Main Text Chapter One: Rebirth in Taiyi

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The heat of summer was as stifling as the atmosphere deep within a forest of the Taiyi Mountains at that very moment.

"Wipe out everyone from Dragonfish Fortress—leave no one alive..."

Qin Yi felt a stabbing pain in his head, and when he opened his eyes with a gasp of agony, the scene before him left him at a loss. He distinctly remembered dying in the Wild Marshes—how had he ended up here?

He raised his hands and stared at them; they were covered in blood. Suddenly, another sharp pain shot through his mind, and in that instant, he understood. He had been reborn. Strangely enough, he was still called Qin Yi, but in this life, he was an ordinary youth of Dragonfish Fortress, not the famed prodigy of Taiyi Mountain.

"Watch out, Qin Yi!"

As he was lost in thought, a voice sounded in his ear. The next moment, he saw an arrow whistling directly toward him. He was too slow to dodge, but a handsome boy of about twelve or thirteen years tackled him to the ground just in time, sparing his life so soon after his rebirth.

"I thought you were dead too. I’m the only one left from Dragonfish Fortress," the boy said, his voice trembling on the verge of tears.

Qin Yi patted him on the back to comfort him. "I’m fine, Zhang Chen."

From his inherited memories, Qin Yi knew this boy was Zhang Chen, his childhood companion in Dragonfish Fortress—his closest friend. And now, their attackers were youths from Mao Fortress and Yan Fortress, the other two of the Three Fortresses of Southern Yi. The three fortresses had always been at odds, but this time, on the journey to seek tutelage at Taiyi Mountain, the boys from the other two fortresses had joined forces against Dragonfish Fortress.

"You two, die for me!"

Suddenly, a furious roar thundered in their ears; a long spear was hurled from afar by one of the youths, aimed right at them as they lay prone.

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

At the sight, Qin Yi and Zhang Chen each rolled aside, narrowly avoiding the spear that struck the ground where they’d lain. Qin Yi yanked the embedded spear free, snapped it in two, kept one half for himself, and handed the other to Zhang Chen. "Be careful."

"You too," Zhang Chen nodded.

"Finish them!" the other two fortresses’ boys shouted, charging together—more than a dozen in all.

"To kill right after being reborn... I’m not too happy about this," Qin Yi murmured as he loosened up his unfamiliar body. Glancing at the corpses of Dragonfish Fortress boys scattered around, he sighed. "Since I've ended up in your body, I suppose I owe you this much."

With that, Qin Yi gripped the sharp spear and charged, unleashing a cunning, arcing strike that pierced a boy’s jaw.

A scream rang out—the boy died instantly. Qin Yi’s gaze was cold as he tossed the corpse aside, his voice chilling and emotionless: "One."

The others, who had moments before thought Qin Yi easy prey, were suddenly rooted to the spot by his ferocity. For a time, no one dared advance.

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"What are you afraid of? Get him!" someone in the crowd shouted.

That shout rekindled their courage, and several charged forward. Qin Yi met them head-on, dispatching them cleanly and efficiently.

"Two, three, four, five..."

Qin Yi, now a vision of a slaughter god, finally terrified the rest of the boys. Though they too had blood on their hands, they were still just youths.

"Run! He’s a madman!" someone screamed, and in an instant, they all scattered in panic.

Suddenly, Qin Yi’s legs went numb and he nearly collapsed, but Zhang Chen caught him just in time. Laughing with the relief of a survivor, Zhang Chen exclaimed, "Qin the Unrighteous, when did you become so fierce?"

"Why, can only Zhang the Inept hold out to the end?" Qin Yi jested.

From his memories, he knew that he and Zhang Chen were notorious in Dragonfish Fortress, infamous for petty thefts and harmless mischief—so much so that everyone called them "Qin the Unrighteous" and "Zhang the Inept." The thought gave Qin Yi a headache; in his past life he had been a lonely orphan, but also a prodigy of Taiyi Mountain. Who would have imagined that in this life he would become a pariah?

"Let’s bury them," Qin Yi said, gesturing at the cold corpses of their fellows.

"Yeah," Zhang Chen replied, and the two set to work.

They performed only a hasty burial, not lingering long. Soon, they set off, their destination none other than Taiyi Mountain—the place where Qin Yi had grown up.

...

The next morning, at the gates of Taiyi Mountain—

Qin Yi gazed up at the sparse figures climbing the endless stone steps, frowning. "Why are there so few people at this year’s Taiyi Mountain Initiation Ceremony?"

Though Taiyi Mountain was not among the top sects of the Human Domain on the Divine Continent, it was still the most prestigious within a hundred miles. He’d expected many more new disciples to come.

"It’s because a year ago, during the anomaly in the Wild Marshes, Taiyi Mountain produced a traitor to the human race, and the sect’s reputation, already modest, plummeted. Strangely enough, that traitor had the same name as you—Qin Yi," Zhang Chen replied indifferently.

His words, however, sent a storm raging through Qin Yi’s heart. He felt a surge of anger and cursed loudly, "Who says I’m a traitor? He’s the traitor—his entire family!"

Zhang Chen was taken aback by the sudden outburst, then sneered, "Hey, don’t tell me you’re identifying with that guy? Get real. He was the pride of Taiyi Mountain—so much so that even the most orthodox prodigies of the human race were wary of him. You?"

Qin Yi almost replied but then quieted, suppressing his tumultuous thoughts. After a long silence, he ground his teeth and muttered, "It must have been Ji Yunyang, the Holy Son of the Heavenly Origin Divine Sect."

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Ji Yunyang was a Holy Son of the Heavenly Origin Divine Sect—an orthodox leader of the human race, born of an illustrious family, a peerless prodigy, and, above all, a man of unfathomable cunning and depth.

Qin Yi realized Ji Yunyang hadn’t been content to let him die; it wasn’t just a matter of rivalry. The other orthodox prodigies, while they normally looked down on Qin Yi’s lower status, would not have condemned him so thoroughly over a supposed betrayal of the human race—there must have been deeper, unspeakable secrets at play.

But what stung Qin Yi most was not being framed as a traitor, nor that his sect suffered because of him, but rather Jiang Yao’s indifference. Why had she not spoken up, told the world he wasn’t a traitor, that he’d died to save humanity’s hope for the future? Why?

His eyes grew resolute.

Jiang Yao, I will ask you again face to face: "Yao Yao, if there is another life, would you travel the world with me?"

"Master, teachers, all of Taiyi Mountain—it is because of me that you bear the shame of having produced a traitor. I swear, in this life, I will restore our honor."

"And I will prove to the world that I am not a traitor. I do not seek everlasting fame—only to die without regret."

Since Heaven had granted him a second chance, he would seize it with all his might.

Yet, as things stood, he was not even a match for a newly initiated disciple of Taiyi Mountain, let alone those orthodox prodigies. But the thought made him smile. His death had not been without benefit—for now, within his sea of consciousness, he discovered a new technique, one that encompassed all four stages of Foundation Establishment.

Though it was only a Foundation Establishment technique, he did not dare underestimate it. After all, it was obtained from the anomaly—how could it be ordinary? Perhaps it was the key to unraveling the anomaly’s secrets, possessing qualities no other Foundation Establishment technique could claim.

"Hey! Are you daydreaming about the mountain fairies again? Snap out of it! If we don’t hurry, we’ll miss the Taiyi Mountain Initiation Ceremony for new disciples!" Zhang Chen called, baffled by Qin Yi’s tears and laughter, convinced he was fantasizing about the immortal maidens on the mountain.

Qin Yi turned and smiled, "No, let’s go."

Before Zhang Chen could say more, Qin Yi strode up the stone steps toward the main peak, Qingxu Peak, moving with the swagger of a dragon and the confidence of a tiger, exuding heroic vigor.

Zhang Chen watched him with mounting confusion. "Qin the Unrighteous is acting so strange today!"

Still, he didn’t dwell on it. However odd Qin the Unrighteous might be, he was, after all, his brother-in-arms—a fact that would never change.

Qin Yi didn’t need to guess to know that his ascent of the mountain would soon send shockwaves throughout Taiyi Mountain.

...