Entering the Chen Kingdom, Kaelan immediately notices how different it feels from the Tang Kingdom.
Where the Tang Kingdom is draped in forests and low hills, its people hardened by constant battles with demons, the Chen Kingdom offers a calmer sight—open plains, fertile fields, and cities built along winding rivers.
The difference lies in geography.
The Tang Kingdom rests on the southwestern edge of the Human Territory, its south and west flanked by lands inhabited by demons.
Constant intrusion from those borders has made martial training a necessity, turning even commoners into fighters.
The Chen Kingdom, however, faces no such threat.
To its west rises the jagged black mountain range, steep and impassable, marking the divide from the demon lands.
Rivers flowing from those dark peaks nourish Chen's soil, turning it into one of the most prosperous regions among humans.
To its south lies the Tang Kingdom, to the east the Ren Kingdom beyond a narrow stretch of swamp, and to the north the Lan Kingdom.
Without demon incursions, Chen's only real threat comes from its neighbouring kingdoms.
For that reason, its royal family maintains the largest and most formidable cavalry among all human nations.
Unlike other kingdoms, Chen has fertile land and an abundance of grain to feed countless warhorses and mounts.
As the convoy travels through villages, towns, and cities toward the capital, Kaelan witnesses a vast variety of horses—strong, swift, and majestic.
Some even carry traces of demon blood, their eyes glinting with faint, unnatural light.
The journey from the border to the capital takes fifteen days.
During that time, Kaelan comprehends the basic law of metal through the mysterious iron and forms the foundational visualisation map for the metal element.
He then begins studying the Law of Morning Dew, refining his understanding of elemental harmony.
By the twelfth day, he fully masters the Dark Ice Sword magic power and turns his focus to the Scorching Sand Sword magic power.
Like the Dark Sword, which merges Ice, Darkness, and Gravity, the Scorching Sand Sword is a fusion of Fire, Sand, and Light.
He chooses it deliberately—because among all his elements, his understanding of Fire stands second only to Darkness and Death.
Upon reaching the capital, the Mu Rice House begins its business, selling the unique delicacies of the Tang Kingdom.
From the manager, Kaelan learns that they won't depart for at least a week.
That means he has seven days to train—and he intends to use every moment.
He leaves the capital behind, determined to master the Scorching Sand Sword magic power.
He knows he must increase his combat strength as fast as possible.
The journey to Chen Kingdom was peaceful, but he doubts the return will be.
His instincts tell him danger awaits.
The convoy's success threatens too many powerful interests.
If Wuya Escort Agency completes this mission, they'll secure their position as one of the top escort groups in the Tang Kingdom.
Their enemies will never allow that to happen.
And some of those enemies are after him specifically.
By creating the Holy Fetus Realm and breaking the limits of martial arts, Kaelan has drawn the eyes of greed and fear alike.
Some want his cultivation method.
Others simply want him dead—for the threat he represents.
He needs strength not only to defeat them, but to crush them so completely that no one dares to rise again.
He flies to the borderlands of the Chen Kingdom, settling beneath the shadow of the Black Rock Mountain Range.
There, he trains day and night, his blade burning with sand, fire, and light.
Five days later, he masters the Scorching Sand Sword.
Now only two remain—the Spring Rain Sword and the Silent Wind Sword.
The Spring Rain Sword draws upon the powers of Wood, Lightning, and Water.
The Silent Wind Sword fuses Metal, Wind, and Sound.
He decides to practice the Spring Rain Sword first, since among its three powers—Wood, Lightning, and Water—he already has some understanding of two.
The first move, Misty Rain.
He channels his mana, summoning a veil of fine drizzle that shrouds him completely. His figure vanishes in the mist.
The purpose of the move is not attack but deception—blurring the enemy's vision while gathering water essence from the air for the next strike.
The second move, Water Lashes.
The rain coalesces into serpentine whips rising from the ground, lashing the rocks around him until they shatter to dust.
The third move, Unending Stream.
The lashes merge into a roaring torrent, a concentrated jet of water that pierces straight through a cliffside.
The fourth move, Root Strike.
The water fades, and thick roots burst from the soil, thrashing wildly, tearing through boulders and trees alike.
The fifth move, Root Torrent.
He infuses the roots with water mana, merging them together into a massive, writhing current of vines that sweeps the land in a spiral surge.
The sixth move, Blood Surge.
The roots and nearby plants dissolve into energy that floods into his veins. Strength surges through his body—his punch detonates like thunder, splitting the air.
The seventh move, Lightning Shock.
He channels mana inward. Static energy gathers and races to his fingertips before exploding outward in a blinding arc of lightning.
The eighth move, Lightning Water Cut.
A blade of condensed water forms in his grasp, crackling with lightning. He swings, and a wave of thunder and water tears through the ground, leaving devastation in its wake.
The ninth and final move, Heavenly Storm.
Dark clouds swirl above him, the sky trembling.
Then comes the downpour—blinding rain and colossal bolts of lightning descending together, a storm so fierce it feels as if the heavens themselves have turned against the earth.
He repeats the nine moves again and again, each sequence sharper, more devastating than the last. His mana burns with every strike, dwindling fast.
When it drops below half, he halts his training and sits cross-legged, closing his eyes to recover his energy.
Far away, in the jagged folds of the Black Rock Mountains, a battered group trudges through the rain, every member wounded.
The woman leading them—Princess Chen Yuyan—glances toward the storm's heart. "Qing, are you certain someone's training there?"
The man beside her, Qing, his arm slashed and blood-soaked, nods grimly. "Princess, you know my gift. I can sense spiritual energy from afar. And from that direction—I felt a surge unlike anything else."
Another man, clutching his bleeding abdomen, staggers closer. "Qing… are you sure it's only one person? Not two fighting?"
Qing exhales sharply, pain flashing in his eyes. "With our state, does it matter? If it's two, better for us—maybe one won't side with the attacker."
They quicken their pace, pressing through the storm, the sound of thunder guiding them toward Kaelan's blazing aura.
Kaelan hears hurried footsteps beneath the storm's roar. Opening his eyes, he sees a wounded group staggering toward him—bloodied, exhausted, pursued by men in black whose killing intent rolls through the rain like smoke.
Moments later, the two groups clash. Steel flashes. The injured fight desperately, but they are being pushed back. A woman among them, her clothes torn and face pale, shouts through the chaos, "Stranger, please help us!"
Kaelan stands unmoving, silent under the rain.
The leader of the black-clad pursuers catches sight of him and snarls, "Kill him."
Three assassins break off from their group and charge toward Kaelan.
Kaelan sighs softly. He had no wish to interfere—but attacking him, an innocent bystander, marked them as villains. His eyes narrow slightly. "Ice Sword."
He channels mana outward. Three transparent ice swords form in the air, gleaming coldly before they dart toward the incoming assassins.
The three raise their weapons and shatter the blades midair—but Kaelan's eyes flicker, and the fragments twist, reforming midflight. The broken halves pierce their chests cleanly.
They drop lifeless into the mud.
Kaelan lifts his hand slightly, and the six shards of ice pull free from their bodies, swirling together and reshaping into six perfect swords. They surge toward the remaining enemies like a blizzard of death.
The men in black fight to defend, but the ice swords and the counterattack from the wounded group leave no survivors. One by one, the pursuers fall, their blood mixing with rainwater.
As silence returns, Kaelan turns away and starts walking.
"Sir, thank you!" the woman calls after him.
He glances back once. "No need. I didn't save you. I killed them because they attacked me. You should thank them."
The woman lets out an awkward laugh. "Still… may I at least know your name?"
Kaelan's figure fades among the rocky outcrops. "Kong Wuya."
The group searches the fallen for anything useful, then resumes their trek once the rain lightens.
Qing murmurs while walking, "Kong Wuya… I've heard that name somewhere."
The princess looks at him. "Where?"
He frowns, shaking his head. "It's not coming to me right now."
Three days later, they reach the royal capital. The princess personally presents the Ice Lotus to her father, the King of Chen.
After hearing the full account of their journey, the King asks, "You said someone saved you?"
"Yes, Father. A man named Kong Wuya."
A minister steps forward, eyes wide. "Kong Wuya? You mean the new martial art ancestor?"
The King and the princess exchange glances. "New martial art ancestor?"
The minister bows. "Yes, Your Majesty. He's the one who created a new realm beyond the Ultimate Martial Realm—the Holy Fetus Realm. The man who shattered the limits of martial cultivation."
At that moment, an elderly man enters—the royal ancestor, finally recovered from his long healing.
The King bows respectfully. "Great-grandfather, how are you feeling?"
"For now, stable," the old man says, voice low but steady. His sharp eyes sweep across the room. "But I heard you mention a new martial art ancestor?"
The King explains everything the minister said about Kong Wuya.
The ancestor listens quietly, then nods. "Find out what this Kong Wuya likes or where he stays. I intend to meet him."
Seeing the confusion on their faces, he adds, "The conflict of demon bloods within me—I've managed to suppress it, but not forever. If he truly transcended the limits of the martial path, he might help me stabilise it."
The King nods gravely and turns to the minister.
The minister bows deeply. "I will investigate everything about Kong Wuya at once, Your Majesty."