1 Angered

"I hear that you have given up on your studies for training and started practicing punches and kicks. What is this? You hope that one day you will be able to build yourself up to immortality?"

Young Master Zhou spoke with a smirk on his face, eyeing the young man who had the appearance of a decrepit scholar.

He was blessed with handsome features and adorned with clean white robes with not a speck of dust on them. With his sleeves flowing from the mountain wind that blew through the air, he looked like a being from heaven who had descended to earth.

Behind him were two burly men, both as large as bears, especially the one with a mutton chop beard. He had a sturdy build and a vigorous appearance; he was easily identifiable as a strong fighter.

"I may be poor, but I am determined. I have given up the pen for the sword, so I am clearly not ready to give in. What? Are you scared?"

Xu Yi responded to Young Master Zhou with a cold stare, an expression that said he would not yield even in death.

He had spoken confidently, but his heart was beating fast as he feared that Zhou would resort to strange tricks. If things went south, he would have to die again even after everything he had gone through to escape with his life.

Young Master Zhou froze in shock, and suddenly, he burst out laughing. As if laughing made it funnier, he kept laughing harder and harder until he was bent over. The two burly men behind him began to laugh as well.

Finally, Young Master Zhou reigned in his laughter, reached out his hand, and gently patted Xu Yi on the cheek. "Back then, your grandfather gave my father a chance, so by extension, I would have to give you one as well, so train well, and don't disappoint me. Oh yes, the anniversary of Lord Mingde's death is coming. Remember to send some offerings to Lord Mingde for my father as well."

Xu Yi snorted, not bothering to reply. Deep down, he was feeling absolutely depressed.

Right now, dealing with this damned Young Master Zhou was very difficult for him. He had to maintain the calm temperament of this body's original owner, and at the same time, avoid doing anything to aggravate Zhou. After all, if that thug really went at it, the only one suffering would be himself.

Just as Xu Yi was about to scratch his head, a shrill howl came from the distant mountain forest. Young Master Zhou raised his eyebrows and happily exclaimed, "A-ha, seems like there's a big guy. Xu Yi, count yourself lucky today, and remember to train well. The next time we meet, if you're still looking so lifeless and spoil my fun for me, then I'll send you down to accompany Lord Mingde. Haha…"

With those words, he twisted into a stance and sprinted towards a red horse stopped dozens of meters away. The saddle on the horse was equipped with a sabre on the left and a bow on the right. Behind the horse were a few other horses, loaded with hunting nets. All of this was equipment meant for hunting.

"The Young Master is leaving. How dare scum like you not get on your knees to see him off!"

Mutton Chops laughed coldly and struck Xu Yi on the shoulder with his palm. By the time the force had left his palm, he had already flipped into the air and onto a horse. He turned back to look at Xu Yi who would be unable to get up from the ground for some time. With a hearty laugh, he galloped away.

Xu Yi lay motionless on the ground, only getting up after he could feel the rumbles from the horses' hooves gradually fade. He dusted off his clothes, and with fire in his eyes, he looked in the direction where the horses had galloped. "Son of a bitch, you've made me mad."

As anger flashed through his mind, he also felt a flash of intense pain. It was so intense that it brought Xu Yi back down to the ground. He felt like his brain was being stirred into a gooey mess of porridge as a flood of memories rushed into his mind.

After more than two hours, he finally managed to struggle to his feet. The ground where he lay was wet as though someone had spilled water all over it.

Xu Yi staggered to a chair by the wooden hut and sat down. He guzzled two large bowls of water before looking up into the sky and lamenting, "I really am stuck in a deep sea of suffering and hatred."

He had been in this world for over half a year now. The unlucky soul who had taken over this body was also called Xu Yi. Initially, Xu Yi had also inherited a portion of this person's memories, which was why he reacted to Young Master Zhou in that manner.

But it wasn't until now, after all the memories had flowed into the body, that he finally understood what exactly happened between Young Master Zhou and Xu Yi.

It was truly an epic soap opera!

The story went like this: In Xu Yi's great-great-grandfather's generation, the Xu family had an amazing prodigy in the Martial Way, Lord Mingde. Because of him, the Xu family began to prosper.

At the same time, Young Master Zhou's great-great-grandfather had come to Guang'an to flee the famine, becoming a servant of the Xu family.

From father to son, then to grandson, the role of servant passed on. In the blink of an eye, three generations of Zhous had become servants of the Xu family.

When it came to Xu Yi's grandfather's generation, the Zhou family had an impressive son, and that was Young Master Zhou's second Uncle Zhou Daogan. Hailed as a prodigy in the Martial Way, he achieved a high level of martial development at only thirty years of age. Following that, he was accepted into one of the Three Great Orthodox Sects of Guang'an Prefecture, Lingxiao Hall. By elevating the status of the Zhou family from servitude, he single-handedly established the now prominent Zhou family.

But the Xu family did not mistreat the Zhou family!

When Zhou Daogan revealed his aptitude for the Martial Way, Lord Mingde had already passed. With no worthy successor in the Xu family, Xu Yi's grandfather chose to gift Zhou Daogan the Martial Way manuals that Lord Mingde had left behind, even financially supporting his efforts. It was only because of this that Zhou Daogan even had the chance to become a formidable practitioner.

After all, human potential is often limited. It is said that studying is for the poor, and martial arts is for the rich. Without the financial means to obtain medicinal herbs and training manuals, even a prodigy would end up being mediocre in the long run.

Of course, Xu Yi's grandfather's goodwill was not purely selfless. He had hoped that if Zhou Daogan would go far along the Martial Way, the Xu Family would get his primary support in the future.

Both parties were striving for a win-win situation — a common occurrence in daily life.

But in a twist of fate, despite suddenly becoming a noble one day, his former identity as a servant became an object of ridicule amongst his fellow disciples in the sect. At first, he could tolerate it. But as the days passed, it twisted him. Instead of blaming his ancestors for not being accomplished, he began to harbor a grudge against the Xu family for having his family as servants.

One was an esteemed disciple of the Lingxiao Hall with high status, while the other was just a wealthy landowner in the country.

Since Zhou Daogan bore a grudge against the Xu family, their fate was sealed.

However, the Xu family were once the Zhou family's masters. Although Zhou Daogan wanted to do them in, he still had to bear his own reputation in mind. He thus resorted to long-term machinations to whittle them down.

Having been framed for a crime, the old master of the Xu family was angered to death, bringing the Xu family to their downfall.

Over the next twenty years, under constant suppression from the Zhou family, the Xu family suffered and were slowly unable to support themselves.

In the end, the Xu family lost their entire fortune. Xu Yi's parents were also tricked by the Zhou family's underhanded means, and they were forced into hard labor and servitude, eventually being worked to death.

With the Xu family in shambles, Xu Yi naturally had no means to train in the Martial Way. All that was left was for him to study. When he was sixteen, he set himself up as a children's teacher in the Xu family's village, somehow managing to make ends meet.

But even so, when the Zhou family got news of this, they went out of their way to destroy Xu Yi's only source of income.

The Zhou family was merciless!

Overcome with a mix of rage and fear, Xu Yi astonishingly died just like that. Before his body could become cold, another soul had coincidentally travelled across time and space into it, becoming today's Xu Yi.

With the melding of memories, Xu Yi could feel his emotions becoming one with the other Xu Yi as well. He truly felt hatred for Young Master Zhou and Zhou Daogan before him.

"Very well, since I've borrowed your body, let me resolve this grudge for you. You can rest in peace."

Xu Yi looked up to the heavens and silently offered a sentence of prayer.

After a short rest, Xu Yi got up and entered the rundown wooden hut. He haphazardly made a simple dinner, swallowed it down, then stepped outside.

The night was already dark, and in the night sky hung a crescent moon. Bright and white, it's light scattered over the land, illuminating the mountain forest in the distance, which looked like a giant resting beast.

When he entered the forest, Xu Yi's body suddenly accelerated. With every step, he crossed a few meters. In a few flashes, he was already deep in the jungle.

He found an open area, then spread his legs out and assumed a stance.

Hu!

Ha!

Hu! 

Ha!