"Huff… huff…"
Lian's breath came out in broken gasps as he pushed his legs harder, the sound of his boots slamming against the uneven ground of the forest. Large tree branches whipped past his face, wild leaves sticking to his sweaty body, the exotic plants snapping against his arms and stinging his skin, but despite these conditions, he didn't dare slow down.
He didn't stop his feet from running. His lungs burned from lack of breath, which made his chest feel like it was on fire, and his heartbeat thundered so loudly he was convinced it could be heard from miles away.
Damn it… damn it…
Behind him, the pressure didn't fade. If anything, he felt it grew heavier.
That bastard was still chasing him.
Lian already knew who it was without needing to glance back. The oppressive atmosphere revealed everything to him. A senior member of the inner sect of the White Spirit Sect, whose cultivation greatly surpassed Lian's insignificant level.
Someone who wanted him dead.
This really isn't fair, Lian thought bitterly as he stumbled over a root and barely managed to keep his balance.
The forest stretched endlessly around him, tall ancient trees blotting out much of the sky. This was the outer part of the Red Spikes Forest, a place normally used by low-level cultivators who were afraid to go deep into the forest and could only search for forest resources and hunt beasts in the outer region. Right now, even this area felt like a death zone for him.
Lian forced himself to keep moving.
His cultivation was low. Embarrassingly low. If that senior brother caught up to him, there wouldn't even be a fight. It would be a one-sided beating followed by a quiet burial or worse, no burial at all.
I really should've kept it in my pants, Lian thought, though there was no real regret in the thought. More like annoyance at being unlucky.
Six months.
That was how long he had been in this world.
Six months since he had died on Earth and opened his eyes in a completely different body. Also a completely different world. A world where people could cultivate spiritual energy, where swords flew, mountains shattered, and powerful cultivators could shake the earth with a single stomp.
At first, Lian had been very excited.
Then reality hit him in the face.
This world wasn't that simple. There was the law of the jungle in this world, with no rules to speak of. The powerful were the lawmakers of this world. Laws existed, but only for the people at the bottom. For those powerful cultivators, there were no scales or bonds to restrain them. In this world, strength was everything. And he had none.
He had transmigrated into the body of a young man who didn't have any talent to speak of. Even after spending quite some time in the sect, he had not progressed much. The sect itself was located in the northern part of a large region filled with countless cultivation families and sects, some strong, some weak.
The White Spirit Sect was… average at best.
Not weak enough to be bullied by everyone, but nowhere near strong enough to stand out. In this region alone, there were several sects that could wipe it out if they truly wanted to.
Still, for someone like Lian, it had been a decent shelter.
Until he screwed it up really bad.
A sharp pain exploded in his calf, and Lian nearly screamed as his leg gave out for half a step.
Shit—!
He gritted his teeth and forced himself onward, sweat pouring down his face.
Behind him, a cold voice rang out.
"Stop running, you bastard."
Lian's heart sank.
He's closer.
The difference in cultivation was cruel. No matter how desperately Lian ran, the gap couldn't be erased. He was already at his limit.
Luck and willpower had carried him this far—but luck always ran out.
Just as despair began creeping in, the forest ahead suddenly opened up.
Lian's eyes widened.
A cliff.
A sheer, unforgiving cliff stretched before him, the land ending abruptly as if the world itself had been cut open. Below was nothing but swirling mist and distant darkness. He skidded to a halt, boots digging into dirt and loose stones.
His heart dropped into his stomach.
You've got to be kidding me.
He turned his head slightly.
The senior brother emerged from the trees, calm and composed, not even breathing hard. His eyes were cold, filled with disgust and killing intent.
"Run," the man sneered. "Why don't you keep running?"
Lian swallowed.
He was trapped.
There was no way back. No way forward.
The senior brother raised his hand slowly, spiritual energy gathering around his palm.
"This is what happens when trash doesn't know its place."
Lian's mind raced. He forced his mind to think of something. Something that could help and save him in this desperate situation. But in this situation, where his strength was pitiful to speak of, he couldn't think of any way to get out of this dire situation.
There was no plan. He also had no clever trick. And also no forbidden or miracle technique that would help him overpower the man.
On Earth, there was a saying: when there is a will, there is a way. But in this situation, his will didn't seem to work. He had the will to live, but how?
As he thought hard in this limited time, only one option seemed to appear in his mind. But this option was like certain death. Even a very foolish person couldn't think this was okay.
"Fuck this."
Lian laughed. He didn't have any other option. He glanced back at the cliff and looked ahead at the senior brother. He grinned. "You know what, she was very tasty."
Hearing this, the man instantly became red with anger. "What did you say, bastard?"
He then charged forward toward Lian while imbuing the sword in his hand with qi. "Aaarrrraahhh! I will fucking kill you, bastard, and chop you up and feed you to the dogs!"
Lian laughed strangely, then turned back and jumped from the cliff. "Fuck, this is awkward."
"I will surely die."
The man watched from near the cliff, anger evident on his face.
The moment Lian jumped, wind roared in his ears as his body plummeted downward, his stomach lurching violently. Pain, fear, and panic flooded him all at once.
This is going to hurt, was the last coherent thought he had before darkness swallowed him whole and he lost consciousness.
The senior brother continued to stand at the cliff's edge, staring down into the mist.
After a long moment, he scoffed.
"What a fool." Falling from this height, nobody can survive, and even if he somehow survives, ahead lies the inner region of the forest. With his meager cultivation, he can't live more than a few hours before being devoured by the beasts.
Turning around, he left without another glance.
Pain.
That was the first thing Lian felt after awakening.
A deep, bone-rattling pain that spread through his entire body.
He groaned softly, his consciousness slowly dragging itself back from the abyss. His eyelids felt impossibly heavy as he forced them open.
The sky above him was pale and distant. Strange rock formations surrounded him, and the air was damp and cold.
He was alive.
"…Huh," Lian croaked. "Didn't expect that."
Every part of his body screamed in protest as he tried to move. He quickly gave up and lay there, panting weakly.
As his breathing steadied, Lian noticed something strange.
A faint, warm sensation flowed through his body, subtle yet steady. It wasn't painful—in fact, it felt almost soothing, gently repairing the damage inside him.
Spiritual energy? he thought groggily.
He didn't understand it, but this energy had likely saved him.
Unable to bear the pain any longer, and with exhaustion creeping in, he lost consciousness again.
When Lian woke up the second time, the sky had darkened slightly. Several hours must have passed.
He slowly sat up, wincing as pain flared through his ribs and arm. His clothes were torn and stained with blood, but he was alive. That alone felt like a miracle.
"Tch… I look like hell."
He tore a strip from his already ruined clothes and carefully wrapped it around his worst injury. As he worked, his mouth didn't stop moving.
"So close," he muttered bitterly. "So damn close."
His mind drifted back, annoyance bubbling up.
If things had gone just a little differently, he wouldn't be here.
If he had managed to sleep with that inner sect elder's wife, everything would've changed. An elder as a backer? He could've walked sideways through the sect and no one would dare touch him.
Instead—
"Caught with the wrong woman," Lian sighed. "Really bad luck."
He shook his head.
Being caught with the senior brother's fiancée had been the real turning point. That had sealed his fate. He didn't have time for any explanations—what could he explain? That his cock had mistakenly slipped inside? That wouldn't work. After being caught in that situation, there was no mercy for him. He barely had time to pull his cock out and run through the window without looking back. The senior brother who was cuckolded, red with anger and filled with hostility, was on his tail, chasing him to the outside sect area and into the forest.