A Farmer's Life
Wei Wu woke to the gentle clatter of wooden chimes hanging from the eave of his hut. The morning breeze carried the smell of wet earth and spring leaves. This was the life he knew:
the life of a simple, powerless farmer in Pine Brook Village.
He stretched, rubbed his hands together, and grabbed his worn straw hat. He didn't cultivate, didn't fight, didn't dream of power or heroes. He planted rice at dawn, fed goats at noon, and slept under the stars when the summer winds blew softly.
He never imagined that this world was preparing to swallow him whole.
The signs began subtly at first.
A distant plume of smoke.
Travelers speaking in hushed tones.
A merchant who fled the northern road trembling, muttering one phrase repeatedly:
"The Ironblood Knights… they're coming."
Wei Wu was no warrior.
He didn't understand politics or kingdoms.
But he understood fear—real fear—when he saw it in a man's eyes.
The Ironblood Knights were body cultivators from the northern Kingdom of Ardenvale. They forged their muscles with metallic essence, turning skin to armor and bone to steel. While most of the vanguard where At most iron rank Stronger than normal humans but With limitations , Some could stop arrows with their forearms. Others punched through shields like paper. Some could even live for centuries
Pine Brook Village had no walls.
No soldiers.
Only farmers with hoes.
And on the second sunrise after the rumor
they arrived.
Wei Wu was repairing a broken bucket when the ground began to tremble. The sound came next—
metal boots striking dirt in perfect unison.
THUD.
THUD.
THUD.
Then the screaming.
About 50 Ironblood Knights walked through the smoky clearing like shadows from a nightmare. Their armor was dark and ridged, forged to mimic iron scales. They looked like beasts wearing human skin. Their cleaver-swords were thick, heavy, merciless.
The village elder approached with shaking hands.
"W-We surrender… spare—"
A cleaver swung.
His body hit the ground before his voice stopped echoing.
The massacre began.
Wei Wu froze, legs trembling violently. His breath hitched in his throat as flames consumed rooftops. Children cried. Mothers begged. Men fought with pitchforks, dying instantly.
One knight turned toward Wei Wu.
He grabbed the nearest pitchfork and held it like a spear, hands sweating.
It didn't matter.
The knight's blade sliced through the wooden shaft like tofu. Pain exploded in Wei Wu's chest. The world spun. His vision blurred.
The last thing he saw was fire devouring his home.
And then—
Nothing.
Wei Wu jerked awake in his bed, drenched in sweat.
The hut.
His hands.
The morning light.
"...What? No wounds…?"
He stood abruptly. His body was whole. His chest was uncut. His shirt unstained. Even the cracked bucket he had fixed the day before was still broken.
He staggered backward.
"I… died. I definitely died."
His heart hammered violently.
And then, like a dam bursting—
his past life flooded back.
He had been a gamer.
A strategist.
A lover of simulation games.
He had died once before coming to this world.
Death had restored his memories.
He laughed.
He cried.
Then he stood still, staring at his trembling hands.
"I get one more chance."
But he was still powerless.
Still a farmer.
He needed a plan.
Wei Wu gathered the villagers that same morning.
Dispite their unbelieving Stare He managed to convince them On the impending threat
People looked at him strangely—he was usually quiet, unassuming, shy. But fear sharpened his voice.
"We don't have strength," he said. "But we can survive. We can slow them. We can buy time."
"How" asked the elderr
Wei Wu knelt and drew diagrams in the dirt.
He ordered the younger boys to untie all thirty goats when the war horns sounded again.
"Let them run wild into the fields. The Knights rely on formation and momentum—if their front line breaks rhythm, their rear line collapses."
Villagers thought it ridiculous.
But Wei Wu insisted.
There was only one approach wide enough for a full squad of Ironblood Knights.
So he created a funnel:
Blocked the eastern approach with wet, slippery logs
Dug hidden trenches along the western side
Left only the narrow river path open
"They will be forced to enter single-file," he explained. "They lose their advantage."
He gathered dry chaff from the barns and piled it between houses.
"When they enter, ignite these. Smoke blinds them. Even iron-bodied cultivators struggle to see through thick smoke."
Villagers murmured in awe.
The quiet farmer was suddenly someone else
someone who could think under pressure Evacuation Route – Pinewood Path
He drew the last mark in the soil.
"Women, children, and elders will escape north before the attack. Stick together. Do not run through open fields. Follow the forest path to Redbranch Town."
2 day when the horns echoed again—
Wei Wu was ready.
His heart still trembled. Sweat soaked his palms. But he forced himself forward. Courage wasn't lack of fear—it was acting through it. As planned The goats were released.
The goats panicked, bleating wildly as they stampeded across the road, scattering the Ironblood soldiers formation.
The only reason for soldiers to raid a village was for provision and food and when said food was charging right at you you'll lose composure
The Ironblood captain shouted, "Reform ranks!"
Too late.
They crashed into the river funnel.
Smoke erupted.
Confusion spread.
Villagers struck from haylofts, bought seconds, then fled.
Wei Wu grabbed a spear and stood at the bottleneck. He wasn't a cultivator—but he fought anyway, shouting for villagers to escape.
His spear cracked against a knight's armor—but he held long enough to buy precious moments.
He knew he would die.
But he didn't stop.
Then his spear snapped.
The knight's cleaver pierced his stomach.
And he collapsed again.
The void swallowed him.
But this time, a voice echoed:
[SYSTEM BOOTING…]
The Endless Sect Cycle System has awakened.
Death Recorded — Reward Issued.
A glowing blue screen appeared.
Wei Wu, still floating helplessly, whispered:
"A… a system?"
Reward 1: Foundation Establishment – Stage 1 (Forced Awakening)
Type: Cultivation Foundation
Grade: Rare but Unstable
Effects:
Opens all 36 minor meridians
Opens 4 of the 8 major meridians
Grants Foundation Stage 1 strength
Increases physical durability, stamina, and Qi circulation
Allows use of low-grade Qi techniques
Enhances pain resistance
Greatly slows bleeding
Special Ability:
(Second Breath) once per day, allows Wei Wu to ignore a fatal wound for 3 seconds.
Weakness:
Because the Foundation was forced upon death rather than earned:
His core is unstable
His meridians may crack under pressure
Requires careful cultivation to stabilize or risk regression
Wei Wu stared at it, stunned.
A farmer…
was now a Foundation Realm cultivator.
But he didn't feel joy.
Just a heavy responsibility settling in his chest.
The Third Awakening
Wei Wu woke again in his hut.
Not two days before the raid—
but hours before it.
His chest heaved.
Foundation energy hummed in him like a warm storm.
"I… can fight. This time… I can fight."
He clenched his fists.
The village would not burn again.
Not without him standing in front.
And thus—
the true cycle had begun.