Zhao Jun.

It was still early morning when the soft rays of the sun pierced through the thin curtains draped over the window, the light prodding at Zhao Jun's closed eyes until they opened. The light woke him and blinded him the moment he opened his eyes, forcing him to blink his brown eyes a few times to restore his vision as he sat up. He lazily stretched his body after sitting up, a few strands of his shoulder-length black hair falling in front of his drowsy eyes as he muttered to himself.

"Man, I really gotta continue complaining about the unfair placement of this room, ain't no way to get any proper amount of sleep here with the sun showing up so early."

Despite his complaints, Zhao Jun still got out of bed and changed out of his simple white nightgown and into a thin red robe embroidered with a soaring sparrow. He threw the nightgown into a woven basket at the other end of the room, cracking his neck a few times as he strode away from the bed and pushed open the door to his room.

"Little Lord, you've woken up?"

"Little Lord, you should have called for us."

The two maids standing outside his room hurriedly greeted him as he stepped onto the interior balcony where his room was located. Looking down upon the dining room he could see beyond the railings running along the edge of the balcony, he could see that his siblings had already started eating breakfast. As such, he walked past the two blue-robed maids while covering up a yawn.

"Yeah yeah, the day I become so old that I can't even change my own clothes, that's when I'll call for you."

Zhao Jun descended the spiralling staircase down to the dining room while still stifling a yawn with one hand, the other hand ruffling his hair in a lazy manner. He swept his half-closed eyes across his six siblings, four men and two girls, his gaze continuing to drift across the table for a short second before he spoke up.

"Where's Little Shui?"

He wasn't surprised that his parents weren't there for breakfast, they followed a different schedule for their sleeping and eating so it was rare for the entire family to share a dinner. But it wasn't his parents that he was looking for, his elder brother Zhao Zhe giving a nonchalant and dismissive response to Zhao Jun's question.

"She's eating with the other servants."

Zhao Jun didn't even bat an eye at the blue-haired Zhao Zhe's dismissive response, simply using his chin to gesture towards a basket filled with fresh bread.

"Alright, toss me a bit of bread and I'll go eat with them."

He spoke as if it was the most natural thing, but that casual statement made Zhao Zhe's eyebrows tick up in apparent annoyance.

"You...!"

Zhao Zhe's slightly annoyed response was cut off by a snapping sound, his mouth suddenly clamping shut as if an invisible hand had forced it to close. The brown-haired Zhao Kong, the eldest son of the Zhao family, glanced sideways at Zhao Zhe before flicking his finger and launching the basket of bread at Zhao Jun, nodding his head in greeting while doing so.

"Bring her our greetings."

Zhao Jun caught the basket, which slowed down as it approached him, and returned the greeting with a nod of his own. He greeted the remaining siblings with a casual nod of his head, none of them exchanging too many words before he left the rectangular dining hall through a door located beneath the balcony he had just descended.

He headed down the staircase that the door brought him to and then followed the carpeted hallway at the bottom of the stairs for a bit, occasionally glancing into one of the rooms lining the hallway. He navigated the winding corridors and staircases until he reached the bottom floor of the mansion, moving through a few more hallways until he stepped through a simple wooden door and arrived in a smaller dining room filled with several groups of tables.

The room was filled with people of varying ages, all of them clad in blue clothing that ranged from plain to delicately decorated. Zhao Jun swept his gaze through the room, which had turned somewhat quieter after his arrival, and quickly spotted his target. He sauntered over to the table and slumped down on the chair next to Qiu Shui, the crimson-haired and black-eyed young girl who served as his personal maid.

"Hand me an egg or two and some butter, will ya? Dry bread is so terrible that it might just be considered a sin."

He placed the basket of bread onto the table as he spoke, the four other maids and butlers sitting at the table tactfully getting up and moving over to a different table. Qiu Shui slid him four eggs and some butter, her lips were turned up faintly but her eyes were sweeping the surroundings in a slightly worried manner.

"Young Master, I've already told you that you mustn't blow off your siblings to come here. Otherwise..."

Zhao Jun cut her off with a casual wave of his hand before she could finish her sentence, cracking open the boiled eggs while chuckling carefreely.

"Or what? They'll disown me? Take away my right to become the next family patriarch? I'm already the Little Lord, not like they can really do anything to me."

The position of Little Lord was an extremely special and unique one, it was so unique that it hadn't existed in the Zhao family until Zhao Jun was born. And the reason behind it was simple, there had never been a person like Zhao Jun before. Everyone was born with a special power, one they could control and strengthen through diligent training. That was, everyone except for Zhao Jun.

He wasn't given any power as he was born, he had nothing that he could strengthen and train, nothing he could cultivate to raise his position, it was as if the gods themselves had abandoned him. Such a person could never lead the Zhao family, he could never become the shield to protect them or the spear to pierce their enemies. So he became their Little Lord, a person of the highest hierarchy but with not an ounce of power, not a single soldier or guard under his command.

And it was a position that Zhao Jun was perfectly fine with, he had no interest in taking up the mantle of patriarch or bearing the responsibility of representing the Zhao family with his every move. He was perfectly content just being the Little Lord, laying low while being allowed to do just about everything he wanted.

There was nothing Qiu Shui could do in the face of Zhao Jun's carefree smile, it was her greatest weakness and the one thing that would always give Zhao Jun the upper hand in any conversation. And thanks to that smile, she was unable to push away his hand as he took hold of hers, giving it a gentle squeeze that made her worried expression soften.

"We're going to head to the market later, and no, you can't reject the offer. You can complain and pout every other day, but there's no way I'll let you reject my spoiling of you on your own birthday."

Zhao Jun spoke with a faint smile while looking at Qiu Shui, enjoying the soft blush that appeared on her face. She never reminded him of it, but there was no way he would forget her birthday just because of something as simple as that. Especially since she was turning 18 today and would officially become an adult, it was a momentous day for most so there was no way he would allow her to get through the day without any celebration.

Breakfast was quickly finished, but it would be hard to not finish it quickly when it only consisted of bread, eggs, and a few varied toppings. Qiu Shui glanced somewhat worriedly at one of the elderly maids once she finished breakfast, quickly getting up and starting to clean away the remainder of breakfast. Sadly for her, Zhao Jun had no intention of letting her escape.

"Come on now, don't leave me like that."

Zhao Jun grabbed hold of her hand before she could pick up even the smallest item, dragging her towards the door while calling out to the elderly maid.

"Oi, Old Head, I'll be taking her with me today, you can take any complaints to me later, but I'll just ignore them."

The elderly maid, the head maid, could only let out a soft sigh when she heard Zhao Jun's casual remark. But contrary to Qiu Shui's worried expression, she only carried a soft and gentle smile as she looked at the departing youths. She knew what Qiu Shui's main fault was, she was too preoccupied with comparing her own position to Zhao Jun's, too occupied with looking at what was normal to bother looking at what was going on in the present.

Zhao Jun quickly brought Qiu Shui out of the seven-story mansion, a vast city spreading out at the base of the hill that the mansion stood on. The hill served as the centre of Violet Dawn's Grace city so if one climbed all the way up to the ceiling, one could get a full view of the entire city by just spinning around.

Spreading out around the entire city was a forest filled with trees that carried violet fruits that looked like apples, a few snow-capped mountains rising towards the sky in the far distance. As for the city itself, it was constructed to resemble a blazing sun, the thick roads scattering throughout it taking up the role of being the rays of light extending outwards. This was the beauty of Violet Dawn's Grace, the largest city within 10 000 kilometres.

"Let's go, a minute spent gawking is a minute wasted."

Zhao Jun tugged on Qiu Shui's hand with a smile and quickly moved down the hill, Qiu Shui's own face blossoming into a smile for the short duration where it was just the two of them. But they eventually entered the city at the base of the hill, Qiu Shui's smile receding a fair bit as she felt the stares that landed on her.

The fact that the Zhao family's Little Lord was fond of a mere maid wasn't a secret, Zhao Jun had never tried to hide it in the slightest. But that fact was easily put together with his status as Little Lord to produce a well of insults, after all, both facts made it more than easy to make fun of Zhao Jun.

But while Qiu Shui worried about it the moment others could see them, Zhao Jun had long ago abandoned such thoughts. He was going to enjoy himself for as long as he could, no matter what others thought of him or the choices he made. And what he wanted right now was to enjoy himself with the girl who he had grown up with, he wanted her to be happy alongside him.

So he didn't give a damn about the citizens that saw them as he firmly held Giu Shui's hand and brought her to one of the city's markets. The market they reached was a mess of stands and small buildings serving as shops. Most of the sellers there were citizens or wanderers that had come to peddle their most recent findings or harvests, only the small buildings actually housed shops that would always be present in the market while also selling the same wares day after day.

And of course, the market was far more packed than the rest of the city, especially now at the crack of dawn when everyone had just arrived with the new wares they were hoping to sell. Qiu Shui continued to shrink back worriedly, but Zhao Jun didn't give her the chance to escape the gazes of the onlookers as he pulled her from vendor to vendor.

"Hey, old man, how much for this gem?"

"Yo, owner! This crystal, can you give me a nice deal on it?"

"Oh, I need this precious little rock! What do you want for it?"

"Hey, this Silk-Lion whisker, how much do I have to bribe you with to hand it over?"

Zhao Jun had no reservations as he hopped from stall to stall like an excited child, buying up any shiny stones and gems that he spotted. And after he bought nine different gems and crystals, each one with a different colour, he found a peaceful place where he had Qiu Shui wait for him while he excused himself to the closest public restroom.

The public restroom was just a square building separated into two rooms, one containing a restroom for women and one for men. The restroom was supported by an array that allowed the user to get rid of their undesirables while also cleaning themselves afterwards. It cost a bit to keep the array's running, but the restrooms made the citizens happy enough that it was worth losing a bit of money on them. Zhao Jun closed the door behind him and locked it, bringing out the gems as well as the silk-like whisker he had bought.

"Alright, let's see what sort of price would be needed for you."

Zhao Jun exhaled a long breath, the gems and whisker leaving his hands and starting to hover in front of him. His hair started to flutter around in the energy that his body was suddenly radiating, the whisker moving on its own as it forcefully pierced through the gems one by one. Before long, the whisker had pierced through the nine gems and then tied its two ends into a knot, forming a colourful necklace adorned by the rainbow-like crystals.

The necklace stopped hovering and fell into his hands, Zhao Jun letting out another long breath. His chest suddenly convulsed when he stopped radiating energy, his throat swelling as he rushed over to the toilet section of the restroom. He had just reached the small wooden basin when faintly red vomit spewed out from his mouth, quickly filling up a bit of the basin. He saw small chunks of bread and egg in the vomit, the chunks disintegrating in front of his eyes as he muttered to himself before throwing up again.

"So the price is my breakfast huh? It seems to have touched my stomach a bit, but otherwise a pretty cheap price."

Was Zhao Jun really the Little Lord of the Zhao family, someone who had no power? No, he wasn't. He did, in fact, have a power he was born with, but it was one he had never revealed, and one he had no intentions of ever revealing. The reason was simply that his power carried too many risks to be used by the leader of a family, it might as well not exist.

His power was far simpler than most, it could be whatever he wanted and it could be as strong as he wanted it to be. But each usage came with a price, the weight of the price depending on how strong he made his power. The first price he had paid was back when he was six and first discovered his power, he lost his sense of taste for two days.

He had made small experiments ever since, testing out the limits of his power, but he had never really used a lot of it at once for fear that the price would be too great. He liked living and wasn't trying to kill himself on accident, so he had no intentions of using his power in any grand fashion, just small tricks like this were enough.

He finished throwing up his disintegrating breakfast and then wiped his mouth, cleaning the inside of his mouth with some of the water he drew from the nearby array. Once he was sure that there weren't any traces left on his face, he left the restroom and returned to Qiu Shui.

But in the time he was gone, she had gotten surrounded by a group of male youths clad in green robes, each of them smiling faintly at her. Zhao Jun's expression sank as he looked at the six youths, his pace quickening as he called out to them.

"Hoh, so you scumlets actually dare to leave your kennel and come all the way out here? Did your maids sew some balls onto you or did you just lose your few remaining brain cells?"

The six youths winced slightly as Zhao Jun called out his insults, their eyes narrowing as they turned to face him. Their mouths curled somewhat angrily as they looked at him, the leading blue-haired and black-eyed youth sneering angrily.

"Hehe, good morning, Little Lord. Your tongue is as sharp as ever, what a shame for your family that your skills aren't as sharp. If they were, you might actually have stood a chance."

Qiu Shui's own eyes narrowed as the six men confronted Zhao Jun, her body quickly stepping past them and in front of Zhao Jun to shield him. Zhao Jun wasn't bothered by the boasting of the youths, who came from the Feilong family that was the Zhao family's only rival in this city.

"Pft, as if your measly family of mutts could produce any type of threat towards us, the only thing you can do is bark loudly while tucking your tails between your legs."

The families were at a stalemate right now, neither able to get rid of the other so they could only tolerate each other. But the Zhao family was still the older family, which was why they occupied the centre of the city, so they had a very slight advantage over the Feilong family. The eyes of the leading youth sharpened even further, his practically poisonous gaze piercing into Zhao Jun.

"Really, such a...sharp tongue... really makes me want to remove it."

His fingers were twitching slightly as he spoke, Qiu Shui's body tensing up as some energy started to radiate out from her. She might be worried about the difference between her and Zhao Jun's position, but there was no way she was going to let anyone harm him while she was around. It was one of the few situations where she would become utterly merciless. But the blue-haired youth didn't take it any further, glancing at some of the guards that had started to close in on the area and giving a faint laugh.

"Haha, no need to look so serious, we just came to take a look at the layout of our future market, no need to get your panties in a bunch, we'll leave."

He raised his arm in a casual manner and signalled for the others to step away, walking away with the five other youths. There was no way he would dare to do anything in this open market, he would die even if he succeeded, and he wasn't interested in dying now that they were about to start their plans.

Qiu Shui followed the departing youths with her gaze until they left her sight, only grabbing hold of Zhao Jun's hand when she was sure that they were gone.

"We should return to the mansion, just in case."

They had left the market, but there was no telling if they were still actually lingering around somewhere nearby, just waiting for them to enter a less populated area. Zhao Jun squeezed her hand softly, smiling at her rare assertiveness.

"You really worry a lot, don't you?"

She worried about him getting insulted, how others would see him if they were together, how he would be treated, worried that he may get hurt, she did nothing but worry. But that was one of the charming things about her, the endless and gentle care. Qiu Shui was still caught up in the mental state of protecting Zhao Jun so she gave a cute snort while complaining softly, as if she couldn't see the surrounding people.

"Of course I do. You don't bother with it so it's up to me to feel enough worry for both of us."

Zhao Jun simply grinned widely at her and pulled out the necklace he had made, draping it around Qiu Shui's neck. When she held it up and looked at it, the light reflecting off the gems caused a rainbow light to dance within her eyes, a slightly entranced expression appearing on her face.

Zhao Jun quickly took advantage of this situation, taking a hold of her chin and giving her a quick kiss. The kiss brought her out of her entranced state and made her remember exactly where they were and what the situation was around them, a charming blush spreading on her face. She quickly held onto Zhao Jun's hand and started to drag him away from the market and back to the mansion.

The youths from the Feilong family didn't disturb them as they returned to the mansion, allowing Qiu Shui to heave a sigh of relief. Having returned to the mansion, she was extremely aware of every single pair of eyes that landed on them, quickly excusing herself so that others wouldn't insult Zhao Jun's poor taste.

But while she quickly retreated to her duties, Zhao Jun's own expression sank and turned cold as he turned around and left the mansion. But since he turned around and left, he didn't notice Qiu Shui turning back to look at him, worry once again flashing through her eyes as she saw him leave.

Zhao Jun descended the hill again and swiftly made his way through the city, his steps swift and sure as he navigated through some of the smaller alleys in the city. He was very familiar with the layout of the city, so it didn't take him long before he managed to reach the wall that surrounded the city. One of the guards clad in the crimson armour of the Zhao clan called out to him as he approached the gate, but Zhao Jun simply waved his hand dismissively.

"Little Lo..."

"I'm just going for a walk, I've done it plenty of times before so stop worrying already."

The guard was forced to remain silent after Zhao Jun dismissed him, he could also feel that the Little Lord was a slight bit different from normal. Zhao Jun moved through the gates and left the city, making his way into the forest and picking one of the violet apples. He ate the apple as he walked, tossing the seed-filled core aside a few minutes after he left the city, his slightly narrowed gaze sweeping the dense forest around him.

"You can stop hiding already, it's such a boring game."

Silence dominated the area for a short moment after he spoke out, but the air started to shimmer at a spot a few tens of metres away from him before long. Like a curtain being pulled aside, the shimmer vanished to reveal the six youths from the Feilong family, the leading youth looking at Zhao Jun with his poisonous glare.

"So you knew that we were following, yet still chose to leave the city? And you asked us if we lost our last brain cells?"

He spoke confidently with a light chuckle, but his slightly narrowed eyes still roamed over Zhao Jun's body somewhat suspiciously. Exactly how did this Little Lord know that they were following him? Was it just intuition? It was a question he wasn't going to get an answer to, Zhao Jun shrugging his shoulders.

"Hey, I'm not the one who walked to my death so don't go asking me that."

The youth's eyebrows twitched once more, a faint sense of unease sprouting in his heart when he saw Zhao Jun's exceedingly confident mannerism. But going over everything he knew about the Zhao family and its members, he calmed his unease as best he could.

"Heh, gutsy little ch...geh?!"

His cocky words were cut short by an exclamation of disbelief. Zhao Jun had flicked his finger, the chest of the youth standing right next to the blue-haired leader caving in as blood spewed out from his mouth. Zhao Jun flicked his finger once more, the throat of another youth caving in as if a fist had smashed into it.

With the second youth falling dead to the ground, Zhao Jun raised his finger as if he was making a hushing motion, his voice so icy cold that it was hard to associate it with the carefree Little Lord.

"You were hoping for both of us to leave the city, or to head to a more hidden place, weren't you? But if you think that I will let any of you lay even a single hand on her, then you are dead wrong."

He knew that the Feilong family youths would follow them the moment they left the market, he had sensed something in the way this leading youth spoke. They were bolder than they used to be, only barely hiding their intent to kill as they left. But that didn't matter to Zhao Jun, what mattered was that they intended to lay their hands on Qiu Shui, something he couldn't allow.

He lowered his arm again and then stretched it out, flicking his finger again and again. Each flick unleashed a blast of violent energy that crashed into the Feilong family youths like boulders cascading down a mountain, crushing their bones and rupturing their organs. The only one who survived the first flick was the leading youth, who had already managed to merge a bit of his Qi into his body to strengthen it.

But even he was left mortally wounded with his chest caved in, heaving for breath as blood ceaselessly poured out of his mouth. His right hand was trembling uncontrollably, but his left hand was constantly rubbing the white jade buckle on his belt, his voice leaking forward in a stuttering and weak manner.

"Gah..ha..he. Monster, you've truly hidden well. But this is far from enough, you will all still fall to... to the Wyrm Jackal..."

Zhao Jun's eyebrows twitched slightly when he heard the youth's dying words, his gaze narrowing faintly. The Wyrm Jackal wasn't some nobody, he was the founder of the Feilong clan, a strong cultivator who had lived several hundred years ago. But he was said to have died only a few years after founding the Feilong family, so Zhao Jun was left confused by the sudden dying words.

A searing pain assaulted his left hand while he was lost in his confusion, a grunt of pain escaping him as he quickly looked down at his hand. And the scene he saw left him horrified. The skin on his left hand was flaking off, revealing the bloody flesh underneath. And even worse, his pinky and ring finger were falling apart in front of his eyes, chunks falling off and disintegrating into dust that blew away.

Within a short 10 seconds, his left hand had lost all its skin and he had completely lost his pinky and ring finger. He had used more power than ever before to kill the six youths, and now he had to pay the price for it.

"...That's a pretty steep price, gotta cover it up."

That was the only response he could think of, he hadn't expected the price to be this steep, even with all his experiments. He quickly took out some bandages from his inner pocket and wrapped them around his hand, also taking out a glove and stuffing the ring finger and pinky finger with more bandages before sliding it on. He had to adjust it a few times, but he eventually got it to look somewhat close to natural, it would work as a disguise for a bit and give him time to come up with an excuse.

He didn't bother too much with the corpses and just left them there, moving away from them in an arching manner before he started to make his way back to the city. But to his surprise, he ran into a familiar figure as he walked down one of the paths that led through the forest and to the city gates.

"Jun'er, there you are!"

Qiu Shui was running towards him with a relieved expression, her forehead covered in dense beads of sweat while even her blue robes were somewhat damp. She had clearly been running a fair bit to find him, Zhao Jun opening his arms to welcome her with a smile.

"Little Shui? Did you miss me and decide to follow me around? Are you trying to make my heart go out of control?"

If he couldn't tell that she had been trying to find him with all her might then it would mean that he was an utter fool. But luckily, it didn't seem like she had seen what he did to the Feilong family youths, that was something he would like to keep hidden if possible. They were away from prying eyes right now so Qiu Shui moved into his open arms and returned the embrace, wrapping her arms around him.

"Of course I would decide to follow you after seeing what you looked like when we split up. I was worried that you were going to go do something stupid and get yourself hurt."

That cold and sunken gaze filled with steely determination was one she had only rarely seen on Zhao Jun, and it was exceedingly rare for anything good to follow that gaze. Zhao Jun enjoyed the soft sensation pressing against him for a bit before pulling back, showing off his own body for a second before raising his left hand and showing the brown glove.

"But I'm not. See? Not a scratch. Well, this on my finger can be counted as a scratch, but that's just a lesson that every rose has a thorn, so watch your grubby hands."

He flicked the bandage-filled pinky finger to show that this was the finger he was speaking of, also showing off that the finger was well enough that he could flick it. Qiu Shui trusted him so this was enough to ease her worries slightly, but she still muttered out in a soft voice as she resumed the embrace, Zhao Jun quickly responding.

"Please, don't just leave me like that in the future."

"I won't, I won't, I promise."

Zhao Jun closed his eyes and leaned his face against the top of Qiu Shui's head, a content smile forming on his face as he took in her scent. If she could act like this every day then he was certain that he could face death with not a single regret.

But the two were doomed to not be able to enjoy their quiet embrace for long, a thunderous explosion echoing out across the entire forest. A massive plume of smoke rose into the air from the distant city, Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui coming to the same realization.

"We have to return!"

Neither of them wasted more time on words as they started to dash straight for the city, Qiu Shui holding on to Zhao Jun's hand and supporting him with her energy. They reached the gates of the city before long, the scent of scorched flesh and smoke so thick that it nearly choked them. Zhao Jun spotted the guard he had seen earlier, he was in the process of digging another guard out of some rubble.

"You, what is going on?!"

Zhao Jun called out while they were still running towards him, the guard instinctively straightening his back due to the familiar voice. He swiftly turned around to face the two incoming youths, hurriedly saluting and pointing towards the centre of the city.

"Little Lord?! It's the Feilong family, they've launched a sudden attack on our territory! You must head to the second defensive perimeter, the others are gathered there!"

The guard's report reminded Zhao Jun of the dying words that the youth from the Feilong family had given. Did the Wyrm Jackal have something to do with this? And was him rubbing the jade on his belt maybe a signal? There was no time to think over these thoughts, Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui quickly rushing through the city.

There was fire and death everywhere they went, not even the roaring of the flames able to overshadow the howling of those grieving the deceased. Zhao Jun knew that things were quite bad since his family was gathered at the second defensive perimeter, which was the market he had been at earlier. The family had ten total defensive perimeters, and them being at the second meant that the previous eight had all been breached.

The two quickly reached the market, which had changed thanks to the arrays covering the entire area. Large walls had risen up, the smaller buildings gathering together into a single thick fortress where troops could be stationed.

Zhao Jun saw his six siblings all gathered up in front of the fortress, wearing grim expressions while the brown-haired eldest brother shouted out orders to the soldiers and civilians gathered in the area. Zhao Jun once again didn't wait until he reached them, calling out to Zhao Kong as they ran over.

"Big Brother, what exactly is going on?!"

The heads of Zhao Kong and the others riveted over to Zhao Jun the moment they heard his voice, all of them letting out a sigh of relief when they saw that he was still alive. Zhao Kong's expression was devoid of emotion as he spoke, showing Zhao Jun exactly how bad the situation actually was for them.

"It's Feilong Lang, the founder of the Feilong clan. The rumours of his death were false, he was actually just wandering the world cultivating. But now he has returned and declared that the Feilong family is the one that should rule the city. He and the family's men have already decimated the first five defensive perimeters and are quickly approaching, Mother and Father fell almost immediately to his first attack. We are preparing our defences now, but I have a different task for the two of you."

Feilong Lang, the Wyrm Jackal, just as the Feilong youth had said. He had been alive and powerful several hundred years ago, just how strong had he gotten in that period of time? Zhao Kong didn't give Zhao Jun too much time to think, they didn't even have the time to mourn the death of their parents right now. He nodded to the blue-haired Zhao Zhe, who gestured for Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui to follow him.

"Follow me."

Zhao Zhe was silent as they quickly moved away from the fortress and closer to the mansion of the Zhao family. Normally he might say something about Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui holding hands, after all, Zhao Jun was still a member of the exalted Zhao family and thus shouldn't be with a mere maid.

But none of that mattered any longer, Zhao Zhe's steps halting after they had put some distance between them and the fortress. He removed his interspatial ring, a ring containing a compressed space that one could access by inputting a bit of their Qi, or by using a Spirit Stone, a gem made from crystalized Qi. He handed the ring to Zhao Jun, his gaze containing an untainted purity as he looked directly at his younger brother.

"Take it, it's the remaining wealth of the family. There is a secret underground tunnel located beneath mother and father's living quarters, it leads to a small spatial array that you can use to escape the city. You'll need to change your names, but never forget that as long as you live, you represent the Zhao clan, make that name proud someday."

Zhao Zhe turned around without another word and ran back to the fortress, Zhao Jun's heart sinking to the bottom of his chest. Zhao Zhe and the others knew that there was no surviving today, there wasn't even a guarantee that they could help Zhao Jun escape. But they still had to try, all to make sure that the Zhao family lives on in some manner.

Zhao Jun looked at the green ring laying in the palm of his hand, it still carried the warmth of his brother's finger. Qiu Shui also looked at the ring, her face as pale as snow as she too realized how dire the situation was. Her gaze moved between Zhao Jun and the fortress where the others were, her voice stammering as she squeezed out the words.

"I... I can't escape... Mother, Father, aunty, granny, they're all here, they're all fighting. This is our home, the place where we met... I... I can't abandon it. Jun'er, please, please escape to safety, you must acquire enough happiness for both of us."

She was just a maid, but there were many people here she cared about, many people that had been good to her. Thinking about fleeing while they remained and died, she knew that she couldn't do it. The guilt would haunt her for the rest of her life, it would push her to put a blade to her own wrists.

But even so, she didn't want Zhao Jun to remain here, she wanted him to flee and survive. She had felt enough worry for the two of them, and now it was time for him to feel enough happiness for the two of them. But just as she turned around so that she could return and fight alongside the others, Zhao Jun grabbed onto her wrist and stopped her, his following words leaving her dumbfounded.

"Shui'er, will you marry me?"

"Wha? Now is hardly the time!"

She would be lying if she said that she wasn't happy at the proposal, but doing so right before she was heading off to die in battle wasn't exactly the best time. But Zhao Jun's expression was more resolute, and peaceful, than it had ever been before.

"No, now is exactly the right time. Yes or no?"

Zhao Jun's piercing gaze caused Qiu Shui's heart to thump wildly, temporarily drowning out the sounds of the horror that the city was experiencing. She didn't need to think about her response, a bright smile forming on both her and Zhao Jun's face.

"...Yes, yes I will."

"Perfect."

Zhao Jun tightly grasped Qiu Shui's hand and turned towards the fortress they had just left, the two rushing over there at their fastest speed. They quickly spotted Zhao Jun's siblings again, Zhao Jun calling out while waving his hand.

"Big Brother!"

The six siblings were immediately caught off guard by the voice, Zhao Kong's pupils shrinking fiercely as he looked at his approaching youngest brother.

"What?! Why are you still here?!"

If he returned, then the Zhao family would truly be eradicated here and never again have any hope of rising through Zhao Jun's children. It would be the end of their bloodline. But Zhao Jun didn't seem bothered in the slightest, moving his finger between himself and Qiu Shui, causing his siblings to be as dumbfounded as she had been.

"Nevermind that, I need you to officiate the wedding of me and Shui'er."

"Right here and now?!"

Their city was burning, an enemy they couldn't beat was approaching, and their deaths were certain, yet he wanted to hold a wedding right now? They looked at him as if he was an idiot, but Zhao Jun simply smiled brightly and nodded his head, Zhao Kong slapping his own forehead.

"By the gods, you really have inherited father's insanity. Fine, let it be my last good deed to you."

With Zhao Jun staying behind, their last sliver of resistance was pointless as they wouldn't even be able to ensure the continuation of the bloodline even if they did fight. But they were still people from the Zhao family, they would fight even if it was hopeless, even if just to protect their own pride.

The Zhao siblings quickly cleared up a small area of space, Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui taking up positions in front of each other and grabbing hold of the hands of each other. Zhao Kong was the eldest son and was thus the leader of the family after their parents passed so he took charge of the ceremony.

"Qiu Shui, are you willing to marry Zhao Jun as your husband, in sacred marriage together for life? Whether in sickness or health, poverty or wealth, whether he is beautiful or plain, in good times and in bad, you are willing to love him, comfort him, to respect him, and protect him? Are you willing to be forever loyal to him?"

There wasn't any time for personalized vows or the like so Zhao Kong simply recited the classical vows, quickly moving through them. Qiu Shui nodded her head, squeezing Zhao Jun's hands.

"I am."

Zhao Kong nodded his head, if it was any other time he would have probably been overjoyed at getting to do this. Sadly, it was not a time of joy so he had to quickly move on.

"Zhao Ju... gods... Zhao Jun, are you willing to marry Qiu Shui and be forever loyal to her happiness?"

An explosion rocked the area nearby a streak of burning light shooting into the sky and causing Zhao Kong to let out an involuntary curse, cutting short even the classical vows. But it was enough, Zhao Jun nodding his head with a radiant smile, Zhao Kong giving his final blessings.

"Always have been, always will be."

"Then as the current ruler of the Zhao family, I now pronounce you husband and wife. May you find your happiness, however short it may be."

Zhao Jun and Qiu Shui leaned forward and shared a kiss, Qiu Shui not shrinking back or wincing despite there being others around to see them. The time for worry had long passed, but it was still a fact that caused the smile on Zhao Jun's face to grow a bit larger.

"You didn't shrink back this time."

As he spoke, he slid off the ring he wore on his right hand, a very standard golden ring he had been gifted when he turned 16. He slid the ring onto Qiu Shui's finger, who in turn removed her own ring, a plain metal ring, and slid it onto Zhao Jun's finger, a slightly bitter smile appearing on her face.

"You should have fled, that way only one of us would have ended up disappearing here."

It was painful being the one that was left behind, but even so, she wanted Zhao Jun to carry that pain, she wanted him to live, even if it was just him. Dying together sounded sweet, but the thought of your loved one dying was everything but sweet. But faced with her bitter expression, Zhao Jun maintained his smile.

"No, even with me staying here, only one of us will disappear."

Qiu Shui and the others weren't able to understand what he meant, but Zhao Jun ignored their confusion and turned to Zhao Kong. He swept the faces of his siblings with one last gaze before his gaze landed on Zhao Kong, giving him a solemn reminder.

"Big Brother, I am leaving her safety to you, if she loses even a single hair for the remainder of her life, I will haunt you until the ends of time."

Zhao Kong instinctively nodded his head, still not understanding exactly what Zhao Jun was meaning. But Zhao Jun knew, he knew that he was going to pay a price he couldn't afford to bear, he knew that he would have to inflict pain on those he cared about.

He stepped away from Qiu Shui and the others, his smile never changing as he looked at them. And then he turned away from them, his expression sinking as a horrifying amount of energy burst out from his body and tore up the stone streets around him. His body shot into the air at the burning light soaring in the sky, Zhao Kong and the others looking on dumbfoundedly.

"Wha...?"

Zhao Jun shot into the sky and collided with the burning light that was approaching the fortress, the air rippling as an immense shockwave tore through it. The advent of the burning light was halted, revealing a slightly aged man with unruly brown hair and speckled green eyes. The man glared dangerously at Zhao Jun, grasping a long spear and pointing the tip at him.

"Who are you?! Identify yourself!"

Zhao Jun didn't even need to ask who the man in front of him was, he was radiating such an atrocious amount of energy that he could only be Feilong Lang. If his guess wasn't wrong then Feilong Lang had probably already reached the Ascended Emperor realm, three more steps forward and he would reach the peak of cultivation. But even so, Zhao Jun shook his head without an ounce of fear.

"It doesn't matter any longer."

It truly didn't, nothing of his would matter any longer after today, because there would no longer be a him after today. He stretched out his right arm and pointed it at Feilong Lang, a tearing sound running through the surrounding area as he gathered so much energy in his palm that space around him was starting to crack.

The energy was unleashed and tore through the air with a vicious roar, forming a beam of crimson light that cut through the sky and blinded all who dared to look at it. Feilong Lang hurriedly dodged but the beam still tore through his shoulder, his flesh strangely turning into flames that flickered for a second before returning to normal.

It looked like he had tried to evade the attack with that move, but his shoulder was still injured despite having turned into fire, blood pouring down his arm. His expression sank slightly as he pushed his spear forward, a burning spear shooting forward and leaving behind a black gash in space.

Zhao Jun dodged to the side, but the spear actually turned into Feilong Lang just as it passed by Zhao Jun's side. He swept his spear out sideways, the handle slamming into the side of Zhao Jun's chest. Zhao Jun was smashed downward, but he still managed to stretch out his arm and graze Feilong Lang's foot with his hand.

A resplendent light shot out from his hand, cutting off the front half of Feilong Lang's left foot. Feilong Lang lost a piece of his foot, but Zhao Jun was sent crashing into the earth, Feilong Lang throwing his spear after him while calling out in a grim voice.

"You are naive if you think this is enough! I have fought monsters beyond what your pitiful mind can grasp!"

The spear shot downwards like a falling star and pierced through Zhao Jun's abdomen, had he not reacted quickly and expelled the flames the spear unleashed then he would have been scorched right away. Seeing him come crashing to the earth, Qiu Shui and the others couldn't resist running over, not sure what else to do in this strange situation.

"Jun'er! Are you okay?!"

Qiu Shui called out in a voice filled with worry, but Zhao Jun's expression barely changed due to it. He tore out the spear from his own stomach, a massive amount of energy bursting forth from the hole it left and quickly plugging it up so that he didn't bleed to death. He glanced at Qiu Shui, but rather than care and love, the only emotions visible in his eyes were confusion and annoyance.

"Gods, why the fuck would you shout in my ear like that?! I'm a bit busy, so could you onlookers fuck off and give me some space? I really don't have the time to be dealing with all the random passerby's right now!"

His sudden outburst left Qiu Shui and the others dumbfounded. Zhao Jun wasn't the type of person to explode like this, especially not towards Qiu Shui. In fact, it looked as if he didn't even recognize them at all. They couldn't help but stop slightly, questioning dumbly as Zhao Jun kicked off of the ground and shot into the sky again.

"He..what?"

Zhao Jun shot straight at Feilong Lang, now grasping the very spear that had just pierced his abdomen. Brilliant crimson flames were born on the tip of the spear as Zhao Jun grasped it, the horrific energy radiating from his body only increasing with each passing second. The ever-increasing energy radiating from his body caused Feilong Lang's eyes to narrow dangerously as he sharply exhaled.

"I've made you fall once, I can do it again!"

He punched downwards, a sea of fire raging towards Zhao Jun, who stabbed out with the now completely crimson spear he was grasping. He twisted the spear slightly as he stabbed out, the incoming sea of fire spinning around the tip and becoming a part of his attack.

But as he unleashed the attack, Zhao Kong and the others noticed something strange. Zhao Jun's left foot was falling apart, chunks of flesh falling off and slowly disintegrating. The same phenomenon repeated itself on his other foot as well as some of the fingers on his left hand, Zhao Kong and the others faintly touching upon something as they saw the glove he wore fall to the ground.

"He's... falling apart? Don't tell me..."

They had never heard anything about Zhao Jun having any sort of power, especially not something as heaven-shaking as this. And looking at him falling apart now, a guess formed in their heads. Could it be that he wasn't able to withstand his own power, and using it demanded a terrible price from him?

They didn't know it, but they had hit the nail on the head with their guess. This was also the reason that Zhao Jun hadn't recognized them earlier. The moment he burst forth with that horrific energy, picturing nothing but a power strong enough to eradicate Feilong Lang, he started paying the price for using the power. One by one, his memories were vanishing.

Feilong Lang looked grimly at the ascending Zhao Jun, pushing down with both hands and increasing the intensity of the sea of fire. The entire sky was quickly covered in raging flames that slowly turned from orange to crimson, and finally to blue. But even as the heat bore down on him, even as his memories vanished, even as his body fell apart, Zhao Jun's instincts remained steadfast.

"Must."

He pushed even harder against the sea of blue flames, forcing some of them to spin around the spear he was stabbing forward. And as he did so, the memory of him celebrating his second birthday with his mother and father vanished.

"Kill."

More and more flames were converted over to him as the energy he radiated increased, rapidly approaching the same level as the energy radiating from Feilong Lang. But in the process, the memory of his favourite childhood game vanished.

"Enemy."

He gave one more strong push, piercing through the sea of blue flames, which then rose up to follow him. And then, the memories of the cat he picked up for a short duration when he was nine vanished.

"Must."

He tightly grasped the spear, the fingers on his right hand already starting to fall apart and disintegrate. And as he did, the final memory vanished from his mind, his own name and existence.

"Protect?"

He had lost his name, his family, his new wife, he had lost everything and should remain as no more than an empty husk. But even so, even if he had nothing, his emotions still burned so strongly that they moved his empty husk of a disintegrating body.

"Must, kill, enemies."

He fully stabbed the spear forward, unleashing a sky-covering tidal wave of crimson and blue flames, the energy radiating from his body surpassing Feilong Lang. He tried to escape, but the tidal wave still swallowed Feilong Lang, his body turning to ash under the combined might of his own and Zhao Jun's flames.

The tidal wave rushed into the heavens after evaporating Feilong Lang, becoming a sight that was visible for several tens of thousands of kilometres. It resembled the end of the world, but the ocean of fire simply dissipated after completing its task. And with the fire having completed its task, Zhao Jun fell from the sky.

The energy radiating from his body receded as if it had never existed to begin with, but the price was still being paid, he was still falling apart and disintegrating. His legs and most of his torso were already gone, only his chest, head, and most of his right arm remained, but even they were vanishing.

He fell down close to Qiu Shui and the others, but his eyes were completely white and his ears weren't working, so he couldn't even see or hear them as they ran over to him. But even with his eyes and ears not working, even with every one of his memories gone, he still turned his head towards his right hand.

His last finger there had just disintegrated and the simple metal ring had fallen to the ground. He himself didn't understand the purpose or meaning of his words, or the ring for that matter, but he still tried to stretch his hand towards that simple ring.

"Ah... please don't leave me..."

His hand was gone so he couldn't grasp it, a single tear falling from his eyes before his head fell apart and disintegrated, his entire body turning into nothing more than dust that drifted away with the wind.