Mid-year rains were often heavy. Drops plummeted from the sky, flooding the earth. The land needed water, but an excess spelled disaster. Just like today. It had poured continuously since nightfall. The rattling wooden roof struck fear, harmonizing with the roar of thunder and the crack of lightning—as if the heavens were enraged, punishing mortals with this storm.

  When rain swelled into a storm, the sea naturally turned frenzied. The churning waves crashing against the shore were an intimidating sight. Far down the beach, a small hut stood, stubbornly resisting the violent wind and rain.

  When the vast forces of nature met resistance, like this little hut, it became a target for the heavens' wrath. Wind and rain battered it from all directions, threatening to lift and flip it into the air. Yet, it remained unmoving, as though deeply rooted in the shifting sand. The harsher the gale blew and the fiercer the rain lashed, the more miraculously firm the hut stood.

  At last, the storm passed. Sunlight struck the hut, casting a long shadow across the vast expanse of sand, like roots buried deep in the earth.

  The small door opened, and a young man stepped out. The scent of rain still lingered. Emerging from the hut's long shadow, his dark blue clothes came into view. Though not tall, his back and shoulders were broad, packed with strength. His hair was tied back, revealing long earlobes, thick eyebrows, and large eyes shining with firm determination. But above all, the smile gracing the corner of his mouth was striking.

  The young man's long shadow slowly detached from the hut's.

  With the storm gone, only the hot wind and warm sun remained. Suddenly, two tall strangers appeared, walking along the endless stretch of sand, heading toward that distant hut.

  The first man was middle-aged, his long beard reaching his chest. He carried an authoritative air, resembling a high official or a wealthy city lord. The second was a handsome, rugged youth with the demeanor of a warlord or general. They walked one after the other, spaced exactly two paces apart. Even after thousands of steps along the beach, that distance neither closed nor widened by a fraction. At a glance, it might go unnoticed, but upon closer observation, one would be astonished—the rhythm of their footsteps was perfectly synchronized.

  Looking at the exterior of this small hut, it was easy to guess the interior. Given its tiny size, it could only be a cramped single room with sparse furnishings. Perhaps a simple, clean wooden table and chairs, and a flat wooden bed with bedding. That was all. What was more interesting was the bedding—prepared in two sets. A person sleeping on a wooden board had no need for two pillows. Two pillows meant two people lived here. The two tall strangers sat down at the simple table, waiting for the host to return.

  They did not have to wait long. The sound of footsteps on the sand drifted over, followed by the opening of the door.

  A beautiful young woman in a light blue dress appeared. She had large, light-colored eyes like a foreigner, her hair flowing freely down her back. Startled to find two unrecognizable strangers, she blurted out, "Who are you?"

  "Is this my niece-in-law... Haha," the middle-aged man chuckled.

  "Who are you?" The woman swept her gaze over them, shifting into a fighting stance.

  "This is the leader of the martial world, Patriarch of the Supreme Martial Pavilion, Diao Zhufan. My name is Li Sibei. May I know my sister-in-law's name?" the tall young man answered with a flirtatious smile.

  "Jin Tianwang has no relatives or friends. Do not falsely claim ties with him." The woman avoided the younger man's gaze, addressing the middle-aged man instead.

  "How can Tianwang have no relatives? We are all family. Little lady, do not speak such piercing words," Li Sibei said, his eyes glinting.

  "Lady Fan is correct. I, Jin Tianwang, have no relatives or friends." A voice rang out as the door slowly opened wide, revealing the man in dark blue.

  "Tianwang, the Defying Heaven Sect has reappeared. Furthermore, another Stone Fiend has been born. The matters you left unfinished in the past—heaven has now paved the way for you to complete," Diao Zhufan said, his gaze fixed on Jin Tianwang.

  "I have no wish to return to the martial world." Jin Tianwang cupped his hands, replying with deep respect.

  "Child, do not think otherwise. If I treated you well before, today I will only treat you better," Diao Zhufan said, his voice resonating with power.

  Jin Tianwang bowed lower, his cupped hands steady, and affirmed with a firmer tone, "I have no wish to return to the martial world."

  "Tianwang... right now I need you by my side. Or do you no longer care for our past bonds?"

  "Uncle Diao, my debt to you is immense. But in this life, I must be ungrateful. I only hope to repay you as a horse or an ox in the next." Jin Tianwang spoke these words with great difficulty. Finishing, he looked up, grabbed Lady Fan's arm, and walked away with her.

  Diao Zhufan and Li Sibei did not follow.

  Jin Tianwang led Lady Fan by the hand, stopping to gaze at the distant sky and the azure sea. His mind was weighed down by countless matters. This Lady Fan was, in fact, Fan Qingqing, the beautiful daughter of the renowned White Jade Dragon Fan Baojian of the Southern Seas.

  Jin Tianwang recalled his past. It began as a mere orphan enduring a harsh life with street urchins in the city, having no fixed home. He spent his days surviving on petty theft, until he met Wang Yi, who offered him food. At the time, Jin Tianwang was not the only one adopted by Wang Yi; a whole group of street children was taken in and fed. Yet, as days, months, and years passed, only he remained. The others had mysteriously vanished, one by one. Eventually, Jin Tianwang was taught martial arts.

  His training did not follow an ordinary path. Wang Yi needed an heir who possessed the Seven-Star Meridian. Born a street urchin, Jin Tianwang naturally lacked this extraordinary constitution. He had to rely on various herbal medicines Wang Yi scavenged for him—drinking them, bathing in them, and applying them. At times, the medicine burned him, sending a searing pain deep into his bones. At other times, it caused agonizing torment throughout his body. But no matter what, he could neither form the Seven-Star Meridian nor simply die to end the suffering.

  Later, Wang Yi took him to the Mystic Valley, a place of danger and desolation. There, Wang Yi found new herbs for him. Until one day, when he felt certain he was about to die, he was saved by Diao Zhufan—a tall stranger who used profound internal qi to pull him back from the clutches of death. From that moment, Wang Yi discovered he had fully developed the Seven-Star Meridian.

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  With the Seven-Star Meridian formed, Wang Yi began passing down a martial art to him. It was merely a single fist stance. Meanwhile, Diao Zhufan guided him in cultivating internal qi. The two took turns teaching him. But for most of his life then, he lived alone in that cruel valley. He passed the lonely days surviving like a wild beast, dedicating himself solely to mastering that single fist stance.

  Yet, this was not the extent of the cruelty. Possessing the Seven-Star Meridian meant facing its inherent curse. On every moonless night, his body ached from head to toe. He sweat and shed tears, unable to sleep. The pain cut deep into every bone and sinew. He suffered repeatedly, until one day, he could no longer shed a tear—and the pain on moonless nights mysteriously faded away.

  During those tormented days, he naturally thought of escaping countless times. But without Wang Yi and Diao Zhufan, he knew no one. He had no one left in the world. He refused to lose anyone else. He had no relatives, no friends. Later, Wang Yi and Diao Zhufan revealed the true reason they forced him to practice the fist technique. It was because of a certain fiend—the Stone Fiend Shi Wusha.

  In that era, the martial world was plagued by a wicked sect named the Defying Heaven Sect. Within it lived the Stone Fiend, Shi Wusha. He was a ruthless fiend possessing profound martial arts. No one under heaven could defeat him, not even Wang Yi or Diao Zhufan. Thus, the two collaborated to create a supreme martial art: the "Ninefold Heaven-Piercing Fist." It was the fastest, fiercest fist technique in the land, believed capable of shattering the Nine Heavens Armor Art. Across the entire realm, no one else could learn and execute this aside from him—the sole bearer of the Seven-Star Meridian.

  Accepting this heavy burden, Wang Yi named him "Tianwang," and Diao Zhufan gave him the surname "Jin." For an orphan who never knew his parents' faces, having a full name brought immense joy. He made a firm vow: "One day, I, Jin Tianwang, will personally kill the Stone Fiend Shi Wusha."

  But his resolve could never be realized. Shi Wusha met an untimely death. The unrivaled fiend was no more. His years of grueling, isolated training were reduced to waste. The world no longer needed Jin Tianwang, master of the Ninefold Heaven-Piercing Fist, because the Stone Fiend no longer existed. He could have gone on to build fame and be of use, but Wang Yi and Diao Zhufan did not think so. Without Shi Wusha, there was no need for Jin Tianwang.

  Thus, in the year he turned sixteen, Jin Tianwang was permitted to cease his training and return to living as an ordinary person. He no longer needed to endure the desolation of the Mystic Valley.

  He became an illiterate youth of sixteen or seventeen, setting out on a wandering life. In reality, he didn't stray far from the Mystic Valley. He merely lived among the local hunter villages. Until one day, he encountered The Drunken Schola—then an unknown figure—who had braved the journey to this desolate land to eliminate a flower-plucking bandit causing trouble in the area.

  Jin Tianwang first met Ou Xiatian at a hunter couple's wedding. That night, Ou Xiatian displayed the demeanor of a knowledgeable scholar. He offered elegant blessings, sang joyful songs to enliven the mood, and drank endlessly. The hunters grew fond of him. Without realizing it, Ou Xiatian became a role model in Jin Tianwang's heart. Afterward, Jin Tianwang brought wine to pay his respects, asking Ou Xiatian to teach him to read and write. A man of the wild like him could only pay with wine, but Ou Xiatian gladly befriended him and earnestly taught him.

  Ou Xiatian soon discovered the flower-plucking bandit was actually the Shadow Bat, a surviving remnant of the Defying Heaven Sect. The Shadow Bat possessed superb lightfoot skills. Though no match for Ou Xiatian in direct combat, he constantly used his agility to flee into the Mystic Valley. Since the valley was strictly forbidden ground in the martial world, Ou Xiatian dared not trespass. This was likely the very loophole the fiends in the valley used to justify breaking their oaths.

  Later, news of the bandit spread. The Virtue Association dispatched men to hunt him down. Finding no suspects, they framed Ou Xiatian and escorted him back to their headquarters. Ou Xiatian had wanted to meet Heaven-Equaling Peak Han Zhaoming anyway, to clarify the truth and discuss breaching the Mystic Valley to capture the Shadow Bat. But upon arriving, he met The Frostflower Maiden Han Yuexin. She took an interest in the case out of youthful curiosity, unaware that Ou Xiatian had fallen in love with her at first sight. Because of this, he deflected and distorted the story.

  Hearing the news, Jin Tianwang worried for the Drunken Scholar's safety. He stormed the Virtue Association alone, fought Heaven-Equaling Peak Han Zhaoming, and rescued Ou Xiatian from the encirclement. Thus, Jin Tianwang's name resounded through the martial world for the first time. Yet, after escaping, Ou Xiatian refused to flee with him, willingly returning to the Association because he knew he could explain the truth.

  Jin Tianwang did not understand Ou Xiatian's underlying intentions. He headed straight for the Mystic Valley, disregarding how trespassing into forbidden territory could escalate into a major crisis. Upon arriving, he captured the Shadow Bat right in front of the valley's inhabitants. He then dragged the real culprit to the Virtue Association to exchange for Ou Xiatian's freedom.

  With the true culprit caught, Ou Xiatian was released. Through the chaos of that event, Jin Tianwang became closely acquainted with the frostflower. Because of Han Yuexin, he turned his back on the wild, choosing instead to follow and look after her.

  "Are you thinking of her?" Fan Qingqing turned to look at him. The woman she referred to was undoubtedly The Frostflower Maiden Han Yuexin.

  Jin Tianwang did not answer. He simply kept his gaze on the vast sea.

  "Can you really not forget her? Even today, you shed tears for her," Fan Qingqing said, her voice tinged with reproach.

  "I have no tears left to shed," Jin Tianwang replied with a faint smile.

  "Will you ever forget her?"

  "I will never forget her, just as I will remember you forever."

  Fan Qingqing's expression showed little satisfaction, but deep down, she felt a trace of gladness. At least she knew she meant a great deal to him. Yet, for her, this was not enough. In her heart, there was only Jin Tianwang. Why did he still have space in his heart carved out for another?

  Reconsidering his words, Fan Qingqing sensed something wrong. She quickly asked, "Saying that... are you leaving?"

  Jin Tianwang gave a slight nod.

  "You..." Fan Qingqing's voice trembled as tears welled up in her eyes.

  "They managed to find me. I must seek a new hiding place," Jin Tianwang replied, averting his gaze.

  "Then why don't we hide together?"

  "I cannot drag you into this."

  "If you shut me out and leave me behind, wouldn't that hurt me even more?" Tears streamed down her cheeks.

  Jin Tianwang kept his gaze forward. He stood up straight, cutting the conversation short. "I must go."

  Fan Qingqing dashed over to block his path, crying out, "Why don't you want me? You..." Stopping there, she suddenly realized the hidden meaning.

  He had no intention of hiding. If he merely wanted to flee, he could have taken her with him. Refusing to let her follow meant he was walking into grave danger.

  She sensed this through intuition. She quickly pressed, "You aren't finding a hiding place. You're going to the Defying Heaven Sect. You can't bear to watch your benefactors die."

  A trace of pain flashed across Jin Tianwang's face. Fan Qingqing saw right through him.

  Fan Qingqing gripped his shoulders tightly. Locking eyes with him, she warned, "Let me be blunt. Even if you intervene, you can do nothing against the Nine Heavens Armor Art. The Supreme Martial Pavilion will suffer a crushing defeat. No one can defeat Shi Moyong anymore. No martial art is more formidable than his armor."

  Jin Tianwang chose not to answer. It wasn't because he arrogantly believed he could defeat Shi Moyong. Rather, he never intended to fight. Since Shi Moyong was once his friend—the Destitute Wanderer Kang Kang—he secretly believed that if he stepped in to negotiate and persuade everyone to stand down, he might just succeed.

  "If you face Shi Moyong, you'll be throwing your life away for nothing!" Fan Qingqing shouted, losing her patience.

  Jin Tianwang was an orphan. Wang Yi and Diao Zhufan were the only two people he respected and called family. If they were truly going to die, he could never stand by and watch. Forced into this situation, he had to step up and stop Shi Moyong.

  Jin Tianwang knew full well that he hadn't even mastered the true essence of the Ninefold Heaven-Piercing Fist before the plan was shelved. And even if he had perfected it, there was no guarantee it could break that invincible armor. In the past, his half-baked fist might have been fierce enough to conquer ordinary masters. But facing an ultimate technique like the Nine Heavens Armor Art, Jin Tianwang had to admit he had no confidence.