Who Exactly Is He?

"Old man, what the hell are you playing at?"

Stone glared at the Old Bishop, clearly displeased.

"We're not going on a picnic here—what's the deal with bringing a delicate Young Lady along?"

"What's the deal?"

Hearing Stone's odd phrasing, picked up from Fang Zheng, the Old Bishop helplessly rolled his eyes.

"The deal is this! Don't forget, there's a spatial restriction there. Without this young lady's help, even if you find the person, how are you going to get back? If you don't go through the Starpath, are you planning to trek all the way back from the Shadow Canyon?"

"Fine, since that's the case, I've got no objections."

Hearing the Old Bishop's answer, Stone had nothing more to say. Breaking out of the Shadow Canyon was something he knew he couldn't do, and under the spatial restriction, ordinary methods wouldn't work either. So if they wanted to return safely, bringing this delicate Young Lady along seemed necessary.

Thus, Stone wisely shut his mouth and led Fang Zheng into the teleportation array, followed closely by the young girl. Perhaps because Stone's scowling face looked a bit intimidating, or maybe because she'd met Fang Zheng before, the girl stuck closer to him, watching Stone warily.

"Alright, it's up to you now, little girl."

Stone didn't seem to care about such trivial matters. He took a deep breath, his expression turning serious.

"Let me see where you can send us."

"Okay... I understand..."

The girl replied weakly, then closed her eyes. Soon, Fang Zheng saw azure light dots quietly emerge around her, connected by straight lines, like a constellation encircling the three of them.

"Is this the Starpath?"

Fang Zheng watched the flickering star chart with interest, feeling it resembled the high-tech holographic projections from his past life. He knew a bit about the Starpath—in simple terms, on this continent, it was more like a natural phenomenon, similar to tides. He didn't fully grasp the principle of distance, only that it involved overlapping one's projection with a constellation and folding space for teleportation... the principle was probably akin to a wormhole?

Since the Starpath was a natural phenomenon, it wasn't restricted by spatial-blocking spells. However, summoning it required exceptional talent and powerful Computational Power, so few could use it. Clearly, this soft-spoken girl was hiding her true abilities.

"I found it..."

Just then, the girl suddenly spoke. Her eyes still closed, she frowned slightly.

"A fate star... about to vanish... coordinates fixed... now!"

As her words fell, Fang Zheng saw a great hole tear open in the space above them, as if the sky itself had been ripped apart. Before he could react, a powerful suction force pulled him and Stone inside.

It was a very peculiar experience.

After entering the void, Fang Zheng first saw endless stars and a vast, boundless universe. He felt as if he were floating in space. But soon, he felt like he was riding an invisible slide, hurtling downward in a certain direction. His speed increased, and the scenery rapidly changed—countless stars stretched into ribbons before his eyes, growing more distant until they merged into pure white...

"Bam!!"

The next moment, Fang Zheng felt like he'd reached the end of the slide, tumbling out and landing hard on his rear.

"Tch..."

The pain of a fall wasn't pleasant, but Fang Zheng had no time to care. The instant he landed, he heard a low growl beside him, followed by the sharp sound of a weapon cutting through the air behind him!

"What the hell!"

At that moment, the experience he'd gained in the free dungeon finally paid off. Instinctively, he rolled on the ground, dodging the attack. Then he reached out, drew the Skyrending Sword from his waist, and looked ahead—only to be startled.

Before him stood over a dozen Skeleton Soldiers, wielding weapons and clad in tattered armor. Their eye sockets glowed with crimson light, forming a semicircle around him. Nearby, a fallen knight stared wide-eyed in shock at the young man who had appeared out of nowhere.

Who was he?

No wonder the knight was puzzled. Moments ago, he'd been ready to fight these undead to the death. But just as he braced himself for a final stand, a flash of light appeared, and this young man suddenly materialized before him.

Since Fang Zheng was only an apprentice Guardian Knight, not a full member of the Holy Temple, he wasn't wearing the temple's standard armor like Stone. Instead, he still wore the noble attire he'd had when he arrived at Starmoon City. Because of this, the knight didn't recognize Fang Zheng's identity. But regardless, he didn't seem like an enemy. Still, when the knight saw Fang Zheng draw his weapon, ready to counterattack the undead, he couldn't help but warn him.

"Careful, these are the un—"

But before the knight could finish, Fang Zheng had already struck.

The holy light of the Skyrending Sword burst forth instantly. Facing the undead, Fang Zheng stepped forward, sweeping his blade in an arc that sent a dazzling golden sword beam crashing into the undead's bodies. Golden cross-shaped patterns erupted across them, blasting them away.

Crusader Strike!

Seizing the opportunity, Fang Zheng didn't let up. He pointed his sword forward, and three massive crimson greatswords burst from the ground, shattering the Skeleton Archers in the rear. Then, a faint holy light flickered around him as he gripped his sword with both hands, charging into the undead ranks like a tiger unleashed.

"Bam!!"

The leading Undead Warrior didn't even have time to raise his weapon before Fang Zheng beheaded him with a single strike. Raising his sword high, beams of light gathered around him, condensing into dozens of radiant Sword of Light blades. These blades then leveled themselves at the encircling enemies, spinning outward like a meat grinder, mercilessly tearing through the undead's bodies and souls.

Holy Storm!

The wounded knight was utterly stunned. He'd seen similar power before, but the flashy, light-and-shadow-filled swordplay Fang Zheng displayed was breathtaking. Fortunately, he sensed no undead or evil aura in Fang Zheng's holy light, which reassured him—at least for now, this man wasn't an ally of the undead.

Still, as he looked at Fang Zheng's young, handsome face, the knight couldn't help but gasp. He hadn't seen it clearly before, but now he was astonished. As a knight directly under the Bishop Council of the Holy Temple, he'd met many powerful figures. But most were older, the youngest past middle age. This young man... was he even twenty?

Who was he?

Could he be a descendant of some hidden clan?

What was he doing here?

As the knight pondered his identity with a grave expression, he saw the young noble sheathe his weapon, walk over, and extend a hand.

"You're a knight of the Holy Temple, right? Looks like I'm not too late..."

"...Huh?"

Hearing this, the knight blinked, then looked up at Fang Zheng.

What was going on?