The Himalayan wind, a razor-sharp caress against his skin, carried the scent of ancient ice and the subtle, earthy aroma of distant pine.
Arya trudged behind the main group, his gaze lost in the dazzling expanse of white that blanketed the towering peaks.
Each jagged outline, a stark contrast against the impossibly blue sky, seemed to hum with a silent, ageless power.
So this is what they mean by breathtaking, he thought, a faint smile touching his lips. He had never seen so much snow in his life.
He'd pictured this trek as a shared adventure with his friends, a boisterous escape from the mundane. But their busy lives, their corporate chains, had left him to face this majestic wilderness alone.
Some friends, he mused, a familiar pang of disappointment echoing in his chest. At twenty-six, while his peers ascended the ladder of success in their engineering careers, Arya felt adrift, a ship without a rudder in the vast ocean of life.
He'd chased government jobs with a dwindling enthusiasm, the weight of expectation pressing down on him like the heavy mountain air.
Another rejection, another door slammed in your face, a voice whispered in his mind, a constant, unwelcome companion.
He was tired of these failures. Even here, amidst this awe-inspiring beauty, the shadow of his perceived failures loomed. He tried to enjoy the scenery around him.
His musings were interrupted by the cheerful chatter of a Kiwi couple, their accents a warm counterpoint to the biting wind.
They were seasoned climbers, on their second Himalayan conquest, and their tales of daring ascents and breathtaking vistas momentarily lifted his spirits.
Maybe there's more to life than just chasing a secure job, he mused, a spark of hope flickering within him. He needed this change, at least for a few days, to escape his chaotic life.
As they continued their climb, a glint of gold in the snow caught his eye. A small, unadorned object, no larger than two inches, lay partially buried, its dull, almost ancient golden surface reflecting the sunlight.
What's that? He turned towards it. Curiosity overriding caution, Arya veered from the path, his boots crunching on the fresh snow. Could it be gold? A thrill, a sudden surge of adrenaline, pulsed through him.
He bent down, his fingers brushing against the cold, smooth metal. The moment his skin made contact, a violent jolt, like a thousand volts of electricity, ripped through his body.
His vision exploded in a blinding flash of white, his senses overwhelmed. A silent scream tore at his throat, but no sound escaped his lips.
He crumpled to the ground, his hand still clamped around the object, his body convulsing uncontrollably.
A searing pain emanated from his palm. He weakly lifted his hand, his gaze fixated on the thin line of crimson that welled up from a clean cut across his skin.
But how…?
The object had no sharp edges, yet it had sliced through his flesh as if it were butter.
What is this thing? Panic, cold and sharp as the mountain wind, seized him. He wanted to run away, to escape from this object.
The golden object began to hum, a low, resonant thrum that vibrated deep within his bones, a sinister lullaby.
An eerie, ethereal light pulsed from the point of contact, spreading rapidly, engulfing his hand, then his arm, and finally, his entire body.
Strange, luminous symbols, like ancient runes, danced across his skin, their meaning utterly beyond his grasp.
He felt a terrifying sensation of being emptied out, his very essence draining away, replaced by something cold, something… other. He struggled to think, but his mind felt like it was being filled with cotton.
No, no, no… The silent protest echoed in his mind, a desperate, fading echo. Tears welled in his eyes, blurring the already distorted world around him.
I don't want to die, he thought, a wave of despair washing over him. Not like this. Not here. He wanted to see his family one last time. His heart ached for his mother, his father.
"Please, God. Stop this. I'm begging you."
Mom, Dad, he thought, his heart aching with a pain far greater than any physical wound. I never told you how much I loved you. He pictured their faces, their smiles, their unwavering belief in him.
He yearned to tell them he loved them, to apologize for being such a disappointment. He tried to move, but his limbs refused to obey.
A tear escaped his eye, tracing a lonely path down his cheek before freezing in the unforgiving cold.
He thought of his younger brother and sister, their playful bickering, their unwavering support.
The golden light intensified, becoming blindingly bright. The humming grew louder, morphing into a deafening roar. Then, just as suddenly, it stopped.
The light vanished. The humming ceased. Arya lay motionless on the snow, his body still, his eyes vacant, staring up at the indifferent sky.
The life within him was gone, leaving behind only an empty shell. His journey had come to an end in this lonely mountain.
....
(Jiang State. Qingyun Region. Qingyun Sect)
Su Family Manor
A gasp, a desperate intake of air, broke the stillness of the opulent chamber. Su Kang's eyes snapped open, his body drenched in a cold sweat.
His heart hammered against his ribs, a frantic drumbeat in the sudden silence.
He clutched his head, a sharp, stabbing pain lancing through his skull. What was that? he thought, his mind reeling.
It was a dream. No, not a dream. It felt far too real to be a mere dream.
Fragmented memories, vivid and disorienting, flooded his consciousness.
He saw a world of towering metal and glass structures, of vehicles that moved without horses, of a life lived under the weight of a different kind of pressure.
Then, just as suddenly, the torrent of memories receded, leaving him trembling and confused, stranded in the unfamiliar landscape of his own mind.
Who am I? The question echoed in the silence of his room, a desperate plea for understanding.
Am I Arya? The name felt foreign on his tongue, yet it resonated with a deep, unsettling ache in his heart. But then who is Su Kang?
He looked around the room, his gaze sweeping over the familiar furnishings: the intricately carved wooden furniture, the silk tapestries depicting scenes of mythical beasts, the faint scent of incense lingering in the air.
This was his room, his home, yet it felt strangely alien. This was his room from the Su family branch in the Qingyun city. He hasn't seen this room after leaving Jiang state.
He was confused by his own thoughts.
He rose and walked towards a large, bronze mirror, its surface polished to a gleaming sheen.
He stared at his reflection, at the young man with sharp, aristocratic features, high cheekbones, a straight, proud nose, and dark, intense eyes.
Silver earrings, shaped like miniature dragons, glinted in the soft light. This is my body, he thought, his voice a near whisper. Su Kang's body.
But the soul within felt like a fractured mosaic, a patchwork of two different lives, two different worlds. He also saw his future.
He closed his eyes, trying to untangle the knot of memories. He remembered Arya's life, the crushing weight of expectations, the endless job hunt, the final, desperate journey to the Himalayas.
He also remembered the bone-chilling cold, the glint of gold, the searing pain, and the darkness. He remembered it all clearly, as if he had lived through it himself.
But he also remembered Su Kang's life: his childhood in the Su Manor, his rigorous training in the ways of cultivation, his close bond with his younger brother, Su Ting, and his family.
He also has memory of future events related to Su Kang. The young man soon started to figure out his memory and started contemplating.
A few minutes later he came to two conclusions about this situation.
Either his soul travelled to this body, but it doesn't explain clearly his future memory of upcoming events and two years later his death with his entire family's destruction.
Arya was thinking about Su Kang's death and that golden-colored metallic object in the possession of Su Kang.
Su Kang will get this object in the future, but he didn't know what it was.
Su Kang kept this object for clues of some ancient treasure. Because even many treasure pavilions couldn't decipher this object.
Until he died, it didn't do anything except suddenly glow in his last breath.
The second conclusion is that he reincarnated in this world and died at the age of 26 with his family but got back in time two years before.
He got back in time two years before because of that mysterious object. Only that mysterious object can answer his confusion.
Arya is more inclined towards the second scenario because his emotions towards his family in this world are as clear and deep as his family on the Earth, and his memory of Earth was awakened just a few minutes ago during a headache.
The young man again is looking in the mirror and observing the surrounding environment. This is the same room that he left around two years ago.
He spent his entire childhood in this room, and everything from here is giving his mind comfort.
After leaving the Su family, his life was filled with danger and fight. He was helping his friends, but slowly he started to realize that gap between him and his friends, but he was most disappointed by his sheer stupidity and destiny.
This time he wanted to stop those horrible mistakes and teach some lessons to those stupid friends of his.
Thinking about this sudden memory awakening and thoughts about those future upcoming events, the young man decided to calm his thoughts and all those emotions for now.