In a place surrounded by trees, a young man was lying unconscious on the ground, his clothes torn in several places. Each tear had reached his skin, opening wounds from which a red liquid flowed.
Cough. Cough. Cough.
The young man, in critical condition, began to cough, spitting blood out of his mouth.
A second later, he opened his eyes, which were directed toward the dark sky, dotted with countless stars. Right in the center, there was a beautiful blue moon that illuminated the night.
"What's happening? Why do I feel pain all over my body?" He was confused, trying to reason. But he stopped when something that felt like a punch to his skull hit him, causing a sharp headache.
"Aaaaaaaaa!"
He screamed, desperately placing his hands on his scalp, trying to contain the agony that lasted for minutes. A flood of information invaded his mind, making him understand who he was.
His name was Li Xian, an outer disciple of the Azure Palace, who had recently come to this forest to complete a mission. However, he hadn't expected to encounter a tiger equivalent to the Qi Refinement Realm. Someone like him, who was in the Body Refinement stage, stood no chance.
To escape, he had used the Thousand Meters Talisman. At the end of the teleportation, he hit his head on the ground, temporarily losing his memory.
"I managed to escape..." Li Xian sighed in relief. He tried to stand up but couldn't. His muscles were far too heavy. "No! I have to get up. If I stay here, I'll die sooner or later from blood loss."
He didn't want it to come to that. Using all his willpower, he gathered strength in his legs and stood up. With every centimeter he rose, his muscle fibers tightened.
Enduring the pain, he managed to stand. That gave him the motivation to move, even if his steps were slower than a turtle's. His legs felt as hard as stone.
"Until I find someone, it'll take a while, especially in this unknown place! With my speed, I won't reach the edge of the forest anytime soon. It's dangerous—I might die before even seeing it. The only solution is to find a healing herb... But how easy could that be?"
Li Xian understood he was doomed. Even though he desperately wanted to live, it was complicated. Unable to keep his mind stable any longer, he began to shed tears.
"There's still a chance... I just need to find an herb."
He wiped his tears, unwilling to give up yet.
[The host's will to survive has been detected.]
[Unlimited Luck System activated.]
[Discover all opportunities, secrets, inheritances, secret realms, and treasures of heaven and earth available.]
[Since the host is still too weak, the system can perform one calculation per day within a range of only one hundred meters.]
[As your strength grows, more functions and chances will be unlocked, along with an increase in search range.]
[Would you like to use your first chance to find the best way to save your life?]
'Ha?' Li Xian's mind went blank when a floating panel appeared before him, golden characters written in unreal script.
'Can this really calculate luck?' He found it hard to believe, but if it was true, his life would be saved. "I accept! Save me!"
[Search initiated.]
[Ding! Found, twenty meters northwest, a healing pill discarded by a beast after killing a human cultivator.]
'Seriously?' Li Xian felt his heart race. Without hesitation, he moved northwest, passing between trees. After much suffering, and with his vision gradually fading, he arrived at the spot and widened his eyes.
There was a bottle lying in a bush, beside a rotting corpse that reeked of carrion. Frowning, he crouched and picked up the bottle.
'That's disgusting!' He didn't want to consume something that already smelled bad. 'I have no choice.'
To survive, Li Xian removed the cap and lifted the bottle to his mouth. Tilting it downward, a white, colorless pill dropped into his throat.
Swallowing it with difficulty, he felt warmth spread through his body, repairing his internal injuries and healing his skin that had been torn by cuts.
"Thank you, system." He didn't know what that panel was, but he was grateful—his life had been saved by it.
'I can really calculate everything once a day?'
It was insane. In a world where everyone fought for opportunities, having the ability to calculate every single one of them placed him on another level.
"System, how do you calculate this? And what are you?"
[Insufficient authority. If you wish to find out, grow stronger. The answers will be revealed gradually.]
"I see." Li Xian didn't ask more questions. That was enough for now.
'I must grow stronger to survive! Today, I almost died to a tiger.' He was traumatized, realizing how unpredictable the world was. If he remained weak, sooner or later he'd die at the hands of someone stronger. If he wanted to avoid that fate, he had to keep increasing his power.
"Hey... does the countdown for the next calculation start from now, a full day later, or does it reset after midnight?"
[Every midnight it resets.]
"Okay." Li Xian nodded and looked up. The sky was getting darker—dawn wasn't far away. "Should I stay here a little longer?"
He was afraid but decided to take the risk. Looking away from the sky, he turned toward the corpse. Frowning once again, he decided to bury the man's remains.
Pulling a sword from his spatial pouch, which was fastened to his waist, Li Xian began digging into the ground, striking it with the blade. As a cultivator of the fourth stage of Body Refinement—who had opened four meridians and broken four limits—he possessed a physical strength of four hundred kilograms.
Each strike impacted the soil, opening a hole. After several strikes, he dug a pit, placed the corpse inside, and covered it with dirt.
"That's all I can do for using your bottle. I hope you have better luck in your next life." He clasped his hands in respect, thanking the corpse. Then he sheathed his sword and once again stretched his neck.
He waited for the turn, which didn't take long. Before his eyes, the blue moon turned red, like blood.
It was terrifying. Li Xian's hair stood on end. Even though he had seen this once before, he had never gotten used to the end of the day—in his opinion, it was the scariest thing in the world.
A minute later, the moon returned to normal, making Li Xian relax. Taking a deep breath, he decided to test one more opportunity.
"System, calculate the best thing around to increase my cultivation."