Redstone Colorado.
Sheriff Hordy sat behind his oak desk, boots on the edge, half finished whiskey bottle resting by his elbow. Redstone was a quiet town most days, a mining settlement out on the western edge and this hour of the day was usually his resting time.
He took a sip, winced at its strong taste and let out a long breath through his nose.
"Finally somethin that hits the spot."
The door slammed open.
Deputy Harris stumbled in hat askew, chest heaving.
"Sheriff...Red Creek tribe sent a rider. A gang about a dozen...hit the village. sir it's a Retaliation for last month. They're lookin to make an example."
The thieves weren't fools they wouldn't raid a tribe so close to town unless they meant to send a message. The Red Creek tribe had refused to pay "protection fees" last week.
This was payback.
Hordy set the bottle down.
"Sad days, When men burn homes just to flex muscle," he muttered, grabbing his rifle and coat. "Saddle up and gather the boys."
By the time they reached Red Creek Village, Huts burned along the ridge. Women gathered the children behind overturned carts hiding. A few villagers threw stones to keep the thieves back from thier huts, but rifles beat stones every time.
Thieves they were torching roofs, kicking down food stores, dragging valuables into sacks. The tribe had almost nothing, but bullies didn't need reasons when fear was the currency.
Hordy chambered a round, eyes narrowing.
"There's no talkin to men in a mood like this."
Harris nodded grimly.
They moved fast.
Hordy fired the first shot, dropping a man taking aim at an old man. Harris picked off another near the fire. The thieves scattered for cover, surprised and scrambling. A proper gunfight broke across the village. Hordy pushed forward house by house, using the burning huts as cover, firing with precision.
He spotted a theif rushing a woman and put him down. Another tried to flank him, Hordy caught him with a clean rifle butt to the jaw.
The tide began to turn.
But then Hordy heard a terrified cry.
A boy, stood frozen in the open, separated from his mother. A thief raised his pistol at the child, finger tightening on the trigger.
Hordy didn't think.
He ran.
"Harris!" he yelled. "Cover"
He sprinted, boots pounding dirt. He reached the boy just as the pistol flashed. Hordy shoved the child behind a barrel and the bullet hit him instead.
Endless Pain tore through his chest. His legs gave out, dropping him beside the barrel as the shooter fell to Harris's return shot.
The boy crawled toward him, eyes wide, trembling."Sheriff…"
Hordy with a weak smile grasped the medallion on his chest.
The medallion the tribe had given him earlier that spring their thank you gift for helping them through a drought.
He stared up at the sky.
"Damn…" he whispered, breath rattling,"should've finished that whiskey."
His view faded into Dark.
Hordy opened his eyes slowly.
He blinked, trying to focus. His chest didn't burn. His limbs didn't ache. He felt… light. Too light for a man who'd spent thirty years sleeping in dust and saddle blankets.
He tried to sit up and immediately knew something was off. His arms were thin. The skin smooth. Not his skin. Not his body.
"You gotta be kidding me," he muttered, Too young. Too soft. "This ain't the afterlife I ordered."
A water basin was nearby. He leaned over, stared into it.
A teenage boy looked back...thin face, sharp chin, black hair.
Eyes wide with confusion.
Hordy touched his own cheek. The reflection matched.
He touched down.
"Damn," he whispered. "I got downsized."
Hordy looked around properly for the first time.
Stone floor, Straw bedding. A shelf full of dusty manuals.
Hordy rubbed his forehead.
"What is this place?"
"Ain't kansas, Ain't Texas, Certainly Ain't Heaven."
He sat down on the straw bed closed his eyes trying to process the information.
Memories of the body start to flow in his head slowly.
While Tilting his head from side to side.
"Di clan, Qinghe Sect, Cultivation, Flying Human, Immortal,
What in the bollocks is this shit fantasy?"
Hmm
"Who the fuck names someone howdy?"
He opened his eyes and sighed.
"Hordy to Howdy, What the hell?"
"This certainly Ain't Earth."
As he was contempleting his situation.
The door creaked and a young man nearly fell inside, catching himself with a broom at the very last moment.
"Ah aha, Not dead, Wonderful, I mean...of course you're not dead, Brother Hao, I never doubted you for a second. Not even when you turned blue and stopped breathing."
Hordy blinked at him."Who...?"
Cao Di raised an eyebrow.
"Haiyaa, Brother Hao, You're forgettin faces now?"
Hordy tilting his head said, "Cody..."
He rushed over to the bed, eyes sparkling with nosy curiosity.
"Mah Mah, Let me look at you. Blink twice if you're alive. No wait blinking doesn't help just…"
He poked Hordy's cheek,"Vital signs normal. Spirit not escaping body. Eyes not rolled back. Good, Good, You're safe...which means I am safe."
Hordy stared at him.
Cao Di did not notice.
He was too busy rambling.
"You fainted while sweeping the courtyard yesterday but I told everyone not to worry. I said, Brother Hao is tougher than he looks, He simply needs a nice long nap And look at you Awake. Proof that I was right, If anyone asks remember I said that, okay?"
Hordy baffled and utterly speechless at this clown chatterbox.
Cao Di took a step back, struck a dramatic pose, and cleared his throat.
"Anyway, Your loyal and trustworthy good friend Cao Di is here. Ready to assist with your recovery, For a modest fee."
Hordy had no idea what the hell was going on.
Just as Hordy opened his mouth to respond to the broom wielding lunatic, someone knocked on the door with force.
Cao Di froze. His smile vanished.
"Act sick, Brother Hao, Act very sick, Pretend to die if you can manage it."
Before Hordy could ask why, Cao Di immediately jumped to Hordy's side, shoving him back down onto the bed with dramatic force.
the door slid open.
A tall young man stepped in outer disciple robe pristine, hair tied neatly.
"You're awake. Yesterday you were sweeping the courtyard, now you sleep all day. What excuse this time?"
Cao Di answered for him.
"Senior Brother Liang, Look at him barely clinging to life, spirit on the verge of flying away terrible condition."
Senior Brother Liang's eyes narrowed.
"Brother Hao," he said coldly, "you owe ten spirit coins for the Strengthening Pills I lent you. Pay Now."
Cao Di immediately slid beside Senior Liang.
"Internal injury, Sudden enlightenment, Qi deviation, All three At once."
Liang's gaze sharpened.
"Hao Di, you'd better not be pretending. Debt is debt. If you don't pay in next three days, you'll settle it with labor."
He turned to leave.
Cao Di immediately bowed.
"Yes, Senior Brother Liang's words are like the morning sun bright and fair."
The moment the door shut, Cao Di collapsed to the floor like a dying goat.
Hordy sitting back up asked in a confused manner.
"Cody, What type of labor was that guy talking about?"
Cao Di leaned in, voice low and urgent.
"Brother Hao… listen carefully. Liang isn't just a bully he's also the guy who decides work assignments in outer court. If he sends you to the stone yard, you'd be smashing rocks until your bones scream."
Hordy blinked.
"Stone breaking? ME?"
Cao Di in serious tone.
"Yes, You Brother Hao."
Hordy sighed, rubbed his temples, and finally stood up.
Cao Di stared up at him.
"Where are you going?" he whispered.
Hordy pulled the straw sandals on.
"To get money."
"H-how? We don't have money."
Hordy rolled his shoulders.
"We'll get some."
Cao Di placed a hand over his mouth to keep from squealing.
"Oh no… you're about to cause a disaster. I can feel it."
He tried to scurry out of the room.
Hordy caught him by the back of the collar.
Cao Di squeaked like a terrified mouse.
And somehow, despite the insanity, Hordy smiled.
He still didn't understand this world.
He didn't understand cultivation, immortals, But he understood people.
And this chaotic man beside him?
That was enough for now.