Chapter 2 "Primordial"

Outside Black Wood Village, the night stars twinkled.

Inside the Black Wood House.

Qingyu was sound asleep, emitting faint snores.

Lu Qingfeng was likewise in deep slumber, but within his mind, a ring engraved with a dragon and a phoenix emanated a dazzling light!

[Player detected over sixteen years of age, Login Ring activation...]

[Login Ring binding complete, unique code generated, Basic Attributes established...]

[Please log in to "Primordial" at your convenience, and enjoy the game!]

Lu Qingfeng abruptly opened his eyes and instantly 'saw' the Dragon Phoenix Ring radiating light within his mind.

Subsequently, a torrent of information flooded in—

At the dawn of chaos, three thousand Demon Gods roamed the void. The Pangu God opened heaven and earth, shaping the Primordial. Since then, after countless tribulations, the Primordial existed eternally, giving birth to numerous Divine Skills and Great Powers, along with countless legends of creation...

The grand, realistic online game "Primordial" takes you to witness the eighth Calamity of Primordial Heaven and Earth, following the sword-fighting in Shu Mountain!

...

"Primordial online game?"

Lu Qingfeng eyed the Login Ring, a surge of excitement filling his heart.

This massive realistic online game set in the backdrop of the Primordial, was said to even allow one's True Body to enter the game, as well as bring the various Cultivation Techniques, Divine Skills, and Magic Artifacts from within the game world into reality.

The Human Federation that developed "Primordial" has, through this game, given birth to a multitude of strong beings, with legends even speaking of Immortals who sit astride the starry river, overwhelming countless Alien Races in the universe!

"Perhaps, this is the late-coming Golden Finger!"

"Log in."

Without panic or hesitation, and without engaging in pointless conjectures.

Lu Qingfeng followed the guidance from the Login Ring and directly logged into "Primordial"!

...

Boom!

A primordial thunder roared past before his eyes.

His surroundings lacked both sky and earth, manifesting chaos.

Within this vast expanse of chaos, a giant of unfathomable height wielded a colossal axe; with one swing, chaos reigned, the Primordial began, and heaven and earth emerged.

Devoid of escape in the chaos, blood spilled from three thousand Demon Gods; not one survived!

Either they perished within the void, or their blood and Divine Souls fell into the newly born world of Primordial.

Not knowing how many eons passed, the flesh and Divine Souls of these chaotic Demon Gods spawned countless ferocious beast races. The world of Primordial nurtured a myriad of divine beasts.

Ferocious beasts, divine creatures, roamed the Primordial lands.

The freshly created world of Primordial plunged into endless slaughter.

Beasts battled fiercely, while the clans of dragons, phoenixes, and Qilins vied for dominance, taking turns in the spotlight.

Then came the confrontations between Dao and Demon!

Demon God Luo Hou and Daoist Ancestor Hong Jun performed the grand struggle between Dao and Demon!

Lu Qingfeng quietly observed the evolution of Primordial.

The view before him spanned from the Great Tribulation at the dawn of Pangu's world creation, to the mayhem of ferocious beasts, the strife of the three clans, and the early Dragons and Han struggle...

It continued to the calamity of witch demons, the destruction of Buzhou Mountain!

The tribulation of the Human Emperor, Xuan Yuan and Chiyou engaged in conflict, marking the rise of the Human Clan!

The Sealing God Tribulation tore Primordial apart, leading to the decline of Jie Sect and the rise of Buddhism!

The Western Tour propagated Buddhism to the east, leading to its great flourishing!

The sword-fighting of Shu Mountain, reenacting Divine Enthronement, as the eighth Saint of Primordial claimed their position!

...

Scene after scene flew past his vision, with legends of myths that he knew by heart from his previous life unfolding before him.

In a daze.

Lu Qingfeng felt a powerful force pulling him, and upon opening his eyes again, he found himself in a building. The noise around him grew louder, as silhouettes continuously materialized.

A long-lost sense of familiarity washed over Lu Qingfeng.

He looked up and saw the words written above the building, radiating with mystical light—

Rebirth Pool!

"Rebirth Pool?"

"Haha! Finally, I can log into 'Primordial'!"

"Sixteen years of waiting, I was about to lose my mind!"

...

Cheers of joy from various youths reached his ears.

"The real online game, the Rebirth Pool must be the initial login point, then."

Lu Qingfeng glanced at the surrounding youths, some brimming with excitement, others feigning depth, and couldn't help but smile.

Such moods were rare to see within the oppressive Black Wood Village. Even during the harvest, the villagers' faces often showed more worry and stillness.

"It's been a long time."

Amidst the noise, Lu Qingfeng's pent-up emotions for sixteen years were slightly eased.

He followed the cheering youths out of the Rebirth Pool.

It was as if he had passed through a layer of space, and upon reemerging, he had arrived at a bustling town.

"This game allows entry with one's True Body, it's no longer just a virtual online game."

"Just why didn't the system let me choose whether to enter with my True Body when I logged in?"

Lu Qingfeng pondered.

His current body felt incredibly real, but indeed, it was just a concoction within the game, not his True Body that entered. That is to say, without making a conscious choice, the system defaulted him to a consciousness and soul entering the game while the physical body remained in reality.

This did not match the game description he read before logging in.

"I'm not sure if this is good or bad."

Lu Qingfeng shook his head and recalled the plots from online game novels of his previous life, thinking to himself, "Attribute panel."

A virtual panel appeared in front of him—

Name: Lu Qingfeng

Race: Human Clan

Faction: None

Title: None

Cultivation: None

Level: 0 level (0/1)

Life Span: 16/68

Root Bone: 1

Merit: Unknown

Karma: Unknown

Cultivation Technique: Yellow Court Scripture First Layer (Uninitiated) [Characteristic: Derivation Technique (First Layer); Mastery over Various Techniques (First Layer); Karma Removal (First Layer)]

Magic Skills: None

Divine Skills: None

Equipment: None

As Lu Qingfeng had expected, his attributes panel was pitifully empty. However, the values for physique, strength, attack, defense, and more that he had anticipated were not displayed on the attributes panel.

"True virtual reality game—" Lu Qingfeng pondered.

Turning his head to look around, the pedestrians and buildings that met his eyes were indistinguishable from reality. If he had woken up and found himself here, Lu Qingfeng would have believed he had crossed over to another world once again.

"Look quickly!"

"Sword Immortal!"

Sudden exclamations filled his ears.

Lu Qingfeng looked up, just in time to catch sight of a streak of white light flashing across the sky and fading rapidly. Following that, dozens of lights—white, blue, red—flashed by, each a sharp Sword Qi dispersing in the air, tearing through the clear sky, sending shivers down Lu Qingfeng's spine.

"Sword Immortal?"

"Riding the sword light in flight! This power is far mightier than what the Returning to Truth Sect calls 'Immortal'."

Lu Qingfeng looked up as the dozens of sword lights vanished and couldn't help but marvel.

Disciples of the Returning to Truth Sect were merely on the level of martial heroes, not yet beyond the mortal realm. They were strong enough to break steles and split stone; they were quick enough to dart across flat ground.

But none had the divine power of the Sword Immortals, soaring through the skies on beams of sword light!

"So, how should I play this game? And what help can it offer me?"

Lu Qingfeng browsed the attributes panel, his gaze settling on the Cultivation Method Column.

All other columns were as barren as could be, except the Cultivation Method Column had something listed.

"Yellow Court Scripture."

"This is the scripture mythically passed down by the Daoist Ancestor Hong Jun. In the game 'Primordial,' it should be among the top-level Magic Gates. How could it appear in my Cultivation Method Column?"

"Could it be the basic cultivation method given to all players?"

Lu Qingfeng wondered, silently invoking to open the Cultivation Method Column.

[Cultivation Technique: Yellow Court Scripture]

[Grade: Daoist Ancestor Level]

[Cultivation Requirements: None]

[Cultivation Method Technique Characteristics: Derivation Technique; Command Over All Magic; Karma Removal]

[Note: The Cultivation Method level is divided into Basic Level, Refined Level, Side Door Level, True Sect Level, Mysterious Level, Supreme Level, Sect Leader Level, Daoist Ancestor Level]

"Daoist Ancestor Level."

"Indeed, it's a highest-caliber Cultivation Method in 'Primordial,' which means it's not the basic method given to all players."

Lu Qingfeng speculated after perusing the details of the Yellow Court Scripture. However, such matters were not easily confirmed with other players. Fortunately, whether it was a basic method provided to players or not didn't matter to Lu Qingfeng.

It was still a stroke of good fortune.

"The game had a general introduction before entering, including a login guide. But after entering, there's no guidance; one must explore on their own."

Lu Qingfeng found the game's realism increasingly apparent.

But for him, the most critical issue at the moment wasn't playing the game but exploring what help the game might offer him in reality.

"There are only three possibilities."

"First, the cultivation level, skills, equipment and the like obtained in the game can be brought out into reality. If that's the case, with the levels present in 'Primordial,' even a random treasure would suffice to help me overcome the difficulties I face now."

"Second, they cannot be materialized. But the experience of leveling up, the various Cultivation Techniques, spells, Divine Skills, etc., obtained in 'Primordial' could be cultivated in reality. Given how realistic 'Primordial' is, it's conceivable that these techniques could be practiced in the real world, too."

"Third, and the worst-case scenario—nothing from the game can be materialized, and the Cultivation Techniques in the game can't be practiced in reality, making it a wholly useless game for the real world."

What Lu Qingfeng hoped for, naturally, was the first possibility.

The game's introduction also seemed to align with this first scenario. However, upon entering the game, Lu Qingfeng noticed there was no option to bring his True Body inside, leading him to wonder if the treasures, Cultivation Techniques, and Divine Skills in the game were ultimately non-transferable to reality and impossible to practice using the game's methods.

If that were the case, the game would be as tasteless as a flavorless spare rib to him.

Still, he would have to experiment to find out.

"Exit the game."

With a thought, Lu Qingfeng's consciousness returned, and he had logged out of the game.

In the Black Wood House, Qingyu was still deeply asleep.

Lu Qingfeng sat up in the darkness and murmured, "Call out the attributes panel."

In the quiet Black Wood House, the only sounds were Lu Qingfeng's voice, tense and slightly hoarse with anticipation, and Qingyu's faint snoring.

Name: Lu Qingfeng [True Body]

Race: Human

Faction: None

Title: None

Cultivation: None

Level: 0 level (0/1)

Life Span: 16/68

Root Bone: 1

Merit: Unknown

Karma: Unknown

Cultivation Technique: Yellow Court Scripture First Layer (Uninitiated) [Characteristics: Derivation Technique (First Layer); Command Over All Magic (First Layer); Karma Removal (First Layer)]

Spells: None

Divine Skills: None

Equipment: None

"The attributes panel can be brought into reality!"

Lu Qingfeng felt a surge of excitement.

Being able to call out the attributes panel in reality confirmed, at least, that the game could interfere with reality.

"Let's try the Cultivation Technique."

Lu Qingfeng touched upon the Yellow Court Scripture, and instantly a flow of complex text emerged from within his mind.

"Above the Clear Purple Mist, before the Sovereign Huang, Great Supreme, the Jade Morning Lord resides. Leisurely within the pearl core, he composed his verses in sevens, spreading change among the five forms, transforming myriad spirits.

This is spoken of as the Yellow Court, the inner chapter, where the qin's heart thrice overlays, dancing with nascent immortals. The nine energies reflect clearly through the clouds, as the Divine Cover bears the child genius in Purple Smoke.

Referred to as the Jade Book, worthy of profound study, chanting it transcends ten thousand faults, rising among the three heavens. Dispelling a thousand calamities, healing a hundred diseases, unafraid of tiger or wolf's fierce claws,

Likewise, it turns back aging and extends life's span…"

A refreshing coolness arose within his body, making Lu Qingfeng exceedingly comfortable, his mind extraordinarily clear.

After a moment, he stopped and re-examined his body, then called out the attributes panel again.

Cultivation, level, life span, Cultivation Technique—all remained unchanged.

"Cultivation is no simple feat; the Yellow Court Scripture is a supreme Daoist Ancestor Level Cultivation Method from Primordial, so advancement is bound to be slower and more difficult."

Lu Qingfeng wasn't discouraged; on the contrary, he was delighted.

Since it was indeed possible to practice the Yellow Court Scripture in reality, at least the second possibility he had surmised was correct!

"Let's enter the game once more. This time I need to probe thoroughly and see whether cultivation levels and items can be materialized into reality."

Lu Qingfeng lay down again and quietly logged back into 'Primordial'.

...