Reborn as... an Egg?

Liyue, Wuwang Hill—

If there's any place in the entire region of Liyue, governed by the supreme majesty of the Geo Archon, that people would hesitate to approach and wouldn't dare enter, aside from Jueyun Karst, home of the legendary Adepti, it would be Wuwang Hill, a place filled with eerie and bizarre legends!

Unlike most of Liyue, anyone who steps into Wuwang Hill can immediately feel a gust of intense, cold wind. Even during the brightest, sunniest days, the strange atmosphere here is enough to lower the temperature by several degrees!

Because of this, aside from a few audacious souls, very few people dare to venture into this area. And yet, in this place, which most of Liyue considers a land of ghost stories and supernatural happenings, an egg has appeared at some point.

Of course, if it were just an egg, that wouldn't be so strange. But this particular egg was far from ordinary. It was a massive egg, at least half a meter in length and width!

Moreover, unlike the eerie, cold atmosphere surrounding it, the surface of this giant egg had faint patterns of crimson gold and a subtle glow. Just one glance was enough to reveal that this egg was no ordinary object!

At this very moment, inside the giant egg—

"Hmm? Where is this? Did someone forget to turn on the lights?"

Lin Yuan groggily opened his eyes, only to find that his surroundings were shrouded in a murky darkness. At first, he thought the lights were simply off, and he reached out, trying to find a switch. That's when he realized something truly bizarre—not the strange place he found himself in, but rather his own body!

Although it was too dark to see clearly, he could sense that his body was completely different from that of a human. His elongated, unfamiliar form and the faint glint of scales and claws came into view.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Lin Yuan finally realized something: his body had transformed from that of a normal human... into some kind of animal?

"Wait, wasn't I just sleeping at home? What on earth is going on?!"

After several minutes of shock, Lin Yuan barely managed to suppress the urge to scream. He vividly remembered lying comfortably in bed after a long, hard day of work. But now, upon waking up, he found himself in this incomprehensible situation!

Once he repeatedly confirmed that this was, in fact, real and not some dream or hallucination, Lin Yuan gradually calmed down and began to assess his surroundings.

The darkness around him wasn't due to a lack of light but seemed to stem from being enclosed in an egg-shaped container. To put it simply, Lin Yuan was inside a giant egg!

Even though his body was confined by the egg shell and he couldn't move freely, after several attempts, Lin Yuan discovered something unusual. He seemed to possess a special ability—he could sense the outside world to a certain degree through the egg shell!

Based on what he could feel, he was on a deserted, windswept hillside. No humans or strange creatures were nearby. Although the eerie atmosphere made Lin Yuan quite uncomfortable, for an egg, this place was probably, maybe, possibly... safe? Right?

"Captain, what did we come to this creepy place for? It feels even colder than Dragonspine..."

"Stop talking and focus. The higher-ups have their reasons for sending us here..."

On the hill of Wuwang, several figures dressed in peculiar attire were advancing steadily. These were members of the Fatui, an armed diplomatic delegation from Snezhnaya. Their advance team had already set up secret bases and camps in various regions of Liyue before their official arrival at Liyue Harbor, and this group was part of that effort.

As the Fatui scouts silently made their way through Wuwang Hill, the one leading the way, known as "Thunderhammer," seemed to notice something unusual and turned to the captain.

"Captain, I think I found something!"

"What did you find? Is it the Millelith on patrol, or did you encounter some monster?"

"Neither! Up ahead, on the hillside, I found a strange-looking egg!"

Thunderhammer pointed towards a spot not far from a cliff on Wuwang Hill, where a giant egg, at least half a meter in length and width, rested. Its surface bore faint crimson gold patterns and occasional flashes of light. Its unusual size and distinctive appearance made it stand out in the gloomy, windswept landscape of Wuwang Hill.

"Damn it! I've been spotted already?"

Just as Lin Yuan was thinking his location might be safe, he sensed the Fatui scouts heading straight for him! He still didn't fully understand his current situation or know what these people intended to do. But almost instinctively, his survival instincts kicked in, and for the first time, he tried to move his body, attempting to break out of the egg shell that imprisoned him!

After all, if he was going to escape, he had to get out of the egg first!

Crack!

Lin Yuan took a deep breath, mustered all his strength, and, with a sharp movement, a loud crack echoed out. A visible fracture appeared on the once flawless surface of the egg. However, after making that one small crack, Lin Yuan was surprised to find he couldn't repeat the effort. It felt as though the previous attempt had drained all his strength!

As the Fatui scouts, who clearly had ill intentions, drew closer and closer, Lin Yuan began to panic. But at that moment, from out of nowhere, he heard an eerie song:

"The first Hilichurl fell ill, the second Hilichurl came to check, the third Hilichurl gathered herbs, the fourth Hilichurl..."

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A/N:

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