Just as Lu Jingming was beginning to doubt life itself, things took an even worse turn.
Because the City Lord—his father—had perished in battle, several noble factions who held grudges against the Lu family sought to seize credit for repelling the Sea Soul Beasts and defending Haiyuan City. More than that, they were clearly eyeing the Lu family's claim to the City Lord's seat.
These scheming nobles formed an alliance and launched a joint attack on the Lu family and their allies, the Zhang family. After the recent battle with the Sea Soul Beasts, the City Lord's forces had suffered heavy losses, and the Zhang family had lost more than half of their elites. The situation was extremely dire.
Just as the City Lord's Manor was on the verge of being overrun and the enemy was about to storm in, Lu Jingming finally came to understand what was really going on.
Though his start in this life could only be described as catastrophic, he wasn't without his trump cards.
In his previous life, at the moment he stumbled into great fortune, he had by sheer luck obtained a fragment of "True Authority."
It was precisely because of this power that he had the chance to be reincarnated.
Although his new life began in misfortune—losing his father at birth and immediately facing extermination—he remained calm. Without hesitation, he used all the remaining "True Power" he retained from his reincarnation.
Relying on this strength, Lu Jingming broke the boundary between illusion and reality—and successfully manifested a character from a game in his past life.
With a flash of radiant light, a silver-haired female swordsman wielding an ice sword appeared before him, who was still just an infant.
The moment she materialized, she fell silent for only a brief second. Without needing any explanation from Lu Jingming, it was as if she instantly understood everything.
She gently picked up the baby Lu Jingming and, calm and composed, walked out of the City Lord's Manor.
Her figure flickered, the ice sword in her hand gleaming with chilling brilliance. With every swing, piercing sword energy burst forth, freezing the air.
Under her blade, the invading soul masters who took part in the rebellion fell like ants.
Everyone present witnessed what it truly meant to "cut down an enemy with a single strike."
Even the Soul Saint patriarch of the leading noble clan couldn't withstand a casual swing from her sword.
After this heart-stopping rebellion, those ambitious noble families were utterly annihilated and erased from the history of Haiyuan City.
Later, as Lu Jingming passed by the manor's kitchen, a pink blur shot out like lightning and leapt straight onto him with a whoosh.
In a blink, the little creature agilely scampered up and perched itself on his head, sitting there quite comfortably.
Lu Jingming froze for a moment, then instinctively reached up and grabbed the bold little rascal from his head.
What he held in his hand was a soft, fluffy, pink-haired little fox, so adorable it was impossible not to like.
Perhaps he'd grabbed it a bit too roughly, because the little fox let out a disgruntled "Ying-ying!", its furry little paws pawing the air in protest, acting fierce in a cute way that made it hard to hold back laughter.
"Shenzi, how many times have I told you? No monkey business on your lord's head, got it? Hm? You snuck into the kitchen for oil-fried tofu again, didn't you?" Lu Jingming scolded half-heartedly, pretending to be stern. As he looked more closely, he noticed a smear of oil still clinging to the corner of the little fox's mouth.
He instantly understood—this gluttonous little pink menace had clearly snuck into the kitchen to scrounge for snacks again.
After all, as the pet of Haiyuan City's young lord, none of the kitchen staff dared to offend this mischievous little fox.
Every time it strolled into the kitchen, the chefs would greet it with obsequious smiles and immediately present its favorite dish: oil-fried tofu.
"Ying-ying." The little fox seemed to understand his words. It waved its tiny paw, lifted its fluffy little head, and gazed at Lu Jingming with round, pleading eyes—clearly asking him to help wipe its mouth clean.
Lu Jingming rolled his eyes. Am I really the master here, or is this pink-haired furball in charge? Why did it feel like the world had turned upside down?
Still, thanks to the fox's unexpected interruption, his previously tense and anxious mood had finally settled down.
He remembered now—there was still at least half an hour before the spirit awakening ceremony.
And since the Awakening Hall was inside the City Lord's Manor, it would only take him a few minutes to get there.
Realizing this, he suddenly saw through it—Zhang Lexuan had clearly been trying to scare him earlier. He'd only panicked because he was too afraid of being punished by Mirrorflow.
With his nerves calmed, Lu Jingming no longer rushed. He took out a delicate handkerchief from his robe and gently wiped the oil from the little fox's mouth, treating it with care and tenderness.
Then he picked up the fox, buried his face into its soft fur, and took a deep breath—twice.
This fluffy, warm little fox fit perfectly in his palm, soft and cozy like the ultimate hand-warmer. It was truly impossible to put down.
Yet whenever he thought about how this adorable little fox would eventually grow up to become a sassy, sharp-tongued, and scheming creature, Lu Jingming couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.
He still remembered—back then, he had originally wanted to use his True Power to summon a glamorous, elegant, and gentle pink-haired shrine maiden to help him manage the massive City Lord's Manor.
Who could've guessed that although the summoning process succeeded, due to the lack of sufficient energy, that pink-haired shrine maiden had undergone a dramatic transformation—right on the spot—into this pint-sized version.
Once a graceful and enchanting figure, she had now become this tiny pink-furred fox before him—her intelligence even regressed to that of a child.
Who knew how long it would take before she could return to being the sharp-witted, elegant Guuji that Lu Jingming knew so well?
Yes, this adorable little fox was none other than the being Lu Jingming had manifested using the power of True Authority.
Her original form came from a popular mobile game in his past life—Genshin Impact—where she was the renowned Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine: Yae Miko.
Cradling the soft, fluffy Shenzi in his arms, Lu Jingming walked at a leisurely pace into the Awakening Chamber.
The moment he stepped into the rune-inscribed room, a delicate and refreshing fragrance greeted him, lingering at the tip of his nose and instantly putting his mind at ease.
His gaze instinctively followed the scent's origin and fell upon several ancient stone pillars standing upright within the chamber.
They might appear simple at first glance, but one would be gravely mistaken to underestimate them—each one was worth a small fortune, costing several thousand Soulgold Coins apiece.
These pillars were crafted from an extraordinarily rare ore known as Focus Stone—an essential material for awakening one's Martial Spirit.