Supporting the body in the white blade, wandering in the red dust

Chapter 1

"When I woke up, the whole world had changed." Muttering to himself, Bai Lang curled up in a ball, looking around at his surroundings. That's right, he didn't recognize his surroundings at all; he didn't even know where he was—logically, he should be leisurely browsing in front of his computer at home, enjoying a rare day off—but what was this dilapidated temple and stinking straw? And what was with his tattered clothes that smelled so strongly of something?

He seemed to be a little beggar? The question was, what had happened? Bai Lang stood up and confirmed that he had indeed become a child, but thankfully he was still a boy, and his hands and feet were intact, untouched by any "life-stealing" or "mutilation." He decided to go to the door to check, since there was no one else around. The scene he saw confirmed Bai Lang's belief that he had transmigrated—in fact, his current situation alone was enough proof. He didn't know why he had come here, and his physical age had decreased, which was enough to prove the existence of supernatural forces.

The scene before them was a field outside the dilapidated temple, with rolling mountains in the background. There were no people on the main road, but some were working in the fields.

Just as Bai Lang was at a loss, a little beggar ran in from outside. "Hurry up! The Chang Le Gang is opening a charity hall today and recruiting handymen. Do you want to sit here and starve to death? Hurry up and come with me." This little beggar was a head taller than Bai Lang, and his appearance was quite resolute—though that was probably because he was thin, making his eyes appear larger. Bai Lang was grabbed by this man and was pulled along involuntarily.

As he ran, Bai Lang couldn't remember the name of the person in front of him. "Isn't it said that soul transmigration should be based on the fusion of memories? Judging from this person's tone and appearance, he doesn't seem like a stranger. He must be very familiar with me. Could it be that he transmigrated into someone else's body? Replacing someone who looks exactly like me?" However, it's best not to have wild thoughts while running. Bai Lang immediately lost his footing and was about to roll forward.

Instinctively, he began to adjust his center of gravity. To Bai Lang's surprise, his adjustment was both quick and precise. After missing a step, he immediately used the missing foot to propel himself forward, while his other foot followed suit. As for shifting his center of gravity, he used a swing of his arms to regain it. This was the level of a gymnast. Bai Lang knew that before he transmigrated, he would never have been able to do this; he would have definitely made a spectacular fall.

However, after this incident, Bai Lang didn't dare to think too much and focused on getting to his destination first. At this time, he discovered another good thing: his breathing was still relatively steady despite his rapid running. He hadn't started panting like a dog. Instead of the lazy office worker he used to be, he should be lying on the ground panting like a dog.

This sprint lasted for almost half an hour. While Bai Lang was amazed by his own stamina, he also stared at the guy beside him with a strange look. This person had run the entire distance without even panting, as if his face wasn't malnourished and emaciated. "Perhaps there really is something special about this place. I forgot he mentioned the Chang Le Gang earlier. Could it be that there are martial arts here? Chang Le Gang, Chang Le Gang? Could it be the world of 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes'?" What else could he think of when he heard "Chang Le Gang"? It was none other than "The Legend of the Condor Heroes."

The small training ground before him was filled with children, including little beggars like himself and children from relatively clean-cut families. They were all looking at a platform in front of them; no one was sitting behind it yet, but it was assumed that registration would begin soon. Bai Lang then realized he had been patting himself down, and found a small, equally filthy metal tag—neither gold nor silver, but a small copper plate—strung together with a thread so dirty it was unrecognizable.

The bronze tag was small, about half the length of his finger. To Bai Lang, it looked like a smaller dog tag, with winding lines and characters on it, seemingly some kind of seal script. However, Bai Lang couldn't make it out—firstly, it was quite dirty, and secondly, he really didn't understand seal script very well. Just as he was studying the dog tag, a voice echoed throughout the entire square—the voice wasn't very loud, but it seemed to resonate right next to his ears. Based on the martial arts novels he had read, Bai Lang believed this was a manifestation of martial arts internal strength reaching its peak.

What he saw was a man dressed as a clerk, accompanied by eight burly men lined up. The clerk was already seated in a chair, and it was this clerk who had just spoken. "Everyone here is dressed in ancient costumes, and I don't know what dynasty they are from—it's not mentioned in the novel, but it's definitely not the Tang Dynasty," Bai Lang thought. The clerk's words were to tell everyone to be quiet and to start lining up. There was no need to rush; the test would only begin after everyone had registered.

The test was naturally conducted by those eight burly men. The so-called test was simple: they just touched the children's joints and pinched their muscles—at least that's what Bai Lang saw. Bai Lang had already reached the front of the line. He walked to the table. "Name?" The clerk looked up into his eyes. Bai Lang couldn't see any expression in the other man's eyes at all, but they were so glaring that he had to lower his head slightly. "Bai Lang," he said.

The clerk wrote down the two characters with lightning speed, indicating that the writing here was no different. "Age?" Bai Lang was immediately dumbfounded. How did he know his age? He was almost thirty years old before he transmigrated, but this body didn't look thirty at all. Fortunately, Bai Lang was quick-witted and estimated his height, immediately giving an age of "twelve years old".

Although he lowered his head, Bai Lang could still feel an X-ray-like gaze scrutinizing him. Judging from the level of a martial arts master, it couldn't be ruled out that the other party was using internal energy to sense him—after all, this advisor seemed to be a master among masters. The other party grunted in acknowledgment. Even with his head down, Bai Lang could still see that the other party had written the characters "twelve ounces," but there were no problems after that. A burly man simply grabbed Bai Lang and dragged him over to feel his bones.

"No hidden injuries, bones and tendons intact, and no signs of broken bones regenerating." The burly man moved very quickly, and in a few breaths he had already examined Bai Lang's bones—focusing mainly on the spine and limbs. This meant Bai Lang had passed. Next was simply a bath and change of clothes. This time, Bai Lang didn't go with the little beggar who had dragged him there—in fact, he didn't even know the little beggar's name, but the little beggar had passed too.

After changing his clothes and taking his number, Bai Lang became the lowest-ranking servant in the Chang Le Gang—his number wasn't 9527, but 1024.
(End of this chapter)