A breeze is felt on the face of a young man lying on a patch of grass. As he opens his eyes and looks around he sees an unfamiliar scene, a place that looks nothing like his comforting bedroom. But instead, what he sees is the ruins of a rocky architecture that could have once been from the medieval fantasy ages.
"Wow… this is a shocker." said the young man. His face a mix of bewilderment and casual indifference.
After a brief moment of lying on the ground. The young man gets up to have a better look at his surroundings.
"Medieval and unfamiliar architecture… shit, have I transmigrated or reincarnated into some kind of novel or a new world like those stories I read?"
He shakes his head for clarity
"Okay okay, let's get our mind racing over the useful stuff first"
"For starters, I can confirm I have no memory loss. My name is Wu Qi Li, I am 16 years old, and I still remember everything else."
"Secondly, let's check if we have the cliché stuff that happens in those stories. A system to probably guide me?"
As he said that, Wu Qi Li proceeds to do everything he saw the fictional characters do to call upon a system.
"Oh come on, at least give me something, it doesn't have to be those over powered systems that give an overpowered skill at the start. I just need a damn clue or guideline for this place."
"Okay nevermind about that. How about feeling around for mana or something."
After several futile attempts he came to a conclusion. "Nothing cliché of sorts has happened. Okay calm down, panicking will not get me anywhere, let's focus on our surroundings first."
As he looked around, the remains carried a hushed serenity. 'Seems like a temple of some sorts.'
At the moment he stepped out of the temple, he soon came to realise why he had always felt a melancholic and calming breeze. What he came across is a majestic view of multiple mountains connected, with bridges and platforms all in a weird sense of harmony. Connecting to different facilities like a webbed maze of floating stone walkways.
With the outside world shrouded in a fog, a fog not so thick but one that is noticeable but transparent. With jagged lines spread across the air like a net. A weird moon that seemed to be shattered and cracked like glass also hung on the night sky.
'The moon? Must be how it's supposed to look like in this world. The… outside looks abnormal too.'
He stepped onto the landing of the staircase that led into his temple."How nice." He said as he took the staircase down onto an allure. The ancient steps groaned under his feet.
Walking through the allure, he glanced at the wall.
The walls were carved with intricate swirls and curves, depicting waves and wind currents locked in an eternal clash. 'Waves, wind? might be a symbolism of something.'
Taking his time looking at the walls he finally reached the end of the wall-walk.
At the end of the allure he took notice of a few people and a weird creature. All situated in the middle of a big walled courtyard
'People? And also a deer that seems a bit too big to be one.'
As the young man approached cautiously towards the Scene He realised that the deer was not the deer that he knew or seen.
'What the?' He thought to himself as he stared at a 8 feet tall deer with thicker and stronger legs Than any normal deer. Yet it didn't have hooves like a normal deer but paws and claws that seemed like it belonged to a giant wolf.
Looking closely, he saw that the beast-like deer and people were seemingly stopped in time? All of them froze in an event. One seemingly dire and dangerous.
The beast was stuck in an action of raising one of its talons ready to strike. One of the people, undeniably the target, appeared to be caught off guard. Two others were raising their weapons and shields. The last one, giving the impression of a leader, based on her attire and fairly calm reaction to the situation.
As Qi Li started to observe more at the scene by closing the distance.
The air shimmered and reflected light as if it's glass. And just like glass, it fractured, it cracked. Lines of fracture traveling across the space and air of the scene. Like a sound of a thousand windows exploding.
CRACK.
Time resumed.
The creature, out of the grasps of stopped time. Swiped at the unready person. Sending him flying to the wall like a ragdoll.
"BRACE!" Shouted the woman in charge.
Looking at the bloodied ragdoll by the wall, Qi Li was still turning the gears in His head as to what was going on. Then turning his attention back to the main focus.
His muscles tensed, as he saw the eyes of the damn beast looking back at him. As if picking him as the next victim.
Just as he predicted, the abomination charged towards him.
In reaction to it, Qi Li dived to the side fully invested in it.
Unfortunately for him, The big deer cut off its momentum from charging and stopped. The beast pivoted swinging its upper front body and head to the way Qi Li dived into. Powering the swing further, it used both its front legs.
The world blurred as Qi Li was flung to the wall next to the bloodied ragdoll as a result of the attack.
Mercifully, the incident didn't cause any fractures or broken bones. Only bruises And a slight concussion.
The deer turned around facing towards him. Once again charging straight. Aiming to impale Qi Li to the wall with its antlers.
He watched The deer close in slow-mo, as if life is Giving him more time to reflect on everything he Has done. And die like this.
Life also gave Him another choice.
Fight back.
Qi Li felt a metallic texture brush by his side. A shield dropped by the man flung To the wall.
As an act of defiance towards the beast's wish to kill him. He Picked it up and curled like a ball behind the shield by the wall.
The deer came into contact with the shield. Bashing it and Qi Li against the wall.
This time, Qi Li felt the power of a full on charge. He felt his Shoulders dislocate and ribs fracturing from the force of The shield Pushing him against The wall.
'SHIT, THAT HURTS' he thought
After the first impact. The deer lifted up its claws, swiping down on the shield. Once, twice, thrice, And more seemingly not intending to stop until the young man gives in or gets crushed by the impacts.
The woman saw this as an opportunity. She shot to the side of the beast like a bullet, proceeding To drill her spear into its right eye. Blinding it.
The deer then turned to a bigger threat. Stopping its barrage upon the little human behind the shield. Attacking the woman while she dodged and Weaved elegantly Like a leaf in the wind.
Bruised and disoriented Qi Li dragged himself from behind the shield. Clutching himself, he approached weakly to the remaining people watching the duel.
His battered and injured look surely stood out like a sore thumb yet there were no reactions from the bystanders. So he called out for a reaction.
"Help, please, HELP!"
There they stood, still staring at the duel as if Qi Li never existed.
Qi Li went closer and closer towards One of them.
Trying to grab the man by the shoulder.
CRASH
Shattering and shimmering appeared on the shoulder of the man. The line of fractures travels across the area, Encasing the bystanders and the Air around them . Except for Qi Li.
The fractures imploded, swallowing the men whole.
Two bystanders were gone. Leaving only Qi Li to be even more confused about the whole situation.
A glance Back to observe the duel, it seemed that It was still at a stalemate between the fighter And the beast.
A stalemate that won't last for long.
Cracks like glass began forming around the woman. With her seemingly not giving any mind to it, or completely Unaware of it.
It seems whatever that happened to the two bystanders will happen to her.
But not for the beast. The beast was still emanating a sinister aura and showed no signs of cracks.
'better get outta here.'
Seeking escape, he turned the way he came.
The allure.
'A tad bit too early for action like this, no?'
He thought as he limped, clutching his body to the arch that led to the allure.
Slightly jogging in the allure, he was heading back to the temple. He heard a noise he never heard in his entire life
GRAUUUUUUGHHHHHH
He turned around and saw the beast.
An open wound with bones visible. Blood gushing out from every wound inflicted. Blood dripped from its empty eye sockets. Antlers broken away.
'She managed to blind the other eye?'
There was also a second thing to note about the deer.
It was limping towards the general direction where Qi Li was going.
'Shit, shit, it has a good sense of smell.'
Picking up the pace, to hopefully shake off the deer he continued back on to the staircase.
'Dammit, it hurts, DAMMIT!'
His feet dragged across the floor,as he came to The steps of the staircase.
He placed his foot on the steps, then another. Ascending to the top.
A final step taken. Yet it didn't seem to land as he thought it would land.
The last tread of the stairs crumbled. Pieces of stone and marble peeling away and thudding to the ground.
Qi Li felt as if the ground was no longer at his feet. He fell backwards and tumbled down the staircase. A clear sound of his body meeting the stone and bouncing off the rocks and marble was heard. His world spun, betraying his sense of direction.
And As a finale to this act, his head crashed Onto the floor. Then the slamming of his body on the hard tiled floor.
A Head snapped up in alert. Its broken antlers like dead tree roots stood up facing the sky. The deer looked towards the direction where Qi Li fell despite not having the necessary organs for it.
Hooves dragged across the floor. It was approaching him at a steady pace.
Qi Li was still dazed, with the hard surface of the floor felt by him. Slowly getting up he rubbed the back of his aching head.
GASP, GASP
With a tilt of his head up he saw the approaching creature.
'GIVE ME A BREAK DAMMIT!'
With no time to waste, Qi Li shook the dizziness away, got up and dragged himself back up the stairs.
As if sensing a change in the air, the deer noticed Qi Li climbing the stairs. A change of speed took place, the deer was slightly moving faster now. Unwilling to let its victim escape.
Catching sight of the increased speed from the deer. Qi Li picked up the pace too. He reached the temple ruin above the stairs. Immediately he placed his legs into work and jogged. With a little difficulty from the injuries sustained.
'Well it's good to have cardio once in a while!'
A presence loomed behind Qi Li during his run. Undoubtedly, it's the deer. Undoubtedly too, it's getting closer.
'PLEASE, SOMETHING PLEASE'
At the corner of his eye, he saw a giant stone arch
The arch was big for him, slightly smaller for the deer. Although the deer could Still squeeze through without much hassle.
A spark lit up in his head