As he walked through the streets, he listened to the conversations of the people around him, gradually piecing together where he was.
This was a small town inhabited by farmers, hunters, and people dedicated to something called "cultivation," which allowed them to become significantly stronger—some even comparing themselves to gods.
He came to understand that mortal beings were referred to as "ephemeral mundanes," and that there was a stage known as the "Base Refinement."
Perhaps the men he had faced belonged to this category; that would explain why their strikes were so potent.
"This reminds me of the stories I read when I was younger, the worlds of immortal or celestial cultivation novels. I didn't expect that after my death, I would reincarnate into this kind of world," Li Yi murmured to himself.
In that moment, he recalled how he died in his previous life. It seemed some of the great scientists of his world wanted to silence him to seize his hypothesis and take the credit for themselves.
"Those bastards... if I ever become a god, I will find them across time and space and make them suffer in ways they never could have imagined," he thought with cold rage.
Suddenly, he heard a voice and saw someone approaching quickly; it appeared to be a young man around his own age.
Upon seeing him, a memory unlocked: the boy's name was Zang Li.
"Li Yi! It's so good to see you're alright!" the youth exclaimed. "I heard the students from the martial arts school went to give you a beating, and we couldn't find you anywhere yesterday."
"Don't worry, Zang Li. Although they did hit me quite a bit, I managed to escape. I'm feeling much better now," Li Yi replied in a low voice.
"You did something very reckless. We all know you need at least two high-level herbs to repair your base and enter the Base Forging Realm. Now, follow me to the cabin so we can see about healing the rest of your wounds."
They walked for a while through the village streets until they reached the outskirts, where a few nearly dilapidated cabins stood.
There, they met about fourteen youths who, upon seeing them arrive, approached out of concern for Li Yi. They entered one of the dwellings, laid him on a makeshift bed, and applied bandages along with herbs that helped soothe the pain.
"Don't worry, Li Yi. Our brother Xuhan Mo joined the town guard yesterday," said the eldest sister, Shen Shinyu, while bandaging him. "When his shift ends today and he returns, I'll ask him to help us get some low-level medicinal herbs to fully heal you. For now, your small cultivation base has been shattered; only a god knows how to fix it so you can cultivate again."
Everyone stood stunned upon hearing Shen Shinyu's words; they didn't even want to imagine the magnitude of the beating he must have received. When everyone left and only Zang Li remained with him, the latter commented:
"Brother Li, you were very brave to try and steal from the martial arts school area. You're lucky the elite students weren't there, otherwise, grass would be growing over your grave by now. Although we know you needed those herbs to complete your base and we didn't have the spiritual stones to buy them, the problem is much bigger now. To repair it, you'd need all the luck in the heavens."
Though Li Yi didn't fully comprehend everything happening, he sensed he was in a serious predicament.
"Brother Zang Li, what do you think of the martial arts schools?" Li Yi asked. He had to investigate, as those boys had been very strong and none of his "siblings" seemed to be students of one.
Zang Li, though surprised by the question, answered sincerely:
"Only those who have managed to condense a good or near-perfect base can enter the martial arts schools. They have a better chance of going far on the path of cultivation and they obtain more resources and prestige. Currently, none of us have managed to get in; only Brother Xuhan Mo was able to condense an average base and, with his limited cultivation, joined the guard to earn resources. Perhaps one day one of us will make it, and improve the situation for all our brothers and sisters."
Li Yi then understood that all these young people were orphans of parents who had died facing bandits or beasts. He now knew his only option was to cultivate and become strong enough to survive in this catastrophic world.
Near midday, Xuhan Mo arrived. After being informed of the situation, he entered the cabin and saw Li Yi prostrate.
"We've always told you to be careful," Xuhan Mo said sternly. "If you hadn't been lucky enough to escape, you wouldn't be here today. Although they've only given me an advance on my pay, I'll send one of our brothers to buy some herbs, but don't think we'll always be running to heal you after your imprudence. When you recover, you'll have to go to the shops in the center and look for work or missions: collecting wood or low-level herbs. You need to raise funds to fix your base or, at the very least, get food. And be careful: if you run into those school students outside the village barriers, they won't hesitate to give you another beating. Inside the village, the laws of the Great Families protect you, but outside, they don't."
Li Yi knew that Xuhan Mo's words were harsh but true; he didn't want to be a burden.
"Don't worry, Brother Xuhan Mo. From now on, I will work three times harder and improve myself through honest means."
Li Yi acknowledged that the previous owner of this body had made mistakes, but he was in charge now, and he would make sure to follow his own path—one that reached far beyond anything imaginable.