Chapter Four: The First Birthday Ceremony

The past life is not to be recalled.

Lu Chun—no, Meng Fan—soon came to accept this name as his own.

Because an infant’s bones are still soft and muscles undeveloped, Meng Fan couldn’t even roll over. Yet, he was determined to uncover the reason behind his transmigration.

“System?”

“System, sir?”

“System, master?”

Meng Fan tried to sense if he had been chosen by the legendary system, but to his disappointment, there was nothing.

As he searched his body for any abnormalities, his gaze was suddenly drawn to a birthmark-like pattern on his right arm.

The pattern resembled a portal. As Meng Fan studied it closely, his mind seemed to be pulled by some unseen force, his consciousness sinking deep into it.

What he “saw” was a vast, boundless starry sky—a universe seemingly hung with billions upon billions of stars, like a true cosmic galaxy. Yet, these stars were mere illusions.

Meng Fan felt that each of these countless stars represented a world. Except for two white stars that radiated dazzling light, the others were dim and faint, mere shadows.

Bringing his consciousness closer, Meng Fan glimpsed faint images of worlds—or rather, their trajectories—through these shadows. This information revealed to him the nature of these worlds.

The two white stars represented the worlds of “The Outlaws of the Painted Rivers” and “Under One Person.”

However, the light from the “Under One Person” world was even more brilliant, with hints of a peculiar glow within the white light.

Meng Fan reached out, intending to touch these two white stars, when suddenly two messages arrived.

[World of The Outlaws of the Painted Rivers: World tier—small world. Transit portal constructed. Time flow ratio to current world is 1:1. Travel possible.]

[World of Under One Person: World tier—small world. Host’s current world. Transit portal constructed. Formerly a medium world, now damaged and degraded.]

Beside these two radiant stars was another star shadow, slowly condensing at an agonizingly gradual pace.

“Is this my golden finger?”

“Transversing myriad worlds?”

“So, my future is not confined to just the world of Under One Person?”

This discovery filled Meng Fan with joy. Given time to grow, even Yuan Tiangang would eventually be no match for him.

What he needed to do next was simply grow steadily. Opportunities were opportunities, but without life, what use were they?

At least until he could defend himself, Meng Fan would not recklessly traverse other worlds—not even returning to the world of The Outlaws of the Painted Rivers.

After all, that world was in chaos now. What good would going back do? It would be courting death.

He had not read internet novels in vain in his past life: survive, endure, and eventually ascend to sainthood through persistence.

It was truly fortunate that Meng Fan had transmigrated into the world of Under One Person amid the vast multiverse. It was a modern, relatively harmonious and stable environment, providing ample time for his growth.

In another world, whether this infant could survive was uncertain.

———

Meanwhile, the news about Old Meng bringing back a child spread quickly through the zoo.

Among the zoo’s keepers were many elderly men and women who cared deeply for the animals—otherwise, the animals wouldn’t be so well-fed and plump.

Within days, everyone knew.

But there was no gossip or slander. After all, Old Meng’s character was well known; no one believed he would do anything wrong.

When pressed by these elders, Old Meng revealed Meng Fan’s origin, which stirred their anger against Meng Fan’s parents.

At the same time, they felt deep sympathy for the child.

That very evening, a group of elderly men and women sat fanning themselves on small stools, chatting.

“How can anyone be so heartless? Even if they didn’t want the child, they shouldn’t have abandoned him in the tiger enclosure! They could have at least sent him to an orphanage!”

“That’s right. Everyone’s heart is made of flesh. To me, those parents must have black hearts.”

“This afternoon, I even went to see Little Meng. That child, so tiny, sleeping so soundly, not crying or fussing—a well-behaved child, truly pitiful.”

“It’s only because he met Little Meng. Little Meng is kind-hearted; this child’s fate is tragic…”

Meng Fan’s arrival became a hot topic in the zoo. These elderly caretakers loved children, and when Old Meng was too busy, they often helped look after Meng Fan.

Time passed bit by bit, and with the company of many surrogate “grandfathers” and “grandmothers,” Meng Fan gradually grew up.

———

Everyone adored Meng Fan dearly. Sometimes when Old Meng’s wages were tight, these elders would even buy milk powder and other necessities.

In short, Meng Fan grew up nourished by the care of many, nurtured delicately like a painted doll.

Born with the bloodline of the Li family, he already had a strong foundation. Coupled with Old Meng’s occasional use of qi to massage and care for his body—fearing illness—Meng Fan grew increasingly spirited and vibrant.

Many milestones passed: crawling for the first time, speaking his first words—calling “father,” “grandfather,” “grandmother”—winning everyone’s hearts.

Before long, it was time for Meng Fan’s traditional first birthday ritual.

With the items brought out by these elders laid all over Old Meng’s dormitory—various objects large and small—they all watched expectantly to see what Meng Fan would grasp.

Meng Fan looked over the items, feeling somewhat troubled.

But soon, he made up his mind.

He first picked up a small book, then a tiger-shaped jade pendant, placing both on a small balance scale.

Then he found a small seal and placed it at the center of the scale’s beam.

Finally, he placed his hand at the middle of the scale, supporting the seal while lifting the scale high to show the elders and Old Meng.

One grandmother stepped forward, held Meng Fan in her arms, gently tapped his forehead, and smiled:

“Little Fan, you can only choose one item in this ritual. How can you be so greedy, picking four at once?”

However, one grandfather looked thoughtfully at the items Meng Fan had chosen.

“Balancing literature and martial arts—the art of emperors. Little Meng, your child is not ordinary!”

Old Meng wiped the sweat from his brow and smiled.

“Really? I just hope Little Fan can live an ordinary, peaceful life.”

The grandfather shook his head.

“Little Meng, it’s best to let the child choose his own path in the future. We as parents can educate, but we should not interfere too much.”

“You must teach Little Fan well; he is destined for greatness!”

“Then I’ll take your blessings to heart!”

Thus, the scene was set for Meng Fan’s future—full of potential and hope.