In the lush outskirts of Wu City in early spring, a red swaddle emerged from the grass. Something inside it was wriggling, and a few stray dogs nearby, intending to investigate, suddenly felt an overwhelming pressure. Terrified, they yelped and fled in all directions.
If anyone had approached, they would have clearly heard a conversation coming from the swaddle.
“This is the so-called perfectly mastered secret technique?” Xiao Lingyu spat through gritted teeth. He had once thought the elder who saved him was profound and unfathomable, deserving his utmost respect. But now, he realized that all the elder’s so-called profundity was a facade—an unreliable charade that had pushed him to the brink of rage.
“Uh…” the elder’s voice stammered, “I intended to reverse time just a day before I attacked the sect, not rewind decades back to your infancy.”
Xiao Lingyu’s voice, now laced with murderous intent, grew even sharper. He couldn’t believe that upon regaining consciousness, he had been sent back to the very moment of his birth, abandoned by his family. Even worse, his body had no cultivation power; without the extraordinary consciousness in his mind, he was just a normal infant, utterly defenseless against anyone.
“Humans make mistakes, and so do horses. I haven’t used this technique in ages; a miscalculation is inevitable. Besides, I didn’t expect your beloved to be so ruthless, intent on ensuring your demise. The Nine Nether Fire Formation covering the entire mountain was too potent—it went out of control.” The elder’s explanation was weak, and Xiao Lingyu snorted coldly, remaining silent.
After a moment, the elder continued, “So, you were abandoned at such a young age?”
Xiao Lingyu’s face darkened instantly, his voice sharp with fury. “It’s all your fault! If I had gone back just a day earlier, I could have used my consciousness to compel them to leave me somewhere safer—or at least a better place to abandon me. Instead… I was thrown into the wilderness to starve.”
The elder tried to console him, “You survived last time, didn’t you? You will meet your benefactors eventually.”
The word benefactor made Xiao Lingyu shudder with revulsion; he would rather starve than encounter any so-called savior.
The elder continued mumbling, but Xiao Lingyu simply shut his eyes and feigned death, hoping to escape the trajectory of his previous life. Yet fate, as always, had other plans.
From a distance, chaotic footsteps approached, accompanied by various voices.
“Today, the heavens favor me; I earned dozens of coins.”
“My business was good today too. Got a few large steamed buns.”
“Uncle Shui, I want a bun.” A soft childish voice: “Be patient, Little Stone, we’ll eat it at the temple.”
Xiao Lingyu closed his eyes tightly, praying the beggars would pass him by. But heaven had other designs.
“Eh, what’s this red bundle?” a voice called out.
“Where? Let me see.”
“Step aside—it looks like a baby.”
Xiao Lingyu felt himself lifted by a pair of large hands. The swaddle was opened slightly, and a hoarse old voice said,
“How sinful! Such a small child, abandoned in the wilderness—how could they survive?”
“Luckily we found him, or the dogs would have carried him off.”
“This child is so fair—how could the parents discard him? Does he have some flaw?”
“Quick, let’s see.”
The bundle was pried open, revealing Xiao Lingyu in his bare innocence. A breeze ruffled his tender skin, and he shivered, utterly humiliated. Even in his previous life, he had never been treated this way. Now he realized: the same group of beggars had handled him the same way in both lifetimes, a thought that filled him with burning shame.
The elder’s laughter echoed in his mind. “Ah, so that’s why you reacted like that to the word ‘benefactor’ earlier.”
“Shut up!” Xiao Lingyu bellowed, his little face crimson.
“Quick, wrap him up; the spring wind is damp and cold,” one said.
“Yes, yes, he looks fine; let’s not let him catch a chill.”
“Eh, why does he have a bracelet on his right wrist?”
“Let’s see if it’s valuable.”
“It looks dark and ominous.”
“Don’t worry, the Earth God protects us; nothing to fear.”
“True, with the Earth God, we need fear nothing.”
“This bracelet must be a keepsake from the child’s family. Don’t touch it, leave it for him.”
“Old Shui is right; the child is pitiful—let him have it.”
Someone asked, “What should we do with the child now?”
“The crazy woman has been crying for a baby—give it to her.”
“Yes, let her raise him; she won’t stop fussing anyway.”
“That works; even with one mouthful per person, we can feed a child this small.”
The elder’s voice softened, “Little Stone, from now on, you are his brothers. Take care of your little brother, understand?”
“Mm. Uncle Shui, what’s the little one’s name?”
“Yes, we haven’t named him yet.”
After thinking for a while, the elder suggested, “Since the child is so fragile, let’s give him a humble name for survival—call him Gou Dan.”
The beggars clapped and praised, “Gou Dan, Gou Dan.”
Xiao Lingyu gritted his tiny teeth at the name, ignoring the voice in his head reminding him, This was your previous name. When did you become Xiao Lingyu? He resolved that once he could speak, he would demand to be renamed back.
Yet he did not notice the greater danger looming.
The elder handed him over to a female beggar who had squeezed through the crowd. Known as the crazy woman for her constant crying for children, she now cradled Xiao Lingyu tenderly, lifting her tattered clothing to feed him.
Xiao Lingyu’s face flushed bright red. He clenched his mouth shut, refusing to open it, while the elder’s laughter echoed faintly in his mind.
After much struggle, the woman finally relented, covering him and cradling him, softly humming a folk song as they returned to the abandoned temple.
The “temple” was in ruins—just a few dilapidated rooms barely offering shelter—but this became Xiao Lingyu’s new home with the beggars.
The child was soon noticed for his extraordinary obedience: he never cried except when hungry or needing a diaper change.
Because the beggars went out daily to scavenge, Xiao Lingyu, too small to be left alone, was carried with them by the crazy woman. Surprisingly, his fair and adorable appearance brought them extra charity, improving the beggars’ living conditions.
Old Shui held him, sighing, “This child is born with great fortune.”
Xiao Lingyu, praised for his natural destiny, began practicing the flow of qi within his body. In his previous life, he had been discovered by his master at six and entered the sect, reaching a supreme level in his twenties.
Though he had deliberately suppressed his cultivation to avoid overshadowing his beloved, in this life, Xiao Lingyu resolved to cut all ties with that person, focusing solely on his cultivation.
With knowledge from his previous life and access to secret techniques, he chose to practice the Cloud Water Technique, perfectly suited to his single water-nature root. In his past life, it had propelled him to the Dan Realm before thirty; now, he was confident of surpassing that, advancing swiftly to the Infant Realm, and becoming a powerful figure in the world.
Though too young to meditate, he found alternative methods to channel qi, unnoticed by the beggars. Soon, the child spent days mostly sleeping, and when awake, he practiced internal circulation safely. With the crazy woman constantly holding him, he avoided distractions that might lead to cultivation mishaps, steadily progressing on the path toward greatness.