My Disciple Is Crazy!

"MASTER!"

The scream tore through the silence, sharp as a blade. It didn't just wake Xu Kai, it yanked him from a profound, empty blackness, flooding his senses with a jolt of pure sound. His ears rang.

A frantic voice sobbed near his head.

"Master! Please don't die and leave me alone! No one understands me! If you die, I won't last a week in this world, I swear I won't! I'll be good, I promise, just please, please be alive!"

He jerked, his body moving before his mind could follow. His head swam as he turned toward the noise.

A face hovered inches from his own, a girl, young, maybe eighteen. Her plain grey robes were rumpled. Her eyes, red-rimmed and overflowing, were now wide as saucers, locked onto him with a shock so complete it was like she stared at a ghost.

"M-Master… you're… alive?"

'Master?'

His heart hammered against his ribs, a frantic drum in the sudden quiet. A cold, unfamiliar panic seeped into his veins.

'Where is this? Who am I?'

Nothing felt right. The air smelled different, like dried herbs and sun-warmed fabric. The light was wrong. This wasn't his room, his city, his life.

A terrible, quiet certainty settled in his gut. He hadn't just fallen asleep. The man he used to be… was gone. This wasn't a dream. The sensations were too sharp, the panic too real.

'So. This is another world.'

The immediate questions, cold and practical, rose above the panic.

'Whose body is this? And who is this crying girl?'

He forced his breathing to slow and dragged his gaze away from her. He was lying on a low cot inside what looked like a large tent. Sunlight pressed against the heavy canvas walls, painting the interior a soft, glowing gold. It was bright, yet curiously cool. A strange, clever design.

For a moment, he just watched dust motes dance in a sunbeam, clinging to the quiet detail to steady his spinning thoughts.

The girl hadn't moved. She was still frozen, a statue of shock and tear-streaked relief.

He cleared his throat, the sound rough.

"Uh. Are you okay?"

She blinked. Then nodded, a quick, jerky motion. She seemed dazed.

He pushed himself up slowly onto his elbows, every movement feeling new and uncoordinated.

"If you don't mind," he began, choosing his words with care, "could you explain… what happened?"

The question snapped her out of her daze. She leaned forward, her brows knitting together.

"You don't know, Master?"

"I don't really remember," he said, tapping his temple. "Everything's a mess in here. It might come back."

He added the 'might' quietly. He was counting on no such thing.

The girl sat back on her heels and let out a long, shaky sigh. She muttered under her breath, almost to herself.

"Well. That makes sense. It's a miracle you're breathing at all. A knock like that… it's to be expected, I guess."

Xu Kai went very still.

'A miracle to be breathing? A knock?'

'Was this body supposed to be dead? Did I just… climb into a corpse?'

The morbid thought sent a fresh chill down his spine. It didn't fully compute, but the girl's demeanor, the lingering terror behind her relief, told him it was close to the truth.

She was his only source of answers. He needed to tread carefully.

The girl looked at him again, and her expression shifted. The shock melted into something more accusatory, a hint of her normal self breaking through the crisis.

"You scared me half to death," she said, swiping at her cheeks with her sleeve. "First, I thought you were gone. Then you wake up, and I'm so happy I could cry, which I did, obviously. And then you ask 'what happened?' and my heart just plunges. I thought your brains were scrambled for good!" She puffed out her cheeks. "Do you get some kind of joy out of watching me worry myself sick?"

'Two heart attacks in five minutes,' he thought wryly. 'This 'master' must mean a great deal to her.'

It was obvious from the title, from her desperate pleas for his survival. 'I won't survive long in this world.' The words echoed.

'Was it just drama? Or was it a clue?'

His eyes traced her figure again. The plain robes, the youthful face now smudged with dust and tears. She didn't look like a fugitive. She looked… comfortable. Or she would, if not for the current panic. There was a languid slope to her shoulders even now that suggested a personality prone to taking the easiest path.

'Don't judge a book by its cover,' he reminded himself.

In a new world, in a stolen body, assumptions were a luxury he couldn't afford.

Seeing the genuine confusion on her master's face, the furrowed brow, the distant look in his eyes, the girl, took a steadying breath. He needed to know. She began to recount the events, her voice low.

Her master, Xu Kai, was a Foundation Establishment cultivator. He had reached the very peak of that realm. For days, he had been sequestered in this tent, gathering his energy, preparing to ascend to the coveted Core Formation stage.

The process of forging a Golden Core was a delicate, all-consuming trial. It was the condensation of one's entire life force and spiritual power into a single, radiant orb within the body. He had been so close. The energy had been coalescing, on the verge of solidifying.

Then, without warning, his mind had shattered.

His concentration, the absolute focus required to guide the terrifying power, vanished like a snapped thread. The ascension failed catastrophically. A violent backlash of uncontrolled spiritual energy should have erupted from within, tearing his meridians apart, extinguishing his life instantly. There were no exceptions. A disruption during core formation meant death.

He should be dead.

And yet, he was breathing. The body lived, but the man who inhabited it… he was gone. In his place was someone else, a soul from a distant world, now clinging to this fleshly vessel. That was the only explanation for the survival. A possession. A miracle and a tragedy woven into one.

As she spoke, fragmented concepts brushed against Xu Kai's new consciousness.

'Foundation Establishment. Core Formation. Golden Core.'

The terms felt alien, yet they landed with a strange, heavy weight. On Earth, he'd skimmed a few cultivation stories, fantastical tales of immortal ascension. He'd found them entertaining in passing, but never delved deep. Now, stranded in the very reality of those tales, a sharp regret pricked him.

'I should have paid more attention.'

"So that's how I ended up here," Xu Kai muttered, more to himself than to her. The words were a feeble attempt to anchor the surreal truth.

"...Yes," she replied. Her voice was quiet, but her gaze was not. She was watching him, really watching him, with an intensity that hadn't been there before.

Xu Kai finally noticed the scrutiny. It felt like a physical pressure.

"What?" he asked, the defensiveness in his voice surprising even him.

She didn't answer immediately. She just looked, her head tilted slightly, her eyes searching his face for something familiar. The silence stretched, growing thick and uncomfortable. It was too long. Long enough for Xu Kai's palms to feel damp.

Finally, she leaned forward, her voice dropping to a near-whisper.

"Master… you've really lost your memories, haven't you?"

Xu Kai's throat tightened. He swallowed, the sound audible in the quiet tent.

'What do I say?'

Panic, cold and slick, coiled in his stomach. The truth, 'I'm not him', was a door he could not open. It led to two terrifying paths: either she'd believe her master's mind was simply blank, a hollow shell… or she'd uncover the terrifying reality of a soul from another world. Both possibilities risked everything.

His mind raced, discarding lies, weighing risks. She knew the original Xu Kai. She'd been with him for a long time, she'd said. Any act, any false mannerism, would be a glaring signal. Denying the memory loss would be a foolish gamble he'd likely lose.

But admitting it… that offered a path forward. It was a shield, a reason for his ignorance, a way to ask the questions he desperately needed answered without raising immediate alarm. It was his only viable foothold in this impossible situation.

He met her expectant gaze. The tension in the air was a taut wire.

"Well," he said, forcing his voice into a tone of weary resignation. "It seems that's the case now."

He held his breath, waiting for her reaction.

She cocked her head to the side, a flicker of understanding in her eyes.

"I knew it. Your behavior is off. The way you look at me… the way you speak. It's different."

Xu Kai's internal guess was confirmed. She knew the original man intimately.

Then, unexpectedly, her face lit up. She flung her hands wide, a wide, almost giddy smile replacing her suspicion.

"Master, if that's the case, I'll help you! We can start small, jogging a few memories. Maybe if we pull one thread, the rest will follow. It just needs a lead, right?"

"Maybe," Xu Kai answered, his voice quiet with surprise.

He had braced for drama, tears, anger, accusations. He'd prepared for the worst. This… this cheerful determination was disarming. It was far better than anything he'd imagined.

Her hands were still raised in enthusiasm. The smile stayed plastered on her face as she leaned in, her voice dipping into a playful, testing tone.

"But, Master… you at least still remember my name, right?"

Xu Kai paused. The trap was obvious, but there was no avoiding it.

"I don't remember."

The effect was immediate and comical. She froze mid-motion, her smile stiffening. To Xu Kai, it looked as if she had literally turned to stone and then cracked. Her arms dropped to her sides. She leaned forward, the cheerful expression vaporized, replaced by utter, genuine shock.

"You don't remember?" Her voice rose an octave. "How could you forget your own honorable disciple's name!"

The retort came to him smoothly, almost on instinct.

"If I don't remember the important things, how do you expect me to remember a name?"

For a split second, she just stared. He sounded exactly like the old master just then, she thought, the familiarity throwing her off balance.

She straightened her posture abruptly, pointing a finger at him.

"Master! Is this a prank? Did you really lose your memories, or do you just hate me so much you're playing with my feelings?"

"I told you, I don't remember anything," Xu Kai replied, keeping his voice level. He was building a narrative now. "The failed ascension… it must have damaged my mind, probably not my cultivation. What do you want me to do to prove it?"

"I want you to remember my name! At least that!" she demanded, hands on her hips.

"And how can I do that," he countered, "when I don't even remember how I got here?"

It was the truth, strategically framed. If she hadn't mentioned his own name earlier, he wouldn't have known that either.

She gritted her teeth, a visible struggle playing out on her face. She looked like she was holding back a torrent of words. Finally, it burst out.

"How could you forget 'Chen Xi'!" she nearly shouted, revealing her name. "I thought I was important to you! This is a betrayal!"

'That escalated quickly,' Xu Kai thought, unable to formulate a reply. "I'm supposed to be the master. Why does it feel like the roles are reversed?'

With a sound of pure frustration, she stomped away, grumbling under her breath. Xu Kai caught only fragments, something about "ungrateful" and "all those errands." He was just glad he couldn't hear the rest.

How had she expected him to know? He'd known her for less than an hour. But one thing was becoming crystal clear.

She is completely crazy.

A few minutes after Chen Xi's dramatic exit, Xu Kai pushed himself up from the bed. Every muscle protested. The cot was deceptively comfortable, and a heavy exhaustion clung to him, whispering for him to just lie back down and let sleep claim him again.

'No. Not this time.'

He had been given a second life, however bizarre. Lazing around wasn't an option.

He swung his legs over the side and stood, his new body feeling strangely both sturdy and unfamiliar. He walked out of the room, his steps tentative on the floor.

The space beyond surprised him. It was far larger than he'd imagined from inside the room. The walls were taut canvas, yes, but the structure itself felt solid, permanent, more like a proper building cleverly disguised as a tent. Sunlight filtered through the high, translucent peaks, illuminating a main living area sparsely furnished with a low table and a few chairs. The design was ingenious. Simple, but cool.

He glanced around. No sign of Chen Xi.

His eyes landed on the only other door. That had to be her room. He approached slowly. Barging in felt wrong, a violation of a boundary he didn't yet understand. He raised his hand and knocked.

Silence.

He waited, then knocked again, firmer this time. The only answer was the quiet of the tent.

'Is she that mad? Or is she even in there?'

He couldn't fathom her logic. He'd literally died and come back amnesiac, and she was hung up on a name? This type of woman was a complete mystery.

"Hey," he called out, his voice flat against the door. "If you don't answer, I might just come in."

It was a bluff. He had no real reason to see her, but leaving her stewing in there felt like a mistake. She was his only link to this world, offended or not.

"No! I don't want to see you!" Her voice was muffled but sharp through the fabric.

"Why?" he asked, playing dumb.

"Master, don't act like you don't know!"

"Is it because I didn't remember your name? Are we seriously still on this?" He couldn't keep the exasperation out of his voice.

"Yes."

He leaned his forehead against the cool canvas.

"Didn't you hear me? I've forgotten everything. I didn't even know my own name. My memory is totally gone. Don't you have even a little pity?"

A pause. Her voice was quieter when it came.

"I do… But it's still unacceptable."

Unacceptable. The word hung in the air. She had no rational ground to stand on, yet she stood there anyway. Was this a ploy? Was she trying to make him stand out here, twisting a knife of guilt he didn't even feel?

'Am I walking into a trap?'

The suspicion swirled briefly, but he dismissed it.

'What evil could this dramatic girl possibly be planning?'

He sighed, a long, weary sound. Fine. If playing along got her out.

"Okay, I understand," he said, layering his voice with a contrition he didn't feel. "If I offended you, then I apologize."

The words were empty, just sounds meant to lure. He'd done nothing wrong. The fault lay with the fall, the failure, the transmigration, not with him.

Silence answered him. Thick and complete.

'So that didn't work.'

He stood there for another moment, listening to the nothingness from the other side of the door. The bait was ignored. With a final shake of his head, he turned. Let her sulk. She'd come out when she was ready.

At that moment, the door flew open.

Chen Xi stood there, her earlier anger gone. Her expression was one of serious, wide-eyed surprise.

"Master… are you okay?" she asked, her voice hushed.

"Do I look like I am?" he countered, too tired to play along.

Her eyes searched his face.

"Did you… just apologize to me?"

'Master never apologizes,' she thought, the realization dawning. 'Even if I'm throwing a fit, he just ignores me or tells me to be quiet. If I annoy him, he'll say 'sorry' but it's empty, just to make me go away. He only means it if it's truly, completely his fault…'

"What did it sound like?" Xu Kai replied, deflecting again.

He was answering every question with another question, a frustrating habit that was somehow familiar.

'…But he just did it. He apologized, without me even demanding it.' she thought.

The concept was foreign.

"Master, but… how?" she stammered, taking a half-step forward. "You rarely apologize to me so sincerely. You've changed."

"Who said it was sincere?' he thought inwardly, keeping his face neutral.

"I lost my memory," he said with a shrug. "What did you expect?"

Chen Xi shook her head, as if clearing it. The way he'd been talking to her, the blunt replies, the lack of his usual stern posture… it clicked.

'No,' she corrected herself. 'He hasn't changed. He's just… clueless.'

A slow, thoughtful smile spread across her face. She put a finger to her chin, adopting a pose of deep consideration.

"Well," she began, drawing the word out. "If you really want me to forgive you… I suppose I can…"

"Oka—"

"…But," she cut him off, her grin turning mischievous, "you'll have to do something for me first."

She finished her sentence with a look of pure, mysterious delight.

Xu Kai stared, momentarily lost.

'Do something for her? Like what?'

The thought was daunting. He was useless here. He knew nothing, could do nothing. He was a blank page in a master's robes. She was the disciple, and clearly someone the original Xu Kai had trusted. He had no grounds to refuse outright, but blindly agreeing felt like stepping off a cliff.

He needed to know the price first. He had a feeling that with Chen Xi, once you agreed, there was no backing out.

"What?" he finally asked, his voice flat.

She paused, her smile faltering into a frown. She hadn't expected that.

"I thought I told you about—" The words died on her lips. Her brows shot up in sudden, genuine recollection.

"Oh! I apologize, Master," she said, offering a quick, perfunctory bow. "I almost forgot. You lost your memories."

"I understand," Xu Kai replied, and he meant it.

He completely understood her whiplash-inducing forgetfulness. It was perfectly in character. How could someone who'd just been furious he'd forgotten her name, remember that he'd also forgotten every other instruction she'd ever given him?

'It was,' he realized, 'perfectly, impossibly normal for her.'

Suddenly, she grinned even wider, a flash of pure, uncontained glee.

"Follow me," she chirped, spinning on her heel. She didn't just walk outside, she practically hopped, her steps light and bouncy.

Xu Kai tilted his head, watching her. The sudden shift from sulking to sunshine was suspicious, but he had little choice. He followed.

She led him to the edge of the clearing where a massive, flat-topped boulder sat, half-buried in the earth. She paused before it for a second, then turned back to him with a silly, expectant smile.

"Master, stay right here for a moment. I forgot something!" she announced, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

'Is she always this forgetful?' Xu Kai thought, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"I'll be super quick!" she promised, already dashing back toward the tent settlement in a blur of grey robes.

'Probably forgot because she got too excited,' he mused, left alone in the quiet clearing. 'But what's there to be excited about?'

He couldn't fathom her logic.

True to her word, she returned in a flash. In her hands was a small, plain wooden bowl. Inside it was a dollop of a thick, vivid green paste.

Chen Xi bounded up to the boulder. Without breaking stride, she planted a foot and pushed off. Her body rose effortlessly, a clean, graceful arc that landed her squarely on top of the massive stone. It was a casual display of impossible strength.

Xu Kai's eyes widened. He knew, intellectually, that cultivators could do such things. But knowing and seeing were worlds apart. The casual defiance of gravity right before his eyes… it hit different. A thrill, sharp and real, shot through him.

Then, a more practical thought surfaced.

'She didn't even offer to help me up.'

She settled cross-legged on the rock, placing the bowl carefully in front of her. She beamed down at him, her smile bright in the sunlight.

"Master, come!" she called, waving him up.

'Does this girl have a conscience?' he wondered, a flicker of genuine annoyance cutting through his awe. 'You leave an amnesiac at the foot of a cliff and just expect him to float?'

But the annoyance was fleeting. Underneath it was a spark of keen anticipation. Ever since waking up in this world, a part of him had itched to try it, to see if the cool, fantastical abilities were really his to command. This was his first real chance.

He took a deep, steadying breath, pushing Chen Xi's thoughtlessness aside. He scoured his mind for every helpful scrap from the cultivation novels he'd skimmed in his past life. Focus. Intent. Qi.

He willed himself upward.

For a heart-stopping second, nothing happened. Then, a strange, buoyant sensation filled his legs. He felt lighter. He looked down. The ground was slowly, steadily falling away. He was levitating.

A giddy shock washed over him. He was flying. Not on a machine, but under his own power. The air whispered past him, ruffling his robes with a gentle, thrilling touch. He rose smoothly, the world tilting as the top of the boulder drew nearer.

A moment later, his feet touched down on the sun-warmed stone. The landing was soft, controlled, even graceful.

Xu Kai stood there for a moment, a private victory buzzing under his skin. It was a small stunt, but the rush was real, a pure, uncomplicated joy he hadn't felt since waking up here.

It lasted about three seconds.

"Master! Stop zoning out!" Chen Xi's voice cut through his reverie like a knife.

His happy moment shattered. He froze, closing his eyes. His hands tightened into fists at his sides, all his focus going into not snapping at her.

'Does this girl have any sense of atmosphere at all?'

He opened his eyes. And smiled.

It wasn't a warm smile. Seeing it, Chen Xi felt the air around them grow inexplicably, unnaturally hot. A primal instinct blared in the back of her mind. Something was wrong. Everything was wrong. A single bead of sweat traced a path down her temple.

"Uh," she managed, her bravado vanishing.

"Chen Xi?" Xu Kai finally said. His voice was calm, but the single moment of silence before he spoke had felt like an eternity to her.

"Ye-Yes, Master?!" she squeaked, sitting up straighter. "Is something the matter?"

He didn't answer. Instead, he walked over to her with slow, deliberate steps. He stopped right in front of her crouched form.

"Mas— Ow!"

Before she could finish, his finger shot out, flicking her squarely on the forehead with a soft thok.

Chen Xi yelped, her hands flying to the spot.

"It hurts!"

"It wouldn't have if you'd held your tongue," Xu Kai said flatly.

"But what did I even say?!" she wailed, rubbing the reddening spot.

Xu Kai ignored her, turning his attention to their surroundings. He was standing atop a giant rock in the middle of what could only be described as a vast forest. Trees stretched in every direction, a sea of green so dense it swallowed the horizon. The air was thick with the scent of damp earth and growing things, incredibly rich and cool in his lungs.

His first thought was of a city forest. He recalled a cultivation protagonist from a story who'd done something similar. It was a comforting, familiar trope.

From the corner of his eye, he saw Chen Xi pouting, shooting him a glare that was more wounded puppy than actual threat. The expression was so genuinely, comically upset that his irritation evaporated. His heart did a funny little flip.

'Why does she have to be both completely crazy and disarmingly cute at the same time?'

He shook his head slightly, as if trying to dislodge the contradiction.

His gaze finally landed on the wooden bowl between them. The vivid green paste glistened ominously.

"And what," he asked, pointing a skeptical finger, "is this ridiculous green stuff?"

He had a strong feeling that anything presented by this particular disciple had a high probability of being utterly absurd.

"Master, be serious! Ridiculous? It is not ridiculous!" she huffed, her indignation momentarily overriding her pout. "Why do you always call it that? Are you looking down on my alchemical capabilities?"

'Yes,' Xu Kai replied inwardly. He wisely kept the thought to himself.

"What is it…" he asked again, carefully omitting the 'green thing' this time.

Pleased he hadn't insulted it, Chen Xi's expression brightened.

"This," she announced proudly, "is Swan Poison."

The word 'poison' hit Xu Kai like a physical blow. He took an involuntary step back, putting more distance between himself and the bowl. He had no intention of dying a second time, especially not before this new life had even properly begun.

Noticing his retreat, Chen Xi's smile widened into a grin.

"Don't worry, Master! In its current, mixed state, it's not poisonous to us cultivators."

Xu Kai relaxed a fraction, but one word stuck.

"Yet?"

"Yes, yet," she confirmed, nodding. "At this unfinished stage, it would only affect normal mortals and animals. A cultivator would just get… a very bad stomachache." She shrugged. "Diarrhea, mostly."

Xu Kai nodded slowly, the puzzle piece clicking into place. He finally understood the 'yet'.

Xu Kai eyed the green paste with wary curiosity. In this second life, no knowledge felt wasted.

"I'm getting curious about this poison," he admitted.

Chen Xi's face lit up.

"Very well, Master! Before the mixture, it was a leaf, a Swan Leaf. It's a vivid green, uniquely patterned. You can't miss it among ordinary leaves; it gives off a faint, detectable energy."

"Is the energy… poisonous?" Xu Kai asked, unable to keep the wariness from his voice.

Chen Xi chuckled, then leaned forward with a smug grin.

"Master, are you scared?"

"Why should I be?!" he shot back, too quickly.

"Because you usually are," she said, pouting dramatically. "Not about everything, but you've always been wary. Especially of anything your lovely disciple does."

'Even the original me was afraid of her?' Xu Kai thought, a slight shiver running down his spine. 'What in the world has this girl been doing?'

"But really," she continued, waving a dismissive hand, "you don't have to fear the leaf. Like I said, it's only dangerous to mortals right now. Not to us. Not until a cultivator finishes the process."

Xu Kai nodded, but the tension in his shoulders didn't fully ease.

"Is it finished?"

"No, not yet."

"Can you finish it?"

"I can, Master. That's why I still have it," she said with a shrug. "But it's very difficult. Herbalism isn't my strongest skill. I'm trying my best, though! Making progress!"

"Good job," Xu Kai said, the praise automatic.

"Thanks, Master!" Chen Xi beamed, her whole posture lifting at the simple words.

"So where did you find it? You didn't just stumble upon it and randomly decide to turn it into poison, did you?" The suspicion was back in his tone.

"Master! Do you still distrust everything I do? I'm a grown lady!" She added a loud 'hmph' for emphasis. "For your information, I couldn't afford a prepared leaf, so I searched the Lud Forest for one. I read the preparation method from a scroll I bought in the main market of Lud City."

With a flick of her wrist, a weathered scroll materialized in her hand, summoned from her Bag of Holding, Xu Kai presumed. She handed it to him.

He took it, eyeing the parchment as if it might bite.

"Are you sure this source is trustworthy? The main market has scammers too. They might get banned eventually, but that doesn't mean everyone there is honest."

He scanned the scroll briefly, dense script and crude diagrams of leaves and cauldrons, then handed it back. It vanished back into her storage.

"I know, Master. But the seller was an old lady who specialized in this. She was quite famous for her herbal knowledge in her youth. I've bought lots of learning materials from her. You have, too. All of them were good. That's why I trusted her with this."

"If that's the case, then she must know her craft," Xu Kai conceded, the last of his doubt fading.

"She does!" Chen Xi chirped. "And she's really nice! She even gave me a discount!"

Xu Kai took a deep breath, the rich forest air filling his lungs. Time to cut to the chase.

"So, back to the main point. You didn't call me out here just to show me this. There's something else."

Chen Xi's playful expression melted away. Her face grew serious, all traces of the grinning girl gone.

"Yes, Master," she said, her voice dropping. "I actually want your support."

Xu Kai tilted his head.

"For what?"

She smiled then. But it wasn't her usual bright, silly grin. This was darker, sharper, a smile of pure, sinister intent. The smile of someone plotting something very dangerous.

Xu Kai didn't like it. Not one bit.

"In slaying a beast, of course."