“Heaven? Was it... a very wonderful place?” Shui Ruo quietly asked.

“No, it was a terrifying place. There was a Mad Scientist... a true madman. He had a terrifying power- the devastating Isrock Disease that humans could do nothing about, he was able to casually cure. He looked down on humans, and called himself a ‘messiah’ who was superior to humans. He wanted to create the world’s most terrifying killing machines, then watch those ‘pitiful humans’ cry in despair as they were slaughtered. Tian Ya was taken to that place and became one of his guinea pigs, and was given a new name- Number 1353. He was the 1353rd child to be taken there.

Shui Ruo: “!!!!”

“He stayed at ‘Heaven’ for three years. There were countless times when his mind and spirit were nearly completely broken, and they were stimulated to reach new limits. His body was always bathed in a special liquid that the madman created... just like this, after three years, his mind and spirit, as well as body, became monstrously strong. Out of those 1353 children, 1351 could not handle the experimentation and died. Only two children survived- a boy and a girl. The boy was Number 1353, and the girl was Number 17. She had red hair and blue eyes.

A few sentences spanned an entire three years. Ling Chen spoke very calmly- he had endured so much, and he felt nothing when looking back. However, anyone would know that in those three years, facing death countless times would have resulted in unimaginable pain and torture. Shui Ruo’s heart was in pieces, and she hugged Ling Chen while sobbing.

“The reason why Tian Ya was able to endure all of this was because he was not willing to die. He wanted to take revenge; he wanted to see Dia Wu again. After the third year, he was taken by the person who had saved him to a place called ‘Hell’. That person was also called ‘Hell’. There were many people there, who looked at Tian Ya and Number 17 with cruelty and pity in their eyes. The people there called the man ‘Instructor Hell’, and they all feared him immensely. No one dared to disobey his orders.”

“It was there that he and Number 17 learnt many terrifying killing techniques. Although his mind and spirit had been repeatedly devastated over the past three years, Tian Ya’s memories were still intact. After enduring three years of pain, there was nothing he could not take anymore. In order to take revenge, in order to see Dia Wu again and protect her, Tian Ya went all out in learning and practicing. Tian Ya and Number 17’s minds, spirit and bodies were terrifyingly strong, and they surpassed everyone else there in a short period of time. Deserts, oceans, forests, marshes, mountains... they had never failed any of their training in these sorts of difficult environments. Afterwards, Tian Ya began to learn true killing techniques. Surprisingly, the first time he killed someone, he did not feel afraid or hesitant, but rather did it quickly and cleanly, as if plucking out a blade of grass. From then onwards, he would kill people almost every day. Those few years, he killed many, many people- so many that he could not remember if it was hundreds or thousands. At that time, he knew that he had become an evil demon, as well as that he was no longer good enough for Dia Wu. However, he still greatly desired to see her again... and then use his strength to take revenge.”

“No way, no way!” Shui Ruo’s face paled as she furiously shook her head, “Dia Wu wouldn’t blame him, much less despise or be afraid of him... Dia Wu said that no matter what he became like, she would always be together with him. If Tian Ya killed so many people, but left her behind, that would be devastating to her.”

Ling Chen slightly smiled, “Mm. I know... the killings Tian Ya carried out were all ordered by Instructor Hell. However, the person who Tian Ya wanted to kill most was Instructor Hell. As long as he did not die, Tian Ya would never have freedom. Everyone under Instructor Hell’s command all wanted him dead... however, Instructor Hell was truly terrifying. Even if Tian Ya worked together with Number 17 and everyone else, they would not necessarily be able to defeat Instructor Hell. He was something that the Mad Scientist called a ‘god’. Many leaders of countries, upon hearing his name, would break out in cold sweat. There were people who tried to retaliate against Instructor Hell, or tried to escape from his control. Unfortunately, those people all died pitiful deaths. After they died, their bodies would be sent to the Mad Scientist, and became his experimental subjects. The two people who Instructor Hell was least vigilant about was Tian Ya and Number 17, as the Mad Scientist told him that he had already put mental restrictions on them, and they would forever obey his commands... however, neither Instructor Hell nor the Mad Scientist knew that Tian Ya and Number 17 had already escaped from the mental restrictions using special methods.”

What that special method was, Ling Chen did not describe, nor was he able to describe it.

“After being trained by Instructor Hell for three years, Tian Ya couldn’t take it anymore. Together with Number 17, they planned how they would kill Instructor Hell. As such, using Instructor Hell’s lowered wariness towards them to their advantage, they planted a liquid bomb on the island they were doing training on. As soon as Instructor Hell drew near, they detonated the bomb... however, Instructor Hell was very sensitive towards danger, and he was able to dodge. When the bomb detonated, he only lost his right hand... luckily, the nerves on his right hand were damaged, and he was unable to use it. Facing Instructor Hell who was only able to use his left hand, Tian Ya and Number 17 had a chance, so they charged up with knives in their hands to kill him... that battle was incredibly intense and deadly; even without his right hand, Instructor Hell was able to inflict many injuries on Tian Ya and Number 17. However, he had taken heavy damage, and the longer they battled, the more blood he lost. In that battle, Tian Ya was struck by Instructor Hell 29 times, Number 17 was hit 13 times, whereas Instructor Hell had taken 13 hits from both of them. Finally, Number 17 was able to cut off Instructor Hell’s entire right arm, and Tian Ya rushed up and used all of his power to plunge his broken dagger into Instructor Hell’s stronger-than-steel body, piercing into his heart... before he died, Instructor Hell displayed a desperate burst of

strength, and jumped into the ocean... although they could not find his body, because his heart had been completely pierced, he could not possibly have survived.”

“Because of Instructor Hell’s death, those under his control were all freed. When Tian Ya and Number 17 brought Instructor Hell’s arm to them, they all started to cheer in joy, and expressed their willingness to become Tian Ya and Number 17’s subordinates... they had all decided that whoever could kill Instructor Hell and let them leave this hell, they would be forever loyal to them.”

“Tian Ya was Asian, so all of the Asian people followed him. Number 17 was Caucasian, so all the Caucasian people followed her. On the third day after killing Instructor Hell, Tian Ya and Number 17 returned to ‘Heaven’. However, they did not find the Mad Scientist. The Mad Scientist had terrifying intelligence and wisdom, but did not have Instructor Hell’s strength and power, so they did not continue to look for him... not long after, Tian Ya suddenly took his subordinates and left, returning to China... he did not even say goodbye to Number 17. This was because Number 17 expressed her willingness to go to China with him, but Tian Ya only had Dia Wu in his heart, so he secretly left.”

“After... after he left, did he reunite with Dia Wu?” Shui Ruo anxiously asked.

“No...” Ling Chen shook his head, “After he returned to China, Tian Ya immediately sent his people to investigate how that family group and Dia Wu were. His subordinates all had superb intelligence gathering skills, so they quickly reported back to Tian Ya... seven years ago, which was when Tian Ya had been taken to ‘Heaven’... she refused to eat and fasted to death.”

“Ahh!!” Shui Ruo cried out in shock. She shook her head, unwilling to accept it, “No... how could it be like this... how could it be...”

“After hearing about that, Ling Chen felt incredible pain, to the point that he almost became crazy... in fact, he really did go crazy. He secretly infiltrated that family by himself, because he knew how terrifying that family’s defences and security measures were- they had all of the most high-tech weapons, as well as the strongest guardian family group protecting them. He didn’t want to bring harm to any of the companions he had just gained. As such, lost in his grief and torment, he went by himself. At that time, although Tian Ya was only 16 years old, his body was terrifyingly strong and he was incredibly powerful. His rampage caused the three legendary bodyguard family groups to appear, as well as heavy armed forces. Tian Ya wore a set of black clothing, and concealed his face, so no one discovered his true identity. He killed many people, but in the end, that family group was indeed the most powerful family group in China, and thus had incredibly heavy defences. Tian Ya was able to kill many people, but also suffered heavy injuries, and was forced to leave. He was chased for an entire night, and lost much blood. At the end, he finally climbed up onto a train and passed out on top of it.”

Ling Chen closed his eyes, and said in a low voice, “At that time, Tian Ya truly hated himself. If it wasn’t for him, Dia Wu wouldn’t have died... if it wasn’t for that family group, Dia Wu wouldn’t have died. However, that family group was much too powerful- he did not have the ability to take revenge for Dia Wu and himself. He thought back to the cold, cruel, painful days he had endured... only Dia Wu was the single bit of warmth in his life. However, the heavens had even taken away this single bit of warmth. He didn’t know whether he would be able to smile or laugh in future, or if his heart, which was becoming colder and colder, could become warm again. He thought that perhaps, from this day onwards, he would live only for revenge... however, deep in his heart, what he truly desired was the warmth of a real family. This was something that even someone with a cold heart subconsciously desired. One day, if he could meet a girl like Dia Wu, he would use his everything to protect her, and definitely would not allow the same thing to happen again.”

Shui Ruo: “......”

“When Tian Ya finally woke up, the train was still in motion. He had no idea where the train was travelling, but his body had recovered significantly, so he jumped off, and began walking. He didn’t know where he was going, but he walked for a long, long time, until he reached a place where there were people living there... it seemed to be one of the outer suburbs of a city. After chatting with a few people passing by, he found out that this place was called ‘Zhong Zhou’. Afterwards, he once again collapsed on the ground... until a very, very beautiful girl’s voice woke him up.”

Ling Chen concluded his narration there. Ling Shui Ruo covered her mouth, trying her best not to sob. However, her face was covered by her tears.