003 Sword Dance

  I started with simple experiments.

  First, I tested my speed.

  The old tree stood to my left, the ruined fountain ahead. I blinked—And the world lurched. The cracked stone was under my feet. The tree was now behind me.

  It took me a sed or maybe less.

  One more time.

  The world blurred arouhe ground barely existih my feet. If I had been any slower to react, I might have tripped and crashed straight through a wall. I exhaled, my breath steady but my mind rag.

  So this is what max-level Padin Agility feels like.

  , I tested my strength.

  I threw a simple punto the air—and the air snapped around my knuckles, a shockwave whistling past me.

  Okay. Yeah. That’s definitely superhuman.

  For bance, I executed a series of acrobatic tricks—flipping, spinning, nding on one foot atop a thin wooden post. My movements weren’t just precise; they were fwless, each a carried out with the efficy of a battle-hardened warrior.

  It was unnatural, yet intuitive—a paradox of power I was slowly beginning to uand.

  I felt fident.

  Now for the real test.

  I reached into my Item Box and pulled out one of my most prized ons—

  Silver Steel.

  It was a legendary longsword, deceptively pin in appearano fshy runes, no glowing edge. Just a simple, well-crafted bde that happeo be sharp enough to cut through mythril.

  Holding it in my hand, I felt an itch—a temptation, a desire to truly unleash my power.

  I could test my magic, cast a spell, swing my sword with divine energy—

  But I held myself back.

  I was too close to the city, and if this world’s cultivators could sense power fluctuations like iories I’d read… well, let’s just say I didn’t feel like testing my PvP abilities this soon.

  So I kept it simple.

  Gripping Silver Steel in one hand, I relied on instinct, guided by the magical muscle memory ingrained in me.

  My Monkey Grip passive skill allowed me to wield the massive sword with a single hand—something I had taken franted in the game, but now fully appreciated in this reality.

  With slow, deliberate movements, I began to swing the bde.

  And suddenly—

  The sword hummed in my grip, slig through the air with eerie smoothness. My movements flowed, sharp yet effortless, like water casg over polished stone as if I had practiced these strikes a thousand—no, ten thousand times before.

  And with the flow of my sword, came the flow of memories.

  My breath came ragged. My hands trembled, but not from exertion—this was deeper, a bone-deep wrongness crawling up my spine. I wasn’t just remembering.

  I was slipping.

  Slipping into someone else.

  No, not someone else—me.

  I saw glimpses—fshes of a life lived within a game.

  A young warrior with a cheap iron sword, accepting his first quest.

  A terrified rookie, standing face to face with his first goblin.

  A gritty survivor, his hands trembling as he made his first kill.

  The joy of his first css adva. The thrill of victory, the agony of tless deaths and resurres.

  But the stra part?

  I wasn’t just remembering these events.

  I was experieng them.

  And then—suddenly—

  I saw it all from the third person.

  I saw him.

  David_69.

  The game character I had pyed for years. The max-level Padin who had fought and bled across tless dungeons, campaigns, and wars.

  A brave warrior.

  A true Padin.

  Someone who had upheld his oath until the very end.

  And then—

  I snapped back to reality.

  I staggered, my breath harsh, my grip on Silver Steel tightening as I used it to prop myself up.

  The memories had almost swallowed me whole.

  It wasn’t just nostalgia. It wasn’t just some random fshback.

  For a moment—just a brief, terrifying moment—I felt like I was losing myself.

  Like I was being David_69.

  I exhaled shakily, f myself to stay grounded in the present.

  This wasn’t a game anymore.

  And that?

  That was the scariest part of all.

  I hought I’d live to see the day I’d experiehis kind of xianxia bullshit.

  Strange and bizarre phenomena? Check.

  Unexpinable experiences suddenly springing on me? Check.

  A nagging sehat reality itself might be a fever dream? Double check.

  If this were a game, I’d probably see a quest marker fshing in my vision, urgio “Uhe Secrets of Your Transmigration!” or some other cryptisense. Who knew? Maybe this entire world was just a simution, and I was just a bunch of numbers and pixels?

  Hell, maybe I was never real in the first pce.

  I let out a hollow ugh, shaking my head as I returned Silver Steel to my Item Box.

  No use dwelling oential crises when there were experiments to run.

  The Item Box was firmed to work. That was a win. But how far could I push gamer mei this world?

  Time to find out.

  First test: Fast Travel.

  I stood still, trated, aally anded myself to teleport to… anywhere.

  Nothing.

  Okay. : World Map.

  I tried opening an interface. Maybe a transparent map s would appear in my vision?

  Still nothing.

  Mini-map?

  Nada.

  World Chat?

  I even muttered, “/global Hello? Anyone?” under my breath.

  Silence.

  …Okay, what about the Premium Shop?

  I dramatically raised my hand and called into the void.

  “Open Premium Shop!”

  Silence.

  No glowing UI. No limited-time deals. No overpriced skins for ons I already owned.

  Truly, I was in hell.

  I sighed. Well, there goes my dream of purchasing an instant power-up.

  It ainfully clear that gamer logic wasn’t on my side. I couldn’t just grind moo level up. There were no menus, no veutorials, and definitely no system messages expining how to cultivate with a simple thought.

  I was truly on my own.

  So much for easy mode.

  Since most of my gamer perks were useless, I returo testing the Item Box instead.

  It had worked for st ons and equipment, but could I o iive ways?

  Time for the Minecraft test.

  I k down, pced my hands on the ground, and started digging dirt block-style, trying to shove raw earth into my iory.

  Nothing.

  Damn. That would’ve been fun.

  Still, the Item Box wasirely useless. Through trial and error, I figured out three key limitations:

  I could store anything as long as it wasn’t alive. No shoving enemies into the void, sadly.The object had to be something I could hold with one or two hands. No lifting buildings or stealing mountains or ndfills for fun.There were no visual cues when using it.That st part was the most important.

  I only realized it way too te, but my Item Box had zero animations—no fshy light, no glowing effects, nothing.

  Which meant…

  I grinned as ideas flooded my mind.

  Imagi—hidden ons appearing out of nowhere.

  A dagger materializing in my hand mid-fight with no prior movement.

  A healing potion summoned mid-swing, making me look unkilble.

  Or better yet—an explosive fsk hurled at an enemy’s face with zer.

  Hah! You ain’t ready for me yet, cultivators!

  I spent the few hours testing more theories, pushing the limits of what I could do.

  I still didn’t have a clear path forward, but ohing was certain—

  Even if I couldn’t rely on gamer meics, I could still rely oivity.

  And if there was ohing Padins were good at—

  It ting to survive.

  I was so tempted to test out my fshier skills.

  Divine Smite? Would’ve been cool to see how it transted into this world.

  Holy Wrath? Would it still ie the wicked?

  Sanctuary? Could I just decre myself untouchable and walk away from all my problems?

  But even I knew when to quit while I was ahead.

  Especially when I suddenly had a visitor.

  I sensed her before I saw her—mostly because a person standing on a flying sword wasly subtle. She desded gracefully, the moonlight catg the edges of her pristine robes. Her stance was stiff, official, and exuded the kind of authority that screamed, Don’t mess with me unless you enjoy pain.

  She had the look of someone in their early twenties, but given the existence of long lifespans in this world, she could have been fifty for all I knew.

  Great. My first real enter with a local cultivator, and it had to be a city enforcer.

  I khe look.

  “State your name,” she said, her voice crisp and no-nonsense.

  I hesitated for a moment. My full username from Lost Legends Online was David_69, but I wasn’t about to introduce myself like that.

  “…David,” I said simply.

  She frowned, as if rolling the name around in her mind, then gave a slow nod.

  “Da Wei,” she said, pletely butchering the pronunciation.

  I blihat wasn’t even close. Did she mishear me? She probably had a high cultivation; if she really tried, she could probably get it right. But… looking at my own refle in her polished pauldron, I had to admit—I kind of looked the part of a native. It robably better this way.

  “A prreeting then,” she tinued. “I am an official enforcer w for the city. My name is Liang Na.”

  Liang Na showed me a silver pque, showing proof of her affiliation.

  I kept my poker face.

  Close enough.

  She studied me, her sharp eyes flickering with suspi.

  “Your affiliation?”

  I froze. A sed too long.

  Was traveler the right answer? Cultivators probably had s, sects, or at least some kind of official background. Saying the wrong thing could meaing beled as a rogue.

  I forced an easy smile. “Just a traveler.”

  Her gaze sharpened.

  Her gaze sharpened. “A traveling cultivator?”

  I hesitated for the briefest of moments.

  Teically, no. I adin. A holy warrior with divine magic. A knight hteousness. A wful good tank.

  But in a world of qi, dao, and flying sword nonsense?

  Yeah, that wasn’t going to transte well.

  So I nodded. “You could say that.”

  She gave me a slow, assessing look. “I see.”

  I resisted the urge to sigh in relief.

  The fact that she hadn’t immediately called me a fraud was good. She must have been watg me for a while, gauging my as. My Divine Sense hadn’t picked her up, either because she was outside its range… or because she had no hostile i.

  Either way, I was now on the radar of an official enforcer of Yellon City.

  And that meant I had to be very careful about my steps.

  I crossed my arms and tilted my head. “So… is there a problem?”

  Liang Na gave me a easured look before shaking her head. “No problem. Just a warning.”

  I frowned. Warnings were never good. “A warning for what, exactly?”

  She exhaled through her nose, as if already tired of this versation. “You used a spell on a civilian.”

  Oh.

  Ohhh.

  So that little Divine Word: Rest trick I pulled on Young Master Zhao earlier did cateone’s attention. That was unfortunate. I was hoping to avoid trouble.

  “…I wouldn’t really call it a spell,” I muttered, scratg my cheek. “More like… a harmless suggestion.”

  Liang Na gave me an unimpressed stare. “A suggestion that rendered someone unscious.”

  “Harmlessly unscious,” I crified. “And, if I may add, peacefully unscious.”

  Her expression remained unreadable, though I swore I saw the tiwitch at the er of her mouth. “Regardless, do not use spells on civilians iure.”

  Noted.

  I gave her a slow nod. “Duly warned.”

  She cupped her fist in a respectful gesture. “I hope I haven’t troubled you, Young Master.”

  Politeness? Or a subtle way to get on my good side? Either way, I returhe gesture. “It's fine.”

  “Young Master Da,” she said again, stig with her earlier misinterpretation. “It is fio use spells as long as no civilian is harmed. It is also acceptable for you to use martial arts withiy grounds as long as it is for self-defense or if it won't harm any civilian. Do you uand?”

  I sighed internally. I guess Da Wei was my name now.

  “I trust I’m not in any trouble, then?” I asked, arg a brow.

  She let out a breath. “No, you hahe i in the inn well enough. Many cultivators from esteemed s or sects tend to e to Yellon City this time of year to indulge in mortal festivities. It is… exhausting dealing with them.”

  That made sense. A bunch of privileged, superpowered rich kids desding on a city for a festival? That was a recipe for chaos.

  “So… I take it Young Master Zhao is one of those privileged troublemakers?” I guessed.

  Liang Na’s lips pressed into a thin line. “Among many others. Though, he’s sidered more as a civilian, than an important s.”

  I hummed in uanding. She must’ve thought I was just annorant Young Master out to enjoy the mortal world. But, since I had resolved the i in an amiable manner instead of, say, smiting Zhao into the dirt, I had somehow nded in her good books.

  Iing.

  My curiosity got the better of me.

  Feigning slight offense, I asked bluntly, “Why do you think I’m a Young Master?” I made sure to i a bit of youthful arrogao my tone—just enough to make it seem like I cared about the assumption.

  Liang Na’s eyes sharpened ever so slightly. “A junior in cultivation should know where he stands.”

  Ah. That was a warning. A very subtle but very real warning.

  I schooled my expression immediately and bowed slightly. “I see. My apologies.”

  She gave a slow nod, seemingly satisfied with my rea.

  Lesson learread carefully.

  I wasn’t in trouble yet, but I had definitely nded on someone’s radar.