night Tribe?”

I looked exactly like the beastkin of this land.

The ones known as the Moonlit Night Tribe.