Chapter 1 — A World Where I Don't Belong
The world was silent.
Elias Quinn's senses sharpened in the stillness. His eyes flickered open to a sky so blue it burned into his vision. Towering trees with leaves glistening like a thousand emerald shards surrounded him, their trunks wide and ancient, wrapped in moss and glowing faintly with a strange energy. He lay on a bed of soft grass scattered with crimson flowers whose petals shimmered like delicate glass.
A cold breeze whispered through the forest, carrying an unfamiliar scent, earthy, metallic, and faintly sweet. His heart pounded. Not with fear, but confusion. Every muscle ached, but there was something more disturbing, his body felt different. Younger. Lighter. More agile. He lifted a trembling hand, staring at it as if it belonged to a stranger.
"How… where am I?" His voice cracked, hoarse and weak.
He tried to sit up but his legs trembled like young saplings in a storm. The weight of his new body was alien, unfamiliar. Finally, with effort, he pushed himself upright, leaning against a massive tree trunk covered in glowing runes. The light from the carvings pulsed softly, casting eerie shadows across his pale skin.
The forest was unnaturally quiet. No birdsong, no rustling animals. Just silence, and the faint rustle of leaves in the wind.
Then, a sudden crack from deeper in the woods.
"Who's there?" Elias called out, trying to steady his voice despite the pounding in his chest.
No answer. Just the echo of his words swallowed by the dense trees.
Elias swallowed hard, trying to control the flood of panic rising in his chest.
Focus. Think. Survive.
He closed his eyes briefly and let his mind sift through memories. He was Elias Quinn, a 25-year-old university student on Earth. A car accident. The crash. Pain. And now… this.
This wasn't a dream. Not a coma. He was somewhere else.
Fumbling, he tried to stand fully, his legs shaky but slowly growing steadier. The cold earth beneath his feet was soft and strange, the air thick with power he couldn't yet comprehend.
A sudden flash of images flooded his mind: ancient temples, swirling demons, warriors fighting with blazing swords… a name echoed somewhere in the back of his mind, Nie Li. He'd heard it before, in books, in games… but this was real. Somehow, he was inside the world of Tales of Demons and Gods.
But how? Why?
His head throbbed, but his mind raced.
He tested his voice again, louder this time:
"Hello? Anyone?"
Still no response.
A rustle in the bushes made him whip around.
Out stepped a young boy, no older than ten or twelve, wearing tattered clothes stained with dirt. His eyes widened at Elias, a mix of fear and curiosity.
"You're… not from here, are you?" the boy whispered, stepping closer cautiously.
"No," Elias said hoarsely. "I'm… lost."
The boy studied him carefully. "You should be careful. There are dangerous spirits in these woods."
"Spirits?"
The boy nodded. "Demon spirits. They hunt anyone who's weak. You don't look like you can defend yourself."
Elias swallowed. "Then how will i survive…Can you help me?"
The boy hesitated, then said, "I'm Xiao Lan. I know a place where the fighters train. If you come with me, maybe you can survive."
Elias nodded, rising fully to his feet. His legs no longer shook as much.
"Lead the way."
As they walked, Xiao Lan told him about the world.
"Glory City is nearby," he said. "It's the last safe place. The world outside is full of monsters and danger."
Elias listened carefully. Everything sounded like a dark fairy tale, but the boy's tone was serious.
"What about cultivation? Fighting spirits? Power?" Elias asked.
"That's how people survive," Xiao Lan said. "You need spirit force to fight back. Without it… you die."
Elias clenched his fists, the weight of this new reality settling on him.
"I'll find a way. I have to."
Night fell quickly in the forest, and Elias struggled to keep up, his new body unfamiliar and exhausted. But something inside him burned…a stubborn spark of will.
He wasn't just going to survive.
He was going to rewrite this world's story.
The sky darkened to a deep indigo as they reached the outskirts of a village. Flickering lanterns cast warm glows on rough wooden houses, and distant sounds of laughter and shouting drifted through the air.
"This is where I live," Xiao Lan said quietly. "I'm not strong, but I know people who can help you."
Elias looked at the simple homes, at the children playing in the street, and for a moment felt a pang of something like hope.
Suddenly, a sharp scream pierced the night.
People rushed out of their homes, pointing toward the forest edge where dark shapes moved swiftly.
"Demon spirits!" someone shouted.
Chaos erupted. Villagers grabbed whatever weapons they had, a few sticks, farming tools, and ran toward the threat.
Elias's heart hammered. This was no game. No fantasy.
This was survival.
He felt a strange sensation deep in his chest, a flicker of power he didn't understand.
Without thinking, he stepped forward.
The first demon spirit. a grotesque creature with glowing red eyes and claws like knives, lunged at a villager.
Elias reacted instinctively, grabbing a fallen branch and swinging with everything he had.
The branch shattered on the creature's tough hide.
Pain flared in his arm, but something inside him ignited, a burning force coursing through his veins, sharpening his senses.
He swung again. This time, the branch glowed faintly, slicing through the spirit's arm.
The creature screamed and vanished into smoke.
The villagers stared at Elias in stunned silence.
Xiao Lan ran up to him, eyes wide. "What… what was that?"
Elias gasped for breath. "I don't know… but I think this body has more power than I thought."
That night, as the village quieted, Elias lay awake under the stars, the weight of his new life pressing down.
He was a stranger in a strange world, with memories of Earth fading like mist.
But one thing was clear.
He wouldn't be powerless here.
Not if he had to survive.