That's it? Hengsheng stared at the words before him, disbelief etched across his face. Make a wish? He had envisioned a powerful system descending upon him, granting him a cheat-like ability befitting someone who had been reincarnated. Instead, it wanted him to... pray to some higher power?
Hengsheng frowned, frustration bubbling within. What am I even supposed to wish for? The possibilities swirled in his mind like an endless storm. Can I wish to be the strongest in the world? No. This was a cultivation world—there was always a higher realm lurking somewhere. If I'm the strongest here, someone from a higher realm could just come and slap me into oblivion.
He scratched his head, thinking harder. Then what about wishing to be the strongest in the universe? But even that didn't feel right. He didn't know whether this world had a multiverse, and if it did, his wish would still fall short.
Frustrated and overwhelmed, Hengsheng threw caution to the wind. Fine. Can I just wish to have... more wishes?
Ding!
[The wish is made.]
Hengsheng froze, his eyes widening. The system had accepted it. Wait, what? It actually worked?!
Before he could fully process what was happening, a sudden pressure engulfed his body. His vision blurred, and the world seemed to spin out of control. He stumbled backward, falling off his chair and collapsing onto the floor.
A sickening wave of nausea crashed over him, his body trembling violently. It felt as if he were caught in the throes of a severe flu, every inch of his being screaming in discomfort.
I... I can't... Hengsheng's thoughts began to fragment as the overwhelming sensation pulled him deeper into the abyss. His consciousness flickered and then faded entirely.
A while later, Hengsheng didn't know how much time had passed, but he slowly opened his eyes. His body ached all over from the earlier incident, and confusion clouded his thoughts. What happened? What about my wish?
He sat up, rubbing his temples, and decided to test it. "I want to be the strongest!!" he shouted. Nothing happened.
"I want to be an adult!!" Silence.
"I want to have a spirit core!!" he yelled in frustration, waiting for any sign. Yet, nothing came.
Hengsheng's face twisted in disbelief. "Did I just get scammed? Damn it!"
Desperation clawed at him as he tried again. "System!? Status! Status window!" His voice echoed through his room, but still, there was no response.
"Ahhhhhhhhh!" Hengsheng screamed, slamming his fists against the floor in frustration. He had convinced himself that his lack of a spirit core would be a temporary setback, that the so-called "cheat" he had expected would eventually make up for it. But now, his hopes seemed crushed.
He lay on the ground, staring at the ceiling, despair washing over him. Life as a mortal in a prestigious cultivation clan was worse than being an ordinary mortal. Without cultivation, he would be seen as trash for the rest of his life. His father, the son of the Lan Clan Patriarch, might shield him to some extent, and his mother, a key figure in their allied Wang Clan, could protect him from outright death. But beatings and humiliation? Those would be unavoidable.
Most of all, Hengsheng yearned to cultivate. To be immortal. To transcend the limits of life itself. Who wouldn't want that?
"Ughhhhh! Ahhhhhhh!" Hengsheng cried pathetically, rolling on the ground like a helpless child. Sucking on his finger out of frustration, he imagined his bleak future.
Even if a treasure that could turn a mortal into a cultivator existed, it wouldn't fall into my hands. The stronger forces out there would never allow it. Even if by some miracle I obtained it, it would bring destruction to my clan. We'd pay the ultimate price for possessing something beyond our capability to protect.
Just as he was about to lose all hope, a strange warmth began to radiate from his chest. The sensation was foreign but oddly comforting, like a flicker of hope igniting deep within him. Hengsheng sat up abruptly and closed his eyes, focusing on the sensation.
Suddenly, his consciousness was pulled inward. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a vast, endless white space. The emptiness stretched in every direction like an infinite blank sheet of paper.
"What… what is this?" he muttered, looking around. When he glanced at his hands, he realized they were translucent, ghostlike. Panic gripped him. "Am I dead?"
He quickly closed his eyes again, and the moment he did, his consciousness snapped back into his body.
'Woop.'
Hengsheng gasped, sitting upright in his room. The warmth in his chest still lingered, faint but steady. Determined to understand, he closed his eyes and focused on the feeling again.
'Woop.'
He was back in the white space. This time, excitement bubbled within him as realization dawned. "This… this must be my cheat!"
Hengsheng took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. Questions began swirling in his mind. How does this work? Is this some kind of tool for cultivation? Could it give me extra time to practice?
But if that were the case, it wouldn't help him anytime soon. He recalled the teachings of his clan—cultivation could only begin properly at the age of 15 when the body matured into adulthood. Starting too early risked an unstable foundation when one reached the Spirit Body Stage.
As he pondered, Hengsheng decided to explore. He moved his 'spirit body' around the vast white space. To his amazement, he found that he could float, even fly, in this peculiar realm. "It must be some kind of mind space," he murmured, assuming it existed within himself.
He flew forward, but no matter how far he traveled, the scenery didn't change. The space was endless, an infinite void. Frustrated, he paused mid-flight, a thought suddenly striking him. My wish… maybe this is where I should start.
Stopping in place, Hengsheng took a deep breath and declared boldly, "I want to be the strongest!"
Immediately, a surge of power flooded his 'spirit body,' filling him with strength he'd never imagined. Excitement bubbled within him as he raised his small palm, aiming forward. With a single thought, the energy gathered into a glowing sphere and shot out into the void.
Boom!
Far away, an explosion erupted, its shockwave rippling through the white space. Hengsheng laughed with satisfaction. "Hahaha! It worked!"
Drunk on power, he made another wish. "I want to be an adult!"
His spirit body transformed before his eyes, growing taller and more muscular. Gone was the frail, 5-year-old form, replaced by a commanding adult figure. He laughed again, this time with a sense of omnipotence. "I'm a god! Omnipotent!"
Consumed by a sense of power, Hengsheng made another wish. "Turn this place into Earth!"
Suddenly, the blank white space began to shift. Stars appeared, filling the vast void, and the ground beneath him solidified into the familiar blue-green planet. He stood on Earth, taking in a deep breath of imaginary air, basking in the illusion of pleasure and control.
But doubt crept into his mind. Is any of this real?
Hengsheng froze. The fear that all of this was just an illusion gripped him. His chest tightened. What if it's all fake?
He steeled himself and opened his eyes.
Back in his room, Hengsheng glanced at his body. He was still a 5-year-old child. The overwhelming power he had felt moments ago was gone. The wishes, the Earth, the stars—all of it vanished, as though it had never existed.
"Hahaha…" His laugh was hollow as he mocked himself. "Stupid. I actually thought everything would be okay just like that."
This world was nothing like the one he had come from. On Earth, success came to those who worked smart, and who found the right way to the top. But here? Here, the fight was over before it even began.
Still, Hengsheng gritted his teeth. At least I have something—a super-reality simulation, a place where I can escape and forget about this harsh reality, even if only for a while.
For now, he resolved to retreat into the mind space whenever the world became too much to bear. If nothing else, it would be his sanctuary away from the cruel world outside.
Hengsheng closed his eyes and returned to the mind space. Everything he had wished for earlier still existed—the earth, the people, and the bustling world he had shaped. With no hesitation, he resumed playing god, molding the simulation further.
He populated the earth with people who resembled those from his old world, but something was off. They stood blankly, lifeless, like mannequins waiting for commands. Frustrated, he made a new wish: "Let everything here be like the real earth."
At once, the simulated world sprang to life. The blank stares faded as the people began to move. Streets filled with activity. Cars honked, workers bustled, children laughed. The world flowed seamlessly, as if this day was no different from any other. Hengsheng hovered above it all, watching with satisfaction.
As he focused, a strange sensation overtook him—his awareness expanded, and he could feel the thoughts and actions of the simulated 7 billion people below. His mind brimmed with their collective knowledge and creativity.
A sudden idea struck him: What if I use these simulated people to solve my problem? Could I create geniuses to think outside the box for me? The thought excited him, but it also raised another question: Why not just wish for my own intelligence to increase instead?
Careful not to overreach, Hengsheng made his next wish: "Make me smarter without losing myself."
Instantly, he felt his mind sharpen. Memories from his past life—conversations, books he'd read, details he had long forgotten—came flooding back. His thoughts flowed faster, clearer. It was as though the fog in his brain had lifted, leaving behind crystal clarity.
"This feels... amazing," Hengsheng whispered, marveling at his newfound mental acuity. I never realized how much a sharper mind could change the way I see the world.
But curiosity gnawed at him: Does this intelligence stay when I leave the mind space?
Opening his eyes, Hengsheng returned to reality. The dull ache of his mortal body reminded him he was back, but his mind still felt sharper. He decided to test it with some mental math, solving equations far beyond what his five-year-old self should manage.
"So it works!" he laughed triumphantly. Even if it's not as strong as in the mind space, I've still become smarter. About 10% of what I gain here carries over... but it's real!
Then another question rose: Why can intelligence transfer, but not physical changes? Does it only apply to things I think in my mind?
His newly enhanced intellect prodded him toward a bold, if insane, experiment. Without hesitation, Hengsheng reentered the mind space, made a wish, and then immediately opened his eyes again in reality.
Ding!
[Status]
Name: Lan Hengsheng
Level: ??
??????????????
???????????????
For a moment, Hengsheng stared in disbelief, then burst into uncontrollable laughter.
"Ha hahahahahhahaaaaaa!"
For the first time since his rebirth, Lan Hengsheng's heart swelled with real, unshakable hope.