Heaven-Defying Level Up

Emerald peaks hovered at the edge of the sky, half-shrouded and floating amidst the drifting clouds and mist. A youth of sixteen or seventeen stood at the edge of a precipice, gazing at the abyss before him, his heart stirring with memories from a life before his rebirth.

Xin Lang recalled the hardships of his previous life—how, because of a congenital flaw in his meridians, he could not pursue the martial path and instead turned to the arduous study of pharmaceuticals. He remembered, too, the scenes of meeting, understanding, and falling in love with Hong Xiu, the saintess of the Heavenly Fragrance Sect.

“It was here! Twelve years from now, it was here that Hong Xiu would perish amid the drifting incense, her life snuffed out! I was powerless, forced to watch as she fought to her last breath for my sake, and I could do nothing for her!”

Xin Lang’s eyes blazed with boundless hatred as he swore an oath to the heavens: “Gate of Immortality! In this life, I will reach the pinnacle of martial cultivation and grind your so-called great sect beneath my heel! I will never allow you to harm Hong Xiu again—not a single strand of her hair!”

Standing at the edge of the cliff, Xin Lang gazed at the precipice where he and Hong Xiu once pledged their lives together. He murmured, “Hong Xiu, the heavens have granted me another chance at life. This time, it will be my turn to protect you.”

He lingered in his memories for a long while before finally turning and descending from the peak.

Rather than retracing the path he’d come by, Xin Lang plunged into