Chapter 2: A Soul Reborn
As Lin Xuan's soul dissolved into that endless light, strange sensations washed over him in waves.
One moment, he felt dense and heavy—a boulder sinking into unfathomable depths. The next, he became soft and formless, flowing like water through an invisible river. Then, without warning, he stretched and twisted like rubber pulled from every direction, thin yet unbroken.
Time lost all meaning.
There was no up or down, no left or right—only the constant metamorphosis of his soul's state.
Yet Lin did not panic. Not truly.
This must be the process of traveling to another world...
He had chosen this. Wished for this. Compared to the endless despair of his previous life, this chaos felt almost... hopeful.
After what might have been seconds or centuries, a distant brightness appeared—at first just a faint dot in the void, then expanding like a sun rising over a dead horizon. The light grew closer, closer, until it swallowed him whole.
The moment it touched him, agony erupted.
His soul was torn apart strand by strand. This wasn't pain of flesh and bone—it was deeper, sharper, cutting into the very essence of his being. If pain in his previous life was like knives and bullets, this was like countless invisible hands ripping him to shreds. Thousands of red-hot needles stabbed into him every second, piercing not his body but his soul directly.
Lin tried to scream. To shout. To curse.
But a soul has no mouth. No throat. No lungs.
His agony could only echo endlessly within his own awareness.
The pain rose and fell like waves of fire, burning everything they touched. Time dissolved once more; there was only torment.
Finally, when he had no strength left even to think, his consciousness faded.
---
He didn't know how long passed before awareness slowly returned.
This time, there was no blinding light, no soul-tearing pain. Instead, he felt... cramped.
He tried to open his eyes, but they refused to move. They weren't just closed—they felt incomplete, as if they hadn't fully formed. He attempted to move his arms and legs, but they were weak and uncoordinated. His body was small, soft, strangely unfamiliar.
Everything around him was wet and warm. A thick liquid surrounded him, supporting his tiny form. It was neither air nor water, yet he floated easily within it. The space itself felt narrow and enclosed—like being inside a small, living cave.
What is this place?
Before he could piece anything together, a sound rang out.
"Aaaahhhh!"
A woman's scream—raw with pain, muffled as if heard through layers of flesh and fluid, yet carrying desperation and strain that reached him clearly.
Lin froze.
More voices followed. Women, hurried and anxious.
"Madam, hold on! The child is about to be born!"
"The doctor is on the way, just a moment more, madam!"
The words passed faintly into his enclosed world, but they were clear enough.
In that instant, understanding struck Lin like lightning.
Wait... this place... this liquid... the screams outside...
I'm in a womb.
He went silent, processing.
Then... this must be my mother. My new mother.
A complicated feeling surged in his heart. He thought of his previous life—how he never knew his real parents, how he died alone in a dark room with no one to call his name or hold his hand.
And now, he was here. Inside the body of a woman fighting in pain to bring him into the world.
He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
He sighed inwardly. That god... He said He would give me a fresh start, but I didn't think He meant this fresh. At least let me reincarnate as someone already born, ah...
But even as he complained, a tiny warmth sprouted in his chest.
A brand-new life. A new beginning. A mother who risked pain for him, and a world that had not yet disappointed him.
What more could he ask for?
---
Outside, the woman screamed again, louder than before. Her voice cracked, but beneath the pain lay determination.
"I... I... ahhh!"
"Madam, breathe! Just a little more!"
"The head is coming out! Push, madam, push!"
Lin felt his small body being squeezed. The once-comfortable space tightened around him, pressing from all sides. He was forced downward—the exit opening ahead. The warm liquid flowed and shifted as he moved. Pressure built around his head, his shoulders, his chest. He was pushed, pulled, guided forward through a narrow passage.
It was uncomfortable.
No—it was suffocating.
Just when he thought his tiny body would be crushed—
A rush of cold air grazed his skin for the first time.
The world split open.
Light—far gentler than that in the void, yet still piercing to his undeveloped eyes—touched his body. His skin felt cold as wetness was replaced by open air.
He had left the womb.
His tiny lungs, unused until now, instinctively filled with air. The strange, burning sensation of breathing for the first time triggered a reflex.
He cried.
A weak, newborn cry escaped his throat.
"Waaah... waaaah..."
For Lin, it was strange. His consciousness remained clear, but his body moved on its own—driven by instinct.
---
"It's a boy!"
"It's a boy! The young master has been born!" one of the women shouted, her voice filled with excitement and relief.
Lin's hazy vision showed only blurry shapes and indistinct colors. Everything was bright, noisy, bewildering. Yet through the chaos, he could feel something.
Joy. Relief. Warmth.
Hearing their cheers, Lin felt something stir inside him.
Happiness... Is this what it feels like to be welcomed?
In his past life, he couldn't even remember his birth. He never saw his real mother, never heard her voice. He never knew if she cried, laughed, or suffered when he came into the world.
But now, he could feel it clearly.
Someone had struggled, cried, and fought... just so he could be born.
A pair of gentle hands lifted him up. He felt cloth rub against his skin as they wiped the fluids from his body and wrapped him in warm fabric.
"Careful, careful. Show him to Madam," one of the women whispered.
Lin felt himself being carried slowly. The sound of labored breathing grew louder as he approached someone.
"Madam, look," the maid said with a smile trembling with emotion. "Look at the young master... how handsome he is."
The woman on the bed—exhausted, drenched in sweat—lifted her head slightly. Her vision must have been as blurry as his, but her voice carried endless softness.
"Yes..." she said in a weak yet joyfully trembling tone. "He is... my child..."
Lin couldn't see her face clearly, but he could feel her warmth, hear her love in that simple sentence.
His heart tightened.
So... this is my mother.
Back on Earth, he had never once heard such a voice calling him her child. Now, in this new life, the first words he heard from his mother were filled with affection.
---
Just as the atmosphere warmed, the door suddenly burst open with a loud bang.
Heavy footsteps rushed into the room.
"Honey! Honey, are you alright?" a deep, anxious male voice called out.
Lin felt the woman's body relax slightly, as if comforted by that voice. She managed a small, tired smile.
"I'm fine... look at him..." she whispered.
The man walked closer—hurried yet careful. Lin felt himself being gently transferred from one pair of arms to another. Bigger, stronger arms that trembled ever so slightly as they held him.
The man's voice shook.
"It's my child..." he murmured, almost not believing his own words. "I... I am a father now..."
Lin couldn't see the man's face clearly, but he could feel the warmth of his body, the strength of his grip, the subtle trembling that revealed how overwhelmed he was.
Something warm dripped onto Lin's tiny cheeks.
Drop.
Drop.
Those were not the fluids of birth.
They were tears.
His father was crying.
In his previous life, no one had cried when he was born. No one cried when he died.
But in this new life, from the very first moment, there were tears waiting for him—tears of joy.
---
The man took a deep breath, steadying himself. Then, in a firm tone, he said:
"Everyone, leave. Give my wife and child some peace."
"Yes, Master," the women replied respectfully.
Their footsteps shuffled as they left the room one by one. The sound gradually faded, replaced by quiet stillness.
Through this small detail, Lin reached another conclusion.
To command so many maids so casually... this family must at least be wealthy. Not bad at all.
Inwardly, he shouted at the heavens: At least He gave me a good starting point this time!
He didn't know what status this family held, what kind of world this truly was, or what dangers awaited him in the future.
But as he lay in his father's arms, listening to his mother's faint breathing, feeling the gentle rise and fall of their chests and the warmth of their bodies...
For the first time in a very, very long time, Lin Xuan felt something he had almost forgotten.
He felt like he belonged.
Author's Note: This chapter is significantly longer than Chapter 1, which was just an introduction. From now on, every chapter will maintain this length as our story truly begins. Please don't forget to give me feedback—I truly appreciate your thoughts. Thank you for reading! ❤️