Childhood Friend of the Zenith

Stepping outside, I went to find the Poison King.

The reason was clear: the Pill.

As soon as I saw him, I started to ask, “How is the preparation progre—”But I stopped mid-sentence.

The Poison King was staring at me.

His expression looked terrible, as if he might collapse at any moment.

Unable to ignore it, I asked, “…Are you all right?

”The concern slipped out without me realizing it.

The Poison King’s voice carried a hint of irony as he replied, “…Young Master Gu, are you all right?

”“Me?

Why?

”His unexpected question caught me off guard, and I tilted my head in confusion.

“Your face is awfully red.

”“...

”Reflexively, I touched my cheeks.

They felt warm—no, hot—much hotter than usual.

‘Damn it.

’Why am I like this?

I swallowed nervously.

The aftermath of what had happened earlier hadn’t worn off yet.

‘This is ridiculous.

’Was it Namgung Bi-ah’s actions and my reaction to them?

Or perhaps Tang So-yeol’s words and expressions?

Either way, it wasn’t good.

‘How am I reacting like this over something so trivial at my age?

’If I included my past life, my age wasn’t exactly small.

How could a little push like that shake me this much?

It was embarrassing.

I was more than this, wasn’t I?

Sigh.

Taking a deep breath, I circulated my energy through my body, forcing myself to calm down.

Feeling the heat gradually dissipate, I muttered, “…It’s just warm.

The weather’s unusually hot today.

”“It’s almost winter.

”“Winter can be warm sometimes.

”“Everyone else is wearing fur coats.

”“…I run hot.

”“Hm.

”The Poison King gave me a strange look.

This old man… did he know something?

‘No, he doesn’t know.

’If he knew, he wouldn’t be standing there looking at me like this.

‘If he knew, he’d immediately fill me with poison, not stare.

’Considering his personality, if he’d caught onto Tang So-yeol’s intentions, he would genuinely be trying to kill me.

So, this was just suspicion.

I added a quick explanation to cover myself.

“It’s true.

And besides, shouldn’t I be the one worried about you, Clan Leader Tang?

You don’t look great yourself.

Are you sure you’re all right?

”“I’m fine.

Will you believe me if I say that?

”“No.

”“Then no, I’m not fine.

”“Yes, that’s how you look.

”“…”The glare he gave me was razor-sharp.

Maybe I’d teased him a little too much.

Clearing my throat, I said more sincerely, “My concern is genuine.

Should I call for a doctor?

”“No need.

So, what brings you here?

”“I came to ask how the preparation is going.

”“Can my appearance serve as your answer?

”“Yes, it’s sufficient.

But will you be able to meet the deadline?

”“I’ll have to try.

”“That’s not very reassuring.

”“Would you prefer I say, ‘Even if it kills me, I’ll manage it’?

”“Yes.

”“What?

”“I’m joking.

”Honestly, I wasn’t, but the sharp look he gave me made me backtrack.

The Poison King stared at me for a moment before sighing.

“…I’ll meet the deadline, but it’s not easy.

”I understood.

The manufacturing process didn’t suit the Poison King at all.

While the Martial Alliance had eased material procurement, the final ingredient remained the critical issue.

The Poison King’s qi.

The Dokcheon required his poison-laden energy to complete.

Not just a little—a massive amount.

‘Enough to leave him bedridden for days after making even one.

’I’d heard he could make three in Dokcheon pill a week at best, even if he pushed himself to his limits.

And that was the upper limit.

The average was two per week.

‘Which is already an impressive number…’For comparison, creating a Great Pill could take several master alchemists months, sometimes years.

Producing one or two Dokcheon​​​​​​​ pill weekly, with even higher efficacy, was nothing short of miraculous.

“Did you contact the trading company?

Any progress?

”“Probably.

The Young Master of the Tang Clan would have handled it.

”“I see.

”If this significant matter was managed by the Young Master and not the Poison King himself...

That could only mean one thing.

‘He’s preparing to pass on the mantle.

’It was a signal that he was getting the Young Master used to taking responsibility.

‘It’s not surprising, given the timing.

’Even if the Poison King was still in his prime, preparing for the transition early would make things easier later.

Leaving that aside for now, I asked, “If it’s too much, isn’t there another way?

”“Another way?

”“For instance, having the Young Master help with the process.

”If it was too hard on him, why not have the Young Master or one of the elders assist with the manufacturing to increase output?

“Haha.

”The Poison King laughed dryly, as if he found my suggestion absurd.

“Young Master Gu.

”“Yes?

”“You’re deeply mistaken about something.

”“About what?

”“It’s not surprising.

People like you don’t usually know these things.

”“...

I’m not following.

”What did he mean by “people like me”?

“Do I appear to have a small reserve of energy to you?

”“…”I hesitated.

His qi?

I narrowed my eyes, considering his question.

‘Small?

’No, it wasn’t small.

But it wasn’t exceptionally large either, or so I thought.

Sensing my uncertainty, the Poison King chuckled.

“Within my rank, I possess an abundance of energy.

Among the Hwagyeong, particularly those of the King-level, I’m in the upper echelon.

”“…Is that so?

”I was surprised, but it wasn’t unbelievable.

Using poison arts inherently consumed more qi.

Flame techniques worked similarly.

If he was bringing this up, though, it could only mean one thing.

“Even someone like me struggles with this process.

Having others help wouldn’t make much difference.

Not everyone is like you.

”“…!

”“You have an absurdly large reserve of energy, Young Master Gu.

That’s why you don’t understand.

”“I…”“I get it.

Geniuses rarely understand the limits of ordinary people.

”“...

”“That’s probably the case for you as well.

”Being called a genius out of the blue left me with a headache.

He wasn’t wrong, though.

In both my past and current lives, I’d rarely, if ever, faced a lack of energy.

It was the same with the Dokcheon​​​​​​​ pill.

While the Poison King struggled to make one, I could likely produce several without stopping.

Given that, I couldn’t deny his point.

In the end, his message was clear.

“Without your assistance, this is the best I can do.

”“…I’m sorry.

”“Don’t be.

”Since I had asked for the impossible, I immediately apologized.

The Poison King chuckled and accepted my apology, brushing it off.

To him, it must have sounded like the ignorant words of a clueless genius.

Should I consider myself lucky for that?

‘So, the current quantity is the best we can manage.

’I had hoped for faster results, but it wasn’t bad.

The downside was that it was grinding down the Poison King’s vitality—but that wasn’t my concern.

‘It’s not my life being spent.

’So, I nodded.

“…Then, we’ll proceed with preparations as they are now.

”“Understood.

”“Yes, then…”I spoke with a face full of worry, though I knew there was nothing else I could do.

‘Please don’t overexert yourself.

’“And if it’s possible, even if it’s painful, please hurry up.

”“…?

”“Oh, I’m sorry… That just slipped out.

”My honest thoughts had escaped before I realized it.

Feeling awkward, I gave an embarrassed smile, while the Poison King stared at me in disbelief.

“…Heh.

”His chuckle carried a chilling undertone.

I bolted immediately.

******************Upon returning to my quarters, I noticed someone was already inside.

There was only one person who could come and go without my permission.

“…You’re here?

”“Yes.

”It was none other than Cheol Ji-seon.

He sat at the desk with dark circles under his eyes, reading through a stack of documents.

“Are you okay?

”“…No.

”“I see, glad to hear you’re fine.

”“…”Ignoring his reply, I sat across from him.

Cheol Ji-seon scowled for a moment but quickly returned to his neutral expression.

He probably knew glaring at me wouldn’t accomplish anything.

“How’s the task I assigned you?

”He got straight to business, skipping unnecessary chatter.

“…The trading company has agreed.

Once the Tang Clan is ready, we can proceed immediately.

”“I just spoke to the Poison King.

It seems we can move forward.

”“Understood.

I’ll relay the message right away.

”Our conversation was efficient, with no wasted words.

We both knew there was no time for small talk.

“I’ve also sent a message to the main headquarters.

”“And the reply?

”“It should arrive in a few days.

”“Tell the branch manager to handle it.

We can’t afford to wait.

”We needed to leave for Hunan without delay.

The message to the main headquarters was mostly a formality, meant to maintain appearances.

“What about the other matter I asked you to investigate?

”“We’ve been gathering information, but…”Cheol Ji-seon trailed off, looking troubled.

“There’s nothing solid.

It’s all vague.

”The investigation pertained to Yeon Ilcheon.

We were trying to uncover everything about him, but apart from well-documented history, there wasn’t much to find.

That wasn’t surprising.

He was a figure from centuries ago, after all.

For an ordinary person, that would be enough reason to let it go.

But not for me.

Click.

I clicked my tongue in irritation.

For me, even scraps of information could be crucial.

“Give me everything you’ve gathered so far.

”“It’s a lot.

Are you sure you don’t want a summary?

”“Do you have time to prepare one?

”“…No.

”“Then just give me everything.

”If there wasn’t enough time, I could just sleep less—or not at all.

Normally, I would have asked for a summary, but I couldn’t risk Cheol Ji-seon collapsing from overwork.

If one of us had to sacrifice rest, it was better for me to do it.

At least my body wouldn’t break from exhaustion.

“That settles that.

Now, about the next—”“…Ah, before that.

”“Hm?

”Cheol Ji-seon interrupted, handing me a letter.

“It’s from the strategist.

”The “strategist.

” There was only one person he referred to this way.

Jegal Hyuk.

I nodded and took the letter.

“What’s this about all of a sudden?

”I unfolded it and began reading.

As my eyes scanned the words, my expression hardened.

Seeing my reaction, Cheol Ji-seon asked hesitantly, “…Is something wrong?

”He wouldn’t have read the letter.

All correspondence from Jegal Hyuk was meant for me alone.

Nodding to reassure him, I said, “It’s fine.

Let’s wrap up here for today.

It seems I need to get things moving quickly.

”“What did it say—”Before he could finish, I handed him the letter.

Cheol Ji-seon read it, and his face immediately darkened.

The letter read:The Divine Dragon Division seems to be making a move to capture the Demon Fang Spear.

They haven’t pinpointed the exact location yet, but it appears the Demon Fang Spear has been discovered.

“This…”“Don’t worry about it.

”I cut him off before he could dwell on it.

“It’s probably nothing major.

”With that, I stood up.

“But we’ll need to move a bit faster.

”Brushing my disheveled hair back, I added, “Inform the Sword Division and the branch manager.

Tell them to prepare to leave tomorrow, if not sooner.

”I had originally planned to wait three days, but now the timeline had tightened.

The Divine Dragon Division was starting to move, and their timing couldn’t have been worse.

Was it just a coincidence?

‘Unlikely.

’After creating the Sacred Dragon Division to counter the demonic factions, they were mobilizing the Divine Dragon Division in my absence.

Was that a coincidence?

My eyes narrowed.

‘It’s far more likely to be intentional.

’Even if it wasn’t, the fact that the Martial Alliance was making moves remained unchanged.

So, we needed to act as well.

“What we need to do is already clear.

”Looking at Cheol Ji-seon, I gave my orders.

“When you send the information to the branch, ensure it reaches the main headquarters as well.

Time it so…”So that the information reached Hanam before the rumors spread.

“…The news reaches them just before the rumors do.

”We needed to drop something big.

******************The Next DayStarting from Sichuan, news spread rapidly: the Tang Clan had succeeded in restoring their family’s legendary Pill.

However, the Tang Clan made no official statement regarding the matter.

The restoration of the Pill, a long-cherished dream of the Tang Clan—if true, it was expected to create a massive ripple effect across Zhongyuan.

But the shocking news didn’t end there.

The rumors also suggested that the Tang Clan intended to commercialize the Pill.

A miraculous elixir, unattainable even by the likes of Shaolin, Wudang, or Mount Hua, would now be available for purchase?

It sounded absurd.

Yet, letters confirming the truth of these rumors were flying toward Hunan at breakneck speed.

Simultaneously—Whistle!

In the opposite direction, a carrier pigeon darted toward the Sichuan branch.

Attached to the bird’s leg was a letter marked with a distinct floral emblem.

It was unmistakably the symbol of the Baekhwa Trading Company.