For a long time, Malin always felt that Fate had been quite generous to him. Although he had to face that life-threatening job every day, as long as he had the lovely Leopard Girl cooking delicious food for him daily, and as long as there was meat to eat and cats to stroke, life wasn't too unbearable. Working a bit harder and facing some difficulties on the job weren't really an issue for a man.

Moreover, being able to live two lives meant one shouldn't have too high demands, right, Mr. Different-Kind?

Having said that, and without waiting for an answer, the young man snapped his fingers, and the white flame on his fingertip lit the tobacco in his other hand, then he flicked it towards the non-human entity on the stake.

Welcome to Abield, to witness the last splendor of the steampunk era.

And the madness.

The world only knows that Xiao Yang and Qin Fei fought over the position of Sect Master of the Azure Sun Sword Sect for a thousand years. Yet, only Xiao Yang truly understands just how despicable, shameless, insidious, and ruthless Qin Fei is.

Why? Because Qin Fei is the young master of the Demonic Sect, a spy planted by them.

However, no one, not even his master, parents, junior martial sister, younger sister, or any of his fellow disciples, believed Xiao Yang. Everyone chose to believe Qin Fei.

Everyone condemned Xiao Yang, claiming he was jealous of Qin Fei, accusing him of slandering and framing Qin Fei.

Qin Fei was simply too good at pretending. He feigned a pitiful background, acted weak, and staged being bullied, gaining people’s pity, sympathy, and protection. With his innate Dao physique, he was hailed as the chosen one of the heavens.

Fine, in this second life, Xiao Yang resolved to show the world how this so-called “chosen one” would massacre the Azure Sun Sword Sect, use the blood of cultivators across the world to break the seal of the Abyss of Demons, and plunge the entire world into a living hell for the demon race!

This is a damn Victorian fantasy novel.

Add a spoonful of steam engines to get that damned tech tree moving! Add a spoonful of love and hate to give everyone a good reason to fight! Add a spoonful of madness to lighten up this gloomy world, and finally, add a spoonful of natural disasters as the main boss… Wait! Bloody hell, I poured too much!

…

Year 931 of the Envirg Calendar.

The city I live in has been named the most advanced city in the West. The main reason? Steam technology, the source of both groundbreaking innovation and utter chaos, has turned the world upside down. It’s undeniable. Yet, despite this, people still flock here in droves. This city always offers a glimmer of hope, whether it’s a lie or an illusion. It’s so close, seemingly within reach, that people are willing to risk everything for it. A city of illusions.

And I am one of those dream chasers.