Chapter 1: Life After Failing to Find Immortality
The mountain peak stood tall and imposing, shrouded in mist and clouds.
As the sun began to set, its soft, warm light bathed Mount Taiyi in a gentle, reddish glow.
Atop the cloud-kissed summit sat a young scholar on a stone stool. With delicate features and dressed in white robes, he exuded an air of serenity and otherworldly charm, like a figure from a painting.
However, a closer look revealed a complex expression on his face.
“I can’t believe we look exactly alike…”
The young man’s name was Lin Tianlu.
A transmigrator.
The moment he regained consciousness in this place, a torrent of memories flooded his mind. It took him half a day to digest it all and understand why he had transmigrated into this young man’s body.
His predecessor had been orphaned since childhood, living a life of poverty and relying on the charity of distant relatives. Acutely aware of the harsh realities of the world, he had dedicated himself to his studies, hoping to pass the imperial examinations and change his fate.
But he failed the exams in the capital. Years of hard work had amounted to nothing more than a fleeting dream.
Heartbroken and desperate, he clung to a rumor circulating among the common folk: that Mount Taiyi was home to a hidden immortal sect. It was said that anyone with a sincere heart and a touch of immortal destiny could join the sect, cultivate immortality, and live a life of freedom and bliss. Even their worldly relatives would be elevated to a life of comfort and prosperity.
Clinging to this last shred of hope, he set off alone to climb the mountain.
Mount Taiyi was treacherous and steep, its paths slippery and dangerous. Even seasoned hunters rarely ventured into its depths, where wild beasts and venomous insects lurked. But fueled by unwavering determination, the young scholar pressed on without hesitation. He braved the elements, endured hunger and exhaustion, and after two arduous days and nights, finally reached the summit of Mount Taiyi.
But…
What awaited him was not the ethereal, dreamlike paradise of an immortal sect.
Instead, he found only a desolate wasteland, overgrown with weeds and rubble.
—The immortal sect did not exist.
Or perhaps it had, decades, centuries ago. But now, it had vanished, lost to the annals of time.
Overwhelmed by a mixture of elation and despair, the exhausted scholar, already at the end of his rope, collapsed to the ground. Unable to catch his breath, he died, filled with regret and unfulfilled longing.
“What a pitiful soul…” Lin Tianlu’s expression was a mixture of sympathy and bewilderment.
Although the scholar’s life had been tragic, and his resemblance to him was uncanny, Lin Tianlu couldn’t afford to dwell on sentimentality.
The reason was simple: his current situation was equally dire.
He… couldn’t get down the mountain.
Mount Taiyi soared into the clouds, its peak towering thousands of meters above sea level. The scholar had only managed to reach the summit through sheer willpower, seemingly guided by divine intervention as he narrowly escaped countless perils along the way. The paths he had traversed were treacherous, and attempting to descend would be suicidal.
And now, here he was, reborn into this predicament…
How was he supposed to get down?
He couldn’t possibly live on this barren mountaintop, could he?
There was no water, no food, no shelter, and certainly no immortals or magical sects. In his current weakened state, he doubted he could even survive the night. The biting wind would surely freeze him to death.
Even if this mountain had once been a haven for immortals, and even though he, a man from modern times, harbored a fascination with cultivation, it was all gone now. Only ruins remained. There was no point in staying here.
He had already explored the entire summit, and every possible descent was perilous, a near-certain plunge to his demise. As for the ruins of the sect, there were no ancient inheritances, no magical treasures to be found. After hours of searching, he had only unearthed a half-rotted signboard and a broken jade pendant… which he had stumbled upon by chance while stepping through the debris.
No blood recognition, no sudden awakening of mystical powers.
No secret manuals, no legendary artifacts.
Lin Tianlu couldn’t help but feel a surge of frustration.
“Couldn’t I have transmigrated to a better place?”
“Even if not, at least give me a system, a spatial ring, a chatroom with other transmigrators… even a wizened old immortal popping out from a crack in the ground would be nice!”
Frustrated, Lin Tianlu spread his arms and shouted at the heavens.
“Hey! Almighty heavens, can’t you at least send me a beautiful maiden?”
‘Beautiful maiden’ ‘Beautiful maiden’ ‘Beautiful maiden’
But only the faint echo of the words ‘beautiful maiden’ reverberated through the mountain mist before fading away.
“…”
After a moment of silence, Lin Tianlu shouted again, “If not a maiden, a handsome young man will do!”
“…”
He sat back down on the stone stool, a dejected look on his face.
Who would hear his cries for help on this desolate mountain?
He was probably the only living soul within a hundred miles.
BOOM!
Suddenly, dark clouds gathered in the sky, and thunder roared.
Lin Tianlu stared at the sky for a moment, dumbfounded, before scrambling to find shelter from the impending storm.
He had just ducked into a crevice beneath a protruding cliff face when the heavens opened, unleashing a torrent of rain.
Watching the puddles forming outside, Lin Tianlu sighed.
He had asked for a person, not a thunderstorm.
Had he somehow summoned the gods of thunder and lightning?
“Well, forget about getting down the mountain. Looks like I’m stuck in this hole, at the mercy of the elements.”
He brushed off the raindrops clinging to his clothes and huddled deeper into the cold, damp cave, hugging himself for warmth.
He was hungry, thirsty, and freezing. His body felt heavy and drained.
Lin Tianlu considered trying to start a fire to warm himself, but as he moved his stiff limbs, a wave of exhaustion washed over him. His breathing grew shallow, his eyelids fluttered, and he slowly drifted off to sleep.
In his fading consciousness, only a single, self-deprecating thought remained.
He was probably the most pathetic transmigrator in existence…
He hadn’t achieved greatness, hadn’t explored the wonders of this world, hadn’t even met another human being. He was going to die alone on this desolate mountaintop.
He hoped that in his next life, he would be reborn into a simpler, safer existence.
…
Morning.
The sun broke through the clouds, bathing the mountain in a golden light, making the desolate landscape appear almost sacred.
Inside the cold, damp cave, a pale hand reached out, gripping the stone wall as its owner slowly pulled himself up.
Lin Tianlu stared in disbelief.
He had spent the entire night terrified, his mind replaying his life’s regrets and even composing his own eulogy.
But now he woke up…
And he wasn’t dead?
The coldness that had seeped into his bones was gone. His body felt warm, and the gnawing hunger in his stomach had subsided.
In fact, he felt… strangely comfortable?
“Could it be that this immortal mountain really does have some magic?”
Lin Tianlu crawled out of the cave and took a deep breath.
Hmm…
He couldn’t detect any spiritual energy, no mystical aura, only the earthy scent of rain-soaked soil.
It was kind of smelly.
“I have no idea what’s going on… but at least I’m alive.”
He stretched his stiff muscles, his joints popping, and made his way back to the ruins at the summit.
After a night of heavy rain, the place looked as desolate and lifeless as ever.
But as he surveyed his surroundings, Lin Tianlu felt a sense of calm he hadn’t experienced the day before.
He knew he wasn’t going to die… at least, not immediately.
Sitting back down on the familiar, lopsided stone stool, Lin Tianlu fell into deep thought.
He couldn’t get down the mountain, and he didn’t need to eat or drink. So what was he supposed to do on this deserted, immortal mountain?
Farm? Scavenge for scraps? Compose poetry?
Or… count the stars?
The second day passed in a blur of boredom and uncertainty.
…
The third day arrived.
Lin Tianlu was still alive, much to his surprise.
Desperate for something to occupy his time, he started gathering materials and crafting tools. He began excavating the ruins, unearthing remnants of the past. Even if all he found were clumps of moldy, decaying matter, it was better than doing nothing.
…
The fourth day.
Still digging.
…
The fifth day.
He had pretty much exhausted the excavation potential of the ruins.
Lin Tianlu surveyed the pile of objects he had unearthed. After careful consideration, he selected a rusty, broken sword and a jade flute… although the flute was missing a piece, and the decorative tassels were reduced to a few scraggly strands, giving it a rather comical appearance.
Driven by a fascination with the artistry of the immortal sect, he carefully cleaned the jade flute and brought it to his lips, blowing gently.
“Pfft, pffffft, pffffft—”
Right, maybe the flute was better suited as a decorative piece.
…
The sixth day.
Lin Tianlu discovered a treasure!
A complete Go board!
The black and white stones were stored in two separate jade boxes, perfectly preserved.
He eagerly set up the board, placing the boxes of stones on either side. He picked up a black stone, pondered for a moment, and made his first move.
Then he switched positions, sat down opposite himself, picked up a white stone, and after much deliberation, made his next move.
The game continued, surprisingly engaging despite the lack of an opponent.
In the end, Lin Tianlu successfully formed a line of five black stones, claiming victory.
—He had no idea how to actually play Go.
…
The fourteenth day.
Lin Tianlu sat at the makeshift stone table he had built, silently contemplating the Go board in front of him.
Playing Go against himself… it was one of the few sources of entertainment he had found on this lonely mountaintop.
His other amusements included mountaintop karaoke and creating his own text-based RPGs. It wasn’t much, but it kept him sane.
“This move… won’t work.”
He frowned at the intricate pattern of black and white stones on the board.
But he wasn’t discouraged.
He had come to accept that he wouldn’t starve or die of thirst on this mountain. As long as he maintained a regular routine, he woke up every morning feeling surprisingly healthy. Instead of panicking and railing against the heavens, he had decided to embrace a more zen-like approach to his situation.
Thud.
Suddenly, a faint sound reached his ears.
He turned his head…
And found himself staring at a beautiful young woman dressed in a white cloak.
Her delicate, refined features were etched with surprise, her lips slightly parted in astonishment. Her beautiful eyes were wide with shock as she stood frozen in place.
Lin Tianlu stared back at her for a moment, speechless, before slowly tilting his head back to gaze at the cloud-filled sky.
“Almighty heavens…
It seems I misjudged you.
You did hear my pleas after all. It’s just that the signal was a bit weak up here.”
XD