A fierce ache spread through his chest, waist, legs, and back. He tried to groan, only to find he lacked even the strength for that. His mind swam in confusion. Had he drunk too much yesterday and fallen asleep on the floor?
Li Dalong's consciousness seemed not to have returned to his body yet, still lingering on the scene of drinking with his colleagues at karaoke. The cold beneath him brought a trace of clarity to his mind. The memories from after his transmigration were still slowly merging, and the clash between two streams of thought left his memories and senses blurred.
I actually transmigrated.
This was the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain in the Righteous Qi Sect on the Heavenly Origin Continent, in the Cultivation World. The original owner of the body Li Dalong had occupied was also named Li Dalong, the eldest disciple of Dongfang Leng, the Righteous Qi Sect's master.
It had all begun three months earlier. His second junior brother, whom he had grown up with, had been ambushed and killed while training away from the sect by Xiahou Jin, the young master of Returning to Unity Manor, a subordinate force of the rival Rising Sun Sect. After extensive investigation, Xiahou Jin had been confirmed as the killer.
Although Returning to Unity Manor was subordinate to the Rising Sun Sect, its standing differed from that of the sect's other subordinate forces.
Xiahou Yeming, the current master of the Rising Sun Sect, came from Returning to Unity Manor's direct lineage. After he took office, the manor grew rapidly, which also led its members to swagger around outside, arrogant and convinced they stood above everyone else.
The Righteous Qi Sect's elders had shelved the decision to avenge his second junior brother, arguing that the sect was in decline and should not immediately go to war with the Rising Sun Sect.
Unable to stomach the elders' weakness or contain his fury, Li Dalong had used his status as the sect master's eldest disciple to steal the sect's forbidden artifact, the Dark Gold Gourd, three days earlier.
He had then stormed Returning to Unity Manor and razed it to the ground. But his cultivation was too low to keep the Dark Gold Gourd under control, and he suffered its backlash.
Combined with the shock of slaughtering so many at Returning to Unity Manor that blood flowed in rivers, this had driven him into a frenzy. He had killed or wounded dozens of Enforcement Hall disciples sent to apprehend Li Dalong.
Only when the enforcement elder personally intervened was Li Dalong finally subdued and taken back to the Righteous Qi Sect.
First, Li Dalong had stolen the sect's forbidden artifact; then, he had killed or wounded dozens of enforcement disciples.
The entire Righteous Qi Sect was furious, and the hatred of the Enforcement Hall's elders and disciples was particularly hard to quell. Sect Master Dongfang Leng had no choice but to agree to strip Li Dalong of his cultivation and imprison him in the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain.
Li Dalong had already been injured. After his cultivation was stripped away and his dantian and meridians were completely destroyed, he breathed his last, just in time for the transmigrating Li Dalong's soul to occupy his body.
Li Dalong could not help sighing. What rotten luck. He had only just transmigrated, and before he could even begin to spread his wings, he had his cultivation stripped away and been imprisoned in the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain.
Something this unlucky actually happened to me. What a miserable fate!
In this cultivation world, where strength reigned supreme, having his cultivation destroyed and being imprisoned in the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain meant he would grow old and die there in the Back Mountain.
Tens of thousands of years earlier, the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain had been a blessed cultivation ground where many of the sect's elders and core disciples lived and cultivated.
Later, calamity befell the sect, and rival sects besieged it. The Back Mountain became the final battlefield, and its spiritual vein was destroyed in the fighting.
Many elders and disciples also died in battle. In the end, the sect master of that era sacrificed himself to the formation, sealing all the enemies within the Back Mountain's central region.
This left the Back Mountain's environment harsh and inhospitable. It was abandoned entirely and became the sect's forbidden ground. Years later, as the Righteous Qi Sect gradually recovered its strength, it added restrictive formations to the Back Mountain, which slowly became a prison for members who had committed grave offenses against the sect.
Just inside the forbidden ground's main gate, Li Dalong struggled to his feet in a sorry state. He looked at the abandoned cave abodes scattered in an orderly arrangement nearby. Dilapidated and ruined, they presented an especially desolate, bleak sight.
Unwilling resignation showed in Li Dalong's eyes as he muttered, "Am I really this unlucky? I've only just transmigrated, and my cultivation's already been destroyed. Now I'm a cripple, doomed to grow old and die here? I wanted to enjoy the wonderful life of this cultivation world!"
Li Dalong staggered toward an abandoned cave abode at the foot of the mountain to his left. Just as he neared its entrance-
"Ding! The host's physical condition and surroundings meet the system's requirements. The Check-In System has been activated. Would you like to check in outside the Everlasting True Person's cave abode in the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain?"
Just as Li Dalong was lamenting his miserable fate, a voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
Li Dalong was overjoyed! Back on that blue planet, he had often read transmigration novels when he was bored.
The protagonist usually has a cheat. Heaven never bars every path! Now I've got a transmigrator's cheat too. It might have arrived late, but at least it's here.
He just did not know what functions the system had or what help it could offer him.
While Li Dalong was pondering this-
"Ding! Would you like to check in outside the Everlasting True Person's cave abode in the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain?"
The system sounded another prompt.
"Check in," Li Dalong said without hesitation.
"Ding! Check-in outside the Everlasting True Person's cave abode successful. Reward: innate spirit body!"
As the system's prompt faded, a warm current appeared out of nowhere inside his damaged dantian and began rapidly repairing it.
His shriveled dantian, riddled with damage, began healing swiftly. Its walls grew full and vibrant again, then became tougher as the dantian itself began expanding.
The warm current also surged along his meridians into every part of Li Dalong's body. His severed meridians healed instantly, becoming wider and tougher, while many tiny meridians that had never been opened before were cleared.
His body, weakened by the fighting at Returning to Unity Manor and the injuries inflicted by the Enforcement Hall elder, recovered in an instant. The strength he had lost came rushing back, greater than before.
"Fantastic!"
"This system's abilities actually defy the heavens! It rewarded me with an innate spirit body on my very first check-in. And an innate spirit body is actually this powerful!"
Li Dalong was astounded. In a single instant, the system had made his physical body so powerful!
"System, can you explain your functions?"
Li Dalong asked eagerly, wanting to learn more and see what other powerful functions the system possessed so that he could survive in this cultivation world where the strong ruled.
"You may check in only once each day, and you may do so anywhere. Naturally, the denser the spiritual energy or the more unusual the area, the better the check-in rewards." "The host's current location has been identified as a special area. Would you like to set it as your daily check-in location?"
Hearing the system's reminder, Li Dalong paused, then pondered to himself. Could this Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain be the special area the system mentioned?
"Yes," Li Dalong said quickly.
"The system has successfully set the Forbidden Grounds of the Rear Mountain as your daily check-in location. The host may check in here an unlimited number of times to obtain different rewards."
With the system's confirmation, Li Dalong felt delighted.
"That means I can hide in this forbidden ground and collect check-in rewards, then use those resources to improve my strength and become the cultivation world's hidden master sweeping the floors."
"This is a cultivation world where the strong reign supreme. Never mind the turmoil and dangers outside-even within the Righteous Qi Sect, undercurrents swirl and conflict never stops."
"This is my first serialized book. I hope you'll all share your suggestions. Thank you for reading!"
Before you continue