On Living

"Kai, I'm off. Like always, I'll be away for a few days. Don't wander around and just wait for me here, okay?" said Qiang Lei as the dilapidated door covered the shack in darkness once more. As though the scene never played and the words were never said, Kai, seemingly suffocated by the darkness, disappeared soon after.

The view in front of Qiang Lei was greeted with smiles as soon as she traveled by foot towards the academy. She, a 13 year old girl, watched the world intently with her bright green eyes as if everything that she sees is her own treasure. The azure sky with the big and small clouds hanging above her, the myriad trees dancing with the breeze welcoming her entrance as the leaves fall and scatter along the way, the sounds of birds, butterflies, bugs, pheasants and all earthlings piercing her ears every now and then were like music to her.

Everything above the earth and below the heavens is such an spectacle to watch. 'A... Alive. Everything is alive.' She thought that a smile never seemed to leave her face and her heart seemed to be full of warmth.

The place where the shack she called 'home' was located can only be considered as a lower realm in this world — Great Grey Continent. Though not the lowest, there was only a little disparity with the lowest one. Even so, in this lower realm, the village where her 'home' resided was definitely one of the many poorest places.

It took an hour to reach the academy by foot. However, Qiang Lei had developed a habit to appreciate what she sees with her eyes that it had become a part of her. Hence, it had taken her two hours at most to arrive at her destination. And yet, instead of feeling tired, she felt more energized. Elated.

As her destination drew near, carriages of various extravagance began to pass her by and as though she was an ant destined to be trampled on, this journey of hers was also full of various gazes — mockery, disdain and pity. It was only natural as one would usually say.

In a world where strength, beauty, wealth and honour reign, a 13 year old girl, whose looks and aura clearly did not possess any of these, was akin to an eyesore that must be removed. For her existence was lower than a noble family's servant and only a status higher from a slave. But it matters not for Qiang Lei. Carriages built and plated with gold, gemstones and various ores with carvings of celestial beasts and beings, curtains of high-quality silk embroidered with fine designs and details, high-ranking magical beast as their mounts, guards donned in ebony and golden armours — they may highly express one's standing in this world, but it matters not for someone like her. It may not be something that she can hope to have but it was something she was not interested in either. Like how the carriages passed her by, such extravagance was also passing.

She only wanted to live simply and in peace. A wish she never attained in her previous life on earth. She was a homebody whose life revolved around the internet and network of information since her highschool years up to when she started working in an IT company. Little did she know that her thirst for knowledge and information is both a blessing and a curse. Her fate was the latter and thus, death welcomed her for knowing more than what she should.

An ancient cube she happened to see in a trash can that she spent time researching about and scrutinising was the beginning of her end. She had not even divulged what information it contained but the act of unfolding it was met with minds and eyes of greed and in the end, she was assassinated.

She never thought she would be given a chance to live once more until she arrived in a completely different world. As soon as she has woken up, she was already inside the shack. With her being not yet knowing what had happened, what she only felt was that her hand was holding onto something. She sat straight and looked at the object.

'It was the cube. The fucking cube.'

The ancient cube was akin to the size of a table tennis ball. Gold in colour, black runic carvings were visible on its surface truly giving off an ancient vibe. What shocked her though was the bullet implanted in it.

'So I died via gunshot, huh. Cliche but sigh, effective.'

She sorted her thoughts and recalled the memories. She was in her office fully focused on the thing she was holding in front of her nose. The next thing she knew, she was already here.

'Ugh. ****.'

Touching her nose, she trembled slightly. She pretty much figured out how she died and why she had to die, this damn thing can only be the reason! She observed the cube once more. Except for the bullet with her dried blood on it, everything was the same. Without a second thought, she removed the bullet inside the cube and something happened once more.

'Sh... Shit.'

As the bullet was taken out, the blood stains on the cube seemed to have come alive as they seeped through it and was completely absorbed by it. The next second, it shot right through in between her brows like a streak of lightning and pain began eroding her mind that she fainted. Not even it took for an incense to burn a quarter, she woke up and the pain was already gone. She touched her forehead and knew it was there.

It. Was. Fucking. There.

Yet, she could do nothing. She could only sigh and sit straight up. Looking around, she sighed once more. She recalled the memories of the owner's body and that act of her made her fall backwards.

*Thud

'For real.'

Time travel and transmigration were not unknown to her given her nerdy personality and humongous thirst for knowledge but to be reincarnated in a body of an orphaned 13 year old girl...

'Seriously, god?!'

She could only scream internally and cry dry tears. She could naturally adapt to the situation but why must the heavens play with her fate! It was fine to be a trash from a noble family! But this...

An abandoned child, picked up by old farmer couple, and had been living in this dilapidated shack... to repay the old couple, she worked to the bones since she learned how to walk and had done all kinds of jobs there of to earn a living — coppers, grain of rice, simple herbs, farm animals, you can name them all. Even after the death of the couple at the age of 9, her life revolved around one thing...

Surviving.

She had learned and experienced all kinds of things to survive. From farming to selling things in the market, from reading and writing to handling delivery jobs, from being bullied to being beaten half to death...

'Ah, such a cruel life, Qiang Lei. But I cannot help but admire you too. Your desire to live in these 13 years was really strong that the heavens seemed to have felt it too. While your soul was not here anymore, I will do my best to make sure that with this body of yours, you will live longer than you could have hoped for.'

"Sigh." Closing her eyes, she sighed deeply. She sat straight up once more and then kowtowed for a little while. No one knew what she was thinking. As the sun started to peek through the myriad holes of her 'new home', she could only utter the words...

"Thank you."

She sat straight back up. After feeling she regained all her senses, she stood up and walked towards what seemed to be the 'door' of her house. She pushed it slowly and the rays of the sun began to blind her. She stood outside and the rays of the sun seemed to pass through her giving temporary warmth to her being.

And then she smiled. Closing her eyes once more, she began feeling the world around her.

'So nice. This is not...'

Sensing the change in her surrounding, she opened her eyes and scanned the area. All of a sudden, her right foot seemed to feel heavier and without a second thought, she looked down. Shock as she was, the only thing that can portray it was her parted lips. Her eyes reflected a white wolf whose left paw was pressed down on that right foot of hers.

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