Ugh… this is unbearable…
Why is everything so wet… so disgustingly sticky?
Leo, barely conscious, struggled against overwhelming exhaustion. A deafening roar pulsed in his ears, and his limbs lay useless as dead weight.
So this is death?
I expected total oblivion—consciousness dissolving into the void…
But Leo had died. A brutal car crash claimed him, all because of one impulsive act of kindness… one catastrophically stupid choice.
Me—Leo, the youngest doctoral prodigy in Great Xia's scientific history. I swore to decode the universe's secrets, my scholarly devotion as steadfast as the stars…
And yet here I am. Dead at twenty-three.
Then—new sensations tore through the darkness.
Muffled voices. A woman's agonized moans.
And his own body, squeezed through a suffocating, fever-hot passage.
Leo fought to stay conscious, straining to parse the chaotic sounds around him—words clear yet linguistically alien. Still, the voices' frantic cadence screamed danger.
<< SYSTEM INTRUSION >>
A synthetic chime pierced his skull:
"Point allocation protocol initiated. ∮∮∮"
>> Race locked: HUMAN
>> Elemental conduit: LIGHT
>> Arcane potential: SUPREME
>> Fate designation: EXTRAORDINARY
>> Mnemonic continuity: CONFIRMED
...
[WARNING]
CREATION POINTS INSUFFICIENT FOR: ≪COSMETIC ARCHITECTURE≫
>> Compromise proposal:
Downgrade FATE to "Mundane"? ✓
Downgrade TALENT to "Transcendent"? ✓
"Reboot complete. Commencing somatic remodeling..."
A grotesque squelching echoed internally—muscles fiber realigning, bones whispering against each other.
Leo's mental scream: So these choices are rewriting my DNA?! And why the hell would anyone trade destiny for a prettier face?!
...
As a steady stream of clear, glistening amniotic fluid spilled forth, Maureen could already glimpse the faint curve of the baby's crown—yet it had remained stalled there for far too long.
Renowned across the region as a seasoned midwife, Maureen had overseen countless births. On the continent of Valtran, it was rare for human women to struggle this much during labor; with the aid of the fluid, most infants slid out with relative ease. And if that failed, a bit of determined pushing was usually all it took.
But not this time.
Her expression tense, Maureen kept her voice measured and steady.
"My lady, deep breaths. One more strong push—we can see the baby's head!"
Though she'd heard plenty about the household's young lord, Count Clonan Campbell—how he was mild-mannered, respectful to commoners, a man of reason—none of that eased the knot tightening in her gut.
For if his beloved wife were to perish under her care, it wouldn't matter how noble his reputation was. Even the gentlest of men could turn cold when grief struck, and she'd seen more than one "reasonable gentleman" invent a charge and send a servant to the gallows.
On the grand bed, the woman lay bathed in sweat. Her thick, pale blue hair clung to her face in limp strands, its usual luster dimmed. Her once-elegant features—so poised, so composed—were now twisted in agony, unrecognizable beneath the pallor and pain.
She was Lady Aisha Campbell, the matriarch of House Campbell. A battlemage of the Grand Sorcerer rank—decorated veteran of countless wars—she had once believed childbirth would be a trifling matter.
Aisha recalled her aunt Cersei's blithe account: "I was astride my feathered steed, practicing the Fireball incantation I'd mastered the day prior, when—plop!—out slipped your cousin Bael."
"Holding Bael in one arm and the reins in the other, I trotted home past the bazaar—and damn if Landry's Mantle of Radiance wasn't on sale! Nearly trampled three grannies to grab that bargain. Limited edition that year, you know..."
Now, Aisha writhed upon the birthing bed, snarling at the midwife: "Why isn't my child out yet?! By the gods, my perineum is tearing apart!"
Another contraction ripped through her, drawing a guttural scream.
The seasoned midwife Maureen remained steadfast: "Courage, my lady! Once the crown appears, I shall deliver your babe. The end is nigh!"
But soon, Maureen noticed that Aisha had begun to hemorrhage heavily. Her eyelids twitched violently, and she hurriedly instructed the surrounding maids to apply pressure to stop the bleeding and replace the wet towels.
Meanwhile, a sudden, louder scream of pain broke Leo's train of thought. He tried to open his eyes and move his body, but ultimately realized it was futile.
The scene before him reminded Leo of the legendary hell. He couldn't help but think that in his lifetime, he had focused solely on research, tirelessly seeking the truth, never having committed any wrongdoing—so why had he ended up here?
Furthermore, he had just discovered the unique properties of lunar soil. Had it not been for the accident, he would undoubtedly win the Nobel Prize in Physics next year. This was a monumental discovery for the benefit of all humanity. Shouldn't he be going to heaven after death? No, wait, shouldn't he live to be a hundred years old?
"Are you sure you want to allocate all remaining points to the face?"
"Okay, face customization begins."
As Leo ruminated, the cold voice of the AI echoed once again in his mind.
Wait a minute—what the heck is "face customization"? This is starting to feel like the character creation process in a game… Could it be…?
"Face customization complete. All your points have been used up. Thank you for your participation. We look forward to seeing you in your next life!"
It's over already? I haven't done anything yet!
"Please rate your experience!"
One star! One star is too much!
"Five stars! Thank you for your review, the Divine Descent System will be at your service…"
Suddenly, the surroundings began to writhe violently. A warm liquid surged up from Leo's feet, quickly soaking his entire body, accompanied by the overwhelming, pungent smell of blood.
The sudden change made Leo feel like he was suffocating. Driven by the instinct to survive, Bai Hao twisted his body, trying to break free from this warm passage.
"I can see the baby's head now, madam! I'm going to pull him out!"
Just as Maureen spoke, she subtly signaled to the several maids around her, who were now standing like soldiers ready for battle. They each held a blood-stopping cloth, scissors, and towels to welcome the newborn, and immediately moved closer.
As Maureen had anticipated, the baby began to slowly emerge, aided by the combined forces of heavy bleeding and amniotic fluid. At this moment, Aisha's screams grew even louder, as if she were using every last ounce of her strength.
With years of experience, Maureen decisively grabbed the baby's head and slowly pulled it out.
With a heart-wrenching scream, Lady Campbell felt her body grow unbearably heavy. A wave of exhaustion swept over her, and her once rosy face was now deathly pale, devoid of any color. After confirming the safety of her child, she fainted, slipping into unconsciousness.
Maureen gently wrapped the baby in a blanket and quickly moved aside, while the surrounding maids immediately rushed forward with various tools, fearing that their mistress might die in their hands.
She was over fifty and had assisted in noble births hundreds of times, but now, beads of sweat covered her forehead, for the baby in the swaddling cloth was not crying.
This situation terrified Maureen. She knew that on the entire Valtheran continent, with the exception of elven babies, whose births are silent, all other children—be they Orcs, Dwarves, or Humans—cry loudly the moment they are born.
A terrifying thought crossed her mind. She immediately checked the baby's breathing and placed her hand gently on its chest. Only when she felt the faint breath and rapid heartbeat did she breathe a sigh of relief.
As Maureen removed her hand from the baby's chest, she was startled to discover a crescent-shaped birthmark on the left side of its chest. The shape was so perfect it seemed to have been meticulously carved by an artisan—a delicate crescent moon.
Looking at the adorable baby in her hands and then glancing at Lady Campbell, who had stopped bleeding on the bed, Maureen's anxious heart finally relaxed.
Maureen was no citizen of the Ormo Empire, but rather a renowned midwife to the nobility from the neighboring Swart Empire—summoned here last month at extravagant cost by Count Campbell himself.
Though Lady Campbell's delivery had concluded without incident, the harrowing ordeal of the birth and the uncannily silent infant now cradled in Maureen's arms left her deeply unsettled. Yet the memory of the Count's obscenely generous compensation soon rekindled her satisfaction.
...
Presently, the swaddled child in Maureen's arms—Leo—parted his eyelids with languid effort. His newborn gaze wandered across the vaulted ceiling above, its timeworn grandeur speaking of generations past.
Leo attempted to flex his feeble limbs, the sluggish response confirming his reluctant acceptance of this reincarnation. Even so, a spark of anticipation flickered within—this strange new world awaited.
Maureen's practiced hands dabbed at Leo's skin with linen, each pass exposing his delicate flesh to the chill air. The sensation carried an eerie familiarity—that same creeping coldness from his final, breathless night.
In this moment of vulnerability, Leo found himself yearning for the confined yet womb-warm darkness he'd so recently departed...
📚 New Book Launch! Support Needed! 📚
My brand new fantasy novel "A Scholar in a World of Swords and Magic" is now live! 🎉
✨ Why you'll love it:
⚔️Pure Fantasy: No farming, no systems, just classic sword & sorcery adventure! 🎓Protagonist: A science PhD reborn in magic world, solving spells with logic! 🌌Epic Worldbuilding: Humans, elves, beastkin... and intricate political schemes! 😆Witty Humor: Serious plot with a "spicy" twist!
📌 Your support means everything:
✅ Add to Library → Never miss an update
✅ Leave reviews → What plot twists do you want?
✅ Share with friends → More readers = more chapters!
🔮 Start reading now!
(Link: https://www.webnovel.com/book/a-scholar-in-a-world-of-swords-and-magic_32707856800573705)
P.S. Daily stable updates, guaranteed no hiatus! ❤️