Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Yan Dechang’s words made Yan Liqiang remember the things that his father drunkenly said to him the night he took first rank amongst the top three in the Qinghe County Martial Arts Examination——

“Xuelian… did you see? Our son…ranked first among the top three… I promised you before…to nurture Liqiang…waiting for the day for him to have the ability…to…avenge you… Then I…can finally put my mind at ease and join you…. Wait for me…”

On the next day, Yan Liqiang pretended that he didn’t hear the nonsense Yan Dechang spouted, but the words his father said the night before had already been deeply imprinted into his heart.

As the saying goes, “A drunk man’s words are a sober man’s thoughts.” Yan Liqiang realized there was something of the past in his household that his father did not wish to mention again. And this past was connected to his mother of this world, whom he had no recollection of.

Yan Liqiang only knew that his mother’s name was He Xuelian, who eventually married his father and subsequently took up his surname. Ever since Yan Liqiang was young, Yan Dechang was not very keen in divulging further details whenever his own mother was mentioned. Yan Liqiang used to think what his father said about his mother was true — that she passed away due to illness during his infancy. However, ever since Yan Dechang became drunk that night, Yan Liqiang began to realize that there was something more beyond the surface of this story.

Moreover, Yan Liqiang had always remembered the warning that Yan Dechang gave to him during the desperate situation that day through the ‘dream’ that the Heavenly Stone bestowed to him — “DON’T FORGET TO EXTERMINATE THE SHATU SEVEN TRIBES TO AVENGE YOUR MOTHER!”

During that time, Yan Liqiang was incapable of destroying Shatu Seven Tribes on his own. But at that critical moment of life and death, Yan Dechang still decided to throw those words to him.

This matter had been lingering inside Yan Liqiang’s heart for a long time, but because Yan Dechang did not want to talk about it, he could only pretend not to know anything, that is, until now.

“I think it’s time for you to know something now!” Yan Dechang said as he glanced at Yan Liqiang with eyes full of emotion. He then raised his gaze and fervently recalled his memories, “That day, when I heard that the Emperor made you the Qiyun Protectorate General, I felt that everything might be according to God’s will. The resentment between our clan and the Shatu Seven Tribes could possibly end with you. I thought we wouldn’t be given this chance at all!”

“My mother didn’t pass away because of an illness but because of the Shatu Seven Tribes. Is that right?” Yan Liqiang asked calmly.

“Seems like I really drank a lot this time and said something I shouldn’t have!” Yan Dechang exclaimed as he shook his head, his expression painted with anguish.

“Why didn’t you tell me this matter before?”

“It’s not that I don’t want to tell you, but there are too many implications with this matter. It is impossible to avenge your mother with our capabilities combined. I was afraid that you might act rashly and do something foolish so I couldn’t bring myself to tell you after all this time. Rather than watch you send yourself to death, I would prefer to not let you know anything at all. I wanted you to continue living your life peacefully, get married, and have children. Perhaps this is the best choice, and this is what your mother desired for you at the time as well!”

“What’s really going on?” Yan Liqiang inquired.

“Let me show you something!” Yan Dechang stood up and reached under his bed to pull out an old iron-edged wooden cabinet that had been utilized for an unknown number of years before opening it. Some old clothes and other similar items were inside the chest. Yan Liqiang then gently pressed on the wood piece on the side of the cabinet, letting out a ‘clack’ before Yan Dechang subsequently took it out. There was also an interlayer behind the eight pieces of wood board that contained a red silk cloth, enveloping something within it. Yan Dechang carefully took out the red silk cloth inside the interlayer and returned it to Yan Liqiang before putting it on the table. He then quickly unwrapped the silk cloth, finally revealing a piece of pitch black yet extremely smooth metal token the size of a hand palm.

“What’s this?”

“Bite your finger and drop your blood on it!”

Yan Liqiang looked at Yan Dechang before he quickly bit the tip of his right index finger without hesitation and dripped his blood on the token.

As the red blood trickled onto the pitch black surface of the token, Yan Liqiang was able to see that the token had already fully absorbed the drops of blood in just the blink of an eye. Less than a few seconds later, the black token began to undergo a change by emitting a feeble luster around it. A red token writing appeared in the middle of the token amidst the luster, which was surrounded by large peaks of luxuriant hills formed by moire patterns akin to that of sea waves as well as a vast plain.

“The earliest form of this token was a piece of unusual meteorite that fell onto the plains from beyond the sky. It was 200 years ago when Qiyun Protectorate General Gulang, who governed Mount Qiyun and Gulang Plains at the time, was able to obtain the unusual meteorite and have it forged into a token. This token is called the Shuiyun Token because of its peculiar properties. As long as the person who possesses the bloodline of the Qiyun Protectorate General drips their blood onto the token, it will reveal a moire pattern… ”

What was the meaning of shocking? This was it!

At this moment, while listening to his father’s calm voice, Yan Liqiang could only feel the sensation of buzzing inside his mind. His brain was shutting down as he couldn’t find the words to respond with. The Emperor had just appointed him as the Qiyun Protectorate General, but he would have never thought that he was actually the descendant of the previous Qiyun Protectorate General. The chances of this happening was like winning a jackpot…

Seeing how Yan Liqiang was speechless, Yan Dechang rubbed the token in his palm and calmly continued, “Before the Shatu Seven Tribes moved into the Gulang Plains, this token has always been in the Qiyun Protectorate General’s possession and continued to remain the same for the next few generations. After the Shatu Seven Tribes’ migration into the Gulang Plains, the Qiyun Protectorate General at the time decided to summon his most loyal attendant one day and gave this token to that attendant. He also allowed his attendant to leave Mount Qiyun with his newborn son to go back inside the pass. At that time, the attendant’s wife had just given birth to a child, but this child wasn’t able to live long and died prematurely. At the same time, the Qiyun Protectorate General’s wife had also given birth to a child. He switched his son with the attendant’s child and told the world that the dead child was his own. Meanwhile, his own son was secretly taken by the attendant to Gan Province…”

“Not long after the Qiyun Protectorate General’s attendant brought his child to Gan Province, the Qiyun Protectorate was suddenly ambushed and annihilated by bandits overnight. None of the kindreds of the Qiyun Protectorate General outside the pass were allowed to live. After that, the Shatu people became the rulers of Mount Qiyun and the Gulang Plains. The loyal attendant, on the other hand, took the orphan of the Qiyun Protectorate General’s bloodline and began a completely new life in Gan Province. On the surface, the orphan was a blacksmith and had a beautiful daughter. He also accepted two disciples, one of whom was lucky enough to marry the gorgeous daughter and had a child. This child took his father’s surname and was named Yan Liqiang!”

While talking about the past, Yan Dechang could not help but shed a few tears. Yan Liqiang’s eyes slowly turned red after he was able to hear the true origin of his background for the first time…

“Back then, your grandfather might have been a blacksmith, but in reality, he was always been thinking of cultivating a peerless set of martial arts for the sake of revenge. The reason why your grandfather died was also not because of an illness but because of his impatience to succeed in cultivating his martial prowess. He caught a severe illness after falling into Qi deviation, and in the end, he passed away!”