The Heavenly Dao looked at its newest soul. It had high hopes for the human. It hoped to see him flourish before it died.
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Adam awoke to water dripping down his body.
“Get up boy,” a gruff voice ordered. Adam groaned as his eyes fluttered open. His body felt sluggish as if moving through molasses. He missed his old life sometimes. It’d been three days since his arrival in this world and he’d made no progress in escaping. He reluctantly got up, swaying a little as he did. Malnutrition and horrible living conditions had taken a toll on him.
The guard turned around and walked out. “Follow me,” he ordered, before walking off. Adam walked behind him, his mind racing. What could they want? Who was calling him? Where was he going? Suddenly, the guard stopped. He pointed at a plain wooden door at the end of a hallway. “Enter,” he said simply. Adam hesitated. He didn’t know what awaited him behind the door. He had heard tales about death waiting for all prisoners of the Purple Dragon Sect. He didn’t want to die.
“Enter,” the guard said more forcefully, shoving him forward.
Adam knew he had no choice. He walked towards the door, his breaths becoming quicker, his palms sweaty. When had he started shaking? Step after step brought him closer to the simple door, the root of his fears. A minute ticked by, then another. All too soon, he had reached the door. He looked back at the guard, who was no longer there. He felt eyes watching from the shadows, ready to pounce if he ran. He opened the door.
A row of teeth greeted him, accompanied by an odor so vile that he almost fainted. The teeth parted, revealing an endless maw filled with eyes of all different sizes, shapes, and colors. All staring at him. The beast moved. Adam screamed. His arm disappeared into that pit of eyes. His senses came back. Adrenaline powered his every move. Yet he could not escape. He ran and it caught up to him. He climbed and it chewed through the bottom. He swam and it swam after him. Then he disappeared.
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1 month ago
“Hey, little guy! How you doing?” Lin skipped across the meadow, following the bat back to its home. She’d been elated when she found it a week ago. It’d been injured somehow, and she had nursed it back to health with Realm 2 Spirit Beast meat she had hunted and cooked as well as a strange fruit she found hanging from a tree. Her fairy intuition had told her it was safe and the bat showed no reaction to it so she assumed it was safe for it. She’d asked her mother about it and even she didn’t know. Her back itched, reminding her of the main reason she had come here.
She revealed her wings, reveling in the freedom they granted her. She still remembered her father's parting words. “Never show your wings. They plant the seed of greed in humans. The seed of envy in other fairies. The seed of wrath in demons. You must grow strong on your own. Be good for your mother. And always remember: I love you Lin,” She never saw him again.
Her wings were almost translucent, with a black outline around them. Shades of blue, red, and green shaped dazzling patterns that would shift constantly. Sunlight warped in impossible ways to form a more beautiful and awe-inspiring image. Her pride and joy she had to keep hidden. Unexpectedly, the bat, as if sensing her inner turmoil, let out a small sound.
“It’s fine. Just thinking about my wings,” she sighed. “No use dwelling on the past though. Come on. We should continue,”
Lin skipped inside the cave, her mood improving with each step she took. The bat led her deeper and deeper, light nothing but an afterthought. It promised a great treasure hidden in the depths to her. One of her Legacies it said. Yet it had been hours now and there were no signs of the treasure.
“Was it a trap?” she wondered. But common sense told her otherwise. As the doubts began creeping in, she sensed a powerful pulse of qi. At first, it was almost imperceptible but as they got closer the pulses became more intense. In front of them, a door covered with drawings of winged beings stood. An eerie blue light seeped out from the cracks but the door seemed to swallow it. Without a doubt, Lin knew this was what the bat had been leading her to. She breathed deeply in the cool dank air and pushed the door open.
What greeted her was a man. His body pulsed with the eerie blue light she had seen escape the door. Dirty black hair and almond-colored skin covered by clothes ripped beyond recognition. He sat up. Beautiful brown eyes seemed to draw her in. Her senses screamed danger, but her body refused to move. She was captivated. The man's eyes widened as she glimpsed his BEING for a brief moment. Then darkness overtook her.
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Adam awoke to the sound of a body hitting the ground. He immediately checked his arm, relieved to see it back. In retrospect, he should’ve rewinded earlier but he had wanted to outsmart it - to prove his superiority - and it failed. His mouth widened, and he let out a gasp as he checked his notifications.
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[Used Rewind - 1 Month]
[Rewind Cooldown - 2 Months]
{ERROR: USER HAS NOT BEEN ON THIS PLANET FOR ONE MONTH}
{Solution Found: User will do what he did one month ago}
{ERROR: INTERFERENCE FROM @%#^!@^ &*@ DETECTED}
{ERROR: UNABLE TO TRANSPORT TO HOME PLANET}
{@%#^!@^ &*@ PROPOSES RESOLUTION}
{RESOLUTION ACCEPTED}
{IMPLEMENTING RESOLUTION (Your secrets lay bare. Make sure no one is watching)
{10% COMPLETE}
{36% COMPLETE}
{78% COMPLETE}
[!!!!!! has glimpsed your secrets]
[Interference from @%#^!@^ &*@ detected]
[!!!!!! has been altered by @%#^!@^ &*@}
[!!!!!! does not know your secrets]
{100% COMPLETE}
[...]
There was more but he couldn’t continue. Not when the thought of an entity interfering with his life lay before him. Especially when he had the opportunity to return to Earth and it had interfered. His life back on Earth wasn’t exciting by any means but it was far better than being eaten alive. Putting his thoughts aside, he noticed a girl prone on the ground. He deduced that she was the one who had glimpsed his secrets and had been altered. Feeling a pang of sympathy for the girl, he gently walked over and carried her to a bed-like structure in the middle of the room.
Adam sat beside her and began observing his surroundings. There was a faint light from a white orb directly above him, illuminating the room. There was nothing of note except a plain wooden door - the same one he had seen his last rewind - and a mix of stone and unknown materials making up the walls. He tiptoed towards the door, wincing when his feet were pricked by needle-like rocks he had failed to notice. He looked outside the door and felt like a blind man. Darkness permeated every inch of this place and he felt a chill as he shut the door. Knowing there was nothing to do but wait for the girl to wake up, he decided to check his remaining notifications.
[You have failed the quest ‘Escape the Dragons Dungeon!’]
[As a result of this failure you will be unable to access the shop until you reach the Foundation Establishment realm. In addition, quests will give half of the rewards you’d gain for completing it for a month. As this is your first time failing a quest as well as considering your unique circumstances, we will compensate you but do not expect {REDACTED} to be so lenient next time]
[Congratulations! You have learned a Godly grade skill!]
New Skill Available: Unrivaled Learner
Unrivaled Learner: Learn everything twice as fast as your peers!
Current Skills:
Calm in the Storm (Mortal Grade) - Passive
Unrivaled Learner (Godly) - Passive
Adam whistled in appreciation at his new skill. The fact that he would learn everything twice as fast as his peers would make him a genius no matter what. But he was still worried about who {REDACTED} was. The fact that it wasn’t a mess of incomprehensible symbols made him more concerned. His thoughts fell into a downward spiral. His [Calm in the Storm] didn’t seem to help at all. But then the sound of gentle snoring broke him out of his worries. He looked beside him and remembered the girl. Her black hair fell across her face messily. A drop of saliva formed at the edge of her mouth before falling onto a wet spot on her robes.
He couldn’t help but chuckle. It reminded him so much of his sister. Reminded him of the pranks they’d pull on each other when they were young. Growing up with no other siblings but her was hard sometimes but they always came together when it was serious. His smile turned wistful as he relived his best memories: birthday parties with his friends, cracking jokes with his friends in the middle of class, and even the simple joy of listening to his favorite songs. He felt a bone-deep weariness and decided to settle down for the night. Clearing an area for himself around the bed, he checked for danger one last time before going to sleep. As his eyelids began drooping, he vowed that he would see his sister again before he died.
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The bat felt ashamed. He had sensed a faint wisp of Heaven’s qi and had led his savior to it, thinking it was one of her Legacies. But he ran away when his savior had needed him most. He could still see the entranced look on her face and heard the thump of her body as it fell towards the ground. Tomorrow, he vowed, I’ll find her. But today he would cultivate. He needed to break through the 1st Realm to beat that man. And he would do it. His savior’s life depended on it.
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Far away, a Devourer reported its sightings to its master, its wings moving rapidly as if trying to convey its urgency.
“Yes master, I’m sure. I have never seen wings like that before! It wasn’t a trick of the light. The colors themselves shifted and the sunlight seemed to bend to her will!”
Its master pondered this new development. The humans would discover her and think it was a sign to invade the demon realm. The demons would see an enemy they had to nip in the bud. It knew the fairies would demand her head as soon as they found out. The king would try to claim her wings for himself and most likely die attempting to merge with them. But that didn’t answer what it should do. Suddenly, it had an idea. It would send an army of Devourers and capture her to study. “Send the army to her location. Capture her ALIVE,” commanded the master.
It laughed at how foolish it was to think of such a simple solution in such a long amount of time. It seemed it would need to do more mind training soon.
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Adam woke up to white eyes peering at him. He sat up and rubbed his eyes, waiting for his mind to wake up. Details of yesterday began flooding in and he looked curiously at the girl still staring at him. He offered an introduction.
“My name is Adam. What's your name?” He reached out a hand, intending to shake her hand.
“Lin,” she whispered, looking suspiciously at his hand.
Adam withdrew his hand, feeling foolish. Of course she would be suspicious. Besides, he thought she was being a little too trusting considering their circumstances. The silence stretched on between them. Then he heard footsteps and voices. He stealthily walked to the door and opened it a tiny bit. He saw rows of torches being waved around as if searching for a hidden entrance. He looked around and saw a man wearing ornate purple robes and wielding a sword staring directly at him. His eyes widened in surprise and before he could react, he pointed his sword at the door.
“There! That's where the girl is!”
Five minutes later, Adam was bruised, tied up, and unconscious. Lin tried to tell them he wasn’t a kidnapper but they dismissed her claims on account of her being a youngster. The party walked through the cavern for many more hours until they reached the surface.
Adam's consciousness returned to himself kneeling before the purple-robed man.
“Ah-Dum! You are hereby charged with kidnapping! You have 30 minutes to defend yourself or be executed!” He brought out a glowing white stone. “This is a Truth Stone. When someone lies in its presence, it will turn black. If you are caught lying five times, you will be executed regardless of your innocence. Do you understand?”
Adam nodded. But before he could say anything, Lin stepped in. She told everyone the same story she had said in the cavern many times. Throughout her tale, eyes kept flashing to the Truth Stone, waiting for it to turn black but it remained a pristine white. Lin finished her tale and the stone hadn’t turned black once. All eyes turned to the man with the Truth Stone.
His eye twitched but he admitted, “We were wrong to accuse you of kidnapping Lin. You see, I was sent to bring Lin to the Purple Dragon Sect, but I can see you have a special bond with her. We apologize for any harm we may have caused and offer you this village's best hospitality. Furthermore, I will ask the sect to allow you to be her servant and you will be tested for any cultivation talent you may have,”
The villagers gasped. Lin raised an eyebrow. And Adam looked at his new quest.
[Ding!]
New quest available: Join the Purple Dragon Sect (click for more details)