Dawn Year 710.
Star City West District, outskirts.
At daybreak, Zuo Tianxuan was awakened from his dream of killing enemies on the battlefield by a heavy metallic pounding. Opening his eyes, he saw a dim room, with only a little light filtering in through the gaps in the curtains.
He muttered something under his breath, rolled over, pulled the blanket tight, and went back to sleep.
But less than five minutes after closing his eyes, Zuo Tianxuan opened them again and glanced up at the fluorescent-faced clock on his bedside table.
It was already 5:37.
Realizing that if he did not get up now, Grandpa's beating would be waiting for him, he promptly scrambled out of bed.
With his lower back aching and his whole body sore, he dragged his exhausted body through washing up, then put on a black tank top and headed downstairs.
The moment he stepped outside, a blast of cold air hit him.
Heavy snow drifted through the dim world, while howling winds swept past, bending and shaking the distant grass and trees. At this hour, only cleaning robots were still working on the streets, and there was not a soul in sight.
Hit by the freezing wind, Zuo Tianxuan shuddered, and his still-groggy mind immediately cleared up considerably.
Rubbing the goosebumps raised on his arms by the cold, he hunched over and ran toward a building not far away.
This building was extremely distinctive. A gigantic iron hammer stood on its roof, making it look from a distance as though the building had been flattened by a hammer that had fallen from the sky.
The heavy metallic pounding that had disturbed his sleep was coming from inside this building.
As he stepped inside, a wave of heat rolled over him, instantly sweeping away the cold