"We greet Master!" they all said in unison, bowing respectfully before Calyx.
"Alright, all of you stand up. For now, we'll do nothing—just rest," Calyx said solemnly.
After that, Calyx wrote in his book that his Talent would be F-Class.
Of course, he wanted to try cultivating at the hardest level—just for fun.
"System, show me my panel."
[Name: Calyx Invictus
Age: 23
Lifespan: 999,997
Realm: Mortal Human
Points: 2 (Generating 1 point in 14:23)
Monarch Auction House: Level 0 (Exp: 0/10,000)]
After checking the panel, he entered the Auction House, heading directly to the private area and into the master's room.
'I almost forgot—I need Selene to prepare some food. Even though I could go without eating at a higher realm, I still enjoy it. Selene will be the one working for now.'
Right after that, he called Selene. The white-haired beauty arrived swiftly, waiting outside the door. Calyx told her she could enter his room anytime.
Then, he instructed her to hunt and cook food for him.
"By the way, do you know how to cook?"
"I am a professional maid, Master."
"Oh, right... go now," Calyx said.
Truthfully, Calyx could create any food—or anything at all—just by writing it in the book. But he didn't want to use it unless he was tired, he just need it or it was a destiny-altering moment.
He then started cultivating.
Even with the help of a Level 3 Spiritual Vine, his progress was painfully slow due to his F-rank talent.
Days turned into weeks, weeks into months, months into years.
And just like that—
Ten years passed.
The current year is 13.
He had finally reached the Peak of Tier 1 Realm.
In the first year of cultivation, he reached the early stage of Tier 1. By the third year, he attained the middle stage. After six years, he reached the late stage. And finally, after ten years, he stood at the peak of Tier 1.
Calyx took a deep breath and opened his eyes. He stepped outside his room and saw Selene approaching, holding a cup of tea she had brewed.
She immediately greeted him and was visibly surprised to see him outside.
Though ten years had passed, her appearance hadn't changed.
Calyx had edited the system to prevent aging for his people, even as their lifespans neared their limits.
Currently, Selene was 28 years old—she had been 18 when she arrived. Her Tier 4 Realm gave her a lifespan of 300 years, so even without editing the system, she wouldn't age significantly.
Soon, Calyx would host the first-ever auction—and without a doubt, the Monarch Auction House would become famous.
Once it reached Level 1, everything would improve—spiritual vine, auction house size and his servants realms would increase.
After stepping outside, Calyx saw Dante training 20 guards with a sword.
They immediately stopped what they were doing and greeted Calyx respectfully when they saw him.
Calyx sat in a chair overlooking the mountain, sipping on Rank 2 herbal coffee that Selene had found in the forest and brewed for him.
"System, how many points do I currently have?"
[Ding! Master now has 262,815 Points!]
'Hmm, not bad. Let's see what I can buy with this.'
"System, show me the shop."
[Ding! Yes, Master.]
A transparent holographic display appeared, showing the shop interface.
Everything was available in the shop.
Calyx scrolled down to the bottom of the listings.
'Rank 2 Nightshade Grass – 50 points… Rank 2 Breaking Pill – 100 points… Rank 1 Fasting Pill – 1 point… Rank 1 Fireball Technique – 20 points.'
Nightshade Grass was a main ingredient for crafting Rank 3 pills. It only grew after 100 years and was incredibly rare in the Desolate Region—highly sought after by alchemists.
In the entire Desolate Region, Rank 4 was considered the highest grade for items, herbs, or artifacts.
In the Eldoria Empire, even Rank 3 was considered a peak item. Rank 2 was already precious, and Rank 1 was the standard.
The strongest person in the Eldoria Empire was the empire's Ancestor—the former emperor—currently in the early stage of Tier 3 Realm.
Calyx continued browsing and purchased some Tier 1 items, planning to distribute them to beggars or people with trash talents when he descended the mountain.
"Rank 1 Bluecorn Pill – increases cultivation speed slightly for just 5 points. Alright, I'll buy 100 of these."
"The final items for the auction will be… Rank 3 Ice Sword – 350 points, Rank 3 Golden Essence Pill – 600 points, and Rank 4 Mud Glory Armor – 2,000 points."
The Ice Sword had an affinity for Ice. The Golden Essence Pill was a high-tier Rank 3 pill that could help a cultivator at the early or mid-Tier 3 stage break through to the peak with consistent cultivation.
The Mud Glory Armor offered decent defense against early-stage Tier 4 attacks and complete protection from Tier 3 and below.
Calyx spent a total of 200,000 points.
A large portion went to four Rank 5 weapons he bought for Dante, Lilith, Nyx, and Selene.
He also bought Rank 3 items for the 20 guards and 10 demonic beast mounts.
Although they were created by the system and were immensely loyal, they had their own emotions. They could feel pain—and they could die.
As expected, they were overjoyed upon receiving the gifts.
After giving Dante the Rank 5 weapon and distributing the items to the guards, Calyx entered the Auction House and headed toward Lilith.
When he arrived, he saw her deep in study—learning about all the items in the cosmos. As the auctioneer, she had to be knowledgeable.
"M-Master! Greetings! What brings you here?"
She quickly stopped what she was doing and bowed respectfully.
"This is for you. As the auctioneer, you're prone to attack from unexpected threats. This will help protect you."
Calyx handed her a Rank 5 Phoenix Dress with strong defensive and offensive properties, capable of manipulating fire.
Lilith thanked him, her heart filled with gratitude.
Next, Calyx visited Nyx, who was currently refining pills in her room.
Nyx wasn't just powerful—she was also a talented Rank 3 Alchemist, Formation Master, and Spell Maker.
Calyx gave her a Rank 5 Golden Cauldron.
She was delighted and immediately thanked him.
Finally, it was Selene's turn.
Calyx looked at his white-haired beauty of a maid and pulled out a Rank 5 sword called 'Blood Pattern' from his storage ring.
"This is my gift to you."
"Thank you… Master," Selene said, accepting it. She then looked at her old sword and back at Calyx.
"Master, is it okay if I use this Rank 5 sword as a secondary weapon? This Rain Blood Sword I've been using… even though it's only Rank 3, it's very important to me. One day, I hope to find a blacksmith to improve it."
Calyx nodded and said, "Give me your sword. I'll refine it."
Selene was stunned. Slowly, she handed the Rain Blood Sword to Calyx.
Calyx opened the book and noticed he was now in next chapter. He hadn't written anything—the words appeared naturally, dictated by destiny itself. But he could still write manually at any time—like now to change or make something.
In the next moment, the Rain Blood Sword became a Rank 6 sword. Calyx returned it to Selene.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Calyx smiled.
At first, he thought his servants were simply system-generated beings—but he was wrong.
They were real people from this world.
The system had only infused them with memories to serve him.
They had their own pasts...