“I can’t hold on for much longer! My qi is drying up!” Wang Shen yelled at his fellow cultivator, Bao Miantong. Wang Shen had already used up all the medicinal pills in his interspatial ring, even the two heavenly 7th tier pills that he had pilfered from the Ancient Grandeur Tomb in Beijing when no one had been looking.

There were just too many of them. 

The horde of zombies stretched far into the blood-red horizon, their ranks filled to the maximum with tier nine overseers and tier eight alterations. But the worst had yet to come, for the Terrible Matriarch had yet to appear. It was a zombie that transcended human understanding, and the only zombie to ever come close to obtaining immortality. A tier ten behemoth that controlled the entirety of the zombie horde. 

Wang Shen brought forth another wave of qi, molding it into another devastating Blooming Lotus. He sent the attack into the front wave of zombies that were crowding around the Shanghai stronghold, eliminating a score of tier five Armored Zombies. 

It was the best he could do as a peak Nascent Soul cultivator. He had been bottlenecked for the past two years, unable to break through to Saint Soul. He and Bao Miantong were considered mid-tier cultivators in this post-apocalyptic world. 

“Wang Shen, this isn’t looking good,” panted Bao Miantong. His face was pale with exhaustion. His friend was running low on qi as well. Around them, their fellow cultivators fought fiercely, desperate to keep the neverending horde at bay. 

“Don’t think, just keep fighting! The Saint Soul and Diety Soul masters should be arriving from the Suzhou stronghold soon!” Wang Shen blasted off another Blooming Lotus, igniting a row of bloodthirsty zombies. He grimaced as a pang of fatigue washed over him, warning him that further qi depletion would result in fatal consequences.

“I can’t Wang Shen. I think it’s over for me.” Bao Miantong’s voice whispered faintly behind him. “My meridians have been shattered and I can’t bring forth any more qi. Here, take this.”

Wang Shen turned around. His eyes widened as he stared at the object Bao Miantong was offering him.

It was the coveted Phoenix Pill. A Diety tier cultivation pill that was said to contain magical properties and had the capability to bring back the dead. It was known to have been in the Ancient Grandeur Tomb, but no one had ever found it. But it looked like that had been a lie.

“I stumbled upon the Phoenix Pill when everyone was separated by the tomb. I didn’t know what to do with it, but I knew it would come in handy one day. You’re the best person to take it, Wang Shen. You’re the only peak Nascent Soul here. If you breakthrough now, we might still stand a chance!”

Wang Shen hesitated before reaching out and taking the crimson pill. His mind was in turmoil, but one thing was clear. They needed to survive.

He popped the pill into his mouth and swallowed it whole. As it entered his stomach, he felt a burning sensation spread through his meridians. It was as if molten lava was running in his veins in place of blood. He couldn’t help but let out a pain-filled scream as he collapsed to the ground.

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His consciousness was beginning to fade. This wasn’t what he wanted. But he couldn’t move his arms, his mind was muddy and his body unresponsive. All he felt was the hellish sensation that took precedence over everything. 

A guttural noise sounded from Bao Miantong. All Wang Shen could do was watch in horror as a wicked bladed arm pierced his friend’s torso. Crimson blood spurted out in gouts as the mid-tier Nascent Soul’s lifeless body fell to the floor. His best friend had died before his very eyes.

The zombies had finally broken through. Hordes of tier six Blade Zombies pushed through the narrow passage, gleefully falling upon the exposed cultivators. 

Wang Shen let out a soundless scream filled with vexation and rage. It was the best he could do as a Blade Zombie suddenly spotted him on the ground and slowly sauntered over.

Then the world turned dark as a bladed arm came down, severing his connection to the world. 

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Wang Shen came to with a jerk of his head and a twist of his arms. Something clattered to the ground.

“Wang Shen? Do you need anything?” A strict, foreign voice spoke to him. 

Bao! Wang Shen frantically thought, turning his head left and right quickly. He immediately felt dizzy for doing so, he had turned his head too fast. His best friend had been right next to him. Where did he go? 

Wang Shen turned his attention towards the voice. Then, he gasped. It was Ling Xuexia, a face he hadn’t seen for more than ten years.

“I thought so,” she said, turning her attention back to the textbook. A few snickers sounded around him, his classmates from ten years ago.

Wang Shen looked around him, studying the faces of his classmates. Could he be in a special mental array? He instinctively reached for his Hong dispelling powder in his interspatial ring, only to find it missing from his hand. 

Wang Shen was taken aback. He could feel that his body was weak. His dantian was disconnected from his mind and he could only summon one millionth of his true strength. This could only mean one of two things. 

He’d been injured severely in the last fight and his cultivation was sealed. Or, Bao Miantong had succeeded in bringing him back to where it all began. Wang Shen took a deep breath and realized the truth. 

He was back. 

Wang Shen, not caring about the consequences, stood up from his seat and excused himself. He could feel stares at his back as he ran from the homeroom, not stopping until he reached the restroom.

Wang Shen took in his new look. Or rather, his old look, one that he had forgotten for more than a decade now. 

A tall lanky boy with short black hair stared back at him. He took off his uniform jacket and began looking at himself, checking to see if there had been any changes since he took the Phoenix Pill. Everything seemed to be in order, other than his disconnection to his dantian. 

Wang Shen tried to circulate his qi within his body. He could feel wisps of energy forming in his body, but nothing even close to what it used to be. He hadn’t yet formed the connection to his dantian. 

Then, he saw it. Wang Shen started chuckling. 

His birthmark on his right arm was still intact. It seemed to stare back into him as he studied it, memories flooding back to him. He’d been returned to his exact physical state and exact physical location to ten years in the past. 

His chuckle turned into full-blown laughter. The heavens had granted him a second chance. He was like a phoenix, reborn from the fires of defeat. Humanity had struggled for too long against the zombie hordes. 

This time, he would be prepared.