"My soul? Is something wrong with my soul?"
Alaric paused.
"I don't know." Old Tian replied as they slowly approached the garden.
Alaric looked on at the older man with confusion written all over his face.
Old Tian, seeing this, explained, "Cultivation is divided into several realms. After the heavenly dao allows a person to progress past the limit of their species, they enter the first realm of cultivation, the foundation establishment realm."
"This realm is divided into seven stages. It is a stage that focuses on the practitioner's body. After going through those stages, you enter the martial core realm, a realm that focuses on energy and nurturing, hence it is also called the nurturing phase."
He paused as they approached the shade, where they could see a small child, four years old, reading a children's book titled The Forgotten Hero and the Prophesied Ragnarök.
The child seemed fascinated by the contents of this action-themed colour book than anything in his immediate surroundings, as he was utterly engrossed in it.
The child was dressed correctly, as Alaric would call it a proper noble in this world.
The maid beside the boy served tea and cookies in front of him, and he sometimes extended his hand to pick up some for consumption.
They acted as though everything was normal, ignoring Old Tian and Alaric, who had approached them and were now standing beside them.
Alaric wanted to ask, but was interrupted by the older man.
"No need to worry, I place a barrier rune around us that makes them ignore our presence completely."
Despite being curious how it was done, Alaric restrained himself from asking and silently nodded. He had other pressing matters at this moment.
"After the martial core realm is the martial soul realm. Practitioners in this realm are rare as the origin in the air has diminished, and progressing into this realm requires a lot of it. The majority don't know, but it is a realm that focuses on the soul of the practitioner. Stepping into this realm gives the practitioner the ability to naturally interact with their souls and sense the soul of others in the metaphysical space they reside."
Alaric leaned lazily on the table in the shade, resting his hand on it. He was truly in awe at what this world had to offer.
"You are in a realm where you can easily sense my soul and notice something wrong with it." He asked.
"Yes. I can sense the metaphysical space your soul is supposed to be residing, but I cannot sense your soul."
"Your body is still connected to your soul, but your soul is not in its natural metaphysical space. That is something someone of my realm cannot do. Someone much more powerful has taken your soul, and according to what I can deduce, that someone is…"
"The heavenly dao," Alaric said in a cold voice.
Being a blessed, there were some privileges he had access to, one of which was that certain levels of beings are not permitted to interfere with or harm him, at least not until he reaches a specific realm of existence.
Taking that rule into account, the only being that can take his soul is the one that can interfere with the rules.
As the one who set such a rule, it is only the heavenly dao that is not bound by them that is strong enough to do such a thing.
"Yes. You follow quite well." Old Tian, who seemed to have found interest in what the young boy was reading, leaned in further to watch the pages. He stroked his beard as he always does and continued.
"Can you guess a reason the heavenly dao would take your soul's 'ransom'?"
Old Tian wanted to understand how much Young Alaric could deduce from the limited information provided.
He was a man who had comprehended the profound Dao of fate. Although he was currently limited to what he could do with that law, he could still deduce some truths about the world with limited information.
Alaric pondered a bit before replying, "It must want something from me, or it doesn't want me to stray too far from a path it has set for me to follow."
Old Tian nodded slightly, "I believe the heavenly dao wants something from you in the future in return for your soul. It wouldn't bother seizing your soul if it wanted you to stay on a set path; that's not how it works. It would simply find a roundabout way to stop you if that were the case"
Alaric fell silent at that, 'What could the heavens want from me?'
"Now do you understand why you can't lead a normal life?"
He nodded helplessly. The heavens were blatantly threatening him to walk the path to power, and he had little choice in the matter.
"You said earlier that a specific race exhibits the same trait I did when my flaw manifested," Alaric asked.
Old Tian pondered whether to tell him or not, as this could be considered classified information known only to a few.
"Yes, they are called abyssal; they are a natural enemy to all that is living. They are from a place called the Abyss Realm. A division of them has a trait that lets them adapt to any physical phenomenon; the process is slower than yours, but it is undoubtedly the same trait."
"You are quite lucky to have such a trait. It is something that can be taken advantage of if you are careful, unlike some of the other blessed."
He had a look of pity when he mentioned the last part. Truly, some blessed had the worst flaw.
Alaric asked about some of those flaws, but was brushed off and told he would find out when the time comes.
"So what now? Are you taking me to the Grand Archives? Alaric stopped asking about his fellow blessed and started asking about his future from here.
"Taking you in would be too dangerous for you, young Alaric. My situation is not ideal at the moment, and I can't defend you as I would like to. I have a friend who would take good care of you until you are 14. Then you can join Grand Archives like any other person."
"When are we leaving?"
"You are quite an eager young man. Not to worry, we will leave very soon."