"Boom!" A thunderous explosion shook the heavens as the figure in the sky raised his hand toward the heavens and charged at the pillar of light. In a split second, a red beam suddenly shot up from directly beneath the man on the ground, piercing straight into the sky. Unable to dodge in time, the man was enveloped by the red light.

Immediately, an unprecedented and unparalleled scene unfolded before Evan Parker's eyes. The entire sky was dyed red by the light erupting from underground, and even the massive pillar of light was no exception. The blood-like color spread in all directions along with the explosion of the white pillar of light.

Chapter Two: Mysterious Injury (Part One)

The foot of the mountain where Evan Parker sat in a daze was a lake about a mile in circumference. The edge of the lake was very strange, as if the ground had suddenly dropped off into the lakebed, with none of the usual gentle, sloping banks. The water was flowing, entering from a small stream on the west side and exiting through another on the east. Both the inlet and outlet were small, so the lake always maintained a steady water level. But in such a desolate place, how could there be a lake like this? With the nourishment of this lake, would this place still be so barren?

Except for Evan Parker, no one could tell that the lake at the foot of the mountain had never existed before that night. And on that night, what Evan Parker saw was a lake without water—a gigantic fist imprint.

The reason the edge was so strange was entirely because the lake was actually a massive pit blasted out by a punch. Evan Parker clearly remembered that after the flash of red light that night, the figure in the sky became unsteady. But he still watched as the man swung his fist downward, only to be struck by the enormous pillar of light from above, vanishing without a trace.

One punch, just one punch, and that was after the man had been struck by the red light. Although he didn't know what the red light was, it was clear it wasn't anything good, or else the man wouldn't have suddenly faltered. To be able to throw such a punch in that state—besides shock, there was nothing else to feel.

Not long after, the entire fist imprint was covered by water flowing from higher ground, becoming the lake now at the foot of the mountain.

This was a desolate area bordering the official road, where there had once been a small village, inhabited by people who had fled here because they couldn't survive elsewhere. Although the official road was just over the mountain, this place was far from civilization, surrounded by vast forests and nothing else. It could be said to be beyond the reach of the authorities, and the local magistrate would never come to such a remote place to collect taxes, so people lived quite well.

But the conditions here were simply too harsh. Aside from the towering trees, almost nothing would grow, for reasons no one could explain. Most people were eventually forced to leave, unable to survive. Only a few hunters managed to eke out a living here, and the village population dwindled to just a dozen or so.

By the time Evan Parker joined the army, there were hardly any people left in the village. And when he returned from the military, all that remained was a desolate little village—nothing else.

His parents had long since passed away, so Evan Parker didn't really care whether anyone else lived here. He tidied up his old house and settled down in peace. No matter what, this was his hometown; a golden nest or a silver nest was not as good as his own humble home. He set up a tea stall on the official road over the mountain, living self-sufficiently and contentedly. Especially since there were no outsiders here, no disputes, life was very pleasant.

But there was one thing: life was simply too peaceful, with no excitement at all. The martial skills Evan Parker had learned in the army had already been cultivated to their peak. In the army, what he learned was how to kill, with none of the "show mercy when possible" rules of the martial world, so he didn't have that kind of killing style either. Once he relaxed, he really felt a bit out of place.

Having grown used to killing, suddenly settling into quiet, the habits from the army unconsciously lingered. The ingrained vigilance remained unchanged to this day. It was precisely because of this that he was able to witness what happened that day; otherwise, it would have been just another ordinary stormy night, and how could he have seen such a scene?

The man in the sky left a deep impression on Evan Parker. So, human cultivation could really reach such heights! But what kind of one-in-a-million talent would it take, and what earth-shattering techniques would one have to practice, and how many years would it take to reach that level?

That man stood in midair, defying the heavens with heroic bearing, leaving an indelible mark in Evan Parker's heart. It made him realize that there were people in this world who could achieve such earth-shaking feats. If that man hadn't been so powerful, the heavens wouldn't have sent down such thunder and lightning to punish him. For a person to cultivate to the point of arousing the jealousy of the heavens—what kind of achievement was that? The martial skills he had honed to perfection in the army were nothing in comparison.

The thunderous crash of the fist striking the ground still echoed in his ears, but a seed had already been planted in his heart. No matter when, that seed would never disappear. What that man brought to Evan Parker was not just a spectacular scene, but also immense confidence and a direction for his future efforts. If others could do it, Evan Parker believed he was no worse than anyone else—he too could achieve it.