Published at 27th of August 2026 7:13 pm

Chapter 1089: The World of Ascension (19)

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

A day had passed.

It was time to head to the Azure Dragon Division again. This time, I was supposed to be assigned official lodging, so I had to leave the temporary inn where I had been staying since the morning.

At most, three days. That was how long I had stayed, using the money earned from hunting monstrous beasts. There was no particular sentiment attached to it. It was merely a place to sleep.

I could just leave without a second thought, but I figured I should at least have breakfast. So, I ordered some somen noodles to have a light meal before heading out.

Then—

I flinched.

I sensed someone nearby. When I turned to look, I saw a familiar figure staring at me with widened eyes.

Upon closer inspection, it was the person I had seen before.

"Tang Seon... was it?"

A member of the Tang Clan, a woman known as the Venomous Phoenix of this era. She had approached me last time, claiming to have an interest in me.

Tang Seon, whose features bore a striking resemblance to Tang So-yeol, stood frozen as she stared at me.

I stared back at her for a moment before speaking first.

"Have you been well?"

"Huh!? Ah, yes... Of course."

"That’s good to hear."

I nodded lightly. There was no need to continue the conversation. Tang Seon, after hesitating for a moment, gave me a polite bow.

I responded with a brief nod and observed her clothing.

"She doesn’t seem affiliated with any organization."

She was wearing the Tang Clan's martial attire, but that meant she wasn’t part of any Martial Alliance sword corps. The fact that she was staying in this kind of temporary lodging likely meant she wasn’t officially affiliated with any faction.

"Well then... I’ll take my leave."

"Yes."

I lost interest and was about to move on, thinking I wouldn’t have any more encounters with her.

But at that moment—

"Sister..."

Someone approached Tang Seon.

Another familiar figure. As expected.

"The Venomous Dragon... No, the Poison Dragon."

Tang Cheongi.

The future Clan Head of the Tang Clan, the one destined to inherit the title of Poison King.

Dressed in a familiar martial uniform, he walked over to Tang Seon.

"Right, I did hear that Tang Seon was the Poison Dragon’s older sister."

I had never heard that the Poison King had a sister. Then again, it was strange that I even knew such information in the first place.

"Besides, she’s someone I didn’t know in the future."

The Venomous Phoenix of this era was someone completely unknown to me in the future.

The name Tang Seon itself was unfamiliar. If she had been a well-known figure, I would have remembered her.

Since I didn’t—

"She must have died."

Either she met some unfortunate fate, or she was simply too insignificant to be recorded in history.

"Still..."

The more I looked, the more the resemblance was undeniable.

Tang Seon’s face was almost identical to Tang So-yeol’s.

"...Hmm."

The only difference was... well, their chest sizes were slightly different. But that wasn’t important.

As I stared at her with faint nostalgia and mild indifference—

"What are you looking at?"

Beside her, Tang Cheongi frowned and spoke to me.

"Hmm?"

"Do you have business with us? Or rather, with my sister?"

"...Cheongi? No, that’s not it—"

"And you, Sister. I made sure to arrange proper lodging for you. Why are you staying in a place like this? It took me forever to find you."

"...Ahaha."

Tang Seon gave an awkward laugh at Tang Cheongi’s words.

From what I gathered, it seemed like there was some unresolved issue between them.

But—

"If you had gone to the place I arranged, you wouldn’t have ended up entangled with someone like him."

"Someone like him?"

I didn’t expect Tang Cheongi to say something like that right to my face.

"Unbelievable."

"Cheongi!"

Tang Seon’s face twisted at his words.

"That was incredibly rude. Apologize immediately."

Her tone was sharp and firm. Tang Cheongi flinched at her reprimand.

"...Sister."

"Now."

With a frustrated look, Tang Cheongi bit his lip. Then, furrowing his brows, he spat out—

"Forget it. I’ll bring some Tang Clan warriors, so just stay put."

"Cheongi!"

Ignoring her words, Tang Cheongi turned and walked out of the inn.

I simply watched without saying a word.

"Haah."

Tang Seon let out a quiet sigh and then turned to me with an apologetic expression.

"I’m sorry. My younger brother is truly immature... I’ll apologize on his behalf."

"Ah, it’s fine."

I forced a small smile.

"Your brother seems to care about you a lot."

I had already experienced this kind of situation before.

Having dealt with Namgung Cheonjun, I had built up some tolerance for this kind of behavior. Compared to that, this was nothing.

"Still, it’s quite amusing."

Out of all the Four Noble Clans, the Poison King was the only one I considered somewhat decent.

Thinking that his younger self was this kind of person was surprising.

Though, of course—

"He’s still better than the Sword King."

The Sword King was an entirely different breed. Compared to that lunatic, the Poison King almost seemed like a saint.

"I don’t mind, so don’t worry about it."

I reassured Tang Seon as I stood up.

I didn’t want to get involved. I had already gotten tangled up with too many people in just the few days I had been here.

Thinking that, I walked past Tang Seon.

"Ah."

She seemed like she wanted to say something, as if she was about to stop me.

But I didn’t wait. In the end, she didn’t call me back.

Leaving Tang Seon behind, I stepped out of the inn, nodding slightly to myself.

"Now that I think about it..."

I wasn’t sure about Tang Seon, but Tang Cheongi’s uniform—

That was...

"Wasn’t that the Iron Dragon Division’s uniform?"

Unlike the Azure Dragon Division, the Iron Dragon Division had its own distinct uniform.

For some reason, that fact stuck with me.

"Why, though?"

I didn’t think I had any reason to get involved with the Iron Dragon Division.

And yet—

Why did I have such an ominous feeling?

That suspicion would soon be proven true.

Because, as always—

My bad premonitions were never wrong.

******

"I am Jo Yahyuk, the Deputy Commander of the Iron Dragon Division, and I will be leading today's joint training."

"......."

The moment I stepped into the Azure Dragon Division, I was practically dragged off somewhere. I had arrived early, expecting morning training—

But the moment I arrived, they announced that there would be a joint training session and led us somewhere else.

So, I followed along, only to find myself in the mountains, where other martial artists had already gathered.

"As you were informed, today marks the joint training between the Azure Dragon Division and the Iron Dragon Division."

At Jo Yahyuk’s words, the Iron Dragon Division members nodded in understanding.

The Azure Dragon Division, however, wore a completely different expression.

"...These guys."

Their faces clearly showed that they had no idea this was happening.

From what I could tell—

"Don't tell me... the Blue Flame Sword Master forgot to mention this?"

That guy.

It wouldn't be surprising if he simply forgot to inform us.

Somewhere in the distance, I could almost hear his "Ah! Hahaha!" laughter ringing in my ears.

As if to confirm my suspicions, Sword Peak Soi and the other senior members participating in the training all wore deeply troubled expressions.

"Unbelievable."

This division is an absolute mess.

"Joint training, huh?"

Being thrown into joint training right after arriving... I had never heard of such a thing before.

From what little explanation I managed to gather, this was supposed to be a training session exclusively for those who had been in the Martial Alliance for three years or less.

"And it just happens to be between the Azure Dragon Division and the Iron Dragon Division?"

Feeling an intense gaze, I turned my head—

And there, among the gathered Iron Dragon Division members, was someone staring straight at me.

Or rather—glaring at me.

The Poison Dragon, Tang Cheongi.

His sharp, hostile gaze was locked onto me.

"Tch."

So, I had been marked.

He must still be holding onto what happened earlier in the day.

"Seriously, what’s with these guys?"

Whether it’s the Sword Dragon or the Poison Dragon—

They’re all a bit odd.

Future Clan Heads should not be acting like this.

Suppressing a sigh, I turned away.

"His father isn't here."

It seemed like Tang Cheongi’s father—the Poison King—wasn't participating.

I had heard that his father was also in his third year of training, but it looked like he wasn’t involved in this session.

Aside from that—

"The Sword Dragon isn’t here either."

The guy I had beaten up before—he must still be recovering. That, at least, was a relief.

"Ugh, this is nerve-wracking. Baek Comrade, you feel the same, don’t you?"

The guy who had been hanging around me this whole time, Do Yun, spoke up with a nervous chuckle.

I glanced at him before nodding.

"A little?"

"Hahaha! That’s a lie. You don’t look nervous at all."

He wasn’t wrong.

I wasn’t nervous in the slightest.

After all—

"This joint training is just another monstrous beast extermination, isn’t it?"

A group of rookies gathering to hunt monstrous beasts together—

It was more of a team-building exercise than a serious training session.

"Besides, the beasts we’re dealing with are only green- and blue-ranked."

Even red-ranked beasts weren’t much of a threat. Green and blue? Even less so.

This joint training didn’t really concern me.

Something else was on my mind.

And—

"This guy is bothering me too."

Do Yun.

The guy who kept acting overly friendly.

He was getting on my nerves.

There was something off about him.

So, I stared at Do Yun for a moment.

"What is it?"

"Nothing. The training’s about to start, so focus."

"Oh, right. Got it."

Just as Do Yun spoke, Jo Yahyuk raised his voice.

"Alright! Training begins now. Everyone, take out your demon-tracking talismans."

At his command, everyone swiftly pulled the demon-tracking talismans from their robes.

"As I explained earlier, the training is simple. You will hunt down monstrous beasts. During the process, we will evaluate your performance and assign scores accordingly."

Several figures stepped forward beside Jo Yahyuk—senior members, their cultivation levels significantly higher than the rest of us.

"Hmm."

As I watched the talismans flutter in the wind, I considered my next move.

"How far should I go?"

Should I actually put in effort?

Or should I just pretend to try and keep a low profile?

It was a moment of indecision.

******

Meanwhile—

While the recruits were gathering for their training session, deep within the mountains—the very heart of the mountain range—

Crack—!

Crackle—!!

A sudden rift tore through the silence.

Under normal circumstances, the appearance of monstrous beasts in the mountains wouldn’t be anything unusual.

But this—

Crackle—!!!

Shattering the stillness, a demonic rift appeared.

It was not the usual green or blue—

CRACKLE—!!!!

It was a deep, blood-red rift.

Grrrrrrr......

And from within—

Emerged a sound unlike any green or blue-ranked monstrous beast.

This—

Was an anomaly.

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