CHAPTER 37: CULTIVATION

The morning sun began to dissipate the night’s cold over the empty capital. The blood dome had disappeared long ago.

Kyrian remained in the same spot, sitting on the stone steps of the house in front of the garden where he had buried the bodies.

He could still feel the presence of that drop of blood in his mind, after paying a little more attention, it was like an invisible thread, a light but constant weight connecting him to Wei Feng.

After waiting the entire night, the old man emerged from a nearby house.

The door creaked open. But the figure that appeared was no longer the same as the one Kyrian had seen enter with the flowers.

The cadaverous, blood-covered old man no longer existed. Kyrian felt genuine shock.

The man who walked out was tall and imposing. His hair and beard were still gray like snow, marks that would continue to show that not much life remained.

But the skin, once wrinkled and pale, was now firm with a slight, healthy bronze. His body, previously little more than a skeleton in clothes, now had a slim but defined silhouette.

He was dressed in a completely clean and new robe of deep red.

Wei Feng now looked like a man in his forties, still full of vigor and restrained power.

Kyrian sensed that the man in front of him was entirely different from the old man before. He instinctively felt an even greater danger.

Wei Feng, upon exiting the house, stretched his arms, his bones cracking with renewed strength. He looked at his hands, clenched his fists, and smiled, a gesture of selfish satisfaction.

"Now it’s better," he said to himself.

His gaze then settled on Kyrian.

"Stand up. This place is a cemetery. There is nothing left for us here."

Kyrian obeyed, rising silently. His clothes were still stained with dirt and blood, a stark contrast to the renewed majesty of his new master.

Without ceremony, Wei Feng turned and began walking south. With long, confident strides. Kyrian took one last glance at the fresh mounds of earth and followed behind.

The journey through the outskirts of the devastated capital was silent. Wei Feng did not speak, and Kyrian did not yet feel the urge to ask.

Soon, they reached the southern gate after two hours of walking.

They left behind the scent of death and entered a verdant plain. The destination was clear.

The majestic and menacing mountains that cut across the southern horizon. Their slopes, high above the clouds, were covered in snow and constant winds.

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After several days of walking without much pause, during which Wei Feng seemed not to tire at all, while Kyrian relied on his martial artist stamina and the strength now discovered as the first realm of cultivation. Wei Feng said he would explain soon.

After many days of travel, they arrived at a hill in an ordinary forest of yellow trees.

On the hill, there was a cave inhabited by bears. Kyrian watched Wei Feng kill them with just a release of two drops of blood at high speed.

The place seemed isolated, and after arranging it a little, it became a good spot to spend the next few days.

Wei Feng nodded after sensing the surroundings.

"This will do."

Kyrian, after so many days without proper sleep, had a good night’s rest in the cave. He woke shortly before sunrise, as always.

He stepped out of the cave only to find Wei Feng sitting on a smooth stone, eyes closed, next to a fire.

Kyrian approached and sat nearby in silence.

Wei Feng then opened his eyes. And suddenly, in the air before Kyrian, Wei Feng pulled from the air, simply out of nowhere, a thick, ancient book bound in dark leather.

Kyrian could not help but be surprised, there was no bag. He could not understand how a book simply appeared.

Finally, he asked a question after remaining silent for days.

"How...?"

Wei Feng gave a lazy glance, finding the question irrelevant for now.

"You’ll understand later. What matters now is that if you wish to survive in my world, you need to understand what you’re getting yourself into."

He handed the book to Kyrian, who took it immediately. The pages were old but still clear.

Wei Feng leaned back on the stone, crossing his arms.

"Kid. You were born as a mortal, knowing nothing of the world. So, I’ll start from the beginning."

Kyrian remained silent, but his eyes fixed on the old man.

Wei Feng raised a finger.

"What you call particles is what we call Qi, the energy of heaven and earth. It is present in everything. In the air you breathe, in the water you drink, in the blood running through your veins. It is the energy that sustains life."

Kyrian blinked slowly. He had seen the particles all along, since he first opened his eyes. But only now could he name them.

’Qi of heaven and earth.’

Wei Feng continued.

"Mortals cannot perceive it, nor can they absorb Qi into their bodies. They live like cattle, awaiting death. Whether here or anywhere else."

"You are an extremely special case, one of few recorded, a mortal born with innate talent. Because of this, you can see and absorb Qi, which should only be possible if born from a cultivator."

"Cultivators refine their own bodies to absorb Qi and transform it into their own power. Records of when and how the first cultivators appeared have been completely lost to history. Humans born mortal today are few, almost extinct, this is the only place with countries and where the mortal population is somewhat larger."

Wei Feng’s voice then deepened.

"The human body is fragile. Brittle bones, weak muscles, impure blood. That is why everyone cultivates. Cultivation refines all of this until you are no longer merely human. You, kid, have already taken the first step without even knowing it. You are already in the Body Refinement Realm."

Wei Feng finished explaining his own understanding of cultivation to Kyrian, whether right or wrong.

Kyrian gripped the book in his hands.

’First realm... so that’s it. That’s why I was already stronger from the start. The particles made me enter this so-called realm.’

"But don’t delude yourself, boy. You are only at the first stage of the realm, it’s like not even leaving the mud. Like a worm, but one that will still crawl toward something greater."

He leaned forward, his single red eye fixed on Kyrian’s irisless eyes.

"Listen well. Cultivation is divided into realms. Each realm is a barrier you break with your body, mind, and soul. At each step, the difficulty increases immensely."

Kyrian absorbed every word. But in his silence, his thoughts boiled.

’If just the first step, the first stage of the first realm, gave me this strength... then those beyond... wouldn’t they be terrifying monsters?’

Kyrian thought, but not with fear. No, there was a small smile on his face. He was finally discovering how to become truly strong after understanding only a fraction of what cultivation meant.

Wei Feng smiled, seeing Kyrian’s lips curve.

"Strength, kid. That is the only meaning. Without strength, you are meat ready to be slaughtered. With strength, you decide who lives and who dies."

Kyrian continued watching. He had understood this long before, from the first body he buried.

Wei Feng then opened his palm. A condensed drop of blood appeared and floated.

"Intention."

The drop transformed into a red blade.

"Qi without intention is like a dull blade. Intention is your will, your understanding, using Qi as a catalyst to impose your will, it is what makes each cultivator unique."

"I spent many years finally understanding and mastering the intention of blood. But you... kid. You already possess it."

"I imagine it was born with your eyes. Damned aberration, damned unjust heavens." Wei Feng muttered, gradually growing irritated.

Kyrian listened in silence and said nothing.

’I wasn’t born with this so-called intention. I took it from the smoke. Was the intention his? Or someone else’s... like the icy barrier...’

’Could my eyes... steal the understanding of others?’

Kyrian was interrupted from his thoughts when Wei Feng reclined on the stone again, satisfied after a moment.

"Choosing the right path is everything. There are those who choose fire, others ice, others the sword, and others even the soul."

"My path is blood. And yours too."

Kyrian simply lowered his eyes to the book. Not correcting the old man. He would not reveal the truth about his other intention.