I am back.

The street is full of people. There's a guy in a business suit walking with a briefcase. He looked at his watch while talking with someone on his phone. Then he looks at me. His eyes showing curiousness as he passes me by. There is a woman with a baby on a stroller. The baby is wailing loudly. She desperately tried to stop the baby from crying. Then she looks at me, like the other guy, with an eye full of curiosity and bewilderment.

I tried to ignore the people looking at me as I take another look at my surroundings. Towering skyscrapers filled the landscape, seemingly overtook the trees and nature. The cars passing by like a shadow, sometimes stopping because of the red light. And the floor which is flattened by asphalt and cement.

It's a city.

I took a deep breath as I tried to recall my memories of the past.

I was an orphan. My parents died when I was 4 years old and I was left in an orphanage. I grew up as a normal high school boy. There is not a single extraordinary thing in my 17 years of living, or so I thought…

While I was going home from school, I was thinking of stopping by a convenience store when "it" happened. In a road devoid of people, a magic circle-like thing appeared out of nowhere. The magic circle looks very much like those in the animes I've watched. It was full of unknown patterns.

I was thrilled, fantasizing that I'd be summoned in a western fantasy world of magic and swords.

There was a flash of light.

But, instead of being transported to a western fantasy world, I was transferred in a world of cultivation. I appeared in an unknown forest. My first few days were harsh, always running away from wild beasts. I got accustomed to sleeping outside, scraping every edible plant available.

After a week, I met the first humans. They were a group of youngsters, like me. They gave me food and helped me get out of that forest. That is when I realized that they are not normal humans; they have powers. They told me that it was the "Essence" of the world. It was vague, but I got the gist of it because of all the cultivation novels I've read.

When parting, they offered me to enter their sect. Feeling grateful for everything they've done for me, I didn't hesitate to join as I know that it will benefit me as well.

That was the start of my path.

My life starting from there was a non-stop cultivation. I cultivated, and cultivated, and cultivated some more until I am strong enough to defend myself from that survival world. I continued cultivating while fighting the strong, then taking some treasures, and cultivated again. That was my life-cycle.

A few decades later, my life took another turn while exploring an unknown valley. I discovered an Ancient manual. I didn't know its significance until the world witnessed it. It shook every expert; its existence enough to bring the world to chaos. It was sought after by every clans and sect in the world. My life was in danger, yet again.

I desperately tried to protect it and sought help from my sect. But, what I did not expect was the betrayal of my sect. Greed filled their eyes. Not much different from the world. Because of it, I decided to hide and cultivate in the forest I've first appeared from.

But, I know that this peace is only temporary.

One day, I was discovered and chased around the forest. I was cornered eventually after a few days of playing cats and mice. Then, "it" happened again. There was a magic circle right below me. The experts were bewildered and tried to stop it but failed. There was a flash of light.

Then, the next thing I know, I was standing here.

I look around again.

Yep. This is Earth, alright.