[SYSTEM INITIALIZING…
CALIBRATION IN PROGRESS: 1%… 15%… 40%… 80%…
CALIBRATION COMPLETE
TWO SOULS HAVE BEEN DETECTED
DISSONANCE BETWEEN SOULS: 30%
ATTEMPTING TO MERGE SOULS… ERROR: HOST BODY REJECTING FOREIGN SOUL
ATTEMPTING FORCEFUL INTEGRATION. SOUL MAY SUFFER SOME DAMAGE
TIME REMAINING: 00-05-47s
[…]
INTEGRATION COMPLETE. SOUL HAS SUFFERED SOME DAMAGE: 30%
IMMEDIATE ATTENTION IS RECOMMENDED
KICKSTARTING BODY. SYSTEM ON STANDBY.
WELCOME HOST]
***
A shock ran through my body, and I sat up in a hurry, crying out in pain as I did. My left arm was on fire, like there was a piece of molten hot iron in place of my bones. I turned my head trying to look at it, and immediately retched in my mouth a little. It was completely mangled from below the elbow. There was no difference between my arm and a piece of meat at the butcher’s that I usually go to.
As I was trying to reconcile with the state of my arm, I noticed something unusual. I was sitting on grass. That was odd. Why was there grass inside a hospital? And why was I in this - I looked down at the clothes I was wearing - weird costume instead of a hospital gown?
Pain lanced through my head suddenly, so much that I almost blacked out. As the pain slowly subsided, images flashed through my mind. Finishing the bar… Going to that club.. And that TRUCK. The scenes were coming faster now. People screaming.. Doctors shouting… and that weird voice before I lost consciousness.
Fuck. Did I die?
If so, why was I able to think? And where even was I? Suddenly, a loud chime sounded from somewhere, and I jumped a little, pain lancing through my arm. I twisted my neck from side-to-side, trying to find the source of the noise. I could see nothing but a large forest to my right and a huge cliff above to my left.
There it was again, that chime. But for some reason, it sounded as if it was coming from not somewhere outside, but from inside my head.
I waited for a few seconds more, and it sounded again. Looks like there was a gap of ten seconds between each chime. As I was trying to figure out how to stop that chime, I remembered something. That uncanny, mechanical voice before I gained consciousness. I think it said… ‘System initializing’?
My heart beating in trepidation at the implications of that voice, I squeaked out in a voice unknown to me, “Status?”
A large screen popped in front of my eyes so suddenly that I let out a small scream.
THE GASLIGHT SYSTEM
Name: Huo Kai
Bone-Age: 16
Gender: Male
Constitution: NA
Spiritual Roots: High grade Tetra-elemental roots
Bloodline: NA
Cultivation: 9th circle of Body-Tempering (800/1000)
Stats:
· Talent: 9
· Will: 14
· Intelligence: 11
· Luck: 3
Gaslight Points (GP): 0
Shop: Reach Qi Condensation to unlock
Skills: Earth Shaking Vajra Leg (100/1000), Stone Splitting Palm (300/1000)
Fate: ???
[You have mail (1) ]
Okay, so my thought process was correct. I do have a system. Which also means that I must have transmigrated to wherever in the Hells this place was. And looking at some of the words in my status, I really did not want to be correct about where I had ended up.
Trying to ignore the pain in my arm, my eyes traveled to the red notification I could see on my status. Seeing how it had reacted to my voice before, I hoped my system was also thought activated. That would make things so much easier. Trying to test out my theory, I spoke in my mind, “Open mailbox.”
A panel blinked into existence on top of my status.
WELCOME MAIL
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Greetings Host, and welcome to the world of cultivators!! As you may have guessed already, you have died in your previous world. But be not afraid. You have been provided a second chance by the most beloved persona of all universes, The Administrator of Systems.
A gift package will be sent in the mail upon the closure of this message, and we wish you all the best in your journey towards immortality. Please do survive until you reach Godhood.
PS: This is an automated message. Please so not respond.
The only thought in my mind after reading the message was, “Shit.” So I have transmigrated into a Xianxia. If my senses were not already overloaded with the pain from my left arm, I would have cried. A xianxia was like the worst world to be sent to. I was a fucking law student for God’s sake. I was not meant for fighting against dragons and phoenixes.
Going over my status one again, I noticed that my will was slightly higher than the rest of my stats. Although my luck was abysmal. Also, I was in the 9th circle of Body-Tempering, and if I knew my xianxia, that was the lowest stage in existence, barely a cultivator. I sighed. Just more to work towards I guess.
But why did I not have a bloodline or a constitution? Were MC’s not supposed to be born with some godly talent that was just unfortunately sealed for the time being? I didn’t know how good my spirit roots were, as I had nothing to compare them too. But the thing that worried me the most were the question marks beside Fate. I mean, an MC is born to rebel against Fate and whatnot, but I thought its more because I do not belong in this world, so my fate was separate from it.
I closed the Welcome Mail panel, an another panel immediately took its place. This one I was looking forward to, as all MC’s got something broken in their login reward upon transmigration.
CONGRATULATIONS!!
For transmigrating successfully, you have been sent a gift pack. The gift pack contains items that were deemed necessary to survive your current situation, and to smooth your progress towards cultivation in the near future. Hope the Host makes good use of these items.
· High Tier healing pill (Qi Condensation) x3
· Low tier Speed Talisman (Qi Condensation) x1
· Tier-10 Spirit Stones x10
· Huo Kai (Original’s) memory packet x1
I looked over the mail once, then twice, then once again. Where in the blazes was my cheat?!! All these items looked like run-of-the-mill items that were available to anyone. Where was the artifact or skill that would make me the most broken existence in this world. The only thing that looked interesting was the ‘Huo Kai (Original’s) Memory Packet’.
But as I slowly got over my indignation, I realized all was not lost. Thinking back on the words in the gift message, it said that I had been provided items that would be of immediate use to me and some things for my future too. The healing pills were definitely for my arm, and the spirit stones had endless uses in cultivation. And the memory packet for me to know more about my situation I guess. Although I wondered what the speed talisman was there for.
Without waiting for even a second longer, I tried summoning a healing pill into my right arm with my mind. A round pellet about three centimeters in diameter appeared magically in my palm. It looked slightly earthy in color, and when I sniffed it, there was definitely a smell of soil and some kind of root. Wondering what ingredients went into making it, I popped it into my mouth, hoping for the best.
I immediately felt its effects. A cool sensation spread into my arm, relieving the pain. When I looked at it, it seemed as though the mangled flesh was slowly repairing itself. Looking at the speed of healing, I decided it would be another few hours until my arm was fully repaired. Wondering whether to take another pill to speed up the process, I decided against it. I had read too many stories where you take one extra pill and your body explodes. I did not want to take that kind of risk.
It looked like I had nothing to do until my arm recovered, so I decided to use that ‘Huo Kai(Original’s) Memory Packet’. I don’t think it was coincidence that I ended up at the bottom of this cliff with a broken arm. It reeked of something that the MC would go through.
Opening my inventory with a thought, I concentrated on the memory packet, and tried to use it. But before the thing could be used, a panel opened in front of my eyes.
WARNING!!
Due to dissonance between the original soul and your soul, only 70% of the original memories have been recovered. Further, your soul has suffered some damage in the integration process, and integrating memory packs less than 75% complete has a chance of damaging your soul further. Do you want to commence with integrating the ‘Huo Kai(Original’s)’ memory pack?
[YES]/[NO]
I read through the message, then looked up at the sky, wondering if the universe was playing a big, fat joke on me. So not only was the memory pack incomplete, trying to integrate it may damage my soul. Nothing to say about the fact that my soul was damaged already. I closed my eyes and took a few long, deep breaths. There was nothing to be gained by being angry at whoever had put me in this situation. I needed to decide whether to use the memory pack or not. On one hand, using it may damage my soul, and even though soul damage can be recovered from in xianxia, the materials required to do so were probably high tier and very rare. But on the other hand, if I don’t use the pack, I would be missing vital information going into this world, and I knew I needed every scrap of information if I wanted to survive. Now that I had been given a second chance at life, I didn’t intend to throw it away so easily.
Thinking over it for a few more minutes, I eventually decided to use the pack. The System said my soul was already damaged, so it didn’t matter if I damaged it a little more. And I needed to know why I was lying at the bottom of this cliff with a broken arm. I went over the warning panel one last time, then clicked YES.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then a piercing pain split my head open. It was like the worst migraine I ever had, only ten times worse.
“Arghh,” I groaned out in pain, clutching my head with my good arm. I was on the verge of blacking out, but I resisted the darkness. It would be fatal if I lost consciousness somewhere unknown. Who knew what animals roamed around here? After a few seconds, images slowly started streaming into my mind. Some were vivid and looked fresh, while others were broken, likely part of the 30% that were not recovered properly. After a few minutes, the last of the memories was gathered in my mind, and the pain slowly subsided.
Rubbing my head gently, I went over the memories in my head, starting from the latest. As I went further back into the memories, my face grew steadily whiter. After going over a few days worth, I stopped my efforts. On one hand, I was in total and utter deep shit. On the other, I finally knew what the speed talisman was for.
***
Trees streamed past me as I ran through the forest. Here and there, I could see eyes peaking out of a bush nearby, or in the leaves overhead. But I sped by before they could take the chance to observe me. As I ran on faster than was possible with my body, I once again went over the information I had uncovered.
I had been killed. Or rather, the original Huo Kai was. The forest I was currently speeding through was a part of the testing grounds for a sect. The original Huo Kai had been a participant in the trial required to enter the sect, but before he could do so, he was killed by an arrogant young master. I hadn’t gone deep enough into the memories to determine who he was and why exactly he had killed Huo Kai, but it seemed to be some sort of feud between their families.
But the real problem here was not that I was in a body that had been killed and had not died accidentally. It was that the sect trial was still going on. I looked through the canopy above me and saw that there were still a few hours before sunset. How I knew that, I didn’t know. It must be some of Huo Kai’s knowledge seeping into my mind through osmosis. The sect trial was going to finish when the sun set completely, and the sect gates were closed. The objective of the trial was to reach the sect before sunset while passing through the treacherous trial grounds.
I had already wasted many hours dead and then recovering, so I was now doing my best to make it through to the other end of the forest where the sect was, while keeping an eye out for any dangerous beasts that would try to ambush me. I assumed this was why the Speed Talisman had been given to me. As soon as I had attached it to my leg, it felt as though I was flying through the air. The wind rushed into me, trying to tear my skin off. I could have been going a lot faster if my left arm was functional, but it was still recovering.
I kept running this way and that, following the mental map I had gotten through Huo Kai’s memories. Here and there I saw the bodies of other trail takers, completely bloody and torn into with claws and teeth. I assumed the beasts in the forest got to them. I took care while going through these areas, lest I encounter something I wouldn’t be able to beat.
After an hour or two of traveling like this, the sun was already very low in the sky. According to the map, I was close to exiting the forest, but I didn’t know if it was to scale or not. I took a turn by some trees that had a trail hidden behind them, my speed not decreasing even slightly. It was true that I could not enter the sect and live as a rogue cultivator, but then it would become almost impossible to repair my soul. The resources and access to information a sect could provide were what I needed if I wanted to survive.
Another turn, and suddenly there was an opening in front of me. My heart lifting in joy, I pushed myself a little more. The sun had almost set, but I was close to my goal. As I burst through into the light, I was immediately starstruck. In the distance, a huge Chinese arch was standing erect. It seemed more than 30 meters high. I could see people milling around its base, probably people who had passed the trial.
I pumped my legs, willing them to move a faster. The trial-goers started streaming inside the gate one by one. There was still a few hundred meters between me and them. Once the last of the participants had gone in, the gates started to close ever so slowly. My heart dropped as I looked over my shoulder. The sun had almost completely set, with only a small arch peeking over the treetops, which was also disappearing rapidly. I wanted to shout, to tell them to hold the gates, but it took all my effort just to keep running.
I pushed myself, forcing a final burst of speed out of my legs, the muscles almost tearing. There were only 20 meters between me and the gate now. I was 5 meters away when the closing gates gained more momentum. The were about to slam shut when I stumbled on a rock in the ground. Due to the speed I was going at, instead of falling face-first, I sailed through the air and into the gates a second before they closed with a huge BOOM. As I lay there on the ground, someone’s loud voice sounded in my ears.
“Congratulations on passing the trial. Though there were many casualties this year, I’m sure that those that did survive deserve to be here.”
I tilted my head towards the voice. There was an old man in black cultivator robes floating in the sky above all the disciples. He looked down at us, eyes passing over everyone, before stopping at me. His eyes flashed for a second, with what emotion, I couldn’t say. Then he boomed out in a voice that was loud yet soft at the same time.
“I welcome you all to the Path of the Night Sect.”