The sun dipped behind the mountains, setting the skies above Bagania City ablaze in orange and crimson. This city, known as the Medicinal Capital of Murim, smelled of rare herbs, boiling elixirs, blood, and secrets.
Somewhere in the heart of it stood a grand, three-story inn—a building of red lanterns, lacquered wood, and peaceful smiles. It was the Golden Bamboo Inn, famous for warmth and hospitality.
But today… its warmth was gone.
On the rooftop sat a young man, legs lazily swinging over the edge. His robe fluttered in the evening breeze. His gaze wasn't soft, nor welcoming. It was sharp, cold, and strange.
This wasn't the man the city once knew.
This wasn't the kind innkeeper who once helped beggars and hosted wandering alchemists for free.
This was Rahul Saini, a man from another world, wearing the body of someone poisoned and forgotten.
"...Haaah." Rahul exhaled, chewing lazily on a dry bamboo leaf. "So this is it. Another world. Cultivation, sects, spirit beasts… murder around every corner. Typical transmigrator stuff."
He'd been an average guy on Earth. No powers. No fortune. No destiny. Just another face in the crowd. Until one moment, death had grabbed him by the throat—and spat him out into this cruel realm.
But this time, he wasn't empty-handed.
[DING! STRONGEST IN THE UNIVERSE SYSTEM ACTIVATED.]
That voice had echoed in his head the moment he woke up in this body.
[Analyzing surroundings… merging with host… scanning emotional data.]
Emotional data?
Rahul looked down from the rooftop, watching the bustling street. Dozens of people moved below—shouting merchants, hurrying disciples, frustrated healers.
And something strange caught his eye.
A dark aura clung to each of them—writhing clouds of anger, jealousy, lust, envy, greed.
He blinked. Was it some sort of illusion?
[CHAOS PATH DETECTED. Emotion absorption unlocked.][Absorbing negative aura from 10-meter radius…]
A sudden rush of warmth surged into his chest. Like fire. Like lightning.
Rahul's body stiffened.
It was power. Raw power, drawn from people's emotions. It flowed through his veins, turning his blood heavier, his breath deeper, his senses sharper.
"Hah… So, this is how it works."
He didn't even have to fight. The world fed him.
Every ugly thought, every dark intention—they flowed into him like fuel.
[You have absorbed: 5 units of Envy, 4 of Hatred, 3 of Greed.][Temporary Strength Boost: +12% for 10 minutes.]
And then came the second surprise.
[Beginner Reward: LUCKY TICKET DRAW UNLOCKED.]
He mentally clicked it.
Click. Click. Click.[CONGRATULATIONS. You've drawn: SSS-GRADE SKILL – UNIVERSAL GUARDIAN.]
[This skill grants access to all known cultivation techniques, magic arts, forging blueprints, and combat systems across dimensions—upgraded to their perfected forms.]
Rahul's lips curled.
"Broken… It's broken beyond words. I love it."
But the system wasn't done yet.
[Next, select your path: Justice, Evil, or Chaos.]
Rahul didn't hesitate.
"Chaos."
[Confirmed. CHAOS PATH SELECTED.][Effect: Emotional absorption, flexible morality, power over both righteous and demonic paths. All stats scale with disorder and emotion.]
"Let the world burn slowly, and I'll sip its ashes."
But peace never lasts in Bagania.
Especially not for monsters in disguise.
Rahul barely made it down from the rooftop when a stranger stepped through the inn's wooden doors.
He wore emerald, green robes. Silver hair tied into a tight topknot. Eyes like daggers. A serpent coiled around his waist, hissing softly.
The moment he entered, all chatter died. The staff stopped moving. Even the shadows seemed to freeze.
Rahul stretched his arms and approached casually. "Welcome to the Golden Bamboo Inn. Room for one? Or did you come to die?"
The man didn't smile.
"You are not the man who once ran this inn."
Rahul tilted his head. "No, I ate him for breakfast."
"…I am Dan Mu, Outer Elder of the Green Serpent Sect."
"Oh. Should I be impressed?"
Dan Mu's lips twitched.
"I'm the one who poisoned you."
Rahul blinked. Then grinned. "Wow. You're either brave… or brain-dead."
"You were too soft. Helping beggars, refusing our protection fee. You didn't deserve this property. So, I fixed the problem."
Rahul clapped slowly. "And now the 'problem' is back. With interest."
Dan Mu narrowed his eyes. Spirit energy surged, thick and poisonous. The air turned green, and the snake around his waist grew, hissing with malice.
"I will end you this time."
"You'll try," Rahul whispered. "And then you'll die."
[DING! COMBAT DETECTED. Enemy Realm: Foundation Peak.][Chaos Boost Activated. Host elevated to Golden Core Realm.][Emotion Surge detected: absorbing 21 Hatred, 12 Envy, 6 Fear.]
Rahul's veins lit with black and violet light. Chaos Qi exploded from him, wild and untamed.
Dan Mu launched forward, palm glowing with green venom Qi.
Rahul didn't even move.
The attack melted midair, dissolved by the pressure leaking from his body.
Dan Mu gasped.
Rahul appeared behind him in a blur.
"Too slow."
SMASH.
One palm.One crater.
Dan Mu crashed through the inn's wall and tumbled into the street. Blood burst from his mouth.
Crowds gathered, whispering in horror.
"That's… Elder Dan Mu!"
"Who is that innkeeper?!"
Dan Mu struggled to rise.
"You're… a demon…"
Rahul crouched beside him.
"I'm something worse."
He placed his palm on Dan Mu's chest.
"Absorb."
[DING! Chaos Absorption Activated.][Extracting Qi Core… Draining Soul Essence…]
Dan Mu's body twisted in agony, shriveling into gray mist, vanishing in seconds.
Silence.
Only Rahul stood, calmly brushing dust off his robe.
He turned, meeting the stares of hundreds.
Some looked horrified.
Some awestruck.
Some bowed their heads in silent fear.
Rahul just smiled.
That night, Bagania City trembled with whispers.
"Dan Mu is dead.""The kind innkeeper has become a devil.""He devoured his soul in front of everyone.""He didn't use any techniques. Just pressure and chaos…"
Back at the inn, Rahul received his reward.
[DING! FIRST KILL REWARD UNLOCKED.]
[You have received: CHAOS SEED.]
A black, pulsating orb appeared in his hand, swirling with dark mist.
[Description: A living cultivation core that evolves through battle, emotional absorption, and destruction. Feed it chaos to grow.]
Rahul pressed it to his chest. The seed sank into his heart, merging with his very being.
His core shifted. His Qi turned darker. Wilder. Alive.
[Host's cultivation foundation has been rebuilt. Chaos Path Stage 1: Embryo of Disorder.]
Rahul grinned, staring out at the blood-red moon.
"Let them come. Righteous sects. Evil cults. All of them."
He raised his hand. Shadows danced along his fingers.
"From this day forward, I am no longer a tool of fate."
"I am the storm that breaks it."