Chapter 2: Before the Gates Open
Morning arrived quietly.
Sunlight slipped through the thin curtains, falling across the worn desk and the stack of admission documents I had checked more than once the night before. Unlike my first life, I didn't feel excitement or nervous anticipation.
Only calm.
The kind of calm that came from knowing exactly how things would unfold—if I allowed them to.
I washed up and stood in front of the mirror for a moment longer than necessary. This body was young, untrained, and fragile. No calluses. No hidden scars. No internal circulation of breath.
Yet my eyes… they were wrong.
They no longer belonged to an eighteen-year-old.
"Slow," I muttered. "We start slow."
Rushing had been my first mistake in my previous life. Talent attracted attention, and attention attracted knives.
Downstairs, the smell of fried eggs filled the air.
"Mo, you're going to be late!" my mother called from the kitchen.
I paused at the door.
Her voice tightened something in my chest. In my past life, I had buried her quietly after my second year in law school. Overwork. Stress. A medical condition I never had time to fully investigate.
This time, I stepped into the kitchen and watched her movements carefully.
Alive. Healthy. Slightly tired—but alive.
"I'm coming," I replied evenly.
My father sat at the table, newspaper folded beside his bowl of porridge. He worked in a small logistics company, earning just enough to keep our family stable but far from wealthy. In my previous life, this background had made me invisible at university.
Invisible was good.
"First day at university," he said without looking up. "Don't cause trouble."
I smiled faintly. "I won't."
That wasn't a lie.
I simply wouldn't get caught.
—
The city bustled as usual.
Buses roared past. Vendors shouted. Students in new clothes gathered in small clusters, excitement written openly on their faces.
I stood among them, an ordinary freshman carrying an ordinary backpack.
Yet my attention wasn't on the campus banners or the orientation signs.
It was on people.
Three meters to my left, a tall young man laughed too loudly, posture loose but center of gravity perfectly balanced. Martial training. At least Body Tempering.
Near the entrance gate, a girl leaned against a railing, scrolling on her phone. Her breathing was slow, controlled. Inner Breath, suppressed deliberately.
Interesting.
The hidden world was already here.
University had always been a neutral ground—surface law above, martial rules below. A place where heirs observed one another before choosing sides.
I walked through the gates.
The moment my foot crossed the threshold, something subtle shifted. Not pressure—expectation.
In my previous life, I hadn't noticed this until my second year. Back then, I had been too focused on grades, on internships, on proving myself.
This time, I observed.
The law faculty building stood slightly apart from the rest of campus, its architecture rigid and severe. Fitting.
I headed toward the registration area.
"Name?" the student volunteer asked, barely looking up.
"Chen Mo."
She typed quickly, then paused. Her eyes flicked up to my face.
"Law faculty?"
"Yes."
She nodded and handed me my documents. "Orientation hall, third floor."
Simple.
Yet as I turned to leave, someone stepped into my path.
"Chen Mo."
The voice was lazy, tinged with amusement.
I stopped.
A young man stood before me, tall, well-dressed, confidence radiating from every careless movement. His watch alone cost more than my family's yearly income.
Liang Hao.
In my previous life, he had been my first enemy,and my first lesson.
"Do we know each other?" I asked calmly.
He smiled, eyes narrowing slightly. "Not yet. But we will."
He leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Law faculty isn't for people like you. Transfer while you still can."
Around us, students pretended not to listen, though their ears strained openly.
In my past life, I had swallowed this humiliation.
Not today.
I met his gaze, expression unchanged. "Is that legal advice?"
For a split second, his smile stiffened.
Then he laughed. "You're funny."
I stepped around him. "And you're blocking a public pathway. Article 234 of the civil code. Minor obstruction, but still actionable."
His laughter died completely.
Behind me, I felt several gazes sharpen.
Good.
Let them notice—but not fear.
As I walked away, my pulse remained steady. No anger. No satisfaction.
Only confirmation.
The board had been set.
Liang Hao would push.
Martial heirs would observe.
The law faculty would become a battlefield.
I reached the orientation hall and took a seat near the back.
As students filed in, a familiar presence brushed against my senses,subtle, restrained, yet undeniably sharp.
Someone sat beside me.
I turned my head slightly.
A young woman with long dark hair sat upright, posture perfect, eyes forward. Her expression was cold, distant, as though the noise around her didn't exist.
Su Qingxue.
So we meet again.
In my previous life, she had stood at the opposite end of the courtroom from me,once. Just once. And I had lost that case.
I looked forward again, lips curling faintly.
University hadn't even properly begun.
And already, fate was moving exactly as I remembered.