This time, it was precisely to take a different path and experience the untouched, undeveloped beauty of the mountains and rivers—who would have thought to encounter a giant snake.

As it turns out, sticking to the ordinary is more reliable; trying to be refined comes with risks.

After walking so cautiously for dozens of minutes, seeing the fertile fields at the foot of the mountain right ahead, Nathaniel Clark finally let out a long sigh of relief.

But just then, a dark shadow shot up from the fields, and a bloody maw lunged at him.

"I fucking can't believe this!"

Nathaniel Clark never expected that the giant snake would be lying in ambush in the fields.

What grudge do I have with you, seriously?

I'm not Xu Xian, I never slept with you.

At the last moment of his life, knowing he couldn't escape, Nathaniel Clark gritted his teeth and did a sliding tackle, making one final desperate move.

And so, he died.

……

……

"Where am I?"

Nathaniel Clark opened his eyes in a daze, looked around, and for some reason, images of those shabby old rural houses with a refrigerator inside that he'd seen online flashed through his mind.

A house built of yellow mud, a rain cape hanging on the wall, and to the left along the wall, a clay stove.

Nothing but bare walls!

Nathaniel Clark smelled the quilt covering him, which gave off a musty odor.

Was I rescued by villagers from the foot of the mountain and brought home?

The next moment, a flood of information suddenly appeared in Nathaniel Clark's mind, making his head spin.

When he came to, Nathaniel Clark's expression was complicated.

He hadn't died in the giant snake's mouth—or maybe he had, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that now his soul had transmigrated into the body of a fifteen-year-old boy.

The boy was also named Nathaniel Clark.

An orphan.

His father had been a martial artist and also the constable of Da Ning County.

Unfortunately, not long after becoming constable, his father hadn't even had a few years to make some money before he drank too much at a pleasure boat, tripped over his own feet, fell into the river, and drowned.

Leaving behind his only son and an old woman.

The old woman was the original father's great-aunt. The father had also been an orphan, raised by this great-aunt. After becoming a martial artist and constable, he bought a house in the city and brought her over.

Ever since the father died, the original Nathaniel Clark was weak and sickly. Though the old great-aunt took care of him, she was getting on in years and couldn't do much work. The family grew poorer by the day, living off what little savings the father had left.

After five years, the savings were nearly gone, and life became difficult. On top of that, a drought hit, many people's fields yielded nothing, grain prices soared, and the family could no longer afford to buy food.

The original Nathaniel Clark had just fainted from hunger, and then his body was taken over by Nathaniel Clark's soul.

Nathaniel Clark got up from the bed, walked to the door, and saw that the yard was bare. The only patch of green was where a hunched figure was squatting, pulling weeds from the ground.

For some reason, Nathaniel Clark felt a pang in his heart.

In modern times, people are told not to trample the lawn to protect the grass.

But here, not trampling it is so that one day there will be grass to pull up and eat.

Those bare patches weren't because there was no grass, but because it had all been eaten.

Perhaps hearing movement, the hunched figure turned around, revealing a face weathered and wrinkled by the elements, temples streaked with white, lips cracked in several places. Yet at this moment, the old woman smiled and said, "Xiao Ning, you're awake."

"Mm."

"Go back and lie down for a bit. Once your old great-aunt finishes pulling the grass and cooks it, you can eat."

"Great-aunt, I don't want to eat grass."

The old woman was stunned: "Alright, your old great-aunt understands. Next time, I'll pull something else for you, Ning'er."

Chapter 2: A Bowl of Rice, a Plate of Grass—So Tasty!

Ate a bowl of grass.

Nathaniel Clark didn't go back to bed, but sat by the door and started thinking.

From the original's memories, he learned that the dynasty was called the Liang Dynasty.

The Liang Dynasty wasn't one where "all trades are lowly, only studying is noble," but an era where martial artists were revered.

Martial artists could hold government positions—the stronger you were, the higher your rank.

In a world ruled by force, reading and reason weren't that important.

If reason doesn't work, then physics will.

Legend has it that the founding emperor of Liang could reverse rivers with a single palm, almost like an immortal.

In the original's memory, he only knew that the martial ranks were Martial Disciple, Martial Master, and above that, he didn't know.

"Looks like only by practicing martial arts can I make something of myself."

Nathaniel Clark understood well that in a world where martial artists are supreme, even with some knowledge from the modern world, it would be hard to get rich just by doing business.

Without the protection of force, wealth is hard to keep.

And to practice martial arts, you need martial arts manuals, but in the Great Liang Dynasty, those are controlled by the court and some martial artists and sects.

Ordinary people who want to learn martial arts from a master have to pay dozens of taels just for the apprenticeship fee, and even then, they have to serve the master for years before they can start learning.

The sects are too far from Da Ning County—the nearest martial arts sect is said to be hundreds of miles away in a prefectural city.

The only way out for the poor is to enter the government school, where martial arts are taught for free.

Nathaniel Clark's father had come from the school, but those who graduated from there were forbidden to pass on the martial arts to their descendants, because the manuals belonged to the court. Teaching them privately was a serious crime.