Chapter 1: Awakening
Zhao Shang's head throbbed, the pain sharp and unrelenting. He groaned as he struggled to open his eyes, his body feeling heavy and foreign. The world around him was a blur of unfamiliar shapes and sounds. As his vision cleared, he found himself lying on a rough wooden bed in a small, dimly lit room.
"This... isn't the hospital?" he muttered, confused. He remembered the screech of tires, the blinding headlights, and the sickening crunch of impact. His heart pounded as he tried to make sense of it all.
Panic surged through him as he realized he wasn't in his own body. His hands, calloused and rough, were much larger than he remembered. He sat up quickly, gasping at the sudden rush of dizziness. The room spun, and he gripped the edge of the bed to steady himself.
"What's going on? Where am I?"
The door creaked open, and an old man with a kind face and a weathered expression stepped inside. He was dressed in simple, worn robes, his white hair tied back neatly. The man's eyes widened with surprise when he saw Zhao sitting up.
"Zhao Shang, you're awake!" the old man exclaimed, hurrying to his side. "You've been unconscious for days. We feared the worst."
Zhao stared at the man, his mind racing. The name Zhao Shang resonated within him, yet it wasn't his own. Slowly, fragments of memory began to surface—memories that weren't his. He saw glimpses of a life lived in a world far different from the one he knew, a world filled with strange creatures and powerful warriors.
"What... happened to me?" Zhao asked, his voice trembling.
The old man, who introduced himself as Elder Hu, explained that Zhao had been found unconscious near the edge of the village. They had brought him back to recover, but his condition had been critical.
"You were always a sickly child, but this time, it seemed the heavens themselves had abandoned you," Elder Hu said, shaking his head. "But now, it appears you've been given a second chance."
As Zhao listened, he realized the truth—he had somehow been transmigrated into this new world, into the body of another young man with the same name. But this Zaho Shang was different. In this world, people cultivated their bodies and spirits to gain immense power, but this body was frail, incapable of cultivation.
Zhao's heart sank. He had been given a new life, but it seemed just as bleak as the one he had left behind.
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