In a spacious hall, two figures knelt on the ground, both clad in black robes. At the highest seat in the hall sat an elderly man wearing a blue robe, his hair turned silver with age and his face marked with the wrinkles of time. However, despite his frail appearance, no one could regard this elderly man as ordinary, for he was none other than the esteemed leader of the Phantom Sect.
From his elevated position, the old man gazed at the kneeling duo and spoke, demanding their account.
"Tell me," he commanded.
Without daring to further delay, the elder of the two began to speak.
"M-Master, we had cornered Reng and pursued him when he attempted to escape. But soon, another individual intercepted us and killed our second brother."
"Lord, you must avenge our second brother," the elder pleaded.
The old man's voice thundered with anger. "You dare tell me what I should do? Hmph! Incompetents! And you shamelessly dare to use me for your revenge! You two pathetic assassins roam about as if you are of any consequence."
The black-robed figures trembled involuntarily at the sound of the old man's voice, but they had no choice but to continue speaking.
"Master, the man was incredibly powerful. We could only watch helplessly as he overpowered us. He must be a Sky Conqueror, at least."
The expression on the old man's face changed. In the Eastern Continent, where he resided, there were eight mid-level Sky-Fallen Masters besides himself, and he held sway over their powers. The person they faced now was likely a new Sky Conqueror, he surmised. The Four Great Force of the Eastern Continent never allowed any power to surpass the level of Earth Ruler . Thus, for thousands of years, they had maintained dominance over the Land of Eastern Continent. Although gifted youths with immense potential often emerged, many of them remained at the level of Earth Ruler, never breaking through to the next level. When they neared the boundary, the two clans and two sects would deal with them decisively.
The most brilliant star of recent times was Reng Blaze, a pinnacle-level Earth Ruler in his forties. He had the potential to become a Sky Conqueror before reaching the age of sixty, or perhaps even ascend to the Saint, just like his ancestors. That was why he needed to be eliminated.
The Phantom Sect, along with the Dike Clan and the Skyfall Sect, had hired the three assassins known as the Three Brothers. Of course, each of the powers had enough people who could kill Reng, but no one was willing to take the risk without a guarantee of success. After all, anyone who could kill Reng was already a renowned figure in the Eastern Continent. If an incident like today's were to occur, the Blaze Clan might capture the assailant and trigger an all-out war. While the situation between the Four Great Powers was currently balanced, if two powers engaged in a conflict, the remaining two would seize the opportunity to eradicate their weakened rivals. Therefore, everything had to be handled discreetly.
"Did he mention his name that Sky Conqueror you spoke about?" the old man asked.
In the following minutes, the elderly man interrogated the two brothers, finally learning the age of the person who had saved Reng. His expression changed completely.
"Are you sure about the age of this Sky Conqueror in his twenties?"
In unison, the brothers replied, "We dare not lying to you, Lord."
The old man suddenly shouted towards the door at the other end of the hall.
"Yang, throw these two into the dungeon. They will guide us when the time comes, but do not harm them too much."
Then, facing the two brothers again, the old man declared, "No payment for your failure. And your next task will be done at half of the price."
The two brothers had no choice but to accept their fate. There was nothing they could do; they were utterly helpless. Bitterly, they cursed Reng and the old man under their breath.
Left alone in the hall, the old man's hands produced two pieces of paper, which emitted a bright light before disappearing into thin air. Soon after, the old man himself dissipated into the air.
---------------------------
It had been a few days since Reng's departure. According to his words, he needed to attend to an urgent matter before returning to join them. In three or four days, he would reunite with the family of three and extend an invitation for them to join his clan.
As usual, Ursa was busy chopping wood with his trusty axe. His wife and newborn son sat on the front porch of the wooden cabin he had built, observing his every move with affection. Even their baby seemed captivated, his innocent eyes following his father's every swing. As Reng had noticed, the child's gaze sparkled with intelligence and awareness. Despite being just thirteen days old, he had already experienced 346 lives before.
Ever since the departure of the man in green robe , limless man had chosen to believe him. After all, what did he have to lose? He had longed for death more than anything else and realized that the green-robed man had been right. With a single thought, he had put an end to his life, only to awaken in the embrace of a bear. At first, he thought he had been born in a land teeming with half-beast, half-human monsters again. But when he caught sight of the woman who became his mother, he finally believed in the existence of gods and goddesses.
Now, just thirteen days into his new life, Ursa's wife and child had yet to give him a name. According to what he had heard from his father, men in the north had to earn their names.
For now, they used temporary names like "my son."
The baby had many names in its previous lives, but now it had been reborn and, though it didn't want to forget its past, it also didn't want to carry anything from its previous life. Therefore, it preferred that its parents choose a name for it, but the parents had decided that it should earn its own name.
As the baby was lost in these thoughts, a tremendous explosion resonated from where its father was. Although the baby struggled to adapt to its new body and spent most of its day lying down, it had become accustomed to the sound of falling trees coming from its father's location. However, the sound it had just heard was entirely different from the noise of a falling tree; it resembled the sound of a mighty lightning strike.