Lin Xiao blinked as the shadowy monster hovered over him, claws wide enough to scoop up a mountain like an ice cream cone. He yawned.
"Okay… this is… a problem," he muttered. Then, thoughtfully, he added, "Or maybe it's just breakfast. Who's hungry?"
The creature growled, flames flickering along its wings, and the floating islands quaked violently. Lin Xiao twirled the Sword of Reverse Fate lazily. "So… rules here are weird, right?"
"Absolutely," said a tiny voice from nowhere. Lin Xiao turned and noticed a small floating orb, glowing faintly. "Hello! I am your guide to the Realm of Reversal. Step one: don't die. Step two: don't die in ridiculous ways."
Lin Xiao raised an eyebrow. "You mean like falling into lava pudding or being eaten by giant claws?"
"Exactly," the orb said. "Also, physics, cultivation, and logic here are… suggestions."
Lin Xiao nodded thoughtfully. "Cool. So basically, I can do whatever and maybe get lucky." He looked back at the monster. "Lucky enough?"
The creature lunged. Lin Xiao, still lying on his cloud bed-sword hybrid (which somehow reappeared under him), lazily flipped upside down, letting the monster crash into a floating island. Rocks, trees, and three confused cows went flying.
"Oops… sorry," Lin Xiao said, waving. "They were probably going to attack me anyway."
The orb squeaked. "Warning! That monster is no ordinary beast! It is a Reverse-Reality Guardian, capable of annihilating realms in one strike!"
Lin Xiao yawned and stretched. "Great. Sounds like a Tuesday morning." He casually flicked a finger at the monster. A small ripple of reality twisted around it, turning its massive wings into… giant, rainbow-colored butterfly wings.
The monster blinked. "WHAT—?!"
Lin Xiao shrugged. "Eh, kinda suits you. Trendy. Very fashionable."
The butterfly-winged monster screeched in confusion and flailed around, crashing into several floating islands. Lin Xiao floated down lazily. "Rule number one: always be sleepy. It confuses your enemies."
The orb spun frantically. "Rule number one is… not to die!"
Before Lin Xiao could reply, a massive portal opened above the battlefield, and a blinding light poured out. From it emerged… a figure dressed in black and gold robes, aura so strong it made Lin Xiao's hair stand on end.
"Lin Xiao…" the figure said, voice calm but terrifying. "You are not meant to exist here."
Lin Xiao blinked. "Not meant to exist… huh? Okay. Sounds official. Can I file a complaint?"
The figure raised a hand, and reality itself began to warp. Mountains melted into liquid crystal, rivers flowed upward, and gravity started doing… whatever it wanted. Lin Xiao floated upside down, munching on a snack, totally unbothered.
"This… this is weird," the orb squeaked. "Extremely dangerous weird!"
"Dangerous is my middle name," Lin Xiao said. "Well… not legally. But conceptually."
Before anyone could act, the figure slammed its palm down onto the floating islands. A shockwave of unimaginable force blasted toward Lin Xiao, cracking the sky and sending rivers of light into chaotic spirals.
Lin Xiao blinked, yawned, and muttered, "Hmm… nap, fight, or eat snacks mid-air? Tough call."
He leapt toward a floating shard of rock to dodge—and discovered something terrifying: this shard was not solid. It dissolved under his weight.
He screamed.
---
Lin Xiao is plummeting toward a bottomless chasm filled with twisting energy, with only his wits (and possibly his ridiculous luck) to save him. Meanwhile, the mysterious figure watches, smiling faintly…