A golden-blue sphere with a faint glow descended from the sky. It drifted silently through the clouds, moving eastward while slowly lowering itself toward a small village.
After reaching an old house at the edge of the village, the sphere seeped through a cracked window. A soft light filled the dark room from inside. The sphere hovered for a moment in the air as if observing the surroundings. Then it drifted toward an inner room where a small child lay motionless on a dirty bed.
The sphere floated above the boy's chest. The glow brightened slightly, then slowly sank into his body and vanished without a trace.
The boy was painfully thin. His face was pale, and his skin clung tightly to his bones as if there was no flesh beneath it. Blue veins were clear across his arms and legs. His ribs were visible even through his clothes. Dark circles hung beneath his eyes. On his left leg, two small puncture-like wounds were visible with a dark patch around them.
He looked less like a living child and more like a corpse.
Beside him, another child sat quietly on a chair a short distance away. His eyes were closed as if he were lost in thought or remembering something important. He looked much healthier than the boy on the bed, although a careful look still showed signs of malnutrition.
Suddenly, a faint green light began to rise from the boy lying on the bed.
The glow wrapped around his thin body. The dark spot on his left leg faded slowly. The purple color grew lighter until only a faint mark remained. The dark circles under his eyes began to disappear. His pale face slowly gained color, and his complexion improved before the eyes.
The boy's fingers twitched.
A sharp breath escaped from his lips.
"Haa… haa…" I gasped, air rushing into my lungs as if I had been drowning. My chest rose and fell again and again, each breath rough and desperate. Sweat rolled down my forehead and my mouth felt completely dry.
"P… Paani… water…" I whispered unconsciously. My voice was barely audible because of the thirst burning in my throat.
The boy on the chair opened his eyes the moment he heard me. He stood up so quickly that the chair almost toppled over. His eyes were wide with shock and relief.
"Jin. Ni hai hao ma?" he asked in a language I could not understand. His voice trembled as he leaned closer.
"P… Paani. I want water," I said again. My throat felt on fire.
For a moment he froze. His face showed surprise mixed with joy. Then, with a shaky smile, he said "Abhi laata hoon."
He rushed out of the room without wasting a second.
I looked around slowly. The room was dark and the furniture was old. Cracks ran across the walls. The only source of light was the window.
A sudden headache stabbed through my mind. I closed my eyes and red lines appeared in my vision. Images and voices began to flash rapidly.
A rough voice echoed in my mind. "Zheng Jin. This is his name. Younger twin brother of Zheng Yan."
Then I saw the image of a woman's lifeless body lying on the ground. Her eyes were open and empty.
A tall man held two crying children, me and Yan. His eyes were full of grief and exhaustion.
The images shifted. Eating with Yan. Playing together. Sleeping side by side.
Then came the sound of coughing. A deep, rough cough that never stopped. The man lay wrapped in an old blanket. His body trembled every day and he grew weaker. His face turned paler with each sunrise.
Then he stopped moving one morning. His eyes remained closed and his chest was still.
Yan screamed first and shook him again and again. I did not understand what death meant at that time, but something broke inside me. Tears streamed down my face before I understood why.
The memory of our cries echoed through the small house.
Villagers came. They placed the man in a coffin. Yan and I were given white cloth to wear and taken near the coffin to cry. Then they buried him.
We never laughed after that day. A man from the next house gave us some food every day because of an agreement he had made with our father in front of the village. His kindness was mixed with curses that we could still hear whenever he delivered the food.
As the memories flowed, knowledge of language and characters poured into my mind. The dizziness grew stronger.
Yan entered the room again with a small clay cup of water. He knelt beside me.
"Here. Slowly," he said in that same strange language. Somehow I understood a part of it.
He lifted my head and pressed the cup to my lips. The water was cool and tasted like life. It slid down my dry throat and eased the burning pain.
"Rest. The pain will go away," he said softly and helped me lie down. I closed my eyes again and let the memories settle.
Some time later, I learned that the original owner of this body was named Zheng Jin, three years old. His brother Zheng Yan was a few minutes older. Their mother died while giving birth to them. Their father, a farmer and part-time hunter, succumbed to a strange illness.
Yan might be Steppe if my guess is right. He is the only one who would understand Hindi in this place.
I opened my eyes. Yan sat on the chair again. His eyes were closed and his head rested against the back of the chair. He looked calm, almost asleep.
"Avinash. Is it you?" I whispered. Steppe's real name, something only the two of us knew.
His eyes opened at once. Surprise flashed across his face, then a grin spread slowly. He chuckled and said, "If it was not me then who else, idiot."
A wave of relief washed over me. I was not alone. His smile faded slowly and he leaned forward.
" Prateek, Are your memories fully synced?" he asked. His voice was steady but I could hear the worry.
"Yes. Everything is clear now. What about you? How long before me did you reincarnate?"
"I am not exactly sure. It felt like around half an hour. Memories and language knowledge hit me the moment I woke up. The headache was horrible," he replied.
"The language came from that module the screen gave us. Did you see the same thing?"
"Yes. A large blue screen appeared in my dream. It said we died by mistake and it cannot send us back, so it reincarnated us together as compensation."
"The same thing happened to me." I nodded. Hearing that confirmed that none of it was a hallucination.
"By the way, how did you die so suddenly? The screen said you died with me. I talked to you last night. It feels suspicious."
"I died in an accident," he said in a plain voice. There was sadness in his tone. I did not ask more.
"You know this is a dangerous cultivation world. We should not talk too much about the past right now," I said quietly.
Yan let out a slow breath. "If I remember correctly, the system told me this world contains a strange energy. Living beings and even objects can absorb it. That energy grants strength powerful enough to shake the earth. The power someone gains depends on how much of it they can absorb. I was given some money, knowledge of the language, and something similar to a recovery boost."
"A similar thing happened to me," I replied. I confirmed from his words that he had no idea this world came from a novel. He never read novels, no matter how many times I tried to make him read. Should I tell him this world belongs to a story as well as plotlines which i remember?
"hiss" A sound came and disturb my thoughts.
I froze. "Did you hear that?"
"Yes. It sounded like a snake."
"Let us check."
"No," Yan said quickly as he grabbed my wrist. "It is dangerous."
"If we do not find where it is hiding then it will be even more dangerous when it moves."
"We should call someone. Let the adults handle it."
The hissing came again, louder this time. Something moved closer.
The next hiss was sharp and clear. Yan and I exchanged a tense look. Neither of us wanted to go, but both of us understood we had no choice.
"I will check and you call someone," I said after calming myself.
Yan opened his mouth but I cut him off. "I have dealt with snakes before."
"I will come with you. After that we will call someone," Yan said.
"Alright."
We stepped out quietly. The house was small, so the next room was only a few steps away. It was slightly brighter than ours.
The left side had an old wooden shelf filled with tools. The right side connected to a small stove.
A hiss came again.
The sound echoed from inside the stove.
"The snake is inside the stove. Be careful," Yan whispered.
"You too." I lowered my body slowly to get a better angle. Yan stood behind me and peered from a distance.
After two slow steps, I saw red eyes gleaming in the darkness. They stared back at me. A chill ran down my spine. Those eyes carried a terrifying intensity and I felt certain the creature was extremely venomous. I could not tell the species. Sweat formed on my forehead instantly.
"Call someone now," I whispered. My body was too weak to safely deal with something like this.
Yan stepped back carefully, keeping his eyes on the snake.
I moved toward the shelf. Sickle, staff, knives, clay pots, metal utensils and wool tools were arranged there.
"I found something," I said. I pulled out a wooden spear. Its head was carved into a V shape. It was a simple domestic weapon, not very useful, but better than nothing.
I turned back toward the stove and waited, hoping someone would arrive soon.
Before I could even take another breath, a black shape shot out from behind the stove. The creature slithered toward me with a speed that made my heart jump.
I staggered back in shock. The snake stopped just a few steps away and raised the upper part of its body. It stared straight at me. Its scales were dark and glossy, reflecting the faint light of the room. Its eyes glowed like cold drops of ink, unblinking and sharp.
It hissed. The sound was thin and sharp enough to cut through the air.
I froze. I didn't want to strike first. I couldn't even recognize what species it was and I had no idea what it was capable of. Going near it felt like stepping into death itself. All I could do was pray that someone would come running.
The snake tensed again. Its jaw opened slightly and a spray of venom shot out.
I threw myself back just in time. The venom hit the floor where I had been standing and left a faint sizzling mark. I began to move to the left in a slow, circular way, inching toward the doorway.
The snake realized I was getting away. Its body tightened like a pulled bowstring. In the next instant, it leaped forward and slithered straight toward me.
I swung the spear at its head on instinct. The wooden shaft smacked against its snout, and the snake recoiled violently. Its movement was frighteningly fast, like water gliding over polished stone.
I tried to strike again in mid-step, but the snake twisted its body and avoided the blow with ease.
It slid sideways and coiled up, its tongue flicking repeatedly. The gesture looked mocking, almost taunting.
"Damn you," I muttered.
Then the snake lunged.
I thrust the spear forward with both hands. The tip struck its back, pierced through the scales, and pinned the creature to the ground. The snake writhed wildly. The shaft of the spear bent under the pressure of its muscles.
The snake twisted up the length of the spear, wrapping part of its body around the pole. I could feel its strength through the wood. It was trying to rip the weapon out of my hands.
I froze for a moment, panting. My grip on the spear was trembling, not from fear now but from the rush of anger still boiling inside me. The snake's body writhed weakly, its wounds leaking dark blood that mixed with the mud into a sticky mess.
"Jin, STOP. What are you doing?" Yan's voice came again, louder this time, almost cracking.
I turned my head slightly but did not pull the spear away. My breath came in sharp bursts."He attacked first," I said. My voice sounded tight, almost unfamiliar. "He kept attacking. What do you expect me to do?"
Yan took a step closer, but cautiously, as if any sudden movement might set me off or draw the snake's last strike. His eyes were wide. "I know, but you are stabbing it like madman."
The snake twitched again. Its head lifted barely an inch, jaw distorting as if it wanted another bite. That single movement lit the anger in my chest again.
"See that?" I snapped. "It is still trying. Even now."
I pressed the spear down hard on its neck, forcing its head back into the mud. The snake hissed again, weaker, trembling in pain. For a moment its eyes met mine, dark and cold, and something in that stare made my own heartbeat stumble.
"Jin." Yan grabbed my arm. Not forceful, just firm enough. "It is done. It cannot fight anymore. Let the Uncle deal with it."
I finally looked up and saw a man standing at the doorway, clutching a packet in his hands. His face was pale and scared. I recognized him. The man who cursed Zheng Jin and Zheng Yan every chance he got. The same man my father had a contract with.
He was staring at me like I was the monster.
"What?" I asked suddenly.
"Nothing," he said awkwardly. "It got late to deliver the food, and Yan said a snake came into the house, so I... came to see."
His voice trembled. He looked like one wrong movement from me would make him drop everything and run.
Yan pointed toward the corridor. "Uncle, bring the long stick. And something to cover the body."
The man nodded quickly, almost stumbling. "Yes… yes, I'll bring it right now." Then he rushed out, footsteps uneven.
My muscles stayed rigid for a few seconds. The rage in me still burned, refusing to die down.
I exhaled slowly, breath shaking.
Then I finally pulled the spear back. The snake's torn body collapsed into the mud, limp and silent.
Only then did I realize how fast my heart was beating, loud enough to thrum in my ears. My cheek still felt cold from where the venom had almost touched me.
Yan looked at me with anger and worry mixed together. "You scared me for a moment."
I wiped sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand. "It scared me first."