Chapter 2

It was early autumn, with autumn rain falling, washing away the summer heat. The rain continued for several days, and just when people thought it would continue for many more days, the weather unexpectedly turned clear and sunny.

In the afternoon after the autumn rain, the sky was a vast expanse of blue, and the bright sunlight illuminated the entire city of Hu Hai, enveloping it in a bright and vibrant glow. Residents who had been cooped up at home for too long chose this moment to go out for some fresh air, and the streets and alleys were filled with people whose faces were beaming with joy and relaxation.

It was a peaceful and beautiful afternoon, but suddenly, the Línjiāng District was jolted by the blaring of sirens. Curious onlookers turned to see a sky filled with red light and thick smoke, indicating that a fire had broken out somewhere.

At this moment, the Third People's Hospital of Hu Hai was engulfed in flames, the entire inpatient building turned into a sea of fire. Fortunately, the fire department arrived in time to prevent the fire from spreading further. However, no matter what they did, the fire department could not extinguish the flames in the inpatient building and could only take measures to contain the fire.

The hospital director stood not far from the inpatient building, his face ashen as he watched the raging fire. He knew that no matter how much the hospital would lose this time, he would not be able to continue as the director, even though he was already of retirement age, he still clung to his last bit of power.

Seeing the fire chief approach, the director immediately stepped forward and asked anxiously, "How is the situation?"

The fire chief sighed and said, "The situation is not optimistic. All the patients on the upper floors have been rescued, but..."

Hearing that all the patients had been rescued, the director breathed a sigh of relief, but the word "but" at the end made his heart race again, and he immediately asked, "But what?"

"But several patients in the basement have perished, only one survived. This time..." The fire chief was about to say that the fire was extremely strange, but he was interrupted by the director's exclamation.

"Ah?"

The director's mouth opened wide in disbelief, staring at the fire chief in shock. "What? How is that possible? One survived!"

What? Do you, old man, actually hope all the patients die? The fire chief was instantly furious upon hearing this.

"What? Do I, Jiang, not deserve to save the patients? Hmph!"

"Not! Not! Are you sure it's the basement?" The director realized he had overreacted and quickly lowered his voice.

"It's the basement!"

Upon receiving the fire chief's confirmation, the director was dazed, appearing to have aged several years in an instant.

"But the basement is the morgue!" the director muttered to himself.

...

After an unknown amount of time, which felt like a moment or an eternity, Xiao Cheng slowly opened his eyes.

As soon as he woke up, without time to check his surroundings, Xiao Cheng immediately tried to summon his flying sword.

He clearly remembered that an hour ago, a group of people had chased him because he had obtained the Three Lives Jade Slip. With no way to escape, he had chosen to force a transcendence to threaten those who wanted the jade slip. However, the transcendence was hasty, and he had fainted after enduring several layers of lightning.

Upon waking, his first thought was that someone was still chasing him, and he needed to escape using his flying sword.

"Where is my flying sword?" To his surprise, the flying sword, which he could usually control like an extension of his arm, did not appear.

Seeing that the flying sword did not respond to his mental command, Xiao Cheng was startled. The flying sword was a cultivator's life weapon, how could it not obey the cultivator's control? Could it have been destroyed during the transcendence? If the flying sword was destroyed, the cultivator should die, but why was he still alive?

Five years ago, the entire Xiao family was massacred, his grandfather died, and several sisters-in-law were killed protecting him. The Xiao family, which was already small, was now reduced to just him.

After the massacre, he realized that the world was not as simple as he had thought.

In the modern, technologically advanced society, there existed hidden cultivation families like the Xiao family, and naturally, there were many more cultivation forces. The Xiao family was insignificant in the cultivation world, with countless threats to their existence.

After escaping, he was unexpectedly taken in by the Five Harmony Daoist, becoming his last disciple. For years, he lived with hatred and self-blame. If he had not been so arrogant and only bullied others without striving for improvement, he would not have been powerless in the face of the massacre, needing a common woman to protect him. He was the most talented person in the family in a hundred years.

Every time he thought of the scene where his sisters-in-law were beheaded in front of him, he could not stop trembling. They were ordinary women, delicate and fragile, and their white, flawless necks were severed by a single sword stroke, their bodies collapsing to the ground like a white peony that had not yet bloomed but withered prematurely. Before dying, they shouted, "Run!"

As a younger brother, all Xiao Cheng could do at the time was run...

How ironic, as the only direct male descendant of the family, he could only watch helplessly as one family member after another died, and even had to be protected by his sisters-in-law at the cost of their lives.

The sisters-in-law were ordinary women, with no cultivation, and as widows, they could have returned to their own families and ignored the Xiao family, but they sacrificed their young lives to save him.

If he had cultivated properly from a young age, he could have at least taken the sisters-in-law with him, but there was no "if"! All his regrets turned into motivation. Since becoming the Daoist's disciple, he had trained diligently for five years, reaching the peak of the innate realm, just one step away from the Golden Core realm.

In these five years, his only wish was to avenge his family. Just as he was about to break through to the Golden Core realm, he and his master were discovered by their enemies, and his master died as a result.

After his master's death, he fled everywhere. A month ago, he accidentally obtained a jade slip in Kunlun Mountain, which turned out to be the legendary Three Lives Jade Slip. It was said to contain a rare cultivation technique, the Nine Profound Immortal Scripture, and had the power to protect life. Clearly, the Three Lives Jade Slip was a rare treasure.

Unfortunately, Xiao Cheng had not gained the jade slip's recognition and could not control its aura. As the saying goes, "A commoner with a treasure is a target for sin." The entire cultivation world began to hunt him down, wanting to kill him and take the treasure. In the final moments, he chose to force a transcendence to deter the cultivators, but he fainted due to the lightning.

Thoughts flooded his mind. Since he had fainted during the transcendence, it must have failed. A cultivator who fails a transcendence would turn to ashes.

"How am I still alive?"

At this moment, Xiao Cheng realized his surroundings. Everything was white: the walls, the bed sheets, and even the TV on the wall. He knew he must be in a hospital. But if a transcendence failure results in ashes, even a great immortal could not save him. How did he survive?

"Could it be the Three Lives Jade Slip? Yes, it must be!"

The Three Lives Jade Slip, representing past, present, and future lives, must have brought him back to life. Where was the jade slip? Xiao Cheng was anxious; the jade slip was his last hope for revenge. If he lost it, he might never have the chance to avenge his family. Feeling the familiar texture of the jade slip, he finally calmed down.

Holding the two-inch-long, spindle-shaped jade slip, Xiao Cheng was lost in thought. Since the jade slip had brought him back to life, it must have recognized him. With this thought, he focused his mind, and his consciousness was able to penetrate the jade slip.

"Really, it has recognized me!"

Xiao Cheng was overwhelmed with excitement. It wasn't that his mind was unstable; years of fleeing had made him as calm as still water. But the jade slip was crucial to his revenge. For years, he had lived like a zombie, with only one thought: revenge. Now that the jade slip recognized him, he had hope for revenge. How could he not be excited?

Looking at the radiant jade slip, Xiao Cheng was momentarily dazed.

Just as Xiao Cheng was lost in thought, the door to the hospital room creaked open, and a beautiful woman walked in.

The woman had chestnut hair, a delicate and round face, and extremely refined features. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her eyes like clear springs, her lips slightly parted, and her cheeks had a hint of baby fat, making her look endearing. She was tall and well-figured, and a pair of tight jeans accentuated her long, shapely legs and a beautiful curve of her hips.

She looked exhausted, having rushed over upon receiving the news, but despite this, she was still incredibly beautiful.

Xiao Cheng stared at the woman in front of him, his mind going blank. The jade slip, which he valued more than his life, fell to the ground with a crisp sound.

Is this a dream? It must be a dream! But why could he clearly smell the unique scent of his sister-in-law? He had lived with her for four years and would never mistake her unique, pure fragrance.

"Yuer, is it really you?"

The woman in front of him was Fang Yujia, his sister-in-law who had been killed protecting him five years ago. The bloody scene from five years ago was vivid in his mind. Xiao Cheng, finding strength from somewhere, sat up and tightly held Fang Yujia's hand, feeling the smooth, jade-like touch. He forgot everything and smiled like a child.

Fang Yujia frowned, withdrew her hand, and her expression was complex, a mix of happiness, surprise, and more disgust.

Fang Yujia took out a wet wipe in front of Xiao Cheng and carefully cleaned her hand, which he had touched, with a calm and meticulous motion.

"We all thought you were dead. The hospital had thoroughly examined you and issued a death certificate. Fortunately, you came back to life, and everyone is very happy. Your grandmother will probably come to see you later, don't worry her too much!" Fang Yujia said calmly, her lips slightly parted, her eyes bright and beautiful.

At this moment, a wave of emotion surged in Xiao Cheng's heart. His sister-in-law was really alive, and he could feel her presence. As for her cleaning her hand, he didn't pay much attention. Fang Yujia was extremely clean, and he was still considered a little pervert in her eyes, so it was normal.

Moreover, from Fang Yujia's words, his grandmother was also alive and would come to see him later. But why?

Could it be... Xiao Cheng thought of a possibility. The Three Lives Jade Slip represented past, present, and future lives. Perhaps the jade slip had brought him back to the past, and he had returned to the past!

"What is the date now?" Xiao Cheng suppressed his excitement and asked calmly.

Fang Yujia was taken aback, not expecting her younger brother-in-law to ask such a question, but she answered truthfully, "Today is October 20th."

"Which year?"

"2013!"

2013? That was eight years ago! Could he have been reborn? Yes, he had been reborn!

Xiao Cheng was overwhelmed with excitement, almost wanting to shout and scream.

Those who have not lost loved ones might not understand his feelings. For five years, he had thought about avenging his sisters-in-law and family members. Suddenly, he was reborn and found that all his loved ones were still alive. This sudden happiness almost drove him mad.

2013, three years before the family massacre. Although he had lost all his cultivation due to rebirth, his family was still alive. What was more important than family? And he still had the Three Lives Jade Slip. Three years was enough time to do many things. He would not let the massacre happen again. He would not allow his sisters-in-law to die because of him, and he would not let his family be destroyed.