Chapter 1: Every Night You Dreamed The Same Dream

"Big Brother, I don't want to die. Please don't leave me."

"You idiot, run away! They're coming!"

"You're the hope of the human race. We will not allow you to die!"

"Dammit it! Die demons!"

Murmurs that came from the deep of the clouds echoed within. Unfamiliar, yet believable, scenes surged one by one. At one time, he helplessly watched his siblings die at the hands of the horrifying invaders. Then in another scene, he became a martial artist. He witnessed how strangers helped and sacrificed themselves in exchange for his own survival. He also saw how the world ended and how he had single-handedly defeated the invaders.

All these unfamiliar images flashed into his head. Suddenly, he saw a purple-clothed woman murmuring to him, and then the dream shattered. He woke with a jolt. Sweats dripped from his forehead, he noticed his clothes were completely drenched.

"That dream again!"

He looked at the sky and, gradually, his beating heart calmed down. His fear from the nightmare he just experienced slowly subsided. The sun has a long way to rise and, so, he went back to his bed and slept.

…

"You brats, your big brother is leaving. Don't open the door to strangers; but if it's Auntie Wan from the next door, it's fine. I also prepared food, just heat them up. Don't go outside, understood?"

"We know, Big Brother. You don't have to remind us!"

Three energetic voices chimed from the backyard, all sounded young.

Although he told them what was important, Yun Feng still held worry about his young siblings. It wasn't as if they were not sensible and dependable, but since he had the same dream every night, the worry and fear were slowly creeping; a dream is a dream, but a constant dream might be telling something. It didn't hurt to create countermeasures.

After leaving the small, rented house, Yun Feng feared those kids would not listen to his instructions, so he knocked on the door of Auntie Wan. Thereafter, a middle-aged woman opened the door.

"Eh, Young Yun?"

"Good morning, Aunt Wan, sorry for the disturbance."

Actually, Auntie Wan wasn't some sort of relative. She was a friend of his late mother and, even so, a sworn sister with a friendship of over two decades. She has been giving assistance to him and his siblings in their difficult times. Yun Feng considered her a person he could trust.

"Is it about those sweet kids?"

Auntie Wan was a middle-aged woman with a thin stature. Her looks were decent and, furthermore, her husband was a merchant running a small business. In other words, she was a wealthy woman who has a lot of free time.

"Yes, yes. Can you help me watch them, Auntie Wan? Just rebuke them if they tried to leave the house," said Yun Feng.

"That's not a problem. If they insist, I'll just take them out to play. I've been missing those kids, anyway." The middle-aged woman responded enthusiastically.

"Thank you, Auntie Wan. I'll take my leave or I'll be late." Yun Feng breathed in relief. To be honest, she already told him many times when it comes to these kinds of things, he could freely ask for her help. However, Yun Feng felt he owed her a lot of favors. His skin was not thick.

"Go. Go, make sure you don't hurt yourself at work."

"Definitely!"

Yun Feng nodded and sprinted away while waving his hand. Soon after, he disappeared from the streets of the west bank of Sea Mountain.

He was heading towards the northern lands of Sea Mountain. It was a district where the cultivation clans and the Heavenly Dao Academy were situated.

Not long after his parents died, Yun Feng took their responsibility. Hence, in order to make a living for himself and his siblings, he had taken jobs. He did not want to rely on his Auntie Wan; she, after all, also had a family.

Yun Feng took two part-time jobs. The first one was a helper of the prominent Li clan.

Li clan was a cultivation clan with a long history. However, in recent years, it was in decline which is why it was in dire need of servants. Yun Feng took the opportunity and volunteered. The pay was good; the monthly wage was ten gold liangs. Although it was quite decent, it was not also high.

Ten gold liangs was enough to last a month, but he had to be frugal. As his siblings grew older, the expenses they needed also increased.

As a result, Yun Feng took another job. It was a job that he had been eyeing for a long time and, three days ago, he had been accepted, though it took him many application failures.

Few minutes later.

The northern lands of the Sea Mountain appeared in his line of sight. It was a different spectacle compared to the western bank. It was like a painting of immortal land that came out into reality.

When Daoist Ning Xue retired and came into the Sea Mountain, he slashed the mountains with a sword and formed a plateau. At first, it was simply made for his own abode, but as years went by, it was reconstructed as a living city. Merchants, clans, and even the Heavenly Dao Academy soon inhabited the place. As a result, it was transformed from a mortal city into a cultivation city where mostly martial artists resided.

"Make way, make way!"

It was crowded in the street though it was early morning. People give way as caravans moved in the middle of the street.

Vendors were seen on either side, entertaining customers. Some itinerant cultivators curiously glanced over the products.

At that moment, everyone suddenly looked in one direction; whispering amongst themselves. Yun Feng also followed their gaze and exclaimed – a white cow with two horns on its body was strolling the road. It has gentle eyes and long legs, its fur was fluffy and smooth.

"Hey, that's a Bai Ze, right?"

"That's an expensive mount. I'm so jealous."

"We can afford it someday if we save up, but that lady sitting above is definitely someone we can't offend."

Everyone was envious of the mount. Most of them were girls. Bai Ze was a Mount that is usually used by females. It was cute and can travel a long distance, hence everyone favored it.

Yun Feng sighed looking over the Bai Ze. He was not envious like other does, he just felt these cultivators were a bit…wasteful. He had heard mounts could cost up to ten thousand spirit stones; that amount was enough to have a carefree lifestyle. If he had such an amount of money, he swore he would not waste it buying a Mount.

Shaking his head, Yun Feng proceeds on his way. He took a few turns and finally arrived at his destination. In front of him was a large manor, in front of the gates, two guards were standing by. A flag was seen at the entrance; on it was the word 'Li Clan'.

After greeting the guards, he directly went inside the manor. It was deserted, with only a few servants seen inside. The houses were dilapidated and some of the stones were missing from the roof. Even though the space it occupied was large, Yun Feng's apartment was even slightly better than this one.

"Yow Yun Feng, I thought you'd be late again."

A voice sounded by the side. Yun Feng looked over and saw a pudgy youth walking over. He smiled, "I woke in the middle of the night and couldn't sleep."

The youth in front of him was Li Xin; the person who introduced him to a job in the Li Clan otherwise there was no way for nobody like him to be accepted as a helper.

"As usual?"

Li Xin frowned. "Are you sure you're not ill or something?"

Yun Feng shook his head. "I'm certainly not. I'm probably just tired with the constant working."

"Take a break or something. I'll ask my father to not deduct your wage," said Li Xin.

"No, it's fine. I'll just buy some medicine on my way." Yun Feng rejected. Li Xin had already done a lot for him. After all, Li Xin was merely someone from the side branch of the Li Clan; he held little to no influence in the clan. In fact, it was Li Xin's father who had helped Yun Feng land a job in the Li Clan.

"What's the job for today?"

"Cleaning."

…

...

...

...

"Phew."

Yun Feng wiped the sweats off his brow as he sat flat beside the tree, shielding him from the atmosphere. He looked over at the other servants cleaning the messy field.

The training of the direct line of the Li clan had just finished. They usually trained with wooden dummies and, as a result, broken pieces of wood were thrown into the grounds. Some of the weaker ones practiced with sandbags but even then their repeated punches wrecked the bag. As it was windy, the soil was scattered in the field, causing extra trouble for the servants to sweep. After all, the training field of the Li Clan was as large as two football fields. Hence, taking some time to clean.

Yun Feng took a deep breath and continued sweeping. Few minutes later, the field was finally cleared. That means he was now free.

As a part-time helper, he only needed to complete one task and then he could leave.

Others were given the same benefit unless one was a full-time servant.

Yun Feng followed the other servants as they walked through the corridors.

"It's really quite unbelievable, isn't it? Young Master Li's growth is simply too heaven-defying; time changes so fast, now a punch from him can smite a low-tier puppet into pieces! He's simply a monster."

"Indeed. He was a mere nobody from the side branch, but so talented. It took him a short four months to reach the peak of Qi refinement from the second level."

"Not to mention that, he's even a master of the bow. I heard he even encountered a demon worshipper and he didn't lose out, though the enemy escaped."

"I bet he soon will become one of the Elites of the Heavenly Dao Academy, standing at the top of the younger generation."

Yun Feng agreed with them. Li Fei was indeed talented, he even think the boy was a genius. He felt that his situation has some similarity with Lin Fei, though the latter was someone he could only look up to.

Yun Feng took his leave as soon as they arrived in the front yard. He bid farewell to Li Xin and headed for his next job.

"I wonder if those brats have taken their lunch." Yun Feng frowned in worry, but as he remembered how caring Auntie Wan was to his siblings, there should be nothing to worry about.

Yun Feng walked along the street. During the afternoon, the students of the Heavenly Dao Academy would roam the street, looking at the various stalls. As a result, the street was crowded.

"Light Snow Silk up for sale. If you buy one, you can get one for free. Only for a cheap price of hundred gold liangs."

"Everyone take a look at these enchanted weapons…All have different attributes, come you might find a fitting weapon for yours to use."

"Qi Absorption Pill, Qi Absorption Pill for sale! For only as low as twenty low-tier spirit stones! Not accepting gold liangs!"

"Are you an aspiring martial artist but have no cultivation manuals to start your journey? Good, I'm selling basic manuals that are suitable for any spiritual roots. Only for as cheap as five hundred spirit stones. Negotiable!"

This street was a free market. Everyone was able to put a stall as long as they paid a considerable amount. Of course, the high-end district was separated, and that market was even more ridiculous compared to here — A single piece of stone there could fork like one thousand to ten thousand spirit stones. A thousand spirit stones were equivalent to a million gold liangs, enough to live for ten lifetimes.

Of course, to a mortal like Yun Feng, there was no way he could buy something in this cultivation market, everything around was so expensive. This was also the reason why Yun Feng set aside his thoughts on martial arts. His current situation did not allow him to do so…

As he walked along the street, Yun Feng suddenly halted. Someone blocked him. It was a hunchbacked old lady caped in dark clothes. She held a shining ball in her hand.

"Young man, your fate is winding."

"Excuse me?"

Yun Feng cautiously stepped back. Although he knew what the old lady was talking about, he had a bad feeling.

"Do you want a divination?"

Predictable. "No, sorry."

Yun Feng decisively shook his head. These kinds of people were usually swindlers who trick people into believing their prophecy. He was not someone they could ripped-off!

After declining the offer, Yun Feng immediately passed over to the old lady. He even hastened his steps.

However.

"Every night you dreamed the same dream."

Yun Feng suddenly stopped on his track. He turned his head in shock and stared at the lady. This gotta be legitimate, right? If not, how could she know something he only knew about?

The old lady smiled and turned around. She clasped her hand behind the back and strode in the alleyways.

Yun Feng hesitated. He desperately wanted to know more about that dream of his, but he was also afraid that the lady was up to no good.

"Screw it. It's afternoon, what am I worrying about?"

Yun Feng gritted his teeth and followed the old lady.