Chapter 4: Ghost of the Modern World
> "You can bury a name… but not a memory."
Lin Ma scrubbed the latrine floor with trembling hands. The bristles of the straw brush cut into his palms, already red from hours of cleaning. The smell was unbearable, but the stares from the passing disciples were worse. Their eyes held scorn, like he was less than human.
He paused, wiping his forehead with a dirty sleeve. In a puddle's reflection, he barely recognized himself. Gaunt face. Hollow eyes. This wasn't the Zhao Lin Ma who once signed multi-billion yuan deals.
But a fragment of that man remained.
His mind—razor-sharp, methodical—began mapping this strange world. Every insult from the Ji clan elders, every corner of the estate, every rule, every subtle gesture of status. He memorized it all.
"Adapt first. Retaliate later."
--
That night, he lay on a hay mat under a rotting roof. Rainwater dripped through a crack, pattering beside his ear. His fingers clutched the jade bead he'd found in his sleeve on arrival. Something stirred when he touched it.
A chime rang in his mind, like a bell echoing across mountains.
> [SYSTEM INITIALIZING…]
Welcome, Zhao Lin Ma.
You have been chosen by the Celestial Order.
Phase 1: Endure the Humiliation of Mortality.
Mission: Complete Seven Days in the Ji Clan without retaliation.
Reward: Unlock Companion Contract - White Serpent of the Falling Sky.
Lin Ma's eyes widened.
He wasn't dreaming.
A system. Like the novels he used to read when stress kept him up at night.
"Is this a test... or fate?"
---
Chapter 5: Latrine Sage
> "Even dirt tells stories if you know how to listen."
By the third day, Lin Ma began to shift his approach. He still obeyed every order—but with intent.
He memorized every disciple's name and routine. He noticed one elder's limp worsened when it rained. Another avoided eye contact with a certain servant girl. When someone "accidentally" spilled tea on him, he bowed and apologized, then quietly noted the silk emblem on the disciple's inner robe—one that didn't match the Ji clan's colors.
"Infiltration from another sect?" he mused. "Or just pride?"
That night, his mind raced as he ate cold porridge in the kitchen's corner. The bead pulsed faintly. A second chime rang.
> [Heavenly Insight Passive Unlocked: Strategic Perception Lv. 1]
Minor increase in deduction and memory recall.
Progress: 3/7 days complete.
--
Chapter 6: The Girl with Silver Eyes
> "Some masks don't hide the truth—they reveal it."
On day five, Lin Ma encountered her.
She wasn't dressed like the Ji disciples. No clan crest. No weapons. Just a plain robe and silver eyes that shimmered unnaturally. She sat by the lotus pond, watching koi dance in circles.
"You're not from here," Lin Ma said bluntly, drawn to her presence.
She didn't flinch. "Neither are you."
A silence passed.
Then she smiled. "You still smell like smog and burnt coffee."
He blinked. "You're…"
The girl placed a finger to her lips. "A whisper between worlds. Keep enduring, Lin Ma. Heaven watches the fallen most closely."
She vanished as quickly as she appeared, leaving behind only a lotus petal that shimmered with starlight. When he picked it up, the system chimed again.
> [Celestial Mark Fragment Acquired: 1/9]
Hidden Quest: Remember Who You Were.
---
Chapter 7: Snake in the Shadows
> "Power often slithers in when pride turns its head."
The seventh night, a storm cracked the skies. Lin Ma shivered in the servant shed, soaking wet. His muscles ached. His lips were pale.
But his mind burned.
He had passed every test. Spoken no harsh word. Retaliated not once. Even when slapped by an elder in public, he smiled and bowed.
And then it happened.
From the ceiling rafters dropped a white serpent, no thicker than a child's wrist. Its eyes glowed with ancient wisdom. It coiled before him and hissed.
"You stink of rot and ambition," it whispered in a tongue he understood. "But I owe a debt to that jade in your pocket."
Lin Ma held his breath.
> [Companion Contract Unsealed: Xiao Bai — The White Serpent of the Falling Sky]
The snake flicked its tongue.
"Let's tear down heaven one insult at a time."