003 Mysterious Cultivator

Guo Yupin watched with narrowed eyes as the silver-haired stranger stood unflinching below him. The single sword hovering above his fingertip pulsed with restrained killing intent, its edge humming with condensed sword qi.

“Very well, I accept your condition,” Wo Li said calmly.

At least the outsider knew when to show some respect. Guo Yupin flicked his finger.

“Serenity Lightning Edge.”

The sword shot forward like a streak of silver lightning, tearing the air with a piercing whistle. It was not his full strength, but it was more than enough to bisect a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator. The blade left faint afterimages as it spiraled, seeking the stranger’s throat with unerring precision.

Wo Li did not dodge.

Instead, he raised his free hand in a casual gesture and declared in a clear, resonant tone, “Wild Shape: Primal Nature Elemental.”

A surge of life force erupted from his body. In the blink of an eye, silver wood-like texture and all manner of flora bloomed on Wo Li’s body and clothing. The change was seamless, almost instantaneous, yet Guo Yupin felt no violent qi explosion, only a quiet, profound harmony with the surrounding nature.

The sword struck true.

Clang!

The sound was not that of metal piercing flesh, but of a blade rebounding off an ancient, immovable tree. Sparks flew as the sword skittered harmlessly across Wo Li’s transformed chest, leaving only a shallow white mark that began healing the moment it appeared. The force of the impact barely made the stranger shift his stance.

An awkward silence fell over the entire field.

Guo Yupin’s expression froze.

What manner of spell was that? He could now sense the shift in Wo Li’s essence. Every trace of whatever strange power the outsider had used earlier had vanished, replaced entirely by thick, heavy life-attributed qi that felt as ancient and unyielding as the roots of the world itself. It was a complete transformation of being.

The Sword Formation King’s hundreds of hovering blades trembled slightly in the air as his focus wavered. In all his centuries of cultivation, he had never witnessed such a technique. It was not mere body refinement or qi armor. The man had literally become something else, something rooted in the primal forces of nature itself.

Below, the crowd remained deathly quiet, their eyes wide with disbelief.

“Impressive,” cried out Guo Yupin, grinning. “It looks like you possess quite the cultivation, my fellow daoist.”

…

..

.

It was a strange sensation. Primal Nature Elemental was one of my strongest Wild Shape abilities. It had a very nice ability that negated the first damage incurred. It was useless against continuous damage, but a sure-fire way to nullify a foe’s strongest single strike or spell.

Back in Legacy World Online, a druid could only be granted a single elemental shape, and I had picked Nature Elemental, eventually raising it all the way to Primal Nature Elemental.

It felt strange, though. Normally, using this Wild Shape would grant me an enormous tree-like body, but now I felt like I was a human tree of sorts? Yeah, it felt weird. It probably had something to do with the ‘different mana’ of this world.

“Is that enough?” I asked. At this point, I just wanted to leave and avoid any more unnecessary trouble.

Gao Yupin lowered himself, landing softly before me. Like an illusion, all of the swords folded into themselves as they became a single sword. He sheathed it and remarked, “It’s enough. Let go of my sect members.”

I canceled the Entanglement spell with a thought, freeing them.

“They should eventually wake up,” I remarked. I thought about it more. Depending on their resistance, they might sleep for a long time. After that brief exchange with Gao Yupin, I could tell I was fairly strong here.

“Cleanse Spirits,” I uttered, removing their status ailment.

The unconscious ‘young masters’ woke up.

Guo Yupin turned his gaze back to me, his expression calm but probing. “What are your plans now, Wo Li? Cultivators from many sects around this land have gathered in this hidden village to prepare for the opening of a secret realm. The Emerald Verdant Forest will open only once every six hundred years. My Serenity Cliff Sect is the reigning power in these lands and possesses the best entry spots. If you have no pressing destination, I invite you to come with us. You may enter the secret realm alongside our disciples.”

The call to adventure was literally staring me in the eyes. I honestly didn’t know what to make of my life in this world yet. I considered the offer for a moment. A secret realm opening every six hundred years sounded like a major event. It was probably full of rare treasures, spirit herbs, and opportunities that could help me understand this new world better. Turning it down without good reason would be foolish, especially since I had nowhere specific to go.

But the problem was what I personally wanted.

In my past life, I had lived the nine-to-five grind zealously, working a thankless job that never appreciated me. I often daydreamed about outdoor camping, recalling the few shorts I had watched while doom-scrolling on my phone. I had always thought of the isekai genre as secretly horror stories, which in hindsight wasn’t wrong if you removed all the cheats, systems, and convenient gimmicks. If I didn’t have all these powers with me, the idea of “doing whatever you want” would have been laughable.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I took a slow breath and met Guo Yupin’s gaze.

“Senior Guo, please do not take offense,” I said carefully, “but I believe I have to go my own way. I have no interest in this secret realm.”

Exploring the world at large might give me a clue how to return home… but would I even want to return home? The right choice, at least for now, seemed to be isolating myself from the xianxia world at large. My sensibilities as a 21st-century Earthling would definitely lead me to many conflicts and butting heads with people. Just preventing someone from dying in that petty duel had already gotten me in trouble. Add to that the existence known as Nevle Drol Diurdhcra—the druid in me—and I honestly didn’t know what I would do if I was faced with things that confronted both the gamer in me and the avatar I had now become.