Inside the rattling carriage, Chen Feng sat quietly while Suyan wiped the last of her tears away.
Seeing her master’s thoughtful expression, Suyun spoke up, breaking the silence.
"Master, do you understand now?" Suyun asked softly, her voice carrying a hint of historical weight.
"Why didn’t you know about this? Every child in our four great empires grows up learning this history."
She leaned closer, her eyes serious. "Right now, where we live is inside the **Azora Cloud Empire**.
Alongside ours, there are three other massive empires: the **Frostfall Empire**, the **Flameheart Empire**, and the **Galewind Empire**. Together, these four great domains form what is known as the **Great Martial Nation**."
Chen Feng listened intently.
"Even though these four empires are terrifyingly powerful," Suyun continued, "Within every empire were countless sects, and some of the strongest sects possessed power comparable to the imperial family itself. But have you ever wondered if there is anything beyond these four empires?"
She shook her head. "No one knows. Because all The four empires were surrounded on every side by enormous mountains that seemed to pierce the heavens."
"No one has ever crossed them. Even the most powerful martial artists in our world—those who have reached the pinnacle of the Martial Grand Master or Martial Lord realms—have tried to cross those outer peaks."
"Yet, none have ever returned successfully. Powerful beasts dwell within those mist-shrouded summits, blocking every path. It feels as though our four empires are nothing more than creatures trapped inside a giant cage."
Chen Feng’s mind raced. He recalled the fog-covered mountain range he had emerged from—a place guarded by a mysterious, apocalyptic beast.
*If even Martial Lords cannot cross those mountains, how did we end up here?* he thought, his analytical mind spinning.
*Could that monstrous entity back in our original realm possess time and space manipulation powers? Did its dimensional distortion transport us into this world? But wait... if a beast possesses such world-shaking powers, how could it be trapped inside a simple castle ruin? None of this fully adds up.*
"And the worst part," Suyan said, her voice dropping to a whisper, "is the **Great Change**. Every fifty-five years, without fail, something terrifying happens."
"Right at the geographic center of our empires lies the **The great death Mountain or the mountain of death**, a jagged peak forever blanketed in dense, unnatural fog. Once every fifty-five years, an earth-shattering roar echoes from its depths—a roar from an ancient, nameless beast."
She shivered slightly. "No one knows what creature it is, but whenever that roar sounds, reality itself fractures. Landscapes shift, cities swap places, and millions of lives are wiped out in an instant."
"Scholars have given that mysterious entity countless awe-inspiring titles: *The Chrono-Spatial Calamity*, *The Void-Shattering Sovereign*, *The Epoch-Weaver*, and *The Great Devourer of Eras*. But it remains an unsolvable mystery."
Suyun looked straight at Chen Feng, her expression grave.
"And master... there are only five years left before the next Great Cataclysm arrives. When it does, everything will be thrown into chaos once again."
Chen Feng sat frozen. The world he had transmigrated into was far smaller, stranger, and more terrifying than he had ever imagined.
The absolute limits of martial power—the legendary Martial Lords—were powerless against the perimeter mountains.
And the existence of a spatial-temporal beast hinted at a cosmic chessboard far larger than he could perceive.
*Only five years left...*
A strange, defiant smile slowly crept onto Chen Feng’s lips. *In five years, countless things can change. I’ve already grown this powerful in just a single day. Who knows what heights I will reach by then—if I stay alive?*
His thoughts snapped back to the present. He needed to focus on immediate survival and nurturing his investments.
Grrrrrr...
A strange sound came from beside him.
Chen Feng turned his head.
Su Yun immediately covered her stomach with both hands.
Her cheeks slowly turned red.
Chen Feng couldn’t help but smile.
She was hungry again.
Chen Feng reached into his system inventory and pulled out a packet of delicate, sweet pastries he had packed earlier for the journey.
Suyun’s eyes instantly sparkled at the sight of the food. Her stomach gave a soft, audible rumble, causing her cheeks to flush bright red with embarrassment as she instinctively covered her middle.
Chen Feng chuckled softly, handing the sweets over to her. "Here, eat up. You need your strength."
As Suyun eagerly took the pastries and began eating, Chen Feng noticed how the lingering tension, fear, and sorrow on her delicate face gradually melted away. *Myriad Food Physique... it really does have a profound effect on mental state and recovery,* he mused.
***
Far away, deep within a prosperous metropolis of the Azora Cloud Empire—one of the countless bustling cities governed by the empire’s five major sects—sat the sprawling, heavily guarded estate of the **Su Family**.
Inside the opulent and dimly lit main hall of the Patriarch’s quarters, a thick atmosphere of tension hung in the air.
The current Patriarch of the Su Family, an aged man with sharp, hawkish eyes and silver hair, sat leisurely sipping hot tea from a jade cup.
Seated across from him was a middle-aged man wearing dark, ink-black robes. His eyes were completely wrapped in a thick, pristine white cloth bandage.
Resting vertically beside his chair was a heavy, pitch-black staff adorned with golden talismans and strange, rune-carved metallic rings at its apex that hummed with a faint, chilling aura.
*Swish.*
Suddenly, a figure burst through the chamber doors, stumbling into the room and collapsing heavily onto the floor.
It was the fourth assassin—the very operative Chen Feng had failed to track down during the night. He had sneaked back into the Su Family estate under the cover of darkness, desperate and terrified.
The Patriarch didn’t blink, keeping his gaze steady on his teacup. "Well? Did you bring Suyun back alive? If not, a corpse will do just as well. The Shaman King has just briefed me on certain developments."
Hearing those words, the assassin trembled violently, his face draining of all color. "P-Patriarch... I have failed! The mission... the mission was a complete disaster!"
*Boom!*
A suffocating wave of pressure instantly crashed down upon the hall. It was the terrifying, oppressive aura of a **Martial Master realm expert** belonging to the Patriarch.
The floor tiles beneath the assassin instantly cracked and shattered into fine powder. A mouthful of dark blood sprayed violently from the assassin’s lips through his black mask as he was pinned flat to the ground by the sheer weight of the aura.
"What did you say?" the Patriarch’s voice dropped into a dangerous, icy register. "You had an elite martial squad with you, and the Shaman King personally lent you a high-level shaman master. How could you possibly fail?"
"Forgive me, Patriarch! Forgive me!" the assassin choked out, gasping for breath beneath the crushing pressure.
Sensing the man was near death, the Patriarch slightly reined in his aura, his eyes narrowing. "Explain. Exactly what happened?"
Between gasps of pain, the assassin spilled every single detail of the encounter—how a mysterious young man had suddenly intervened, slaughtered their comrades, and displayed terrifying, unfathomable strength.
As the report concluded, the Patriarch slowly turned his head to look at the mysterious figure sitting beside him—the **Shaman King, (The second elder of shadow bone sect)**.
Though the Shaman King’s eyes were covered by the white cloth, it felt as though an invisible, piercing gaze was dissecting the entire room.
Suddenly, a strange flesh-ripping sound echoed. At the back of the Shaman King’s neck, the skin split open, and a grotesque, blood-red eye with a vertical pupil slowly blinked into existence.
A heavy, ancient, and resonant voice echoed directly inside the minds of everyone in the room:
*"I can sense the shifting threads of destiny..."*
*"The future of this entire world and all four empires has begun to warp. That mysterious Martial Master who saved Suyun is no ordinary person. His fate is intricately bound to the core destiny of this realm."*
The red eye swiveled slightly within the Shaman King’s flesh. *"If you can hunt him down and bring his corpse—and his eyes—to me, I will grant you a peak of power beyond your wildest imagination."*
A wave of ecstatic thrill washed over the Shaman King.
Using telepathy, he communicated directly with the disembodied eye in his mind: *"Great one, do we no longer need the girl, Suyun?"*
*"Why would we not?"* the ancient voice replied coldly. *"The more, the better. I want both of their eyes and bodies."*
The Shaman King gave a stiff, respectful nod. He turned his face toward the Su Family Patriarch and spoke in his normal, chilling tone:
"They cannot have escaped far from the Azora Cloud Empire. Mobilize all our hidden forces, scour every single sect, every aristocratic family, and every hidden ruin within the empire. I want both of them brought to me—dead or alive."