Chapter 1427: Memories of the Past (I)

“Then... shall we begin, senior?”

Zhang An looked at Li Hao and nodded, taking in a deep breath. “If you insist and aren’t worried, then it’s alright with me! I can also take a look to see if I was wrong all these years...”

It was hardest for people to see themselves clearly at times. It was easy for one to think that they could also accomplish something if another could, but reality often demonstrated the opposite of that.

His aim since childhood was to catch up to the Human King and the rest. He was of the same age as the Human King, Exalted Blood Emperor, Exalted Hard-Headed Emperor and others. They were only a few years apart, so they were his goal.

But reality was sobering. The gap between them only grew bigger; he never closed it.

“Then let us go,” Li Hao smiled. “I hope to make some good gains before Silver Moon rises in stature...”

The long river appeared and circled around Zhang An. The man breathed out slowly. He’d come here to convince Li Hao to be more careful and send him out the Star Gate to look for New Martial. But somehow, it turned into him perusing his past with Li Hao!

The river waters flowed around Zhang An and a star floated out of Li Hao’s forehead. It glimmered with radiance—the true star of time was almost completely one with Li Hao.

He’d integrated his body into it. It was a unique combination for both Li Hao and the star.

Time flowed backward, his memories returned to their deepest depths!

Parts of his past that he didn’t wish to revisit or couldn’t manifested in Zhang An’s mind.

The two fell down into the river with a feeling of weightlessness. Li Hao stuck to Zhang An’s side, whereas Zhang An entered the body of his memories. He wasn’t in control, just along for the ride to observe his memories.

The scene flashed in front of Li Hao’s eyes and a person appeared in front of him. Magnificent, formidable, unparalleled!

This person’s presence wasn’t all that strong, but it levied unbearable pressure on Li Hao. He sensed fear from the young Zhang An!

“Grandfather!” called out the Zhang An that they were part of.

Grandfather...

Li Hao understood that they were seeing the supreme of New Martial! He hadn’t thought that this would be the first person they met. What a coincidence.

A person appeared in front of Li Hao. This should be the grandfather that Zhang An was addressing—Supreme Zhang Tao of New Martial.

Li Hao knew a little about this esteemed personage; the supreme had left a deep mark on New Martial history. He was the guardian of the Human King and one of his mentors. The supreme’s influence was undeniable. Being one of the forerunners of human emperor dao in New Martial, he later severed his own dao to facilitate the Human King’s own.

In the last battle of New Martial, he answered the call of battle against the ruler of the Core Origin era—the Heavenly Emperor. The supreme ultimately died in battle and was brought back to life by the Human King.

Zhang Tao was one of the main proponents of New Martial and its strategist. Strictly speaking, it would take the combination of Director General Zhao, Gan Wuliang, Lin Hongyu, and Hong Yitang to barely have the same effect as the supreme.

And this effect was measured in terms of administrative affairs.

Zhang Tao exercised jurisdiction over all of New Martial’s political minutiae. Out of them, the field of education was his forte. It was quite a happy surprise to encounter him as soon as they fell into the past. Although, given Zhang An’s identity, it was only a matter of time before they came across the man.

The identifier of ‘grandfather’ sent Li Hao into a daze; the Zhang An that he was attached to was also staring off into space. The old Zhang An was no better off—it’d been so long since he’d last seen his grandfather!

Too long!

He’d lost contact with his grandfather ever since arriving at Silver Moon—both out of an avoidant tendency and fear. His grandfather was a highly respected, affable, and charming old man in many people’s eyes... but Zhang Tao was terrifying in Zhang An’s opinion.

Zhang An’s older brother was the mainstay of the family and everyone doted on his younger sister for being the youngest. That left Zhang An stuck in the middle. He lacked his brother’s independence and his sister’s lively charm. He’d been afraid of his grandfather since childhood. Even now, his soul trembled involuntarily when faced with the man.

“You’re back.” The old man in front of them looked at Zhang An. Although he was an old man, he presented a very youthful exterior. It was only the slightly weary look in his eyes that showed the hardships of life.

“Yes, grandfather!”

“Go pack your things and prepare yourself to attend Demonic Martial!”

“De... Demonic Martial?”

“Yes.” The old man smiled, as if having thought of something. “An interesting fellow has appeared at Demonic Martial, you should be familiar with him...”

“Fang Ping?”

“Yes!”

Boom!

Li Hao’s mind buzzed. It seemed that the river of memories was affected simply from mentioning this person. It threatened to buckle from the shock, immensely surprising the young man!

This was just the past!

It was memories of the past and a memory of Zhang An mentioning one person’s name. Just that was sufficient to rock the river. What kind of might did this person possess??

“That’s him!” laughed the old man, blithely unaware. “He’s an interesting little fellow and destined to become a premier pillar of support for humanity. I’ve decided to train him as the third generation director to take over my position!”

“Grandfather, he seems to be highly skilled in causing trouble. He raises a huge fuss wherever he goes. The Earth Dwellers have rioted a few times because of him. Many of our warriors have died and numerous veteran grandmasters have fallen in battle because of it. Yet you...”

“What foolish thinking! How absurd!” lectured the old man with dissatisfaction and disappointment. “Other people can mouth these words, but you cannot say such things! You are my grandson and have benefited from my personal tutelage!

“Your elder brother set out to hold down the fort against the Earth Dwellers a long time ago. When it comes to you, I’ve put forth everything I have to raise you!

“Skilled in causing trouble?” snorted the old man. “The Earth Dwellers are invincible and innumerable, how are we to turn the tides in our favor? Are we to do nothing but doggedly defend ourselves and wait for them to invade en masse?

“Do you know why he raises such a fuss every time he goes? He even causes a pitched battle if possible! Whether it is I or anyone else, no one stops him. That’s because we need someone to break through this stalemate!

“Since he dares to do so, is willing, and is capable of doing so, then let him! We will jointly bear the cost of all consequences!

“He is the soul and spirit of your generation. He possesses a spirit that will never be defeated or speak of failure. The Human King will sacrifice even himself if the situation calls for it. The older grandmasters... willingly to go to their deaths for him!

“Only then will we possibly have a future!” The old man frowned with displeasure. “He can poke fun at himself and the veteran martial masters can joke at his expense, but no one truly thinks that he’s done anything wrong! Since he’s willing to take the risk, then we have the resolution to endure all of the consequences for him!

“Zhang An, you are young and haven’t seen much of the world yet. Your view of the bigger picture is limited, so I want to send you to Demonic Martial to get to know him. He said that I should be careful because he wants to take revenge on me, that I should not send my family to Demonic Martial. I’m not going to listen to that!”

The old man laughed, great meaning in his amusement. “I’m going to send you and your younger sister there. He can do whatever he wants! I’d like to see if you can grow out of your indecisive and waffling habits after coming in contact with him.

“Zhang An, you started off at a higher point than him and you’re stronger than him. You have me for your grandfather, he does not. However, I do not wish for you to think less of the heroes of the world for it!

“Someone who can plague the innumerable powerhouses of the Earth Dwellers to the point where they want to eat his flesh and drink his blood... There is much that you can learn from him. You should respect him—the only thing you shouldn’t do is think lightly or bear a grudge against him!

“The war with the Earth Dwellers would still erupt without him. With him, we have a powerhouse with which to exterminate our enemies. You might not strike within reaching distance of him all your life...”

The young Zhang An seemed quite disinclined to accept these words. He was a superb genius in other people’s eyes, one with immense potential. Combined with his excellent upbringing and genteel demeanor, he was used to being showered with compliments from a young age.

But today, his grandfather suddenly told him that he was being sent to Demonic Martial for none other than to imitate someone else, to befriend a bumbling young man!

Zhang An was highly put out, but didn’t dare say anything in front of his grandfather.

He didn’t want to go to Demonic Martial, he had his eyes set on Capital Martial. Although the two were equally renowned, Capital Martial focused even more on martial dao and produced more powerhouses from its alumni. While Demonic Martial’s reputation had grown rapidly over the past couple of years, that was because Fang Ping was a student there.

Zhang An was much more inclined to attend Capital Martial and nursed a deeply buried thought that he could cause just as much of a stir from Capital Martial and help the university stand on equal footing with its counterpart again.

Adding to someone’s splendor was not as memorable as rendering aid in a time of need. And with the Zhang family’s influence concentrated in the capital, he would flourish better there. Zhang An saw himself leading Capital Martial to participate in the next nationwide martial dao gathering, seizing the championship, and breaking Demonic Martial’s streak of back-to-back victories over the past two years.

......

Li Hao listened quietly, sensing one thing not apparent from the scene. Contrary to public opinion, the supreme highly valued his grandson. The truth was very much the opposite of what Zhang An thought—Zhang Tao had great hopes for Zhang An.

He even hoped that Zhang An could become close comrades with the future Human King, that he would become part of the inner circle, just like how the Exalted Blood Emperor had become.

For that, the supreme cracked the joke of sending his grandson and granddaughter to Demonic Martial for Fang Ping to treat as practice targets. He just needed to ensure that no lives were endangered. Well, Zhang Tao wouldn’t mind even if his grandchildren ended up dead!

The old Zhang An also watched the scene with complicated emotions. This had been a conversation between him and his grandfather before he set off for Demonic Martial. His past self had rankled at his grandfather’s decision, but didn’t dare refuse. He was furious and bitter that his grandfather valued someone over himself!

I’m the grandson here, why is grandfather so biased toward that good-for-nothing troublemaker? He keeps creating more issues for mankind! So many grandmasters have answered the call for war and died in foreign lands because of his impetuousness!

Zhang An really hadn’t understood back in the day!

But now as he looked back on history, Zhang An sighed to himself. He had been ignorant and arrogant in his youth. He had indeed been too full of himself.