A few years later, the little bug had climbed into the folds of a jacket and performed a fake death technique to completely hide its aura and all signs of life. A few days later it woke up and rolled itself out of the folds of clothing, falling to the ground like a piece of debris. Then, a few minutes later it burrowed into the ground to keep from being noticed by its unwilling transporter.

Finally out of that terrible place.

During the years it spent watching that place, it had felt the aura of many Nascent Souls. The bug was no stranger to such a level of power, but its current state gave it just as much chance against a Nascent Soul as any other insect. It could only bide its time and wait for the perfect opportunity to leave. The little insect finally got news about a regular traveler to ‘the outside’ and slowly learned more about that person’s schedule. The person in question would always get drunk after a holiday and even in that state they would still maintain their schedule of visits to the outside.

On one of those drunken nights of celebration, the bug snuck into a fold in that man’s clothing and let him carry it outside. This little bug was extremely cautious and didn’t take the risk of approaching any of these people until he was drunk and hungover, reluctantly doing their job and unaware of the little speck that had clung to his jacket. Even when he was already outside, he didn’t wish to draw any attention and just fell from the jacket like an overly large piece of road dust.

Finally free, the little creature burrowed into the ground and headed towards a different direction than the man that had carried him out had taken. This little creature didn’t want to take any risks that the man might find him familiar, or realize what had happened and track its passage. Instead, it burrowed underground in a random direction, exhibiting the absurd amount of patience that it had shown earlier. If it could spend many years nibbling on the roots of a tree while listening to rumors, it could also spend years burrowing through wilderness to hide its tracks.

Upon finding another settlement filled with humans it spent a few more years gathering information and making sure there wasn’t anyone on its trail before zeroing in on one of the more affluent families in town.

This should do, the Dou Clan. There’s a rising talent that is already betrothed, perfect.

The bug snuck itself into the garden courtyard of the rising young genius of the Dou Clan and waited patiently. Many more seasons passed before the auspicious day arrived. There was a grand wedding and an immense banquet. Then the young genius brought his new wife into their wedding chamber. Still, the bug did not act. It waited patiently, a hundred yards from this first night of husband and wife.

Months passed and the new wife was pregnant. Still, the bug waited. The young genius went to lead a conflict with another Clan, yet this creature did not act. The conflict escalated to a war and finally met its conclusion. Many in the Clan died in the war, but the young genius led them to victory at the cost of an arm. Yet, even with this handicap, the genius of the Dou Clan was still unrivaled and he gained the support to become the Young Master of the Clan. Next in line to be head of the Clan, the new genius welcomed his first son into the world.

A few days later, when the young couple were in their most exhausted state, the little bug snuck into the nursery and hid itself among the swaddling clothes. Then, when the baby was put down for a midday nap, and the parents left to get a rest, the little creature finally moved. It crawled into the baby’s mouth and slid down the stomach. An unusual energy was released from it, an energy that wasn’t sensed by the child’s parents, blocked by the infant's own body. The energy grew brighter and stronger until with a flash it was gone completely along with the bug that was its source.

Finally, I am reborn! Jinxi will rise again!

Within the child’s budding spiritual sea, the infant’s soul was faced with a large intruder. This new intruder was an insect with a shiny golden carapace. The bug from before had shed its old body, its limbs were much thinner and its body longer and larger, with a pair of wings, twice the size of its body. It fluttered across the clear and empty spiritual sea.

The poor newborn’s soul was pure and untouched, cleansed in the process of birth. It was weak and unprepared to face an invader. Worse yet, this invader did not attack it directly, the golden bug pressed up against it and felt the energy of the soul. The golden insect let out a soft clicking that turned into a continuous sound, releasing a gentle buzzing song.

It altered its signature, like a frequency of the soul, so the two were similar and then began to merge with it. The two souls slowly became one. The newly born infant could not put up a fight, in fact it did not even know that it should resist. This new energy seemed ominous, but then it immediately began to feel familiar and warm. Soon, the infant became merely a part of a much greater whole. This golden insect was no stranger to this process. There was a soft glimmer as the Golden Cicada disappeared, leaving a glimmering infant soul in its place. To the outside world, nothing about the infant had changed, but on the inside of the child’s tiny dantian there was now a golden egg.

I usually don’t have to take over this young, but beggars can’t be choosers. The Dou Clan isn’t ideal, but it's the best option in this little city. I can use the Dou Clan to conquer greater territories, or simply move on to new bodies. Nobody can beat Jinxi in patience.

The new master of the Dou Clan found nothing different about his child, nor did his wife or anyone else in the family. The being that had taken over the child’s body acted just as any other infant would. In fact, it treated it as a vacation. It had been buried under the soil, suckling upon the roots of trees and bushes for sustenance. Now that it had a warm bed and motherly care, its conditions were already many times better than before. It did not even have to worry about predators or being discovered in its hiding place. This was like a two year vacation.

Of course, after two years, the new owner of the child’s body was no longer in the mood to rest and had started training his new body. He couldn’t be too obvious, but the movements of play were done a little bit too seriously and with a rigorous number of repetitions. The older he grew, the more energy his tiny body contained and more exercise he could perform. The stronger this little body could be, the easier time it would have in training later. Natural talent affected the perception of energy, and ease with which it could be manipulated in the future for training and battle. Yet, this little fellow didn’t care much about talent. Even if its new body had the worst level of talent, he had enough experience to overcome that handicap. At least enough to enable him to find another body with better talent. Thankfully, he had saved himself that effort by choosing the child of a genius and inheriting a good level of talent.

The only unfortunate thing was that he could not show his ability too soon. He had to train in the techniques that his father gave him and learn the heritage of the Dou Clan. The Dou Clan Cultivation Technique was nothing special, but it wasn’t bad either. He had to hold himself back until he reached a proper age. What had surprised him most was that he was in a part of the world he’d never heard of before.

What happened to the Dou Kingdom? Am I not even in the Tianxia Empire anymore? Was I asleep for a very long time without realizing it?