Qingzhou, Yonghe Cemetery.
This is a graveyard, a place for burying the dead.
It was deep into the night by then, the crescent moon hung high in the sky, its dim silver light obliquely shining on the cold tombstones, the surroundings were eerily quiet, with occasional flickering will-o'-the-wisps.
A rat was scurrying along the edge of a tombstone, carrying a piece of rotten meat in its mouth.
"Crack!"
Suddenly, a gaunt arm burst through the soil, the nearby rat panicked and fled in terror.
A slightly raised mound of soil began to slowly move, a pair of arms astonishingly broke through the ground, and right after, a figure slowly sat up from the small mound.
"Where am I? Wasn't I just attacked and killed by an old dog from the Heavenly Punishment Sect?"
Chen Yuan examined his body, which was in tatters, his exceptionally emaciated body covered with scars both large and small, as if he had been tortured and beaten to death.
He frowned slightly, his brain suddenly ached intensely, and countless fragments of memories suddenly appeared in his mind.
"So, it turns out I have been reborn into a small world called Earth, but the spiritual energy here is much more mixed and sparse compared to the Tianqi Continent," he reflected as he tried to draw spiritual energy into his body for the first time after merging memories, much to his bemusement.
The body he was reborn into originally belonged to a scion of a powerful family.
His father, the Family Head of the Chen Family, disappeared in a set-up, their fate unknown. After his parents lost power, Chen Yuan was driven out of the Chen Family, only for his enemies to find him afterward.
Then he was brutally clubbed to death and buried in this graveyard.
As for who framed his parents and killed him, Chen Yuan's memory was not clear.
"Since I've taken over your body to help the Guangcheng Venerable be reborn, I shall avenge this grudge for you as a way of repaying your life's kindness!" Chen Yuan bowed his head and clenched his fists.
He felt that all his cultivation, spirit, and will had dissipated.
This body... was too weak.
It was even weaker than an ordinary person on the Tianqi Continent without any cultivation base.
At that moment, the roaring sound of a car engine ceased nearby, followed by rustling footsteps, more than one person obviously.
Then, a conversation reached Chen Yuan's ears.
"Boss, in the novels and TV series I watch, there are always plenty of heroes saving beauties. We've kidnapped the Miss of the An Family; won't we run into such trouble?" a slim man with a sneaky look quietly asked.
The man next to him, a burly man with a bald head, slapped the slim man's forehead, "Shut your damn mouth! All you know is novels and TV shows. In this desolate graveyard in the dead of night, who the hell would come out here, as if they would crawl out from the graves? After pulling off this big job, we'll live a lavish life abroad with me!"
"Hurry up and get this done."
The slim man echoed, instantly invigorated at the thought of the lovely life ahead, he lifted a sack from the car.
He opened the sack, revealing a woman.
Under the bright moonlight, although she was somewhat dirty and her face showed a panicked expression, her natural beauty was still hard to conceal.
Her brows arched like willow leaves, cherry-pink lips, delicate features akin to a piece of artwork, and her long, black, flowing hair draped over her shoulders exuded an elegant demeanor.
Yet at this moment, her delicate body shivered with fear.
"What are you... What are you going to do?" the woman looked around in horror.
"Hehe, Miss An, we're just making a living by taking money to eliminate disasters for others. Someone paid us for your life, don't blame us brothers," the burly bald man sinisterly said.
"I... I will offer double the price they gave you, just please let me go, I promise not to call the police," the woman tearfully said.
"Tsk, tsk, that's not up to you, you know. We have our professional ethics. Besides, Miss An is indeed a rare beauty. Since you're going to die anyway, why don't we brothers have some fun before you go?" the bald man with his accomplice started walking towards the woman with a lascivious smile.
"Don't! Don't come any closer! If you come any closer I'll..." the woman said in terror.
"What would you do? Out here in the middle of nowhere, who do you think can save you? Even if the sky god himself comes, you're still going to die!" the bald man cruelly laughed.
"Click."
At that moment, the sound of a lighter flicking open resonated not too far away.
"As they say, when there's a feast, everyone should partake. Brothers, it's not too good to be selfish here, right?" Chen Yuan lazily leaned against a tree nearby, habitually pulling a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.
In Tianqi Continent, those things didn't exist, but after merging with the host's memories, his personality and behavior had been somewhat influenced by the host's life, and he now subconsciously wanted to light up a cigarette.
"Who's there!" Bald turned around, only to see a man under a big tree not far away, with a cigarette in his mouth, leaning against the tree, smiling playfully.
"Who are you?" Bald shuddered, the sudden appearance of a person in this desolate cemetery indeed frightened him initially.
However, Bald clearly wasn't new to kidnapping; he quickly regained his composure, a vicious look flashing in his eyes as he pulled a small knife from his pocket and hid it behind his back.
Then he laughed and said, "Haha, looks like you are one of us. Since you've caught me, it's only fair to share."
"Come on over, buddy, let's have some fun together with the three of us."
At that moment, the woman behind Bald could clearly see the dagger he was hiding behind his back.
Her expression changed instantly, and seeing that the figure was actually approaching, her eyes dimmed suddenly, a sense of helpless despair arising in her heart.
She had thought he was there to rescue her, but now it seemed that this man, a tomb guardian, was going to collude with the kidnappers.
This filled her with despair; was she going to die here today?
Just then, as Chen Yuan approached, Bald fiercely shouted while flashing the knife hidden behind him, "Buddy, you should have guessed what we're up to by now. Don't blame me for being ruthless; blame your bad timing."
As he spoke, the sharp knife thrust directly towards Chen Yuan's chest.
The woman closed her eyes, unable to bear the sight of blood splashing.
Although this tomb guardian originally had ill intentions, seeing a living person die right before her still instilled fear in her heart.
Suddenly, the next moment, the atmosphere became eerily quiet.
The woman, surprised, opened her wide eyes only to be shocked by the scene before her.
The two kidnappers were now being choked by the 'tomb guardian,' lifted harshly off the ground.
"I don't like leftovers; if I eat, I eat alone," Chen Yuan said as if he were throwing away trash, tossing the now unconscious men aside, and walked towards the woman.
An Lan opened her mouth in disbelief, not having recovered yet.
These two guys were professional kidnappers, armed with knives, and they were dealt with so effortlessly?
Her mouth agape in shock, she tried to say something but couldn't, only able to blankly watch as the man walked towards her.
Chen Yuan came up to the woman and gently lifted her chin.
"You're quite pretty. After having my fun, killing and burying you straight away should keep it hidden, right?"
Hearing this, the woman's delicate body shuddered violently, thinking she had been rescued but had instead fallen into another predator's grips.
Her bright eyes brimmed with tears, despairingly closed, and then felt a light pat on her buttocks, sending a shiver through her body. In this desolate cemetery, An Lan had given up hope of being rescued.
Moments later, An Lan hadn't noticed the 'tomb guardian's' next 'move.'
She opened her eyes somewhat confused, only to meet Chen Yuan's teasing gaze.
"You... how come you didn't..." An Lan timidly began to speak.
"What, were you actually hoping I'd...? You should have said so earlier," Chen Yuan smirked playfully.
An Lan's cheeks flushed as she stepped back, "No… not that... I thought you were as bad as them…"
"I would like to be a bit more wicked, but alas, my nature is kindhearted and upright. I've never even kissed a girl's lips. How about you take pity on my goodness and give me a kiss?"
As Chen Yuan moved closer to An Lan, intending to lean in.
"Wishful thinking!" An Lan retorted, but her heart strangely felt a bit more at ease.
She glanced gratefully at Chen Yuan, knowing he was intentionally teasing her to ease her tension.
"You might not be so lucky next time, and if we meet again, I'll have to claim it with interest," Chen Yuan said teasingly.
Hearing this, An Lan's cheeks blushed again, about to speak but heard Chen Yuan say,
"What are you standing there for? Get in the car; do you want to spend the night here?"
He started the jeep left by the kidnappers, and it roared to life.
An Lan snapped back to reality, her cheeks still red, and hurriedly climbed into the jeep.
...........