Childhood Friend of the Zenith

It was the first sensation I felt after becoming a Demonic Human.

Every part of me, from my toes to my head, burned with heat.

This wasn’t the familiar heat from my flame arts, either.

Demonic Qi was even more violent than flame Qi which was already infamous for its violent nature.

Demonic Qi blocked and decayed other Qi, as though refusing to share its host with any other power.

That’s what the Heavenly Demon said, so thousands of Demonic Humans took it as absolute.

Becoming a Demonic Human let them wield Demonic Qi, merging it with their martial arts to unlock greater power than ever before.

Demonic Qi seemed limitless in its power.

With such Qi filling one’s body, the heat was inevitable.

Heat radiated from me without any effort on my part.

It was strange to feel heat pouring from my body, not from flame Qi, but from raw strength alone.

Bastards that experience this sensation for the first time, usually end up being consumed by madness.

I’ve seen it happen countless times in my past life.

I was extremely cautious to ensure that wouldn’t happen to me.

Stay still if you don’t want to die.

Ssss…

It became silent when I pressured the Qi in my body.

There was only one reason the Demonic Qi went wild.

It possessed a will of its own, refusing to obey its host’s commands.

The Demonic Qi originally belonged to the Heavenly Demon, so perhaps it recognized only the Heavenly Demon as its true master.

Because of this, I made it clear.

I told it to know its place, as I was the owner of it now.

The clash between my Qi and Demonic Qi nearly tore my body apart, but I managed to prevail.

Did it snap?

There was a line that connected me and the Heavenly Demon.

But now, I couldn’t see the line, nor did I feel the resonance from before.

Was it really this easy?

The faint line had appeared just as I was transforming into a Demonic Human.

Something had shifted the moment I snapped it.

Could it really be this easy?

Of course not.

It was absurd.

If it had been this easy, I wouldn’t have endured all that pain in my past life.

I could have snapped the line if I wanted to? My ass.

This time was simply different.

Not only was this life drastically different from my last, but it felt as though some unseen force had guided this change.

At least, that’s how it felt.

“…N-No.”

I looked toward the person, trembling with terror.

It was Wi Seol-Ah, her face pale with shock, hands covering her mouth.

I observed the white aura and the power that currently enhanced her sword.

Then, I shifted my gaze to her face.

She looked like the Wi Seol-Ah I knew in this life, but I frowned at her pupils.

That subtle difference in her eyes unsettled me.

“Stay right where you are.”

“…”

Wi Seol-Ah flinched after hearing my words.

“We have a lot to talk about.”

“…Ah.”

I saw Wi Seol-Ah’s large eyes quiver.

It was very noticeable because of how big her eyes were.

Now that I thought about it, I wondered if my eyes were red or violet.

Place.

I touched my face, but there was no way to tell.

However, one difference I felt was the fact that my skin felt cold, even though it should’ve been hot due to all the heat filling up my body.

The Demonic Qi made my body searing hot, yet my skin remained cold.

It was a strange sensation.

It had been a long time since I’d felt this way.

Swish.

I turned my head toward the presence stepping closer to me.

There, the Heavenly Demon stood, looking up at me with radiant violet eyes.

“…Ah.”

It wasn’t that I hadn’t sensed the presence approaching.

Instead, I let it approach me as I felt no hostility from it.

This was another difference.

I could sense any hint of hostility from the Heavenly Demon, yet as it neared, I felt no fear.

“How did you do it?”

Its voice was slow, each word pronounced with deliberate firmness.

Had the Heavenly Demon always spoken this way?

Or was this simply its current state?

“What?”

“That.”

The Heavenly Demon pointed its finger towards my Dantian.

“Mine… How did you?”

At first, I wondered what it meant, but it seemed to be talking about the line I’d severed that had connected us.

Or perhaps it was referring to my Demonic Absorption Arts.

Judging by its reaction, though, it seemed safe to assume I had indeed severed the line.

“What makes you think that belongs to you?”

“It is mine.”

I felt a strange emotion as I spoke to the Heavenly Demon.

It was because I’d never spoken to the Heavenly Demon like this before.

Now, I could see its face clearly.

Before, it had merely resembled Wi Seol-Ah, but now I could see that this was unmistakably the Heavenly Demon.

Its hollow eyes and the furrow of its brows gave it a perpetually displeased look.

And then there were its violet eyes.

Had it always felt this way?

The being I once feared now felt oddly familiar.

Was it because it looked so much like Wi Seol-Ah?

That probably wasn’t it.

-I am the Heavenly Demon.

They were very different.

Whether it was the Heavenly Demon, or my current self.

Had it always felt like this?

The Heavenly Demon I knew embodied the word absolute, with a presence that seemed to pierce the heavens.

Yet, this Heavenly Demon felt entirely different.

“That’s mine.”

Its pestering tone and the way its hair shifted with each word.

-Captain.

It looked entirely unlike her, the one who looked down on me.

How is this even possible?

I thought about when the Heavenly Demon appeared in my past life. It was around the time I was just over the age of twenty, so it was only a few years difference.

Yet, in that short time, this childlike being had changed so drastically?

Could this not be the Heavenly Demon?

The thought crossed my mind briefly, but I knew I was wrong.

I could feel it, even now.

An incredible power concealed within that small frame, its presence so potent it had to hide it to remain undetected.

I looked into the Heavenly Demon’s eyes.

Its annoyed expression was oddly reminiscent of Wi Seol-Ah’s face when I’d stolen her yakgwa.

This child would grow into the Heavenly Demon one day, huh.

Maybe it was simply putting on an act.

That was certainly possible.

However, it didn’t matter to me.

“It’s yours? No.”

I flowed my Demonic Qi.

It surged instantly to my top Dantian.

It was faster and more powerful than ordinary Qi.

It merged with my martial arts, amplifying its strength even further.

That was the strength granted by the Demonic Qi.

My Demonic Qi rose above my shoulders, poured out into the air,

“What… is that…”

and the Palace Lord who was watching, showed an expression of disbelief.

The Heavenly Demon’s eyes went wide.

Was it because this Qi leaving my body was familiar to it?

The Demonic Qi flowing from me revealed its true nature.

The instinct of Demonic Qi was greed and domination.

With a will to dominate everything around it, the Qi shot skyward and merged with the black barrier.

Crack… Crunch.

It began gnawing away at the black barrier overhead.

Watching this, I turned to the Heavenly Demon and spoke.

“Now it’s mine.”

The Demonic Qi coursing through me no longer belonged to the Heavenly Demon.

Its origin might have been from a Demon or the Heavenly Demon’s authority, the Demonic Absorption Arts, but I had embedded it in my heart and stripped it of its will, making it mine.

“…”

The Heavenly Demon remained silent after hearing my response,

Reach.

Then, it extended its pale hand toward me.

I wondered at its intent, but I had no intention of allowing it to proceed.

Clench.

Before the Heavenly Demon’s hand could reach me, I seized its wrist.

My hand wasn’t even that big, but I was able to fully wrap my fingers around its thin wrist.

The instant I touched the Heavenly Demon,

Roaaaar-!

The Demonic Qi within me suddenly erupted in a furious scream.

This time, it wasn’t attempting to return to the Heavenly Demon.

Instead, it radiated such hostility that I was taken aback.

Moments ago, you tried to return to your master, and now you’re acting like this? For fuck’s sake.

It truly left me speechless.

Sigh.

I exhaled in disbelief at the absurdity, yet I sensed it wasn’t just my Demonic Qi reacting this way.

Kyaaaaaa!

The Heavenly Demon quickly pulled its hand back, reacting to the unexpected recoil.

The shock on its face was definitely something new.

I didn’t know the Heavenly Demon was capable of making such expressions.

“…”

It rubbed its wrist and stared up at me.

Locking eyes with it, I channeled more of my Demonic Qi.

I expanded my Qi to devour the black barrier, its power far beyond the Red Heaven I’d wielded before.

Half of the barrier was already eaten away.

But beyond the barrier, it wasn’t a red sky I saw.

It was a darkness deeper than the black barrier itself.

The blend of my Qi with Demonic Qi created this ominous appearance.

Should I call it the Black Heaven instead of the Red Heaven now?

Anyway.

I never understood why the word black in martial arts always felt so unsettling.

I felt the same in my past life. I really hated seeing it.

Blaaaze.

Defying my own words, I surrounded myself with black flames.

It was to start my battle against the Heavenly Demon in front of me.

Can I truly defeat the Heavenly Demon here and now?

Honestly, I’d never even considered it.

I’d known I’d face it one day, that much was certain.

If I was to take the place of the Celestial Sword, I would have to stop the Heavenly Demon in her stead.

But was that moment already here?

It feels too early.

It was much sooner than I’d anticipated, yet I felt no hesitation.

In fact, it felt like fortune was on my side.

Fighting this childlike form of the Heavenly Demon should be far easier than facing its perfected self.

I opened my palm wide.

Blaze!

Black flame gathered in my hand, forming a dark sphere of fire.

I was able to feel it.

It felt far stronger than any normal Flaming Sphere I’d wielded.

This sphere held enough power to obliterate everything around me if handled recklessly.

Isn’t it unfair for me to change this much just because I turned into a Demonic Human?

Now I was already more than halfway to the level I’d reached in my past life.

Simply becoming a Demonic Human made me this powerful.

This is why all of those bastards who had greed for power turned themselves into the Demonic Cult in my past life.

I looked toward the Heavenly Demon as my Flaming Sphere neared completion.

The Heavenly Demon looked up at me with a strange expression as if it noticed my hostility.

It moved its hand, just like before.

“…!”

It was reaching towards my Flaming Sphere.

I hesitated for an instant at its unexpected action, but quickly launched the Flaming Sphere toward the Heavenly Demon.

Clench.

“Huh?”

The Heavenly Demon squeezed the Flaming Sphere effortlessly, extinguishing it.

My Flaming Sphere had grown immensely stronger after I reached Fusion Realm and became a Demonic Human, yet it snuffed it out with a single squeeze?

Slam-! Craaash-!

The recoil from my palm shattered the surroundings into a chaotic mess.

Trees were uprooted effortlessly.

Of course, I was able to maintain my position as I wasn’t that weak to be blown away by it, but I couldn’t calm down my shock.

What just happened?

What the hell just happened?

I stared at the Heavenly Demon in disbelief, and it returned my gaze with a sullen expression.

I noticed the mark left on its hand.

There was a scratch on the Heavenly Demon’s hand due to the recoil, but that was it.

It only left a small scratch.

The Heavenly Demon glanced at the slight bleeding on its hand, then looked back at me and spoke.

“…Now.”

“What did you say?”

“I’m leaving now. It’s boring.”

I questioned it again, thinking I’d misheard, but the Heavenly Demon simply turned and walked toward the Palace Lord.

After the Heavenly Demon spoke, dimension started to rip apart behind the Palace Lord.

It was the same gate to Abyss I saw back in the Black Palace.

What were they up to?

It appeared so suddenly, yet now it was going back?

Should I send them back like this?

“What kind of nonsense is this?”

Blaze.

I wrapped myself in flames.

There was no way I’d let them leave like this.

Do I look like a joke to them?

I engulfed my fist in flames and struck out.

Fiery Fangs of Beast.

Kwaaaaa-!

A beast-shaped Qi, infused with Demonic Qi, surged violently toward them.

The heat of the attack scorched the area dry, but the Heavenly Demon, still walking away, turned slightly and waved a hand dismissively.

I wondered what such a slight movement could achieve, but it shattered my expectations.

Swoooosh-!

Rumble!

“What…!”

As if revealing its true strength, the Heavenly Demon unleashed an overwhelming surge of aura.

The black aura swallowed my flames and then redirected toward me.

A black tidal wave of aura surged toward me.

The powerful aura struck the ground beneath me with staggering speed.

Craaaack-!

The ground around me fractured and shattered.

Nearby rocks cracked like paper, and the land crumbled effortlessly.

The whole terrain changed.

All of this was caused by a mere flick of the Heavenly Demon’s hand.

Surprisingly, I emerged unscathed from the incredible attack.

The attack had barely missed me.

But I realized instantly that this was the Heavenly Demon’s intention.

The Heavenly Demon was signaling me to stop interfering.

Then was it just playing around this whole time?

Was it playing with Wi Seol-Ah the whole time?

I stared at the Heavenly Demon, horror written across my face, as it turned and spoke.

“Let’s meet again… next time.”

“What…?”

“You are fun. I want to see you again.”

It almost seemed like the Heavenly Demon was smiling as it spoke.

With those words, the Heavenly Demon turned and walked away as if nothing had happened.

As it passed the Palace Lord, his body lifted and began floating in the air.

“M-My heaven…”

The Palace Lord spoke as if he was trying to read the room, but the Heavenly Demon didn’t even give him a gaze.

The Heavenly Demon and the Palace Lord vanished into the Abyss,

Slam.

The gate closed instantly, leaving no trace behind.

Watching this, I felt the strength drain from my legs, and I collapsed to the ground.

“…!”

Wi Seol-Ah rushed over, trying to support me.

I took a deep breath, staring at the desolation surrounding me.

I corrected myself.

Did I call that an imperfect form of the Heavenly Demon?

I was wrong.

The small creature I’d just encountered was already in its perfected form.