Chapter 1: ; From Reincarnated Orphan to Earth Mother

My name is Chén Chén, I'm an orphan.

That's the literal meaning.

In my previous life I was born on Earth, and after great difficulty I rose from the orphanage to become a high-level manager at a construction company, but due to bad luck from overtime I contracted COVID-19. Then I was reborn into an orphanage in this world.

That's right, it's another orphanage.

Chén Chén wasn't discouraged either; after all, in my previous life I was also an orphan, and even in my twenties I never found a girlfriend, so being reborn with no attachments is practically like returning to youth, right!

This is definitely a huge profit.

The good news is that being an orphan also has many advantages; first, you can change your name, so in this life Chén Chén still goes by Chén Chén.

The bad news is that although this world is still called Earth, it's actually an extremely dangerous place, or rather it should be called the world of Devouring Starry Sky.

It shares the same thousand-year history as my previous life, but starting in 2015 it completely veered in another direction. The global flu spread of the rr virus caused huge losses to humanity, and at the same time it sent humanity back to the savage era of fighting beasts tooth and claw.

Humans and beasts have returned to the same starting line, and this time the flying beasts and wild animals that humans had suppressed for over a thousand years got a head start—the Great Nirvana Period has arrived.

Fortunately, relying on courage and wisdom, after decades of war and sacrifice, humanity finally secured a foothold on this planet.

Or rather, it has taken hold in Chén Chén's person.

That's right, because Chén Chén is now the Earth Mother herself.

But the story actually starts five years ago.

The satellite city of Jianghai City, on the edge of Jiangnan Base City, was attacked by monsters; Jianghai City relies on the ocean, and sea beasts have always been a major threat that humanity cannot solve.

Because forces were limited, the higher command decided to abandon Jianghai City and cover the civilians' western retreat.

After being reborn, Chén Chén still trains his body every day, dreaming of becoming a martial artist so he can soon meet Luofeng, develop feelings, and cling to the thigh of the future true strongest in the Universe.

Unfortunately, the little Chén Chén, only twelve or thirteen, soon encountered this life's sole Waterloo.

As for why it's the only one, it's because Chén Chén died again in this Waterloo.

The orphanage was originally in a relatively remote area, and when the monsters attacked it suffered heavy damage right away; almost no one in the orphanage survived, and this life of Chén Chén is considered over as well.

Fortunately, the accumulated luck of two lifetimes as an orphan allowed Chén Chén to complete a third rebirth.

This time he didn't reincarnate into another world, but Chén Chén seems to have completely broken free of the human species and become Earth.

Earth, in a sense, also has no parents, so Chén Chén undoubtedly achieved the "three lifetimes as an orphan" accomplishment.

Chén Chén doesn't know whether he is the only planetary lifeform in this world, but as the Earth Mother herself, Chén Chén feels great anxiety about his fate.

A planet, in the concepts of my previous life, might be an existence beyond humanity's reach.

But in this world, the first rank after breaking through the apprentice stage in martial arts is called the Planet-level, which shows how lowly planets are regarded here.

The claim that one punch can shatter the Earth Mother is actually feasible in this world!

Chén Chén dares to bet that more than fifty percent of the offspring on his body have at some point entertained that thought.

Of course, according to Chén Chén's memory of the novel, Earth, under the protection of Luofeng, humanity's greatest combat power, successfully survived until the grand finale.

But that is based on the premise that Earth is not alive!

Humans are undoubtedly an extremely xenophobic species, and Chén Chén cannot possibly predict whether his birth will cause massive shifts in the world line.

Everyone talks about the butterfly effect, but Chén Chén is not just a butterfly; he is the actual Earth itself, and that influence can be huge.

Therefore, to avoid being smashed, Chén Chén must pull himself together!

Regarding the self-rescue plan, it has been officially launched.

————

My name is Chén Chén, I'm seventeen and a half, an orphan, and a survivor of the Jianghai City attack five years ago; I followed the retreating main force to Yangzhou City, one of the eight major satellite cities of Jiangnan Base City.

This is naturally the result of Chén Chén's backroom maneuvering.

Using a human body's avatar to come here is naturally to complete the most important part of one of the items in the self-rescue plan.

……

Limitless Martial Arts Hall, the largest martial arts hall on Earth, was founded by the world's strongest individual, Hong.

Its branches are spread all over the world.

Beep.

Chén Chén swiped his student card at the entrance and entered the martial arts hall.

Senior Brother, hello!

Senior Brother Chu, good evening!

I, Chén Chén, am just an ordinary senior student in the Limitless Martial Arts Hall.

Many students see Chén Chén's proactive greetings during training breaks, because in the martial arts hall, just the words "senior student" already outshine ninety percent of people.

Most of those training in the martial arts hall are youths aged sixteen to their twenties, and only a few obtain senior student status, someone like Chén Chén who is only seventeen or eighteen.

Though called a martial arts hall, its building scale is terrifyingly large; the three massive towers inside would be a rare sight even in my previous life.

Chén Chén never stops, heading up to the third floor of the senior student teaching building.

In the training hall, which is hundreds of meters long and wide, only a dozen or so people are present.

Chenzi!

Chenzi, you really know how to kill time; the madman just arrived a moment ago.

Several idle senior students greeted Chén Chén, and Chén Chén also politely greeted a few "kids".

Good evening, Chen Ge.

Good evening, son, cough cough cough… Ah Feng.

The person practicing boxing right before my eyes is none other than the future Universe's strongest, the Eternal True God, the God King… the Earth's future light, Chén Chén's greatest guarantee for his own lewd development—Luofeng.

As for why Luofeng calls himself Chen Ge, there's no doubt it's because Chén Chén lied about his age.

This is the second benefit of being an orphan.

However, if we go by Chén Chén's age in this life, he'd be over fifty billion years old? Luofeng calling him "brother" is quite a bargain.

As for why everyone else calls Luofeng's nickname "Crazy" while Chén Chén calls him "A Feng", that's of course because the most common way to address the protagonist is usually said by side characters.

And Chén Chén is naturally not a side character.

Of course, in Chén Chén's heart, Luofeng has always been his "good son".

Five years ago, Chén Chén's mortal form arrived in Yangzhou City as a refugee, and relying on Earth perception, he easily found Luofeng.

And on the day Luofeng turned sixteen, seizing the opportunity, Chén Chén entered the Extreme Martial Arts Academy together with Luofeng as fellow entrants.

Over two years of training, both made rapid progress, leaping to become senior students; even within the academy, some secretly referred to the two civilians as the "Twin Stars".

"Want to spar now?"

"Come!"

Sparring can improve combat awareness and also achieve a decent training effect.

For someone like Luofeng with beginner-level strength, the improvement from sparring is actually far less than solid training, but Chén Chén's strong summarizing and analytical ability makes Luofeng feel as if he has a personal trainer, and each sparring session yields abundant gains.

The two picked a spacious spot, taking turns attacking and defending, feeding each other moves, and fought vigorously.

……

Half an hour later, both had nearly exhausted their stamina, found a place to sit and rest.

"Chén Chén should be fully confident about passing the warrior practical exam, right?"

Luofeng clearly knows that, although they are called the Twin Stars, Chén Chén's strength has always been slightly above his own. Especially in combat talent, Chén Chén could even be considered half a teacher to Luofeng.

"Of course, just a minor warrior; we two must have far-reaching vision, and surpassing the War God within three years is our goal."

Luofeng smiled; such arrogant words are actually also his own aspiration!

Luofeng recalled the mighty blade-wielding monster expert he had seen a few days prior, aspiring to become such an expert.

"A Feng, don't fall behind; this exam we two brothers must both become quasi-warriors."

Chén Chén patted Luofeng's shoulder and said.

Luofeng gave a bitter smile: "But I still have some distance to go before becoming a quasi-warrior; I really envy Chén Chén's talent like yours."

Luofeng naturally also didn't want to fall behind Chén Chén, who entered at the same time and is called the Twin Stars with him.

However, the physical fitness indicators for a quasi-warrior haven't even been met yet, let alone the warrior practical exam.

"I've already planned to apply to a military academy; you know our family's situation—after graduation, joining the army would let my parents retire in peace, and in terms of safety, it's far higher than being a free warrior."

Warriors generally have five paths.

First path: join the military and become a member. The advantage is higher safety; the state would not lightly let warriors take risks, and the safety guarantee for large military operations is also extremely high. At the same time, the state provides many benefits to warriors' families, so warriors have no worries behind them.

Second path: join a martial arts academy. The academy's management is relatively lax, belonging to a rather loose group; moreover, the Extreme Martial Arts Academy was founded by the world's strongest expert 'Hong'. Becoming a 'warrior' of the Extreme Martial Arts Academy brings many benefits, and the management is lax, offering more freedom.

Third path: join a certain conglomerate, clan, or major power, etc., serving as an enforcer.

Fourth path: become a mercenary or free warrior—this is a life‑or‑death existence, the most adventurous, yet also the most free.

Fifth path: join the 【World Tree】. The World Tree is said to possess the world's strongest medical means, and its welfare and cultivation are also excellent. However, joining requires special qualifications and luck. To date, even experts who have emerged from the World Tree do not know what its selection criteria are.

As the eldest son in his family, Luofeng's sense of responsibility is also one of the reasons he can strive and persevere so much.

"Tsk tsk tsk, kids with families are just different." Chén Chén said sourly.

This is indeed without any pretense; as a three‑life orphan with no father or mother, Chén Chén still harbors an instinctive envy of Luofeng's harmonious family.

"Sorry, Chén Chén."

"Hahaha, it's fine, you don't know me yet; if you want to sympathize with me, then I'll give you the three good things of an orphan."

Although they have only known each other for two years, Chén Chén is undoubtedly Luofeng's best friend in martial arts.

If possible, Luofeng naturally also wants to become a free warrior like Chén Chén and carve out his own place in the world.

But he and Chén Chén are not the same.

"Alright, I'm heading off now—keep it up, become a warrior before the college entrance exam; by then, military academies won't be something you can just pick."

Chén Chén actually rarely stays at the martial arts academy; according to his own words, to support Jiāng Jiāng and himself, he has always worked eighteen part‑time jobs, only coming to the academy in the evenings.

Watching Chén Chén's departing back, the fire of fighting spirit in Luofeng's eyes blazed fiercely; he clenched his fists and resumed training.

【Daily Task: Luofeng's affection (completed)】