A narrow path led into Jiangcheng.
In a house where only identical shoes were kept, an 18-year-old youth sat cross-legged.
1489…
Where should the beginning of the war start…
1990…
So annoying. It probably started from my memory.
1998…
I have always wanted to become a passing-by ‘Warrior’.
What kind of person is that, after all!
Xiangye Xun had his own answer in his heart.
It was not about the dragon from the story, nor the demon lord on the final battlefield, nor a hero who appeared out of nowhere. He simply wanted to go through battle after battle and display his own strength.
It was like every child who admired the heroes in cartoons and movies. He just happened to have such a desire.
That was all.
He had always fought for it without wavering.
This was not just a childhood whim that faded with time, but a force he sensed deep within his soul, driving him forward.
He practiced every technique that could increase his physical strength or temper his body without fail. While advancing day by day, he also concealed his strength, waiting for the day he would need to reveal it.
Such a grandiose life would be spectacular, but to me, it was just the flavor of a vulgar novel.
He put down the paper on the ground. Xiangye Xun, soaked in sweat, put on his pants. As he did push-ups, counting up to 5,000, he fell into a slight daze.
Honestly, he had already fallen into a trap because, according to common human understanding, the human body had limits. Against a standard army equipped with guns, he was destined to be shot dead.
Even if he continued training for decades and became one of the strongest, he would still be unable to escape the limitations of being human. He would still be defeated.
Although this did not stop him from continuing to train like this as part of his daily warm-up.
But the passing-by ‘Warrior’ I ultimately want to become is someone who can withstand a mere nuclear bomb and turn it into fireworks. So I must become such a person.
To withstand a nuclear bomb, I need technology. What is it that I need?
That primal Magic Blade!
Unlimited life-taking!
No, none of them. As long as one is still human, one cannot surpass those limits.
I need to pursue something with even greater extraordinary power.
Yes, it must be something. Something.
Magic Blades, spiritual power, and anti-‘Zhiding’ theories can no longer satisfy my need for power. Only by pursuing things beyond ‘common sense’ can this human known as ‘Xiangye Xun’ complete his transformation.
Magic Blades, spiritual power, spiritual… fighters. Anything will do.
He had tried ascetic training, meditation, forced conversion to various gods, studying the occult, cultivating various paths, seeking spirits, questioning gods, even dying on a cross, finding a mirror, and venturing into unknown places late at night.
But even so, the so-called correct path was not something that existed.
But I will not retreat. Even if the road ahead is pitch-black, I will rush headlong toward the path I believe in.
And so, as time passed, I welcomed the final summer of my high school life, yet I still had not discovered fighting aura, magic, Spiritual Qi…
(The following content: Children, please do not imitate.)
I maintained an intense daily training routine: diving underwater near my home for 40 minutes at a time, running four kilometers round-trip between the suburbs and home, doing 5,000 one-handed push-ups, and performing sit-ups nonstop for two hours.
On holidays, whenever I had free time, I would go out and spend my saved allowance on extreme sports.
Recently, I had picked up some strange little hobbies.
For example, I read novels in my spare time, but only to kill time. I never found what I was looking for.
Some books were quite good, and I devoured them. Recently, I had become hooked on a novel called Xiong Sui Li Ye Fantasy Village. There was no other reason for it. It was the first time I had been fascinated by an otherworldly novel.
I was especially interested in the pure love between girls, but that passion eventually faded. I began paying more attention to the content and details, only to discover far too many plot holes.
The minor villains were ridiculously absurd, serving simply as stepping stones for the protagonist to beat to death or kick around like balls. Whenever the plot needed someone to cause trouble, a few familiar villains would be summoned to oppose the protagonist.
But something about it just didn’t feel right. After reading some online spoilers, I skipped ahead to the war scenes.
After all, reading novels was just a way to kill time. It was not my main pursuit.
Then one day, when I realized this book was a vulgar novel, I felt an unprecedented wave of sensation.
It came from the bottom of my heart, like a human’s sixth sense. Suddenly, wherever I looked, I could feel it.
I firmly believed.
That power did not come from the world I currently lived in. It was definitely the supernatural battle I had been waiting for.
I put down the book and ran like mad, chasing after it. I had waited so many years and lived for this very moment.
What power was calling to me, responding to me?
I had been chosen!
A youth who had waited his entire life finally sensed that power, that thing, appearing before him. He absolutely could not let it go!
He had to seize the opportunity.
He quickly ran out of the house and onto the road. A dazzling light appeared before his eyes, accompanied by the roar of a large truck rushing toward him, the truck’s…, and a powerful push.
Not good!
He suddenly launched himself forward, but without any unnecessary movements. Instead, he kicked off the ground and fiercely reached for the dazzling light ahead.
He knew he had done it. He had grasped the power that called to him.
At the same time, he fell into darkness and died.
Although the more likely explanation was that he had gone mad and been buried beneath a truck.
But the fact that I can tell this story now means I’m still alive.
My insight was correct.
I had indeed obtained the magic power I wanted.
As for how I obtained it, I was killed by a truck and reincarnated into another world. Coincidentally, it was the very otherworldly setting of the novel I had read just before dying?!
(Of course, all of the above is a later story.)
The fire in the fireplace occasionally crackled softly, filling the room with warmth that dispelled the gloom in its depths, along with a faint lavender scent.
Outside the window, it was late autumn. The leaves rustled in the wind, but inside this spacious, quiet room, there was only warmth.
Lady Yu Wei sat upright on a soft bed. Although fine beads of sweat from childbirth dotted her forehead, her face was as pink and tender as a healing glow. With her eyes closed, she breathed faintly, like a kitten.
She slightly raised her head and carefully held the little life that had just come into the world.
It was a baby. An adult’s finger gently touched the infant’s tightly clenched little fist.
Affection overflowed from her eyes, as if what she held were not a blood-covered newborn but the world’s most precious treasure.
He looked around seriously. Within his solitary mind, he fell into thought, then into an excitement that he suppressed on the outside.
‘In the end, I succeeded. I discovered it.’
The mother slowly raised her head. Her gaze passed over the flickering candlelight and fell warmly on the person beside the bed.
The usually dignified Yu Wei now looked like a helpless first-time parent. She stood stiffly at the foot of the bed, her hands, accustomed to holding a sword, trembling slightly, and her eyes a little red.
Beside the father stood a little girl in a lacy dress, tightly holding his large hand.
She looked about five or six years old, with black hair and the delicate appearance of a doll. In her red eyes, like her mother’s, flickered lights of curiosity and excitement.
She stood on tiptoe and stretched out her little hand, wanting to touch the baby in her mother’s arms. Her mouth curved into a huge, carefree smile.
“Mommy!”
She let go of her father’s hand and fluttered to the bedside like a happy little butterfly. Her voice rang out as clearly as a silver bell.
“Am I going to be a big sister?”
The adult smiled, his expression warmer than the fire in the fireplace. He reached out a hand and gently beckoned her closer.
“Come here, Xiong Lei’er. Come see your little brother.”
Strange, why isn’t this one smiling at all?
Yu Wei was happy about the birth of her new child, but she was also a little worried.
Little points of light flickered in the baby’s eyes. He blinked, but his thoughts never stopped.
‘I can directly sense these points of light filling the air. They exist in nature and also appear in the human body. It seems this person’s magic power is quite abundant.’
‘These are all magic power, right? This alone makes all those years of effort worthwhile!’
As he focused his consciousness on his eyes, he tried to withdraw his mind. The points of light before him faded like smoke and quickly disappeared.
‘It seems I can control the ability to perceive magic. Can all babies do this?’
Xiangye Xun could feel that his limbs seemed to have awakened. He could condense magic power within his body at any time and communicate with the magic outside.
This was not merely the manifestation of some ability, but a part of his body. As long as the thought crossed his mind, he could do it naturally.
It was as if he could freely communicate with the magic in nature. Understanding magic had become an instinct.
As for why he had pursued this thing called magic from the very beginning, perhaps it was because some of his memories had remained when he reincarnated into this world.
However, now did not seem to be the time to think about such things.
“Uuu…”
The baby opened his mouth, and tears welled up in both eyes.
Xiangye Xun noticed that the people nearby seemed to find his behavior strange, so he stopped suppressing the emotions in his heart.
“Waaah!“
The mother turned to Yu Wei and said in surprise, “Look, he’s crying.”
The worry on Yu Wei’s face gradually melted like an iceberg, revealing a smile.
“Yes, what a healthy child! Even the way he cries after birth is unique. He seems like a promising child. He will surely become the pride of our Carterina family!”
“Husband, what name do you want to give him?”
“If it’s a boy, then call him…”
“Changxiong Cai Carterina.”
Changxiong Cai Carterina.
That was my name after reincarnation.
As mentioned above, I was very fortunate to be born into a noble family, which made my infancy very stable.
Before I realized the seriousness of the matter, I grew normally until the age of six, and my ambitions and desires never changed in the slightest.
To become a passing-by ‘Warrior’.
For six whole years, I spent almost no time idle and trained in that so-called magic, never living up to my parents’ expectations… disappointing Mother and Father greatly, being a qualified older sister, a pendant beside Xiong Lei’er, and a passerby used to highlight my older sister’s extraordinary talent.