When Lin Yue abruptly opened his eyes, the first thing he noticed wasn't the familiar smell of disinfectant from the lab, but a bone-deep chill. It wasn't the cold wind from an open window on a winter night. This cold seemed to seep into his bones, carrying the tang of rusted metal. He instinctively tried to raise a hand and rub his eyes, only to find his arm as heavy as lead. The moment he exerted himself, a sharp, crackling sound rang in his ears, like metal scraping against gravel.
He struggled to turn his head. As far as he could see, gray currents of air churned all around him. They were unlike anything on Earth: formless, yet carrying an indescribable pressure. Every so often, black stones fell out of the currents and struck the ground with a dull thud, making his chest tremble.
"Where am I?" Lin Yue's head was pounding. His memories of the night before stopped in the lab—he had been revising a project report at his computer until three in the morning when the screen suddenly turned blue. A powerful current had shot from the mouse and up his arm. After that, all he remembered was this chaotic scene.
He struggled to sit up. Beneath him lay a black rock that dug into his body, its rough surface coarse enough to tear his clothes. He felt for his pockets. His phone, ID badge, keys—all the things that proved who he was had disappeared. Only the faded cotton T-shirt and sweatpants he wore remained, now soaked through with the gray currents and icy against his skin, like a wet rag wrapped around him.
Did I transmigrate? The absurd thought had barely occurred to Lin Yue before he dismissed it. He was a science student from a Project 985 university, and he believed in data and logic. But the scene before him left little room for disbelief: there was no sky, no ground, only endless gray mist. Even the light appeared out of nowhere, flickering on and off as if some creature were breathing.
He tried to stand, but the moment he straightened up, a violent current slammed into him from the side. Lin Yue flew like a leaf caught in a gale and crashed hard against the rock behind him. A dull thump rang out, and a ripping pain flared in his chest. He couldn't help coughing, and the faint taste of blood filled his mouth.
"These currents aren't right!" Clutching his chest, Lin Yue leaned against the rock and gasped for breath. He realized that countless tiny "blades" were hidden in the seemingly disordered gray mist. That collision hadn't just been caused by the current's force; the blades had cut through his clothes and skin, too. He looked down at his arm. Several small slashes marred his sleeve, and the spots where blood welled up were slowly being eaten away by the mist, turning a strange black.
Just then, a low rumble came from deep within the gray mist, as if some enormous creature were on the move. Lin Yue hurried behind the rock, peeking out with one eye. A huge shadow flashed through the mist, moving so fast that it left only a blur behind. Wherever it passed, even the violent currents parted on their own.
"A Chaos Fierce Beast?" Lin Yue's heart leaped into his throat. He'd read plenty of stories set in the Primordial Wilderness. The fierce beasts of the Chaos World were all incredibly powerful; one bite would be enough to swallow a person whole. He held his breath and stared hard in the direction the shadow had vanished, his palms slick with cold sweat.
He didn't dare stay there. First, he had to find somewhere relatively safe. He crouched low, set his feet shoulder-width apart to minimize the area of his body exposed to the currents, and slowly made his way along the cracks in the rocks. With each step, he carefully watched how the currents shifted, afraid of running into another violent blast like the last one.
After about half an hour, Lin Yue began to run out of strength. He leaned against a relatively flat rock to rest and suddenly noticed that the gray mist in the distance seemed thinner. A faint golden light shone on the black rocks there, standing out sharply against the surroundings.
"I'll take a look over there!" Gritting his teeth, Lin Yue edged toward the golden light. The closer he got, the more he felt its warmth. The "blades" in the mist seemed to weaken in its glow, no longer as sharp as before.
When he was still ten zhang away from the light, a huge shadow suddenly appeared beside it. It was at least three zhang tall, its back to him, and an aura of the same origin as the golden light surrounded it. Whenever the gray mist drew near, it seemed to meet its natural enemy and automatically retreated to either side.
Terrified, Lin Yue hurried behind a rock, his heart pounding. He studied the shadow's outline: broad shoulders, thick arms, and hands hanging at its sides, each palm thicker than his thigh. Its knuckles were sharply defined, and its skin was covered in a fine layer of black scales.
"What in the world is that?" Lin Yue clenched his fists, filled with fear and confusion. He didn't know whether the creature meant him harm or not. All he could do was clamp a hand over his mouth and keep even his breathing quiet, terrified of drawing its attention.
The shadow seemed to sense something and turned its head slightly. Lin Yue hurriedly shut his eyes, his mind going blank as he prayed it wouldn't notice him. After a while, the suffocating pressure gradually faded. He cautiously opened his eyes a sliver and saw that the shadow had turned away again, standing motionless in the golden light like a silent statue.
Lin Yue breathed a sigh of relief, but stayed on guard. In this unfamiliar Chaos World, danger lurked everywhere. If he wanted to survive, he had to quickly figure out his situation and find a reliable way to stay alive. Leaning against the rock, he steadied his breathing and considered his next steps. First, he had to identify the shadow. Next, he needed to find a stable source of energy. Finally, he had to figure out whether this really was the Chaos World he thought it was.
Time passed slowly. The gray mist kept churning, and distant rumbles sounded now and then. Lin Yue gradually regained his strength. He knew he couldn't hide here forever. Drawing a deep breath, he clenched his fists and decided to risk approaching the shadow. Whether it was a fierce beast or a mighty cultivator, that was better than sitting around waiting to die.
Keeping close to the rock, he inched toward the shadow, each step incredibly difficult. When he was five zhang away, he suddenly stopped. A wisp of pure energy was drifting slowly out of the golden light around the shadow, and it landed in his palm. Warm and gentle, it drove the chill from his body at once and eased the pain in his chest.
Lin Yue froze. He looked at the pale golden energy in his palm, then at the shadow nearby, and felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of safety. After hesitating for a moment, he finally mustered his courage and cupped his hands toward the shadow. "This junior is Lin Yue. May I ask who you are, senior? I arrived here by accident and know nothing about the Chaos World. I would be grateful if you could enlighten me."
The shadow didn't turn around. In a low, hoarse voice, it uttered two words: "Pangu."
"Pangu?" Lin Yue's mind went blank with a thunderous roar, as though lightning had struck him. Looking at the silent shadow before him and recalling the warm energy he'd just received, he suddenly understood: he hadn't merely transmigrated to the Chaos World—he had met Pangu, the Creation God who would bring about the Creation of Heaven and Earth!
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