Chapter 002: Simply Unbelievable

修... Cultivation World!?

Ying Shu’s eyes widened even further.

“Are you talking about that world from novels and TV shows, where people can fly through the skies, move mountains and seas, and refine pills and magical artifacts?”

The young man nodded with a gentle smile. “Yes.”

“Oh my, I was just coming to pick up a delivery—how did I end up in the Cultivation World?” Ying Shu muttered as she looked around. When she saw the plaque above the grand hall ahead bearing the words “Lockyang Palace,” her eyes lit up. “Lockyang Palace? This is Lockyang Palace? That’s the delivery address on my order... I probably haven’t transmigrated—ahchoo, ahchoo, ahchoo—”

Before she could finish speaking, a fit of sneezing overtook her.

Only then did the young man notice that she was dressed in shorts and a T-shirt.

With a wave of his sleeve, both Ying Shu and her electric scooter vanished from the spot.

Her vision blurred, and in the next instant, she found herself inside the palace, her body warmed once more.

She stared in astonishment at everything in the grand hall.

“Sit,” the young man invited, conjuring a tea set with a flick of his hand.

Ying Shu watched as the jade teapot floated in midair, pouring tea into two cups all by itself.

One of the cups drifted toward her. She circled her hand around it, confirming that nothing was holding it up, and finally accepted the cup, taking a sip.

The young man smiled slightly. “I know it’s hard to believe what you’re seeing, but you are indeed in the Cultivation World right now. If I’m not mistaken, it was I who commissioned you through the Universal Errand Platform, and you were brought here after accepting the task. Once you’ve picked up the item, you’ll leave this place.”

Ying Shu was puzzled. “If you’re in the Cultivation World, how can you place an order on a platform in my world?”

“Half an hour ago, a system called Universal Express contacted me out of the blue. I tried placing an order, and to my surprise, you actually came.”

Ying Shu was speechless.

If she could, she would rather not have come at all.

“I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Cheng Shan. I’m from Blue Star, Huaguo, Kyoto, in the year 2024. I used to be a doctor at Kyoto First Hospital in Lower Kyoto District Three. I must ask—are you also from Blue Star, Huaguo, Kyoto, in 2024?”

“Cheng Shan? Worked at Kyoto First Hospital in Lower Kyoto District Three?” Ying Shu’s mind raced as she recalled something. “Were you the head of the Oncology Department?”

Cheng Shan asked excitedly, “You know me?”

“My brother, Ying Xing, is receiving treatment in your department. I heard you were in a car accident due to fatigue—don’t tell me you transmigrated to the Cultivation World after you died?”

Cheng Shan had already spent over a thousand years in the Cultivation World. The only people he still remembered were his family and friends; he no longer recalled the names of patients. “You’re saying I died in a car accident from fatigue?”

“That’s what the nurses said,” Ying Shu replied.

She had overheard two nurses talking about Cheng Shan during a night at the hospital while staying with her brother.

Having seen Cheng Shan several times, she remembered him well.

“Fatigue driving?” Cheng Shan sneered. “Nonsense.”

Ying Shu set down her teacup. “So there’s more to the story?”

Cheng Shan hesitated. “It’s not time for you to know yet. By the way, what month was it in 2024 when you crossed over?”

“August.”

“I’ve been here over a thousand years, but only a month has passed on Blue Star?”

Ying Shu was astonished. “You’ve been here over a thousand years!?”

Cheng Shan nodded. “I don’t know how long you’ll remain in the Cultivation World, so I’ll make this brief. My wife in the modern world has ALS and has been bedridden for years. I have a ten-year-old son attending a private school, and each semester’s tuition costs tens of thousands. We have no savings or other sources of income. Forget hiring a caregiver for my wife—we can’t even afford the tuition. So I’d like you to deliver these things to my wife and son.”

Ying Shu was silent.

Such a good husband.

Even after a thousand years, he still thought of his wife and son.

Cheng Shan took out a small vial and a large wooden box from his storage ring. “The vial contains a Restoration Pill I personally refined for my wife. I don’t know if it’ll work for her condition. The wooden box holds gold and silver jewelry I acquired during my travels in the mortal world—after converting it to cash, give half to them as I asked, and keep the rest as your courier fee.”

Ying Shu frowned as she accepted the items. “I don’t even know how to get back. How am I supposed to deliver these?”

If she couldn’t return, her mother would have to look after the shop and take care of three people alone; she’d be overwhelmed and exhaust herself.

But before she could finish the thought, her phone chimed.

[Pickup successful. Please deliver the item to the designated recipient within 24 hours.]

Then, Ying Shu saw her hands turning transparent. Alarmed, she cried, “What’s happening to my hands?”

“You’re probably about to return,” Cheng Shan replied, quickly standing up and pressing a pill into her mouth. “This is a Cleansing Pill. It will flush out toxins, purify your essence, open your meridians, and rejuvenate your body. The side effects are diarrhea and expelling filth from your pores—once you’re back, rush home or to a hotel restroom. Also, when you meet my wife, just say you’re a friend who helped me make medicine; she’ll believe you. Make up the rest as you wish.”

He hoped that giving her the Cleansing Pill would ensure she tasted the benefits and be more willing to help him in the future—delivering more items, perhaps even caring for his family.

Ying Shu barely had time to speak before she and the scooter vanished from the hall.

In the blink of an eye, she was back in Ginkgo Alley.

If not for the vial and wooden box in her arms, she would have thought it was all just a dream.

“It’s unbelievable. No one would ever believe I actually went to the Cultivation World. Ah—”

Suddenly, pain gripped her abdomen.

Recalling Cheng Shan’s warning, Ying Shu quickly hopped on her scooter and sped off.

On her way home, she noticed filthy black grime oozing from her exposed skin, accompanied by a foul stench that made passersby wrinkle their noses in disgust.

By the time she reached her door, she looked like a mud-covered wretch. Her mother, Qi Zhen, pinched her nose and asked in exasperation, “Did you fall into a cesspit?”

Ying Shu had no time to explain and dashed upstairs to the bathroom.

An hour later, she emerged refreshed. Her dark circles were gone, her pores had shrunk, and her skin was as fair and flawless as a newborn’s—she looked several years younger.

Staring at her reflection, Ying Shu marveled, “Cultivation pills are truly miraculous—not only are they effective, but they work instantly.”

She wondered what effect the Restoration Pill would have on Cheng Shan’s wife.

If it could restore her to health, perhaps the pills of the Cultivation World could cure her grandfather and the others too.

But would she have a chance to return to the Cultivation World?

After all, a month here equated to a thousand years there—who knew if Cheng Shan was even still alive.

If only there were a way to contact him.

Remembering the errand platform that had sent her to the Cultivation World, she quickly picked up her phone to check. The name “Express Legs” had changed to “Universal Errand.”

“It’s been renamed?”

She clicked in to find the interface unchanged, but all her previous delivery records had been wiped. Only Cheng Shan’s order remained, and her profile information had changed as well.

[Name: Ying Shu]
[Age: 22]
[Merit: 0]
[Points: 0]
[Level: 0]
[Skills: 0]

Completing tasks earns merit?

And what on earth are these skills?