Still alive after enduring Edward Clark's Demonic Body Explosion Technique? This is simply a miracle—what is this little bit of pain in comparison? Overjoyed, James Carter was about to circulate his cultivation technique to heal his wounds and stop the pain, only to discover that there wasn't a trace of spiritual power left in his body.

Startled, James Carter could hardly believe it. He tried again, but still, there was no response at all. Had he lost all his spiritual power? This was a huge problem. James Carter's heart suddenly trembled as he recalled the scene just moments ago. The mountain gate? Spiritual root test? What was that?

Only now did James Carter realize that he was no longer on the demon-slaying battlefield of the Immortal Realm, but in a completely unfamiliar place. The surrounding mountains were lush, the waters clear, mist curling in the air—it actually looked like a great place for cultivation.

Struggling to sit up, James Carter noticed that he was wearing coarse cloth clothes, and something was poking at his waist. Reaching down, he found a well-sharpened hatchet.

Boom! James Carter's mind felt as if struck by lightning, and in an instant, he understood—this was the scene from when he participated in the spiritual root test at the Tai Tian Sect all those years ago. Not only had he survived the Demonic Body Explosion Technique, but he had actually returned to his childhood.

"This is the outer mountain gate of the mortal Tai Tian Sect!" Looking at the distant, vaguely familiar figures with all kinds of expressions, James Carter was completely certain—he had been reborn. The reason those people seemed both familiar and unfamiliar was because he had forgotten them for so long—ten thousand years, in fact.

Yet, no matter how much time passed, it could not erase James Carter's hatred for the Tai Tian Sect. William Carter had joined the Tai Tian Sect, later killed the young sect master, and pinned the blame on him. All the suffering that followed was tied to this event and this sect.

To suddenly go from a Da Luo Golden Immortal back to an ordinary mortal—aside from hatred, James Carter didn't even know how to describe his feelings at this moment. But one thing was certain: no matter what, he was still alive. While a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers and generals had perished, at least he was still alive—and at the most anticipated moment of his life.

Chapter 2: Rebirth (Part 2)

The person who struck him down was skilled at dealing with mortals; at the very least, James Carter could only maintain a sitting position and couldn't stand for a long time, as if something was binding his body. It wasn't until the first batch of dozens of people who had been eliminated with him came out from the archway-like mountain gate that James Carter finally felt his body loosen and was able to stand up.

"So unlucky!"

"Failed again this year, sigh!"

...

A chorus of sighs and complaints came from the crowd. A few young men from the same village saw James Carter struggling and ran over to help him up.

"Could be worse—at least we got a chance to try. Little James was really unlucky today, got kicked out before he even had a chance!" One of the young men, seemingly quite warm-hearted, helped pat the dust off James Carter as he spoke.

"Alright, let's go, time to head back!" Basically, everyone had lost their chance today. Someone took the lead, and naturally, the rest followed: "We still have a month's journey ahead—let's go! Maybe there'll be another chance next year!"

"Forget it, whether you have a spiritual root for immortality is up to fate. If it doesn't work this year, there's no guarantee it will next year," someone sighed on the way down the mountain.

"That's not necessarily true. Sometimes spiritual roots only manifest after the body matures and the bones are set. Maybe if I nourish myself well this year, I'll have a spiritual root for immortality next year!" The speaker was, of course, someone still hopeful about their own body.

"William Carter and Sarah Carter had good luck this year. Mr. Carter Sr. is going to be even more influential now. Both his legitimate grandson and granddaughter have spiritual roots for cultivation—he'll be strutting around the village for sure!" Where there are those who are disappointed, there are also those who are proud. The crowd spoke with a tone of envy.

William Carter, Sarah Carter—James Carter heard these two names again, and memories long buried seemed to surge up from the depths of his mind, unstoppable. Especially William Carter, whom James Carter hated to the core. If not for him, his master wouldn't have been implicated; if not for him, James Carter wouldn't have had to live a life of hiding, humiliation, and dependence on others. You could say that at least half of James Carter's misfortune in his previous life was because of William Carter.

Fortunately, now James Carter had been reborn, and at a time before he had even begun cultivating. That meant James Carter had countless opportunities. Walking home with the others, James Carter was secretly pondering.

Because he had screamed at the mountain gate and been kicked out, James Carter actually felt a bit lucky. If he had really faced the people of the Tai Tian Sect, he wasn't sure he could have suppressed his anger. Right now, he had no spiritual power at all—even against the lowest disciple, he would be no match.

As for not being selected, James Carter cared even less. With the memories in his mind and ten thousand years of cultivation experience, whether or not he joined some sect was already meaningless to James Carter.

Even if James Carter had lived a cowardly life in his previous incarnation, and remained so even in the Immortal Realm, he had still once been a Da Luo Golden Immortal. These mortal sects—aside from his own sect, the Pure Yang Palace—how could James Carter possibly care about them? With his previous life's cultivation experience, could he really not step onto the path of cultivation again? At worst, he could follow the old path and once again become a Da Luo Golden Immortal.