"Brother Ou, think about why you've come..."

A graceful figure appeared in Ou Yangming's mind. In the beginning, it was only a tiny black spot that seemed to be extremely far away, but the figure approached him quickly. It stopped when it was right in front of him and was clearly visible.

It was a delicate and charming face that looked at him coquettishly, and the red lips that kept opening and closing suggested that the person was saying something.

"Brother Ou, think about why you've come?"

'What do you… Mean?'

"Brother Ou, think about why you've come!"

'Why have I come? What exactly have I come?'

Ou Yangming, whose consciousness was about to sink, suddenly awakened. The figure became bigger and louder in his head, so much so that the voice resounded in his consciousness like deafening thunders.

'Why, have, I, come?'

A pair of withered hands appeared in Ou Yangming's mind.

He was an orphan, an orphan who, ever since he was a child, had no one to care for him. His biggest fortune in life was that he grew up being fed by a hundred families in the village. Once he grew up, he left the village to wander here and there.

That year, Ou Yangming was 13 years old, and it had become difficult for him to beg for leftovers from adults. He wanted to be a helper, but suffered from malnutrition and was as thin as a match, so nobody was willing to take him in.

Ou Yangming's favorite season was summer because he could find more food, and could rest in any corner on the street if he was tired. The warm sunlight helped him stay away from cold, and he did not need to worry about freezing to death at night.

He hated winter the most because it was very unlikely for him to find food during severe winter, and most importantly, freezing nights were a survival test for him. Ou Yangming had seen too many wanderers, stray cats, and stray dogs that fell asleep on a winter night without ever waking up the next day. Additionally, their corpse or carcass ended up being an energy source for other living beings that were also struggling between life and death.

Ou Yangming did not want to become one of them. He did not want to at all. Therefore, he adopted all sorts of methods and did his best to survive.

However, he fell sick.

That winter night, he felt terribly sick. As he lay on the ice-cold floor, he felt the heat from his body dissipating. Even his thick hundred-families-clothes1 could not stop the process.

Ou Yangming vaguely saw pairs of evil eyes staring at him, so he subconsciously kept his guard up because he did not want to die.

All of sudden, through his half-blurred vision, he saw a pair of withered hands covered in aged spots.

Following that, he felt something warm. It was a warmth that was stuck in the deepest part of his memory; a warmth called family affection.

Ou Yangming saw the hands' owner after his high fever went away.

Old Craftsman had carried Ou Yangming back to the military camp, and took the initiative to take care of him. The old man had managed to save the young boy from a serious illness.

Hence, from that day onward, Ou Yangming lived in the military camp, not having to worry about food and clothes anymore.

※※※※

Ou Yangming's ear suddenly hurt as it was being pulled hard.

"Ouch, old man, be gentler! It hurts, it hurts, it hurts…"

Ou Yangming's scream was heard outside the drill ground, and waves of laughter were heard as a result.

In the military camp, Ou Yangming envied the disciples from decent families because they could become soldiers. They were well-nourished, had a strong body, and could learn martial arts. Since Ou Yangming envied them, he often peeped at them.

Nonetheless, Old Craftsman despised this habit of Ou Yangming's, so the old man would run to him whenever he peeped, and pull him by the ear to drag him away.

"You're peeping again! Aren't you afraid they'll suspect that you're a spy, and chop your head off with a slash!"

"Ouch, old man, look at what you're saying. As long as you're around, they won't lay a finger on me!"

"Hmph, one day, I won't be here anymore. I'll see what you can do then!"

"Old Man, you'll live a long life, so you'll definitely be able to protect me."

"Stop flattering me and get your book. How much of what I taught you yesterday do you remember?"

"Ah, old man, what's the point of reading and learning words? It's not as interesting as practicing martial arts like them."

"Pfft! Look at your thin body, how could you think about practicing martial arts? Look after your health and learn more words before you think about that!"

"Ah, reading… It's difficult…"

"Young fella, are you going to read or not?"

"Ouch, old man, let go! I'll read, of course, I'll read! Don't you know that I love reading!"

After being threatened by Old Craftsman's fists, palms, rods, and sticks, Ou Yangming finally learned all the basic words, and could read a book on his own.

※※※※

"B*stard, why are you eating so little today? Don't you want to cultivate martial arts? If you don't eat more, how are you going to practice martial arts in the future?"

"Old man, I heard from the people in the kitchen that this is a medicinal food, and it's quite expensive. It's best not to have this next time."

"Pfft, what the hell do you know? Your body has been weak ever since you were a child, and you have an incompletely cured illness. If you don't recuperate through medicinal food, how many more years do you think you can live? Hmph, I brought you here to bury me in the future, not the other way round!"

"But…"

"Are you going to eat or not? Hey, where's my stick? Where did you hide it?"

"Ouch, old man, I'm almost done eating. Look, did I not finish even the bones?" Perhaps because Ou Yangming ate too quickly, intense coughs were heard coming from him.

"Bones? Are you a dog? Be careful not to choke on your food. Eat slowly, nobody's snatching your food from you. Ah, look at your short temper, when will you change…"

※※※※

"Have you remembered the way to identify raw materials?"

"Of course, even if you're old, you should know who I am."

"Is that so? Bring me a featured iron ingot then."

"Old man, it's here!"

"Idiot, I asked for a featured iron ingot, why did you bring me a normal iron ingot? I knew you didn't learn well. Where's my stick?"

"Ouch, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts! Old man, please show mercy…"

※※※※

"Watch closely, you must remember the way to smith from raw materials and to extract purity. This is the basic skill of a blacksmith, so you must grasp it."

"Old man, I'm not a Military Fire Blacksmith, why must I learn this?"

"Hmph, are you not allowed to learn because you're not a Military Fire Blacksmith? Even a normal blacksmith can smith armaments, and as long as you pick up this skill, you won't starve to death."

"Oh, I see… Okay, I'll learn it!"

"Cough, cough…"

"Hey, old man, you're coughing again. Did you catch a cold last night?"

"Ah, I'm getting old, I must admit it… Hey, why are you distracted again? Where's my stick?"

While in a trance, streams of clear liquid rolled down Ou Yangming's closed eyes. He finally realized that Old Craftsman had already begun to show signs of his life's exhaustion, but Ou Yangming had not cared.

He had always not cared!

※※※※

"Oh right, take this saber to Zhang Yinfan, he's looking for you."

"He's a stingy person, it's not good if he's looking for me."

"Aren't you going?"

…

"Good fella, take this!" Old Craftsman picked up a fractured saber and tossed it to Ou Yangming.

The fractured saber was slowly restored in Ou Yangming's hands, and became a usable military saber again.

"Listen carefully, a real Military Fire Blacksmith isn't an ordinary blacksmith. Each time you forge a weapon, you must use your heart.

"Come, watch how I do it, and use your heart to perceive.

"Do you remember it?

"Repeat it.

"Idiot, you can't even memorize the formula. Who should I hit if not you?

"Okay, I'll tell you again. Listen carefully… Memorize it!

"Ah, sorry, I'm too used to it. Continue… Why are you staring at me? Are you unhappy?

"Stop flattering me, memorize it again!

"Okay, I'll teach you the Layering Art. It's my final trump card, so I have nothing else to teach you after this.

"You damn b*stard, today's supposed to be a gleeful day, but you just had to embarrass me. I've been taking care of you for nothing!"

The voices slowly faded away and seemed to have agglomerated into an image.

Through the window gap, Ou Yangming saw the old man who was lying in bed. The familiar and old face was scarily thin, as though it belonged to another person.

This was the last image in Ou Yangming's memory, and everything was blank after that.

An intense and unbearable sorrow burst out from the deepest part of his body like a downpour of galaxy water; it was unstoppable.

Unknowingly, Ou Yangming's eyes were filled with tears, and due to the blurred vision, he could not see anything even in the spiritual world.

"Brother Ou, think about why you've come!"

It sounded like an alarm in the morning, and he was completely awoken.

'Why have I come… Yes, why have I come?

'I've come for Old Craftsman, I've come to prolong his life. Before I acquire the Life-prolonging Golden Pill to prolong Old Craftsman's life, I mustn't fall down! I mustn't!'

As Ou Yangming's body trembled violently, he had an upsurge of emotions, and he became high-spirited. His heavy eyelids opened up bit by bit.

A considerable amount of tears rolled down his cheeks and soaked the clothing in front of his chest, but his eyes were resolute like never before.

Ou Yangming's body that had fallen down earlier was full of power again, and the enormous mental stress could not bother or restrain him anymore.

'Old man, you've done enough.

'I'll be filial to you in the days ahead. You'll enjoy life in comfort.'

Subsequently, Ou Yangming stepped forward with determination, and each step taken was firm and steady.

His body was like a solitary rock in turbulent and boundless waves as he made his way to the sixth level's platform.

'Old man, I want nothing but you to stay alive…

'Stay with me, stay alive!'

Clothes made from various cloth strips