Blue Star.
Xishan Cemetery, Jiangling City.
A woman stood silently before a newly erected tombstone, mourning in silence and bidding farewell to the deceased one last time.
The tombstone bore the name of the departed: Lin Jichen, aged 29.
The woman was Ren Lan, Lin Jichen's senior from university.
She stood quietly in front of the tombstone, gazing at the portrait engraved upon it. The man in the picture was strikingly handsome, his eyes as bright as stars.
Ren Lan stared at the photo, lost in thought.
A cemetery worker approached, pushing a cart carrying a dark ebony urn.
"It's time for the burial, ma'am. Would you like to place it yourself, or shall we do it?" the worker reminded her.
"I'll do it."
With a heavy heart, Ren Lan walked forward, took the urn into her arms, and carefully placed it into the small, square grave beneath the tombstone.
"I never thought that after all these years, our reunion would be under such circumstances."
She muttered to herself, her eyes welling up with tears.
Her voice was slightly choked, unable to hide her sorrow.
"If only you had listened to me back then, this wouldn't have happened. You had a limitless future in *Bahuang*, but you chose to trust the wrong people. Even after being deceived, you didn't realize it… Sigh, forget it, it's all in the past now…"
"Ma'am, please place the deceased's belongings inside as well," the worker reminded her again.
Ren Lan nodded, her eyes red as she put the last remnants of Lin Jichen's possessions into the grave.
But suddenly, she remembered something. She hurriedly rummaged through the belongings and pulled out a voice recorder.
A small note was attached to it, with a line of tiny words:
"Ren Lan, play this when I'm buried."
Ren Lan had kept this in mind, though her grief had nearly made her forget.
Looking at the recorder in her hand, she chose to press play.
A voice recording played.
"Crazy woman! Long time no see, huh? Haha! Bet you didn't expect this—I've already ascended to immortality and am on my way to the celestial realm! I probably won't have another chance to see you again, so I figured you'd miss me. Here's a little recording for you…"
The voice in the recording was cheerful, without a hint of solemnity or sorrow, even jokingly comparing his death to achieving immortality.
Ren Lan, however, was not surprised. She had always known Lin Jichen to be this optimistic and full of sunshine.
The recording continued.
"Actually, I wanted to apologize to you. I should've listened to you earlier. But this was my own blindness, I can't blame anyone else. I'm sorry, my dear senior Ren Lan. If fate allows, let's meet again in the next life. I'll still be your punching bag for taekwondo… hehe… Well… I guess this is goodbye…"
Hearing this, Ren Lan could no longer hold back her tears. This was only the second time in her life she had ever cried.
The first time was when Lin Jichen had misunderstood her and cut ties with her.
Ren Lan, known as a strong-willed, never-crying tomboy, had broken that claim twice in her life—both times because of Lin Jichen.
However, in the next second, the tone of the recording suddenly shifted.
"Holy shit! Where am I? Why is it so dark?"
"Wasn't I supposed to ascend to immortality? Why am I trapped inside a tiny box? Help! Somebody help me! I'm scared~ Yamete~"
"Dame dame! Dame yo~"
Several cemetery workers nearby couldn't help but chuckle. They had never encountered such an absurd farewell message before.
In their profession, they were trained to remain solemn and professional at all times.
But now, even they couldn't hold back their laughter.
"Pfft."
Ren Lan laughed too, wiping away her tears as she cursed at the tombstone.
"Lin Jichen, you bastard!"
---
*Ding ding dong dong…*
A phone ringtone jolted Lin Jichen awake from his sleep.
"Ugh, my head hurts…"
He groaned, clutching his aching head as he opened his eyes.
The pungent stench of alcohol and the acidic taste of vomit lingered on his body and in his breath.
As he looked around, he saw a room that felt strangely familiar, yet oddly distant.
"Wait, where the hell am I? This looks just like my old university dormitory."
"Wasn't I fatally wounded by the Ascension Realm boss Zhu Jiuyin? Weren't my injuries beyond saving? How am I still alive?"
"Wait! Where's my storage ring? My elixir chamber? Why is everything gone?!"
---
*Ten minutes later.*
After triple-checking his situation, Lin Jichen finally understood.
He had been reborn.
Back to ten years ago!
This year, he had just finished his college entrance exams and was a freshman in university.
At nineteen years old, he was young and full of life.
As for why he had been reborn, Lin Jichen thought carefully.
If his guess was correct, it had something to do with the jade pendant he had snatched from Zhu Jiuyin's cave.
The moment he took that pendant, it vanished. But just before his death, he vaguely remembered seeing it again, glowing brilliantly.
And then, he had woken up ten years in the past.
After a moment of contemplation, everything clicked.
Before Eight Desolations merged with the real world, there had always been a rumor.
The strongest beast in the Ascension Realm, Zhu Jiuyin, possessed a supreme divine artifact, known as the Twin Fish Pendant, capable of comprehending the laws of the universe.
No one had ever obtained it.
After being betrayed, Lin Jichen had accidentally fallen into Zhu Jiuyin's lair… and the jade pendant he had grabbed was most likely that legendary Twin Fish Pendant.
Who would have thought… this mythical artifact had granted him a second chance at life.
"Since the heavens have spared me, then Xu Zhihui, Guo Jie—you two traitors! This time, I'll make sure you suffer the pain of betrayal and despair!"
Lin Jichen stood before the dormitory mirror, his eyes gleaming with an icy, bone-chilling light.
Before his rebirth, he had endured the most miserable and hopeless period of his life.
The woman he had loved for ten years, Guo Jie, had betrayed him, running off with his most trusted brother, Xu Zhihui.
The two had even schemed together to steal all his wealth, elixirs, and treasures accumulated over ten years.
In the end, they had lured him into Zhu Jiuyin's abyss to die.
Even as a Dao Comprehension Realm cultivator and the world's top spellcaster, he had stood no chance against the monstrous entity.
Mortally wounded, with no cure for his injuries, Lin Jichen had perished soon after.
Looking back, his past life was nothing but a complete tragedy.
He had been dealt a winning hand, only to play it all wrong.
Despite having so many better choices and people who truly cared for him, he had foolishly clung to a toxic love, ignoring those who were genuinely good to him.
Now, the heavens had granted him another chance—the year was 2040.
And on August 8, 2040, an era-defining virtual game would launch—"Eight Desolations".
A game that would soon prove to be more than just a game.
This time, Lin Jichen would start over from scratch.
This time, he would seize every opportunity, take revenge, and rewrite his fate!
*Ding ding dong dong…*
His phone rang again.
It was his ten-year-old Huawei, displaying an incoming call:
[Crazy Woman]
Seeing the name, Lin Jichen couldn't help but grin and immediately picked up.
"Xiao Linzi! What took you so long to answer? Something huge just happened—I have breaking news for you, brace yourself!"
On the other end of the call was the youthful, energetic voice of a girl.
Lin Jichen, however, barely registered her words.
He was simply relishing the sound of her voice.
It had been ten years since he last heard it.
And yet, it was still so familiar, so dear.
"I'm sorry, Crazy Woman," Lin Jichen murmured softly.
"Huh? What are you apologizing for?" she asked, confused.
"Nothing… Just something I felt like saying."
Lin Jichen chuckled, brushing it off.
In his past life, he had let down two women the most.
And Ren Lan was one of them.