I Am Bald, For World Creation Merit

Li Cha, originally named Li Cha, was a fine young man of the new era from the twenty-first century. At the age of thirty, having just earned the prestigious title of "National Intangible Cultural Heritage Tea Ceremony Inheritor" through his masterful tea artistry and profound understanding of traditional culture, he was in his prime, ready to make his mark and bring tea culture to the world.

Fate played a cruel joke on him.

In a car accident, he threw himself under the wheels of a truck to push a child who had frozen in the middle of the road to safety. In his final moments of fading consciousness, the thought that flashed through his mind was not fear, but deep regret: "My canister of Mother Tree Da Hong Pao, which I just received and hadn't even dared to open yet..."

When he opened his eyes again, there was no legendary King of Hell, nor angels or God. He discovered that he had become a tree—a solitary tea tree floating in an endless, gray, misty expanse.

The surroundings were a hazy gray; there was no concept of up, down, left, right, time, or space. After the initial confusion and terror, as a soul baptized by the information explosion era, Li Cha quickly (perhaps a few hundred years passed, or maybe tens of thousands? Who knows?) accepted the fact that he had transmigrated, and had done so into the legendary Primordial Chaos Era, becoming a Primordial Chaos Spiritual Root—the Primordial Chaos Spirit Tea Tree.

His main body's branches and leaves displayed a profound Chaos Hue, with Great Dao Patterns naturally inscribed upon the leaves, emitting a faint, refreshing fragrance. This fragrance not only calmed the mind and spirit but also seemed to have a certain effect on smoothing out the Chaos Qi.

As a tree, he could not move on his own and could only drift passively. During this time, he felt terrifyingly powerful auras sweep past from distant or nearby places; those auras were filled with tyranny, destruction, and endless pressure, making this "little sapling" tremble and desperately suppress his own aura, wishing he could shrink himself into a speck of dust.

He knew those were the legendary Primordial Chaos Demon Gods, born with mastery over the Great Dao and possessing immense strength. In front of them, he, a "tea tree spirit," probably wouldn't even count as an appetizer.

Just as he thought his life as a tree would continue eternally in such fearful drifting, he encountered that heaven-supporting giant.

It was in a relatively stable region of chaos that an indescribably massive figure shifted from blurry to clear; the power he emitted inadvertently stirred the surrounding Chaos Qi. He held a primitive giant axe, his body surrounded by Dao rhymes, with the laws of power flowing across his skin.

Pangu! The Great God Pangu, who would perform World Creation!

Li Cha's heart (if a tree could have a heart) began to pound wildly. He knew that opportunity had arrived, though it might also be an even greater crisis.

Pangu clearly noticed this tea tree emitting a strange, refreshing fragrance. His massive eyes looked over, carrying a hint of curiosity. Li Cha, struck by a sudden inspiration, swayed his branches and leaves desperately, condensing a few of the most essential tea leaves containing his origin Dao rhymes, and carefully presented them before Pangu.

The meaning was clear: Big Boss, want some tea?

Pangu took the tea leaves and placed them in his mouth (perhaps not even enough to get stuck in his teeth). A moment later, a look of realization and pleasure appeared on his eternal, unchanging face. The spiritual energy and Dao rhymes contained within the tea leaves actually allowed his comprehension of the Great Dao of Power to become a fraction clearer and smoother!

Although the effect was minimal, for someone at his level, any small benefit was precious.

Thus, Pangu did not leave but sat down near Li Cha. He did not speak, only occasionally plucking a few of Li Cha's leaves to assist in his meditation.

Li Cha was ecstatic; he had succeeded! He had latched onto the thickest thigh of all! World Creation Merit, here I come!

However, he soon couldn't laugh anymore.

Pangu sat there for an entire Yuanhui (129,600 years)!

An entire Yuanhui! Do you know how I spent this Yuanhui?

Big Boss Pangu was enjoying his meditation, but Li Cha felt like he was about to be plucked bald! Although as a Primordial Chaos Spiritual Root, the tea leaves would slowly regenerate, they couldn't keep up with such persistent, year-after-year plucking! His once lush and leafy canopy had become sparse, with many branches left bare, looking utterly miserable.

Li Cha wailed internally every day: "Big Boss, when exactly are you going to create the world? If you don't do it soon, your raw material supplier is going to go bankrupt and sacrifice himself to the Dao first!"

Perhaps his resentment was finally received by the Great Dao, or perhaps Pangu's accumulation was already sufficient.

On this day, an unprecedented tremor came from the depths of chaos.

Pangu suddenly opened his eyes, shooting out divine light that tore through the chaos. He stood up, his giant axe emitting a hum, and boundless fighting spirit and determination filled the surroundings.

"It's here! It's finally here!" Li Cha was so excited that his branches and leaves trembled, nearly shaking off his last few precious leaves.

He knew the grand spectacle of World Creation was about to begin, and following closely behind would be the siege of the Three Thousand Demon Gods. He didn't want to be an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire. Fortunately, Pangu also noticed this and tucked him into the Chaos Pearl.

The moment Pangu swung his giant axe to deliver the first strike of World Creation, Li Cha extended a small rootlet out of the Chaos Pearl, using it as his eyes to observe the surroundings. This was the legendary scene of World Creation and Pangu battling the Three Thousand Demon Gods; how could he miss it!

Hiding inside the absolutely safe Chaos Pearl, he "saw" clearly through his rootlet the earth-shattering battle outside.

Pangu swung his giant axe, each strike containing supreme laws of power, splitting the chaos and separating the clear from the turbid. Earth, Water, Fire, and Wind surged violently, with worlds cycling between birth and destruction.

The Three Thousand Demon Gods roared as they charged; they were of various forms, mastering different Great Daos, and launched frantic attacks to stop the creation of the world and to devour Pangu.

The scene was billions of times more shocking than any special effects blockbuster. Demon Gods bled, laws shattered, and chaos crumbled... Li Cha watched with a pounding heart, yet he also gained insights, developing a deeper understanding of the Great Dao, destruction, and rebirth.

In the end, the Demon Gods were slain, and the world was formed. Pangu stood between heaven and earth, supporting Qiankun, until he died of exhaustion.

At the final moment when his majestic body fell and transformed into all things in the Primordial World, his last bit of consciousness, about to dissipate, caught sight of Li Cha, who was quietly peeking out from the Chaos Pearl.

Pangu's gaze remained profound and gentle, carrying a hint of weariness and a sense of entrustment.

He struggled to push the Chaos Pearl and a piece of jade disc that, while shattered, still brimmed with Dao rhymes (a fragment of the Jade Disc of Creation, one percent in size), toward Li Cha. At the same time, a faint but clear divine thought entered Li Cha's mind:

"Look after... the Primordial World... especially... my... children..."

As the words faded, Pangu's massive body collapsed with a roar; his eyes became the sun and moon, and his spine became Buzhou Mountain...

Li Cha held the Chaos Pearl and the fragment of the Jade Disc of Creation, which still carried Pangu's aura, and felt the majestic, vast, yet incredibly intimate Golden Light of Merit descending from the sky after the world was first created. A significant portion of this merit landed precisely on him, merging into his main body and soul.

That was the World Creation Merit! The World Creation Merit he had dreamed of!

He had succeeded! At the cost of nearly going bald, he had exchanged it for this greatest opportunity and protective talisman!

However, looking at the vast, primitive, yet vibrant new Primordial World before him, and feeling the weight of the two supreme treasures in his hands and Pangu's final entrustment, Li Cha's heart was filled with mixed emotions.

A new journey had begun. But how should he take this first step? The brand-new sky above his head didn't seem very friendly... He faintly sensed that a cold and massive will had already noticed him, this "stowaway" and "person with connections."