Chapter 1

In the 162nd year of the Great Yan Dynasty, the seventh year of Yong'an, in the autumn. In Jinyan Prefecture, Yichang County, at the foot of Mount Daming, there was a village called Gu Family Village.

As winter approached, the mountains and forests of Mount Daming were covered in frost at dawn.

"Great Yan has stood for over 160 years, surrounded by enemies from the outside and plagued by beasts and bandits from within. In this world, only martial arts can be the foundation of one's life."

A bald, muscular man on a platform in the center of the village's training ground shouted loudly.

The man was eight feet tall, with broad shoulders and a bear-like waist. A scar ran from the corner of his left eye to his jaw, twitching like a centipede when he spoke.

Below the platform, on the training ground made of yellow clay, dozens of children, the youngest being eight or nine years old and the oldest being thirteen or fourteen, stood in neat rows, their eyes fixed on the man.

Gu Shaoshang stood in the middle of the line, his eyes shining as he looked at the martial arts instructor, Gu Ji, on the platform.

"Gu Ji has participated in dozens of battles over more than 20 years in the military and has always returned unscathed. He should be able to help me achieve my goal. I must seize this opportunity!"

Gu Ji stood on the platform, his scar twitching as he looked at the children below.

"Martial arts are boundless, and the foundation is the first step! The Tiger Roar Fist I teach you is a legitimate body-strengthening technique used in the military. When you master it, tearing tigers and leopards apart and breaking stones will be as easy as pie."

Suddenly, Gu Ji took a step down from the platform, his bones cracking. As he turned, his black training suit fluttered, and he punched a heavy stone on the training ground!

"Boom"

The stone flew three zhang away and shattered into pieces.

"Amazing!"

"That stone weighs 500 pounds, and it flew three zhang!"

"That's the hardest stone, and it was shattered in one punch!"

After all, they were just a group of teenagers, and the training ground erupted in excitement.

Gu Shaoshang was deeply impressed. "I've been in this world for ten years, and I still find the martial arts here incredible! I can do it, and I can even be stronger!" His heart raced, and he trembled with excitement.

Gu Ji walked back to the platform and scanned the crowd with his tiger-like eyes.

The crowd immediately fell silent.

"The foundation of martial arts starts with strengthening the skin, flesh, tendons, and bones, then the bones, marrow, and internal organs. When the body is flawless, it is the first realm of martial arts, known as 'Establishing Life'!"

"Established Life martial artists can carry a thousand-pound cauldron and run like a horse. In the Tiger Roar Army of Youzhou, they can lead a hundred soldiers and easily defeat hundreds of bandits. They are truly a match for a hundred men!"

The teenagers listened with amazement.

"And I am an Established Life martial artist, a hundred-soldier commander in the Tiger Roar Army of Youzhou!"

Gu Ji stood on the platform, looking proud.

"Uncle Ji, how long will it take us to reach the Established Life realm?"

A boy in the front row, wearing a gray linen robe, asked, his face full of longing.

Gu Ji smiled, his scar twisting like a centipede.

"I started practicing martial arts at ten, joined the Tiger Roar Army at twenty-one, and reached the Established Life realm at twenty-nine."

Gu Ji sighed, his eyes distant.

"Shaoshang, with your talent, you might reach the Established Life realm before you turn twenty-five. Only those who reach the Established Life realm before twenty-five have a chance to join the Great Yan Martial Hall."

The crowd was in an uproar, all looking at Gu Shaoshang with envy.

The Great Yan Martial Hall is the most powerful institution in the Great Yan Dynasty, suppressing all sects and intimidating other countries!

Those who can join the Martial Hall are all world-class geniuses. Even just having a chance to join is already better than most people.

Gu Shaoshang, being just a teenager, blushed and felt a bit dizzy.

Gu Ji waved his hand and left the platform.

"Practice the Tiger Roar Fist on your own. Come to me if you have any questions."

The crowd dispersed, practicing in pairs or alone. The youngest had been training for at least half a year, so they didn't need constant supervision.

Gu Ji walked down from the platform and headed towards the village. Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching and turned to look.

A ten-year-old boy in a linen robe was walking towards him, his slightly dark face showing a hopeful expression.

"Shaoshang, what's the matter?" Gu Ji stopped. With only a thousand people in Gu Family Village, all blood relatives, he naturally knew Gu Shaoshang.

Gu Shaoshang looked up at the towering Gu Ji, who seemed like a beast, and spoke cautiously.

"Uncle Ji, can you hit me with a punch?" Gu Ji was the third son of the previous clan leader, and all the village boys called him Uncle Ji.

"Uh!"

Gu Ji was stunned.

"Are you crazy? With your small body, one punch from me would turn you into a bloody mess." Gu Ji was speechless. An Established Life martial artist's punch could kill tigers and leopards and shatter a man-sized stone! He had never heard such a ridiculous request before.

Gu Shaoshang was drenched in cold sweat. If it weren't for that damned mirror, he wouldn't have made such a foolish request.

Gu Shaoshang was a穿越者 (穿越者 means "穿越者" in Chinese, which can be translated as "transmigrator" or "reincarnated person"). In his previous life, he had achieved nothing by the age of thirty. Unexpectedly, a mirror he bought during a trip had brought him to this world, cutting through the stars.

Ten years had passed, and the mirror had never opened.

"Uncle Ji, I want to personally experience the power of the Tiger Roar Fist when it is fully mastered. Please!"

The thought of opening the mirror took precedence, and Gu Shaoshang, despite feeling embarrassed, spread his feet and took a stance.

"......"

Gu Ji looked speechlessly at the ten-year-old boy in front of him, his slightly dark face serious, like a little adult.

"......Alright, I don't have time to play with you. Go play with Gu Shaoshang and the others." Gu Ji's face darkened, and he waved his hand to leave.

Gu Shaoshang gritted his teeth. If he missed this opportunity, it would take several years to open the Mirror of Heavenly Projections.

The Mirror of Heavenly Projections was the culprit that brought Gu Shaoshang to this world. The only way to open it was through combat. He had tried many times, but the children in the village and the beasts in the mountains were not enough to meet the conditions.

Gu Ji slowly walked out of the training ground.

The houses in Gu Family Village were close together, with ironwood fences more than a zhang long deeply embedded in the ground, keeping most wild animals out.

On the crossroads in the village, on the stone slabs, Gu Ji thought of Gu Shaoshang and shook his head.

"Gu Ji!"

Gu Ji's heart skipped a beat, and he heard the sound of the wind.

His spine trembled, and he pounced like a tiger, clawing at the attacker's chest. He had used this move countless times to rip out hearts!

Suddenly, Gu Ji's fierce smile froze as he saw the young boy, Gu Shaoshang, holding an ironwood knife, looking shocked!

"Oh no!"

Gu Ji's heart bled, and his right hand turned into a palm! He barely reined in seven-tenths of his strength, avoiding Gu Shaoshang's vital points, but his palm still struck the wooden knife! Combat techniques on the battlefield were always about survival, and this move was a matter of life and death. Gu Ji was already a master to be able to do this.

Gu Shaoshang's head exploded, and his hair stood on end!

Gu Ji's pouncing figure was like a giant tiger, and his claw seemed to freeze Gu Shaoshang, making him feel like a rabbit in a tiger's mouth, unable to move!

"Move!"

Gu Shaoshang roared in his heart!

His arms barely lifted, holding the ironwood knife in front of him!

"Boom"

"Crack"

Gu Shaoshang felt like he had been hit by a large truck traveling at seventy miles per hour! The ironwood knife, known as the "steel of wood," snapped along with his arms, and he was thrown away!

"This is bad!"

Gu Shaoshang spat out a mouthful of blood in the air, his eyes rolling back, and he fainted.

Gu Ji leaped to catch the boy in mid-air.

"Good thing I reined in my strength."

Gu Ji sighed in relief, gently massaging Gu Shaoshang's arms and chest.

"Snap!"

Setting bones was no problem for Gu Ji.

......

"Uh"

Pain shot through Gu Shaoshang's arms and chest as he groaned and opened his eyes. He saw the bare walls of his home and his father's stern face.

"You little brat, you dared to sneak attack an Established Life martial artist with a wooden knife! You're lucky I didn't kill you!"

Gu Shaoshang lay in bed, listening to his father, Gu Jiu, scold him with a stern face.

"Ah, since your mother passed away when you were three, my health has never been the same. Do you want to kill me?"

Gu Jiu shook his thinning hair and, with his emaciated body, came to the bed and picked up a bowl of medicine.

"Father, I was wrong."

Gu Shaoshang looked at the man in front of him, who looked like a consumptive, and his eyes turned red.

This man had dragged his sick body to raise him! His desperate desire to open the Mirror of Heavenly Projections was also for him.

"Father, how long have I been unconscious? I'm so hungry!" Gu Shaoshang struggled to drink the medicine his father fed him, and the pain from his bandaged body made him cough.

"Hmph! You've been asleep for two days! If it weren't for Uncle Ji, you would have been left with a lifelong disability!"

Gu Jiu scolded lightly, but he was worried about his son and left the room.

"Stay in bed and don't move around!"

After his father left, Gu Shaoshang closed his eyes and focused his mind.

In the dark consciousness, a mirror shone like the sun.