...
{3rd Pov}
He had already accepted that he would eventually build a harem, and Xyra had been aware of that intention for a long time.
In a strictly modern setting, the idea of a harem would sound unrealistic, since most women would find it difficult to accept sharing their partner with others.
Social expectations, personal boundaries, and cultural norms in such environments usually reject that kind of arrangement outright, making it impractical and often unstable.
However, the world he found himself in was not a purely modern one.
While its surface-level values and day-to-day social behavior had evolved to resemble those of a typical modern society, its foundation was still deeply rooted in a magical civilization shaped by traditions and customs that stretched back thousands of years.
Those older influences had not disappeared; they had simply adapted, lingering beneath the surface and occasionally shaping people's perspectives in subtle ways.
Even in his previous modern world, there had been regions and cultures where having multiple partners was not entirely unheard of.
Some societies still practiced polygamy, and in other places, more flexible relationship dynamics existed despite mainstream norms such as polymory.
Because of that, the concept itself was not completely alien, even if it was considered unusual or controversial.
In this world, that same idea followed a similar pattern.
It was not the standard, nor was it widely encouraged, but it also was not something entirely impossible or unthinkable.
Compared to a strictly modern setting, the resistance toward such arrangements was softer, and while it might still be difficult for some to accept, it was far from being an insurmountable barrier.
Not to mention, the fact that Astreo was regarded as the reincarnation of some ancient being from a distant past made it significantly easier for his subordinates to accept that his values and way of thinking were different from those of people in this era.
To them, it wasn't entirely strange that someone like him would act in ways that didn't align with current norms.
Although, if he were being honest, he would say that most of his differences came from the fact that he had not been raised or conditioned under the so-called Red Flag.
Ahem.
Yes, Astreo had not hidden the truth about his reincarnation from his subordinates.
There was little point in doing so, considering the circumstances under which they had first met him.
Back then, he possessed nothing more than the body of a child, yet his behavior, awareness, and capabilities were clearly far beyond what any normal child should have.
Naturally, such a contradiction demanded an explanation.
From his perspective, there were only two plausible conclusions they could arrive at.
Either they would see him as some kind of evil magician who had forcefully taken over the body of a child, or they would accept that he was someone who had been reincarnated into a young body while retaining his past memories.
Between those two options, the choice was obvious.
He preferred the latter, not only because it sounded far less hostile, but also because it allowed him to build trust more easily.
After all, when it came to cultivating loyalty, first impressions played a critical role.
Once a person formed a fixed image of someone in their mind, changing that perception later would be extremely difficult, if not outright impossible.
At the moment, Astreo's primary focus was on developing his Psychic Magic, as it was the element he had invested the most time and effort into.
Among all the elements he possessed, Psychic stood at the forefront, followed closely by the Space and Astral elements in terms of the effort he had pushed in them.
Out of these, Psychic Magic had the highest probability of breaking through to the Forbidden Tier 9, which was currently his immediate goal.
Reaching that level was not just about raw strength, but also about unlocking further potential that had remained out of his reach so far.
Once he achieved that breakthrough, he would awaken another innate talent.
His previous two talents—Innate Soul Grade Element and Mutated Star—were already exceptional by any standard, far beyond what most individuals could ever hope to obtain.
Because of that, he had no doubts that the next talent would be even more extraordinary.
After all, the requirements for a Forbidden Curse Tier were absurdly high, demanding an enormous number of Emperor Grade Soul Cores.
A reward tied to such a steep requirement could not possibly be mediocre.
For now, however, his biggest concern was not his growth, but a specific individual—Wen Tai.
Astreo was fully aware that, even with all the advantages he currently possessed, defeating Wen Tai outright was not something he could realistically accomplish at this stage.
There was a clear gap between them, one that could not be ignored or underestimated.
Escaping from Wen Tai, if the situation demanded it, was still within the realm of possibility.
But defeating him in direct combat was an entirely different matter, one that would require far more than what Astreo currently had.
At present, his combat prowess could be considered at the Mid-Emperor level, while his defensive capabilities, thanks to his Chaos Armour, reached the High-Emperor level.
That alone would place him far above most opponents he might encounter.
However, Wen Tai was not someone who could be measured using ordinary standards.
Wen Tai was built different, he was someone who was expected to reach the Plane Dominating stage in the near future, or perhaps he had already achieved it by now.
Astreo could not say for certain.
The butterfly effect caused by his own actions had already begun to alter the course of events, making it increasingly difficult to rely on his prior knowledge with absolute confidence.
'Perhaps he really is that strong, or perhaps he isn't. Either way, my first priority should be reaching at least the High-Emperor level of combat prowess,' he thought to himself, letting out a quiet sigh as he organized his priorities more clearly in his mind.
He had already made significant progress in his relationships with Lisa and Xyra.
The bond between them had deepened far beyond what it used to be, and the trust they shared was no longer something shallow or uncertain.
However, the final step in those relationships still remained untaken, and that was a deliberate choice on his part.
He had no intention of crossing that line until he reached a level of strength where he could afford such distractions without compromising his growth.
The reason for that restraint was simple—he understood himself far too well.
If he allowed himself to take that last step, then there would be no turning back.
Knowing his own nature, he was certain that once he crossed that boundary, his self-control would drop significantly.
As someone who was fully aware of his more indulgent and degenerate tendencies, he knew he wouldn't stop at just Lisa and Xyra.
His attention would inevitably shift toward others as well—Qin Yu'er, Yumeko, Ding Yumian, and Rumy were all already within his thoughts to some extent.
On top of that, some of these women were not exactly reserved or indifferent themselves.
Their own boldness and underlying desires, when combined with his lack of restraint, would only accelerate things further.
In that kind of situation, instead of focusing on his cultivation, training, and long-term goals, his thoughts would start drifting in entirely different directions.
He could already imagine how it would turn out.
Rather than thinking about which element to cultivate or how to improve his strength for the day, his mind would be occupied in what position he should creampie which woman for the day, wasting both his time and energy.
Days and nights would blur together, not because of training or progress, but because of constant indulgence that would ultimately slow him down.
That was exactly why he was holding himself back.
Until he reached a level where his strength could support his desires without consequences, he had no intention of letting himself fall into that spiral, no matter how tempting it might be.
Although Astreo behaved with a level of maturity that seemed far beyond his current age, the truth remained that he had died relatively young in his previous life, and in this life he has barely been given time to grow up, in fact he had grown up spoiled due to System and under his attempt to cultivate subordinates.
Because of that, he did not possess some exaggerated or unshakable "Firm Dao Heart" like many seasoned cultivators were often described as having.
His willpower, while strong, was not absolute.
He understood that clearly, which was exactly why he chose to restrain himself before he risked spiraling into complete indulgence and losing control over his priorities.
At the same time, his restraint was not only for his own sake, but also for how he was perceived by the women around him.
By holding himself back, he was subtly showing them that he was not a man who could be easily swayed or controlled by lust alone.
Instead of constantly seeking physical closeness or indulging in overly intimate moments, he made a conscious effort to maintain a certain level of distance.
This allowed him to build emotional comfort and trust, rather than letting everything revolve around fleeting physical attraction.
His intention was clear—he wanted them to genuinely care for him, not just desire him.
After all, if a harem was built purely on lust and temporary attraction, it would either collapse sooner or later or evolve into something unstable and unhealthy, which was something Astreo had no interest in dealing with.
Such a foundation would only lead to conflicts, insecurity, and imbalance over time.
On the other hand, if he approached things differently—making each of them feel valued, cared for, and emotionally connected, while still maintaining a measured distance—they would naturally begin to long for his attention and affection in a more meaningful way.
That balance between closeness and restraint would strengthen their bond with him rather than weaken it.
In the long run, this approach would create a far healthier and more stable connection between him and the women around him, something that would last much longer than anything built on simple desire alone.
'Though in the future, I will probably need something like a Dao Companion bond or a Soul-Binding Technique to form a true connection between me and my women,' he thought to himself, his mind wandering toward possibilities that were still far beyond his current reach.
Unlike a simple Psychic contract, which could enforce obedience or create a surface-level link, what he envisioned was something far deeper and more refined.
He wanted to create an ideal type of soul contract—one that would bind them together on a fundamental level, not through force, but through a stable and lasting connection that could not be easily broken.
A bond that would ensure mutual understanding, loyalty, and permanence, rather than something shallow or temporary.
Of course, even he knew that such an idea might be nothing more than daydream at this point.
The techniques required, the level of control, and the sheer depth of understanding needed to achieve something like that were far beyond where he currently stood.
It was not something he could realistically accomplish anytime soon.
Still, Astreo had never disliked dreaming.
In fact, he enjoyed it.
More than that, he had a habit of turning those dreams into concrete goals, and then steadily working toward achieving them, no matter how unrealistic they might seem at first glance.
For him, the gap between a dream and reality was simply a matter of time, effort, and persistence.
With that, after having gone through a rather long internal discussion about his future harem and the kind of relationships he wanted to build with the women around him, he finally set those thoughts aside.
There were more immediate matters that required his attention.
Without wasting any more time, he refocused his mind and continued on his mana cultivation journey, returning to the steady and disciplined path that would ultimately determine how far he could go.
…
A year later,
Astreo had started setting aside more time for the women around him, making sure that his relationships did not remain completely neglected while he focused on his own growth.
Even so, aside from Lisa and Xyra—both of whom he had shared a certain level of physical intimacy with—he had not crossed that line with any of the others.
His interactions with the rest remained controlled and measured, never going beyond what he had already decided for himself.
At the same time, Astreo did not particularly fear the possibility of any of the women falling out of love with him.
In his mind, the chances of that happening in a deep and genuine way were relatively low to begin with.
However, even if it did happen, he had already thought about how he would handle such a situation. If any of them lost their feelings for him then it would simply mean that they were not compatible with him in the way he intended.
In that case, he would draw a clear line and treat them as subordinates rather than considering them as potential partners or future members of his harem.
After all he will be happier with a few women that are so truly loyal to him where they don't care about their conditions, rather than many women who would betray him if he does not give them attention daily.
For now, however, that was not his primary concern.
Astreo had made a decisive choice regarding his cultivation.
He had completely set aside the development of his other elements and devoted himself entirely to his Psychic Element.
Nearly half a year ago, he had already absorbed Emperor-grade Soul Cores into it, pushing it close to half of the Forbidden Curse Tier stars having reached Tier 8.
Now, after continuous effort and focus, he had almost completed the process.
At this point, only a single star remained.
That last star was all that stood between his Forbidden Tier Psychic Element advancing from Tier 8 to Tier 9.
A year ago it was just half in number, but in reality, it represented months of intense and uninterrupted cultivation.
Even with half of his stars already completed, the remaining process was far from easy.
Moreover, Astreo was no longer spending every moment solely on cultivation.
His schedule now included breaks, time spent with the women interested in him, and attention toward other responsibilities.
Because of that, what could have been completed faster had stretched out over the course of an entire year.
Even so, he did not consider it wasted time.
'Now let's see what happens!' he thought, excitement clearly visible on his face as a grin spread across his lips.
It was not something he even tried to hide—nor did he want to.
After all, reaching this moment was not the result of luck or coincidence, but years of consistent effort, discipline, and careful planning.
Every step he had taken until now had been leading toward this exact point.
Finally, as he completed the refinement of the last Emperor-grade Soul Core, a noticeable change occurred within him.
Inside his Psychic Star Universe, every single star began to shine with an intense and brilliant hue, far brighter than before.
The transformation was immediate and overwhelming, as if all the accumulated power had been waiting for this final trigger.
Soon after, he felt his entire Spiritual Space tremble.
The energy within him surged violently, yet remained under control, as the brilliance of his Psychic Element rose to an entirely new level.
In fact, its radiance began to surpass even that of his Astral Element, which had previously stood as one of his strongest aspects.
The shift in dominance was clear, marking a significant turning point in his overall strength.
And then, it happened.
He felt something within him awaken—a new ability, a new talent, something fundamentally different from what he had possessed before.
[Congratulations, Master, for awakening the Innate Talent 'Elementalisation'!Master has also successfully achieved combat prowess of High-High Emperor.]
The system's voice echoed in his mind, delivering the information in its usual calm and dutiful tone. However, the meaning behind those words was anything but ordinary.
Astreo had finally reached the next level.
"Damn, another absurd name that could give anyone a stroke just by reading it—High-High Emperor. Seriously, who even comes up with this stuff?" Astreo muttered out loud, clearly annoyed as he complained about the naming of his current realm.
"But whatever, putting aside how ridiculous the name of the realm sounds, as for the talent I just awakened… I can already make a pretty good guess about what it does."
In fact, he had already started imagining how things would look going forward.
If this trend continued, then realms beyond this would probably have sub-realms within sub-realms, each one with an even more unnecessarily complicated name than the last.
Just trying to read or remember them would be enough to make an average person dizzy, if not outright collapse from the sheer absurdity of it.
And if it were a Xianxia cultivation realm?
Hearing it would probably make up the listener cough up blood on the spot, not even from injury, but from pure frustration.
The thought alone almost made him snort.
Worse yet, knowing how things worked, that blood would probably carry spiritual energy or some nonsense, making it even harder to clean up afterward.
Just imagining the mess was enough to irritate him further.
'No wonder cultivators usually don't bother explaining higher realms to their disciples. Just hearing the names alone would be enough to destroy whatever motivation they had left for cultivation,' he thought, nodding to himself as if he had just uncovered some profound truth.
As he entertained that idea, he absentmindedly stroked his chin, almost as if he had a long beard to go along with his "wisdom," even though there was obviously nothing there.
Still, the gesture made him feel like he had just solved some great mystery of the cultivation world, even if it was a completely ridiculous one.
"Though, jokes aside, let's see what I can actually do now," he said out loud, his tone shifting from casual amusement to something more focused.
A moment later, he let out a quiet sigh. "Is this what prolonged cultivation does to you? Even after taking breaks and spending time away from training, I still can't escape this lingering sense of loneliness, huh? Now I've even started saying everything I think out loud like some kind of narrator."
Astreo couldn't help but feel a certain level of gratitude toward his past self for not choosing the extreme ascetic path that many cultivators followed.
Spending years sitting in one place on their ass, doing nothing but cultivating without any form of interaction or distraction, sounded efficient on paper—but in reality, it came with its own set of drawbacks.
He knew that if he had gone down that route, his mental state might not have remained as stable as it was now.
After all, he wasn't a traditional Qi cultivator whose lifespan increased with cultivation.
He was a Mana cultivator, and the two paths were fundamentally different.
Qi cultivators often developed a kind of detachment over time due to their long lifespans, allowing them to endure long periods of isolation without it affecting them too much.
Mana cultivation, however, didn't grant that same level of emotional insulation.
No matter how strong he became, he was still susceptible to the psychological effects of prolonged solitude, which made balance all the more important.
Shaking off those thoughts, Astreo refocused his attention on the matter at hand.
Finally, he activated his newly awakened talent.
The moment he did, he could feel something instinctive within him respond almost immediately. It wasn't unfamiliar or difficult to grasp—in fact, it felt natural, as if it had always been a part of him, simply waiting to be unlocked.
That was the very nature of an 'Innate Talent.'
Unlike abilities that required time, study, and repeated practice to master, this was something embedded into his very being.
Because of that, he was able to use it without hesitation or confusion.
As the talent took effect, his Psychic prowess began to surge rapidly, rising to a level that was clearly beyond what he had been capable of just moments before.
[Combat Prowess: Mid-High Emperor → High-High Emperor]
The system displayed the change in his combat prowess clearly, leaving no room for misunderstanding.
Previously, he had been at the Mid-Emperor level, and after receiving a significant boost from his Psychic Element, he had advanced to the Mid-High Emperor stage.
That level came with its own very "interesting" position—he could easily bitchslap any Mid-Emperor without much effort, but at the same time, he could also get bitchslapped by any High-Emperor without much resistance.
It was that awkward middle ground where you weren't exactly weak, but you also weren't strong enough to dominate the top tiers.
Neither here nor there.
In simpler terms, it was like being stuck in second place while first and third place kept fighting over who gets to beat you up next.
Truly, the definition of being sandwiched from both sides.
However, all of that changed the moment he activated Elementalisation.
His combat prowess directly jumped to High-High Emperor, and the reason behind that increase was obvious.
Right now, he no longer possessed a conventional physical body.
Instead, his entire form had transformed into something far more abstract and dangerous.
His body was now composed entirely of burning pink flames, constantly flickering yet remaining stable enough to maintain a humanoid shape.
There was no flesh, no bones, no solid structure—just raw elemental energy taking form.
Within that flaming silhouette, two deep red eyes glowed intensely, giving him an almost eerie presence.
And honestly, if his previous state was "getting sandwiched," then right now he had at least moved up the food chain enough to start doing the sandwiching instead.
'Show my race,' he requested the system without wasting any time, his curiosity immediately shifting toward understanding what exactly he had become in this state.
[Race: Psychic Elemental (Current) / Half-Human Half-Astral (Locked)]
He carefully observed the information while simultaneously examining his own condition.
There was no doubt that his prowess had increased significantly, and the difference was not just numerical—it was something he could directly feel.
At the same time, he also noticed the continuous drain on his mana while maintaining Elementalisation.
The consumption rate was noticeable, but not severe enough to exhaust him within a few minutes, which meant it was sustainable for combat, at least for a reasonable duration.
Still, something about the description bothered him.
'So, basically, am I still half-human and half-Astral, or have I become some kind of mixture of three races now?' he asked, clearly confused about how this classification was supposed to work.
[Master, in the state of Elementalisation, is purely an Elemental. This means Master gains all the benefits associated with an Elemental form. Likewise, during this duration, Master ceases to be Half-Human/Half-Astral.]
'Hmm… but it should still be possible to somehow use the advantages of being an Astral even while I'm Elementalized, right?' he asked again, thinking ahead. If he could combine both aspects, that would obviously be the most optimal outcome.
[Possible. However, it will require Master to explore and develop it independently. The System currently has no module available to assist with such integration. Likewise, Master may create such a module himself.]
Astreo's lips twitched slightly as he heard that response.
It really felt like having a cheat that casually told you to become their own cheat.
And not just that—this was like being told to outperform your cheat while you were still far weaker than it by an absurd margin.
"Well, at least unlike that ridiculous upgrade module, Elementalisation is directly tied to Magical Studies. That means it shouldn't be that difficult to connect it with another elemental typing. In the end, that should allow me to make use of my Astral race as well, even if its benefits are still unawakened for now," he said, thinking the idea through as he spoke it out loud.
From his perspective, the plan was logical enough to be worth attempting.
Instead of jumping straight into something as complex as integrating his Astral nature, he could first experiment with combining two known elements.
By cultivating another compatible element and attempting a dual Elementalisation, he could gradually build an understanding of how different elemental states interacted with each other.
Only after that would he move on to something more complicated like the Astral Element.
His first target was obvious—Space Element.
Among all the elements he possessed, Space had the highest compatibility with Psychic, both in terms of nature and application.
If there was any element that could successfully merge or coexist with Psychic Elementalisation, it would most likely be that one.
'But still… that basically means sitting on my ass and cultivating for ages again,' he thought, already feeling a wave of mental exhaustion just from imagining the process.
He knew exactly what it would involve—long hours of focused cultivation, trial and error, repeated failures, and slow progress that would test his patience more than anything else. It wasn't difficult in terms of complexity, but it was undeniably tedious.
Still, complaining about it wouldn't change anything.
Whatever the case might be, at least he now had a reliable means of protecting himself against Wen Tai, at least for the time being.
That alone made everything he had just gone through worth it.
To be continued...
(A/N: For those who don't get it, this chapter was a soliloquy and I haven't written a new chapter. Questions, Questions. It is all about my Fake Sage Fanfic, for the first time in any of my fanfics I did such a long foreshadowing, I mean for Great Sage Fanfic which has over 200 chaps written anyways. I still have an arc to go, but after this I will release a side-fanfic on Tragedy.
Tragedy and 'Akros', in same words is same as pouring tea and coffee together. But out of all versions this will be best way to deliver Re: Zero readers who are Maso*cough* immersive, a great reading!
Anyway I am quite excited about it. only God knows how much I had to bear insults and stop arguing with stupid people because I was doing foreshadowing.
Like seriously, I genderbent a character, uploaded Side-chapters on their feelings and all you got "Why is this male character not following canon?", I am pretty sure we had a man named 'Reinhardt', in canon, not a gal named Reina.
Anyways~ Questions, Questions, I have to ask does this fanfic has anymore readers?
My laptop broke down, and I got it back after a week or so, and I also got sugar rush, starved myself for days due to stuff. And so... I only wrote chaps on other fanfics, Like I have a lot of them to handle.
Does this fanfic gets attention again? Idk, what do you think?
I think there are a lot of MTL Full-Time Mage or Versatile Mage fanfics uploaded recently, ignoring the fact all of them groomed Xinxia who had best chemistry with Mo Fan to their 'Little wives', and the fact they had a good relationship with Mu Ningxue... Too good actually.
And Chinese nationalism, All hail HUAXIA KINGDOM, the ancient dragon kingdom in the east who is secretly the strongest kingdom in earth and everyone who dares to hurt it's people are evil Sakura demons!
Leaving this out they are not bad fanfics per se... I mean there are a lot of fanfics, you can just read them?
When I made this fanfic, the Infinite Resource systems should have given away what kind of story it would have had.
Anyway prototype of this fanfic was an Erotic pokemon fanfic. Essentially I read some of those talent grade pokemon fanfics and stuff, and I realized why not make difficulty of pokemon training more resource intensive for everyone and give MC infinite resources?
Essentially with infinite resources MC would have trained his pokemons to absolute level. So i wrote a chap and then discarded it, because I would have to write 70-80 chaps of pokemon fights first.
Like what erotica has any taste if women just throw themselves at you? Or you don't do anything to earn their trust?
Basically it would have involved process of Pokemon growth and battles then getting a erotic harem, it was just process would have been much easier with the system and type of Pokemon world it was.
But writing that many chaps... I would have been bored, so I wrote this fanfic.
Which is in now current condition, because I couldn't really take your intense love every chapter.
So, thank you XD
PS: You can read my fanfic Wives Returned by Death, fanfic's theme involves intense emotions, growth, harem, obsession, etc)