"Splash..."
"Cough, cough cough cough."
Jiang Ming suddenly jerked his head out of the water jar, coughing madly, as clear water and saliva mixed with a little blood spewed from Jiang Ming's mouth.
"Damn, a bunch of cowards, none of them dared to come, so I had to... uh..."
Jiang Ming cursed instinctively, but suddenly his pupils contracted as if something got stuck in his throat, causing his words to abruptly cease, freezing him in place.
In front of him was a somewhat coarse stone jar, and on the water's surface mirrored a face both strange yet familiar.
Instinctively, Jiang Ming touched his own face, and the reflection in the water mirrored his actions simultaneously.
Scattered memories surged in Jiang Ming's mind, leaving him momentarily stunned in place.
After a moment passed, clarity returned to Jiang Ming's gaze.
The good news was he had traveled through time, the bad news was it seemed he might be lost once again.
Jiang Ming took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down and once again go through the information in his mind.
According to the memories, he was certainly no longer on Earth, not even in an ancient era he'd traveled back in time to.
This place was also a feudal dynasty era, with customs and culture not much different from ancient times in Jiang Ming's previous life, yet was different because...
This world contains monsters and demons that eat people, ghosts and spirits, sinister and eerie realms...
Common people live ever in danger, perhaps precariously surviving only thanks to some sustainability belief held by the monsters.
The original body was also named Jiang Ming, he was the youngest son of the village chief of Jiang Family Village, possessing somewhat broader knowledge than ordinary farmers, having visited Evergreen City once, and was thus considered a knowledgeable person in the village.
He knew that the Imperial Court had Immortal Masters existing, guarding city pools, able to protect citizens and defend against evil spirits.
However, the Imperial Court's power didn't reach the level of suppressing everything, this Imperial Court which concentrated the essence power of the Human Race could barely protect the Main City.
For small mountain villages like Jiang Family Village, survival mostly relied on worshiping 'Deities,' relying on their protection to barely thrive.
Yet now it seems to Jiang Ming that these so-called Deities were probably just some enlightened mountain monsters and fairies, otherwise why must they require living sacrifices?
Jiang Ming's family even possessed one or two treasures bestowed by Mountain God, elevating their status in the village above the temple priest.
But speaking of this is useless now, as Jiang Family Village is gone.
Three days ago, Mountain God broke precedent, refusing to accept the offerings of a pair of boys and girls, even returning them unscathed, startling the villagers who then intensified the offerings.
The next day, the villagers discovered the temple priest had disappeared, panic ensued, yet Jiang Ming's village chief father managed to suppress the noise, and once again sent people to Evergreen City for help while continuing to increase the amount of offerings, begging for the Mountain God who protected Jiang Family Village for a century to protect them.
But clearly, Jiang Ming's father's actions were to no avail, Evergreen City was unable to protect the small mountain village, and for whatever reason, Mountain God chose to abandon its followers.
The third day, evil spirits arrived, turning Jiang Family Village into a dead land.
A village with eight hundred households, nearly three thousand people, was not considered small in size but overnight lost all vitality.
Only Jiang Ming survived, yet the original body's youth named Jiang Ming quickly went mad, threw himself into the water jar, dying cowardly.
"What a hellish beginning."
Jiang Ming cursed inwardly, with the images in his mind sufficient to drive an ordinary person mad, Jiang Ming clenched his fist, his heart beating faster involuntarily.
As heaven could bear witness, he merely saved a drowning child without even being drowned, yet upon awakening found himself in an extraordinary beginning, could it be true that good deeds go unrewarded?
Jiang Ming was not someone to sit and wait for death, he supported himself using the water jar, surveying this rather spacious house.
The house was clean, with no trace of blood, not resembling a place where a tragedy had occurred.
Jiang Ming took a deep breath, gathering courage as he grabbed a nearby iron fire poker for protection, tiptoeing slowly to explore all around.
The thick wooden door was tightly locked, even propped with tables and miscellaneous items.
All windows were securely shut, with only the moonlight filtering gently through the window paper, becoming the room's sole light.
The house had no apparent means of entrance or exit, how the original body's family had disappeared, could these specters indeed pass through walls?
Jiang Ming's whole body stiffened, for the thick wooden walls and door failed to provide him a trace of security.
But whether it was an illusion or not, Jiang Ming seemed to hear wailing at his ears, and countless eyes appeared to be peering greedily from the darkness through the room's window paper.
Heavy breathing started to sound, yet listening closely one was met with deathly silence.
Jiang Ming's eyelids twitched, his legs, not particularly thick, began trembling rhythmically, for Jiang Ming was neither a centurion nor a cold-hearted killer, how could he not be afraid?
"Damn it, what trickery is this?" Jiang Ming cursed inwardly, though dared not speak aloud, beads of sweat dripped from his forehead down to the floor tiles.
Suddenly, in the corner of his eye, a shadow seemed to flash by.
Startled, Jiang Ming turned around sharply, only to see the direction of a window, where only the cold moonlight remained.
"An illusion?" Jiang Ming tried convincing himself it was merely an illusion.
"The only plan now is to leave Jiang Family Village for Evergreen City, though Evergreen City may not compare to the Great Lii Dynasty's thirty-six great Main Cities, it is a Main City too, guarded by Immortal Masters sent by the Imperial Court, ordinary spectres dare not invade... moreover, Immortal Masters..."
Images flashed in Jiang Ming's mind of the original body's sight of Immortal Masters moving mid-air in Evergreen City, with immortal qi billowing, and an expectation and excitement for extraordinary power managed to wash away a touch of fear.
Extraordinary power! For modern people living in a materialistic world, none would not be intrigued by extraordinary power.
"I, Jiang Ming, arrived here, how could I cowardly let dirty things bring me harm, I must become an Immortal Master, there's a way, there must be a way!"
At this moment, Jiang Ming's eyes were filled with red threads of blood, both hands, tensed with nervousness, felt a tingle of numbness, his face flushed with an indescribable fear and excitement.
"But as an ordinary person, my only reliance to successfully reach Evergreen City is..."
Jiang Ming abruptly turned and quickened his pace towards a specific place.
That being the shelter pit Jiang Ming's family had prepared for him, holding the two treasures left by Mountain God.
And it was by relying on these two objects that the evil spirits failed to devour Jiang Ming.
It was apparent Jiang Ming's family had given all hope and vitality to Jiang Ming, yet now these things could only be inherited by the new Jiang Ming occupying the nest.
"Heaven never seals off one's path!" The only key items left to break open this deadlock now are those same treasures from extraordinary creatures.
Yet in Jiang Ming's turning moment.
A curled and distorted shadow suddenly appeared on the window paper, the breeze swayed the paper, emitting weak howling, gradually becoming abnormal, as if a woman was sobbing softly.
The wooden door, piled with miscellaneous items, began shaking as if something were crashing against the door.
"Bang, bang."
The sound was piercingly terrifying in the silent night.
Jiang Ming quickened his steps, clenching the fire poker a bit tighter, seeming not to hear the abnormal sounds behind him.
The treasure seemed to only protect one person, thus the shelter pit wasn't large.
Jiang Ming's eyes brightened.
"Found it! I found it!"
Jiang Ming quickly found the two items.
One item was a jade green tree branch, the other was a snow-white fang shed by some unknown creature; though bestowed by Mountain God, it retained an intimidating aura that deeply scared Jiang Ming, as if embedded in the bloodline.
Jiang Ming gritted his teeth and reached out for the two items.
Suddenly!
Radiant and dazzling light shone in Jiang Ming's eyes.
The brightness radiated, steadily driving away the surrounding darkness, peaceful warmth overwhelming Jiang Ming's heart, in an instant fear and darkness were expelled, as a crisp sound of glass colliding echoed in Jiang Ming's ears.
"Ding—"
The crispy sound washed through Jiang Ming's mind, and he bemusedly raised his head to the front, hearing a gentle female voice:
"Welcome to Jiuzhou Cultivation Realm..."
As light filled the space, a vast and ethereal scroll gradually unfolded before Jiang Ming's eyes...