Chapter 1

"Yu Feng, stop it! If you keep bullying Ding Hao, I'll call Mr. Huang!" On the main street leading from Yun Gang No. 2 Middle School to the central urban area of the county, students were gradually leaving school. Four or five boys were surrounding Ding Hao, punching and kicking him, with Yu Feng, the leader, at the forefront. Xia Lin, Ding Hao's neighbor and classmate, caught up from behind and, upon seeing the scene, came to his aid.

Due to Xia Lin's threat to call the teacher, Yu Feng and his gang stopped. Because Xia Lin was a girl, Yu Feng, who had already beaten them, did not pursue the matter further, but he kicked Ding Hao, who was lying on the ground, in frustration: "You must pay back the money tomorrow, or I'll beat you up every time I see you!" With that, the group left.

"Are you okay?" Xia Lin came to Ding Hao's side and carefully helped him up. "Yu Feng is really something, we're in the same class, why does he always bully you? And why do you owe them money?"

Ding Hao smiled gratefully at Xia Lin: "I'm fine. How could I owe them money? It's protection money. You know, I haven't paid for the summer tutoring fees yet, where would I get the money?"

"What should we do?"

"It's fine, he can't really beat me up every day, can he?" Ding Hao was also helpless. Ding Hao was an orphan. After the incident at home ten years ago, he was separated from his family and was taken in by a kind old man named Mr. Yang, who brought him to Yun Gang County. Mr. Yang was a widower with no wife or children, but he treated Ding Hao like a grandson. He supported Ding Hao's food, clothing, and education by doing odd jobs and collecting trash.

Although Ding Hao could hardly remember his parents or where his home was, he could never forget the words his father said to him before leaving, or how he ended up in this small county. After multiple unsuccessful attempts by the police to find his family, Ding Hao accepted this reality. He was very grateful to Mr. Yang and listened to him.

He even planned to find a job after getting into college to support Mr. Yang. Unfortunately, he couldn't fulfill his wish. Mr. Yang passed away in the spring of this year.

This left Ding Hao in a difficult situation. His previously stable, albeit modest, life was completely disrupted. He needed money for food, clothing, and school fees. As an 18-year-old high school student, where could he get the money? The worst part was the few bullies at school, like Yu Feng, who used to leave him alone when Mr. Yang was around but now picked on him almost every other day, clearly taking advantage of the fact that Ding Hao had no adult at home.

Of course, Ding Hao could endure this, as it was nothing compared to what he had endured over a decade ago.

In fact, Ding Hao still remembered some details about his past. He was seven years old when the incident at home happened. At that time, he wasn't called Ding Hao but Ding Tianle, with the nickname Lele. He would never forget how his father drove hundreds of kilometers in the rain to send him to a hotel, repeatedly instructing him:

"Child, the farther you go, the better! Don't go home, don't go back to Qianjiang, never. Take this ring, it might be useful when you grow up..."

Ding Hao was reluctant to leave his family, but he was very sensible. Although he didn't know what had happened at home, his father had never been so anxious before, and even his beloved mother didn't come to see him off. Ding Hao knew that something serious had happened, something that even his grandparents couldn't resolve, or that the entire Ding and Xiao families were unwilling or unable to protect him. Otherwise, his father wouldn't have sent him to a strange city and left him there. It was his father's resolve that made the young Ding Hao realize he couldn't just sit and wait for disaster.

So, after his father left, Ding Hao didn't stay at the hotel. Instead, he used the money his father left him to find a homeless orphan of about his age and size in the city. For 500 yuan, he asked the orphan to switch identities with him, even giving him the branded clothes his mother bought and the jade pendant with his nickname.

The orphan, being an orphan himself, was more than happy to comply, unaware of Ding Hao's true intentions. He proudly wore the new clothes and boasted about being Ding Tianle from the big city of Qianjiang...

This was something that haunted Ding Hao for years. Years later, he learned from the internet that three days after he left, a group of people found the orphan. They first broke his limbs and made him beg on the streets. Two weeks later, the orphan was found in a dilapidated temple, unrecognizable. Later, it was said that an official was furious and sent people from the capital to the city where Ding Hao had stayed, eliminating the gang. The gang paid with three lives and eleven severe injuries!

Ding Hao didn't know what happened after that. There were no news reports, and he didn't dare to investigate.

Over the years, Ding Hao often blamed himself, feeling that the orphan had died in his place. He also felt fortunate because if he hadn't done that, the one who would have been dismembered would have been him!

For the past ten years, Mr. Yang had supported him. By working in the fields and collecting trash during his free time, Mr. Yang provided for Ding Hao's food, clothing, and education. Ding Hao had planned to study hard, get into college, and support Mr. Yang.

Unfortunately, he couldn't fulfill his wish. Now that the village had been incorporated into Yun Gang County, Mr. Yang and Ding Hao were considered city residents. Mr. Yang was 66 when Ding Hao was 7, and he passed away at 73, before Ding Hao could get into college.

From now on, Ding Hao would have to live alone. He sighed deeply, knowing that Mr. Yang had done his best. Over the years, Mr. Yang had been frugal, and when he passed away, the house was empty except for the ring that his father had left, which Mr. Yang had kept for ten years. There was nothing else of value.

Ding Hao didn't know what his father meant by "powerful," but now, without a high school diploma, unable to fight a grown man, and with no money, he was far from powerful. So, Ding Hao knew he had to persevere.

Ding Hao's academic performance had been decent over the years. He and Xia Lin were neighbors, and both had excelled in their middle school exams, entering Yun Gang No. 2 Middle School. Although Yun Gang was a small county, Yun Gang No. 2 Middle School was the best in the southwestern five counties, and even in the entire Duliang City and Hunan Province.

In recent years, some city and provincial leaders had sent their children to Yun Gang No. 2 Middle School, leading to increased support from the city and county governments. The best teachers in the county were transferred to the school, creating a positive cycle. The school's college admission rate kept rising, and more leaders' children enrolled, leading to even more support from the government.

Ding Hao's foundation was solid, but his life had become unstable. He had to work part-time, often taking leave, which seriously affected his studies. Additionally, Yu Feng and his gang frequently bullied him, causing his grades to plummet. In a class of over 60 students, he was now in the lower middle range. According to past admission rates, it would be difficult for him to get into a third-tier university.

This created a vicious cycle: poor grades, bullying, and teachers not intervening. The lack of intervention led to more bullying, making it hard for him to focus on his studies. It was August, and because they were about to enter their senior year, the school had organized voluntary summer tutoring classes starting in July.

Though called "voluntary," it was actually to pass inspections. The teachers continued their lessons in the tutoring classes, so if you didn't attend, you would fall behind when school resumed in September. So, even without money, you had to go.

Today, the homeroom teacher had urged Ding Hao to pay the tutoring fees, which was a problem for him. The money Mr. Yang left was long gone. Xia Lin's parents, who had known Ding Hao since he was a child, occasionally helped him with food and supplies, but they weren't well-off themselves. The tuition had to be solved by Ding Hao, and the protection money from Yu Feng was just another burden.

If not for Xia Lin's timely intervention and threat to call the teacher, Yu Feng and his gang would have continued beating Ding Hao.

"Ding Hao, you're bleeding! Should I take you to the hospital?" Xia Lin, seeing the blood on Ding Hao's lip, was visibly worried.

"It's fine, it's fine! Let's go home." Ding Hao wanted to go to the hospital, but he decided to tough it out. A hospital visit would cost him a year's tuition and living expenses. If he went to the hospital every time he was beaten, he would owe the hospital a fortune.

"Are you really okay?" Xia Lin handed him a tissue, her concern evident.

"Really, I'll be fine after a good night's sleep!" Ding Hao was grateful to Xia Lin. They had been classmates since elementary school and had always helped each other. Even in high school, when boys and girls started to keep their distance, Xia Lin always stood up for him when he was bullied.

Xia Lin had a gender advantage and was a top student, so the teachers, especially the homeroom teacher, Mr. Huang, respected her. Yu Feng, though a troublemaker, wasn't completely bad, so he gave Xia Lin and the teacher some face today. However, if Ding Hao didn't pay the money tomorrow, the beatings would continue. This was Yu Feng's rule, and he couldn't break it just because of Xia Lin.

Yun Gang County was small, and Ding Hao's home was at the end of the street from Yun Gang No. 2 Middle School. With Xia Lin's help, Ding Hao limped home. Seeing the empty, dilapidated house, he felt frustrated, but he didn't show it in front of Xia Lin. He could delay the protection money, but what about the tutoring fees? What about the new semester's tuition? He didn't want to see the homeroom teacher's stern face again.

Pain! Ding Hao suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left hand. Looking closely, he saw that his hand had been scratched by Yu Feng and his gang, and blood was flowing down his middle finger. The ring on his middle finger was still there.

The ring was special, given to him by his father over a decade ago, and it symbolized his hard times with Mr. Yang. Ding Hao cherished it and had worn it since Mr. Yang's death, despite the ridicule from Yu Feng and his gang. He couldn't let the ring get dirty and needed to clean it.

This was his first thought. But the blood had already stained the ring, and the next thing he knew, something unexpected happened.

The ring seemed to come to life, shedding its rust and glowing brightly. Ding Hao felt a wave of dizziness...

When Ding Hao woke up, he found himself lying on a grassy field, surrounded by open space. "What's going on? Where am I? Where's my ring?" He looked at his left hand, which was empty, and panicked. He wasn't afraid of Yu Feng's beatings or the teacher's demands, but the ring was too important to him!

The jade pendant had disappeared with the orphan over a decade ago. If the ring was lost, Ding Hao would be devastated! As he got up and searched the grass, an old man in a Taoist robe with a white beard appeared beside him: "Young man, you're finally here!"

"Sir, where am I? Did you see my ring?" Ding Hao was confused, looking at the old man, who seemed older than Mr. Yang but was in good health.

"Ha, you're looking for the ring? Young man, the ring you wore was accidentally left by me, but it has absorbed your blood and is now bound to your soul. You don't need to look for it, just feel it with your heart."

"Soul-bound? Feel it with my heart?" Ding Hao was bewildered. He had only heard of souls leaving the body in ghost stories, not binding to objects.

"Exactly, calm down and focus," the old man advised.

"Seems like it. Yes... I can feel it, but where am I?" Ding Hao sat on the grass, closed his eyes, and soon felt the ring, which was now glowing and floating.

"This is the magical space! I am its creator! How does it feel? Do you like it?"

"Yes, the sky is very blue, and the air is fresh... This must be Lhasa." Ding Hao still didn't believe he had left Earth. The only place on Earth with such clear skies, fresh air, and green grass was the Tibetan Plateau. So he said something that almost made the old man choke.

"Ah, how do I explain this? Anyway... the ring is the medium that brought you here. You're not on Earth, but in the ring's space. You're very lucky to be the master of this space."

"Master? But you're the creator, and are there other people here?" Ding Hao had many questions but didn't know where to start. The old man, however, seemed more interested in introducing the magical space.

"..." Ding Hao pinched his thigh hard, thinking he was dreaming. Was this a dream caused by the bullying? But the pain was real, so maybe it was a dream within a dream?

------ New book uploaded, rolling on the ground, begging for support. Join the book club for more discussions: 309668984.

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