Chapter 1 Sheng Mingyun

The jungle was alive with the symphony of insects and the faint rustling of leaves. Sheng Mingyun, a battle-hardened leader at thirty years old, had faced countless challenges in his covert military career. But this mission had taken an unexpected turn.

As moonlight filtered through the dense foliage, Sheng Mingyun crouched with his team, their eyes reflecting a mixture of disbelief and confusion. They had been double-crossed, and the enemy had sprung a well-laid trap.

Whispering urgently, Sheng Mingyun addressed his team, his voice cold and stern, edged with determination. "Listen up, everyone. We're in a tight spot, but we won't go down without a fight. We need to create a diversion so the rest can escape."

His team exchanged worried glances, but there was unwavering trust in Sheng Mingyun's eyes. They knew he would never leave them behind.

Sheng Mingyun activated his communication device, issuing a stern order. "This is Sheng Mingyun. Execute Protocol Omega. Repeat, Protocol Omega. Get to the extraction point at any cost. Leave no one behind."

As his team members nodded in understanding, he felt the weight of responsibility on his shoulders. The extraction point was miles away, through treacherous terrain filled with hostile forces. But there was no other option.

With a nod to his team, Sheng Mingyun took a deep breath, steeling himself for what lay ahead. He knew that this mission had to succeed at any cost. The lives of his comrades depended on it.

The sound of enemy footsteps drew closer, and Sheng Mingyun's heart raced, but he showed no fear. He gestured for his team to split up and disappear into the jungle, each of them carrying out their part of the diversion.

Sheng Mingyun's path led deeper into the underbrush. He moved silently, relying on his training to evade detection. The minutes ticked by like hours as he drew the enemy's attention away from his team.

Hours passed, and exhaustion began to set in, but he pushed himself forward. He couldn't afford to stop. Every step he took was a step closer to the survival of his team.

As he emerged into a small clearing, Sheng Mingyun knew he had to act quickly. He took off at a sprint, his heart pounding in his chest. He had bought his team precious minutes, but he was now alone, deep in enemy territory.

He reached for a small device on his belt, activated it, and hurled it into the dense vegetation nearby.

Deep within the heart of the dense jungle, a deafening explosion tore through the tranquility, hurling leaves and debris into the night air.

This daring move, though perilous, had achieved its intended purpose. Enemy forces, bewildered and clamoring in disarray, rapidly converged on the epicenter of the blast, under the moon's gentle glow.

In the midst of this chaos, a wry smile played across Sheng Mingyun's lips. The excruciating pain coursing through his battered body was undeniable, but he clung to his decision without remorse.

He had willingly offered his life as a sacrificial exchange for his team's survival, even as darkness crept into his senses.

Time remained elusive in that shadowy abyss, yet Sheng Mingyun, who believed he should have perished in that explosion, eventually stirred.

Amidst searing flames threatening to consume him, his very soul teetered on the brink of collapse from the agonizing pain. His eyelids trembled, yielding to consciousness, awakened by the intensity of suffering.

"Ahhhh!!!!" Sheng Mingyun screamed, but with each passing moment, his consciousness became clearer, making him keenly aware of the all-encompassing pain.

As time crawled, the excruciating torment seemed to rekindle his mind, flooding him with a torrent of memories from his past and another life, overwhelming his senses.

His mind, once shuffled hastily like a deck of cards, now rearranged itself with fervor. Vivid images flooded in, both familiar and unfamiliar recollections: childhood adventures, incense in an ancient temple, the laughter of siblings, and the scent of herbal concoctions brewing. This was a life he shouldn't have lived, experiences that belonged to someone else entirely.

The possessor of these memories was a sixteen-year-old named Sheng Mingyun, the same name as his previous self, hailed from the Sheng Family, one of the top clans in the Shu Kingdom's capital, ranking tenth among the twelve kingdoms in the Qing Dynasty. This placed them at the ninth spot among the ten dynasties of the Xuan continent, one of five in the lower realm.

Despite the soul-rending pain, as these two sets of memories merged, there was no conflict. Both memories fell into place, resolving his puzzlement and confusion.

Gradually, it dawned on Sheng Mingyun like a bolt of lightning. These were not someone else's memories; they were his own. He had been reborn in this world, with his previous life's memories lost at birth, growing up like any ordinary child.

This revelation left him shaken. No longer the thirty-year-old military leader from Earth, he now inhabited a world steeped in martial arts and ancient traditions.

Emotions swirled within him. On one hand, reluctance gripped him, a reluctance to let go of the life he had known—his family, his comrades, his sense of duty. Yet beneath these emotions lay an unusual sense of relief.

In his final moments in his previous universe, he had clung to the belief that his sacrifice had granted his team a chance at survival. Now, in this youthful body, that chance was his to seize.

Drawing from another memory, his last recollection was a fierce battle with a monstrous beast, a creature plucked straight from his darkest nightmares.

With determination, Sheng Mingyun propelled himself forward, though his battered body protested vehemently. Pain emanated from every corner of his being as he surveyed his injuries. His attire lay in tatters, smeared with mud and stained with his own blood. It was clear he had narrowly escaped the clutches of the creature, but not without paying a heavy price.

He clenched his teeth against the agony, pressing on with unwavering determination.

This forest could not hold him captive forever. He needed to find his way back to his new home, where his frail younger sister awaited.

Each step echoed his indomitable willpower as he moved forward, defying his battered body. Survival trumped fear and pain. Yet, as he attempted his daring escape, fate took an unexpected turn when he stumbled and tumbled into a narrow crevice that plunged him into a cavern ablaze with raging flames.

"Am I going to die again?" Sheng Mingyun murmured, his heart heavy with the thought of his ailing sister.

The reason he found himself in this dire situation stemmed from a desperate attempt to protect his sister from a forced marriage to a much older man, orchestrated by his uncle, Sheng Rui, in exchange for favors.

In an effort to prevent this from occurring, he struck a deal with Sheng Rui, promising to acquire a low-level beast core. However, this task amounted to battling a first-level Martial Qi opponent, six levels beyond his own, given that beasts inherently possessed greater strength than humans.

Despite the substantial disparity, Sheng Mingyun gave his utmost effort, ultimately fleeing for his life but not without inflicting severe injuries upon himself. Nevertheless, he persevered and made his way home despite his wounds, only to be engulfed by flames.

Amidst the searing blaze that engulfed Sheng Mingyun, his body and spirit were to be devoured by the flames, the world expecting nothing but ash to remain. Yet, in the heart of that inferno, something extraordinary occurred.

"No! I won't die! My sister needs me! My life is my own! Even fate can't control me! Sheng Rui, I, Sheng Mingyun, swear, once I survive, I'll make your life worse than death!" He declared amid the searing pain.

Inside the cavern of flames, Sheng Mingyun's agony was indescribable. The searing inferno engulfed him, flames licking at his body, attempting to consume not only his flesh but his very soul. He should have been reduced to ash, obliterated in the fiery maw that held him captive. But then, something extraordinary happened.

As the flames seethed around him, Sheng Mingyun's unwavering determination and indomitable will ignited a shift in the chaotic conflagration. A blinding light, brighter than a thousand suns, erupted from the core of his being. It radiated outward, pushing back the flames that were supposed to be his doom. The entire cave was bathed in this otherworldly brilliance.

The flames that were meant to consume him and obliterate his essence took an unexpected turn. Instead of being devoured, the flames seemed to bow before him, as if recognizing his unwavering determination and indomitable will.

The impossible was unfolding right before his eyes. In this moment of transcendent transformation, Sheng Mingyun's powerful soul harnessed a force he had never known existed within him, guiding the molten essence of the flames to meld with his being.

This fusion birthed an unforeseen ability—a power of regeneration. It was a force of creation, of renewal. The flames that should have been his end were now the catalyst for his rebirth. The scorching heat molded his essence, enabling it to take on a new form.

The blazing inferno danced and swirled around him, reconstructing his body rather than destroying it. His physical form twisted and reshaped itself, the poison that had plagued him for fifteen long years melting away like ice under the sun.

The poison, once a malevolent force within his bones, was transmuted by the intense heat. As he focused his willpower, the poison that had plagued him for years, the insidious venom that had stifled his growth, began to melt within him. It oozed from his bones, seeped from his very pores, and blended into his flesh.

It blended seamlessly into his flesh and marrow, a harmonious fusion that granted him an unforeseen strength. The venom's potency, once a source of weakness, and should have been a consuming toxin became a part of him, now contributed to his invulnerability, fortifying his constitution, and rendering him immune to toxins.

He became a fortress against any poison, being forged in the crucible of fire and pain. Sheng Mingyun felt a surge of power, unlike anything he had ever experienced. It coursed through him, filling every fiber of his being.

This process of metamorphosis continued, the flames no longer an instrument of destruction but a catalyst for rebirth. His body, once frail and hindered, underwent a miraculous transformation.

The poison that once threatened his existence had, in an unexpected turn, transformed him into a being transcending mortal limits. His physique underwent a miraculous metamorphosis, now epitomizing strength and resilience. He could sense his newfound invulnerability to any poison, a gift granted by the very flames that were meant to spell his demise. He had, in essence, been reborn, much like a phoenix emerging from its own ashes.

As the blinding light began to wane, the chamber's intense heat subsided, Sheng Mingyun had emerged from the crucible of fire not as a victim but as a warrior, reborn and ready to face whatever challenges the world would throw at him. His eyes gleamed with an inner fire, his posture exuding an unprecedented strength.

His unwavering determination had altered the course of fate, rendering him a formidable force, a living testament to the indomitable power of the human spirit. The flames, once an inescapable torment, had granted him a rebirth - a fresh start imbued with the unyielding resilience of one who had gazed into the abyss and emerged stronger than ever.