Childhood Friend of the Zenith – 327 (Part 1)



327 (Part 1)

”'<Chapter 328: The Listening Demon. (2)

Right after starting the practical training.

Cheol Ji-seon hesitated as he walked alongside Jang Seon-yeon filled with uncertainty.

He had felt the same way for several days.

Moreover.

‘Maybe I should just stop now….’

Even as he followed the clumsy footsteps.

His mind was a mess.

Shin Seong who was in front of him remained silent.

Yet the subtle energy he felt from behind made Cheol Ji-seon break out in a cold sweat.

Even without words he could tell.

How deeply Shin Seong’s emotions had sunk into darkness.

It was so palpable.

Cheol Ji-seon had to silently sob in fear.

‘Is this really Shin Seong?’

His first impression of him had already been shattered upon their meeting.

But still.

As the son of the Alliance Leader.

For someone known to be so beautiful the disparity between his exterior and interior was too great.

‘If it’s going to be like this….’

A face of someone flashed in Cheol Ji-seon’s mind.

A person with a fierce appearance closer to the unorthodox sects than the orthodox ones a bit of a rogue.

But at least he didn’t seem to be different inside and out.

‘…Rather.’

Cheol Ji-seon’s steps came to a halt.

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He had told himself to do everything Jang Seon-yeon instructed.

But from Cheol Ji-seon’s perspective it was impossible to do so without feeling uneasy.

‘To open a door right beneath where a person is standing…?’

A handful of fragmented memories from his childhood came to mind.

On the burning ground.

The house that was swallowed up.

His father who was above it.

His own screams that felt like they would tear his throat apart.

And Noona who held him close and silenced him.

And then his mother who could no longer look into her son’s eyes.

For Cheol Ji-seon it was a hellish memory.

‘…To make me do that again with my own hands…?’

His fists clenched.

Tremors coursed through him and the cold sweat flowed from his forehead to the tip of his nose.

Just as Cheol Ji-seon was being consumed by the past and his mind was wavering.

“Cheol Mister.”

Shin Seong’s voice reached him.

“…!”

Noticing that he had stopped moving Jang Seon-yeon called out to Cheol Ji-seon.

Startled he looked at Jang Seon-yeon.

He had to cover his mouth with his hand.

Because the look in Jang Seon-yeon’s eyes was so dark.

“It seems you are hesitating.”

That was all Shin Seong said as he met Cheol Ji-seon’s gaze.

“Ah no….”

Hearing Cheol Ji-seon’s trembling voice Jang Seon-yeon smiled slightly.

Cheol Ji-seon found that smile chillingly terrifying.

“That’s right. You shouldn’t hesitate now.”

“Q-…”

“Isn’t there something we both desire?”

Jang Seon-yeon said this and turned her head again.

Desire….

At Shin Seong’s words Cheol Ji-seon immediately thought of what he desired.

‘The revival of the family.’

The Jae-gal family shedding its false accusations and rejoining the core of the orthodox sects.

‘…Noona’s happiness.’

Wishing for his Noona to live a happy life.

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That was the only life he wished for.

At the same time fulfilling the dreams his father could not achieve.

‘Noona’s….’

He would heal Noona’s body.

This was the reason for heading to the Central Plains.

Jang Seon-yeon had said she would help revive the Jae-gal Family.

Though she hadn’t mentioned Noona if that was included in the deal.

He might have agreed without hesitation.

‘…If I hadn’t met Jin-ryong.’

Yes if he hadn’t met him.

Leaving aside the fact that he was a terrifying being who had thought of killing him.

The presence he possessed was overwhelmingly strong.

Just looking at Shin-ryong-gwan was enough.

At first he was amazed that all the bloodlines of the four great families had entered the competition.

And that this was the highest level of any Shin-ryong-gwan in history.

More than half of the Six Dragons and Three Peaks had entered.

And each of them displayed an unbelievable presence.

But that wasn’t all.

The beautiful sword dancer a masterpiece of the Namgung family was also present.

Shin Seong the child of the Alliance Leader who had recently been making waves as an outstanding figure.

Even the successor of the legendary sword master who had retired and gone missing.

Amidst these absurdly powerful beings.

Two months passed.

The one who displayed the most presence was none other than Jin-ryong.

Not only did he take the top spot from the entrance exam.

From the very first day he confronted the instructors and even emerged victorious.

Jin-ryong became the center of several incidents like a storm.

‘…Because of that I’ve been called mad and all sorts of things but.’

Just thinking about it made his teeth grind but that wasn’t what mattered now.

Jin-ryong was undeniably proud.

Rumors about him were rampant.

Most of them were malicious but Jin-ryong didn’t seem to care much.

He would listen once and then lose interest as if the chatter of the lower ranks didn’t matter.

However he didn’t overlook the murmurs about those around him.

Once when someone spread bad rumors about him.

Jin-ryong personally went to the source and dealt with it.

What he said then was “If you do it one more time I’ll make sure you can’t open your mouth again and burn you.”

Those who witnessed the situation at the time.

Could tell at a glance that those words were not a lie.

The killing intent that Jin-ryong exuded while speaking.

Was enough to dominate the entire room.

When he said that Jin-ryong was not different inside and out it meant this.

He didn’t care about others’ gazes.

He moved as he pleased.

If he didn’t like something he would break it.

If he liked it he would keep it close.

Such a simple and straightforward statement.

But acting without regard for others’ gazes was a different matter.

Of course Jin-ryong also seemed to have many thoughts and hidden feelings.

But he didn’t give off the same ominous vibe as Shin Seong.

‘…In that regard he’s better than Shin Seong.’

Even if there were whispers that Jin-ryong felt inferior to Shin Seong.

Or that his jealousy was excessive.

The Jin-ryong that Cheol Ji-seon saw didn’t seem to care about such things.

Rather.

‘The person in front of me seems to be more concerned about that.’

It would be more accurate to say that Shin Seong felt inferior to Jin-ryong.

Even now he was radiating energy that was visible.

In this situation.

No matter how much Jin-ryong told him to do so.

Was it really right to point a blade at him?

Cheol Ji-seon could only deepen his worries.

Jin-ryong did not fully understand his own power.

Not just the demonic beast that emanated from the Demon Gate.

But also the ability to open dimensions in the ground swallowing everything above and sending it somewhere.

Moreover if he opened a crack in the ground those above would be immobilized.

Even masters who surpassed the peak could not move.

And those who were swallowed had not returned until now.

Because his father had been just like that.

Cheol Ji-seon hesitated and moved forward.

Before long the two were heading toward the highest point of the mountain.

As they walked silently.

In the distance Gu Yang-cheon came into view. Shin Seong had indeed come to find Gu Yang-cheon.

He had thought there would be some disruption.

But Gu Yang-cheon was flowing just as expected.

At that moment.

“Stay here.”

Shin Seong said to Cheol Ji-seon.

Following Jang Seon-yeon’s words Cheol Ji-seon hid himself in the bushes.

Hoo-!

As soon as he carefully sat down an unknown barrier formed around Cheol Ji-seon.

As he felt a gentle energy a very faint vibration sound could be heard.

It seemed to be a qi barrier.

Cheol Ji-seon felt a moment of surprise at the intricate application of qi from the barrier.

But it was only for a moment.

Cheol Ji-seon could clearly see.

That the gaze of Gu Yang-cheon who was confronting Shin Seong in the distance.

Had briefly turned toward him.

‘Did he feel this…?’

Given the distance and the barrier spread out it was surprising that he noticed it so quickly.

Gu Yang-cheon who had exchanged glances with Cheol Ji-seon smirked and looked back at Jang Seon-yeon.

Seeing that Cheol Ji-seon swallowed hard.

It seemed Jang Seon-yeon had made many preparations.

But in the end to Cheol Ji-seon it was no different from a game created by Gu Yang-cheon.”’