Chapter 1 Ten Years Later

• Mount Stokeris had steep and towering cliffs with ancient trees reaching toward the sky.
• An isolated monastery stood alone amidst the clouds at the summit of the mountain.
• Two people were standing in front of the monastery gates, an elder and a youth.
• “Finneas, a decade has passed, and you've become invincible in the ordinary world. It's time for you to descend the mountain.”
• The voice of Melvin Frye, the elder, carried the weight of time.
• “Just say it if you want to hit me.”
• Finneas Lamorde looked at the old man with eyes full of resentment.
• Melvin fell silent for a moment before he said, “Actually, my actions were for your own good!”
• “Hah!”
• Upon hearing those words, Finneas let out a cold scoff but didn't respond.
• Suddenly, Melvin asked, “Finneas, do you despise me?”
• “I used to really hate you!”
• “And what about now?”
• “It doesn't matter anymore. Ten years have passed, so there's no point in bringing this up.”
• “You're right in that it's pointless! After all, how many decades does a person have in their lifetime... Time is as ruthless as a blade, cutting down even the most arrogant. Despite my strength, I still couldn't leap across to that unreachable shore.”
• The old man let out a sigh.
• With great effort, he lifted his gaze, staring into the distant sky.
• At this very moment, the sun was setting in the west, marking the arrival of dusk.
• The evening glow intertwined with the layers of clouds, its lingering light falling upon the vast forest and reflecting a breathtakingly beautiful sheen.
• “The setting sun is beautiful, but alas, it is fleeting.” With a sigh, Melvin continued, “Finneas, could you call me 'Master Frye?'“
• Finneas lowered his head, the corners of his mouth still carrying the same unchanged cold smirk.
• Melvin seemed accustomed to it, continuing to speak to himself as usual.
• “Finneas, what do you think the Immortal Realm is like?”
• “Finneas, I'm craving dumplings.”
• “Finneas, my tooth aches...”
• The scene gradually quieted down.
• Whoosh!
• The evening breeze blew gently, bringing with it a touch of coolness.
• After quite a while of silence, Finneas sensed something was amiss and looked up at Melvin.
• To his surprise, he found that the old man had closed his eyes at some point and was currently devoid of any signs of life.
• Upon witnessing this scene, Finneas stepped forward and roughly hoisted Melvin's corpse up.
• His voice was cold as he said, “Aren't you just trying to trick me into going down the mountain so you can find an excuse to beat me up? Why would you go to such absurd lengths as to feign death?”
• However, no matter what Finneas said, Melvin no longer showed any response.
• His complexion was gradually turning purple, and his body temperature was slowly cooling down.
• His frame had withered away to less than forty kilograms, a stark contrast to his once ethereal and majestic demeanor.
• Memories began to slowly surface in Finneas' mind.
• Ten years ago, he was merely twenty-two when he graduated from university.
• To fulfill his promise to his girlfriend, he journeyed alone by car to Yiefmery to meet her parents at their home.
• Unexpectedly, during the journey, he encountered an enigmatic old man.
• The elder mentioned that Finneas had a natural spiritual constitution and was a promising seedling for cultivation.
• Despite Finneas' objections, Melvin forcibly brought him into this scarcely populated mountain.
• Just like that, a whole decade passed!
• Over the span of those ten years, Melvin subjected him to the most rigorous training known to mankind.
• Every day, before dawn, he had to get up to train.
• At seven, he practiced his punches.
• At ten, he practiced his kicks.
• At twelve, he practiced his swordsmanship.
• At two in the afternoon, he practiced the Eyes of Aether.
• At six in the afternoon, he practiced his arrays.
• At nine in the evening, he focused on medicine.
• After midnight, he began to meditate.
• Day after day, year after year.
• Over the decade, he had yearned to escape countless times, to flee from this place and return home.
• But every time, Melvin would effortlessly drag him back and give him a severe beating!
• There was even once the beating was so severe it almost cost him his life.
• Even though immortal cultivation was considered a great opportunity, Finneas was utterly indifferent to it.
• His girlfriend was still waiting for him to propose, while his aging parents and younger sister were all depending on him to earn money and support the family.
• How could he stay here?
• Unfortunately, no matter how much he pleaded, Melvin remained unmoved.
• Finneas had once subtly suggested that he wanted to send a message home, even pleading on his knees, but the old man still did not agree.
• After giving him a thorough beating, Melvin said coldly, “The pursuit of immortal cultivation goes against the heavens, so you must sever all ties with the mortal world! Finneas, unless I'm dead, you can forget about ever leaving this mountain!”
• From that moment on, Finneas harbored a deep-seated resentment toward Melvin!
• He trained relentlessly every day, hoping to quickly grow stronger. His goal was to surpass Melvin so he could kill the latter as a way to alleviate the hatred burning in his heart.
• And so, a decade flew by in the blink of an eye!
• He had devoted himself to ten years of rigorous training, yet instead of surpassing the old man as he had hoped, he was instead met with this particular scene.
• At that moment, Finneas felt an emptiness in his heart.
• He wasn't as joyful as he had imagined, nor was he as infuriated. All there was, was an undisturbed tranquility.
• Or perhaps, it would be more apt to say he was feeling numb.
• He couldn't help but feel that his ten years of persistence now seemed utterly ridiculous.
• The evening breeze began to blow more fiercely.
• The temperature in the vast mountains seemed to have plummeted below freezing all of a sudden.
• Without uttering a word, Finneas silently laid Melvin to rest.
• Then, he turned and stood, his melancholic eyes gazing at the lush green mountains in the distance.
• No one could comprehend what he was feeling at that moment.
• After a good long while, he finally spoke.
• “I can't believe you're truly gone this time! Your body will gradually disperse, becoming eternal, much like the grains of sand in the desert. In a way, this could be considered a form of immortality. With this farewell, we'll never see each other again!”
• In the end, Finneas just couldn't bring himself to address Melvin as “Master Frye.”
• Then again, what significance did it hold whether he did it now or not?
• He unsheathed his sword, transforming into a ray of light that vanished into the horizon.
• If there had been a cultivator present at that moment, they would have undoubtedly been utterly astounded.
• It was hard to believe that in this modern era, someone could actually fly on a sword!
• Half an hour later, Finneas returned to the hometown of his memories at last.
• His hometown was located on the outskirts of Jacaster in Jussipi.
• The home he couldn't stop thinking about was nothing more than a modest, single-story house.
• In front of the single-story house was a small pond, with willow trees swaying gently by its side.
• “So... nothing has changed, after all!”
• Observing the familiar scene before him, Finneas' eyes ultimately welled up with tears.
• A decade had passed since he was abducted, and now he was finally returning to his home.
• Even with his current state of mind, he couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow, on the verge of tears.
• Back when he had been in the mountain, there had been countless days and nights when he would dream of such a scene...
• Of swimming in the pond as a child, or the hustle and bustle of the streets, or even of all his friends and family.
• “After disappearing without a trace for ten years, I suppose Mom and Dad must have thought I was dead, right?”
• “And little Alyssa... When I left, she was only nine years old. I don't even know if she's in university now!”
• “The old man claimed that the path to immortality lies in cultivation and requires one to sever all earthly ties. But if that means cutting off those dearest to us, what then is the purpose of cultivation?”
• Finneas let out a long sigh, steadying his chaotic emotions.
• Wasn't this the moment he had been waiting for all these years?
• At that moment, a cry of fear suddenly echoed from within the single-story house.
• “I was wrong! I don't want the relocation compensation anymore! I was wrong, I understand my mistake now!”
• “Please... No... No!”
• Smack! “Behave yourself!”
• Upon hearing this, Finneas' expression changed abruptly.
• Is that Lyssie? Is she being assaulted?
• “D*mn it!”
• Finneas' expression was bone-chillingly cold.
• His body seemed to teleport as he rushed toward the single-story house's gates!