Chapter 1: Arrival in the Demon Moon

  Many years later, when He Lian was carefully wiping the Tianlang Blade under the Yuhuang Tree, his heart no longer had the passion and excitement of his youth, but only a calmness that had faded everything. What he wanted to strive for now might just be to live in harmony with the world.

  In this world, there are countless people who are tirelessly busy every day, competing for money, fame, and women...

  Struggling with people, struggling with time, struggling with fate...

  Perhaps the root cause is dissatisfaction with the unfairness of this world, dissatisfaction with why one gets up earlier than a chicken and sleeps later than a dog but can only enjoy treatment similar to that of a pig, and dissatisfaction with others' luxurious cars and fine wines while oneself still worries about having enough food and clothing.

  Maybe this world was originally fair, but there are many people who don't follow the rules, so there is unfairness...

  The protagonist of this story, temporarily called Sun Liao, is one of these unfair sacrifices.

  Before the age of thirteen, he was a standard rich second generation, luxury cars, beautiful women, and a group of friends who were also from wealthy families, all the standard configurations for a prodigal son, he had them all, and even more.

  Moreover, he also has a more wasteful father.

  At the age of thirteen, his father lost the last property of the family, and even before he was ashamed to commit suicide, he couldn't figure out how the family's wealth could be lost so quickly. He didn't realize that he had just entered someone else's trap, and he was another victim created by those who did not follow the rules.

  Sun Liao's mother, that poor woman, also died of depression soon after his father's death. From then on, Sun Liao became an orphan and buried his hatred for his father deep in his heart.

  Life is a journey, filled with encounters and missed opportunities, sometimes wealthy, sometimes impoverished. Sun Liao understood that he had to adapt to this huge disparity as quickly as possible, not for anything else, but for the words his mother said before she passed away.

  No matter what, live on.

  He no longer lives for himself, he doesn't want to disappoint his mother again...

  Back to his own small hut, it was actually just a dilapidated house that was about to be demolished. Sun Liao held in his hand a hard and dry steamed bun that he had begged for, with his own black fingerprints already imprinted on it. From the day he started begging, Sun Liao had long forgotten what dignity was. He remembered Gu Long once saying that when traveling through Jianghu, one must never provoke three types of people: beggars, Taoist priests, and Buddhist monks. Now, as a beggar himself, Sun Liao had already been provoked by countless people, but he had no strength to fight back, nor the courage to do so. Fortunately, Sun Liao could still find examples more miserable than himself to comfort him, such as that monk in the corner of the wall.

  That monk arrived here just yesterday, he is called a monk because of his shiny bald head and those faintly visible monk clothes. No one here would be surprised by the intrusion of a stranger, after all, this place is originally a gathering place for vagrants, a shelter for the poor, and a happy nest for impoverished families.

  However, Sun Liao had been paying attention to the monk all along. After all, Sun Liao, who had once been wealthy and noble, could easily tell that the monk's tattered and dirty robes were not made of ordinary materials. The delicate skin under the monk's robes also showed that he had once lived a life of luxury. Although the monk's face had an inexplicable slyness to it, people who have fallen on hard times always seem to have an inexplicable curiosity or sympathy for others in similar circumstances, and Sun Liao was no exception. Sun Liao would always divide his alms into two portions, giving one portion to the monk, who would silently eat the food without ever expressing gratitude.

  Perhaps he was mute? Sun Liao thought with a bad taste. His sympathy for the monk deepened a little more in his heart.

  It was another monotonous afternoon, Sun Liao dragged his sore body back to his little nest, and as usual handed half a bun to the monk.

  Different from usual, the monk did not stretch out his hand, but instead lifted up his dirty face towards Sun Liao, with an eerie glow flickering in his eyes, and hoarsely spat out a sentence: "You, do you hate?"

  "So you can talk!", Sun Liao's butt hit the ground, "Hate? Who should I hate? I've long lost the right to hate anything, what about you? Do you hate?"

  "Son, I have a deep-seated hatred in my heart, hidden very deeply. You hate that the world is unfair, and you hate yourself for only being able to struggle and live in this dirty and chaotic place, why do you have to eat these spoiled foods? As for me, what I hate is another world."

  "Another world? What do you mean?"

  "What I'm referring to isn't important, what's important is that you're not satisfied with your current life. So, are you willing to accompany me to my world? I can give you power, give you status, and there, no one will ever throw food at your face like feeding a dog again. You'll regain your dignity, and even be able to strip others of theirs!" The monk's face shone brighter, his voice trembling with excitement.

  "Is this guy sick or something?", Sun Liao thought to himself, but anyway, he was bored just standing around, so he might as well humor him.

  "I can walk with you, but why should I believe that you can give me those things? Is it because of your tattered monk's robe or your mysterious words?" Sun Liao looked at the monk's sly face with a hint of disdain, treating this conversation as just a game to pass the time.

  "Based on this!" The monk suddenly let out a loud roar, his originally dim eyes widening abruptly, and in an instant, he seemed to have changed his entire demeanor. His dirty clothes and the dirt on his face couldn't conceal the dignified appearance of the monk's treasure body, and even Sun Liao felt that at this moment, the monk was as majestic and powerful as a celestial being.

  "Uh, monk, oh, master, what's this...?" Unconsciously, Sun Liao seemed to be stunned by the monk's sudden transformation, and even used honorific language towards him.

  "Don't care who I am, don't ask why. You only need to know that I can give you power, give you status, give you everything you want. Those ordinary people who once looked down on you will have to kneel at your feet, look up to you, respect you, and fear you. And you will be loyal to me, until death!" The monk's eyes emitted an eerie green color in the dimly lit small room, looking extremely deep. At this moment, these eyes were staring straight into Sun Liao's eyes.

  "I surrender to you, loyal unto death!" Sun Liao's eyes had already turned red, and he was heavily panting as he repeated the monk's words. To Sun Liao's ears, the monk's voice had a kind of inexplicable allure. He couldn't help but repeat them, couldn't help but obey, couldn't help but surrender.

  "Then stretch out your humble hands, swear to me with your blood, and use your blood to help me open the road to the other world!", The somewhat weak monk shouted in a strained voice, but the frenzy and excitement in his eyes had become even more intense.

  Sun Liao mechanically stretched out his left hand, and with a swift motion of his right hand, he picked up a shard of broken porcelain from the ground and slashed it down heavily. Instantly, blood gushed out like a fountain, pouring down like rain, yet his face still wore an expression of numbness, as if he had already become desensitized to any pain.

  "It's now!", the monk let out a loud cry, his right hand's five fingers swiftly drawing a mysterious pattern along the trajectory of Sun Liao's splashing blood. Then, his left hand's index finger shot up like a knife, pointing straight at the sky.

  It was as if in an instant, the sky above Sun Liao's small hut suddenly became overcast with dark clouds, and the rolling black clouds looked terrifying even in the dim twilight. The people around him rushed out of their own dilapidated huts, staring at the terrifying cloud mass and shivering with fear.

  Inside the hut, Sun Liao's face was as white as paper due to excessive blood loss, and the monk was also drenched in sweat. However, his left hand pointing at the sky remained motionless. As he stared at Sun Liao, who seemed to be on the verge of collapse, the monk hesitated for a moment before letting out a fierce cry, biting his tongue and spitting out a mouthful of blood onto his left hand. Instantly, the clouds above the hut churned even more violently, with flashes of purple lightning illuminating the darkness.

  "Wait, why is the lightning purple?" The monk seemed to have thought of something extremely terrifying and tried to withdraw his left hand in a panic. At this moment, the clouds in the sky finally stopped their intense rolling, and in an instant, a huge bright purple lightning bolt struck towards the small hut. The monk's expression instantly became extremely vivid, seeming to be both helpless and unwilling. Sun Liao, who had almost lost all his blood, was left with only one last breath and naturally couldn't dodge the terrifying lightning bolt. With a loud rumble, the small hut and the two people inside suddenly disappeared into thin air.

  It's not a small thing, nor is it big. To say it's not small is because two lives are involved; to say it's not big is because this matter has not caused much attention. The life and death of an orphan who lost both parents and a monk with unknown origins will not have any impact on the world.

  But what about another world?

  Maybe life won't disappear easily, it just blooms in another way.

  "Where is this place? Am I dead or alive?" Sun Liao's consciousness gradually awakened, slowly moving his arms, accompanied by aching numbness throughout his body, and doubts about life and death.

  "You are still alive, but I am dead." Suddenly, the old monk's voice echoed in Sun Liao's mind. It sounded so helpless, with a hint of self-mockery.

  "What kind of joke are you playing, you stinky monk? If you're dead, is it your ghost that's talking to me?" Hearing the old monk's voice, Sun Liao felt an inexplicable sense of relief. After all, with his current state, having the mysterious old monk by his side made him feel much safer.

  "Not bad, it's just my soul. Even you, you're no longer the original little beggar. Don't believe me? Look at your own body," said the old monk with a hint of schadenfreude in his voice.

  Sun Liao heard this and hastily struggled to turn his head, after a long time, he finally returned to his own body.

  But this, this, this is clearly a baby's body. Soft and round hands and feet, weak body, even under his own body was a small exquisite cradle. Sun Liao felt great fear, he wanted to shout, but what came out was indeed a childish cry.

  "Don't be afraid, I've said it before, you're no longer the same as you used to be. It's just a smelly shell of skin, if you lose it, so what? You are much luckier than me, at least you can still return to your own body, feel and touch things, while I can only drift around in your mind like a wisp of smoke, never again experiencing the happiness that anyone should have."

  "Old monk, you scoundrel! Where is the power you promised me? You said you'd take me to a world of pleasure, but this cradle is what you call an exotic world?! Is the power you gave me just making me cry like a child?! Return my body to me!", Sun Liao roared in his mind, after all, who could accept suddenly transforming from a nimble young man into a baby that only knew how to wail and cry?

  "Don't call me old monk, my name is Gong Sun Jian. As for the otherworld I promised to take you to, we've already arrived. This is the incredibly wonderful otherworld I was talking about. It's just that some unexpected things happened on the way here, resulting in our physical bodies being damaged. Fortunately, you found a body that perfectly suits you in this world. Unfortunately, this body is that of an infant. Even more unfortunate is that I've been sealed within this body as well, and you are the dominant one. One of your thoughts can kill me."

  "Aren't you afraid that if you tell me this, I will really kill you in my mind?" Sun Liao asked with some surprise.

  "Why kill me? Don't forget, it was I who brought you into this world. It was I who helped you escape the fate of a beggar. It was I who kept you away from the disdainful gaze of the wealthy. And as far as I can see, even the lowest family in this body's household is one of immense wealth, where you can obtain the riches I promised you. More importantly, although I have lost my own body and strength, relying on my understanding of this world, I can still easily help you become powerful. In this world, I possess power and wealth that you cannot imagine, all of which I can help you attain. Knowing all this, do you still want to kill me?" Gong Sun spoke confidently.

  "Actually, even if you can't give me these things, I won't kill you. After all, this world is too unfamiliar to me, and with you by my side, I won't be too lonely. It's like having a pet cat or dog on me, haha." Sun Liao proudly swung his small body, quickly forgetting the discomfort of losing his original body. His original body had lived an unhappy life, but now he had the opportunity to live again, and more importantly, thirty years ago, the old monk was still condescendingly ordering him around, but who could have thought that now he could kill the old monk with just a thought? Life is indeed full of unknowns and changes. Moreover, being able to come to a completely unfamiliar world means that I can have a brand new beginning, which isn't a compensation for my tragic fate in my past life?"

  "What's with the cat and dog? I, Gong Sunjian, one of the five great masters of the Demon Moon Continent, have never had anyone dare to speak to me in such a disrespectful tone. But, as they say, when you're under someone else's roof, you must lower your head." The old monk's lewd face showed an expression of not bothering to argue with him.

  "What about you? Are you one of the Five Great Masters? You're more like one of the Five Great Rascals! Sun Liao looked at him with suspicion, thinking of the slightly lecherous-looking old monk in his mind. "One of the Five Great Masters, how could he end up running to my humble abode? How could he devour my black buns like a wolf?"

  "Hmm, this...", the old monk's face rarely turned red, "I am indeed one of the five great masters, but I have too many enemies. That day, for some reason, all my enemies found me at once. As the saying goes, 'two fists can't defeat four hands', I fought hard but wasn't a match for them. I had no choice but to open up a spatial channel with all my might, who knew that severely injured and lacking strength, I was transported to another world. I thought of waiting for my powers to recover before returning, but then you, this little beggar, seemed not bad, so I wanted to ask for your help, using your pure yang blood to activate the heavenly thunder to aid me in crossing through space. Who knew I overestimated my own strength and underestimated yours."

  "Wait, you're saying that you'll take all the blood from my body? Doesn't that mean that if you succeed, I'll die?", Sun Liao angrily interrupted the old monk, a painful feeling of being used by others surging up in his heart.

  "It's true, I was too selfish back then. But now you're still alive, and I've become this...this thing that can't even be recognized as human or ghost. I suppose it's the price I paid for my own selfishness. And besides, you also gained a great benefit from it." The old monk didn't tell Sun Liao that he had used the hypnotic technique, which was considered an evil art on this continent, otherwise Sun Liao wouldn't have listened to him so easily.

  "What benefits? What do you mean by underestimating me earlier?" Sun Liao felt a bit better after hearing the old monk's explanation, but he also secretly decided to be more cautious around him in the future.