"Hmm… Uh… What's happening…?"
"Aghhh!"
He screamed like a madman. He didn't know what was happening to him. His head felt like it was crushed by a truck—splitting open, as if it were about to explode.
"I feel like I'm going to die… My body… I can't even feel my body!"
He couldn't move, not even a single finger. His eyes refused to open. It was terrifying.
Darkness. Darkness everywhere.
"Where am I? Please… someone help!"
He wanted to scream, but not a single word came from his mouth. He thought he was in a dream. He hoped this was just a dream.
That lingering hope was crushed the moment he realized—this pain was too real.
"Uhhhhh… Please… someone help! Please, save me!" he screamed in his mind.
He felt like it had been years since he spoke… or ate. If this was a dream, it was the worst nightmare he had ever experienced.
After what felt like an eternity, he slowly began regaining his senses—but his will was already shattered.
"I've been enduring this pain… this loneliness… for years," he thought. "This endless darkness…"
Then he felt something.
A dark hand dragging him deeper into an abyss.
But he resisted.
In the distance, he saw a faint light—dim, flickering… but real.
He mustered what little courage he had left and moved toward the light. The hands in the darkness clawed at him, dragging him back with all their might.
But he fought. He screamed. "I DON'T WANT TO DIE!"
He struggled and crawled, inch by inch, toward the light. And as he touched it…
BOOM!
All the dark hands shattered into nothing. The chains on his soul broke.
He gasped.
His eyes suddenly opened.
"Uhh… My head… It feels like it's going to explode!"
But before he could think, a flood of memories invaded his mind.
"Who… is this?"
"Who am I? Where am I?"
"Whose memories are these?"
He saw a child crying over the death of a father. A mother sobbing. Greedy relatives with eyes full of malice.
Ten minutes passed.
He finally regained control of his mind, exhaled heavily, and muttered to himself, "This is a different world… a world where power is everything."
The memories became clearer.
His predecessor's name—Shen Yue, a 14-year-old boy.
Thrown onto the battlefield as cannon fodder.
The place—Luoxing County, currently at war with the barbarians. Due to a shortage of soldiers, even commoners like Shen Yue were sent to the front lines. The military promised freedom to any survivors—but survival was near impossible. Shen Yue was already 90% dead.
"After all that pain in the darkness… How can I just die like this?"
"I don't want to die… I want to live! I REFUSE TO DIE LIKE THIS!"
He screamed with all his might in his mind.
Suddenly, a cold, distant, mechanical voice echoed:
"Cloning System binding: 10%... 20%... 50%... 90%... 100%. Host successfully bound."
A golden panel appeared in front of his eyes.
Name: Shen Yue
Age: 14
Physique: None
Bloodline: None
Cultivation: None
Skills: None
Spiritual Root: None
Talent: Extraction
Unique Trait: Clones: 0 (Locked)
Stats:
Strength: 10
Dexterity: 8
Wisdom: 2
Spirit: 0.8
"I don't know how I got this system… but this… This is my chance."
Before he could think more, another alert appeared.
"Warning! Host body in near-death state. Activating recovery phase."
Suddenly, a warm, strange energy began to pour into his body. It was so soothing… so comforting… he wanted to stay in that feeling forever.
His consciousness drifted, and he found himself in his mind—in soul form.
There was nothing else to do, so he decided to explore the memories of his predecessor.
He saw a cute, childish, shy little girl who followed him everywhere. They played in a small courtyard.
His younger sister—Shen Ning, only 12 years old. After their father's death, she became quiet, distant. She even stopped eating and locked herself in her room.
The real Shen Yue had always tried to make her smile… but failed.
Then he saw his mother—Lan Xue. She was beautiful, kind, elegant. The jewel of the outer city. She came from the inner city's famous Lan Family. But after their family committed a crime, they were exiled. She later married Shen Yue's father.
And finally… his father—Shen Xing. Late-stage Qi Absorption cultivator. A high-ranking military commander. A fierce but kind man who distributed food in the slums during hard times.
After his death, everything fell apart. The relatives turned on them. Even the military abandoned them. Shen Yue, just a boy, was drafted like cattle.
After seeing everything, he felt deep sympathy.
He whispered, "You can rest, brother. If I survive… I'll take care of your family. You can pass on in peace."
With those words, he felt a sense of responsibility settle over him. These people… they weren't his real family, but the emotions and memories felt too real to ignore.
He tried calling out mentally, "System?"
The golden panel popped up again.
Name: Shen Yue… (Same stats)
Then his eyes focused.
"Cloning System… That means I can create clones, huh?"
He sighed. "Feels like I'm in a game world…"
He had no bloodline, no skills, no spiritual root…
But then he noticed something—Talent: Extraction.
"What kind of extraction?" he thought. "Soul? Cultivation? Bloodline?"
He touched the word mentally. Instantly, information appeared:
Extraction: "You can extract any special attribute from living or non-living things—soul, talent, physique, bloodline. Simply say: 'System, extract.'"
He took a deep breath. "Let's try this… System, extract."
The voice replied:
'System has extracted:'
Low-level Fire Spiritual Root (Mixed)
Mid-level Sword Talent
Low-level Archery Talent
Low-level Spear Talent
High-level Iron-Copper Molt Physique
Mid-level Flame Scorpion Bloodline
Qi Absorption (3rd level cultivation)
Warning: Host body cannot withstand cultivation. Qi stored for later use upon recovery.
After ten more minutes, he regained awareness.
Then he heard a voice—
"Huh? There's a survivor here! What a lucky boy. Good thing you met me. If it were someone else, you'd be thrown out with the corpses. Heartless bastards, the lot of them."
He shouted, "HEY! Someone, come here! There's a survivor! He can be saved!"
Shen Yue felt a wave of relief. "Thank you… I owe this man. If I meet him again… I will repay this debt."
He shut his eyes and waited for someone to come. Soon after, he was rescued.
When he opened his eyes again, it was morning. He found himself lying on a bed.
A beautiful woman stood beside him. A military physician.
Her name—Xia Xue. Everyone in the military called her Madam Xia.
When she saw him awake, she got up and said, "I've healed your injuries. You're one of the lucky ones. Not many survive injuries like that."
Then, turning away, she added indifferently, "Someone will bring your meals from tomorrow. If your recovery continues like this, you'll be fully healed within a month."
"I… Thank you," he said.
She waved him off silently and walked out of the room.