The Transmigrated Alchemist's Revenge System

Chapter 2

# **Chapter 2: "A Waste's Memories"**

The first thing Alex noticed was the pain.

Not the clean, sharp pain of his molecular disintegration in the lab, but a deep, throbbing ache that seemed to permeate every fiber of his being. His bones felt hollow, his muscles atrophied, and his skin burned with fever despite the cool air flowing across his face.

The second thing he noticed was that he was breathing.

Alex's eyes snapped open, and he immediately regretted it. Sunlight streamed through paper windows, stabbing into his skull like needles. He tried to raise his hand to shield his eyes, but his arm felt like it weighed a thousand pounds.

"What the hell?" he croaked, his voice sounding wrong—too high, too young, too weak.

The voice that came from his throat wasn't his own. Dr. Alex Chen had possessed a deep, confident baritone that commanded attention in lecture halls and boardrooms. This voice was barely a whisper, cracked and hoarse like someone who'd been screaming for hours.

He forced himself to sit up, every movement sending waves of agony through his body. The room around him was nothing like his sterile laboratory. Rough wooden walls, a simple bamboo mat for a bed, and furniture that looked like it belonged in a historical museum. The air smelled of incense and herbs, with an underlying mustiness that spoke of poverty and neglect.

"Where am I?" Alex muttered, then froze as unfamiliar memories crashed into his consciousness like a tsunami.

*Xiao Feng, age eighteen, youngest son of the Xiao family...*

The memories hit him with overwhelming force. He saw himself—no, saw *Xiao Feng*—as a child, practicing cultivation techniques in the family courtyard. But these weren't his memories. The face reflected in puddles of water was young and handsome, with delicate features and intelligent eyes. Nothing like Alex's own weathered, thirty-two-year-old face.

*Cultivation... meridians... qi flow...*

Alex gripped his head as foreign concepts flooded his mind. This wasn't Earth. This wasn't his world. Somehow, impossibly, he was in the body of someone else, in a place where people could manipulate energy called "qi" to perform superhuman feats.

But as the memories continued to flow, Alex's scientific mind began to catalog what he was experiencing. The pain in his body wasn't random—it was specifically located along pathways that Xiao Feng's memories identified as "meridians." Energy channels that should have carried qi throughout his body but were instead blocked, damaged, crippled.

"Meridians," Alex whispered, his analytical mind already working. "Bioelectric pathways. Neural networks adapted for energy manipulation."

The memories showed him the truth of Xiao Feng's situation with brutal clarity. At age fifteen, he'd been the pride of his family—a cultivation prodigy with talent that impressed even the elders. But three years ago, everything had changed.

*The sect examination. Elder Han's cruel smile. The "accident" that destroyed his meridians...*

Alex watched through Xiao Feng's eyes as the memory played out. A young man with incredible potential, accepted into the prestigious Crimson Blade Sect, eager to prove himself. But during the entrance examination, something had gone wrong. Elder Han, one of the sect's most respected teachers, had been supervising a combat trial when Xiao Feng's meridians had suddenly exploded with agonizing pain.

"Qi deviation," Elder Han had announced to the gathered crowd. "The boy pushed too hard, too fast. His meridians are completely destroyed."

But Alex could see what Xiao Feng had missed in his agony. The subtle hand gesture Elder Han had made just before the "accident." The way the elder's eyes had flickered with satisfaction rather than concern. The whispered conversation with another sect member about "eliminating potential threats."

It hadn't been an accident. Elder Han had deliberately sabotaged Xiao Feng's cultivation, destroying his future and condemning him to a life of shame and ridicule.

"Murder," Alex said aloud, his voice growing stronger with anger. "That bastard committed murder. He killed this kid's future."

More memories flooded in, showing him the aftermath. Xiao Feng's return to his family in disgrace. The disappointed looks from his father, the cruel mockery from his brothers, the whispered gossip from servants. For three years, he'd been nothing more than a burden, a reminder of failed potential.

But the worst memories were the most recent ones. Just two days ago, Xiao Feng had overheard his cousin Xiao Mei talking to her friends about him.

"He's completely useless now," she'd laughed, her voice carrying clearly through the garden walls. "Father says we're only keeping him around out of pity. A crippled cultivator is worse than a mortal—at least mortals don't pretend to be something they're not."

"Didn't you used to be engaged to him?" one of her friends had asked.

"That was before his meridians were destroyed," Xiao Mei had replied with disgust. "Thank the heavens I'm not bound to that waste anymore. Can you imagine being married to someone who can't even circulate qi? I'd rather marry a pig."

The memory of that conversation had driven Xiao Feng to despair. He'd climbed to the highest tower of the family compound, intent on ending his shame forever. But as he'd stood on the edge, preparing to jump, something had stopped him.

A voice in his head. The same voice Alex had heard in the void between worlds.

"Your death solves nothing," the voice had said. "But your life... your life could be the key to justice."

Xiao Feng had collapsed then, his weak body unable to handle the strain of emotional turmoil. And in that moment of collapse, Alex Chen had awakened in his place.

"Transmigration," Alex said, testing the word. "Body switching. Consciousness transfer."

His scientific mind was already working on the problem. The voice in the void had mentioned something called the "Revenge System." The mysterious assassin in his lab had known about it. And now he was in the body of someone who'd been wronged, just as Alex himself had been murdered.

But as Alex tried to make sense of his situation, he became aware of something else. The room he was in wasn't empty. Someone was watching him.

"Young Master Xiao?"

Alex turned to see a middle-aged man in servant's clothing standing in the doorway. The man's face was weathered and kind, with worry lines around his eyes. Xiao Feng's memories identified him immediately: Uncle Chen, the family's head gardener and one of the few people who'd shown kindness to the crippled young master.

"Uncle Chen," Alex said, surprised at how naturally the name came to his lips. "I'm... I'm fine."

"Are you?" Uncle Chen stepped into the room, his eyes filled with concern. "You've been unconscious for two days. The physician said you'd overextended yourself again, trying to force qi through your damaged meridians."

Alex felt a flush of shame that wasn't entirely his own. Xiao Feng had been desperate enough to keep trying cultivation despite his crippled condition, causing himself incredible pain in the process. It was a testament to his determination, but also to his desperation.

"I had... strange dreams," Alex said carefully. "Very strange dreams."

"Dreams can be powerful things," Uncle Chen said, sitting on a wooden stool beside the bed. "Sometimes they show us paths we never considered before."

Before Alex could respond, he heard footsteps in the corridor outside. Heavy, confident footsteps that made Xiao Feng's memories spike with anxiety.

"Is the waste finally awake?" The voice was cruel and mocking, belonging to someone who clearly enjoyed causing pain.

Alex's hands clenched into fists as Xiao Feng's memories provided the identity: Xiao Long, his elder brother. The firstborn son who'd never shown anything but contempt for his younger sibling, especially after the crippling.

"Young Master Xiao Long," Uncle Chen said, rising and bowing respectfully. "Young Master Xiao Feng has just awakened. Perhaps—"

"Perhaps nothing," Xiao Long interrupted, striding into the room. He was tall and muscular, with the confident bearing of someone who'd never known failure. His cultivation base was solid—not genius level, but respectable enough to maintain the family's reputation. "I need to speak with my dear brother."

Uncle Chen hesitated, clearly wanting to protect Xiao Feng but unable to defy the elder son. "Young Master, he's still weak—"

"Leave us," Xiao Long commanded, his voice carrying the authority of someone accustomed to being obeyed.

Uncle Chen shot Alex a worried look but had no choice but to comply. As his footsteps faded down the corridor, Xiao Long's expression shifted from mere arrogance to active malice.

"So," he said, settling into the chair Uncle Chen had vacated. "The family disgrace finally wakes up. Do you know what you've cost us with your latest stunt?"

Alex said nothing, but his mind was racing. Through Xiao Feng's memories, he could see the complex web of family politics and cultivation world hierarchies. The Xiao family was a minor noble house, respectable but not powerful. They couldn't afford to have a crippled son drawing attention and mockery.

"Father had to apologize to the Liu family," Xiao Long continued. "Apparently, you made quite the spectacle of yourself at the market yesterday, trying to prove you weren't completely useless. Liu Wei challenged you to a duel, and you actually accepted. Do you have any idea how embarrassing that was?"

Alex felt his blood run cold. Liu Wei—the name triggered a cascade of painful memories. The young master of the Liu family had been one of Xiao Feng's childhood friends, but after the crippling, he'd become one of his cruelest tormentors. The "duel" had been a public humiliation, with Liu Wei easily defeating the powerless Xiao Feng while a crowd of onlookers laughed and jeered.

"I remember," Alex said quietly, his voice carrying a note that made Xiao Long pause.

"You remember?" Xiao Long's eyes narrowed. "You remember being beaten unconscious by someone you used to call a friend? You remember the entire market laughing at the Xiao family's shame?"

"I remember everything," Alex said, and this time there was something in his voice that made Xiao Long lean back slightly. "I remember exactly what happened. And I remember who's responsible."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Xiao Long demanded. "You're the one who's responsible! You're the one who crippled himself with his arrogance! You're the one who's been dragging this family's name through the mud for three years!"

Alex looked at his brother—no, Xiao Feng's brother—and felt a cold fury building in his chest. Not just his own anger at being thrust into this situation, but the accumulated rage and humiliation of three years of abuse and mockery.

"Tell me something, brother," Alex said, his voice deceptively calm. "Do you remember what I was like before my meridians were damaged?"

"What kind of question is that?" Xiao Long snapped. "You were arrogant and reckless. You thought you were special, that you could surpass everyone else in the family. That arrogance is what led to your downfall."

"That's not what I asked," Alex said, sitting up straighter despite the pain. "I asked if you remember what I was like. My personality. My habits. My interests."

Xiao Long's expression shifted slightly, confusion mixing with his anger. "What does that matter? You're the same pathetic waste you've always been."

"Am I?" Alex smiled, and there was something predatory in the expression. "Because I don't think you've been paying attention, brother. I think you've been so focused on my failures that you've forgotten what I was capable of before."

"You're not capable of anything!" Xiao Long shot to his feet, his cultivation base flaring with threatening energy. "You're a cripple! A waste! You can't even circulate qi!"

"Can't I?" Alex asked softly.

And then, to both of their surprise, something impossible happened. A faint blue glow began to emanate from Alex's skin, centered around his hands but spreading slowly up his arms. It wasn't qi—Alex was certain of that. It was something else entirely, something that felt familiar and foreign at the same time.

"What—" Xiao Long stumbled backward, his eyes wide with shock. "How are you doing that?"

Alex stared at his glowing hands with a mixture of fascination and recognition. The energy felt similar to the compound he'd been working with in his lab, but refined, purified, controllable. Somehow, his consciousness transfer had brought more than just his memories and personality. It had brought his connection to the forces he'd been studying.

"I told you," Alex said, his voice now carrying an authority that made Xiao Long take another step back. "I remember everything. Including things I never knew before."

As if triggered by his words, a new voice suddenly echoed in Alex's mind. Not the ancient entity from the void, but something cleaner, more mechanical.

**[REVENGE SYSTEM ACTIVATED]**

**[HOST INTEGRATION COMPLETE]**

**[ANALYZING CURRENT SITUATION...]**

**[ANALYSIS COMPLETE]**

**[MISSION GENERATED: RESTORE FAMILY HONOR]**

**[FIRST TARGET IDENTIFIED: LIU WEI - DEFEAT IN SINGLE COMBAT]**

**[MISSION REWARD: BASIC CULTIVATION TECHNIQUE UNLOCK]**

**[SYSTEM SHOP ACCESSIBLE]**

**[CULTIVATION ANALYSIS AVAILABLE]**

**[WARNING: HOST BODY CONDITION - SEVERE MERIDIAN DAMAGE DETECTED]**

**[INITIATING REPAIR PROTOCOLS...]**

The voice was accompanied by what looked like a translucent blue screen floating in Alex's vision, visible only to him. Numbers, statistics, and options scrolled across the interface like the most advanced computer system he'd ever encountered.

"The System," Alex whispered, understanding flooding through him. "This is what that assassin was talking about."

"What are you muttering about?" Xiao Long demanded, but his voice had lost its aggressive edge. The blue glow around Alex's hands was growing brighter, and the air in the room was beginning to feel charged with energy.

Alex looked up at his brother, and for the first time in three years, Xiao Long saw something in the crippled young master's eyes that made him genuinely afraid.

"I'm going to fix everything," Alex said simply. "Starting with Liu Wei."

"You can't fight Liu Wei!" Xiao Long protested. "He's at the third level of Body Refinement! You can't even circulate qi!"

"I couldn't before," Alex corrected. "But that was before I died and came back with a comprehensive understanding of cellular biology, pharmaceutical chemistry, and the molecular structure of bio-energy."

"What are you talking about?" Xiao Long's voice was barely a whisper now.

Alex smiled, and it wasn't a pleasant expression. "I'm talking about the fact that cultivation is just applied biochemistry. And I happen to be very good at biochemistry."

The blue glow around his hands pulsed once, then faded. But the message was clear: the crippled waste of the Xiao family was gone. In his place sat someone with knowledge, power, and a very specific set of grudges to settle.

"Tell Liu Wei I accept his challenge," Alex said, his voice carrying absolute certainty. "But this time, we're going to do things my way."

As Xiao Long stumbled out of the room, Alex turned his attention to the translucent interface only he could see. The System was offering him options, techniques, and knowledge that could transform him from a crippled waste into something far more dangerous.

But more than that, it was offering him justice.

"Elder Han," Alex said to the empty room, his voice carrying a promise that would have chilled the corrupt elder to his bones. "I know what you did. And I'm going to make sure you pay for every single day of suffering you've caused."

The Revenge System pulsed with satisfaction, and Alex began to plan his first move in a game that would shake the foundations of the cultivation world.