Lin Xuanji woke up face-down in dirt.
Not the soft kind either—this was the kind of dirt that really commits to being dirt. Grainy, dusty, and absolutely unwelcoming.
He groaned, rolling onto his back. The sky above him was bright and painfully blue.
"Great," he muttered. "Either I'm dead, or someone dumped me in the middle of a nature documentary."
He sat up slowly, taking in the jagged cliffs and the empty plateau he'd somehow arrived on. No city, no people, no phone signal—just a mountain that looked like it had social anxiety.
Before he could panic, a cold, flat voice rang in his head.
(Initializing… Host detected.)
Lin Xuanji flinched. "H-Hello? Who…? Where?"
(Binding complete. Sect Building System activated.)
He stared into the empty air. "…I have a system? Seriously? Did reincarnation come with a starter pack?"
No answer.
"Okay, System," he said cautiously. "What do you… build?"
(Sects.)
"Thanks, totally clears things up."
(I guide the Host in rebuilding Heavenly Peak Sect.)
Lin Xuanji gestured at the barren mountain. "Rebuild what? There's nothing here!"
(Correction. Host must begin from zero.)
He exhaled. "So I reincarnated into unemployment. Fantastic."
(Statement irrelevant. Proceed with initialization.)
"Wow," he muttered, "I really drew the short straw. Couldn't I get a cooking system? Or a shopping system?"
(Host is not qualified for those.)
"…That's rude."
He stood and dusted off his clothes. "Alright, Sect Building System. First step?"
(Claim the mountain.)
"How? By shouting 'Mine!'?"
(Host must verbally accept the appointment as Sect Master.)
Lin Xuanji paused. "You want me to… what, swear an oath to a rock?"
(Affirmative.)
He sighed into his hands. "Fine. Whatever. I accept."
The mountain vibrated under him.
Not violently, but enough to make him stumble. Faint light traced over the ground like someone was drawing glowing lines beneath the stone.
Lin Xuanji yelped, jumping back. "System! What did you do?!"
(Established sect foundation.)
"You could warn me before doing—whatever that was!"
(You did not request warnings.)
"Oh my—forget it."
He wiped his forehead. "Rewards? Please tell me there are rewards."
A small, cold object suddenly appeared in his hand. A token. Silver. Heavy. Important-looking.
(Reward 1: Sect Master's Token.)
A scroll appeared next to his feet.
(Reward 2: Basic Sect Blueprint.)
"And I'm guessing there's a mission."
(Correct. Mission: Recruit first disciple.)
Lin Xuanji stared at the empty mountain.
"…System, do you see anyone here?"
(No.)
"So how am I supposed to recruit a disciple?"
(Host may build facilities to increase attraction value.)
"Facilities? I don't have anything to build with!"
(Blueprint activation will cause automatic construction.)
"…Automatic construction?"
(Correct. Host selects a structure. I construct it.)
Lin Xuanji blinked.
He pointed at the ground. "You can… build buildings out of thin air?"
(Affirmative.)
His shoulders slumped with relief. "Finally! Something useful!"
(Useful is subjective.)
"You know what? I'll take it."
He unrolled the blueprint, hoping it magically knew what to do.
And it did.
The moment the scroll opened, the mountain responded—though Lin Xuanji didn't realize it wasn't the System doing the work. Stone shifted. Dust rose. The ground rearranged itself like clay being molded by invisible hands.
In seconds, a small wooden hut stood where there had been nothing.
Lin Xuanji's jaw dropped. "System… you're amazing!"
(Acknowledged.)
The mountain hummed faintly beneath his feet, almost pleased—but he didn't notice.
"Alright!" he said, slapping his cheeks. "Now all we need is someone to join this… very prestigious one-hut sect."
He cupped his hands around his mouth. "Hello?! Anyone want to become a disciple?"
Only the wind answered.
"…This is going to take a while, isn't it?"
Far below, hidden by forest, a faint set of footsteps began climbing the mountain path.