Chapter 2: The Fall and Awakening

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Chapter 2: The Fall and Awakening

The last thing Feng Xiaoxiao remembered was standing alone in her state-of-the-art lab, the buzz of triumph humming in her veins as her experiment neared completion. She had spent years perfecting this invention-something that could very well alter the course of energy as humans knew it. Her genius was unparalleled, her influence undisputed. She stood at the pinnacle of the world, an object of fear and respect, a master of every path she walked.

And yet that night, she'd felt something funny-a prickle at the back of her mind, a feeling that things were… off. Her colleagues were conspicuously absent, her lab empty of the usual assistants. Shrugging off her unease, she'd continued on alone, hands steady on the controls, mind racing with equations and projections. She was only moments away from history-the first to unlock a source of limitless energy.

Then, out of the blue, she had heard footsteps echo in the hall behind her—quick, deliberate, and familiar. Turning, she was shocked to see the silhouette of her closest friend and confidant, Xu Wei. He stepped into the light, but instead of warmth, his gaze held only cold indifference. And standing beside him was her own sister, Feng Ling, her face twisted into a smug, venomous smile.

"Feng Xiaoxiao," Xu Wei's voice had been even, almost clinical as he stepped closer. "This should have always been mine. You were too blinded by your power to see the danger of keeping it all for yourself."

And before she could act upon it, before the treachery had time to sink in, he had flipped the switch on her own invention-a wave of pure energy that would detonate in a single, blistering flash, and heat so great it was incomprehensible. She felt herself tear into a million pieces as the world blurred around her. Anger, betrayal, and a searing, burning need to scratch her way back-to show them all what it truly meant to cross her-had been her last thoughts.

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When Feng Xiaoxiao opened her eyes, it was not to sterile gleaming walls of her lab, nor the cold gaze of her traitorous sister. She was met by an earthy scent of damp soil and the soft rustling of leaves. The mind struggled to catch up with surroundings that refused to gel in her head as she blinked. She lay in a forest-so thick, so ancient, its bounds seemingly endless before her.

She sat up slowly, her body foreign and strangely delicate. Gone was the strength and resilience of her former self; this new frame was slender, fragile. Her hands—so accustomed to the precision of complex machinery—were now slender and calloused, the hands of someone who had known hardship. As she flexed her fingers, disjointed fragments of memories that were not her own deluged her mind.

In this life, she was still Feng Xiaoxiao, the daughter of the Prime Minister, born into nobility yet abandoned to cruelty. Her father and brother, her household protectors, had gone to war ten years ago and were useless. These recollections were as clear as crystal, carrying a cold edge of loneliness and mute torture hung upon her. Her stepmother treated her as if she were a burden, and her stepsister never stopped making sure that she kept reminding Feng Xiaoxiao of her inferiority-she was delighted with every single moment of Feng Xiaoxiao's suffering.

Memories of her past life collided with this reality, a strange, bitter marriage of betrayals across two lifetimes. She had been betrayed at the height of her power in her past life; in this one, she had been worn down from the beginning. But there was one truth the two shared: those closest wanted to destroy her.

A low growl snapped her back to the present. Eyes sharpening, she turned toward a wolf prowling toward her, staring with a hunger that spoke of predatory intent. Instincts honed from years of martial arts training in her past life kicked in, and she crouched low, gaze never leaving the beast.

She grasped at a fallen branch, clenching it tightly in her hands. While her body was so much weaker, her mind was still razor-sharp, and her spirit unbreakable. In the wolf's lunge, she dodged and pressed the branch forward with all the precision possible. The wolf yelped in pain, retreating into the shadows of the forest to leave her alone once more.

She exhaled, and her breath misted in the morning air as she took stock of her surroundings. This new life was raw and unforgiving, but she was a survivor. She had proved it once before, and she would again.

Feng Xiaoxiao cast one last look around the forest, with the fog wrapping itself around her like a shroud.

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