Nocten Vale was a well-known author on Earth.
He lived a quiet and disciplined life, spending most of his days writing and reading. He rarely went out to meet people. Social gatherings were something he disliked—places filled with meaningless conversations that he had no interest in.
To him, time was too valuable to waste.
It was a day like any other.
Nocten returned to his room, intending to continue his new book. However, the story had been stuck for nearly a month. No matter how much he thought about it, the middle part refused to move forward.
Ideas came… but none felt right.
He sat at his desk, staring at the unfinished manuscript.
Minutes passed.
Then hours.
Slowly, without realizing it, his thoughts began to blur. His eyes grew heavy, and before he could write a single word—
he fell asleep on the table.
Silence filled the room.
The moment he opened his eyes again—
everything felt different.
His body felt lighter.
Smaller.
Nocten frowned slightly.
"This…?"
He looked down.
Small hands.
A child's body.
For a brief moment, his thoughts paused.
Then, calmly—
"Am I dreaming…?"
But something felt wrong.
Too real.
The air, the sensation, the weight of his body—
none of it felt like a dream.
After a short silence, he slowly sat up.
The bed beneath him was unfamiliar. The room was simple, nothing like the one he remembered.
Nocten stood up and walked toward the door.
Each step felt strange, as if he were adjusting to a body that did not belong to him.
He stepped outside.
The world beyond was completely unknown.
He paused.
Observing.
Thinking.
This… was not Earth.
At that moment, a voice called out—
"Gu Yan!"
Nocten's gaze shifted slightly.
The name echoed in his mind.
Unfamiliar… yet strangely fitting.
He slowly turned his head.
From the distance, a woman approached in haste. Her steps were hurried, her expression filled with worry. As she drew closer, her features became clear—delicate and graceful, a natural beauty.
She reached him quickly.
"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.
"You've been unconscious for a week… you didn't wake up at all."
Nocten remained still.
He neither resisted nor responded as she pulled him into a tight embrace.
His gaze stayed calm.
A week.
So this body had already existed here before he awakened.
His mind quietly processed everything.
The name—Gu Yan.
The unfamiliar surroundings.
This body.
This woman.
A different world.
A different identity.
The conclusion formed naturally.
Nocten Vale…
was dead.
And now—
he had been reborn.
As Gu Yan.
Nocten observed the woman quietly.
Her reaction… her urgency… the way she held him—
this level of affection was not something given lightly.
She must be this body's mother.
He looked at her, his expression calm.
"Who… are you?"
The words were simple.
But deliberate.
Nocten understood his situation clearly.
He knew nothing about this world, nothing about this identity. If he pretended to remember, it would only create flaws.
And flaws… would be noticed.
A week of unconsciousness.
A perfect explanation.
Memory loss.
The woman froze.
Her eyes widened, then slowly filled with tears.
"Y-You… can't remember me?" her voice trembled. "I… I'm your mother…"
She held him tighter.
"I'm Su Yan…"
Soon, a man with broad shoulders, appearing to be in his thirties, came hurriedly toward them.
"You finally woke up… how are you? Are you okay?"
Su Yan quickly began explaining the situation to her husband.
After listening quietly, the man nodded and looked at Gu Yan.
"For now, go and rest," he said calmly. "I will explain everything to you slowly later."
Gu Yan nodded.
Without saying much, he turned and walked back to the room he had come from.
After returning, he sat down in silence.
Slowly, he began to understand the situation.
He had been reincarnated.
Not just into another world—
but into a world of cultivation.
The use of clan names… the structure… the people—
everything pointed toward it.
Gu Yan had a good grasp of such worlds.
After all, he had read many cultivation novels.
And he had written many as well.
Back on Earth—
he was Nocten Vale.
But no matter what—
he still did not understand how he had come here.
Everything felt real.
Too real.
And for some reason, he did not want to accept it.
Gu Yan remained silent for a while.
Then slowly, he lay back on the bed.
His thoughts were heavy.
Unsettled.
Tomorrow…
He decided to leave it for later.
This body was still that of a four-year-old child.
No matter how sharp his mind was, it could not fully keep up with his level of thinking.
Fatigue began to set in.
His eyes slowly closed.
For now—
rest was necessary.
He would think about everything… tomorrow.