It was just an average day, living my life, when the world turned completely blank for me and utter darkness shrouded everything.
Dead!
My extremely blurry consciousness drifted through an unknown place, completely impervious to my surroundings. Honestly, feeling my own weightless body was the most terrifying experience of my life.
'Where am I? Did I really die? If I really did, then this is supposed to be the afterlife, right?'
These thoughts terrified me to the extreme until the world suddenly brightened. It was still a little blurry, but my gaze could at least make out jagged edges of shadows lingering at the edge of my vision. 'Is it two people… or three?'
Then my ears began to twitch as catching murmurs in a completely unfamiliar language, immediately raising a single question in my mind.
'Did I transmigrate into another world?'
The language buzzing in my ears was something my mind didn't have even an iota of familiarity with.
A day passed like this, and my vision finally gained some clarity. My gaze now took in a dilapidated house, with rough patches of holes scattered across the ceiling and a lamp attached to a grimy, sticky wall, dimly lighting the empty, desolate room. The only other source of light was a paper window, through which the yellow rays of the sun could barely drift. If this place was so dark during the day, then what would happen at night?
My gaze then shifted to the woman holding me. Her face was extremely thin and rough, her figure clearly malnourished.
'Is this my mother? Sigh… it seems I really did reincarnate into a dirt-poor household. And poor people are always bullied!'
But my hope hadn't completely shattered yet. Transmigrators usually received a system, so maybe… please…
'Yeah, I'll definitely get a system. I just need to wait for it. Then I'll finally have a chance to lift myself up.'
That thought was my only consolation in this cold, dilapidated, dark household.
Time passed, and eventually, a year went by.
The first delightful thing that happened to me was that my body could finally crawl around on the floor and… and that was it. Nothing special. Oh—also, my father came by to give money to my mother. He was a hunched, unassuming figure with his hands calloused, likely from years of hardship. Then another year went by. Our situation didn't improve in the slightest, but at least Father stayed in the household more often and played with me quite frequently, filling me with unbridled joy. My memory was still groggy, so couldn't make out much beyond that.
Another year passed, and finally my mother began teaching me the language of this world. That was also how I knew my name:
Lu Shen.
"Lu Shen, you are such a smart boy. You will become someone great when you grow up—maybe even a cultivator. Not like your father, who is a herb gatherer."
One day, my mother said this while hugging me, Lu Shen.
"Okay, Mother," Lu Shen replied with a smile.
"Haha, that's my son."
His mother smiled, wiping the tears from her eyes before returning to sewing clothes. Lu Shen was left alone on the bed, lost in his thoughts.
'Looks like I really did transmigrate into a cultivation world.' He couldn't help but let out a heartfelt sigh. 'And a poor household at that.'
Either way, Lu Shen needed to pat himself on the back and start preparing for the turbulent future ahead of him. Another two years eventually passed, and again, their condition didn't improve. However, Lu Shen gained enough strength to walk around and could finally help his mother by sewing clothes and doing minor chores—but that was about it.
He had never worked so hard in his previous life, but now, in this world, everything was filled with hardship. Still, he had to persist through all these difficult times, all the while wondering every single day:
'When will I fucking get my system!?'
Today, he woke up early alongside his father, wearing the same worn and torn robes, brushing his teeth and adjusting his hair with his hands.
"Are you ready, Lu Shen? Today we're going to gather herbs."
"Eh, yes, Father."
Lu Shen hurriedly fixed his unkempt hair and quickly followed after him.
"Hmph. Remember, don't be overly smart like you usually are. Just quietly follow me. Being a herb gatherer is a difficult job."
"Yes, Father."
The two quickly left the household. Outside, the area was almost vacant, without a single soul in sight—likely because the sun had only just begun to rise, and the chickens were only now crying out in their morning melody. Rough, thatched houses filled his view wherever he looked, all much like their own—some in better condition, others in worse. Lu Shen lowered his head and quietly followed after his father through the streets until they eventually reached an entrance barricaded by wooden walls. A crooked man with one missing tooth sat right at the entrance. When he saw Lu Shen's father, a wide grin spread across his face.
"Lu Zhen, it seems you're up early as always."
"Haha, Old Lu, if I don't arrive early, the good stuff would've long been taken by the other herb gatherers," Lu Zhen said with a hearty laugh.
"Hmph. And yet you still barely make ends meet. What are you so proud of? If you hadn't married your wife and had simply listened to my advice, you'd still be free," Old Lu said. His meaningful gaze lingered particularly on Lu Shen, who stood behind Lu Zhen.
Lu Shen immediately hid behind his father.
"Haha, no need to be scared, child. This Old Lu may look crooked, but he's quite friendly," Lu Zhen chuckled, patting his head.
'This man is quite strange…'
Lu Shen narrowed his eyes.