Chapter 1: The Timeline Known Worldwide

In the 145th year of the Great Zhou Dynasty, during the 2nd year of the Zhengsheng era.

In Yunzhou, within the city of Jiankang, in the town of Huaiyuan.

The autumn air is thick, with the night growing slightly cool.

Cough... Cough..

From within the thatched cottage, there came a continuous, weak cough, accompanied by occasional gasps and cries.

"Big brother! Big brother!"

A child, dressed in coarse linen, with a frail body and dark skin, knelt beside the bed, clutching the covers tightly.

Their eyes, numb with sorrow, watched as the young man lying on the bed gradually grew weaker, his coughing subsiding into shallow breaths.

Soon, the young man's breath dissipated entirely, before the child could even cry out.

Just when the breath should have ceased, it unexpectedly returned, the chest rising and falling steadily.

A glimmer of surprise flashed in the child's eyes.

Quickly rising, they went to the table in the room, picked up a bowl of warm soup with bits of bread floating in it, and walked towards the bed.

"Where am I? Have I failed?"

Liang Hui felt the stabbing pain in his chest and murmured to himself.

However, the physical pain did not faze him. He had experienced too much of such suffering ever since he was deceived by his boss under the guise of a tourist trip to a neighboring country. Now, the most important thing for him was to confirm if his escape was successful.

After a year of investigation and planning, he had managed to flee from that area, even crossing a river, getting closer to his homeland.

Before he could dwell on it further, memories flooded his mind like a tide. The intense pain made him grit his teeth, and large beads of sweat kept forming on his face,sliding down onto the bed. Yet, he remained conscious. "Great Zhou...

Yunzhou... Liang Hui... Wolf Gang...

So that's it? What luck!" Liang Hui murmured intermittently in his mind.

Through memories shared with a youth bearing the same name as him, he knew a few things.

It seems like Liang Hui has indeed traveled to a world with extraordinary powers.

"Big brother, you're awake! This is great. I was afraid you'd leave like mom and dad," a voice filled with joy and tears interrupted Liang Hui's thoughts.

At this moment, the boy had already brought the soup bowl to the bedside and offered it to the young man. "Big brother, drink up. Drinking more will definitely make you feel better."

Looking at the boy's thin, dark face and his constantly moving throat, Liang Hui remained silent for a moment. Then, he drank heartily.

The weakness in his body and the stabbing pain in his chest reminded him that if he didn't want to die, he shouldn't hesitate. Only by staying alive could he have a future.

Liang Si, on the side, stared longingly at the diminishing warmth of the soup, swallowed hard a few times, and did nothing else.

Phew~

After finishing the warm soup, Liang Hui felt the warmth spreading in his abdomen. Struggling, he sat up, preparing to articulate his well-thought-out plans. Suddenly, the entire world seemed to freeze in place. A deep-seated memory imprinted itself upon the entire realm.

It was the story of a young man named Liang Hui, rising from the ruins, ascending from the dust to become an immortal. With fists that conquered all corners of the universe and defeated heroes of both past and present, he led billions of souls to transcendence, establishing a divine court and waging war in the void.

At this moment, as if time had been frozen and then resumed its flow, a clamor erupted throughout the world, and everyone whispered:

"Huaiyuan Town, Liang Hui!"

Some believed it to be just a grand dream, while others saw it as a divine oracle bestowed by the gods.

Some believed it to be true and were willing to support him in his ascent, reaping the rewards of his future achievements. Others, regardless of the truth, sought to snuff out the young man in his moment of vulnerability.

The world's elites, regardless of their motives, are now rapidly converging towards Yunzhou and the remote town of Huaiyuan.

"Big brother, ascending to immortality?" Liang Si's gaze was vacant as he struggled to sit up, addressing his elder brother.

"What did you see?" Liang Hui's expression changed for the first time, his voice no longer as composed as before, as Liang Si spoke.

"Big brother, I saw your fists conquering all, unmatched by any hero in the world," Liang Si's face was filled with admiration, the prospect of such a future too brilliant for a peasant like him to dare to imagine.

Seeing the expression on his original younger brother's face, Liang Hui felt a chilling sensation emanate from the depths of his heart.

Ignoring the broken bronze bell that suddenly appeared in his mind after the memory ceased, Liang Hui realized that the unexpected flashback was not witnessed solely by himself, but also by Liang Si beside him. If Liang Si saw it, then who else did?

"Liang Si, go out and take a look," Liang Hui restrained the tumultuous emotions in his heart, setting down the soup bowl and speaking with solemnity. He needed to ascertain whether the vision of the seemingly future was known only to him and Liang Si, or...

"Yes, big brother," Liang Si replied, already striding towards the door with determination.

Creak!

As the door opened, Liang Si darted out and disappeared beyond the threshold.

Now, the room was empty, with only Liang Hui remaining. He slowly immersed his consciousness in his mind, observing the broken bell that had suddenly appeared.

The bronze bell, riddled with cracks, emitted a faint yellowish glow, each beam containing an aura of indestructibility. These glows intertwined, forming densely packed inscriptions.

Artifact Name: Flowing Light Bell

Artifact Master: Liang Hui (**)

Divine Ability: Dream Ingress

Occupation: None

Skills: None

"The Flowing Light Bell, a treasure trove of the divine court, forged by my own hands in what seems to be the future? It has even caused the gods and demons of various realms to tremble!" Liang Hui murmured to himself. The broken bell in his mind was no stranger to him; it had appeared too many times in what seemed to be memories from the future.

What caught his attention was the divine ability, "Dream Ingress," which seemed to be a power that emerged from the combination of his soul with this body, rather than something brought by the Flowing Light Bell.

How intriguing!

Liang Hui's gaze was deeper than ever before.

Clang!

As his thoughts wandered, the door was abruptly pushed open. However, the figure that entered was not Liang Si returning from his investigation, but three burly men dressed in gray armor, with a green wolf head embroidered on the chests of their clothes.

The wolf head, with its open mouth resembling a roar, looked ferocious.

Such attire belonged to only one underground force in Huaiyuan Town

—the Wolf Gang. The leader of the group was a man named Hong Er, a low-level member of the Wolf Gang and the main culprit in the death of the original host.

Several days ago, a dispute arose over the ownership of the deed to the original host's house, leading to a brawl. It was during this altercation that Hong Er, with a single heavy blow to the chest, ultimately caused the original host's death after days of struggling.

Now, as Hong Er observed the slightly surprised expression on the young man's face upon their arrival, his eyes gleamed with intensifiedmalice. He reached into his pocket and retrieved a pair of iron knuckles, fitting them over his fists.

"Lucky for you, kid, we've been waiting around the perimeter for you to die these past few days. Although I don't know why those memories appeared, and I don't believe a peasant like you could overturn the world!" Hong Er muttered to himself.

"But killing you would bring peace of mind."

With these words, Hong Er strode confidently towards the bed, while the two gang members behind him glanced at each other hesitantly, sensing a contradiction between their intended action and the demeanor of the young man.

Even though days ago it was just a matter of showing off for Hong Er, he had not laid a hand on the young man. But now, Hong Er stood before the bed.

His right fist slightly retracted, gathering strength.

Then, he swiftly launched a powerful blow toward the young man's head.

As he watched the indifferent youth, a hint of ruthlessness and satisfaction flashed in his eyes. No matter how brilliant the future might be, at this moment, the young man was meant to become a victim of his fist.

Boom!

Suddenly, a solemn and ancient bell rang out in the room.

In that instant, the air froze, and everything in the room came to a standstill.

Then, Hong Er's right fist, which had been launched with such force, fell weakly to his side.

His mouth opened, but no sound came out, only blood flowing continuously from the corners of his mouth, followed by shattered organs.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Along with Hong Er, the two hesitant men in front of the door collapsed.

Liang Hui looked on indifferently at the scene before him. Despite its shattered state, the Flowing Light Bell was still a divine artifact, and clearing out the riffraff was a simple task.

"Big brother! What... what is this?" A voice tinged with fear came from outside the door.

Liang Si, pale-faced, stared at the three figures lying on the ground.

Liang Hui leaned back on the bed, his gaze inexplicably fixed on Liang Si at the door.

"Liang Si, the place you went to investigate seems quite far," Liang Hui said, half-leaning on the bed, his tone casual.

"Big brother, I ran out into the streets and checked other places too. It's strange, many houses in the town have candles lit. Shouldn't everyone be resting at this time?" Liang Si expressed his confusion.

Liang Hui exhaled a sigh of relief, looking up at the dilapidated roof, his gaze profound. Considering Hong Er's words and Liang Si's investigation, he had already prepared for the worst.

He gestured towards the corpses on the ground. "Earlier, Hong Er and his men came, but l've taken care of them."

Pausing for a moment, he continued,

"Liang Si, go and bring me the knuckles from Hong Er's body."

"I understand, big brother," the boy replied without hesitation, immediately bending down and tremblingly removing the knuckles from Hong Er's body, then handing them to Liang Hui.

Examining the weapon in his hand carefully, Liang Hui's expression grew thoughtful.

The knuckles were made of finely crafted iron plates, with the center crafted from leather of an unknown animal-a pair of very ordinary weapons.

However, Liang Hui keenly sensed a trace of aura on the knuckles.

Following this aura, he felt that he could use the divine ability "Dream Ingress," but he refrained from activating it for now. The current situation was too dangerous for him to experiment. After all, no one knew what using divine abilities would consume or what kind of disturbance it might cause.

After making up his mind, Liang Hui set the knuckles aside and spoke earnestly, "Liang Si, do you remember the temple near the western outskirts of the town?"

The "sister-in-law" mentioned by Liang Si was not someone the original host was married to or engaged with, considering their family background. Instead, it referred to the woman who would accompany the youth in the future.

In their memories, the first meeting place of the two was the dilapidated temple.

Liang Hui didn't explain his true thoughts but instead said, "Help me up. Let's go to that temple."

Without hesitation, Liang Si reached out and helped the youth up.

After getting out of bed, Liang Hui, dressed in tattered brown clothes, wrapped the knuckles in a piece of cloth. With Liang Si's support, he slowly made his way past the corpses towards the door.

The closer he got to the door, the calmer his heart became.

At the threshold, moonlight bathed the youth's figure in silver.

He looked up, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Regardless of who brought him into this fascinating world, he felt sincerely grateful.

Transcendence!

So many heroes throughout history had exhausted everything in pursuit of it, yet failed.

Now, as long as he could overcome the current crisis, it was within his reach!