"Where am I?"
Upon waking up, Yun Hao was overwhelmed by a wave of panic.
He found himself in an unfamiliar place where he didn't recognize anything. The wooden ceiling above him wasn't familiar, and the bed beneath him was as hard as stone.
Without understanding how he ended up here, he straightened his back and sat up in an L shape. But before he could even begin to ponder, a pain seeped into his skull, throbbing like hot iron. Unable to endure it, he let out a scream, using every fiber of his vocal cords.
"Aiiiiii!"
Screaming like a pig, Yun Hao placed his hand over his head and began rolling on that brick-like mattress, like a frantic cockroach scurrying left and right. After ten seconds of this, he stopped when memories flooded into his mind like a realistic movie.
Receiving the memories, Yun Hao, lying on his back, parted his lips slightly and his pupils constricted. He couldn't believe he had transmigrated.
According to the memories, he had been reborn into a world of immortal cultivation.
But here, instead of spiritual roots, everyone cultivated using spiritual meridians.
A type of special meridian that all sentient beings were born with, serving as the point of absorption for the Spiritual Power present throughout heaven and earth.
He, in this world, was one of the rare few born with empty spiritual meridians, named so because they had no attributes at all. Basically an empty shell, incapable of absorbing spiritual power, and thus becoming a useless person.
"So I really died in the end." Yun Hao sighed through his mouth. In his previous life, he was a university student who liked antiques and exploring museums.
During one of those explorations, he ended up in a museum that suddenly caught fire. The only thing he remembered was running nonstop. After that, he lost consciousness and ended up here.
'Did I die from cardiac arrest? Or did something explode?' This doubt crossed Yun Hao's mind, though he had no idea. And he didn't bother cracking his head over it. It wasn't worth it—after all, he was dead.
Thinking too much about death would only make him mentally collapse. Especially when he had no clues at all. Avoiding overloading himself, he dropped his previous thoughts and formed a new one. He began thinking about his current situation.
'A useless young man, huh? This formula present in thousands of novels actually happened to me, huh? What good luck.' Yun Hao sighed again.
Just that, without blaming anyone for his misfortune. And without uttering absurd words like: "If the heavens block my path, I will destroy the heavens."
'That's way too embarrassing.' Yun Hao, overcome with secondhand embarrassment, shook his head in exasperation, then began setting his current goals.
'My parents left behind three acres of land. If I cultivate them well, I can live a stable life and spend the rest of my days peacefully. Of course, that is if nothing unexpected happens. If there's one thing unpredictable, it's the world of immortal cultivation.'
"Can my empty spiritual meridians really not cultivate? Since they're just a shell, shouldn't they be able to cultivate other attributes? Like a farmer who aerates the soil with lime before planting. The shell should be nourished and then sprout into a dazzling multi-attribute seed."
This logic made sense—at least to Yun Hao—who also understood how illogical it was to actually achieve this.
"Haa... I forgot... If that's the future, what can I do? Wait for a golden finger to appear out of nowhere?" He joked, and suddenly heard a voice in his ears.
[Why did you take so long to say the command?]
[Ding]
[Cultivation Mission System is installed]
[Checking host information]
[Check complete]
[Cultivation Mission System has been installed]
[Ding!]
[First mission issued]
[For one month straight, complete every day a sequence of ten kilometers of running! One hundred sit-ups! And one hundred air punches!]
[Reward: First Level of the Yuan Meridian Realm]
[Failure: System detachment]
"..." Yun Hao was stunned. He was only joking! He never thought he would actually get a system. And a mission-type system? Staring at the translucent screen that appeared in front of him, he lifted his hands to his chin.
"Complete missions and gain cultivation? The first one isn't difficult, it just requires constant physical effort for a month. Aside from the exhaustion, it's not a bad deal." But he still had another question: 'Is this system legitimate?' He didn't trust it, but he didn't distrust it either—after all, the thing materialized before his eyes.
"I'll try! I'll confirm it myself!" Yun Hao murmured. If this were real, he would change all his initial goals and set new ones.
If there was anything inconsistent about him, it was his goals.
On Earth, he grew interested in antiques because they offered variety, just like him, who always changed based on the environment he was in.
Without further delay, Yun Hao left his humble wooden house. Outside, he admired the cool sun that cast faint yellow rays. It was morning, probably around eight, though he wasn't sure and merely guessed.
Removing his gaze from the sky, he looked ahead, noticing that the area around his house was surrounded by trees full of birds singing cheerfully, spreading pleasant sounds to the ears.
"A perfect weather for running." Yun Hao smiled slightly and stretched his arms, warming up before starting. After preparing, he looked at the screen.
"System, is there a tracker? I don't have anything to mark my daily progress."
[Counting Panel activated]
[Mortal Mission: Completion 0%/100%]
Goals:
Run 0/10km x30
Sit-ups 0/100 x30
Punches 0/100 x30
....
'Thank you.' Yun Hao thanked mentally.
In the next moment, he lifted his feet off the ground, increasing the force of each step striking the earth by the second. He couldn't go far at high speed, so he preferred running in circles around his wooden house.
Half an hour later, Yun Hao was sweating through every pore of his body, leaving his washed-blue garments completely damp. His tongue hung out as he panted heavily.
This body was trash, due to its previous owner giving up on life and becoming reclusive. He survived only because he had saved money left by his deceased parents.
"I ran five kilometers." Yun Hao, halfway through the distance, decided to stop and rest.
Returning home, he drank a cup of water, quenching his thirst and exhaustion. He rested for twenty minutes.
Returning outside, he completed the remaining five kilometers. Once done, he headed back to his home again, staggering. To avoid falling, he held onto the rough wooden walls to stay upright.
"I did it, the first daily task."