Runes • Rifles • Reincarnation

As Jin Shu strode through the hallway of the ship's cabin, Sun Li dangled from his grip like a limp kitten, too intimidated by Jin Shu's icy gaze to utter a sound.

"Which room is yours?" Jin Shu asked, his tone cold and clipped.

Sun Li weakly raised a trembling arm, pointing to the door at the end of the hallway. "W-what are you going to do?" he stammered, his voice cracking with fear.

"Punishment," Jin Shu replied flatly.

"Oh...!" Sun Li’s face turned beet red as he squirmed in Jin Shu’s hold.

Jin Shu shot him a sidelong glare. "What the hell are you thinking about?" he snapped, raising his free hand. Without waiting for an answer, he delivered a firm backhanded slap, enough to jolt the nonsense out of the young prince.

"Ow!" Sun Li yelped, cradling the back of his head as tears welled in his eyes. "Shu-gege~ Why~?" he whined pitifully.

Jin Shu opened the door at the end of the hall and unceremoniously tossed the limp prince toward the bed in the center of the room.

“Ah!” Sun Li squealed as he tumbled through the air, landing face-first into a pile of pillows. His knees folded beneath him, leaving his backside sticking up awkwardly.

Jin Shu closed the door behind him with a quiet click, shutting out Biyu and Yin’er. As he approached the bed, his cold eyes settled on Sun Li, who lay sprawled in a comically undignified position. Raising his right hand, Jin Shu’s voice carried an icy edge. “This is for the trauma you caused my younger self.”

Sun Li turned his head just in time to catch the words. “Huh—?”

Slap!

“Aaah!!” Sun Li cried out as Jin Shu’s palm struck his backside with resounding force. His entire body lurched forward, his face smashing back into the pillows.

Jin Shu frowned, flexing his stinging hand. He hadn’t realized how much strength he’d put into that first slap, but it was too late to stop now. Sun Li needed a lesson he wouldn’t forget. Raising his hand again, Jin Shu’s voice sharpened. “And this is for using your ability on me as you pleased.”

This time, he struck with measured force.

Slap!

“Mmmph!” Sun Li screamed, his voice muffled by the pillows. His body spasmed briefly before going completely limp.

Concern flickered across Jin Shu’s face. He rolled the boy onto his side to check on him and found Sun Li unconscious, tears streaming down his delicate features as his reddened backside swelled. Jin Shu felt a twinge of guilt twist in his stomach. “Maybe I went too hard on him... He’s just a kid, after all,” he muttered under his breath.

With a resigned sigh, Jin Shu rubbed his hands together, channeling his qi to prepare the healing massage technique. He worked swiftly, ensuring the swelling subsided and the pain dulled.

Once finished, he left Sun Li lying on his stomach, still unconscious, and quietly exited the room, closing the door behind him.

Biyu and Yin’er lingered just outside the door, their curiosity piqued. Before Jin Shu fully closed it, they managed a brief glimpse of Sun Li sprawled across the bed, his swollen backside sticking awkwardly into the air.

“Is she okay?” Biyu asked, her brow furrowing in concern.

“He’ll be fine,” Jin Shu replied with a dismissive wave. “I used a healing massage technique.”

Biyu’s expression shifted to something between confusion and suspicion as she glanced at him. “That massage technique?” she asked, a faint blush spreading across her cheeks.

“Yes—” Jin Shu hesitated, catching her meaning too late. “No—no! It’s not what you think,” he said quickly. “The technique works through clothing for surface-level injuries.”

“Still… you rubbed a girl’s…” She trailed off, then whispered awkwardly, “…butt.”

“He’s not a girl,” Jin Shu corrected with an exasperated sigh.

“Oh. Right,” Biyu said, though her uncertain tone lingered. “I guess that’s fine then…?”

Jin Shu decided not to engage further and instead placed a hand on each of their heads. His expression softened unexpectedly, and his voice turned gentle. “Thank you, Biyu. Yin’er.”

The girls blinked at him in surprise. The sudden warmth in his demeanor was a stark contrast to his earlier cold stoicism. They exchanged puzzled glances as his hands lingered a moment longer, then he pulled them back abruptly, looking awkward.

What they didn’t realize was that Jin Shu’s older Earth-born psyche had momentarily taken control, his habits slipping through. A moment later, the main psyche reasserted itself, pulling the older and younger psyches into alignment.

“Ahem,” Jin Shu cleared his throat, straightening up. His expression sharpened, as he regained his composure. “Let’s go find ourselves a room,” he said briskly, moving down the hallway.

***

Later that night, Jin Shu sat cross-legged in the center of his borrowed room. His breathing was deep and steady as qi flowed into him with each inhale, while impurities left his body with every exhale. He was teetering on the edge of a breakthrough. Over the past few weeks, the qi in his lower dantian had gradually accumulated until it reached its saturation point.

As seconds passed, his robes began to flutter as if caught in a phantom breeze. The qi coursing through his meridians surged, radiating subtle fluctuations that filled the room. With one final deep breath, a resonant boom echoed within his dantian, signaling his cultivation’s breakthrough from the 4th to the 6th stage.

However, as his qi began to settle, the Qi Compression Rune on his right shoulder activated. It glowed faintly, compressing his qi until his cultivation dropped back to the 5th stage.

Nano, how did I break through two stages at once? Jin Shu asked, his tone filled with wonder.

“Because of your Qi Gathering Rune,” Nano replied, as if the answer were obvious.

Doesn’t that just double the speed at which I gather qi? Jin Shu frowned.

“Yes, but it also doubles the amount of qi gathered from the atmosphere,” Nano explained patiently.

Wait… Oh! That means I achieve double the results, not just double the speed? I thought it only affected speed.

“How else would you consistently progress despite the Qi Compression Rune lowering your cultivation at every breakthrough?”

Right... I didn’t think of that. Jin Shu scratched his chin. Uh, Nano, are there other runes I’ve misunderstood like this?

“You would need to tell us your own understanding of each rune for us to identify discrepancies.”

Well—

Knock! Knock!

Before Jin Shu could continue, a knock at his door interrupted him. A familiar voice followed. “Shu-gege?” Sun Li called softly.

Jin Shu froze, his body tensing. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. “He was punished already,” Jin Shu muttered under his breath. “He wouldn’t try using that accursed power on me again… right?”

Shaking his head, he rose to his feet and opened the door cautiously. Sun Li stood on the other side, clutching a steaming bowl of soup, careful to steady it against the ship’s gentle swaying. His eyes were slightly red and puffy, likely from his earlier tears.

“Would you like dinner, Shu-gege?” Sun Li asked in a soft, almost timid voice.

Jin Shu blinked, caught off guard by the gesture. His brow furrowed in suspicion. “Why are you delivering me food?”

“Um… as an apology,” Sun Li said, hesitating slightly.

“Shouldn’t you be asking me for an apology, not offering one?” Jin Shu asked as he stepped aside to let Sun Li in. The boy shuffled to the corner of the room, carefully placing the soup on the table.

Once his hands were free, Sun Li waved them frantically. “No, no, no! I’d never ask Shu-gege for an apology. It was my fault for using my powers on you,” he said hurriedly, bowing deeply. “I’m sorry, Shu-gege.”

“Ah, no, it’s fine. I shouldn’t have punished you so harshly,” Jin Shu said, gently pulling Sun Li up from his low bow. His tone softened further as he hesitated. “Uh… how is your, uh, backside?”

Sun Li’s cheeks flushed crimson as he placed a hand over his bottom, averting his gaze. He mumbled something under his breath, too quiet for Jin Shu to hear.

“What was that?” he asked, leaning slightly closer.

“I said… you shouldn’t ask a girl such a personal question,” Sun Li replied, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jin Shu froze for a moment before pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. “You’re not a girl, Sun Li. You’re a man.”

The words had barely left his lips before Sun Li’s eyes brimmed with tears, and he began to wail uncontrollably.

“Waaah! You’re just like everyone else!” he cried, fat tears streaming down his face. “Whenever anyone finds out I was born male, they look at me with disgust! You do too, don’t you?!”

Jin Shu groaned, pressing a hand to his temple as a headache blossomed. Why did I say that?! He should have known better. As someone with memories from Earth he had more experience with people struggling with their gender identity then those in this world.

“Sun Li, I’m sorry,” he said quickly, his voice laced with guilt. “I didn’t mean it that way. I know that’s something you struggle with. It was my fault for being insensitive, so please stop crying.”

“Waaah! You don’t mean that!” Sun Li sobbed, his voice cracking. “You’re just saying that to make me stop crying!”

“No, I do mean it.” Jin Shu crouched down to his level, meeting his tear-streaked eyes. Jin Shu's voice softened further. “I understand. You feel like you don’t belong, right?”

Sun Li hiccupped and blinked at him in surprise, his tears slowing. After a moment, he gave a small nod.

“See? I get it. I promise I won’t call you a man anymore, and I’ll use your preferred pronouns, okay?” Jin Shu offered her a tentative smile. “How about this—let me make it up to you. I’ll grant you one wish. Anything you want.”

Sun Li sniffled, wiping her tears with her sleeve as a spark of hope lit in her eyes. “A-anything?”

“Uh-huh. Anything reasonable,” Jin Shu replied with a nod, pleased to see her mood improving.

Sun Li hesitated for only a moment before she beamed, her earlier sadness completely replaced by excitement. “Then… can I be your wife?!”

A loud bop echoed through the room.

“Ow!” Sun Li yelped, clutching her head.

Jin Shu’s palm hovered in the air as he winced. “Ah, sorry. That was a reflex.”

Sun Li pouted, rubbing the sore spot. “You’re so mean, Shu-gege…”

Jin Shu sighed and stepped back, running a hand through his hair. “Look,” he said gently, crouching to her level again. “You can't be my wife, Sun Li. But… I’ll be here for you, okay? You don’t need to be something you’re not to feel valued.”

Her big, teary eyes blinked up at him, processing his words. “You mean it?”

“I mean it,” Jin Shu said firmly, his tone soft but resolute. “So no more crying over this, alright? I’ll help you for as long as our trip lasts.”

A small giggle bubbled out of Sun Li as she wiped her tears. “Fine, Shu-gege. But I'm still going to become your wife!”

Jin Shu rolled his eyes but allowed himself a faint smile. He stood and ruffled her hair before gesturing to the door. “Go get some rest.”

Sun Li nodded and skipped out of the room, humming a tune under her breath.

As the door clicked shut, Jin Shu exhaled deeply and sank back onto his bed, laying next to Yin’er who had somehow slept through all of that. Between her emotions and my younger self's traumatic memories, this isn’t going to be easy… he thought. But at least she’s not crying anymore.