The eight horses pulling the commander’s chariot were all bought from Firecrow Empire at high prices, a mixed breed of horses and demon beasts, which gave them their red eyes and great stamina. Even so, galloping without rest for such a long time was not something they could have withstood. Eventually, when they arrived outside of Yangpu on the third day, they screamed and then collapsed to the ground, all dead from weariness.

　　It took another ten minutes for all the students to arrive, and by the time they did, each one of them was gasping for breath with a pale face.

　　Only then did Yunxiao walk lazily down from the chariot. He stretched himself and yawned, then looked up at the sky. “Oh, I didn’t know it’s already nighttime. The moon is quite full today… Hey, come down here and join me in enjoying the moon.”

　　His voice drew Chen Zhen, Han Bai, and the others down from the chariot, each holding a steaming cup in hand and sipping at it from time to time. The sight of them made all the two thousand students fume and filled their hearts with resentment. But when they thought of Yunxiao’s incredible fighting strength, they did not dare to speak a word about it.

　　With a sly smile on his face, Yunxiao said, “Alright, the time for tea is over. We need to get to work now.”

　　Chen Zhen and others put down their teacups and took out their weapons as they began to draw on the ground. The two thousand students looked at them curiously, but no one could understand what they were doing. Very soon, a huge circle was drawn on the ground. Some students immediately realized that it was a formation, one that enclosed all two thousand students.

　　“What are they doing? What is this formation?”

　　“Heaven! Do you know how many Primordial Stones it takes to activate such a huge formation? And do you know how strong an alchemist must be to activate it?” A student with knowledge of formations cried out in shock.

　　“Can’t you see we have Master Jia Rong, a second-tier alchemist, following us? Tsk, tsk…I know what it is…it must be a huge restoration formation. They are going to restore our Primordial Qi.”

　　“Oh? Is there such a good thing?”

　　“Of course! If you don’t believe me, just wait and see!”

　　A hint of a cold smile emerged on Yunxiao’s face as he listened to the chattering. Before long, the construction of the formation was completed. Countless Primordial Stones of various sizes and grades were socketed along both sides of the lines that formed the formation. It was a sight that made everyone gape.

　　‘It is just too wasteful! This son of an aristocratic family is so rich!’

　　If truth be told, Yunxiao was quite in an agony right now. For the purpose of constructing the formation, he had almost emptied all the Primordial Stones in the Divine Realm Tablet!

　　Choking back the bitterness, he walked to the center of the formation, took out the swords of Taiyin and Spring Water, and stabbed them into the ground. A beam of light towered into the sky immediately, with the shadows of both swords taking shapes in them while shining brightly and emanating freezing cold air. The army of students, who had never seen such a magnificent scene, was instantly attracted as each of them looked up at the sky.

　　A cruel smile appeared on the corners of Yunxiao’s mouth as he said, “This is a formation that has exhausted all my wealth, and its two eyes are both third-grade mystic weapons. It can help you all become true warriors in a very short time! Now, my friends, please enjoy the pleasant journey I’ve prepared for you!”

　　Under the light of the swords, the look in his eyes appeared to be unusually bizarre. Meanwhile, he performed a few incantation gestures, with which numerous ancient, strange-looking words emerged in the void before falling into the formation. All of a sudden, everyone was shocked to find that the bright and beautiful moon in the sky had become abnormal, with blood-red traces gradually appearing across its surface.

　　“What…What happened!” Everyone was utterly astounded as the moon transformed into an evil-looking eyeball!

　　Standing outside the formation, Yunxiao’s pupils had turned blood-red and begun to gradually twist and curve, changing into two crescents. Then, all of a sudden, they expanded and from the moon came spreading out an evil power.

　　All the students in the formation felt a jolt through their hearts as the strange power emanated from the blood-red moon instantly controlled their minds. Their expression began to turn vacant as they all stared blankly at the air.

　　When those standing outside the formation looked into it, they saw each of the students frozen to the spot with a blank face.

　　“What happened to them, Young Master Yun?” asked Chen Zhen, aghast. Yunxiao had only told them the steps to construct the formation but never the purpose.

　　Yunxiao turned and gave him a look. The pair of evil-looking pupils frightened Chen Zhen and made him back off a few steps.

　　“You will go in and have some fun as well.” Before his voice had died away, he took a few steps and pushed Chen Zhen, Han Bai, Meng Wu, and Meng Bai into the formation, leaving only Jia Rong and Ji Meng with him.

　　With a look of fear on his face, Jia Rong quickly stepped away from him. Ji Meng, on the other hand, frowned and wanted to walk into the formation himself.

　　“Don’t go in,” Yunxiao suddenly said. “You are a Martial Lord, and Jia Rong is a second-tier alchemist. My eye technique is still too weak, so I can’t control your minds.”

　　Upon hearing that, Jia Rong breathed a sigh of relief. He collected his courage and walked over to Yunxiao as he asked carefully, “Young Master Yun, this formation…”

　　Yunxiao closed his eyes and said calmly, “This is an illusion formation called Thousand and Thousand. In it, they will experience something that they will never forget for the rest of their lives…hehe, something very interesting.”

　　Jia Rong shuddered; the playful and wicked look on Yunxiao’s face when he said ‘something very interesting’ chilled him. He could not help but begin to pray for these students.

　　“I need you to protect everyone, Ji Meng. I’ve no idea how long I can last, but I’ll try my best.” When he had finished, he drew a small circle around his feet, placed a few Primordial Stones in it, and then sat cross-legged down. Next, he locked both hands in an incantation gesture and began to meditate.

　　With his eyes narrowed, Ji Meng jumped up a nearby tree and hid himself within the branches and leaves while spreading his divine sense as far as he could. Jia Rong was the only one who had nothing to do now, so he just sat down and began to meditate as well.

　　…

　　Zhang Tao was the most outstanding student at Skyhawk Martial Arts Academy in town. He was only thirteen years old, but he had already opened five chakras, and it was very likely for him to condense his dantian, produce Primordial Qi, step into the Origin Realm, and become a true warrior before the age of fifteen.

　　His greatest wish was to save enough money quickly, then get in Jialan Academy and become a State Guardian after graduation. He wanted to bring glory to his ancestors, let his parents live a good life, and marry her sister into a good family.

　　He would come to the back of the mountain every day to practice alone. By now, he could punch a big hole in a tree that took two men to embrace.

　　“What’s this?” A furry-white head poked out from the basin-sized hole he had just punched in a big tree. To his surprise, it was a wolf!

　　“How could there be a wolf in the tree?” Zhang Tao retreated hurriedly in horror. Meanwhile, the white-furred, green-eyed wolf drifted out of the tree, and the sight immediately made him cry out, “Demon wolf! A demon wolf! Why is there a demon wolf at the back of the mountain?”

　　He had no time to think further. In his desperation, he spun and ran down the mountain. Even a true warrior would not dare to fight a demon beast!

　　“Awooooo!”

　　The demon wolf howled and then swooped over with its bloody mouth wide open!

　　Knowing that he could not avoid it, Zhang Tao quickly turned around and locked himself in a horse stance. ‘Don’t panic! Don’t be afraid!’ he kept telling himself in his mind.

　　“Clenched Fist!”

　　Since he could no longer escape, he had decided to fight. Putting strength into his feet, he threw out a punch, which pierced through the air with a whistling noise.

　　An ordinary wolf would certainly die if it were struck by the punch. But, it was a demon wolf that he had encountered. The punch hit the wolf head, and just as Zhang Tao was excited about that, he was immediately terrified to find that his fist went through the demon wolf as if it had hit nothing.

　　“What’s going on?”

　　His mind went blank in an instant. Suddenly, the demon wolf wrapped around his arm, opened its mouth, and closed its jaws hard!

　　“Ahhh!”

　　Zhang Tao’s face twisting into a grimace as a stab of sharp pain washed up his shoulder, and then he saw his right arm bitten away by the demon wolf.

　　“Bast*rd! I will kill you!” he screamed with his eyes turned bloodshot. Meanwhile, he pounded the five fingers of his left hand like claws at the demon wolf’s head.

　　“What?”

　　The claws went through the wolf’s body once again without touching anything. Shocked, he bellowed, “How can this be? How is this even possible!”

　　“AHHH!”

　　Another piercing shriek rang out, sending countless birds in the back of the mountain up into the sky. The severe pain knocked Zhang Tao out, and when he woke, the dusk was already settled in.

　　“How… how did this happen…” He stared blankly at the blood all over the ground and his shoulders where both his arms were missing, eaten by the demon wolf!

　　“Ahhh! Why! Why didn’t you just kill me?”

　　Zhang Tao ran frantically down the back of the mountain, with tears streaming down his eyes!

　　“Without my arms, how am I going to practice martial arts, get into Jialan Academy, become a State Guardian, and bring my parents and sister a new life?”

　　“Heaven, why are you doing this to me?”

　　Face after face flashed through his mind. Stumbling, falling, rolling, Zhang Tao somehow managed to return to his home. Looking at the dim light inside the small broken house, he knew his father must be smoking hookah in front of the door, his mother must still be mending clothes beside the bed, and his sister should be having her dinner in the kitchen.

　　He did not feel any pain when he looked at his empty shoulders. Instead, he felt his heart filled with mercury, so heavy that he could hardly breathe and lift his foot. He did not know how to face his family, the closest people to him.

　　“No! NO! NOOOO!” Suddenly, a painful scream rang out of the house.

　　It was his sister’s voice!

　　Zhang Tao jerked his head up and bolted into the house. The shabby door had fallen to one side. He saw his father lifting a hoe and trying to hit a man on the forehead. But, the man kicked him in the chest and sent him flying backward, leaving a trail of blood in the air. By the time his father fell on the ground, he was already dead, with blood trickling out of all his seven orifices.

　　“Dad!”

　　Zhang Tao felt his heart being torn apart. He roared and ran over, wanting to pick his father up, but how could he do that when he had lost both his arms?