Liang Qihui stared at her son's corpse, frozen for a long moment before she finally broke down in wailing grief, throwing herself beside Mark Harris. The others were all wide-eyed with shock, but most just stood by watching the commotion. Only a handful of warm-hearted, sensible people snapped out of it and hurried to help call 120 for emergency services. Among them was someone who had just witnessed the spectacle in the temple, now wearing a look of sudden realization.

“No wonder the old immortal kept saying ‘unspeakable, unspeakable’ and even wanted to refund the money. So this young man was doomed to die—truly worthy of being called a divine fortune-teller—”

As soon as these words were spoken, a wave of discussion rippled through the crowd.

No one noticed that at this moment, John Spencer and his disciple had also run down the mountain. They stood outside the crowd, watching from a distance.

How could this be? It was clearly a fate of inestimable value; neither his face nor his brows showed any sign of a short life. Why would he suddenly meet such a calamity? Could it be that Heaven would not allow it, or did I make a mistake? No, both my disciple and I saw the same thing—how could we be wrong? He clearly drew the “Hidden Dragon” lot; there might be setbacks before becoming a dragon, but it should never have led to death—

John Spencer’s face grew even more puzzled. Unconsciously, he caught sight of a bloodstained blue jade talisman lying quietly on the hillside ten zhang away. It was a protective charm sold at the temple, inscribed with Daoist symbols—he remembered personally blessing it himself.

John Spencer’s eyes lit up, and in an instant, all the doubts in his heart were resolved.

Yuan Tiangang’s “Tui Bei Tu,” Image 59, Renxu: Great Unity under Heaven!

—This child will meet his destiny in the winds and clouds; the day he soars as a dragon will come four thousand years later!

Chapter One: Origins

Galactic Era 3704, July 2nd, Greenfield City, Chiyan Planet No. 3, morning.

“Tian-ge, Tian-ge? Wake up!”

Blinking open his eyes in a haze of sleep, Brian Carter struggled to lift his eyelids and saw a beautiful young girl at his bedside, gently pushing him. Her limpid, autumn-water eyes were full of anxious concern.

“It’s Eddie! Alright, stop pushing. Isn’t it only eight o’clock? Let me sleep a little longer.”

Glancing at the digital clock on the wall, Brian Carter closed his eyes again with relief, drifting back into sleep. Maybe it was because he’d stayed up late reviewing yesterday, but now his head was splitting with pain.

Wait, reviewing? Why was I reviewing?

“Tian-ge!” The girl’s voice grew sharper. “Today is your school’s graduation exam. If you’re late, you won’t be able to graduate—don’t blame me then!”

Brian Carter jolted awake, leapt out of bed, and checked the clock again, letting out a pig-like wail: “Edward Collins! You little brat! You did this on purpose this time, didn’t you!”

“Tian-ge, you’re blaming me again! You forgot to set the smart housekeeper to wake you up, didn’t you? Why blame me?”

Edward Collins pouted, trying her best to look innocent. But as she watched Brian Carter hurriedly throw on his clothes and dash out of the room in a fluster, her eyes sparkled with barely concealed laughter.

The girl followed at a leisurely pace into the living room, only to find that in just a moment, Brian Carter had already finished washing up at lightning speed and was coming out of the bathroom. Their eyes met, and Brian Carter glared fiercely: “You little brat, don’t think I don’t know your tricks! How could I forget to set the time yesterday? Even if I did, I told you to wake me at 7:30, but you waited until now! I don’t have time now, but when I get back, just wait and see how I’ll deal with you!”

“Tian-ge, you’re wronging me—”

Edward Collins’s eyes reddened, her face full of pitiful innocence: “You really did forget! And today I woke up late too, so I didn’t call you at 7:30. I really didn’t do it on purpose.”

Brian Carter couldn’t be bothered to argue. He grabbed a piece of bread from the table and headed straight to the garage, driving off in his hovercar in a flash.

He was grinding his teeth in frustration. Edward Collins had always been the most diligent among their siblings. She’d handled all the household affairs single-handedly for years, waking up before six every morning to make breakfast for them—almost every day, without exception. For her to wake up late today was truly like the sun rising in the west. This girl was a master at playing the victim—don’t let her fool you—

“Yun-jie, do you think Tian-ge will make it this year?”

As soon as Brian Carter drove out of the garage, a twelve-year-old, doll-like little girl with big, sparkling eyes suddenly popped out from a door next to the living room.

“Tian-ge had his car modified this year. With his driving skills, he should make it before the exam qualification is canceled.”

The teary look had vanished from Edward Collins’s face. She tapped her chin thoughtfully: “But he’s definitely going to get points deducted by the instructor. Rushing to the exam at the last minute—he’s not taking the graduation test seriously at all! If it were me, I’d deduct points too. What I’m worried about is Tian-ge’s grades. He worked hard on the practical simulations this year, so even if he gets points deducted—”

“Don’t worry, Yun-jie, I’m here!”