A hundred years ago, the capital of the Huoyun Empire, which had ruled the Sifalin Continent for three centuries, Jintang City, was breached by a fierce southern tribe, the Huihe, thus ending the era of an empire. The leader of the Huihe was named Henry King, who led his Huihe army to claim seven provinces in the south of the Sifalin Continent as his own domain. Originally, he could have continued his march northward, but at Tonglu Pass—known as the greatest natural barrier of the Sifalin Continent—this lion-like giant fell.

No one knows the cause of his death, but his name was forever inscribed in the annals of history. The mighty Huoyun Empire was forcibly divided by his hand. North of Tonglu, the two great noble families of the Huoyun Empire split the territory, forming a tripartite balance of power with the Luodan Kingdom, established single-handedly by Henry King, thus beginning the era later known as the Three Powers.

Chilajiao was originally a southernmost base established by the Luodan Kingdom after its founding, meant to guard against the orc tribes from the even more remote Saman Continent. This place was once called the Gate of Light and Darkness, meaning that south of Chilajiao was a dark and wild land, while north of it was a prosperous and civilized world.

However, fifty years after the founding of the Luodan Kingdom, the Saman Continent remained peaceful, showing no signs of war. Meanwhile, the northern Tonglu region was in constant conflict. Tonglu blocked the Huihe from advancing north, and likewise prevented the two northern kingdoms, Chelou and Yuechen, from moving south.

In just over thirty years, there were four large-scale battles in the Tonglu region, with casualties on both sides numbering in the hundreds of thousands each time—a devastating toll. Helpless, the Luodan Kingdom had to redeploy troops from the southern front. This shift greatly reduced the southern military presence, and in the end, the imperial capital had no choice but to abandon the defense of Chilajiao, withdrawing all troops from the island back to the base.

Yet the fourth king of the Luodan Kingdom was unwilling to simply give up Chilajiao. After several fruitless cabinet debates, the former southern army commander and current Grand Marshal of the Empire, Frank Frost, suggested exiling the empire’s most heinous criminals to Chilajiao, as a demonstration that the sovereignty of Chilajiao still belonged to the empire.

Thus, any prisoner who set foot on Chilajiao basically lost all hope of ever returning to the continent. Normally, they labored under the watch of a small squad of imperial soldiers stationed on Chilajiao. If war broke out, these prisoners would become the empire’s first wave of cannon fodder.

When I woke up again, the restraints on my body had been removed, and I was lying on a bed made of piled straw, dressed in clean prison clothes. The stench on my body was gone; for the first time in sixty days, I felt a comfort I had never known before. Lying on the relatively soft bed, the sound of the waves echoed in my ears. I didn’t want to move at all, until...

“Kid, if you’re awake, stop playing dead. Taking care of you these days has worn this Old Man out!” That aged voice reached my ears, and without looking, I knew who was speaking.

Sitting up, I looked at the man not far from me, who called himself the erudite scholar Smart Alec, and couldn’t help but laugh.

It was a small house built of black stone. Though the light inside was dim, it was much better than the carriage. The first thing that caught my eye was a shiny bald head, not a single hair on top. His snow-white beard under his chin was exceptionally neat, as if it had been carefully combed. His eyes, bright as stars, shone with a wisdom that saw through the world. He sat on another pile of straw not far in front of me, hugging his knees.

Seeing me smile at him, he smiled back, revealing white teeth.

“You rascal, you really can sleep. Haha, you slept so long on the carriage, and then another three days here. Even this Old Man can’t compare.”

I stood up, only to be surprised to find that all the scars on my body had disappeared. I clearly remembered that just over ten days ago, there were still faint wounds on my body—marks from being beaten by police and bailiffs in town. While on the carriage, I had noticed that most of the wounds had healed, but I hadn’t expected that not a single scar would remain.

I marveled inwardly at the remarkable effects of the holy temple’s elixirs, so I didn’t answer Smart Alec right away.

“Sigh, young people these days really have no manners. I, at my age, took care of him for so long, and he doesn’t even say a word. The world is getting worse, people have no decency!”

“Thank you, thank you!” I knew that if I didn’t respond, this Old Man would never stop talking, so I replied perfunctorily. In truth, I was genuinely grateful to him, but after what happened with Luke Allen, it was hard for me to trust others or interact with them. People’s hearts are treacherous—even my best friend betrayed me, so how could I trust anyone else?

But unexpectedly, as soon as this Old Man heard me speak, he perked up immediately. He didn’t mind my attitude; instead, he said excitedly, “You rascal, you can finally talk! Ah, these past two days have bored me to death. You lay there like a corpse, and I had no one to talk to. Kid, what’s your name? How old are you? Are you married?”