Volume One: Awakening of the Dragon Soul Chapter 30: Li Qingchi's Memories

“A long story…” Mo Xing paused, then quickly responded, “Go ahead, I’m listening.”

“Let me just give you the gist of it,” Li Qingzhi said. “I grew up in Twin Moon Cliff, living a fairly comfortable life.”

“Until one day, outsiders waged war against us. The adults hid me and the other children in a cellar, stuffed us with food, and sternly warned us not to leave, unless the Sacred Sky Guardians came to rescue us.”

“We stayed in that cellar, breathing air that drifted in through a small ventilation shaft, eating food that still seemed plentiful enough, and listening to the endless bombardments and shouts above. We stayed like that for more than half a month!”

“My god, that long!” Mo Xing exclaimed, feeling as if it were the end of the world: adults fighting off invaders above, while children lived underground.

“Yes, I couldn’t stand it any longer, so I decided to go out and see,” Li Qingzhi continued. “That night, the other kids were all asleep on the straw piles, and the sounds from outside seemed to have stopped. I wanted to sneak out and check. The exit was sealed tight, and it took a lot of effort to pry it open.”

“I remember clearly, the moon that night was a crescent, a light rain fell from the sky, the stars hidden behind dark clouds. The night wind chilled me and scattered the hope in my heart.”

“I saw thick smoke, broken banners, corpses everywhere—it was a slaughterhouse. I wiped the tears from my face, standing alone in the rainy night, witnessing it all.”

“Quite poetic…” Mo Xing muttered, recalling the frontier poems he’d studied, scenes described like:

‘The moon of Qin, the fortress of Han, ten thousand miles of long march, none return.’

A sudden, inexplicable sense of desolation surged within him, and Mo Xing felt a pang of sympathy for Li Qingzhi.

“I forced myself to carry on. I ran through the rain-soaked night, searching for them, believing my family must be fighting in some corner—” Li Qingzhi paused.

“I climbed over the hills and finally saw my family. I waved and called out to them; they turned, their faces filled with panic, and shouted, ‘Run!’ As I was still confused, suddenly a group of outsiders appeared and a barrage of violent shockwaves blew them all away.”

“One second, they were alive; the next, they vanished without a trace. It was almost theatrical.” Li Qingzhi gave a bitter laugh.

“When I saw it, my legs trembled and I collapsed to the ground. The outsiders noticed me, too—a beam of purple energy shot toward me!”

“I closed my eyes in terror, and only after a while did I slowly open them, realizing I was still alive. The outsiders had all been wiped out, and a figure wearing a black-violet mask appeared in midair. He was the one who saved me!”

“Who was he?” Mo Xing asked.

“Him…” Li Qingzhi hesitated, “He was—”

“The Master of the Dark Sect!”

“What? The… Master of the Dark Sect?” Mo Xing’s face was filled with shock.

“Please, go on,” said Chief Zhang. Mo Xing turned to see that Zhang’s expression was calm, without a trace of emotion.

“Oh? I’d like to ask something off-topic—Chief Zhang, you could have killed me outright. Why leave me alive?” Li Qingzhi smiled.

“Because I want to hear your story,” Chief Zhang said with a slight smile.

“Pfft.” Mo Xing couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“That’s your reason?” Li Qingzhi burst into laughter. “Aren’t you afraid I might attack you once I recover, or that others from my sect will try to rescue me?”

“No worries, I can handle it. And rest assured, your associates won’t be coming for you.” Chief Zhang replied.

“Why do you say that?” Li Qingzhi asked, puzzled.

“It’s now eleven thirty-six at night,” Chief Zhang glanced at his watch. “Your associates were all apprehended half an hour ago, and in five minutes, the campus security will arrive to take you into custody.”

“Four minutes and fifty-five seconds left. Please finish your story,” Chief Zhang said with a smile. “We are listening closely.”

Mo Xing glanced at Chief Zhang beside him, feeling as if he were watching a crime drama. This man was simply too formidable, as if everything was within his grasp—commanding troops like Han Xin, strategizing like Zhuge Liang. He had the villains running in circles!

“Haha, amusing.” Li Qingzhi laughed. “I never imagined I, Li Moren, would see such a day!”

“So I’ll continue. The Master of the Dark Sect saved me and invited me to join them. All I cared about then was survival, so I nodded in agreement.”

“He smiled, drew a circle on my forehead with his finger, and an immense power surged into me. I passed out. When I awoke, I was back in the cellar, lying on the straw pile, with my companions snoring around me.”

“Like a dream…” Mo Xing suddenly said.

“Yes, I thought so too,” Li Qingzhi continued. “I got out of bed, went to the sealed passage, and spent some effort to pry it open. Crawling out, I found the scene outside was exactly like in my dream!”

“Exactly the same?” Mo Xing exclaimed.

“Yes, I was quite confused,” Li Qingzhi frowned. “I ran all the way to the hill, finally saw my family, waved and shouted to them, they turned with frightened faces, told me to run, then were blown away by outsiders—and the Master appeared again, saving me and destroying the outsiders.”

“He told me, ‘Did you see that power? If you join us, you can pursue ultimate strength.’ I broke out in a cold sweat, because everything was exactly as in the dream! Terrified, I agreed. He drew a circle on my forehead again, and I fainted once more. When I woke up, I was back in the cellar yet again!”

“My god…” Mo Xing was astounded. It was like a game constantly rebooting: every login, back to the beginner’s village, starting again from level one, fighting monsters, training, defeating bosses.

No save files, only endless restart!

“I kept witnessing the brutal battlefield, seeing family vanish, returning to the cellar over and over. The cycle repeated thirteen times! I was on the verge of collapse. Finally, on the last round, he asked if I wanted to join them. I cried and shouted, ‘No! I want to go back!’”

“He wore a half-mask; I couldn’t see his eyes, only his lips. He was silent for a moment, then smiled faintly and told me, ‘We will meet again someday.’” Li Qingzhi paused.

“Then everything went black, and I was back in the cellar. I thought it was another loop, but the scene changed to morning. Sunlight streamed in through the ventilation shaft, the kids had all gotten up—some were playing, some chatting, others eating breakfast, those not-so-fresh rolls. Only then did I realize I was truly awake.”

“A friend ran up and told everyone the Sacred Sky Guardians had arrived! Everyone was thrilled; they rushed to the passage and pried the door open. Later, the Guardians ended the conflict, negotiated with the outsiders, and Twin Moon Cliff was restored.”

“So… what does that have to do with you joining the Dark Sect?” Mo Xing asked, perplexed.

“I was dissatisfied with that agreement!” Li Qingzhi suddenly shouted. “The outsiders lost fifty thousand, but we at Twin Moon Cliff lost over three hundred thousand—including my family! Why should we coexist peacefully with them? Why cede territory? It was an unequal treaty!”

“Later, I found the answer: the outsiders were strong, so they had the initiative! At that moment, I finally understood—”

“Power is the ultimate law!”

Li Qingzhi laughed aloud, and Mo Xing felt something bleak and strange in his laughter, goosebumps rising on his skin. Chief Zhang beside him rested his head on his hand, lost in thought.

“That’s why I sought out the Dark Sect and joined them—just to pursue ultimate power! Only by becoming stronger can I avenge my family and reclaim my homeland from those wretched outsiders!”

“Clap—clap—”

Mo Xing turned to see Chief Zhang stand and applaud.

“Thank you for your gripping tale. It was excellent, and we’re right on time.” Chief Zhang nodded.

“Now, I’ll leave it to campus security!”

“Tap tap tap tap—”

Footsteps approached from not far away.