Starting to Gain Experience from Push-Ups-Chapter 1212 - 589

Sunlight slanted in through the tall, narrow stained glass windows on both sides, casting brilliant patches of light on the wide steps.

Inside the golden hall, the atmosphere was tranquil and sacred.

Fang Cheng did not immediately speak to make a promise.

He turned around and sat back in the large Golden Throne.

His back rested against the cold chair back, and his arms casually draped over the armrests.

Looking down at the red-haired man kneeling on the ground, he asked in a calm voice:

"Tell me about your background and your personal grievances. What’s the story?"

Shanks maintained his position on one knee.

He kept his head down, fists tightly clenched, his broad chest heaving several times.

When he spoke again, his voice was extremely low and suppressed:

"I was born into an ancient family in Eastern Europe with a heritage of over a thousand years, where there is a giant castle built deep within the Black Pine Forest, its walls covered with green vines and the gardens filled with large patches of red roses."

Shanks’s gaze became slightly unfocused, as if his view penetrated the sacred hall before him, sinking into distant memories.

"At that time, the castle was always filled with laughter. Although my grandfather was strict, every time he returned from outside, he would bring me some toys. My parents were gentle in temperament, managing the family with orderliness."

He paused, the corners of his mouth curving into a very bitter smile:

"I had a brother nine years older than me. He was a genius and my idol."

"On summer afternoons, he would often practice swordsmanship in the courtyard, shirtless, with sweat trickling down his muscular lines. The sound of the blade slicing through the air, I can remember clearly even now."

"And my sister, Emily..."

At the moment the name was uttered, Shanks’s voice uncontrollably trembled.

"She was only seven at that time, loved wearing that white dress with lace edges, chasing butterflies in the rose garden. When she got tired of running, she’d plunge into my arms, giggling endlessly..."

Shanks closed his eyes, the muscles at the corners twitching violently.

"I once thought those days would last forever. Until fifteen years ago, that man knocked on the castle door..."

The airflow inside the hall seemed to grow colder as his tone shifted.

"That man wore a long grey coat, with most of his face hidden in the shadow of the hood. He spent the entire night in my grandfather’s study that evening."

"No one knew what they talked about. But the next morning, after that man left, my grandfather changed completely."

"He locked the study door and shut himself inside all day. Through the door, I often heard him making sounds like the howling of a wild beast."

"Later, my brother went out with that man, saying he planned to travel the world and gain experience."

"But a month later, when he returned to the castle, he seemed like he had a different soul, becoming very strange."

Shanks abruptly opened his eyes, his blue pupils filled with bloodshot lines, brimming with intense hatred:

"His gaze became extremely cold. When he looked at us, it was no longer like looking at family, but as if he was inspecting meat on a chopping board. He began to argue with our parents frequently, his temper getting more and more violent."

"He no longer practiced sword diligently every day, but instead liked to hang a hunting dog on a tree, slicing off its skin and flesh piece by piece, laughing amid the dog’s screams."

"Later, he even drove out in the middle of the night to hunt homeless vagrants in the nearby cities..."

"My sister was terrified, she hid in my room every night, clutching my clothes tightly, trembling all over."

Shanks clawed at the marble floor with his hands, his nails producing a harsh scraping sound against the hard stone slab.

"She cried and asked me: ’Why does Brother look at me like that? Does he want to eat me?’"

"I could only hold her in my arms, stroking her hair, lying to her over and over: ’Don’t be afraid, with your second brother here, everything will be fine...’

When he reached this point, Shanks’s voice abruptly stopped.

His Adam’s apple moved violently, like swallowing razor blades, his expression twisted dramatically.

After a while, he looked sorrowfully, with a wretched smile, continuing to speak:

"But everything did not get better."

"A few months later, the man in the gray coat appeared again, bringing with him the fate that would destroy our entire family!"

A tear spilled from the corner of Shanks’s eye, sliding down his cheek, silently dripping onto the marble.

"That day, I happened to be reporting at a university in a neighboring country, luckily escaping the disaster."

"When I received the news, I rushed back to the castle like a madman... The heavy rain was washing over the courtyard, and the ground was covered with blindingly dark red pools of water."

Shanks’s chest heaved violently, accompanied by heavy panting, interrupted by sobs tearing from deep within his throat:

"Grandfather, Father, Mother... more than a hundred people in the castle, all dead..."

"Their bodies were casually discarded along the corridors and staircases, the air filled with the nauseating smell of blood and the stench of burning after the fire."

"I waded through blood that reached my ankles, searching room by room. Finally, on the wall of the main hall, I saw Emily..."

Shanks’s head slammed onto the stone slab, producing a dull thud.

He lay on the ground, his body curled up like a shrimp, roaring hoarsely:

"She was pinned to the wall by a sword! That beautiful white dress had long been soaked black with blood!"

"I knelt in the blood, holding her cold corpse, crying until my voice was hoarse!"