Qingyun Arrives

At this hour, the sun was at its most scorching, yet the black-haired youth stood like he was forged of iron, running incessantly around the training grounds. His entire body was already soaked in sweat, and to his back, he had strapped a heavy bag of sand and gravel.

The youth's body trembled slightly, and his breathing was ragged; anyone subjected to such a harsh environment would find it difficult to persist.

Yet, within the black-haired youth's eyes shone an unyielding will. He did not give up, instead continuing to plant his heavy footsteps as he pushed toward the next lap.

With every breakthrough, he tempered his own resolve.

The youth's name was Zhang Qingyun. Not long ago, he had transmigrated, arriving in a place he had often dreamed of.

That place was the Hidden Leaf Village in the world of Naruto.

After transmigrating, his name remained Qingyun.

He had not transmigrated into the Uchiha, Hyuga, or any other of the Hidden Leaf's prestigious clans; he was merely an orphan, an orphan without even a surname.

Everyone called him Qingyun, and he never bothered himself with what his surname might be.

Although he did not mind his background, the ignorant children of the village often came to bully and insult him.

"Hey! You little brat, born of a mother but raised by no one!"

"What are you doing here in the middle of the day?"

"Are you trying to torture yourself? Haha!"

The children of his age were only interested in play, and in their spare time, they treated Qingyun as a laughingstock.

Qingyun paid no mind to the mockery of the surrounding children. Before he transmigrated, Qingyun had been nearly thirty years old; naturally, he would not stoop to bickering with these little brats. Though his appearance was that of a child, his soul was already pushing thirty.

As Qingyun continued to run, a stone suddenly flew toward him.

"Whoosh!"

With the heavy sandbag on his back and his body exhausted, he was naturally unable to dodge in time.

"Thud!"

Qingyun's head was split open instantly. He looked up to find that the ones who had thrown the stone were the same brats who bullied him, and they were now laughing even louder.

"Wahahaha! That's hilarious! This guy is bleeding!"

"Haha! No one helps you, and no one cares about you! No father, no mother! And you torture yourself like this every day—you really are a freak!"

These three or four children were all wearing the clothing of the Hyuga clan. It was clear they were from a prestigious Hidden Leaf family, accustomed to bullying others, and now that they had injured someone, they felt not a shred of remorse.

This time, Qingyun did not endure it. He slowly picked up the stone that had struck him and hurled it back at the Hyuga brat who had thrown it.

"Bang!" Although Qingyun was exhausted, he had not slacked off on his daily training. The stone flew like a bullet, instantly slamming into the Hyuga brat's stomach.

The Hyuga brat immediately clutched his stomach in pain.

"Bastard!" When had a child of the Hyuga clan ever suffered such an insult? He immediately pointed at Qingyun and cursed, "Beat this mongrel to death for me!"

The Hyuga brats swarmed and surrounded Qingyun.

Qingyun scanned his surroundings, his eyes icy. The Hyuga brats looked at one another, none daring to be the first to step forward.

"What are you waiting for! Get him!" The Hyuga brat could no longer hold back, and the group of children lunged at Qingyun at once.

"Hmph! A bunch of brats, learning to bully others with your status at such a young age? What will you be like when you grow up? This time, I'll teach you how to behave!" Qingyun did not hold back. Since his transmigration, he had trained day and night, and his physical fitness far exceeded that of his peers.

In less than half a minute, Qingyun had knocked all the Hyuga brats to the ground.

The Hyuga brats were truly terrified this time. Once they scrambled to their feet, they fled as if they had greased their heels.

"You little brats! Go home and suckle on your mother's milk!" Qingyun grinned, not taking the matter to heart.

Qingyun returned home, unstrapped the sandbag, took a hot shower, and collapsed onto his bed, falling into a deep sleep.

Qingyun felt groggy, unable to tell if he was in reality or a dream.

In any case, he found himself drifting into a vast, white expanse, and at that moment, he saw a white-bearded old man appear before him.

"Young man, you have finally arrived." The old man looked like an immortal, though he was not the Sage of Six Paths from this world.

"Old man, are you looking for me?" Qingyun was somewhat bewildered.

"Indeed, I have waited for you for a long time. Not bad, an exceptionally robust soul!" The white-haired old man looked at Qingyun with apparent satisfaction.

"Who exactly are you? And what do you want with me?" Qingyun asked directly; he had no desire to listen to an old man ramble on endlessly.

"Ha! Do not be impatient. You are a transmigrator who arrived in the world of Naruto by chance, yes? You feel listless every day? You have no strength, correct?" The white-haired old man stroked his beard as he spoke.

"That's right, all correct. Everything you said is true. How did you know? Could it be that my lack of strength is because of you?"

Since his transmigration, Qingyun had been training frantically every day, tempering himself with a strong will, yet his progress remained slow. His strength, in particular, would often vanish for no reason, as if he had been drained dry.

"That is correct, boy. You have great fortune!" The more immortal the old man appeared, the more absurd Qingyun found the situation.

"You old geezer! You're a bad one! Tell me! What have you done to me!" Qingyun was so anxious he nearly reached out to grab the old man's beard.

The white-haired elder said, "Do not be impatient, boy."

Then, the elder's body vanished, and before Qingyun knew it, the man had appeared behind him.

The elder patted Qingyun on the shoulder and said, "With the demonic training you put yourself through every day, your body would have reached its limit long ago. If I hadn't been protecting your body, you would have died of exhaustion."

"Besides, I only absorbed a tiny bit of your soul energy. I have appeared now specifically to repay you." After the white-haired elder explained for a long while, Qingyun's anger finally subsided.

"Repay me? Why didn't you say so earlier? Speak, how will you compensate me?" Qingyun looked at the white-haired old man, feeling inexplicably irritated.

The white-haired old man said with a wry smile, "You are truly pragmatic. How about I gift you a system?"

"A system? What kind of system? Let's hear it." Qingyun knew well that many transmigrators only achieved a transformation in strength by relying on the help of a system; a system was like a golden finger, allowing one to grow much faster.

"Let me look for it, don't be impatient. There, this system is yours." The white-bearded old man took a gourd from his waist, poured out a pill, and while Qingyun had his mouth open, shoved it directly inside.

After swallowing the pill, Qingyun suddenly felt as if the entire world had become different.

"What was that thing you just fed me?" Qingyun immediately demanded.

"This pill is a divine medicine that can help you break through dimensional limitations. Wake up now; once you wake, you will naturally understand."