Kai Shen woke to silk sheets and morning birdsong, and for one disorienting moment, thought he was still dreaming.
Then the memories crashed over him like a tidal wave. The betrayal. The swords. The burning World Tree. Yuhan's face in those final moments.
He sat up so violently he nearly fell out of bed, his hands flying to his chest where nine mortal wounds should have been. Nothing. Smooth skin. Young skin.
*No. No, this isn't possible.*
But the room around him was undeniable. This was his childhood bedroom in the Shen family compound. The same wooden desk where he'd practiced calligraphy. The same window overlooking the spirit bamboo grove. The same ancestor shrine in the corner.
Everything exactly as it had been sixteen years ago.
Kai stumbled to the bronze mirror and stared at his reflection. Sixteen years old. Soft features. Eyes that hadn't yet witnessed the deaths of millions, hadn't watched friends fall, hadn't held the weight of three realms.
Eyes that hadn't watched Feng Yuhan step between him and death.
The door burst open. "Young master! Young master Kai!" A girl rushed in, worry written across her delicate features. "You cried out—are you ill?"
Ling Xiao. His personal maid. Dead for over nine hundred years in his previous life, here alive and young and whole.
Kai's throat tightened. "What... what year is it?"
She pressed a cool hand to his forehead, frowning. "The 837th year of the Celestial Calendar. Young master, should I fetch the physician? You're trembling."
837th Celestial Calendar. Three days before the Azure Sky Sect examination. Sixteen years before he would meet Feng Yuhan.
Or... supposed to meet him.
*But the Void sent us both back,* Kai realized. *Which means Yuhan is out there somewhere, sixteen years younger, with all his memories intact.*
The thought made something in his chest clench—part dread, part desperate hope.
"I'm fine, Xiao'er," he managed. "Just a nightmare. What's happening today?"
"Your father has called a family meeting at breakfast." Her expression turned sympathetic. "I think... I think it's about the sect examination, young master."
Right. This was the day his father would declare him trash, announce his red-grade potential to the entire family, and assign his examination slot to someone else.
In his previous life, this moment had shattered what little confidence he had. He'd spent years trying to prove himself, only to fail again and again until chance and desperation had forced him down the path to power.
But that was before. Now...
Now he was a Transcendent Realm cultivator in a sixteen-year-old body. He had knowledge, technique, and most importantly, he knew exactly where every heaven-defying opportunity in the Three Realms was hidden.
And somewhere out there, Feng Yuhan had the same advantage.
*What will you do differently this time?* Kai wondered. *Will you seek me out? Or will you avoid me, knowing how our story ends?*
Only one way to find out.
"Tell my father I'll meditate until breakfast," Kai said. "I'm not to be disturbed."
After Xiao'er left, Kai sat in lotus position and turned his awareness inward. His body was young, his meridians undeveloped, his dantian barely formed. In his previous life, he'd been born with red-grade potential—the mark of trash.
But potential was just a starting point. With the right techniques, even the worst foundation could be rebuilt.
And Kai knew techniques that wouldn't exist for another five hundred years.