Early August, at the height of summer.
Andrew Han and Monica Zhang, having tasted forbidden fruit for the first time, now savor its sweetness day and night, swept up in the fervor of their passionate romance.
In their little house in Greenfield City, the girl wears bunny-ear cotton pajamas, pure white and flawless, with a Pikachu patch on her chest that clashes with the overall style, accentuating her lazy, sleepy face.
Click.
She gently pushes open the iron door to the rooftop, her eyes fixed longingly on Andrew Han as he practices martial arts.
Boom!
Andrew Han tightens his right fist, adjusts his breathing, and slowly releases the Mountain-Sketch Pillar Stance. Even at the Second Mountain Level, it now struggles to refine his Magma-State Internal Power—only the Third Mountain Level could have any effect.
But reaching the Third Mountain Level is extraordinarily difficult.
Even his master, Miles Ning, after falling from grace, could only reach the Second Mountain Level—because the minimum requirement for the Third Mountain Level is Law Realm internal essence.
Without internal essence, it cannot be achieved.
Unable to master the Third Mountain Level.
"Forget it. There's no way to improve in the short term—unless my Magma-State Internal Power evolves again." Andrew muses quietly, then turns to approach Monica, who is leaning by the door.
It's about eleven thirty at night.
The two often commute between Greenfield City and Riverford. Roy Zhang is busy with company affairs, and Andrew's parents, Han Wenzhi and Chen Shu, rarely restrict him, allowing the couple to comfortably enjoy their own two-person world.
"Still not sleeping even though you're tired?"
Andrew's eyes soften with affection as he rubs the bunny ears on Monica's pajama hood.
As the youngest member of the Titled Sequence, blessed with an extraordinarily resilient body, he naturally doesn't feel the least bit tired. Monica, though she has reached Third Rank in the Martial Arts Ranking, with remarkable flexibility and suppleness, is still more fragile and needs moderation.
"Stay with me, hold me while I sleep," Monica murmurs, her voice soft and sweet, her body boneless and limp in Andrew's arms as if she has no strength left.
The two Pikachu patches press gently against Andrew Han, snuggling close.
"As you command."
Andrew Han chuckles, leaving the rooftop—after all, his martial arts have reached a bottleneck. Using soft Internal Power, he gently closes the iron door, and with a pulse of force, turns off the bedroom light. The two share a quilt, and the girl nestled in his arms soon falls asleep.
Her delicate face glows with a rosy flush, a faint smile at her lips.
Like a blissful little rabbit, she falls lazily asleep.
"Monica..."
Andrew props himself up, gazing blankly at Monica's flushed sleeping face—her complexion even fairer and more beautiful, long eyelashes, delicate features, occasionally murmuring in her sleep, curled up in his arms like a child.
In this moment—
The dark room is steeped in tranquility, with only the moonlight at the edge of the curtains flowing like silk and water, highlighting Andrew Han's clear, black-and-white eyes. They shine with a mysterious light, freezing the bedroom air as if an ancient immortal had descended into the world.
"From beginning to end."
"All I've ever wanted is just this."
Andrew sighs softly—even as his martial prowess reaches the highest echelon in Sinovera's martial world, his original wish and deepest conviction remain unchanged.
In this life, he asks nothing of the past, nor does he dwell on bygone days.
In this world, he does not chase fame or fortune, nor seek the highest peak—he only hopes for a good life, and for happiness for everyone around him.
At least for Andrew Han, the measure of his strength isn't in mystical martial power, but in whether he can change the memories of his past life, wash away old repression, and most of all, preserve these moments of beauty and peace.
"That's about enough."
"But before the nationwide martial arts movement begins, there's still one thing to do."
Andrew closes his eyes, gently holding the fragrant, soft, fair-skinned girl in his arms. His heart is resolute, without a trace of killing intent: "I've long sensed your plot to besiege me. Did you really think I only know martial arts and not strategy?"
Come, then.
All of you, come.
With your deaths, I will write the chapter of my rise to the peak of the Titled Sequence.
...
August 15th.
In the living room of the Han home in Riverford, little Lucy Han, dressed in a pink skirt, bounces and chases a red balloon, darting around the room like a lively fawn.
"Lucy, take a break."
Andrew Han sits on the sofa, smiling faintly as he speaks.
Lucy jumps up, grabs the balloon, turns her head and glares with wide eyes, her tone fierce: "Bad brother, you've found another girl outside. Lucy won't talk to you anymore."
"You need to call Monica 'Sister Monica.'" Andrew says with a cheerful smile.
At nearly five years old, Lucy Han's logic and clarity have sharpened, and with her innate Inspiration, her intelligence and emotional acuity rival that of a normal young adult.
"No!"
"Never! Not even if you beat me!" Lucy raises her little fists, shouting with fierce determination, her large, watery eyes sneaking glances at her brother, lost in thought.
She is more lonely than angry.
In truth, Lucy simply feels that Monica Zhang has stolen her brother away. After all, at just over four years old, she still can't distinguish between romantic love and sibling affection.
Andrew Han smiles: "Do you still want Seventh-Nest Pork-Rib Soup?"
"I don't want it!"
Lucy turns her head away stubbornly.
Andrew shakes his head and laughs: "I have all kinds of lollipops here... Lollipops, you really don't want any?"
"Candy."
Lucy hesitates, her dark eyes flickering with indecision. In the face of delicious food, principles can wait.
Thinking this, she scurries over on her short legs, pounces on Andrew, kneels beside him, and pitifully holds out her small hands: "Do you have coffee-flavored... or cola-flavored ones?"
"I've got them all." Andrew grins, pulling out a bag of lollipops, instantly lighting up Lucy's eyes.
Colorful lollipops.
To her, this is the best food in the world.
"This one, and this one."
"I want this one, and that one... actually, I want them all!" Lucy lifts her chin, fiercely hugging the bag of lollipops, scooting to the edge of the sofa on her short legs, as if afraid Andrew might take them back.
Andrew laughs: "Alright, they're all yours."
"Hmph."
Lucy glances at her brother, takes out a coffee-flavored lollipop, licks it twice, and then, satisfied, stops clinging to him, hops off the sofa, and returns to her little nest.
Andrew sighs.
He admits to himself that Lucy really has grown up—she no longer clings to him all day.
"But still..."
"Which one of you is setting traps, choosing where to lay your snares?" Andrew gazes out the window, his eyes deep and calm, as if a giant beast is awakening within, radiating an overwhelming majesty. "I, Andrew Han, am waiting for you."
It is mid-August; he is ready to welcome them as they come to deliver their own deaths.
...
Southvale provincial border.
In a wild, overgrown mountain valley, even the wind carries a chilling sense of death through the tangled grass and cold stone.
"Are you ready?"
A strange, glass-scraping voice echoes through the valley.
"We're ready." "We're ready."
The voices answering are those of Demons and Specters—a force of nine Great-Class Demons and six Great-Class Specters.
"Heh heh."
At the heart of the scheme, Mu Sam—the mastermind—slowly opens his blood-red eyes, radiating eerie malice, and lets out a resentful, ferocious ghostly laugh: "Human Andrew Han, we've come to kill you... Are you ready?"
...