Dying is hard. No matter how many times I experience it, it doesn’t get any easier. I could say that the first time was the worst, but that would be a lie. I’ve had many deaths worse than the first. Still, the first time I died was the only time I truly believed it would be my end. That was a different kind of pain. My first life was long ago. So long ago that I can barely remember anything about that time anymore. After my first death, in the lives that followed, I endured years of pain and suffering. Once I found my footing, though, I also found joy and wonder in a new world. All of this, of living innumerable lives in another world, has made my first life feel so distant. So... detached. I’ve even forgotten my name from that first life. It’s disappeared in the long river of time. I only really remember one thing from that life. I had a sister. I can’t remember anything about her anymore, not even her name, but I remember caring about her. She was my only family at the end. Allowing these memories to fade is one problem I have not yet fixed. Not yet. Forgetting makes living easier. When I died, it was sudden. My sister had gotten into some kind of trouble, and I was in a hurry to save her. It was rushing that led to my death. Maybe it’s strange that I don’t even remember the details of how I died, but I have died so many times since then. All I remember anymore is that I had a sister, she was in trouble, and I wanted to save her. I do, however, remember what came next. My consciousness floated in an empty void. Everything was nothingness. I could not see, or everything was black. I could not feel. There was nothing to feel. Time passed, but it was impossible to know how long I stayed there. What is your desire? I had no ears, but the question echoed through my mind. The voice was commanding, as if all things should listen when it spoke. It was the entity I would later come to know of as the Earthly Dao. It was a being that controlled, not ruled, but controlled, an entire world. My final thoughts echoed through my mind. I wanted to live. I wanted to live for my sister. That is compatible. I can grant you a new life. You will have the chance to see her again. You will even have the power to help her in any way she requires, eventually. Do you accept this blessing? Yes! Agreement noted. Sensation crashed into me. I was kneeling. The ground beneath me was packed dirt. A gentle wind blew through my hair. The air smelled clean, as if I were in the countryside in early spring. I opened my eyes to see that I was in a large courtyard filled with people kneeling on the ground. There had to be dozens of us lined up in tidy rows. Everyone had their eyes closed and looked like they were in deep meditation. I was so shocked I shouted something and tried to bolt to my feet, but I stumbled. “闭嘴!” At the head of the courtyard, a middle-aged man stood on a small platform and glared at me. I had no idea what he was saying, but his ‘shut the hell up’ face didn’t need any translating. I quickly shut the hell up. I didn’t know what was happening, or why I suddenly appeared here, but I would try to play my part until I could understand. I tried to get back into the kneeling posture everyone else was in, but my discomfort was obvious. Fortunately, not long after my outburst, everyone else in the courtyard began to open their eyes. When the last person awakened, the man up front shouted again. “起立!” Everyone started to stand, so I followed along. The large courtyard we were in was surrounded by red-plastered walls nearly eight meters tall. The area of packed dirt we had been kneeling on was surrounded by a border paved with large gray bricks. At the head of the courtyard was the carved, dark wood platform the shouting man stood upon. To the left of the platform was a massive red double door that was several meters tall. It was adorned with seven rows and seven columns of large brass studs laid out in a rectangular grid. The group was herded out of the courtyard. The scenery barely changed as we entered onto a wide road paved with the same gray bricks. The same red walls sealed off both sides of the road. We could only go forward or back into the courtyard we just left. The man guided us down the road and through a few crossroads, but the tall red walls were everywhere, completely blocking our sight. Along the way, we passed several more large, studded doors, but nearly all of them were closed. Only a single one was open. Beyond, there seemed to be an idyllic garden trapped within the red walls of a prison. A breeze brought the smells of fresh flowers and a spring day, but we quickly passed it by. No sounds escaped these walls. All that could be heard was the trod of feet as we marched through this maze. Our group was taken to a remote corner of the complex. We were led to a new area completely enclosed with the same high walls. The ground was cobbled with the same bricks, but they seemed loose-fitting, and some slipped as I walked over them. This area had around fifty tiny wooden shacks crammed together in tight rows. At the far end of the rows of houses was a large square of sandy soil. At this point, the man leading us started talking and giving directions, but I couldn’t understand a word he was saying. Eventually, everyone in the group started entering different houses, so I just went with the flow. I picked a house at random and entered it. From the outside, the building looked to be a small shack made of rotten lumber. Inside, the place was cramped and dirty. The wooden floors looked like they had seen the passing of millennia. They were cracked and broken in several places, and they were completely worn through almost everywhere. Patches of stone and soil could be seen in many places, and weeds had begun growing in the corners. The place had the musty odor of mildew. The only thing inside was a rolled-up sleeping mat. The total square footage of the house was barely enough room to completely unroll the thing. I hadn’t seen anyone leaving a house after entering, so I decided to sit down and wait until I heard movement outside. It wasn’t comfortable, but at least I had a bit of privacy to think. “What the hell is going on,” I muttered to myself. My question went unanswered as I sat there alone. I began to think about the events of the past hours. Already, thoughts of my previous life had become fleeting. If I didn’t concentrate, my mind didn’t want to return to that life. It wanted to focus on the here and now. When I did concentrate on that life, I felt remorse for forgetting, but my thoughts would always drift away from it. The cares and concerns from before didn’t seem to matter anymore. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. More prominent in my thoughts was the voice in the void. I had accepted its ‘blessing’. I would only learn what that meant in time. I waited in my small room for what felt like days, but it was likely less than an hour. When you are stuck in an unfamiliar new environment, have no idea why, and don’t have a clue what you should do, your sense of time can get a little screwy. The cost of learning all languages extant in the Nine Rivers Continent is not possible to calculate at this time. “Okay, what about just learning the local language.” The cost of learning the Western Han Language is 100 credits. That wasn’t good. How could I get the credits I needed? “Sys—” I began before being cut off. Processing... An external entity has discounted the price of learning the language. Cost 1 credit. “Buy it!” I said, before thinking too much. Purchase confirmed. 8 credits remaining. Knowledge slammed into me. It left me a little woozy, but in my daze, I still inherently understood that I knew an entirely new language. It felt like I was born knowing it. Thinking in this new language almost felt more natural than thinking in the one spoken my entire life. After regaining my senses. I returned to a crucial point. “System, what did you mean about an external entity?” The cost of that information is not possible to calculate at this time. “Why did I receive a ‘discount’?” The cost of that information is not possible to calculate at this time. I felt like I was hitting my head with a rock. I decided to try something else. “System, how do I earn more credits?” The cost to learn basic information about how to earn more credits is 1 credit. “Ok, Purchase it.” Purchase confirmed. 7 credits remaining. You will be rewarded credits upon your death. The number of credits received will reflect your cultivation level at the time of your death. The higher your cultivation, the more credits you will receive. SYSTEM WARNING: Quick, repeated, intentional deaths may result in administrative action. That warning didn’t sound great. I didn’t want to die in the first place. I had done that twice already, and even if the second time was rather quick, it wasn’t an experience I enjoyed. Deciding not to linger on thoughts of death, I put any further questions for the system aside for the time being. I needed to understand what was happening in the world around me. I stood up and confidently walked out of my tiny one-room house. My back-and-forth with the system didn’t actually take too long. In fact, I exited my room even earlier than I had in my last life. So, of course, there was still no one out and about. I decided to try my luck with the gate guard again. Hopefully, he wouldn’t kill me this time. The gate was just as hard to open this time, but again, the guard helped after I got it started. “What are you doing? No one is allowed out,” he said, glaring at me. I was nervous, but when I was able to understand him, I was so happy I started smiling. “Yes, sorry, I just wanted to know what’s going on.” “What?” His voice was tinged with anger and annoyance. “Sorry, I’m just not sure what I should be doing.” “Go back inside and sit down!” he yelled at me. Not wanting to die again, I quickly backed away and did a quick two-step back to my little house. That guy had anger issues, and it would do no good to poke the bear. Just as I reentered my row of houses, the door of the first house opened up and a young man walked outside. He was wearing a red hanfu robe that was covered in bright gold embroidery. The cuffs of his robe were tied tight against his wrists with elegant leather straps. His long hair was done up in a tight bun at the back of his head. “What are you doing?” he asked annoyed. Then, he glared. “It’s you. First, you were a nuisance during the ceremony. Now, you bother us during our meditation. Let this daddy teach you how to behave,” he said in a flat voice. I wanted to respond, but before I could, he rushed toward me and punched me directly in the chest. Like with the guard, my sternum broke and my ribs snapped. Something must have punctured a lung because I couldn’t breathe, and I began coughing up blood. When the guard had killed me before, he was at least powerful enough to end me quickly. This time, I wasn’t so lucky. My body collapsed to the ground. I tasted only copper. I felt only pain. In front of me, all I could see was a pair of embossed leather boots. I was able to turn my head and look up at the face of my killer. This boy didn’t show the signs of surprise and worry the guard had. His face held only a malicious smirk. You have died. Calculating... You died as a Martial Disciple 1. 10 credits awarded. Total Credits: 17