Chapter 227: Fate Stars Hang High, Sun and Moon Share the Sky

Kaihuang City, Luo Family Village.

This village, resembling a paradise secluded from the world, leaned against Pillar of Heaven Mountain; on ordinary days, the villagers entered the mountains to hunt, gather herbs, and chop firewood, then took them to the city to sell.

On an open patch of ground within the village, a boy no older than eleven or twelve, with a withered and emaciated complexion, was practicing boxing; although his face bore the sallow hue of malnutrition due to insufficient food, he struck every punch with utmost dedication, occasionally emitting grunts and shouts of effort.

"Use force! Do not slacken!"

Beside the boy stood a burly, bare-chested giant of a man.

"Practicing boxing is like rowing upstream; if you do not practice for one day, your skill diminishes by one layer; if you do not practice for ten days, even the greatest abilities will go to waste, so how can you hope to sense your Fate Star?"

The giant held a bamboo stick in his hand, scolding while tapping the boy's body with it to correct flaws in his fist technique; his voice and movements were extremely severe, yet only when he saw the boy gritting his teeth to persevere did a rare trace of warmth appear in the depths of his eyes.

Just like that, nearly half an hour passed.

"Enough, stop now, rest for a while."

As the giant finished speaking, he did not relax his stance but stared straight at the boy, who did not instantly collapse to the ground but slowly retracted his fist formation.

"Hoo."

A long breath was exhaled, condensed and lingering, as if a white arrow had landed in empty space; only after accomplishing this did the boy stand orderly in place.

"Not bad!" Only then did the giant nod with satisfaction: "It seems you have not forgotten what I taught you yesterday; the greatest taboo in practicing boxing is leaking qi; even if you are exhausted to the extreme and cannot continue, you must not slacken when resting, otherwise, once the qi leaks, this half-day of practice will have been in vain."

"Hehe..."

Hearing this, the boy scratched his head, revealing an expression that was both simple and slightly proud, then raised his head to glance at the sky above.

At a single glance, myriad stars sparkled brilliantly.

Regardless of sunrise or moonset, even during the day, countless stars still twinkled in the heavens; some were brilliant, some dim, and some had not yet been ignited.

The teachings he received since childhood told him that the stars in the sky corresponded to people on earth, symbolizing the destinies of all living beings... Thinking of this, a trace of anticipation appeared in the boy's eyes, and he could not help but look at the giant: "Master, when do you think I will be able to ignite my Fate Star?"

"Right today."

The giant spoke casually, leaving the boy stunned in place; it took him a good while to react: "Right today!? Then why didn't you tell me sooner, Master!"

"If I had told you sooner, it wouldn't have worked."

A smile touched the corner of the giant's mouth as he said softly: "You just performed a set of 【Fate-Responding Fist】; now raise your head to look at the sky and slowly close your eyes."

The boy hurriedly complied.

Strangely, such an action that would normally be utterly meaningless suddenly gave rise to an indescribable sensation within the boy.

"My Fate Star..."

In a trance, the boy's consciousness seemed to connect with the firmament; he saw a star, originally dim, slowly brighten under his gaze.

The next second, a thought descended along the starlight—

【Villager】

These two simple words left the boy stunned for a long time before he opened his eyes, only to find the giant looking at him with some tension: "What Fate Star did you obtain?"

"It is 【Villager】," the boy answered truthfully.

Hearing this, the giant's expression remained unchanged, yet a trace of disappointment surfaced in his eyes: "【Villager】, ah... well, living a peaceful and stable life for a lifetime is not bad either."

Upon hearing this, the boy's face was filled with confusion: "Can't 【Villager】 practice martial arts?"

"Of course you can."

The giant patted the boy's head, then sighed: "However, the miraculous power of 【Villager】 merely allows you to eat anything when you are hungry."

"And when applied to martial arts, since you are not 【Martial Soldier】, you lack the corresponding miraculous blessing; practicing will yield half the result with twice the effort; rather than wasting that time, it is better to obediently farm the land and be a good 【Villager】; rashly pursuing a change in fate will only result in a life worse than before."

Speaking to this point, the giant sighed once more.

This was his personal experience.

Unlike the boy, he was a 【Martial Soldier】, yet he was unwilling to remain merely a lowly soldier, wholeheartedly aspiring to become a general in the army.

However, he did not have that fate.

With his Fate Star unlit, everything went against him; attempting to break free from the predetermined trajectory of fate invited misfortune, resulting in him suffering heavy injuries in a great battle.

If not for that, he would not have retired and come to seclude himself in such a small mountain village.

"But Master..." After listening to these words, the boy lowered his head, yet spoke with hope: "Does having 【Villager】 as a Fate Star mean I must remain a villager for my entire life?"

"... ot necessarily."

The boy was still young, and the giant did not wish to dampen his enthusiasm too severely, so he changed the subject:

"Although all Fate Stars under heaven have fixed numbers, exceptions do exist; for instance, during the 【Heavenly Demon Descent】, infinite variables will arise."

"At that time, even if you are a 【Villager】, there is hope of becoming the 【Son of Heaven】."

"I know, I know!" The boy immediately raised his hand: "The Day Son of Heaven and the Night Son of Heaven; the Fate Stars corresponding to them are the sun and the moon in the sky!"

"Correct." The giant smiled slightly: "Wielding the Sun Star makes one the Day Son of Heaven; wielding the Moon Star makes one the Night Son of Heaven; both are the supreme positions of heaven and earth."

"Whenever the 【Heavenly Demon Descent】 arrives, warriors under heaven will sense it, ultimately giving rise to two Supreme Sons of Heaven who will join hands to slay the extraterrestrial Heavenly Demons."

"At that time, the Son of Heaven will unify the world, ushering in a long-awaited era of great governance."

Speaking to this point, longing also appeared in the giant's eyes: "Ancient texts record that the last 【Heavenly Demon Descent】 occurred one thousand years ago."

"At that time, pressured by the might of the Heavenly Demons, the monarchs of the sixteen kingdoms of the Central Plains joined hands; on the summit of this Pillar of Heaven Mountain behind you and me, they swore an alliance by smearing blood on their lips, established the era name Zhangwu, and united to resist the Heavenly Demons; under the rule of that dynasty, fierce generals were as numerous as clouds, and strategists as plentiful as rain, all serving with their lives, which allowed the dynasty's fortune to extend continuously to the present day..."

The giant's eloquence was quite decent.

Under his narration, a stirring piece of history unfolded gradually, listening to which made the boy utterly captivated, wishing he had been born in that great age of contention.

However, just at this moment.

"General Chen! Bad news, bad news!"

Outside the village, several young men came running quickly, holding bows, arrows, and short blades, their faces filled with terror: "An uprising in the mountains! Wild beasts are sprinting wildly!"

"What?"

At these words, the giant instantly displayed a look of alarm.

Pillar of Heaven Mountain covered an area of a thousand li; how many poisonous insects and fierce beasts dwelled within it? There were likely several Beast Kings; how could ordinary matters cause an uprising in the mountains?

'Could it be a beast tide?'

'Impossible; years ago, the City Lord reached an agreement with the Beast Lords inside Pillar of Heaven Mountain; both sides agreed to stay out of each other's way; why would the Beast Lords suddenly launch a beast tide?'

Despite these thoughts, the giant dared not be negligent.

After all, Luo Family Village was located in a remote corner outside the mountain; facing a beast tide, it would be like a pebble in the ocean, destined to be swallowed up in an instant.

Perhaps only the nearby Kaihuang City could barely count as a reef.

Thinking of this, the giant made a decisive command: "Immediately gather the villagers and evacuate to Kaihuang City; this is beyond our ability to handle; we must report to the City Lord first."

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Before the giant could finish speaking, his voice was interrupted by a thunderous roar like a clap of lightning; it seemed thunder erupted from within the mountain, and at first hearing, one might think Pillar of Heaven Mountain had collapsed!

In an instant, countless villagers within Luo Family Village displayed looks of fear and dread.

Even the giant, who considered himself relatively knowledgeable and experienced, showed shock on his face, staring dumbfounded at a narrow rift that had suddenly torn open in the sky above Pillar of Heaven Mountain!

"The sky... has split...!?"

Descriptions from ancient texts flashed through the giant's mind; stories he had only ever seen in tale books were now appearing realistically before his eyes, leaving him at a loss for what to do.

Heavenly Demon Descent?

Heavenly Demon Descent!

In that instant, hundreds of millions of stars in the firmament were simultaneously ignited; especially the Sun Star and Moon Star, which radiated brilliant light, shining down upon that rift.

Almost simultaneously, in the eyes of all warriors who had ignited their Fate Stars, the image of the rift appeared; they felt that the restraints normally imposed by their Fate Stars were completely released, their actions no longer bound by the identities inherent to their Fate Stars, and a powerful, irresistible thought arose in their hearts:

"Kill!"

Kill those who emerge from the rift!

He who first takes their heads shall be King of the World!

(End of Chapter)