A Valiant Life - Chapter 5: Is this a dream?

“Those who defy the heavens must be prepared to pay the price.”Zhu Rong dared to forge a divine grade weapon in the mortal world, an act the heavens deemed a challenge to their authority.In response, the tribulation descended with fury, striking him down and ending his life in a blaze of divine wrath.But death was not the end.In the moment his soul scattered, he awoke once more... in the body of his 17 year old self.With his memories intact and the mistakes of his past laid bare, Zhu Rong is granted a second chance, to repair the regrets that once shackled his heart, to reclaim the strength he once lost, and to finish the masterpiece that cost him everything.This time, he will forge his legend anew.And this time, not even the heavens will dare to stand in his way.

'Why' does one strive to attain power?For what reason does one endure various rigorous trainings, endure the bruises and the batterings, and go ahead to drill their soul and body into perfect shape just to become stronger?Those ridiculously overpowered, god-like monsters that walked the Earth knew, because they never stopped training.But I didn't know the reason.Why, one might ask?The answer was quite simple, really.I had no desire to 'know' the reason, and I had no drive to discover the 'why.'It was because my circumstances gave me no reason to become stronger. And stupidly enough, I greatly believed that I was strong enough to fend for myself.But boy was I wrong.Fate punched me in the guts, and proceeded to give me very, very good reasons to abandon my narrowed mentality and strive to become stronger than I thought I was.And those reasons multiplied by the day.As I ventured out of the dreary slum-like backlands that I grew up in — diving head first into the wider world overrun by monstrous aliens, insanely advanced technology, and humans with supernatural powers — the initial 'why' had grown to become quite... numerous.So come. Come read my story.And see how I crawled out of the depths of the dejected Island called the backlands as a nameless underachiever, and grew to become a.. tether to the entire universe.Come read how I came to be called...The Twilight of the Vast Expanses.

Cassian had lived his life in the most miserable way. He had scrubbed the floors and washed the clothes in the cold winter and done everything just to please his uncle’s family, but in return, they sold him to a merchant only for a pouch of coins.And the merchant decided to gift him to the king of Aetherlyn, a faraway kingdom from his small village to show his loyalty and curry favor from the king. And he was the lucky one from the group to be choosen by the king. Thus he got the position of palace servant.Cassian thought maybe his life in the palace would be different, but he was bound to be disappointed as the people in the palace were far more sinister and ruthless. Scheming ran in their blood.And can anyone tell him why his path always crossed with the notorious first prince of the kingdom? The seemingly cold prince had an unpredictable temper. And why was he always drawn to him like a moth to a light?Will Cassian be able to survive in the palace where the true faces are hidden behind masks, or will he become more entangled in their schemes and just become a mere pawn in their game?

After Xia Feng transmigrated, his heart was mysteriously removed.In its place, a defective demon heart capable of sustaining life only for eighteen years was implanted.This is a magical heart that can sync with the power level of its target.To stay alive, he bound himself to the ultimate villain of the future, a Destructive Witch who was destined to destroy the world.The stronger the Destructive Witch becomes, the stronger he becomes!Thus, Xia Feng realized, it's not my fault for stirring up trouble: “Miss Witch, I admit you're strong, but not strong enough!”