Cairen focused on the open book in front of him. Some time had already passed while he was completely absorbed.
The book lay on the stone table as Cairen rested his head on his hand, reading carefully so as not to miss any detail.
"Basic Fundamentals of Cultivation."
As the name implied, it was truly basic, a brief explanation about what cultivation was and about the realms.
It first explained the most important thing, the energy that moved the world, the essence of life: the Qi of heaven and earth.
"Qi is the vital energy that flows through all things, Heaven, Earth, and all existing races. Invisible to the eyes, but it can be felt by those who walk the path of cultivation."
"With Qi it is possible to mold mountains, sustain oceans, and nurture life. By cultivating, the body strengthens, consciousness expands, and the soul draws closer to the heavens. Powerful cultivators do not need to eat, can fly freely across the skies, and their life expectancy can reach thousands of years."
Cairen read it twice, astonished, trying to compare Qi with what he knew from his other world. In his previous world, there was an invisible energy, but it was so weak and shallow that only those extremely talented could use it. Even then, the maximum power achievable with that energy was probably weaker than the peak of the first cultivation realm in this world.
He couldn't imagine a warrior from his old world being able to kill those venomous beasts in the cave. And those beasts didn't even seem that strong.
He continued reading with interest. The book explained the realms in a straightforward manner, yet still with a certain weight, each word making sure his attention never wavered.
"First Realm, Realm of Physical Enhancement. It is the first step on the cultivation path, consisting of strengthening the muscles, bones, and organs to the body's natural limit. It lays the foundation for the next realm…"
"So this is where I am, probably thanks to the Narakai physique, I didn't have to worry about this first realm," Cairen thought, pleased.
Then came the second realm, the one he had to read most carefully at the moment, the Realm of Affinity Awakening.
"When the body reaches its physical limit, it is possible to awaken the body's natural affinity, the natural connection with one of the countless types of Qi."
There were three ways to discover one's affinity, Cairen read.
"Natural instinct. When the cultivator feels at home in certain environments even before starting cultivation, environments rich in a certain type of Qi, such as near a waterfall, lake, forest, etc…"
"Spontaneous attraction. When the cultivator's affinity is so strong that the element itself seeks them out."
"And lastly, the most common, safest, and most accurate method. The Affinity Crystal."
Hmmm, I see. I probably have poison affinity because of the bloodline, but what is my innate, natural affinity? Cairen wondered.
In the Affinity Awakening realm, there were three stages.
"Awakening. One must come into direct contact with their affinity's Qi until a dantian is formed at the center of the body."
"Elemental Tempering. The physique needs to be adapted to the affinity, standing under a waterfall, lying in fire, drinking poison… extremely dangerous for those with a weak affinity."
If I'm not mistaken, when I drank the poison, my body was being tempered, even if unconsciously. But I'm not yet in the second realm, otherwise the system would have shown me…
"And lastly, Physical Evolution. The cultivator perceives a connection with Heaven and Earth, being able to sense and absorb Qi into their dantian."
…
Cairen then read about the other realms: Qi Accumulation Realm, Qi Release Realm, Core Formation Realm, Spiritual Awakening Realm, Fusion Realm, Domain Realm, and finally, the Lost Realm. The last one had no information, but Cairen was curious and planned to ask the elder about it when he had the chance.
He then closed his eyes for a moment, absorbing all the information well.
"The next step is to awaken the affinity and create this dantian…"
…
Some more time passed, and Cairen was fully focused on reading all the books that night. He didn't feel tired or sleepy, so he didn't care about the night passing.
After finishing the book on cultivation, he began reading about Herbs and Poisons.
He read and made comments on certain points he found interesting so he could better engrain them in his mind.
Then he read the Bestiary of the South Continent (Part 1).
This was the largest book, containing so many beasts that Cairen was completely enthralled. He found some of the ones he had seen in the cave where he first appeared.
"So they're called beasts, not monsters. The ones I fought are the weakest, comparable to the first realm."
Cairen realized he wasn't as strong as he thought. There were hundreds of extremely dangerous beasts that could kill him before he even had the chance to react. He realized this place was far from safe. Without enough strength, this world was far more dangerous than his old one.
He found some beasts similar to animals from where he came from, but here they had bodies and scales compared to precious metals, measuring several meters in size. Even dragons the size of a city, though it was written that they hadn't been seen for thousands of years.
"This… will I ever see a dragon? If I become strong enough, definitely… If they truly exist, it would be impossible for them to just disappear or go extinct, maybe they're hiding."
Cairen thought excitedly. This world was dangerous, yes, but what mattered was that it offered the opportunity to grow stronger through his own efforts.
Next, he read about the Sect of the Three Poisons. He studied the rules, how it operated, and all the facilities disciples could use. He also learned about how disciples were divided and the sect's hierarchy. He, as a core disciple, had authority beneath only the Sect Leader, Wei Feng, and the five Poison Elders.
The sect's history was interesting, but he didn't care much about that for now.
"The more I discover, the stronger this desire to become powerful grows… Is this what others feel?" Cairen wondered, closing the book with a discreet smile.
At that moment—
Knock, knock!
Cairen quickly stood up upon hearing someone at his door.
It must be morning already, and I didn't even notice…
Opening the door, Cairen found three people. In front stood Elder Xu, and behind him, a boy and a girl, both with brown hair and similar appearances. Cairen recognized them—they were the two he had followed to get out of the cave where he had been lost.
"These two will be your servants from now on. They will take care of your cave, meals, and needs and perform any tasks you request. This is Lian Yu, and this is Lian Peng," Elder Xu introduced them.
The two bowed slightly to Cairen, looking somewhat tense. Cairen had read about servants in the rulebook, only core disciples had servants, and it was beneficial for everyone involved.
So he accepted. The two entered, and then Elder Xu continued.
"Now, follow me. We're going to the sect leader. Today we'll discover your affinity and awaken it. You must create your dantian today. And then we'll test your bloodline ability."
"You're lucky, boy. Our sect stands above all in the kingdom when it comes to poison, and I can tell your blood is a powerful poison. You'll soon learn the limits of your bloodline and how to use it perfectly," the elder said, though it seemed he was more excited about this than Cairen himself.
But Cairen smiled and followed the elder, it was exactly what he wanted, what he needed.
I'll start faster than I thought. This is great. And it's also good to learn more about the Serpent's Plague. After all, I've only used it once and only saw it used a few times… Cairen remembered, feeling a little sad, but quickly returning to normal.
As long as I'm alive, the bloodline and its memories will always be with me, right? There's no reason to be sad.
…
The two walked through the sect, passing by training areas. Many disciples looked at Cairen, whispering. Many already knew that a new core disciple had been chosen and that it would soon be officially announced to the entire sect.
After a while, they arrived at a huge courtyard. The Sect Leader was seated on the ground with a translucent crystal ball in his hand. As soon as the two approached, he opened his eyes.
"Affinity crystal?" Cairen asked.
"Good, it seems you've read the books. That's good, so I don't have to explain much. Sit on the ground. Hold the crystal and focus entirely on it."
Cairen followed the leader's instructions and closed his eyes.
"Focus, forget the world around you, and control your breathing. When you feel something reacting, at that moment, you must grasp it. And then—" the leader's voice was cut off when suddenly the translucent crystal turned into a dark gray energy.
"What kind of affinity is this? This isn't poison." The sect leader and Elder Xu stepped back, frowning, they had never seen this affinity before.
At that moment, the system's voice rang in Cairen's mind.
Ding!
[Fallen Affinity has been awakened.]
[Preparing the creation of the Fallen Dantian.]
[… 1%]
[… 2%]
…
Elder Xu and the sect leader looked on in disbelief as they felt the crystal absorbing the Qi around them. A terrible wave of Qi was drawn into the crystal and sent to the center of Cairen's body. At that moment, his dantian began to form rapidly.
"How is this possible? The crystal is absorbing too much Qi, and from every possible type," Elder Xu said, concerned.
"I see it, but he doesn't seem to be having any problems, his dantian is already forming, faster than anyone I've ever seen. This is good; he needs to finish as quickly as possible. The affinity crystal wasn't made to absorb so many types of Qi at once…"
"If the boy doesn't form his dantian quickly, there's a chance the crystal will explode and his body will be damaged," the sect leader said, worried.
At that moment, the crystal showed the first sign of a crack.
Meanwhile, Cairen was focused on forming his dantian, completely forgetting the outside world.
[… 55%]
[… 70%]
[… 89%]
[… 97%]