《A Lonely Exploration of Tao》


 Chapter 1 : Pity

    Volume I : Forsaken


    <hr>


    "What are you waiting for? What kind of coward is scared of a first-tier demon beast?"


    Avery winced at Chao Wei''s words, but otherwise remained frozen, unable to bring the knife down on his helpless prey. The little fox was just too adorable, looking up at him pitifully, puffing up its fluffy white fur in a fruitless attempt to appear threatening, a single tear falling from it''s watery eyes. It looked so soft, so innocent, he had trouble believing it would ever grow up to be a fearsome beast, much less that it had already killed someone.


    He knew the dangers of hesitating in front of a demon, no matter how inoffensive it appeared. He knew this was his chance to gain his first experience points and finally start cultivating immortality. He also knew his future in the sect was as good as over if he failed such a simple task.


    In spite of that, his hand refused to move. He was a city boy, one who had never harmed anything bigger than a fly, far from ready to ruthlessly end the life of this supposed monster.


    When he first inexplicably crossed into a mystical world, he felt exhilarated, thinking of all the fun adventures that filled the novels he loved. He even had a game-like system that could level him up through killing enemies or completing quests. This was a dream come true, breaking free from his mundane life and setting off on the path to excellence. The system would be his ladder, which he would climb straight to immortality and invincibility.


    The weeks it took to integrate a demon hunting group as a mortal had dampened his spirits somewhat, but it was only now that he realized how unsuitable his sheltered modern upbringing was to this lawless land. Forget about fighting for resources or hunting evil cultivators, he couldn''t even bring himself to harm a dangerous beast.


    Stuck in place, not knowing what to do, Avery watched with apprehension as the fox approached him cautiously. He had to control himself. He had to act, and take a life. It was going to die no matter what, it would never be allowed to escape this place alive. The only difference would be whether Avery would join it in the underworld, or if he would begin his journey towards immortality.


    The poor animal inched forward, eyes fixated on the gleaming blade. Avery to leaned back away from it, yet he dared not take a step back, his feet glued to the floor. The knife in his hand felt impossibly heavy, causing his arms to dip slightly, forcing him to raise them again. Time extended, each second seeming like hours, his knife wobbling uselessly, until Avery finally gathered his resolve.


    His arms were locked in place, refusing to move, so it was his whole body that was slowly leaning forward. Unable to strike down the gorgeous creature, he would simply fall on it. It was only coincidence that his knife would fall with him, angled to take its life. It didn''t make sense, but somehow that felt less cruel, like it would not really be his fault. That was right. It would be gravity''s fault, and he would not be blamed for the brutal murder of such an adorable fox.


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    ¡°Useless trash, I''ll do it myself!¡±


    A boot slammed into Avery''s side, sending him flying while a brusque hand tore the knife away from him. Lying dazedly on the forest floor, Avery blinked as panicked mewls, angry curses and pained roars reached his ears. All thoughts deserting his mind as he refused to interpret those noises, simply staring at the green canopy, waiting for it to be over.


    The ruckus dimmed down, and  Chao Wei''s snarling face appeared above him, blood dripping from his left eye. It took Avery an immense amount of effort to lift his head, only let himself fall back down with a relieved sigh, spotting no blood on the knife.


    He felt detached from the whole situation, as if he was an unrelated observer, suddenly acutely appreciating how much he didn¡¯t belong here. And in how much trouble he was in. He had probably just ruined his life, and that was if he survived Chao Wei¡¯s anger. He expected to be immediately beaten up, but when Chao Wei forced himself to calm down and reached down to grab him with a frigid expression, it was somehow worse.


    "Follow me" Chao Wei commanded, dragging Avery along, marching towards the formation that would teleport them back to the sect. "The sect can tolerate mediocre talent, but cowardice is unforgivable."


    Avery knew he was right, and that the consequences for his mistake would be too heavy for him to bear. His mind was numb, unable to face what was happening. In a trance, he repeated to himself phrases like "this world is crazy" and "I want to go home" as if they were incantations. He did not know what would happen to him, and had no desire to think about it. He only wished he was somewhere else, anywhere but here.


    As Chao Wei channeled Qi into the teleportation formation, his newly scarred face eerily expressionless, Avery mechanically took out the novice gift of the system: a fireball talisman. There was no question of using it against Chao Wei, but with the right timing, perhaps he could use it to unbalance the teleportation formation, shattering space and making the teleportation destination random. Admittedly, the chances were high that he would instantly die or appear somewhere unsuited for human life, but even that felt preferable to facing reality.


    In the back of his mind, he knew this was a mistake, the smart thing to do would be to get over himself and quietly surrender himself and endure a fair punishment. With time, a youthful mistake would be forgotten. He merely had to wait for the next opportunity to prove himself to the sect. Unfortunately, being rational did not rank high on his list of priorities at the moment. He just couldn''t bear to face natives pointing out how inadequate his way of life was to this world. In this brutal world that didn¡¯t quite feel real, dying in an explosion didn¡¯t seem so bad. He no longer wanted an eventful life. Adventures were too stressful, too full of violence and pain, always teetering at the edge of death. He wanted to go back home, to reading novels and hanging out with friends.


    Some might find constant fighting exciting, but Avery would much rather take his chances and try to find new life doing fulfilling work. He could be a farmer, a merchant or a court official, he didn¡¯t care. He just wanted a comfortable life where he was neither being hurt nor hurting anyone else. If he died before that, he would pray this was all a dream, and that he would wake up alright on earth, in the peaceful life he had taken for granted.


    Shoving Chao Wei out of the formation, hoping that would be enough to prevent him from being harmed or implicated in his escape, Avery activated the talisman while mouthing "Sorry." Sorry for being useless, sorry for causing your injury, and sorry for selfishly endangering you in my impulsive escape.


    Everything went black.

 Chapter 2 : Stranded

    Ding, Congratulations on discovering new area : Dragon¡¯s den


    Description : The sleeping place of a powerful true dragon, its mana fluctuations will disturb the Qi flow of cultivators, killing anyone who hasn¡¯t attained immortality.


    Danger rating : 5 stars


    Reward : 1000pts


    Jolted back to reality by the system''s sharp notification, Avery recoiled from the abyss that surrounded him. A chill coursed through him as his back met a frigid, unyielding surface. His breath hung in the still, warm air as his adjusting eyes discerned a pair of towering obsidian walls looming over him like colossal sentinels, stretching impossibly into the gray void above.


    As if pressed down by the monolithic slabs, his attention fell to the velvety abyss beneath his feet, a surface so eerily slick that he felt the need to confirm its existence with an apprehensive brush of his hand. Coldness seeping through his skin, his fingers trailed hesitantly over the perfectly even plane of frigid darkness he was standing on.


    Turning his head to escape the three walls of darkness that seemed to press in on him, creating a narrow corridor, he gazed into the hazy mist of gray inhabiting the endless span of this silent chasm.


    Despite the obvious lack of light sources, an inexplicable ambient light still allowed him to easily see the light blue motifs adorning the end of his sleeves, their appearance disconcertingly incongruous to this colorless land.


    This visibility offered no comfort, for there was nothing to hide the unfathomable depth of this realm of muted grays and looming shadows. Mysterious fog, like ethereal strands, divided the pair of unbroken lines etched by the titanic walls, etching a path to the infinite unknown.


    It added an eerie depth to the chasm, distorting any sense of scale and leaving Avery feeling like an insignificant speck in a vast, incomprehensible universe. His mind struggled to comprehend the scale of the place that surrounded him, the sheer vastness of the chasm that extended out on each side of him.


    The silence in this desolate place was palpable, broken only by the soft echo of his own breathing and the panicked beating of his heart. The stillness hung heavy, wrapping around him like a suffocating shroud that seemed to echo his own fear back at him.


    It was as if he stood on the edge of an ancient secret, a place untouched by time and teeming with untold mysteries.


    As he stood there, paralyzed by the overwhelming sense of isolation, a chill crawled up his spine as he considered the possibility that he might be the only living soul in this bizarre, otherworldly expanse.


    Avery''s gaze returned to the walls, which somehow bore the shadow of gargantuan scales. Despite the lack of evidence, the idea clawed at the edges of his sanity, implying he was standing in between the scales of a presence so colossal it was incomprehensible.


    With sheer willpower, he tore his focus away from useless speculations, for once choosing action. Faced with only two directions to choose from, he picked one and stepped forward, hoping to find the exit to this silent abyss.


    Initially, he carefully scrutinized the surroundings for any signs of an escape route, but gradually the dead silent atmosphere and unchanging scenery numbed him.


    He had no way of knowing how long he had been wandering in this noiseless land, only continuing on, refusing to think about anything, where he was, how he got here, whose fault it was, all the things he could have done better... No, there was no point contemplating that. It was much better he walked mindlessly, one step at a time, each one identical to the previous one, hypnotized by the stillness and serenity of this quiet void. He fell deeper and deeper into a trance, all his worries and fears fading to the back of his mind, as there was only one thing to do. Walking, walking, and walking, one step at a time, again and again.


    His stomach growled, his tired body the only reminder of the passage of time. The surroundings offered no solace, an endless stretch of sameness that taunted him with its monotony. Nothing to occupy his mind, not even a boulder or some loose rocks, and nothing to satiate his hunger. What living being, be it plant or animal, was able to survive in this desolate land?


    More pressing even than his hunger, it was thirst which snapped him out of his reverie, that persistent ache in his throat that refused to go away no matter how much he swallowed. He licked his dry lips, feeling like a century old mummy as the world suddenly snapped back into focus, feeling more real than ever. All of his suppressed worries and regrets came crashing down on him, along with a mounting panic. Lost in a desolate wasteland, on the verge of death, and the only thing he had thought to do was walking aimlessly? Stupid! None of this would have happened if he had used his brain!


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    Avery shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. It was no use dwelling on what he should have done differently. He needed to focus on the present, on surviving. Surveying his barren surroundings once more, It was abundantly clear there was no food or water to be found in this featureless environment. His only hope lay with the system, and it''s long forgotten shopping tab.


    It was not without reason he had failed to consider this option sooner. Despite boasting an extensive catalogue of thousands of spiritual treasures, the system did not offer a single mortal item. The cheapest food-like product he could find was a low-tier spiritual flower, probably meant to be used in an alchemical concoction of some kind, priced at 250 points. It was fortunate the system had awarded him 1000 points for discovering this territory, but that would only last four plants, and he didn''t know how nourishing they would be. Besides, the cheapest water he could find was called ¡°heavy water¡±, and it cost 5500 points, way outside of his price range, not to mention it probably wasn¡¯t drinkable.


    Reminding himself of the novels he had read, he searched for Bigu pills, alchemy products which could feed cultivators for multiple days. It existed, but was once again too expensive, at 1500 points.


    Growing worried again, he grit his teeth and bought the spiritual flower, hoping it would contain enough moisture to sustain until a better option presented itself.


    No sooner had he selected the blue icon did a small herb materialized in front of him, hovering about a meter off the ground. He eagerly approached his hope survival, his hand trembling with anticipation as he reached to take it, when it all went wrong. Suddenly, the plant twisted and contorted in on itself, withering away to nothing in a matter of seconds.


    All that was left was a cloud of ash, leaving Avery staring at the spot where the herb had been, fighting a sense of frustration and helplessness. What had just happened? Had the plant been cursed? Was it some kind of trap?


    ¡°What was that? Are you trying to kill me?¡±


    The only reply to his surprised yelps were the lonely echoes resounding throughout the silent chasm, his unintelligent system being unable to defend itself.


    It took a lot of effort to to steady his breathing, refusing to let his fear overcome him, but once calm, it quickly dawned on him what had happened - the system had warned him that the power of the dragon was deadly to nearby cultivators, and the plant was clearly magical.


    A shiver ran down his spine as he imagined the worst-case scenario. What if he had ingested the plant before he realized the danger? The thought alone was enough to make his stomach churn.


    Not taking into account the consequences of a plant exploding in his body, what would have happened had he absorbed some spiritual energy eating it? He had heard of cultivators accelerating their Qi circulations this way, but here the dragon''s power was extremely hostile to Qi.


    Avery froze, suddenly thankful for his lack of cultivation. Were he to possess any spiritual energy, he might be nothing but ash by now... Forget about purchasing a flying technique or escape method, cultivating here was out of the question. As long as he remained under the dragon''s influence, he was stuck in his current, vulnerable mortal state. Admittedly, all this would hardly matter if he failed to feed himself and stay alive long enough to practice in the first place.


    Pushing his ruined plans for an uncertain future aside, Avery refocused on the system. While confirming it wasn¡¯t malicious quelled his paranoia, it also changed his views on the situation.


    When he was mysteriously transported to this world or when he was stranded in this somber place, Avery didn¡¯t freak out. This wasn¡¯t because he was extraordinarily strong willed or had an unwaveringly optimistic view on life. Rather, he subconsciously believed his system to be infallible. When he saw the top tier magical exercises in the system mall, he felt that he only needed to go through the motions to eventually achieve invincibility.


    It was only now, when he needed it the most, that Avery realized the system was just a tool. There was no denying it was an incredibly powerful one, and it was probably his only chance out of this predicament, but it was still just a tool, and it was Avery¡¯s job to use it properly.


    Avery warned himself not to expect everything would magically go his way, and that he needed to fight for survival. Gritting his teeth, he sat down, did his best to ignore the terror he felt, and began to properly study the system. Instead of getting discouraged by the crazy prices of items or getting overly excited and rushing to complete a quest like he had done in the sect, he took the time to slowly comb through all available options.


    It took a few hours during which his hunger got worse, but when he was certain he hadn''t missed anything, he became solemn.


    If he was understanding the system¡¯s notification correctly, if he wanted to buy an item to help his escape, it needed to be at least an immortal item to withstand the dragon''s power. However, the highest level item of the system was Mahayana, and even then it showed a locked symbol, with no price tag attached to it. For now he could only hope that higher level items would show themselves if he had enough points, and that it was not tied to quests or his cultivation realm.


    At least he had found a way to survive. Although eating the system''s products or finding food in the area wasn''t possible, he found he could buy time warps, a consumable that could perfectly restore his body to the state it was one hour ago. This was without a doubt meant to be used to heal crippling wounds, but he saw no reason it would not also resolve his thirst and hunger.


    The item was obviously meant to be absurdly expensive, with its price rising exponentially in accordance with the pricing formula (2^small cultivation level). This meant that at the ninth layer of Qi gathering it would cost 2^9=512 points, which was half the reward he got for discovering this highly dangerous place meant for immortals.


    Fortunately, Avery was still mortal, so the item cost 2^0, or 1 pt. This meant he could buy 750 of them, and survive 31 days without worrying about food and water.


    Avery was tempted to spend those 31 days searching for an unlikely way out, but if his theory was correct and he truly was standing on the back of a giant dragon, he doubted a month would be enough to escape. He would most likely be better off investing a portion of his points into kickstarting a point-making venture.

 Chapter 3 : Blacksmith

    Trapped at the bottom of an ominous abyss, with  nothing around to kill and no quests to accomplish, his only hope of getting points was the occupation menu.


    When Avery had previously experimented in the sect, he had found that if he set his occupation to alchemist, he could gain points by refining elixirs. He had dismissed it at the time as it only gave points in ones and twos, which was far from the hundreds needed to buy anything decent, and he had deemed it a better usage of his time to climb the sect hierarchical ladder and integrate into a team which would help him kill monsters to get rich in points overnight.


    That plan had failed miserably, and for now singular points would have to suffice. Being an alchemist evidently wasn¡¯t an option, as all the materials would probably explode before he could process them. The same problem applied to other occupations such as beastmaster or farmer. Occupations that did not require materials, like seer or formation master sounded so complex it would probably take years before he was good enough to be rewarded with any points.


    His best bet were manual jobs with inanimate materials. There were a few he could choose from, like sculpting or painting, but he quickly decided on blacksmithing. It just seemed the most useful. From what he knew of this world, a sharp sword was definitely more appreciated than a beautiful painting, and he had a hard time imagining a bunch of sculptures helping him out of this mess.


    He hesitated for a moment longer, knowing he did not have enough points to change his mind if he chose the wrong option. Taking one last glance at the occupation list, he decisively changed his profession for 500pts.


    Ding, congratulations on changing your profession and receiving the blacksmith novice package. -500 points


    Looking through the gift box, Avery took out a dozen ingots of what he guessed were magical ores, as well as a hammer, a stylet, and a disappointingly thin instruction manual with a refining diagram.


    Reading through the three paged instruction manual, Avery learned that there were two steps to refining in this world. First you had to shape the metal, which would often be very easily done with magic, but then you had to inscribe runes on it to guide the flow of Qi in the material, giving it attributes and making it into a treasure.


    Once he was sure he had not misunderstood anything, Avery didn''t waste time and started forging according to the diagram, hitting an ore with his hammer to craft a spearhead.


    He had no means to heat up the metal, but the hammer must have some magical properties as each strike reshaped the ingot with ease. It might have even been too easy, each impact flattening half the ingot, making it challenging to control the resulting shape. He was not helped by the fact he had no anvil or support of any kind, and he had to work kneeling on the floor in front of the future spearhead. He quickly decided to hold the hammer at the very top of the shaft for more precise movements, but it didn¡¯t help much.


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    Avery couldn''t help but feel disappointed in himself as he put down the hammer roughly an hour later. He hadn¡¯t expected to craft a masterpiece on his first try, but his new weapon was so blunt and misshapen it was uncomfortable to look at. Upon further inspection, he was convinced the untreated ingot would have made a better weapon than his creation.


    Noticing he had not been awarded a single point, he promised himself he would do better next time. He hesitated to continue his attempt at forging, but he decided to move on to his first attempt at engraving. The manual had placed a lot more emphasis on this part of the process, and he had a feeling it would reward him with much more points.


    Besides, Avery had done some calligraphy when he was young, so he was more at ease with this part. The symbol depicted on the diagram was of a complex shape that vaguely reminded him of Chinese characters. He took the time to study the design for some time, memorizing the pattern and deciding where he should start, before proceeding to draw it on the shameful weapon.


    Having only a stillet and no ink, he was expecting to physically carve the glyph on the metal, but instead he felt something being drained out of him and being used as ink. Some kind of energy was flowing from him through the stillet, and being transformed into glowing silver-blue ink. He couldn''t quite tell what was being depleted, so he panicked and stopped engraving. The sensation of loss stopped immediately, but the line he had drawn also blurred and faded away.


    He tried understanding what was happening, attempting to use vague feelings to ascertain the nature of what was being consumed. It wasn¡¯t physical strength, it felt much more elusive and deeply connected to him, but it was hard to be more precise than that.


    He was pretty sure it was supposed to be Qi, but since he had no Qi to offer, he was highly concerned that something more important had replaced it. The worst case scenario would be that it was his soul or lifespan that was being depleted, or really any resource he could not regenerate.


    He couldn''t really do anything about it, so he could only carry on and hope he was only losing something like vitality, and that it was replenished whenever he used a time warp. He might have immediately changed profession if he had enough points, but right now he had to bite the bullet and get to work.


    Completing the pictogram took a few dozen strokes, and he messed up a few of them, but each successful stroke would emit a mysterious light, making the glyph glow silver.


    It was useless to worry about something he could do nothing about, so he had decided to ignore the feeling of being drained, and focus on his calligraphy. However, it was such a mysterious and indescribable feeling that he was constantly getting distracted, unconsciously stopping to appreciate the weirdly inviting energy.


    He had no way to explain it, but perhaps the closest comparison would be two friends talking just out of earshot. He was close enough to hear that they were talking and couldn''t ignore their voices. They acted as if the conversation was extremely interesting, so he subconsciously paid attention, but no matter how closely he listened it was impossible to understand anything.


    He had no feeling of loss, so he was able to reassure himself that using this mysterious energy wasn¡¯t too big of a problem, but the distraction alone greatly hindered his engraving. It was a constant fight to keep his hand steady, and only by taking his time, ignoring the relative urgency of finding a source of points, was he able to persevere.


    Unfortunately, perseverance was not enough to make up for his lack of skill. His hand wobbled too much, the light of the glowing ink slowly dimmed, and soon there was nothing left of his first attempt at engraving.

 Chapter 4 : Challenge

    The mystical energy proved too mesmerizing, and before he had etched out even half of the design, he got confused and accidentally crossed out his handiwork, ruining it. Once again the unfinished rune fizzled out, the system still making no comment.


    Avery clicked his tongue out of frustration, fruitlessly attempting to estimate how much time his failure had cost him. Since he had arrived here, he had walked around for long enough to feel hungry, before reading a list of millions of system products. After that, he had failed to shape and engrave a spearhead until he was feeling hungry again. All of this must surely have taken many hours, but the daylight level had never changed.


    In such a deep and narrow canyon, there should have been a great difference in the amount of sunlight arriving to the bottom in accordance with the time of day. The higher up in the sky the sun was, the more direct sunlight could travel to Avery¡¯s position, but the bleak dimness had remained constant throughout the day, with only a eerie ambient gray light that cast no shadows permitting him to see anything.


    He concluded that the light did not come from the sun, another disturbing peculiarity of this god forsaken place, but the point was he probably couldn''t use the day/night cycle to keep track of time.


    He instinctively patted his pockets, wanting to take out his phone and check the time, and glanced at his wrist where he used to have his watch, before he recalled nothing from earth had accompanied him here. Besides, he was wearing a flowing brown robe fitting his status in the sect with the pockets in the sleeves, not below the waist. It had taken some time to get used to wearing an oversized dress, but overall he found it quite comfortable, if slightly cumbersome.


    Looking around and finding nothing he could improvise into a time keeping device, he snooped around the system options making sure he had not missed a clock feature. There was none, but his purchases were logged, so he could view the number of time wraps used and calculate the time passed, with a precision of a few hours.


    The problem was that he did not know how much time had passed since his last rewind, so he did not know how much time his body had gone without eating. This meant he did not know how many time warps he needed to return to just after the meal, and risked returning to before it happened, forcing him to waste time warps returning to the meal before that.


    Avery took a few time warps until he felt full of energy again, and then he made a small cut in his arm. This was meant to help him keep track of time, as when he used the time warps, he could survey how fresh the injury looked. It would be somewhat more precise than just a vague sensation of ¡°I am a bit less hungry¡±, and hopefully avoid rewinding before the meal, when he would be hungry again.


    Once he had settled on this rudimentary time keeping system, he stopped dilly-dallying and got back to work.


    He did his best to concentrate on the inscription this time, but the elusive flow of power was simply too intriguing and he wasn¡¯t able to stay fixated on his hands.


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    Subconsciously, he was exceedingly interested in studying the abstruse energy, and he couldn¡¯t help getting engrossed in it each time it appeared. If he was still safe in the sect, he would never have ignored this phenomenon, and instead explored a way to perform magic before the system even unlocked his ability to cultivate. Now, in an environment where Qi was forbidden, it was even more tempting. Unfortunately, he needed to make sure he would survive before he could think of becoming a magician, and while the prospect of dying of thirst in a month''s time was tremendously stressful, it wasn¡¯t particularly helpful to his concentration.


    More than a dozen attempts were foiled in this manner, getting captivated and forgetting to complete the rune, but at least he was progressing. He was getting familiar with the design, each time he persevered for longer, learning to keep going with half of his mind occupied. He would stop from time to time and try to work on the shaping of the spearhead, but these attempts all failed miserably. He didn''t even feel like he was improving, so he decided to stick to engraving for now.


    Finally, after more than 40 hours of consecutive failures, he managed to shakily complete his first rune.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed an inferior rune. +1 Points


    Before Avery could be relieved to see his idea to gain points was viable, The glyph he had just etched dimmed and shattered, turning into specs of light that were absorbed by the misshapen spearhead. The spearhead showed no obvious change, and the way the rune was destroyed led Avery to believe the rune had failed to empower the spearhead, despite the system notification. After considering carefully, he accepted four possibilities.


    First, his intuition was wrong and this was how it was supposed to happen, evidenced by the points gained by the system and the fact the metal absorbed the shattered glyph.


    It was also plausible that the rune was a success, but the spearhead was so grotesque it was not capable of receiving the rune, causing it to dissipate.


    Another explanation would be that he had failed altogether. There was no doubt he had messed up a few times while drawing, and it was absolutely believable he had not reached the necessary standard for success. It only seemed weird as he considered the system had a harsh but fair evaluation, and was not one to reward failure, but perhaps it was lenient for his first try?


    The fourth hypothesis, and the one Avery was the most convinced by, was that the engraving was successful, but the dragon power in the air interfered with the rune and destroyed it. This conclusion was supported by the system message announcing success, the way the rune burst being similar to the previous spiritual plant, and there being no difference to the spearhead before or after the rune.


    He couldn''t determine with certainty which assumption was correct, but he supposed it didn¡¯t really matter if he got the points either way. Anything but the fourth option would mean that as he improved, he would be able to use the tools he had made. This would lead to a possible escape, but he doubted he would be so lucky.


    There was something else he was curious about, which was if it was possible to engrave the same rune on the spearhead multiple times, and grind points this way. If not, he would need to either find a way to ¡°unmake '''' the weapon, or buy more material regularly, making his profit suffer immensely.


    Things had not gone his way so far, but as long as his work just now wasn¡¯t a complete success, any other option should allow him repeated tries. The worst case scenario would be option 1, as he thought being able to engrave the same weapon multiple times would be overpowered. Otherwise he should be good to go, even if he had to intentionally control the quality of his work to make sure the rune would fail so that he could redo it.

 Chapter 5 : Against the clock

    He got to work once again, trying to keep at least the same quality standard as last time, but also paying attention to his speed, attempting to confirm whether or not multiple engravings were possible and wasting the least amount of time possible.


    The good news is that he felt no different engraving on a potentially pre-inscribed weapon. Contrary to his fears, it did not become more difficult to paint, The ink flowed and made the design glow silver in the exact same way as before, and the energy flow was just as mystical as before.


    The bad news was that even if the challenge wasn¡¯t raised, normal difficulty was enough for him to fail his next attempt, being too preoccupied by his various worries and theories. Even the one following that ended up failing, his hands still too unskilled and his mind too anxious.


    It was only on the fourth try he managed to complete the glyph, and it was with bated breath that he waited for the system''s verdict. If he had succeeded, that presumably meant he could draw as many runes as wanted, and would not have to worry over gaining points buying replacement material. He would only have to draw a rune an hour to survive, which sounded perfectly reasonable.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed an inferior rune. +1 Points


    Avery jumped up and down, executing a few awkward dance steps hearing this announcement. If he could layer point-giving runes, whether or not they worked to enhance the spearhead, his material problem was solved.


    He even decided to directly discard the metal shaping part of the refining process, and focus on calligraphy that used no material. Not only was it cheaper, he was more skilled in it, he found it more interesting, and most importantly it gave him the opportunity to study a way of using magic he might be able to learn.


    If he could engrave the same material multiple times, the only remaining problem would be time. Avery didn¡¯t know precisely how long engraving took, but judging by the fact his hunger had come back full force, just this attempt definitely took more than 3 hours, and probably closer to six hours. In other words, it had taken at least 3 points to collect 1 point. He still had 250 points, which meant he had ten days to improve to the point he could engrave a rune every hour.


    The first thing he had to improve was his familiarity with the design. He needed to know all of the strokes and how they linked together so well he did not have to think about it anymore. He was losing too much time hesitating between each stroke, and losing up to six hours and points every time he got distracted and failed a rune.


    He was expecting to have to spend a long time before becoming confident in his drawing, but after only a few more tries, he noticed subtle changes in the flow of energy in accordance with the part of the rune he was drawing. Linking the behavior of the stream of energy with the movements of his hands, he was able to turn the distraction into a help.


    It still didn¡¯t guarantee a success, but a day later, he got incredibly immersed in the energy flow, and it somehow influenced his state of mind. He saw the engraving process completely differently, his brush painting the metal surface like an eastern dragon flowing through the wind and sea.


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    He felt possessed by an artistic genie, and had a clear vision of what he wanted to do. There was no more hesitation in his strokes, one movement followed the next in a beautiful dance to gradually reveal a stunning picture.


    However, despite having a clear mental picture of the goal, he lacked the skills to accomplish it. He knew what he wanted, but actually doing it was still very hard. His clumsy hands were still slow and wobbly, and he had abysmal control over them.


    What he wished to be a straight line became a zig-zag, what he wanted to be a curve became either a line or a half circle, and what he wanted to be a circle became a misshapen oval.


    In the end, he saved about half an hour by eliminating his hesitations, but he still had a long way to go, and the limiting factor was now the precision and control of his hands.


    Of course, he did not fall into that strange state of understanding again, but the memories were enough for him to retain confidence, and his improvements were very fast.


    Less than a day later, with 7 days remaining until his points ran out, he had completely mastered the design, and every rune gave him points.


    He had originally planned to practice ignoring the energy flow next, but he had spontaneously found another way to deal with it, making it a help instead.


    The last remaining problem, the one with which he could make the most progress but would take the most time, would be control of his hands.


    He had to learn to accurately and quickly translate what was in his head to reality through his hands. Right now his movements were hesitant, he had trouble drawing steady curves or lines, and when he had drawn a good stroke he would realize that he had placed it half a centimeter too low or too high, and it did not link up well with the rest of the rune.


    He had expected this of course, he had faced the same problems on Earth back when he had tried himself at calligraphy, and he knew the only solution was practice. Artists aren''t only talented, they also need an insane amount of practice to learn how to properly bring their ideas to reality.


    The problem was how to practice. A normal man would steadily get better just by engraving again and again, but Avery was using time warps that reset his body every few hours. This meant he would lose all the progress his muscle memory had made, bringing him back to square one.


    After realizing the problem, Avery had to force himself to write without muscle memory, consciously controlling his every movement. Of course he was horrendous at it, and it became a case of thinking about something so much he forgot how to do it. He guessed he was about ten times slower using this method, and half of his runes were now not good enough to gain points.


    The worst part of it was how much concentration it took to work this way. He could no longer use the energy to guide his movements, as he needed to be the one in full control. He was forced to take some time to practice ignoring the energy, something he had initially been glad to avoid.


    There was no more productivity trance for him where time passed like a dream, instead every moment was elongated by the extreme minutiae and attention to detail he needed to maintain. His exhausted mind, while refreshed by the time warps, grew increasingly more frustrated each time his focus slipped, and his frustration made it easier for his focus to slip again, creating a vicious circle.


    Deciding his current strategy was not working, he decided to ditch engraving complete runes, and instead practice etching each individual stroke one by one. Just like when you learned to write you kept repeating the letter "A" dozens of times instead of directly writing words, he separated the rune into 23 different parts he could practice.


    The new task was not particularly enthralling, but at least it did not make him want to rip his hair out. Every so often, he would also draw a complete rune just to change things up and to measure his progress. He did his best to find satisfaction in the fact he could now feel himself improving, but he did not know if he was getting better fast enough to survive.

 Chapter 6 : Stress

    After an entire week, a full 168 hours of exhausting struggle, Avery managed to control his hands well enough to be faster than his initial goal of three hours, and even surpass it, engraving two runes every three hours.


    Progress had been slow but measurable, and he had persevered, every second gained a testament of his efforts and concentration. He hadn¡¯t taken a single break, afraid of running out of time, or getting demoralized and being unable to get back to work.


    While the insane rhythm of non-stop work for so long was crippling mentally, it did wonders to his skills, especially when coupled with the motivating deterrence of imminent death.


    He had already passed the original deadline of 10 days, but his practice had already earned him a few points, enough for 2 more days of survival.


    The problem was he was stuck at a bottleneck. At first he expected that when he became familiar with the process, he could finish a symbol in a few breaths, but despite his best efforts, his record was one and a half hours.


    He was capable of writing faster, the rune pattern itself was not that complicated, and could probably be drawn in less than a minute if he knew it by heart perfectly and he wasn¡¯t so awkward with his hands he needed to move them excruciatingly slowly.


    What he couldn''t quicken, no matter what he tried, was the graceful flow of energy powering the rune. When he had started drawing runes in less than 90 minutes, he realized his pen was moving too quickly, and that the mysterious ink did not have time to settle on the metal. Whatever the stylus was channeling could not be rushed, otherwise the glyph would not light up properly and become useless.


    He had had a fit at that time, breaking down and crying, knowing that it was impossible to find a way to quicken the energy flow and get good at it in the two days he had left. He had no clue of where to start to improve, and was fast running out of time.


    His sobs were the only sound in the somber gorge, until even that quieted down to heavy breathing. Slowly, Avery temporarily pushed his depression away, his will to live stronger than his will to wallow in despair.


    He gave up practicing, and instead browsed the system menu in search of a previously unseen miracle that could give him hope. He was a survivalist, and was ready to fight for his survival, but he needed hope. He needed to know he had a chance, that his efforts had a purpose beyond making his last days miserable.


    If he needed to climb the cliff, he would climb it, risking falling and dying, but he needed to know there was food and water at the top of the cliff, and not an equally barren plain.


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    He found no miracle in the system¡¯s shop, but a spark of hope was lit when rereading the blacksmithing manual.


    While his speed was capped, the manual mentioned rune quality. Indeed, he realized all of the system¡¯s announcements mentioned he was crafting inferior runes. Presumably, since inferior quality gave one point, he must be able to earn more points by making a better product.


    Immediately, he turned his attention to quality, striving to make each stroke perfectly, while maintaining roughly the same speed, focusing on the accuracy of his movements, pushing himself to the absolute limit, knowing these were the last few hours that would determine his survival.


    Avery soon ran out of points, but he barley noticed, inscribing runes in an almost demented way. He still had three days until he died of thirst, minus about a day during which he would be too weak to do anything.


    Finally, after two more days, a heavily sleep deprived and thirsty Avery smiled as he heard the system ring.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a common rune. +2 Points


    It had taken two weeks of non stop forging, but he was finally making a profit. He was still in hell, he still had no way out, but at least he could survive. He wanted nothing more than to fall into a blissful sleep and recuperate, but he knew it was impossible.


    It had been an incredible 350 hour race from death, and he had prevailed. He had given his all, he was so exhausted he couldn''t stand and had to engrave laying down with the spearhead an inch from his head. Nevertheless, he was not finished. He was now going faster than death, and growing the distance, but he couldn''t yet afford to take a break. Rather, he needed to continue doing his best, as they were so close a single failure would be enough to send him back in the arms of death.


    Avery had never anticipated it would be so hard to motivate himself and continue working once victory was at hand. His sprint to the goal was done, and instead he was faced with an endless marathon.


    He could accumulate enough points to afford a rest period, but sooner or later, he would need to get back to work, forever running from starvation.


    The next week, when Avery was able to gain points and gradually rewind the two days he had spent without food, water or sleep, was the hardest week of his life.


    Finally, in peak condition except for his crumbling mind, he felt safe enough to take stock of the situation.


    His new achievements meant that he now got an extra point every three hours. It would still take ages to save up enough to buy anything useful, so he decided it would be better to use this time to rest his mind. Although his body was kept in peak condition, the high concentration he had to maintain to carefully carve the complex patterns was mentally exhausting.


    Since his body was full of energy and he couldn¡¯t sleep, he started to walk ahead mindlessly. On the off chance there was an end to this gorge with an easy exit, he didn¡¯t want to miss it. After completing a common rune, he would gain 30 minutes of free time, and he would walk around for approximately 15 minutes, trying to think of nothing and rest his mind.


    As his craftsmanship improved and he began to produce common ranked runes regularly, he settled in a cycle of crafting and walking.

 Chapter 7 : Mental Health

    Irrationally, Avery felt humiliated thinking he was incapable of hanging on, and was wasting the points he needed to accumulate carefully by resting every few hours. He saw the decrease in the efficiency he had spent so much effort achieving as a failure on his part.


    He slowly got into a new rhythm, one much less stressful than before, but while his situation had improved, his will and motivation were still slowly being drained, especially with no achievable goal to aim for.


    He hoped he could eventually buy a life-saving item from the system, but right now he wasn¡¯t even storing his points, but rather squandering them on unproductive resting strolls.


    He hoped he could learn magic by studying the energy powering the runes, but so far he didn¡¯t even have a hypothesis as to how he might control it.


    There was no deadline or rush, only endless monotony, and that repetitive lifestyle was a challenge of its own.


    When he was racing to improve before time ran out, he had endured a tremendous amount of stress and made immense efforts, but he was able to impose his will and force himself to continue chasing his goal.


    The week following that saw him ripping himself out from the jaws of death, during which he had been so worn out he feared he would die of exhaustion, but his existential terror and hope of success had kept him going.


    In contrast, right now, as far as his escape and survival went, he was standing still, waiting to either discover something about magic or slowly improve to the next quality of runes, at which point his life of tediously collecting points would begin.


    What was being tested was no longer his mental fortitude, but his endurance, with despair waiting at every turn for the opportunity to engulf him.


    Even his restful strolls that were meant to let his mind recuperate, thinking about nothing, had become a battlefield.


    The more he grew more accustomed to his new life, the more active his thoughts became, and in this bleak environment with nothing much to think about except contemplating how disastrous the situation was, active thoughts were a disadvantage. There simply were incredibly few positive things to rejoice about, so each time he let his mind wander, he kept sinking into self-defeating thoughts and getting depressed.


    Retreating into his happy place and remembering fond memories just made him homesick. He wasn¡¯t sure he would ever be able to return home, and even if he did, it would probably take hundreds of years, and the earth would have long become unrecognizable.


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    Concentrating on improving his craft wasn¡¯t feasible either, as he lacked the necessary drive and urgency to make an effort.


    Slowly, he started to reduce the amount of downtime he took. While at first engraving was incredibly hard and had required all of his concentration, he had gotten much better in the last few weeks, and now he had a lot of brain power to spare, and therefore needed less breaks.


    With his rising proficiency, engraving had become a repetitive and undemanding job, which quickly led to boredom.


    Eager to occupy his mind, he directed his thoughts to the mysterious energy he sensed leaving him when he forged, reminiscing, sinking into the feeling and attempting to build an elusive connection with it.


    After each rune, he would talk to himself, elaborating theories about its nature and debating the results of his rudimentary research.


    He knew that stuff came from inside him, and he knew that it could be controlled, so he wanted to figure out how to do so without the help of external items. If he could understand the elusive feeling he got when crafting, perhaps he could learn to control it, or at least to hasten it.


    He experimented with how the order in which he drew the rune affected the energy flow, and found that one particular way, starting from the central circle and gradually expanding outward was slightly faster than otherwise.


    Along the way, he got annoyed at constantly referring to a ¡°flow of energy¡± so he decided to name it. It was a mysterious energy capable of powering magical runes, but it looked very different from Qi, so ¡°mana¡± seemed an appropriate name.


    He also experimented if he could improve his crafting with intent, so he made sure to have a clear mental image of a spear when he made a rune, but he felt no different. Following the same logic, he attempted it with a lot of relevant concepts, such as ¡°fire¡±, ¡°sharpness¡±, ¡°strong¡± and ¡°speed¡±. Anything he felt could help a spear be deadly or durable, he applied to his crafting, but in the end he got no results.


    He found it very surprising that intent did not change anything, as it was often mentioned back in the sect. Most likely, he was either not skilled enough to make a noticeable change, or he was improving the runes effect, which would be useless as runes were immediately destroyed by the surrounding dragon power.


    On that note, he was now relatively certain that was what was happening. Being able to layer functioning runes on top of one another didn''t sound reasonable, and neither did being awarded two points for failed products. Obviously, his engraving was successful, and the runes were only shattered after being completed.


    He had no reason to believe a rune could be destroyed by being applied on an unsatisfactory host, while on the other hand he already had an example of something getting ruined by dragon power in a roughly equivalent manner.


    Admittedly, there was an inconsistency in that theory. The rune was composed of stuff that came from inside him, so why was he fine while the glyph got disintegrated? Maybe it was his physical body protecting him or isolating both powers from coming into contact, while the glyph was 100% magic with no defenses?


    This was the frustrating state of his research. He knew so little, and each time he thought he glimpsed an answer, it would only lead to more questions. It was only natural not to become omniscient after pondering on shallow truths for less than a month, but he wished there were practical applications to his mental gymnastics.


    All in all, his research wasn¡¯t very fruitful, but it served to keep boredom at bay, and maybe he would eventually discover something to give him control over mana.

 Chapter 8 : Decay

    Avery was about to start engraving again, but he was startled to find the spearhead was in a deplorable state. He hadn''t detected it when he had been concentrating on getting the strokes right, but the material had undoubtedly deteriorated, becoming frail and brittle. Counting the hours, it had only been slightly less than a month, but the spearhead looked like it had weathered decades at the mercy of the elements.


    It was evident that something horrible had happened, and he risked losing his engraving support. It had never occurred to him that, although metal objects were definitely more resistant to the dragon power than organic materials, it appeared they weren¡¯t immune either.


    He had just gotten to a point where he was earning enough to make a profit, and his only stream of revenue was threatening to disappear along with any chance of survival.


    It had taken about a month for the material to decay to the point it was unusable, and now he needed to buy a new metal ingot at 250pts. He could technically generate a maximum of 200pts a month at his current rate, not too far below the newly apparent expenses of 250pts a month, but he was already at the end of the month having spent a huge portion of points while gaining almost nothing. To expect to gain more than 150 points in the few days left before the spearhead was unusable was but a fool''s dream.


    Suddenly, Avery thought of something else. If even metal blocks were susceptible to erosion, what about his stylus? It was undoubtedly an intricate magical tool and should be much more vulnerable, as well as much more expensive to replace.


    He scrambled around in a panic, with a sinking feeling in his stomach, until he grabbed his instrument and verified it showed no sign of decay.


    Unwilling to suffer any more unpleasant surprises, he made a list of everything he had, a list with only five items. A decaying spearhead, a bunch of metal ingots, a torn refining manual, a set of clothes that were in great disrepair, a hammer he never used, and his stylus. Of all that, only his stylus and the hammer were still in acceptable condition.


    However, Avery had one last concern. Even inanimate objects, ones which contained no Qi like his clothes, were slowly being ravaged by the surrounding magic, so what effect would it have on him? Even as a mortal with no Qi, dragon power was probably still deadly to him. Thinking back, the system had claimed it would be ¡°killing anyone who hasn¡¯t attained immortality¡±, not only cultivators.


    Since he was not currently dead, and it was unlikely he had more resistance than metal, he must have been saved by his use of time warps. From his body''s point of view, it had only been affected for a few hours maximum, and that was not enough time for any negative consequences to surface.


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    What terrified him was the prospect of his soul also being injured. He kept his memories after a time warp, so it could not be restoring everything, and there must be loopholes. It was possible the dragon power was attacking him in this way, but since it was dubious he would not have felt any effects by now, he was probably safe.


    This was not enough to abate his apprehension, but there was nothing he could do, so he forced himself to believe the only problem he had to deal with was the lack of material. Instead of wasting time fretting over something that had not happened yet, he decided to make the most of his limited time until the spearhead gave out on him.


    He managed to grab a last couple of points, but two days later the spearhead crumbled away alongside his latest glyph. He checked the ingots he hadn¡¯t used, but they had also disintegrated, leaving Avery with only 87 points, 163 points away from what buying replacements demanded.


    Just like before, Avery suppressed his anxiety and took the time to look through all the options available to him. A quick tour of the shop clearly established he lacked the points required for it to be helpful, but reexamining the blacksmithing diagram sparked an inspiration.


    Although he was technically blacksmithing according to the system¡¯s rules, what he did had very little to do with the materials. The equipment was only the support for him to draw on, and while he certainly couldn''t draw on thin air, he saw no reason he would not be able to engrave runic characters directly on the cliff face.


    Avery was slightly concerned something terrible would happen if he messed around with the scales of a terrifyingly huge dragon, but with little choice left he built up the courage to tentatively inscribe a rune on the wall.


    Carving on the wall was actually more enjoyable as he could draw at eye level rather than having to sit down and bend over and squint at his work. Besides, he had so much free space he decided to scale the drawing up to better carve the details. He expected increasing the size of the rune would also increase its consumption, which in turn would increase the time needed to complete it, but he didn¡¯t know if it was worth it.


    As usual, when he carefully carried out the first stroke, he saw the print light up. Avery tempered his expectation, scared of being disappointed at the very end, but it was with renewed enthusiasm that he hurriedly finished the character on the wall. Just like before, the glyph burst into sparks when he completed it, but Avery was surprised to find that the sparks were not consumed by the wall, but were instead bounced off and assimilated into his body.


    Avery didn¡¯t really understand why this would happen, and he didn¡¯t know what the sparks were, but as they entered his body he suddenly felt his mind becoming clearer and more agile, as if he had just taken a nap. This surprised him, and made him wonder whether he was always feeling mentally exhausted not only because of his concentration, but also because whatever was consumed when he engraved had something to do with his mind.


    Theorizing without more information would be useless, so he turned his attention to the system''s exciting new notification.


    Ding, congratulations, you have crafted a superior rune. +5 Points.


    Without precise time measurements, he wasn¡¯t sure it was worth it to spend longer for a better product, but he eventually decided to stick with a small format. He felt it would be easier to become more precise and improve the quality of the small runes rather than to make the big runes faster.

 Chapter 9 : New runes

    Weeks and months passed like a dream, and the new year found Avery still unwaveringly carving rune after rune. His penmanship had become excellent, and he regularly crafted perfect runes worth ten points, but his life saw very little variation.


    He had gradually become incredibly bored by this repetitive lifestyle, and was craving any distractions. He had walked thousands of kilometers this year, but the scenery was still as unvarying and somber as ever, a shadowy corridor extending forever in the distance.


    Worse, he had confirmed he was going nowhere. After losing his iron ingots, he had left his hammer behind, unwilling to carry a useless object around. Then after a few months of walking, he had circled back to it. There was no easy escape to this endless abyss.


    His exploration of the ephemeral energy wasn¡¯t going anywhere either, it had become another part of his life that was stalled in an unchanging limbo.


    He had managed to accumulate a little above 10 000 points, but at the current rate it would take millions of years to buy an item that could help him escape. The system said only immortal ranked entities could survive here, and he didn¡¯t even have the authority to see the price of those items. He did know they would be absurdly expensive, as the cheapest teleportation scroll already cost trillions of points.


    He had reached the point of crafting perfect runes at every try months ago, but he had made no progress since then. Getting a perfect evaluation already required him to produce a rune flawlessly, as a single mistake would drop the grade to superior. What was left to improve when the system claimed his work was flawless?


    He imagined better grades existed, like Dao runes or Chaos runes? After all, this was a nonsensical magical world with an absurd level of power escalation. Perhaps he needed to infuse intent into his craft, giving it an artistic conception, or perhaps he needed to discover some kind of profound meaning in the rune, but his fumbling around in the dark had so far led to nothing.


    There was nothing interesting about an uneventful life without progress, where the only change was a number slowly going up day by day. Unable to bear it any longer, he decided this could not go on. Glancing at the system mall, he found the package that had been tempting him and spent most of the points he had been religiously saving buying it.


    Ding, congratulations on purchasing the 1 000 runes package. -10 000 Points


    He was unsure if different runes would give him more points, but at least this would provide him some much needed variety. He also hoped that having more examples for reference subjects would help him predict the next level of chirography.


    He briefly looked through his new runes, but was disappointed when he found no descriptive title. He was hoping for them to be named or be organized, like a ¡°rune of swiftness¡± under the category of "wind". Unfortunately, there were no such details, so his plan of comparing the runes to each other according to their uses failed before it could begin. He might still be able to understand something about how runes worked by comparing their design, but his motivation had already been severely hit.


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    In the situation he was in, with very little information and nothing to distract him, he could only motivate himself to keep going and work to avoid starving by placing his hopes on the system. However, that meant that anytime he was disappointed by the system, he would feel betrayed and lose a lot of faith in his eventual escape.


    It was all he could do to force himself to start studying the new runes. Even if it didn¡¯t amount to anything in the end, at least it would give him something to ponder on to pass time.


    Avery didn¡¯t have any plans or a research methodology, he just practiced inscribing the new runes. He had no idea how long it would take him to escape, but it would probably be enough time for him to thoroughly exhaust all the research material he had just gotten. In light of that, it was probably in his best interest to be as inefficient as possible to make the investigation last longer.


    As expected, some glyphs took longer to make and cost more than others, although he was disappointed to find out that they all gave the same amount of points.


    With a year of calligraphy behind him, he made very fast progress, but it still took more than a week to become flawless at engraving each rune, which meant it would take 20 years to perfect them all.


    In between learning each rune, he would also come back to his initial rune, trying to apply whatever he learned and make sure he did not forget his skills.


    Apart from learning a lot of miscellaneous runes, which would surely be useful whenever he got out of this hellhole, and drawing something different for a change, Avery was trying to improve his fundamental knowledge of runes. He was comparing them to each other, trying to decipher a pattern. He quickly realized that there were a lot of recurrent strokes in all of the glyphs. Slightly disgruntled, as this seriously diminished the novelty he was expecting, Avery compiled a list of all the different strokes.


    Making the list was harder than anticipated, as he had no way to write something that would stay in existence for more than a few seconds, and was forced to do all of it in his mind. He would have been incapable of doing this on earth, but absorbing rune shards must have immensely strengthened his mind, as after only a few tries, he was able to create a mental sheet of paper upon which he could draw the strokes in his imagination.


    Despite his enthusiasm and hard work, Avery didn''t actually get much out of this. He found that every rune he knew started with a circle in the middle, on which each rune would add complicated patterns using combinations of 10 different strokes. Those ten strokes were composed of 5 unique designs, and their mirrored versions. This was all well and good, but it really didn''t help him draw better or faster, and he was having immense difficulties doing research without being able to write anything down.


    He kept all this information in the back of his mind, certain it would be useful one day when he understood runes better, but for now he decided to stop playing around and go back to accumulating points with his initial rune, leaving the rest of the unlearned runes for the next time the boredom would become unbearable.


    To avoid getting demoralized by the time passing by, he stopped looking at the system stats and calculating the time with used time warps. He knew he had been in this gloomy purgatory for almost two years, and that had been enough for him to almost sink into a deadly depression several times. Unfortunately, there was still no escape on the horizon, and it would take a million years for him to discover if his only hope of buying a miraculous item from the system was justified. Faced with these cruel numbers, it was best he forgot all about the future, and lost himself in the current repetitive task.


    In an attempt to set a clearer goal, Avery swore to himself he would not stop carving the rune he was best at until he had 500 000 points, after which he would take another holiday learning other runes.

 Chapter 10 : Depression

    While he crafted, Avery usually tried his best to make abstraction of his unfortunate circumstances, and focus solely on feeling for any change in the channeling of arcane energy. Perseverance was the mother of success, and he had promised himself that one day he would tame that elusive mana and become a master of magic. To achieve that, he would constantly study and experiment with mana. Nothing had worked yet, but he had no intention of giving up.


    Today, though, was a different story. He just felt too weary and depressed, and just couldn¡¯t muster the energy to discipline his mind and avoid pointless dwelling on his morbid thoughts.


    His thoughts went to the usual dark places, complaining about everything, wallowing in helplessness, and generally immersing himself in misery.


    His unruly imagination portrayed the dim gorge as an inescapable prison, a place in which you would forever feel trapped and weighed down by despair and hopelessness, a black hole with no escape.


    He felt excessively fatigued and discouraged, and couldn''t help but dwelling on the horrible possibility he would be stranded here for all eternity, lost and forgotten, alone in this wretched world where no one would ever find him.


    His anguish grew so great, it gained an almost physical sense of weight, pressing on Avery, demanding he admit his powerlessness.


    He had felt this way many times during this last year, but he had always managed to tear his thoughts away from such disheartening subjects, and force himself to always, always, push despair away to remain positive and optimistic.


    It might sound impossible to discipline his thoughts and stay positive, but once he fell into depression, it would be a million times harder to climb his way out of it. It was imperative for his survival that he retained the ability to concentrate on carving runes, and a mental breakdown was his most fearsome enemy.


    For two years, he had succeeded in keeping loneliness and despair at bay, but it was not that he had achieved some kind of zen state, where he was at peace with his lot in life. Instead, it was his relentless race against time that had kept him sane.


    Each time he carved a rune, he would put his all into it, using every bit of mental energy he had, doing his very best to make it perfect. At this point, he doubted anything short of death could make his focus waver. There was no place for misery in his life, his thought were completely dominated by the glowing glyph.


    Even when he paused to rest, his mind would be too exhausted, almost incapable of thinking of anything, be it positive or negative. Along with the boost he suspected the rune shard he absorbed gave him and his fear of death, it had been enough to avoid more severe mental consequences.


    However, this wasn''t true anymore. He had made insane progress, and runes were no longer challenging. He had reached a bottleneck, where engraving was becoming easier while his mental capacity was still growing, leaving him with a lot of energy to spare for more unpleasant and self-destructive thoughts.


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    The emergence of all those demoralizing thoughts was not a surprise, but that did not make them easier to fight against. His survival rested on his constant blacksmithing, but was it worth it? Was his life really worth living? It was the same thing day in, day out, a tedious song with no soul, enthusiasm or passion. His calligraphy had reached perfection, and he didn¡¯t even have the satisfaction of improving anymore.


    Whether he died today, or whether he persisted for a thousand years before surrendering himself to the reaper, would there be a difference? His epitaph would still end with ¡°Avery carved the same rune over and over again for XXX years until he despaired and ended his life.¡± Be it a year or a million years, it could all be encapsulated in the same heartbreaking sentence.


    Besides, this world had cultivation, so surely it must have reincarnation? If he died, maybe he would reincarnate as a prince, or the son of an immortal, living his new life on easy mode. Even if he was a poor slave, he had trouble imagining it would be worse than his eternal solitary confinement.


    Even if his life really was worth living, surely he could afford a break? He had quite a few spare points, so what was the harm with lying down for a few days and lazing around for a change?


    Unable to take it any longer, Avery uttered a deep sigh and lowered his pen. A short rest would do no harm, and instead was a great idea.


    He ought to have more faith in himself, as it was evident as soon as his mind was well rested, he would assuredly be in high spirits, bursting full of motivation. After all, doing nothing and idly waiting for the next time he was miraculously in a productive mood really was the way to go.


    Despite having made his decision, Avery stayed frozen staring at his hand. He just needed to loosen his grip a tiny bit, and his stylus would fall to the floor, and he would be free to unwind and relax. Otherwise, he needed to stay strong, lift his arm back up, and maintain the grind.


    Finally, after a full minute of motionless glaring at his hand, Avery mustered his courage, slowly raised his pen, and started drawing one last rune. He would take a break, but not right now. Right now, he would make at least one last effort.


    He couldn''t promise more, but at least he would do one more rune. Whether he would do one more after that would have to be determined once this one was completed. Right now, he would make at least one more glyph, and he would put his all into drawing it.


    He bravely attempted to monitor the mana flowing through him, but was far from attentive, still too preoccupied by the hopeless circumstance he was in, and how low his chances of escape truly were.


    In the end, though, he gave it his all. He poured every ounce of his willpower into his glyph, and only after a countless amount of mental determination did he finally tap his stylus to the ground.


    He had to fight every second to stay focused, and ignore the creeping feelings of despair. His head still swam with an icy concoction of misery, and he was barely managing to concentrate a mere few seconds at a time, before the feeling of powerlessness would return, depicting the canyon as an inescapable jail with indestructible barriers, keeping him trapped in a hell he could never hope to escape.


    It was when he was succumbing to despair, convinced he would stay imprisoned for all eternity that a miracle happened. He was so shocked his hand jerked and ruined his work, but he could hardly care about it now. After a year of immutability, he finally felt the evanescent energy suddenly stir up and get channeled with more vigor, making the engraving process slightly faster.


    His joy at having finally stumbled across a way to improve and shorten the crafting process, as well as a potential first clue on mastering magic was so intense, it promptly blew any negative thoughts out of his head, and instead caused him to burst out laughing, jumping and dancing around excitedly for a few minutes. This was his first breakthrough in ages, and it was a massive one!


    Avery sauntered around for a while and enjoyed the rare moment of novelty, then rushed to grab his stylus and began experimenting, conjuring all kinds of images related to incarceration, and comparing how the eccentric energy reacted.

 Chapter 11 : Intent

    Avery had suspected for a long time that a superior level of rune must exist, and that it was probably related to intent in some way. In light of that, he had made many tests, but none had ever resulted in any noticeable effects.


    He had concluded that either intent wasn¡¯t a thing, it had an effect unrelated with the rune quality, or he had not found the correct intent to match the rune he was drawing.


    Now, with the sudden reaction of the flow of mana, he guessed he had coincidentally stumbled on to the correct intent, which must have something to do with imprisonment.


    He was still confused as to what a rune destined to adorn a spearhead had to do with imprisonment, but now that he had a clue, he was confident he would eventually figure out all of the rune¡¯s secrets, and then all of mana¡¯s mysteries.


    His depression was temporarily gone and forgotten, vastly overweighed by his drive for improvement and curiosity. He had stumbled on the very thing he had been hoping for, a chance of mastering mana. He would grab that chance with all his might, and with a direction to follow, it was only a matter of time until he became an expert on the art of magic.


    Full of motivation, he tested all kinds of ideas, eager to finally learn more and find what worked and what didn''t.


    At first he thought he needed to convey the idea of inescapable confinement, binding the enemy by unbreakable chains, but he found it was better to visualize a low-security prison full of inmates than an inescapable cell holding a single prisoner.


    He was having a hard time expressing a clear idea through images, and kept getting distracted by all kind of possibilities of what else the true meaning of the rune could be.


    He started to feel a need to be able to better describe his ideas, as they were too vague for accurate analysis. In an attempt to be more precise, he stopped picturing images, but rather tried to convey intent through words. It wasn¡¯t as effective, but it was more specific.


    He performed a multitude of tests, and found that the word with the best result by far was ¡°containment¡±, followed by ¡°imprisoned¡± and ¡°captive¡± while words like ¡°shackled" or ¡°chained¡± had almost no effect.


    He also checked whether the same intent could have a different effect depending on when he thought about it, or if he could use multiple concepts. For example, he would start out focusing wholeheartedly on the word ¡°prison¡±, but when his drawing was approximately halfway done, he would instead concentrate on the notion of a ¡°trap¡±.


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    His logic was that runes might represent something that could not be boiled down to a single notion, and have a structure more akin to a sentence than a single word. Perhaps stringing together many concepts in the right order could lead to the best results.


    Thinking about it carefully, Avery remembered he had gotten the rune to put on a spear. He really couldn¡¯t see what spear had to do with some kind of restraining enchantment, and he found it more plausible that imprisonment was only a small part of its nature. Presumably, its full name would sound somewhat like this : ¡°strike the enemy, cut his flesh and seal his Qi¡±?


    Saying this, Avery was suddenly struck by inspiration. He had so far limited himself to imagining restraints applied to humans, but was it not more likely it would be related to the suppression of the Qi of cultivators?


    Unfortunately, none of those ideas panned out. Mana always reacted the exact same way to his intent, regardless of when it was channeled, and while the words like ¡°seal¡± or ¡°suppress his Qi¡± did make the mana flow quicken, it was no more pronounced than all of the other concepts he had tried before.


    Unresigned, and determined to find what the glyph truly symbolized, he tried to forget his new discovery and once again list all the effects that seemed to fit with a beginner''s first spear rune, but his mind kept coming back to ¡°restrain¡± and ¡°imprison¡±. He had finally decided to give it a rest and go back to visualizing pictures when he had an inspiration.


    What if instead of confinement, the pictogram symbolized storage? He immediately tested the word ¡°storage¡±, which had an average effect, but when he specified ¡°mana storage¡±, he was elated to find the ephemeral energy was roused and practically gushed out of him, enabling him to finish inscribing twice as fast as usual.


    He carried out a few more tests, and became reasonably certain he had found the correct use of the rune, so he moved on to investigate if the method of visualization affected anything. He had previously noticed that projecting images had better results than words, but what about a descriptive sentence?


    He experimented a little, and found the more descriptive he was, the better, as long as it was relevant. ¡°Bountiful mana storage¡± was better than ¡°mana storage¡±, but ¡°beautiful mana storage¡± was worse.


    Next, he compared the effects of conveying intent through words compared with pictures. As the saying went, a picture is worth a 1000 words, so he was not surprised that he was still better off exercising his visual imagination. He was uncertain of how to picture Qi, so he got the best results imagining a huge pile of spirit stones.


    As with words, the more clear and complete the picture was, the better, but he eventually realized that although words and images got reactions from the arcane energy, they were not the focal point.


    The words were only a conduit, or a support for intent. To craft a storage rune, he needed to have the feeling it would store a lot of things, and visualizing was only a way to project his intent. A single word filled with the sentiment of boundless abundance would be more effective than a 3000 word essay he recited while thinking of something else. The ideal of course being 3000 words full of intent.

 Chapter 12 : Hope

    Despite all his discoveries, Avery wasn¡¯t saving that much time. While he drew slightly faster, he also had to allocate a considerable amount of time to conjure up an image beforehand and analyse the results afterward. While the speed at which he was gaining points remaining constant, it was a much more interesting way to craft, so his boredom and depression were greatly alleviated.


    He had taken to visualizing a black hole, devouring everything and absorbing the entire universe into a minuscule singularity. It wasn''t perfectly aligned with the true meaning of the rune, but the deep feeling of awe, mystery and fear he associated it with more than made up for it. He found picturing a battery while thinking of spiritual energy worked just as well, but it just wasn''t inspiring enough compared to a terrifying celestial phenomenon extreme enough to bend the laws of physics.


    Picturing a mundane object was not only boring, it also hindered his progress. It was evident that the higher level of inscribing was closely related to feeling and exploring the mysteries of the runes.


    This was what pleased Avery the most. There was no end to his accumulation of points in sight, and he was doing all he could not to dwell on the possibility that the immortal items capable of saving him might never appear to him as a shopping option.


    He had no other choice than to hold on and trek towards an uncertain future, but the confirmation of the existence and power of intent made another theory of his seem a lot more plausible.


    The runes obviously were not random shapes, but rather profound symbols deeply connected with the laws of this world. If they were so powerful, Avery hoped researching them was the equivalent of cultivators studying the Tao. They would be his ladder to enlightenment, cultivating his understanding and accompanying him to delve into the mysteries of the universe, until he would one day attain detachment and eternity.


    This was why visualizing a black hole worked so well, as one of the most powerful cosmic entities in the universe certainly felt much closer to the heavenly truth than a banal household item.


    He was currently having fun, but that would not last forever. His new discovery was a breath of fresh air to his stale existence, but the novelty would one day wear thin, and he would eventually be back leading his tedious and repetitive life.


    Now however, if his conjecture was correct, and he was right and each rune represented a Tao law, perhaps when he had studied them in depth, he could use them to directly prove the Tao. He would then ascend and become immortal in one instant, skipping all the previous cultivation steps and bypassing the restriction imposed by the dragon power.


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    As far as he knew, there were no other requirements to becoming an immortal except comprehension. That was why stories of grass becoming enlightened and flying to heaven existed. This didn''t mean cultivation was meaningless, as it acted as a ladder helping to reach the sky. With the average comprehension of a mortal, it would take a million years of non-stop work to comprehend a Tao law, while the average Transforming God cultivator, having been transformed and becoming closer to the Tao, could do the same in about 500 years.


    Avery was hoping that by using the infinite time exploit granted by his system and with the runes as guides and mentors, he could bridge the gap to ascension.


    The second advantage of traditional cultivation was strength. All the stories he heard recounted immortals facing devastating tribulations, and leveraging their powerful martial arts to surpass it, while he would only be a very weak immortal with no martial arts foundation or Qi reserves. Avery wasn''t sure what he would do about this, but he figured he would cross that bridge when he came to it.


    Going back to work, he soon fell into a rhythm again, carving runes continuously, each time trying to channel a little bit more emotion and passion. Every ten or so runes he would slightly alter the mental image, adding a background, making it a weapon of mass destruction in the mouth of an immortal dragon, or even giving it life.


    Some worked, like adding an immeasurable starry sky as the background to establish a massive sense of scale. Others, like making it devour the earth, were ineffective or even detrimental, as it made it too grounded and it lost some of its heavenly majesty.


    Since he noticed he got better results when he elevated the runes and treated them as sacred truths, especially when he associated them with heaven, he reaffirmed his conclusion that they were a part of the Tao. He guessed there might be 3000 runes, one for each of the 3000 Tao laws he had heard about, and what he was currently doing was the equivalent to an immortal cultivating the Tao of storage or containment.


    Giddy with excitement, Avery plunged into a frenzy of rune inscribing, stimulating his creativity to the maximum to test all kinds of theories. He was no longer only after speed, but also exploring the intricacies of the rune, archiving and comparing how different concepts resonated with and affected the rune creation.


    Progress was slow, but every improvement was now enough to make him laugh out loud. He was no longer mindlessly repeating the same motions again and again, wishing for anything to deviate from his lifeless and perpetually desolate existence, he was now wholly invested in his craft, racking his brain for inspiration, experimenting and analyzing with unprecedented fervor.


    It was during this time that he figured out something else the rune shards were doing. When the rune broke and its fragments got absorbed by his body, he would get a small boost to his spirit, making his visualizations much clearer and faster. The effect would wear off in a few seconds, but it was enough to elevate his mental image to another level. Wanting to take advantage of this, he stopped resting between attempts, and simply focused on improving his craft.


    His life had already become much more interesting, as he kept combining different ideas to see how the mysterious energy reacted, eager to improve himself, and confident he had found his surefire path to freedom.

 Chapter 13 : Research

    He kept playing with different scenes in his head, associating it with various emotions such as awe and fear, or peace and confidence. He noticed that while intents unrelated to storage did nothing to excite the flow of mana, they could strengthen his imprisonment intent.


    As long as he kept storage as a core idea in his mind, he could pile other concepts onto it to strengthen it. The effect wasn¡¯t huge, but if he imagined a huge crate with a beach as a backdrop, it was definitely more effective than just a nondescript background.


    It didn''t help much, as the intensity of the feeling was clearly much more important than its nature. He would be better off simply concentrating on the crate. What made this discovery significant was that it opened up a way to improve.


    One of the reasons Avery was experimenting with visualizations was that he had no clue on how to enhance his intent. After all, if all that mattered was the quantity of intent, how could he train himself to ¡°think harder¡±?


    Instead, by discovering and analyzing all the intricacies of intent, he could not only stave off his depression, but also find ways to develop his control over mana. ¡°Think of more things¡± was easier to do than ¡°think of one thing better¡±. At the very least his progression would be very clear.


    Of course, Avery wasn¡¯t going to run off with just this initial revelation and go back to the grind for points. With his current rate of earning points, he had an eternity to earn an indefinite amount of points. It did not matter how high the price of an immortal item was, if it existed, he would eventually get it. Success would be inevitable, but repeating the same thing for billions or trillions of times would be mind bogglingly boring.


    He would rather take the time to invent a clever way to earn points faster, risking wasting time contemplating impossibilities in the hope of finding a shortcut. It may take more time in the end, but it would give him a chance to remain sane.


    He still had a lot to learn, and was determined to make the most of the infinite time granted to him to become a master of magic.


    <hr>


    He had only carelessly added a random idea on his storage intent, and it had been enough to produce a noticeable reaction. Would having more than two concepts help? Did any additional idea help, or only a few very specific ones? Maybe the concepts needed to be more intrinsically linked, instead of simply present?


    Proceeding to test his hypothesis, he refocused on his original black hole and made it absorb the beach, and it indeed aided the mana flow faster.


    In order to be thorough, he also visualized the black hole on the beach not affecting it in any way, as it was only wallpaper, painting quite the ridiculous picture.


    He had expected a barely noticeable effect, but he was surprised to see the mana flow actually slowed down as compared to a purer picture of the cosmic entity.


    He had used the same image as a background twice, but one time it was helpful, while the second time it was a hindrance. It wasn¡¯t even a problem of needing there to be the right combination of elements, as devouring the beach was helpful.


    Avery believed the picture was probably both helping and hindering at the same time, and the manner it was used changed the effect.


    The beach should have a basic positive effect on the visualization in all circumstances, as it was adding an intent, but in other ways it was also harmful.


    The reason he loved imagining a black hole so much was that it was one of the most terrifying, but magnificent things in the universe, a cosmic phenomenon extreme enough to bend SpaceTime and the laws of physics.


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    With that in mind, equating it with a small sand beach really didn¡¯t do it justice, tarnishing its majesty and actively damaging its image. Just like cooking where two good ingredients didn¡¯t necessarily go well together, the coastal background clashed with the central picture.


    Even devouring the entire earth could not portray the unreasonable transcendence of the singularity, because at a cosmic scale, even a planet was insignificant.


    In an attempt to stay away from this banalization of the singularity, he decided against devouring any material object, fearing it would be counterproductive, and made it devour more arcane concepts.


    He began imagining an endless sea of fire, an immense world of red and blue flames sustaining on pure energy. Then, inspired by some anime scenes he had liked, Avery made a tiny black spot abruptly appear slightly above the inferno, and the entire inferno was suddenly affected by a tremendous gravitational force.


    An infinite amount of fire started rushing towards this tiny black spot, helplessly getting engulfed and further fueling its growth.


    The black hole gradually grew bigger and bigger, slowly but steadily, consuming the inferno around it faster and faster, causing strange transparencies to swirl around it, as if in a kaleidoscope.


    The raging fire was no longer settled in on a horizontal plane, but was rather forced into a mysterious vortex revolving in the inescapable embrace of its devourer.


    The scene he visualized was striking, but in the end the results were underwhelming. He believed the gush of mana did speed up a tiny bit, but with how imprecise all of his observations were, he was always second guessing himself, wondering if he was imagining things.


    He had never expected everything to go smoothly on his first try, so he immediately tweaked the scenario in his head, testing out anything he could come up with and attempting to measure their varying effectiveness.


    He tried many things, from changing the flame''s color, changing the size or position of the black hole, changing the way the black hole appeared, changing how defined the inferno was, changing it to an unfathomably deep ocean, or a combination of many ideas.


    He even carried out his tests multiple times in the hopes of eliminating errors caused by his lack of precision. Not for the first time, he cursed his lack of even the most basic necessities, as having to remember and compare all of his research results without pen and paper was proving to be a nightmare.


    After a few days of intense investigation, he tentatively concluded with a model to produce the best effect. The most striking difference with this new and updated scene was the interaction between the flame and the black hole.


    Instead of directly devouring the flames, it was best the fire emit small immaterial balls of red energy, which would be bundled up and rise up until they were attracted and absorbed by the black hole.


    The reason for the success of this particular prototype was still unclear, but he had tried this with the other three elements and had gotten similar results. He also got a significant boost when he combined the four elements together, but for some reason he found doing that unreasonably hard, and since he was getting tired of this scene, he decided to shift gears and temporarily focus on different concepts, to later come back and compare his findings.


    His next attempt was to consume the concept of good and evil. He created a hell below and a heaven above, which he filled with angels and devils, from which dark and light specks rose. He did have an easier time imagining the mysterious concepts of "good and evil" being consumed as compared to the four elements, but the gains were very minute, far less pronounced than the four elements.


    As Avery experimented with various concepts, he confirmed that concepts absolutely had to be relevant to the rune in order to be useful, and that it was not only an issue with the strength of his visualization.


    The pertinence could be minute, as freedom and a treasure chest were both useful, but it had to be there. Even then, he was having difficulty depicting nebulous concepts, so the time it took to detail and clarify wasn''t worth it.


    The only exception to that were fundamental concepts, like Good and Evil, Space and Time, the Four elements or Life and Death. It did not seem to matter if the things imagined were true or not, as both the visualization of the four elements and that of the five fundamental particles were successful, despite the two notions being contradictory. Only their perceived relevance to the world was important.


    He couldn''t find a link between storage and these fundamental principles, and the best explanation he could come up with was that it was related to the nature of the world in general. Whatever the case, they were by far the most effective, so they became his favored field of study.

 Chapter 14 : Elemental system

    He had spent the last weeks drawing quick and dirty runes, wanting to test many hypotheses one after another in quick succession. Right now, he wanted to test all that he had learned, and try to engrave the very best rune he possibly could, without worrying about time.


    First he chose what he would visualize. He had not noticed a significant difference between the global efficiency of different principles which would justify concentrating on a particular one, so he decided to focus on an elemental world for now. He had started with them, and it was the one he had the most fun with.


    As he was imagining a black hole, he envisioned four colored planets orbiting it, each symbolizing an element. He then concentrated on one world at a time, assigning to each one an admittedly stereotypical swarm of elemental creatures to inhabit it.


    They still felt extremely barren, being nothing but colored balls with dozens of tiny stickmen on them, so he spent a considerable amount of time detailing the planets, notably by constructing a densely populated city. He couldn''t realistically create a world as complex as earth, but he could imitate video games, create a few very realistic sites, from which one would logically infer that the rest of the world was equally as developed.


    He started with the earth element, in 2D with very low definition, picturing a simple circular wall filled with various rectangular blocks, with a huge pyramid in the center. Afterwards, he gradually added in details and variety. The triangular pyramid became a plain aztec-inspired temple, and the nondescript rectangles transformed into recognizable but blurry houses. The city walls gained gates and guard towers, with a dirt road leading to a nearby mine.


    On his third passage, he went further in-depth, the pyramid gained an ornate ceremonial altar on top of the stairs, coupled with a few engravings of strange earth gods. He then turned his attention to the residential city, rotating houses around, changing their height and width, adding balconies and decorations to break uniformity.


    It was not perfect; for example, there was no commercial area, all of the houses and areas looked equally rich, and he had not prepared anywhere for the denizens of the city to work, but he was content with it. He had to know when to stop, as there was no limit to the amount of thought and details he could add, but his time and patience were finite.


    The next step was to add some life to the picture, by populating the city with residents. Since this was an earth world, he imagined a group of golems, sentient piles of rocks in a roughly humanoid shape, to inhabit the city. He didn¡¯t spend too much time on them, and just had a lot of variations in sizes and color according to the material each golem was made out of.


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    He was about to call it a day and turn to the other worlds when he was struck by inspiration. He quickly created a new group of golems, gave them clothes, and made them act out a sacred ceremony in front of the central altar, their prayers causing a column of brown earth energy to emit from the pyramid.


    He had no clue if tying elemental energy to worship was helpful or not, but he was in a creative zone, so he skipped the tests and cost/benefit analysis and simply added it in anyways.


    Satisfied the city was complete, he ¡°copy/pasted¡± it around the globe, simply varying the size and filling in the empty spots with towering mountains, before turning his attention to the fire planet.


    Making a note to distinguish them from each other in their style of architecture and landscape, he made the fire world much less bulky and structured, forfeiting coordination and order for the vibrancy of randomness.


    The city had a very odd irregular shape, and was filled with a chaotic mess of buildings. The architecture was inspired by oriental mosque, filled with very open and very colorful buildings with high circular spires and bulb shaped roofs. The population was also extremely diverse, consisting of a multitude of half-corporeal fire spirits of all sizes, shapes, and colors.


    To mirror the Aztec temple of the earth city, Avery designed a huge lotus made out of fire, in front of which the fire spirits would bow and give worship, providing fire energy to the black hole.


    He fashioned the air planet in a similar manner, making flying steampunk cities filled with turbines and clear tubes of gushing steam protruding everywhere. The natives of this planet were a variety of mechanical lifeforms, and the religious building they worshipped was a huge glass-like tower, a tower that completely traversed the gas planet.


    Lastly, the water planet was themed after greek and roman mythology, complete with imposing structure, beautiful parthenons and statues everywhere. Avery had already run out of imagination at this point, so the inhabitants of this world were boring mermaids, but this was also the only planet where he thought to add in other species than the ¡°main one¡±. Basically, he threw all of the marine animals he could think of in the ocean.


    Running out of inspiration and eager to admire his work, Avery took a mental step back and ¡°zoomed out¡± to get a better view of all four planets. He was dismayed to discover that the three worlds he had detailed before the water world had severely deteriorated, and had almost reverted to being colored balls.


    He had become too focused on the water world, and his mind had forgotten his previous work, necessitating his return to repair it.


    He had overestimated his mind, and had forgotten dreams were impermanent. If he focused on a particular part of the picture, it was only natural the rest would become blurry. It was obvious in retrospect, but since he had been banished to this hellhole, he had done nothing but repetitive work, alone and without distractions. He realized his thought patterns and common sense were probably heavily impacted, and the thought that his tireless work in this dim place was leading to him regressing instead of steadily improving was more than he could bear.

 Chapter 15 : Frustration

    From the beginning, Avery had considered his time in solitude a constant fight against himself. His stupid mortal body was absurdly high maintenance, needing to eat every few hours. It was his deficient muscles and skills that were preventing him from simply climbing the smooth vertical walls, smoothly obtaining freedom.


    It was his lack of knowledge and imagination that slowed down his research so much. If he had spent his time in the sect asking around about cultivation, he would surely have learned a great deal about intent, instead of foolishly pinning all of his hopes on a useless system.


    More significantly, was it not his stupidity and cowardice that made him rashly make his senseless escape, instead of honestly facing the consequences of his actions? If he had wanted to spend eternity in hell, would it not have been quicker and more efficient to simply commit suicide? Or was he too afraid he would end up in heaven instead?


    He was one big bundle of inadequacies, not brave enough to either wholeheartedly believe in a better future, or resign himself to reality, give up and let it end. No, the best option was unquestionably to continue on in constant self-loathing and doubt.


    Now even his greatest hope of escape, mastering mana, was spoiled by his brain¡¯s inexcusable incompetence. It did not matter if reason told him it wasn¡¯t his fault, that it was best to let go of his insecurities and strive to move past them. Avery was fed up with his incompetence, and he resented the world for trying to wrench this victory out of his hands.


    He had set up with the goal of producing the very best rune his knowledge of intent allowed, and nothing, not even his own ineptitude would stop him. He had an eternity in front of him, so time was not an issue. He would force his mind to grow until it was able to accommodate this vast setting in excruciating detail. Eventually he would triumph, it was inevitable.


    While his mind had undeniably been very affected by his recent life, and not always in a positive way, it was not all bad. Avery felt his thought process had become much steadier, perhaps losing in flexibility and speed, but gaining in overall strength and stability. After all, he had managed to imagine a complete city in acceptable detail, something he was certain he would not have been capable of back on earth, and doubted was even humanly possible.


    Avery was amazed at his power to handle so much data. Admittedly, now that he was looking back at his work, it wasn¡¯t very impressive or aesthetically pleasing, and the still intact water world could hardly be considered art. It more resembled a crude clay sculpture made by a 10 year-old, but despite the poor quality of his work, the amount of information he had been able to process at the same time was incredible.


    Evidently, the last year had already caused a huge growth in his concentration, so his brain could develop to eventually assimilate such a huge scene. He only needed a little practice, and he would train until he could bear in mind his entire dreamland in its full glory.


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    To do so, he would use his most fearsome weapon : relentless repetitions. He had gained an incredible stubbornness over the last year, so he would continue trying until he succeeded, no matter how long it took.


    Avery immediately took action, returning to the fire planet, and redesigning it back to its former questionable splendor. Now that he knew what he was doing, it went much faster, as he could skip deciding what he would create, and directly make it, sometimes even improving over the previous version.


    However, doing so caused him to overlook the water world, jeopardizing its integrity, and by the time he had completely repaired the fire city, the visualization had not really improved, it¡¯s focal point had only been flipped.


    He then attempted to keep all four elemental planets intact at the same time. He was testing if focusing on all of them at the same time was more effective than working on them one after the other.


    Unfortunately, this approach had much poorer results, and in the end he only got a mediocre product devoid of any details. After trying out a few different methods, he couldn¡¯t find any shortcuts so he could only helplessly cycle back and forth between all aspects of his projection until he became so familiar with everything that it took very little brain power to maintain.


    Slowly but surely, he painted everything again and again, painting everything once, twice, ten times or a hundred times, each time getting a little faster, a little more precise, the picture lasting a little longer.


    This back and forth was certainly repetitive, but it wasn¡¯t really boring like carving runes had been. Not only did he have a lot more liberty, being able to add and modify his design according to his whims, he also finally had a clear way to improve.


    More importantly, it was his self-deprecating anger that kept him going. He needed to prove to himself and the universe that he was capable of defying reality, and achieving the impossible. If he couldn''t do something simple like dreaming up a simple fantasy land, what qualifications did he have to one day obtain an immortal item?


    Unfortunately, using self-contempt as a motivation created a vicious circle. While he was making overall progress in holding everything together, which would normally be enough to satisfy him, he also became increasingly frustrated each time he saw all his hard work go to waste due to his own inadequacy.


    It wasn''t just that he was failing at what he was trying to do; he knew that learning to multitask and to think of multiple things at once would be difficult, bordering on impossible. It was the feeling of fighting against himself, of constantly undermining his own achievements, that drove him insane. He would then get unbelievably frustrated by his self-inflicted setback, which only further fueled his anger, and his need to prove himself.


    Avery became a maniac, groaning and screaming at each mishap, but it never occurred to him to stop or do something else. He knew in the back of his mind loneliness and disappointment was making him more and more unhinged, and that he was ruining all of his previous efforts in managing his mental health. He was in it for the long haul, so mindless perseverance was not the way to go, but it was too late, and he was way past the point of calming down.


    At least frustration was something different, an escape from the crushing depression. It might be painful and eventually become unbearable, but at least it was a real feeling, something that made him feel alive.

 Chapter 16 : Sacrifice

    Months passed with Avery fanatically obsessing over his fantasy land, never taking a rest and taking every small mistake personally. His frustration had gradually grown from fierce annoyance to an unbearable itch, and he felt like he could literally explode at any moment, and finally lose his mind.


    It was true he had also made exemplary progress, but he was far from being satisfied, as his ambitions grew quicker than his skills. He despised his own creation, continually making minute changes and adjustments, which piled up into the huge world getting more and more intricate. While his ability to visualize a complex scene improved, he had also gradually improved and expanded said scene. He did not have much artistic talent, but he had been single mindedly fixating on these four worlds for more than half a year, and he had slowly polished and added to his original creation, completely transforming it.


    What had previously been a smooth globe with a bunch of circular city-like props thrown around haphazardly had evolved into a semi-realistic planet with mountains, rivers and oceans, fauna and flora, where the artificial structure roughly integrated with their surroundings. If before his four planets gave the impression of being plastic toys only fit for three years old, now it looked like a lifeless painting, lackluster but moderately realistic.


    For example, his fire world had undergone a complete rehaul, and was now almost unrecognizable. As the name suggested, the entire planet, from rivers to mountains and creatures were entirely made out of fire, being agglomerations of differently colored and textured flames.


    In the attempt to infuse a little life in the scene, Avery had slowly added in a multitude of plants and animals during his successive attempts at designing this world. He had separated different biomes, populating deserts, oceans, forests and mountains with the appropriated wildlife.


    Unfortunately, while the world had achieved the realism of an average low-poly game, it was frozen in time. His greatest failing had been his attempt to vivify the world, and making it look inhabited. The world was still incredibly uniform, with no natural wonders or significant places to amaze its inhabitants. All of the animals were rooted to the spot, with even the flames composing them being motionless.


    At one point he had tried to animate the flames, making them flicker and dance to differentiate them from colored glass, but he had been forced to abandon that idea, his brain simply unable to handle so much agitation.


    There was no wind to shake the trees or grass, no waves on the sea, no day and night cycle, and no movements in the cities. It was a dead world, devoid of movement or sounds, a reflection on Avery''s state, eternally alone in a stagnant world.


    Sometimes, he worried that by the time he was free, he might have forgotten what the real world was like, and would be incapable of handling simple things like holding a conversation or preparing himself a meal.


    Yearning for human interaction, Avery spent a huge amount of time populating the various cities he had placed, even inventing a simple culture for the fire spirits, roleplaying their discussions and actions trying to warm his heart on those imaginary flames.


    He made the fire spirits all wholeheartedly believe in the divinity of the first flame. It had supposedly existed since time immemorial, witnessing the birth of the universe alongside the three other primordial elements. The first flame and its counterparts had then slowly grown into the colorful and diverse worlds they were now.


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    The fire spirits believed that to grow, the first flame had stolen nourishment from the fabric of the universe, but this had had a price deficient, puncturing a gaping hole in the center of the universe.


    This hole was a wound to the foundation of the universe, and was causing it to slowly unravel, and dissolve into the growing black hole. If nothing was done, one day when the black hole was too big, there would be nothing supporting the universe, and it would dissipate into nothingness, leaving behind as its only vestige a black ball containing everything that had ever existed.


    To avoid this, the universe had to be constantly nourished, offering back the stolen energy to heal the wounds and remedy the foundation of the universe.


    Avery was projecting himself heavily in his creation, so it had naturally been terribly tainted by his irritation, causing them to become unnecessarily savage and brutal.


    The best way the spirits found to ¡°reimburse¡± their energy debt was to offer living sacrifice to the black hole, and preferably sentient beings. Avery took a twisted pleasure in picturing this macabre ceremony, designing elaborate rituals and terrifying scenes in an attempt to direct and exhaust this frustration.


    The worst part was that he couldn''t even put himself in the shoes of the masters of ceremony to give an outlet to his anger and calm down as he had originally intended. Instead, he was envying the sacrifices, at least they were granted a quick and painless death, while his miserable life had no end in sight.


    Avery elaborated on plenty of other things, from which foods would be on display in shops to the kinds of jobs citizens had or the political landscape of the different lands, but in the end it always came back to the bloody altar.


    Their cultures centered around sacrificing their people to buy time for the world, until one day, either the universe would be repaired, or it would completely unravel and become nothingness.


    The most influential faction was the Shrine of Onus, the only cross-world organization. Its founder claimed to be able to hear desperate cries of the tortured universe, and he was the one to invent the abominable ritual.


    His teachings had three major tenants:


    <ol>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">Everyone had a mission he had been born to accomplish, and it was one''s duty to himself to find his purpose in life and complete it. </li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">It was one''s duty to society to help his fellow man, contribute to the advancement of the world as well as to procreate and to raise valuable members of society.</li>


    <li style="font-weight: 400">It was one''s duty to the universe to give up his now useless energy once one''s mission was accomplished. </li>


    </ol>


    His doctrine was based on the twin concepts of duty and growth. The tendencies of the four primordials was neverending growth, and as it¡¯s descendants, one had to strive to facilitate that goal. One had to not only push for the advancement of the world, but also pay for the cost of this expansion.


    He not only preached this to whomever listened, but evidently he must have believed what he said, as the day when his word was accepted by all four worlds, he organized a terrible ceremony and offered himself as a voluntary sacrifice.


    Accompanying him to the afterlife were hundreds of criminals and war prisoners, and of course hundreds and thousands of animals, but the most shocking were the dozens of faithful volunteers. They were of all ages and social status, but they were all pious believers, believing their purpose in this world to be accomplished, and that it would be selfish to continue to hang on to a life and hoard world-saving resources.


    Unlike the restless and terrified prisoners, those volunteers were calm and solemn, reciting prayers under their breath as they peacefully walked towards the altar, wearing nothing but a simple white robe and a serene smile on their lips. Even an old queen was among them, her final act giving her life for her subjects.


    Avery spent a few more months fixating on the messed up culture of the four worlds, until he realized how much time had passed. It would soon be his three year anniversary since he last had any human contact, and he decided it was finally time to finish his rune.

 Chapter 17 : Epiphany

    After almost an entire year obsessing over the same visualization, it had expanded to truly ridiculous proportions, yet he still found all kinds of things, both big and small, to rectify or improve upon.


    He would never be satisfied with his work, and despite having a literal eternity in front of him, he doubted he would ever come to a point where he would be proud of his creation. He was too focused on the myriad of flaws that still had to be addressed.


    He just couldn¡¯t appreciate how far he had gone, only how far he still had to go. He had spent so long, he needed to validate his work and confirm that his toils and tribulations were meaningful and had a use in reality.


    He felt very anxious as he finally completed the rune, as his work of more than nine months was being evaluated and judged by an unfeeling system.


    As soon as his brush caressed the chasm walls, Avery felt a rush of mana, emerging from wherever it dwelled to race through his body, forcing itself through his stylus, flowing to complete the glyph in record time.


    As usual, he was going to try and follow the path of mana, but he was distracted as he received enigmatic feedback from the rune, causing him to experience a brief enlightenment.


    He sensed the rune was calling to him, eager to share some of its profound truths. He realized inputting all those emotions and concepts into the rune served a deeper purpose other than simply occupying his mind or making him slightly faster.


    Perhaps engraving served as a sacrificial ceremony, where his intent was somehow given significance and projected into the void to elicit a response. He would make an offering of his deepest feelings, and the rune would awaken and answer his call, bestowing knowledge in exchange.


    Unfortunately, the tribute had to meet a minimum requirement, and he was just shy of it. It was enough to start a conversation, but not enough to gain anything from it, like when you can hear voices in the distance, but cannot tell what they say.


    Avery had fallen deep into this enlightenment. It was a special state bestowed by the heavens, where his comprehension was elevated to a completely different level. He felt that he could see through everything, and that the entire world had become clear. Just by looking at something, he could see through it right down to its fundamental principles, learning everything about the how and what of the universe.


    Every cultivator yearned for such an experience, but instead of being pleased, Avery felt miserable. He was eager and ready to learn, and to make the most of his opportunity, but he had nothing to understand. The rune had deemed his offering unsatisfactory, and was therefore withholding all of its knowledge.


    Avery was left alone at the bottom of the dimly lit crevasse, with nothing to study, nothing to understand, nothing to learn and nothing to gain. The rune gave nothing away, jealousy hoarding the knowledge from any unqualified viewers.


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    He was given nothing to contemplate, and when he turned his attention to other things like the cycle of the sun and moon or his body in an attempt to find something to understand, those thoughts would be chased away. His epiphany was labeling such thoughts as distractions and was helping him concentrate by forcibly refocusing his attention on the unintelligible rune.


    Holding back a wail of despair, he frantically tried to focus on the rune, itching to reach out and grab at it¡¯s knowledge, desperate to glean anything useful that would fuel his enlightenment.


    Ding, congratulations, you have crafted a perfect rune. +10 Points.


    In the end, the system ring woke Avery up, and he could only watch as his enlightenment ended without gains, growing even more frustrated at having squandered such a legendary state.


    Unable to bear it any longer, Avery screamed out in frustration, flailing wildly in the air, gesticulating to evacuate his impotent rage. He shouted and cried and howled, when his throat was raw or his fists got bloody from punching the ground, a time warp would fix it, keeping him trapped in his helpless tantrum.


    He was consumed by his fury, his rationality exiled from his brain. He knew what he was doing wasn¡¯t constructive, and that every second he spent tending to the flame of resentment in his heart, his carefully constructed visualization was fading away and getting more and more blurry.


    He knew he had to control himself, but was incapable of doing it. Finally releasing all of his frustration on the world felt so right, so liberating, he just couldn''t help it.


    It was empowering, he was imagining he was punching so hard it would break the dragon scales he was trapped on and kill the evil serpent.


    He needed to show the world that he existed, that he had power, and that his feelings mattered. He needed to prove that his actions had consequences, that he was more than an unnoticeable speck in the universe, that he had personal agency and free will, one of the last freedoms nobody could take away from him.


    He needed to remind himself that he was not alone in the world, and that sunlight existed. His memories of friends and family, of beautiful beaches or imposing mountains weren¡¯t just a dream, and he was not going insane.


    Life wasn¡¯t supposed to be bleak and hopeless, he had something to look forward to. Happiness was waiting for him somewhere, and he just had to get there.


    <hr>


    And still, the dark abyss remained unchanging, enduring his violent outburst with no reaction, the dim atmosphere even suppressing the savage howls and blows.


    He had let out his hopes and feelings into the world, and they had been mercilessly shattered and crushed.


    He had tried to battle the uncaring void, and had lost miserably.


    <hr>


    Avery¡¯s fighting spirit was ready for war, but had nothing to fight. His frustration burned hot, erupting in volcanic fury, but in the end it had all been for nothing. Nothing happened, nothing changed, and nothing ever would.


    He had called for a companion, a savior or even an enemy, but only emptiness had responded. Unfeeling darkness had drowned his fury, until even the flame of resentment smoldering in his heart dimed and died out.


    His body was constantly healed, able to fuel his wrath for eternity, but in the end his mind couldn''t hold on anymore, and he had to surrender. His struggles slowly weakened, until he was trembling limply on the ground, almost welcoming the encroaching darkness, hoping it would swallow him up and end his misery once and for all.


    <hr>


    Finally, for the first time in three years, Avery fell asleep.

 Chapter 18 : Fatigue

    He did not know how long he spent lying flat on the ground, too exhausted to move, too exhausted to think, too exhausted to even feel. He had mechanically used time warps without thinking or counting, so it could have as easily been three hours as it could have been three months.


    All of his frustration had left him, and all that was left was a profound sense of loss, of infinite sorrow and self loathing. He was too tired to feel angry, and every last hint of motivation had left him.


    Lying prone on the smooth floor, the feeling of the cold and hard surface pressing against his skin the only remaining thing connecting him to reality, Avery was like an old wilted flower, wearily looking back on his pitiful life.


    He was a worthless individual, a failure, and would never do anything worthwhile in his life.


    He had traversed to a fantastical world of swords and magic, the dream of many avid readers, but what had he accomplished since then? Nothing at all. No high stakes adventures uncovering existing secrets, no exploring and/or saving the world, no funny companions or romantic partners, nothing he could be proud of or brag about.


    If one day someone wrote down his story, he could tell everything in just a few dull paragraphs. A boy was thrust into a brutal world, then wasted his time planning and gathering information while he was safe in a sect, then wasting his opportunity to climb the ranks of the sect because of weak sentimentality. He wasn¡¯t even mature enough to stand by his choice and take responsibility for the consequences, but only to shamefully run away.


    As proof of his incompetence, he couldn''t escape properly, but only impulsively followed a ridiculously dangerous plan. His plan was roughly equivalent to jumping out of a ship in deep seas and hoping he would drift to an inhabitable island before he died.


    For some reason he believed that everything would go well for him, and it had, but even as he was astronomically lucky to not get killed on the spot, it still wasn¡¯t enough for him. He was thrust in what was essentially a big hole, but he was too incompetent to climb out or find any creative way of escape.


    The only smart thing he did was to figure out a way to live eternally, but that had only served to further demonstrate the incredible depths of his incompetence. He had spent two years engraving 24/7, and yet had nothing to show for it other than ¡°I can draw one very specific pattern in an adequate way.¡±


    His runes were an insult to the art of forging, and he should be glad to be exiled in this god forsaken land, otherwise any self-respecting blacksmith would have him murdered for his affront to their craft.


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    No, he was safe and sound, alone and at peace in his corner of the universe, living an idealistic life with no worries of thirst or hunger, aging or sickness, hate or violence, natural disasters or material troubles.


    He just had to draw two and a half runes a day to live forever, yet he never stopped complaining, like the ungrateful whiny idiot he was. He was tainting the very world he lived in just by existing, a ugly blemish nobody could get rid of. Maybe it would be for the best if he gave up and finally ended his miserable life, to at least get rid of a loathsome stain from the world.


    <hr>


    After more than three years, and he felt his gains were pitiful when compared with the insane amount of effort he put in.


    It used to take an hour and a half to make the system ring, but now, after months of hard work, he could engrave in a mere fraction of that time. This was definite proof that mana could be influenced by his intent. Even if he couldn''t cultivate, even if the system never offered him an item that could help him escape, now he had a backup solution.


    He now had the prospects of eventually mastering mana, becoming a wielder of arcane arts, and flying out using his own strength. This would usually have been enough to make Avery ecstatic, but right now he just couldn''t care less.


    Besides, there were severe caveats to his success. He now had proof mana was controllable, but he had already been convinced of that. He could engrave much faster, providing he first spent weeks and months developing a clear mental picture.


    What he had was nothing more than a proof of concept, far from the breakthrough he had hoped for. He had plenty to learn and improve upon, but as for practical or tangible immediate benefits, he had nothing.


    He had labored and toiled so hard he couldn¡¯t even stand up anymore, and in the end he had failed. He might have been an inch away from success, but that inch meant everything. If Avery wanted to try again, it would involve at least a month of work to restore his visualization to its peak, and who knew how long it would take to perfect it to the point of contacting the rune.


    He was a failure anyways, and so would never succeed or find happiness. He just couldn¡¯t be bothered to put in so much effort to struggle against an inevitable conclusion, and would rather spend his time moping around.


    He replayed his life in his head, proving to himself again and again that he was worthless, that it was all his fault and that washing away until he ran out of time warps and died was the best solution.


    He was criticizing his different visualization attempts, punishing himself for being blind to the obvious, when an idea sprang to his mind.


    He thought he might have found a shortcut, a shortcut that might be enough to propel him to the point of establishing proper contact with the rune.

 Chapter 19 : Ultimate performance

    At first Avery ignored his new idea, unwilling to put any more effort into a doomed venture, but it stuck in his brain, nagging him until he properly considered it. Even then, it wasn''t enough, and he rolled to his side and disregarded it.


    He tossed and turned, his mind a whirlpool of panic and discomfort. Sometimes he fell asleep, but the darkness would follow him in his nightmares. Soon he couldn¡¯t even be sure whether he was asleep or not, as everything was blurring together under a uniform blanket of misery.


    How much time had passed? Day, weeks, months? It was impossible to tell, but it hardly mattered. Avery never changed, the abyss never changed, nothing ever changed.


    It was only after an indeterminate amount of time that a change occurred. In his mindless flailing about, he had unintentionally rammed his knee into his discarded stylus.


    Annoyed at this interruption to his mental ordeal, Avery slowly extended his hand towards it, wanting to dislodge it and throw it away, out of sight and out of mind.


    However, as his fingers touched it, a few fleeting memories emerged, along with a sentiment of defiance, and a desire for survival. He was going to stay alive and triumph over this stupid dragon, and his stylus would be his weapon.


    Avery was desperately hanging on to the last thread of sanity he had left, forcing out one final spark of motivation to fight against the abyss.


    He needed to make one more attempt to put all of his doubts to rest. That way, he could know for sure. Did he have a chance, or was it all a cruel joke, and he was indeed doomed to be a prisoner for all eternity?


    Finally, after a long hesitation, he decided he could make one last effort before the end. He already knew he would fail, but the least he could was to run the race to its completion.


    Having convinced himself, Avery reluctantly recalled his previous visualization, whining internally that this was a massive waste of time and effort. He almost gave up instantly when he grasped just how much damage his recent mental turmoil had dealt to his visualization, but in the end he only sighed, still determined to see it through.


    He slowly repaired his landscape, but the process felt hollow, with no passion, no joy or frustration, just mindless work, and a yearning for everything to be over.


    He managed to make his mental picture almost identical to how it was at its peak, but it also felt tremendously empty, a work of art without a soul. He noticed this, but disregarded it. He had promised himself he would restore his visualization, and he had done that. He would not waste time on annoying details.


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    Now that it was done, it was time to see if his useless brain had really come up with a good idea.


    He had been reviewing the lengthy process during which he had attempted to identify what were the best concepts to include in his visualization, laughing at himself for not coming to conclusions that were obvious in hindsight. In his mocking crusade, he had endeavored to find flaws in his reasoning or things he had missed.


    That was when it had clicked. He had determined that imagining natural laws like the four elements, fundamental forces or karma was the most effective, but he had neglected to think any further. Each time he visualized this principle, he was going through a middleman, instead of addressing the boss itself. This world was governed by the Tao, and the Tao contained all of the laws.


    Since he was creating the ultimate storage device, it had to be capable of holding anything, and what could be more emblematic of that than containing the supreme Avenue itself?


    Since the Tao was a higher tier concept than the four elements, directly engulfing it should provide a great improvement for only a minimum amount of effort. The idea was to use the already established visualization as a base, and to spend a few days building upon it in order to implement his idea.


    He wasn''t clear on how to represent the Tao, so he kept it as abstract as possible, concentrating on the concept of an ultimate and sacred truth holding up the very foundations of the world, without delving into the details of its appearance or function.


    It was just an incorporeal stream of golden light, a magnificent aurora that circled the world. It slowly revolved in an ethereal manner, taking the vague shape of an eastern dragon, protecting the world. It grew and shrunk, deforming and reforming on a whim, radiating a warm but powerful light, shining its majesty down on the universe.


    Sometimes it flew down and passed through the different planets, causing flowers to bloom everywhere, heralding unprecedented prosperity. Swimming through time and space without a care in the world, it changed or maintained fundamental principles as it liked, as the supreme ruler of the universe.


    Not only did it rule over everything, it was everything. Everything came from it, and everything would eventually return to it. It was the truth that could never be denied, a constant that would never be changed, a light that would never dim.


    And yet even this consummate entity was being devoured by the black hole.


    Each time it swam too close to the singularity, a few strands of its luminous form would be pulled in, slowly plundering its origin.


    The golden dragon was immortal and immutable, and nothing in the world was a threat to it. It wasn¡¯t being harmed in any way, but it was slowly being sealed up, contained in a rune capable of storing anything.


    He found it very soothing to describe this miraculous existence, and empathized deeply with this undying light, a creature with an infinite lifespan that was slowly being bogged down and tainted by an encroaching darkness.


    He found it slightly therapeutic, but far from enough to make him enjoy it, and he breathed a sigh of release when he completed his vision.


    It was with apprehension that he picked up his pen to etch out the rune, imagining his thoughts being forced into the pen and used as ink. After putting in so much time and effort, he was going to finally find out once and for all if the results were worth it.

 Chapter 20 : Tao

    Taking a deep breath, Avery started drawing. He was expecting to once again come into contact with the mysterious rune, being presented with obscure knowledge. The question should have been whether he would be able to reach and understand that well of knowledge, but something much more terrifying happened.


    As soon as he made contact with the cliff face, he was overcome by an overwhelming sense of dread. He had the distinct impression that what he was doing was unforgivably sacrilegious, and that if he continued, he would be struck down by a heavenly punishment.


    The entire world was looking down upon him, judging him, and declaring him guilty. He had rashly profaned the Tao for his own selfish gain. A blasphemous thought, and one that would not be allowed to pass unchecked. He had soiled the purity of the Heavens, and he would need to make amends.


    Panicked, Avery tried to stop, to bring back his hand, to grovel and apologize, and to do anything to take this terrifying gaze off of him. He tried to show his repentance, but his body stayed frozen, unable to keep up with his thoughts.


    Before he could react or reconsider what he was doing, he felt a supreme will descend from the sky, making even the powerful dragon below him whimper. Whatever was descending had surpassed the five senses, and was detectable through consciousness alone.


    It was something immense and inviolable, and utterly beyond mortal comprehension. As it descended, it resonated slightly with Avery¡¯s visualization, and seemed to fit itself inside of the picture of the golden dragon.


    Only a minuscule hint of it entered his vision, but that trace was enough to cause Avery to collapse in crippling pain. It was too big, too substantive, and his consciousness could not accommodate this tremendous presence. Just like drawing a sword on a piece of paper was fine, but trying to carry a sword on that piece of paper would rip it apart, he couldn¡¯t bear the weight of what was being drawn into his mental picture.


    He felt his consciousness splinter apart, but he hardly paid attention, too preoccupied with admiring the holy apparition. This was what every cultivator dreamed of, a chance to see the Tao with his very own eyes.


    He was like a moth to the flame, willing to endure severe burns for a chance to approach and venerate the light. Physical pain was inconsequential, and he would not waste time on trivial details.


    He no longer cared about escaping the forbidden place, of having a happy life with friends and family, or of returning home. The Tao was beautiful enough to make everything else irrelevant. Becoming immortal, becoming free, becoming invincible were thoroughly unworthy goals when compared to the ultimate truth, and could only come as a byproduct of his quest to reach it.


    In the background his body was burning up and withering at an alarming rate, unable to withstand a force so far above his level, but that didn¡¯t matter. Dying was worth it if he could be in the presence of the Tao for a single instant longer.


    What he was experiencing now was a million times better than what the failed enlightenment could have ever been. It was not just his understanding experiencing a temporary boost, but rather his very soul that was being elevated by the mere presence of a reflection of the Avenue.


    As he beheld the Truth, his eyes opened up to a previously unseen universe, spying for the truth and uncovering the most obscure mysteries. He could finally appreciate how big and complex the world was, and how blind he used to be. It was like an iceberg hiding most of its secrets underwater, there was so much to discover, so much to learn, that it made him dizzy.


    As he listened to the song of the world, he started to notice the whispers of the world, overhearing many mysteries and secrets from ages past. Events and accomplishments so great they left inerasable marks on the world, and they were still discussed even as eons had passed.


    As he felt the Tao on his skin, every single cell in his body was opening up, becoming more and more suitable to bear the Tao. While his body was still rapidly collapsing upon itself, it was also slowly getting used to this overbearing force.


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    As he tasted the Avenue, worshiping it¡¯s transcendent flavor, he finally had a taste of true happiness. Not just a fleeting emotion of something good happening, but a profound sense that everything was right in the world, with a perfect blend of meaning and joy.


    As he smelled its heavenly scent, he was revitalized, given endless stamina to tirelessly quest for the truth. No obstacle could stand in between him and the Tao, be it time, talent or opportunity. All of them would be brought down by his perseverance, as they were nothing compared to the gift he had received from the Tao.


    As he contemplated the Avenue, his mind expanded and matured at an incredible rate, his thought process spreading up and becoming more agile, his mind becoming increasingly creative and ingenious.


    The transformation he was undergoing was not only physical, but also affected his soul. His transfiguration was an elevation in his life level, where his entire being was refined and sublimated.


    Each time he breathed in the Great Way and filled his lungs with its sublimity, he felt he was suddenly becoming more complete, as he had finally found his path. He was meant for the Tao all along, he had just never realized what he was subconsciously yearning for until now.


    His troubles and sorrows seemed so shallow when compared to the beauty of the world, but instead of feeling worthless, he felt empowered. He might be a minuscule creature, but he was part of a greater whole, and he had a responsibility to maintain that greater whole.


    He saw millions of big and small creatures in the Tao, and they were all important, all part of balance. From the humble ant to the most powerful dragon, they were all one of the countless manifestations of the Tao, and any unnecessary killings would be equally heinous, as it would upset the natural balance. Since everything came from the Tao and was part of the Tao, murdering a fellow creature was striking directly at the Tao, while giving aid to another was equivalent to helping the Great Way.


    Avery wept as he understood his own place in the world, being both insignificant and incredibly important. One''s worth was not dictated by their power or social standing, rather everyone was of equally divine origin.


    All of his difficulties recontextualized before the timeless truth, he resolved to abide by the Tao. Regardless of if he ever managed to escape, he realized he would never be alone, as the Avenue would be his everlasting companion. He would detach himself from material worries, strive to be in harmony with nature, respect himself and aim to deepen his connection with the cosmos.


    If the Tao demanded he stay stranded in the abyss for all eternity, then Avery would take pleasure in doing so. Following the Path was its own reward, and would bring him a happiness nothing else could.


    He cried out in joy as he understood how much he was loved and appreciated, and that he was a result of the Avenue¡¯s perfection. The Tao was all encompassing, the perfect unity of a myriad of contradictory notions, and if even a single individual were to not exist, that would make the Tao imperfect, and therefore not the Tao.


    Despite their individual insignificance, everyone was indispensable to the Tao, and they were the culmination of the entire universe.


    <hr>


    And yet with this triumphant discovery came a heartbreaking realization.


    <hr>


    Avery was not of this world, and was therefore not a part of the Tao. He was an outsider trespassing into foreign lands, barging into a couple¡¯s house and immediately expecting to be treated as if he was their son.


    Worse, he was not treading lightly, taking care to respect local customs and beliefs, doing his best to avoid offending anyone. Instead, he desecrated the most supreme existence there was, portraying its imprisonment for no other reason than laziness.


    Horrified at his action but unable to stop, Avery could only watch in atrocious shame as strands of the golden apparition got slowly pulled into the black hole, trapping them and robbing the world of their glory.


    The feeling of imminent danger grew exponentially stronger as the scene progressed, and many of his organs were already shutting down, failing to withstand the tremendous pressure.


    He wanted nothing more than to stop and repent, but there was nothing he could do. The arrival of the Tao had shocked his body and visualization, and he had no control anymore. He nevertheless tried his best to change the course of his actions, but it was already too late.


    His hand continued on its previously intended trajectory, and drew a neat little stroke on the wall, and his mana synchronized with his mental picture was stimulated to rush through his body to his stylus.


    Only a tiny hint of the Great Way had entered Avery¡¯s visualization, and only a miniscule trace of that had flowed into his rune, but it was already far too much. He felt his body explode, his mind blur, and his soul shatter.


    Then, there was a loud cracking sound and he was thrown back into the opposite wall and knocked unconscious.


    END OF VOLUME ONE

 Chapter 21 : Consequences

    Volume II : Conception


    <hr>


    Avery awoke with a crippling headache, every inch of his body in excruciating pain, and a profound but inexplicable anguish.


    So disoriented he couldn''t even remember why he was in this near death state, Avery tried to stand up, but found he couldn''t even raise his head far enough to verify his current condition. He rushed to open the system and reset his body with 5 time warps. Funnily enough, this was the first time he had used them for healing, which was what  he assumed they were initially intended for, rather than some shady immortality exploit.


    However, all humor was quickly replaced by a burst of anxiety as he realized the time warps did not work their magic in the usual manner. The effects had always been immediate, fully restoring his body to pristine condition in an instant, but not this time. Now he was being healed ever so slowly, and each time warp could only rewind time for a few seconds instead of a full hour.


    Not only that, but for the first time he could actually feel the energy from the system as it worked, and it was being hampered and obstructed. Whatever had devastated his body had left something behind, which was actively fighting against the system¡¯s recovery.


    Worse, it was winning, as Avery was required to spend hundreds of points to offset even a tiny fraction of this pernicious force. He was fortunate to have a fortune in reserve, but to rewind 5 hours and return to his peak condition cost almost 20 000 points instead of the intended 5.


    What had happened to him? How had he encountered a stronger force than the system? Had the dragon woken up? Was it so powerful? And how come he felt that by healing his body, he had an acute sense of having lost something important?


    In a daze and not knowing what to think, he habitually reached out to pick up his writing instrument. The stylus the system had provided, the only thing he had that could withstand the dragon''s strength, had a large crack in it.


    This realization flung open the floodgates of his memory, and before he could panic, the recollection of all that had happened came rushing back, especially of gazing upon the Tao.


    What held his attention was not the phantom pain of having his body wither and collapse upon itself, crushed and suffocated by an inviolable presence, or the knowledge he was being punished for an inexcusable act.


    It was not the realization that he had abandoned all of his evolutions by using time warps, be it his truth seeing eyes or his ears capable of hearing secrets in the wind. He no longer had all sorts of magical powers, but he would have died had he not restored his mortal body. Besides, he had only lost his super physique, the most essential transformation of his soul was still there, making it much more suitable to the Tao.


    It was not the disastrous state of his mind and soul, something for which he had no cure, or even the prospect of not being able to engrave runes now that his stylus was broken.


    No, what held his attention were those fleeting moments of being in the presence of the Great Way, the glorious sentiment of unity where he was in harmony with nature, and the subsequent horror of being excluded and rejected. He tried to console and convince himself that the Tao couldn''t be unique, and that he must be accepted by whatever had created his home world, but it was not enough.


    Avery went into a daze, reminiscing at the unbelievable experience, until he shook himself back to reality. He knew his mentality and life goals had been fundamentally altered by this event, but even if he wanted to spend eternity contemplating the Tao, he needed to make sure he would be alive first.


    His stylus now had a big crack, and he needed to ensure he hadn''t lost his only source of income. He didn''t waste time on complex visualization, simply instinctively picturing a simplistic black hole scene and carving a rune to verify his financial stability.


    As soon as he tried to conjure up his visualization, his whole body spasmed as he was hit with an unbearable headache, and the agony from his soul he had been subconsciously ignoring manifested itself through a whirlpool of torment.


    His vision was splintered in a dozen separate parts, and focusing on any one of these pieces caused him untold suffering. Trying to pay attention to multiple fragments at once was intolerable.


    The only chunk Avery could bear to visualize with only a minimal amount of pain was the central one, a decently sized portion which was held together by the mysterious golden substance it was hosting.


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    This golden light had no distinct form, sometimes resembling a fuzzy cloud, a falling teardrop or a coiling dragon. It stood out and demanded attention, as the only spot of color in an otherwise black and white picture. It was without a doubt the most striking and impressive aspect of his virtual world, and it was evident it did not belong there.


    For Avery, this was a huge burden to his consciousness, one he could hardly bear. He neither could nor wanted to get rid of it, as it was a shadow of the Tao, while he was only a poor mortal. They were on a completely different level, and coming into contact with the Tao was both a life changing opportunity and a mortal danger.


    He had no clue of what to do about his ruined mental world, so he just ignored it, restrained his vision to the central fragment and continued on to engraving.


    He was immensely relieved to discover that the crack had had no effect on his painting, but when he finished the rune, there was a faint whining noise and the crack on the pen grew slightly.


    Avery became concerned that the pen had been too severely damaged and that he would only have a limited amount of uses before it broke completely and became unusable. He couldn''t predict how long it would take; it could be broken by drawing just a dozen runes, maybe it would take millions, or perhaps his hasty guess was incorrect and it would never break, but he wasn''t willing to bet his life on his luck.


    There were more than a few replacement styluses in the system shop, some seeming more advanced and refined, but it was of no use. The novice gifts from the system were evidently special. They were given out only once the first time he transferred to the profession, and they had a mysterious quality that rendered them immune to the harsh environment.. Anything he could buy would only be a common spiritual item, which wouldn''t last a day under the dragon¡¯s influence.


    Regardless, there wasn''t much he could do. He could get lucky, master mana and become immortal with the finite amount of practice the pen could still provide, or he could fix the pen and take his time.


    He had no idea where to start repairing the pen, and achieving ascension didn''t seem feasible.


    He would not only have little practice, but he would also have a limited amount of time. If he was frugal with his sketches, he would lose his only source of points and would have to make do with the 270 000 points he had previously earned, which translated to about 31 years of time warps.


    30 years was a significant amount of time, more than his entire life so far, but he had never heard of anyone becoming immortal in less than 1000 years. He wouldn''t say it was impossible, as he was on an entirely different cultivation path after all, but he still doubted an ignorant hermit would be faster than a sect patriarch aided by a systematic cultivation technique, a legacy of thousands of years of insights and an incalculable amount of resources.


    Avery had a much more sensible plan; he would learn to draw the runes without using the pen. He had previously been curious about the pen''s purpose and discovered that it was actually very straightforward and easily replaceable. The stylus did little more than to compress and concentrate his intent until it was capable of transforming into spiritual ink.


    In principle, there was no obstacle to him doing it himself, because he knew exactly how to do it, and the only issue was skill. There was no novelty, but he had to have such a strong artistic conception it became semi-physical without the aid of a tool. In short, he just had to do what he was doing now a million times better, or have a million times more control to compress it. Perhaps he would stumble on a method to repair the pen halfway or realize the threshold to immortality was below that, but sticking to what he knew sounded like his best bet.


    If everything else failed, he would set aside enough points to switch jobs and find another way to earn points. It served as a safety net, but he was afraid that the skills he had acquired would be hard to carry between jobs, losing him decades of progress.


    Suddenly, something occurred to him, and he checked the list of available jobs, finding a promising entry. He knew that buying a new stylus from the system would only end up wasting points, but he was hoping that by transferring to an adjacent job, he might be given another stylus.


    Most jobs had nothing to do with writing, but Avery had high hopes for the one titled ¡°Talisman master¡±, and he immediately transferred jobs to test out his hunch.


    Unfortunately, the Talisman master''s tool was a brush, coming in the novice package a bottle of beast blood and a stack of yellow paper. Despite the difference in shape, Avery nevertheless tried to paint a rune with the brush, but it did nothing.


    Disappointed by this, he immediately changed his job back, deciding to hold off any other experiments. It was not only a waste of precious points, but even if he found a promising occupation with which he could earn points, he wasn''t certain that it would provide the same opportunity to touch the path to the Tao.


    In the end that was what mattered to him, having a path to the Tao.


    However brief they had been, the instants where he had felt loved and included in the great tapestry of the cosmos were the happiest moments of his life, and he would do anything to relive them.


    He might have been rejected by the Tao, but that just meant he needed to work harder, prove his worth and get accepted, like a foreigner acquiring the local nationality. He would never give up his quest for unity, and would never let himself die before he was certain he would be reincarnated as a child of the Great Way.


    To prevent drifting off into his bittersweet dreams or succumbing to the overwhelming sense of disappointment and wretchedness compared to the Tao, he did not dare to reflect on the unexpected calamity caused by his recklessness, but instead returned to work immediately.

 Chapter 22 : Persistence

    He was racing against the clock and had no time to waste. He had no idea if 30 years was long or short for this amount of improvement, but any time he wasted was time separating him from the Tao.


    Many things were too complicated and elusive for Avery to understand, and he was miles away from grasping its true nature, but he knew it was wonderful. It wasn¡¯t a sentient being or an unfeeling and robotic arbiter of the cosmos. It was more than that, it was the ultimate source of everything. It did not rule, and it did not need to. It was the universe itself, and all that existed flowed according to its original image.


    The only exception to that were enlightened beings. Anytime a creature gained a certain level of intelligence, be it because of its race, cultivation or a chance encounter, they would be partially liberated by the shackles of nature, able to influence the world around them according to their wishes and efforts, in both good and bad. They would be granted free will, and the opportunity to change, destroy or even improve the natural order.


    Just like two perfect spheres could differ in size, density, color or any number of parameters, being perfect did not mean having no room to grow. the Tao was a mind-numbingly complex puzzle, where every piece fit perfectly together to form a beautiful picture, and there was no better way to assemble all of them.


    However, sometimes enlightened beings could change some of these pieces or how they fit together, and consequently change the overall picture the puzzle was showing. Some even managed to add a new piece to the puzzle, like for example a Saint creating the six reincarnations.


    It all stemmed from a singular and beautiful design, a parent trusting its child to help him, take care of him and help him grow. Free will was the only threat to a perfectly ordered cycle, but they were also its only hope of change and improvement.


    And that was Avery¡¯s chance. He was a foreigner, uninvited and unwanted, but if he proved his worth, and showed that he could improve the world, then he would be accepted with open arms.


    He needed to capitalise on what he had gained, and to understand the world deeply enough to be able to improve it.


    Fortunately, while visualizing the Tao had had some disastrous unforeseen consequences, it had also brought a tremendous amount of knowledge. Seeing the Tao directly was a once in a lifetime opportunity any immortal would kill for, because it was equivalent to reading the encyclopedia of the entire world.


    Many things were too complicated and elusive for Avery to understand, and most of those he could had no direct relation to runes, but the tiny fraction of truths he understood were enough to completely reshape his understanding of the world. Since Runes were an expression of the world, understanding the world was understanding the foundation of the runes.


    This was akin to a master alchemist learning basic forging many times faster than a new cultivator. It wasn''t that knowledge or skills translated well between professions,. It was because they were both an expression of the Tao, and the alchemist could use his mastery of the Tao gained through medicine to learn forging from the roots.


    Avery now had a much higher perspective than before, which would be of immeasurable help. It wouldn''t suddenly make him better at inscribing, but it would help him progress at lightning speed, and avoid many unnecessary detours.


    The first thing he realized was he was getting the 4 elements wrong. It was painfully obvious in retrospect, but this was a world following Chinese mythology logic and not European alchemist rules, so it had a fundamental principle of 5 elements instead of four, composed of Fire, Water, Wood, Metal or Gold, and Earth or Soil. He also had to consider the complicated relationship between each element, and try to make his visualization as real as possible.


    He believed his initial scene to be solid, so he once again did his best to restore it and heal his shattered mental landscape, trying everything and anything that he could think of. This time there was no laziness or languid desolation, but only rushed passion, as he was incredibly eager to get it over with and take a step towards the Avenue.


    It turned out the solution was both exceedingly simple and bordering on the impossible. He could easily rejoin broken off parts of his vision just by imagining it. He needed to focus on a specific fragment and picture it slowly drifting back to collide with the central one. Once they crashed into each other, he would envision them merging, the stray golden strands of the Tao acting as thread to sew them together.


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    The impossible part was in the execution. As previously mentioned, focusing on multiple shards brought him so much pain and suffering he feared he would die of a heart attack.


    Not only that, but he couldn''t convey intent without his mental landscape being absolutely flawless, and he must have millions of miniscule splinters scattered about. The amount of pain was the same regardless of the size of the portions he was reassembling, so the entire ordeal was an unending torture.


    But Avery was a man driven by an overpowering yearning for the Tao, and nothing would hinder his progress. If his will to survive had been enough to guide through three years of loneliness and misery, his newfound craving for the Truth, which was infinitely stronger, would carry him to the ends of the earth and beyond, disregarding any obstacles, surpassing any challenge.


    One after the other, he drew and stitched the debris together, accepting the torture as a punishment for his heinous and disrespectful act, as he slowly repaired his mind to recreate a suitable canvas for his art.


    The time he spent was inconsequential, and he was in too much pain to count the hours or calculate the number of time warps used, but his mind was still clear, always looking to the future and dreaming of his reunion with the Avenue.


    Finally, his torment ended with his visualization being whole again, all of the repairs clearly indicated by a multitude of glowing stitches.


    Without taking a second to catch his breath or to appreciate his achievement, Avery directly started to consider his next step, and how to accomplish it


    His immediate goal was to find a way to control mana without his pen, after which he would strive to escape his current predicament, stuck as he was at the bottom of an obscure chasm. Then he would be free to pursue his lifetime obsession, the Tao. He would endeavor to get accepted by the world, and to find his path to walk on the Supreme Avenue.


    While he was brimming with boundless motivation, with countless ideas flying around in his head, he knew he had to stay grounded, and start small. He had resolved his mental wound in a surprisingly straightforward manner, and thought he had understood a trend in the world.


    The world did not take kindly to rash shortcuts or foolhardy tricks, but rather rewarded perseverance and persistent efforts. He would probably never encounter an insurmountable obstacle in his quest to mastering mana, but it would require an insane amount of work, compensated with a slow but consistent growth in skills.


    He was on a path leading to the Tao, and he needed to take things step by step and accept it would be a long and laborious journey.


    He would not be asked to jump over boulders or swim across the ocean, but he would need to repeat the simple task of moving his foot hundreds of millions of times, crossing mountains and precarious bridges. Each step would not be hard, but if he was unlucky, one misstep might be enough to make him fall down off the path and into an inescapable chasm.


    That being said, he also needed to make sure he was taking the right path, and not just a deceitful animal trail that disappeared soon after leading him in a wrong direction. With all that he had learned from the Avenue, he now saw many foundational flaws in his visualization, beyond the fact it was so decayed it could barely be recognised.


    After weighing his options, he finally decided against restoring it anew, and instead reworked it from the ground up, despite the fact it would invalidate much of his previous work. He was prepared to work tirelessly for his goal, and starting from the wrong foot would cost him more in the long run than a little restructuring right now.


    Putting his thought into action, he changed the four planets into 5 elemental planes whose principles were dictating the operation of the galaxy orbiting around the black hole. He also attempted to insert concepts, like yin and yang, but discovered that if he didn''t have a deep enough understanding of a concept, haphazardly forcing it in would only diminish the quality of the painting.


    Just as before, he was having trouble picturing all this clearly simultaneously, but any built up frustration was wiped away by a deep seated anxiety of losing his only hope of escape, along with a terrible yearning to relive that brief contact with the supreme Avenue.


    Gone were the days when he would try anything that came to mind, and gone were the days when he would test his every conjecture.


    His leisurely exploration suddenly became a stressful race, and he took every element one at a time and branded their existence deep into his subconscious, until it would require no effort from him to picture it in exquisite detail. As the galaxy improved, his state of mind improved, and he saw hints of the reflection of the Tao in his craft. He took this as confirmation he was on the right path, and from there was able to force himself to enjoy the journey.


    He spent half a year redrawing and perfecting the same image, until it felt so real he couldn''t find a way to improve it anymore. The galaxy had changed drastically over time, until even the five elemental planes disappeared. They were no longer needed, as the concept of the five elements had permeated deep into the foundations of the imaginary world. Just as gravity was invisible, the five elements simply existed, without the need for anything to reveal them.

 Chapter 23 : Tao Mirror

    After spending so long on his vision, Avery had made great progress, but he couldn''t bear to continue this way.


    While progress was smooth, it wasn¡¯t fast, and more importantly, it was too mundane. After experiencing the Supreme Avenue descend in front of him, a mere celestial phenomenon like a black hole didn¡¯t cut it anymore.


    He had tried to be content with his lot, knowing that he would eventually move on to bigger and better things, but it had only worked for the first few weeks, after which he had grown increasingly restless.


    Avery dreamt of the Tao every day, reliving that transcendent experience, and the thought that he might be losing time with an inefficient approach was driving him crazy.


    This time however his disgruntlement did not hinder him, and he had instead managed to turn it into a motivating force, helping him to be more productive, to find a better way of doing things and search for every possible improvement, no matter how small.


    He had made countless big and small adjustments to his mental picture, but during the last year and a half, he had had time to devise a new, crazy plan to drastically expedite his exploration of the Tao.


    He had long deliberated, wanting to make sure he was not rashly meddling with things beyond his level once again. He was convinced that it wasn¡¯t an inconsiderate risk, and that it was just a way of portraying runes that was closer and truer to the Tao.


    He had learnt a lot during these two years, and had slowly transformed all of the random insight from the Great Way into useful and practical knowledge. He had then strived to include his new understanding into his vision, but was relatively unsuccessful.


    He had already greatly amended his vision, changing it so much it was unrecognizable, but it still wasn''t enough. While it was true he was improving, he was standing on a shoddy foundation, and he could not remedy all of the fundamental mistakes he had previously made.


    He sensed he was fast approaching the limit of his current vision. Well, maybe not the true limit of the vision, but at least the limit of what he could do with it at his current skill level.


    While his galaxy was imaginary, to be able to carry intent, it had to have an internal consistency. It could evolve and change, but he could not completely restructure it to fix the mistakes he had made. There was nothing really stopping him, but doing so would only result in his intent getting muddled and losing in purity.


    To advance further, he would need to take a step back, abandon the unstable foundation he had built with insufficient skills, and start anew. He was now much more capable in every way, and he was convinced it was worth taking a small loss and resetting to be able to open a path further ahead.


    Despite firmly holding this belief, he hesitated whether to take action immediately or if he should push his current visualization to its absolute limit before he discarded it.


    He had no precise measurements on how his plans would affect his speed, not even enough for an educated guess, and was at a loss as to what to do.


    He finally decided he needed to evaluate how far he had gone before he could come to a proper conclusion, even if it meant risking the physical integrity of his writing stylus more than absolutely necessary.


    Avery eventually picked up his pen, this time carefully etching his vision on the wall. The damage on the stylus spread as expected, but Avery hardly noticed as he once again fell into enlightenment.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a Tao mirror rune. +20 Points


    He''d sensed before that he was inches away from a significant breakthrough, in which he''d make contact with the rune. This was why he had so hurriedly decided to visualize the Tao. Now, after six months of hard work, he far surpassed that milestone, his craftsmanship had entered a new realm, and he finally made contact with the rune.


    It wasn''t so much calling and communication with something far away as he had first assumed, but rather it was shining a light on something that had always been there concealed in the darkness.


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    Similarly to how a letter written in invisible ink must be exposed to the correct range of light to be seen, the rune can only become apparent when illuminated with his artistic conception.


    His visualization was still too incomplete, so the rune he saw was still hazy and shrouded in darkness, but it was still invaluable. In the short term, it was arguably more valuable than his insights from the Tao.


    This rune was not like the ones Avery had drawn, this was a perfect rune, no, it was the original rune, the right rune.


    If before Avery was attempting to draw a lion using only verbal descriptions from books, now he suddenly had a real lion in front of him as a model. It was still night and he couldn''t see the details clearly, but just this glimpse was enough to reshape and ground his idea of a lion.


    He was no longer blindly groping in the dark for ideas on what he should do, confused about his destination. He now had a clear view on the objective, and he only had to understand and copy it. Besides, the rune not only revealed information about itself, it also revealed the connection between it and the Tao. Avery could use the rune to digest the insights from the Tao, and use the Tao to understand the rune, incorporating concepts like yin and yang, the three realms or luck and karma into it.


    The rune he had drawn eventually shattered and dispersed, and the light cast by his conceptualization died out, shrouding the original rune in mystery once more. That brief moment was enough for Avery''s comprehension to skyrocket once more, rewarding him for all of his hard work.


    Seeing the incredible improvement he had just made, and knowing it was not a one off opportunity, but rather something he could repeat as long as he diligently crafted an adequate rune, he reigned in his ambitions and vowed to honestly push his current vision to its limit.


    <hr>


    It took seven more years to develop his imaginary galaxy to the extreme, carving a total 16 runes and subsequently gazing on its true form. He had gained an extraordinary amount of insights from those experiences, comprehending the surface of many fundamental principles.


    He had consequently done his best to infuse over a dozen of those complex concepts into the fabric of the virtual universe, but he had finally arrived at a bottleneck.


    He had originally designed the black hole world to nurture the intent of storage through the display of the alchemic principle of the four elements, and it was ill suited to hosting more than that, especially since his premise had changed into five connected elements.


    He had been able to force other notions in, but with his insufficient ability, their inclusion had created numerous logical flaws. They still improved the quantity of intent, but they simultaneously harmed its quality.


    Now that he had gained all he could from this mental world, it was time to say goodbye and recast his foundation. With his current expertise, he would be able to create something infinitely superior, something that could accompany him for a long time in his quest for the Truth.


    There were two ways for him to improve his mental picture. One was to improve his idea of storage, and pour more intent into it. He could get better at this just by thinking about it constantly, but that was it. It was very slow, and couldn''t be forced.


    The second way to improve, which was the one he had chosen, was to develop the background scenery. To make it as accurate as possible, and as comprehensive as possible, in such a way that it became a perfect stage for the rune to appear.


    This was because runes were a representation of the Tao, and the picture containing even a hint of the Tao was enough to make it more connected to reality and elevate the quality of the rune. While he was still unable to just picture the supreme Avenue directly, he could still show it through its various rules applied in a world. In short, he needed to create a realistic mental world.


    Improving the background was harder and required a lot more effort, but it would serve to improve every single rune instead of just one. This would normally not be worth it, as it was infinitely more complicated to depict the ultimate truth of everything as compared to a singular concept, but Avery had the advantage of having already experienced the Tao. Besides, the reason Avery chose to focus on the background was precisely because it was harder.


    His current goal was not to craft better or faster, it was to strengthen his mental strength to the point he no longer needed the assistance of the pen to engrave. For this, he needed to challenge himself and go beyond his limits, rather than taking things slow and steady.


    Aside from that, he found he was straight up unable to properly focus on anything else. When he attempted to concentrate on the rune itself, he would unconsciously notice the hint of truth in it, and invariably get distracted and start reminiscing about his experience with Heaven.


    In fact, if he was honest with himself, he cared more about scraping together the vague shadow of the Tao rather than gathering points to stay alive. Survival was not a goal for him anymore, it was just a way for him to have more time to rejoin the Avenue.

 Chapter 24 : World Creation I (Chaos)

    Avery had decided to abandon his current mental picture. The black hole was relatively well suited for the rune of storage, but many aspects of the Tao, like karma or reincarnation, could only be properly expressed through a more complex and logically valid world.


    Since he had chosen the hard path, he needed to make sure he had the best foundation possible. Taking a deep breath, he erased everything he had made, knowing it would take months of work to reimagine it completely. The gains were worth the risk. Then, using his previous experience, he poured every concept he knew in the dark void, in the form of indistinct grey gas symbolizing Chaos.


    Avery wanted to simulate the creation of the world, following the Chinese myths. From the chaos, he imagined 3000 Chaotic Gods, Chaos Gods each possessing their own unique Dao law. Of course, he did not know what all the 3000 Daos were, but he just specified the ones he knew, including space, time, fate, 5 elements, karma, strength... As for the rest, he just claimed they existed and left them blurry.


    It would have been better to know them all, but for some reason none of the many books he had read had thought it a good idea to print out a huge list of 3000 unnecessary names.


    Once the 3000 Chaotic Gods condensed out of the gray gas, he focused on the god of strength, Pangu. He identified with Pangu and gave him the same crushing boredom and yearning for escape that he had felt, back when he was engraving without the Tao to wipe those insignificant emotions away.


    The conditions in the Chaos were harsh, and the Chaotic Gods were the only entities within it. It was impossible for them to reproduce, as each Mazinger was a completely unique individual with no compatibility with each other, be it spiritually or physically.


    The Chaos was infinite, but it was also uneventful. It was like being a tiny fish in the ocean, an ocean without bottom, border, or limit of any kind, but you were only one of the 3000 fishes in the world. And you, as an immortal fish, have an eternity to drift forever alone in this bitter sea of loneliness.


    The currents that drowned any hope of mortal creatures surviving were just a speed boost for you, leading you always farther to the horizon and beyond, only to find a new identical horizon as your only prize. There was nothing to think about either, no novelty to contemplate, only the same ever-changing but unvarying world.


    When humans are bored out of their mind, they often resort to counting things like the bricks on a wall, but the Chaos was mysteriously both fluctuating and unchanging, an illogical paradox that provided a strange but dull environment with nothing to attract the attention.


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    While the subtleties of Chaos itself would be more than enough for a normal man to contemplate for their entire life, if they were lucky enough not to be driven mad at the mere sight of its nonsensical inconsistency, Chaos Gods were born from Chaos with the power of Chaos. They already knew everything, and nothing could arouse their curiosity.


    Fortunately, the Chaotic Gods could feel each other''s presence, and they soon set out towards each other in search of companionship. They gradually gathered at what Avery imagined to be the "center" of Chaos, but they were too different and unsuited for each other. An argument and a fight soon broke out, lasting thousands of years, until everyone grew tired and parted ways.


    They could not really win any meaningful  victories, as their powers were incomparable. Neither could they grow stronger and overcome adversity and prove their worth that way. They had already reached the peak, but it was nothing they could revel in and be proud of. They had all been born that way, and they never grew.


    Every man was born stronger than an ant, but no one took pride in that. It was only when facing equals that one was stimulated, and the Chaotic Gods were not equal. In a contest of strength Pangu was unbeatable, and while he might lose in a contest of anything else like time or karma, he instinctively looked down on any way other than strength.


    Pangu, embodying the law of strength, had the strongest combat power and was unbeatable in a fight, but he had the exact same realm than every single other Mazinger. None of them had made any progress in billions of years. Their strength came from their law, and their law was complete, so there were no deficiencies to make up for, or any goals to strive towards. Not only did they not know how to advance, if that was even possible, they had never even considered cultivating. Strength was something given at birth by fate, not something that one had to work for.


    If you compared a Mazinger 10 seconds after he was born to himself a billion years later, there would be no difference. Their strength, their intelligence and character, their knowledge and, apart from their infrequent meetings, even their experience would be exactly the same.


    We often say you can only appreciate something you have lost, but Pangu and his companions had never lost anything, nor had they ever gained anything.


    <hr>


    All of this wasn''t exactly consistent with what the myths claimed, because Avery had an unclear memory of those vague stories. He knew the basics, like Pangu dividing Chaos with his axe, but otherwise he was just making stuff up, imagining whatever he felt made sense, attempting to logically connect events he only hazily remembered together.


    Then again, whether it was true to the myths or not was not important, what mattered was that it helped Avery build a solid foundation for his mental visualization, in which he could pour any and all his insights into and help him predict the Tao. It didn''t need to be real, but it needed to feel realistic enough so that on some superficial level, Avery could believe this world to be real.

 Chapter 25 : World Creation II (innovation)

    Every Mazinger attempted to occupy themselves, but the Chaos was simply too monotonous, and all of those great beings slowly succumbed to crushing loneliness and boredom. There was nothing to do, nothing to look at, nothing to think about. They could only keep exploring an infinite space with nothing to discover.


    This continued for millions of years, with only the occasional gathering and subsequent fights breaking the monotony of Chaos, and even those had become depressingly predictable.


    This situation had seemed doomed to persist unchanged for all eternity, until eventually, Pangu gave birth to an idea. If the Chaos was too boring by nature, he would need to change the Chaos into something more interesting. This idea slowly grew for thousands of years, until one day Pangu made up his mind to make it a reality.


    With a goal in mind for the first time in his life, Pangu was suddenly motivated, and started thinking about how to transform the Chaos. Avery tried to portray what he had felt when he had guessed he could become immortal with rune, and again when he saw the Tao and decided to make it his new goal in life. With enough motivation, time and effort were just stepping stones to success.


    For the millions of years to come, you could hear Pangu roaring and striking Chaos, trying to shape it into something more suitable. He punched Chaos with so much force it buckled and got repelled, creating a space of pure emptiness. Unfortunately, emptiness was no more exciting than Chaos, and it was quickly filled in again by the omnipresent grey gas. Pangu tried his best, but brute strength simply wasn''t enough to create a world.


    Finally, after many failed attempts, Pangu could only accept that his dream was out of his reach. Surprised and frustrated, for the first time in his life he ached for more than strength. He nevertheless kept trying, preferring the sharp pain of failure to the deafening silence of boredom.


    Eventually, Pangu felt he and three other Primordials were drifting towards each other again, and he suddenly thought of asking for help.


    He hesitated, and soon reconsidered. He was of the way of strength, and he would not lower himself to ask for help from inferior ways. Either his way could accomplish his goal, or nothing could.


    Making his decision, he resolutely changed his direction, avoiding contact altogether. He felt pride at now being the only Mazinger with a goal, and he could already imagine the admiration and envy his kind would feel when he showed them his completed work. He would keep it a surprise, until he was ready to prove how superior the way of strength really was.


    However, as Eons passed, Pangu was no closer to success than before. He had never changed his technique, only hitting Chaos with so much force it would tremble, but that was equivalent to throwing a rock in a lake and expecting the ripples to form a functioning city.


    It had never occurred to him to change his technique, only repeating the same ineffective strikes over and over again, as he knew nothing else. He was the god of strength, and strength was his one and only tool.


    Despite his lack of results, he had intrigued many Chaotic Gods throughout the years, and through his conspicuous actions and deafening roars, it was not hard to find out his plan.


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    Every Chaos god reacted the same way, begrudgingly admitting the brilliance of the idea in their hearts, but convinced Pangu had no hope of success, as the only hope of creating such a miracle lay in their personal law.


    Time passed, and eventually every single primordial was attempting to transform Chaos, but not a single one of them cooperated, and not a single one made any progress.


    Despite countless years of failures, none of the Chaos gods abandoned their efforts. This was the first time they had an objective to work towards, and they were obsessed with it.


    Even if they never succeeded, at least they had found something to do, something meaningful that had the potential of revolutionising the immutable Chaos.


    Another reason for their persistence was their pride. They had seen all of their compatriots fail, and had gotten increasingly convinced that it was due to a failing in their law, and that it was only by succeeding that they could prove they were superior.


    There were now less and less meetings in Chaos, as every primordial concentrated on their experiments and stopped idly wandering. The few meetings that occured were now followed by long sessions of bragging and demonstrations of the various unsuccessful attempts.


    Of course, after this it would still unavoidably devolve into a fight like before, but at least now they were exchanging information, and doing something that could eventually become constructive.


    While Pangu was furious to have his idea stolen, he was also very proud to see that they all imitated him. He felt this proved that he was the greatest of them all, and he invented himself a role of teacher and leader. Eager to once again revolutionise Chaos and show everyone he was their superior, he finally stopped repeatedly bashing Chaos, and started paying attention to the efforts of his students.


    He tried to apply his newfound inventiveness to their endeavors, comparing everyone''s method .


    While before he simply disregarded all of the others'' efforts, now that he was carefully assessing each of them, he realized why they were all doomed to fail.


    To create a world, they had to clear the Chaos away, but Chaos was infinite and all encompassing. If you are underwater and try pushing the water away, more water will simply come to fill in the cleared space, and you will never be able to create a water-free area this way. Instead, you need to put in a solid object that prevents it from returning.


    The issue was that each Mazinger had only one power, which was their Law, so they had no option other than occupying the space with their law. Unfortunately, in some ways, the laws of Chaos gods were more extreme than Chaos itself. While Chaos was an unstable soup of everything, laws were the fundamental essence of one specific thing, which could be thought of as a concentrated and purified form of Chaos.


    The problem with Chaos was that it was too strong, preventing anything less extreme than Chaotic Gods from being born, but its instability was a necessity. Laws were not only still too strong for anything, even other Primordials, to survive in their midst, they were also too stable.


    They were the most stable state in the universe, the maximum entropy of their domain, disallowing anything other than itself from existing, and thus devoid of all hope of creating something varied and interesting.


    Once again, Pangu felt superior, having used his intelligence to spot the problem before anyone else, and he swore he would also find the solution first.


    Pangu thought for a long time, until he finally came to the conclusion that the only way was to cooperate with other Chaotic Gods. If one law was too strong, then they needed other laws to balance them out and create variations. Pangu hesitated in sharing his discoveries, finding the concept of needing the help of someone else repulsive, but he soon rationalised that he was not asking for help, he was guiding and ordering his subordinates around. Thus, for the first time in the history of this world, a general meeting was announced.

 Chapter 26 : World Creation III (cooperation)

    It took a long time for everyone to gather in the infinite Chaos, but everyone was curious why Pangu had called them, and they all decided to come.


    Pangu started talking as soon as everyone was present, knowing that he had limited time before another fight would break out. Looking down on his peers and their unsuccessful efforts, he couldn''t resist first smugly bragging about how creation was his idea, and how he had a new idea that was so great, so impressive it would prove he was indubitably superior to the rest of them.


    The crowd soon grew restless, and Pangu almost jumped down to fight all of his doubters, but in the first act of self-control in his timeless existence, he resisted his uges and changed the subject.


    He then exposed his discoveries, explaining why everyone was failing over and over again, and proposed his plan to solve it. Everyone would work together and balance each other out to create the world they all dream of. They would create a treasure that melded all of their powers together, in a way reforming an unstable Chaos, but one that would be under their collective control.


    There was of course a lot of discussions and arguments, but fortunately it never degenerated into a full blown fight, and they were eventually able to come to an agreement. They accepted to join forces to build a new land, where each of them would contribute their law, and cooperate to protect this new world from Chaos and each other.


    To do this, they would start with creating three treasures : First they devised the jade butterfly of fate which would be a tool to harmonise their powers and help them work together. They then built Pangu a formidable Axe that would help him leverage his law of strength to push Chaos away and create an empty region for the world to be born in. Finally, they would pour most of their efforts in crafting the Great Lotus of Chaos, or World Lotus, which would serve as an embryonic form of the universe.


    <hr>


    At this point, Avery had been working on his visualization for more than a month, and had already poured a lot of his insights into it, but it still wasn''t even as good as his first black hole attempt. It was just backstory Avery had half-created and half-remembered from vague myths, but this was the crucial point.


    He wanted to use the scene of each Chaos god giving their laws to the world as a way to infuse all of his knowledge into the foundation of his mental world, and highlight the invisible rules that governed the world.


    When he first focused on the concept of four elements, he had needed to detail the those principles in a visible manner, with four planets emitting energy, and it was only after he had grown so familiar with their presence that he could gradually hide them and consider them as a clear underlying principle that no longer needed to be shown.


    He was trying to do the same thing now, not just imagining a random new world, but one where he was acutely aware of all of the fundamental laws. He could then slowly consider those principles and perfect them according to his enlightenment.


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    He would make many events unfold in this new world, and would use them to study the Tao. If a normal cultivator would enlighten themselves by contemplating the revolution of the moon, he would be enlightened when he made the moon orbit the earth in a logical way. He would have to take into account all he knew about reality, what was coherent with the world he had built so far, and most importantly his understanding of the Tao, and doing so would increase said understanding. He would then use his new comprehension to complement the hidden rules of the world and perfect it.


    If he did not know something, he would just not pay attention to it, and pretend everything was being done without him. Just like in a computer game where the closer you were to something the higher its quality would be, he would zoom in on the things he knew and leave the rest blurry, to be gradually supplemented as he learned more.


    <hr>


    Returning to the task at hand, Avery was excited to plan out the creation of the world.


    The Chaotic Gods had tried many times, but they were never able to create their artifacts, failing time and time again. It was not that their design was faulty, or that their abilities were insufficient, as the Primordials were all insanely intelligent and almost all-powerful.


    The only issue was using those capabilities. With so much power, and so much individualism, it was completely impossible for the different Chaos Gods to succeed at working together. As soon as two laws entered into contact, they became violent and practically uncontrollable, so mixing 3000 of them together was unfeasible, even with infinite time to try again and again.


    This was why they had designed the jade butterfly of fate. It was a supreme treasure which could allow them to work together, and without it they would have no hope of making multiple laws cooperate and restrain their great power enough to craft a delicate and complicated wonder like the world.


    They would be able to use the jade butterfly to craft the universe, but they had to rely on themselves to craft it first.


    It was impossible for all 3000 of them to cooperate without help, so they started with only two Chaotic Gods combining their powers to craft a very rudimentary jade butterfly. When that was completed, it would then be used as a platform for a third Mazinger to add his law. The butterfly would be advanced by this new rule, and it would then be able to accommodate a fourth Dao, and so on and so on.


    <hr>


    It took forever, with many failed attempts destroying their prototypes, forcing them to restart from the beginning, but eventually, The Jade Butterly of Fate was completed, and the first cooperation of Primordials was successful.


    The Chaotic Gods weren''t tired, as they were only working one at a time and had had plenty of opportunities to rest. Impatient, they immediately went onto the next part of the plan, which was crafting Pangu''s Axe.


    It was a relatively quick affair, as it was a simple weapon with every Dao supporting pangu''s strength law, allowing him to strike with an exaggerated force. Compared with coaxing thousands of hostile laws to cooperate, using 2999 laws to fuel the power of one law was child''s play.


    Once this was done, The Chaos Gods started discussing the details of their world creation plan, until the entire lotus had been designed. Their arrogance made them very confident in their success, but they were actually very unclear about what success would mean. They had set out to create a region in chaos that was different, but they had no clue what that difference would entail.


    Excited at the prospect of finally seeing something new, the Primordials rushed to prepare themselves and create a new Era.

 Chapter 27 : World Creation IV (World Lotus)

    There were many arguments and disagreements on how to create a world, many failed tests. The number of ruined prototypes was uncountable, as was the number of times the design was remodeled.


    The Chaos Gods were naturally gifted in all aspects that had something to do with their law, but they were having tremendous trouble taking into account the intricacies of the other laws.


    They had to learn the strengths and weaknesses of all of the different powers, and find common ground, but the Chaos gods were too extreme. They were the apex of their law, with no imperfection. Their nature disallowed any foreign influence, including the understanding of other laws.


    Their nature made cohesive planning impossible. Imagine if all of your life, the only color you could see was red. Then, one day someone tells you he can only see blue, and that you have to work together to mix both colors to make a very specific shade of purple.


    It would be impossible to do, since you simply did not have enough data, and had no way of acquiring the necessary information. The only way left was trial and error, trying again and again until you were told you had succeeded.


    The Chaotic Gods were in that situation. They had no clue as to what they were doing, only that sometimes their creation imploded immediately, and other times it decayed slowly.


    They had to infer the right steps to creating a world, trying everything they could think of, and they only knew that they were successful when the world persisted instead of destroying itself. Even then, they had no idea what the world they had created would be like, only that it was stable enough not to collapse upon itself.


    No matter what it was, after innumerable years, they had finally prevailed, and were incredibly excited to deploy their creation.


    Looked like a multicolor five-leaved lotus, with 3000 tendril-like roots wiggling around as if they were alive.


    In the center of the five leaves, in the place where there would normally be a flower, was a golden fruit with mysterious glowing patterns swirling around on its surface.


    Those patterns were so mystical and beautiful that even the Primordials were mesmerised. They were the crystallization of all of the Chaotic Gods'' knowledge and powers, containing all of the laws of the universe.


    When looking at it, the Primordials felt that their eyes were opened, and that they could finally see the obvious. It was something more advanced than them, something that could contain all of their powers, and it was a roadmap of what the Chaos gods could do to finally improve.


    They were still going to go ahead and create a new world, but in their hearts, they were already considering how to use these new insights to improve themselves.


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    The world creation plan was a joint venture, it had bruised every participant''s ego to recognise they had to work together and that they were incapable of succeeding alone.


    Even Pangu, who comforted himself by saying he was the leader, and that it came from his ideas, was dissatisfied deep down.


    The Great Lotus of Chaos was proof there was something more, a way for them to advance and find a remedy to their uselessness. Not only that, it was a new way for them to compete, a way where everyone had the same starting point, and where winning would actually mean something.


    Before they even finished their current project, they all secretly decided that after this, they would retire and concentrate on assimilating other laws, trying to attain the state of the fruit in front of them.


    They did not even intend to enjoy the new world they were creating. They had no idea what it would bring to the Chaos, or what would be born out of it, but they had already resolved to abandon it.


    They had made all of this effort to fight their boredom, but their pride was more important, and the allure of power too sweet for some cheap entertainment to matter anymore.


    The only reason they were even going to go through with their world creation plan was because of their stubbornness, refusing to leave behind unfinished undertakings.


    They were Chaotic Gods, and they would never accept leaving behind a legacy of failed or uncompleted projects. They were perfect beings, and they would be remembered as such!


    The passion of the Primordials riled their powers up, and they all started emanating terrible auras. The Chaos was filled with terrible sounds as the laws of space, time, karma, strength and many others collided with each other in a violent manner.


    The Chaos itself was drowned in this horrifying battlefield, but the World Lotus remained unmoved by all of this, as if those most powerful beings in the universe were no threat to it. It even started absorbing these powers through its roots, unconcerned of its highly dangerous nature.


    The only reaction it made was that its petals fluttered in a nonexistent gale, and its runic patterns were slowly growing more distinct and more numerous.


    Seeing that their auras were helping it, and therefore helping them by showing a brand new realm of power, The Chaos gods did not hesitate and stopped restraining themselves, letting their full strength flow freely.


    The impact of 3000 laws being unleashed without restraint in the same area, even lacking any warring intentions, was devastating. It formed a terrible explosion that transcended all logical concepts to become a pure mass of destruction, a recreation of chaos that was incompatible with itself, an appalling monstrosity that threatened the universe itself.


    And yet even when facing this dreadful force, the World Lotus showed no other reaction than to drastically increase its absorption rate, camly devouring this new threat.


    In this space where even the time law was being devoured, where all parties involved, be it the Chaos, the World Lotus or the Chaotic Gods were immortals, holding infinite power and energy, only the progression of the World Lotus had any meaning.


    The originally small fruit unhurriedly grew in size, its color also brightening until it became blinding to look at. The intricate patterns it was hosting were no longer limited to its surface, but were rather permeating right to its core, and spilling out onto the Lotus¡¯s leaves and roots.


    Fascinated by the secrets they could glean out of those runes, the Chaotic Gods were deep in a contemplative trance, unable and unwilling to wake up.


    Finally, as the fruit leisurely ripened, it emitted a heavenly fragrance that woke them up.

 Chapter 28 : World Creation V (Bloom)

    The lotus was completed, but it was not yet ready to bloom. It was composed of the 3000 Mazinger¡¯s laws, and had achieved a realm that could accommodate all of these contradictory concepts.


    However, despite the fact it had an equal realm to the Chaos itself, it was not an eternal constant like the Chaotic Gods or the Chaos. It may have absorbed an immense quantity of energy and knowledge from the Chaos gods, but it had not swallowed their origin or whatever their boundless powers came from. It may have tremendous reserves, but in a world where everything else was infinite, it would undoubtedly be found lacking.


    In modern terms, The Great Lotus of Chaos had an incredibly large battery, but it would never be enough to outlast entities that had solar panels and wind turbines, or any such energy sources that were inexhaustible.


    It might have been able to face the combined might of the Primordials, but that was only because it was made to adapt and contain their powers, and was therefore immune to their laws.


    Unfortunately, it was made to transform Chaos, and was therefore antithetical to it. Any contact would be disastrous, and it could not consume the power of Chaos, but would instead quickly dissolve into Chaos.


    They were composed of the same elements, but the lotus represented order, while Chaos predictively represented Chaos. Any connection between the two would result in an explosive battle to the death.


    Chaos was endless, and it was impossible to defeat it, but since The World Lotus had limited energy to resist, it would eventually lose and be destroyed by the Chaos.


    All of this created an awkward rock-paper-scissors power dynamic. The Chaotic Gods could disturb or even temporarily destroy the Chaos. The Chaos could easily overwhelm the World Lotus and disintegrate it, but the Primordials were helpless to defend themselves in front of the Great Lotus of Chaos.


    Right now the Lotus was in an inactive state, containing all of its laws and mysteries inside it, which was how it could endure and stall the corruption of Chaos, but to create a world, it needed to wake up and fight for space and survival.


    Creation would already use up an insane amount of energy, and there would be none left to resist the Chaos and stop it from crushing the nascent world.


    Fortunately, The World Lotus was their creation, and the Primordials had every intention of protecting it from Chaos.


    <hr>


    Shaking themselves out of their reverie, the Primordials crowded around the World Lotus, ready for the next step in their plan.


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    Pangu took the lead, while the Chaos was still weak, disturbed by their previous exuberance. He took his Great Axe in hand, and under the expectant gazes of his comrades, he shouted and struck a historical blow. He delivered the most terrifying attack in all of Chaos¡¯s history, dividing Chaos in a single blow, creating a limitless chasm of nothingness in the endless Chaos.


    Unable to bear this unreasonable amount of force, his brand new axe splintered in his hand, breaking into 3 separate pieces, which fell into the newly created void.


    Having no time to spare any attention to his destroyed weapon, Pangu joined the other Primordials as they rushed to throw the Great Lotus of Chaos in the newly created void and rouse it to start building a new world.


    Slowly, under the influence of the Chaotic Gods concentrated laws, the Lotus matured and bloomed.


    Powered by the Chaos gods'' strength, the fruit grew bigger and brighter, expanding exponentially. Hidden inside of this blinding ball of light, a new order was being established, obeying all 3 000 conflicting laws, forming a delicate equilibrium.


    The glowing sphere of light evolved into the Tao, and the Tao evolved into the world. The Tao contained the same laws as the Chaos, but it had Order. Yet it was not an authoritative order, or an oppressive one, but rather an exquisite balance of all laws to create something far beyond their individual limits.


    It created a world stable enough to form a consistent foundation on which all things could be built, while being turbulent enough to allow an immense variation of unique and marvelous sights. Most importantly, it was much more suitable for living beings to come into existence.


    There was no physical or material world yet, just an astonishing framework of rules to govern it. Only when the lotus had completely bloomed and when all of the laws had been perfectly assimilated would matter be created.


    It might still be empty, but it was already all that the Primordials had hoped for, a land that allowed imperfect creatures to be born, that pushed them to grow and improve themselves, exploring every facet of the universe, living eventful and meaningful lives.


    The Chaotic Gods were incredibly excited to see this, but not for the original reason they had started this project. They had stopped caring about the excitement that was destined to fill this world, and were instead eagerly analyzing and studying how it worked, eager to imitate this delicate balance in themselves.


    The future progress of multitudes of beings was still a distant future, but their own advancement was within reach. They just needed to learn how to make different laws compatible, after which success would only be a matter of Time.


    They watched in wonder as the time and space merged into SpaceTime, and were amazed at how light and dark melded together to form shadows. They were enlightened when they saw fire, water, metal, earth and wood form a complex and mutually beneficial system of growth and decline, all inscribed into the duality of yin and yang.


    Instead of destroying each other, contradictory laws could be associated together and form mysterious natural cycles. Even those delicate cycles were themselves parts of greater and more complex cycles, with every single law of primordial importance. It was a new way of perfection, one that included every concept instead of purifying one notion to the extreme like the Chaotic Gods had.


    It was beautiful, as it was the Tao.

 Chapter 29 : World Creation VI (End)

    The Chaos gods would have gladly meditated on this miraculous entity for all eternity, but their studious mood was interrupted by Chaos.


    Pangu had created an immense void in which the new world had germinated, but it was only temporary. Chaos was rolling back in and was gradually refilling nothingness with its grey gas, causing it to inexorably shrink until it disappeared.


    With Chaos expanding inward while the Tao grew outward, nothing remained of the void, and both existences collided violently.


    There were no deafening sounds or visually stimulating sounds, but slowly, ever so slowly, the glow of the millions runes covering the World Lotus were dimming.


    Eventually, when a particular rune had lost all of its golden luster, it rapidly decayed, until it collapsed and turned into a new strand of Chaos. The only defense the Lotus had was to continually provide more energy to repair or replace broken runes, feeding off of the aura of the Primordials.


    It had become a race, to see if Chaos could cause the lotus to decay faster than it could repair itself. At first the Lotus was by far the winner in this contest, but the tides soon turned.


    As the new world grew, not only did it require exponentially more energy to continue advancing, it also offered an increasingly large surface area which made contact with the Chaos. It was getting harder and harder to cope with the demand.


    The Chaos gods had never expected the world to expand so much, but it was not in their character to give up, so they could only continue feeding the greedy cosmos.


    Chaos Gods had infinite power, and they would never run out, but there was a limit to their output. As time passed and consumption increased, it changed from an almost unnoticeable drain to a fairly obvious burden.


    Soon the Chaotic Gods had to strain and make an active effort to provide enough energy, instead of lazily letting their aura flow around.


    Even the Lotus was having a hard time gathering all of this energy, and the Primordials had to resort to directly linking up with their respective roots to facilitate the energy flow.


    The consumption was rapidly increased to ridiculous levels, to the point that no single Mazinger could bear it, and they had to band together once more, interfacing with the jade butterfly of fate to make the conversion of energy more efficient.


    The situation was gradually getting worse, but the idea of quitting never crossed anyone''s mind. The Chaos had no consciousness and was only acting according to its nature, while the World Lotus''s only directive was to guide and fuel the expansion of the world until it reached a sufficient size. No one knew what a sufficient size was or why it was so important, only that it had not been reached.


    As for the Primordials, they were too proud and stubborn to admit any kind of defeat. If they needed to nourish the lotus forever, they would do so, because they would never surrender to the idea that there existed something that was too hard for them to do.


    The world had been enlarged to a truly unreasonable extent, now measuring almost a square light year, filled to the brim with an unimaginable concentration of minuscule golden runes, and nothing else.


    As it had expanded, it had encountered and devoured the fragments of Pangu''s axe, and had discovered that it had absorbed a minuscule part of Pangu¡¯s origin while doing so.


    This ¡°origin¡± was infinitely mysterious, but was fitted perfectly in the new world¡¯s order, as if it was always meant to be there. Once assimilated, it also started producing infinite energy, finally providing the world with its own means to fight against the Chaos without relying on outside help.


    Responding instinctively to this discovery, The World Lotus immediately stopped passively accepting the energy it was given, and instead targeted its benefactors, trying to devour and assimilate their origin, and gain their infinite power for itself.


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    The Primordials grew furious at their creation¡¯s greed, but there was nothing they could do. The lotus was immune to all of their powers, and it showed no reponse to their retaliation.


    Even escape was impossible, as they had previously established a link with the Great Lotus of Chaos to facilitate the energy transfer, and that link was now trapping them, providing a direct connection through which their laws could be drained.


    They could only rage helpless as the world ferociously stole their law, their origin, their consciousness, their everything.


    The Chaos gods were not physical entities that could be killed, but were universal constants. They would exist forever, and nothing, not even Chaos, the Tao or each other could destroy any of them.


    They were in no danger of dying, but they still feared being assimilated into the world. It was like a wooden beam in a house. The beam itself was still intact, but it could no longer sway in the storm or roll down hills, imprisoned by the building it was a part of. The Primordials were in a similar situation. Everything, including their consciousness, had become the building blocks of this new universe, and had become immutable constants.


    They had become perfectly predictable, without free-will or emotions. To an outsider¡¯s eye, there was nothing left of those great beings, and it was as if only the Chaos and the Tao had ever existed.


    The Tao did more than plunder their law, it refined them and incorporated them into itself, forming an unprecedented unity. They were no longer individual laws, but the 3000 Daos that composed the singular Tao.


    <hr>


    Upon the complete incorporation of the 3 000 Dao¡¯s, the Lotus celebrated, having achieved perfection. Suddenly, this immense world measuring trillions of light years across halted, and then abruptly deflated.


    It shrunk so fast and violently that the Chaos pursuit could not keep up, recreating a circular expanse of void. It shrunk down from a trillion light years to a billion, a million, a thousand, until it was smaller than even one light year. And it became smaller still, faster than the eye could see, to the size of our sun, our earth, our moon, a basketball, a marble, an atom, even becoming smaller than an electron.


    The countless runes that had filled this huge world were all compressed into an infinitesimally small point. They had become a singularity so dense they started to fuse together and sublimate into something new.


    In a glorious eruption of light, the final act of creation was revealed. Perfectly obeying all of the Dao¡¯s and their cycles, perfectly adapted for the inception of life, physical matter finally appeared in the universe.


    The world was no longer only conceptual, it now contained something unique, something more tightly bound by natural laws, something imminently logical, and something consistent.


    All of the objects were attracted by the nascent light, and they flew into it, getting transformed and gaining material forms.


    The light then gradually died down, and the material world was revealed. It was much smaller than the previous humongous ball of light, measuring only a few million kilometers across, smaller than our solar system, but that was enough.


    For now it was only filled with the mythical five colored clouds, but under the operation of the 3000 Daos, those clouds were being converted into familiar objects. They became the sun and moon, the earth and seas, and everything in the cosmos.


    It was already a beautiful world, but it was also terribly barren. The multicolored clouds of creation could transform into anything, but they could not inspire life into anything. No, animating the cosmos was the responsibility of something else.


    The World Lotus, having completed its mission, had withered and died when the world had become a singularity. Then, the light of creation, its body had been miraculously transformed, and its leaves had fallen down into the world.


    Four of those leaves were now morphing into the four divine beasts, namely the Azure Dragon, the White Tiger, the Vermilion Bird and finally the Black Turtle.


    Lastly, the fifth leaf, alongside the rest of the withered Lotus body and its 3000 roots, had evolved into the world tree. It was a gorgeous tree with the duty of holding up the sky, its branches extending into heaven while its roots delved right down to the underworld.


    Other than the World Lotus, the jade butterfly of fate was also absorbed, and it had shattered into 3 000 pieces, raining fragments down upon the world. Transformed by the Tao, those pieces turned into runes, but only 1 000 of those runes were clear and distinct, while the remaining 2 000 remained blurry and half-incorporeal.


    As for the fragments of Pangu¡¯s axe, they had yet to take a definite form. Avery couldn''t remember what had happened in the legends, and had no clue what he should do with them, so for now they remained formless.


    <hr>


    Avery was taking extreme liberty with the Chinese myths, even mixing in foreign legends, but he believed that was okay. All that mattered was that it emotionally resonated with him, so that more intent could be produced.


    This was his own version of the myth of creation, one he knew very well and understood all the supposed mysteries. Taking a step back to gaze at his work, a feeling of pride welled in his chest, and he hesitated whether he should go ahead with his crazy plan and risk it all.

 Chapter 30 : World Creation VII (reality)

    This visualization was the most complex one he had ever made, and Avery believed it had tremendous potential, but he was not satisfied with that. Despite its intricacies, it was still only a virtual world that had absolutely no impact on reality, or even on his spirit.


    This was just a scene in his imagination, a daydream that would fade and disappear as soon as he thought of something else. Avery might be able to utilize this dream to produce intent, but he couldn''t help thinking, what if it wasn''t just a dream?


    What if he could make this real, something that had real meaning and weight? Looking at the golden strands that were holding his spirit together, he knew it had to be possible.


    Those translucent threads were conceptual entities with no material form, but that did not mean they were only an inconsequential illusions. They were born out of a reflection of the Tao, and were in a strange half-virtual state, being both imaginary and substantial.


    Avery wanted to make his entire imaginary world ascend to this state, so that it would become fixed. He would then be able to work on it and improve it without needing to worry he would forget details each time his attention slipped.


    Besides, it seemed logical to him that such a mental world would be much more advanced, and therefore much more effective at generating intent. It would be such a significant improvement he might even directly reach the next level of runes.


    He also guessed that since the world would become half-virtual, it would become much closer to reality, and Avery would therefore have much less trouble studying the Tao from it.


    Of course it was easy to speculate, but actually achieving that state was the hard part. That golden substance was created by his visualization resonating with the Tao, and as far as he could tell, he would need to be a saint to gain that sort of power.


    Perhaps merely being an immortal would suffice, but even that was far out of Avery¡¯s reach. Becoming one was probably much harder than what Avery was trying to do in the first place, which was to improve his runes.


    Hoping to give significance to his mental world using only his own powers was unrealistic, which was why he planned to make use of the external forces. He thought that he had found a new exploit, one that would save him at least centuries of work.


    Avery¡¯s idea was to once again attempt to draw the Tao. The last time he had drawn the Tao, it may have splintered his spirit and almost killed him, but it had also transformed the golden dragon he had drawn to represent it.


    He wanted to repeat the action that had gotten him into this mess, he was expecting very different results from before. This time, instead of having a single element symbolizing the Avenue in an otherwise unrelated world, now he was saying that everything in his visualization was a representation of the Great Way. If the sanctifying effect of the Tao was consistent, and that everything was representing it, then logically the entire virtual world would be elevated.


    The best part was that since his entire visualization would be blessed, and that he had seen that the resulting image of the Tao could heal his mind, Avery believed there was a very good chance that his mind would end up stronger instead of being harmed.


    Besides, this time he was not directing the Tao, dishonoring it by attempting to devour it. Instead it was a praise of its magnificence and glory, claiming that the entire world flowed from the Tao. Surely that would elicit a much gentler response from the Avenue?


    He could of course see how wrong things could go, and that he was basing his reasoning on a lot of things that had no guarantee of being true, but he was determined to go through with his plan.


    He only had twenty years left before his points ran out, and as far as he knew, he was nowhere near his goal of writing runes without his pen. He knew he had previously resolved to do things the right way, but time was pressing. He could tell that without finding shortcuts and taking some major risks, he would die of starvation.


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    Being killed because he could not bear the arrival of the Avenue was not ideal, but it scared him infinitely less than the thought of dying and disappearing soundlessly, Losing any chance of seeing the Tao again. He was a foreign soul, so what would his afterlife be? would he be reincarnated normally, would he return to his original world, or would it just be nothingness?


    Drawing the Tao was a risk, but he preferred to think that he was taking an active step towards salvation, instead of just idly waiting for death.


    Besides, it was not like he really had a choice. He had already declared that his mental world was an expression of the Tao multiple times during its creation. Whether he liked it or not, both concepts were now intricately linked, and using this world for engraving would undoubtedly prompt a reaction from the Heavens.


    Since his decision was made, the only remaining thing to consider was how to maximise his chances to actually survive the Tao¡¯s presence long enough for his soul¡¯s transformation to take place. It was hard to know how dangerous this second heavenly descent would be, so Avery was just going to prepare all he could, and hope for the best.


    Last time he was in so much pain he hadn''t even thought of looking through the system for things to protect or heal his soul, but now that he had the presence of mind to check, he found a few promising items.


    There were a few different types of treasures and talismans that could protect the soul, as well two very expensive herbs that boasted the capability to heal a wound of the soul.


    They would probably not last long, being damaged both by the surrounding dragon power as well as by the Tao¡¯s overbearing presence, but every bit would help. If the situation got dire, they could make the difference between life and death.


    <hr>


    His preparations finished, Avery took a moment to prepare himself for the upcoming ordeal, then, controlling his trembling hands, he drew the rune with practiced ease.


    The instant his stylus touched the dragon, he immediately knew that this would be much worse than last time. It felt like all of the trillions of cells in his body had suddenly gained minds of their own, and they were all going in different directions, tearing his body apart with their uncoordinated efforts.


    It felt like his brain was growing too big for his skull, his head was threatening to pop like a balloon.


    He did not get to appreciate the majesty of the Tao, or even notice it¡¯s arrival, but was only vaguely aware of a blinding light and of a deafening symphony before all of his senses shut down, unable to comprehend such overbearing glory.


    Every part of his body, mind and soul was madly struggling, fighting against itself, driven mad by witnessing the unknowable. It was so bad that Avery had to spend his points indiscriminately, forced to buy consumables at an incredible pace just to remain whole.


    In short, it was torture, but he grit his teeth and bore with the pain. Some of his predictions were obviously completely wrong, but he still had hopes his conclusions remained solid. If the Tao was so much worse this time, perhaps it was because it was resonating with something much bigger? Maybe this was actually good news?


    In any case, he could feel his mental world was indeed undergoing a wondrous transformation, but his pain-addled brain was incapable of identifying what exactly was happening.


    <hr>


    The agony lingered for what seemed to be forever, and it was so intense that Avery didn¡¯t realize when it had stopped, his body still instinctively sending painful distress signals through his nerves, without realizing the danger had passed. Similarly, his brain continued processing nonexistent pain signals, even as his body calmed down.


    Worse, while his mind eventually settled down, his soul never stopped crying out in anguish. No matter how many soul repairing treasures he bought, it did nothing to help, and Avery eventually had to stop wasting points, as he still needed them for time warps.


    It had been, and still was the worst experience Avery could ever imagine, but a single glance at his mindscape was enough to confirm it was all worth it.


    He did not know why his soul was still in such torment, as everything else had ended up according to his expectations. His visualization was at the same time unchanged and completely different.


    It still depicted exactly the same things, but it was no longer made out of thoughts and dreams, but of something much greater, something permanent. The entire mental world seemed to glow softly in a mythical light, intact and even stronger than before, and it was clear Avery¡¯s bet had paid off.


    Giddy of his success, Avery wanted nothing more than to immediately test out his new visualization, but the inexplicable pain he felt rendered him unable to concentrate.

 Chapter 31 : Barren World

    Even after using all of the healing items he could find, Avery still suffered just as much, so his first priority was to investigate this phantom pain. He thought he had an idea on what caused it, but if it was right, then he had no clue as to how to solve the issue.


    He had often referred to the three components of his being, namely his body, mind and soul, but as far as he knew, only the Body and soul were real things. The body was easy to understand, it was Avery¡¯s physical form. As for his soul, that was harder to explain. He knew for sure that it existed in this world, as he had seen references to it in the Tao, but he wasn¡¯t clear on its function, only that it was the spiritual part of his being.


    Those two parts of his being were very different, but they weren¡¯t dissociated. Instead they were intrinsically linked, perfectly suited for each other and acting in unison.


    That was what Avery called his mind, the fusion of his body and soul, a place where he could process both the signals from his body, like hormones and nervous signals, as well his spiritual desires and thoughts to finally make decisions.


    Unfortunately, Avery had been using time warps for years now, and while his soul had grown to an absurd degree, especially after being elevated by the Tao, his poor mortal body had stayed exactly the same.


    This meant that they no longer fit well together, and that was the source of the terrible pain he was feeling. It wasn''t an unhealable wound, and he had suffered no damage, but he had become incompatible with himself. It was like he was trying to assemble two different puzzles, and of course the pieces did not match.


    According to his insights on how the body/soul relationship worked,  Avery was pretty sure that was the source of his pain, but even if his diagnosis was correct, he had no clue as to how he could heal himself.


    Unable to find anything in the system or in the insight he had gained from the Tao, he could only bear with the headache and turn his attention back to his mental world, hoping to find a fix like when he had sown his vision back together.


    <hr>


    However, what awaited him in his dreams was only more distress.


    While his visualization had undoubtedly been greatly elevated, as it radiated a sacred aura, it had also suddenly become uncontrollable.


    He tried imagining the Azure dragon roaring in anger, a volcano erupting or a shooting star falling to the earth, but nothing happened. The world was barren and still, only following established cycles.


    The moon was still orbiting the earth, and the earth was orbiting the sun, but the rotation of the moon had no impact on the tides. That was normal, as it wasn¡¯t something Avery had thought to include into his original visualization, but the problem was that he was no longer able to add a tidal system.


    The mental world was no longer a dream he could modify freely, it was now in a fixed state, and that state was imperfect. The world was now half-real, so everything had to follow cause and effect according to established rules.


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    Before, his visualization had been like a gooey liquid, free-flowing and extremely malleable. It would not retain its shape and constantly collapse back into a flat puddle, but it was extremely easy to temporarily take a specific form.


    When the Tao had elevated his mental world, it was like it had frozen this liquid. Its properties had been inverted, taking a permanent shape that was no longer difficult to keep, but it could no longer be effortlessly managed and changed.


    It had never occurred to Avery that he may be unable to affect this sanctified world, as he had managed to control the golden dragon. He had forgotten he had never tried to change the dragon''s shape, and had just used it as it was.


    If you had a thread and were sewing with it, you were not actually making any changes to the thread, only displacing it. You could pick up your ice sculpture and move it around, but you couldn¡¯t easily change its shape.


    Similarly, Avery could technically still control his world and make it move around, but could not change it¡¯s inner workings. And since he was only interested in what happened inside the world and not around it, it had become useless.


    His visualization had been a masterpiece, and one that he was immensely proud of, but that wasn¡¯t enough. For it to function as a complete world, it required perfect internal consistency, and right now it was imprisoning itself with many unclear rules.


    Avery was probably the mortal with the most knowledge of the Tao and it¡¯s rules, but the creation of a world required perfect understanding. If even a single factor was not taken into account, it would mess up cause and effect, and everything would come crashing down.


    Limited by his human brain, he had often claimed ¡°the dragon moves because I want it to¡±, and that had been fine when it had only been a story he told himself, but now it would not fly.


    In reality, everything needed to be eminently logical, and leaps in logic could not be tolerated. There might be multiple ways to make everything work, but whatever way he chose had to make perfect sense.


    It did not matter if the dragon moved by virtue of his muscles or strange mechanical pistons, as long as it made sense. But even if he had thought to define all of the muscles of its humongous body, it would not have been enough. He would need to detail how millions of cells worked together to compose muscles, and how these cells were made of atoms which are themselves made of smaller and more complicated stuff. And he needed to have etched out all those rules during the creation of the universe.


    In reality, there were 26 dimensionless constants that described the fundamental nature of the universe, and the rest of the cosmos flowed from the interactions of those 26 constants. Those constants were not random either, but were uniquely tuned to facilitate the appearance of life with inhumane precision.


    This was one of the arguments to support the multiverse theory, because the probability of the only existing universe being suitable for life to develop seemed too small to reasonably consider. For us to be the lucky ones, there needed to be an infinity of failed universes. For example, one with a 1/10120th faster speed of expansion would not allow any planets or stars to form, leading to a barren world. Either that or it was all perfectly designed to be perfect by a conscious creator.


    All this to say that the universe was incredibly complicated, but also beautifully simple, and for another universe to exist and function, it had to at the very least reach that impossible standard of quality. Anything else would be useless, and would be like carving a car shape out of a block of wood and expecting it to work and be able to drive it as if it had a functional engine.


    If Avery was capable of creating a perfect world, he would already be a saint, and there would be no need for him to create one. To create a world requires a perfect understanding of everything in it. In other words, it required complete comprehension of the Tao, and that was what Avery was pursuing in the first place.


    Upon realizing that his risky move, even when successful, had resulted in him being worse off than before, Avery fell to the ground, his spirit crushed.


    Cultivation was a step by step process, and his shortcut had, once again, had disastrous consequences. He did not regret what he did, as he still believed it had been his best shot at managing to engrave without a pen in twenty years, but he was devastated by his failure.

 Chapter 32 : Setback

    The half-virtual world had much less potential than Avery had imagined, but that did not mean it was useless. It truly was much more advanced, and who knew what the result of engraving a rune with it would be?


    Taking solace in that thought, he looked around on the floor for his stylus, but found only dust. Evidently, his pen had not survived his last stunt, and had finally lost the last useful object he owned.


    He didn¡¯t even have any clothes left, as they had been disintegrated by the dragon power years ago. His only remaining material possession was a hammer he did not know how to use, and had nothing to use it on.


    He had not expected this revelation to hit as hard as it had, but he couldn''t help but get emotional looking down at the ashes of his ten-year companion. It wasn¡¯t just worrying about whether or not he could really engrave without his pen, he was mourning the loss of a dear friend.


    He had transmitted so many emotions through this instrument, it had felt alive to him. All his moments of anger, sorrow and despair, and even occasionally joy had all come from using it.


    He loved it, grateful that it had been a reliable lifeline he could use to guarantee his survival. He hated it, for all the hard work it had demanded, the endless repetitions of incredibly precise movements, and all the pain that had flowed through it.


    He had not believed that he could feel more lonely than he already did, but apparently it was possible. He was a lonely man forgotten in an immense universe, and nothing, not even an inanimate writing instrument, would bear the test of time with him. Loneliness was his destiny, and it was inescapable.


    <hr>


    Fortunately, Avery was already very familiar with the slipping slope of negative emotions, so he forced his attention to one of the only things that could get his mood back up. His visualization and the hints of the Tao it contained.


    For all of the disappointment it had turned out to be, he had poured so much of his hopes and dreams in it that any mention of it was always accompanied by an irresistible fondness, as well as immense pride.


    No matter how flawed it was, it was the fruit of thousands of hours of work, and it felt like his child. He would never abandon it, and would love it no matter how infuriating it was.


    Besides, he did not know if it was a total failure yet. Perhaps the shattering of his pen was a sign from the heavens, telling him he was already ready to engrave runes with pure intent without external aid.


    He knew he should not get his hopes up, and that it was incredibly unlikely, but he nevertheless grew very excited at this idea and immediately set out to test it.


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    He imagined his mental world producing a majestic intent, that flew up in the sky, transcending the half-virtual world and rushing to his soul. There, it roused the idle mana from its slumber, forcing it to travel down to Avery¡¯s body, all the while compressing it into an ink-like substance.


    It arrived at his head, and was led to his heart, following his blood vessels as it coursed down his arm. It finally arrived at his finger, but instead of continuing on to his stylus, it directly exited his finger as silver ink, painting the surface of the wall.


    Unfortunately, while the mystical ink was definitely visible, it was very inconsistent, tracing incredibly thin lines that sometimes disappeared entirely.


    It was already impressive, but had not quite reached the necessary standard for a magical rune. Avery was very close to his goal, but that last step was always the hardest, and his visualization was frozen, unable to improve any more.


    Unwilling to give up before he had tried everything, he went back to his mental world, trying anything he could think of, wanting to understand exactly what the Tao had done to his creation.


    He failed to regain any power on the internal workings of the world, but despite everything, the mental world was still half-virtual, and was still intrinsically linked to his mind. This connection provided Avery with the only authority he had, which was influencing the flow of time.


    He did not have total control, but the world was instinctively moved by his thoughts, and time had become relative to what Avery was studying.


    If he was considering the movements of planets and stars, time would flow extremely fast, years or centuries passing by in the blink of an eye. This would let him, as an outside viewer, see the stars moving at a comprehensible speed. Otherwise, with these celestial objects moving so slowly compared to their size, they would look immobile to him.


    If he was focusing on something smaller, like a forest, time would flow slower, perhaps only a few in-world months per second, at just the right speed to understand it¡¯s development. And if the scale was reduced to a single plant, he would find that each second corresponded to a few days or weeks.


    He could also concentrate on a single beam of light, at which point an in-world second would be extended until it lasted thousands of years in reality. Time was proportional to the scale of what he observed, allowing him to fully apprehend everything that was happening.


    This was of no help to improve his world or write runes, but the more Avery looked, the more he realized that it was perfect for studying the Tao. The world might be unfinished, but it was directly connected to the Avenue, and had become an incredible comprehension treasure.


    All the things Avery had thought to include in the creation of the universe had been perfected, and his authority over them allowed him to understand them with unprecedented ease.


    His eyes sparkling and his face full of joy, he confirmed that it would be an invaluable resource, as it had become a supreme cultivation treasure, unveiling many obscure secrets to the naked eye.


    Even in its imperfect state, he could use it as a direct guide to ascending to immortality through comprehension. Even if it wasn¡¯t what he had originally hoped for, he had still gotten something extraordinary out of this fiasco, and it was up to him to use it to its fullest.


    This was incredible news, but this treasure had still come at the cost of losing Avery¡¯s source of points. To be able to enjoy using it, he needed a new source of income. For that, he found no other way than to go back to the system store and change his occupation.

 Chapter 33 : Seer Avery

    The system offered 81 different occupations, and many sounded very interesting, but most of them were impossible for Avery to choose. First, he could eliminate any jobs that required him to interact with other beings, like being a Teacher, a Beastmaster or a Doctor.


    Other than that, now that he knew the effects of the dragon power, he could discard any professions that sounded like they required a constant supply of material. This unfortunately included most of the remaining jobs, like Alchemy, Sculpting or Herbalism.


    He then made a list of all the few remaining ones, ordered by preference. Funnily enough, his top choices were the two occupations he had once deemed too advanced when he had chosen the blacksmith job. There were a few others, like ¡°dancer¡± or ¡°musician¡± that looked like they fit all of the criterias, but he was thoroughly uninspired by them, and he doubted he would have any talent in any of them.


    He could probably still survive with those occupations, but if he was going to spend decades doing something, it had better be something he enjoyed. He would try all the other options first, and would only become an artist as a last resort.


    His first choice was Formation master. He knew very little about formations, only that they vaguely looked like giant arrays of interlocked runes. Besides the Talisman master job that he had already tested out to be a dud, it sounded like it had the closest connection to his previous blacksmith job.


    Of course, he was not sure that was such a good thing. The skillset might transfer very well, but if they were too close in nature, he might be similarly stuck by his solid mental world. Also, he believed there was a high chance it would still require materials to set up.


    In his mind, informed only by the short description provided by the system, formations were a way to use the natural energies of the world, and guide them to flow in a very specific way. According to the pattern that was formed, various magical phenomenons would occur, but surely there needed to be something tangible to force the natural energies to flow in this pattern.


    In a way, it was transforming the very landscape into an array of giant runes. But with such a large area of effect, Avery found it doubtful he would be able to draw those runes with mana. It was more reasonable to expect that it would require tons of materials to set up. Besides, the dragon power had a high probability of simply destroying the formation before it was complete, before he could even gain any points.


    This made him hesitate, and consider his second choice, which was becoming a Seer. It was unclear what exactly that job entailed, but it sounded like it had the most potential to provide a different path to the Tao.


    He doubted that any additional materials would be necessary, but it was possible it required people to use it on. It all depended on whether it was restricted only to fortune telling or if it referred to a wider set of skills around the global theme of ¡°seeing the invisible¡±.


    Last time he had had to choose a job, he had discarded both options, as he had deemed them too complicated to master in the short time he had left. Now, circumstances were different, and he was confident in his ability to master the craft. Not only did he have 20 years instead of a mere month, but he also had a lot more experience and knowledge of the Avenue, which should help immensely.


    In the end, he chose to become a Seer. It felt like a better long term plan, diversifying his abilities and increasing his chances of eventually finding a way to immortality. If he was wrong, he was only losing 500 points, which was hardly unreasonable.


    Ding, congratulations on changing your profession and receiving the seer novice package. -500 points


    He quickly checked the novice package, and took out a beautiful silver coin, as well as a manual. Setting aside the coin for now, he rushed to read the leather-bound book, afraid if he wasted too much time, it would disintegrate before he read it all.


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    The title was ¡°Divine Arts of Fates¡±, but despite the high sounding name, he was disappointed by its mundane content. It kept hinting at the great powers a seer should have, mentioning farsight, seeing the future or seeing through lies, but showed no way of attaining those powers.


    The mortal stage of being a seer was much more humble, and the job was an odd mixture of detective, psychiatrist and advisor, a variety of mortal skills intended to quickly understand the situation of a client, and offer sage advice.


    They were certainly very useful skills for a mortal to have, but had nothing mystical, and were useless to Avery. The only magical ability he learned was divination. He would use the coin to reach out and ask a question to the Avenue, at which point the Tao would reflect the answer back onto the coin.


    There were many factors that played into how satisfying and complete an answer he would get, but the short version was that the more insights of the Tao he poured into the coin and the simpler the question, the clearer the answer.


    It was a very broad skill, with ridiculously high potential, but it was also incredibly difficult, as well as full of danger.


    Transmitting insight was an incredibly advanced skill, and it was even harder than producing intent. Any passionate thought even tangentially related to the subject could technically qualify as intent, no matter how correct or ridiculous it was. Intent was still hard to improve and control, but it remained a skill accessible to any mortal, often even produced unknowingly when living through extremely emotional moments.


    On the other hand, insight could only be proven through cold hard facts, providing a rigorous explanation of the universe. He did not have to explain everything, but every single mistake he made, claiming a flawed conclusion to be true, would all but invalidate his efforts.


    It was technically still attainable by mortals, as he believed that some modern physicists or mathematicians might have reached that level of knowledge, but it required a lifetime of dedication and research based on generations of geniuses.


    It was hundreds of times harder than simply becoming a powerful cultivator. Even without guidance, for someone with the insane amount of knowledge of the inner workings of the world it required, deducing the first stages of cultivation would be effortless.


    Even Avery, with his unique circumstances, was far from knowledgeable enough. He had seen the Tao twice, communed with the mysterious runes more than a dozen times, but in the end, he had less than ten years of study, and most of that time had been spent training his mind to convey a coherent picture instead of uncovering the mysteries of the universe.


    Not only was it very hard, it was also supremely dangerous. He was not directly inviting the Tao into his body, so he would not be physically harmed, but it would be a tremendous test of mental fortitude.


    Avery already had a very clear understanding of how enthralling the Tao was, and of how easily an untrained mind could get very lost in this ocean of knowledge, forgetting reality and dying without even realizing it. He had ignored the extreme pain of his body burning up to contemplate the Avenue, so how would he be expected to look away just to eat?


    This was obviously not a skill suited for a novice seer, so the manual did not introduce it to be used as is, but rather it elaborated on how to constrain the scope of the skill to create an inferior version.


    He would not be addressing the ultimate Truth, but rather restrict his call to the Dao of fate. Even then, not the entire law, but rather the fate of a very specific person.


    Under the principle that every living being was a world of its own, he would call to them, substituting their soul for the Tao, trying to discern their fate. In that case, instead of offering insights on the Tao, you would just need to have a lot of knowledge or a close connection to whoever you were asking about.


    Since the effects of the ability were suppressed, the dangers and difficulty were also greatly reduced, and although it was still very advanced, it had become at least possible for a talented mortal to learn.


    With his preexisting knowledge of the Tao, Avery was eager to try this skill out, and the only issue was finding something to practice on. Alone as he was in the chasm, it might sound like there was nothing with a close connection to him, but looking at the five Divine beasts in his mental world, he smiled.


    He could already tell that he would excel at this first stage of being a seer.

 Chapter 34 : Self-reflection

    Avery believed everyone was talented at something, and to excel at an unrelated task, one had to find a way to leverage their advantages in unexpected ways. He had no one he could read his fortune to, but he could reuse his virtual world he had spent so much effort making.


    He even suspected it might be more effective than fortune-telling real creatures. After all, the creatures of the mental world were both intricately connected to the Tao, while still being fake and inferior beings, with practically no protection from the probing of their creator.


    Taking out the silver coin, Avery attempted to reach out to it spiritually, not really knowing how he was supposed to establish a connection with it. It took a little bit of fiddling around with his mind during which he felt silly, but he was soon ready to begin his first divination.


    He reached out to the coin, and pictured his target. Since his mental world was fixed, what he really did was ¡°zoom in¡± on the Black Turtle, while describing all of its attributes.


    At first nothing happened, but he continued trying, and after only a handful of attempts, he got a response from the coin. He had learned the skill with relative ease. He was pretty sure it was due two both his uncommon knowledge of the Tao, as well as his one-of-a-kind connection with the subject of the divination.


    What he did not expect was the hard part of divination was not establishing a connection, but using that connection. When he peered into the turles fate, He was falling into a river of knowledge, with endless data rushing downstream around him. Avery had no way of processing all of this data, every time he tried to hold on to something, it would dribble out of his cupped hands.


    It was as if he was hearing an epic orchestral piece, and he had to single out one one instrument, to ascertain a few specific notes. There was too much information, flowing past too quickly, and nothing could be gained.


    It was also more dangerous than he had anticipated. This world of information paled in front of the majesty of the Tao, but it was still enough to put Avery under its spell. This was a part of what he was chasing after, and he was expected to simply give it up?


    It was too hard for him to do, and he was only saved because he had not managed to dive deep enough to lose contact with reality. He was able to instinctively buy time warps until the connection wavered and the vision faded.


    In the end, the only thing Avery got was a single word, ¡°sleepy¡±. That was the extent of his gains, but it was enough for the system.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed an inferior divination. +1 Points


    Disappointed by the results of this low-tier divination, he was about to try again, wanting to practice and get better at it until it became actually useful, but decided to check the store before that.


    He pulled up the system catalogue, wanting to see what seer-specific manuals had become available now that he had changed jobs, in the hopes some of them could help him.


    He did not find anything like that, but he got incredibly excited when he saw the description of the ¡°cutivating Yuan Shen¡± skill manual.


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    Cultivate your mind into a spirit, entrust it to the Avenue and travel the Three Realms through the Dao.


    Reading this line, and seeing it cost a million points, he was about to enter into a mad rush to gather those points at the fastest speed possible. He was about to give in to that impulse, but he stopped himself, and decided to take a step back, think about it thoroughly and properly plan for the future.


    The first thing to do was to take stock of the entire situation. What were his goals, what were the obstacles preventing him from accomplishing them, and what tools did he have at his disposal to surpass those?


    He realized that he had only two goals in life. First and foremost, he wished to get accepted by this world and rejoin the Tao, so that every waking moment was spent in the company of the Truth. In practice, he was pretty sure that meant he had to become a Saint.


    A lofty goal, but since there were already seven saints, why couldn¡¯t he become the eighth?


    His second goal was to escape. He wanted to explore this fantasy land, he wanted to experience human contact again, to make friends and enemies, to just live a human life. He felt like he had become a robot, doing the same thing over and over again. Even his intelligence was robotical, filled with incredible knowledge but no wisdom. He was not living in this Chasm, he was surviving, and he wanted out.


    This used to be his dearest wish, so much so that he had seriously considered escaping reality through death, but now it was a mere afterthought.


    The Avenue had recontextualized everything, and he could only laugh in derision at his previous ambition, casting it aside as a secondary goal. Now, he would gladly give up his freedom and remain in exile for eternity if it meant improving his chances of becoming a saint by 1%.


    Those were his only two goals. Freedom and Sainthood, both extremely difficult to attain, but at least they were not contradictory. Indeed, Freedom would presumably come naturally on his path to sainthood, without him needing to make any special efforts towards it.


    As for obstacles, they weren''t that numerous either. He was not sure about how to become holy, but becoming an immortal would be a good first step, and that would not be too hard. The only thing he needed was enough time to grow closer to the Tao, and maybe to survive a tribulation.


    Meanwhile, the only thing inhibiting his freedom were two unshakable walls and a dragon preventing any low-level magical solution. Both would become irrelevant if he became an immortal capable of walking the skies.


    Taking into account all of the ways he knew of achieving those goals, he struggled internally for a few minutes, but finally decided against buying the skill.


    It was absurdly expensive, and there was little doubt it would also be incredibly hard to master, but that was not what made Avery give up on it. It was simply unnecessary, and at this point, it would be a mistake to scatter his interests around, as it would only end up wasting time.


    Seers could be very powerful, and their unique skills were full of temptation, but Avery made the decision to set the profession aside. He was still going to keep the job and use it to gain points, but it would remain a background activity.


    Instead, he would take becoming immortal as his short term goal, as it perfectly aligned with his two major goals. Avery already had a steady path to immortality, in the form of his mental world, and from now on he would wholeheartedly focus on it.


    The divination skill was full of potential, and he would see if he could find a way to use it to help his contemplation, or speed up his enlightenment, but he would not prioritise practicing it.


    Again and again, he had paid the cost of wanting to do too much too quickly, and with how his previous shortcuts had panned out, he believed a slow and steady approach would be best. With a reliable way of gaining points, he had eternity in front of him and a clear path to follow.


    The Tao was waiting for him, and he would walk towards it at his own pace, without trying to jump the boat every few years because a nearby path looked easier.

 Chapter 35 : Calm before the storm

    Setting his sights on the future, Avery settled down into a routine of peaceful contemplation, opening himself up to nature, passively observing and actively absorbing knowledge.


    He learned to assist his comprehension with his divination, making the most of his time, but he refused to obsess over efficiency or to count insignificant gains anymore.


    Every few hours, he would initiate a divination, diving into the river of fate, but instead of attempting to grab and hoard knowledge, he tried to become a fish in the sea, to attune himself to the Tao. Gradually he became intimately familiar with the many Daos, learning to distinguish them and learn how they felt, until he could even recognise them in his mental world.


    Once his divination ended, he would immerse himself into his visualization. This was the time of active research, where he would control, confirm and expand his knowledge, and test all of his theories.


    Then, after a few hours, he would attempt another divination, to gather new insights and in passing, earn a few points to guarantee his survival.


    This was his routine, but it did not feel repetitive, as each passing moment he was learning something new, and with each passing day he felt closer to the Tao.


    Of course, it was not always easy, and he often caught glimpses of mysteries too profound for him, sometimes spending weeks trying to understand the obscure and seemingly nonsensical Dao without any gains.


    Irritation still built up like it always had, and he often wanted nothing more than to give up and look for another way, but he was determined not to let his laziness or boredom control him any longer. He would master his own fate, and nothing would stand in his way.


    His mind was still hurting just as much as before, and with his continual uses of time warps, the dissociation between his body and soul had instead become worse. He had never gotten used to the headache, but he had learned to live with it, and to accept it. He still moaned and groaned about it regularly, but at least it no longer interfered with his concentration.


    In a twisted way, he even came to appreciate the pain for its consistency. One day he might be happy, another sad, and another still, filled with rage. Those emotions came and went without rhyme or reason, but the Pain was constant. It only grew slowly sharper and stronger, and he knew it would only go away on the day he left the mortal coil, either through Death or Ascension.


    The more time passed, the better Avery managed to control himself, and to keep a serene state of mind. Bursts of fury that would have previously been unbearable no longer influenced his actions, and he did not dance around in joy anymore.


    He had higher aspirations than fleeting joy and sorrow, and by walking alongside the Avenue for so long, his care and concern for the impermanent had been whittled down to nothing.


    <hr>


    He was in no rush, nothing was waiting for him, and he could afford to do things the slow and steady way. He even stopped counting the hours, letting decades slip by without care, seemingly fixed in time, remaining as immutable as his mental world.


    Despite not putting any special focus on divination, he had always done his best every time. Progress had naturally come along, slow and steady, as each time he plunged into the river of fate, he went a little deeper, saw a little more and remembered a little more.


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    His skill had reached a supreme state, surpassing even his mastery of runes, but he dismissed any ideas to cease restricting it and directly address the Tao. Ignoring the difficulty, it would be insanely dangerous, and most importantly completely unnecessary.


    Divination was already doing an admirable job as it was, and required no upgrade. It was actually the other way around, as Avery had become concerned he was using it too much.


    He had become so adept at divination, and his connection to the Mental world now ran so deep, that he felt he was on the brink of a great breakthrough.


    He was no longer simply calling to the black turtle image, but he was building a mysterious bond with the virtual world as a whole, and it was getting closer and closer to completion with each passing day.


    Nowadays, divination was more than taking a dip in the coin-projection of a virtual river of fate. Instead, he was communing with the entire mental world at a deeper level. The feeling wasn¡¯t very clear yet, but it was like he was accessing a part of himself that was locked away in his subconscious.


    He was accessing his Authority over his visualization. It wasn¡¯t restoring it to be like before when it was only imaginary, and he had complete control, but it was him taking his rightful place. The world was his creation, and he was its Way of Heaven. An omniscient observer, dictating the flow of the world, a beautiful amalgamation of rules.


    This was obviously great news, and it bolstered Avery¡¯s comprehension to unprecedented levels, but he worried what would happen when he surpassed the current bottleneck. What would happen when the connection was completely established?


    In the end, he pushed those concerns away. He couldn''t be sure if this was good or bad, but he had chosen to stick to this path, and so he would.


    <hr>


    It was only a few weeks later that he felt that his consciousness was ready to completely link up to the virtual world, and he hesitated once more.


    Being much closer to the breakthrough, he had a clearer understanding of what it entailed. He could now tell that it was not a normal step for a cultivator to go through, far from it. It wasn¡¯t even something reserved to seers through their special skills. No, it was an opportunity unique to him, granted to him by his one-of-a-kind mental world.


    This was an incredible opportunity, but what it would actually give him was unknown. It would probably be an insane boost to his cultivation, but if he was unlucky it was possible it would simply lead to instant death. And in any case, it was clear it was another branching path, breaking off from the route he had sworn to follow.


    There was no indication to help him determine if this alternate path was better or worse, only that it was different. Unsure what he should do, Avery even tried divining his own fate, something that was extremely hard to do. After many attempts, he finally succeeded in foreseeing a vague image, but all he got was a sacred and incomprehensible feeling.


    This breakthrough was incredibly important, being somehow related to the Tao. It would be a life-changing event for him, but he couldn''t be sure if it would be positive or negative.


    It was like he was standing in front of the gates of paradise, but he was refusing to enter for no other reason than that he had previously promised not to enter. That and that it was technically possible it was actually a disguised portal to hell.


    If it was before, he would not have hesitated to throw himself through that gate, no questions asked. The chances of it being a trap was infinitesimally small, and hesitating was like being afraid to ever step outside to avoid being hit by a falling meteorite. It was so unlikely it was almost negligible.


    But now, he had enough foresight to take a step back and refuse this opportunity, because no shortcut was worth jeopardizing his ultimate goal. He was safe and in no rush, so it was better to stay true to his vow and keep following his path.


    If there was even the smallest chance that this alluring path turned out to be a dead end, he could lose everything. And for what? For something that could not possibly be greater than the Tao, and that would eventually become irrelevant anyways as he reached his final destination. The risk was small, but the potential losses were too high and the gains too low for it to be an acceptable gamble.

 Chapter 36 : Rebirth

    Avery went back to divining, faithfully following the path he thought was correct, ignoring the growing temptation of a breakthrough. He persisted for more than a year, honestly immersing himself in the Tao, but, while his conviction was admirable, it was not enough.


    That possible connection to the mental world was like a blinking red light in his peripheral vision, demanding attention. Worse, as his understanding of Fate and of the Tao grew, the connection grew stronger, becoming ever more inviting.


    Eventually, the gap separating him from his visualization became so small he didn¡¯t even need to make an effort to cross it, but rather had to restrain himself from instinctively crossing that barrier.


    In the end, a stray thought - idly wondering what would happen if he accepted - became enough to initiate the breakthrough, and everything suddenly changed.


    One moment he was looking inside his world through a tinted window, unable to see anything clearly, and the next all obstructions vanished, and he was drawn at the very center of his creation.


    At first it felt incredible. The entire universe celebrated his arrival, welcoming its master, for now and forever. Here, his power knew no bounds, and he was free, free to do anything he wanted, no matter how dangerous or ridiculous it was. He had become an entity that was above cause and effect, and above limits of any kind.


    He had even surpassed his insignificant mortal intelligence, as the omniscient personification of the cosmos. He had spent decades trying to uncover the nebulous rules of the universe, and had only made minimal progress, but now he had access to all of it at his fingertips.


    But it was more than knowledge or power, it was his entire being that was fundamentally different.


    He was no longer a frail human, so weak he had never been noticed by a gargantuan dragon despite freeloading on top of it for more than half a century. Not even after attracting the punishment of Heaven twice had anyone learned of his existence, and he remained alone, forgotten in the abyss.


    He had believed he had come to terms with his loneliness and insignificance, and he had, but this was different. He was not uselessly rebelling against fate, he was being presented with a position he had not even considered to be possible.


    His dream was simply to reach and get accepted by the Avenue, but wasn¡¯t this even better? No matter how flawed the world was, no matter how erroneous this simulacrum of Truth was, this was his chance to experience being the Tao itself.


    It was like a poor but ambitious peasant wishing to climb the ranks and become a high priest, a respected man who heard the words of God, when he was suddenly offered to become God himself. Who could resist such an opportunity?


    Unable to control himself in front of such devilish temptation, Avery immersed himself into his new identity as a virtual Tao. Unfortunately, this dream was as wonderful as it was fleeting.


    <hr>


    The heavenly feeling lasted a few instants, but it was very soon replaced by an incomprehensible dread and an intense feeling of wrongness, waking Avery up from his lovesick idiocy and helping him realize the enormity of the mistake he had made.


    There was already a path to becoming the Tao, and that was cultivation. Wasn''t this what he had vowed to do for now on? To walk his path steadily, and to not make shortsided jump to every attractive alternative?


    The correct way of attaining the Tao was to become a Saint, equal to heaven, and everything else was a distraction. He could be wrong, but regardless of what the objective truth was, what mattered was that Avery sincerely believed that. Since his conviction was pure, why could he never bring himself to carry out his resolutions? He had only done okay in the last decades because nothing extraordinary had happened, but at the first opportunity, he had forgotten everything and repeated his mistakes.


    Even claiming it was an accident was no excuse, because deep down, he knew that if he had wholeheartedly resisted the temptation, nothing could have happened without his consent.


    Unfortunately, the realization came too late, and his self-rebuke would not stop the terrible consequences of his actions. The feeling of wrongness was intensifying exponentially, until it eventually evolved into something much worse.


    Avery had lived in constant pain for decades, and his body had been almost completely destroyed multiple times, but this was different.


    It wasn¡¯t mere pain, it was something new, something he had never felt before. Pain was only the result of the nervous system signaling there was a problem, but this was his entire being warning him of an existential threat, causing him untold fear and suffering.


    It took a moment for Avery to realize exactly what was wrong, but finding out only served to frighten him even more.


    When his divination had forged an intimate link with his metal world, the latter had somehow traced the connection to the rest of Avery''s being, and it had seen something more complete than it. It had instinctively erupted with the devouring intent Avery had trained so hard to produce, and had started to devour Avery''s very existence.


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    Avery was only a mortal, but he was nevertheless completely real, and born from whatever the equivalent to the Tao there was in his home world. He was perfectly internally consistent, and the virtual world wanted to absorb that original perfection for itself.


    The original balance of his body, mind and soul was already faltering, but now it was being aggressively torn apart. His mind, which was supposed to be the product of body and soul, hosted his mental world, which had been elevated to a realm far above everything else. When his divination had let it come into contact with Avery¡¯s body and soul, it asserted its dominance, and greedily absorbed everything that made Avery "Avery". It violently shattered the delicate balance of his existence and reforms it with itself at the top of the power pyramid.


    It was like he was eating himself, but he was not a symmetrical snake like the legendary uroboros, instead only one part of him was being empowered at the expense of all the others.


    The process was excruciating, but relatively quick. His body offered almost no resistance and crumbled before the might of the Tao empowered virtual world. His soul resisted a lot longer, as it had been previously elevated by the Tao''s presence, but it was too closely linked with the body, and it gradually lost power as it''s physical counterpart got devoured. As for his mind, the difference between it and the mental world had always been very blurry, and the assimilation was over before it even began.


    Racked with excruciating pain, Avery sobbed and wailed, dreaming that the entire world was unfair. Did he need to be so severely punished every single time he took a shortcut? How was one supposed to learn if he could not try different things? How could an already intolerable pain become even worse?


    Unable to withstand the unbearable feeling, Avery did what he always did when insanely powerful forces outside of his control messed around with his entire being. He fell to the ground, welcoming the sweet release of unconsciousness.


    <hr>


    In the few hours it took for Avery to wake up yet again, bemoaning the lack of a fluffy bed on which he could pass out comfortably. He wasn''t too concerned about what had happened, as this kind of occurrence had almost become familiar. Since he had woken up, it meant he had survived and was going to be fine.


    His composure did falter slightly when he attempted to stand up and felt no response from his body at all, but it was nothing more than passing concern. He somehow felt very distant from all of this, as if it was all happening to someone else and he was only an unrelated observer. He effortlessly managed to remain calm and take stock of the situation rationally.


    Unfortunately, learning the ins and outs of the situation did little to help him calm down. Instead it was the nature of his cage that forced this uncommon composure upon him.


    Actually, he wasn''t sure if he was still technically Avery, or if Avery could even be said to be still alive. Everything about him had been ruthlessly devoured, and he had been completely assimilated by his mental world. His entire being had been torn apart and consumed, and he had then been reborn as something new.


    Rather than a human that had constructed a magical world in his mind, now it would be more accurate to refer to him as a living world which happened to have a human body. His body, mind and soul still existed, but they were now only superfluous accessories to the new core of his existence, the virtual world.


    Now that he knew what was happening, he managed to control his body again, but it was completely different from the instinctual way he used to move. It was more like piloting a puppet though mysterious Dao strings, needing his full concentration on each full movement.


    He was also having trouble processing information coming from his body. He did not feel, hear or see anything directly anymore, it was more like his body was receiving all of this information, and then drafted a report which it gave the new Avery.


    He was technically getting all of the data he would normally have access to, but it felt completely different, just like reading "I am in pain" on a piece of paper did not make you feel actual pain.


    However, that did not mean Avery had no direct access to the real world anymore. His mental world had gained a presence in the real world, as if the two overlapped, creating an invisible field covering a two meter radius in every direction.


    There might be more to discover, but for now the only useful application of this field he had discovered was to use it as a perception sphere, inside which he had gained a mysterious sense he called ¡°god''s view¡±.


    It was completely different from the 5 senses he was used to, and he found it impossible to describe it any more accurately than simply saying that "he was seeing through the Dao ''''. It was like he had discarded the graphical view of a video game and was now directly viewing its source code. It held the explanation to absolutely everything that happened in his perception sphere, but it was very hard to decode and understand.


    Avery knew there would be a lot to discover about his new nature, but on this aspect alone he was not too bothered by the change. Sure every little movement had become a challenge, he felt like a stranger in his own body, obviously some pretty severe drawbacks, but not everything was negative.


    The Dao vision was honestly great, but even more importantly the constant pain that had accompanied him for decades was gone. He had thought he had learned to bear and even appreciate the pain, but now that it was gone, it was as if he was finally able to breathe freely, and be at peace.


    <hr>


    The revelation that his very nature had been completely changed should have terrified him and caused an existential crisis. Apart from some surface level concern, Avery was astonishingly calm.


    It was not only because his brain was no longer influenced by his hormones, adrenaline and similar chemical processes, it was that the very way he thought had been changed. He still had the same memories, values, intelligence and character, but they were now processed in a completely different manner.


    He saw nothing wrong with this, but then again he was already changed. Perhaps if he had been asked earlier, he would have violently rejected the idea, but now with hindsight he saw only benefits.


    It wasn''t a huge transformation that made him unrecognizable, but small tweaks here and there, the most noticeable one being the added momentum to his emotions.


    It was like he was controlling a video game character through a screen, and he had a very low emotional investment. He could still be angry or sad or happy, but he was less invested and could act a lot more rationally and view the situation much more objectively. He still felt the same emotions, but they were no longer handled by his small human brain, but by the majestic consciousness of an entire world. He was the incarnation of an entire universe, so for something to affect him, it had to be able to move the entire cosmos. Otherwise it would only be a passing sentiment he could effortlessly ignore.


    He was no longer a mere mortal, but a veritable god, and his mentality was slowly changing to better align with his position.

 Chapter 37 : Omniscience

    Avery still had a lot to discover about how this new state was affecting him, but he decided to leave his question for later. He wanted to see what had happened to his mental world, and did not want to waste any more time on the dull outside world.


    He looked within himself, and instead of a detailed but dead mental picture, he was greeted by a small sphere of golden light. It looked slightly similar to the Tao fruit he had imagined during the creation of the world, but it felt much more real and impactful.


    Without any resistance, and guided by new instincts he did not know he had, Avery let his consciousness fall into the glowing ball, merging with it. Immediately, he felt a joyful feeling, as if he was being welcomed back into his home. It was not the overpowering elation he had felt in front of the Tao, but a more of a comfortable and cozy feeling, reassuring him that everything was going to be fine, and that he was exactly where he needed to be.


    Finally, he lost all contact with the outside world, and his perception sphere snapped into place, englobing the entire virtual world and revealing a beautiful galaxy.


    The Dao sight was as complex and mystical as it was in the outside world, but this time it was in a world he was perfectly familiar with, one which held no secrets from him, as he was its creator. It had become infinitely more understandable, granting almost effortless access to all of the world¡¯s data.


    However, this did not mean he was omniscient in this world. It was more akin to being directly plugged into the internet. With a computer, you had almost all of mankind''s knowledge at your fingertips, with an uncountable number of obscure facts only a quick google search away, but that did not mean you actually knew everything that was on the internet.


    In the same way, Avery only needed a thought to learn how many grains of sand there were in his world, or which mountain was the tallest, but before he got curious enough to ask, he would have no idea. If he did not pay attention, he could even forget what he had previously learnt like any mortal.


    He technically had infinite knowledge at his disposal, and that was definitely awesome, but it was very hard to reconstitute a general understanding of a world from countless very specific facts. Just like it was hard to picture the geography described in a book, even if the author detailed the width, height and depth of every single mountain and ocean. The drawing of a map was still required to better grasp the global landscape.


    Avery played around with his new Dao sight, trying to find an easier way to display all of this data. After all, even if you knew how to read morse code, you still wanted to play the game with a graphical interface.


    It took an unknown amount of time tweaking his perception sphere and adapting to his new existence, but he finally managed to familiarise himself with this new sense and translate it into a more coherent view. It was still a little bit fiddly, but it would be good enough for now.


    Suddenly he was able to see the entire world at once, becoming instantly aware of all of the stars and their orbits. It still wasn¡¯t omniscience, but more a general understanding of what was happening in the world, with limited details.


    He could see the movements of the stars, and could find their exact speed with just a thought, but not much more. He knew stars were not perfect spheres, and there were a lot of chemical reactions that caused solar storms and nuclear fusions, but all he could tell was that it was a ball of flaming gas.


    Feeling a strong vitality rising from the center of the universe, he turned his attention to the small globe of earth around which the galaxy orbited. His vision suddenly shifted, and he suddenly zoomed in on the planet.


    Just like before, as he zoomed in and his perception got smaller, the time also slowed down, to match the relative space-time scale of whatever he was observing.


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    His vision stabilised, and what sprung to his eyes first was how green the planet had become. It was no longer a brown mudball with only a few oceans as decorations, it was now covered in lush forests and animated with a huge variety of animals. Far from the barren world he had despaired over, this was a thriving land full of wonder and life.


    Unsure of how so much life had just appeared in his realm without his input, Avery habitually searched for the black turtle, but was surprised to find it dead.


    Well, not dead exactly, instead it seemed it had never existed, and a huge turtle-shaped island took his place. The same thing had happened to the other three divine beasts, their bodies had been replaced by striking landscapes.


    Wanting to understand what had happened, Avery tried divining their fates, and found it ridiculously easy to do. His authority and partial omniscience over this world coordinated extremely well with his divination skill, so that viewing the past of his world was almost effortless.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a false divination. +0 Points


    Avery stared at the notification, dumbstruck. It wasn¡¯t the fact he had failed to gain any points that stunned him, as that was of little consequence.


    He already had centuries worth of points saved up , and he hoped that would be more than enough to become immortal. Besides that, now that his mental world had been perfected, it would be able to improve again, which meant he would soon be able to engrave runes again.


    The reason he was so amazed was because he knew why he had not received any points. For the second time in his life, he had felt the system working, and this time he had understood a little bit of how the system points worked.


    When he had completed his divination, he had felt the Tao react, and it had rewarded his augury with some mysterious golden energy. At the same time, the system had reached out to harvest that energy, and transform it into a translucent substance Avery understood to be his experience points.


    The problem was that since he was divining his visualization, it was not the real the Tao that had reacted, but his own Tao, the one of the mental world. Perhaps it would be more accurate to call it his Dao?


    Anyways, that was what had responded. Since the Dao was a part of Avery, this was just him giving himself something, and nothing was actually gained. This was why he had gotten zero points.


    However, if he tried a new divination in the outside world, it would presumably provoke a response from the true Tao, and the system would convert whatever the Tao gave into points. Sadly, he would not be able to feel the reaction of the true Tao, so for now it would remain an unconfirmed theory.


    That theory did have a lot of implications. This was the first time Avery had ever heard of the Truth responding to a mortal''s actions, and he had never seen any reference to this while studying the Avenue.


    He knew he would eventually learn more about what it was as he delved deeper in the mysteries of the Avenue, but even with the help of his world, comprehending the Tao remained a daunting task.


    It was as if you noticed a problem with your car, and wanted to fix it yourself. You knew almost nothing about how a car worked, but you had a technical manual that explained everything about it. That did not automatically make you an expert. You knew that all the information you wanted was there, easily accessible, but it would still take a long time to read and understand it, and even more to be able to make use of it.


    The fact that the Tao rewarded his actions was fascinating, but it didn¡¯t really change anything for now. What was perhaps even more interesting was the fact he had felt the system work.


    It had been incredibly hard to sense, and it was even more elusive than mana had been, but at least now he knew it did not break the laws of conservation of energy or anything.


    There was no doubt it was still extraordinary, still far above Avery¡¯s realm, but since he could feel it work, it meant that it operated according to the rules of reality. It had to work in a defined way, and therefore it would not disappear without a reason, leaving him to die.


    This did mean that it was possible for something to be powerful enough to mess with his system, and that it was not infallible. He should not blindly trust it, but one day as he grew stronger, he would also have the opportunity to completely understand and control his system.


    He found the idea that this was not a gift from god, or something that so utterly transcended his reality he would never be able to understand it rather reassuring.


    It was more real and grounded than that, and it gave Avery the sentiment he had control over his own destiny. Nothing was impossible to attain, not even the legendary system, and achieving his goals was just a matter of time, effort and opportunity.

 Chapter 38 : Primitive

    Turning his attention away from his grand ambitions for the future, Avery offered a moment of silence for the death of the first living beings of his world, reminiscing on what he had seen during his divination. Apparently they had not managed to adapt to the transformation of the world, and no longer fit the new order. History had been retroactively rewritten, and they had become inert landscapes.


    However, while they might not have survived, their legacy had. Their vitality, despite not being strong enough to transform them along with the world, was still extremely precious, and unique to this nascent world.


    As their body metamorphosed into rivers and mountains, that vitality had been condensed into five drops of divine blood, to be repurposed. It was from those five drops of blood that new life had sprung out, and started to repopulate the earth. Every creature in the world was a descendant of the divine beasts, carrying their bloodline throughout the ages.


    Of course, the bloodline had gradually been diluted to the extreme, and most creatures had very little in common with their divine ancestors. Despite this, the blood bond was still present, and many common physical traits came from them.


    Satisfied with this explanation of the divine beats'' demise, Avery looked around, wanting to get a better understanding of the general situation of the world. He had previously created this world according to his memory of Chinese myths, so he had expected to end up with a version of the Prehistoric world, full of cultivators and famous figures like Hongjun, Nuwa and Kunpeng. It might be a little off on account of his sloppy memory, but should still be easily recognizable.


    This world, however, was completely different. There were a few references here and there, but it was clear that it was its own thing, and would follow a unique path suited for itself.


    The next thing he did was to check for any sapient life, and was thrilled to find that one had already appeared. After decades of solitude, he would finally have some company.


    Chasing the vague feeling he felt through the Dao, he managed to get a location, and immediately zoomed in on it.


    He had expected to find a small camp inhabited by a group of primitive humans, or maybe they would be replaced with beastmen, elves or even dragons if the world had taken a full fantasy route. The race of inhabitants was not important, but he expected to find a medieval settlement and signs of a relatively established culture.


    Instead, the only thing he found was a flat plain with a few boulders dotted around. He looked around in a confused manner, before delving back in the intricacies of his Dao sight, attempting to find out more precisely from where the vitality came. He wondered if the creatures were invisible or too small to be noticed, or if he had made a mistake in understanding what his new sense had told.


    Suddenly, before he had time to find an answer through the Dao, a dinosaur-like creature entered his field of view, distracting him. Hopeful that this was the intelligent being he was tracking, Avery turned to examine it. It was powerful looking, its shape vaguely reminiscent of a velociraptor. It ran on four legs, with a long scaly tail trailing behind it, counterbalancing the weight of its horned head.


    It was obviously a predator, with a mouth filled with a row of disturbingly sharp fangs, and a body built for speed, perfect for catching unsuspecting prey. A prey it was currently holding in his mouth, no doubt searching for a safe spot to devour it without worry.


    It certainly looked fearsome and full of savagery, but it did not look like it had a very high intellect. Not only did his eyes look devoid of wisdom, it also seemed to lack the necessary limbs to use any of its supposed intelligence. It simply didn''t have enough articulation to perform delicate tasks.


    He supposed it could be like a dolphin, using its intelligence in complex social dynamics, instead of being like humans crafting useful tools and inventing technology. However, as far as he could see, this creature hunted alone, and had no companion.


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    He was about to give up and go back to searching through the insane amount of data his perception force-fed him to get clearer answers to all of his questions, when he saw the dinosaur stumble and fall, the grass beneath his feet giving way to reveal a deadly pitfall trap. Even its final cry was strangled as the unfortunate creature impaled himself on the array of sharpened wooden spikes that adorned the bottom of the trap.


    Already surprised by the sudden death of the creature, Avery was further shocked to see one of the huge boulders suddenly start to tremble.


    Slowly, the rock rose up from the ground, until there was enough space for half a dozen pitch black snakes to slither out from under it, presumably to enjoy the fruit of their patient hunt.


    However, there was something unsettling with these serpentine hunters. They did not have shiny scales, but a repulsive slimy skin, covered in disturbing mucus. Their very body shape was unnatural too.


    When they had first come out from under the boulder, they had seemed relatively small, with a diameter of no more than a few centimeters, but as the seconds ticked by, more and more of their body was revealed, with its diameter also slowly increasing. By now, they extended for more than two meters, with a width of almost half a meter at the rim of the boulder.


    It was as if they were coming out with their tails first instead of their heads. Not only that, but even the way they moved was unsettling, as they violently broke apart and burrowed in the earth to get a grip and drag themselves forward, instead of the graceful slither commonly associated with snakes.


    It took a moment for Avery to realize he was not looking at the hidden nest of a group of snakes, but rather the nightmarish tentacles of an eldritch creature. He wasn¡¯t scared, as his new nature and thought process would not allow him to make a fuss over such a small matter, but it did elicit a kind of morbid curiosity.


    The tentacles were not particularly fast, but each movement exuded an unmistakable sense of weight, highlighting the tremendous damage a three meter long limb made out of pure muscles was capable of dealing.


    Finally fully extended, the tentacles suddenly dug deep into the ground, and they labourously started to drag their rock-like main body towards the pitfall trap.


    The lumbering behemoth was far from agile, and it left deep and unmistakable scars in the earth behind it, ruining all of its previous camouflage. This was why one last pair of tentacles was revealed, this one a dark green color.


    The color was not the only difference, as these feelers were also much thinner, and were constantly dripping with a weird green slime that tainted any ground it touched. As the cunning monster moved, these limbs extended back to cover up his tracks, flattening the earth behind it and using the strange substance it secreted to give back a green grassy look to the turned over soil. The sloppy disguise would not hold up to an attentive scrutiny, but it was enough to fool a careless animal.


    By now, it was painfully clear this wasn''t a real rock, but rather the camouflaged shell of a huge tentacle monster. And now that he knew what to look for, Avery easily spotted similar tracks leading to every single boulder in immediate proximity.


    Evidently, he had found what he was looking for, but instead of a settlement of familiar humans or beautiful elves, fate had given him a group of cunning monsters, with a civilisation so primitive it could barely be counted as one.


    Not knowing what to feel, Avery silently watched as the monstrosity dragged itself towards the corpse of its prey. The journey was excruciatingly slow, as it was obviously extremely heavy.


    Finally, the monster arrived at the edge of the edge of the deadly pit. Avery was expecting it to use its tentacles to fish out its prey, and was curious to see how it would rearm the trap, but that was not what happened.


    Instead, the creature heaved itself slightly above the ground, and slowly maneuvered itself so that its body was perfectly covering the hole, at which point he let himself fall on top of it, making it disappear.


    Now, it would have all the time it wanted to enjoy his meal, which would even be preserved and stay fresh for longer because it was being kept underground, away from the sun and heat.


    Despite being impressed by their cunning, Avery was still slightly repulsed by the vile appearance of these creatures, but he knew better than to judge a creature by its appearance. He had done that once before, and had only resulted in him being banished to this god-forsaken land.


    Deciding he needed to try and interact with them, he tried to mobilise the powers he should have over this world, imagining himself appearing in front of the boulder, but nothing happened.


    Frowning, he tried to establish a telepathic link, followed by any other means of communication he could think of, but the results were always the same. He was a silent observer, with absolutely no ability to influence or enter into contact with the world he was ruling.

 Chapter 39 : Introspection

    Avery was the creator of this world, and technically ruled it, but he was not all powerful.


    Before, the level of the visualization was too high compared to his body and soul, and it was normal that he had no control. However, now that he had fully integrated as the ruler of this realm, he had thought he would naturally be granted ultimate power over it. Unfortunately, this was not how things worked.


    He had hoped his transformation would have given him more control over the inner workings of his world, but apparently not. He was not a God who could shape and reshape the world at a whim, or a Sage with boundless magical powers. He held the position of the Tao, and despite the unparalleled honor that was, it also came with extreme restrictions.


    <hr>


    Avery often compared the Tao to God, since that was a concept he was much more familiar with. However, the more he learned about the Avenue, the more he saw the limitation of this comparison. No matter how enthralling and divine the Truth seemed, there were key differences between the two.


    A god was a creature that transcended reality, and that had created the world because he had wanted to, not by necessity. He could care immensely for his creation, going to extreme lengths to ensure its well being, but in the end he was above it all.


    It was like a human treasuring a vase he had crafted. He would be extremely upset if somehow that vase came to break, but it wouldn''t actually harm him, because he was separated from his possessions.


    The Tao was different. It was not the world¡¯s maker or ruler, it was the world. There was no part of the Avenue that was separated from the universe, and no part of the universe that was dissociated from the Tao. In the end, perhaps it was not so much the ultimate creator and more that it was a divine seed from which the universe sprouted.


    A God was also different because the name implied it was a sentient creature. It had desires, values and often enemies. The Avenue simply was. It merely followed its own rules, in a rigid but infinitely complex way. It had no Goals, or any opinions on what the world should be like. It only ordained that it existed.


    That did not mean it could not be biased in any way, rewarding some things and punishing others, but that was not motivated by some great plan or vision. No, that was simply the way it was.


    And that was the way it would stay, because without anything to influence it, it would simply follow its own rule for all eternity. That was why the free will of sapient creatures was so important.


    It was the only thing that did not have to flow according to the natural cycles, the only thing that could express creativity, the only thing that could have a true impact on the world. Enlightened beings held the power to completely transform the world and the Tao, for better or for worse.


    He had often dreamt of being accepted by the Avenue, but now, after decades spent studying it, he realized this was not how things worked.


    It simply did not have the intelligence to accept or reject him. Becoming a part of this world was not a matter of recognition, it was a matter of him forcing his way in, and tricking the world into thinking he was a native from the beginning.


    <hr>


    There were obviously multiple worlds, and Avery liked to imagine each one of them was a beautiful tapestry.


    He had previously been one of the many threads on the tapestry of earth, but a mysterious accident happened, and he had been torn out and thrown across the room, where he landed on the tapestry of the prehistoric.


    From afar it might look like Avery was part of this work of art, but in actuality he was only a wandering thread that had fallen on it, and he wasn¡¯t truly part of it. A small breeze would be enough to pick him up again and exile him to god-knows-where.


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    Avery liked this analogy a lot, because he thought it accurately reflected his humble position. In the grand scheme of things, he was only a small, loose thread. Not worthless of course, he could be a very pretty piece of thread, but his potential would only be fully released if he was part of something bigger. Only when millions of threads merged together would they truly form a stunning picture.


    That was why Avery wanted to become an immortal so badly, as he theorised that through ascension, he would be reborn as a child of this world, and be completely integrated.


    To do that, he needed to explore the Truth. As a thread, stuck to the surface of the tapestry, he had very limited vision. He could see a lot of things happening around him, but most of it seemed random and nonsensical. To contemplate the Truth was to take a step back and view the world from afar, and only then would all of the elements meld together to form a wonderful picture.


    You were still technically looking at the same thing as before, but with new context and perspective, he could now better understand the whys and the hows of the world.


    Since Avery was not really a piece of thread but had some agency of his own, he would be able to improve himself and work to follow this order. And once he knew enough, he would be able to weave himself in that tapestry as a powerful immortal.


    But even if weaving himself into something greater was infinitely better than to remain a forgotten piece of string, that was not the end of Avery¡¯s ambitions. He wanted more than to just be a part of the Tao, more than just being an unremarkable thread among a million others.


    He wanted to become a piece of art himself. Once he was an immortal, he would continue learning from the Truth, and strive to imitate it. As he learned more, he would gain in length and color, until one day he would have grown enough to be able to weave himself into a picture of his own, a smaller painting that was part of a larger piece.


    The Avenue was a huge mural depicting countless things, from the 33 heavens to Mount Bouzu and the netherworld, but some of those scenes had their own identity. That was what Saints were.


    The six reincarnations were made by empress Houtu, and both of them were indistinguishable, like the world was indistinguishable from the Tao.


    If one day the empress decides to become independent and exile herself from this world, as it was her right as a saint, then she would leave with the entire netherworld. By herself, she equaled the Avenue in nature, and was a piece of art by its own merits. It would be smaller and perhaps less expansive, but in the end it would be a complete world nonetheless, and one with just as much potential as the prehistoric.


    To dream of the Tao was not to accept it as an overlord, becoming a mere super powered lackey, nor was it to forgo your own individuality to serve it.


    No, to dream of the Tao was to study it, using it to grow until you reached it, and it didn¡¯t stop there.


    To dream of the Tao was to wish to equal it, and by doing so add to it. It was to catch up to it, and then continue walking together ever forward throughout eternity, in a mutually beneficial relationship. And if one day they were separated, you would simply form a smaller picture, instead of merely being a loose thread.


    <hr>


    That was Avery¡¯s dream, but that would take countless years to achieve. Right now, what mattered was that this new outlook on the nature of the Avenue explained his current powerlessness.


    The Tao was not a sentient being, it was a complex set of rules undergoing endless self-contained evolutions. It was not designed to have a consciousness and be controlled by it.


    If a human was made tiny and climbed into the driver''s seat of an RC car, then he would still not be able to drive it. There would be no working steering wheel, no acceleration or brake pedals, or anything of the sort. Everything was designed to work with a remote control, and just because someone was in the toy car did not mean that it would suddenly work differently.


    That was Avery¡¯s current position. He was in command of the virtual the Tao, but he could no more influence the events of the world than a human could control his individual blood cells. He still had some overall control, being able to influence the world space and time, but he could already do that before fusing with it.


    There might be some obscure workarounds he had not yet discovered, or some ways to influence the world he was missing, but for now it was best he focused most of his attention on familiarising himself with his new identity. He just needed to let natural evolution work its magic, keeping an eye on what happened to the creatures of his world, especially the eldritch rock monsters.


    Hopefully soon some more palatable creatures would evolve and gain sapience.

 Chapter 40 : Irrigation

    Since he was powerless to influence anything, he decided not to waste time moping around. He should concentrate on acclimating himself to his new nature. He knew it brought along endless potential, but he needed time to uncover it, and even more to find the best way to use it.


    But while that might have been the most efficient use of his time, he knew he would not be able to ignore the prospect of meeting other creatures. After decades of loneliness, companionship was more precious to him than he had realized.


    He might not be able to directly grant greater intelligence to some species, but he could let natural evolution proceed in an accelerated manner. He zoomed out to a galactic scale, and time sped up accordingly. He did not want to spend centuries waiting for sentient rocks to develop a culture, so he just pressed fast forward, stopping every few minutes to check nothing had changed.


    For a long time, nothing happened. These monsters were exceptionally intelligent animals, but they had not quite reached human standards, especially in regards to creativity. Coupled with their static and patient nature, they had very little incentives to change or improve.


    Their current lifestyle was already enough for them to live comfortably, and there was no reason to change anything. During the last five hundred years, the only novelty or invention they had come up with was to dig underground irrigation tunnels, to combat their one major weakness - the lack of water while traveling.


    It turned out they were a migratory race, a lifestyle necessitated by their insufficiently developed camouflage. Each time these huge boulders dragged themselves across the dirt, they would leave behind deep tracks, and despite their best efforts to hide them, to the attentive eye, they were easily noticeable.


    While predators would not pay any special attention to the state of the grass, and would therefore gladly run over the poorly concealed tracks, herbivores were different. They were experts on all plant-related stuff, and had to be constantly on guard against any potential danger, so they would easily notice something wrong with the covered up tracks and make sure to stay clear of the area.


    That was generally not a problem, as the rock monsters could survive just from catching a predator from time to time. The issue with scaring off herbivores was that there was no one to graze the grass anymore. The vegetation would be free to grow without restraint, and after only a few weeks, it would become visibly different from the surrounding flora.


    It would become a circle of tall herbs in an otherwise well kept clearing, and the tracks would become even more obvious, as ground coloring could maybe pass as short grass, but not if it was surrounded by tall grass. That was a red flag to even the most inattentive beast to stay clear of the area.


    The field would become a forbidden area, and to avoid succumbing to starvation, the rock monsters would be forced to migrate to another hunting ground. Each of these ¡°migrations¡± would be less than a kilometer, just enough to be outside of the suspicious region, yet that journey often took weeks. It would also be extremely dangerous, and it would be one of the only times these creatures would ever face mortal danger.


    In half a millennium of observation, Avery had counted less than a hundred attacks towards any of them, all of them by accident, and none of those had dealt any damage. No one was interested in fighting a rock, and said rock was strong enough to handle any half-hearted strikes.


    He had also seen a few of them die after a small tsunami had flooded the plains, killing a huge portion of the animal population and starving the rest, but those were exceptional circumstances. With their strong defenses and convincing camouflage, they had no natural enemies, and Avery had yet to see one of them die of old age, so the only remaining dangers were thirst and starvation.


    The creatures obviously had a very slow metabolism, probably hibernating most of the time, so even food wasn¡¯t a huge issue under normal circumstances.


    The only weakness of this monstrosity was water. It had a huge grey body that stayed immobile in the sun all day. It needed a constant supply of water to keep the inside of its shell cool and avoid being baked in the sun, and to humidify his delicate tentacles.


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    It could not survive for more than a few hours without a supply of fresh water. Usually, they dug deep in the ground until they found the water table and used their tentacles as straws to drink. But their tentacles were only three meters long, and sometimes they would be unlucky and would dig where the water was buried deeper, so that they could not reach it. With how slow they traveled, they almost never had time to try again at another location, and would be doomed to die of thirst.


    And since it was impossible to determine which land had easily accessible water from afar, whether they survived or died was entirely up to lady luck.


    To avoid putting all of their eggs in the same basket, when it was time to migrate, they would split off in six groups, and would head off in different directions. On average, at least one of those groups would be unlucky, with every one of its members dying of thirst.


    The only reason that the death rate was not higher was that this area was exceptionally humid, and that they always chose to travel on rainy days, reducing their dependence on groundwater.


    This was also the reason none of them had ever left these plains. The land they lived on was a bassin under the sea level, with a much lower elevation than everything surrounding it. This was great as it meant a lot of water pooled down here, and became an easy attainable drinking source.


    If you dug out a well on the top of a mountain, you would need to dig much farther than if you placed it in the bottom of a valley. Right now they were in the valley, but if they ever tried to climb out of this bowl-shaped land, their tentacles would no longer reach down into the subterranean waters, and they would be sure to quickly die out.


    Even the nearby sea was of a higher elevation, and was hidden behind soft hills, those imperceptible slopes an impassable barrier to these creatures.


    This dependence on groundwater was their only weakness, and it was the main challenge that these monsters would ever face in their life. But a challenge was meant to be overcome, and after decades of useless death, even these passive creatures had enough.


    Finally, a particular experienced member of this species had an idea. He would resolve the issue the same way he hunted prey, using their intellect and digging capabilities. Avery wasn¡¯t sure how they had communicated, but they evidently had, because that day marked the beginning of a great project of an entire race working together.


    The idea had come when one of them realized that water flowed to occupy whatever space he dug for it. From that, it had concluded that they would be able to control the flow of water and bring it with them by digging irrigation tunnels.


    Everyone had agreed this was a great idea, and the project had immediately begun. They all participated in the operation, digging endless tunnels, dreaming of the day they could drink from everywhere in the plains. And now, more than four hundred years later, it was still under construction, and it progressed at a snail¡¯s pace.


    To be honest, it wasn¡¯t that great of an idea to begin with. It would have been much easier to find a way to mark and communicate habitable spots, or build some kind of straw to drink water that was farther down. But what made this project so valuable was actually its flaws rather than its success.


    Irrigation was a complex subject, and tunneling was even more complicated, so their enterprise was soon met with many problems. What would they do with all the dirt they dug up? Digging led to a lot more physical exertion, which in turn led to more energy consumption, which meant they needed to eat more. How could they improve their hunting techniques to cope with the growing demand for food?


    Having a difficult goal forced them to use and develop their intelligence, instead of mindlessly rebuilding the same traps with no originality.


    One of the problems they overcame were cave-ins. At first, their goal was basically to hollow the entire plains, and they never thought about what would then support the ground. This led to a lot of unfortunate cave-ins.


    Cave-ins by themselves were not very dangerous for these powerful creatures, but it would force them to migrate early to flee the ruined landscape, indirectly endangering them. So they had to learn how to dig safely, and change their plans from just hollowing the earth to building a more sophisticated tunnel system.


    It also took a long time for them to figure out that water did not simply ¡°fill in whatever hole you dug¡±, but followed the rules of gravity, always flowing downstream. In the end they recorded and passed down that knowledge. They even started carving maps on their shells. It was not quite writing, but was already very close.


    This project was of a huge cultural and historical significance, and showed a level of cooperation that humans might never achieve, but it also wasn¡¯t very thrilling to watch.


    Avery did not want to denigrate this project, as it was a game-changer, potentially kickstarting the development of the entire world. But after five hundred years, he had to admit he was expecting something more impressive.

 Chapter 41 : Zoology

    Avery continued observing, cheering on the living rocks as they learned and improved, slowly growing more civilised, until one of them stumbled on something quite extraordinary.


    It started out as a day like any other, with one of the creatures peacefully digging a tunnel according to the routine, using the techniques he had learned from his elders. He wasn¡¯t a particularly remarkable specimen either, and the only significant difference he had with the rest of his species was that had been gifted with slightly longer tentacles. That, and that it was about to discover a world-changing item.


    Everything was going when he suddenly felt his tentacle spasm in intense pain. He had hit something buried deep underground, and his tentacle had been almost cut off. This did happen from time to time, as their tentacles were much more fragile than their hard shell, but it had never felt so easy to cut through ten centimeters of powerful muscles.


    Once abiding to the advice given by the elders, the creature ignored the pain, and carefully shifted the earth around the harmful object to bring it up to the surface without hurting himself. This was protocol, as any sharp rocks they found were precious commodities that could be used in their traps.


    However, as the supposed stone shard broke the surface, it revealed itself to be something completely different. It was a translucent object that seemed to be midway between illusion and reality. It emitted a soft white light, hiding its form and making it impossible to ascertain its shape.


    The living rocks were very confused by it, but Avery recognised it instantly. It was one of the fragments of the jade butterfly of fate, which had fallen to earth during the creation of the world.


    It wasn¡¯t one of the 1000 defined runes, those that mirrored the runes Avery knew about in reality. It was one of the undefined fragments, who¡¯s usage and meaning was still unknown.


    Even when he checked what it was through his Dao sight, he was not able to ascertain their purpose and returned empty handed. It wasn¡¯t that he did not manage to find or understand the information either. It was that information did not exist, because those runes had not yet been attributed an identity. They were one of the vestiges of the incomplete creation of the world, an inadequacy that still needed to be remedied.


    Avery wasn¡¯t sure what it meant for there to be 2000 magical items of undefined use in his world, but one thing was certain. He was witnessing a historical moment, as this was the first time living creatures would come into contact with magic.


    realizing the importance of this moment, he quickly focused his attention to a single proton, causing time to slow to a crawl, effectively pressing pause on all of the events happening in the world.


    Avery knew the boulders had a way to communicate, but he had never investigated how they did it in detail. It had been enough to watch from afar as the global civilisation advanced, and learning to understand their undeveloped animal talk was too much trouble for it to be worth it.


    Now, however, they had already matured a lot, and this was the first introduction of magical powers to the creatures of this world. He really did not want to miss the mess it would certainly cause just because he was being too lazy to learn to understand them.


    Before learning their language, he needed to find out which form of communication they used, as it was obviously not regular speech. For this, the first thing he had to do was to take a peek under their carapace and find out what organs they were equipped with.


    Predictably, most of the organs he was familiar with as a human were absent. In fact, the creature had a relatively simple anatomy. Its rocky shell was certainly huge, providing almost one and a half cubic meters of space to fill, but three quarters of that space dedicated to housing its massive rolled up tentacles. Of course, since the tentacles were almost always in use, it ended up being empty most of the time.


    The tentacles were arranged in a circular fashion, extending out from the rim of its shell. And from inside the circle they formed, was a terrifying maw. Rows upon rows of sharp teeth, with not a single flat tooth in sight. Its tentacles did a good enough job crushing bones and tearing enemies apart, so those teeth¡¯s only job was to tear flesh apart to make it more easily digestible.


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    Speaking of the digestive system, that was another thing that Avery recognised. It had a stomach, intestines and everything else it needed to live on a diet of meat, dirt and water. Accompanying it were huge pouches to store water and fat, and a unique breathing mechanism that extracted oxygen from the millions of minuscule holes in its shell.


    Last but not least, was its nine brains. The main one was situated at the very center of the monster, where it was the most protected, and eight smaller sub-brains at the base of each tentacle.


    That was it. No eyes, no ears that could hear though its carapace, no tongue to taste or talk. They even lacked any kind of reproductive organs. So how did they communicate with the outside world?


    As with most things that had to do with these creatures, the answer laid in their remarkably versatile tentacles. They were equipped with powerful tremor sensing abilities, capable of sensing and emitting minute vibration through the earth.


    He was going to study how they worked when he was stunned by the many functions of the tentacles. What surprised Avery wasn¡¯t so much what they could do, but rather how well they could do it, and how fast they had improved.


    He had already gotten a superficial glance at their tentacles when he had first seen the creatures, equivalent to five hundred years ago for them, and they had looked quite different back then. It was not the fact that they had changed that was unbelievable, but how much and how fast it had happened.


    Half a millennia ago, these creatures already had eight tentacles, but of those, six of them were identical, designed solely to move their heavy mass, while the last pair was more delicate and used to craft traps and cover up tracks.


    Now, not only had the general length of their tentacles increased, they had also become way more specialised.


    A pair of them had lengthened considerably, much more than all of the others, while simultaneously becoming thinner and more agile to more easily edge its way in the earth and reach water. Its ability to act as a straw and suck the water up to the main body had also been improved, while all the other tentacles had lost that ability.


    Two others had specialised in what Avery was currently interested in, namely tremor sense. They were the ones whose appearance had changed the most, as instead of wet and slimy skin, they were covered in stiff fur-like lamellas designed to catch any incoming vibrations. He did not really understand how it all worked, but it involved huge amounts of nerves and tiny muscles, as well as a strange viscous liquid trapped behind the mass of sensorial fibers.


    In terms of strength, these tentacles were the weakest ones, but they more than made up for it with their astonishing precision. They were capable of accurately measuring the movements of their fur to the micrometer, and use it to send equally precise signals.


    They used this both as a sort of underground echo localisation, to replace sight, and as a communication method, replacing ears and tongues. It did not have a huge range, but they could hear the minute vibration of a nearby tentacle that was less than a few dozens of meters away.


    Besides that, they still had four strength-based tentacles, but a pair of them had still changed slightly, taking a more angular shape. This was no doubt to facilitate digging, as it could now be used as a sort of shovel to separate and carry the dirt, instead of roughly pushing it away.


    Avery had found what he was looking for, but something about all this was disturbing him. He could understand the living rocks becoming smarter and building a primitive civilisation, as intellectual progress went a lot faster than natural evolution. but this was different, as they had undergone extreme physical changes in a very short time frame.


    He was not surprised by the changes themselves, as he could totally see how they were all evolutionarily advantageous. What baffled him was how quickly they had changed. His memories of his science classes were a little iffy, but he was pretty sure evolution was normally nowhere near this quick.


    It normally took at least hundreds of thousands of years, or perhaps a million years for any significant physical transformation to occur. How was it possible that he was seeing such drastic modification after only a few centuries?


    A quick search through his Dao sight database revealed no easy answers, so Avery decisively pushed those distracting thoughts aside to concentrate on his initial goal.


    He had found how the creatures communicated, and with quasi-omniscience, he would have no trouble hearing their conversations. The only thing left to do was to become fluent in vibrating tentacle talk.


    On earth, Avery had had a hard time learning foreign languages, and had known almost nothing of Spanish despite studying it for almost ten years. However, compared to unraveling the mysteries of the Tao, even learning a completely alien language should be child''s play. With him having access to all of the information he wanted, it should not take more than a few weeks to learn it. And with the current rate of the flow of time, that would translate to less than a nanosecond for the living rocks.

 Chapter 42 : Blessing

    Avery ended up needing only a few days to master the alien language. Apparently he was still underestimating how much his mind had progressed, and how overpowered his quasi-omniscience cheat was.


    Eager to put his new skill to use, he made his perception sphere zoom back out to the scale of a dozen meters, and the march of time sped up accordingly.


    The living rock he was interested in was currently calling to the rest of his group, asking advice on what to do with the magical fragment. Glad he had reacted fast enough and hadn¡¯t missed anything, Avery paid close attention to what they were saying.


    ¡°I found something. It is sharp. Very dangerous. Useful for Traps. But it is different. It is strange. Invisible but not. I want to touch it.¡±


    This message got a response from everyone in hearing range, making it quite difficult for Avery to understand. He might be a master in theory, having memorised all of the vocabulary and grammatical rules of this unique language, but he had absolutely no practice. It was still a challenge to follow the fast flowing conversation, despite its simplicity. Fortunately, most of them said the same thing, so he was able to make out the following conversation.


    ¡°Move it closer. We want to see. Unknown is valuable.¡±


    ¡°I cannot move it. Touching it hurts. I want to touch it. Why do I want to touch it? Touching it hurts. I still want to touch it.¡±


    A few of the older members of the group grew concerned, and advised him to be careful.


    ¡°You want to touch it but it hurts you. It is a trap. Our prey wants to approach us, but we hurt them. We make traps. We do not fall in traps. Do not touch it.¡±


    Unfortunately, those wise words were drowned in the mass of excited comments that came immediately after.


    ¡°You want to touch? Then touch! Follow the instinct! We are Sil''piceus! Our instincts are the best! How does it feel? Does it hurt? Do you see it better?¡±


    Spurred on by his companions, the creature stopped hesitating, and led by his instinct, he carefully extended his tentacle again. He realized a section of the mysterious object seemed more grounded in reality than the rest of it, appearing gray rather than translucent. This was the part that was calling to him, demanding he touch it, and as if by magnetism, his tentacle was inexorably drawn to it.


    Unsurprisingly, attempting to hold an object capable of easily shredding through his powerful muscles did not go well.


    It wasn¡¯t only a problem of the magical fragment being sharp, or having any harmful physical properties. There was obviously some kind of magical shenanigans going on, because despite only the very tip of his tentacle touching it, his wounds were slowly spreading up his limb.


    Copious amounts of pungent black blood flowed from his wound dripping down his tentacles. As it fell onto the fragment of the butterfly of fate, it seemed to be absorbed. And the more blood it drank, the more solid it became.


    ¡°It hurts! But it also feels good. It hurts too much. I stopped touching it. I want to touch it again. It is calling me. Calling harder. Touching is important! And now I can see it a little. I want to see more. I am going to touch it again.¡±


    The calling grew stronger still, becoming increasingly unresistable. While some other instinct inside of him tried to push back, screaming that hurting himself intentionally like that was folly, he paid it no mind. Despite the pain, touching it felt right, and he knew it demanded that he reach out to it again.


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    Once again dismissing the advice of his more experienced peers, the headstrong monster caressed the mesmerising object. In his foolish bravery, he silently bore with the pain as he watched it feed on his black blood.


    There seemed to be an odd magic at work here, one unknown even to this world''s creator. Slowly, the cursed item became more and more concrete, until finally, it was satiated, having become a completely real object.


    realizing that his blood was no longer being absorbed and that he was now hemorrhaging all over the ground, the reckless creature hesitantly retracted his tentacle. It was in such a sorry state it would be easier to rip it out and let a new one regrow rather than to let it heal, but somehow he felt it was worth it.


    ¡°I did it. It wanted blood. I gave it blood. It felt good. It hurt. I didn¡¯t like it. I like it now. I can see it.¡±


    ¡°What do you see?¡±


    ¡°It looks like me. It has tentacles. It has a shell. It is a Sil''piceus. It is small. It does not talk. It is not a true Sil''piceus. But it is big. It is a better Sil''piceus?¡±


    ¡°What are you saying? Is it big or not? Why is it a better Sil''piceus?¡±


    ¡°Size is not big. Importance is big. Very very big. My importance is small. Very very small. I need to touch it again. It needs me. I will help it.¡±


    ¡°You said touching it hurt you. Why do you want to touch it? Hurting a Sil''piceus is bad. We should use it to hurt prey.¡±


    Still hypnotised by the mysterious object, he reached out for a fourth time, ignoring all of the advice as always. This time, however, the magical fragment was already satiated. When the first drop of blood fell upon it, it did not get absorbed, but rather it spread to cover the entire surface of the object, definitively anchoring it in reality.


    As soon as the entire item was coated in blood, it seemed to become complete, and it accepted the owner of the blood which had given it substance as its master. This caused said unfortunate creature to be suddenly released from the spell he was under, and he finally recovered all of his rationality.


    With that freedom came an overwhelming sentiment of righteous indignation against the thing that had caused him so much pain. He waved his tentacles around menacingly, before screaming and hitting the cursed object with all of his strength.


    ¡°It hurts! Stop hurting! You hurt me. I will hurt you too! I will hurt you more!¡±


    As if responding to his demands, the cursed fragment suddenly pulsed with light, and his tentacles started healing at such a rapid pace it was visible to the naked eye.


    The creature froze, not knowing what to do as it felt a mystical energy entering his wounded limb, restoring it to peak condition. With the pain fading away to become a mere memory, his simple brains grew increasingly confused at the situation. What was this thing? Was it helpful or harmful? Why did it wound and then heal?


    ¡°What is happening? Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°It was a trap. I was prey. But it did not kill me. It did eat me. But I am alive. It did not eat all of me. Now I am not prey. It helps me. I am the master. What is a master?¡±


    ¡°We do not know. This object is strange. Strange and dangerous. It is also valuable. We must use it to improve our traps. But we must also be careful. We must ask for advice. The Elder will know what to do.¡±


    The elder they were referring to was not an older member of their small group, but rather the oldest member of their entire race. It was rumored he was more than two hundred years old. It was even said that while he himself did not invent or discover any revolutionary technique, he had taught many who did. It was an accepted fact that anyone who was lucky enough to become a part of his group was destined to live a long and fruitful life.


    The Elder was a legendary figure, the only Sil''piceus who had ever lived long enough for his reputation to become known to every member of his species while he was still alive. Unfortunately, It was very hard to contact the Elder.


    It wasn¡¯t that he did not want to help or that he was hiding, it was simply a natural result of their excruciatingly slow traveling speed. The plains they lived on were not huge, but they were not small either, and it would take decades for a determined Sil''piceus to crawl across it.


    In addition, the Elder himself was also constantly moving about, and his whereabouts were unknown. The only way to locate his group was to ask any group you met if they had seen him, and to follow their directions, while mostly relying on luck.

 Chapter 43 : Discussion

    Every Sil''piceus believed in their hearts that the Elder would know what to do. That was an undeniable fact, but with the difficulties involved in meeting with him, they still decided to try to figure this out themselves.


    ¡°Touch it again. Tell us what it does. Be careful. Be ready to stop touching or cut your tentacle off.¡±


    ¡°It does not hurt. It helps. It heals. It stopped healing. My tentacle is fixed. It has nothing more to heal. It helps.¡±


    ¡°Does it have a pointy part and a healing part? Some rocks are like that. They have a good end and a bad end. You have to hold them by the good end to avoid getting hurt.¡±


    ¡°It has no end. It is like Sil''piceus. The shell is round. It has tentacles. The tentacles have ends. I did not touch the tentacles. Only the round shell. It is both the good and bad end.¡±


    This exchange continued for a while, until they finally decided that verbal descriptions were not enough.


    ¡°We must know if it hurts others. Stay where you are. We will come and find you. Do not touch it again. Wait until we are here.¡±


    ¡°I wait. You come to me. Like prey. Don¡¯t get hurt. You are not prey.¡±


    It turned out that by ¡°We will be here soon¡±, they meant almost an hour later, during which Avery saw them inch their way towards the magical object. They even slowly formed an irregular circular formation that reminded him a bit of stonehenge. The scene looked oddly ritualistic, with a dozen eldritch monstrosities all surrounding the one of their kind who was holding a small black idol, with blood dripping all over it.


    Despite the disturbing appearance, this arrangement let them all have a clear view on the mysterious object. The Sil''piceus could sense a moving object from a long distance away, according to its mass. Often, the heavier it was, the more powerful the vibrations it would cause, which meant it could be heard from farther away.


    That was very useful to detect preys and predators, but they needed another method to see inert objects. Like echo localisation, they sent out vibrations from their tentacles, and could make things out by reading the signals that bounced back. The vibrations they sent were tiny, and the earth did not transmit them as easily as air did, so that form of detailed sight had a very limited range, and very low resolution. That was why they often lifted any unidentifiable object they found to the surface, so they could more easily make out its appearance by touching it.


    The central creature first buried the magical fragment in the earth to let everyone have a look at it using their Tremor sense. Then, at the request of his companions, he dug it up again and threw it to them, so that they could try and touch it themselves.


    ¡°It is strange. It does not hurt but does not help either. It does nothing. But we feel something. We are connected to it. It obeys us a little. But it obeys you a lot. You should try telling it what to do.¡±


    Having recovered the magical fragment, he tried to order it around, telling it to start flying around, or to vibrate and speak, but nothing happened.


    ¡°You said it healed you? Then try ordering it to help you like that. Tell it to make you strong. Tell it to make you very strong!¡±


    Following those suggestions, he gripped the fragment and wished to become stronger, able to break the earth with a single swing. Instantly, the fragment pulsed with light and his tentacle was enveloped in a dark ominous aura. Feeling an overwhelming sense of power, he tried hitting the ground, creating a small crater.


    This was far above what he could do normally. His tentacle was already powerful to begin with, but for it to have that effect, it needed to have become at least three times stronger. Excited, he tried again, but was disappointed to find his next strike perfectly normal.


    ¡°I asked to be strong. It made me strong. But only once. I hit very hard one time. The next time I had normal strength. It took my strength back.¡±


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    ¡°Ask for strength again and tell us if it works.¡±


    ¡°It works. But also only one time. Even if I ask a lot. I hit hard one time. And then I have to ask again.¡±


    ¡°We tried asking for strength like you. It did not work. Maybe we need to touch it for it to work. Or maybe it only likes you. You fed it blood. Give it to us. We will try.¡±


    They passed the fragment around, testing every theory they could think of. They managed to discover many things about how it worked, like the fact that it could grant power to anybody that requested it, but the effect would be much worse than if the central Sil''piceus asked for it. Instead of being three times stronger, they only became twice as strong.


    This led them to start calling him the Owner. Apparently, their culture had yet to assign a name to everybody. Only some special individuals would be granted a title, like the Elder, or the Owner.


    Besides that, they found out that they did not need to touch it for it to answer your prayers, but the closer you were to it, the better it worked. Touching it was still the best, and any effects would become unnoticeable if you were more than two or three meters away. Taking into account a Sil''piceus size, in practice this meant only one of them could be using it at the same time.


    Their animated research lasted for as long as any of them had any new ideas, which admittedly wasn¡¯t that long. After that, now having a vague idea of the fragment''s power, they did not calm down but instead started a heated debate on how they should use it.


    ¡°Why are we talking so much? It can hurt things. We put things that hurt at the bottom of our traps. We should put it in our traps.¡±


    ¡°No! It is very strong! Using it in a trap is a waste! Elder said we Sil''piceus are very smart. He said that we should not only copy what the others did but that we should try and improve it. Using this strange object in a trap is not an improvement. It is not better at hurting than sharp rocks. It needs someone to command it. Stone spikes do not.¡±


    ¡°Yes! We already have things that hurt. But we have nothing that heals. We have nothing that makes us strong. It is special!¡±


    ¡°Why do we need to be strong? We are already strong. Why do we need to heal? Our shell will protect us. It is special. But it is not valuable. It is useless. Put it in the traps!¡±


    ¡°Ask it to find the Elder! And then ask Elder what you would do!¡±


    Everyone quieted after hearing that affirmation. There were a few mumbles here and there, but everyone begrudgingly agreed that this was the best solution.


    Despite their enthusiasm, the Sil''piceus plan immediately failed. It turned out that asking for the location of Elder did not work, as the fragment remained unresponsive, refusing to answer any question. It was not a divination item, and had no intention of waking up for anything other than to grant someone magical powers.


    The Sil''piceus were disappointed, but they still decided they needed to ask for Elder''s help. This just meant they needed to find him the traditional way, scouring the land and relying on word to mouth to learn his whereabouts.


    This of course led to a third argument, as none of them agreed who should risk their lives to make the trip. The journey was expected to be very dangerous, since it was essentially an extended migration, being constantly on the move for an indeterminate amount of time. That meant living through the hardest and most stressful part of their lives for who knew how long.


    However, none of the Sil''piceus were willing to let a chance to meet the Elder go. Death was inevitable, but if they were part of the group that risked their lives to bring a civilization-changing object to the Elder, they would become Heroes. They would be given names to be forever remembered, and little Sil''piceus would one day dream of becoming like them.


    The argument went on for hours, but eventually they realized they needed to be realistic, and do what was best for the species. Finally, one of the oldest of the group turned to the Owner, and made it clear what should be done.


    ¡°You will have to go alone. If you are alone you can ask it to make you strong. If you are strong you can go faster. If you are fast you can go far and catch up to Elder. If you can catch up to Elder he will tell you what to do. You will not need us. The Sil''piceus needs you, and you need Elder.¡±


    The atmosphere became subdued after that statement. Everyone was secretly regretting that they were not the ones who had gotten this opportunity, and were doing their best to hide their disappointment. Meanwhile, the Owner was preparing for his perilous trip across the plains. His group made themselves as helpful as possible, but their heart just wasn¡¯t in it. They were all filled with a strange mix of regret, relief and anticipation.


    The Owner was given priority access to any prey they caught, so that he was always in top form. He slowly got into traveling mode, folding his utility tentacles neatly under his shell, leaving only the strength based limbs outside, ready to drag him across the earth.


    Since he was going to travel alone, and that he would be using all of his limbs to crawl faster, he saw no need to keep holding the item. He lodged it in his body, held in place by his folded limbs.


    All his preparations done, he silently waited for a suitably rainy day to commence his journey.

 Chapter 44 : (In)Side Story 1 : Journey

    The air is hot. The ground is hot. My body is hot. I hate the heat periods. They are always the same, hurting me by making the entire world try to burn me. My tentacles are drying out. The heat harms them. They are withering. I need to give them water, cold, and rest. I can give them none of those things.


    I am thirsty. My water pouches are almost empty, and my body is getting very dry. I cannot hear any water nearby. I need to travel farther and farther still until I find water.


    I am hungry. It has been too long since I have laid any traps. I cannot afford to. I have a mission, and I cannot waste any time digging a hole and waiting for prey.


    I know it is forbidden, but I even stopped covering up my tacks behind me. My camouflaging limbs are so dry, I think they would turn to dust if I leave them in the sun any longer.


    I am tired. It has been six cycles since I separated from the group, and since then I have been crawling without rest. I only stopped when I heard water. As soon as I had drunk enough, I went right back to crawling.


    I must find the Elder. I do not know where he is, so I must look everywhere. Everywhere is big, so I must be fast, and cannot stop to rest. I will continue, and I will accomplish my mission. I will be worthy of my Title.


    I caress the Mystery inside my carapace. It is valuable, and powerful. So powerful that the group gave me a Title. It obeys me, so I am the Owner. And I have a mission to show it to the Elder. The mission is important, the Mystery is important, and I am important. Too important to die of heat.


    I need to continue moving. I need to find water. I do not know how far the water will be. Please, Mystery, please fix my tentacles. Please give me food. Please give me water. Please tell me where to find water. Please tell me where the Elder is.


    The Mystery is not always helpful. It likes to heal. My tentacle is healed. But it does not like to give things or answers. Also, the Mystery does not do anything for free.


    Using the Mystery makes me tired. Not in the good ¡°Everything is ready and we only have to wait for prey to come¡± way. Not even in a ¡°I have worked very hard, and I don¡¯t want to work anymore¡± way. No, it makes me tired in a bad way. In a ¡°I need to continue moving to find water, but my tentacles feel too heavy to move¡± way. It is the worst kind of tiredness, the one that leads to Emptiness.


    It is not my tentacles that are tired. The Mystery has already fixed those. It is my brains. And the Mystery does not want to fix the tiredness of my brains. Only rest can heal my brains, but I cannot rest. The mission is too important.


    <hr>


    Traveling is not fun. It is not exciting. It is gruelling. Most of the time, there is nothing happening at all. You just have to drag yourself over the ground, one tentacle after the other, in an endless repetition of efforts.


    You can not even talk properly while traveling. It is impossible to send clear signals without digging your Communication tentacles deep in the ground. That also means it is hard to see. You can only see when something is very close, or very loud. The thing I am hearing right now is very loud.


    It is a very rhythmic sound, and it is getting louder and louder. It is difficult to see what is causing it because of how far away it is. But I don¡¯t need to see it to know what it is. There is only one thing in the world that likes to hit the earth like this. That is a prey running towards me.


    I do not know what to do. I need to build a trap! But I do not have time. I am alone, and working alone is slow. I do not know how fast the prey is, but they are never that slow. Besides, I cannot afford to stop and dig a trap. I have a mission, and building a trap alone takes many cycles. But I am hungry, and need to catch prey. I will die without it.


    The noise is getting louder. I am sure of it now. It is a prey. But maybe it is not food? I have no traps, so I cannot catch it.


    I met the Sharpener once. He told me that before they are in our traps, prey are not prey. They are enemies. They are predators. He said they could hurt us. How is that possible? I have never seen a prey hurt a Sil''piceus. Maybe he was wrong? No. He had a Title. That means he cannot be wrong.


    Then do I really have to let the prey leave? I am so hungry...


    What about the Mystery? It will not give me food, but it gives me strength. With strength, I can easily turn the maybe-prey into for-sure-food. Maybe the Mystery counts as a trap? That would mean anyone that touched me fell into my traps! Maybe that is how we should use the Mystery! It is a mobile trap that does not need to be prepared!


    I also have a Title, so I am also right! The thing coming is prey, and when I touch it, it will be falling into my Mystery trap. Then It will be food, and I will drink its blood to satisfy my thirst!


    I asked the Mystery for food and water before. Maybe it did actually help? By giving me prey and traps? Then the Mystery is even more valuable than we thought!


    The prey is coming closer. It must be very big, because I heard it a long time ago, and it is still not here. That means he is making a lot of noise, and only big prey do that. The prey is big. Bigger than me. That does not matter. I am a Sil''piceus, and I have a trap. It will fall into Emptiness, and I will be satiated.


    This prey may be big, but it not too fast. At least slow enough that I can see it clearly as it is approaching. Prey often have very strange bodies. This one is no exception. It is moving around on four support sticks, which cannot even bend properly. Like so many others, for some reason it thought that it was a good idea to put his mouth on the front of his thin body, instead of beneath it. Does it not know that food lives on the ground? It is stupid.


    At least this prey knows tentacles are the best. It does not have any, but I can see it tried to have some. It did not do it well. Its entire body looks like a stiff tentacle with random bits striking out of it, and a mouth in front.


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    Having a body in the form of an inferior tentacle was okay. Having a body that is the amalgamation of eight tentacles and nine brains is better. That is why Sil''piceus are better. That was why prey is prey.


    The prey is coming towards me slowly. I was scared it would pass by me, but it changed direction. Now it is coming directly towards me. Lucky me! Or maybe it is not luck, but the gift of the Mystery.


    The prey is here. In a few moments it will be close enough that I can hit it! Please, Mystery, give strength! Give me a lot of strength.


    My tentacles pulse in an ominous black light, and I feel that my prayer was answered. There is no time to waste. I am hungry, and need to get food.


    My tentacles whistled as they tear through the air towards my prey. It only took a fraction of a second for them to reach it. The impact makes four dull thumping noises. The prey is falling down. It should have known better than to stand on a bunch of fragile sticks.


    The prey is getting back up. How is it doing that? Prey never get back up after they fall into a trap. Why is this one different? Should I hit it again?


    It is coming towards me again. The Mystery really wants to give it to me. I hit it again. This time it does not even fall. It is turning around. Why is it doing that?


    The back of its tentacle-body hits my shell. It makes a booming sound. I shake a lot, but am not hurt. I even have a Mystery-trap, so of course I will not get hurt. My shell is the best, and heat is the only thing that can defeat it. Hitting is useless.


    I do not understand what the prey is doing. Why did it try to hit me? Was it trying to hurt me? Why would it try to hurt me? Does it think I am prey? I am not prey. I am a Sil''piceus. It cannot eat me.


    This is too confusing. I forgot to hit it again. Now it is turning away from me. Does it understand I am not prey?


    Pain. I am hurting so much. So much pain that one of my brains has stopped working. My main brain turned it off to stop it from transmitting the pain.


    The prey bit me. It tried to eat my tentacle. A huge chunk of my tentacle is haging limply in the prey''s mouth. I hate it. This is not supposed to happen.


    Mystery, help me! Heal my tentacle! Mystery, give me strength! Mystery, kill that prey!


    Why does the Mystery only help once? At least my tentacle is slowly healing. My flesh is growing back! But I feel brain-tired. But I will still ask for more strength!


    Pain. So much pain. My tentacle has fallen off. The prey bit me again. But this time it did not eat. It just continued biting, and then it pulled. It pulled so hard, it tore off half of my tentacle.


    The pain stopped. Now two of my brains are broken. This means I cannot move two of my tentacles. I only have two strong limbs left. What is happening? Why is the prey not acting like a prey? I hate it!


    Pain. It does not stop hitting me. It does not stop biting me. My black blood is flying everywhere. I feel weak. This cannot go on. I have one combat tentacle left. The Sharpener was right. The prey is not a prey. It wants to eat me. I need to eat it first!


    I unfold all of my tentacles and start attacking. My drinking tentacles immediately start withering in the heat. It does not matter. Mystery, give me strength! I am a Sil¡¯piceus, and I will not become prey!


    I am stupid. With my sensing tentacles waving in the air, I cannot see where the prey is. Where is it? I am only hitting the air. The Mystery¡¯s power is wasted. I feel too tired to continue.


    Pain. One of my drinking tentacles is torn off. It is too fragile. It hurts so bad. But I remember where my tentacle was. And the prey must be right in front of it.


    I missed it. Only one of my weak tentacles barely hit something. The prey has already moved away. I feel even more tired. My brain is slowing down.


    Pain. My last strong tentacle is limp. It is being eaten. But my other tentacles are close. I can hit the prey.


    It feels nothing. My remaining limbs are too weak. I try to wrap my tentacles around it, to stop it from biting me again. It is too strong.


    I am too tired. Five brains are not enough to stay awake. I want to rest. But I cannot. Sleeping near the not-prey means falling into the Emptiness. I cannot do that.


    I have a mission. I have a Title. That means I am important. I always dreamed of having a Title. Now that I have one, I will prove myself to be worthy of it. That means turning this not-prey into food.


    ¡°Mystery, give me strength!¡±


    I know that I only need to speak with my brain, but I am using my whole tentacle to scream for help.


    I will have to let go of the not-prey to be able to hit it properly. I have to be fast otherwise I will lose track of it and it will bite me again.


    My tentacles glow with power. I will have to be quick. Before I can let go of the not-prey, I feel it struggle in my grasp. It is hurt. It is very hurt. Why is it hurt? I did not hit it yet.


    My sensing tentacles are touching it, so I can look at what is happening inside of it. For some reason, the insides of its body are melting.


    I think it is because of my communication tentacles. I was screaming, which meant they were vibrating, and the Mystery makes the vibrations very strong. Then the vibration travels through everything I touch, including the body of the maybe-prey-now. And that hurts it a lot.


    Why does vibrating hurt it? It does not hurt me. That does not matter. It is good. I want it hurt. I hit it without letting go, and that will stop the vibrating. How do I hurt it more?


    Hitting it is not a good idea. I tried that with my strong tentacles, and it did nothing. Besides, I do not want to stop touching and holding it. Then it would stop getting hurt and it would escape.


    I have an idea. I will squeeze it a lot. With the Mystery, I am very strong, and I do not like being squeezed a lot. I hope the please-be-prey does not like it either. I hope it hurts a lot. I hope it hurts enough that it becomes Empty. Mystery, give me more strength.


    The Mystery is giving me strength. I am giving it mysterious brain energy.


    I want to squeeze the please-die-quickly-prey very hard. I want to end it all. But I am too tired. I am only squeezing a little.


    I want to hurt it more. I want to make sure it becomes food. Then I want to eat its flesh and drink its blood. Only then will I be in a suitable state to continue my mission.


    I want to do many things, but my body is not obeying me. My vibrations are slowing down. My grip is weakening. I am falling asleep. I can feel it. I want to stop it, but I cannot. Sleep is too strong, even stronger than my brains.


    I will never give up. Sleep is strong, but my will is stronger. I will persevere. I will turn the prey into food. I will survive. I will find Elder. I will be worthy of my Title.


    I am the Owner, and I will accomplish my mission.


    <hr>


    The prey is falling down. The inside of its body has completely turned to soup. It is not prey anymore. It has already become food. I have won.


    It was hard, and I got very hurt, but in the end I was right. I do not need to dig traps. Mystery is my trap. I just need to learn to use it better.


    All that is for later. Right now, I am hungry and thirsty. I should not waste the fruit of my labor. It is time to feast. Then it will be time to sleep.


    Then it will be time to find the Elder.

 Chapter 45 : Change

    Avery watched with a bemused smile as the Owner scoured the land in his search for the Elder. His quest had lasted for almost ten years, and he was finally reaching his goal.


    He had been unlucky, and had passed by the Elder twice, missing him by no more than a few kilometers. Ironically, his initial group had been lucky enough to meet the Elder a few years ago. It was a cruel trick of fate, as he would have been better off simply continuing to live his peaceful life with his companions.


    Instead, he had gone through unimaginable trials and tribulations, facing death at every turn, only to fail to achieve his goal for a decade. He had been pushed to his limit over and over again, and only his sheer determination to succeed had kept him going.


    Being approximately 30 years old, the Owner was still relatively young, but he had already experienced more than ninety percent of this world''s living creatures. Not only that, but he had also achieved a mastery of fighting that had never been reached before.


    He had slowly evolved from a hopeless rookie unable to follow what was happening during a fight, only blindly reacting to pain with no strategy whatsoever to a seasoned veteran.


    He did not have a very creative imagination, so he did not pioneer any new methods of fighting with the magical fragment. After the first few weeks, the only thing he ever asked for was strength. He simply never found anything more beneficial and reliable than brute force.


    However, while his prayers were simple, what he did with them was anything but primitive. By virtue of a decade of experience and thousands of life and death fights, he had honed his fighting techniques to a never seen before peak. Then again, he was the first of his kind to dedicate himself to this hunting style.


    His fighting style was unique. In gaming terms, it was an odd mix of an assassin¡¯s and paladin''s role. He focused mainly on explosive surprise attacks, hoping to finish any battles as quickly as possible. If they dragged on, he would then rely on the great speed and agility of his tentacles to perform precise attacks and keep the enemy at bay. All of this of course was fueled by his prayers to the magical fragment, which gave him the strength to measure up to even the fiercest predators.


    He would lay in ambush, covering his tentacles with dirt to camouflage them. He would then wait patiently, while praying to be granted power. Only when prey came in his range would he act, unleashing a series of magically empowered attacks at their weak points. These last few years, he had gotten exceptionally good at this, and most of his fights were finished in one hit.


    When he faced prey with too thick a hide, who were too resistant to blunt force, he would instead immobilise them before destroying their internal organs with powerful vibrations.


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    His control over the magical strength he received had also improved greatly. Now, he no longer empowered his entire body, as this was too exhausting and completely unsustainable. He was now able to enhance only a specific part of his body, to minimise the cost while maximising the benefits.


    Besides that, the most striking growth he had experienced was in his battle techniques. He had gotten much more cunning, but contrary to the general trend of his species, he did not use his intelligence to build clever traps. Instead he used the full calculation power of his nine brains to analyse his opponents movements, to predict his next actions and determine what weak points he had.


    With how skilled he had gotten at the art of killing, he was now the uncrowned King of the Plains. The only thing that could still pose a serious threat to him were predators that lived in packs. However, after the first few close calls, he had learned to hide and avoid them, only to strike back whenever they scattered.


    It had been months since he had gotten slightly close to dying of thirst and starvation, as his growing strength also allowed him to travel faster, reaching whatever prey and water he needed faster.


    <hr>


    Avery found watching the Owner''s adventures incredibly cathartic. It was like watching your cute pet run around the house, it was adorable.


    It wasn¡¯t only a matter of being entertained. Seeing the vigorous world full of energy and life was soothing his soul, and the loneliness that had unknowingly built up over the past decades was slowly abating.


    On the surface everything was going perfectly well, and he had never felt better. Deep down, however, he just couldn''t shake the feeling that something was very wrong with him.


    He knew that the mental world was currently dominating his existence, and everything else was insignificant. He knew he had changed, and had thought he had easily accepted that. He was a God looking down upon his world, and had started to treat everything in it with a certain level of indifference. That was who he was, and it did not matter what he had been before.


    What he had failed to realize was that the changes he was undergoing were not finished. Now, his thoughts were no longer influenced by his hormones or things like that, but by the state of his world.


    One example of that were his views on the Sil¡¯piceus. He remembered he had found their forms repulsive, and had ardently wished for another more aesthetically pleasing race to replace them as the main intelligent species of the world.


    However, as time went by, he was beginning to find his earlier thoughts ridiculous. Now, he actually found them very cute, with how they waved around those beautiful tentacles of theirs.


    This was more than just getting used to the appearance of the creature. This was his aesthetic preferences actively being modified to suit the general trend of his world. He was pretty sure that if a race of slugs evolved to dominate the world, then he would find them the pinnacle of beauty.


    The idea of his thought being modified uncontrollably was scary enough, but that was not all. What disturbed him even more was how parts of his new mentality were incompatible with the values he had built up during his life on earth.

 Chapter 46 : Existential Crisis

    One of the obvious signs of the change in mentality Avery had gone through was how desensitized to blood and violence he had become. Following the Owner¡¯s journey meant watching hundreds of bloody battles to the death, something that would have previously horrified him. Now however, they barely registered.


    While it was true that he had already visualized very bloody scenes when he was trying to improve his runes, and even before that had watched plenty of violent movies without any problems, but that was different. They were just fake stories, and even then he had not liked anything too gory. No matter how many cruel acts these stories showed, ultimately it was of no consequence.


    However, this was not how he viewed his inner world. No matter whether he was right to do so or not, he considered it to be a completely real place, filled with real people. It might be immaterial and exist only in his mind, but it was nevertheless a real world, populated by real people.


    If he believed that, then he should be as emotionally impacted by what happened in it as if it happened in the outside world. The fact that it did not happen and that he had remained indifferent proved something was wrong.


    Avery knew himself. He used to feel queasy at the sight of blood, and hated to look at any wounds more serious than a papercut. That didn¡¯t mean he could not control himself and act reasonably, for example helping clean a deep cut if need be, it just meant he would feel very uncomfortable doing so.


    Of course, his willpower had grown immensely since that time, but that would only help his self-control, and would not suddenly make something he found uncomfortable appealing.


    He was scared of how he was carelessly dismissing the pain and suffering the creatures of his inner world went through. On average, the Owner went through at least one bloody fight a day, which often ended with limbs ripped apart, melting internal organs and blood flying everywhere.


    Through his Dao sight, Avery could see everything in incredible detail, but he never felt any discomfort or distaste for the excessive violence. Only mild amusement that his pets were playing around.


    This was already quite a radical change to his personality, but if it was limited to that, he would not have minded overly. He did not live in a peaceful country protected by rules and regulations anymore. Being indifferent to violence might even be an advantage when he finally met other cultivators.


    There was no doubt he was different from the past, he had already noticed that when he had been exploring the changes that becoming a living world meant. He was what he was now, and past Avery was no longer his concern.


    The problem was that it went deeper than that. His mind was being transformed to suit his position in the world, but that was not the position of God. It was the position of the Tao, and the Tao had no likes or dislikes, desires or distaste.


    Avery was pretty sure that if he let things continue like this, he would gradually lose all of his autonomy. He would be an emotionless machine, rigidly following pre established routines.


    While fully becoming a half-virtual Tao sounded like it was very close to Avery¡¯s goal, it was actually very different. He wanted to become a Saint, which would mean attaining the Truth while retaining his individuality and desires.


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    Becoming a virtual Tao was skipping ahead a hundred steps with almost no effort, but like every single shortcut he had found, it came with a massive drawback.The mental world had grown too strong, and it had caused a crippling imbalance in Avery¡¯s existence.


    Not only did he risk losing all emotions and everything that made him an intelligent being with free will, he also had a growing fear that he was losing his way. He had planned to use his mental world to aid his exploration of the Avenue, and that had been going great.


    However, while his knowledge of the Tao was growing ever deeper, his connection and intimacy with it was waning instead of increasing. He was merging with a virtual world, and risked totally losing contact with the physical one. It was as he had feared, this breakthrough had given him immense short term benefits, but it also threatened to destroy his path.


    The worst thing was that while he was aware of the problem, he had no clue on how he was supposed to fix it. The mental world already dominated his existence, and he had no way of going back.


    The only thing he could do was to deepen his comprehension of the Tao, and hope he would find a way to reverse this change once his knowledge grew. This was what he was already doing, since studying his mental world was the best way he found to explore the Tao.


    His habit of observing the Sil¡¯piceus adventures was not only for idle entertainment. It was also a way for him to research Daos that were intrinsically linked to sentient creatures.


    He was not passively watching a movie, he was pausing at every frame and contemplating how everything worked, trying to figure out the causes and effects of everything.


    Many arcane concepts, like war, love, hunger or family could not really be experienced when he was exiled alone on a barren land. If he could not live through them himself, then he needed to at least see other beings feel them.


    Normally it would be unthinkable to learn about the concepts just from observation. For example, you could never learn the Dao of hunting just from watching someone hunt. You could not walk the Great Way without actions, since only by acting would you actually interact with it.


    Avery was only able to learn from his observations because of his partial omniscience, and because of his status as the creator of this world. First, his Dao sight let him see the actual laws at work, so it was much easier to study concepts from afar.


    Secondly, the entire world was a part of him, so when a creature went hunting, in a way Avery himself was also going hunting. This was one of the positive aspects of becoming a living world.


    Whenever a creature of his world learned something, Avery would learn it too. It was not like his own memories where the knowledge was easily accessible, but it was present somewhere similar to his subconscious. It would supplement his thinking and aid him in his efforts to comprehend the universe.


    He was the world, so as it advanced, he would progress too. The appearance of a primitive civilisation was not only good for abating his loneliness, it was also another way for him to cultivate his mind.


    As the Sil¡¯piceus grew, they would inevitably make the world advance and perfect itself, growing ever closer to the real world. Avery was its incarnation, so it would also gradually elevate his life level.


    Perhaps this was another valid way to attain the truth. Instead of painstakingly cultivating for eons to become a Saint, he could abandon his resistance, fully merge with this world, and truly become the Tao. This would of course mean he would lose his intelligence and free will, so Avery had no intention of going down that path.


    In the end, he had many worries, but he believed he was already doing his best. He knew something was wrong, and that he needed to fix something, but he had no way to do it. He was helpless to do anything about his change in nature, and could only continue on the path he was treading, doing his best to think of a solution.

 Chapter 47 : Desolate

    Avery tried his best to concentrate on studying the Tao, tuning out all of the distracting shenanigans of the Sil¡¯piceus. This was a cultivation world, and chances were that everything would get magically solved as his cultivation advanced. At least, he dearly hoped that would be the case.


    He did first return to the real world, looking for a quick fix to his problem, making sure he was not overlooking any easy solution. He didn¡¯t have any expectations, so he was not disappointed when nothing he tried worked. He soon ran out of ideas that could be immediately tested, and he gave up and moved his attention back to his visualization.


    He had originally planned to retreat from his mental world for a lot longer. He wanted to re-familiarize himself with his body and make absolutely sure there were no hidden issues he had missed. He also wanted to see if it was possible to let the passage of time naturally sever the growing connection when he intentionally distanced himself from his inner universe.


    However, he decided against conducting any extensive tests because of how ill at ease he now felt in his own body. It was not a downright painful experience or anything, it was just inhumanly uncomfortable.


    It all felt alien now. He felt like a stranger in his body, an unwanted guest parasitizing his own flesh. Everything just felt so cold and inhospitable. He was not living in his body anymore, he was just piloting a fleshy mech, interacting with it through robotic controls and screens.


    Compared to the warm embrace of his mental world, where the entire creation was celebrating his presence, it was almost unbearable. He did not want to stay in this desolate wasteland. He much preferred staying in his mental world, even if it was insidiously transforming him.


    Inside his mind, he was at home, and he felt safe, he had an intense sense of belonging. It may all be fake, and it may be the delusions of a man hugging himself to feel a modicum of love, but it was still infinitely better than anything that the cold and merciless world outside had ever given him.


    All this made him flee back to his welcoming inner realm as soon as he had done his due diligences investigating his body¡¯s situation. It was not that he was unable to control himself and overcome this discomfort. This was far from the worst thing he had endured, although this was the first time he had an escape route. The problem was that he did not believe persevering would be necessary or even beneficial.


    His domain was the product of numerous coincidences and risky bets. It was of a much higher tier than every other part of Avery, and with his current power, he seriously doubted he would be able to affect it in any way. It was not something he could recreate, control or fix.


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    He also had a very slim expectation that the situation would somehow get better with the passive passage of time. He had a much deeper belief that he would eventually discover a solution at some point during his cultivation.


    It was almost impossible to maintain a proper state of mind to study the Truth while inhabiting his inhospitable body, and he was lacking in motivation to do it anyways despite the difficulties. In the end, he decided against hedging his bets, and went all in on cultivation.


    Before that, he did try to engrave a rune again. This had nothing to do with his problem, but engraving had accompanied him during the hardest years of his life. His relentless pursuit of points through rune crafting had been one of the only things keeping him sane, and it had led to the Tao revealing itself to him.


    He had previously felt that his visualization was an inch away from producing enough intent to make his stylus obsolete, so he hoped that now he could pick his old profession back up.


    His comprehension flowed through the visualization, transforming into a flood of intent, unlike anything he had ever produced. It rushed to his soul, where some mysterious transformation happened. Then, a seemingly endless stream of mana poured back out into his body, exiting his extended finger as glowing lines of translucent ink.


    It was so great to draw a rune again. He was returning to his root, and he had a feeling that as soon as he completed his rune, something magical would happen. There seemed to be something incredibly important at stake, but he had no idea what it was.


    With how much intent was flowing through his inner world, for a moment he was convinced his engraving would finish smoothly. He was unfortunately disillusioned when he discovered that his world¡¯s tremendous advancements were still not enough to succeed.


    There was a noticeable improvement, and the illusory lines he could draw with his fingers were much thicker and more consistent, but it was apparently still a tiny bit short of what was required to carve a successful rune.


    He was slightly stunned by his sudden failure. He had felt very confident, his assurance growing with each second the tide of mana flowed through his arm, only to have it be abruptly shattered.


    However, he soon recovered. It had taken him half a century to reach this point, so a few more years of work would not matter. At least he now knew for a fact that he was right, and that the improvements of his inner realm would enable him to engrave runes once again.


    While he was not overly affected by his failure, it did mean that there was nothing left tying him to the outside world. He had settled all his doubts, making sure his body was still in good shape and that it was not too negatively affected by all the reality warping shenanigans that were occuring in his mind.


    What he needed to do now was to wait for the next major advancement of his world, taking this time to dive deep into his research of the Tao.

 Chapter 48 : Time

    For a time, his attempt to focus solely on the Tao worked. With his world providing him with an endless quantity of insights, he was improving at breakneck speed, easily dozens of times faster than before.


    There had been no massive change to the number of time warps he had bought, so he wasn¡¯t really sure how long this productive frenzy had lasted. It could be anything from a few weeks to a few years.


    At this point, the passage of time was inconsequential to Avery. He used to place a lot of importance on the number of hours, days, weeks, months and years that passed, counting them and trying to estimate how much longer he would be trapped in this hellhole.


    However, now he was starting to find all of those worries ridiculous. What truly mattered was not time, it was his comprehension of the Avenue. As the years flew by, his mastery of the subject greatly increased, but he gradually became aware of just how deep and complex the Tao was and how far away his goal of becoming an immortal was. Many things that looked simple would take weeks to understand, while others could be grasped in an instant.


    He was trying to swim across an ocean. His goal was to reach the continent on the other side, but he had no idea of how far it was. He had a very limited vision, and could only see what was coming up a tens of meters ahead. He had set a shorter goal in reaching the islands of immortality, but he also had no information on them, other than they definitely existed and that they were a lot closer.


    Not only did he not know how far away his destination was, even his swimming speed was inconsistent. According to his mood, he could be as fast as a speedboat or as slow as a turtle. It was even technically possible for him to lose ground and regress if his spirit got damaged.


    Exploring various Dao¡¯s required every bit of brainpower he had. He was aided by a stupidly overpowered cultivation treasure in the form of his inner realm, but it was still up to him to use it. Since the amount of help it could provide was far above what Avery was capable of accepting, it demanded absolute concentration to use. He had nothing left to spare on counting meaningless numbers.


    All of this led to Avery abandoning his habit of making useless predictions. He was content with doing his best every day, measuring his observable progress rather than the time he had spent working.


    His body was protected by time warps and his mind was anchored in his inner realm, so the passage of time alone would not leave much of an impact on him.


    At this point, being trapped a century, a millennia or even a million years would not make much of a difference. They were just meaningless numbers. The only thing that mattered was his self-improvement.


    However, while the passage of time in the outside world, which he had taken to calling the Greater Timeline, was irrelevant, the same was not true for the timeline of his inner world. His inner realm was the only thing that often changed, and that was capable of evolving with time.


    While the two timelines were linked, their relationship was complicated, and inconsistent. For example, the decade of adventure the Owner had gone through had only translated to a few weeks for Avery, but the latter''s recent dive into the intricacies of the Tao had only taken about forty in-world days. In short, time was confusing, and keeping both timelines straight was not worth the trouble.


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    He was content with keeping track of the in-world time, which in theory was easy. With his partial omniscience, he could just know how long it had been since the beginning of the world.


    The problem was that even if the inner timeline was still important, it was very hard to control. Once, Avery had been resting his mind idly watching the Sil¡¯piceus shenanigans, when he had been momentarily distracted.


    In a passing thought, he wondered about the total size of his world. Sensing his thoughts, his perception sphere had then automatically expanded to its maximum size, informing him of its exact measurements. However, that had come at the cost of pressing a super-fast-forward button.


    He had reacted almost immediately and refocused on the Owner¡¯s journey, but those short moments had been enough for multiple months to pass. If he was not careful, he feared a small mistake made in a moment of inattentiveness would show him the end of the world.


    He only controlled the speed at which time flowed, and he did not have the ability to rewind it. He had no second chances, so he had to make sure he was not missing anything important.


    This was one of the many worries that he kept in the back of his mind, hoping that he would eventually find an opportunity to clarify his doubts and fix the potential problem. Fortunately, his worry about this particular issue was soon shown to be unfounded.


    <hr>


    He was focusing all his attention on the Tao, abiding by his decision. The only distraction he allowed himself were his trips to the real world. He made sure to return to the real world often to take some time out to admire it through his Dao sight. He was hoping that this would slow his assimilation into the mental world.


    Even then he wasn¡¯t really resting, rather he took this opportunity to try and find differences between the Dao¡¯s of the real world compared to those of his inner realm. It was just another form of study, one that brought him many benefits.


    He was returning to his mental world, planning to once again wholeheartedly dedicate himself to the Truth when his attention was forcefully diverted. No matter how much he focused, his attention was inexorably drawn to the Owner''s journey.


    The latter was finally nearing his goal, and the entire world was anticipating his meeting with the Elder. That would be a momentous occasion, and it was an event that could not be missed.


    The world somehow identified how significant this event would be, probably by using the obscure power of fate. It designed that as an important historical event, one that would severely impact the advancement of the world.


    It wasn¡¯t like something was physically forcing Avery to pay attention to it, rather he was feeling a profound desire to see history unfold, and witness the development of his world.


    If someone presented you with the most delicious meal ever made, you would see how appetizing it looked, and how divine it smelled. In these conditions it was almost impossible to concentrate on the homework you were supposed to be doing, no matter how interesting it was.


    This was what Avery was feeling, except it was his soul that was being tempted. He was filled with an irresistible urge, an urge he did not even really want to fight.


    His rational mind might be warning him that this was not a natural craving a normal human would feel, but this in no way diminished the desire he felt. This was an event that involved the development of his inner realm, and there was nothing more important than that.


    For once, the Tao would have to wait.

 Chapter 49 : Meeting

    The Owner felt excitement well up in him as he finally reached his goal. Just ahead, only a few hours worth of travel away, stood a distinctive rock formation. From it, he could sense the subtle vibrations emitted by his kind. More importantly, he was close enough to understand what they were saying, the unique tremors transmitting a very clear message. He was approaching the Elder¡¯s pack.


    The next few hours were the longest in his life. Every second that passed made his excitement grow, every tentacle length he traveled made his anticipation grow. Not only was he about to meet a living legend, this was his last step in becoming one himself.


    He only needed to preserve for a few more hours, and his journey would be complete. He would truly cast away his nameless status, having fully earned his Title. Through It, he would be remembered. Through It, he would live eternally.


    Already, many of the Sil¡¯piceus knew of him, even if they had never met. Already, his Title and mission had become common knowledge. He was no longer just an unidentified member of a group, who only introduced himself with the number of greater cycles he had lived through. He was important, and he was different.


    Being granted individuality was great,  but it was only the beginning, and it was far from enough. He was but a child, rewarded for what he could do rather than for his actual achievements. His mission was incomplete, so his title was incomplete. His potential was enough for him to become famous, but that was it.


    He wanted more than temporary recognition. He wanted his name to be passed down through generations. He wanted to know that his story would be used to inspire the young. He wanted everyone to know what he had gone through, for his sacrifice to be forever inscribed into history.


    Most importantly, he wanted everyone to know that he had been successful, that his actions significantly contributed to the advancement of his race. In a thousand years, the Sil¡¯piceus would look back, and they would thank him for his contribution.


    Knowing that the end of his journey was at hand, he stopped conserving energy. He made full use of the Mystery''s strength, gladly sacrificing a little mental energy for some additional speed.


    <hr>


    It was with a touch of awe and reverence that the Owner crossed the final meters separating him from the Elder. His journey complete, they were technically of equal status, but the Elder was much more than just a Titled individual.


    He was the smartest creature in the world, the longest lived Sil¡¯piceus. The Tunneler and the Observer both claimed that his advice had been invaluable to their success. Even the Teacher had said that he was only trying to imitate the Elder, and that he had not invented anything new.


    The Elder¡¯s legacy was unparalleled, his knowledge and wisdom seemingly infinite. His glory shone so bright, it was hard not to get blinded.


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    A trace of indecision and doubt surfaced in the Owner''s heart, wondering if he was really worthy of his company.


    He suddenly froze, confronted with his own inadequacy. His only merit was finding a mysterious object through luck. He had not invented anything, he had not made remarkable achievements, he had not advanced society. He had been lucky. He was incomparable to everyone who had ever gained a Title. He was not rewarded for his efforts, but for his dumb luck.


    The moment of doubt lasted for a fraction of a second, before his powerful will, tempered through a decade of battle, easily squashed all the fluctuation of his heart.


    He had been lucky, but he had then gone on to prove his worth. His journey had been his trial, and he had surpassed it. For more than a decade, he had done many things no other Sil¡¯piceus had ever done.


    Just wandering alone without a group was impressive enough, but he had done so much more. He had fought hordes of beasts relying solely on his tentacles. He had felled huge monsters, he had survived a firebolt from the sky. He had rampaged across the land, sustaining himself on the blood of his victims. He had learned to harness the forces of the Mystery, he had created a powerful battle technique for himself.


    The Elder was admirable, but at the end of the day he had always followed tradition, relying on his mind and intelligence like everyone else. Only he, the Owner, had truly pioneered a brand new way of hunting.


    He walked a path no one else walked, and on his path, he was an absolute expert.


    His movements instantly lost all of their hesitation. He decisively impaled his tentacles deep in the earth. He stoically waited for his communication limbs to stabilize, using his tremendous control to offset the disruption of his brusque action.


    He doubted anyone had noticed his moment of weakness. After all, they had all lived comfortable lives fed by traps, and their awareness was far below his. Rather than lingering on his mistake, the Owner sent out a well-practiced pulse, signaling he was ready to talk.


    At the same time, he used his tremor sense to its fullest, trying to discern what the Elder looked like. This was the first time he was close enough to do anything more than hear him.


    ¡°Welcome, gifted one. I have long heard of your Title, and of your mission. You are here seeking my counsel, are you not?¡±


    He instinctively returned the greeting, but he did not go ahead and explain his situation. Instead, he asked the question that was burning in his mind. It might be slightly disrespectful, but he had to know.


    ¡°You are small, like a child. I know the Elder is old so why are you the size of a child? Are you withering, falling into Emptiness?¡±


    There was a moment of silence, before he heard a good-natured laugh.


    ¡°Size does not directly correspond to age, young one. I have simply never found the utility in a big body, preferring to conserve energy to power my brains. What is important is the power of the mind, not that of the body. I assure you, I am perfectly fine. I still have too much to do before I succumb to Emptiness.¡±


    For the second time in less than ten minutes, the Owner froze.


    ¡°The power of the body is the most important! My body is the strongest, and I have killed hundreds of monsters with it. It is the future, and it will help us break free from the limitations of traps!¡±

 Chapter 50 : Confrontation

    Full of righteous indignation, the Owner had no fear of offending the Elder. Instead, he grew even more confident. His tentacles twitched slightly, and he secretly sent a prayer to the Mystery. If a fight broke out, he would be ready for it. No, he was more than ready for it, he was waiting for it.


    ¡°Then perhaps you know something I do not, little one. Please, tell me about the power of your body, and of what you have accomplished with it.¡±


    The Owner was a bit disappointed he was not going to have the opportunity to test his mettle against the Greatest of the Sil¡¯piceus in a physical confrontation. Maybe that would come later, but for now he calmed himself down and thought about how best to enlighten his opponent.


    ¡°I am strong. Strong enough to break the thickest shells, fast enough to catch even the most nimble prey, durable enough to withstand dozens of tentacle hits. I am so powerful, I have outgrown the needs of traps!¡±


    To prove his point, he lifted one of his tentacles in the air, pausing for a second before lashing at the ground with all of his strength. The resulting impact shook the earth, aptly demonstrating how deadly such an attack would be.


    And yet, the Elder remained impassive, unsatisfied by this display of power.


    ¡°So you are strong, stronger than anyone else. That is impressive, and I can understand why you take so much pride in that fact. What I do not understand, and what you have to explain to me, is why that strength is important? Why should I not take just as much pride in being the weakest Sil¡¯piceus?¡±


    This time there was no pause for reflection, no careful choosing of words. There was only an instinctual answer, an attempt to express what was common sense to him.


    ¡°Because being strong is good! It will lead our race to greatness! It has kept me alive during my journey. It lets me go faster, it lets me find water easier, it lets me defend myself. Most importantly, it lets me hunt, giving me freedom from troublesome traps. A weakling would never survive alone in the plains, but I have!¡±


    Despite how agitated he was feeling, the Owner did not continue waving around his tentacles uselessly. It served no purpose, and he had learned a long time ago the importance of conserving energy.


    ¡°Yes, being strong has given you advantages, but the same can be said of my weakness. I need less energy to maintain my body, and am often given priority to feed. Why should I wish for anything else? I can argue that my weakness is just as useful as ¡­¡±


    The Elder stopped mid-sentence, reconsidering his points.


    ¡°My apologies, it seems I am derailing the conversation. Perhaps my initial question was flawed. I do not doubt your strength, nor do I doubt that it has been useful for you. I know you have done a great many things that I could never hope to accomplish. I know all of that and more, but quite frankly, I don¡¯t care.¡±


    He gently waved his limbs around, pointing at the members of his group. They were all attentive listening to the conversation of the two Titles individuals, not daring to intervene.


    ¡°You have found your path, but how is it helpful to the community? Your strength is admirable, your acts memorable, but do they matter? The tides of time will one day engulf you, dissolving your renown strength to nothing. When that time comes, what will be left of those achievements, and what can be built upon them? What will our descendants have to thank you for?¡±


    The Owner quietly thought about that, his body frozen as he pondered over the meaning of his strength. Deep inside, he still believed it was important, and that the Elder was wrong to dismiss it so casually. He just did not know how to express that feeling, much less explain it in a convincing manner.


    ¡°My mission would have been impossible to accomplish without my strength. My contribution to the race is the Mystery, which is why I have been granted a Title.¡±


    He was slightly ashamed of what he had just said. He believed in what he said, but the argument felt so lackluster when compared to the Elder¡¯s attack. He was a newbie crossing blades with a master, and his inexperience was painful.


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    ¡°Your Title has nothing to do with your strength. You are called the Owner because you discovered the Mystery, and was entrusted with it. Ultimately, it is not your strength or courage that is revered, it is your luck. Some could say that your strength has instead been a hindrance to your mission. Without it, you would not have been confident enough to venture alone in the wilderness, and I would have held the Mystery a thousand cycles ago. Once again, your luck would have been more valuable than the power of your body.¡±


    The Owner shifted uncomfortably. He was rediscovering an unpleasant feeling, one he had not felt for a long time. He was losing, fighting a losing battle against a much more skilled opponent. He belatedly realized that despite his appearance, the Elder was far from harmless. He simply used words as his weapons, and was terrifyingly effective with them.


    ¡°You previously mentioned you believed your strength was the future, a new way forward for our glorious race, but are you not instead forgetting our past? You want us to abandon our greatest advantage and regress to our primitive beginnings. Every common beast can hit an approaching enemy. Every common beast knows to run away from a predator.


    For the first time, the Elder left his calm and composed state, his energetic voice conveying unending passion. This was his greatest pride, his greatest strength. It was with a ferocity matching that of the most savage beast that he proclaimed his beliefs.


    ¡°Only we, the Sil¡¯piceus, have surpassed those lesser compulsions, and have learned to leverage our intelligence, letting nature work for us instead of being controlled by it. You say you are the strongest beast, and you are right, you are. But you are also so much more than that. It is your mind that lets you use your strength more effectively, your intelligence that lets you defeat stronger opponents! Most importantly, you cannot pass down physical strength, but you can pass down knowledge and inventions, advancing our entire race!¡±


    The Owner did not know how to respond. He was not convinced, his belief in himself had not been shaken, but he had lost this battle of words. This would not be their last fight, and he would do his best to win the next one, but he had nothing to turn the situation around right now. He was defeated, and had the pride to admit it with dignity, and ask for advice.


    ¡°You are right. My Title comes from my luck, not from my strength. Is it really a burden? Is my path a dead end? Do you truly believe that it is a regression to an inferior state, instead of an advancement? That all my efforts so far have been in vain? If so, what should I do now?


    As if waiting for those words, the Elder¡¯s entire temperament shifted once again. Gone were his overbearing intensity and his uncaring impassiveness, replaced with thoughtful benevolence. He was a caring mentor, showing the way but letting his student explore it by himself, full of good intentions.


    ¡°Of course not. I can see that you do not agree with me, and you do not need to. I may not believe in your path, but that does not mean that you should abandon it. Rather, now that you understand your limitations, you can work to fix them, and prove my words wrong.¡±


    The Owner was surprised by the Elder¡¯s sudden change. He was expecting him to continue his criticisms, taking the opportunity to finish off a defeated opponent, like he would have. On the contrary, he felt nothing but care and worry from his adversary.


    ¡°Your mission as the Owner has been fulfilled, and you are no longer needed. Now, you can either retire and spend the rest of your life living normally as any other. You can join my pack, guarding an object that is under no threat, waiting for the day you get unlucky and die of thirst.¡±


    He had never thought about that. His decade long goal was to complete his mission, and he had never thought of what would happen after that. He was not like the other Titled individuals. He had not invented anything, and could not continue to improve. His mission had ended, and there was no more to do, expert perhaps guarding the Mystery.


    He tried to imagine returning to his idle life of waiting for prey to fall onto his traps. He tried to picture himself being part of a group again, always having to slow down to let them keep up. It felt so appealing, so boring, that he knew he could never accept to live that way again.


    ¡°I know you will never be satisfied with that. You are held high under Heaven''s Eye, and will never accept mediocrity. You need a new mission, one that will not expire. What I want you to do is to refine your path, and make it something that can be passed down, so that all Sil¡¯piceus can profit from it.¡±


    He felt the reassuring touch of the Elder, promising him that this was not the end, and that greatness was still attainable.


    ¡°The fact that your strength currently serves no purpose is not a criticism of your path, It just means that you have not yet traveled far enough on it. You are a pioneer, and no one can show you the Way. I can only say that what I value is not your physical body, it is the way you control your body, making the most of your strength. At the end of the day, is that not another application of mind over matter? What you can contribute is not the transient strength of your tentacles, it is the techniques for us to do the same.¡±


    There was a hint of finality in the Elder''s next words.


    ¡°Do that, create something permanent, and perhaps you will be the first of us to earn two Titles.¡±

 Chapter 51 : Research

    The Elder let him contemplate his future for a few moments, giving time for his last statement to sink in, before firmly taking control of the situation again.


    "Your Path is yours alone. I will do my best to help you and give you advice, but ultimately I can only give you a rough direction. Now it is up to you to slowly inch your way to Eternity. But before that, you must complete your actual quest."


    These simple words had a mesmerizing tone to them, breaking the Owner out of his reverie. Scrambling to take hold of the Mystery, he moved to offer it to the Elder, all the while rambling about what it was.¡±


    "Yes! I have discovered an extraordinary item, which gives me great power. I want to ask you how you think I should use it! It is very easy to use, you just need to ask for something, then it will make you tired and give you what you asked for. And depending on how much energy you give it and how hard you ask, it will change how much it gives."


    The Elder laughed kindly, but did not move to accept the item, letting it hang idly in the air.


    "I know. I have heard a lot about this Mystery. Word of your Quest has arrived far before you did. While you were slaughtering your way here, I was already considering what to do with it."


    He fidgeted, unsure whether he was being faulted for his slow speed. It was true, it would have been better if he had stayed with his group the whole time.


    However, the faint feeling of shame and uncertainty was immediately crushed by a dispassionate disappointment in himself. He may have just had a difficult conversation, but just because he was reconsidering his entire life''s meaning, did not mean he had to act like an impressionable kid. He had earned his Title, and he needed to carry himself with the appropriate dignity.


    "Fate has made a fool of my quest, but that was not something anyone could predict. I did my best according to the information I had, and I stand by my decision. You need to stop doubting me for my bad luck."


    The Sil¡¯piceus were slow by nature, and it was often very difficult to tell what they were thinking, but there were exceptions. For some reason, he felt that the Elder was radiating a proud feeling, as if he was happy that his jab had received such a response.


    "No one can predict fate? Perhaps you are right. No matter, I will stop antagonizing you. You have already proved to be worthy of your Title, and that you can carry it with dignity. Now, it is time to test some of my hypotheses about the Mystery, and ascertain just how powerful and valuable it is. First, have you tested whether multiple people could use it at once?¡±


    "No? It never occurred to me, I was almost always alone¡­ besides, we need to be so close to it to be able to use it, we would get in each other''s way. It is not good for fighting"


    "I am afraid my plans for this Mystery go far beyond using it to fight. Come, we must first make sure my ideas are possible. When I tell you to, you just need to wish for strength as you always do."


    Instead of taking the item himself, the Elder called for one of those who had been watching by the side to approach. He then instructed the both of them to pray for strength at the same time.


    The Owner wondered why the Elder did not do the test himself, but seeing how enthusiastic the volunteer was, he decided not to question it. He simply obeyed, and enjoyed the familiar feeling of unstoppable strength, accompanied by an insidious fatigue. He felt significantly more drained than usual, but that could be explained with how far away he was from the Mystery.


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    His next blow did not do much visible damage to the ground, but the shockwave he felt assured him it would have been enough to break the bones of all but the biggest predators. The volunteers strike, however, only limply impacted the ground, devoid of any power.


    "So, it seems that asking it to multitask is impossible, at least for now. That is unfortunate, but that was not too important to my plans. Now, Number 3, since you volunteered, what do you think we should test next?


    Hearing how the Elder called her, he paid closer attention to the volunteer, eager to see what the third most valuable member of her group would say. Judging by how small and feeble her tentacles were, she probably wasn¡¯t recognized for her physical prowess, and with the thickness of her shell, she couldn¡¯t be much older and more experienced than him either. To compensate for that, her mind must truly be fearsome to justify giving her the third highest priority to resources.


    ¡°I know! We should test whether we can both pray for the same thing to make it stronger! Come, let¡¯s try that! You just need to do the same thing again, and I will wish for you to be even stronger.¡±


    He threw a questioning glance at the Elder, but other than that he simply went along with the various experiments the newcomer kept proposing.


    He had to admit the tests were well thought out, as he learned more about the limits and various quirks of the Mystery in a few dozen experiments than he had after a decade of intensive use. However, he very quickly lost interest in the results, preferring to simply appreciate the fervent passion that number 3 constantly displayed.


    Sure, knowing that two wishes could be superimposed for a better result was neat, and knowing that he could extend the mysteries range by holding the tentacles of someone touching it was intriguing, but on a practical level it was not that useful to him.


    What he really needed to know was exactly how many prayers he could afford to make in a set amount of time, how strong it would make him, how much his movement speed and precision would decrease because of fatigue¡­


    He understood it might be invaluable to the Elder, who obviously had other plans for it, but all this was not very beneficial to him. He had already learned just about everything that was relevant to his Path, and had no plans to change his Way on account of all these new discoveries. He could perhaps incorporate a few things here and there, but nothing more.


    This was why he was content to let himself be mesmerized by number 3¡¯s singsong voice, and he fell deep in thought, remembering the Elder¡¯s words. His Quest was about to be finished, so what would he do next? His skills were not valuable to a group,


    If the Mystery was as valuable as he believed it to be, he would need to leave it behind. Would he still be able to fight without it?


    After all this, would he be back to being a normal Sil¡¯piceus, or worse, would he end up being chained by the Mystery, duty-bound by his Title to guard it forever, always putting safety first?


    The Elder was right, there was no way he was going to let that happen. He was proud of what he had accomplished, but he did not want his legend to end here. He did not know how he would do it, but in one way or another, he would fight his way to greater heights, and he would drag his entire race along with him.


    He started cataloging all of his skills, trying to find something he could leverage to fuel his future growth, when he noticed that number3¡¯s voice had lost some of it¡¯s childish zeal, giving way to unabashed nervousness.


    ¡°Good, we roughly know how to use it efficiently, we need to know the limits of what it can actually do. Look at that spot of barren soil, right there where your last strike landed. Now, pray and imagine it returning to its former grassy state. Think of the earth moving back into place, and create a carpet of grass on top of it. Empowering something is not enough, we must see if the Mystery is capable of directly altering reality.¡±


    He complied without wasting any time, and felt both her¡¯s and the Elder¡¯s prayers superimpose with his, before the Mystery suddenly drained more energy than ever before, causing more than half of his brains to directly fall unconscious.


    The last thing he was able to see, before the rest of his mind completely shut down, was a few blades of grass on the previously barren earth.

 Chapter 52 : Advancement

    The Owner woke up to see the Elder attentively examining the dozen or so blades of grass they had collectively willed into existence. It was far from the luscious foliage he had imagined, but it was there, proof that the Mystery was capable of altering reality.


    However, before he could celebrate, he noticed something about them felt off. Focusing, he sent a series of continuous vibrations through the earth, trying to get a clearer image of what he saw, but he only ended up more confused.


    He knew what vibrations that were bounced back by grass felt like, but the ones he was receiving now were unusually muted, as if only half of them had collided with the material. It was hard to describe, but it felt as if the grass simultaneously was and wasn''t there.


    The Elder had apparently noticed the same thing as him, as he called on another member of his group to come over and try to touch the grass. He did not know what to expect, but he was definitely surprised to see it''s limbs pass right through them as if they weren''t there. Even stranger, he could still sense both the grass and the tentacle. Somehow, his tremor sense was telling them that both objects were occupying the exact same space at the same time.


    The Owners tentacles twitched, one of them snaking towards the Mystery while he raised the others, assuming a defensive posture. He had learned long ago that when something didn''t make sense, it usually meant that danger was about to strike.


    "Thank you number 26. You have been most helpful, but you can go now. We will wait for number 3 to wake up before continuing our test."


    Then, without waiting for a response, the Elder dragged himself toward the Owner, until they were close enough that they could talk without anyone else overhearing.


    "Do you understand what we are trying to do?"


    Instead of answering, the Owner forced the Elder to continue backing away, until he felt safe that he would be able to react to anything the magical grass could do. It was only when he was asked a second time that he truly took the time to think about what all this meant, and that he stared at the Elder in awe.


    "You are trying to see if we can hide our tracks! You want to use the Mystery to perfect our camouflage so that prey never stops coming to our traps. But... that would mean there would be no more need for us to migrate every few weeks, where so many are dying of thirst and exhaustion."


    "Good, good. It seems that although your imagination is slightly underwhelming, you still have vision. Yes, almost all of our brethren die during our perilous migrations. Imagine how much our race would grow if they were no longer needed. Of course, we are still far from that point, but I have faith that by working together, you and number 3 will find a way to make my dream a reality."


    "Me and number 3? Aren''t you going to help? You are the Elder, surely you would be better at this than us. Besides, isn''t it your dream? What''s going on?"


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    "I will always be here, ready to give you advice and help you in whatever way you need, but ultimately this will be your project. The opportunity for two of our talents to work together and learn is far more valuable to our species than the time we would gain if I took over this project."


    <hr>


    Avery didn''t pay much attention to their conversations, too preoccupied by the shocking changes occurring in the virtual world.


    The instant the three Sil''piceus had used the new rune to make an illusion, it had shocked the world, ushering in a mysterious transformation. He wasn''t sure what exactly was happening, but he could see the entire virtual world lighting up, shaking and growing wildly.


    It wasn''t affecting anything inside the world itself, rather it was the very foundation of the world that was being refined and expanded upon. The laws were getting clearer, and their interactions were getting more intricate. The virtual Tao was getting more closely aligned with the true Tao, and the visualization was becoming more "real".


    The world was advancing, whatever that meant.


    As far as Avery could tell, the reason for this advancement was that through the Mystery, the creatures had started harnessing the power of the Tao. This was the beginning of a new age, where spiritual powers would flood the mundane world. What confused him was why all of the times the Owner had used the Mystery in the last decade did not qualify as an advancement opportunity.


    However, all those questions soon disappeared from his mind as he understood what a great opportunity this was.


    The world was sublimating, and to its creator, it felt like all of its most profound truths were laid bare, and all of the complex mysteries had become ridiculously simple.


    Just a look was enough for countless insights to rise up in his mind, and he could feel his understanding skyrocketing, each second equal in enlightenment equal to months of normal cultivation.


    It was a pity it was ultimately a fake Tao, unworthy of being compared to the real thing, but for Avery, who was technically still a mortal, it was still one of the greatest opportunities he might ever get.


    However, if Avery had learned something about heavenly opportunities that sounded too good to be true, it was that they always had crippling drawbacks that made you wish you had been able to restrain yourself.


    This was why he did not look to the most obtuse laws, like the laws of Life and Death, or indeed any of the 3000 Daos. Instead, he studied mysteries of the Sil''piceus race, and more specifically the new Rune they had created. He knew it had no equivalent in the real world, and as such would probably not help his cultivation, but this was precisely why he chose to focus on it.


    If it ended up being harmful, he could just abandon it and he would not be losing anything. However, if he tainted his understanding of real laws with false truths coming from a Tao simulacrum, he feared that he would end up cultivating this false Truth, and forever lose the opportunity to reach the Tao.


    If what he learned here turned out to be incompatible with the true Tao, he could end up losing all of his progress, as well as his connection to the Tao.


    He considered the chances of that happening to be extremely slim, but the Tao was just too important to him, and he was not prepared to take this risk. Even if the Sil''piceus rune would not help his cultivation directly, it would still expand his knowledge, and he would be able to use it as a reference, greatly improving his speed of cultivation.


    Besides that, he also hoped to use this new understanding to drive the world in his visualization and be able to engrave runes again.

 Chapter 53 : Obstacle

    Avery eventually woke up from his enlightenment, and his consciousness gradually returned to reality. The first thing he noticed was that his sphere of perception had grown greatly, going from a two meter radius to a ten meter one. It was bombarding him with more information than he could handle, making it hard to concentrate on anything.


    It was only after taking some time to accommodate himself to his heightened sense that he was able to calmly sort out his gains.


    This had technically been a lower level opportunity than the previous times when he had seen the Tao in person, but this had happened in his own virtual world, so he had been able to make the most of this opportunity. Not only that, but he had also managed to take control and explore a single thing to its peak, instead of just learning a bit of everything.


    All this meant that his understanding of the Sil''piceus rune was dozens, if not hundreds of times more comprehensive than everything else he knew. In fact, he could acutely feel that his understanding of it was just barely enough for him to become an immortal.


    It appeared that he did not necessarily need to comprehend one of the 3000 Daos to ascend, but that any concept that was understood at a high enough level would do the trick. Now all he needed to do was to inspire his understanding and present it to the heavens, and the gates of longevity would open for him.


    It was a shame that he dared not use this false understanding to transcend mortality, but at least it was definite proof that he was on the correct path, and that he was not too far from success.


    However, while this was certainly something to celebrate, his mood was dampened slightly by the seemingly insurmountable obstacle that he could feel blocked his way. With his new status as a mortal on the edge of the great breakthrough, he could vaguely sense some of the details of his ascension, and he now knew with absolute certainty that it would be far from a peaceful process.


    Each time he moved to inspire the virtual Dao, he could feel himself being targeted, the surrounding laws growing chaotic as an immeasurable tribulation brewed in the sky. If he wanted to fly into the sky, he would first need to be baptized by lightning. This was a serious problem, as Avery had no confidence in surviving this ordeal.


    He could hope that this was only a side effect of using a false concept, and that it would not be a problem if he honestly cultivated the Truth, but since he had already heard of cultivators transcending tribulations back at the sect, that seemed unlikely. That left him with the intimidating prospect of facing a calamity normally aimed at the most powerful cultivators of the mortal world, with nothing but a mortal body and a handful of ineffective runes.


    He had no Qi or body exercise to protect himself with, no magic power or treasure that could withstand the erosion of dragon power long enough to fend off a tribulation. The only power he had any semblance of control over, mana, seemed incapable of doing anything other than powering up runes. He doubted that even the system''s time warps would be able to save him, as he would not even have time to use them before he died.


    For now, the only thing he could think of was to use one of the systems given profession tools to somehow protect himself. For example, his blacksmithing hammer should still be laying around somewhere, but how was he supposed to use it to survive heavenly guided lightning strikes? Using it as a lightning rod was out, and electricity was not something he could smash at and break. Perhaps, if there was really no other way, he would just have to cultivate to sainthood as a mortal, entirely bypassing the immortal stage.


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    This issue required careful consideration and planning, but fortunately, he was in no rush. He did not want to ascend with his current Sil''piceus concept, and it would still be time to worry about this after he had comprehended an authentic Dao. When he finally reached that point, who knew what methods and ideas he would have?


    This unexpected heavenly opportunity had brought him a lot of surprise, and he certainly felt like he had made a great breakthrough, but in essence, nothing had changed. He had taken a peek at what''s to come, and it would be a great help to him as a reference, but he still needed to walk his path step by step, making sure never to stray away from the authentic Tao, and not losing his way in taking ill-advised shortcuts.


    <hr>


    Now that his inner world had suddenly advanced, Avery was eager to try and engrave a rune again. With how close he had been last time, he felt there was no way he would not succeed, but he decided to first check the current state of his inner world. His runes could wait, while his visualization... could probably wait too, but it just sounded right for him to check on it first. After all, it was the source of his intent.


    Looking inward, the first thing he saw was that the virtual realm had expanded tenfold. However, while the limits of the realm had expanded, nothing that it contained had changed. The central planet had not gotten bigger, no new stars had been added, no matter or energy had been created. It was just a huge empty space, with only a deceptively large galaxy in the middle, occupying less than a tenth of the available space.


    Other than that, the only notable change was the Sil''piceus plains. Instead of roaming the plains in disorganized groups, most of the Sil''piceus had regrouped around two huge blood lakes, forming a strange city, dominating the otherwise barren land.


    Curious to know what in the world had happened while he was not paying attention, Avery traced back history, and discovered that for his inner world, more than five hundred years had passed.


    The Elder''s original plan of hiding their tracks had failed, as they were ultimately not able to create anything, and were limited to casting simple illusions. After weeks of hard work, they nevertheless managed to make their illusions that looked realistic to their tremor sense, but without eyes of their own, they had failed to make anything that could fool the eyes of their prey.


    They never really understood what the problem was, and no matter what they attempted, they never succeeded in luring in prey effectively. As the Owner and number 3 were growing disenhearted, the Elder sunk into meditation, and after spending a long time reconsidering the issue, he finally concluded they were looking at this the wrong way.


    The ultimate goal was not to attract prey, it was to find a reliable way to feed their entire species. Their next attempt to use the rune to create meat did not succeed either, but when the Owner cut one of his tentacles off and regrew it with a simple prayer, they knew they had found a source of unlimited food.


    It still took some time for this to become an available long-term solution, as the mental strength required to regrow a limb would knock out the average Sil''piceus for a few days, ultimately losing more energy than they gained. It was not until number 3 discovered how to permanently empower the rune using blood sacrifices, earning herself the Title of Priestess, that the Elder''s vision truly became reality.


    Wasting no time to capitalize on this success, the three of them searched for a place with ample water, before settling down and starting building a great city to house all of their kin and guarantee their safety.


    Everything was centered around a great central lake of black blood, and the crude temple that sat on top of it. Each day, the inhabitants of the city would contribute some of their blood to the pool and some of their meat to the community, before worshiping the bloody rune and accepting the great gift of Healing.


    Relying on the miraculous powers of the rune and upholding the virtues of cannibalism and self-mutilation, the Sil''piceus slowly ushered in an era of stability, where the only remaining threat to their lives was old age and natural disasters.

 Chapter 54 : Division

    During the next few decades, the Sil''piceus lived quite the idyllic life. Evolution was working at an unnatural pace, and their physique had already been subtly altered. The pair of limbs they had used to move around slowly grew bigger, all the while losing their sensitivity to pain, becoming easier and easier to cut off and consume.


    Not everything was going perfectly, and they did face a few disagreements, one of them being the negative effect the blood pool had on the environment. At first, the sweet allure of blood drew in countless scavengers, which soon became delicious snacks. Then, as the city developed, the stench grew overpowering, and soon not a single beast was willing to approach this plague-ridden land.


    The primitive mollusks were far from master architects, so their ill-contained blood seeped deep into the land, spreading through the earth and contaminating water reserves, until even the vegetation started dying. Fortunately, under the constant healing of the Mystery, the Sil''piceus themselves were unaffected, and they soon grew accustomed to their new bloody haven.


    The true threat they faced was themselves. As time passed, the previously easily satisfied creatures eventually started craving for something more.


    Even for a species of incredible patience and tranquility such as them, lazing around forever was far from satisfying. This was different from their old lives, where their stillness had a goal, and a purpose. Back then, they had not been doing nothing, they had been laying in ambush. Now that everything they needed was just a thought away, what were they supposed to do in the time between feedings? Their lives needed direction. Now that they had secured their survival, they needed to start thriving.


    It was this common realization that led to the first schism in their history. There had been plenty of vehement arguments before, but none had ever really extended outside a singular group. Now that they were contemplating the direction in which they wished to evolve, the stakes were much higher, which led to a time of great division.


    There were countless ideas floating around at this time, but in the end two main directions were determined, which more or less aligned with the Owner''s and the Elder''s opposing views.


    The Elder disdained the outside world, believing that there was nothing there worthy of their greatness. He preached that they should look within themselves, and cultivate that which made them unique, their intelligence. It was under his tutelage that one of his disciples earned himself a Title by popularizing the idea of artistic merits. From then on, the Sil''piceus were no longer only concerned by practicality and function, but they also paid attention to form and beauty.


    Almost every aspect of their lives were changed by this new passion, and one of the many things that drew Avery''s attention was how storytelling has evolved.


    Storytelling had always held a very special place in their culture, and was not something to be trifled with. It was reserved to the faithful recounting of the exploits of their ancestors, and the sacred ritual through which Titled individuals obtained conceptual immortality.


    To taint their glorious history by mixing in false and unearned triumph of fictional characters would be unforgivable. So, when retelling the same tales again and again began to grow stale, innovation found a new direction. If the content was fixed, then they would play with the format. Poems, theatrical reenactments, epic tales, sometimes recounting the entire history of this species, sometimes focusing on a single flower that the Elder had once seen, the diversity was mesmerizing. The same stories, the same events, but shown under so many different lights, it could entertain them forever.


    However, while the Elder''s path, to capitalize on their superior intelligence to refine their minds, was certainly well received, it was not the only one.


    The Owner, who had grown into a hero all the young ones dreamed of becoming, urged many of his more hot blooded kin to follow him and explore the wilderness. The world was vast, and it had so much to offer. What better way to prove the greatness of the Sil''piceus than to make it cower beneath their tentacles?


    He spread the martial arts he had arduously created, and called upon his like-minded friends to adventure with him, search for riches and mysteries, and etch the bloody name of the Sil¡¯piceus to every corner of the world.


    This appealed greatly to the brave and ambitious, those who wished to be the one to discover the next mystery, and change the world. Not everyone found value in art, and in dedicating their lives to something that ultimately had no innate value, and they often defaulted to following the Owner.


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    Such diversity in interest was far from unnatural, but for a young civilization that had always been relatively uniform, they could not believe there were two right options, and one of them must be wrong.


    The heroic adventurers scorned the cowardly and feeble relics who were wasting their time away crafting useless things. Meanwhile, the wise artists cried and worried at the folly of throwing away so many precious lives for some unimportant excitement.


    Instead of abating, the disagreements got steadily worse, from reasoned debates to heated arguments, from words to actions, and from action to violence. The hatred between the two camps continuously grew, until the unprecedented hostility even threatened to devolve into a civil war.


    Then, one day, the Elder called in for a great assembly to be held under the blessing of the Mystery. The night before it was held, all of the more violent and problematic members of both camps mysteriously disappeared, never to be seen again. Even the Owner had uncharacteristically gone out to hunt, having seemingly forgotten about this important event.


    Making full use of this miraculous opportunity, the Elder proceeded to address the leaderless crowd, and he did his best to calm everyone down. It was far too late for them to reconcile easily, so he worked on focusing everyone''s hostility and competitiveness towards something productive.


    He convinced both sides that they were doing what the others couldn''t, and that the others would understand one day. There was no need to argue with empty words, as the results would speak for themselves.


    But no matter who was right or wrong, in the end they were all part of the same species, and their adversaries were not to be fought or hated, they were to be pitied and helped.


    The misguided bravery of the reckless warriors would lead them to their death soon enough, and as enlightened scholars, they should be responsible. Instead of wasting energy fighting, they should focus on inventing anything that could help their imprudent kin live long enough to realize their mistake.


    As for the blind intellectuals, who were stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the vastness and beauty of the wilderness, they were being short-sighted and leaving themselves vulnerable to any outside threat. They needed to be shown the beauty of martial arts, and the sanctity of communing with the Mystery to augment their fighting ability. This was the ultimate form of mind over matter, to hone your control of your fleshy body and through it, impose your will upon reality.


    In the end, everybody, no matter what they believed, needed to learn martial arts, so that if the Great City was ever threatened, they too would be able to lend a helping limb, fighting off potential invaders, instead of being a shameful burden to their species in a time of need. And who better to teach them than the fearless martial artist, those who were accustomed to the harsh but rewarding life of adventure, and who had experienced hundreds of battles?


    It was by using this kind of rhetoric that the Elder strived to calm everyone down, forcing them to cooperate and unify them again. A single assembly was far from enough to convince everyone, but under his careful management, tempers cooled down, and soon, everyone had become used to helping each other instead of being at each other''s throats. By forcing them to help each other, they started properly communicating again, which led to mutual understanding, and an organic melding of the different points of view.


    By the time the next generation came along, their culture had mostly healed, and this first division faded into history. It had become customary for everyone to practice martial arts, and as soon as their cultivation was successful, they would travel the land, spreading the glory of the Great Race throughout the world, and making their ancestors proud.


    Then, when their youth and fighting spirit grew eroded by the years of excitement and combat, they would return victorious to the Blessed City, bringing back with them all of the treasures, knowledge and experience they had gained.


    There, they would settle down, cultivating their spirits and teaching the next generation, and start their second life, doing there best to create or invent something of value to their civilization, hoping their contribution would be enough to leave an everlasting mark on their Glorious History.


    <hr>


    Avery closed his eyes and let his consciousness return to the real world. He felt weak and dizzy, and he knew he needed a little rest.


    It did not technically cost him anything to peer into the long river of history, but he had seen literal decades of history flash by in an instant, severely overloading his mind.


    He was receiving too much information at once, and considering he already had trouble handling his improved Dao vision, he did not want to overdo it.


    He could tell there was nothing urgent happening that required his attention, and he had not gained any in-world powers, so he was now itching to finally craft a rune again.


    Besides, as fascinating as his cute pets were, it was also frustrating to see all of this agitation and life from afar, without being able to join in.

 Chapter 55 : Vision

    The first thing he did was to take a few moments to rest his mind. He even tried to sleep, but had no luck. Perhaps he had lost the habit of sleeping for so long his brain had forgotten where the entrance to the end of dreams was, or perhaps his new state of existence was entirely incapable of sleep; whatever the case, he stayed regretfully awake.


    Refusing to get annoyed at something so trivial, he decided to quit chasing the elusive land of dreams. Falling asleep was not something you could do by trying really hard, so he forgot about it and let his thoughts wander uncontrolled.


    He was expecting to get lost in thousands of random thoughts, flowing in myriads of different directions, but a single monolithic idea reigned supreme in his subconscious. It seemed that he had been so focused on the Tao for so long, it had become the only thing he could think about.


    Very soon, he found himself dreamingly reminiscing at his various encounters with the Great Way. The only difference from what he normally did was that this time, he was not incessantly chasing the supreme truth, exhausting himself trying to better himself and become worthy of the Great Way. He was content to simply lay in it''s sublime presence, silently admiring something so beautiful it gave meaning to the entire world.


    After an indeterminate amount of time, Avery realized that his headache had abated, and that he had unknowingly adapted to his extended perception sphere, to the point it felt like he had been born with it. It did not mean that he had crystal clear vision in a radius of ten meters, as most of it worked like peripheral vision in which he was only vaguely aware of what was happening, but even that was incredible. He supposed this would be a godlike ability for any warrior, though he had to admit that it was currently useless to him.


    What he really valued was the ability to focus and directly study the building blocks of the universe in a way no mortal would understand. This was what he was relying on to avoid cultivating into a dead end. Even if he learned false truths in his virtual world, he would systematically compare and verify them with what he saw in the real world, and rectify his understanding. This was what allowed him to confidently enlighten in his inner world, without fear of losing his way.


    He was slightly curious as to how long he must have spent daydreaming for such a change to occur, but he quickly discarded those useless thoughts. What mattered right now was that he was feeling great, and he was ready and eager to finally try engraving again.


    Smiling slightly, he stood up, walked toward the cliff face, and extended a finger, preparing to use it to draw a rune.


    He was briefly tempted to draw the rune in the shape of a Sil¡¯piceus, curious to find out what would happen if he truly brought that virtual rune into reality. He hesitated for an instant, before restraining himself. There was no need to take risks finding answers to uncertain questions when he already had endless mysteries he could look forward to solving.


    He just chose the rune he was the most familiar with, the first rune he had ever gotten. His current visualization had little to do with the concept of storage, so that rune would not be different from any other, but it brought him this far, and it would feel wrong to suddenly decide to use a different one.


    Turning his attention inward, he imagined a majestic intent gushing out of his inner world, adding all of the profound understandings he had cultivated to it. With how rough and primitive his control of intent was, it completely ignored his order to gather into a formless river gently flowing into his soul.


    The countless laws that formed his virtual world, as well as all his insights into the Tao, were far too powerful for him to control. The only thing he could do was to direct them to merge with the concept of Sil¡¯piceus, in the hopes that that would let him control them.


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    However, perhaps unsurprisingly, merging everything into a single superpowered concept had the opposite effect. A godlike figure of a planet sized Silpiceus suddenly painted the sky of his inner world in various shades of black and red.


    The terrifying figure was filled with an indescribable majesty, and a powerful cultivator would see that its very flesh was made of thousands of intersecting rules. Under the shocked gaze of the entire world, the creature slowly wrapped his tentacles around the globe, and violently drove his limbs through the earth to reach the core of the planet. Then, it pulsed brightly, before fading away without leaving any traces, as if everything had been a dream.


    <hr>


    The eerie vision had only lasted a few seconds, and had left no visible trace, but Avery could already tell it had had a profound impact on his inner world.


    Apart from one obvious exception, there was no actual change he could see, but he could feel that his inner world was no longer completely his anymore, as if it had started to become independent. He did not understand how that was possible, as it was not a possession or a magically bonded item. There was no distinction between Avery and his visualization, so what would happen if they separated?


    Despite this alarming new development, Avery wasn''t very worried. This was just another thing he would have to pay attention to and try to fix, but he did not seem to be in immediate danger. He was mostly annoyed at himself, for once again senslessly acting on baseless hopes, believing everything would go according to an ignorant plan.


    He had rushed to engrave a new rune, without proper consideration. He''d simply never considered if there were uncontrollable factors or dangers in guiding intent. Blinded by his goal, he had somehow just assumed that since his stylus was able to create spiritual ink without harming him, he would be able to do the same without any problems.


    He had been lucky once again, having survived, and even gaining a lot, but the odds would not be in his favor forever. By then, he had to make sure he had learned his lesson, or he would lose himself in one such reckless gambit.


    It was not enough to not do anything impulsive, he needed to make a conscious effort to think critically to make sure what he was doing was not reckless. Perhaps this had been a risk worth taking. Engraving runes was still very important to him, and in hindsight, he did not regret his actions. What he did regret was that there had been no thought behind these actions, only hopeful assumptions devoid of evidence.


    After making sure he had learned what he could from his mistake, he turned his attention to what he had gained. The first positive he could see was his increased detachment from his virtual world. While it might become a hidden danger later on, for now it was a great relief for him who had been concerned about how much his personality was affected by his visualization.


    The second and most important reward was the result of the huge vision of the Sil¡¯piceus interacting with the world¡¯s heart. Instead of the mundane core of melted rock, the center of the planet was now occupied by a mysterious pool of glowing silver ink gathering around a translucent rune.


    He had originally intended for intent to rise up and gently guide mana out of his soul, but things had gotten out of hand, and the opposite was now happening. Intent had somehow crystallized and become permanent, and it was radiating a sort of gravitational pull, steadily sucking mana out and forcing it to accumulate, forming a mystical lake.


    He would no longer need to spend time producing and guiding intent every time he drew a rune. He now had an easily accessed reserve of spiritual ink, and judging by how it was constantly sucking mana out of his soul, he would wager that it would automatically fill itself up.


    There was much to discover about how exactly this new mana pool would work, but that would have to wait. He still had some blacksmithing to do. There was a slight risk that something would happen when he guided mana through his flesh, but time warps were supreme healing items, so it was worth the risk.


    His attention returned to the real world, where he was still standing in a drawing pose, and he gently moved to finish engraving his rune on the cliff surface.


    His finger had the weight of an entire world behind it, and he briefly had the illusion he was overwriting reality. Then, the rune was complete, and he fell into enlightenment.

 Chapter 56 : Clarity

    He had almost forgotten that crafting a high quality rune let him gaze at its true form for an instant, but there could never be too many ways for him to quicken his cultivation, so he calmly let himself fall into the endless void.


    Soon, he saw nothing but an obscure rune shrouded in darkness. Then, stroke by stroke, his intent illuminated the glyph, piercing the shadows and revealing its sublime form. If last time he was peering into the abyss with nothing but a small flickering flame trying to light up the abyss, then now it was as if the sun itself had descended to banish the darkness and lay everything bare.


    The true form of the rune was completely clear, and simply glancing at it let Avery learn from it. In this instant, he was finally able to completely appreciate what the rune really meant, and its purpose. It was not limited to the concept of storage, but it was linked with the idea of infusion, stability, homogeny and ascension. The rune was not simply gathering Qi, it was dispersing it into the material it was etched upon, turning the mundane into spiritual treasures, and stabilizing said treasure to make it whole and suitable to accept more runes.


    This would have been great to know a long time ago, but now that his visualization did not focus on any single concept nor cater to any specific rune, and that he could still not actually make use of the runes he carved, it was of little consequence. What he really valued was what was revealed as the rune was completely lit up.


    Every rune he knew had been constructed around a perfect circle, which he now knew represented the Tao. And now that it was brightly illuminated, he could actually look inside, and see the Tao.


    He was of course not seeing the real thing, he already knew how dangerous that would be, but it was giving him a small peek at the Tao''s shadow. The volume of information was infinitely smaller than what his inner world or Dao vision provided, but for once it wasn''t random. Instead of letting him haphazardly access an incomprehensibly huge database, it was guiding him in a very deliberate manner, showing him exactly what he needed to resolve his doubts and progress his cultivation.


    This new source of enlightenment had a very different effect than the ones he usually had, which would let him cultivate even faster. He would first rely on his inner world to provide the raw data, then use his Dao vision to compare and sort all of that information, before finally using runic enlightenment to fully understand it.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a Clear rune. +50 Points


    Avery couldn''t help but smile as he was woken up by this notification. He wondered if there was anyone else in the world that had only drawn a single rune of the Tao Mirror level before surpassing it. Perhaps he was already making history?


    His smile grew even wider when he noticed the rune did not immediately shatter, but rather persisted for half a dozen seconds before it surrendered to the dragon power and disappeared. If he drew the Sil''piceus rune, then it would presumably be enough to become permanent, and if his different runes reached that level, then he would finally be able to fulfill his original intention and craft an item capable of liberating himself from this hellhole.


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    He was proud of his accomplishment, and had no intention to stop improving anytime soon. Looking around for a while, he picked up the weathered list of a thousand different runes. He had bought it a long time ago, but had left most of them untouched. He had realized it was no more advantageous to know 1000 runes as compared to a single one, so why should he waste time and effort on them? He had originally bought them to provide some novelty, but even then he had taken it slow and only learned a new rune once in a while, to make them last as long as possible.


    However, now that he could learn their function by drawing them at the Clarity level, and subsequently use them to peer into the Tao, they had become relevant again. His inner world should be able to reach that level no matter which rune he engraved, so it was time to study them in depth.


    With renewed enthusiasm, he pursued his cultivation, alternating between using his inner world, his Dao vision and engraving for best effect, advancing forward at a record pace.


    This was the most fulfilling period of his life, as he was growing closer to the Great Way with each passing moment, and all kinds of different escape methods were steadily becoming more and more viable. Filled with hope and motivation, he appreciated each second of this peaceful life.


    <hr>


    Avery wasn''t paying any particular attention to the Sil''piceus anymore, but with how much time he spent studying his inner world in general, he still remained very aware of their development.


    After the first schism was resolved by the Elder using powerful rhetoric and a sting of deadly coincidences, he had retreated behind the scenes, only offering advice in the most dire circumstances.


    He had not hidden himself, and instead had sat down on a stone platform directly under the Mystery, where everyone could see him. His placement was very conspicuous, but he had stayed immobile in meditation for so long, the uninformed simply assumed this was a statue. Most of the younger generation even believed him to have died of old age, as he would otherwise be past his thousandth birthday.


    Surviving a thousand years was not that impressive, as others, like the Owner, were also slowly approaching that age, but the Elder had disappeared before the Great Blessing, at the age of seven hundred years old. Since none had seen him be elevated as kin of blood, he must not have gained their infinite lifespan, and must have died before then.


    Even the Owner did not know if the Elder was alive or not. He knew where he was, and could tell he had not gone withered and hollow, but since a few decades before the great blessing, when the Elder had prophesied its arrival and told them to prepare, he had never talked or moved again.


    The Great Blessing, where the giant projection of the Sil''piceus rune had claimed the sky, had had a visible effect on each and every Sil''piceus. One of the more striking examples was the blood runes covering their shells, as well as a nascent control of their blood. The most powerful martial artist, like the Owner, had more than doubled in size, and had radiated an oppressive bloody aura. There had been a lot of movement and miraculous signs that day, yet the Elder had been unaffected, a motionless statue contemplating the Mystery.


    He was not alone on the stone platform either. Every few decades, some intellectuals who had reached a new realm of spiritual achievements would cease all of their activity, say their goodbyes, and join him under the Great Rune. When asked why they were doing this, they would always respond the same way, claiming that they had felt the call of fate, and once they sat on the stone platform, filling in a circle around the Elder, they would never move again.


    This was one of the disturbing mysteries that haunted the Sil¡¯piceus, and it was the reason many feared to venture too deep in spiritual meditation. If even the Elder was susceptible to this curse, then who would be able to resist?

 Chapter 57 : Great Work

    While The Elder and his companions were frozen in this unchanging state, their surroundings had undergone tremendous change as the Great Work was getting closer and closer to completion.


    The Great Work was the species'' most ambitious project to date, and it had started long before the Great Blessing, all the way back when the second fragment of the jade butterfly of fate had been discovered. This time they had found one of the defined fragments, portraying a rune Avery now understood to be vaguely related to the concept of an illuminating flame.


    They had at first tried to find a use for it, wishing for it to revolutionize their society like the Mystery had, but they found it mostly useless. While it had its own unique abilities, it had a much more restricted powerset, and the Sil''piceus saw no use for fire or light.


    Years passed until a Sil''piceus, who was assisting the Priestess as a novice, found a way to link the new rune with the Mystery, setting the Great Work in motion.


    Obviously, the Mystery was the best and the most suited for the Sil''piceus, and all the other rune fragments were inferior. Since that was the case, it was not worth exhausting themselves trying to use these inferior goods. Instead, they should link them to the mystery, and force them to offer their power up to their obviously superior counterpart.


    Upon realizing they could greatly improve the Mystery this way, and that it was repeatable, their adventurous spirit burst out in full force. They might not have been so enthusiastic in powering up any other foreign tool, but each Sil''piceus had a very personal relationship with the Great Rune, cultivated through their martial arts.


    There were many intricacies to martial arts, but most people recognized three major stages. You first had to train your spirit and body, with no mention of any supernatural abilities. It was only once you had cultivated one of those aspects to a certain point that you would be considered an adult, and undergo a warrior''s ceremony, branding your body or spirit with the mark of the Mystery, and condense a personal rune.


    This personal rune let you access the powers of the Mystery everywhere and everytime, although the power was greatly diminished. It started out very weak, but as you practiced and fed it with blood or insight, it grew closer and closer to the real thing, until you could call the full force of the Great Rune upon your enemies.


    It was even rumored the third stage involved completely fusing yourself with your personal rune and become an extension of the Great Rune, but those that had reached this state were incredibly rare.


    Excited by the prospect of a quick power boost, and under the guidance of the still active Elder, who had used his strange power to determine the number and approximate location of the 2998 other runes, countless expeditions were started, and the Sil''piceus trails covered the world.


    Many of their kind died of thirst and starvation, of natural disasters and unfortunate accidents, and even in battle as they fought each other for the glory of returning home successfully. Despite the unprecedented high mortality rate, their fervor never diminished, as each time a new rune was brought home, they could feel the Mystery, and by extension themselves, grow in power and importance.


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    They soon determined that they could find two kinds of runes. If they returned with an undefined fragment, then it was a simple matter to press it against the Mystery, and it would naturally be absorbed, making it more powerful. It would heal them faster and better, make them stronger, cover a larger area, and basically improve in every single way.


    On the other hand, if they returned with an already defined rune, who already had set identity and powers, then things would be more complicated. They needed to first study it and determine what its powers were, before including them in their proper place in the blood formation and letting them complement the Mystery.


    This was a very troublesome process, but it was also extremely rewarding. While an undefined fragment would give the Mystery more power, linking these runes up would add their power to the mystery and render anyone capable of using it easily.


    The Sil-piceus had always been at the peak of the food chain, but with this new development, they were no longer restricted by the limits of flesh, becoming capable of casting fireballs, freezing enemies or levitating. They even discovered teleportation, although it was too costly and imprecise to use from a personal rune. Once they had learned water manipulation, even their most fearsome enemy, thirst, was vanquished.


    The Sil''piceus reigned supreme, and even nature had to bow to their whim.


    Although their population was slowly diminishing, each Sil''piceus was a warlord capable of moving mountains and parting the sea, so it was a price well worth paying. Even amongst those concerned by the lack of young, few were ready to go through the trouble of producing offspring.


    The Sil''piceus did not breed, but they procreated through asexual reproduction, which involved give up one of their tentacles, along with its commanding brain, and let it grow into a separate individual. The tentacle would regrow, but the brain would not, leaving them forever a diminished individual.


    This sacrifice of processing power for offspring used to be necessary for the survival of their species, to have enough members to be able to beat the odds and leave their mark on the world, but now that a careful Sil''piceus could live on for eternity, such things were unnecessary.


    It was said that this was one of the reasons for the tense relationship between the Elder and the Priestess. He had given up a brain to birth her, believing she would grow up to be smarter than him, and better able to help their species. She was certainly smart and talented enough to earn herself a Title, but rumors claimed he was still disappointed. He believed he had made a mistake, and that their species would have been better off if he had kept his full intellectual powers. In his mind, one genius was better than two smart individuals.


    He never treated her badly, too afraid of making her even more a waste of resources, but there was no love in his careful ministration. She was raised to be perfect, and every aspect of her life was carefully optimized to minimize the loss his mistake had cost the species.


    This mathematical approach to childbearing bore great results, as the Priestess made many accomplishments and even before earning her Title, but this did not bring her happiness.


    Nothing she did ever satisfied the Elder, and he was never truly impressed. He might congratulate her for a job well done, but deep down, she was still disappointing him. He did not want her to accomplish his bidding perfectly, he wanted her to improve his vision. If she was doing something he could think of, no matter how well, then she was still an inferior product. He had raised her to surpass him, not to be a tool.


    The Elder noticed that the pressure and lack of affection was wearing her down, but he did not care. As far as he was concerned, such shallow suffering was nothing compared to the illustrious mark he was making her etch in history. He regretted not having the same upbringing, and the only reason he was not doing that to everyone was because of his limited time and energy.

 Chapter 58 : Domination

    Despite their few numbers, the Sil''piceus ruled as the undisputed masters of this primitive world, and nothing could stand in their way. When they encountered resistance or needed something, their immense power enabled them to effortlessly take whatever they wished.


    An example of this was the creation of the second blood lake. As the number of defined runes in their possession grew, their demand for blood became unsustainable for this dwindling species. Something had to be done, and somehow, more blood had to be produced.


    This led to much talk and discussion, and some violence, but ultimately it was decided that they organize Great Hunts throughout the world and bring back the blood of their prey to make up for this blood shortage. However, this was highly contentious, as many believed that tainting the Great Rune by giving it inferior prey''s blood would be blasphemy, and were ready to kill whoever tried to commit such a sin.


    It was a tumultuous time, and without the Elder to calm everyone down, it was the Priestess that finally came forward with a compromise, to build a second separate blood pool to house the inferior blood. The Mystery would still be fed pure Sil''piceus blood, but the inferior runes did not deserve such honor, and would have to be content with their prey.


    This compromise still did not please everybody, but she was backed by the overwhelmingly powerful Owner, so her proposition was finally accepted. The Sil''piceus had once again barely avoided a civil war, and as soon as the second blood pool was built, they took out their anger and dissatisfaction on the rest of the world. Especially when they realized that by overfeeding the defined rune, they provoked a feedback that further strengthened the Mystery, their aggression knew no limit.


    Tides of blood washed the world, leaving a devastated landscape behind, to the point where strict rules had to be established to avoid creating a barren world where not a single prey still lived. Over the years, their victims did not number in the thousands or millions, but in billions or trillions. from the smallest insect to the largest behemoth, none were safe, and none were spared.


    Sometimes, being killed would even have been a mercy for the unfortunate animals, as some were captured and experimented upon, forced to give up blood everyday and force-fed disgusting nutrients designed for nothing more than to produce more and more blood.


    The Great Blessing had done nothing but aggravate things further, as it removed any limitation of lifespan or any question about whether or not they were on the right path. The Heavens had approved them, so naturally everything was inferior to them, and everything belonged to them.


    Even a terrifying pandemic was ultimately no threat to this powerful species. The twin blood lakes were far from sanitary, and countless world-devouring plagues and viruses thrived in it, but with their runic healing power, the Sil''piceus were unaffected.


    This did not stop the problem steadily getting worse, as while the Mystery kept them in peak condition, it never actually took the initiative to kill any of the harmless viruses, no matter how they mutated and grew. One day, under the constant proximity with supernatural power, a particular parasitic leech managed to evolve, learning to infect the Sil''piceus without triggering any of their natural or mystical defenses.


    With the incredibly favorable environment, the parasite multiplied at an incredible rate. In little more than a month, most of the blood kin''s population was infected, each of them sometimes hosting hundreds or thousands of these hyper aggressive parasites on their bodies.


    The simple body of the shelled octopus were warped beyond belief, transforming into an incoherent mass of writhing flesh. It was not as simple as a physical transformation either, as their body became a battlefield, Animated by thousands of hostile consciousness, each vying for ultimate control.


    Before the Sil''piceus could even understand what was happening, they had become almost unrecognizable. Even the Great Rune changed with them, faithfully reflecting their current state.


    This terrifying plague would have spelled the end of any other civilisation, but the Sil''piceus were largely unaffected. They were not ordinary beasts, they were accomplished martial artists that had long gained complete control over their body. There was only one result awaiting those bloodsuckers foolish enough to invade their sacred flesh, and that was to be assimilated and live forever more as a mere puppet, under the suppression of their personal rune.


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    Even the collision of countless separate minds inhabiting the same body, which would have driven any lesser creature mad, was of no consequence. They were already very familiar with having sub-brains assisting the main one, and their unwavering will was protected by the Great Rune. This was just a matter of establishing a proper hierarchy, and they would be able to multiply their thinking speed and processing power.


    In the end, the Mystery had been right, the parasite was no threat, but rather a boon. They gained in intelligence, strength and number of limbs, and the only cost was beauty. It did ruin their camouflage ability, but that skill was way past relevant at that point, especially now that prey would be rendered mad or even die whenever looking at their incoherent form. The Sil''piceus cultivated both their body and spirit, and the contrast with a single unified body hosting thousands of separated minds, all of which exuded a fearsome spiritual pressure, acted like a passive mental attack that could easily prove to be deadly to the simple-minded.


    Population became even less of a concern after this, because with a single thought, a single Sil''piceus could separate himself into hundreds or thousands of different creatures, able to act independently, capable of using a portion of their powers to execute their will from the other side of the planet. They were not a single creature anymore, they were one entity composed of many.


    Even their survivability skyrocketed, because even if the main body died, as long as a single parasite under their control survived, they would be able to use it as a backup and recultivate to their full power.


    There had been some apprehension at first, but the parasites were too aggressive, and they had infected them before they realized the danger. In fact, the only reason the parasite had not infected the entire world was that it was too powerful, and normal animals would simply die before it had time to spread. It was only after the Sil¡¯piceus truly realized the benefits, that they all accepted the parasite and even started to actively breed them and help them grow. It was yet another gift from the Great Rune, and further proof that everything in the world existed to serve them.


    The only exception was the Elder and his companions, seemingly frozen in time. Despite their voracious nature, not a single parasite was ever seen on the stone platform. Perhaps this was another effect of the curse, or perhaps this was because they were so close to the Great Rune, no one knew. They only knew that this was a relic of the past, and the stone platform became a place of remembrance, serving to remind themselves of who they used to be and how much they had advanced. And just above them, was the Great Rune, hovering in the air as a symbol of eternity, and as a reminder of their ambition.


    The Great Work was the most important project the Sil''piceus had ever undertook. Not only in scale or magnitude, or in the world-changing outcome, but in the fact it gave them a common goal to focus on. As the Sil''piceus grew in power and intelligence, disagreements became more and more frequent, and they had teetered on the edge of a civil war multiple times. Small scale fights and duels had become common, but that was not a significant concern, since at this point it was almost impossible to permanently damage these nigh-immortal creatures.


    However, if their civilisation was ever truly divided, perhaps separating into two enemy countries with opposing goals, or anything similar, then it would be hard to imagine another conclusion to such a war other than mutual destruction. This was why the Great Work was so important, and no leader had ever opposed it despite the casualties it had caused. It was their unifying goal which held their civilization together.


    Even now, as the progress on the Great Work was slowing down, hampered by the inaccessibility and hidden nature of the last few runes to gather, their motivation had not in the least dwindled. Everyone could tell that gathering the three thousand runes would bring an immeasurable leap in their power, and many theorized they would become gods, immortal and eternal.


    This was their ultimate dream, and they would not let any petty squabbles or disagreements get in the way. The day was not far when they would become gods, and they would not stop there.


    <hr>


    Meanwhile, on the edge of the larger blood lake, an insignificant mosquito-like creature was about to change the fate of the world.


    It had lived here for all of its life, and had gorged itself in so much high quality blood that a small golden drop of radiant blood had slowly condensed in its heart. It had started to form decades ago, but it had had no effect apart from siphoning a little blood each time the mosquito ate. The insect didn''t even know it existed, having barely noticed an increase in his appetite.


    It was only now that it had reached a certain point, that the golden drop abruptly started to shine brightly, and all the blood in the mosquitoes body began to boil, heralding the start of a complete physical transformation. Simultaneously, millennia of ancestral memories poured into the insect''s tiny brain, flooding it with knowledge dating back to the creation of the world. Unable to withstand so much information, the beast froze mid-flight and fell straight down into the blood lake.

 Chapter 59 : Doubts

    Avery frowned, noticing his cultivation was being greatly slowed down by the inner turmoil in his heart. He was growing increasingly worried at how acceptable he kept finding the tyrannical actions of the Sil''piceus and the utter disdain they showed for anything they considered below them.


    However, his doubts did not last. The Sil''piceus truly were the protagonist of his world, and such behavior was their right. It was possible they occasionally went a tiny bit overboard in their relentless path of slaughter, but was peace and biodiversity really so important?


    Indeed, if you truly thought about it, the Sil''piceus were all the world needed, and everything else just existed to serve them. What was the use of a barren rock if no creatures existed on it? What was the use of plants if there was nobody to eat them? What was the use of having a beautiful world if there was no intelligent life to appreciate it?


    Their powers gave them the supreme right to rule, and what kind of overlord would prioritize the god of unrelated creatures over the advancement of its own race? They were demigods, so why should they follow mortal rules? Especially those coming from another world?


    Then again, power did nothing to avoid the rules of morality. Each of them had so much death on their conscience it was ridiculous. The only reason every other species on the planet had not gone extinct was that they had leaders with great foresight, who carefully regulated who and what was to be hunted, in order to maximize the current rewards while minimizing the impact on future hunts.


    In fact, the animal kingdom was currently thriving. The Sil¡¯piceus was doing everything they could to help animals grow, and never hunted young ones before they had the chance to breed, to make sure to maintain an everlasting source of blood. They might not live long or particularly fulfilling lives, but the overall population thrived, and their deaths were given meaning through the noble pursuit of godhood.


    Sure there was a lot of death, but nature wasn¡¯t kind, and chances were they were being spared a more painful demise in the wild. You were killing creatures that would have died anyway, so that others could escape death forever. On a global scale, was this not a net positive?


    Another thing that added to the complexity of this matter was that they did not hunt for sport or cruelty, they hunted for their growth and well being. What was the difference between this and others eating more than the bare minimum they needed to eat so that they grew healthy and strong, besides the scale? Could the Sil¡¯piceus truly be blamed for their unending appetite for blood? Should he really expect them to halt their growth and cease their pursuit of immortality because some inferior creature had to pay the price?


    Did morality even exist? Was it really worse to kill an animal when compared to a human? Was killing evil in the first place? Did being evil matter?


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    Avery just couldn''t or come to any conclusion, flipping back and forth in what he considered acceptable, unable to determine which thoughts truly came from him and which were coming from his inner world. Internal biases were an insidious enemy, and no matter how much he tried to be objective and logical, he could not ascertain how he should feel.


    The worst thing was, no matter what he ended up deciding, there was nothing he could do. He was a powerless observer, and he could not even control how he felt about what was happening, much less do anything to stop it.


    <hr>


    Seeing his confusion getting steadily worse, Avery decided he needed to take one more break. He momentarily paused his cultivation, tuned out his perception of his mental world, and turned his attention to another problem, one for which he had a solution.


    Gently waving his arm, his extended finger flowing in a captivating pattern, and stroke by stroke, an ethereal rune appeared in the air.


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a Clear rune. +50 Points


    The rune shone dimly but consistently, hovering in place while resisting the erosion of dragon power. Its light was slowly diminishing, but it fought to fulfill its purpose, and in its center, a minuscule flame was lit.


    This triumph only lasted a split second before the nascent fire was ruthlessly snuffed out, and with its disappearance came the decay of its mother rune. An instant so brief it was insignificant, but an instant during which the laws of reality had bent to Avery''s will.


    This was the culmination of an untold number of years spent pursuing the Supreme Truth, the only evidence of uncountable years of tireless study that were lost to the inconsistent timeline of his inner world.


    He no longer had any need for material to engrave upon, having completely abandoned any semblance of being a blacksmith. His runes did not aim to alter or elevate an object, they would affect the very world, acting as spells to enforce his will upon reality.


    He was reaching the very peak of this level of runes, and he only needed to take a step further to officially wield immortal runes and ascend. Then, this abyss would trap him no longer, and he would have a multitude of options available to him.


    Even if the legends were false and immortals were not innately capable of flight, He had learned many runes that could easily carry him out. He knew of one that could temporarily lessen the effect gravity had on him, another that let the winds carry him and one that provided a simple but consistent unidirectional force on something. If for some reason he did not wish to fly, which he absolutely did, he could make his hands and feet sticky, and simply climb the cliff.


    Even if immortal-level runes were still not able to completely withstand the oppression of dragon power, it would be only a matter of chaining a few runes together, and they would surely be able to last long enough for him to make his escape.


    This was a certainty in his heart. The day he broke through the next level of runes was the day he would become immortal, and the day he would be free.


    Yet, as he was growing closer and closer to immortality, the accompanying tribulation was also getting clearer and clearer. It was no longer an illusory threat, looming in the distance, but a seemingly insurmountable obstacle that denied him hope of realizing any of his ambitions.

 Chapter 60 : Solution

    The Tribulation was a seemingly insurmountable obstacle that stood between him and his ambitions. No matter what escape method he could think of, they all relied on him attaining immortality, and there was no way to do that without first facing the heavenly thunder.


    He couldn''t even renounce ascension and be content to escape using runes, as they simply weren''t powerful enough, and the dragon power never allowed them to exist long enough to achieve anything significant. Not even using immortal level runes would work, as there was no way to engrave this level of rune without inviting terrifying lightning strikes upon him. It was not that mortals were not allowed to accomplish immortal feats, it was that the Heavens would take this very accomplishment as a sign that one was ready to ascend, and it would send down the deadly tribulation.


    He could think of a few other options to escape this place, but no matter what they were, they all relied on being able to resist the dragon power, which implied reaching the level of immortality, for which he first needed to transcend the tribulation.


    As for buying a solution from the system shop, he had long lost any hope of that ever being a possibility. Since the very beginning, there had been no change to the system, and except when he transferred to a new profession, no new items had ever become available. Not even mahayana level items were unlocked, despite him having clearly achieved that stage of understanding.


    He had racked his brain, trying to find other ways, but he had no luck. It was possible that there was an easy and obvious solution that he was missing, but he had pursued immortality though runes with a one track mind for so long, it was the only thing he could think of.


    Perhaps he was lacking imagination, and there was another way, but he had an intuition that escaping this god-forsaken place might count as an immortal feat in itself, and end up still provoking the tribulation to come down on him.


    No, as far as he could tell, the tribulation was inevitable, and the laws of Heaven demanded he face it before he could fly in the sky.


    The most frustrating thing was that the tribulation was not that big of a deal. While a mortal would have no hope in surviving it, a powerful cultivator would be able to use their powers to resist it easily.


    Avery held back the urge to grind his teeth, whishing for the upteenth time he could cultivate. With his comprehension, Qi cultivation would be ridiculously easy. He didn''t even need to buy a cultivation technique, as his understanding on the energies of heaven and earth were more than enough to guide him to immortality.


    If he was in a place with abundant Qi, he bet he could become a venerated mahayana monk in less than a decade, at which point ascension would be a breeze.


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    The problem was that he was a mortal, and would stay that way. He needed to cultivate to become immortal, but he needed to become immortal to cultivate.


    <hr>


    Despite his best efforts, he made no progress in figuring out a way to avoid the tribulation. However, this did not bring him to despair, as he thought he had found a way to survive it as a mortal.


    As his comprehension improved, he grew more in tune with the mysteries of the world, and with the help of his powers as a seer, he had intently studied the nature of the tribulation.


    He could try to shield himself from it, perhaps laying out enough protection runes they held out long enough to deflect both the dragon power and lightning, but that would not be of any use. He could not avoid the Tribulation, as it was an indispensable ingredient for ascension.


    Contrary to what he used to believe, the tribulation was not some kind of punishment from the Heavens, raining down with the intent to kill. Every ascension was punctuated by a tribulation because they were the very thing that let an individual shed his mortal flesh and be reborn as a child of the sky.


    The lighting was not only destructive, it also contained the mysteries of nirvana. It destroyed the mortal body, leaving behind only the flesh that contained the essence of immortality, but it would then let it reform as the body of an immortal, giving him the identity of a child of the sky.


    The only problem was to survive long enough for this rebirth to occur. No healing or protection item he had access to would be enough to resist the tribulation, and even if he reacted quick enough to spam his time warps, they would undo the changes to his body, and it would all be for naught.


    He was not a peak cultivator whose body had been gradually cultivated to near perfection, and only had to burn away a few impurities. He was a pure mortal, and one from another world. From the Tribulation¡¯s perspective, there was not a single cell in his body that fit the sky, and it would not stop until every unsuitable flesh was destroyed. And who knew what would happen if Avery lost his physical form? No matter how powerful or alien his world-like soul was, it still fell under the jurisdiction of the laws of heaven, and without a physical form to anchor it in the world, it would probably be mercilessly dragged to the netherworld.


    The tribulation would do everything it could to turn him to ashes, as it was only after he had completely shed his identity of a child of earth that the heavens would accept him, and grant him rebirth. Facing the tribulation head on was a doomed endeavor, as it had infinite time and energy, and using trickery to avoid it would defeat the purpose.


    The only solution he could think of was to abandon his physical body completely, and craft himself a replacement. He could design himself a body that could accept rebirth, a perfect body formed out of perfect runes.


    Runes were both intrinsically linked to Avery''s spirit, and existed in the material world. They were uniquely suited to serve as a replacement body, he just needed to give them that identity. Runes were identified by what they were engraved upon. For example, a rune engraved on a sword would become part of the sword, and would strengthen the sword. A rune drawn in the air would affect the world, and a rune inscribed on his body would become part of his body.


    While his mortal body would still be obliterated, the Heavens would approve of a runic body composed of millions of runes that teetered at the very edge of immortality, and would grant it rebirth.

 Chapter 61 : Blueprint

    Of course, this method of creating an entirely new body made out of runes was not without its own challenge. For one thing, it required him to stuff his body full of millions of runes in just a day or two. He was fortunate that drawing them inside his own body would temporarily shield them from the Dragon power as long as they were inactive, but he still needed to complete everything before he was forced to use his time warps and undo all of his progress.


    Forget about a rune every hour, he would need to be able to draw hundreds of them every second. A daunting task, but far from impossible, especially now that he had a veritable lake of mana at his disposal. He only needed to practice his control to the extreme.


    A more fundamental problem was designing what the runes would do. He needed to build a new body he would be comfortable living with for the foreseeable future. The heavens would greatly enhance it through Nirvana, but he needed to lay down the foundation for it to be perfected. He had already given up in making his runic body equal his mortal body in all ways, preferring to focus on nailing the few abilities he desperately desired.


    On earth, it had been trivial to construct a machine that hit harder than any creature on the planet. There were plenty of vehicles that traveled a thousand times faster than the fastest animal, another that was infinitely agile or precise, or telescopes that could see better than any other eye. However, it was almost impossible to make something that equaled nature''s design in all ways.


    He did not care about being strong, he did not care about being fast, and he certainly did not care about being handsome. In truth, he only really cared about two things. One was to escape, and the other was to pursue the Tao in peace.


    He wanted to be free to pursue his ambitions in peace, like a leaf in the wind, able to flow with the current, not fighting against the world but going along with it, a ghost that no one could catch.


    This was the general theme according to which he designed his future body. To be able to avoid any harm, any disturbances and complications without worrying about anything, able to witness the magnificent world and Tao without interfering or being interfered with.


    Following the old adage of ¡°less is more¡±, Avery dismissed every other strength a normal immortal body should have. He did not make it strong, fast or agile, regenerating or invulnerable. In many areas, he barely even matched the physique of an average mortal. He only made it adaptable, able to withstand anything, and fit in everywhere. There were only two notable exceptions to this.


    The first was a pair of wings. A pair of simple, intangible wings that could appear on his back at will and with very little effort.


    A fallen leaf flowing in the wind had not truly reached detachment, for without a way of guiding his movements, then the tumultuous elements would simply become another prison. He needed not fight against the world, but he had to be able to guide and choose the current he chose to follow, so that the world would propel him ever forward, like a sailboat taking advantage of the capricious winds.


    He did not design his wings to be extremely fast or give them a ridiculous carry weight. He only had one wish, and that was for them to have an infinitesimally small energy requirement, and cause as little disturbance as possible. He wanted to make sure that no matter the situation, he would always be able to use them, and never again be stranded in an abyss again.


    The second was a pair of eyes to study and change the world. The eyes were the windows to the soul, and to the Tao.


    His right eye would reflect the moon, and through the power of extreme yin, it would become an all devouring black hole of knowledge and energy.


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    The mechanics of how it worked was very complicated, but the results were very straightforward. It would simply create an immense spiritual suction force, accumulating knowledge and energy at a terrifying rate, albeit in a very disorganized manner. This was meant to complement his Dao vision, gathering and storing all of the information he needed so that he could easily digest it with his Dao vision.


    The one major drawback was that it abandoned any concept of subtlety or concealment. Any use of it would greatly disturb the laws in the areas, and any half-decent cultivator nearby would immediately sense what he was doing. This was not meant to be an ability he used everyday, but rather a tool which he could use to decipher the most profound mysteries, or to absorb energy to power his second eye.


    As for his left eye, it hosted extreme yang in the image of the sun, it''s purpose was the opposite. Instead of absorbing the truth of the world, it would be a tool to help Avery Impose his will upon the world, in the forms of runes.


    Its use was only limited by his imagination, but the functioning principle was very simple, because it was basically an enhanced version of the stylus had provided him so long ago. It served to amplify and condense his intent, so that his every rune would have world changing powers. The idea was to use runes as spells, rather than as a forging process.


    If Avery carving a rune normally was like pointing a flashlight at the world, then his left eye would transform it into a deadly laser, with no theoretical power limit.


    This time the drawback was a fraudulent energy expenditure. He had focused on precision and limitless scaling, so the energy requirements were insane. It would be okay if it was just a normal rune written on a sword, though at that point he would still be better off simply using his finger as usual.


    Unfortunately, the energy expenditure grew exponentially, so if he wanted to become a wizard casting spells around indiscriminately, the only way would be to first use his right eye to power it.


    To be honest, he was not too attached to the sun¡¯s eye. Tracing runes with his fingers was more than enough for him, and his fantasies of being a magician did not excite him anymore. The primary purpose of this eye was to function as his twin opposite, to balance yin and yang, so that the powers of both were maximized. One received and the other projected, and under the blessing of the sun and moon, their powers were multiplied.


    Of course, all this was still at a very rudimentary stage, as he had barely started designing the blueprint, much less practice actually drawing so many minuscule runes at a breakneck speed. This was just another project of his, a new practical application of his cultivation.


    Getting to the point that he could engrave so many runes in a short time frame would require nothing but practice, but actually choosing the runes he had to draw and arranging them together so that they formed a complete body suitable for life was the real challenge.


    Technically, he could be content to draw a single rune and call it his new body, but such a simplistic body would not let him actually do anything, and he would end up worse off than if he remained a mortal. To truly accomplish his goal, he needed to build himself a body suited to his needs, and for that, he needed to link up countless runes together to form a coherent whole, mimicking the trillions of cells of the human body.


    The first hurdle was to choose which rune he would use. He had bought every rune the system offered, and contrary to his earlier belief, there were not 3000 runes, and they did not represent the Daos. There was an infinite number of runes that could represent anything in the five elements.


    He had discovered a long time ago that runes were always composed of the same 5 strokes and their mirrored versions, arranged around a circle. He did not know what to do with this information, but now, it only took a brief period of study for him to finally understand what they meant.


    Each stroke represented one of the five elements, with their two mirrored versions signifying if they belonged to yin or yang. Then, their arrangement, how each stroke linked up with each other, their size, orientation and placement would describe something in a stylistic manner, and the rune would end up having that effect.


    Since everything in the world was composed of these same five elements, a rune could represent anything he could accurately describe through the five elements. They were only limited by the extent of his knowledge.


    This meant that he did not need to limit to the runes he had learned about, but could design his own, and optimize them so that as a whole, they would function as a complete body. There was a lot of academic work involved in this project, but with his deep comprehension of the Tao and its laws, he was confident he could complete it in a reasonable time frame.

 Chapter 62 : Brewing Trouble

    The Great Work was advancing slowly but steadily, with less than two hundred runes still missing. Nothing had changed for the eternal Sil¡¯piceus, who were fully committing themselves to the pursuit of godhood.


    It was the rest of the world that had undergone tremendous changes, as animals and plants of all sizes and species were starting their own cultivation journey. Under the teaching of the senior mosquito, countless beasts rallied together in an attempt to resist their overlords.


    Their futile resistance led to nothing, as the Sil¡¯piceus did not even notice it. It was only much later, after the alliance had been destroyed by internal conflicts, that they became aware of what was happening, and they still barely paid any attention to this new development.


    They were not even sure when exactly the wild beasts had started cultivating. For these demigods, an ant doubling, tripling or even multiplying their strength by a thousand made no difference. They would hit it once, and it would die, and offer up its blood to the Great Rune.


    The only reason they became aware of anything at all was that they found that some of their prey had blood tainted with the color of gold, which was of much higher quality. A single drop of golden blood had better effect than a liter of normal blood.


    Intrigued by this discovery, they investigated the cause of this, and through the use of spiritual arts capable of revealing the secrets of the past, they got their hands on a brand new cultivation technique.


    They did try and study this new power system, to see if they could take advantage of it or incorporate it in their own cultivation, but had little success. While they managed to salvage some blood purification techniques from it, they otherwise found the cultivation system incompatible and inferior to worshiping the Great Rune.


    The technique allowed one to cultivate atavism, returning to their roots and making the traits of the divine beasts reemerge. Cultivating this kind of technique to its peak would allow one to gain the body and power of one of the divine beasts, and become a god.


    This was an unprecedented opportunity for all the creatures in the entire world, but from the Sil¡¯piceus point of view, what was a mere divine beast when compared to their glorious race.


    They had obviously already attained the perfect form, so why would they ever abandon their noble identity and power to gain a body of an oversized prey? Why should they pursue the power of an old relic that could not survive the creation of the world when they were already on their way to becoming gods themselves?


    No, such a technique was only fit for prey, but that did not mean it was worthless. If it served to elevate their blood, then a prey that had cultivated would be much more valuable than otherwise.


    This new power system was indeed a treasure, and they needed to spread it through the entire world, so that as much prey as possible could refine their blood.


    Upon realizing this, the Sil¡¯piceus did not waste any time, and went to work perfecting this rudimentary cultivation technique. With the combined wisdom of the Great Race, a new and enhanced cultivation technique was quickly designed, which allowed one to cultivate at a breakneck speed, and pushed the purification of blood to the extreme.


    Then, they spread this technique throughout the earth, building magical monuments everywhere on the planet that contained all kinds of techniques to teach the ignorant animals how to cultivate.


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    The wild beasts greedily accepted this sudden and indiscriminate gift of power, unaware they were simply being raised so that they would be able to offer up some higher quality blood. Their caretakers did nothing but watch on impassively as they cultivated and grew in power, gaining magical powers, enslaving their brethren and building fledgling empires. Factions were created and destroyed, and the world had entered an era of tribal warfare.


    None of that mattered to the Great Ones. They grew in power faster than anyone else, and the prosperity of the entire world would only serve to further fuel their growth. Unsatisfied with waiting for the rivers of blood to trickle back to their blood lake, they built great formations spanning the entire world, to gather even the tiniest drop of blood spilled on the other side of the world.


    While the Great Work was not yet complete, the Great Rune had been fed so much rich blood that it already held unimaginable power, leading the Sil¡¯piceus to believe it had far surpassed the false power of those pathetic divine beasts.


    There was only one aspect that the Sil¡¯piceus failed to take into account. Any creature, after being cultivated to a certain point, would awaken their wisdom and become intelligent. Only, the Sil¡¯piceus never noticed this fact, because the passive mental attack inherent to their incoherent form destroyed the mind of their prey as soon as they approached, long before they had a chance to demonstrate their intelligence.


    <hr>


    As decades and centuries passed, the average cultivation level grew at a frightening pace, but still none could threaten the eternal rule of the Sil¡¯piceus. In fact, the difference in power only grew as time went by. Few beasts survived long enough to truly cultivate to a high level. The Sil¡¯piceus would never kill cultivators directly, preferring to regularly harvest their blood before releasing them so that they could recover and cultivate further. But these wild beasts had no unity, and often killed each other, compromising their only hope of one day overthrowing their cruel overlords with petty disputes.


    To make matters worse, the cultivation technique the Sil¡¯piceus disseminated had very little focus on gaining strength, instead concentrating on the purity of blood, with a secondary emphasis on healing and longevity. They desired healthy and succulent prey, not warriors.


    Despite the changing world, the Sil¡¯piceus had an immense head start, and it seemed impossible to catch up to them. Yet, far away, hidden amongst the fog in the sea, trouble was brewing.


    On an isolated island in the middle of the sea, a great ceremony was being held. Millions of birds, insects and flying animals of all kinds were gathered, prostrating themselves before their monarch.


    In the center of the adoring crowd, a mosquito king was hovering atop a pale replica of the twin blood lakes, arrogantly releasing the coercion of an emperor. Under the worshiping eyes of his subjects, he approached an altar made out of golden bones, and reverently revealed what it contained.


    It was an ethereal drop of golden blood, exuding a terrifying aura, containing the mysteries of the creation of the world, demanding respect and idolization.


    This was the original blood of the divine dragon, a vestige from the creation of the world. This was their most precious treasure, and was what gave them the confidence to overthrow their masters.


    They had found it centuries ago, following its special connection to the mosquito king''s identity as first cultivator of atavism. However, as powerful as this item was, it required equally powerful wielders, so they had never dared make use of it, fearing the Sil¡¯piceus would take it as their own. Even now, no one truly felt ready to risk everything in a great war.


    Unfortunately, time was against them, and they could not afford to wait for the Great Work to be complete, as it would spell their doom.


    Time was running short, so the mosquito king finally decided to take the ultimate step, and attempt to assimilate the divine origin contained in this drop of blood. Taking a deep breath, he sent one last glance at his friends and subjects, before plunging and disappearing inside the golden drop.


    For a week, nothing happened. Seven days passed, during which the fate of the world hung in the air, and the future was uncertain. Then, under the tearful eyes of the crowd, the golden drop lost its luster, and revealed their king, a mosquito no more, and his new status as a god.


    From the size of an insignificant insect, the newborn god rapidly expanded to become bigger than the island he had been living on. Then, raising its head towards the sky, it uttered a bloodthirsty cry, full of defiance, hatred and relentless fury, a roar that was heard across the world, announcing the start of a Great War.

 Chapter 63 : Great War

    The dragon¡¯s roar was heard throughout the land, and no one, not even the Sil¡¯piceus, could ignore its majesty. Nor could anyone misunderstand its murderous intent, or who it was directed at.


    There was an inherent sacredness to its status, and none but the most powerful beasts could resist the call of a divine being. In mere seconds, the entire world was coerced to bow down to their new god. Its will was their command, and they immediately started marching towards the twin blood lakes.


    The terrifying howl made the earth tremble, startling the Sil¡¯piceus, but instead of fear, it only invoked an endless hunger. They had an unwavering confidence in their power, and when they realized that someone was preparing to challenge their rule, they only laughed and expanded their blood lakes.


    Instead of preparing for war or mounting defenses, they crazily searched for the last few remaining runes they had yet to obtain, all the while spreading cultivation techniques everywhere. Losing was not something that they ever considered, and they could hardly contain their excitement when thinking of the upcoming feast.


    Many strategic meetings were held, but instead of considering how to win, they were more preoccupied on how to ensure that the attacking forces survived this chaotic war, so that they might try to invade again.


    The slaughter of millions of cultivators was a fortunate event, but it would not be worth the cost if it robbed them of a renewable source of blood. They also decided to act as if the power difference was not so great, so that their enemies would not discourage themselves, and dare attack them again after a brief period of recovery.


    As for the Sil¡¯piceus scattered all around the world, they rushed back home, as no one wanted to miss the promised bloodbath. The few that were too far away or too weak to return quickly cursed their luck, promising themselves to be present in the next war.


    <hr>


    The divine dragon leisurely wandered the planet, using its powers to gather troops and bring them with him. None could escape its control, and it even managed to defeat a few of the Sil¡¯piceus it met on its journey.


    A few weeks later, holding almost all of the cultivators in the world on its back, the newborn god finally made its way toward the twin blood lakes, to fight against fate, and to win its freedom.


    The Sil¡¯piceus watched all this happening with bated breath, preparing themselves for a feast like no other.


    Upon reaching the shore of the large blood lake, the divine dragon froze for a moment, before uttering a second, savage roar, and dissipating into trillions of motes of golden light.


    These drops of light burst as soon as they reached the ground, revealing themselves to be the troops it had gathered. Trillions of animals of all sizes and shapes, forming a beast horde so large that even Avery, observing from afar, had a hard time comprehending its scale.


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    No time was wasted on useless pleasantries, as the instant they touched ground, the beasts launched themselves towards their tormentors, propelled forward by centuries of resentment and a terrible yearning of freeing themselves of their cruel masters.


    Most were driven insane the instant they beheld the incoherent form of their enemies but that did nothing but enhance their brutal savagery. Nothing could stop them from enacting the murderous judgement of their god upon these monsters.


    And yet, even when facing the combined might of the entire world, the Sil¡¯piceus did not flinch. Far from being frightened, they held nothing but contempt tainted by greed towards these pathetic invaders.


    In actuality, the Sil¡¯piceus, a species who were only a few tens of thousands strong, vastly outnumbered the rest of the world.


    Each Sil¡¯piceus would divide themselves into thousands, millions, sometimes even billions of individuals, sending their parasitic sub-bodies in the fray, desperate to bring glory to their name and give their contribution to the Great Rune.


    Not only were they not outnumbered, they were not outgunned either. In fact, the power gap was so comically large that they held back from using their powerful limbs or most destructive sorceries. Instead, they limited themselves to weaker spells invented for the express purpose of disabling and bloodletting, yet healing afterwards, safeguarding the victims life so that it could be further exploited.


    When the defeated animals would soon reenter the battle after being healed by their god, they were only volunteering to donate their blood again, often getting crippled before they could even damage their enemies.


    This did not mean the Sil¡¯piceus were undefeatable. Not all of them were equally powerful, and from time to time, one of them would make a mistake and end up swamped, leading to their swift destruction.


    The problem was that the death of one body did not matter to these demigods. They all had countless lifesaving means, and as long as the Great Tower stood, no Sil¡¯piceus would truly die. They would only suffer small losses that were of no consequence, and that could be instantly offset by consuming a little blood.


    From afar, this looked like a relatively balanced battle, as neither camp were making any progress, but that could not be further from the truth.


    The Sil¡¯piceus had ultimate control of the situation. The battle would end the instant they decided to start using their more destructive spells, or if any of their third stage martial artists deigned to take part in this ridiculous war.


    The reason that they let this war of attrition continue was that it was to their advantage. Their enemies were exhausting themselve, exhausting the power of their god, and exhausting their fighting spirit.


    Meanwhile, the Sil¡¯piceus were growing in power with each passing seconds, feeding their Idol with an endless amount of blood, and reaping the rewards. It was true that using the power of the Great Rune did cost a lot of mental energy, but if they used their multiple minds efficiently enough, they would be able to continue fighting at this rate forever.


    This was not a balanced fight or a battle for survival, it was the one sided slaughter of prey throwing their lives away for a hopeless cause.

 Chapter 64 : Divine War

    Realizing the futility of its current strategy, the divine dragon ceased its efforts to heal his troops, and decided to take action personally.


    It would have preferred to remain an unseen force empowering his subjects, because it had no confidence in its own fighting prowess. While it was true he had never felt more powerful, he had very poor control, and he feared it would not be enough to match his terrifying enemies.


    He might be a God, but that was a position gained through an artifact, and not obtained from his own comprehension. In fact, he was more than a little ashamed of the manner in which he had acquired his sacred status. As the first cultivator, he was a very prideful individual, so how could he accept stealing a fallen god¡¯s powers instead of earning them himself?


    This was not to say that what he had done was easy. The divine drop of blood was somewhat similar to a computer locked with biometric security. The truly valuable thing was the information it contained, but only a dragon could access it.


    Fortunately, the mosquito king was cultivating atavism, folowing the azur dragon lineage, which would naturally lead him to transform into a dragon. Upon realizing it couldn''t afford the time to cultivate normally, it had plunged into the golden drop and started absorbing the endless vitality contained within. He was in essence hooking himself up to the battery of this computer and using its energy to commence his transformation in advance.


    This was an incredibly dangerous process, akin to putting your fingers in a plug in the hopes of using this energy to make yourself stronger, but he was not a peak cultivator for nothing. After a week of struggle, he had succeeded and been reborn as a noble dragon.


    Once his transformation was completed, he had been recognised by the dragon blood, and had been allowed to fuse with it and ¡°download¡± all of the data it contained.


    The most important thing he received was the position of God.


    Unfortunately, goodhood did not come with instruction manuals, and he had lacked the time to familiarize himself with what that truly entailed. He could tell it was incredibly important, but the only use he had thus far found for it was to create links of faith, enabling him to control and empower his subjects.


    He could feel there was much more to this position, but without the time to explore it, he could only rely on his near endless amount of vitality to fight against a civilisation of demigods.


    He had hoped that by gathering the forces of the entire world and supplying them with enough vitality, they would be able to win a war of attrition, but it was now obvious that this was a hopeless endeavor.


    <hr>


    Resigning himself to having to fight personally, the dragon summoned up a great surge of magical energy, directly picked up the closest mountain, and hurled it at the Sil¡¯piceus city, intending to raze it to the ground in a single shot.


    The improvised meteorite hurtled towards its target, vaporizing anyone that tried to get in its way, but before it could make contact, a huge tentacle rose from ground, catching the projectile in an almost leisurely manner, before throwing it back, forcing the dragon to swerve in the sky and avoid it.


    Then, before the divine beast could recover from its improvised aerial maneuvers, the sky seemed to be warped by an unseen force, and with a large crack, the massive form of the Owner appeared, so large it covered the sun.


    It was hard to describe how big the Owner was. At some point, he had grown into a behemoth the size of a small city, composed of an incalculable amount of parasitic sub-bodies. Each and every one of his thousands of tentacles were thicker and longer that the divine dragon, all of them radiating the oppressive pressure of a third stage martial artist.


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    He had grown so large he could no longer fit in the Great City, being forced to carve himself an immense cavern underneath to live in. Indeed, were it not for his mastery of teleportation and flight powers, it would have been impossible to move around without destroying everything around him.


    This was the result of countless years of dedicated cultivation, the proof of his immense power. He may have not yet taken control of a domain, and had not earned the position of God, but that did not stop him from claiming to be the most powerful being in the world.


    He too had not originally intended to fight personally, unwilling to reveal just how large the power gap was. The plan had been to send some weaker third stage martial artists to take care of the dragon, all in an effort to maximize the benefits of this war without demoralizing the enemy too much.


    However, it had been so long since he had fought anything even approaching his level, and he couldn''t contain himself. Despite his old age, he was still a hot blooded warrior at heart. He yearned to experience a battle to the death again, and he was not going to let an opportunity approaching it go to waste.


    He was waving all of his tentacles very aggressively, but in truth, he was using only one of them at a time to attack his enemy. He wanted to appear as if he was trying his best, while not ending the fight too quickly.


    The divine dragon was making a valiant effort to keep up, calling the wind and rain, creating a sea in the sky and throwing dvine lightning around indiscriminately, but doing no real damage.


    Even when two Gods, the inheritors of the world tree and white tiger, appeared out of nowhere to launch a surprise attack, the Owner only feigned injury. Then, a few calculated tentacle swings were all that he needed to include them both in his macabre dance. He was trying his best to make it appear as a relatively balanced fight, while still taking great joy in making them slowly fall into a hopeless position.


    This superpowered performance lasted multiple days, the Owner taking its role as a cruel puppeteer toying with his victims without them even realizing it very seriously.


    It was only much later that the Owner grew tired of this meaningless fight, and cast his most powerful spell. He did not want to kill them, but he was deadly curious about their divinity, and he believed that stealing their divine blood would only make them more willing to attack again. After all, it did not seem to affect their combat power too much.


    The sky turned red as all the blood contained in the twin blood lakes rose up to the heavens, forming an immense octopus, looking down upon the world. This was no virtual image of no consequences, as Avery had once created, but a veritable blood phantom the size of the planet, poised to destroy the world.


    This truly was the Owner¡¯s deadliest attack, but he had only channeled a infinitesimally small portion of his power into it. He had calculated the power of this strike perfectly, so that it would shred the three gods apart, separating them from their divinity, while still letting them live.


    The blood phantom¡¯s strike easily broke past the defenses of the young gods, and ripped the divine blood from both the azure dragon and white tiger. It was slightly less effective on the bloodless world tree, who managed to keep hold of its divinity, but it still left it half dead and in a coma.


    This strike determined the Sil¡¯piceus victory, yet the Owner too let himself fall limply on the ground, barely avoiding crushing his own city. He wanted them to believe this had been his final strike, and that they had been supremely close to beating him. Only then would they be the most motivated, to improve themselves and return to contribute their high quality blood to the Great rune.


    Understanding his intentions, a pair of powerful Sil¡¯piceus ran towards the recovering gods, forcing them to retreat while making it clear that the Owner was not capable of finishing them off himself.


    Despite their grievous wounds, the two fallen gods had to continue using their powers on their unconscious comrade and flee as far as they could, leaving two golden drops of divine blood hanging high in the sky, and vowing to take revenge for this humiliation.


    Content with the results of his performance, the Owner stealthily separated a parasitic sub-body and made it grab the divine blood, intending to offer them up to the Great rune. Yet, he froze as soon as he stepped foot into the temple, seeing the Great Rune vibrating violently, enveloped in a huge silver formation.

 Chapter 65 : Traitor

    The Owner immediately recognized the teleportation circle that was enveloping most of the temple, and by exerting a little spiritual pressure, he found that there was a second, hidden teleportation formation that extended beyond what he could sense.


    It was not hard to understand why the Great Rune had so much trouble powering up such a massive formation, but what perplexed him was that it did not even cost a fraction of that to teleport to the other side of the planet. What was the point in going so obviously overboard?


    Glaring at the Elder, who was calmly drawing the last few lines of the formation, he restrained himself from shouting as he accused incredulously.


    ¡°You are trying to escape? But why? The war is won, the Great work is on the brink of completion, and you are risking everything to escape? Don¡¯t you see that the Great Rune is on the brink of destruction?¡±


    As he was talking, he lashed out at the unfinished spell in an attempt to disturb its creation. However, before his limbs even approached the formation, they hit a strange translucent mirror, which deflected his strike just as easily as he had deflected the divine dragon¡¯s meteor.


    Then, before he could try again, thin silver chains rose from the ground, grasping at both this incarnation and his real body, immobilizing them completely. The chains did not look sturdy, but no matter what he tried, the Owner could not escape his bindings.


    Apparently unconcerned by what was happening, the Elder mutely finished his work, before turning to face his prisoner.


    ¡°I am doing my duty, as I have always have. I cannot allow the Great Work to be complete.¡±


    He slowly approached the prone Owner, and gently took the two drops of divine blood from his immobilized tentacles. He held them up, admiring their golden luster, before throwing them disdainfully to the Great Rune, not even looking to see what would happen.


    ¡°You should be ashamed of how much importance you place on these meaningless items.¡±


    The Elder slithered closer to his captive, so that they were almost touching.


    ¡°Do you have any idea of what you have done in your blind pursuit of power? Did you not stop for a moment to consider the consequences of your actions?¡±


    Lifting a tentacle, the Elder gently touched the center of the Owner¡¯s body, right where his personal rune used to be.


    ¡°You have tied your very life, and the existence of our entire race, to a mere object, and now you aim to give that thing godhood? It would be bad enough if you wanted to limit yourself with the position of God, but you must be afraid of having too much freedom, and prefer to create a God you have to obey.¡±


    The Elder did not make any violent movements, but there was an incredible harshness in his voice, causing the Owner to instinctively shrink back.


    ¡°A lowly race, worshiping a single, pathetic God lording over an insignificant world, is that the height of your ambitions? You have seen what the position of God means, and you would sacrifice the potential of our race to serve something of such low status?¡±


    Desperate to understand what was happening, the Owner tried to look around. It was hard to see things clearly without using his tentacles to emit investigative vibrations, but he was finally able to notice the presence of the sages that had been meditating with the Elder.


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    ¡°The Great Rune is but a tool, it exists to serve us, not for us to serve it.¡±


    Concentrating harder, he was able to see that they were dragging along dozens of unconscious third stage martial artists towards the Great Rune.


    ¡°The Great Work is a dead end, and it cannot be allowed to continue.¡±


    With disturbing ease, the sages cut off a tentacle from each martial artist, throwing it to the Great Rune and making it vibrate even more violently.


    ¡°They are all external methods, distraction makes you forget what makes a Sil¡¯piceus great.¡±


    After his last exclamation, the Elder effortlessly ripped one of the Owners powerful tentacles off and fed it to the great rune.


    ¡°You may be ready to bow to a mere artifact, but I will never accept us being the puppets of fate, much less of a puny God of our own creation.¡±


    The loss of a tentacle hurt, and the claim that the Great Work was a doomed endeavor was a severe blow to his worldview, but none of that was anything compared to the betrayal he felt from his old teacher. Confused, not knowing what to think, he could only make a herculean effort to talk through the bondage of the silver chains and pitifully beg his trusted friend for answers.


    ¡°Then tell us, guide us, we would have listened. Why are you escaping, like a coward? Why have you abandoned us?¡±


    The Elder did not respond to these accusations, but simply pointed towards the sky.


    ¡°This world does not contain enough to satisfy us. It has served us well when we were a young race, but we have already exhausted all that it had to offer. You are content to play around as a king, deluding yourself that you are important, but I know how small this planet is, and I know how vast the universe is. I am nothing, you are nothing, but the Sil¡¯piceus cannot be nothing.¡±


    Then, under the stunned gaze of the Owner, the Elder dug his tentacles into his own flesh, spilling silver blood all over the floor, and ripping his own personal rune from his chest. It was a strange transparent rune, with not a hint of blood in it, but containing an extraordinary amount of insight.


    ¡°Take this. It holds everything you need to know to conquer the Starry Sky, and to build the Sil¡¯piceus civilization anew¡±


    The Owner watched as the translucent rune melted into his flesh, and before he could muster the force to utter a single word, the teleportation formation lit up, and the Great Warrior disappeared, shuttling through space on a journey to visit the stars. Accompanying him were almost a hundred third stage martial artists, a force that would make even gods cower in fear.


    <hr>


    Humming in satisfaction the Elder turned to face his acolytes.


    ¡°Good, good. Now, the future of our species is secure. The Owner will spread our name throughout the universe, and ensure the Sil¡¯piceus lineage will last forever. Now, it is time to look past eternity, and tread beyond. It is time to start our war against fate.¡±


    ¡°We cannot pin our hopes on the Starry Sky. We have reached the limits of this world, and we will one day reach the limits of the sky. We are Sil¡¯piceus, and we cannot allow ourselves to ever be shackled by the limits of our reality!¡±


    ¡°Our glory will be infinite, our strength eternal, our reign absolute. If the finite universe cannot grant us this, then we will create something new, something infinite, something beyond this reality.¡±


    With a solemnn wave of his tentacles, the Elder revealed a third, even bigger formation, enveloping the entire world, with an infinitely more complex goal than teleportation.


    It took hold of the Great Rune, eradicating the nascent consciousness hiding within, and thrusting it into the core of the world, to bathe in Avery¡¯s mana pool. Then, through a mystifying technique, the Elder used strange powers that even Avery didn¡¯t understand, and created the seed of a dream world.


    At first the dream world used the Great Rune as a focal point, gathering the consciousness of every Sil¡¯piceus in the vicinity, growing more solid and defined as the number of consciousness it housed increased. Then, when the dreamworld became solid enough to stand on its own, it discarded the Great Rune, taking its place at the center of Avery¡¯s mana pool.


    The dream world was still very small, and would barely cover the great city, but it had infinite growth potential.


    <hr>


    The Elder glanced at the dead city he had created, its inhabitants'' consciousness trapped in his dream world.


    He looked towards the Heavens, seemingly addressing an unknown being as he proudly proclaimed his ambitions before he too fell into slumber.


    ¡°The day that the dreamworld is complete will be the day that the Sil¡¯piceus have transcended beyond this miserable world.¡±

 Chapter 66 : Aftermath

    Avery stared speechlessly at the broken wreckage of his inner world. He hadn¡¯t been paying much attention to what he perceived as a hopeless war, and had been caught by surprise by the explosive resolution.


    The Owner was floating aimlessly through the void with his unfortunate companions, making the best use of his time by studying the Elder¡¯s personal rune, and upgrading his martial arts technique to harness the power of the stars.


    The great city of the Sil¡¯piceus was gone, submerged deep in the middle of the ocean. When the Elder had ripped the Great rune from its place, it had critically unbalanced the blood formation that linked all of the runes together, causing everything to blow up.


    The power of these combined items was immense, and the collapse of the formation had sunk the entire continent, while rescattering the thousand defined runes across the world.


    The only sign of the great city left on the surface was the color of the surrounding ocean, which had been forever tainted red with blood. While the Sil¡¯piceus had been protected by the power of the dream world, and this might have been part of the Elder¡¯s plan to make sure no one disturbed their slumber, for the rest of the world, this was an unprecedented catastrophe.


    More than ninety percent of the world''s population had been gathered on the blood lakes'' shores. While a very small number of them actually died during the great war, the subsequent runic disaster had pretty much wiped them out. Of those lucky enough to survive, fewer still had managed to remain sane after confronting the hideous demigods.


    Even if you survived with a stable mind, you were left alone under the sea, forced to fight your maddened friends as they took out their pain and hatred on you. How long would you last, and how long did you want to last? This was the punishment for daring to abolish the Great Ones, the creation of a cursed land where resentment had grown so deep it had manifested.


    This did not mean the world was completely dead, as the mortal wildlife on the other continents were practically unscathed. The cultivation civilization, on the other hand, was crumbling in ruins. The only remaining cultivators were the handful that had been powerful enough to resist the divine dragon¡¯s call, along with one hibernating god and two fallen ones.


    Unfortunately, few of these survivors had time to raise the new generation of cultivators. They were too busy hunting down the last remaining Sil¡¯piceus who had not taken part in the Great War. Not a single one of their cruel masters could be left alive, or they would have the opportunity to climb their way back to power.


    However, even weakened and isolated, robbed of their source of power, the Sil¡¯piceus remained near-unkillable demigods. They could create and hide backup bodies faster than their enemies could kill them, and were a nightmare to deal with.


    In the end, the atavism cultivators took inspiration from the mysterious god who had struck the final blow in the Great War, eradicating the Sil¡¯piceus consciousness directly. Instead of killing their body, they sealed their spirits with the power of the world tree''s roots, and forced them to join it in its slumber.


    At the same time, everyone was searching everywhere for the enigmatic benefactor who had taken the opportunity brought about by the mutually destructive result of the battle between the Sil¡¯piceus leader and the three gods to deliver a final blow.


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    That ultimate attack had enveloped the entire world in its silver glow, and by the time it had vanished, the Great City was no more, and the Great War was won. Everybody wanted to meet that unknown hero to which the world owed their freedom.


    However, no matter how hard or long they looked, they never found any traces of this supreme cultivator, and this Lord of Mysteries was believed to have perished as a martyr fighting his enemies in a battle of minds.


    All this meant that apart from a few exceptions, the world was left to recover by itself. The new era was to be born from the ashes of the old one without interference, flourishing in this free world their predecessors had sacrificed to establish.


    Cultivation knowledge was not lost, for the countless magical steles the Sil¡¯piceus had erected throughout the land remained. No matter where you were in the world, you could never be more than a few dozen kilometers from one of these monuments, containing the supreme wisdom of an ancient race.


    Cultivating sapience took time, but eventually a new civilization would be born, and in turn they would attempt to shape the world to their whims. In the meantime, nature was free to enjoy the relative peace of the law of the jungle.


    <hr>


    Avery was a little sad to see the familiar civilization he had watched develop for centuries fade into obscurity, leaving only ruins behind. Although perhaps a little violent, it had been a thriving and vibrant world, and now it was gone.


    Avery felt a terrible melancholy rise up, amplifying his ever present feeling of loneliness. This was yet another thing he had lost to time, an entire world that had left him behind in his unchanging abyss. Loneliness was his destiny, and even creatures born from his imagination could not accompany him forever.


    He accepted those feelings, letting the pain wash over him, but refusing to let it affect him. He was better than that, and he would not let himself have a breakdown when escape was at hand. Besides, there were many things that mattered more to him than this sense of loss, and he was deadly curious to explore the secrets of the Gods and the Dream World.


    In regards to Godhood, he was in a similar position to the divine dragon. He technically had all the information he needed. He just had to contain his instinctive hatred towards those that would contest his supreme authority and get to work studying it.


    The problem was that Godhood was an extremely complex and delicate subject, and the amount of data to understand was massive. It would take at least decades of dedicated efforts to analyze everything and make a comprehensive conclusion on the nature of divinity. Because of how long it would take to understand it, it would have to wait for when he successfully became immortal, but it was possible.


    The same could not be said about the Dream World. The Elder truly was a genius, and to be able to create a virtual world without the aid of the Tao, he must have surpassed even Avery in his understanding of the world. Even now, Avery had no idea how the Elder had created the Dream world, or anything about his powers at all.


    If studying Godhood was like a high-schooler trying to read a super advanced scientific paper on quantum mechanics, peeking at the Elder¡¯s Dream world was like trying to access a password protected file. He could see that it existed, read some metadata like its size and when it had been created, but that was about it. He had no way to even access the truly important information, so there was nothing to study or understand.


    He did not know how it worked, what its purpose was or even what happened in it. The Dream World was beyond his reach.


    This obviously did not sit well with Avery, but there was nothing he could do, and it was useless to worry about it. It was not like he had not gained anything either, as the Elder¡¯s actions had made his inner world, and therefore his intent, undergo a huge leap in quality.


    In fact, this development of his inner world might not be a bad thing. There was nothing left to distract him, and he could concentrate completely on overcoming his tribulation.


    Taking one last look at his visualization, Avery switched his Dao vision back to monitor the outside world, more motivated than ever to ascend. It might be childish to compete with creatures born from his imagination, but he was not going to let what little authority he had over his inner world get usurped.

 Chapter 67 : Tribulation

    Avery opened his eyes, watching in wonder as the world bent to his will, allowing mana to manifest into a mesmerizing pattern.


    It pained him every time he had to refuse the enlightenment opportunity proposed by successful completion of a rune, but if he was to link thousands of runes together, time was of essence.


    He had surpassed the level of clear runes a long time ago, all the way back when the Elder had constructed his dreamworld. Since then, he had progressed tremendously, but he also never dared put his all into engraving anymore, afraid of calling the tribulation down prematurely.


    He had focused on speed and consistency, and became increasingly confident in his skills. Eventually, he became so adept at controlling mana that he was capable of inscribing a rune on every cell on his body in just a few hours. Even then, he did not ascend, for he had yet to complete the design of his runic body.


    This design had very little in common with his first draft, save for its purpose. He had at first imagined that his new body would be based on a human template, originally intending to draw a rune on every single cell of his human body.


    However, as he revised his plans again again and again, with more care for function than form, that humanoid shape was naturally abandoned. It simply wasn¡¯t a shape very suited to house the complex structure of intertwined runes.


    He was trying to find which arrangement of glyphs would produce the best effect. He gradually discovered that to work best, they should themselves form the pattern of a larger rune, one which signified their overall purpose. Then, he organized those larger runes together to form even bigger glyphs, and so on and so on.


    In the end, his entire new body was a huge rune, spelling out Avery¡¯s existence. It was not completely accurate, as Avery was still infinitely far from knowing himself completely, but it spelled out everything he believed to be important to make him what he was.


    His inner world occupied the center of the rune, where the Tao would normally be, and around it were three concentric circles, symbolizing the extra features he had added. There weren''t really eyes or wings anymore, but he had taken the habit to call them that, so they carried that identity, despite ultimately having little to do with those body parts.


    As for the rest, it was entirely dedicated to summing up Avery¡¯s existence in a single word, ¡°Free¡±. In effect, its exterior aimed to act as a Faraday cage, letting everything flow through it without harm. The idea wasn''t to be resistant, it was to be so accommodating, no harm would ever come to it.


    It was also designed to be as self sufficient as possible, using the principle of 5 elements nurturing each other to minimize energy loss. It was hard to test accurately, but he calculated that with how low maintenance cost his body would be, it would be able to function forever, even in a land devoid of spiritual energy. Even in an empty void, it would take more than a century for him to finally die.


    He would not claim this runic body of his was perfect, but this was the limit of his current abilities, and he did not know how to improve it any further.


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    <hr>


    Satisfied with the result of his tireless efforts, Avery looked towards the heavens and stood up, finally ready to take the ultimate step of his mortal life.


    With a single thought, countless minuscule runes appeared in his heart. He did not even need to use his finger anymore, his control of mana was such that he could use it to inscribe anywhere his Dao vision reached. This was a fortunate thing, for having to dissect himself to engrave runes upon his bones would not have been very practical.


    He concentrated fully on engraving, reducing the scope of his Dao vision to increase its precision. The runes he was drawing were so tiny, it would have been impossible to see them clearly otherwise. This was because if he were drawing glyphs of the usual size, the complex pattern would not have fit even if his body was ten times as large.


    Being drawn outside of his body would have robbed them of that all-important identity, so he had been forced to learn to miniaturize his runes so that the entire design would fit in his chest.


    He inscribed rune after rune, making absolutely no mistakes, each stroke a work of art in itself, never slowing down, but also never severing their access to his mana pool, forcing them to remain incomplete.


    This was another technique he had invented specifically to surpass this tribulation. He was going all out, and each and every rune had easily reached immortal level. The tribulation would start as soon as the first one was finished, far before he was ready. Since engraving millions of runes at the same time seemed impossible, he did the next best thing, artificially delaying their completion so that he could finish his work.


    He was incredibly tired, hungry and thirsty by the time this monumental undertaking was complete, but he was far beyond caring about these mortal woes. It was time to transcend this cruel reality, and become an immortal.


    With a decisive slice, he cut off the mana connection to all the runes at the same time, and began his ascension.


    <hr>


    A single lightning strike fell down from the featureless sky, illuminating the abyss in its purple glow. It was accompanied by the sound of divine thunder, deafening its victim, who smiled at the familiar, heart-wrenching pain of a transcendent force rampaging through his body.


    It lasted only a fraction of a second, then Avery''s mortal body was no more, with not even ashes left. A mortal had no hope of resisting a blow from the Heavens.


    At the same time, the lightning struck at Avery¡¯s soul, blurring the boundaries of dream and reality, falling straight into his visualization, and getting silently absorbed.


    This was all the effect of a single lighting strike falling in a world that had weathered a battle of Gods. Far from destruction and rebirth, no one in the virtual world even took notice of their creators'' ordeal.


    With Avery¡¯s body destroyed, the tribulation retreated, and silence returned to the abyss.


    Then came light, a magnificent light like no other, enveloping Avery''s traumatized spirit, bringing him back to life.


    Each of his runes gained a deep purple luster, reaching closer to perfection, and Avery¡¯s runic body was complete.


    Yet Avery was too busy adoring the golden light of the Tao to care about his life and death. While not quite as grand and overpowering as the previous time he had interacted with it, this time the Tao revealed itself to be gentle and accommodating, eagerly welcoming Avery as one of its own.


    He felt an overwhelming sense of relief and profound happiness from the knowledge that he was no longer a foreigner, forever alone in an inhospitable world, but a true citizen, protected and cared for by the Heavens, as a small part of a greater whole.


    He knew in his heart that he would never again be alone, and that the Tao would be his companion forever.

 Chapter 68 : Escape

    Ding, unsuccessful purchase, you do not have enough points.


    Avery was rudely awakened from his blissful daydream by the system''s loud notification.


    Confused as to why he would suddenly be lacking points, especially with the incredible number of high level runes he had drawn for his ascension. He opened the system to check what was happening, and immediately found the issue.


    He had been automatically buying time warps at a consistent rate, as he had been doing for years. He was so used to doing it that he no longer needed to think about it, and would trust his instincts to keep him alive even when falling into enlightenment for a very long period of time.


    The problem was that he was no longer a mortal, but had officially become an immortal, and as the cost of time warps were calculated according to his cultivation level, they had gotten absurdly expensive. To be precise, they now cost more than five hundred trillion points each. Obviously, his savings ran out rather quickly.


    He supposed he just had to thank his lucky star that time warps were extremely ineffective against the Tao¡¯s power, and he had not been able to buy enough of them to rewind back to before his ascension.


    Since he was scrolling the menu, he decided to check the purchase logs, and calculate how long it had taken for him to become immortal.


    He glanced at the numbers with a nonchalant attitude, emblematic of his self satisfied mood as a new celestial being, but that facade dropped as soon as the result of his mental arithmetic came out.


    He was nearing his eight thousandth birthday. He had not wandered the abyss for a few decades, not a few centuries, but a few millenniums. Somehow, years had turned into decades, and decades into centuries, and he had been alone for thousands of years.


    If he remembered correctly, human civilization on earth was only about 6000 years old. How was it even remotely possible for him to be older than that? It had taken the Sil¡¯piceus civilization less than two thousands years to approach Godhood, and he had taken four time as long to become immortal, even when being able to enter enlightenment traces at will. Was he really so unsuited for cultivation?


    Ultimately, his old age mattered little. The past was the past, and he had a bright future ahead of him. Why cry about bygone pain when an eternity of happiness was at hand?


    Determined not to let small things like the inexorable march of time ruin the celebration of his ascension, Avery decided it was time to leave this godforsaken place behind. With a single flap of his newly acquired symbolic wings, he took off to the skies, to infinity and beyond.


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    As he rose to the heavens, he got his first good view of his prison, and the enormity of his situation fully sunk in.


    His initial theory had been correct, and he had been living in between the scales of a gargantuan creature, but it seemed he had grossly underestimated the size of the beast.


    Even with the help of propulsion runes, it still took Avery multiple days of top speed flight through this silent purgatory to gain enough elevation to be able to see the creature in its entirety.


    It was a giant black dragon, its serpentine body curled up upon itself, hiding most of its massive form. Lacking precise measurement, Avery could only claim the guess it was probably bigger than the entire solar-system.


    It was hard to imagine how much power that massive body must hold, but it was clear it was unable to use any of it. Just like Avery had been held captive by its presence, so too was the dragon a prisoner, tied down by an uncountable number of chains made out of black and red fire.


    The great beast''s jailer was an illusory black lotus, sitting upon its head as a crown, its thirty six petals digging into the majestic dragon''s flesh, pinning him to the ground.


    Avery felt an uncontrollable urge to fly to the black lotus, to investigate what it was, but he restrained himself. It was clear that even as an immortal, he was far from qualified to remain in this area. This dragon¡¯s den was simply too terrifying, and it was not something a new celestial being could explore. Even now, he still had no idea where the omnidirectional ambient light came from, nor could he explain any of what was happening here.


    Turning away, Avery set forth on a journey to rejoin civilization. He had no idea where he was, nor where he should go, but using his old powers as a seer, he was able to see his karmic entanglements and use them as a compass.


    He had interacted with very few people in this world, so he had only three causal relationships deep enough to provide a direction. He could not tell to whom they belonged, but one of them was pointing directly downwards, towards the black dragon.


    Their relationship was very profound, but the most vexing thing was while their karma and merits mostly cancel out, the Heavens ultimately deemed him to be in karmic debt towards the beast. While it was true that the dragon power had been trying to kill him for millennia, Avery had used its body as the earth he stood upon, and the paper he inscribed upon.


    He was unable to determine the nature of his two other causal relationships, and comparing them to the one he had with the dragon was like comparing the thickness of a hair to a towering tree, but they would still be enough to guide him. Since they both pointed to roughly the same direction, leading him far away beyond the horizon, he just chose the deepest one and followed it.


    The flight to freedom was slow, and more than a week passed without anything happening, but he did not mind that. Flying did not cost him much, allowing him to continue his exploration of the Tao while on the move.


    It was a month later that Avery stopped dead in the air, inches away from a translucent membrane that covered the sky. It was only now that he realized that the ¡°dragons den¡± he had lived in for thousands of years was not a giant cavern, or a magical house, but a small world. He had left the prehistoric world a long time ago, and now it was finally time to come back.


    Walking slightly forward was all it took, and Avery effortlessly crossed the dragon den''s world border.


    Finally, he was free.


    END OF VOLUME TWO

 Chapter 69 : Freedom

    Volume III : Detachment


    <hr>


    Avery glided elegantly through the air, feeling a bit dizzy as he beheld nature''s beauty. The dragon¡¯s den he had been trapped in for so long had turned out to be a been a small world, hidden in a magnificent mountain range. Incredibly, he was starting to miss his  desolate prison, intimidated by this heavenly wilderness.


    He had found no signs of humanity so far, and the truth was that he was in no hurry to find them. It was already hard enough to acclimatize to this unfamiliar world. He was content with his current life, a free spirit letting nature heal his wounded heart.


    He spent most of his time cultivating and admiring the scenery, appreciating just how much better this was to the dim ravine that he had called home for centuries. Now, there was no limit to his actions, he could go anywhere he wished, do anything he wanted, free to play with the wind and rain as with long-lost friends or stalk the wildlife. He was living an Idyllic existence, and sometimes he felt his heart was so full of joy it would burst.


    The scenery was astonishingly beautiful, and Avery never grew tired of the feeling of flying freely through the air, twirling in the breeze and immersing himself in the magnificence of nature.


    There was so much to appreciate, so much variety and charm, so much that had been hidden by the monotonous gray sky of the abyss. Snow covered peaks that reached so far they seemed to touch the stars, gorges that led to the underworld, trees with emerald green leaves and clouds streaked with gold, majestic waterfalls of crystal-clear water.


    This magnificent scene was an ode to nature''s majesty, and to the Tao¡¯s greatness. This was what he had been missing for thousands of years, and this was something he never wanted to lose again.


    He felt both excitement and anticipation to be out in it all, loving both the coolness of the daylight hours and the frosty nights. He remembered, a long time ago, before he had even come to this world, he used to dismiss the world''s beauty, preferring to sit at home with a book in hand or a computer on his lap, but he could no longer comprehend his previous self¡¯s actions.


    He was not only passively admiring a beautiful landscape, he was seeing an earthly manifestation of the Tao. With no sapient beings to disturb it, the natural order had full reign to order everything according to its delicate laws. Each mountain, each flower, each snowflake was an expression of the Great Way, each of them unique yet part of a greater whole. The entire world was talking to him, and every whisper in the wind brought him countless insights into the Supreme Truth.


    Yet all this was not what brought him the greatest joy, or what truly brought him to hate his previous prison. That was the sudden closeness and accessibility he felt from the Tao. It seemed that the small world of the dragon¡¯s den was partly disconnected from the Tao, making it obscure and distant. Perhaps that had been one of the factors that let Avery survive his multiple encounters with the supreme truth, but he couldn''t help but feel it had not been worth it.


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    Now, in this great world of the prehistoric, the Great Way was clearer, more profound, more present. It was difficult to describe, but it brought him great joy, and he could hardly imagine anything more wonderful.


    Laughing at how perfect his life was, Avery looked around him again, wanting to admire it again. He blinked, surprised to discover that night had fallen, the black velvet sky adorned by the twinkling of stars, like thousands of diamonds sparkling with starlight, the earth bathed in gentle moonlight.


    He was pretty sure that it had been early morning when he had started daydreaming about the Tao, and now a day had been lost to his idle musings. This was not the first time something of the sort had happened either. On the contrary, it seemed to happen every other day. Now that he no longer used time warps and his body did not age, he had no way of keeping track of time.


    He supposed he could design some kind of clock using runes, but he was not that invested in having a minuted record of his activity, or in managing his time efficiently.


    He was an immortal anyways, so why should he bother worrying about these insignificant details? Be it night or day, the Tao was always there, and it was all that mattered.


    Avery continued his journey to the horizon, wind beneath his feet, the Tao as companion, and karma as a guide.


    The mountain range seems to have no end, as he had flown by thousands of peaks and each time he would fly over one, another bigger one would appear. In all fairness, he was not paying much attention to where he was going and might have been going in circles, but even then this mountain range would still be massive.


    The amount of unique and awe-inspiring landmarks he had come across was beyond impressive. From a forest with trees made out of flames to a sword-shaped mountain and a lake of liquid crystal, this mountain range had it all. As for animal life, while it was not extremely numerous, it had its own wild charm, with many extraordinary creatures enhancing the beauty of the landscape they lived in.


    Avery even grew particularly attached to a white fox he had one day found running around through the trees. It looked so pure, so innocent, going on to do its daily tasks without a thought about the greater Truth. It reminded him of the distant past when he had not yet discovered the Tao. He watched the adorable creature from afar for days, cheering it on as it hunted, and worrying about its safety whenever it got into trouble.


    He never directly interacted with it, not wanting to disturb the natural order directly, but he gave it a gift before he left, a rune containing all of his understanding of the Tao. If it cultivated diligently, and if fate was on its side, then it too could aspire to rejoin the Tao.


    Such was his admiration for this extraordinary landscape that he was almost disappointed when he started to notice that the mountain peaks were getting slightly shorter, that snow became slightly rarer, and that ravines no longer extended so deep. He was happy in this mountain range, so did he really have to go outside? Why should he go and face the unknown uselessly?


    He forced himself to continue, as one who aspired to understand the Supreme Avenue should always seek to explore the unknown, and could not allow himself to rest on his laurels. Yet he grew increasingly worried as the mountains grew sparser, and it was with apprehension that he finally beheld the first sign of civilization he had seen in eight thousand years.


    He knew that he was about to complicate his simple life immensely, and he wasn''t sure it was worth it.

 Chapter 70 : First Meeting

    Avery hovered in the sky far above his target, unsure as to what he should do. He was floating in the air, looking down upon the first sign of civilization he had found, a strange village set in the mountainside. Surrounded by hundreds of small irregular fields, following the irregular shape of the landscape, tiny hamlets and huts nestled among the bushes and trees, it had a certain rustic charm.


    It was quite an odd settlement, strangely orderly and symmetrical despite the primitive building materials and inefficiently spaced out buildings. In the center of the village stood a tower-like structure, striking out with its metal exterior. From it extended suspiciously perfect paths bisecting the fields and circling the whole village in a lattice-like pattern.


    From Avery''s perspective, it seemed that it was some kind of magic circle, but one that seemed to follow very different principles from his runic formations. He could not easily tell what its purpose was, only that it made the whole town feel off. Then again, Avery could hardly remember how cities and towns were supposed to look. Anything that was not the Sil¡¯piceus great city would probably look odd to him.


    In any case, that was not what he was most concerned about. He needed to fly down and finally meet fellow humans, but he did not know how to do it. Should he hide himself and observe first? Should he swoop in and land in the middle of the village, should he land somewhere concealed and walk the rest of the way there as if he was a normal traveler?


    Once he was there, what should he say? That he was a lost traveler? A cultivator who just escaped a terrible trap? A lonely interdimensional traveler? Should he lie, should he tell the truth, should he tell only part of the truth, and how much? What if they didn¡¯t like his answers? What should he do?


    Avery tortured himself with these questions endlessly, until he realized it was already mid-afternoon, and that he needed to act now before he lost all of his confidence.


    Landing right before the wooden gates of the hamlet, he advanced slowly, making sure the nearby villagers spotted him early, trying his best to appear confident.


    He heard his observers shout and point at him, gathering around him and calling their friends. Realizing he could not understand a word of what they were saying, he paused to design and draw a rune with the effect of a translation spell.


    The spell was a very simple one, as he did not need to design a translation function by himself, but only connect to the one initially present in this world''s laws. Seeing how convenient it was, and as it seemed far-fetched to believe that the laws of this world had been born with a translation function that only cultivators could access, he guessed this was a latter addition by some powerhouse to facilitate universal communication.


    He sent a silent thank you to that unknown benefactor, and started drawing the rune in the air, so that it would temporarily affect the area, making it so that everyone could understand everyone else.


    However, his actions only made the crowd more agitated, and countless villagers flooded the place, holding various tools in a threatening way. Worse, the only thing he heard through the translation rune were hostile exclamations like "kill it, quickly!", "be careful, it''s about to attack!" and "try to lure it into the formation!".


    Confused as to what was happening, Avery froze, trying to make sense of this situation. Why were they reacting like that? What had he done wrong? Why did they want to kill him? He only wanted to make friends!


    He was so lost and confused that he did not even think to dodge the fireball launched at him, letting himself be engulfed by blue flames. It did not do any harm to him, as his body wasn''t flammable anymore, but it did make him panic, shocking him out of his indecisive stupor. He tried to wave at them reassuringly, shouting that he came in peace, that he was simply a lost traveler who meant them no harm.


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    When no sound came out, Avery remembered his new immortal body had no mouth. Wincing at this embarrassing oversight, he made a move to draw a rune in the air, one that would transmit sound and speak in his place. Watching the crowd grow restless at the sight of this new spell of his, and thinking over what he was doing, Avery suddenly realized what was wrong.


    It was painfully obvious in retrospect, but he looked nothing like a human being. From the farmers'' perspective, he was a hovering mass of glowing runes, moving around and casting spells, soundlessly approaching their home. Of course they would be frightened, and he was an idiot for not realizing it sooner. In reality, he looked more like a monster than most of the magical beasts he had seen in the mountain range.


    Looking at the scared and angry mob surrounding him, arming themselves with farming tools and crude weapons, and seeing a blue robed man standing on the tower balcony, preparing a new fireball, Avery gave up. He had messed up too badly, and things were never going to work like this. Turning back, he ran away at top speed, desperate to get out of this horrible situation.


    He flew much farther and higher than necessary, to give himself some peace of mind, and even cast an invisibility spell to make absolutely sure no one would find him before he sorted things out. He tried very hard to resist the impulse to run back into the mountains and simply cultivate in the wilderness, but he had to admit that option was extremely tempting.


    He even had second thoughts on rejoining civilization at all. Sure, meeting people sounded good, but did he really have anything to gain? He already had the Tao as a companion, and wasn''t feeling that lonely. The idea of having friends was attractive, but that required a lot of effort slowly building close relationships, an idea that filled him with terror. Besides, would they not just distract him from his cultivation? He was an immortal, what did he need friends for?


    However, he was a proud immortal, and he really shouldn''t give up after a single small setback, no matter how embarrassing it was. Especially since everything had been his fault, and he could easily try again after correcting a few details.


    Besides, who really cared about what happened in a small village lost in the middle of nowhere? This was a perfect testing ground to help him learn and gently acclimate to society, without any worry of consequences. This first meeting would only be a failure if he let it get to him and dictate the direction his life should take. Otherwise, it was just a learning experience that no one would ever know about.


    Yes, but did he truly want to rejoin society? He was a cultivator, the lives of mortals had nothing to do with him. What if doing so hampered his cultivation? What if he broke his Dao heart? Was it worth it to go through all that pain and effort just to say he was not alone?


    Avery was fretting over his next course of actions endlessly, making odd patterns in the sky as he drifted back and forth in accordance with his indecision. It took a long time for him to calm down, and decide that he could not let himself choose exile over a small embarrassing incident nobody would ever hear about.


    He yearned for freedom, and that included not letting his instincts and baseless feelings control his life.


    His decision made, he got straight to work on making sure his second meeting was a success, trying to drown the mortifying memories of his first meeting with thoughts on how to solve his problem.


    The first thing he needed to do was to craft a human form for himself. Wanting to redesign his runic body to conform to human esthetics and include common communication functionality would be a time consuming affair, one that he was not sure he was ready to commit to. As the fireball incident had shown, there were some great conveniences in having a body composed of mana. A much more reasonable way would be to disguise himself, to make himself look human even if he was not.


    Picking up dead branch that had fallen under a nearby tree, he used a rune to shape the wood into a spiral shaped pendant. Once satisfied, he got to work on crafting his first ever treasure, and finally taking this first step on a journey to become an accomplished treasure refiner.


    It was a relatively simple affair, requiring a dozen runes to form the illusory human body, and another dozen runes to make sure it would follow his movements. Lastly, a voice transmission rune, so that he could talk through it, and a translation rune to make it understandable. That was all it took, and Avery now looked like a young man, with heavily tanned skin and strong musculature, similar to the villagers he was trying to fit in with.


    Ding, congratulations on shaping an ordinary rank material. +1 point


    Ding, Congratulations, you have completed a Gateway rune. +100 Points (x14)


    Ding, congratulations on crafting a pseudo-immortal treasure. +50 Points

 Chapter 71 : Second Meeting

    Avery hovered far above his target, unsure as to what he should do. He now had a human appearance, a voice and a translation rune, but he was racking his brain to try to make sure he had not forgotten anything else. Unfortunately, he could hardly remember what a normal human day was like, much less the minute details about how they interact socially. He did design himself some simple clothes, but those were the only modifications he could think of.


    He was having second thoughts, questioning whether this was really the right thing to do. It had gone so badly last time, and now he wanted to actually be accepted as a guest. He would fail again in a tremendously embarrassing manner, he was sure of it. He appreciated the irony that he found it harder to go meet a group of random mortals than to face a heavenly tribulation, but that did not help him gather his courage. Only as night fell, and the villagers started heading home, forcing him to act quickly, did he dismiss his irrational concerns.


    Landing just out of view of the village, he adjusted his robe, made sure it looked dusty and worn, picked up a nearby stick and used it to walk, wanting to create the impression of having traveled from very far on foot.


    He slowly marched towards settlement, and as he reached the front gates, he was hailed by a pair of villagers, and was pleased to see they were much less agitated than last time, and that it seemed like his illusions had worked.


    He had been confident in his runes, but he saw with his Dao vision, which meant he could see right through his illusions. He knew that mortals should not be able to do the same, but a tinge of worry had always remained.


    ¡°Greetings traveler. What brings you to our village? We get so few visitors out here, the girls will be glad to see a handsome new face like yours.¡±


    It took Avery an unnaturally long time to realize the question was addressed to him, at which point his heart started racing. He was making his first impression, and he had to make sure it was good.


    He had already prepared answers for all the basic questions he could think of, but now that he had to tell them under pressure, his mind felt blank, so desperate to be correct that it forgot all of his preparation.


    Painfully aware of the uncomfortable silence, and of every second of awkwardness where he didn¡¯t speak, he hastily blurted out the first thing that came to mind.


    ¡°I¡­ I am a traveler. I have traveled far, very far. Umm¡­ I got lost, and, uh, was wondering if you could tell me where we are?¡±


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    The younger villager, who looked like he had just become an adult yesterday, paid no heed to his hesitations, and happily started chatting away.


    ¡°Ah, don¡¯t be nervous, we aren''t going to hurt you. You must be really lost, we are so isolated¡­ And it seems you got robbed, too. Don¡¯t worry, we¡­¡±


    Robbed? Why did they think he was robbed? Taking a look at himself, Avery tried to understand their reasoning, suddenly realizing he had forgotten to make himself a backpack.


    What kind of traveler would have no supplies? He needed a blanket, some food, a canteen, maybe a cape to protect him from the rain¡­ Yet all he had was a plain pocket-less robe, and the crude walking stick in his hand.


    Should he acquiesce and claim that he was robbed? But by who? Should he say he lost everything? But how? Should he tell them he was an immortal, and had no need for material possessions?


    Lost in his tumultuous thought, he did not even realize the young man had happily continued his monologue, apparently not interested in waiting to hear his answers.


    ¡°...you see the thunder spirit? Did it attack you? It tried to attack the village a few hours ago, but the venerable chased it off! He was awesome, calling down meteors from the heavens, making¡­


    The chatterbox seemed like he would continue like this forever, but he was curtly cut off by his companion, who was obviously fed up with his antics.


    ¡°Can¡¯t you shut up for once in your life? He is barely standing on his feet, and you are exhausting him with all your questions. Mister, come with me, we will find you a palace to eat and rest.¡±


    Avery grew even more uncomfortable seeing the concerned look of the townsman, and tried desperately to find the best way to minimize the social interaction he needed to make.


    ¡°No, no thank you. I am, uh, very tired. Can I just have a place to sleep? I can eat tomorrow.¡±


    His feeble request was met with a conciliatory smile, and he had an intuition that things were not going to go so smoothly.


    ¡°Of course, we will arrange that as soon as possible. Let''s go, I will take you to meet my wife, she will know what to do with you.¡±


    The rest of the evening passed by in a blur. He met so many people, was asked so many questions he barely remembered answering, and was led to so many different houses. Everyone had different ideas as to where the best place for him to sleep was, and seemed to have no interest in leaving him alone at all.


    Avery tried to protest and get rid of his growing entourage, but his weak objection failed to register. It was only much later, when night had fallen and the entire village was aware of his presence, that he was given a room and left alone.


    It had not been perfect, but he had finally rejoined civilization, and was ready to face his next challenge. Now, he had a few hours to recharge his social batteries, which had been severely atrophied by centuries of lack of use.


    Knowing he would have an exhausting day tomorrow, he immersed himself in cultivation, calming his nerves and seeking comfort in his proximity to the Tao.

 Chapter 72 : Sermon

    Avery unhappily woke up from his meditative trance. His cultivation had been slower than usual, and the Tao had felt more distant than usual. The difference was almost imperceptible, but he did not like the idea of anything getting between him and the Avenue.


    Seeing as the only difference from his normal cultivation was that he was in a village instead of alone in the wilderness, he was pretty sure the cause of this was his recent interactions with mortals and the resulting karmic ties that now bound them together.


    It might not be a big deal right now, but if his cultivation had slowed down by a noticeable amount after one evening of barely interacting with his hosts, then it would quickly become unbearable.


    Perhaps, immortals were never meant to tread the red dust, and his outdated attachment to civilization would only lead him to lose his way, unable to bear the weight of mortal karma.


    He certainly wanted companionship, but not to the extent that he was ready to jeopardize his connection to the Truth in any way.


    His pessimistic musings were cut short when he re-calibrated his Dao vision to capture light instead of focusing on the fundamental laws of the universe, and saw a completely different scene from the one he was expecting.


    Instead of the small wooden room furnished with a sturdy looking table and chairs, he found himself outdoors, the sun shining on his back and the wind rustling his clothes. The only remaining evidence that he had ever been indoors was the floorboards and bed he was sitting on. Other than that, the entire house around him had been demolished, to make room for the dozens of blue robed cultivators sitting cross-legged in a circle, surrounding him.


    He had no idea who his observers were, but they were all intently looking at him, having noticed he had woken up. He could tell they were cultivators by the Qi running through their body, and that they were wearing brightly colored robes enchanted with familiar runes. He also guessed they must belong to the same sect or clan, for they all wore the same token on their waist, though the color of its symbol differed. Sadly, that was all he could make out of this situation with his deductive skills.


    He had no idea what he should do, so he stayed perfectly still, secretly glad that his illusory body would not betray his confusion and unease. The only movement he allowed himself was an interrogative glance at the only person he even recognized, the cultivator who had thrown fireballs at him just yesterday. It was hard to accurately control facial expressions through an illusion, but he hoped he managed to look more curious than pleading, or scared.


    Fortunately, it seemed his silent plea was understood, for the man hastily got up and bowed.


    ¡°Please forgive us, your excellency. We did not mean to disturb you, but no one could resist cultivating alongside you. We are eternally grateful for this great opportunity, and will do our utmost to compensate you.¡±


    Opportunity? Was watching him cultivate somehow beneficial to them? He was quite sure these people had not been in the village yesterday, so that ¡°opportunity¡± must be important enough to rush and travel great distances to experience.


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    He didn¡¯t actually know what happened when he cultivated, because he was too focused on the Tao to monitor the outside world. It had simply never occurred to him there might be some outward signs of his cultivation, or that it could be beneficial to outsiders.


    Avery almost sunk deep in thoughts again, pondering what this meant and what he could learn from it, but stopped himself when he realized no one else was making a sound.


    Looking around, he saw the crowd looking at him expectantly as if waiting for him to say something. It was like he was their superior, and they were awaiting his orders.


    Avery had many things to say, and many questions to ask. Who were they? Where were they from? What did they gain? Why did the village now look empty, where were the villagers? And that was not counting the more general question he wanted to ask, about the world in general.


    However, each time he opened his mouth to speak, he stopped midway, deciding against voicing whatever questions he was going to ask.


    He was addressing complete strangers, who were most likely not capable of harming him at all, but for some reason he could not bring himself to disappoint them. They appeared to treat him with respect, as if he was their superior, and he could not bear the thought of seeming ignorant and asking those ¡°basic¡± questions.


    Still, staying silent felt even worse, and nobody seemed to want to rush him or take the initiative to talk. They were all perfectly happy to let the senior cultivator gather his thoughts, as they all knew how disorienting it could feel to wake up from profound meditation. On the contrary, seeing Avery remain calm and composed, taking his time to consider things carefully when faced with a surprising situation impressed them very much.


    As seconds trickled away, the silence grew heavier and heavier, becoming unbearable. In desperation, Avery simply turned to his usual savior, the Tao.


    ¡°The Tao is beautiful. All is Tao, and Tao is All.


    Yet there is tragedy, for Tao and I are separate, and all beings yearn for unity with the One.


    Meritorious is the one who, through no-mindedness, follows the natural order perfectly.


    That is non-existence, to incarnate the Tao so that no distinctions remain, forever in harmony. To realize oneself in the Way, is to be at home with the Tao, and this way is sublime, and without the intermediate existence of duality.


    Yet there exists another path, of perfection through Duality. The Tao and I can be one, or we can be two, unified yet distinct.


    The Tao is One, and One is perfection.


    Yet Yin and Yang are Two, and Two is perfection.


    If Tao is Yang, then I will be Yin.


    If Tao is Yin, then I will be Yang.


    Together forever, perfection in duality, existence arises through harmony.


    That is the path that I must walk, for perfect companionship, and eternal contentment.¡±


    Avery talked for a long time, pouring his heart out without restraint. He wasn¡¯t really addressing the crowd, he was talking to himself, and to the Tao.


    He preached his Truth for multiple days straight, as once he had started talking, he could not stop. He was vaguely aware of new cultivators arriving to listen to him, but he paid them no head.


    Finally, when he felt all had been said, he closed his mouth, and looked down upon his listeners. He still felt the same awkwardness and irrational fear of asking questions, but that did not deter him anymore.


    Those transient moments of unease were nothing compared to the Tao, and as one who aimed for the Supreme Avenue, he would not let those small displeasures hinder his path.


    It was with a calm smile that he addressed the nearest cultivator.


    ¡°Who are you?¡±

 Chapter 73 : Indifference

    It took some time for the cultivator to reply, as he was still ruminating on Avery''s lecture. Not that Avery minded, as he took this opportunity to recompose himself. Asking that simple question had taken more effort than he cared to admit, and he still had so much to say.


    Finally, once his eyes cleared and he finally registered he was being talked to, the man jumped to his feet and bowed, clasping his hands together.


    "Yes, teacher. I am Zheng Tu , deacon of the pill pavilion of the Gushanhui sect. Thank you for your grace, with it I finally have a chance of reaching Mahayana.¡±


    Avery was glad the man correctly interpreted his continued silence and proceeded to explain himself some more without additional prompting.


    ¡°The Gushanhui sect is a subordinate branch of the YongQihui palace, in charge of the Gushan province. Your Excellency, I see you have been traveling, would you like to go rest in the sect? You would be our guest of honor, with all the accommodations we could provide, and a high grade formation that could help you cultivate.¡±


    Avery did not respond to the invitation, but rather continued asking questions, trying to gain as much information as he could while saying as little as possible. He mostly limited himself to simple sentences like ¡°what is that¡± or ¡°tell me more¡±, thinking that the less he said, the less likely it was he would embarrass himself.


    He was still terrified of making any mistakes, but he was not sure what he was even trying to do, and what mistakes he could make.


    Did he really care to know the Gushanhui sect had more than 5000 disciples, and ruled over a province the size of a small country? Did it matter that they had an immortal ancestor, or if his sermon could have given a chance to beat their lifelong enemy, a neighboring sect?


    Avery was looking for information because it sounded like the right thing to do, but now that all his questions were being answered, he found he was completely devoid of interest. Perhaps they had some insight in the Tao that would be of help to him, but he was at a loss on how to ask for them.


    Growing bored of this meaningless dialogue but not really knowing if he should stop or not, or indeed how to put an end to this conversation, he suddenly had an idea. There was no need to ask him all these questions, or go through all that trouble at all.


    He may not use those powers often, but he was an accomplished seer, capable of peering into the past and future.


    Instead of these exhausting conversations where he did not even know what he should ask, he could directly take a look and learn everything there was to know about the cultivator. Then, when he knew his life better than the man himself, surely he would know what to say and do?


    The only problem was that he did not have his fortune telling coin anymore. In his rush to freedom, he had forgotten it and left it along with his blacksmithing hammer on the dragon''s back. However, he was learning that runes were basically omnipotent, and he could just design one with a divination function as a replacement.


    He went to work immediately, his high cultivation enabling him to multitask effortlessly. This was the source of a common misconception, that cultivation made you smarter. It was true that it improved your brain and cognitive functions, and let you handle much more information at once. This was especially for Avery who specialized in mental cultivation, as his thinking speed could put computers to shame.


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    This aspect of cultivation was like upgrading your computer, installing more RAM and a better processor, making the machine run much smoother and faster. However, it did not update the programs that the computer ran, and still only did what the software asked of it. A poorly designed program would stay poorly designed, even if it was executed by a supercomputer.


    This was how his cultivation could make him multitask and comprehend the immensity of Tao, while being utterly useless when faced with everyday conversations. It did not matter if he had a second or a year in between each question, he would still find it just as hard, and his anxiety was something he had to overcome himself.


    However, when he decided to design a new low-level rune, it only took a few minutes, and he spent more time looking for an opportunity to stealthily draw a rune. Sadly, with so many people paying close attention to his every move, his chance never came. However, since they all already believed him to be some senior cultivator, then he had no real need to hide.


    ¡°Excuse me, I just have to cast a simple spell.¡±


    Without waiting for a response, he directly drew a rune in the air, and peered into the fate of his conversation partner.


    In a few instants, he saw his entire life, becoming intimately familiar with the land, learning all of his darkest secrets, experiencing the ups and down of his life.


    Avery felt his pain when his little sister died, his joy when he found his Taoist companion, and the addictive ecstasy of breaking through to the next cultivation level. He saw the sinister plots he had been a part of to reach his current position, the lives he had ruined in his pursuit of power. At the same time, he saw the efforts he had made to carry out his responsibilities, and the good he had tried to do, believing that collateral damage was inevitable.


    The man followed a very different moral code to the one Avery was used to, but Avery found learning about all of his good or evil the man had done did not faze him in the least. Learning he had been teaching a hardened killer did not evoke any emotions, just a cold-hearted acknowledgment of what he had done. Intellectually, he could judge him, and tailor his future interactions with him accordingly, but emotionally, he felt nothing.


    Avery wasn¡¯t sure why he felt nothing, if it was just a side effect of witnessing history through divination, if his morals had been radically changed by time pursuing the Tao, or if he simply felt himself above it all. All he knew was that he was totally apathetic to all the suffering and happiness he saw, and that he needed to take some time and reexamine himself.


    However, while good and evil left him indifferent, each time he watched the man cultivate, an immense sense of disappointment welled up in him. They might cultivate their understanding of the universe in a similar way than him, but their desires were so impure it made him sick.


    They seemed to regard cultivation as a chore, a boring task that they had to do to gain power, instead of this beautiful moment during which one was in complete harmony with the universe.


    Their aim was never to reach the Tao, to achieve perfection or be one with the Heavens. It was to become powerful, to become beautiful, to defeat an enemy, to live a long life, to be respected. They were pursuing selfish, mundane goals while disregarding the greatest prize of them all.


    Why could they not understand that the Tao was the real prize? Power and influence were only meaningless side-effects of cultivation, amusing goodies that littered the Supreme Avenue, barely worth mentioning.


    They were traveling on the same road, but where Avery was looking at the final destination, and enjoying every second he spent following the Great Way, they were only looking to the sides of the road, scavenging for benefits and looking no further than the next obstacle.


    This was what made him regret his sermon. He would need to do a few more divinations to confirm everyone followed a similar approach, but if they did, then they were unworthy of his time, and even more of his preaching.

 Chapter 74 : Fate

    Avery continued skimming the cultivators past, but there was nothing that really attracted his attention. He did read all the cultivation manuals he came across, but not only were they too low level, they also focused on the gathering of Qi, something that was useless to him.


    He had lost his human body, and no longer had a dantian. He had no way to store Qi, and nothing to use it on. A human would generally slowly accumulate Qi, cycling it through their meridians. Each time Qi passed through their body, it would purify and elevate their flesh, slowly but surely reaching for perfection.


    However, for Avery, cycling Qi through his body would only disrupt the delicate balance of mana he had established. If he wanted to improve himself, he only needed to rewrite his runes.


    If he wanted to, he could adapt his runic body and create a new cultivation technique to start cultivating through Qi, using storage runes to replace his dantian. However, that would only dilute his path, and he was better off just continuing on cultivating mana.


    The reason Qi was the standard cultivation resource was that it was a very basic form of Hongmeng Qi, compatible with everything in the world, and with limitless uses. One could use Qi to forge their body or strengthen their soul, engrave runes or power formations, to create fire or water.


    Mana was a much more specialized energy, one for which he knew no other uses than fueling runes, but it was perfectly suited for Avery¡¯s needs. He only knew runes, so what was the use of additional versatility?


    Even if being a jack-of-all-trades was often preferable to being a master of one, he did not care. He was already powerful enough, having successfully escaped the abyss and fulfilled his worldly ambitions. Now, his only remaining goal was the Tao, and why should he take some valuable time out of his cultivation just to get a few more meaningless abilities?


    Instead of the advanced martial art cheats, it was the less impressive poems and ballads of mortal sages that brought him the greatest joy. He lost himself in these musing on the profundities of the universes, that had no apparent purpose or goal.


    ¡°The Path cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be known.


    The Path does not appear in the eyes of the plain man, or in the head of the sage; But realize your unselfish nature, and all will be clear.


    Cultivate a pure heart, and through non-existence, become One.¡±


    These simple words inspired countless insights that would greatly help Avery¡¯s cultivation, and were by far the most valuable things he gained from his divination. He knew not who had penned these words, but he felt a similar inquisitive reverence towards the Great Way to the one he felt.


    Perhaps their philosophy differed slightly, but they were fellow travelers on the meeting on the Avenue, and they had a kinship that transcended time and space, as they were connected by their desire to stand tall before the Tao.


    Unfortunately, the man he was spying on had read very little of this kind of poetry, deeming them useless rambling of mortals who had no clue what cultivation really was. The only other thing that piqued his interest was to learn how long he had spent cultivating while pretending to sleep.


    It turned out that the crowd surrounding him had not rushed to see him at all. They had been extremely methodical, gathering slowly and taking great care not to appear suspicious. They wanted nobody to realize what they were doing so that they could monopolize this opportunity.


    They had had plenty of time to organize themselves, for his light meditative trance had not been a nightlong affair as Avery had assumed. It had lasted four long months.


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    He knew he often lost track of time, but wasn¡¯t a few months a little bit much? If all of his cultivation trances were this long, how long had he spent in the mountains exactly?


    He found the idea that years could have flown by undetected amusing, but in the end, it did not matter too much. He was immortal, and had all the time in the world to spend. Perhaps he should make himself an alarm to wake him up in case a time-sensitive issue comes up, but frankly, he could hardly imagine anything more important than contemplating the Tao.


    He also learned why he had attracted so much attention. Apparently, he unconsciously drew runes as he cultivated, probably as a way to "store" the insights he gained, leaving his mind uncluttered and free to delve deeper into the mysteries of the Tao.


    So that as time went on, the air in front of him was filled with hundreds of illusory runes, symbolizing all the progress he had made while cultivating. These runes were incomplete, and had no effect, but they still contained the fruit of his cultivation, and were a great help to any mortal who had the opportunity to study them.


    Soon after, his divination soon caught up to the present, showing him the scene of nearly a hundred men and women looking at him, waiting with anticipation to see what the runes he had drawn would do. They did not realize it had already taken effect, and that he was about to take a glance at the future.


    Predicting the future was no harder than surveying the past, but it was much more vague, and less accurate. This was because he was not really seeing the future, he was only simulating the machinations of fate.


    Fate was one of the laws of the world, it was simply a result of the natural order. In the right conditions, water would turn to ice, and no matter how many times you tried the exact same experiment, it would always return the same result. There were many forces at work to make this happen, but the inevitability of the result is what we call fate.


    As far as Avery knew, this definition of fate could not be applied to his old world, as on earth there was something called the uncertainty principle. This principle apparently challenged determinism by showing that in quantum physics it was impossible to measure the movement of a particle and its position at the same time.


    As he understood it, this meant there was a fundamental randomness inherent to the universe. As such, it was logically impossible to claim that everything was determined and could be accurately predicted.


    There was most likely a lot of nuance and details that Avery and his waning memory were missing, but what was important was that the world he was in now did not contain the same principle.


    The prehistoric followed an absolute order, forming a world devoid of randomness, where perfect predictions were possible. If Avery wanted, he could predict how many blades of grass would grow on a mountain in the next thousand years, and provided he took everything into account, he would always be correct.


    The only exception to this was with free will. Sapients were given the mission to change and improve the natural order, so they could not as tightly be bound to it. Of course, it was not total freedom.


    If fate was like a river, flowing downstream and dragging all things along with it, then to have free will was to be given the ability to swim, to orient oneself and alter one''s course.


    It did not mean you no longer felt the current, it simply meant you had agency, and could choose to resist fate. You could be content in your lot, and either through choice or laziness, go along with fate''s grand design. This was common, as it was both inadvisable, unnecessary and impossible to resist fate on all things.


    However, it was still possible to swim against the current, and depending on the amount of effort you made, you could do anything from slightly changing your trajectory to completely subverting fate. It was difficult and perilous, but it was the only true freedom this deterministic world offered.


    This was why it was said that the general trends of Heaven were set in stone, while the minor trends were susceptible to change. It was possible for an individual or a small group to defy fate, but to change the trajectory of the world required concerted efforts from too many people for it to be viable.


    It was also why becoming a saint was so difficult, since it implied single-handedly defying a major trend, imposing a new order on the world, changing fate forever.


    All this meant that while Avery could easily foretell the fate of anybody he came across, he would only know the path they were set on, and could not predict if and when they would decide to walk outside of it.

 Chapter 75 : Morality

    The uncertainty of predicting the future was only one of the many reasons Avery was hesitant on doing anything about what he just foretold.


    His arrival and subsequent preaching had greatly destabilized the Gushanhui sect, providing an opportunity that was long-awaited by some. In the next few weeks, before anyone had time to digest and gain from his teachings, there would be a bloody coup, and a group of traitors would take control of the sect.


    He had very little information on the traitors, for the subject of his divination had been one of the first victims. The man had died rather heroically, fighting for his sect, refusing to surrender even when surrounded and laying down his life with dignity, causing Avery¡¯s divination to end.


    Wanting to gather more information, he decided to continue, and immediately started looking around for a new subject. His augury must have lasted longer than he realized, for the surrounding crowd was now even bigger, and they were all contemplating the divination rune he had made, doing everything they could to gain as much from it as possible before it completely dissipated.


    His gaze fell on a beautiful woman who was staring at him with stars in her eyes, and he quickly drew a new rune. In the end, while runes were incredibly versatile, they still had limitations, depending on how they were used. When engraving them directly upon the world, he could use them to cast spells, but the heavens would soon heal themselves, restoring the natural order.


    This thought made him pause, as he suddenly became very scared that he was no better than the cultivators he disdained. His runes were forcibly changing the world, forcing it to heal, and he was using them without consideration, bending reality to his will without care for the consequences.


    He was in the middle of a crisis, and this was not the time to cast away his only tool, but he made a mental note to be more careful in the future, and not to use runes unless absolutely necessary.


    During the next few days, Avery foretold the fate of dozens of people. He didn¡¯t feel particularly inclined to find any of their secrets, but he felt he had a duty to do it. He witnessed plenty of vibrant, colorful lives, some virtuous and some not, yet none of them expressed what he deemed to be the proper respect and worship towards the Tao.


    He got increasingly annoyed as he saw them waste chance after chance to approach the Truth, and started almost hating these respectful buffoons. Unfortunately, even after days of research, he got no closer to finding out what he should do. Despite all the schemes and subterfuge involved, the revolution was a rather straightforward grab for power, barely hidden beneath a thin veil of righteous indignation, and a call for change.


    This change of leadership would have almost no impact on the sect, and it would end up no different than before. It would still be an organization where all the despicable schemes and ruthless backstabbing were internally contained. More importantly, it would still have a positive impact on the outside world, protecting mortals from magical beasts and controlling loose cultivators, making sure that no one abused their power. It was far from perfect, but for a group of people who held the power to destroy cities on a whim, it was near miraculous.


    This was not a fight of good versus evil; it was a power struggle between two flawed factions. In addition, Avery couldn''t just pick a side based on who had attacked first, because the traitors all had legitimate reasons to want to overthrow the sect management. At some point or another, they had all been terribly wronged, and were trying to make the people accountable pay, despite not being any better themselves.


    Still, the old Avery would have never hesitated to do everything he could to stop this revolution. He had the power to prevent a lot of death and suffering, and doing nothing would be inexcusable.


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    The problem was that he no longer believed in applying his old world''s moral code to his new life. He was a different man in a different world, governed by different rules. Unfortunately, while he knew it had changed, he still did not know what his current moral code was.


    He believed in the Tao, and wanted to follow its precept, but he was running into the same issue that had plagued religions on earth for thousands of years, which was ascertaining exactly what their god demanded.


    If he believed in the beauty of natural order, then he should stand back and let the events unfold, without interference. He might be partly responsible for this event, but his intervention would not fix anything. Even if he managed to put fate back on its original course, exactly as it was before, he would not be erasing his mistake. He would just be breaking the natural order a second time. Not to mention he was also guided by fate, and this might have been its intended course of action from the start.


    However, things were never so simple. As much as he liked to tell himself that the Tao was impartial, that was ultimately untrue. It might have been originally, as he believed that the complex system of merits and karma was a later addition by a Buddhist saint, but the fact remained that the Heavens rewarded those who saved lives while punishing murderers.


    It was not a part of the Tao he was particularly well versed in, but the concept of merits and karma were deeply entrenched into it. He knew he would gain much merit by stopping this war, while letting it unfold would burden him with heavy karma.


    The real question was whether or not he should include the meddling of saints and other powerful beings in his vision of the perfect Tao. He instinctively wanted to say no, that he was pursuing the pure and authentic Tao, the untainted One that created the world, but truly believing that would completely invalidate his highest ambition.


    He wished to become a Saint, to walk alongside the Great Way as an equal. That meant changing the natural order to allow his existence as a saint, and if he decided that affecting it in any way was tainting it, then how could he justify his goal? There could be no hypocrisy in his search for the Truth, and he could not disregard something while claiming to do the same himself.


    If he decided the original Natural Order should never be changed, then his only option to be one with the Tao would be to emulate Hongjun or Houtu. Abandon his individuality, disperse his consciousness into the Great Way, and become truly one with the Tao. To attain infinity through nonentity, simultaneously becoming everything and nothing, reaching the extremes of both existence and nonexistence.


    This was an extreme path to the Tao, one which Avery greatly admired, but one he did not wish to follow. Perhaps he was being selfish, and perhaps his faith was insufficient, but he wished to conserve his identity, and be able to stand in front of the Tao as himself, Avery.


    He came from a different world, and had proof that alternate forms of perfection were possible. He only needed to reach perfection himself, then find a way to fuse his perfect form with the Tao.


    This was following the path of Nuwa and the other saints. When she created humans and became the Holy Mother, she reached perfection, both internally and externally, and gained a holy throne. She was still herself, an equal to the Tao. Both One and Two, together they cooperated to create a new order, and expand the world.


    This was what he aspired to be, and why he could not disregard the work of the saints that came before him. To complicate matters further, the natural order was meant to be broken. No matter how appealing and comforting it was, he could not let himself fall into blind faith.


    Free will was part of the natural order, and demanding that it followed its innate course without change would actually be going against it. Fate was meant to be broken, even if it pained Avery each time it was. The issue was determining when it was okay to break it, and when it was better to let events flow as they should.


    After much consideration and hesitations, he finally decided to stop the impending war. Despite how much he wished he could be an unseen observer, the mundane world that made him so uncomfortable was still part of the Tao, and he could not just abandon it.


    He was partly responsible, and he needed to stop this war. Everything pointed at this being the right thing to do, and his confused reculance to break the natural order was not enough to dissuade him.


    However, he was only going to act because he thought that was his duty, but the only thing he felt was annoyance and anxiety about having to interact with people so much. He had no sympathy for these false cultivators, and instead the idea of them dying from a power struggle like the ones that so often blinded them to the greatness of the Tao sounded beautifully poetic to Avery.

 Chapter 76 : Restraint

    Standing up and looking at the crowd with a serious look, Avery tried his best to sound grand and dramatic.


    "I have come here to warn you all of the terrible disaster I have foretold is soon to befall your Gushanhui sect. Heed my word, for the catastrophe is impending, and the time to prepare is now!¡±


    Avery winced at his own words, embarrassed by how edgy and grandiose he had made his statement sound, despite it conveying practically no information. As such, it did not surprise him that his exclamation only met confused stares, and he hastily continued, wanting to clarify.


    ¡°There are traitors among you, who wish to take this opportunity to take over the leadership of your sect!¡±


    Seeing that no one believed him, he pointed aggressively at the sect leader, and started telling them everything he knew.


    ¡°You will be one of the first to die. You hold the commanding token of the sect formation, so deacon Xia Yong and five inner elders will be waiting to assassinate you as soon as you return to the sect! ¡°


    However, instead of the shock and horror he was expecting, they were all wearing agreeable smiles, as if they all believed all this was just a joke. They clearly held him in extremely high regard, but now they are not taking him seriously, even though he had been very clear on how serious the situation was, and his voice contained no inclination of levity.


    Just moments ago, they were obviously looking up to him with immense respect and reverence, so why were they acting so flippant about his warning now?


    "Please, you have to listen to me, this is important. You must believe me, or you will die!¡±


    Seeing nothing he said had any effects, Avery thought he must not be expressing himself well enough to convey his urgency. The worst thing was that while his words did not convince them, they caused him to form very heavy karmic connections.


    Since they were not listening to him, he decided he needed to be more direct. Drawing yet another set of runes in the air, he cast a huge illusion, painting the scene of the rebellion he had foretold in the sky.


    This did catch their attention, but not in the way that Avery wanted. Almost the entire sect was gathered around him, and that of course included plenty of traitors. As soon as he started broadcasting their treachery, they did not hesitate to start fighting for their lives.


    Avery had imagined they would quietly surrender when they lost the element of surprise and had to face an enemy force who had an overwhelming numerical advantage. Instead, they were galvanized by the prospect of impending defeat and seemed desperate to take as many lives as they could with them.


    This scene was incongruous with what he had seen in his divinations, where it had been difficult for all parties to kill their friends and colleagues, and where everything had been done to minimize the violence.


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    He knew he was lacking in his understanding of the human psyche, but how could he have been so wrong? Far from helping anyone, his meddling had considerably worsened the situation, all the while burdening him with hundreds karmic ties that rapidly approached the weight of those linking him to the black dragon.


    The image of an orderly crowd listening peacefully had devolved into a messy melee. Spells and martial arts techniques were flying everywhere, in a way that did more collateral damage than actual harm to the intended target.


    What should have initially been a precision strike against the upper management of the sect, taking power as cleanly and quickly as possible, had turned into a messy bloodbath hundreds of times worse than the one Avery had originally predicted.


    It was by far the most violent event he had ever been in. Admittedly, it was only the second fight he had ever been in, and the first one had lasted less than ten seconds, but the point still stood. He had failed terribly, doing something that should have been extremely easy.


    He almost didn¡¯t notice his own actions as he drew an unprecedentedly powerful spell in the air, determined to bend reality to his will, forcing the universe to comply and stop this madness.


    It was his most powerful single purpose spell he had ever cast, a huge runic pattern that would gather all the Qi in the area and use it to render everyone unconscious. Yet the closer he got to completing it, the harder it became, in a way completely different from any of his other experiences in drawing runes.


    It would be invisible to a mortal''s eye, but through his Dao vision, he could feel millions of minuscule golden chains restraining his body and spirit, stopping him from completing his spell. For reasons he did not understand, the Heavens were preventing him from taking part in this battle, despite being responsible for it.


    He did not give up right away and tried everything he could think of to stop the stupid fight. He tried to cast dozens of different spells but was stopped each time. He tried talking to them, or getting in the way of their attacks, but was always ignored. It was almost like in their eyes, he had ceased to exist.


    Nothing he did led to a positive result, and just made him feel miserable. At this point, it seemed inevitable that this was the beginning of a tragic, albeit short, war, and one that Avery should have been able to easily prevent. One he had tried to prevent, but the only thing his meddling had accomplished was to start the revolution sooner, and make it bloodier.


    He was not moved by the violence itself. He had seen far worse when the Sil¡¯piceus were reigning in his inner world. He only felt irritation, at these imbeciles for throwing their lives away so impulsively, and at himself, for being incapable to do anything right. He was at fault for all this fiasco, and ever since he had come to this village, not a single thing had gone his way. Poor planning, poor preparation and poor execution had made this one of the worst days in his long life.


    He should never have come here, should have never forced himself to do the "right" thing despite being disgusted by these cultivators. It had only brought along misery and pain for all parties. He was an immortal, and had no business treading the red dust.


    The cultivators who had all gathered to listen to him didn''t even notice him flying away and hiding in the clouds, looking down upon their petty squabble dispassionately.


    Avery watched the war unfold with a detached feeling. Instead of shock and horror at all the suffering he had caused, all he felt was profound relief each time one of the cultivators died, and that one of the karmic ties weighing down on him was dissolved by the power of the river of forgetfulness.


    As for the karmic flame that was now flickering sinisterly on his runic body, it was painful, but he had lived through worse. Since it had no impact on his connection to the Tao, he could easily ignore its continuous soul attacks and was rather excited to take some time to study it.

 Chapter 77 : Heavenly Law

    ¡°You made the right choice. Nothing good ever comes out of meddling in mortals¡¯ lives.¡±


    Avery whirled around looking for the one speaking to him, only to remember his sphere of perception was perfectly capable of looking behind him, and his actions served no purpose whatsoever. He could turn in any way he wanted, without affecting his vision at all.


    ¡°My apologies, I did not mean to startle you. You should really work on your perception and hiding abilities.¡±


    A silhouette slowly materialized besides Avery, slightly beyond his perception range. He could still see it, as his Dao vision was just as capable of interpreting incoming lights into pictures as a normal eye would, but that explained why he had not sensed its presence before.


    "Who are you? What are you doing here? And what did you mean about interfering in mortals'' lives?¡±


    Avery demanded while instinctively backing up, eyeing the figure of the one who had spoken suspiciously. He was facing a breathtakingly handsome man peacefully hovering in the air without support, exuding an aura of refinement and elegance.


    Avery would not hesitate to say it was the most gorgeous man he had ever seen, his eerily perfect features far surpassing any supermodel or their computer edited photographs.


    However, Avery barely noticed his immaculate appearance, too surprised by the profound feeling of intimacy and kinship he felt from this stranger, which could have only one explanation. The man was not a human, he was a celestial being, same as him.


    Scared by his sudden appearance, Avery closed the distance between them so that he could monitor any movements in his Qi and react accordingly, while stealthily preparing a few sets of runes he believed could help him escape, just in case the man turned out to be hostile. Even if they were both Immortals, Avery had absolutely no intention of fighting back.


    Not only was he a brand new immortal with absolutely no fighting experience, there was a high probability that he was also the weakest celestial to ever live. His body had zero offensive capabilities, and while he could use his runes as spells, it was very inefficient.


    Runes were never meant to be used in this way. They were meant to act like circuit boards, to channel external energy and synergize with precious materials to produce magical effects.


    For example, if he carved a fire enchantment into a blade, a cultivator would still need to fuel it with Qi to get a flaming sword. Runes that had an effect by themselves were actually very rare and were much weaker than their counterparts.


    To think of using runes to fight was ridiculous. They would take too long to gather energy, during which they were extremely susceptible to disruption, and they would be too weak to use as a weapon if he only used mana.


    Mana was very special, since it was a mysterious mental energy that gained in power and could be controlled by pairing it with intent and a profound understanding of the Tao.


    Avery still couldn''t see where mana came from, but he suspected that it might be energy he channeled straight from the Tao, because he had a seemingly infinite amount of it. He had been using mana non-stop for thousands of years in the abyss, but had never run out, despite not having access to anything that could replenish it. The only limitation was how fast could channel mana and how powerful he could make it.


    However, while its nature and origin were still nebulous, he had a pretty good grasp of its capabilities, especially since it had pooled into the core of his inner world, letting him study it thoroughly.


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    Pure mana was very passive and would hardly react to anything. It was only when given a purpose through intent and a form through runes that it would become a physical thing and have an effect on reality. Mana was meant to create runes, not power them. Avery was still able to use mana as fuel, since in the end it was still an energy source, but this conversion needed specially designed runes, and were very inefficient.


    His entire body might be made out of such runes, and they were specifically designed to be as energy efficient as possible. They were also constantly gathering energy from the environment to make up for their consumption. At this point, he had enough storage and mana productions that he could survive for centuries even in a land completely void of energy.


    However, using runes offensively would be another matter. It might sound like he was casting very powerful spells around at his leisure, but that was only because as an immortal, Avery¡¯s mana was very powerful, and could easily power some low-energy runes.


    In truth, he had only used them for tasks that demanded very little energy, and it hadn¡¯t even been enough to cast a simple illusion on the sky, and he had needed to first make his runes gather energy from the environment. If you compared his acts to the legends of immortals moving mountains and seas, there was a huge gap.


    His powerful mana, comprehension of the Tao and the versatility of runes let him be fearless when meeting cultivators, but if he was facing another immortal who could use Qi to directly power his attacks, he predicted he would lose instantly.


    His defensive and survivability abilities were top notch, but his combat prowess was next to non-existent, and he could only rely on his high cultivation realm to bully mortals, while fleeing at the first sign of a relatively even match.


    In the end, however, all his preparation turned out to be superfluous, for the immortal made no move to attack, and only patiently waited for Avery to finish his preparations.


    ¡°There is no need for such caution. I am simply here to welcome my youngest brother into the great family of Celestials. You are an immortal now, an exalted being who has found his path to the Tao. This undignified nervousness is beneath you, and so are your attempts to get involved into mortals'' fate.¡±


    Avery was oddly trusting towards this stranger, being comforted by his reassurance and ashamed by his admonition. He had enough sense not to let his guard down, but once again, his emotions and rationality were in contradiction.


    He wasn¡¯t sure what to respond, so he just focused on the less important details to give himself time to think.


    ¡°But they are not mortals, they are cultivators. Why are they allowed to fight when I am not?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t quibble over terminology. They have not attained immortality, so they are mortals. Though it is true that mortal cultivators suffer similar restrictions when interacting with pure mortals.¡±


    The celestial looked to the sky and took a more solemnn and dignified tone, almost as if he was reciting a poem instead of explaining something to him.


    ¡°It is inscribed in the laws of heaven, that it is forbidden to meddle in the lives of those of a weaker cultivation state than ourselves, no matter what our intentions are.


    To preserve the foundation of the world, to prevent the decay of man, and to preclude entropy, all must be governed by the ways and manners of their kind.


    In the image of the three worlds, the three realms are separated, each subjected to the rules, obligations and privileges fitting their status. Mortals deal with mortals, cultivators deal with cultivators, and immortals deal with immortals.


    Such is the decree of the Heavenly court, acknowledged by the Tao, and enforced by the power of the Saints.¡±


    The celestial settled down, returning to his original air of carefree indifference, and smiled peacefully at Avery.


    ¡°Of course, preaching is the only exception, as spreading the Truth is always a great merit. However, be wary that your intentions are pure, for tainting a sermon with ulterior motives is a heavy offense, and there is no hiding the secrets of your heart from the Heavens.


    Besides that, the heavenly law only prohibits interference, so if you have family and friends in the mortal world, there is nothing separating you. You just have to know that trying to directly change their fate will only lead to disaster.¡±


    Avery glared at the immortal angrily, despite knowing he was not at fault. He did not appreciate learning that his perceived freedom as an immortal was just an illusion, and that he had only traded the rules of the mortal world for those of immortals.


    However, looking at his inner world, and at the lifeless ocean that had replaced the previously prosperous continent of the Sil¡¯piceus, he had to admit these limitations made some sense.

 Chapter 78 : Overwhelmed

    Avery wasn''t sure how he felt about this heavenly decree and how it was enforced. On one hand, his inner world history was proof of the destruction and resentment unrestricted powers could cause. On the other hand, he had just gained his freedom, and was not too happy to learn he was shackled by a bunch of apparently man-made laws he had no control over.


    If he had been asked to promise never to meddle with the fates of mortals, Avery would probably have agreed, because he had no attachment to the mortal world and could see the logic behind their policy. However, now that this had been imposed on him without his consent, he found it much harder to accept, and felt a strong urge to fight back and overthrow this unwelcome authority.


    This wasn¡¯t even about whether total non-interference was really a good solution, as it prevented him from saving lives. This was about whether he, as an immortal, believed himself to be above the laws of the court of Heaven, an institution he didn¡¯t know existed before today.


    Unfortunately, it wasn¡¯t like he really had any choice. That heavenly decree was enforced by powers he could not resist, and what he felt about them mattered little. For now, he just needed to make note of them, and he would decide whether he should go along, abolish or avoid those rules when he had the power to choose.


    ¡°What other laws am I subjected to? And who exactly decides what they are? Why am I arbitrarily subjected to some unknown rule-set without having consented to anything?¡±


    ¡°You are living in this world, so of course you have the same duties and rights as everybody else. Still, you do not have to worry too much, as the Heavenly court has very few rules that apply to all celestials universally, and those that do are very lax. Besides the one you already know, it is forbidden to harm the feng shui of the world, it is forbidden to break someone''s Dao path, and it is forbidden to cultivate devil Qi. Other than that, there are plenty of accepted conventions and commonly agreed upon practices among immortals, but they are not enforced by the saints'' powers in the same way.¡±


    While talking, the man extended his hand and presented a jade slip to Avery. Sensing some spiritual fluctuations that faintly resembled some of his runes, he rapidly deduced its function. By channeling a little mana into it, he felt several books worth of information flood into his mind, informing him of the code of conduct for immortals.


    Having no time to process all of that data during a conversation, he was about to guide it into one of his runes to be analyzed later. Unexpectedly, a mighty will suddenly rose up from his inner world, immersing itself into his mana and copying all the information he had received. Then it was gone, as if it was just a dream, as if it had never existed.


    Avery immediately reacted, looking inward and trying to track the mana that has gained a certain dreamy quality, but he found nothing. After a few seconds of fruitless searching, he silently suppressed his worries and concerns, knowing that this was yet another matter that would need more careful consideration than the current situation allowed. Besides, he was pretty sure he already knew who the culprit was, and if he was right there was not much he could do about it.


    Meanwhile, apparently unaware of everything that had just happened, the celestial happily continued his explanations.


    ¡°As for who decides on the laws of heaven, they are technically ratified by the jade emperor, but in truth he can only write this level of heavenly law when most everyone is in agreement.


    It was more or less a consensus after the Wu and demon tribe tribulation that such a cataclysmic war could not be allowed to happen again. Unfortunately, the conflicts of interest were too deep, and mortal disputes inevitably escalated into immortal wars, dealing unimaginable damage to the world.


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    No one could agree on what exactly was to be done, and since most people even disagreed on what was right or wrong, it was finally decided to simply separate the three cultivation realms and let things develop naturally.¡±


    As he listened, Avery saw vague visions of those tumultuous times appear in front of him, perfectly illustrating the tale he was listening to. These were not hallucinations or illusions, they were echoes of the past called forth by the words of an Immortal. Even if he did not intentionally infuse them with power, the words of a Son of the Sky would naturally trigger a reaction from the world. It wasn¡¯t a particularly useful or practical power, but it was a symbol of their exalted status, and it made each conversation feel like watching a movie.


    ¡°It is common courtesy to give at least a century to let a newly ascended immortal digest his gains and get accustomed to his position, during which no one would come and disturb you. Only in about forty years or so should you start receiving messages congratulating you for your successful ascension. I myself wouldn''t be here if the ancestors of the Gushanhui sect hadn¡¯t informed me that a suspected celestial was preaching to them.¡±


    Avery looked down in embarrassment, suddenly realizing he had already forgotten about the deadly battle that was still ongoing beneath him. He shivered at how detached and uncaring he had become, a monster who had accidentally ruined lives and thought nothing of it.


    He zoned out as an intense feeling of loss and exhaustion welled up inside him. He had actually started to miss the peaceful abyss that had imprisoned him for thousands of years. Compared to that peaceful life pursuing the Tao, it now felt like he was drowning in thousands of questions about himself, about the world, about the Tao, about everything.


    Unfortunately, the ongoing conversation seemed doomed to add to his confusion rather than resolve his worries, and the immortal¡¯s teasing smile looked downright terrifying to Avery.


    ¡°Some of these rules are to your benefit, of course. Artifact spirits that manage to cultivate themselves to the extent that you did are extremely valuable, and you should be glad that it is now considered taboo to claim you. If these were ancient times, you would already have been branded by some almighty spiritual will, and your consciousness would probably have been dispersed.¡±


    Avery instinctively took a step back upon hearing those words, horrified. It did not come as a great surprise to him that his hastily made illusions had been seen through, but he had never considered what people would think when viewing his true body.


    ¡°I would still suggest you take some time to improve your camouflage abilities, because not everyone will be stopped by cultural taboos, and you look to be a truly unique and interesting treasure.¡±


    The celestial held out his hand for the second time, offering a new jade slip to Avery, which he robotically took, before once again feeling that mysterious will rise up to peek at the information.


    ¡°This contains inspirations that should be helpful to forming your primordial Dao body. You will still have to comprehend your own unique Dao body, but once you do, you will have no more need to hide behind low quality illusions.¡±


    Avery didn¡¯t know what to say, so he said nothing, mutely staring straight ahead. His head was abuzz with questions, but instead of asking them, he only wished he could close his eyes and forget his worries, and crush that crippling social anxiety that was one again rearing its ugly head.


    ¡°If you are still feeling unsafe, you can also join my organization, and we will protect you we are...¡±


    Seeing no reaction from Avery even after several minutes, and realizing how overwhelmed and lost he looked, the immortal showed an understanding smile and handed him a jade slip with his contact information, before disappearing into the sky.


    Avery stayed frozen in place, at a loss as to what to do. All his cultivation, knowledge and powers were useless here, and the instinct he had cultivated though thousands of years in the abyss, to rely on the Tao to solve everything was even more problematic.


    Only the Tao could let him forget, soothing his soul and resting his mind. However, were the changes brought about by the Tao not the cause of his worries in the first place? Was it not to blame for his indifference and inhumane behavior? Would it not end up exacerbating his problems?


    He struggled with himself for hours, his thoughts too chaotic to offer constructive answers, before giving up with a sigh, drawing a rune in the air and immersing himself into the Tao once more.

 Chapter 79 : Settling Down

    Avery woke up from his cultivation refreshed and at peace. He hadn¡¯t actually solved any of his worries, but the majesty of the Tao had trivialized them all. He felt liberated and at peace with himself, ready to rationally think about his problems, and find ways to solve them without being controlled by irrational fear.


    Finally, after spending a lot of time lost in thought hovering high in the sky, he mustered up his courage, and with one last yearning look towards the wild mountain range, he took off in the direction of the capital, determined to face his problems head on.


    In truth, his repeated attempts to rejoin civilization were not strictly necessary. There was no character requirement to becoming a saint. If he was willing, he could totally retreat back into some forgotten abyss and cultivate his Dao to completion in blissful seclusion. He need meet no one, and no one need to even know about his existence.


    It wasn¡¯t that he was personally attached to rejoining civilization either. The empty feeling of loneliness that haunted his heart had already been filled by his eternal companion, the infinite Tao. With such a partner, he needed never meet another soul in his life, and with how painful socializing had turned out to be, he was in no hurry to relive that experience.


    No, the real reason he was determined to conquer his social anxiety was because of his pride and immense respect for the Tao.


    He was pursuing perfection, to become a Saint equal to heaven, and he would never be able to live with himself if he thought he was sullying the Great Way with all of his flaws and inadequacies. At the very least, he needed to be able to hold a normal conversation without bringing shame to the Supreme Avenue he aimed to embody.


    However, this wasn¡¯t why he was looking to settle down in the capital city of a nearby country. Even if he was determined to go through the red dust and cultivate his heart and mind to match his status, he would not choose the capital city of a powerful empire.


    The reason he had decided to set up shop in the capital was to address some of his other worries. He wished to meet mortal scholars akin to the one who had written a verse on the Tao that had impressed him so much. He wanted to discuss morality and virtues with them, and with their teachings, forge his own moral code.


    He was deeply concerned about how dissociated his emotions and rationality had become, and could not decide which part of him was correct, and which part of him he should listen to when making a decision.


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    Either the problem stemmed from some grave misunderstandings he had on the Tao, his blind cultivation having somehow deviated from the Truth in some significant way, or he was simply incapable of satisfactorily embodying the truth he had half-understood.


    However, he did not want to take the immortal''s offer and discuss cultivation with him, firstly because of how disappointing he found the cultivators approach to the Tao, but mostly because facing someone who equaled or surpassed him in power would be much more stressful. It would probably leave him crippled by his social anxiety and be unable to gain anything out of their conversation. He had no clue on how immortals lived, so he decided to be cautious and hide himself for the time being.


    <hr>


    After surveying the capital from the air, using a few runes to maintain his flight and invisibility, Avery soon landed on a busy merchant street, and placed an exquisite little doll house in a small gap between two buildings.


    This was a new treasure Avery had just crafted, and it would be his residence for the near future. He had originally imagined that he would easily find some old abandoned building he could magically refurbish to suit his need, but the city was so crowded that every plot of land was already fully exploited. He ended up having to be creative, and use his powers to create himself a home.


    The miniature house, which had the appearance of a rustic tea shop, had the magical properties of being bigger on the inside than on the outside. Once entering, one would feel it was to human scale, a perfectly normal tea shop.


    Then, Avery had engraved many runes on the facade so that even from the exterior, the tiny house appeared to be a regular old building, fitting in innocuously with the rest of the city, as if it had always been there.


    Lastly, the storefront continuously broadcasted some mental signals that would confuse any passerby. This would not harm mortals, but their minds would instinctively shield themselves from it, creating a sort of blank spot in their awareness, making them unconsciously ignore this small shop. It wasn¡¯t invisible, but under normal circumstances, it was impossible for anybody to want to enter or even think deeply about anything about this new building.


    He had carefully adjusted the strength of the confusion formation so that those who had profound insights into the Tao would be able to resist it and see his tea shop, even becoming invisibly drawn to visit it.


    Although not very large, this creation of his had too many advanced functions, putting a tremendous strain on its runes. He estimated they would collapse as soon as he stopped powering it with mana. Fortunately, he had no intention of leaving this place anytime soon, so he could afford to continuously supply them with power.


    Entering his new home with a swoosh, Avery happily sat down cross legged on a decorated prayer mat, ready to turn his attention elsewhere.


    This tea shop was like a fishing line he had cast into the sea, now he only needed to wait patiently for the fish to bite. Meanwhile, he would be free to consider his other worries, and execute his other plans.

 Chapter 80 : Bottleneck

    The most important thing in Avery¡¯s mind was of course his cultivation. He had finally become an immortal, but the journey to Sainthood still stretched out to infinity. The long path ahead did not deter Avery in the slightest. It only meant he had to continuously deepen his understanding and comprehend the mysteries of the universe, which was something he took great joy in doing.


    In theory, there would be no bottlenecks in his studies, and the only thing he needed was time and effort to reach an unfathomable level. However, while he welcomed the prospect of climbing the stairway to heaven one step at a time, he could already tell that becoming a Saint would not be so simple.


    Avery could only vaguely foresee some of the difficulties he would have to face, and he was very unclear about the details, but he guessed that taking that last step, jumping from the state of creation to the state of creator, might prove to be nigh impossible.


    Comprehension alone was not enough to change your state of being, as proven when he had to rely on the immortal tribulation to elevate his being from an earthly mortal to a lofty immortal. This time however, there would be no benevolent tribulation eager to elevate his life level, and he would need to rely entirely on himself.


    As for how to take that ultimate step, Avery had no clue. From the information he had gained from that helpful immortal, he knew that this world was at least a few trillion years old. Despite that, he could clearly sense there were only seven thrones in the heavens, exuding an unmistakable majesty.


    It was easy for Saints to hide their presence if they wanted to, so maybe there were one or two hidden thrones he had failed to sense, but it was unlikely there were many more. What he could sense however, using their shared connection as children of the sky, was that this world did not lack elites whose presence and power made him look like a firefly comparing himself to the sun. Yet those powerhouses, having trillions of years of history behind them, could not claim a throne for themselves.


    Avery was not particularly smart or talented, and he did not believe he was better than these ancient almighties. The only reason he had even achieved immortality in the first place was because he had relied on the endless lifespan bestowed by the system, but that was an advantage he now shared with every single other immortal.


    Under normal circumstances, he would have no confidence in succeeding where so many others had failed, but there were a few elements that gave him hope, and he was determined to make full use of them.


    The first possibility was to rely on the system. It was a mysterious entity, and he knew that in the hands of a competent man, the system could become a godly tool that would bring untold riches and power to its wielder.


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    It was unfortunate that he had already set foot on a completely different path, and that apart from buying crafting materials and a few extremely specific skills from it, he deemed it of very little use.


    Even if the shopping catalog had expanded enormously after his ascension, there was not much that could catch his eyes. After all, a lonely hermit had extremely limited requirements on material possession, especially one who was able to easily craft the necessary treasures for himself.


    What he valued was not the system shop or other function, it was the system itself. As a Celestial, Avery already had the qualifications to start analyzing it, and he had been moderately successful.


    Each time he tried to study the system, Avery would see an impossibly vast sea of information, exuding an incomparable saintly aura, reminiscent of the feeling of studying the Tao.


    Of course, there were differences, and if the system was a fallen leaf floating helplessly in the wind, the Tao was a towering tree, its roots encompassing the underworld while its highest branches dominated the heavens. However, despite the clear gap in power, scale and vitality, there was an unmistakable similarity in nature that gave him hope.


    Avery didn¡¯t know what that meant yet, or how he should use this strange system of his, but since there was a chance unveiling its secrets would reveal a path to becoming holy, comprehending the mysteries of the system had become a priority.


    Of course, it was still uncertain if this endeavor would actually turn out to be helpful, so he would not bet everything on it. There was another advantage unique to him that he could rely on, and on the surface, it seemed practically certain it would be enough to propel him onto a heavenly throne.


    If he could somehow manage to turn his inner world into a real world, that was complete and could exist independently, then surely, he would naturally become a Saint, equal to heaven.


    The problem was that he had absolutely no clue how to actualize his inner world. He had never caused it to progress out of his own initiative, all of its advancement were due to the blessing of the Tao. Indeed, the only time it had ever advanced without the help of the Tao, it was through the Elder creating his dream realm.


    It seemed that in a manner similar to how Avery theorized the Tao granted free will to sufficiently intelligent creatures because it was the only way it could improve, his inner world could only be enhanced by the efforts of the creatures inside it, or by some transcendental force pulling it upwards.


    As far as he could tell, these were the two unique advantages he had he could leverage, and he would do his utmost to make sure they would let him transcend this world.


    The issue was that the first was uncertain, and could be a dead end and a waste of time. The second, while clear and obvious, was incredibly difficult to achieve, and might be more challenging than becoming a Saint was.


    As for his cultivation, his runes or his mana, they were not unique. They might be rare, but Avery believed that if the secrets of transcendence laid in them, then they would have been long discovered, and the heavens would be filled with Saints.


    It was also possible that his status as an otherworlder only loosely tied to this world would change some things, but that was not something he could change or control, so he would simply have to wait and see if he would one day be given a pleasant surprise.

 Chapter 81 : Descent

    Studying the system would be a long but ultimately straightforward affair. He would just have to slowly comprehend it in the same way he studied the Tao, and act according to what he found.


    However, on the matter of his inner world, he had bigger plans. It was evident that his current status as a god, despite how grand it sounded, was utterly powerless when it came to adequately developing his inner world.


    He had previously been able to accept that his mental realm was nothing more than a cultivation treasure. It helped him gain insights into the Tao, and that was all he needed it to be at the time. However, now that it might a chance for his sanctification, letting it leisurely evolve out of his control was out of the question.


    He needed to get rid of his status as a distant creator, and become an active player. By separating an incarnation and sending it down into the world, he hoped it would become a native. Then, he would be capable of exerting some influence and guide the advancement of the world.


    This was not only to try and take things into his own hands, to take an active role in the development of his inner world, but also to resolve two of his other worries.


    The Elder was still hiding in his dream realm, a frightful creature having successfully concealed himself from the eyes of God, and who knew what he was plotting. He had even managed to somehow extend its tentacles to the real world by parasitizing Avery¡¯s mana.


    At this point, Avery was convinced that the Elder was superior to him in almost every meaningful way. Be it wisdom, experience, talent or comprehension, the Elder had it all, and his awe inspiring feats were frankly intimidating.


    The creation of the dream realm in particular still stumped Avery. It might technically be inferior to his inner world, but it had been a planned creation, completely different from him relying on freak accidents and a higher power. Meanwhile, Avery didn¡¯t think he had ever intentionally achieved something the Elder wouldn''t be able to do. The only thing the Elder might lack would be luck, but luck wasn¡¯t something to be proud of or something one could rely upon.


    Avery obviously wasn¡¯t completely comfortable with such a dreadful creature residing in his mental realm, but it hadn''t been a big problem either. The Path was large enough to accommodate the two of them. No, the Elder was not an enemy, but he was a risk. It was fine if the Elder merely surpassed him. However, if he one day became a stumbling block on his path, then Avery would be prepared. Nothing would be allowed to stand between him and the Tao.


    He had been blindly dancing to the Elder''s tune for long enough. It was time to take the initiative and take a leading role in their silent confrontation, and start investigating the dream world. Knowledge was power, and the Elder held a wealth of knowledge that made his creator jealous.


    His third and least important goal was to combat his social anxiety. Even if he was to live out his eternal life as a hermit in seclusion, he wanted that to be his choice, and not merely because the prospect of holding daily conversations terrified him.


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    As for why he thought descending in the inner world could help him, it was because he never considered the creatures living in it to be his equals. This was not a viewpoint born out of rationality, but it was just the way he felt. After all, he even had a tendency to think lightly of the Elder and his dream world, even while he certainly was a much greater threat to him than those villagers he had been terrified to talk to.


    Nor was it a feeling he thought he ought to have. While it was hard to classify their mostly virtual lives, he could see no difference between them and real-life creatures. Fundamentally, the origin of his inner world was the Tao, so surely the essence of the creature was the same, even if the form was not.


    However, as was becoming disturbingly common, his emotions didn¡¯t care to align with his beliefs. He was an indifferent deity, holding the fates of millions in his hands, looking down upon these lower beings with little regard for their joys and sorrows. After all, who could blame an author for creating a world full of misery, or a sleeper for dreaming up a dystopian nightmare? These virtual lives were just inconsequential things that had no weight attached to them.


    He thought he could take advantage of his irrational feelings. He might have trouble facing people in the real world, but he should be able to converse with these lower beings with no problems, and use those experiences to train up his social skills.


    <hr>


    Avery did not rush to execute his plans. He took his time to think things through, calm his state of mind and make sure his cultivation was stable. Lastly, he bought a lot of precious materials from the system and crafted himself a pendant infused with powerful anti-divination properties. He did not want to be disturbed, so he did his best to hide his existence from any immortals curious about their newly ascended brethren.


    When everything was ready, and he felt sufficiently prepared, he carefully executed the Yuan Shen technique he had recently learned. This skill of the seer pathways had caught Avery''s eye when he was stuck on the dragon¡¯s back, as he had seen hope of freedom from its description.


    ¡°Cultivate your mind into a spirit, entrust it to the Avenue and travel the Three Realms through the Dao.¡±


    It had seemed prohibitively expensive at the time, and he had never had the chance to try it. Thankfully his current wealth meant he no longer had to hesitate before buying something helpful to his cultivation.


    He no longer needed it to travel freely through the land of immortality, but he had a new use for it. He wanted to direct the skill inwards, replacing the Avenue with his position as the Tao of his inner world, and using mana that was heavily connected to his mental realm to fuel and anchor the technique. This should enable him to create a spiritual avatar inside his inner world, that would be capable of executing his will and probe the Elder.


    It took a lot of experimentation, tweaking the technique to fit its new purpose, but it was well within his skill level. It did not take long for a spiritual phantom to condensed in his inner world, proving his success. His mind had been separated in two, his main body cultivating peacefully, while his avatar had an entire world to play with.


    His ghostly form was unaffected by wind or rain, floating elegantly as he wandered the endless plains, until he came across a solitary caravan. He stayed undetected, following and observing them, unsure how he should approach them.


    It was only a few days later, seeing a young hawk with a crippled wing stumble and fall as she tripped on an ancient necklace, that Avery suddenly felt a mischievous whim.


    Following that impulse, his invisible form flew down, and silently entered the primitive pendant, ready to give that lucky girl a surprise that would change her life.

 Chapter 82 : Temptation

    While waiting for the disheveled hawk to recover from her fall, Avery decided to examine his temporary home.


    The pendant he had chosen to inhabit had a slight spiritual nature, even holding a few drops of powerful blood essence, but nothing so advanced as an alternate space suitable for housing spirits. It just contained a trace of refined blood Qi, which wasn''t very comfortable for him to coexist with. Wanting to renovate a little, he habitually drew a translucent rune, but midway through the first stroke, he hastily abolished his spell.


    He was not in the real world, and was met with many unexpected complications when using his powers. The subtle differences between both worlds had complex repercussions on his runes. Some differences enhanced his magic while others were a hindrance, but that was not the main point.


    His failure in spellcasting was not caused by a lack of power, but because Avery''s mana pool was situated in the core of this world. Each rune he drew would draw power from said mana pool in a very obvious way, which could easily be traced back to him.


    This obviously wasn¡¯t conducive to his goal of spying on the Elder without being noticed, so the power of runes would have to be reserved as an emergency measure. Not that it mattered too much, since he was a spirit with practically no material needs and very high survivability.


    Avery was engrossed in making plans when he realized quite some time had passed without anything happening. He had let himself get lost in his thoughts, waiting for the necklace to be picked up, but the hawk showed absolutely no interest in it. She was wholeheartedly focused on catching up to her group, which had inconsiderately left her behind, perhaps not even noticing her fall.


    She was not going very fast, awkwardly running on legs unsuited to such activity, her torn wing trailing behind her, kicking up dust and causing her to have a coughing fit. She was having a hard time catching up to the caravan, but he had been lost in his thoughts so long that she was about to run out of his telepathic range.


    Not expecting to have miscalculated, Avery hastily reached out to her. He hesitated whether to change his voice and take an ancient or wizened tone, but finally decided against it. He was here partly to gather worldly experience, so he better act as himself.


    ¡°Wait up, little girl. If you leave me behind, I don''t know how long I will have to wait for the next person to come help me.¡±


    The grounded bird showed a very reasonable reaction to some unknown creature suddenly speaking to her telepathically, and promptly fell flat on her face.


    ¡°What? Who are you? Ouch! Oh, they are leaving me behind! How will I catch up? What is happening? Who is talking? What does he want? What is this voice in my head? Go away or I will peck you! Please don¡¯t hurt me. Is it asking for help? It does not sound dangerous¡­¡±


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    Avery chuckled at the mess of chaotic thoughts that the inexperienced avian unintentionally broadcasted through the telepathic link. Finding her panic amusing and charming, he showed a rare smile and quietly filtered out the thoughts that were not meant for him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I mean you no harm. I am just an old spirit, looking for a companion to carry me and show me the world. Since you stumbled upon my receptacle, it means we are fated, and I would appreciate it if you could take me in as your travel companion.¡±


    She glanced around, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from, before whirling around to glare in the direction she had been running from.


    ¡°You are in that necklace I tripped over? But that was some time ago already, why did you wait until now to speak?¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­ I didn¡¯t want to scare you, so I thought I would let you pick me up first before approaching you when you were calmer. I didn¡¯t expect you to ignore me, and it took some time for me to react.¡±


    Unfortunately, his explanations were met with skepticism and distrust. She shot a few curious looks back at his position, but soon shook her head and started running away.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, mister spirit, but I have to go. If I don¡¯t hurry, then I will never catch up, and then I will be lost too. If you want, I will tell the guards about you, they are very powerful and will be able to help you.¡±


    It was Avery¡¯s turn to panic, forgetting for a moment he wasn¡¯t actually tied to the pendant and could leave whenever he wanted. He didn¡¯t want his first interaction in this world to be a rejection, so he tried to entice her with benefits.


    ¡°No, wait, don¡¯t leave me! You won¡¯t only be helping me; you will be helping yourself too. I might only be a spirit, but I have a lot of knowledge and experience I can share with you. For example, I can teach you how to cultivate and cure your wing. Then you will have no problem catching up to your friends.¡±


    This made her stop dead in her tracks and exclaim incredulously. ¡°Really? You can cure my wing? And help me cultivate?¡±


    She was still very suspicious of this unknown entity that was suspiciously insistent on her touching it, knowing that if something sounded too good to be true, it probably was.


    ¡°Better, I can teach you how to heal yourself, and be reborn as the ultimate bird of prey. In fact, if you listen to me, I will make you the fastest bird in the world.¡±


    Avery¡¯s unrealistic sounding boast did nothing to reassure the distrustful bird, and only made her more hesitant.


    ¡°Nonsense. I know about cultivation, and I know I have no talent. How can you claim to make m¨´e the fastest bird, when even my ancestors lost to the Roc lineage?¡±


    ¡°My dear, if you are willing to put in the effort, I can guide you to heights you have never imagined. Cultivation is much more about hard work, knowledge and opportunities than it is about talent, and I can provide two of those things.¡±


    Before she could doubt his exaggerated words again, he backpedaled and focused back on the present situation, offering her more realistic rewards.


    ¡°Even if you are not willing to put in any effort, I can at least guarantee that your wings will be cured. Besides, do you have a choice? Without my help, will you ever catch up to your friends? I think it is more likely you will get lost forever in this desert.¡±


    Looking ahead at the dwindling dust cloud, she knew he was right. She was already tired, and at this rate she might never catch up with them. On the other hand, he was offering her a once in a lifetime opportunity, to repair her wing and regain her dignity as a bird. This was a dream come true, and she decided it was well worth the risk.


    Seeing her stop tentatively and slowly make her way back to him, Avery showed a satisfied smile, and congratulated her.


    ¡°You made the right choice, little one, and have taken your first step on the path to the Tao.¡±

 Chapter 83 : Choice

    While waiting for the hawk to laboriously make her way back to him, Avery did his best to reassure her and convince her he was not secretly a big devil waiting for her to come closer so he could devour her soul.


    It was too late for her to regret anyways, her detour had already crushed any hope she had at catching up to the caravan, but he knew better than anyone else that logic could not always control emotional reactions.


    ¡°Since we are going to journey together, I cannot keep calling you little girl forever. Tell me your name, little girl.¡±


    Still very reluctant to give out her personal information, she answered very succinctly and threw the question back at him.


    ¡°I¡¯m Audrey, mister spirit. What about you? Who are you? How did you become a spirit? Are you a cultivator? Is being a spirit fun?¡±


    Despite how charming he found her curiosity, Avery found that some of her questions were inconvenient for him to answer. As someone who had dedicated their eternal life to pursuing the supreme Truth, he was very reluctant to lie. The truth and the Truth were different things, but they were not completely unrelated either, so the higher the cultivation, the less likely it was for someone to outright lie or deceive juniors.


    He obviously didn¡¯t want to come clean and tell her his identity either, so he simply gave a vague response and changed the subject.


    ¡°Call me Avery. I became a spirit as a result of wrongly using a skill, and only woke up not long ago, so I am not clear about my new existence. Now tell me, what do you know about cultivation?¡±


    ¡°Um, I just know it is a way to use blood to communicate with our ancestors and ask them to give us some of their powers. Oh, and my ancestor is the Wayseeker Thunderbird, so if I could reach him, I could control storms, and never get lost again!¡±


    Seeing how confident she was in her ignorance, Avery had to restrain himself to not start lecturing her on the true mysteries of blood Qi. He promised himself he would teach this new protege of his soon enough, and skipped straight to the relevant topic.


    ¡°That''s not exactly it, but I suppose saying that you will use blood to gain the powers of your ancestor is not too far from the truth. However, the ramifications of the path you will follow are extremely great, so it should be considered carefully.¡±


    ¡°Since you are a female hawk, be it physically or spiritually, you should be most suited to cultivate the lineage of the Vermilion Bird. Unfortunately for you, this old necklace only contains the blood essence of the Azure dragon bloodline, so you will have to make a choice.¡±


    ¡°Vermilion bird, Azure dragon, what are those? Do I have to choose one of them as my ancestral totem?¡±


    Avery had no clue what an ancestral totem was, and was surprised that she seemed not to know about the four divine beasts. It wasn¡¯t hard to understand what she meant, but it seemed he had some misconception on the common knowledge of this era.


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    He wasn¡¯t quasi-omniscient in this form, so he had prepared thoroughly for his stay in this world, like learning all the languages in use or listing any clues that might lead him to discover the Elder¡¯s plan. Other than that, however, he had intentionally restricted his knowledge, believing that would help him train his mentality.


    ¡°You can think of it that way. Under normal circumstances, I would recommend you stay true to your lineage and choose to follow the Vermilion bird. Unfortunately, that way, the blood essence I have can only be used as a source of energy. If used well, it will make your cultivation go ten times faster, but that is all. You will still have to cultivate them from scratch, and it will take at least a few months before your first transformation, when your wing will be healed.¡±


    ¡°On the other hand, while you are not as suitable for the path of the Azure dragon, choosing it will let you maximize the benefits of this impure dragon blood. With my help, we can even do a blood transfusion, directly letting it infect and replace your own blood, instantly letting you achieve your first transformation. However, following that, any future progress will become much more laborious, requiring more time and effort.¡±


    Audrey had already forgotten to be suspicious, too busy trying to understand what he was saying, and what she should choose. She asked many questions, understanding this was a very important matter, but not quite grasping what each option meant.


    ¡°Mr. Spirit, you know so many things, you must know what I should choose, right?¡±


    Avery blinked, surprised at her sudden demonstration of trust in him, but he knew there was no right answer.


    ¡°In the end it all depends on how ambitious you are. If you are aiming to reach the top of the world, to dominate the heavens and attain godhood, and are ready to risk your life for it, then it is best to take the path of the Vermillion Bird. Take your time, find a way to survive in this desert for a few months while you build yourself a steady foundation.¡±


    ¡°Otherwise, if you simply want to cure your wings, and rush your way to the level of powerful cultivators, knowing that you will face many obstacles if you want to go further, then accept the calling of the Azure Dragon, and be reborn.¡±


    The hawk pouted before brightening up, having come up with a new idea.


    ¡°What about cultivating the power of the Wayseeker Thunderbird? He is my ancestor, so he will probably like me! And he is very strong, probably stronger than that Vermillion Bird, so isn¡¯t he a better choice?¡±


    Not wasting a single second, Avery ruthlessly shot down that idea in a dismissive tone.


    ¡°That would be a most foolish choice, for you would be forsaking both the instant benefits of the dragon''s blood as well as the long-term stability of the path of the Vermillion Bird. Not to mention that I do not have any cultivation techniques relating to this thunder hawk.¡±


    Downcast and unconvinced, Audrey felt she had been insulted and decided to sulk in protest for a moment. That moment passed almost instantly, as she once again got excited at the idea of repairing her wing and flying through the air.


    Avery watched her quietly, letting her think in peace. He patiently answered all of her questions but decided against offering any more unsolicited advice. This had to be her choice, and he couldn¡¯t influence her too much, despite how uncomfortable he found it to let a small child make such irrevocable decisions.


    The sun was setting when the flightless bird finally reached the necklace she had left behind, resolutely grabbed it with her talons and exclaimed in a loud voice.


    ¡°I chose the Azure Dragon!¡±


    She was still unsure of her choice even as she announced it, but she convinced herself it was the correct option. She had no interest in dominating the world. All she wanted was to be healed. Besides that, the most important factor was that she was already very hungry, and could see no source of food she could catch in these barren plains. Now, her only chance of survival was to accept the baptism of dragon blood, and hope it would cure her crippled wing, allowing her to hunt and feed herself.

 Chapter 84 : Transformation

    Smiling at the young hawk''s attempt to appear resolute, Avery conveyed his agreement and started instructing her.


    ¡°Since you have made your choice, don¡¯t regret it. When there is no turning back, you can only relentlessly pursue your path, overcoming every obstacle.¡±


    Audrey nodded imperceptibly, understanding it was impossible to reverse what was about to be done. After that, it would be her responsibility to make sure it was enough for her to lead the life she wanted.


    ¡°Now, I just need you to use the necklace''s central tooth to cut yourself. Anywhere is fine, as long as it draws some blood. It might hurt a little bit, but it won¡¯t last long, so don¡¯t be afraid.¡±


    The hawk acquiesced apprehensively, but quelled any remaining doubts as she moved to obey him. She took the ancient fang and awkwardly shoved it against her wounded wing, failing to pierce her feathers'' soft defense. She tried a few more times, looking quite comical, before her violent movements made her lose her balance and fall on the side, her weight finally allowing the fang to slice deep into her wings.


    ¡°What luck I have to be of service to such a majestic bird. Now, stop wiggling around, I will start the blood transfusion.¡±


    Ignoring her resentful look and concentrating on his task, Avery went to work. The dragon blood he had was very pure, evidently coming from a fairly powerful atavist cultivator. However, what he now had was merely a tooth of this creature, which contained very little blood. It took a lot of effort to condense all the remaining blood aura into a single red drop, which seemed to contain a faint golden light.


    He carefully examined the result of his labor, totally disregarding the impatient look she shot at him. This drop has a very high spiritual quality, but it was very small, so he would have to control it with care to make the most of its limited power.


    Once he had planned out the entire process, and was reasonably certain he would be able to complete it smoothly, he let the blood seep out of the ancient fang and invade Audrey¡¯s blood vessels.


    The overpowering blood Qi slowly traveled through her body, chasing away her natural blood and replacing it with an endless amount of blood aura, which was slowly invading every inch of her body, converting and transforming her body, corrupting her with countless draconic properties.


    Just as Avery had ended up suffering greatly from his immortal tribulation because he had skipped the gradual cultivation of his body, this transformation was similarly unkind to Audrey.


    Much of her mortal flesh withered and dissolved at the contact of the overbearing traces of divinity, leaving behind only pure energy. It was Avery¡¯s job to expertly weave that energy together with the blood aura, reconstructing her body fast enough to save her life.


    Fortunately, while his spiritual form was incapable of directly interacting with the material world, when it came to controlling spiritual energies, perhaps only the Elder could be his match.


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    This heaven defying jump in cultivation was no big deal for him. He even had some attention to spare to draw a complex purple pattern on her neck that would be able to house his spirit in the future. He had no intention of inhabiting some moldy old necklace for the rest of his life, and didn¡¯t want to be separated from his protege either.


    Meanwhile, he also guided her original bloodline, which was being mercilessly forced out, into the now empty necklace, condensing into a new drop of blood. He didn¡¯t have any specific plan for it yet, but keeping her original bloodline had many uses. It was not worth it to let it be assimilated by the stronger dragon blood and disappear, since the amount of energy it contained was insignificant anyways.


    Under his careful guidance, the transformation was smooth, and less than an hour later, everything was finished. Before him lay a beautiful bird, which looked both familiar and strange.


    Audrey had never been a big bird to begin with, and with how little energy he had to work with, the body he had reconstructed for her could only be called tiny. Her 60 centimeter wingspan was reduced to a third of that, with the rest of her body shrinking accordingly.


    Most notable were the changes to her legs. As a cultivator who had achieved her first transformation, the draconic properties had achieved a qualitative point, granting her the legs of a dragon. She undeniably looked quite peculiar, the thick, scaly paws at odds with her slim and elegant physique, but the power they contained was unmistakable.


    Other than that, the magical pattern on her neck, which Avery had drawn to resemble his runic true form, was very light and hard to see behind her plentiful brown feathers. Of course, her wing had been healed, or more accurately Avery had not seen fit to recreate any of her old ailments while crafting her new body.


    Satisfied with his craftsmanship, Avery smiled happily, but Audrey was in no condition to admire her new form. She laid motionless on the ground, drawing deep, ragged breaths as she tried to recuperate from the unbelievable pain she had just felt.


    Avery gazed at her whimpering form speechlessly, belatedly realizing that he could have put her to sleep and let her avoid all this suffering. He had underestimated how much the process would hurt, forgetting that not everyone was as accustomed to the pain of being transformed by a higher level of energy as he was.


    He awkwardly waited for her to regain the ability to think, and seeing her shivering and crying quietly, he decided it would be best not to mention that this agony had been completely unnecessary.


    ¡°Now, now, Everything is alright now. You don¡¯t have to cry anymore, your suffering is in the past. Look, can¡¯t you see? You are reborn, and your dream of healing yourself has been achieved. This is a time for celebration, not misery!¡±


    His words had no effect, he tried comforting her in different ways, but surprisingly, none of them seemed to calm her down.


    ¡°Remember that everything was worth it. Stop focusing on the trivial details, rejecting the enchantment of divinity to wallow in the woes of mortality. Your pain is transient, and will last for but a moment. Compared to the eternal happiness of the Truth, it is so insignificant, so why are you still crying?¡±


    ¡°Calm your mind, forget the pain, and focus on the Tao. Feel the mysteries of the world, the beauty of natural laws, the majesty of divinity. Why do you let your pain distract you from contemplating the Truth?¡±


    Despite his various attempts, she remained completely unresponsive to his repeated prompting and clumsy attempts at consoling her. She didn¡¯t even speak a word as she simply stared blankly at the starry sky, whimpering for hours before slowly falling into a dreamless sleep.


    He wasn¡¯t very well versed in hypnotism or the manipulation of memories, but he was nevertheless able to play a supporting role, empowering the automatic defenses of her mind and helping her seal off these traumatic memories deep in her subconscious.

 Chapter 85 : Useless Companion

    Audrey groggily turned her head to shield her eyes from the glaring sunlight, wondering what in the world was going on. Her body kept sending her conflicting signals that she was unable to understand in her half-awake state, forming a heavy fog of confusion that weighed on her mind.


    She felt both wide-awake and sleep deprived at the same time, simultaneously ready to run for the entire day, while also exhausted beyond belief, wishing nothing more than to go to sleep for an entire week.


    Her body was bursting with endless energy and strength, giving her the illusion she could reach the moon in a single jump. Nevertheless, she was also starving, each of her cells screaming in ravenous hunger.


    Shakily rising to her feet, she realized that her wing felt much less stiff than usual,.Then her confusion got worse, as she wondered why the ground was so close to her head. Incapable of making any sense of the situation, she tried to think back and remember how she got her, stranded all alone and feeling so weird.


    Her lethargic brain was remarkably unmotivated to provide her with any answers, as only a hazy image of an ancient necklace slowly emerged. Something was missing, as if she had forgotten something incredibly important.


    What in the world had happened? Had she eaten one of those funny tasting berries again? But even if she did, she would still be in the caravan. Had she finally been unable to resist and had stolen a drink from Craig¡¯s forbidden collection? Had they really thrown her out as a punishment, as they had promised? But what did all that have to do with that necklace?


    ¡°Ah, you are finally awake. Now I understand what people must feel when I start meditating in the middle of a conversation.¡±


    The sudden appearance of an unfamiliar voice made her jump, making her lose her fragile balance. A startled quack was all she managed before she fell to the ground with all the elegance and grace of a drunk hippopotamus.


    ¡°This day will be remembered for years to come as the glorious rebirth of the dragon queen. It will be recorded in history books, children will playfully reenact this scene, bards will sing your tales, and all of them will mention your inspired first words. ¡°Quack¡±, they will chant, meditating on the profundities of this word, which no doubt fully reflects the great Audrey¡¯s intellect and exalted wisdom.¡±


    ¡°Mister Spirit! You scared me¡­ You''re not being nice¡­ Ouch¡­¡±


    Her voice grew quieter and quieter as scattered memories gradually resurfaced, and hope lit up in her eyes as she guessed why her body felt so strange.


    ¡°I remember you said you were going to replace my blood¡­ I can¡¯t remember anything after that, but when I think about it I feel fear¡­ Mister Spirit, what happened?¡±


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    ¡°Nothing much. Everything went according to plan, and you successfully became a first transformation cultivator. Only, the procedure was a little more painful than anticipated, so I sealed those memories while you were sleeping.¡±


    Audrey instinctively shivered when she heard him say ¡°a little painful¡±, but felt nothing more. Perplexed, she ultimately decided that losing painful memories was a good thing, and put the issue out of her mind.


    She had more important things to do, such as admiring her new body. Excitedly listening to Avery¡¯s explanations, she flapped her wings, flexed her legs and wriggled her tail, testing her new physique.


    Despite her reduced size, she had never felt better. Each of her muscles was bursting with unprecedented strength, forming a pure body without imperfection, equipped with powerful wings capable of carrying her up through the Heavens.


    She had stopped listening to Avery as soon as he went from listing all the changes she had undergone to lecturing her about his theories about blood Qi, and why it empowered her.


    She had no time for boring speeches, for the sky was calling her, and she was awaited on cloud nine. Letting out a jubilant whoop, the reborn hawk took off.


    With a great kick, her powerful legs propelled her high up in the air, her wings smoothly opening to catch the morning wind. Her dreams coming true, she flapped her wings, effortlessly displacing the air beneath her.


    Then as fast as she had ascended, the clueless bird fell straight back down to earth, promptly landing flat on her face.


    ¡°I assure you that your feathers are enough to hide my mark. There is no need to further cover it in dust, nor do I need you to help me hug the ground.¡±


    ¡°I, uh, don¡¯t know how to fly¡­ I fell and tore my wing during my first flight, so I never learned¡­¡±


    She nudged the pendant pitifully, looking adorable as she quietly asked if he knew how to fly, and if he could teach her.


    ¡°Why would I know that? I am not a bird! However, I suppose that I could try to improvise a simple flying technique. I would just have to consider the shape and power of the wings, to control the flow of air¡­¡±


    Audrey¡¯s eyes quickly glazed over as a long litany of unhelpful ramblings entered her ears, making her regret asking. She tried to interrupt him and ask him different questions, but Avery had already fallen deep in thought, and wasn¡¯t listening to anything she was saying, only generously sharing his thought process with her.


    She waited impatiently for some time, but when it became clear that he was not going to stop anytime soon, she did her best to ignore him, wrapped the leather necklace around her leg, and started running.


    All her troubles disappeared as she marveled at her prodigious speed, feeling the wind rushing through her feathers and crying in her ears, like an old friend encouraging her.


    Her dragon legs were awesome, carrying her forward with such ease she found it unbelievable, half convinced it was all a dream. Could it really be her, that hawk who was running across the plains at incredible speed, faster than any bird in flight?


    Her heart pounding with delight, she welcomed her new life, losing herself in excitement. She wasn¡¯t a cripple anymore. She was strong, she was fast, and she was free.

 Chapter 86 : Lost

    Even without flight, her powerful legs were more than enough to let her travel great distances, and Audrey guessed she must be fast approaching her destination. Perhaps in a few hours, she would be able to demand reparation from those fake friends that had left her behind.


    While relatively barren, the plains were not completely deserted, and with Avery¡¯s help in locating prey, she had managed a few hunts. Most of her attempts failed as her lack of control over her strength made stealth very delicate, but each successful kill was exhilarating, as if she was finally satiating some primal instinct.


    While she was far from satisfied, as the few critters she had managed to eat did little to alleviate her hunger, it still provided her enough energy to support her rush to civilization.


    She hooted happily, addicted to that overwhelming sentiment of freedom and unbridled confidence in her newfound strength.


    A few days passed as a blissful dream, an idyllic journey with the sun, moon and stars as companions, roaming the immensity of the earth with impunity, racing along with the wind, untethered by any of her troubles.


    Only Mister Spirit¡¯s long-winded speeches did not fit the carefree atmosphere, but that disembodied voice certainly added to the mystery of her current existence.


    Even after a week of constant exercise, she never felt tired, never felt the need to stop to rest, never felt pain or fear. Only her hunger remained, but even that faded away as she started immersing herself in her body¡¯s growing melody, that savage song of blood and authority. She heard it grow louder each passing second, her heart beating according to a strange, hypnotic rhythm. It was constantly flooding her veins with power, pushing her already perfect body to even greater heights.


    Not only that, but she also felt her spirit slowly melding with her new body, giving her a feeling of wholeness, and a heightened sense of existence that brought about a deep-seated joy.


    Still, she had not truly broken free from earthly considerations, and had a lot of questions plaguing her mind.


    ¡°Mister Spirit? Are you here?¡±


    She received no response, but she had expected that. She used to believe he was purposefully ignoring her, but she had come to realize he seemed to spend his existence deep in thought, completely unaware of anything else.


    Self-deprecatingly mocking herself for having picked up such an unreliable spirit, she tried to activate her blood Qi, since he had said he would feel that.


    It took a dozen attempts, after which she must have succeeded, as her mind was suddenly invaded by an ethereal presence. Said presence said nothing, but it radiated a faint aura of impatience and displeasure.


    Gulping silently, she reminded herself that he was only a spirit, she spoke in a soft voice.


    ¡°I was told we would arrive at our destination in less than two days, but it¡¯s been more than a week, and we are still not there yet. Am I actually running really slow?¡±


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    That impatient aura was suddenly tainted by a trace of mirth, and despite the impassive tone of his response, Audrey got the distinct impression he was mocking her.


    ¡°What does your speed have to do with anything? It wouldn''t matter if you were going faster than light, you won¡¯t get any closer to your goal if you keep running in circles.¡±


    ¡°What? I¡¯m running in circles? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±


    That mocking atmosphere disappeared in favor of his usual profound wisdom, but she was not convinced by his defense.


    ¡°Because the more time you have to get accustomed to your strength before interacting with mortals, the better. Since there is no rush in getting out, I thought it best to let you do your own thing in peace. It would be a much better learning experience.¡±


    ¡°No rush? No rush! I¡¯m starving here! You are saying that if you had only deigned to give me a helpful comment, I would have arrived long ago? That right at this moment, I could be comfortably sitting in an inn eating dinner?¡±


    Her beak watered as she thought of all the delicacies she could be eating, instead of those rare rodents she had painstakingly hunted. What right did Mister Spirit have to take that away from her?


    ¡°You''re just hungry, not starving. You are perfectly capable of surviving this way for years. And don¡¯t push all the blame on me. I¡¯m not the one stopping to do happy little dances every few minutes and randomly choosing traveling directions.


    She instinctively lowered her head when chastised, but then immediately raised it again defiantly.


    ¡°It¡¯s not random! I am very careful each time, always following the sun. I remember it was blinding us because it was just in front of us, so it must be in the right direction! And there is nothing wrong with dancing. It¡¯s fun!¡±


    She held her head down as soon as she stopped speaking, twitching uneasily, standing on one leg then the other, nervously awaiting his reaction. She was also a little proud of herself, internally telling herself that she was right, and that and that she should not be afraid to speak her mind.


    As the long silence dragged on, apprehension won over her pride, and she became so uncomfortable she began absentmindedly grooming herself.


    ¡°Perhaps I need to take a more active role in your education. Sit down, it¡¯s time we talk about cultivation.¡±


    For a long time, she didn¡¯t react, wondering why he was suddenly talking about something completely different.


    ¡°If you learn what I will teach you, not only will you become even stronger and faster, but you won¡¯t have to worry about food ever again.¡±


    That mention of food seemed to restart her brain, and she obeyed hesitantly.


    ¡°If cultivation is so useful, why didn¡¯t you tell me about it sooner? It¡¯s really mean to let someone starve if you have a solution!¡±


    ¡°What do you think I was doing all week while you were fooling around? I was creating a custom cultivation technique that was perfectly suited to you, that''s what I was doing! And if it had not been for you bothering me every few hours, I would have finished it half a day ago, and you wouldn''t have to start learning the unfinished product. Now stop blaming me for your failure, stop asking so many inane questions, and listen carefully.¡±


    It all sounded very important, and Audrey promised herself she would listen attentively, but by the first sentence, she already knew there was no way she would understand or learn anything he was saying.


    ¡°To cultivate atavism is to accumulate blood Qi, to purify your blood and unearth the power of your ancestors. From shallow to profound, and from complex to simple, this is a process of returning to genesis, to shed the ordinary, and to become extraordinary.¡±


    ¡°Now, you may be asking yourself, why blood? What link does it have to our ancestors? Why not our bones, our muscles, our feathers? The simple answer is that blood courses through our bodies, carrying our vital energy. The complex answer is that it isn''t only blood. The fact that plants can use sap to do the same shows that¡­¡±


    Audrey wondered why the moon changed her shape so much? Was she being eaten by the sun? That must hurt a lot! But why would the sun do that? And why did it let the moon heal up afterwards? Perhaps it was being chased away by the stars?

 Chapter 87 : Arrival

    Audrey flapped her wings, instinctively kicking her legs as she climbed high up in the sky. That moment of defying gravity only lasted a moment, as she quickly lost her balance and came crashing down to the ground, but that failure did nothing to dampen her spirit.


    She was learning to fly! Mister Spirit was teaching her for real this time, by showing her instead of coming up with long and incomprehensible speeches.


    ¡°Better. Again.¡±


    Her vision blurred as an alien memory invaded her mind. Suddenly she was back in the sky, but something else was in control of her body, letting her experience the epitome of flight.


    Each and every movement was precise, showing the bearing of a master in perfect control of her flight. It wasn¡¯t only the flapping of the wings either. Everything, from the orientation of her body to the fluttering of her tail feathers and the subtle flow of blood Qi was in harmony, contributing to that elegant aerial dance.


    Eager to make that illusion a reality, Audrey could barely wait for the vision to fade before she launched herself in the air.


    She was unable to resist the earth¡¯s call for very long, but that didn¡¯t matter. She just had to stay airborne a little longer each time, and eventually she would succeed. At first, she had been scared of her uncontrolled height, but once she realized these small falls were nothing to her awesome new body, nothing could stop her.


    ¡°Alright, that''s enough. You¡¯ve had your fun, now it¡¯s time for more important stuff.¡±


    Before she could protest, she fell into a new vision. It was her again, but she was on the ground doing a series of strange movements, jumping, flapping, kicking¡­ every part of her body was involved in a peculiar choreography.


    Audrey scrutinized every detail, trying to remember everything, knowing that Avery would accept nothing short of perfection. Then, she painstakingly tried to recreate it, wanting to get over it quickly so that she could get back to flying. While the ritualistic dance was fun and challenging in its own way, it just couldn''t compare with flying.


    Hanging her head pitifully, she nevertheless dutifully did her best, and gradually, an illusory, otherworldly feeling grew in her heart.


    ¡°What¡­¡±


    Realizing she had spoken aloud, she frantically clamping her beak shut, hoping Avery wasn¡¯t listening. She might be curious, but she had already decided that from now on, her number one rule was to never ask unimportant questions to Mister Spirit. It simply wasn¡¯t worth it.


    Fortunately, while Avery heard her, he seemed to have no interest in explaining anything.


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    ¡°Oh, you finally felt something? Good, good, this confirms my hypothesis. It seems learning to control blood Qi through physical exercise is definitely achievable.¡±


    <hr>


    Audrey alighted clumsily, glad that she had finally arrived, only to be struck dumb at what she saw.


    The last time she had visited a wild city, she had only been blown away by the incredible diversity. The sight of hundreds of different species of all shapes and sizes living together leaving her to gasp wonder.


    Now, however, she completely forgot to marvel at the chaotic mess of caves, hills, burrows, nest-bearing trees, exotic constructions or artificial cliffs. Her senses as a cultivator were completely focused on the oppressive auras that covered the city.


    She could feel a handful of extraordinarily powerful presences at the center of the city, clad in a halo of strength and authority which made her want to bow her head in submission, acknowledging their superiority.


    However, opposing that, she felt an even stronger impulse to resist defiantly, to look directly at those presences and tell them she did not fear them, that it should be them bowing down to her.


    ¡°Stop daydreaming and move. Nothing good will come out of recklessly provoking the local authority.¡±


    Struggling to resist her instincts, she obeyed and painstakingly made her way to one of the four main roads that led to the central cathedral. No matter what, the cathedral represented the gods, and hosted the symbol of the wishing temples, and no one would dare threaten her there.


    Indeed, as soon as she passed by the pair of sphinx statues and stepped onto the well-kept road, the world quieted down. She felt she had entered the domain of a much more mysterious power, which was isolating and protecting her from outside harm.


    She could still vaguely sense those awe-inspiring presence living in the city, but that impossible weight that seemed intent on crushing her was gone. Following its disappearance, her rebellious instincts then settled down too.


    Secretly heaving a sigh of relief, she quickly made her way to the main hall and calmed herself by piously offering her prayers to the most prominent idol.


    ¡°As long as we are together, it would be best if you abstained from praying to that particular entity.¡±


    Bewildered, she looked at the silver idol, confirming that she had been praying to the Great God who had put an end to the age of violence.


    ¡°What? Why? Are you one of those people who think he is only a myth?¡±


    ¡°Oh no, I believe in his existence alright, and that is why I advise you to be careful when dealing with him. He is not someone the current you can oppose.¡±


    Why would she want to oppose him? And even if she did, how could she do anything to offend such a mighty god?


    ¡°Why do you say that? Mister Spirit, are you enemies?¡±


    ¡°Enemies? Not really, no. Let''s just say that he is the lord of the dreamworld, with authority over all spiritual entities, while I am a wandering ghost clinging to his earthly existence. I do not wish for him to discover my existence.¡±


    That statement only made her more curious, but she could tell that most of her questions would only lead to some interminable lecture. She didn¡¯t want a lesson on the nature of spiritual entities or on the intricacies of godly authorities, so she simply asked one last question in an incredulous tone.


    ¡°You speak as if he could hear my prayers. Does that mean you believe he is still alive? Didn¡¯t he sacrifice himself in the process of shattering the rule of the Old Ones?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if he can hear your prayers, but he is still alive, I am quite sure about that. Everyone else can die, but not him. I have no doubt he will at least survive until the end of the world, and perhaps even after that.¡±

 Chapter 88 : Admission

    Audrey was confused by how confidently Avery uttered his statement, in a way that betrayed a great understanding and familiarity with the elusive Lord of Mysteries.


    ¡°How do you know? And why are you so scared of him? Mister spirit, who are you, really?¡±


    ¡°You really are letting your imagination run wild. I told you, I am just the spiritual remnant of a cultivator who no longer exists in this world. Don¡¯t worry about my past, it won''t bring you any troubles.¡±


    Her curiosity unsatisfied, Audrey clicked her beak in exasperation.


    ¡°What, that¡¯s all? Normally you can¡¯t stop explaining the boring stuff, but now that we are discussing something actually interesting, you finally become quiet?¡±


    This was one of the rare times that she felt foreign emotions spilling through their telepathic communication, making it abundantly clear that Avery was every bit as exasperated as she was.


    ¡°Here I am, offering you the mysteries of the universe, letting you peek at the very foundation of the world. And what do you do, when faced with an opportunity that would make gods jealous? You waste your time gossiping and asking about trivial details.¡±


    She had previously dismissed his delusions of grandeur, as he regularly mentioned things that were beyond even her Great Ancestor, but she wasn¡¯t so sure he was exaggerating anymore. Perhaps, if he was really acquainted with the Lord of Mysteries, there might be some truth in his boasts. Still, there was no way she would admit that.


    ¡°Who cares about your mysteries? Stop trying to scam me, you hardly know anything practical. Why should I waste my time learning what air is made of, or what in the world buoyancy is? Just telling me to flap my wings up and down would be more helpful than all your useless secrets.¡±


    Another round of bickering ensued, completely ruining the nascent image of Mister Spirit being an existence with a status comparable to the most ancient rulers of the world.


    <hr>


    ¡°Miss, are you okay? You''ve been talking to yourself a lot¡­¡±


    Letting out a small cry of surprise, Audrey spun around to see a stag-like creature looking at her with concern.


    She was immediately drawn to its short, elegant antlers - perfect perch material - its beautiful, snowy white coat and icy blue eyes. Accompanying its graceful appearance, Audrey could sense a holy aura emanating from the creature, making it hard for her to concentrate. Raising her vigilance to the maximum, she tried hard to remember how lone travelers asked for admittance in a foreign city.


    ¡°Hello! I¡¯m Audrey, here to receive the local baptism.¡±


    While it would have been polite to bow, she simply waved her wing in courteous salutation, wondering if she had an aura of her own, and what concept it would project.


    ¡°Baptism? You want to settle down here?¡±


    There was a confusing amount of hostility in that question, at odds with its previous tone. Was baptism a big deal? Well, she had never been baptized when traveling with the caravan. Nor do anything really, but then again she had never felt the oppression of these terrible auras before.


    ¡°Uh... I don¡¯t know... No? I just want to find my friends...¡±


    Flustered by her lack of knowledge and annoyed at herself for showing such an undignified side of herself, she took a deep breath and straightened her folded wings proudly.


    ¡°Sorry. I am lost. This is my first time traveling alone. I¡¯m not sure how things are done here, but I need to find my companions, and I can¡¯t do that with those¡­ presence making it hard to stay awake.¡±


    The creature nodded her understanding, no longer looking as if he was about to attack her.


    ¡°Then you want a city token, not a baptism. I can give you one, the procedure is rather simple.¡±


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    Inviting her to follow him with a shake of his head, he led her away from the central altar, towards a side room.


    ¡°I have money! Uh, no, I don¡¯t¡­ but I give great hugs! You want one?¡±


    Rambling to hide her nervousness, taking uncharacteristically long strides to try and keep up with her guide, Audrey fought to maintain a half dignified facade as she made a mental inventory of what valuables she had to offer. It came out empty.


    ¡°Charming, but no. I just need information, and to make sure you are trustworthy. So trying to bribe me wasn¡¯t very smart.¡±


    The majestic elk''s tone was dry, completely unimpressed by her shenanigans, making her feel like a fool. Eager to leave that awkward moment behind but not knowing how to prove her good intentions, Audrey just started chatting.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m very trustworthy!¡± - she patted her chest proudly with her wing - ¡°I¡¯m Audrey Thunderbird, by the way. I was born in the Exona woods, but¡­¡±


    ¡°Do you have any proof?¡±


    Audrey was starting to get accustomed to the stag¡¯s intense mannerism, shrugging as she followed him through a side door and an interior chamber with a large fountain, carved from marble.


    ¡°I told you, I got lost. Taking out my StormFeather, money and whatever else you could want from me will have to wait for me to find my caravan. Which will have to wait for me to be able to walk around your city, which will have to wait until I have a city token.¡±


    ¡°I see.¡± Her host interjected caustically, placing a hoof in a shallow basin connected to the fountain, causing the central runic statue to light up.


    ¡°So you got lost while traveling with a caravan? What was the original purpose of your journey?¡±


    She meant to answer honestly, only leaving out her adventures with Mister Spirit, and her subsequent cultivation, but the answer was not as simple as it seemed.


    "I am on my way to the Great Healing Temple to¡­ to¡­ heal my wing?"


    Glancing disbelievingly at her at her perfectly healthy wing, Audrey suddenly considered her future. Why was she still traveling when the problem was already fixed? What was she planning to do, exactly? She couldn''t just come home after running away, could she?


    Perhaps Mister Spirit would have an idea? Did he have somewhere to go, and should she accompany him? She did owe him, after all. So many questions¡­ She already felt a headache coming.


    "Anyways, my wing is healed, and that¡¯s great! Now I am just here to get my stuff back, I don¡¯t really know what I¡¯ll do next.¡±


    The stag nodded slowly as Audrey described her predicament, red symbols appearing in the water around his front foot.


    ¡°You had an injury so bad you had needed to visit the Great Healing Temple in person, but it was unexpectedly fixed in advance? How did that happen, exactly?¡±


    ¡°I learned cultivation! There was something about blood Qi and ¡°First transformation¡±, and I think it was very painful, but then my wing was healed¡±


    More and more letters were appearing in the fountain pool, and Audrey hopped slightly, attempting to get a better viewing angle to read them. However, before she could make any of them out, a ray of light shot from the writer''s antler, temporarily blinding her.


    ¡°No peeking."


    The stag paused, waiting for her to recover her sight.


    "You must be quite skilled, to have achieved First Transformation while suffering a crippling injury. I suppose you are lucky Thunderbirds focus on their legs rather than their wings."


    He nodded at her, his expression unchanged, she restrained her curiosity as to what he was writing.


    ¡°Yes! Well no, my totem isn''t the Thunderbird, it''s..."


    Before she could finish her sentence, she froze, the blood Qi in her body mobilizing to prevent her speech as a familiar voice rang in her mind.


    "It would be prudent to avoid mentioning the Azure Dragon, that name is of... particular significance."


    Avery''s heart thundered in her chest, and she stumbled slightly as she regained control over her body, forcing herself to appear as natural as possible under the puzzled gaze of her guide.


    ¡°Sorry, I was warned not to talk about my totem. The important thing is, it gave me very strong legs, and it healed my wing! I can fly now!"


    He took a long look into the eyes, causing her to break out in goosebumps. His gaze was piercing and powerful, making her want to avert her eyes.


    ¡°How did you get a new totem suited for you? Who warned you not to mention it?"


    "I can''t tell you that either. Will that be a problem?"


    He shook his head slowly, as if trying to figure out what the right answer should be.


    "It won''t, don''t worry about it. The only thing I really need is your name, species and cultivation level, the rest is just me being curious."


    Saying this, the stag stepped back from the pool. The Great Rune statue flashed, and all that was written in the water disappeared, replaced by a small round token bearing the image of three pillars and a golden sun.


    "Keep this with you at all times, it will protect you. It will last seven days, after which you need to renew it."


    Raising a leg to grasp the token in her claws, she breathed a sigh of relief at being accepted into the city. Then question marked appeared in her head, as she look back at the stag, looking lost.


    ¡°So what do I do now?¡±

 Chapter 89 : Customer

    "Of course, there are still crazy cultists wreaking havoc everywhere in a vain attempt to resurrect their vile masters, but this city is well protected.¡±


    Audrey stroked her token, suddenly understanding why the city found it important to monitor all cultivators. While she had known they had existed, she only knew the Old Ones as monsters from scary stories, and could not understand why anyone would want to bring them back.


    "Is it really possible to bring the dead back to life?"


    This wasn¡¯t Mister Spirit¡¯s question, it was hers. Even the Great Runes, with all their power, couldn''t accomplish such a feat, so how could these cultists hope to achieve the impossible?


    ¡°No, it¡¯s not. The Old Ones were destroyed, and will never come back. I bet all the cult leaders know this, and are just using empty promises to fool new followers into joining them.¡±


    Audrey lost most of her interest upon hearing this, cultists appeared to be nothing more than a bunch of power-hungry madmen exploiting old legends for their own gain.


    She continued repeating Mister Spirit¡¯s questions as if they were her own, but paid little attention to the answers. She was more preoccupied with the chaotic yet stunning cityscape that surrounded her, captivated by the vibrant and diverse city life.


    ¡°But you cannot deny that the rituals work. If not the Old Ones, who is responding to their sacrifices?¡±


    Hopping sideways to avoid an overzealous beaver barreling through, Audrey took the opportunity to glance into a nearby dwelling, admiring the huge butterfly laying lazily on the grass.


    ¡°That is beside the point. The Old Ones used to be very powerful, so maybe they got jealous and made a treasure capable of mimicking Great Runes through ritual offerings. Cultists might control a few evil relics, but defying death is far beyond their reach. They can¡¯t even properly control their rituals.¡±


    Audrey nodded her head in agreement. It did sound ridiculous, a bunch of cultists resurrect that which had been sealed in the void. Nevertheless, she faithfully voiced Mister Spirit¡¯s question.


    ¡°Surely there is more to it than that. This is a complete power system detached from great runes or blood Qi, with limitless potential. No matter how it was misused in the past, there is no inherently evil power. It is only a matter of learning to control it, and discerning how to use it.¡±


    The stag, whose name had turned out to be Vincent, jumped as if bitten, antlers briefly flaring with holy light.


    ¡°Fryen be praised, stop saying stupid things. How can you claim there is no evil power, when any contact with it leads to death and despair. I¡¯m telling you, stay away from anything related to the Old Ones, it is all lies and deception, all of it. There is no mystery, merely the remnant powers of the cursed sun wreaking havoc on the world.¡±


    Making a mental note to avoid cultists, Audrey shrugged. It was no surprise that Mister Spirit was acting strangely.


    She could hear the voice inside her urging her to delve deeper into the topic, questioning the relationship between the spirit world and the Old ones, but faced with her guide''s disapproving glare, she opted to change the subject with a chipper tone.


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    ¡°Anyways, thanks for letting me stay at your place!¡±


    <hr>


    Avery was startled by the sound of his tea shop¡¯s door opening. His peaceful contemplation of the Tao had almost made him forget his arrangements, and he hastily recast his illusory body. He had dispelled it earlier, as he had found that his runic body was becoming unable to withstand his comprehension of the Tao, and was holding him back. To cultivate any further, he had to reforge and upgrade his body, constantly improving it at a rate similar to his growing understanding. He found it strange that his runes restricted him in a way that his mortal human body never did, but for now, all he could do was comply with these strange rules, using the information on the formation of a Dao body and his improved runes to keep up.


    Glancing around, making sure nothing he wanted hidden was visible, he turned his attention to his customer.


    ¡°Welcome, esteemed guest. What brings you to my humble establishment?¡±


    Looking around vigilantly, a tall middle-aged lady strode in, her strong build and wide shoulders making her decorated armor appear weightless, exuding a dangerous feeling. Actually, his Dao vision was the only thing that let him be confident he was facing a woman, since her obvious strength, colossal stature and the air of controlled savagery were by far a better match for the male archetype.


    She appeared to be only armed with a dagger on her waist, and was holding her helmet under her arm. He guessed she wasn¡¯t expecting any trouble, and her unusual alertness to danger was only proof of her competence. He had to admit this really wasn¡¯t the sort of customer he was expecting to attract, but he was curious to see what such a warrior would have to say about the Tao.


    ¡°Your shop is new, is it not? We passed in front of it while parading, and it gave me a very strange feeling.¡±


    Noticing her armor made her unable to sit with him on the mats he had prepared, he stood up to fetch a pair of chairs.


    ¡°Ah yes, it should be quite new. I find it hard to keep track of time, but if it is any indication, you are my first customer.¡±


    ¡°Oh really? For a shop in the prime merchant street to lack customers is rather surprising. Perhaps it stems from your subpar marketing. After all, I still have no clue what you are selling. If this is even a shop that is, I only assume so because of your placement.¡±


    Avery inclined his head to thank her for her suggestion, before picking up the teapot. It should have been very awkward, since the low table was not meant to be reached by those sitting on tall chairs, but his high cultivation lent a certain naturalness and elegance to all his movements, letting his undignified posture appear casual.


    ¡°It matters not. I have advertised enough, and the rest is up to fate. This is a simple shop, and my only ware is tea. Here, take a sip, I dare you to find a better tea in this country.¡±


    Handing her a cup and making one for himself, Avery smiled confidently. His tea leaves were bought from the system, and they were an inferior version of the fabled comprehension tea. They might not be true treasure immortals would fight over, but mortal tea leaves simply couldn¡¯t compare.


    ¡°I know this is your first time, but I must inform you that it is customary to inform the customer of the price before serving them, and let them decide whether they wish to make a purchase or not. Otherwise, if you wait for your wares to be consumed before revealing the cost, some might accuse you of being dishonest, and of overcharging.¡±


    Despite her remark, the soldier confidently carried the tea cup to her lips, obviously unbothered by the danger she had just outlined.


    ¡°Fret not, I have no intention of robbing you. Even if I dared, I have no need for money or riches. I can already afford to keep this shop open for centuries, so why would I want more? No, you have already paid the price of my tea. Words from the wise are worth far more than gold, and as long as you have some insights to offer, you are welcome here.¡±


    His words were sincere, and despite his social anxiety lurking in the background, he greatly anticipated exchanging with someone he now knew was a learned and refined individual.


    ¡°Words from the wise are worth far more than gold? Then it seems to me that you are still making a deficit.¡±


    Avery smiled but did not respond, accepting the compliment.


    ¡°What a peculiar establishment you are running. You chose one of the best spots in the city yet remain desolate, you wish to receive guests yet refuse to advertise, and you offer your services yet refuse to be paid. More bizarre yet, you are a merchant claiming to have more than enough riches, and you profess you do not wish for more. How extraordinary. A suspicious mind might even conclude that you are not a shopkeeper at all, and that you have ulterior motives for occupying such a strategic location in the capital.¡±

 Chapter 90 : Divergent Paths

    It was true he was not an authentic shopkeeper, making him unsure on how to reassure her that he harbored no evil intentions. From that uncertainty came fear and exhaustion, and he felt the urge to drive her out, stop this exhausting conversation and return to his meditation. Instead, he calmly took another sip of tea, and explained himself politely.


    ¡°Sometimes the simplest answers are the correct ones. I tend to my shop, and have therefore earned the title of shopkeeper. I am not lacking in material wealth, and will therefore request spiritual wealth. I pursue the ultimate Truth, and wish for my thoughts to remain unburdened. Why should I exhaust myself earning what providence will freely provide?"


    Everything sounded self-explanatory to Avery, a sentiment which was obviously not shared by his guest.


    ¡°What is this supreme Truth you speak of?¡±


    What kind of question was that? So baffled by the idea of having to clarify this, Avery even forgot to feel nervous about being questioned.


    ¡°The Tao, naturally. What else is worthy of being called supreme? Surely you must understand that, or your path would not have crossed mine.¡±


    ¡°Ah, so you are a man of Tao. I suppose that explains some things, though just to make sure, would you mind reciting some of Da Yijun''s literary works? We live in troubled times, and there has been more than one case of devil cultivators passing themselves off as scholars and Taoists.¡±


    Da Yijun? Who was that? Avery noted the name down, assuming he was exactly the type of scholar he had come to this capital to meet. Then, lamenting once more over the lack of public libraries in this grand empire, he continued on with this strenuous conversation, acting like he was perfectly at ease.


    ¡°I am afraid I cannot fulfill your demand. You see, I am self-enlightened, and must confess having little to no knowledge of the legacy of mankind on these topics.¡±


    On the surface, she had stayed very calm, seemingly accepting his refusal. No frown, change in posture or anything of the sort, but the air around her suddenly carried a subtle hostility.


    It wasn¡¯t quite like the auras of atavist cultivators in his inner realm, which was a projection of their identity, their power resonating with the world and forming some kind of low level domain. This was more of a mental attack, or perhaps a powerful intent leaking out into reality. Was she like him, cultivating through intent instead of Qi? Was this why she had been called here? In any case, that aura-like ability was mighty interesting¡­


    ¡°Sir? Sir, I am going to have to ask you to answer my question.¡±


    Avery looked up to see the soldier reaching over the table to grab his shoulder, forcing him to hide an embarrassed smile as he realized he had wandered into his thoughts again.


    ¡°My apologies, I often get distracted. Though I must ask, what exactly is my knowledge or ignorance supposed to prove? Surely, if devil cultivators are such a threat, and have the habit of passing themselves off as Taoists, then they would have no problems learning a few manuscripts to help with their disguise.¡±


    This really puzzled Avery. It was like trying to uncover foreign spies by asking them to speak English. One would expect any competent spy to learn the language and customs of whatever country he was infiltrating.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what they try to learn. They follow the devil''s way, and can therefore never sincerely praise the Tao. It is a poison to them, which is deadly even to cultivators.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense. The Tao is all encompassing, and no matter which path you take, it will eventually lead back to it. I have never met any devil cultivators, and our views might very well be morally opposed, but that doesn''t mean they aren¡¯t fellow Taoists.¡±


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    Besides, if there was such an obvious flaw in their disguise, why would they ever try to disguise themselves as Taoists?


    ¡°Ignorance. The devil''s way is evil, and it pursues nothing but destruction. The Tao is not all encompassing, it is simply the Origin. From it, countless divergent ways were born, and of those, the way of the devil is one of the most evil.¡±


    Avery was lost for a moment, unable to wrap his head around the idea that anyone could oppose the Tao and seek its destruction. He could understand a mortal¡¯s ignorance, failing to see the magnificent of the Truth, but how could anybody knowingly reject it? It was simply unthinkable!


    ¡°Your words don¡¯t make sense. How can a path to transcendence be evil? You might fear the destruction it brings, but looking from afar, you will see that nothing was destroyed, it was only reorganized, and it is still the Tao. Perhaps you do not agree with this new order, but who are you to judge if it is evil? Do not lose your faith in the Tao because of surface level inconsistencies, for a Natural Order without inner conflicts would be inert, bringing about endless entropy.¡±


    While saying that, Avery was becoming more and more curious about this devil way. Since devil Qi was forbidden by the heavens, and for it to claim to oppose the Tao, it was clear that it held many secrets. Maybe, some of those would help him in his sanctification?


    ¡°Stop acting as if the Tao was everything. It is only the beginning, the stage upon which we play. It deserves respect and gratitude, but nothing more. It cannot affect the characters on stage, while we can affect it, and if powerful enough, destroy it.¡±


    That was categorically false. As an immortal, Avery was certain the Tao was eternal, and could never be destroyed. It might be changed, sealed or banished, but in some form or another, the Tao would exist for all eternity.


    ¡°Am I to understand you have turned your back on the Tao? Which of the thousands of so-called divergent ways do you follow?¡±


    The soldier''s aura had already lost most of its intensity, but it now came back in full force, somehow conjuring an image in his mind of a man sitting upon a throne lifting his hands to hold up the sky.


    ¡°Me? I am a believer in Life, in Intelligence, and in Civilization! The Tao is the tree, but mortals are the fruit that it bears, the true treasures to value. The Tao is stagnant, beautiful perhaps, but ultimately it is just a tool to create something truly magnificent, Life. To combat entropy, to act upon the world.¡±


    ¡°Then, from Life a miracle was born, Intelligence. To be conscious and to bend reality to our whims, Intelligence makes us capable of climbing to unprecedented heights. It has triumphed seven times, reshaping the world and proving the Tao is not perfect, that it can be improved.¡±


    ¡°However, this was not the end. From Intelligence arose Civilization, and our glorious empire will one day surpass even the Saints achievements! Then, in the future, perhaps Civilization will give birth to something new, something that will transcend it.¡±


    ¡°Stop always looking backwards and repeating that the Tao is great. Nature is limited, it has already accomplished everything it will ever do. In this world, only Civilization has infinite growth potential, and only it is worthy of the highest honor.¡±


    The Tea shop sank into silence as Avery and the soldier both considered what had been said. Neither of them really questioning their beliefs, but simply seeking the wisdom contained in the other''s path, to use this impromptu debate to improve themselves.


    Avery was ready for prolonged meditation, but seeing his guest opening her eyes after only a few minutes, he too pretended to wake up.


    ¡°That was most enlightening. Shall we continue?¡±


    ¡°There is no need. It is already clear that you truly are what you claim to be, and I have many duties to attend to. It has been a pleasure meeting you, but I must be going.¡±


    With no further ceremony, she put down her cup of tea and stood up, not having drunk any of it. A short bow later, she was on her way to the door.


    ¡°Wait! Could you give me a little of your blood? I have come across some blood-related cultivation techniques, and want to experiment with them.¡±


    He still wanted to say so many different things, having so many questions to ask, he panicked and asked the first one that came to mind. In hindsight, it was not the most appropriate thing to ask of someone who had been suspecting you of being a devil cultivator only moments before, but he didn¡¯t know how to time-travel just yet.


    However, while surprised, the soldier didn¡¯t hesitate and lightly cut herself with her dagger, tossing it to him as if it was the most natural request in the world.


    ¡°I¡¯ll be back for the dagger.¡±


    Catching it in mid-air, he waved her out and peered at the bloody blade, trying to see if the techniques of his inner world worked in reality.


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see some people appreciate my gifts properly.¡±


    Looking up, he saw the soldier lumbering into his shop, a new medal on her armor and her hair a few centimeters longer. Standing up to welcome her, Avery wondered once more whether he should design an alarm clock to help him keep track of time.

 Chapter 91 : Cultists

    Flap, kick, peck. A whirlwind of motion, she darted and spun, her figure a blur as she performed her training routine. Mister Spirit kept recommending introspective meditation, but she much preferred using her Qi to incinerate all her worries and uncertainties as she moved. The sweet, burning energy coursed through her veins, expelling any lingering doubts and fears with each release.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to do this, you know. Assuming you are correct, you are trying to make contact with some very dangerous individuals.¡±


    Audrey looked up to see Vincent walking in with his usual immaculate bearing, having finished his morning graze. Hunger was


    ¡°And you don¡¯t have to come. You already let me build a nest in your glade, you don''t need to watch over me all the time.¡±


    The stag just gave her another deep, penetrating look, as if attempting to peer directly into her soul.


    ¡°Yes, I do. I swore to protect the city and everyone in it, and right now that means staying close to you.¡±


    Audrey bristled momentarily, feeling insulted. She wasn¡¯t some fragile, delicate creature in need of protection. It took some effort to calm down, and offer her thanks instead.


    If that was possible, Vincent¡¯s look became deeper still, clearly aware of her emotional shift.


    ¡°Why are you so interested in cultists, anyway? When you find yourself alone in a foreign city, is your first priority really to find a group that most people would do their best to avoid at all costs?¡±


    Audrey could only shrug in response. She wasn¡¯t interested; Mister Spirit was. He was the reason she even knew where the cultists were, and he had promised he would handle it if anything went awry. She didn¡¯t know why she trusted him to take care of her, but even her new instincts, frustrating as they could be, easily accepted his protection.


    After finishing her martial arts dance and ignoring his last attempt to discourage her, she set out towards the city¡¯s periphery. She had no clue what to expect - Mister Spirit¡¯s explanations had been tremendously unhelpful, as usual - but perhaps that was why she was so excited.


    Less than a moon¡¯s turn ago, she was the crippled child of an unimportant family. Now, she was a powerful dragon cultivator on the nearing her second transformation, about to jump headfirst into a world of mysteries and legends. Uncovering a cabal of fanatics desperate to resurrect an ancient evil sounded like a magnificent way to start, did it not?


    Besides, Mister Spirit had promised to give her a technique that would make her wings stronger and prettier, and that was worth risking her life for.


    She wove her way through the busy city, with Vincent following close behind. He didn¡¯t have wings, so they had to walk, but she would have done so anyway. Flying was special, she refused to reduce it to a mere transportation method. It was a goal in itself, an experience worthy of being pursued for its own sake. Her legs would bring her places, but her wings were only tasked with bringing her joy.


    <hr>


    ¡°This is your last chance to turn back, and leave this to the Hunters. There is no need for a young lady like you to get involved in such dangerous matters."


    Disregarding the advice, Audrey pecked the hollow wooden block by the den¡¯s entrance and waited for permission to enter.


    For a while nothing happened, then unsettling squelching sounds came from deep within the earth. Something was coming closer, only stopping a few wingspans before reaching the entrance.


    Her powerful eyes let her see the alleged cultist in spite of the dim light, but it was of little use. He was wearing a cloak that completely masked his features. Even his body shape was difficult to distinguish. She could only say that he was about thrice as tall as he was wide, and his overall proportions were many times bigger than herself. She guessed that this was by design, as she had never seen such clothing before. Clothes were usually small and delicate, accessories that represented wealth and status instead of hiding oneself.


    ¡°I smell a light-bringer, and an adventurous spirit. What business do these troublesome folks have with our peaceful sanctuary, I wonder?


    Audrey cleared her throat, unsure how to respond, especially with the sudden hostility Vincent showed. In the end she just faithfully repeated Mister Spirit¡¯s words.


    ¡°The pursuit of truth. I seek answers, ones I believe you can provide.¡±


    The cloaked figure let out a low, rumbling laugh, sending shivers down Audrey¡¯s spine. She could not quite put her feather on what she found so unsettling, but the sensation was unpleasant.


    ¡°A seeker of knowledge, even worse. What a unique blend of bothersome matters fate has served us today.¡±


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    Audrey shuffled around, trying to get a better look at the cultist and see through the cloak''s concealment. Almost blurting out Mister Spirit¡¯s question before realizing it was addressed to her. With no hesitation, she sent back her agreement, allowing him to control her tongue and speak directly.


    ¡°I happened to be studying the Trenam Nexus, and don¡¯t quite understand why you need such a huge containment matrix. Instead of gathering energy to use all at once, would it not be preferable to process the sacrifices in small batches, leveraging the natural rebound to power the system more efficiently?¡±


    The creature paused for a moment, his displeasure evident as she suddenly felt a huge presence weigh on her. Then he turned around and disappeared into the depths of the den. Audrey hesitated for a moment, but under Mister Spirit¡¯s reassurance this was meant as an invitation to discuss in private, she followed the cultist into the cavernous chamber.


    They emerged into a large chamber, lit by a dozen crystal spars. In the center of the room was a large black stone altar that made Vincent gasp when he saw it.


    ¡°And they study the Ancient Gods as well, this just keeps getting worse and worse. In any case, these things are not for them to question. Such rituals are gifts to be cherished, not scrutinized by ignorant mortals incapable of grasping their depth.¡±


    Listening to the cultist¡¯s words, Audrey felt a strange sensation wash over her - a mixture of wonder and unease. She had no idea what the Trenam Nexus was, or what Mister Spirit was trying to do, but she could tell it was something important, and probably dangerous. But despite her misgivings, she couldn¡¯t shake off the thrill of excitement at this adventure.


    ¡°Don¡¯t play dumb with me. This ritual¡¯s design is terribly inefficient, obviously the work of an amateur. I don¡¯t know who designed this, but it isn¡¯t anyone worthy of worship.¡±


    Despite its apparent importance, Audrey quickly lost interest in this discussion as it quickly became overly technical and completely unintelligible. Glancing around at the stone chapel in boredom, she used her inner voice to talk to Mister Spirit.


    ¡°Don¡¯t cultists fear the light? Why is this room so well lit?¡±


    She could feel Mister Spirit¡¯s laughter, though it did not seem to be directed at her.


    ¡°Of course they don¡¯t hate the light, they believe the Old Ones originate from the sun. On the contrary, they worship pure light. What they hate is starlight and the ¡°new sunlight¡±, since the myths claim the stars and void threw all the Old Ones back into the sun before sealed its power forever.¡±


    Audrey nodded to herself, this did line up with the stories she remembered. Finding this topic much more interesting than the technicalities of the ritual, she asked Mister Spirit more about the cultists and their beliefs, not surprised he could hold two conversations at once.


    At some point the cultist got rid of his cloak to better experiment and test Mister Spirit¡¯s theories, revealing an elongated body, spindly light green limbs and bulbous eyes that sat atop an angular, triangular head. Audrey had never seen such a creature, but judging by the armored beetle-like skin, and spindly limbs, she did not think it would be very tasty.


    She was happy to spend the rest of the day imagining all the cool things she would do if she had bladed forearms like that, keeping herself occupied until the cultist got tired of Mister Spirit¡¯s lectures and shooed her away with one last remark.


    ¡°You are not what you seem, light-bringer. There is something different about you, something...unsettling. Be careful in your search for knowledge, for there are many secrets that are better left forgotten.¡±


    <hr>


    As was customary, Vincent bowed low, but he raised his head quickly. He knew Owen thought all of this to be a useless waste of time, but others would still criticize him if he failed to maintain the proper decorum.


    ¡°That suspicious hawk I told you about, she met with a cultist today. One that had access to a void shard. I have already alerted the hunters, but have told them to wait for your order before taking action.¡±


    His voice echoed in the huge cavern, rousing the third regent from his slumber. He usually waited for nightime to issue his report, but knew this would be of particular interest to the firefly.


    Cultists were getting more and more out of hand, and while their city had yet to suffer any direct damage, many caravans had disappeared mysteriously.


    As expected, light flashed as the firefly lord woke up, immense power gathering in his tiny body.


    ¡°Have you found who sent her? What are they planning?¡±


    Vincent hesitated for a moment before answering, sorting facts from theories and guesses.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. It is quite clear she is being manipulated, by someone who can communicate with her without detection, even in my presence. As far as I can tell she is completely in the dark, and is just helping a friend who taught her cultivation and healed her wing.¡±


    Vincent paced around in a circle, unsatisfied by the little he had discovered.


    ¡°As for what they are planning, I don¡¯t have anything concrete. Audrey - that¡¯s her name, my lord - helped improve a magic circle called the Trenam Nexus. She spoke differently when mentioning it, and I suspect the mastermind was talking through her at the time, but I don¡¯t get why this was so important.¡±


    He felt the weight of the firefly lord¡¯s gaze upon him. He knew the importance of his next words, as any action taken would have far-reaching consequences for their people and the city.


    ¡°I asked the Hunters, they claim it is used in a small transmission ritual, to send offerings to the Cursed Ones. The modifications only lower the sacrificial requirements, so in theory it is good for us. However, each time I think about it, I feel that I missed half of the conversation.¡±


    Vincent shared every detail he could remember, gravely concerned about this potential threat. The regent fell silent for a few moments, the light within his body flickering and swirling as he weighed the information and contemplated their next course of action. Finally, he spoke in a low, resolute voice.


    ¡°Continue to monitor Audrey and the cultist¡¯s activities, but do not engage them. I want every detail of their meetings, every word and action brought to me. Then I will find a Dreamer to lay a trap for whoever is pulling the strings from the shadows. Whoever he is, he will learn that Cenara is not somewhere he can stir up trouble without consequences.¡±

 Chapter 92 : Mysterious Shop

    Caressing her imperial cross to calm herself, Da Min gently pushed open the wooden door.


    She was a veteran of countless battlefields, accustomed to the horrors of war, and she was not afraid of death. Despite this, facing this seemingly simple tea shop, she felt a long-forgotten nervousness rise up, akin to that time she had been waiting for an imperial audience.


    This eerie and mysterious house was proof that creatures with unimaginable abilities were toying with her life and the fate of the empire. She had wanted to warn others about it, to put it under constant surveillance, but every time she tried, she would somehow be distracted, and end the conversation only to realize afterwards she had said nothing about it at all.


    Hundreds of unsettling coincidences had left her alone in her knowledge of its existence. She had ended up researching it herself, but had found nothing. As far as the empire was concerned, this shop did not exist, and it did not have the space to exist.


    What was this place? Why was it here, what powers did it hold and what did the strange man inhabiting it want? It seemed that if she wanted answers, she would have to face the shopkeeper once more.


    Stepping through the door, she took a moment to adjust to the pressure, fighting against her claustrophobia and the irrational belief that she was being squashed into a space too small to contain her. Forcefully repressing her fear, she glanced around the dimly lit building, knowing she was on a time limit.


    The shopkeeper has not changed, hunched over in his chair, his eyes glued to the bloody knife she had given him. What did he find so interesting about it that he still studied it so intently months later?


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to see some people appreciate my gifts properly.¡±


    She knew he hadn¡¯t done anything to harm her with it, she would have felt it if he had. Her appointment as general had tied her fate to that of the dynasty she served, so anyone stupid enough to use her blood in magic rituals would have to face off against the luck of the entire nation.


    Since nothing like that had happened, he probably didn¡¯t have ill intentions, but now she was curious about why he had wanted it in the first place.


    ¡°Esteemed guest! You startled me, I was not expecting you to be back so soon.¡±


    So soon? What made him so reticent to her coming, to find their time apart too short even after almost a year? Did he have something to hide, or did he simply dislike her? Why would an entity capable of subtle mind control fear discovery? She hoped this was a sign his powers were limited in some capacity.


    ¡°I am sorry, am I disturbing?¡±


    As usual, it took him a second or two two respond, as if he needed to think carefully before each sentence he spoke.


    ¡°Oh, not at all. I was simply lost in thought, but I can always make time for a chat with a fellow truth-seeker.¡±


    Rather than dance around the issue, she decided that this time a straightforward question would be best.


    ¡°Sir, I must ask, are you a cultivator? The empire is backed by the Gushanhui sect, and for safety reasons, it is required for roaming cultivators to identify themselves settling down.¡±


    This was quite the exaggeration, but it was important to make a show of strength, and to hide the empire''s helplessness when facing supernatural enemies. Still, she made sure not to tell any outright lies, because when revealed, a paper tiger was worse of a defense than a real-life mouse.


    ¡°No, I am not a cultivator. There was a time I dreamt about it, but no longer. Though, to answer the spirit of your question rather than playing around with specific terms, I am a little skilled in the arcane arts.¡±


    Was it possible to wield magic without being a cultivator? Was this why he sounded so unconcerned by the threat of the Gushanhui sect? And why, oh why couldn''t she be facing off against a proper threat, like meeting an enemy army on a battlefield, instead of being here walking on eggshells, asking about things she knew nothing about, worried that the slightest mistake could herald the collapse of her country?


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Having confirmed she was dealing with powers beyond her comprehension, she meant to be polite, but the idea of being mind controlled was so appalling, a faint accusatory tone leaked out.


    ¡°So, you really are the one messing with my head!¡±


    ¡°Messing with your head? What are you talking about?¡±


    There was no way she was going to believe that he had nothing to do with her repeated amnesia, especially with how targeted they had been.


    ¡°You know what, that thing that prevents me from talking about you or your shop to anybody!¡±


    Only the fear of her impertinence harming the empire kept her from shouting, as she wished nothing more than to take all of her frustrations on this terrifying man. It could not be understated how hard it was to conduct a difficult military campaign while wrestling with the idea that someone was controlling your thoughts from halfway across the mainland.


    ¡°Most curious. How exactly are you ¡°prevented¡± from speaking? Is it a physical restriction? An invisible gag? Do the words come out garbled, or do people simply not hear you? Have you tried writing a letter?¡±


    ¡°So you claim to have nothing to do with it? It is only a coincidence that I lose my train of thought every time I want to disclose your existence to anyone?¡±


    ¡°Oh no, it is probably my fault. Or, more precisely, this shop¡¯s fault. You see, it is a rather powerful treasure, and one of its functions is to hide itself and any of its occupants from the outside world. I just had no idea it extended to memory manipulation. Most curious indeed.¡±


    Da Min didn¡¯t know what to say. She had been expecting smug satisfaction, malicious delight or annoyance at being questioned. She might have accepted confusion or righteous anger at being wrongly accused, feigned or real. What she found intolerable was his carless nonchalance. He wasn¡¯t defending himself, speaking as if the fact he had controlled her mind was insignificant, only interested in the mechanics of it.


    ¡°How could you not know? Isn¡¯t it your shop?¡±


    ¡°Ah yes, but as I have said, we are dealing with a high-level treasure here. I told it to hide me, and so I was hidden. I didn¡¯t really consider how that would happen.¡±


    ¡°Anyways, enough about that. With your fancy armor and medals, you must have a high rank in the army, correct? Then I would like to ask for some advice.¡±


    She wasn¡¯t ready to move on, but thought it wise to follow his lead for now, to bring back the subject later, after she had time to think. Accepting his invitation to sit down, she was presented with a steaming cup of tea, which he motioned for her to drink.


    ¡°I have¡­ a protege, who has dragon blood flowing through her veins. Ruling is her destiny, and I wish to help her to grow into a true empress, to establish an eternal dynasty, unifying the world.¡±


    Da Min jumped to her feet, her hand on her sword and a scowl on her face.


    ¡°Sir, what are you saying? I serve the empire, and will do so until the day of my death. There is only one true dragon fated to rule, and it is his Imperial Highness.¡±


    ¡°No, no, I don''t want you to change masters and enter her service or anything like that. Since you believe in civilization, and have experience in leadership, I just thought you could give me some advice on how I could teach her, and unearth her potential.¡±


    ¡°I say again, I am general Da Min of the Ohilia Empire, and will have no part in the creation of a rebellion! If your protege truly has dragon blood, then you should present her to the court, and I can guarantee that she will be given the opportunity to thrive. But if you wish to establish a ¡°new dynasty¡± to ¡°unify the world¡± as you say, then you will have to face my sword!¡±


    Strangely, the shopkeeper''s face, which had always worn a peaceful and relaxed expression, radiating warmth, suddenly became completely emotionless. Contrastingly, for the first time, she could hear a trace of panic and embarrassment in his voice.


    ¡°No, no, you misunderstand me! I don¡¯t wish to harm your empire at all! It won¡¯t have any impact on you at all! She doesn¡¯t even live in your world. Don¡¯t take it so seriously, it''s just part of a hide and seek game I am playing with the Elder¡­¡±


    Most of his hasty explanations flew over her head, but they sounded sincere, and plausible. Provided she believed the shopkeeper was capable of communicating with someone from another world. It did sound far-fetched, but then again, that was on brand for this mysterious non-cultivator.


    Finally, she sighed and sat back down, defeated. The shopkeeper could get his way, whether she was willing to help or not, and it seemed best to make a token effort, and infiltrate this possible rebellion she couldn''t defeat.


    This way at least, she would know what signs to look out for to see if this draconic empress ever became a threat. What better way to know your enemy than to teach them yourself?


    She started mentally sorting out what advice she could give, that would satisfy this monstrous man while minimizing the potential threat it would bring. To buy herself some time, she raised the teacup to her mouth, taking a sip, and the world exploded in color.