Chapter 1

**Pang! Hum!**

Yuan force fluctuations spread, the sound of the two fists colliding echoed, sending stone chips flying. Ye Wuxue was hit in the chest by a punch, his figure retreating three zhang before he finally stopped.

However, the young man, who looked to be around fourteen or fifteen years old, with fair skin, was handsome, especially his eyes, which seemed naturally brilliant, adding a touch of peculiar charm to his still somewhat youthful face.

But at this moment, Ye Wuxue looked somewhat disheveled. His black hair, which was draped over his shoulders, fluttered in the wind. He did not look at the opponent on the martial arts platform who had defeated him in three moves; instead, he closed his eyes, his face expressionless, as if immersed in his own world.

"Ye Wuxue, eliminated! Murong Hai, wins, advancing to the next round!"

With the voice from behind the large martial arts platform, Murong Hai, who was standing on the platform, jumped down. He had a scarred face, a robust build, and was eighteen years old.

With a proud expression, Murong Hai's eyes swept over the closed-eyed Ye Wuxue, his satisfaction and disdain unhidden. As he walked past Ye Wuxue, he suddenly laughed lightly.

"Ye Wuxue, I really admire you. Ten years, have you ever counted how many times you've lost? Oh, right, I forgot, a waste like you probably can't even remember what victory feels like, hahaha, you're really... trash."

"Ye Wuxue, the 'waste,' was paired with Murong Hai in the first match, he deserves his bad luck!"

"Ye Wuxue was defeated in three moves, tsk tsk, so weak!"

"Sigh, Ye Wuxue has never won a single battle in ten years, yet he keeps fighting, for a whole ten years! What a freak!"

Surrounding the large martial arts arena on the left, a group of about a hundred boys and girls, no older than twelve, wearing uniformly tailored light blue martial arts shirts, their young faces shining brightly like the morning sun, were chattering.

All of this, Ye Wuxue, with his eyes closed, seemed to have long been accustomed to. But no one knew that at this moment, a tremendous change was happening within him!

This change, even for Ye Wuxue, who had been silent for ten years, with a heart as hard as iron and a will that had been honed to transparency, made him tremble slightly, his heart surging like a tide, the deep stirring from his soul growing stronger and stronger, almost making him want to howl to the sky!

"Heaven rewards those who are diligent! After ten years of silence, I have finally achieved my wish, have I succeeded?"

... "Haha, Binglan, I'm one step ahead, don't fall behind."

Murong Hai, with a radiant smile, walked to the stone benches on the right side of the martial arts arena where dozens of young strong men were seated, and smiled at a girl sitting at the front.

As he approached, the martial intent and burning gazes of the young strong men focused on him, and powerful fluctuations swept over, all belonging to the young strong men of the Murong family of this generation.

"Murong Hai, defeating that waste Ye Wuxue makes you happy? Your strength has indeed grown quickly, breaking through to the eighth level of the Body Tempering stage, but compared to Brother Tian, you still fall short."

A slightly cold female voice sounded, coming from the girl Murong Hai called Binglan. Although she was seated on the stone bench, her long, slender legs, crossed together, formed a seductive curve. She wore a red, tight-fitting silk dress, with floral embroidery on her chest, a slender waist, a pointed chin, and beautiful phoenix eyes, a straight nose, and cherry lips, making her an extremely beautiful woman.

After hearing Binglan's words, Murong Hai's smile froze, his eyes flashing with intense jealousy and envy. He chuckled but did not speak further, walking to his stone bench and sitting down with his eyes closed.

The young strong men seated behind Murong Binglan, upon hearing the words "Brother Tian," almost simultaneously showed a look of admiration and reverence.

"Next match, Murong Binglan versus Murong Jie."

At the same time, a powerful male voice sounded from behind the martial arts platform. The moment the voice rang out, the entire arena fell silent, for this was the voice of the head of the Murong family, Murong Changqing.

"Whoosh, whoosh"

Two young figures leaped from the stone benches, rushing towards the martial arts platform. A fragrant breeze swept past as Murong Binglan stood on the fifty-zhang wide platform. Opposite her stood a boy with average looks, his eyes flashing with infatuation and love as they swept over Murong Binglan's face.

Murong Binglan, one of the Murong sisters!

With remarkable talent, beautiful looks, and a cold, captivating demeanor, she was the goddess in the hearts of many Murong descendants. Looking at the beauty before her, Murong Jie felt somewhat nervous and tense. Ye Wuxue, who had been standing on the platform with his eyes closed, now opened them. His strong will, honed over ten years, controlled his emotions, and his eyes remained calm as he looked at the two standing on the platform, then walked down the platform. However, Murong Binglan's gaze, as it swept over him, was filled with deep humiliation and disgust.

"Begin."

"Boom, bang"

Murong Binglan and Murong Jie erupted into battle.

Although Ye Wuxue, who had walked down the platform, was still emotionally stirred, he slowly walked to the back of the arena and bowed to the figure sitting in the middle of the ten figures there.

"Uncle Changqing, Wuxue will leave first to go back and practice."

The young man's voice was clear and melodious, as if the recent defeat had not cast any shadow on him.

"Alright, Wuxue, you can go."

Murong Changqing's eyes showed a complex expression. The handsome young man standing before him, ten years ago, was so extraordinarily talented?

Although Ye Wuxue was not from the Murong family, after the person who entrusted the four-year-old him to the Murong family and left that thing eleven years ago, Murong Changqing did not treat Ye Wuxue as an outsider. He discovered that Ye Wuxue's cultivation talent was truly monstrous!

At four years old, he cultivated the high-level technique of the Murong family, "Heavenly Power," and at five, he broke through to the fifth level of the Body Tempering stage, defeating a peer from the Qingming Divine Palace, one of the five major super sects in the Northern Sky Domain, who was also a peerless young genius.

This news was like a stone causing a thousand ripples!

At five years old, the fifth level of the Body Tempering stage, what did this mean?

For cultivators, the first major realm is the Body Tempering stage, divided into ten levels, focusing on strengthening the body and refining qi and blood, corresponding to: "skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and marrow."

Generally, breaking through to the first level of the Body Tempering stage, the Skin Tempering stage, at ten years old is considered a genius. If one can break through to the third level of the Body Tempering stage, the Flesh Tempering stage, at ten years old, this is a genius that appears once in a hundred years.

Such a genius, the Murong family, one of the three major families in Longguang City, a major city in the Eastern Land of the Northern Sky Domain, had only produced one in generations, and that was the current Murong Tian, who was about to emerge from the Murong family's forbidden area.

Murong Tian, who broke through to the third level of the Body Tempering stage at ten years old, was called a genius that appeared once in a hundred years.

What about Ye Wuxue, who broke through to the fifth level of the Body Tempering stage, the Tendon Tempering stage, at five years old, when his qi and blood were not even fully formed?

Murong Changqing originally thought that heaven was blessing the Murong family, allowing two such geniuses to appear in this generation. But after Ye Wuxue, at five years old, defeated the peerless young genius from the Qingming Divine Palace, for ten years, he made no further progress!

For ten years, Ye Wuxue remained at the fifth level of the Body Tempering stage, the realm where he had shown his extraordinary talent at five years old.

Murong Changqing tried countless methods to find the reason, but the result was only one.

"His qi and blood inexplicably withered, making him unsuitable for cultivation."

Heaven envies geniuses, and this was no exception.

Even after Murong Changqing had to give up, Ye Wuxue chose to continue cultivating. He seemed completely unaffected, persistently and diligently practicing.

But to outsiders, Ye Wuxue could not bear the sudden fall from grace and was desperately trying to regain his glory as a genius.

They believed that Ye Wuxue had gone mad.

"Waste Wuxue" became his nickname.

Just as Ye Wuxue was about to leave the martial arts platform, a powerful fluctuation rose from afar and quickly approached!

"Whoosh"

Powerful yuan force surged around the newcomer, a tall figure, no more than seventeen or eighteen years old, with his skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and marrow all thoroughly trained, his qi and blood fully integrated with his yuan force, forming a white yuan force that exuded a vast power!

Ye Wuxue could clearly see a faint silver crescent moon floating behind the newcomer, as tall as a person, though blurry and unstable, it emitted a powerful aura.

The white yuan force slowly dissipated, revealing the newcomer in a white martial arts shirt, his black hair neatly tied, his entire body spotless, and his handsome appearance.

"My goodness! It's Murong Tian! Murong Tian has emerged from seclusion!"

"His aura? Has he really broken through the Body Tempering stage?"

"Whoa! Is that... the Soul Moon?"

...

"At such a young age, with such cultivation, he is indeed the first among the young generation of the Murong family!"

... The entire martial arts arena erupted with shock as Murong Tian appeared. Many shocked voices echoed, especially the young disciples of the same age as Murong Tian, who were seated on the stone benches, showing bitter and helpless expressions. Murong Hai, who had been boasting a moment ago, was now silent.

Murong Tian, at this moment, became the center of everyone's attention, the focus of all the light.

The two battling on the platform also stopped, Murong Binglan's beautiful eyes tightly fixed on Murong Tian, filled with admiration.

"Haha! Heaven blesses the Murong family! Tian, you have finally condensed the Soul Moon, reaching the first realm of the World Cleansing stage, the Heroic Soul stage! At seventeen years old! Good! Very good!"

At this moment, an elder sitting beside Murong Changqing suddenly stood up, laughing heartily. The elder had an ordinary appearance, exuding a gloomy aura, but he was laughing extremely joyfully.

Murong Baitian, the third elder of the Murong family, and Murong Tian's grandfather.

"Murong Tian greets the family head and the elders."

Speaking calmly, Murong Tian's face was also calm, but his tone carried a hint of innate pride.

"Tian, there's no need for formalities. You have successfully condensed the Soul Moon and reached the World Cleansing stage at seventeen, a remarkable achievement in the two hundred years of our Murong family's history, ranking among the top three."

Murong Changqing was also extremely pleased. As the successor of the Murong family, Murong Tian's excellence undoubtedly added another powerful expert to the family in the years to come.

"Yes! Tian is a genius that appears once in a hundred years!"

"I have lived for sixty years, and I have never seen a genius like Tian."

"Reward! Family head, Tian is so excellent, he should be rewarded!"

... Murong Baitian's heart swelled with pride and enthusiasm upon hearing the other elders' praise. His grandson was so outstanding, truly bringing honor to the family!

Ye Wuxue, standing behind Murong Tian, had not yet left. His gaze swept over the faint silver crescent moon, his eyes shining with curiosity, his mind swirling with thoughts.

"This is the mark of the World Cleansing stage, the Soul Moon? Indeed, it is unique."

Suppressing his thoughts, feeling the tremendous changes within him, Ye Wuxue prepared to leave. He had something extremely important to confirm.

This was the transformation he had been waiting for after ten years of silence.

Today, he had finally achieved his wish!

"Family head, Murong Tian has a request."

Murong Tian spoke calmly again. As soon as the words were spoken, Murong Binglan's beautiful eyes lit up, as if she had realized something, her heart filled with joy. Her gaze swept over Ye Wuxue, who was about to leave, filled with disgust and relief.

"Oh? Haha, I once promised you that if you could break through to the World Cleansing stage during your seclusion, I would grant you two requests. You have indeed achieved this, so, Tian, you can make any request."

Seemingly aware of Murong Tian's thoughts, Murong Changqing smiled.

With Murong Changqing's confirmation, Murong Tian's gaze suddenly shifted, his eyes coldly looking at the departing Ye Wuxue, like a nine-heaven dragon looking down on an ant.

"The first request is on behalf of Binglan. I humbly request the family head to revoke the marriage contract between Binglan and Ye Wuxue, for he... is unworthy."

As soon as these words were spoken, the entire audience was shocked.

"Whoa"

The sound of people drawing in their breath could be heard all around. Many Murong descendants were first stunned, then their faces showed understanding.

"Whoosh"

With a fragrant breeze, Murong Binglan, like a red butterfly, swept down from the martial arts platform, standing beside Murong Tian. She lifted her delicate chin and said coldly, "Father, Binglan does not wish to marry Ye Wuxue. Please revoke the order, Binglan cannot marry a waste!"

The cold, beautiful voice spread around, instantly reaching the ears of Murong Changtian and the five elders, and clearly to every Murong descendant.

At the same time, Ye Wuxue, who also heard Murong Tian and Murong Binglan's words, paused. This scene, seen by the Murong descendants, instantly filled their minds with Ye Wuxue's sorrow and unwillingness. Some of the gazes on Ye Wuxue were filled with sympathy and pity, but more were filled with a sense of watching a show.

Indeed, Ye Wuxue quickly turned around.

But the expected distorted face did not appear; instead, it was a relaxed... smile?

Ye Wuxue's handsome face was full of smiles, and he said loudly, "Uncle Changqing, I have already refused the marriage contract. It's good to take this opportunity to revoke it. I am very grateful."

"Uh"

Again, dozens of extremely surprised voices sounded. The Murong descendants had imagined all sorts of scenarios—sorrow, unwillingness, madness, humiliation—but none of them had expected Ye Wuxue to respond in such a way, and it seemed to be genuinely... happy?

Hearing Ye Wuxue's response, Murong Binglan felt a sudden darkness before her eyes, almost unable to stand, a strong sense of humiliation instantly spreading through her heart!

Murong Tian also raised an eyebrow, clearly surprised by Ye Wuxue's response. But Murong Tian was not without cunning, his gaze remained cold, and without waiting for Murong Changqing's response, he spoke again.

"The second request is to humbly request the family head to grant me the Blood Dragon Jade. This item, Ye Wuxue does not deserve to possess."

These words echoed in Ye Wuxue's ears, his smile gradually fading, a deep chill flashing in his calm eyes!

The Blood Dragon Jade, apart from the unopened letter, was the only thing left to him by Uncle Fu, currently in the custody of Murong Changqing. It carried Ye Wuxue's deepest longing for the past eleven years, a precious item he had always yearned for, with no connection to the Murong family.

In other words, it originally belonged to Ye Wuxue.

And now, Murong Tian wanted to take it!