SWORD OF FLAME

Ancient Manual

On his right wrist, just above the palm of his hand, there was an image of a coiled snake in a reddish-yellow color.

Fang Yun’s face turned pale with fear. He was terrified that his parents would notice the snake image. He tried to wipe and scrub it vigorously, hoping the image would disappear. But the more he rubbed it, the more intense the heat that shot through his entire body.

In the end, Fang Yun gave up and let the snake image remain on his right wrist. He finished bathing and returned to his room.

After getting dressed, Fang Yun reopened the Fire God Technique manual from the first page. Again, he was surprised—the image of the coiled red snake on the first page had vanished.

Feeling as if he was dreaming, Fang Yun rubbed his eyes and stared at the first page of the ancient Fire God Technique manual in his hands.

"It really is gone. Did the snake image move onto my hand? How is that possible?" he muttered quietly.

Not wanting to speculate too much, Fang Yun wrapped his wrist with a piece of cloth. He had already prepared an excuse in case anyone asked why his hand was bandaged, though the answer would be a lie.

Fang Yun then turned to the page that depicted the movement techniques of the Fire God Strike. He began practicing each movement with a bit more fluidity.

He continuously repeated every movement illustrated in the ancient manual for months until he mastered them all.

During his training, Fang Yun was determined not to move on to another technique until he had fully mastered the first one.

For nearly two years, the young man—now fifteen years old—studied the Fire God Strike, which had very complicated movements. Throughout that time, he rarely left the house, except when his parents asked him to.

One afternoon, Fang Yun’s father returned from work looking pale. The man, who was not yet forty years old, called out to his son, who was inside his room.

"Fang Yun, come out for a moment, son."

Fang Yun immediately came out of his room upon hearing his father's call. "What’s wrong, Father?" he asked anxiously, seeing his father’s pale face.

"Are you sick, Father?"

"Yes, Fang Yun. I asked for permission from Liu Zun to go home early. He agreed, but on one condition—you have to take my place cutting grass for Liu Zun's livestock," his father explained.

"Alright, Father. I’ll go right now!"

Fang Yun grabbed a sickle that hung on the woven bamboo wall of their house and casually walked to a nearby field full of fresh grass.

It didn’t take long before he arrived at the edge of the forest. He saw the lush, green grass and quickly began cutting it diligently and gathering it into a bundle.

Once he had enough, Fang Yun tied the bundle with a rope made from tree bark.

"Finally, it’s done," he whispered to himself.

Before he could lift the bundle onto his shoulder, a familiar voice suddenly called out from behind.

"So this is where you’ve been hiding, you loser! I’ve been looking for you for so long to test out my new technique, hahaha!" Chong Li laughed heartily when he saw Fang Yun, whom he hadn't seen in almost two years.

Fang Yun turned around and saw Chong Li with four of his friends.

"What do you want, Chong Li? I’m just cutting grass for Liu Zun’s livestock."

"I don’t care what you’re doing. What matters is that you have to taste my new technique! Enough hiding for the past two years... Hahaha!"

"Don’t mess with me, Chong Li. I’ll report this to Liu Zun!"

"Go ahead, I’m not afraid. Liu Zun would never dare go against my father just to help you!" Chong Li challenged arrogantly, his fists clenched tightly, ready to beat Fang Yun.

"You two, grab him!" Chong Li ordered his men.

Two of Chong Li’s friends immediately rushed toward Fang Yun, trying to capture him. However, Fang Yun managed to dodge and twist their arms until they cried out in pain.

"Oh... so now you dare to fight back, huh? Get him and beat him up!"

The other two of Chong Li’s friends immediately charged at Fang Yun. Even though he had been training using the movements from the Fire God Technique manual, Fang Yun had not yet been able to apply them in a real fight.

A solid punch to his stomach sent him staggering backward. Before he could fully regain his balance, Chong Li’s kick nearly landed on his head—fortunately, Fang Yun managed to block it with his arm.

Crash!

Fang Yun was pushed backward but still managed to stand tall. His physical training had helped him somewhat, as he noticed Chong Li grimacing in pain when his shin collided with Fang Yun’s arm.

"I might as well fight them with my bare fists since I can’t yet use the techniques I’ve learned," Fang Yun thought.

Now standing firmly, Fang Yun launched a punch to counter an incoming blow from one of Chong Li's friends named Wu Ching. Their fists clashed, producing a loud cracking sound.

Crack!

"Argh!"

Wu Ching screamed in pain, clutching his hand as if he had struck a stone wall.

Fang Yun smiled as he looked at his own right fist in mild amazement. He didn’t feel any pain despite the direct collision with Wu Ching’s punch.

"You bastard...! You dare hurt my friend. I’ll beat you up myself now!" Chong Li roared as he charged toward Fang Yun.