BLEEDING UNIVERSE (The warrior in two worlds)

Chapter 3

The air on Earth right now was almost completely dry of spiritual energy. He knew that.

The strongest martial artists hiding in the shadows of this planet were probably just basic Grandmasters—weaklings compared to what he used to be.

But Baron didn't need Earth's energy. He was carrying a hundred years of supreme cosmic secrets right inside his brain.

He knew every perfect way to train, every secret medicine recipe, and the exact locations of every hidden treasure that would ever appear on Earth.

He wasn't going to rush his training this time. He would build a power base so heavy, so solid, and so incredibly perfect that no storm in the universe would ever be able to shake it.

But the absolute best part? None of the bad things had happened yet.

Right now, in this year, his father wasn't sitting behind prison glass. His mother wasn't buried in a cold grave. His little sister Malica was still safe and happy at home. And Juliana... Juliana didn't even know who Matt Windgate was yet.

Everything could be fixed. Everyone could be saved.

The plane’s tires hit the runway with a loud screech, shaking the cabin for a brief second before the aircraft slowed down to a smooth, steady glide toward the terminal.

Baron looked down at his phone one more time as the seatbelt sign clicked off.

He remembered this exact arrival from his past life.

He had stepped off the plane feeling small, poor, and terrified of the giant city. He had let the rich kids and the elite families bully him and step all over him because he didn't know any better.

A tiny, razor-sharp smirk slowly crept onto the corners of Baron’s lips.

For just a split second, the terrifying, icy glare of the Void Sovereign flashed deep inside his young eyes, making them look like two bottomless oceans.

He unbuckled his seatbelt, stood up into the aisle, and casually straightened the collar of his cheap t-shirt.

"Matt Windgate," Baron whispered softly to himself, his voice completely calm and smooth. "The show is starting. You better get ready."

The automatic glass doors of the arrival terminal slid open, and Baron Colgate stepped out into the thick, humid air of the airport.

He carried a single, faded blue backpack slung over one shoulder.

He looked like any other eighteen-year-old kid arriving in the big city for college—thin, lacking any real manly muscle, and dressed in a cheap, washed-out t-shirt.

But his posture was entirely different.

Baron walked with a straight back and eyes that locked onto the horizon like a general marching toward a war zone.

He looked incredibly charged, his spirit burning with a dangerous vitality. He wasn't walking like a student; he was walking like a man on a deadly mission.

"First, the bus," Baron muttered to himself, his eyes scanning the signs overhead. "The city transit bus should be right outside the main gates to take me straight to Tuntadel City University."

He was so deeply caught up in his own thoughts, tracking his anticipation and mapping out the future timelines of his memory, that his vision blurred for a split second.

Images from his past life flashed behind his eyelids like jagged bolts of lightning. The memories were returning in heavy, unorganized pieces—the faces of enemies, the smells of blood, the burning of his old soul.

Thud!

Because of his distracted state, Baron crashed right into a heavy, solid chest.

The impact jarred him back to reality. Standing right in front of him was a massive, towering wall of a man.

The guy was easily six feet four inches tall, built like a brick wall, and wearing a tight leather jacket that strained against his bulky shoulders.

He was a local thug type, the kind of guy who used his size to scare people for a living.

The moment their bodies collided, a jolt of pure memory snapped into Baron’s brain. It was a terrifying feeling of absolute deja vu.

‘I know this guy,’ Baron realized instantly. In my past life, ‘I bumped into him right here. I stuttered, I cried, I begged for forgiveness, and he beat me so badly in front of the crowd that I had to start my first day of college with a black eye and broken ribs.’

The giant guy didn't waste a single second. He didn't ask for an apology. He just let out a loud, angry scream that echoed across the concrete pavement.

"Are you blind, you little rat?!" the giant roared, his face twisting into an ugly, furious scowl.

Taking full advantage of his massive size and seeing that Baron looked like a weak, helpless kid who needed to be taught a harsh lesson, the giant balled his right hand into a massive fist.

He pulled his arm back, aiming a heavy, brutal punch directly at Baron’s face. To the giant, this kid was just a lowlife he could trample for fun.

But Baron wasn't a helpless kid anymore.

He didn't speak. He didn't yell. Instead, a slow, dark smile crept onto Baron’s lips. It was the thrill of the hunt.

As the massive fist came flying through the air with the speed of a charging bull, Baron’s mind worked on an entirely higher dimension. To his ancient, trained eyes, the giant's movement was laughably slow—like watching a turtle crawl through thick mud.

Right before the fist could connect with his nose, Baron smoothly bent his knees, dropping his weight low to the ground.

Whoosh!

The giant’s heavy punch sliced through empty air, passing directly over Baron’s head in a perfect duck. The sheer force of the missed swing threw the big man slightly off balance.

Moving with the fluid grace of water, Baron stepped sharply to the right, slipping right into the giant's blind spot. He didn't have his cosmic Qi energy right now, but he knew the exact structural weak points of the human body.

He clenched his small, smooth fist, tightened his core, and drove a powerful, lightning-fast punch straight into the giant's exposed left ribs.

Crack!

A sharp, sickening thud echoed through the air.

"ARGH!" the giant screamed.

The massive man doubled over instantly, the air completely blasting out of his lungs. His face turned a deep, bright shade of purple as he clutched his left side, stumbling backward into a row of metal luggage carts.

The carts rattled loudly as the giant slid down to his knees, coughing and gasping for air, completely unable to stand back up.