Text / Zhen Bai
A sweltering August night, a sudden downpour.
Xuzhou Prefecture was the largest city in the Xixu Prefecture territory. Since August arrived, the rainy season had been cold and damp, the stone roads throughout the city never fully dry.
Within the Magistrate Manor of Xuzhou City, someone carrying a lantern hurried past, splashing through puddles.
They traversed through overlapping courtyard gates and covered bridges before finally stopping.
The palace-maid-like servant holding the lantern came to a halt, reached out to push open the intricately carved red door before her, and stepped aside. “Young Master, please.”
The room was clearly lavishly decorated, filled with precious incense burners, noble woods, white porcelain, and exotic flowers. Any single item could support an ordinary family for a year, not to mention the carved screens and gilded night lamps…
Yet, all the decorations now looked ominously haunted.
Faint, overlapping shadows were vaguely visible on the carved screen, but no sensible servant would go behind it for a group dance. Clearly, these were not human shadows, but the phantoms of evil spirits.
The night lamp, too, had for some reason been veiled in an ominous blood-red hue, bathing the entire room in crimson, thick with the aura of death.
The one addressed as “Young Master”—
dared not step forward. His legs felt welded to the spot, a gut feeling telling him he’d soon drop dead if he entered.
Wasn’t this supposed to be a xianxia game?
How did it turn into a horror game instead?
Because of the rain, the surrounding humidity was intensely heavy, and the sensation was incredibly real. He could hear the patter of the rain, and feel the chillingly cool yin wind brushing against his neck all too clearly.
“Young Master, please,”
the servant urged once again, her unchanging tone making her sound like a puppet.
The “Young Master” moved his stiff limbs, yet still couldn’t take a single step forward.
After a long moment, he asked, “…Is it absolutely necessary that I enter this room?”
The servant bowed slightly. “The Young Miss is critically ill and has been unconscious for several days. The best doctors in the city are helpless. Today, the Young Miss was lucid for a moment and said… she wanted to see you one more time.”
She then lifted her head and glanced at him. “But, Young Master, you need not worry. Mr. Zhuyong can return today. By then, there will certainly be hope for the Young Miss’s illness.”
This so-called Mr. Zhuyong sounded quite impressive.
Wait, that title didn’t sound like a doctor’s.
It sounded more like a mage’s.
He had a rather bad premonition. “If the doctor can’t save her, could it be she’s been cursed by evil…?”
The servant averted her gaze. “This servant knows not.”
Your face is practically shouting “That’s right” at me!
A coughing sound came from within the hall, followed by a weak female voice. “Is that Brother who has come?”
The servant whispered, “Young Master, the Young Miss… has been suffering greatly these past few days. She merely wishes to see you.”
Stalling the plot by the door forever wasn’t a solution. He squeezed his eyes shut, strode quickly inside, and headed straight for the sickbed—
On the bed lay a girl of barely fourteen, her face drained of color, even her lips pale. Her eyes lifted slightly, as if struggling to see him clearly. Likely due to illness, she wore no rouge, yet her peerless features were undeniable, carrying a fragile beauty without makeup.
“Brother, you’ve finally come. They all fear me, dare not enter this room, but I knew you wouldn’t be afraid. You always care for me…”
He nodded slightly.
…Actually, I am afraid too.
“Mister often says, people have their fixed fate, life and death are numbered. I never used to believe his rhetoric, but now I must. These past days, every time I wake, my heart often palpitates. I have a premonition,”
the girl looked at him with those ink-black eyes, then said softly, “…Perhaps today, I will die.”
He comforted her, “Didn’t they say Mister is coming back? If his occult skills have reached the City Lord’s level, he must be quite capable. Hold on a bit longer! Nothing will happen to you!”
This game’s freedom was indeed high. During main storyline quests, you could actually choose the content of your dialogue.
Indeed, there was no false advertising.
“Mister is also in the mortal world, and every mortal has their own fate. He can’t even change his own fate, so how can he change mine?” She gave a bitter smile, then reached out to him. “I just wanted to see my brother one last time before I die. Now, my wish is fulfilled—”
He reached out and took her ice-cold hand.
But the next moment, the beauty on the bed abruptly changed. Blood streamed from her eyes, revealing two rows of densely packed, terrifying, sharp blood-dripping fangs. Her oval face twisted, elongating into a sharp cone. The newly formed, ghastly, ghost-like torso writhed as it detached from the girl’s body, then violently lunged at him.
And his hands were caught fast, unable to move!
There really is a ghost!
“How can this little girl’s body compare to yours? You are born with…”
The Resentful Ghost’s twisted, sharp voice pierced his eardrums, making him regret not turning his pain and other sensory settings to the minimum.
No way, is he going to die right at the start?
In the next instant, a ray of sword light shot in from outside the door, passing through the window lattice, piercing the screen, and striking the Resentful Ghost’s body, blasting it into scattering ashes with a violent force!
Even the ghostly shadows on the screen seemed scorched by flames, screeching as they vanished one after another!
The door was abruptly blown open by a force of energy. A figure in drifting white robes appeared at the doorway.
The young girl on the bed had her eyes tightly shut, already unconscious, but thankfully, still breathing.
The candles in the lamps flickered violently but ultimately didn’t go out.
Someone stepped slowly into the hall. Through the tear in the screen created by the sword light, he could see that person, elegant in white robes, possessing an extraordinary aura.
Rain still poured outside, yet not a single drop touched that person’s clothes.
All things froze at that moment, then an interface box popped up:
Please enter your name: ________
Yes.
This was a game.
As a Player, the scene he was in now was a large-scale multiplayer online ancient-style xianxia game called 《Fuxi》.
Before entering the main storyline, there was a world setting introduction.
The world of 《Fuxi》 was divided into the three paths of Humans, Demons, and Devils.
Ghosts belonged to the Devil path. Those who fell into Devils were also of the Devil path. Humans were divided into ordinary mortals and cultivators.
Most Cultivation sects were built in remote, isolated places difficult for the Mortal Realm to contact. Cultivating meant severing earthly ties to avoid accumulating too much karmic burden.
But this didn’t mean the Mortal Realm was unimportant.
On the contrary, protecting the Mortal Realm, subduing Demons and exterminating Devils, could aid their cultivation in terms of cause and effect. Thus, many Righteous Path cultivators still held to the traditional virtue of helping the weak and vanquishing Demons and Devils.
But Demons and Devils didn’t care about any of this. They were bloodthirsty and ruthless killers, universally wanted by the Righteous Path by default, to be exterminated on sight.
Therefore, cultivators were always highly respected in the Mortal Realm.
He played this game partly because he liked cultivation-themed games, and partly because he was drawn to an NPC in 《Fuxi》—the daughter of the Fuxi Sect Leader, Fu Mingxia.
《Fuxi》 had no closed beta and went directly to open beta. It was wildly popular and claimed to have an absolutely realistic game physics system, offering Players a hundred percent immersive experience.
Before the server launch, there were only a few leaks. Among them, in the promotional trailer, there was a breathtaking fleeting glance of Fu Mingxia standing on a cliff at sunset, turning her head to look back.
To call it breathtaking was no exaggeration.
Jade formed her bones, autumn waters her spirit, peach-blossom skin, ink-black hair cascading like a waterfall.
If it were just a pretty face, one shot wouldn’t have been enough to make her a viral top trending topic.
Someone commented about her—
In that one glance, one sees all of the Mortal Realm.
The moment she turned, it made you believe that fate is fate, but fate is also nothing more than fate. After wandering countless mountains and rivers, experiencing life, death, and the passage of time, in the end, it’s all just a superficial glance back at this Mortal Realm as the sun sets.
According to the leaks, she would be a crucial NPC running through the game’s main storyline, the reincarnation of the Azure Crow Divine Bird. Moreover, she had a nemesis.
Conflict creates drama; crisis creates stories.
If Fu Mingxia represented the Righteous Path, fate itself, then her opposite represented evil and destruction.
The object of desire for tens of thousands of Devils and Demons was a supreme treasure, the Blood Jade.
Cultivators achieved Ascension through Heavenly Tribulation; Devils and Demons achieved Ascension through fantasy—no, through innate talent.
But talent was decided at birth. To change one’s fate or achieve Ascension overnight, absorbing the soul bloodlines of others was one path, and obtaining the Devil Clan’s supreme treasure, the Blood Jade, was the fastest method.
The Blood Jade could draw in Malice from the Mortal Realm, gathering it into form. Over countless millennia, the world’s Malevolent Will, resentment, hatred, and various other negative forces were innumerable and not to be underestimated. Later rumors said the Blood Jade, having absorbed the world’s Malicious Will, had already taken form, becoming the greatest threat to the Mortal Realm’s destruction.
Seven hundred years ago, the Malevolent Will was besieged and suppressed by high-level cultivators working together. But they exhausted all methods of eradication and could not completely destroy it.
Finally, led by the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple, the cultivators spent eighty-one days and nights at the Southern Miasma Sea before finally managing to dismantle its bones and tendons, scattering its Soul Spirit, and suppressing the Blood Jade deep within the seabed magma. This was considered a resolution to the matter.
However, judging from the official stance, this Malice most likely hadn’t fully died out.
In the official preview, the Malevolent Will was a blurry, black humanoid silhouette…
Terrifying, twisted, evil, powerful…
The character art was entirely pitch black, clearly a design that wasn’t heavily budgeted.
From these distorted, dark silhouette teasers, many speculated that the Malice Incarnate either had horns on its head, a tail behind it, painted markings on its face, or wore demonic armor—in short, it had to be the image of a world-destroying Demon King.
The game had class divisions, corresponding to the various sub-sects of Fuxi Mountain. Before entering the game, he had already decided his choice and his game ID—
【Number One Sword God Under Heaven, Li Weiyi】.
【Name Selection Successful!】
The white-robed figure at the door was now before him, and a line of text had also appeared beside him—
Mr. Zhuyong, Foundation Establishment Cultivator.
Cultivators had different levels. The official website previously released a level system. Lower-stage cultivators were classified as Spiritual Light, Bright Hall, and Foundation Establishment.
Although only a lower-stage cultivator, Mr. Zhuyong could easily slay the fierce ghost from earlier through several barriers, an undeniably impressive feat.
The Mr. Zhuyong before him looked to be only twenty or thirty, but cultivators had methods to maintain a youthful appearance; he was far from as young as he looked.
“This Resentful Ghost parasitized the screen. With its power, it originally couldn’t have invaded this place. But with the current astrological influences, the luck of the Mortal Realm is bleak… A great calamity may be coming.”
Mr. Zhuyong sighed, then continued, “The Resentful Ghost has been removed. She’ll recover after resting for a while. Come with me. I have something to tell you.”
The servant went inside to attend to the person on the bed. Zhuyong led Li Weiyi to stand under the eaves outside the door. In the distance, faint sounds of string and flute music could be heard. Zhuyong explained, “Today is your eighteenth birthday, but I need to speak with you. You can return to the banquet afterwards.”
Li Weiyi only thought the City Lord was remarkably nonchalant, throwing a feast for his son while his daughter was haunted—quite inauspicious.
Mr. Zhuyong’s gaze fell to the boy’s waist. “You still have this wooden sword. The one I gifted you at age seven. The moment you grasped it, you achieved unity of man and sword, the sword moving as your heart desired. To be honest, you are the most suitable person for the sword path I have ever seen.”
Li Weiyi thought, Sword masters are nothing special; Sword Immortals are the true peak.
He proactively said, “I’ve heard Fuxi Mountain is the Number One Immortal Sect under heaven. I want to join Fuxi!”
“You have great ambition. Fuxi Mountain, the Ten Thousand Buddhas Temple, and the Kunlun Mountains are the three top Immortal Sects in the world. Among them, Fuxi Mountain is the most renowned.”
Zhuyong turned to look at the young man before him. “When you truly enter Fuxi, the sword techniques you learn will be many times more powerful than mine. Naturally, you won’t think much of my sword energy then.”
A red glow faintly appeared on the horizon, and the rain suddenly intensified. Amidst the roaring downpour, someone stumbled in from outside the courtyard, covered in blood, shouting, “Young Master, run!”
But just as he reached the stone steps, a sword energy pierced his chest.
The killing sword energy could only be executed by Zhuyong.
Li Weiyi was shaken. “What’s going on? Could he… also be a ghost in disguise?”
Otherwise, there was no explaining why Zhuyong, who had just been killing ghosts, would kill a household servant.
“He is not a ghost in disguise, but he dared to interrupt our private talk. That is a death sentence.”
Mr. Zhuyong’s previously indifferent expression turned cold. “You are a Spiritual Body I’ve nourished with medicine for over ten years. I’ve prepared so long, waiting precisely for this moment to harvest you. How could I let it go to waste? That thing just now, who knows where that wandering ghost came from? How audacious, daring to covet what is mine.”
Li Weiyi: “???”
What? You’re ready, but I’m not!
But he knew he had to run. So he turned and dashed toward the courtyard gate. The heavy rain pelted him, everything feeling incredibly real. There was light in the distance, but the rainwater on the ground was turning redder and redder, the metallic scent of blood growing thicker.
When he fled to the banquet hall, he found countless devilish auras possessing the bleeding corpses of performers, manipulating the stiff bodies to mechanically play string instruments and blow flutes!
The guests had long died violently, bleeding from their seven orifices, slumped askew in their seats.
The City Lord sat in the main seat, a hideous Devil Creature gnawing on his corpse.
A powerful gust of wind came from behind Li Weiyi. He knew it was Mister’s sword energy, but it was too late to dodge—
At the critical moment, someone shoved him aside. Looking back, it was his nominal mother in the game.
The sword energy pierced her heart. She couldn’t even speak before dying instantly.
So, so frustrating!
Even if they were in-game parents, they were still parents! Especially after she’d just taken that hit for him, the look she gave him at the end clearly told him to flee.
But Li Weiyi stopped, turning to face the white-clad figure closing in step by step.
He wasn’t refusing to run; he knew he couldn’t escape anymore.
After killing so many people, Mr. Zhuyong’s body wasn’t even wet from the rain, let alone stained with a single drop of blood.
Li Weiyi was furious. “You’re not a proper cultivator at all! You’re a Devil Cultivator!! You killed so many people! You’ll face retribution!”
But Mr. Zhuyong was a villain, completely unfazed by karmic retribution, personal attacks, or Player curses.
Zhuyong mocked with a smile, then raised his hand. The expressionless puppet servant emerged from behind him, holding the fourteen-year-old girl.
Mr. Zhuyong: “I only need your life and the lives of the city’s populace. As for your little sister, her death isn’t essential. How about this: you commit suicide right here, and I’ll use you for pill refinement. Once they’ve eaten their fill, I’ll let her go. After all, I watched her grow up. So, is this trade a bargain?”
‘They,’ naturally, referred to the countless Devil Creatures and Devil Cultivators currently devouring the guests’ corpses.
But while his words feigned pity for the young girl, his eyes held no trace of sympathy.
Li Weiyi: “In your dreams!”
A villain’s promise is a lie that deceives fools! Only an idiot would actually believe that and commit suicide.
Rather than that, he might as well fight.
However, the moment the young man charged, he was blasted away by an unseen force mid-air, coughing up blood.
Mr. Zhuyong’s cold voice drifted over. “I did say you were a sword prodigy, but you haven’t even unsealed your Spiritual Light. How can you fight me?”
“Heard too much flattery and actually believed it? Foolish.”
“Did you really think you were some genius? No matter how good your aptitude, it’s merely a stepping stone on my path. After killing you all, I’ll go take the lives of those insects outside…”
“Enough, I’ve lost interest in playing with you. Since you don’t wish to die, let your little sister die first then. This is your choice. Watch closely.”
He raised his hand, signaling the puppet servant to directly snap the hostage’s neck.
However, at that critical moment, a dot of ink shot forward with blinding speed!
The ink dot, soft yet firm, struck the puppet servant squarely in the chest, blasting her back dozens of feet. Wind gently lifted the unconscious girl and set her safely aside.
Simultaneously, a faint metallic chanting sound arose from the air, and several dazzling rays of saber light intertwined, attacking Mr. Zhuyong!
Caught off guard, Zhuyong instantly sustained several bloody wounds. He immediately began struggling against the saber light, but after only a couple of exchanges, he was heavily wounded and sent crashing to the ground!
Lifting his head, he cast a venomous glare in the direction where the ink dot had come from. “Fuxi Mountain! You dare meddle in the affairs of my Evil Nightmare Temple.”
A young woman’s crisp, clear voice seemed to descend from the heavens. “Fuxi Mountain’s Wind Subduing, Blade’s Edge Sect are here.”
“All Devils, be vanquished!”
As soon as the last word fell, black and white ink dots rained down like a sudden storm, smashing the monstrous shadows surrounding the young man into smithereens. The ghostly entities possessing the corpses were annihilated, their souls and spirits extinguished before they could even scream!
A Teal-Robed Maiden descended on the wind, landing gracefully. Rising amidst the bloody wind and rain, she stood between the young man and the monsters.
Dark clouds pressed down, and a fierce wind howled.
“A hundred years ago, you from the Evil Nightmare Temple were beaten to your knees begging for mercy, writing self-criticisms and guarantee letters spanning tens of thousands of characters that are still carved on our sect’s stone steps. Have you all forgotten already now?”
Fu Mingxia looked at the young man lying on the ground, his consciousness fading, and gave a light smile. “Don’t be afraid.”
She lowered her head, quickly scanning this Player’s information, and called out his name. “Number One Sword God Under Heaven, Li, Wei, Yi!”
Good news: He’d met his goddess.
Bad news: His goddess was reading out his deeply embarrassing name with a serious expression.