Star Martial Soaring Cloud

Zhongyun City is located in the northeast of Zhongzhou. It was because of this that when the earth-shattering gamble in Zhongyun City began, a group of young talents from Beiyuan and Dongbin were able to rush to Liangshan in a short time and witness Wang Xiao and Song Qing's leaping battle.

After that battle, Song Qing left as promised, but his legendary deeds were forever etched in the history of Zhongyun City.

Wang Xiao's name has become deeply intertwined with Zhongyun City because of this high-stakes gamble that caused a sensation.

Even today, when people talk about Zhongyun City and the old stories of Liangshan, they always mention that young man who, despite being new to the world, dared to face a powerful expert in the Divine Sense Void Realm and resolutely entered the fray.

Traveling several hundred miles east from Zhongyun City, you will reach the territory of Qixing Mountain.

Wang Xiao remembered this very clearly.

He lived here for a full ten years.

They travel back and forth between the foot of the mountain and the summit, day and night, through spring, summer, autumn and winter, undeterred by wind, frost, rain and snow.

After days and nights of travel, he was finally about to return to Qixing Mountain, which he had been away from for a long time.

As he approached his hometown, he felt a mix of fear and trepidation. The closer he got to the land of his memories, the more his heart raced, and his emotions surged uncontrollably.

He slowly descended from the clouds and landed on the land where Qixing Mountain should have stood.

But the next second, he was completely stunned.

Where is the mountain?

Within a radius of dozens of miles, not a single mountain can be seen.

As far as the eye can see, there are only low, rolling hills, crisscrossing fields, sparse trees, and distant villages with wisps of smoke rising from their chimneys.

There are no towering peaks, no lingering clouds and mist, and no ancient, lush trees.

All the scenery that once graced the mountains has vanished.

Wang Xiao froze on the spot, her mind blank, and her blood instantly freezing.

"How is this possible?" he murmured, filled with disbelief.

He would never mistake the place where he had lived for ten years.

It was from here that he and Kung Pao Chicken set off for Zhongyun City at the invitation of their senior brother, Song Qing.

He clearly remembers that morning when he set off. The lone pine on the peak was gilded with a layer of brilliant gold by the morning light, and thin mist wafted through the mountains, flowing freely among the forest.

He still remembers the shape of every stone on the mountain path, the location of the ancient well deep in the bamboo forest, and the taste of the wild fruit forest on the back mountain.

All the memories are vivid and real, as if they just happened yesterday.

But now, Qixing Mountain has disappeared.

A lone pine tree atop the mountain, running through the mountains, the companionship of my senior brother, the silhouette of my master…

Why is it the master's back view?

Wang Xiao's heart skipped a beat.

Upon careful recollection, he still clearly remembered his master's earnest teachings, his tone of voice, his walking posture, and even the subtle gestures such as stroking his beard and lowering his eyes.

But he couldn't recall a single detail of his master's features.

It was as if someone had used immense power to forcibly erase this memory from his mind, leaving only a blurry outline, a lonely figure forever turned away from him.

"What exactly happened?" Wang Xiao spread his divine sense with all his might, searching the area within several miles inch by inch.

There were no fluctuations from the formation, no traces of a barrier, and no unusual energy.

This land is just ordinary soil, and the surrounding hills are also ordinary mountain and landforms. It seems that for thousands of years, a Seven Star Mountain has never stood here.

"Is my cultivation too shallow to fathom its mysteries?" He clenched his fists, his eyes filled with confusion. "Or is the Seven Star Sword the key to returning home, and I've lost it?"

In the vast expanse of heaven and earth, no one answered.

"Or perhaps... Master doesn't want to see me?"

Wang Xiao's voice was extremely low, so low that only she could hear it.

But the moment he finished speaking, his heart felt as if it had been squeezed tightly by something, a dull ache running through it.

"Young man, what are you looking for here all by yourself?"

An aged voice slowly came from behind.

Wang Xiao turned around and saw an old farmer standing on the edge of the field, a hoe on his shoulder, his face etched with the marks of time.

The old man's trousers were rolled up to his knees, and his shoes were covered in damp mud. His cloudy eyes quietly looked at him, his gaze simple and full of concern.

"Grandpa," Wang Xiao forced a smile, clinging to his last glimmer of hope, "Shouldn't there be a mountain here?"

"Mountains?" The old man paused for a moment, then chuckled and shook his head. "Young man, how can you talk nonsense in broad daylight! I've lived on this land for over seventy years, my ancestors have lived here generation after generation, and I've never seen any mountains. Look around, all you see are flat fields and low hills, where are the mountains?"

Wang Xiao opened his mouth, but a thousand words stuck in his throat, and in the end, he was speechless.

Seeing his pale face and dazed expression, the old man asked again with concern, "Child, are you feeling unwell? Why don't you come back to the village with me to rest? It's just ahead, only a few steps away. Judging from your appearance, you must be exhausted from traveling for days."

"Thank you for your kindness, sir." Wang Xiao gently shook her head, politely declining.

The old man took a few steps forward, but then, still worried, he turned back and said, "The sky looks gloomy; it's probably going to rain soon. If you have nowhere to go, come to my house to take shelter from the rain. Don't get soaked."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sky suddenly darkened.

Dark clouds surged and gathered from all directions, pressing down heavily and enveloping the entire land.

A sudden gust of wind arose, swirling dust and withered leaves in the air.

"Grandpa, you should go back quickly, it's going to rain."

"And what about you?"

"I'll stay a little longer."

The old man sighed softly, shook his head helplessly, shouldered his hoe, and strode quickly toward the village. His aged figure soon disappeared at the end of the field ridge.

Wang Xiao stood still, looking up at the increasingly dark sky, watching the layers of dark clouds surge and completely swallow the last ray of light.

A distant rumble of thunder, deep and drawn-out, sounded like something slowly awakening between heaven and earth.

"Haha..." Wang Xiao suddenly chuckled softly, his laughter carrying endless helplessness, bitterness, and a hint of relief. "Even Seven Star Mountain has disappeared?"

My senior brother Li Guang is still alive, my senior brother Song Qing is still alive, and everything I have experienced is definitely real.

The skills taught by the master are real, the Seven Star Rain Steps I mastered are real, and the ten years I spent on Seven Star Mountain are also real.

All that has happened in the past is not a fabrication.

"When it rains, run freely. No matter how heavy the rain, if you can keep yourself dry, you've mastered the Seven Star Rain Steps."

The scene of my master teaching me the Seven Star Rain Steps is still vivid in my mind, as if it were yesterday.

The sky was just like that day, with dark clouds and howling winds.

The master stood on the open space at the summit, hands behind his back, his robes fluttering in the wind, exuding an extraordinary air.

He said that the storms and rain are the best teachers in the world.

Wang Xiao clearly remembers that at first it was just a light drizzle. His master walked calmly and steadily in the rain, and he followed closely behind, but his clothes were always soaked by the rain.

As the rain intensified and the drizzle became denser, the master's movements became increasingly swift, like a gentle breeze, weaving through the vast rain curtain.

Finally, the rain poured down, turning the world into a vast white waterscape. The master's figure completely blended into the rain, leaving only a faint outline, as if he had become one with the wind and rain, and merged with heaven and earth.

The rain stopped and the wind died down. The master stood quietly in front of him, his robes as dry as ever, his hair spotless and without a trace of water.

This is the Seven Star Rain Step.

Wang Xiao slowly closed his eyes, and a drop of cool rain gently fell on his cheek.

"Is it going to rain?" he whispered, tilting his head back. "Master, is this a test for me?"

A thunderclap boomed, and a torrential downpour began!

Wang Xiao suddenly opened his eyes and took a step forward instantly.

He had practiced the Seven Star Rain Steps diligently for ten years, day and night, until it was ingrained in his very bones.

His figure moved swiftly through the torrential rain, like a ghostly phantom, a swift breeze, or lightning flashing through the sky.

Rain columns rained down from the heavens, dense and crisscrossing, as if trying to stitch the entire world together without leaving any gaps.

But Wang Xiao's steps were faster and his movements were more agile.

He dodged one drop, then another, and countless raindrops missed their mark.

Extreme speed creates multiple afterimages, leaving blurry and ethereal trails in the vast rain.

Rain fell in front of him, behind him, and beside him, but not a single drop could soak his clothes.

The rain intensified, becoming increasingly torrential and violent.

From the initial raindrops the size of beans, it transformed into continuous rain lines, and finally into a vast curtain of water that overwhelmed the heavens and the earth.

The heavens and earth were completely swallowed by the heavy rain, and all that could be seen was a white mist.

Wang Xiao's movements became increasingly swift, elusive and difficult to spot.

Raindrops brushed against his shoulders, swept across his arms, and stung his hair...

But in the end, a drop of rain gently landed on his shoulder.

He ultimately failed to achieve the perfection and flawlessness his master possessed.

Wang Xiao stopped in her tracks.

He stood silently in the rain, letting the torrential downpour soak him through in an instant. The icy rainwater pierced his clothes, chilling him to the bone.

"Is this the answer you gave me?" His voice trembled slightly, his eyes filled with bitterness and resentment. "It's because my cultivation isn't high enough... so I don't need to know anything... right?"

He looked up at the sky obscured by the rain and shouted at the top of his lungs.

"ah--!"

A thunderclap ripped through the sky, its roar intertwining with his shouts, echoing endlessly through the rolling hills.

Wang Xiao stood still, letting the cold rain wash over her body and cleanse her mind.

He looked up at the sky, which would never give an answer.

A moment later, Wang Xiao turned around and walked step by step back the way he came.

He did not turn back, nor did he ever look back at that empty homeland.

Because there is nothing there anymore.

He was like a lost traveler, persistently searching for the way home.

But deep down he knew that his home had disappeared.

Or perhaps, that place of belonging never truly existed.

Or perhaps, only when he reaches the summit and becomes powerful enough will this lost Seven Star Mountain reappear in the world.

After Wang Xiao left, two figures appeared out of thin air in the vast rain.

The torrential rain raged across the land, but all the rainwater that fell within three feet of the two people automatically slid away, as if an invisible barrier had blocked the wind and rain, and severed the entire world.

The rain and mist obscured the figures and appearances of the two people. Only one person could be vaguely seen sitting on a four-wheeled vehicle, while the other stood behind them, steadily pushing the vehicle. They were completely unaffected by the rain and not a drop of water got on them.

"Isn't this a bit too cruel to treat our junior brother?"

"Just because he's our junior brother, does that mean everything is taken for granted? Why?! Junior Brother Li Guang, tell me!"

Li Guang, the God of War.

The pillar supporting the Great Qian Nine Provinces, an unparalleled powerhouse in the Divine Realm of Emptiness.

At this moment, stripped of all glory, he is simply a person quietly pushing a cart.

The man on the four-wheeled vehicle slowly closed his eyes and remained silent, as if the words he had just uttered had exhausted all his strength.

After a long while, he let out a soft sigh and gently patted the armrest.

"Let's go."

Besides Li Guang and Song Qing, Wang Xiao also had a senior brother, a paralyzed senior brother.