1067 - Childhood Friend of the Zenith

**Chapter 1067: Northern Rabbit - Novel Archive** "Rrrrrr…." A monstrous entity groans, impaled by a spear. "Rrr…rrr…." The creature, which had been desperately struggling to escape, suddenly grows still. Its torn, dark purple eyes widen slightly. Sssssss. An anomaly begins to occur in the creature's flesh. Ssssssssss. A wind picks up. Within this gust, an electric aura swirls. The sky, still displaying the night, trembles with auroras. While dark purple auroras dance turbulently, under the roughened atmosphere, Taecheon gazes across. The scorched black earth. Upon it stands a woman, her expression weary, only her violet eyes shimmering. Staggering as she clutches her sword. "Cough." She spits blood. Grasping her head as if in pain, she releases a ragged breath. Taecheon, observing this, speaks. "Intriguing." He tilts his head. As Taecheon tilts his head, his body crumbles. His ruined body falls to pieces on the ground, yet he seems unfazed. He merely looks at the woman with indifferent eyes. "Surely you must be cloaked in divine power. So why are you so weak?" The more they fought. A sense of doubt filled Taecheon. The divine aura enveloping this woman is not insignificant. Even from Taecheon's perspective, it's astonishingly intense. Despite being wrapped in such power, it's curious. The woman is strong, yet she seems insignificant compared to what she possesses. Her innate power and abilities are extraordinary, yet she fails to utilize them. Puzzled, he draws a conclusion. "You’ve restrained yourself." She has blocked her own power, preventing its use. Otherwise, it makes no sense. Then. "For what purpose?" Why has she restrained her power? This is what Taecheon finds hardest to understand. If another being controlled her, it might make some sense... "No, your existence itself is a mystery." Though cloaked in divine power, she is not its master. Possessing power but unable to wield it, her form maintains itself mysteriously. "What are you?" What in the world is this woman? Even pondering it a hundred times, he cannot understand. At that moment. "I already answered your question about what I am." The woman, the Celestial Demon, raises her head and speaks. The answer was given long ago. An attachment, she said. Her name, the reason she lives, everything is because of that attachment. "Attachment, huh. Such meaningless words." Taecheon laughed. For those who live immortally, such words are indeed trifling. "So, is what you are doing now related to that attachment?" For what reason? Leaving aside the existence of this woman. For what purpose is she standing in his way? The answer lies behind her. "Are you trying to protect it?" "…." Something impaled by Taecheon’s spear. A thing that was groaning moments ago now produces no sound. Is it dead? Judging by the vitality emanating from it, it doesn’t seem so. "Are you trying to protect it?" Is she trying to protect that? She must be. She must be enduring for that very reason. "Without moving a single step away." She hadn't budged despite Taecheon's onslaught. Even after taking so many attacks, the woman did not move. It must have been to protect that creature. Then, could it be a guardian? Both are related to the Dragon King, so perhaps it’s due to that connection. "A trivial act." Ssssssss. Taecheon gathers his spear into one hand. Regardless of the intent behind the actions or the alien nature of the being itself. It no longer mattered much. It’s always been that way for Taecheon. "It’s about time to end this." His shattered body’s regeneration had slowed, and his descent with half his divine form had reached its limit. Time was tight. He needed to finish and return swiftly. Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrr--!!! Energy gathers in the spear. It will pierce through the woman and reach the sacred tree. As he prepares, thinking so. ‘Damn.’ Seeing this, the Celestial Demon smiles bitterly. ‘This is troublesome.’ The power she had stretched was nearing its limit. She had tried to stop it, but now it seemed impossible. What should she do? The Celestial Demon looked back. She sees him lying as if dead. His form had become grotesque, but even so, she found his silhouette within it. ‘Still such a heavy sleeper.’ Even now, he seems to have no intention of awakening. What a heartless person. ‘It would be nice to at least show your face.’ She had waited and waited. Even now, she wishes to see his gaze just once. Yet he does not wake. ‘It’s fine.’ She thought it was fine even as she heard that. It was too late to lament such things now. If she was going to lament something so trivial, she should have done it long ago. No, it would have been better to let go then. Yet, she couldn’t and came this far. ‘Attachment.’ The thought, she muses, well represents her. Firmly. She grips the sword-shaped energy mass tightly in her hand. Could this be the end of the road? Perhaps, but. "It’s okay." She said, telling herself it was alright. Even if she doesn't see him. Even if she ends up forgotten and disappears, it's still okay. This was a life she decided to live regardless. ‘So please.’ Even if all that remains is him after she departs with her attachment. ‘At least you.’ May you be alright. Okay-ness to the woman meant something directed not only towards herself but ultimately towards him. Crrrrrek!!! An enormous force gathers far away. ‘Does he intend to finish it?’ Taecheon was putting all his strength into preparing a strike. That indicated urgency on his side as well. She glances back. She seals her lips as she sees Gu Yangcheon lying there. There was no escaping it. Taecheon was aware the woman was protecting Guhyangcheon. Knowing it was both unavoidable and necessary to block, he gathered his strength. "Huuu." She exhaled softly. The woman drew up her energy. It was already depleted. Energy barely trickled from the crack of a locked door. It was woefully insufficient. She could use the power locked away behind that door. But she couldn’t. The lock was of her own making. To unlock it, forgetfulness had to end. It was something she had forsaken for his sake, knowing that forgetfulness would not end. As she recalled this and prepared for Taecheon’s assault— Twitch. "…!" She sensed a presence behind her. As she swiftly turned her head, Pssssssss!!! Guhyangcheon's body began to change. His massive form shrank, and the fur and tail vanished. Returning to his original state. The form reverted to its human shape before it all began. Then. "Ha!" Taecheon looked at Guhyangcheon and let out a gasp. "This can't be." His voice suddenly dashed with urgency, as though he sensed something. What was it? The energy-stricken woman couldn't feel a thing. Only— ‘I have seen him.’ Satisfied just having glimpsed him. Right after he fully returned, Thunk! The spears impaled in his body pulled themselves out. No one touched them, yet they moved as if having a will of their own, withdrawing independently. Then. "Sigh…." Accompanied by a deep sigh, Guhyangcheon rose. The hole-ridden wounds on his body began healing. It was swift. His skin knitted back seamlessly, and what stood out were his changed eyes amidst his weary demeanor. They were the same as when he had become a monster. Dark purple eyes hovered at the edge of his gaze. Entirely different from his usual eyes. As the woman noticed something about his altered form— "……." Guhyangcheon’s eyes turned towards her. Their eyes locked. As the woman was about to speak to him, Guhyangcheon spoke to her. "Yehwa." That softly uttered name. Upon hearing it, the woman, Yehwa, froze rigidly. The name she was never supposed to hear reached her ears. And then— Crrrrreck…!!!! The lock within Yehwa unraveled and dropped to the ground. The firmly sealed lock opened the door. Spilling out from within was a torrent of black heavenly sea. Saaaah!! The surging heavenly sea filled the empty space, and soon the woman was entirely saturated with it. The celestial ocean brimmed without an inch of void. The woman’s eyes began to glow from within. "You!" In that moment, Taecheon urgently launched a strike. The tremendous force he had prepared rained down upon Yehwa and Guhyangcheon. Taecheon’s energy was fully infused in his blue spear. Under normal circumstances, it would have pierced through them with ease. It was supposed to happen again. Thus, as the spear neared the two, Slash. With the sound of something being severed, Taecheon’s spear split in two. Kuaaaaahhhhhh!!! The pent-up energy burst into all directions. The bisected spear swept through the air before it exploded into a loud detonation. Taecheon widened his eyes, witnessing his energy disperse. He looked straight at the woman who had cleaved through his energy. "What in…!" It wasn’t strength so easily divided, yet it had been split effortlessly. How was this possible? Something had shifted. A drastic change had occurred. "Ah." Yehwa let out a simple cry. Huaaaaaah!! The darkness from Yehwa's feet surged like an ocean, consuming everything in its wake.