01

The hand he held with affection and care slowly loosened.

When he noticed it he raised his head which he had put on his foster mother's deathbed out of fatigue.

"No .....not yet!

Open your eyes please..."

His throat tightened at the sight of his foster mother's dull face.

Tears threatened to fall and pain seized his heart.

His hands trembling, he gently shook the sick's shoulders.

In vain.

No answer.

He clenched his fists and bowed his head.

The day he had dreaded now had arrived.

His body was stern and the tears soon began to flow.

His tears suffocated him so much, he was dying of grief. He coughed and tried to hold back but it only made it wrost.

The doctor at the doorstep was very embarrassed, he didn't dare to leave or stay.

How to look away when a son cried so hard for his dead mother. -Poor boy- he thought while shaking his head.

Xin Luo no longer saw his entourage, not only because of the tears which prevented him, he only thought of the departure of his foster mother who did not even have enough strength to say anything before leaving.

She could only look at him with an expression empty of emotion before dying.

Xin Luo knew deep down that she was in so much pain from her illness, that she must have been relieved , but he couldn't admit that the situation was better for her.

He who was alone in the world... How could he get over it.

His real family didn't pay attention to him like she did. She was only a stranger but took care of him like her own child when he was young and defenseless.

All evening he stayed at the bedside of what was now a corpse.

With a haggard look he couldn't think correctly.

He had cried all his tears, his eyes were red and puffy and the dehydration was giving him a severe headache.

The people of the village had long left after hearing the news.

The door had not been closed and the pitiless cold had entered the whole little house of rotten wood.

If Xin Luo remained motionless for a long time it was certain that he would have the same temperature as his mother's corpse.

No one was going to come to help him, to comfort him.

He could not afford the burial ceremony, the only valuable thing he has must remain in his possession as it's his sole hope to attain his goals.

Without the burial ceremony it it was said that the dead could not access their next life and were doomed to wander aimlessly.

In the middle of the night he left his house carrying his foster mother's remains wrapped in a white cotton sheet and went into the forest to bury her.

He said to himself that perhaps the spirits there would be opening the way for his mother to pass to the afterlife.

He was not religious but out of respect for his mother he still wanted to make an effort.

Without difficulty he climbed the mountain.

He wanted to bury his mother at the highest point, thinking that the sky would be more reachable for her lonely soul. She could be able to fly up like a majestic bird, without restraint nor worry. Only the wind and clouds as companions...

His body followed a sickly rhythm.

He never took a break until dawn when he found a quiet corner near an oak tree.

He had no tools so he just took a stick to dug relentlessly. His nails were bleeding, on the verge of peeling off.

But he didn't care.

His knees were numb and painful from sitting too long.

But he didn't care.

It could snow or rain, he would not stop on his track. A will of steel, that is his greatest quality....or wrost default.

Without realizing it, a young woman was watching him from a distance behind the trees.

She was holding a basket full of roots, leaves and herbs.

Visitors never come to this area.

She knew it well since it was she who was in charge of making them flee with various traps and tricks hidden in the forest.

Her name was Chen Wu, she has been living in the mountain forest for 3 months now.

She is a transmigrator who comes from the future.

In her old life she was a simple botany student in China.

She had always lived in solitude as an orphan and the only thing that fascinated her was nature.

One day when she was hiking in the mountains as usual there was an earthquake.

She would disconnect from everything electronic and had no way of knowing what was going to happen.

In the mountains, a natural phenomenon like this was even more dangerous.

No one could know where she were or rescue her and as she collected samples from the edge of the cliff the ground cracked.

Without having any time to think or react the rocky part, on which she was, separated itself from the rest of the mountain.

In her fall Chen Wu didn't feel much, she just wondered "Now what?"

She reluctantly waited for her small body to crash on the groud, hoping that it wouldn't hurt. But it never happened.

She was still feeling the wind against her back, her clothes fluttered but the fall seemed endless.

She couldn't turn around but she was clearly falling, right?

As she blinked several times she found herself in a bed.

She could not believe her eyes, wasn't she falling from a cliff literally two seconds ago? Was it a dream? One of those dreams that made you think you were falling and scared you so much you'd wake up? She looked around and the interior was nothing alike to her university dorm. It was quite spacious but the roof had holes and the walls covered by a brownish cloth were dusty and moldy.

Near the sliding doors was a beautiful mahogany low table. It's legs were carved with countless chrysanthemum flower patterns. She was admirative of the furniture, a little cleaning and those could be selled at a big price!

While she was scrutinizing the room a undescribable voice rang.

"Congratulations, you are now the new Guardian of the Xie Ling tree. Don't let anyone harm it."

She stopped moving for a long time from shock.

-Am I going crazy?- she wondered.

Where does it come from??

Gardian of the tree?! What is happening here...

"..." Chen Wu was silent.

Just as she was going to get up from the hard wood bed she noticed her clothes.

She was wearing a dark long hanfu. The colors were simple but the design was really beautiful.

"Is this a joke?" She quickly ran to the door  and did not expect to see that she was still on the mountain forest. It seemed even more luxuriant that before.

From a distance she could see a bright light behind the trees, that must be the cliff from which she could see her city.

She rushed there and almost fell because of the long fabric but when she arrived, the sight was not what she expected.

From the highest position she could see all the traditional chinese square roofs with grey or greenish tiles. No sky buildings no planes or cars.

The undescribable voice spoke again.

"You died, live on as the guardian of the sacred Xie Ling tree in this world.

Woe! If it were to be destroyed."

Chen Wu was dumbfounded, what was happening to her? And why!

"The world's system in charge of humans lives and deaths decided to give you three tasks that were left undone in three worlds. If you success you'll be able to choose between different choices related to your life and past life."

"I- I understand...But why do I have to protect the tree?" she reluctantly agreed while thinking - It's not like I have a choice.-

"...you will know in due time."

After a moment she asked. " What if I fail?"

The sun shined brightly. A gust of wind blew from the forest and pushed her forward. She fell at two centimeters from the border. She saw the trees from bellow, they were so tiny that from her position they seemed like dots. The sight gave her nausea while a shiver rand down her spine. Her heart rate accelerated as she recalled her previous fall. She quickly crawled back, panicked.

"If you fail, you will cease to exit." The voice added.