Chapter One: Deadly Affection

Before the enormous portrait of a family of three, painstakingly pieced together from seeds of every color, Lin Qingyun suddenly froze, his expression turning blank. Where no one else could see, his hands trembled, and the youthful, delicate features of his eighteen-year-old face transformed in an instant.

A profound shadow crept into the depths of his eyes. His hand slowly rose to touch the painting—the one that by all rights should have been destroyed long ago. Not just the painting, but this manor and the city itself ought to have been reduced to ruins. Even he himself, had he not already perished under the surprise assault of divine beasts and the cultivator civilizations?

“You stubborn child, why do you believe everything others say? You’ve only just reached the Vermilion Initial Stage—even if the ruins permit those at your level to enter, the dangers within are countless. Absolutely not, you cannot go.”

“What’s more, we can’t even be sure whether your uncle and aunt ventured into Ruin Number Eighteen. If it were certain, would I even let you search for them? I’d have gone myself already. No matter what, your second uncle is a master at the Soaring Clouds Stage.”

In the grand manor atop Sea City’s highest peak, Lin Kunshan, with a square, imposing face, thick brows like swords, and eyes bright and deep as the sea, puffed on a cigar, chiding Lin Qingyun. Yet beneath the stern words, concern was plain.

“Qingyun’s determination to look for his uncle and aunt is filial devotion. Besides, we’ve prepared plenty of pills and equipment for him. I’ve even selected over a dozen experts to accompany him. What could possibly go wrong? Last time Ruin Number Eighteen opened, your uncle and aunt vanished mysteriously; most likely, they entered the ruins. It’s said the place is teeming with medicinal herbs, and both your uncle and aunt are obsessed with alchemy research. How could they resist such a place?”

Dressed in extravagant attire, every piece of jewelry on her enough to be the life’s work of an ordinary person, the slightly plump Zhang Xueyi packed Lin Qingyun’s bag as she countered Lin Kunshan’s objections.

One blocked, one encouraged, but as Lin Qingyun stood before the family portrait in the living room, his mind cleared. He realized he had been reborn.

He was back at the most pivotal moment of his life—thirty years ago, in 2124—about to set out for Ruin Number Eighteen to search for his parents, missing for a year.

He had just graduated high school, though, with his parents gone, he had barely attended his final year, exhausting every means to find them.

“Qingyun, are you listening to me? Don’t believe your second aunt’s words. I’m telling you, even if your parents did enter Ruin Number Eighteen, we have money and connections. The Huaxia Alliance itself would send people to search; there’s no need for you to go yourself. Haven’t you heard that the scion of a wealthy family should not sit beneath a precarious roof?”

Lin Kunshan’s stern voice pulled Lin Qingyun from his thoughts.

Hearing these words, so full of concern and righteousness, Lin Qingyun felt a wild urge to laugh aloud—especially at the way his second uncle and second aunt played their parts, one strict, one gentle. In those days, he had been deeply moved by their act. When clinging to life in the ruins, bones shattered, drifting through underground rivers, he had even regretted not heeding his uncle’s warnings.

But only later did he understand: it was his second uncle who had secretly informed him that his parents were in Ruin Number Eighteen. And during his absence, his uncle had seized all the Lin Pharmaceutical Group shares left by his parents.

Though Lin Qingyun eventually mastered alchemy, befriended great figures, and, with their backing and his unique constitution, reclaimed what had been taken, that was over a decade later.

“Qingyun, are you even listening?” Lin Kunshan, noticing his lack of response, assumed the full authority of an elder.

“I hear you, Uncle. I know you mean well. But I must go to Ruin Number Eighteen. Someone claimed to have seen my parents there. Besides, it’s said that once the ruin closes this time, it may not open again for another decade.”

With his past life’s experiences, Lin Qingyun quickly masked his emotions, turning to his aunt with a calm smile.

“And you’ve arranged so many experts to protect me. I’m only going to search for someone—there’ll be no danger.”

“Why are you so stubborn…” Lin Kunshan could only sigh in exasperation.

“Qingyun is just being filial. Besides, Ruin Number Eighteen isn’t as perilous as all that. Qingyun, I support you,” Zhang Xueyi said encouragingly.

Looking at her genuine smile, Lin Qingyun no longer wished to witness their performance. At first, when he learned their true nature, he had even suspected his parents’ disappearance was their doing. Only after reclaiming control of Lin Pharmaceutical Group and resorting to ruthless means did he learn they only turned greedy after his parents vanished.

“I’ll be back,” Lin Qingyun said, unwilling to watch their act any longer. He picked up his pack and strode out.

“He’s gone,” Zhang Xueyi signaled gleefully to Lin Kunshan, who, despite a fleeting look of satisfaction, gave her a reproving glare and rose to see Lin Qingyun off.

Though Ruin Number Eighteen was not rated especially dangerous, Zhang Xueyi’s people would find a way to strand him there—enough time for Lin Kunshan to inherit the Lin family business.

Lin Qingyun left quickly; by the time his uncle and aunt emerged, he was already speeding away in the courtyard’s hovercar.

A century ago, Earth’s spiritual energy had revived, plunging the world into decades of turmoil. Mutated animals and plants, relics appearing everywhere—humanity returned to the age of cultivation. While technology advanced, it did not achieve the breakthroughs once imagined—no interstellar migration, space elevators, or Dyson spheres. Instead, cultivation became the new mainstream: it could bestow power and longevity, and most resources were poured into it.

The hovercar Lin Qingyun rode was, in essence, nothing more than an electric flying car—a technology already present a century before. Now, with batteries ten times more powerful, water, land, and air transport had become more refined.

As the eldest son of the Lin Pharmaceutical Group, Lin Qingyun naturally rode the most advanced hovercar. After instructing the AI butler, he closed his eyes to gather his thoughts.

If events followed the original timeline, upon entering Ruin Number Eighteen—before his aunt’s people had a chance to betray him—a cataclysm would erupt. This disaster was one of the factors that would, decades later, lead to humanity’s extinction.

Yet Lin Qingyun had no intention of preventing or altering these events: he lacked the strength and capability. Moreover, even without this incident, the powerful beings among the stars would eventually discover Earth anyway; many later ruins contained coordinates for the stars.

His immediate priority was to seize the greatest opportunity hidden within Ruin Number Eighteen.

In his past life, Lin Qingyun survived against all odds and uncovered his greatest secret because, during the explosion at Ruin Number Eighteen, he was swept into the Creation Pill Furnace and carried into the underground river.

Upon realizing his rebirth, Lin Qingyun suspected the Pill Furnace was involved. Nevertheless, he had no desire to risk his life as before; one misstep, and he would die with nothing left behind. He remembered exactly where he had emerged from that underground river—there was no need to enter the ruin and endure a deadly ordeal. Instead, he could wait at the river, where the Pill Furnace would emerge.

Whether or not he entered the ruins should not change this outcome. Having resolved his plan, Lin Qingyun examined his belongings. He left all smart devices in the hovercar; though he trusted the pills and food his aunt provided, he checked them thoroughly.

As expected, he found several tracking devices hidden among his things. He placed some food and pills into the trash bag from the car, leaving the rest behind.

Ruin Number Eighteen lay less than a thousand kilometers from Sea City. Lin Qingyun’s top-tier hovercar far outperformed helicopters from a century before, and he neared the ruins in under two hours.

The surrounding area was tightly controlled by the United Government, with a temporary base and a battalion stationed there. Already, over ten thousand people had gathered.

As he descended, Lin Qingyun gazed at the crowd below, knowing that in a few days, few would survive.

Even when several of Huaxia’s top ten experts arrived after the disaster, they could not save them. Had he not lived through decades of hardship, Lin Qingyun might have acted rashly; but reflecting on his past, he realized his own death had been the result of revealing too much.

It was not only the legendary Pill Furnace, but also his unique constitution, that had made him a target for countless killers.

Reborn, Lin Qingyun would not repeat his past mistakes. Until he possessed true power, he would hide his abilities—especially the secret of his constitution and the Pill Furnace.

And now, he had an even greater secret: the memories of the next thirty years. This, too, must be kept hidden.

After disembarking, he sent the hovercar away. He did not enter the main base or meet his aunt’s people but instead set off for a mountain a hundred kilometers away.

Though he had not shone in cultivation, even with a wealthy family and all the resources of a pharmaceutical empire, he was merely at the ninth level of the Vermilion Initial Stage.

Vermilion Initial Stage—also known as the Qi Refinement Stage—had different names in other cultivation systems, but after a century of spiritual revival, the Huaxia United Government’s terminology had become standard globally.

The Vermilion Initial Stage was the beginning of cultivation. To reach the ninth level at eighteen was rare nationally, but among the elite, only those who reached the Heartstring Stage and built their foundation before twenty were considered true geniuses.

At the ninth level, one could purge lingering illnesses, move with lightness and ease, leap more than ten meters, and cross a hundred meters in seven seconds. At full speed, one could travel as fast as a galloping horse before the spiritual revival.

Running a hundred kilometers was effortless. Upon arrival, Lin Qingyun appeared as if he were merely out to enjoy the scenery, finding a spot to quietly await nightfall.