Chen Xing stumbled out of the rift, still dizzy from the trip. No matter how many times he did this, it always made his gut twist and make his head spin.

“The things I do to survive…” he muttered as he stumbled around, trying to find a place to lean on. Eventually, he gave up, and sat down on the ground. Taking a minute to calm down, he looked around him. He was surrounded by a forest, the sound of nightlife present. In the distance, there seemed to be the sound of a howling wolf.

How peachy.

Xing had just landed himself in an otherwise red-zone area the moment he exited the dimensional rift. How was he always this unlucky? Sitting on the forest floor wallowing in self-pity, Chen Xing was quite the pitiful sight; especially since his clothes were torn on the edges, with his short black hair looking like a rat’s nest.

And now, the sound of the howling wolf grew louder. Shivering, Chen Xing decided it was time to get up and find some human civilization before the wolf could find him and decide to have him as a midnight snack. Groaning as he got up, he dusted off his clothes and pulled up his watch to find any fluctuating heat signatures of humans. One single red dot popped up on his watch within a 10-mile-radius. But before he could head in the direction of another human, the red dot on his watch blinked, appearing closer to Xing’s location.

Huh? How odd. Maybe his watch had malfunctioned when he fell off the rooftop--or maybe it was because of the dimensional rift--but the second option was not very likely. Again, the red dot on Chen Xing’s watch blinked three or four miles close to him.

Okay, yeah, this wasn’t normal. Now Xing was running, running far away from the supposed human that was heading his way. But, like luck would ever kiss up to him, Chen Xing was tackled to the ground before he could take another step. The sound of metal against metal stopped Xing from struggling, as something cold and sharp was pressed against his neck. And in another language Chen Xing didn’t recognize, the person on top of him spoke to him coldly.

“Wait, kind person, can you please let me get to my watch first? It has a translation function; so if you could jus--” the sharp object was pushed closer to Chen Xing’s neck, drawing a bit of blood. Okay, yep, this was not working in Xing’s favor. He needed to somehow get to his watch and turn on his translation function, then upload it to his modified identification chip. He rambled to distract the person on his back as his left hand inches to his watch on his right wrist.

“Kind person, you must understand, I can’t understand a single thing you’re saying until I turn on my translation function on my watch then upload it to my identification chip, okay?” Chen Xing spoke, sounding like he was reprimanding the person present and like that person wasn’t threatening his life.

Chen Xing’s hand touched his watch, and he did flips of joy inside. Problem was, the translation function was activated through voice. And so, he made his second reckless decision within a ten-minute lapse.

“Activate translation function,” Xing said as he touched his watch screen. There was a quick moment of loading, followed by his watch beeping to input the language needed for translation. Chen Xing blanched. He had forgotten about that function. Curse my god awful luck! He wailed inside. “Uh, friend, would you mind getting off me for a moment?” Chen Xing tried, and received no comment. And so, his third and most reckless decision in this ten-minute time span, decided to try and get up from underneath the stranger.

And the sharp object was pushed even deeper into his neck, drawing more blood. Chen Xing stopped immediately, not yet ready to die. And, finally, the person on top of him spoke again. Xin’s watch started loading once again, beeping when the translation had passed through and uploaded to his identification chip immediately.

“Oh finally! I thought I would die if I couldn’t translate what you’re saying! Chen Xing says in his new language, sounding unnatural from his homeworld tongue. Xing noticed when the stranger’s sharp object slightly moved away from his neck, letting him breathe a sigh of relief.

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“What’s a weakling like you with no foundation doing in the Demon Forest?” the stranger asks in their cold voice, still keeping the sharp object against Chen Xing’s neck.

“I’m sorry?” Xing replies, confused. “No foundation? Demon Forest?” Though he sounds confused, Chen Xing had actually somewhat figured out what was going on.

“Cultivation. You aren’t even in any cultivation realm yet.” The person says, moving the blade closer to Xing’s neck again. Chen Xing wanted to scream. He wanted to scream very badly. Of course he landed himself in a cultivational world, where immortals ran amok, and spirit beasts preyed on both immortals and mortals. At least that’s what most cultivational worlds Chen Xing had experienced.

“Right. Yes, I get it.” Chen Xing stumbled over his words. “Well, I was here to collect some rare herbs for my master, but got lost along the way…” It was a stupid excuse, but that was the first thing that Chen Xing could think of as an excuse.

“Your master? Then you must be an apprentice in herbs. Tell me, what are the effects of the Moonstalk Grass?” Great. Now he was being quizzed.

“Oh yes, the Moonstalk Grass, it, uh…” Chen Xing racked his brain for an answer, thinking back to the little information he had learned through his reckless adventures. The only herb he ever remembered learning about was the Thousand-Year Blossom. That was the only herb he had ever used--and it was for experimentation reasons only.

“I’m sorry, kind stranger, but I am not yet knowledgeable about many herbs. My master has yet to teach me.” Please believe my lie, please believe my lie, please believe my lie.

“Fair enough. Then let me take you to my sect for further questioning.”

“Oh yes, thank you very much kin--wait, what?” Before Chen Xing could say any more, the world around him turned black.

~

“He was in the Demon Forest during the night.”

“Are you sure? The Demon Forest is very dangerous and difficult to survive in--especially at night.”

“Yes, I’m sure. Not only that, but the boy was talking in an unrecognizable language; one that I have not heard of.”

“Then are you suggesting that he is a spy sent from another sect?

“Yes, it’s possible, but to be able to show no trace of cultivation is nigh impossible.”

Chen Xing groaned, and the conversation immediately halted to a stop. Xing’s head throbbed, a dull thud against his head. When he tried opening his eyes, the headache only worsened, making him groan again. People in this world sure are violent, Xing silently.

“Can all of you...please explain to me why I’m tied up?” Chen Xing struggled to say, his head pounding wildly whenever he so much as made a sound or shifted in the chair he was bound to. He grunted when another wave of pain washed over his head.

“You are to be questioned tomorrow morning, and given time to rest beforehand. You should feel grateful I was lenient with you in the forest.” That made Chen Xing snap. This dude was the random person who had tackled him to the ground and supposedly knocked him out? The headache momentarily vanished, replaced with a forming ball of hatred.

“You were the stranger who tackled me to the ground? Have you ever heard of a ‘formal greeting’? How could you just hold a blade up to a stranger’s neck before you even greet them?!” Chen Xing spat, pissed. People in this world really were violent, no, as*holes. They didn’t know basic courteousness, and right off the bat decided to tackle a stranger to the ground! How did they ever plan on getting themselves friends or lovers like that?!

“Formal greeting?” the man sneered. “You are a mere mortal in front of many cultivators reaching heights you have never seen before--only dreamed to be.”

Oh, the nerve of this twerp. If Chen Xing ever got the chance to, he was going to beat this arrogant brat into a bloody pulp. Just then, the other person in the room spoke up.

“Changming, let the boy rest until tomorrow morning. We do not have the authority to confirm whether or not this boy is a spy from a neighboring sect. After all, neither of us have any experience with interrogation.”

Well what do you know, a sensible man in the god-awful world, Xing thought. For the rude boy, however, Chen Xing glanced at the ‘Changming’ boy, sending him a murderous glare.

“One day, if I ever get the chance, I will put you through Planet Q’s trainee reprimand,” Chen XIng cackled. The brat didn’t understand what Xing had said, but he was satisfied with that for now. The two cultivators left the room, leaving Chen Xing alone in the small room, tied to a chair.

“Luck really has a passion for evading me, huh,” Chen Xing said to no one in particular.

Just another day in this god-awful universe.