Xiao Tianhao lay sprawled on the cold concrete, his heart hammering against his chest. Every beat tugged at the dull ache beneath the gauze on his forehead.
The damp scent of another world's forest humus still clung to his palms, mingled with the smell of blood and fragments of bark.
This wasn't a dream! That Primeval Jungle that blotted out the sky, that magnificent city crouched like a primordial behemoth, and that Bloodfang Boar whose tusks had nearly pierced his back... all of it was real!
The terrifying power that had once scorched his soul seemed to have fallen dormant, leaving only a strange tremor faintly connected to his soul.
A name surfaced without warning in his chaotic mind-the Profound Space Pearl!
As though that name were the key to unlocking long-sealed memories, more fragments of information trickled into his mind:
It commanded the mighty power of time and space, allowing passage between two worlds; it held the power of purification, capable of tracing things back to their origins and elevating the bloodlines of all things; within it... an inherited imprint seemed to lie dormant!
"The Profound Space Pearl... the Book of Time and Space Spirit..." Xiao Tianhao murmured, his eyes blazing with incredulous joy.
He had read Tales of Demons and Gods, so naturally, he knew how heaven-defying the Book of Time and Space Spirit was!
This unremarkable pearl was actually a supreme treasure on the same level!
That world, Glory City-he had no idea whether Nie Li had been reborn yet.
A vague yet overwhelmingly powerful thought exploded in his heart-he wanted to return to that world. Both its formidable powers and its many beauties drew him in. This was an opportunity that belonged to him alone.
The pain of crossing over again was still enough to tear his heart and lungs apart.
When Xiao Tianhao fought back his nausea and dropped to his knees once more on the soil of another world, he warily surveyed his surroundings.
The dense forest remained dark and deep, but thankfully, that terrifying Bloodfang Boar was nowhere to be seen.
In the distance, Glory City's enormous walls, alive with flowing runes, stood much clearer in the morning light, radiating an awe-inspiring grandeur.
He couldn't rush over like some wild man. Glory City was heavily guarded, and outsiders-especially people with no cultivation whatsoever-would surely face extremely strict questioning.
He needed an identity. He needed a cover.
As his gaze swept the area, he spotted dust rising from a winding dirt road in the distance, accompanied by the faint creak of wheels and the low panting of Demon Beasts.
A small caravan!
Xiao Tianhao took a deep breath, suppressed his excitement, and hurried toward it.
The caravan was modest in size, with just three freight wagons pulled by low-level Demon Beasts called Stone-Armored Oxen-stocky creatures resembling yaks, but clad in scales like rock.
A dozen or so people dressed as guards rode warily on Demon Beasts resembling horses, with single horns on their heads and fine scales covering their limbs.
At their head was a slightly plump middle-aged merchant with a shrewd face.
"Halt!" the guard captain barked, his hand already resting on the hilt of the saber at his waist.
The Unicorn Scaled Horse beneath him snorted irritably, pawing at the ground with its front hooves.
Everyone else in the caravan instantly tensed as well, their sharp gazes sweeping over this disheveled stranger in peculiar clothes-a modern T-shirt and jeans-with a wound on his forehead.
"Sir! Please... please help me!" Xiao Tianhao tried to fill his voice with the terror and weakness of someone who had narrowly escaped death.
He deliberately raised his palm. Although the cuts left by the bark had scabbed over, the blood mingled with dirt made them look particularly wretched.
"I'm... I'm an herb gatherer from the mountains back there. Yesterday, we ran into... into a herd of Bloodfang Boars! My companions... they all..." His voice choked, revealing immense grief at just the right moment.
"A herd of Bloodfang Boars?" The scar-faced captain furrowed his brows, his eyes still full of suspicion.
His piercing gaze swept over Xiao Tianhao from head to toe, as though weighing the truth of his words.
Could an ordinary person without a trace of soul force really escape the jaws of a herd of Bloodfang Boars?
Just then, a low-level Windhowl Hound chained to one of the rear wagons with a thick iron chain, tasked with keeping watch during the journey, suddenly let out a whimper of utter terror!
The Demon Beast, which had been fierce and baring its teeth at the stranger, now looked as though it had encountered its natural predator. Its whole body flattened against the ground, trembling violently, its tail clamped tightly between its legs.
Pale yellow urine flowed out uncontrollably, filling the air with a pungent stench.
"Whine... whine..." The Windhowl Hound's fear spread instantly like a plague.
The guards' Unicorn Scaled Horses also began backing away uneasily, snorting, their eyes revealing instinctive dread. Their riders' scolding and soothing did little to help.
Everyone's gaze converged on the only new element among them-Xiao Tianhao-with shock and uncertainty.
Xiao Tianhao's heart jolted, and he understood at once!
It was the Profound Space Pearl!
In his excitement a moment earlier, the pearl in his mind had unconsciously released an extremely faint trace of pressure originating from the very source of life!
This pressure had worked on that Bloodfang Boar, and its effect on these even lower-level transport Demon Beasts was immediate!
"This..." The shrewd, plump merchant narrowed his eyes, looking at the Windhowl Hound crouched on the ground and the restless mounts.
Then he looked at the young man standing before them, who appeared utterly bedraggled yet had a strange hint of composure in his eyes that even he himself had not noticed.
A person with no cultivation could scare a Windhowl Hound into wetting itself? There was nothing simple about this! Perhaps... he had some treasure on him? Or... there was something unusual about the young man himself?
"Bring him along," the plump merchant suddenly said, interrupting the scar-faced captain before he could continue his questioning. A merchant's customary smile spread across his face.
"You've had quite a fright, young brother. Fate brought us together. We happen to be heading into the city too, so we'll give you a lift. But as for the entry fee..." He rubbed his fingers together.
A great weight lifted from Xiao Tianhao's heart, and he hurriedly said, "Of course, of course! Once we're inside, I'll find a way to pay you!"
He silently rejoiced that the intimidation inadvertently caused by the Profound Space Pearl had become his best pass into the city.
Glory City's gates were far more magnificent and imposing up close than they had appeared from afar.
The walls of enormous blue-gray stone rose a hundred zhang high, stretching across his path like an impassable natural chasm. Huge mystic runes flickered and flowed across their surface like breaths, emanating energy fluctuations that made his heart tremble.
People streamed through the gates in an endless but orderly flow.
City guards clad in standardized leather armor, their bearing lean and formidable, rigorously inspected everyone entering the city.
Most wore Bronze Badges on their chests, while the few squad leaders wore Silver Badges.
When it was the turn of Xiao Tianhao's caravan, the inspection was indeed extremely strict.
The city guards carefully verified the caravan's Entry Permit, inspected every piece of cargo, and even performed a basic soul force examination on every guard.
When a cold, scrutinizing gaze landed on Xiao Tianhao, he felt an invisible pressure sweep over his entire body.
"Identity? Place of origin? Purpose of entry?" The city guard squad leader, a Silver Rank Demon Spirit Master, spoke in a cold, hard voice.
The plump merchant quickly stepped forward and explained with a broad smile, "Sir, this is an unfortunate herb gatherer we encountered outside the city. His companions all fell victim to Demon Beasts. He's all alone, a truly pitiful fellow.
"I felt sorry for him and gave him a lift, thinking that once we entered the city, he could report to the Relief Office under the Sacred Orchid Institute."
"An herb gatherer?" The squad leader's sharp gaze lingered on Xiao Tianhao's modern clothing, filled with obvious suspicion.
He extended a hand, sending an invisible thread of soul force toward Xiao Tianhao.
Xiao Tianhao's heart rose into his throat.
Just then, the Profound Space Pearl concealed against his body seemed to react to the foreign soul force, giving an extremely faint pulse.
An indescribable sense of rippling space spread outward, so subtly it was almost imperceptible.
The squad leader's probing soul force circled through Xiao Tianhao's body. Apart from confirming that he indeed had no soul force fluctuations, it detected nothing unusual-the Profound Space Pearl's fluctuations existed on a level far beyond his perception.
He frowned, then finally waved a hand. "Go in. Remember, you must register at the Sacred Orchid Institute's Relief Office within three days and obtain a Temporary Residence Permit! Fail to report in time, and you'll be treated as a Dark Guild spy!"
"Yes, yes! Thank you, sir!" The plump merchant hurriedly pulled Xiao Tianhao along to offer his thanks, then quickly passed through the enormous gateway.
The moment he stepped into Glory City, a wave of noise rushed into his face!
Broad streets were paved with neatly cut blue-gray flagstones, lined on both sides with stone-and-timber buildings of a rugged, ancient style.
Demon Spirit Masters wearing all kinds of leather armor and carrying weapons were everywhere. The air held the faint scent of medicinal herbs, the smoke of metalworking fires, and the distinctive odors of various Demon Beast mounts.
In the distance, magnificent towers of differing styles rose from the ground. Most striking of all was the Sacred Orchid Institute's main tower in the city center, soaring into the clouds, its spire seemingly wreathed in the power of wind and thunder!
Xiao Tianhao felt as though he had stepped into a vast, living fantasy epic, his heart surging with emotion.
He followed the caravan to a relatively quiet street corner.
He handed the plump merchant the few fairly well-crafted metal buttons he had brought from his original world, along with a small lighter-which he claimed was a family heirloom-barely covering the entry fee and fare.
After seeing the merchant off, Xiao Tianhao immediately slipped into the crowd.
He urgently needed to learn the exact point in time he had arrived at!
His gaze swept over both sides of the street before settling on a busy little shop bearing the sign "Old Chen's General Store."
He squeezed inside, pretending to examine the herbs, ores, and low-level Demon Spirit crystal cores on the shelves, all of which emitted faint energy fluctuations. His ears, however, were pricked up, catching every conversation in the shop.
"...I heard the Saint Nether Family and the Sacred Family clashed again at the northern hunting grounds, fighting over a Frost Horned Python about to break through to gold rank!"
"Hmph, dogs biting dogs! The City Lord's Mansion and the Sacred Orchid Institute are still the dependable ones."
"By the way, the Sacred Orchid Institute's entrance assessment next month is coming up, isn't it? I wonder if we'll see a few promising youngsters this year..."
"Not likely! Geniuses don't grow on trees. I hear the city lord's young daughter is exceptionally gifted, but there's only half a year left until her formal entrance assessment..."
Half a year!
Xiao Tianhao's heart gave a violent leap!
The city lord's daughter, Ye Ziyun! Half a year until her entrance assessment... wasn't this the point in time before Nie Li's rebirth?!
He had only half a year! Within those six months, he had to grow stronger, find Nie Li, and gain a firm foothold in this world where danger lurked on every side!
The Holy Emperor's threat was always present. If he wanted to reach the pinnacle of this world, he had to join forces with Nie Li.
He had no desire to flee back to the modern world whenever danger appeared.
An intense sense of urgency seized him.
He hurried out of the general store, his gaze turning toward the majestic main tower of the Sacred Orchid Institute in the city center.
At this moment, Nie Li should still have been an ordinary boy struggling at the bottom of his family.
Find him! Get close to him! This was the first step toward change!
Before you continue