I Knock on Heaven's Gate with the Bones of Poetry

I transmigrated, but my golden finger can only glow.

Others transmigrate as royalty or martial arts prodigies. Me? All I have is a page of Li Bai's poetry that glows, and a "burden" named Miss Cheng, who's on the brink of death and needs me to carry her.

They say only the Pool of Primordial Unity, deep in Qingcheng's secret realm, can save her. But the road there runs through the snow and storms of the treacherous Shu Path, the Stairway to Heaven that tests the human heart, the "Erosion" that can turn people into monsters, and the imperial hounds who call themselves "Purifiers" but are crazier than the filth they hunt.

When Miss Cheng slowly begins turning into warm, smooth jade in my arms, and that page of poetry burns through my soul, I finally understand: she was never a burden.

She's the key.

And I am the fire.

"Let dark jade be the token, let the Dao fire be the guide. Heaven's Gate, open!"

The scum from the Purification Bureau are pounding on the gate outside. The Pool of Primordial Unity is right behind us. Miss Li is gravely wounded and near death, while Zhao Bo and Sun Qian stare on in despair.

Holding the burning-hot page, I look at Miss Cheng, now completely transformed into jade in my arms, and suddenly smile.

So my golden finger was never meant to make me a god.

It was meant to burn me to ashes, so I could be the last bundle of kindling for this fading golden age.

(This is not a conventional power fantasy. It's a story about protection and choice. Enter at your own risk, but those who do may witness the most heroic beacon lit in the darkest night.)