The Sovereign's Rest, Tianlin City.
At the edge of the ruined Vale estate, in a still-standing shack.
"Ethan, I can't hold on any longer. Promise me, you'll take good care of yourself. Wait for Victor and Derek to return with Elena."
A frail, delicate woman lay on a pile of straw, speaking weakly to Ethan Vale.
"No, Sophia! You can't die. You have to live... live to see me avenge Father and Mother!"
Ethan knelt beside her, clutching her hand, shouting with all the desperation in his voice.
"It's my fault... I failed. Barry Yates is the Sovereign now—untouchable. There's no revenge left. Seeing you once more... that's enough for me."
Sophia Vale's face softened with a bittersweet relief, but deep in her eyes hid a sorrow that wouldn't fade.
Moments later, her breaths grew faint as sleep claimed her.
"Sophia!"
Ethan looked at her weathered face, eyes burning red. His hands pressed hard into the rough stone floor, fingers splitting open, blood seeping out.
"Eighteen years..."
His gaze became hollow, as though speaking to himself.
Eighteen years ago, Ethan Vale's soul crossed into this world, becoming the fourth son of Blaine Zephyr, leader of the once-mighty Vale Clan in Tianlin City.
Victor, his eldest brother, had been a Martial Saint sect disciple. Sophia, his second sister, was unmatched in beauty and had married the City Lord as a favored consort.Ethan Vale's third brother, Derek Vale, was an inner disciple of the Roaring Sky Sect.
Though Ethan wasn't as accomplished as his older brothers, he still had the potential for martial excellence, with his entry into a sect seemingly just around the corner.
But the true prodigy of their family was their fifth sibling, Elena Zephyr, who was born with the rare Cold Soul Physique.
When Ethan was thirteen, during a training mission, he encountered an opportunity to acquire a Flame Spirit Herb, something that could alleviate Elena's ailments. In his eagerness to help, he injured a poor commoner boy in his way—a boy named Barry Yates.
Barry, a nobody mocked by his peers, had never once dared stand up for himself. However, this incident lit a fire in the boy.
Within three months, Barry's rise was meteoric. He defeated Ethan in a duel, destroying his Sea of Qi in the process.
Sophia Vale, Ethan's second sister, tried to avenge him, leveraging the resources of the City Lord's estate. But her actions were thwarted by Isabella Stone, the City Lord's stepdaughter, whose affections Barry had somehow gained.
Barry's rise didn't stop there. The Roaring Sky Sect welcomed him, and within a year, he bested Derek Vale in combat, crippling his arm. Soon after, Barry became the personal disciple of the sect master himself.
One year later, Barry returned to the Vale family's city with vengeance in mind. Blaine Zephyr, Ethan’s father, and the entire Vale family were destroyed.
Sophia Vale, cast aside by the City Lord, Grant Rowe, was thrown into the dungeon to rot.
Barry Yates continued his rise, eventually ascending to the throne of the Xuan Celestial Empire as its almighty ruler. His reign was absolute. Barry Yates destroyed the Vale family but kept Ethan Vale alive, ensuring he remained a cripple in the city of Tianlin to endure scorn and humiliation.
Everyone in Tianlin understood Barry's intent—stepping on Ethan had almost become a city tradition. For years, Ethan had been surrounded by enemies, living in relentless disgrace, his spirit crushed.
Yet dying had never been an option. His elder sister, Sophia Vale, imprisoned in the city lord's water dungeon, relied on the medicinal herbs Ethan painstakingly gathered and traded for bribes just to survive.
A day ago, Sophia had been declared critically ill and sent back to him, left to await death.
"Never thought I'd be the so-called chosen one’s stepping stone," Ethan muttered bitterly as he draped a tattered quilt over his sister. "To fall like this—what a cruel fate!"
His jaw tightened with resolve. "Sophia, I won’t let you die. Even if it takes my life, I’ll save yours!"
Casting one more look at her frail figure, Ethan left the dilapidated woodshed, determination burning in his eyes. These eighteen years spent with the Vale family had forged an unshakable bond—blood thicker than water, unbreakable.
At the Spirit Herb Hall, Ethan pleaded, "Manager Brooks, could you let me owe you for now? My sister..."
"Shut your mouth, you shameless beggar!” Oscar Brooks sneered. "No money, no medicine. Get lost!"
The shout summoned burly staffers, who promptly shoved Ethan outside. Fists and boots rained down on him without mercy. The Herbal Hall used to belong to the Vale family, with its shopkeeper and clerks once loyal to them.
After the Vale family was wiped out, the hall fell under the City Lord's control.
For years, the herbs collected by Ethan Vale could only be sold at the Herbal Hall—at just thirty percent of the market price. No one else dared to buy from him.
Ethan's face was smeared with blood as he crawled back to his feet in front of the Herbal Hall, limping away as he clutched his side.
"I have to get the herbs... If I don't, Sophia will die!"
His voice trembled only in his mind—his lips didn't move, his body numb from the pain.
The gates of the Loftus estate loomed ahead.
"Well, would you look at that? Isn't it Ethan Vale?"
"What brings His Highness here today?"
The guards at the gate sneered, the mockery sharp and unbridled.
The Loftus family stood proud among the great clans of Tilian City, their daughter Charlotte Loftus once a childhood companion of Ethan’s, promised to him in marriage.
But after the fall of Ethan's family, Charlotte became a ghost in his closed-off world.
Ethan knew she’d tried—and failed—to align herself with Barry Yates after her father's push.
"Ethan Vale, requesting to see Miss Charlotte," Ethan rasped, voice hoarse and voice cracking.
"You think Miss Charlotte would see someone like you? Get lost!"
One of the guards, who once spoke to Ethan with utmost respect, barked at him, disdain dripping from every word. "Please, just inform Miss Charlotte Loftus. Tell her my second sister is gravely ill—if she doesn’t get treatment now, she won’t make it. Ethan Vale will never forget your kindness," Ethan said, his head bowed low.
A few years ago, when he and Charlotte were together, Sophia Vale had shown great affection for her, often gifting her with precious items and the cultivation pills she needed. Perhaps, just perhaps, Charlotte might remember those sentiments and lend a little money.
"Hahaha! Beg? That’s how you beg for help?" one of the guards scoffed. "Get on your knees, and maybe I’ll deliver your message!"
The guard who had just told Ethan to leave seemed to enjoy himself immensely. He didn’t actually believe that the once-proud Fourth Young Master of the mighty Vale family would kneel before him. But just the thought of putting on airs in front of Ethan satisfied him. If Ethan dared to retort, giving him another beating would be even better.
"So, what will it be? Kneeling, or no help for your sister? The great Sophia Vale, once the pride of Tianlin City, the dazzling city lord’s wife—isn’t her downfall your fault?"
"See? You can never tell who’ll rise in life. Once, it was Barry Yates fated for nothing but humiliation, only to end up as the supreme Emperor Yates!"
"Your family’s destruction—it’s all on you!"
"You're nothing but a cripple. Get on your knees already. Do it, and maybe, just maybe, you’ll still have a chance to save that beautiful sister of yours."
The other guards joined in, hurling taunts and insults, their words cutting deep.
Thud!
Without warning, Ethan dropped to his knees. His knees slammed hard against the stone slabs at the gates of the Loftus mansion.Ethan Vale’s hands clutched tightly against his legs, nails biting into flesh. He gritted his teeth. As long as he could save Sophia Vale, his second sister, no amount of humiliation was too great.
“Ah, look! He’s kneeling!”
“Hahaha, can you believe it? The proud Fourth Young Master of the Vale family is groveling!”
“Come quick, everyone! See how low this useless waste has fallen!”
Laughter rang out from the guards at the Loftus manor gates, their mockery cutting deep. The heavy creak of the gate interrupted their jeering.
The woman who stepped out had a presence that silenced even the noise. Charlotte Loftus, tall and striking, her long legs and snow-smooth skin impossible to ignore. Her eyes held no warmth, only disdain and arrogance.
“Get up,” Charlotte said coldly, her voice sharper than her gaze. “Don’t you dare kneel in front of our house. It’s revolting.”
“Charlotte, please,” Ethan begged, his voice trembling. “My sister… she—"
“Shut your filthy mouth!” Charlotte snapped, her disgust evident. “How dare you say my name? And as for that wretched Sophia Vale—she's not worth my time.”
With a sneer, she produced a gilded paper, the marriage agreement their families had once signed. She tore it into pieces, flinging the shredded remains into Ethan’s face. One piece fluttered in front of him, its bold heading unmistakable—Marriage Contract.
Ethan opened his mouth to reply but was cut short. A sharp impact struck his face—a crimson pebble, hitting just below his left eye. The pain stung, but what hurt more was the memory it carried.
There it was, lying in the dirt at his feet. The small stone, carved with two intricate words: “Ethan” and “Charlotte.” He had been twelve when he’d found it, a rare red stone from their day playing by the creek. Back then, he had given it to her, believing it would carry the innocence they once shared.
Now, it lay before him, a relic of another life—a life that no longer existed.Blood trickled down Ethan Vale's face, the gash at the corner of his eye throbbing. Charlotte Loftus smashed the token of their supposed love, defacing not only the wooden engraving of their names but also his eye.
Their first meeting after years apart, and she shredded the engagement into nothingness, leaving him broken and blinded.
"Cripple! Get lost!" Charlotte's voice was ice, her expression colder still, devoid of even a flicker of pity. Without sparing another glance, she turned and stepped into the Loftus family estate. The heavy wooden doors slammed shut behind her, sealing him entirely out of her world.
Ethan knelt there, unmoving. His head remained pressed to the ground, as if frozen by the crushing weight of humiliation and despair.
“Look at this fool. Begging after being thrown out.”
“Does he think he can win her back? Pathetic.”
“Miss said, ‘Get lost!’ You deaf or what?”
The mocking voices swirled around, stabbing at whatever remnant of pride he had left.
Yet, for Ethan, those jeers began to fade, muffled as if coming from a distant storm.
His left eye, drenched with blood, burned as he saw something impossible—a sword. It was there, vivid and crimson, its weight unbearable, pressing down from somewhere deep within his vision.
This blade—it was monstrous. Heavy beyond belief. It pinned him in place, robbing him of even the strength to lift his head.
