Chapter Two: The Sacred Tome Chooses Its Master
The sensation of being blasted away made Li Qian Feng feel as if she were tossed into a washing machine—spinning, drifting... Then, suddenly, the dizzying motion shifted into a precipitous plummet.
“Aaah—aaah—aaah—”
With a loud thump, she finally collided with solid ground. Her face hit first—an authentic mouthful of dirt, if ever there was one!
Pain surged fiercely, darkness clouded her vision, and countless stars danced before her eyes. Sprawled on the earth, Li Qian Feng shook her head repeatedly before she managed to open her eyes.
Sand, a babbling brook, and a lush, verdant forest—blurred at first, but she glimpsed a place of clear mountains and green waters, a haven of beauty.
Her gaze finally settled on a nearby jagged blue stone, and she collapsed onto the soft sand by the stream, cold sweat pouring from her body in terror.
The stone was less than thirty centimeters from her. Had she landed on it, given her face-first descent, she would surely have been splattered with blood, her organs crushed.
The world spun, the earth revolved; Li Qian Feng, miraculously surviving, was so dizzy she couldn't move a muscle. All she could do was lie there, limbs splayed on the sand.
Gradually, the dizziness ebbed, and sensation crept back to her body.
Pain! Nothing but pain and numbness. Not a single part of her body was spared.
Her throat burned, parched. Water, she needed water... To her left, a stream gurgled nearby, but her body felt heavier than a mountain; she lacked even the strength to crawl.
Her left hand stretched as far as it could, still unable to reach. The water flowed merrily, just a fist's distance from her fingertips.
Damn that fist’s distance.
Gritting her teeth, she braced her right hand against the boulder, let out a shout, and finally managed to roll over.
A simple movement, ordinarily effortless, now nearly knocked the breath from her.
Darkness clouded her eyes again, and stars flashed anew. Lying flat on her back, arms and legs spread wide, Li Qian Feng gulped deep breaths to steady herself.
Her university survival course hadn’t been in vain; she calculated perfectly. That roll left her right hand in the water, but her body remained dry.
Her mouth was full of sand, lips numb. Whether the stream was poisoned or not... none of that mattered. Water is the essence of life. After gulping it down, Li Qian Feng finally felt herself revived.
Her body continued to ache, but she could now sit up shakily. Only then did she notice her shoes and socks were gone, and her black suit skirt had been shredded into rags, barely covering her modesty. Her exposed skin was covered in bloody little cuts.
She took stock of herself... Fortunately, everything was still intact.
Her hair tie was missing, her ponytail now a messy mop.
She touched her face.
Ouch, that hurt! Her lips were swollen like sausages.
With a cry, Li Qian Feng abandoned any thought of using water as a mirror—what was the point? She knew her face was a disaster zone. Even goddesses would shun such a face-first descent to earth, let alone a mere mortal woman like herself.
Recalling what had just transpired, she felt more wronged than Dou E.
Who was this “Feng San”? She didn’t even know him.
And what was that nonsense about “dying by my hand is your privilege”? Life is precious, and she wished for nothing more than longevity.
She suddenly remembered and quickly checked her neck. Lucky! The phoenix jade pendant was still there, caked in sand, its red cord now a dull gray, the color hidden.
What on earth was this thing? Earlier, the jade had emitted a blinding arc of white light, countering the black-robed sorcerer’s spell. Then, it exploded. The shockwave sent her flying, and she landed in this unknown place.
She untied the pendant and placed it in her palm, wanting to study it closely.
Unexpectedly, as her blood touched the jade, it was instantly absorbed into the sand coating the pendant.
A crisp female voice rang in her mind: “Heavenly Tome: Master recognized.”
Immediately, two lines of golden characters appeared in her mind:
Species: Master;
Rank: Acquired;
My god, ghosts in broad daylight!
The phoenix jade suddenly felt like a hot potato, and Li Qian Feng let out a scream, instinctively tossing it away.
With a splash, the sand-coated jade fell into the stream, sinking quietly to the bottom.
The golden characters vanished. The world returned to peace—blue sky, green trees, birdsong, and the fragrance of flowers.
Remembering how the jade had saved her life, Li Qian Feng bit her finger, hesitated for a long time, then finally reached into the stream and retrieved the pendant.
Another strange thing happened. The sand seemed to have rooted itself, forming a shell around the jade, transforming the once fine mutton-fat jade into something as gray and unremarkable as any ordinary pebble.
Oddities abound, but this was especially bizarre. Li Qian Feng refused to believe it! She washed, scratched, even bit at it... She even picked up a sharp stone and scraped with all her might.
Whatever trick she tried, nothing worked. The sandy crust was harder than gold, not a single grain came off!
Nor did any more strange characters appear in her mind.
Li Qian Feng tugged at the “red” cord. Though the color had faded to brown, its strength remained undiminished. She wondered where the old director had found such a sturdy thread. Truly a quality product!
Was there some chemical reaction inside? Maybe she was just concussed and hallucinating? She put the “pebble” back on, planning to have it properly appraised by jade experts once she returned.
By now, Li Qian Feng had recovered much of her strength, but her stomach protested loudly.
She looked up at the sky. The blazing sun was overhead—it was still noon! She’d been blasted away around eleven o’clock, she reckoned. Given police rescue speed, she’d have to rely on herself for now.
“Damn broom spirit! Ridiculous lunatic! Damn demon...” Li Qian Feng cursed the three black crows as she surveyed her surroundings, gritting her teeth and struggling to stand.
But the more she looked, the more shocked she became!
Heavens, ancient trees towered on both sides of the stream, endless in every direction.
Rare species like camphor and gingko were abundant, some so massive it took two people to encircle their trunks. Those as thick as sea bowls—well, they’d be embarrassed to call themselves “trees.” Chop one down and you could trade it for a fortune.
As far as she knew, the cemetery had once been a few barren hills on the city outskirts. In recent years, the city government had organized tree-planting days, adding pines and cypresses for greenery. Yet, even with the best fertilizer, trees shouldn't grow so robustly, let alone mutate.
What place was this? This was beyond fantasy!
Li Qian Feng rubbed her eyes in disbelief, muttering, “A dream, a dream, I’m definitely dreaming...”
Just then, a dull thud struck the back of her neck, as if something blunt had tapped her.
Someone struck with a black stick! That was her first instinct.
Before she could utter a sound, darkness swallowed her again.
When she awoke, the first thing she saw was the dark, thatched roof above her. Pain flooded her body like a tide.
She lay on bare earth. Li Qian Feng groaned, instinctively moved, and immediately broke out in cold sweat—her hands seemed to be bound.
She hurriedly raised her hands for inspection, finding her wrists tied with a finger-thick brown vine. It was looped only once, appearing simple and feeble, harmless even, but the more she struggled, the tighter it became. Another uncanny occurrence!
Who did this!
“Ji gu, ji li gu...” A shadow flickered, someone shouted excitedly, and ran off with a patter.
He moved so fast Li Qian Feng didn’t even get a glimpse of his back—only saw a grass curtain at the doorway swaying. In the harsh sunlight, she vaguely made out a dark, muscular leg outside.
There was a guard!
Disaster! All evidence pointed to her being kidnapped.
Anger gave way to pure fear and anxiety.
But fear wouldn’t save her. Li Qian Feng took several deep breaths to steady herself, nervously surveying her surroundings.
It was a crude, circular hut: nearly round, with a central wooden pillar about twenty centimeters thick. It looked as if layers of dry grass had been piled atop a half-meter-deep pit, then covered with a thatched roof. No windows, just a door. Empty, not a single piece of furniture.
An animal shed? It seemed familiar. Where had she seen it?
Li Qian Feng struggled to sit, and discovered her ragged suit was gone, replaced by a dirt-colored rough linen... Well, she could barely call it a “robe”: clearly handmade, thick, coarse, and heavy, cut in a sleeveless, round-neck style, extending past her knees.
The “pebble” pendant remained on her neck. Her wounds were covered with a layer of blackish green, muddy-looking stuff—a homemade herbal paste, she guessed.
She sniffed, and confirmed it was indeed wild herbal mud.
She gingerly touched her cheek; her face was coated too. She groaned inwardly—this was surely the end of her beauty.
What kind of kidnappers were these? Even hostages have rights! Couldn't they have used proper antiseptics? What if she got an infection, or tetanus? She didn’t demand legendary healing remedies, but couldn’t they at least have Yunnan Baiyao?
Outside, footsteps approached—a group, by the sound, hurrying over.
The main event was here! Her heart pounded; Li Qian Feng clenched her fists, eyes fixed on the door.
The curtain lifted, and a crowd entered. Men and women, all seemingly of status and age. The once empty hut became crowded.
They wore short robes of linen or animal hide, barefoot, hair loose, with colorful feathers stuck in their hair, stone or bone ornaments hanging from foreheads, necks, waists...
Thunder rumbled within her—Li Qian Feng was stunned inside and out.
As an outstanding archaeology graduate, a rising star in her field, she finally realized why the hut seemed so familiar!
She had a ceramic model of a Banpo clan dwelling in her office—a souvenir from her internship at the Banpo site, which she dusted daily.
This hut was its real-life counterpart!
This scene was a perfect recreation of primitive society life!
Was Li Qian Feng now a fashionable trendsetter, swept into the tide of transmigration?
Heavenly Tome 2, Chapter Two: Tome Recognizes Its Master—End of update.