015 Second Chances

[POV: Li Qing]

The forest smelled of wet earth and ozone.

Li Qing blinked slowly, her fingers brushing against the smooth skin of her own throat. It was a name she had not expected to hear again, Li Qing. Her last clear memory had been the flash of qi and the sickening jolt as her head parted from her shoulders at the hands of that Nascent Soul cultivator. Everything after that had been darkness.

Now she was alive, whole, kneeling in the mud while rain hammered down around her.

In front of her lay a charred man, or what remained of one. His body was blackened and cracked like overcooked meat, wisps of smoke still rising from the ruin of his flesh. Silver hair, singed at the ends, clung to the side of his face. Long, elegant ears peeked through the strands, definitely not human. The same man who had called her by name only moments ago now looked like something dragged straight out of hell.

Li Qing’s breath caught.

She pushed herself upright on unsteady legs as the downpour grew harsher, cold water soaking through her torn robes. Before her eyes, the charred husk began to shed. Layers of burnt skin and ash sloughed away like dead bark, revealing unblemished pale skin beneath. His robes remained perfectly untouched, not even a single mark. Not a single scar or wound marred the body that emerged.

A sage. He must be an immortal sage.

Li Qing quickly lowered her gaze, avoiding any form of eye contact. One did not stare directly at such beings.

“Is there a problem, Li Qing?” the silver-haired man asked, his voice calm, almost gentle.

She swallowed hard, the burning question forcing its way out before she could stop herself. “Who… who are you? And what are you doing here?”

The mysterious man tilted his head, rainwater dripping from his long ears. “I need a bit of a nap first. Look after me for a while, would you?”

Li Qing did as she was told, though every instinct screamed that she should not be here, that this was far beyond the affairs of the likes of her. Her eyes drifted to the side and landed on the headless corpse of Guo Yupin, the trusted ally from Serenity Cliff Sect. How was she supposed to explain this to the Sect Leader? An ally, dead in an instant. It seemed the people who had hidden their claws for so long were finally showing them, and that could spell disaster for the Hidden Village of Leaf.

Perhaps this mysterious sage was a fellow villager? Someone higher in the order? She could not tell. The village’s true higher-ups had vanished long ago, leaving only scattered satellite settlements across the Earthly Heart Continent. Lately, even those who had been reducing contact with one another. Everything felt fragile.

Suddenly, the sage stirred and woke.

“So much work to do,” he muttered, voice thick with reluctant determination.

He rose to his feet and walked over to Guo Yupin’s carcass. Without hesitation, he waved his staff and declared clearly, “Revive Life.”

The ground trembled. Roots and vibrant plant life surged upward, swallowing the dead man whole in a swirling cocoon of green. When the earth and vines parted again, Guo Yupin emerged intact, chest rising and falling. His eyes fluttered open, darting around in confusion.

“Wo Li? Is that you?” he croaked. “Did they get you, too? Is this the afterlife?”

So… Wo Li. That was his name.

Wo Li shook his head. “No.”

Without warning, Heavenly Tribulation descended from the darkened sky, crackling bolts of divine lightning aimed straight at him.

Wo Li’s voice rang out, steady and commanding. “Wild Shape: Primal Nature Elemental.”

His form shimmered. His entire essence transformed, skin taking on the texture and sheen of ancient silver-wood, veins of glowing green running through him like living sap. The Heavenly Tribulation struck him full force, yet he endured, standing tall as lightning danced harmlessly across his wooden form.

Guo Yupin’s eyes widened in pure shock. “He… he just took a Heavenly Tribulation head-on? That’s impossible!”

Li Qing suppressed a sigh. She was painfully aware that the old man might lose his mind completely if he learned the full truth that this ‘Wo Li’ had not only endured the tribulation, but had resurrected both of them… and apparently himself as well.

Wo Li tilted his head, looking genuinely puzzled as the lightning faded. “What exactly is a Heavenly Tribulation?”

Li Qing hesitated only a moment before answering helpfully, her voice soft and respectful. “It is the wrath of the heavens themselves, sent to punish or test those who defy natural laws—especially those who tamper with life and death, or cultivate beyond mortal limits. Most who face it are reduced to ash. Only the strongest immortals survive.”

“Good to know,” Wo Li said casually, already turning to walk away. He called back over his shoulder without slowing down, “Come. It’s gonna be busy work. I don’t have all day.”

Li Qing and Guo Yupin stared at each other in the pouring rain, both too stunned to speak. The silver-haired sage with the long ears strode ahead as if he had not just cheated death twice in the span of minutes, leaving them no choice but to follow.

…

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[POV: Guo Yupin]

It was unbelievable, but Guo Yupin was alive.

Not a single injury marked his body. Even his dantian and golden core remained perfectly intact, pulsing with steady spiritual energy as if death had never touched him. This was nothing short of a divine blessing, a second chance most cultivators could only dream of in their final moments. Yet as much as he wished to revel in the miracle, Guo Yupin could not stop the questions swirling in his mind.

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Just who was Wo Li?

They roamed the forest for hours, the silver-haired, long-eared man leading the way with quiet purpose. Whenever they found the bodies of black-robed cultivators, Wo Li buried them with careful respect, offering a few seconds of silence and a murmured word of farewell.

But for the others, such as fellow cultivators, innocent villagers, allies, and strangers alike, he showed no prejudice. He raised his staff and spoke the words “Revive Life,” bringing them back from the cold embrace of death without hesitation.

And every time, Heavenly Punishment would fall.

Between every resurrection, Wo Li would pause, breathing heavily as lightning scars faded from his skin. Then they would continue, searching for more of the dead.

Guo Yupin watched in growing awe as a small group began to form behind them. Men, women, and even a few children followed reverently in Wo Li’s wake, their eyes wide with disbelief and gratitude.

Unable to contain his curiosity any longer, Guo Yupin leaned toward the old woman walking beside him and whispered, “Li Ming, is he some manner of hidden expert of your Hidden Village of Leaf? We could’ve used him when we—”

The old woman sighed softly. “From now on, just call me Li Qing, like in the old days. As for your question, you should know better. Wasn’t it you who had a battle of nerves with him just outside the village and nearly caused a commotion about it?”