In a foggy daze, Su Hao opened his eyes again, blinking as the remnants of his most recent battle flashed before him in vivid, fractured images.
The intensity of it seemed to play out right in front of him, the chaotic clash of steel, the adrenaline, and the raw will to survive.
But now, that memory was distant, irrelevant. What had happened afterward? He didn't know, nor did it matter. By now, he was sure that countless years had passed—millions, most likely.
In that distant past, there must have been a magnificent civilization, built on runes, teeming with life and grandeur. But those glories had long since crumbled into dust by now.
Instinctively, Su Hao entered the Marble space to check the logs, the mysterious dimension tied to his consciousness and immortality, the repository of everything he had experienced.
As the familiar logs of the Marble Space flickered before his eyes, a particular entry stood out.
[15,642,159 years, 7 months, 8 days, 17 hours, 2 minutes, and 58 seconds.]
Over fifteen million years had passed...
Su Hao's breath hitched, his mind struggling to comprehend the sheer enormity of the number. Millions of years had slipped away like grains of sand in an hourglass, beyond the limits of any normal human's imagination.
"Fifteen million years…" he muttered. "Is that supposed to mean anything to me now?" His words hung in the air, heavy with the realization of just how small he was in the face of such an overwhelming expanse of time." In the face of eternity, does time still hold any meaning at all?"
He rubbed his temples, feeling the weight of it all. Time... it was a concept he had come to understand more intimately than most, yet even now, after endless reincarnations, the sheer magnitude of it left him feeling unmoored. The immensity of the universe and the unrelenting flow of time stretched out before him like an infinite ocean—one he had been drifting through for far too long.
But pondering that question only deepened the feeling of insignificance. The universe was too vast, too incomprehensible. Instead of dwelling on the abstract, Su Hao exhaled slowly, as if releasing all the confusion and frustration in one long breath. The past was gone. What lay ahead was what mattered.
He refocused and checked the other entries in the Marble Space, tracing his journey through the cosmos. Logs were filled with entries from starfields unknown, detailing his wanderings across space.
[532,662 years, 8 months, 0 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes, and 0 seconds.]
[Entered unknown starfield; automatically added to comparison; comparison successful; Coordinates recorded.]
...
[532,667 years, 9 months, 8 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes, and 0 seconds.]
[Entered unknown starfield; automatically added to comparison; comparison successful; Coordinates recorded.]
...
The same pattern repeated itself countless times. Starfield after starfield, unknown realms cataloged with meticulous precision, each data point a reminder of how far he had traveled, places now lost to time.
Finally, Su Hao skipped ahead to the most recent entry.
[10,542,159 years, 7 months, 8 days, 0 hours, 0 minutes, and 0 seconds.]
[Entered unknown starfield; detected abnormal gravity; gravity lock engaged; automatically added to comparison; comparison failed; new star map established; successfully established.]
Su Hao's eyes narrowed at the failure to compare the starfield's coordinates. His mind sparked with curiosity, questions bubbling up, but he stifled them. Speculating endlessly about why the system had failed was futile—there were too many unknowns, and with his current abilities, there was little he could do about it. His attention drifted back to what really mattered—the present.
Exiting the Marble Space, Su Hao finally turned his attention to the body he now inhabited, a body unfamiliar to him in a world that was equally alien.
He reviewed his body's data, only to find no updates since his time in the Warrior world.
Su Hao simply saved the data in a separate file, then set up a new body data table, which was still completely blank for now, ready to be filled with fresh information as he adapted to this new form.
He had just crossed over into this new world and had yet to fully receive the memories of the child whose body he now inhabited. It would take time, Su Hao knew. In his experience, the process of memory integration could vary wildly, sometimes taking a mere three days, other times dragging on for weeks.
As a result, he wasn't clear about his current situation.
And then came the bodily sensations—unexpected, and altogether inconvenient.
"What...?" Su Hao frowned, bewildered. His mind stalled as a jolt of discomfort rippled through him. Starving. Cold. Weakness clung to his limbs like lead, and he could feel his body trembling, already on the verge of collapse. He couldn't help but scoff at the absurdity of it all.
"Hell-mode already?" Su Hao muttered bitterly, his voice rough with sarcasm as he took stock of the situation.
With a groan, Su Hao pushed himself up, muscles stiff from the cold. He took a moment to assess his surroundings.
Filthy. That was the only word that came to mind.
The narrow alley he found himself in was coated with grime, the walls made from a hodgepodge of stones, mud, and decaying grass stalks. They looked as if they might collapse at any moment.
The air reeked—an acrid mix of urine, feces, and rotting refuse, so potent that it stung his nostrils and made his stomach churn. Even the worst garbage heaps wouldn't smell this bad.
Yet strangely, this body he inhabited seemed accustomed to the stench. No reflexive gagging or nausea stirred within him. His mind briefly marveled at the fact this body hadn't already died from some horrid disease given the conditions.
The dimming light of dusk filtered weakly into the alleyway, casting long shadows.
Su Hao leaned against the rough wall, the jagged stones pressing uncomfortably against his back as he scanned his environment more carefully.
The alley opened up to a broader street ahead. Crude houses stretched in all directions, their uneven forms looking more like scattered debris than planned structures. The town had an aura of randomness—architecture cobbled together in an almost haphazard fashion. Su Hao's sharp eyes took in the medieval, almost primitive style of the homes. It spoke of a world with little organization or foresight, a place where people simply survived, rather than thrived.
But what struck him most wasn't the poor state of the town.
It was the silence.
Not a single soul moved through the streets. No voices, no footsteps, no animals scurrying in the gutters—just oppressive, suffocating silence. Su Hao was the only living thing visible, standing alone in the alley as dusk slowly gave way to night.
It was as though the entire town had been abandoned. Yet, the signs of recent life were everywhere.
"Where is everyone?" Su Hao's thoughts spiraled. "Is this a ghost town?" His skin prickled at the thought. After all, the universe was vast—who could say for certain? The lack of life in this place wasn't just eerie—it was unsettling to his core. It felt wrong, as though something terrible had happened or was about to.
He backed away into the alley, seeking its meager shelter as if the narrow, filthy space could somehow protect him from the unknown threat lurking just beyond his sight. Leaning against the wall, he let the cold seep into him once again as he analyzed the situation.
'No parents, no safety net... Street kid, most likely. The body's practically falling apart. Bare feet, tattered clothes—hell, "clothes" is generous. It's just rags. His grim assessment only deepened his sense of urgency. Not a good start.'
Second, judging by the surroundings, this seemed to be a world with relatively low productivity. The weather was quite cold, and if this world had seasons like spring, summer, fall, and winter, it was likely autumn. This meant that he had to find clothes and shelter before winter arrived, or else he'd be dead.
Lastly, based on the traces on the street, it was clear that people lived in this town, and not just a few. But now, even though it wasn't fully dark yet, there wasn't a single soul to be seen. The town seemed like an empty shell—something suspicious was definitely going on.
Maybe something terrifying would emerge after nightfall.
"Should I wait until dawn?" Su Hao wondered aloud, his mind weighing the options. Staying put might keep him safe from whatever danger lurked in the dark, but it wouldn't solve his immediate problem—he was starving, and this body wouldn't survive another day without sustenance.
He could feel that this body was reaching its limits. If he didn't eat something soon to replenish his energy, he might not even have the strength to look for food tomorrow, and that would be the end of him.
'No choice', he concluded, his sharp mind settling on a course of action. There was risk in venturing out now, but there was also the chance of finding food. Doing nothing would guarantee his demise.
"Could this be a one-day tour of another world?" Su Hao chuckled wryly.
He had been through worse and come out stronger. This wouldn't be the end. Taking a deep breath, he pulled himself together and steeled his nerves. If the universe had anything left to throw at him, he would be ready.
Every time Su Hao entered a new world, the cycle began again—a harsh reset that left him stripped of all power he had painstakingly amassed. His formidable strength—all vanished in the transition. It was an infuriating reality, a constant in his seemingly endless journey across realms.
The silver lining was that the knowledge he had gained remained with him.
'Give me three months', Su Hao thought, and he'd once again wield the strength of a common warrior, enough to defend himself from the dangers lurking in this strange world. 'Give me three years', and he would climb back to the level of a master warrior, using various runes at will. At that point, he would hold the freedom to pursue knowledge and explore the mysteries of this world without restraint.
But for now, the priority was far simpler: he needed food.
With renewed resolve, Su Hao stepped cautiously from the alley, his gaze sweeping over the silent, dimly lit town. Night had nearly settled, casting long shadows between the buildings, the narrow street illuminated only by the thin fingers of dusk retreating toward the horizon.
Apart from the deepening darkness, the town didn't seem to have changed much. It was still silent... eerily silent...
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Su Hao murmured, "I can't see them, and they can't see me. That's fair, isn't it? So… what am I afraid of?"
Then, braving the cold wind, he slowly ventured deeper into the mysterious town.
Time to find something to eat!