His constitution had a new, magnificent name. His cultivation, once stagnant, was now at the peak of the first layer of the Qi Condensation Realm, ready to advance at any moment. And his Spiritual Roots, the measure of a cultivator's talent, had jumped from the very bottom to a respectable "Medium-Grade." In this small town, that alone was enough to be considered a decent talent.
[Distributing the first reward for System activation.]
[Awarding Cultivation Technique: Supreme Immortal Scripture.]
The message had barely vanished when a stream of golden light shot from the panel and entered his forehead directly. This was no painful intrusion. It was an infusion of pure, sacred knowledge. He didn't read words he absorbed concepts. Golden characters, intricate diagrams of energy pathways, and profound universal truths flowed into his mind, settling not in his memory, but in his very soul.
Amit, the software engineer, would have called it the ultimate operating system for the soul, a perfect code for reality. Aryan, the reborn cultivator, knew it by a simpler name: power. The technique was so profound that the 'Basic Qi Breathing Art' felt like a 'Hello, World!' script before this divine architecture. He understood with absolute certainty that he now held the keys to the universe.
[New System features unlocked: Supreme Store, Supreme Points (SP).]
[Welcome Gift: 100 SP have been credited to your account.]
[New Mission issued.]
A new tab appeared on the panel, labeled "Missions."
Mission: A New Beginning
Objective: Reach the third layer of the Qi Condensation Realm.
Time Limit: 7 days.
Reward: 500 SP, 1x Low-Grade Qi Condensation Pill.
Penalty for Failure: None.
He stared at the mission. Two layers in a week. For the old Aryan, it was an impossible dream. For the new Aryan, armed with the knowledge of the Supreme Immortal Scripture, it felt achievable.
The door creaked open, pulling him from his thoughts. His mother, Priya, entered cautiously, her eyes a mixture of fear and hope. Behind her stood a tall, stern-faced man with a weathered face and broad shoulders his father, Vikram.
Their eyes fell on him, sitting calmly on the bed, and they both froze. They stared at his clear skin, his bright eyes, and the quiet confidence in his posture. Then their gazes dropped to the disgusting, flaking black filth spread across the bed.
"Aryan... what... what happened?" Priya whispered, her voice trembling.
Aryan's mind, now clearer and faster than ever before, raced for an explanation. The truth was impossible. He needed a lie that was just plausible enough.
He lowered his gaze, feigning deep contemplation. "When my cultivation failed," he began, his voice steady and clear, "for a moment, I thought I had died. In that moment, something in my mind opened. It was like a sudden epiphany. I understood where I had gone wrong, not just in cultivation, but in everything." He gestured to the filth. "This is the result. The hidden sickness and impurities that have plagued me my whole life have been expelled."
Vikram's stern face was a mask of disbelief. He strode forward, his eyes narrowed, and placed a heavy hand on Aryan's shoulder. He sent a probing wisp of his own Qi into his son's body a father's right and a cultivator's test. The moment it entered, his eyes widened. The meridians, which he knew to be narrow and fragile, were now wide and resilient. The Qi within them, though meager, was incredibly pure. He snatched his hand back as if burned, his stoic mask cracking for the first time in years.
"You... purged your body through an epiphany?" Vikram's tone was skeptical, but something unreadable perhaps a desperate hope danced in his eyes.
"I cannot explain it better than that, Father," Aryan said, meeting his gaze without flinching. "I only know that I feel... new."
A long silence fell. Priya and Vikram exchanged a look. The explanation was bizarre, but the proof was before them. Their son, who had been at death's door hours ago, now radiated a health he had never known.
Finally, Vikram gave a slow, stiff nod. "Clean yourself up. We will talk more later." He turned and left, his footsteps heavy in the hall, leaving Priya to tend to her son, tears of relief now streaming down her face.
Later that night, after a long bath and a hearty meal he had devoured like a starving man, Aryan was finally alone. The house was quiet. He sat cross-legged on his now-clean bed, the moonlight casting a silver sheen across the floor. He closed his eyes, shutting out the world and turning his focus inward.
He didn't need to think. The Supreme Immortal Scripture was a part of him now. He began the first cycle of cultivation.
The moment he did, the ambient Qi in the air, the spiritual energy of the world, reacted like iron filings to a powerful magnet. It wasn't just seeping into him; it was being drawn, pulled by the scripture's unique resonance. It flooded into his new, pristine meridians, which were now wider and stronger than he could have imagined. The energy circulated without friction or pain, completing a full cycle in a matter of minutes a feat that would have taken the old Aryan a full day of agonizing effort.
With each cycle, he could feel his body absorbing the Qi, growing stronger, tougher, more vibrant. A spark had been lit in the ashes of a failed life. Despair was replaced by a cold, sharp resolve. He glanced at the mission panel, visible only to him in the darkness of the room.
The mission panel offered a reward for reaching the third layer of the Qi Condensation Realm in seven days. A cold, sharp smile a look that had never once graced the old Aryan's face touched his lips. He would do it in two. This wasn't a second chance. This was a hostile takeover of a failed life, and he would burn anyone who stood in his way to claim what was his.