He stared at the screen in disbelief. His brain started to work, trying to analyse how stupid the situation was.
The classic Isekai trope. Transmigration into a cultivation world. A system interface floating in the air.
But the pain in his ribs was real, as well as the memories. The memories of Zhan Wu's life felt just as real as his own. The exhaustion on his body was painfully real.
"Okay," he muttered to himself. "I should call myself Zhan Wu now, I guess? Assuming this is real. And what the hell is a 'Warrior System'?"
[WARRIOR SYSTEM EXPLANATION INITIATED]
[The Sovereign Blade King was the legendary founder of your bloodline, a warrior who achieved perfect balance between the White Path of righteousness and the Shadow Path of pragmatic necessity. This system is your inheritance for guiding you to master the cultivation method that requires you to walk both paths at the same time.]
[PRIMARY OBJECTIVE]
[Gather the Seven Blade Shards of the Sovereign's Weapon.]
[SECONDARY OBJECTIVE]
[Form Legacy Bonds with companions who embody different aspects of the Path.]
Zhan Wu laughed bitterly. Of course. It couldn't be just a simple power fantasy where he could get overpowered immediately. He had tomaintain some kind of philosophical balance while collecting magical items and building a harem.
[Legacy Bonds allow you to synchronize your cultivation with powerful individuals who complement your path. These bonds provide stat boosts and unlock advanced abilities. Recommended companions: 3-5 individuals of significant power and diverse alignments.]
"You've got to be kidding me," Zhan Wu groaned, rubbing his temples. "So I need to form a cultivation harem to survive? That is so cringe."
[TERMINOLOGY CORRECTION]
[Strategic Alliance of Complementary Paths]
"Bruh, that's literally the same thing with more words."
The system didn't respond, which somehow made it worse.
Zhan Wu sighed and examined his status more carefully. Foundation Establishment was a low cultivation realm, maybe equal to a top tier athlete in his old world, but with the ability to use energy blasts. His injuries had clearly drained both his physical strength and Qi reserves to dangerous levels.
More concerning were the Righteousness Score and Pragmatism Gauge. The original Zhan Wu had been trained only in the White Path techniques, which was the Heaven Cleansing Edge arts that focused on honor, justice, and fair combat.
But his Pragmatism Gauge was far way too low, meaning he lacked the cunning and ruthlessness needed to survive. This man was too rigid to adapt.
He needed to raise both scores and keep them balanced. Too much righteousness and he would brecome predictable, easy to manipulate and destroyed. Too much pragmatism and he would apparently suffer some kind of cultivation deviation, his spiritual energy would turn on him.
He needed to balance both paths or die trying.
"This is insane," Zhan Wu muttered. He looked around the empty house, then at the blood stained floor where the original Zhan Wu had died, he felt something stir in his chest. It was fear, maybe, or the excitement for the challenge he never thought he would face.
The old Gu Feng had been a cynic who never did accomplish anything real. He had critized every protagonist for their plot armor and dumb decisions, feeling sage in his intellectual superiority he felt above the authors while achieving nothing himself.
Now he had a chance to prove whether his cynicism was justified, or if it was just cowardice.
[NEW QUEST AVAILABLE]
[The Righteous Caravan]
[Quest Description]
[A White Path caravan is under attack by Shadow Sect assasicns three li to the south. They will be completely annihilated if you don't help.]
[Rewards]
[+10 Righteousness Score, Possible companion encounter, Recovery pills]
[Accept Quest?]
[YES] [NO]
"... seriously?"
Zhan Wu looked at his still trembling hands, feeling the sharp pain in his ribs with every breath he took, and hesitated. The smart choice was to hide, heal, and avoid combat entirely.
But his Righteousness Score was already dangerously low. And deep down he knew if he let innocent people die when he could have helped, the system might punish him. Or worse, he might prove that Gu Feng's cynicism had been right all along, that when things got real, he would choose safety over principle.
"Damn it," he whispered, reached out and pressed [YES].
[QUEST ACCEPTED]
[NEW ABILITY UNLOCKED]
[Basic Sovereign's Insight ~ Analyze enemy cultivation level and weaknesses.]
[Cost ~ 2 Qi per use]
Zhan Wu then stumbled toward the door, using the wall to hold himself up. He found a simple jian sword among the supplies in the room, and pushed the door open, limping into the fading daylight.
As he stepped out into the street, he couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous it was. Forty eight hours ago, he had been an overthinking cynic who wasted his life reading webnovels. Now he was limping toward assassins while half dead, trying to maintain balance between good and evil, as a cultivation world character.
—
The sounds of fighting reached Zhan Wu before he saw the caravan. It was the sound of steel clashed against steel, people screamed of pain, and the loud crack of spiritual energy slamming hitting physical bodies. He climbed a low hill and saw the chaotic battlefield spread out below him.
Three wagons were arranged in a rough circle on the road, trying to form a defense. A small group of a dozen defenders wearing white and blue robes fighting for their lives against twice their number of attackers in black.
Bodies were already everywhere, and even in from this far away, Zhan Wu oculd tell the defenders were losing
[Activating Sovereign's Insight]
His vision sharpened as thin golden lines drew themselves over his view, outlining everyone fighting.
[Shadow Sect Asssasins x24]
[Average Cultivation ~ Foundation Establishment (Middle to Late Stage)]
[Technique Foces ~ Assassination arts, poison application, group tactics]
[Weakness ~ Predictable attack patterns, weak to area techniques]
[White Path Disciplines x11]
[Average Cultivation ~ Foundation Establishment (Early to Middle Stage)]
[Technique Focus ~ Straightforward sword arts, defensive formations]
[Notable Individual ~ TARGET HIGHLIGHTED]
The golden outline around one specific person glowed brighter than all the others. A young woman in elegant white robes was fighting right in the middle of the defensive circle.
Her sword technique was remarkable. Each strike released a burst of spiritual energy that pushed back several attackers at once.
But she was clearly slowing down, her movements growing slower with every clash.
[SPECIAL TARGET IDENTIFIED]
[Bai Ling ~ Potential Legacy Bond candidate - High Righteousness aligment]
[Cultivation Level ~ Foundation Establishment (Peak Stage)]