The last coherent sensation was the blare of a horn h– sharp, desperate, metallic – cutting through the mundane drone of city rain. Su Lin remembered the glare of headlights refracting through his windshield like shattered diamonds, the violent jerk of the steering wheel slipping from his grasp, and then… impact. Not pain, exactly. More a profound *cessation*. A crumpling of reality itself, folding inwards like cheap tin foil. Then, nothing but an infinite, silent dark.
Consciousness returned not with a gasp, but with a slow, viscous seep. It carried the scent of damp earth, stale sweat, and something pungent and herbal – wormwood and damp stone. His eyes fluttered open to a rough-hewn ceiling of dark wood, smoke-stained and sagging. Weak, grey light filtered through a small, grimy window. Every muscle ached with a deep, unfamiliar soreness. His throat was sandpaper.
*Where…?*
The thought fragmented as a translucent blue rectangle materialized directly in his vision, humming with silent, electric potential.
**[Transmigration Protocol: Complete]**
**[Host Designation: Su Lin - Confirmed]**
**[World Assimilation: Xuan Huang Realm - Successful]**
**[System Binding: Finalized]**
**[Primary Directive: Survival and Ascension - Active]**
Information, cold and precise, flooded his mind, bypassing comprehension and etching itself directly onto his consciousness.
*A world a thousand times larger than Earth. A single gargantuan continent – the Azure Wilds – consuming forty percent of the planet, the rest a vast, terrifying expanse of deep oceans and scattered, likely monstrous, islands. Humanity, once teetering on the brink of extinction after a cataclysm called the Spiritual Awakening a hundred millennia ago, clawed back survival through martial might. Now, they clung to fortified city-strongholds in the southern and western reaches, controlling a mere thirty percent of the continent. The rest? Wilderness. Untamed. Dominated by beasts, flora, and entities evolved beyond comprehension, ranked from Low-Level nuisances to Sovereign terrors capable of ending civilizations.*
*He was in one such stronghold. Falling Leaf City. Low-Level. A frontier outpost perpetually tasting the dust and blood of the encroaching wilds.*
The sheer scale, the lethality, the *improbability* of it all threatened to drown him in panic. His heart hammered against his ribs like a trapped bird. He was Su Lin, 25, former data analyst for a mid-tier logistics firm, whose greatest physical exertion involved hauling groceries up three flights of stairs. He belonged to spreadsheets and coffee breaks, not continents shattered by flying fists and oceans boiling under draconic breath.
Then, the System interface shifted.
**[Welcome, Host Su Lin. Xuan Huang Realm Integration Complete.]**
**[System Functions Initialized:]**
1. **[Path of Carnage]:** Eliminate monsters, beasts, demons, devils to gain Experience Points (EXP). EXP scales with target threat level. EXP applicable *only* for instant mastery or accelerated comprehension of martial techniques and cultivation methods.
2. **[Omniscient Archive]:** Scan and register any martial arts technique, cultivation manual, or battle skill encountered. Analyze and complete any incomplete technique. Completion time varies based on technique grade and complexity.
3. **[Heaven's Favor]:** Consume Natural Treasures, Heavenly Materials, or Earthly Wonders to acquire Talent Points. Talent Points permanently increase Host's innate Talent Level. Each Talent Level upgrade enhances core attributes: Strength (STR), Constitution (CON), Agility (AGI), Spirit (SPI). (Initial Talent Level: 1 - Mortal Mediocrity).
**[Host Status:]**
```
[Name: Su Lin]
[Talent Level: 1 (Mortal Mediocrity)]
[Realm: None]
[Attributes: STR 5 | CON 5 | AGI 5 | SPI 5]
[Techniques: None]
[EXP: 0]
[Talent Points: 0]
The panic receded, not vanished, but forced down by a surge of cold, analytical clarity honed by years of dissecting complex datasets and identifying critical paths. This… this was data. Parameters. Variables. A system. His mind latched onto it like a lifeline.
*Rule Zero: Survival is paramount. Everything else is secondary.*
*Rule One: Never reveal the System. It is the ultimate advantage and the ultimate vulnerability.*
*Rule Two: Never reveal true strength. Perception is armor.*
*Rule Three: Only act when victory is 100% assured. No gambles. Ever.*
*Rule Four: Eliminate threats with ruthless efficiency. Protect allies pragmatically. Sentiment is a luxury earned through absolute security.*
His breathing slowed, deliberate. The aches remained, but they were just data points now. Baseline physical condition. Suboptimal. The herbal smell? Likely treatment. He was in a place of healing, or at least, attempted healing. He needed information. Context. He needed to *observe*.
He pushed himself up slowly, muscles protesting. He was on a low pallet covered with rough-spun blankets. The room was small, cramped, dominated by shelves laden with dried plants in various states of decay, clay jars, and rudimentary medical tools. A worn table held a mortar and pestle stained dark green. An old man, his back bent like a weathered sapling, stirred a small pot over a low-burning hearth in the corner. He hummed tunelessly, oblivious.
Su Lin cleared his throat. The sound was raspy, alien.
The old man started, nearly dropping his wooden spoon. He turned, revealing a face etched with deep lines, kind eyes the colour of weak tea, and a wispy grey beard. "Ah! Awake at last! Good, good. Was beginning to worry the fever took you proper, lad." His voice was a dry rustle, like leaves skittering on stone.
"Where…?" Su Lin managed, feigning confusion, letting his voice waver. "What happened?"
"Found you half-dead in the Mud Alley, near the West Gate," the old man said, shuffling closer. He peered at Su Lin with professional concern. "Name's Wen. Folks call me Elder Wen. Run this little clinic, such as it is. You took a nasty knock to the head. Been out three days. Remember anything? Name? Where you're from?"
*Amnesia. The universal cover story.* Su Lin let his gaze drift unfocused around the room, then back to Wen. He shook his head slowly, wincing as if the movement pained him. "No… nothing. Just… Su. My name is Su." A partial truth was always more believable.
Elder Wen sighed, a sound like wind through barren branches. "Common enough, after a head wound like yours. The mind protects itself. Su, eh? Well, Su, count yourself lucky. Mud Alley after dark… not many walk away. Probably scavengers left you for dead after they took your purse and decent boots." He gestured at the worn, oversized sandals near the pallet. "Those are mine. Bit big, but better than nothing."
Su Lin looked down at his feet. Indeed, they were clad in rough leather sandals several sizes too large. His clothes – simple trousers and a tunic of coarse, undyed fabric – were clean but threadbare, likely also provided by Wen. "Thank you, Elder Wen," he said, injecting genuine gratitude into his tone. This man was his first anchor in this terrifying new world. A potential asset. Or a liability. Observation continued.
"Pah, just doing my bit," Wen waved a gnarled hand dismissively. "City's harsh enough without leaving folk to die in gutters. You rest. Weak as a newborn kitten, you are. I'll fetch some broth." He shuffled back to the hearth.
Su Lin used the time. His eyes scanned the shelves. The System hummed silently.
**[Scanning: Dried Bloodroot - Low-Grade Natural Treasure (Damaged)]**
**[Potential Talent Points: 0.01 (Insufficient Quality)]**
**[Scanning: Frostpetal Leaves - Low-Grade Natural Treasure]**
**[Potential Talent Points: 0.1]**
**[Scanning: Mortar and Pestle - Crude Tool]**
**[Scanning: Fragment of "Herbalist's Primer" (Incomplete - Common Knowledge)]**
**[Estimated Completion Time: 5 Minutes]**
**[EXP Cost for Instant Mastery: Negligible]**
He dismissed the prompt for the primer. Basic knowledge could be learned conventionally; EXP was for combat power. His gaze lingered on the Frostpetal leaves. 0.1 Talent Points. A minuscule gain, but a *gain*. Proof of concept. He noted their location.
Elder Wen returned with a steaming wooden bowl. The broth smelled faintly of herbs and something vaguely meaty. "Here. Get that inside you. Build your strength."
Su Lin accepted it gratefully. As he sipped the thin, salty liquid, he asked casual questions, his voice weak, his demeanor appropriately bewildered. "This city… Falling Leaf? Is it safe?"
Wen barked a short, humourless laugh. "Safe? Lad, nowhere in the Wilds is truly safe. We've walls, aye. Guards, after a fashion. Keeps out the small fry. But the big beasts? The real horrors?" He shook his head, eyes distant. "They come. Sometimes in waves. Sometimes… something worse slips through. And inside the walls?" He lowered his voice. "Gangs run the slums. The Stone Serpents are the worst near here. Extortion, theft, worse. City Guard looks the other way if the coin's right. You keep your head down, Su. Work hard, stay invisible. That's the only safety there is."
The information clicked into place. Low-Level City. Frontier. Corrupt. Dangerous externally *and* internally. Perfect environment for Rule Two: Never reveal true strength. And Rule Three: Only act when victory is assured. He needed to be the most invisible man in Falling Leaf.
Over the next few days, Su Lin played the perfect convalescent. He was quiet, obedient, and deeply grateful. He helped Wen with simple tasks – sorting dried herbs (scanning each one, cataloging their miniscule Talent Point potential), sweeping the packed-earth floor, fetching water from the communal well. He moved slowly, deliberately, exaggerating his weakness. He observed everything.
Falling Leaf City was a study in grime and grim survival. The air hung thick with the smell of unwashed bodies, woodsmoke, cheap oil, and the ever-present tang of the surrounding marshlands. Buildings were crammed together, leaning precariously, built of rough timber, mud brick, and scavenged stone. The streets were narrow, muddy tracks choked with refuse and wary people. Most wore expressions of ingrained fatigue or hardened suspicion. Guards in patched leather armor patrolled listlessly, their eyes sharp for easy bribes rather than actual threats.
He saw martial artists – real ones. A group of City Guards marching down the main thoroughfare, their strides long and confident, wearing boiled leather reinforced with dull metal plates. Their leader, a man with a scar bisecting his eyebrow, radiated an aura of contained violence. Su Lin focused.
**[Scanning: City Guard - Qi Refinement Realm (Low-Level)]**
**[Scanning: "Iron Mountain Stance" (Low-Grade Body Tempering Technique - Incomplete)]**
**[Estimated Completion Time: 2 Hours]**
**[EXP Cost for Instant Mastery: 50 EXP]
He filed it away. Body Tempering. The first realm. Hardening the physical vessel. Useful. Essential, even. But he had no EXP. And no way to get it yet without breaking Rule Three.
He witnessed a flashy confrontation near a run-down tavern. A young man, barely out of his teens but radiating arrogance, dressed in slightly finer linen, shoved an older vendor whose cart had spilled rotten vegetables. "Watch where you roll that junk, old man!" the youth sneered, his hand resting on the worn hilt of a short sword.
**[Scanning: "Gale Step" (Mid-Grade Movement Technique - Proficient 60%)]**
**[Scanning: Cultivation: Meridian Awakening Realm (Mid-Level)]**
The vendor cowered, apologizing profusely. The youth kicked a stray cabbage with unnecessary force before swaggering away, followed by two similarly dressed cronies. Su Lin noted the technique, the realm, the arrogance. A potential future irritant. *Observe. Catalogue. Avoid.*
His explorations were cautious, never straying far from Wen's clinic in the district known as the Moss Quarter. He kept his head down, his shoulders slightly slumped, the picture of harmless recovery. He found a public training ground near the crumbling city walls – a dusty square where a few determined souls practiced basic forms under the watchful eye of a grizzled veteran. On a worn stone stele at the edge of the ground, weathered characters depicted a sequence of spear thrusts and blocks.
He approached casually, pretending to catch his breath, leaning against the stele. His fingers brushed the cool stone.
**[Scanning: "City Guard Basic Spear Form" (Low-Grade Weapon Art - Incomplete)]**
**[Estimated Completion Time: 1 Hour]**
**[EXP Cost for Instant Mastery: 30 EXP]**
He committed the crude images to memory anyway. Knowledge was power, even without instant mastery. As he turned to leave, he felt eyes on him. Three figures leaned against a nearby wall, their postures radiating lazy menace. They wore rough-spun tunics stained with mud and worse, their expressions bored and predatory. Stone Serpent tattoos coiled on their forearms.
"Well, well," drawled the tallest, a gaunt man with a broken nose. "Look what crawled outta Wen's hospice. New meat."
Su Lin kept his gaze lowered, his posture submissive. "Just passing through, brothers," he mumbled, trying to edge away.
Broken Nose stepped into his path. "Passing through? This is Stone Serpent territory, *brother*. Everything passes through us." His companions chuckled, a low, unpleasant sound. "Elder Wen's a soft touch, giving you bed and board. But that kindness… it ain't free. We collect the rent he forgets."
Su Lin's mind raced, icy calm beneath the facade of fear. *Three opponents. Apparent strength: Body Tempering Realm, possibly early stages. No visible weapons beyond crude clubs tucked into belts. Environment: Open training ground, potential witnesses (the veteran instructor was watching impassively from a distance). Threat Assessment: Low. But Rule Three: Victory not 100% assured without revealing capability. Escape preferred.*
"Rent?" Su Lin feigned confusion. "Elder Wen didn't mention…"
"Wen's forgetful in his old age," Broken Nose sneered. "Five copper leaves. Now. Or we help you remember… painfully."
Su Lin made a show of fumbling in his pockets, coming up empty. "I… I have nothing. Just recovering…"
"Nothing?" Broken Nose's eyes hardened. He gestured, and one of his thugs, a burly man with thick arms, stepped forward, cracking his knuckles. "Then we take payment in labor. Or blood."
The burly thug reached for Su Lin's tunic. Time seemed to slow. Su Lin saw the clumsy grab, the opening. His Earthly mind calculated angles, force vectors. He *could* break the man's wrist. He *could* sweep his leg and drive an elbow into his throat. Expending minimal energy. But witnesses. The veteran was still watching. Revealing any competence, even basic, marked him. It violated Rule Two.
Instead, Su Lin stumbled backwards as if pushed, tripping deliberately over his own oversized sandal. He fell heavily onto his backside in the dust, raising a small cloud. He coughed dramatically, clutching his chest. "Please! I'm sick! I have nothing!" His voice was a convincing wheeze.
The thugs paused, momentarily nonplussed by the display of utter patheticness. The burly one looked down at Su Lin sprawled in the dirt, then back at Broken Nose, snickering. "Pathetic worm. Not even worth the boot leather."
Broken Nose spat near Su Lin's foot. "Useless. Tell Wen his debt increases by two leaves for wasting our time. We'll be back tomorrow. Have it ready, cripple." They turned and swaggered away, laughing.
Su Lin remained on the ground for a moment, dust coating his borrowed clothes, his face a mask of abject fear. Inside, his mind was crystal clear. *Threat identified: Stone Serpent Gang. Modus Operandi: Extortion. Target: Elder Wen (and by proximity, himself). Capability: Low-Level Martial Artists (estimated Body Tempering).*
He pushed himself up slowly, brushing off the dust, his eyes downcast. He caught the veteran instructor's gaze. The old man gave a slight, almost imperceptible shake of his head, his expression unreadable, then turned back to his students. *Message received: Don't fight. Don't resist. Just pay or suffer.*
Su Lin limped back towards the Moss Quarter, his mind already working. Rule Three dictated he couldn't confront them directly yet. Not without EXP, not without a technique mastered, not without absolute assurance of no witnesses and overwhelming force. But Rule Four: Eliminate threats. The Stone Serpents were a threat. To Wen. To his fragile cover. They needed to be dealt with. Permanently. But quietly. Deniably. He needed power. He needed EXP.
Back at the clinic, Wen saw his dusty clothes and defeated posture. The old man sighed, his shoulders slumping further. "The Serpents?"
Su Lin nodded mutely.
"Told you to keep your head down," Wen said, not unkindly, but with deep weariness. "They smell weakness like marsh jackals. Don't worry about their bluster. I'll… handle it." The way he said it suggested handling it meant scraping together precious coins he couldn't afford.
Su Lin didn't argue. He helped Wen prepare a poultice in silence. As Wen focused on grinding herbs, Su Lin's gaze flickered to the small jar where the Frostpetal leaves were stored. Wen had used a few in his broth. There were maybe a dozen left. Potential Talent Points: 1.2. A start.
Later, under the pretext of needing air, Su Lin slipped into the small, overgrown courtyard behind the clinic. The sun was setting, painting the grimy walls in hues of orange and purple. He found a relatively clear patch of hard-packed earth. He closed his eyes, recalling the images from the spear stele and the guard's Iron Mountain Stance. Crude, incomplete, but a foundation.
He wouldn't use EXP yet. Not until he had a target. But he could practice the *forms*. He could build the muscle memory. He began, slowly, painfully, exaggerating his weakness even in solitude – a habit ingrained by Rule Two. A clumsy thrust. A shaky block. He looked exactly like what he pretended to be: a sick man fumbling with basic movements.
But inside the System hummed.
**[Observing Host practice "City Guard Basic Spear Form" (Simulated)]**
**[Progress: Entry 0.5%]**
**[Observing Host practice "Iron Mountain Stance" (Simulated)]**
**[Progress: Entry 0.3%]**
It was infinitesimal. Pathetic compared to instant mastery. But it was progress. Earned through effort, not System cheat. It felt… real. It masked the true potential lurking beneath.
As dusk deepened, casting long shadows, Su Lin heard the distant, mournful howl of something large and predatory from beyond the city walls. A reminder of the vast, deadly world outside. And inside, the Stone Serpents were a more immediate, human-sized danger.
He finished his clumsy forms, breathing heavily, leaning against the clinic wall. He looked at his hands – soft, uncalloused, utterly unprepared for this world. But his eyes, in the gathering gloom, held a cold, calculating light. He had a system. He had rules. He had a target.
Tomorrow, he would venture beyond the West Gate. Into the fringes of the Whispering Marsh. He needed EXP. And beasts, even small ones, meant EXP.
He needed to kill. Quietly. Efficiently. 100% assured.
The Cautious Sovereign had found his first battlefield.
( End of Chapter )