Reborn as an Immortal in a Martial World

Chapter 5: Gathering

With the young people who had martial talent all heading to Celestara, the mortal world had grown somewhat desolate. Many of the wealthy and well-connected had moved there too, chasing their fortunes among the stars.

The city where Aiden lived was vast, the capital of the mortal Wasteland, but it had grown old and kept many traces of a bygone age. Ancient trees lined the roads, their trunks thick, some a hundred or two hundred years old. Over the years the city has preserved its old character.

Elsewhere, small districts on the far outskirts had been all but abandoned. They stood empty for years, wastelands wrapped in vines and thorns, slowly swallowed by the wild.

The next evening, Eleanor cooked a pot of chicken soup and four or five delicious dishes to celebrate her son's recovery from his grave illness. No one mentioned Caleb.

The family of three had just sat down to eat when the doorbell rang.

Aiden started to rise, but Eleanor stopped him and hurried to the door herself. The little gesture warmed his heart.

"Hello, Auntie! Is Aiden feeling better?"

A sweet voice drifted in from the doorway, as clear and bright as a songbird's, and full of lively innocence.

"Oh, it's Lucy! Have you eaten? Come in, come in. I just made chicken soup. Thank you for rushing him to the hospital that day. I really must thank you properly."

Eleanor happily led Lucy Hartwell inside. Seeing Aiden staring in a daze, she gave him a quick pat. "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and thank her."

Then she tugged at Thomas, who was quietly sipping his soup, and gestured for him to come away with her.

Aiden murmured his thanks. Looking at his parents peeking through the crack of the kitchen door, he could not help finding it a little funny.

Ever since he had regained his memories, he had known he was reborn by chance. But he had no recollection of any world called Earth in the Immortal Realm.

And he felt a deep pang of guilt toward the lovely girl before him, because she shared her name with the girl who had died in his arms in his past life.

"Hey, what are you daydreaming about? Did the fall knock you silly?" Lucy waved a slender hand in front of his eyes. It pulled him back, and he finally looked at her properly.

She was dressed casually tonight. Though it was early autumn and a little chilly, she did not seem to mind. She wore a short skirt and a top that bared her shoulders, and her long legs looked even longer and straighter in her stockings. Her glossy black hair fell loose over her shoulders. A smile lit her young, pretty face, and her eyes were bright and full of life.

"It's nothing. Thank you for that day. I might have been in real danger otherwise." Aiden smiled and pushed down his tangled feelings, showing her a warm, charming grin.

Lucy studied him. Something about him felt different, but she could not name it. She gave up thinking and started pulling him toward the door.

Eleanor could not hold back any longer. She rushed out from behind the door. "Where are you two going? Eat first!"

Lucy giggled, her little pointed canine teeth flashing in the light. "Auntie, there's a farewell party tonight, and I'd love for Aiden to come. Don't worry, they're my best friends. I'll protect him well."

"Pfft."

Aiden could not help laughing. He wasn't sure whether he was laughing at himself, so weak that a little girl had to protect him, or at Lucy's innocence.

Eleanor glared at him, then looked at Lucy, who was coaxing her sweetly, and sighed. "All right, go. But come back early. Aiden has only just recovered and shouldn't stay out late."

"Thank you, Auntie! Don't worry, we'll be back soon. Goodbye, Uncle, goodbye, Auntie!" Lucy made a little heart with her hands at Eleanor, then happily dragged Aiden away.

Eleanor sighed, half amused and half exasperated. "That girl. There's just no handling her."

Thomas drew her back to the table and dug into his food with gusto, mumbling between bites, "It's been so long since we had this many dishes."

......

On the road, Lucy drove her little beetle-shaped car, weaving through traffic. She kept stealing curious glances at Aiden in the passenger seat. Since he got in, he had been silent, eyes closed, resting.

Lucy assumed he was tired and did not disturb him. In truth, he was cultivating. After a full day of sorting out his thoughts, he had chosen a method called the Innate Primordial Scripture.

He had actually created it himself out of boredom in his past life, but it suited his present situation perfectly. Had his cultivation not been so high back then, he might well have practiced it seriously.

Aiden's martial aptitude had been ranked Grade E at birth, weaker than that of an ordinary person. But he had never cared for martial arts. He worked hard all night instead.

At last he refined the thread of spiritual energy in his body, stepped through the threshold of cultivation, and became a minor cultivator in the early stage of the Spirit Awakening Realm. The Spirit Awakening Realm was the awakening of the body and the sharpening of the five senses.

If he faced Caleb again now, he would not be as helpless as before. He could not crush him, but defeating him would be no problem.

Still, his physical foundation was far too weak, and it would take slow, patient nurturing. Once he reached the Great Perfection of the Spirit Awakening Realm, he could cleanse his marrow and strengthen his body.

These days, whether in the mortal world or on Celestara, everyone practices martial arts. Only a few still held to the old breathing and nourishing techniques. Martial arts were divided into four realms: Yellow, Profound, Earth, and Heaven.

It was said that a Heaven-realm warrior could leap over rooftops and run along walls like the legendary heroes of old. But Aiden looked down on all of it, and on the so-called masters as well.

"Wake up, sleepyhead. We're almost there. Don't catch a cold." Lucy's voice was very soft, as if she hated to disturb him but had no choice.

Aiden smiled knowingly and opened his eyes. He looked at the bright lights beyond the window and felt a little out of place, though he had once lived in the Immortal Realm.

But the style there had always been like the ancient ages of this world, simple and unadorned.

On an autumn night the sky was exceptionally clear. Watching countless stars that seemed to pour down from above, he could not help feeling happy.

"If I remember right, we just took our graduation portraits the day before yesterday. Why another party?" Aiden broke the silence first, curiosity in his eyes.

Right now, all he wanted was to cultivate in peace in this world and recover his strength. Then he would find a way back to the Immortal Realm, kill every Half-Step Venerable who had surrounded him, and deal with the granddaughter of that Immortal Venerable. He would remember every one of those debts.

The city held both ancient relics, like stone towers that had stood for centuries, radiating age, and rows of gleaming skyscrapers standing shoulder to shoulder, full of modern bustle.

The roads near the commercial district were crowded with people and vehicles, and the traffic had slowed.

Lucy tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and smiled. "A few of my best friends are about to leave for Celestara, so we decided to have a get-together before they go."

Aiden turned to look at her delicate, pretty face. "Caleb told me you're leaving soon too, to study martial arts on Celestara. Is that right?"