The sky was dark, the earth lifeless, and the ground littered with pale bones. Some appeared human, others resembled beasts, and many were unidentifiable fragments. Most were scattered and broken. The entire scene resembled a horrifying depiction of Shura's Hell.
In this death-filled landscape, Chen Lin was overwhelmed with confusion. Yet, what baffled him the most was his current state. His body—or rather, the lack of one—was now a mass of gray-white gas. He could even see his own translucent form, an existence suspended in this grim purgatory.
As Chen Lin stared at the skeletal remains in a daze, something startling occurred. A pile of broken bones began to move, emitting a chilling "click-click" sound. Startled, Chen Lin watched as the fragments assembled into a complete skeleton. Gray-white deathly energy swirled around it, seeping into its bones. Once it absorbed all the energy, its hollow eye sockets glowed with a faint green light—it had come to life.
The glowing eyes turned toward Chen Lin, who instinctively recoiled. Despite its fragile appearance, the skeleton exuded an ominous aura that sent a chill through Chen Lin's gaseous form. Without hesitation, he fled.
His flight revealed a more terrifying sight: countless skeletons roamed the desolate land. Some were assembling themselves, while others were already fully formed, radiating danger. Amid these skeletal forms were other floating "air masses" like himself, though they seemed insignificant in comparison.
Chen Lin quickly realized the skeletons paid no attention to the air masses, treating them with a disdainful indifference. The skeletons were locked in a savage hierarchy, ruthlessly preying on weaker counterparts to absorb their energy and grow stronger. This endless cycle of slaughter was the grim law of this world.
Skeletons frequently clashed, their battles occasionally damaging the floating air masses. These fragile entities would dissipate like bubbles, blown away by the turbulence of combat. Unlike the skeletons, however, air masses like Chen Lin did not fight among themselves. They hovered passively, only moving in response to the pull of larger energy clusters.
Time held no meaning in this morbid realm, yet Chen Lin sensed the gradual flow of energy into his form, causing him to grow ever so slightly. He discovered by accident that devouring smaller air masses could accelerate his growth. Over time, he accepted this dark reality, albeit reluctantly.
Through one such "devouring," Chen Lin gained crucial information. He was in a place akin to hell, a realm of the dead. This world was populated by undead creatures born from fragmented souls of intelligent beings. These fragments lacked intelligence and acted purely on instinct.
The undead came in many forms: ghosts, skeletons, skeleton warriors, zombies, skeleton mages, bone demons, death knights, and more. Each type had a strict hierarchy of strength, ranging from low-level to high-level undead. The weak served the strong, and evolution occurred through endless combat and absorption of energy.
Unlike the instinct-driven undead, Chen Lin retained his memories and intelligence from his previous life, a rare anomaly in this world. "Others who transmigrate get to be heroes or gods. Meanwhile, I'm just a ghost! Even the weakest protagonist at least has a body!" he lamented.
Nevertheless, his optimism prevailed. "At least I'm alive—sort of—and I have my wits about me! Intelligence is key in any situation." Using his superior intellect, Chen Lin devised a plan to lure and devour weaker air masses, steadily increasing his strength.
The more Chen Lin devoured, the more information he gleaned. Most of the undead in this world originated from a magical plane of swords and sorcery. Strength was classified into nine levels, divided into three tiers: primary, intermediate, and advanced. Each level had four stages: novice, intermediate, advanced, and peak.
Chen Lin learned that the most powerful undead could rival the living world's strongest beings, capable of calling storms and transcending worlds. Even more intriguing was the possibility of undead reaching a pinnacle where they could regain a physical body and rejoin the living plane. This revelation filled him with hope and ambition.
"My goal is clear—rebuild my body, return to the human world, and rise to glory!" Chen Lin envisioned himself conquering nations, amassing wealth, and surrounding himself with beautiful women, just like the protagonists in the novels he loved.
However, reality quickly tempered his dreams. Despite his progress, Chen Lin's current strength was only at the second level of the primary undead. The road to the holy level seemed impossibly distant, and the challenges ahead were monumental.
Chen Lin identified two pressing problems:
1. **Stagnation in Strength**: After reaching the second level, devouring air masses no longer increased his power. Absorbing ambient energy was his only option, but the process was agonizingly slow.
2. **Heightened Risk**: As his strength grew, stronger undead began to notice him. Though he could evade or survive their attacks, he often lost energy in the process.
"If I can't solve these problems, I'll be stuck here forever," Chen Lin muttered grimly.
With determination fueled by his memories and wisdom, Chen Lin resolved to find a way forward, no matter how long it took. Time was the one resource he had in abundance, and he was prepared to use it to achieve his dream of reclaiming his humanity.