The blissful life of wealth and comfort lasted until Xiao's tenth birthday.
He had spent the entire day celebrating with his parents, grandparents, uncles, and aunts, partying and playing until exhaustion left him unable to keep his eyes open.
After a warm bath and a change into a brand-new bear pajamas, Theresa tucked him into bed, kissed his forehead, and whispered, "Goodnight, baby."
"Good night, Mom," Xiao mumbled before drifting into unconscious sleep.
But when he awoke, it was not in his cozy bedroom. His surroundings had changed entirely. A flood of information entered his mind as if triggered by some unseen force, filling him with an invisible power that he could feel coursing through him.
He found himself standing on a vast stone arena, at least five hundred meters across. This place was called the Daluo Arena, and it was Xiao's so-called golden finger—a unique ability linking him to countless other versions of himself across different worlds.
Xiao, a well-read child of novels and fanfiction, immediately recognized the concept. This was a "group travel" scenario: countless versions of the same person, each independent, scattered across different realms. Over time, they could gather and share talents, pooling knowledge and power.
However, Daluo Arena was far more than a mere chat platform. It had been created by the power of Daluo Daoguo, a self-reinforcing entity that aggregated fragments of itself across time and space. Even if other versions of Daluo Daoguo were blocked by worlds or heavens, they instinctively sought to reunite.
Xiao had been fully merged with one fragment of Daluo Daoguo, making him inseparable from its essence. The arena functioned as a battlefield to determine which Xiaos would inherit the fragments of Daoguo.
Each fragment retained an independent existence. Though all were once the same person, their experiences had diverged, shaping unique identities. Now, the fragments were distributed across the multiverse, and Xiao would have to reclaim them—by persuasion or by force.
If another Xiao resisted, it meant combat. Each battle had stakes beyond mere victory: knowledge, power, identity, talent, even entire worlds could become the property of the victor.
The consequences were clear: any Xiao who lost in the Daluo Arena would have their fragment absorbed, effectively erasing them from existence. Their life center, their very consciousness, would vanish. Memories, identities, worlds—everything tied to them would disappear.
In Daluo Arena, there were no allies, only rivals. Every other Xiao was a threat, every fragment a prize. Victory meant ascension; defeat meant annihilation. The multiverse itself became a stepping stone toward godlike power for whoever emerged supreme.
…
…
Boom~~~~
A resounding gong echoed across the vast arena. Two fragments of Daluo—one black, one gray—shot out from opposite sides of the stone stage.
They spun and twisted through the air, colliding at the center with a blinding flash of light. When the radiance faded, the fragments had fused into a single form, hovering above the stage—the prize for whoever would claim victory.
"Haha! Look what I've caught—a god damn kid! I'm so lucky!!"
A carefree, mocking voice rang out. From the far end of the stone stage, a tall, handsome young man strutted forward, a smug grin plastered across his face.
Xiao blinked, his mind briefly frozen.
"???"
Xiao, who had been staring at the sky, snapped back to reality and noticed the man leaning casually against a wall, a teasing grin spread across his face.
The man's presence was striking. He wore a linen gown, open at the chest, revealing taut, sculpted muscles. A subtle red mark adorned his neck, and an elegant, powdery scent clung to him—the unmistakable fragrance of a woman. Clearly, another Xiao had lingered with a beautiful woman just moments ago.
"Are you always this… cool?" Xiao asked, his tone sour.
"Hehe," the man replied, amusement dancing in his eyes. "You think I'm cool? You have no idea… yet here you are, unlucky enough to be reborn as a child—another me!"
'Other Xiao'—as he would come to be thought of—looked down at the diminutive child in front of him, barely reaching his waist, delicate and fragile. The sheer joy of seeing such an opponent was almost too obvious to hide.
To him, this little version of himself was nothing more than a minor inconvenience, a tool to sharpen his skills or pass the time. He didn't think the child could pose any real threat.
And so, they began to talk, each probing for information, trying to measure the other's strength.
"Okay, the chat's over," Other Xiao finally said, waving his hand impatiently. "No need to drag this out. I don't want to hurt a child, but give up the Daluo fragments, or you'll suffer!"
"Wait—there's no need for that. We're all Xiao. We can… share the Daluo Dao fruit peacefully…"
Sebastian Xiao hesitated, fear etched across his face. He didn't want to die, and his powers still resisted awakening. All he could do was stall, buy time. Alone, facing this fully grown version of himself, victory was impossible.
But the harsh reality of the Daluo Arena was unyielding. There was no mercy here; survival required annihilation.
"Don't dream," Other Xiao snapped, cutting him off. "If we don't kill the other, we'll never leave this place. I don't have time for games—I need to get back to my wife!!"
The mention of a waiting wife only emphasized his nonchalance. All Xiaos instinctively felt revulsion and unease when facing duplicates of themselves—a natural, worsening reaction that intensified with every passing second.
Sebastian Xiao swallowed hard. He knew that the gentle hope of coexistence was nothing but fantasy in this arena.