Chapter 01: Snow Wind Continent
Night slowly settles in a quiet manner as bright stars begin to appear.
On the hillside, a child about six-year-old is standing in a strange position. The child’s feet stretched open, toes touching the ground with the heels lifted, hands raised high above the head, his head tilted up; faint spiritual energy constantly circling around his small body.
Moonlight shined down enveloping the child's body.
The child continued in this bizarre position, inhaling the spiritual energy into his body, letting it flow along the meridians.
The night slowly passed.
As the moonlight faded, replaced by the first ray of sunshine, the child slowly lowered his palms. His eyes opened to reveal deep dark pupils that seemed to have a sharp golden glint deep within them.
Huang Xiaolong breathes out a mouthful of foul air, eyes staring at the rising sun. From birth to present day, it has been seven years since he came to this world. He started practicing the Body Metamorphose Scripture since he was three, and now four years later he managed to reach the Third stage; Palm Propping the Sky Gate.
In his previous life, his ancestors trained under the Shaolin Temple banner, and Body Metamorphose Scripture is an inheritance from his ancestors. Until now, Huang Xiaolong has been unable to clarify the reason he, someone who hailed as a prodigy of martial arts in his time, was brought into this world.
And the matter that depresses him the most is he awoke in the body of a newborn baby.
Huang Xiaolong looked at his small thin arms and smiled sourly. He was seventeen and after fourteen years of hard work, he finally managed to train in the Body Metamorphose Scripture till the Ninth stage, never did he imagined that he would be starting from scratch again.
At this moment, a soft rustle of footsteps reached Huang Xiaolong’s ears, coming in from the hillside. Huang Xiaolong knew who it was without having to look over his shoulder and sure enough, soon a tender childlike voice cried out: "Big Brother, I know that you are here to see the sunrise, Dad and Mom are looking for you.”
Huang Xiaolong turned over his shoulder and saw a five-year-old lovely little girl, her hair braided into two long braids and big round eyes, coming up the small hill. This little girl is Huang Xiaolong’s sister, Huang Min.
Other than Huang Min, Huang Xiaolong has another brother, three years younger, named Huang Xiaohai.
"Dad and Mom are looking for me?" Huang Xiaolong asked: "What is the matter?"
"I don’t know." Huang Min’s voice laced with innocence: "Brother, let’s go back. If we are late, then Dad and Mom will spank your backside!”
When Huang Xiaolong heard this, he squeezed Huang Min’s cute little cheeks, smiled and said: "Then let’s go."
Huang Min rubbed the spot Huang Xiaolong pinched on her little face, pouting her mouth and said sulkily: "Brother, you are truly hateful. I have said before that you are not allowed to pinch my cheeks!”
However, just as Huang Min’s finished her words, her cheeks were once again pinched by Huang Xiaolong, laughing as he makes his escape, Huang Min’s screaming in the back trying to catch up.
"Brother, don’t run!"
In the end, the siblings frolicked down the hill as they reach the Huang Clan Manor at the foothills.
Although he was seventeen in his previous life, however, being by his sister Huang Min’s side brings out the child in him.
Soon, the siblings reach Huang Clan Manor.
Back in the manor, Huang Xiaolong headed straight to the Eastern Courtyard’s hall. When he arrived at the main hall, there is a middle-aged man in his mid-thirties with scholarly looks, dressed in a white robe sitting in the hall, and next to him is a pretty woman. This married couple is Huang Xiaolong’s father in this life, Huang Peng and his mother, Su Yan.
"Dad, Mom, you were looking for me?" Huang Xiaolong asked as he entered the hall.
Huang Peng raised his sharp, sword-like brows: "Where did you run off to early in the morning?"
"It’s fine. Don’t frighten the child." Su Yan said with a smile: "Long’er, in a few days you will be seven years old. It’s about time to awaken the Martial spirits in your body. Your father and I are planning to bring you over to the Martial Hall to awaken yours.”
Martial spirits awakening? Huang Xiaolong blanked for a moment.
In this world, humans have an existence termed as martial spirits in their body. A warrior’s strength is closely related to the strength of martial spirits. Martial spirits graded into low, intermediate and high-grade, rated one to ten with grade ten and above are considered as superb talent martial spirits, a heaven-defying existence. Only then, the body is able to absorb the world’s spiritual energy and becoming a Warrior.
Nevertheless, there are people born without martial spirits or some with crippled Martial spirits are unable to train thus, these people are considered as waste!
"Martial spirits." Huang Xiaolong’s eyes flickered for he too wants to know if he possesses martial spirits in his body and what will it be.
Thus, Huang Xiaolong led by Su Yan and Huang Peng to Martial Hall of Huang Clan Manor. When they arrived at the outer area of the temple, it was already packed with people waiting to awaken their martial spirits, apart from Huang Xiaolong other disciples of the Huang Clan Manor are also present.
...
An imposing middle-aged man stood in the center of the Martial Hall, square face, thick eyebrow and exuding an oppressive air, this man is Huang Peng’s brother Huang Ming, also Huang Xiaolong’s uncle. Next to Huang Ming, stood a boy the same age as Huang Xiaolong, the second child of his Uncle Huang Ming, Huang Wei, who is also here to awaken his martial spirits.
Huang Peng and Su Yan led Huang Xiaolong to the hall center, greeting Huang Ming: "Big Brother.”
Huang Xiaolong followed after his parents, calling: “Uncle.”
Huang Ming seeing Huang Peng and Su Yan arriving, his expressionless face loosens slightly, nodded and said: "You’re here."
In Huang Xiaolong’s memory, he had never seen this uncle of his laugh. Huang Min is in charge of Huang Clan Manor’s Punishment and Discipline, therefore he is a very strict person.
Huang Ming no longer speaks after he greeted Huang Peng, and knowing his brother's temperament Huang Peng takes no offense.
Not long after Huang Xiaolong arrived, a hearty laughter resounded from outside the hall. When Huang Xiaolong and the others turned to look outside, a tall old man surrounded by a group of people enters the hall. This old man is none other Huang Xiaolong’s grandfather, Huang Qide, Huang Clan Manor’s landlord for forty years, the very person who established the Huang Clan.
"Old Manor Lord!"
Upon Huang Qide’s arrival, the disciples of the Huang Clan Manor in the hall quickly rushed over to pay their respects.
Huang Ming, Huang Peng and Su Yan also move forward with quick steps: "Dad!”
Huang Xiaolong, Huang Wei both came forward: "Grandpa.”
Huang Qide smiled, nodded his head at Huang Ming’s group, the facing the rest of Huang Clan Manor’s disciples, he smiled and said: "Do not stand on ceremony. Today, I came over just to have a look.” Usually, the Old Landlord would not make an appearance during Martial spirits awakening ceremony at the Martial Temple, however, this year is special because of Huang Wei and Huang Xiaolong, that Old Landlord exited his closed-door retreat earlier than planned.
Huang Qide walked to the front of the main hall, eyes swept passed the crowd in the hall before finally stopping on an old man in a gray robe next to him, laughingly said: “Since everyone is already here, let’s begin.”
"Yes, Manor Lord." The old man in gray-robe answered respectfully, then he walked to the center of the hall.
The old man in a gray robe is Huang Clan Manor’s Head Housekeeper Chen Ying, Huang Xiaolong heard his father explain. Chen Ying has been a follower of Grandfather Huang Qide for a long period, even before Huang Qide established the Huang Clan Manor, he was already by grandfather’s side.
Chen Ying stood at the center of the hall, light surging in his hands spreading an overwhelming force around the hall.
Huang Xiaolong eyes flashed; Is this power of a Ninth Order Warrior’s battle qi? So strong! Even with the strength of his previous life, having trained in the Body Metamorphose Scripture till the ninth stage, he still would not be Chen Ying’s opponent.
With Chen Ying’s channeling his battle qi, suddenly in the center of the hall, a hexagonal pattern suddenly glowed ever more brightly forming a beam of light.
"Huang Wei, you first." Huang Qide looked to Huang Wei.
"Yes, Grandfather." Huang Wei answered and stepped forward into the hexagonal pattern light beam. As the beam of light fell on Huang Wei, everyone in the hall’s focus was on Huang Wei within the beam of light. Huang Ming’s face has always been expressionless, however, this time looking at his son, there is a faint trace of tension on his face.
The beam of light wrapped around Huang Wei, shortly, a black light appeared, surging around and finally, a black shadow of a tiger emerged from behind Huang Wei. It is a black tiger with three eyes. As the shape of the black tiger condensed, a ferocious tiger’s roar echoed through the main hall.
Everyone was in shock.
Huang Qide stared at the faint black shadow behind his grandson Huang Wei, his eyes shone brightly as he let out a big laugh, tremendously pleased.
"This is a Grade Ten Martial Spirits, the Three-Eyed Black Tiger!" Head housekeeper Chen Ying cried out in a trembling voice.
Grade ten Martial spirits, even among the high-grade martial spirits, it is infinitely the closest to being the superb talent martial spirits.
Huang Wei’s martial spirits turned out to be a Grade ten martial spirits, the Three-Eyed Black Tiger!