Chapter 1 : Chapter 1
Chapter 1: A Stranger Alone in Another World
A long, long time later, when Martie returned once more to the Golden Traveler Tavern, she would still think of those ordinary, busy, bewildered days.
The gentle afternoon sunlight was warm and tranquil, rich and sweet like undiluted golden ale.
Whoosh—
The dawn spread upward from the sky’s deep blue, gradually enveloping this otherworldly continent.
In a remote kingdom on this land known as the Atre Continent, in some nameless little town, the only tavern—the Golden Traveler Tavern—had also been awakened by the morning light.
Jiang Lin sat up on the narrow bed and stared blankly at the cramped space inside the room.
Rather than calling it a room, it would have been more accurate to call it a storage shed.
Inside the entire space, there was only a narrow bed that looked as though it had been shoved in there temporarily. Everything else was made up of wooden wine barrels piled around the room.
From time to time, the air gave off the scent of poorly blended cheap alcohol.
The Golden Traveler Tavern had no fine liquor, but this was the only tavern in Wheatfield Town, and the people here did not care about such things.
Jiang Lin had already spent a year in this other world, and he had remained silent for that same year. From his initial confusion to the present, he had gradually adapted to this world’s way of life.
Or rather, he had grown used to this utterly different world.
“I was dreaming again...” Jiang Lin murmured as he sat on the bed. A trace of hatred flickered faintly through his black eyes, only to be hidden away again at once.
He sat cross-legged on the bed and began trying to circulate his cultivation art, attempting to connect with the spiritual energy of this world.
Just like the countless attempts he had made over the past year, the “spiritual energy” of this world seemed not to exist at all. Or perhaps Jiang Lin simply had not found the proper method of cultivation here.
Although this world had no “spiritual energy,” after learning its language, Jiang Lin had come to understand that while it lacked the gifted lands and endless prodigies of Zhongzhou—
—it still had no shortage of legends about the strong.
Most of them were tales of mercenary bands, holy temple knights, or the heroic deeds of some high-ranking archmage.
Stories like those were spread far and wide in the Golden Traveler Tavern, passed from mouth to mouth among the rash, rough-spoken men who gathered there.
After the novelty had worn off, Jiang Lin had long since grown tired of hearing them.
After a long while, Jiang Lin finally stopped trying once again to connect with the “spiritual energy” of this world.
It was not a disappointment so much as something entirely expected.
When the Sword Sect had been destroyed, the Patriarch had used that ancient teleportation array at all costs to send him to this otherworldly continent. Jiang Lin had gone through the initial confusion, rage, and then the despair of finding his own spiritual power exhausted beyond recovery, unable to replenish it in the slightest.
By this moment, one year later, all that remained in his heart was calm acceptance.
“The spiritual energy of this world feels as though it has been bound somehow. Without spiritual energy, I cannot recover my strength, and with the accident that occurred during the ancient teleportation array...
“All I have now is physical strength in this body, while the spiritual power within me has been drained to the extreme.
“I cannot even heal the hidden injuries inside my body.
“Although I have yet to see the true powerhouses of this world, from now on I must be extraordinarily cautious, advancing step by step and seizing every possible chance to restore my strength.
“If I can recover it, then returning to Zhongzhou may no longer be impossible.”
Jiang Lin rubbed the storage ring on his hand. Right now, he did not even have enough spiritual power to open it. His whole body felt like that of someone depleted to the brink.
When the teleportation array had gone awry, Jiang Lin had had no choice but to use every last bit of his spiritual power to protect himself from that terrifying force, a slaughtering pressure like heavenly tribulation lightning. By the time he arrived here, his spiritual power had already been completely exhausted.
It was also because of that accident that he had ended up in this world by a twist of fate.
Still, it was not only spiritual energy loss. Several hidden injuries also remained within his body.
But as long as he had spiritual energy to nourish himself, those injuries would not be a problem.
When he recalled the terrifying pressure within the teleportation array, it had been like the divine might of the Heavenly Dao itself.
At the time of the Sword Sect’s destruction, he had already fought three Mahayana cultivators alone, and his own spiritual power had been greatly depleted.
If he had not gone all out during the teleportation accident, he probably would never even have made it to this world.
His thoughts shifted slightly. Jiang Lin let out a long breath of stale air, expelling the foul smell of cheap liquor from the room. Then he rose and walked to the only window, pushing it open.
Fresh air mixed with the unique scent of this other world poured into Jiang Lin’s nose.
Outside the window lay the scenery of Wheatfield Town. In the muddy ground left behind by the rain lingered a faint earthy smell.
The town was not large. Its houses stood in neat, uneven rows, most of them built in strangely styled forms. Veiled by the thin mist of dawn, they looked as though they had been draped in gauze, blending into the gradually brightening blue sky. This was the unique flavor of this other world.
Vast wheat fields encircled the town, the crops on which the people here depended for survival.
Farther out lay the forest. Jiang Lin had often heard that magical beasts appeared frequently within that Dusk Forest, making it an extremely dangerous place.
They were probably much like demon beasts, only called by a different name.
Jiang Lin had long wanted to go and see it for himself, to search for even the slightest opportunity.
But lacking any real power, he had dismissed the idea. He did not like doing things without certainty.
The reward for the brave was not always high returns.
More often than not, it was death.
He stood by the window for a long time, until someone knocked on the door.
A gentle voice soon came from outside.
“Jiang Lin, are you awake? Mrs. Heath is preparing for tonight’s banquet, so could you help get the wine and food ready?”
Only then did Jiang Lin gradually pull his thoughts back. He opened the door and looked at the somewhat helpless woman outside.
Her name was Martie. She was about twenty-four or twenty-five, and by the standards of this little town, she counted as quite beautiful. The light freckles on her face only brought out a different kind of charm. She wore a long cotton-linen dress, and her brown hair was braided and draped over one side of her chest.
At that moment, she was looking at Jiang Lin with a helpless expression, shrugging as she said, “You know, I did not want to interrupt your sweet dream. Mrs. Heath was just pressing too urgently, and the servants are already waiting downstairs.
“Let’s hurry and finish everything together.”
Jiang Lin nodded and gave her a faint smile. “It’s all right. I was already awake.”
Martie was the owner of the Golden Traveler Tavern. She had inherited her father’s business, and as the only tavern in this town, it did fairly well day to day.
Of course, at this hour, the tavern would usually be closed.
Clearly, Martie did not want to be busy this early in the morning either. Jiang Lin only had to glance at the faint dark circles beneath her eyes to know that much.
“Honestly, Jiang Lin, seeing such a polite smile from you first thing in the morning puts me in a much better mood.”
Martie beamed, her eyes narrowing mischievously as she looked at him. Leaning lazily against the doorframe, she looked utterly at ease.
“Taking you in really was the best decision I ever made.”
“Miss Martie’s kindness is something Jiang can never repay. I can only help you with these small tasks.”
Jiang Lin nodded. His gratitude came from the bottom of his heart. When he had first arrived in this world, he had barely been able to communicate, and everything here had been utterly unfamiliar to him.
That feeling had been terrible.
If Martie had not taken him in, Jiang Lin would not necessarily have starved to death, but he certainly would not have had what he had now: a place to stay and a life that could, at the very least, be called stable.
“What a strange fellow,” Martie said with a laugh. She crooked her finger at him and said, “Then why don’t you call me big sister and let me hear it...?”
“The servants are probably tired of waiting.” Jiang Lin acted as though he had heard nothing at all. His expression remained indifferent as ever, completely ignoring the young woman’s teasing. After cultivating for hundreds of years, only here would he find himself being flirted with verbally by a little girl.
Of course, in Martie’s eyes, Jiang Lin only looked about the same age as she was.
That was why she treated him like a younger brother.
How could she possibly know that he had already cultivated for several hundred years?
Jiang Lin did not mind. He simply chalked it up to the more open customs of this place.
With that, he turned and headed downstairs.
Seeing her request ignored, Martie shrugged helplessly and did not take it to heart. Taking in this strange and mysterious man was probably the craziest thing she had ever done.
For all she knew, he could have been some wanted criminal from the Church, or perhaps a lost prince from one of the northern tribal kingdoms.
But judging by his bearing, Martie thought the latter seemed more likely.
As she thought of it, the scene of their first meeting rose once more in her mind.
That look in his eyes was something she would remember for the rest of her life.
“Oh, Dad, you irresponsible old man. Insisting on chasing after the mysteries of magic... honestly.”
Martie muttered her usual complaint, then followed him downstairs.