In the blink of two days, the foolish boy finally awoke from his deep slumber. The moment he opened his eyes, his once-dull and muddled gaze grew sharp and clear.
As he rose and looked around, his surroundings felt both unfamiliar and oddly familiar at the same time. Pushing open the door, he saw Chen Chang'an and Da Huang standing not far away.
The moment his eyes landed on Chen Chang'an, an overwhelming sense of familiarity washed over him—as if he had known this person for an eternity. Yet, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall anything beyond the fragmented memory of this man helping him during his days of foolishness, bringing him here.
But the boy sensed that his familiarity with Chen Chang'an couldn’t have stemmed from that alone. It was a strange, indescribable feeling, impossible to grasp or explain.
Chen Chang'an and Da Huang exchanged a glance. From the boy’s expression, they seemed to have discerned something.
"Do you know how to drink?"
Chen Chang'an’s sudden question caught the boy off guard. Drinking?
The boy stared at Chen Chang'an for a long moment. Why did those words stir something deep within him?
"I think… I’d like to down three hundred cups," the boy blurted out instinctively.
So it really is you!
Hearing this, Chen Chang'an was certain—this boy must be the reincarnation of Wu Mingdao. Perhaps the severe damage to his soul in the past, combined with the experiences of this life, had erased most of his memories from his previous existence.
But some deeply ingrained impressions still lingered.
"Xian'er."
"At your command, young master."
"Prepare wine and dishes."
"As you wish."
As Gu Xian'er went to arrange the food and drinks, Chen Chang'an studied the boy with a smile. "Do you have a name?"
"No. My memories don’t hold one."
"But… I remember the word ‘blade.’ I don’t know what it means." The boy shook his head in confusion.
Blade?
As in Wu Mingdao’s blade?
"How about I give you one?"
"Alright." The boy nodded. For some inexplicable reason, he felt an innate trust toward Chen Chang'an.
"Wu Mingdao. What do you think?"
Wu Mingdao?
Warmth and familiarity washed over him—as if this name had always belonged to him.
"Good. From now on, I am Wu Mingdao." Wu Mingdao grinned.
He loved the name instantly. At that moment, it felt like a rebirth.
Before long, the Happy House delivered the wine and dishes. Chen Chang'an and Wu Mingdao raised their cups in toast after toast.
Wu Mingdao, being only sixteen and never having tasted alcohol before—let alone possessing any cultivation—was already swaying before he could finish three hundred cups.
"Brother… Brother Chen, seeing you again… feels so good."
Before passing out completely, Wu Mingdao uttered these words from the depths of his subconscious—words whose origin even he couldn’t explain.
Watching the drunken Wu Mingdao, Chen Chang'an smiled faintly. "Yes, seeing you again truly is good."
Confirming the boy’s identity resolved a lingering knot in Chen Chang'an’s heart.
But now, the question remained—what path should Wu Mingdao take? Chen Chang'an hadn’t decided whether to reveal his past life or not.
"Some things don’t need to be said. Perhaps it’s better for him to rediscover those memories on his own."
"Wu Mingdao should walk a path that belongs to him now."
"What do you think?" Da Huang asked Chen Chang'an.
Chen Chang'an nodded. Indeed, Wu Mingdao’s journey should be his own to forge.
"Should he walk a new path or retrace the old one?" Chen Chang'an mused.
"A new man should take a new road. That’s only logical."
"He is Wu Mingdao, but not the same Wu Mingdao from before."
"Perhaps he’ll make his own choice."
"We can just ask him tomorrow."
"Right. We’ll ask him tomorrow."
"By the way, any news yet about your promotion to the Purple Gold Medal?"
"Surely they wouldn’t actually dig up someone you can’t defeat?"
"Just how strong are you in reality?" Da Huang couldn’t help but ask curiously.
His real strength?
Chen Chang'an had never clearly defined it, but he was certain of one thing—it definitely didn’t surpass the Hollow Void Realm.
Moreover, he had a feeling that as the power scaling of higher realms became more volatile, his own strength would be affected accordingly.
Once he broke through to the Divine Ability Realm, he wouldn’t experience the same overwhelming leaps in power that allowed him to surpass multiple realms before.
Even so, Chen Chang'an’s current strength was monstrous by any measure. Da Huang had long believed that Chen Chang'an wouldn’t even need to reach the Great Emperor Realm to stand unrivaled in this world.
"Whatever comes, we’ll face it."
"Whether I earn the Purple Gold Medal or not isn’t the most important thing. Don’t forget—my real goal is to meet the City Lord and gather information."
"I refuse to believe he’ll keep hiding forever."
Chen Chang'an had never lost sight of his true purpose—to uncover clues about the Embryonic Pearl. Creating legends or chasing glory had never been the point.
Just as Chen Chang'an and Da Huang were deep in conversation, the Happy House’s proprietress came looking for them again.
"Tell me, madam, am I the only guest in this establishment?"
"Could it be that you’ve taken a liking to me?"
"Are you secretly pining for me?" Chen Chang'an teased.
Hearing this, the proprietress flashed a coquettish smile and fired back without hesitation, "Why would I need to pine in secret?"
"If you’re willing, I could push you down right here and have my way with you."
"I’m not like that timid little maid of yours, too shy to admit her feelings even when she’s smitten."
Her words instantly flushed Gu Xian'er’s face crimson. She wanted to retort but didn’t dare utter a word.
"You think everyone is as brazen as you?"
"Out with it—what brings you here this time?"
"Hmph! What’s wrong with being brazen?"
"Chen Chang'an, are you looking down on me?"
Hm?
This woman—she was joking earlier, but now she’s actually getting serious?
Chen Chang'an could tell the anger in her eyes wasn’t feigned. She was genuinely upset.
"Not at all. It was just a jest."
"If I’ve offended you, I apologize."
Chen Chang'an was never one to stubbornly cling to pride, especially not with a woman. A soft word could easily resolve the matter—no need to escalate things unnecessarily.
This was wisdom he’d learned from his master—never give anger room to grow.
"Hmph, fine. I’ll let it go this time."
"The City Lord’s estate sent word. Your promotion battle will take place outside the city in three days."
Outside the city?
Chen Chang'an hadn’t expected this. The city was vast, and the Medal Arena was more than spacious enough—why move it beyond the walls?
After a moment of thought, Chen Chang'an understood the reason behind their actions.
"They're worried about collateral damage. It seems the ten participants sent by the City Lord's Manor this time won't be weak in strength."
"You're so well-informed—do you have any insider details?" Chen Chang'an asked with a smile.
"Insider details? How could I possibly have access to the City Lord's Manor's secrets? You overestimate me," the proprietress replied, chuckling.
"Is that so?"
Chen Chang'an gave her a deep look before saying calmly, "Seems like we’ll have to wait until the day itself to find out just how strong our opponents are."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
lities. One day, Qi Yuan was buying groceries when he unfortunately came face-to-face with a monster. Just when he thought he was going to die on the spot, he suddenly heard the monster's thoughts... "This aura, he's definitely not an ordinary master!" "So terrifying, so terrifying." "A fight with my back against the wall, I can't take it anymore." Qi Yuan: Ah, no one told me that my awakened ability isn't telepathy, but rather the stronger my enemies imagine me to be, the stronger I truly become. PS: Zhou Hai in the first chapter is not the protagonist.
ing gift was a patch of barren land, and disciples were all picked up along the way. He spent fifty years diligently building three "ramshackle little sects," thinking he could finally live a carefree life relying on his disciples. But right at the fifty-year mark, he was suddenly swept away by a spatial rift and exiled to the Chaos Desolation, the Disorderly Ruins. There was no spiritual energy there, only slaughter. Relying on the cultivation feedback from his disciples, Gu Changyuan hacked his way through a sea of blood for eleven hundred years. When the system finally fished him back out, he discovered the ramshackle little sects he'd built back then had developed a rather... unusual style. Hold on... I vanished for a thousand years, so how did my ramshackle little sects become holy lands?!
