Righteousness Soaring to the Heavens

Boundless City was divided into southern and northern districts.

The southern district was relatively prosperous, lined with shops, and most martial artists gathered there. The northern district, meanwhile, was a slum of low, ramshackle shacks inhabited by commoners who went into the mountains to gather herbs.

That day, three youths—two boys and a girl—were desperately running from the southern district toward the northern shantytown.

Though they used every ounce of strength they had, they were still caught by several men from the Black Tiger Gang.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The three of them were instantly beaten to the ground.

"You little bastards, you dared sneak a look at us practicing martial arts? Looks like you don't want to live anymore. Sever the tendons in their hands and feet, gouge out their eyes, and hang them at the gang's entrance to serve as a warning to others."

"Yes, Captain Huang!"

A youth named Wen Hua struggled to climb to his feet. Wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, he shielded his two companions behind him.

"I was the one who had them come with me to secretly learn martial arts. A man bears the consequences of his own actions. If you want to kill or flay someone, come at me alone. Let my companions go," Wen Hua said with righteous resolve.

Wen Hua, Zhao Dun, and Xia Shuang had grown up together in the northern district's shantytown since childhood, inseparable as shadow and form.

Wen Hua was the eldest, Zhao Dun was a fat boy, and Xia Shuang had been pretty since she was little—now she was even more beautiful. Whenever she went out to play, she had to smear soot from the bottom of a pot over her face.

"Ah Hua, we'll face it together," Zhao Dun said hurriedly.

"We made a promise when we were little: if we lived, we lived together; if we died, we died together." Though Xia Shuang was a girl, there was not the slightest fear of death on her face.

Born in a lawless, chaotic place like Boundless City, she had seen far too much death since childhood. She had never expected to grow up and had long been prepared to die.

Children from slums like theirs had no future, much less any hope.

Wen Hua had always refused to accept that. He had wanted to find a way out, so he secretly brought the other two outside the Black Tiger Gang's walls to steal lessons in fist techniques. Today, they had been discovered.

"You two..." Wen Hua turned to look at his companions, his eyes slightly damp. "I got you into this. Zhao Dun, take Xia Shuang and leave. The two of you must live out my share of life as well. Go."

Clap! Clap! Clap!

Huang Biao, a Black Tiger Gang underboss, clapped his hands. "What touching friendship. I'm moved. I'll give you a chance. As long as you two kill him, I'll let you go. How about it?" Huang Biao wore a mocking, playful expression as he pointed at Zhao Dun and Xia Shuang.

He wanted Zhao Dun and Xia Shuang to kill Wen Hua with their own hands.

"In your dreams!" Zhao Dun said.

"Ptui!" Xia Shuang spat at him, making her stance clear.

"I can kill myself, as long as you let them go!" Wen Hua roared.

"You little bastard, who the hell do you think you are? Just a worthless life. What are you standing around for? Sever their hand and foot tendons, gouge out their eyes!" Huang Biao flew into a rage when his scheme failed.

With all his strength, Wen Hua shoved Zhao Dun and Xia Shuang away. "Run!" He himself fearlessly charged toward the Black Tiger Gang members.

He was going to risk his life. Though he could not defeat them, he would hold them back for a few breaths before he died, buying his companions time to escape.

"Ahhh..."

Wen Hua roared.

Slash!

He did not dodge the blade coming at him at all. Instead, he raised his arm to block it. The steel blade instantly chopped into his arm, but it was stopped.

Blood sprayed out.

He ignored his wound. He did not even furrow his brow, much less retreat. Seizing the chance, he closed in and drove a dagger into the other man's chest.

Slash!

"Ah!"

The Black Tiger Gang member's eyes widened. He had never expected Wen Hua to charge straight into his blade. Caught off guard, he was actually stabbed to death by Wen Hua's small knife.

After killing him, Wen Hua knew there was no way back. The Black Tiger Gang ranked third among the powers in Boundless City. If an ordinary commoner dared lay hands on one of their people, they would be slaughtered to the last, with even nine generations of their family implicated.

"Zhao Dun, take Xia Shuang and leave Boundless City. Live on." After killing the man, Wen Hua turned his head and saw that Zhao Dun and Xia Shuang had not fled. "Run!"

"Ah Hua, we promised to always be together, always be best friends. If we die, we die together. We're not afraid," Zhao Dun said.

"That's right!" Xia Shuang nodded, with not a trace of fear of death in her eyes.

"You dog bastards, you dared kill a member of our Fierce Tiger Gang? I'll make you beg for life and beg for death. I'll torment you for three days and three nights!" Underboss Huang Biao raged as he personally walked toward the three of them.

"I'll break every inch of your bones, inch by inch."

After half a month of long travel, Zhang Yu and the others finally arrived at Boundless City in the Chu Family's carriage.

From Southern Azure City to Boundless City, they had traveled along the Chu Family's trade route. Money had cleared the way throughout the journey, so they had not encountered much trouble.

The moment they entered the city, they saw Wen Hua and the other two youths being beaten by Black Tiger Gang members. Zhang Yu had not been interested in meddling, but after hearing what the three said and seeing Wen Hua's loyalty, he could not help using the Eye of Truth-Piercing to take a look.

[Name: Wen Hua]

[Age: 15]

[Cultivation Aptitude: Excellent]

[Comprehension: Excellent]

[Fate: Righteousness Soaring to the Heavens]

Hiss...

Double excellent!

This was the first person Zhang Yu had seen with two excellent attributes.

And he even had the fate of Righteousness Soaring to the Heavens. He was simply a perfect candidate for a disciple.

Isn't my third disciple right here? Zhang Yu was in high spirits.

He jumped down from the carriage and, in a single stride, arrived before Wen Hua and the other two. Huang Biao was just about to break Wen Hua's shoulder bone when he threw a vicious punch at Wen Hua's shoulder hollow.

Huang Biao was a martial artist at the peak of Bright Force. Beating a commoner who had never practiced martial arts was as easy as turning over his hand.

Unfortunately, the imagined scream never came. A large hand caught his fist, and then an immense force traveled from his fist into his body.

"Ahhh..."

Huang Biao's right arm was instantly twisted into a pretzel, bone piercing out from his elbow joint.

"Who are you? How dare you lay hands on our Black Tiger Gang?" Huang Biao clutched his broken arm and glared viciously at Zhang Yu as he roared.

"I hate it when people look at me like that. You can die now," Zhang Yu said coldly.

The next second, he punched at Huang Biao's head.

Huang Biao wanted to retreat, but it was far too late. Zhang Yu was too fast.

"Our Black Tiger Gang's leader is a martial artist at the peak of Dark Force. You dare kill—"

Bang!

Splat!

His head was directly blown apart by a single punch.

"So noisy!" Zhang Yu shook the blood from his hand and looked up at the remaining two Black Tiger Gang members.

The two gang members trembled all over when Zhang Yu glared at them.

Captain Huang Biao, at the peak of Bright Force, had had his head exploded in a single move. They were even less worthy of notice.

"Scram!" Zhang Yu uttered a single word.

The two immediately turned and ran, wishing they could grow another pair of legs.

Only after everyone had fled did Zhang Yu turn to look at Wen Hua and the other two.

Wen Hua and the others were all dumbstruck. They had just prepared themselves to die together, yet in the blink of an eye, Huang Biao was dead and the Black Tiger Gang members had run away.

"Do you want to learn martial arts?" Zhang Yu asked Wen Hua.

Thud!

Wen Hua dropped to his knees. He wanted to learn more than anything. Ever since he had understood things at the age of five, he had wanted to learn martial arts and change the fates of himself, Zhao Dun, and Xia Shuang.

"Please teach me, Young Master."

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Wen Hua repeatedly kowtowed.

Zhao Dun and Xia Shuang hurriedly knelt as well and kowtowed to Zhang Yu. "Please teach us too, Young Master."