1 Transmigration

A spring wind gently blew across an expansive field, there a youth dressed in ordinary clothing awoke, "Where am I?" The youth questioned looking around he was in a massive field covered by dense knee long grass.

The grass was mostly dried out from the winter, but a few blades of green grass had already sprouted signaling that spring had come. The sun had just risen and the morning was still fresh. Zi Xiang got up from the ground and looked around, "how the hell did I get here." Stranded in the middle of a field with no recollection as to how he got there. Trying to figure out where he was Zi Xiang looked around for any sort of defining landmark he scanned around the field.

There were no results, realizing he was well and truly lost Zi Xiang began to panic. A sense of fear and unease gripped Zi Xiang. Lost in the field with no idea where civilization is or even if survival was possible there where few ways to escape the situation. Zi Xiang sat back down, "okay I don't know where I am or how I got here the first thing I need to do is calm down and come up with a plan." Contemplating over the matter there were only three ways to get out of the situation wait for rescue, walk off in some random direction, or follow the sun.

None of these choices were optimal but without a map, or any landmarks it was pretty much the best a person could do. "Waiting around probably wouldn't do any good right now, my family would report me missing but I don't know where I am and there aren't any landmarks to identify my location by the time anybody found me I would probably already be dead; Next walking in a random direction is just idiotic I could easily get lost or off track and lose my direction; or following the sun, I could go east or west that way I wouldn't get lost as easily.

"Wait I almost forgot!" Zi Xiang hurriedly checked his pockets and pulled out his phone he turned it on only to be met with no service deciding to text his parents anyways he sent them a simple text for help naturally, it wouldn't send but he decided to do it anyway. Zi Xiang gave a light sigh before shutting off his phone.

"Well considering my options the best choice is probably just to follow the sun west, although I should probably just stay and wait I don't have any idea where or how I got here I didn't even leave any tracks to follow back." Zi Xiang got up once again identified the location of the sun and began walking west.

Zi Xiang walked through the grass, though wading would've been more accurate every step he took the grass slowed him down muffling his momentum. Continuing onward was the only way to survive if he simply stopped he might not have enough time to get out of the field before starving to death.

Walking on for a few hours Zi Xiang stated to exhaust himself the sun beating down at him the grass clutching at his legs, he was starting to slow down the only good thing was that it wasn't too hot. The occasional spring breeze danced its way through the grass refreshing Zi Xiang.

Although Zi Xiang had already put on his hood it didn't do much to protect him from the sun. Needing something better to protect himself from the sun as well as some sort of distraction from the walking, Zi Xiang sat down to rest.

" The sun really is too hot it'll probably be even worse during the afternoon." Considering his choices further in depth Zi Xiang began to regret his decision. Walking west during the afternoon the sun would shine directly in front of him. His hood would be completely useless and the afternoon was the hottest part of the day.

Wanting to do something productive, he decided to gather some dried grass to make a hat, although he wasn't some survival expert he had a basic idea of what to do, he got a pile of dried grass selected eight straws of grass with sufficient size and strength.

He then placed them in a cross shape intersecting in the middle with four on one side and four on the other. Selecting some straws to weave with he placed them on the cross; he held the center of the cross together with his left hand thumb and pointer finger, while he used his right hand to weave the straws together. Zi Xiang fumbled the attempt not quite remembering how to weave a hat, he started experimenting with some bits of grass.

The first one he put together he assembled the cross then placed the straw against one of the cross' sides twisting it below and underneath the side, as he tried twisting the straw to the next side. Zi Xiang didn't hold the center tight enough and the straws forming the cross fell apart leaving him once again with just a pile of straws.

The second attempt he kept the cross held on his knee as he weaved the straw across all the sides of the cross forming the base he again fumbled the cross. Continuing a few times the third attempt it again came apart, same with the fourth, and the fifth. Eventually, Zi Xiang started to hold the cross with his thumb, pointer, middle, and ring finger to keep the structure better stabilized using most of his left hand to hold the cross together.

Finishing the base of the cross he continued repeating the same thing. Though after the third loop the cross once again came apart, the straws too loose to properly keep itself together. Trying again he used the same method, but this time making the loops tighter, again the cross fell apart this time at its sixth loop.

Continuing a few more times Zi Xiang focused on making the base tighter and each loop more compact the cross lasted longer but it was only delaying the inevitable, eventually, the cross fell apart again and again.

Zi Xiang after numerous failed attempts began to make another cross, he laid the straw against the topmost side; folding the straw in half using the ends as a foundation he weaved the straw onto the cross making sure to keep the straw closely connected, continuing onto the next one he twisted the sides of the straw onto the next part of the cross again weaving the straw into the cross repeating for all four sides he finally until completing the base.

Next he began to experiment instead of continuing to fold straw in the same way as the base he now took the ends of the straw and weaved it into the straws forming the cross creating an in and out weave, continuing Zi Xiang made multiple loops around the cross though after a few loops he began to have trouble a few of the straws weaved into the cross were sticking out and there were a few difficult knots where the straw had tangled together.

Trying again Zi Xiang began to undo the parts he had woven. unwrapping all the straws back down to the base this time instead of weaving in both ends of the straw at the same time he only weaved one then the other pushing the first end through the middle of the straws that formed each side of the cross Zi Xiang gave it a good tug feeling a bit of loose space he pushed the straw closer to the center. Pushing the other end of the straw through he wove the straws together he creating a tight weave which looked near perfect continuing Zi Xiang completed his first loop.

Repeating the processes after a few loops Zi Xiang again ran into a issue the cross had split into 8 sides with the two straws on each side being too tightly bound to be easily woven and a large gap forming in between each side making it impossible to continue.

Zi Xiang nearly cried out in frustration he had already been weaving for a little over an hour and a half from what he could judge. "I've been working on this damn hat for over an hour and I have nothing to show for it. It doesn't even look like a hat yet!" screaming internally Zi Xiang held back the urge to just crumple the "hat" right in his hands bringing his fingers together and crushing the thing right in his palm. The shape deforming from the pressure of his clenching fist and the straws collapsing from the force with a *crunch.

Flashing back to reality Zi Xiang took a deep breath and tried to relax "It's alright I just need to keep on working I feel like I almost figured it out I just need to persevere." Looking back down at the cross he realized he had actually crushed it out of frustration it was still held in his clenched up hand.

This time Zi Xiang was so aggrieved he actually started crying out of frustration and regret.