After finishing all this, Long Xingyu left without looking back.
Long Xuanye was already a dead man.
Deep in the forest.
When the first ray of sunlight pierced the layers of leaves and fell across Long Xuanye's face, he opened his eyes.
He had not slept all night.
As time passed, the unease in his heart grew ever stronger.
At last, he could no longer hold back. He sprang from his hiding place and raced toward home.
Only a rapidly flickering blur remained on the forest path.
"Creak—"
The familiar wooden door was shoved open.
The instant he stepped inside, a light screen visible only to him popped up before his eyes.
[Choice Two complete. Reward issued.] [Innate Inner Spiritual Power: 87→88]
The relief that flashed across Long Xuanye's face froze completely the next moment, when he saw the room.
Home was empty.
His mother's and little brother's presence had vanished without a trace.
The bowls and plates left on the table had been smashed to pieces, with scraps scattered everywhere.
The storage chest in the corner had been violently overturned. The clothes inside had been slashed to tatters, and the few remaining bags of grain had been spilled across the floor, mixed with dirt and no longer fit to eat.
Everyone was gone. The house stood empty.
No, this wasn't simply an empty house.
This was... an attempt to wipe him out completely!
Long Xuanye's gaze swept across the ruined belongings.
A faint yet domineering trace of power still lingered on them.
He knew that aura down to his bones.
It was Long Xingyu's!
He understood in an instant.
That man had taken his mother and little brother, then personally destroyed everything here.
He had destroyed every last resource Long Xuanye depended on to survive!
A dreadful thought slithered into his mind like a venomous snake.
He remembered the original story of Throne of Seal, which he had read in his previous life.
Convinced that Long Haochen carried the Demon God King's bloodline, Long Xingyu had stood by while a group of human geniuses entered a perilous place!
If not for the protagonist's plot armor, humanity's future might have been destroyed!
What wouldn't a madman like him do?
Now, that butcher's blade had turned toward Long Xuanye.
A child with little External Spirit Power, no resources, and no way to earn a living, abandoned alone in this chaotic border town.
He wanted Long Xuanye dead!
Long Xuanye's gaze turned cold.
What a fine Doomsday and Slaughter Divine Seal Knight!
What a fine leader of humanity!
Someone like that...
Could actually be worthy of the Throne of Seal?!
Long Xuanye stumbled back a step, his body hitting the broken doorframe with a dull thud.
A moment later, he slowly straightened up.
Despair?
No.
He still had a chance!
Fortunately, the system's earlier rewards had given him a physique far beyond ordinary people. His External Spirit Power wasn't too low.
Surviving...
Was still possible.
He could only say it was fortunate he hadn't revealed his true strength earlier...
Just then, a familiar transparent light screen appeared before him without warning.
[Host detected to be in mortal danger. A moment of choice has begun.] [Choice One: Stay where you are and conceal all traces of your presence. Reward: Innate Inner Spiritual Power +20.] [Choice Two: Face the enemy and kill the Shadow Leopard left behind by Long Xingyu. Reward: Knight Secret Technique · Instantaneous Movement Steps, Innate Inner Spiritual Power +2.]
Shadow Leopard?
Long Xuanye's pupils contracted sharply.
Destroying his home and cutting off his food supply hadn't been enough. That man had even left him this "generous gift"!
"Roar—!"
Before the thought had even faded, a black shadow carrying a gust of foul wind shot out of the darkness outside, like an arrow loosed from a bow!
It was a fully black magical beast, its blood-red eyes filled with hunger and savagery.
Too fast!
The instant the shadow appeared, Long Xuanye's expression changed. Every muscle in his body tensed. He drove his strength through his waist and abdomen, twisting at an impossible angle to dodge sharply to the side.
"Rip!"
The sharp wind of its claws grazed his clothes and left three deep gouges in the battered wooden door.
The Shadow Leopard missed its strike and landed steadily, a warning growl rumbling in its throat as its blood-red eyes locked onto the "prey" before it.
Looking at the beast, the hatred in Long Xuanye's eyes nearly took on physical form.
This was Long Xingyu's will.
This was that man's determination to kill him!
Kill it!
Kill the beast!
His overwhelming hatred transformed into a power he had never felt before.
Long Xuanye didn't retreat. He surged forward instead, stamping down hard. The ground cracked beneath him as he charged straight at the Shadow Leopard!
The man and beast crossed paths in an instant inside the cramped wooden house!
Claw shadows. Fists cutting through the air.
Flesh collided with claws, producing a dull thud.
At last, when the dust settled,
Long Xuanye stood panting, his right fist drenched in blood. Beneath his feet, the Shadow Leopard's head had caved in deeply, and it had stopped breathing for good.
[Choice Two complete. Reward issued.] [Skill acquired: Instantaneous Movement Steps. Allows rapid movement in a crisis and lets you unleash explosive damage by harnessing your speed.]
A warm current surged through his limbs and torso, quickly repairing his injuries. The Spiritual Power he had expended was instantly restored, and had even improved a little.
Long Xuanye looked at the newly acquired reward on the system panel and gave a bitter smile.
The rewards were indeed substantial.
The Shadow Leopard's Magic Crystal could be traded for some urgently needed supplies, and the Instantaneous Movement Steps skill was a powerful tool for survival and turning the tables.
He mused, As expected, real adventures give better rewards. Slowly building up External Spirit Power before was painfully inefficient.
But then he gave another bitter smile.
"But I'm not an idiot. If I could steadily build up my Inner and External Spirit Power, who'd willingly take risks? I don't have that luxury now. I can only fight for my life..."
The next day.
The morning mist had yet to lift.
With little hope but willing to try, Long Xuanye quietly returned to the outskirts of Odin Town.
He wanted to check the Knight Temple branch and see if there was still any chance for him to continue cultivating.
However, as soon as he reached the vicinity of his dilapidated wooden house, he stopped.
Not far away, two men in the Knight Temple's standard leather armor were talking in low voices.
Every so often, they glanced toward the ruined house, their faces betraying impatience.
One of them said, "It's been a whole day. Why hasn't anything happened? Could that kid have run away?"
The other snorted.
"Be patient. Once we find the boy's corpse, we can go back and report."
Every word they said reached Long Xuanye's ears.
His figure quietly vanished into the morning mist.
So they'd even arranged what would happen afterward.
They were waiting for his corpse.
Good. Very good.
The morning mist was icy, soaking through Long Xuanye's thin clothes, but it was nothing compared to the chill in his heart.
Long Xingyu.
Long Xingyu again.
The Knight Temple was supposed to symbolize protection and justice.
Now, it had become a butcher's blade, coming for his life.
Was there anywhere safe in this world?
His last shred of hope was crushed completely.
Long Xuanye stood behind a tree, motionless for a long while, his body stiff as a stone statue.
Even the Shadow Leopard's Magic Crystal in his arms felt unbearably hot.
Where could he sell it?
Any shop in Odin Town might have a Knight Temple informant.
The moment he showed his face, a Net of Heaven and Earth would close around him.
The path to becoming stronger seemed to have been completely blocked.
Just as the endless darkness was about to swallow him, a glimmer of light appeared before his eyes.
[Host detected to be in a desperate predicament. Fate Choice triggered.] [Choice One: Completely conceal your whereabouts and evade the Knight Temple's search. Reward: Innate Inner Spiritual Power +1, External Spirit Power +3.] [Choice Two: Reveal your whereabouts and draw the searching knights to you. Reward: Innate Inner Spiritual Power +20.]
Before you continue