The Immortal Born from Ashes

Yun Wao had finally found peace.

And by peace, we mean:

A half-eaten bun near a dirty well, and the sweet sound of no one screaming or blowing up.

He sat under a dusty tree like a pile of forgotten laundry.

The village? No clue.

The continent? New. Probably full of weird soup.

Did he care? Nah.

He was broke.

Emotionally crushed.

Spiritually? Don't ask.

His hair was crunchy.

His robe smelled like old regrets.

A fly had claimed his eyebrow like it was its new house.

Life was perfect.

(If you ignored the trauma, the lost past, and whatever the hell that voice was.)

…

Then — out of nowhere — she appeared.

A girl.

Not glowing. Not flying. Not holding a sword made of moonlight.

Just… walking.

Holding a small bag of food.

Like she didn't live in a world where old men exploded during tea and monsters farted lightning.

She stopped in front of Yun Wao.

Tilted her head like a confused duck.

Pulled something from her bag.

Bread. Or a rock. He didn't care.

She handed it to him.

> "Even if the world forgets you," she said with a soft smile,

"you shouldn't forget yourself."

Then she walked away.

No name. No backstory. No dramatic music.

Not even a goodbye.

Yun Wao blinked.

Looked at the bread.

Then at the sky.

Then back at the bread.

> "…huh."

He took a bite.

And that's when everything went wrong.

BOOM!

A bunch of cultivators burst in like angry chickens in matching robes.

Eight of them. No — nine. One was just short.

They looked strong… or like they were trying real hard to look strong.

Their robes said Crimson Moon Sect.

But their faces said, "We messed up."

> "We were supposed to recruit mortals, man!" yelled one dude with a man bun that looked like a bird's nest.

"Servants! Maybe a few outer disciples! Not fight some demon freak!"

Their leader stepped forward.

He looked serious — Foundation Establishment peak stage. Almost Golden Core.

Eyebrows sharp enough to cut metal.

Held a glowing stone like it might explode.

> "We got a death message from Lei," he said. "Just one line. And a spiritual scan."

He tapped the stone. It crackled.

> "It's... Golden Core... Qi... but... it's not human—"

[End message. User has stopped existing. Please rate your death experience.]

Then — a wave of demonic Qi burst out from the stone.

It felt hungry. Like it could eat your soul and burp your memories out.

> "Golden Core demonic presence!" Chicken Man screamed.

"We're so dead!"

"SHUT UP!" someone else yelled. "It might still be here!"

"Why did I skip sword formation class!?"

…

Yun Wao took another bite.

Chewed.

Looked at them like they were just background noise.

And turned away.

They left.

Just like that.

Yun Wao? Still munching.

> "Bro," he muttered, "I just wanted a nap."

…

[End of Chapter 4]