Chapter 1: Hell Mode Start

Biyun Continent, Yuntian Kingdom, deep in a remote mountain forest!

At night, inside a dilapidated temple, nearly a hundred men, women, young and old were squeezed together, lying on the hard ground.

The night wind was bitterly cold, and the chilling breeze made everyone shiver uncontrollably. Though everyone was covered with some kind of cloth, it was clear those coverings didn’t offer any warmth.

A young girl lying on the left side trembled and turned over in her sleep, then suddenly snapped her eyes open.

Xiao Ling’er patted her chest in lingering fear, surprise flashing through her heart — She… she actually wasn’t dead?!

Before she could even feel joy over surviving the elevator crash, something sinister approached her in the dark — a lecherous hand reaching toward her chest. Xiao Ling’er reacted swiftly, grabbing the hand and twisting it with a loud crack!

“AAAHHH—!”

A man let out a pig-like scream, waking the surrounding people.

Xiao Ling’er immediately reached out and grabbed the man by the throat.

“Ugh… ugh…” The man struggled desperately, only managing to make choking noises.

“Er Lai! Er Lai! What’s wrong with you?” An old woman beside the man cried out anxiously.

“What happened? What’s going on?”

“Who’s fighting?”

“Sis? Sis?”

“Ling’er? Ling’er?!”

A cacophony of confused voices erupted all around.

But Xiao Ling’er was already exhausted, gasping for breath and her whole body weak. She was confused — When did I become this fragile?

Snap! A fire striker was lit.

The entire place fell silent — then suddenly erupted in a woman’s furious screams:

“You damned Xiao Ling’er, you cursed wretch! How dare you hit my son?!”

The old woman beside the man shrieked, baring her teeth and claws as she charged at Xiao Ling’er.

Just as she reached Xiao Ling’er, the girl released her grip on the man’s throat, letting his body drop to the ground like a discarded rag.

“AAAHHH—!”

The old woman howled in grief and grabbed a nearby wooden stick, swinging it hard toward Xiao Ling’er’s head.

“Sis—!”

“Ling’er! Don’t hit Ling’er!”

Two voices, one large and one small, rang out as two figures rushed forward, both trying to shield Xiao Ling’er from the blow with their bodies.

Xiao Ling’er grew anxious — the stick was about to hit the woman trying to protect her. Drawing all her strength, she kicked through the gap near the old woman’s leg.

The old woman flew several meters away like a tossed sack. The scene fell completely silent.

Everyone from Daoxi Village stared at Xiao Ling’er in disbelief. Was this still the same timid girl who usually kept her head down and avoided everyone?

Their eyes were filled with fear as they all instinctively took a step back, wondering — Has this docile Xiao Ling’er gone mad?

But Xiao Ling’er was far from satisfied with herself. Her entire body felt like jelly, her legs unable to support her. She fell down hard onto the ground.

Just then, a sharp pain surged through her head — as if something was trying to force its way into her mind. Xiao Ling’er collapsed to the ground, drenched in cold sweat from the agony.

After what felt like an eternity — at least a century in her perception — the pain in her head finally subsided.

And with it came a flood of memories that weren’t her own — memories of a girl’s life from birth to the age of fifteen.

As Xiao Ling’er sorted through the foreign memories, her feelings were mixed with both joy and sorrow.

Joy because she had survived the elevator crash — and instead awakened in this new world as Xiao Ling’er of Daoxi Village in Yuntian Kingdom, Biyun Continent.

Sorrow because, though she had survived, her situation was dire. The entire village of Daoxi was suffering — no, to be precise, all the surrounding cities and people were enduring disaster.

It had been half a year since the last drop of rain fell from the sky. The crops planted by the people yielded nothing, and even the wild grasses and herbs in the mountains had all withered and died.

With no other choice, the village chief of Daoxi Village had organized the villagers to flee south in search of survival.

And now, just five days into their escape, the original owner of this body had sacrificed the last bits of food and water for her mentally challenged mother and ten-year-old younger brother — and starved herself to death.

Thus, Xiao Ling’er — a ninth-dan black belt in taekwondo from the 23rd century — had been given a chance at rebirth.

Sigh… Although she was lucky enough to be reborn, she had landed right in hell-mode.

Given the current lack of water and food, it was only a matter of time before she followed in the original girl’s footsteps — dying either of thirst or hunger.

If that was the case, wouldn’t it be better to die now and start over again?

Xiao Ling’er looked around, trying to come up with the least painful way to die — only to be interrupted.

“Ling’er, don’t be scared. Don’t be scared, mama’s here.”

Pulled from her thoughts, Xiao Ling’er stopped thinking about death and instead looked up at the woman crouching in front of her with eyes full of concern.

This was… the original owner’s mentally challenged mother?

She looked terrible — her face waxy yellow, sunken eyes, lips cracked and bleeding, and her body thin as a candle flickering in the wind. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her clothes were thin and ragged.

“Big Sis… are you feeling sick anywhere? Did… did that Er Lai guy… did he do something?”

Xiao Ling’er turned her gaze to the skinny little boy next to the woman. Though he was ten, he looked no older than six or seven.

Like his mother, he was also dressed in torn, thin clothing. His face was all bones, shaped like a shoehorn, and his lips were cracked and bloody.

Xiao Ling’er then looked around at the others inside the dilapidated temple. They were all in similar condition — dirty, disheveled, and clearly malnourished, as if they could collapse at any moment.

Everyone had moved the straw mats away from the center of the floor and now sat huddled together in one corner, watching her with guarded expressions.

Especially the mother and son pair, Er Lai and his mother, who sat in a corner glaring at Xiao Ling’er — their eyes filled not only with caution but also deep-seated hatred, as if poisoned.

Xiao Ling’er’s eyes flashed coldly. Oh? So you hate me now, do you?

She hadn’t fully grasped the situation earlier — but now that she knew this was a time of chaos, she regretted not just killing Er Lai outright back then.

You escaped death once. I hope you treasure your life and don’t try anything stupid again. Next time, I won’t be so merciful.

Seeing Xiao Ling’er looking at them again, the rest of the villagers instinctively retreated further. Her earlier outburst had truly scared them.

That terrifying image of her strangling Er Lai with a fierce look in her eyes and then kicking his mother several meters away — it was burned into their minds.

If the village chief hadn’t lit the fire striker just in time, Er Lai would probably have been strangled to death right then and there.

So no one dared provoke Xiao Ling’er now — afraid that if she snapped again, their lives wouldn’t be safe.

Finally, only the old village chief dared to step forward and tentatively ask,
“Ling’er girl, are… are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” Xiao Ling’er replied flatly.

She withdrew her gaze and turned toward her “cheap” mother and little brother, softly saying, “Go to sleep.” Then, without saying more, she lay down and went to sleep herself.

First, because she was too exhausted. Second, because there were too many things she hadn’t sorted through yet — she needed time to process.

Surviving the elevator crash should have made her happy. Back in the modern world, she had no attachments — a lone soul with no ties.

Sure, she had kept her life… but it came with a hellish beginning.

How would she survive in this chaotic world?

Sigh… Since she was here, she would just have to make the best of it. She believed that wherever there’s a will, there’s a way. When the boat reaches the bridge, it’ll cross; when the cart reaches the mountain, there’ll be a road.

She’d figure things out tomorrow. Right now, she was just too tired — and drifted off to sleep the moment she lay down.