The city of Liangzhou was magnificent above.
Surrounded by massive walls, worn brittle by war and the passing of time.
At first light, the whole of Liangzhou came back to life with sound and movement.
The central market was like a universe—a maze of stands and voices.
Beneath bright awnings, vendors shouted out their goods:
"Fresh dumplings, steamed hot!"
"Authentic beast cores—final one after a Fire-Wind Wolf!"
"Spirit-forged daggers! Sharp enough to cleave the boulder!"
In between crowds, children darted back and forth, giggling, grasping candied plums and toy weapons.
Armored mercenaries traded for healing salves.
A hooded old cultivator was squatting on the side of the road, selling the talisman for change.
The smell of cooking flesh and incense wafted on the morning breeze.
Deeper inside, the forge dwellings echoed with the rhythm of hammer on steel.
Sparks danced like fireflies over open smithies as the apprentices mopped sweat and the masters murmured to molten blades, willing spirits from their cores.
Proud spires rose in the noble district, each engraved with a family's crest and guardian sigils.
Courtyards were alive with spirit flora, their petals giving off a weak glow under the morning sun.
On high, scarlet battle flags streamed from watchtowers like the wings of a dozing dragon-silent at present, but forever prepared to fly in defence.
Liangzhou looked eternal in the distance.
But beneath the surface of grandeur rhythmic tensions brewed.
This was not a city of peace, but a city built on sacrifice.
Every few generations, the Beast Tide would come—waves of beasts out of the Unseen Wilds and batter at the city as surf upon stone.
Countless lives were lost. Houses burned. Districts fell. Yet each time, the city rose—ruined but not destroyed.
The locals named it the "City of Ten Thousand Defiances."
To others, it muttered a different ominous name: "The Waiting Grave."
***
Near the outer wall, huddled inside an inner mountain rim, was the renowned Heavenly Path Academy, where some of the most accomplished young warriors and scions trained to rise up and one day protect Liangzhou.
It has created innumerable heroes who have given their lives to save the city.
It was the pride of Liangzhou, the hope and future of Liangzhou.
But on that day, something far less lofty was happening on the academy grounds.
"I'm telling you, Yuyan'er, that your coldness is even more enchanting."
A lad with emerald robes draped over his body leaned slouching against a weeping willow, a roguish grin that pulled at his lips.
His hair was tidy, face clean, posture graceful——the epitome of a young master's appearance.
The girl, unfortunately, appeared to be about to vomit.
"Li Fengyuan," she snapped as she pushed past him, "do you have nothing else to do but hang around me like a stray dog?"
"Oh, I certainly do," he said suavely as he fell into stride alongside her. "And that's exactly what I'm doing!"
Around them, students whispered. Some snickered.
"Young Master Li is doing it again."
"Tsk, tsk… Shen Yuyan should accept him already. His talent is trash, sure, but the Li Clan is a Noble Family. It's not a bad deal."
Others rolled their eyes. The young master of Li Clan had not behaved like a fool for the first time.
It was a regular old habit.
Li Fengyuan didn't seem to be concerned about what others thought about him and chased the girl into her seat in class.
And then something happened to Li Fengyuan.
There was a quick jolt — as if lightning had severed his skull. The sun itself above appeared to wink.
A high-pitched buzzing sound ensured his ears were ringing. His body stiffened, his eyeballs widened and the world turned white.
Memories poured in.
"Argh!"
He staggered backward, holding his chest.
(What happened?)
He still vividly recalled the moment he took on the Demon God with his body covered in blood, practically about to collapse.
(Did I die?)
It was the only reasonable conclusion—because the last thing he could recall was staring that reality in its horrid face.
But this was not the afterlife … or any void.
"Li Fengyuan?"
Shen Yuyan's voice sounded in the distance, with traces of worry.
And then the picture focused, and a girl he vaguely remembered stood before him.
(Shen Yuyan?)
He looked up, eyes trembling.
(Is this… Heavenly Path Academy?)
Glancing around, yes, this was indeed the old school he had gone to.
(A dream?)
He said he could not know, perhaps only flashes before death. But it was too vivid—too real—to be either.
(Regression?)
That was the only thing that could happen now—and what he badly wanted to happen.
It only took a moment, but he knew the truth.
This wasn't a dream.
He had truly returned.
Back to when he was fifteen.
He remembered everything.
The fall of Liangzhou.
The treachery of the great houses.
His cowardice. Their deaths.
"If I could do it again… I'd protect everyone."
And now—against fate, against reason—he was back.
A second chance!
***
"Shen Yuyan, you have long been in agreement with the Young Master. Your family has no way to antagonize the Li Clan!"
Said arrogantly one of the boys walking behind Li Fengyuan.
Another nodded and added.
"You must understand that this is for your own good, you know. You should be honored that Young Master Li is interested in you!"
As soon as those words were spoken, Shen Yuyan's expression turned cold.
Just because her clan wasn't from a noble household didn't give others the right to look down on her, or try and force a marriage.
Her hatred of Li Fengyuan only increased.
BANG—!
"Dare to say that again?"
The girl next to Shen Yuyan slapped the table in indignation!
From her dress alone, it was clear she belonged to a powerful noble clan—not someone to be trifled with.
The boys stared, startled to see who she was. They went mute and wouldn't even look her in the eye.
"Hmph! Cowards!"
The girl muttered.
She was Xiao Mei—Shen Yuyan's best friend and the daughter of one of the most powerful noble families in Liangzhou.
"Hey, Li Fengyuan, keep your little dogs in check. Or else I will not only beat the dogs, I will also have their master accompany them."
Xiao Mei warned, her voice chilling to the bone.
From her tone alone, it was clear the Xiao Clan stood above the Li Clan and she wasn't afraid of Li Fengyuan in the slightest.
Li Fengyuan was still in a daze as he subconsciously focused on the two girls in front of him.
(Xiao Mei…)
Though still in her early teens, she carried herself with noble bearing—the kind born not from arrogance, but from strength and responsibility, totally different from himself.
She was dressed in sweeping robes of azure cloth, accentuated by silver trim, garb elegant and pragmatic—clothing typical for a girl who'd known both the courtesies of court and martial discipline.
Long, waist length dark hair with soft waves and warm golden-orange highlights, that shine under the light.
Gentle waves of hair droop around her face and hang down past her shoulders.
She stood there with grace but also recklessness in her eyes, that challenged anyone who questioned her.
She had always been this way.
Fiery! Loyal! Proud!
She was with him in his past life, and had stuck by him until the very end when her body had been ripped to pieces beneath beast claws.
Li Fengyuan's chest tightened.
"I couldn't save her then."
She has died saving him—while he couldn't do anything but just watch helplessly.
She'd risked everything for a man who hadn't even been worthy of her friendship… much less her love.
But now, she is still alive.
Under the desk he made a fist and held it.
"This time, I will save you with all my strength!"
Li Fengyuan muttered.
He looked at Shen Yuyan, who stood next to Xiao Mei with peace on her face.
Her long hair blowing gently pink in the light as it swept down her back like silk.
Her hairpin was fine as the spring breeze, there were many small flowers dotted on top of it with deep blue ribbons that embellished them.
Her expression remained calm and distant—not a trace of fear, only annoyance.
There was strength in her silence. A quiet defiance in the way she held her head, eyes clear and unflinching.
A gentle girl, with a face like porcelain and steady violet eyes that rarely smiled.
That was Shen Yuyan.
But when she did smile, it was like winter plum blooming in frost, softening the harshest parts of the world.
And he—Li Fengyuan—had been the fool who froze that rare warmth with his own arrogance.
Back then, he thought he was merely pursuing her. Showing affection. Giving her the "honor" of his attention as a noble heir.
But in truth?
He had cornered her. Pressured her. Refused to listen.
How many times had she begged him to stop?
How often had he laughed it off, pretending it was a part of flirtation?
Now, seeing the slight crease between her brows, the subtle edge in her posture, and the poised distance in her gaze—he finally understood.
And he knew he deserved it.
But not anymore.
He breathed out, long and steady as if expelling a lifetime of arrogance in one breath.
I know who I love. I know what I want. And I know who I was.
This time there will be no mistake!