The afternoon class was filled with the philosophy professor's monotonous voice, rambling on about Machiavelli's The Prince. The afternoon heat poured through the open windows, making most of the students succumb to drowsiness
Gu Feng had stopped paying attention to his philosophy class since long ago, his eyes glued to his phone hidden beneath the desk, his thumb furiously scrolling through another cultivation novel to kill the boredom.
The main character had literally broken through the Soul Formation stage by sucking up the essence of a thousand year old phoenix.
'Total bullshit. The author clearly doesn't get how basic energy conservation principles actually work in a closed system,' Gu Feng thought with a sneer, even though he couldn't stop himself from reading the next paragraphs.
He had read hundreds of these novels, watched a lot of anime, and could argue for hours about the philosophical logic of transmigration versus reincarnation.
He knew he was smarter than anyone. His test scores were high, and without him having to study.
But he had never used that brain for anything real in twenty two years of his life for anything real.
"Mr. Gu," the professor called. "Since you're so busy with your phone, tell us.. the ends justify the means?"
Gu Feng looked up at the old professor who was staring at him intently, with a look that said, I dare you to answer.
He straightened his back a little bit, but didn't bother to hide his phone.
"Morality is just a trap for people who are too scared to do what they have to do. Machiavelli wasn't exaggerating, I personally like his opinion. It's way safer to be feared than loved. Love is fake, but fear actually keeps people in line."
The room went quiet, and the professor's face went hard. "That's a pretty edge take, Mr. Gu. But let me ask you one thing. If you really believe that was the interpretation, are you the one people fear? Or are you just another loser waiting to be crushed?"
The question was like a hard slap at his face. Gu Feng wanted to talk back and argue with this particular professor, but he couldn't. Deep down he wasn't the person to be feared or loved. He was just a college kid wasting his life.
"Yeah, I figured that much," the professor whispered in disappointment, then walked back to the front. "Class dismissed."
—
Gu Feng walked out of the school feeling empty. The professor's words kept haunting his mind.
'Are you just another loser…'
The sun was already going down, turning the evening sky red. He stopped at a grocery store, bought some ramen noodles and a drink, and started walking to his apartment.
He took the path through the old part of the city as he liked the old buildings that were sitting next to the big new towers. It just felt right to him, even if he didn't know why.
He was walking across the street, thinking about how useless he felt, when he heard tires scream. Everything slowed down.
Gu Feng turned his head and saw a huge delivery truck, its tires let out smoke because the driver was slamming on the brakes, but it wasn't stopping.
The truck was sliding straight toward an old grandma who had dropped her bags in the middle of the road.
Gu Feng didn't think, his body just moved on its own. He dropped his own grocery bag and ran, reaching the old woman in three big steps, then shoved her hard.
She flew onto the safe sidewalk just as the truck's grill filled his vision. The horn blasted loudly.
In that last second, Gu Feng saw the driver's terrified face through the windshield.
'Well damn,' he thought with a strange clarity. 'I guess I actually did something real for once.'
Then the world turned into pain, and everything went black.
*******
[SYSTEM INITALIZATION COMPLETE]
[WELCOME, HEIR OF THE SOVEREIGN BLADE]
[TRANSMIGRATION SUCCESSFUL]
The words carved themselves into Gu Feng's consciousness before he even opened his eyes. For a second, he thought he was dreaming or hallucinating from his drying brain.
However, he felt a deep exhaustion combined with the sharp sting of cuts and bruises, not the crushing agony of being hit by a truck.
Gu Feng forced his eyes to open. What he saw were stone ceilings and old wooden beams, and the sharp smell of blood and herbs filled his nose. When he tried to sit up, pain lanced through his ribs.
When he wanted to place his hand on his chest, he froze. His hands were rougher and calloused, with several healed scars across the knuckles.
Confused, he stumbled to his feet, swaying slightly as he walked, then found a small bronze mirror hanging on the wall. The face that stared back ahim was perhaps eighteen or nineteen years old, with sharp features, intense dark eyes, and long black hair tied in a traditional topknot. The reflection was wearing robes that looked like they belonged in a historical TV show, and it was stained with dried blood.
[SYNCHRONIZATION WITH HOST BODY: ZHAN WU COMPLETE]
[ACCESSING RESIDUAL MEMORIES…]
The foreign memories flooded him like a tidal wave crashing against a rock.
Zhan Wu, the last heir of the Zhan Clan, once used to be one of the three great families of the White Path. The clan had been wiped out over the last ten years, its members hunted down by Shadow Sect assassins.
Two days ago, Zhan Wu had been ambushed while traveling to the Azure Cloud Sect, seeking protection. He had managed to kill his attackers but suffered fatal wounds in the process.
He had died alone in this abandoned house, his body giving up just as the last of his clan's legacy turned to dust. And now Gu Feng had taken his body to be the Zhan Wu that was supposed to be dead.
[WARRIOR SYSTEM ACTIVATED]
[LOADING SOVEREIGN BLADE LEGACY…]
A glowing and transparent blue screen floated in front of his eyes, filled with text and numbers that looked like they had been pulled straight from the cultivation novels he had spent years reading.
[WARRIOR SYSTEM - STATUS PANEL]
[Host: Zhan Wu (Gu Feng)]
[Age: 19]
[Cultivation Level: Foundation Establishment (Early Stage) - INJURED]
[Core Stats~]
[Physical Strength: 12/100]
[Spiritual Essence (Qi): 8/100]
[Mental Fortitude: 34/100]
[Combat Technique: 15/100]
[Unique Attributes~]
[Righteousness Score: 45/100]
[Pragmatism Gauge: 38/100]
[Special Ability~]
[Dual Path Cultivation (Heaven Cleansing Edge + Myriad Venom Arts)]
[Warning~]
[Both Righterousness and Pragmatism must remain above 30 to prevent system penalties.]
[Perfect balance (50/50) unlocks advanced abilities.]
[Legacy Bound~]
[LOCKED - No companions registered]
Current Quest~
[SURVIVE]