《Eternal Warden》 Prologue On a busy street, a car ran out of control. As the people were all freaking out and jumping out of the way, a single child stood there petrified. As the little girl watched the car speed closer by the second, she suddenly felt a shove. When she landed on the ground, she heard a collective gasp from the people around her. When she looked at where she had been standing, she saw the mangled body of a teenager. The boy had blonde hair, a black T-shirt and black jeans. Besides the blood covering the ground, his hands and legs were bent at weird angles. As the boy was gasping for breath, the blue sedan had crashed into a nearby house. People all around immediately ran to the boy¡¯s side. Some were freaking out, trying to call for an ambulance while some were trying to apply pressure to the wounds. The boy however just blankly looked up as he felt the blood well up into his throat. As he coughed out the blood, he felt his body run cold. A young man in his twenties told the boy, ¡°Just hang on, the ambulance is on it¡¯s way. Don¡¯t worry, you will live through this.¡± Even though the young man with blonde hair heard him say that, he instinctively knew that he was going to die. As he felt his vision blur, he suddenly felt his body grow light. As he closed his eyes, his ears began to hum and after a few moment passed, the pain all disappeared. His head became clear again.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. As he opened his eyes, he was greeted by a tense jungle. With a shocked face, he looked all around, taking his surroundings in cautiously. These unfamiliar surroundings put him on the edge as he thought to himself, ¡°What is this place? I was hit by a speeding car and my body was all mangled up¡­. What happened? Is this a dream or is this the afterlife?¡± Just as he was looking around, a voice echoed across the world, ¡°Welcome candidates to the Trials of the Wardens. For the next ten years, do you best to accumulate points as only the top 1000 will be accepted as the new Wardens. Give your all and remember to abide by the rules.¡± Hearing this, the young man was stumped. ¡°Trials of the Wardens? What the fuck is that? Isn¡¯t this the afterlife?¡± As he looked around, he couldn¡¯t make heads or tails of the situation. With no idea what was going on, he decided to find someone that could tell him what the hell was going on. With no idea in which direction to go, he randomly picked one and started walking. *** In a large hall, there were several dozen middle aged men dressed in the same robes observing a gigantic sphere in the middle of the room. Suddenly, one of the men raised a brow as he said, ¡°This fellow¡­.¡± Just as he murmured that, a white haired old man suddenly appeared in the room. As everyone¡¯s gazes converged on the man, the man said with a deadpan expression, ¡°There has been a mishap. A Mortal has somehow appeared in the Trials.¡± Chapter 1: Accident Hearing the old man say that, the people in the room frowned. One of the men, who seemed like he had the most authority stood up and asked, ¡°How?¡± The white haired old man then said, ¡°I don¡¯t know. When I was transporting the Trial Takers to the Trial World, he suddenly appeared amongst them.¡± The man frowned even harder as he asked, ¡°Who is he?¡± The man answered, ¡°A young man from the Mortal Realm. From what I learned of his memories, he has no idea what is going on either. He was dying and when he closed his eyes, drawing what he thought would be his last breath, he was suddenly transported to the Trial World.¡± The middle aged man thought to himself for a moment and asked, ¡°Does he have any foundation in cultivating?¡± The white haired old man shook his head and said, ¡°He has some proficiency in Mortal Martial Arts but that is all. In his World, they never developed cultivating of any sort.¡± The man let out a deep sigh and threw the man ten jade slips and said, ¡°Let him choose one Cultivating Art and Offensive Art from these. Also, let him choose one Offensive and Defensive Soul Artefact as well.¡± Hearing this, another man stood up and immediately said, ¡°Chief, that is-¡± However, before he could finish, the man silenced him with a glance and said, ¡°It seems like it was fate that he accidentally became part of the Trials. I want to see how far his fate takes him. Also, the rest of the Trial Takers have been groomed meticulously by their Clans for decades. Giving him this little advantage still puts him in a disadvantage against the rest of them.¡± Hearing this, the man shut his mouth and it seemed like it made sense. He then glanced at the sphere and sighed heavily. He mumbled, ¡°That boy will have it hard against all of these sly foxes.¡± The rest of the people present nodded their heads in acknowledgement. The white haired man accepted the ten Jade Slips and disappeared from the room. *** As the young man was aimlessly wandering around, the air twenty meters in front of him suddenly distorted and a white haired man appeared in front of him. The young man immediately jumped back as he stared at the incomprehensible sight in front of him. The white haired man sized him up for a moment before he said, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t be here.¡± Hearing this, the young man grew serious. As he slowly inched backwards, he said cautiously, ¡°I have no idea how I got here or what this place is. I am sorry for trespassing.¡± The white haired man let out a smile and waved his sleeve. Ten bright lights flew out of his sleeve and seeing this, the young man immediately ran for it. However, the moment he turned around, he suddenly felt frozen in place. No matter how much he urged his body, it seemed as though it was frozen in time. A voice came from behind him, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter how you got here or where you are from. You appearing here seems to be fate and to make it fairer for you, the higher ups have decided to give you a chance.¡± Hearing this, the young man involuntarily turned around. More like, he was forced to turn around by the invisible force that was wrapped around him. It was only then that he saw that those ten bright lights had turned into small crystals that floated in front of him. As the young man glanced at the white haired man, the man continued explaining, ¡°In front of you are three Cultivation Arts, three Offensive Arts and three Defensive Arts and the Soul Artefact registry. You are allowed to choose one of each type of Art and one Offensive and one Defensive Soul Artefact.¡± Hearing this, the young man had a dumb expression on his face as he asked, ¡°What the fuck are Arts and Soul Artefacts?¡± The white haired man seemed to have expected the question and started explaining, ¡°Cultivation Arts allow you to take in the Qi around you to strengthen your body. This is called cultivating and the higher ones cultivation, the longer their lifespan. In front of you are three Top Grade Cultivation Arts that are amongst the strongest in all of the Three Realms.¡± The man then took a moment before he continued, ¡°Offensive Arts are special methods for attacking. For example, if you chose a sword as your main weapon, then using a Sword Art you could split mountains or redirect rivers. Defensive Arts are the opposite, they are meant for defending. If your proficiency in a Defensive Art is high enough, you can stand even having a mountain dropped on you.¡± Hearing this, the young man gulped. To him, this was straight out of a book. He had read his fair share of fantasy novels and to him, this was something straight out of one of these novels. After another moment, the man continued explaining about the Artefacts. ¡°Artefacts are divided into Offensive, Defensive and Utility Artefacts. Offensive Artefacts are meant for attacking, such as swords, axes, spears and so on. Defensive Artefacts are for defending such as shields, robes and such. Utility Artefacts however have no direct connection to either of the two, such as Alchemy Cauldrons or Movement Artefacts.¡±Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The man then continued after a breath, ¡°Soul Artefacts are special Artefacts that grow alongside in power with it¡¯s wielder. The bond between the Master and Artefact is far stronger than normal and since they have the ability to grow, they are most valued of any type of Artefact since they have the ability to grow Heaven Defying.¡± The young man was numb already from the explanations, he had a sharp head, so he took in everything the man said. However, he just had a hard time believing that this was happening. He mumbled to himself, ¡°Is this a coma dream? Did I survive the crash and am currently in a coma?¡± Hearing this, the man raised a brow. The man asked, ¡°Are you still doubting it?¡± The young man let out a hollow laugh and said, ¡°Sorry but too much has happened in a too small of a time frame. In one moment I was laying on the ground dying, the next I am told that I have somehow appeared in the Trial for Immortals. It is a bit unbelievable, that is all.¡± Hearing this, the man simply nodded his head and said in a softer tone, ¡°However, this is the truth and your new reality. Although, we don¡¯t know how you got here or what happened, since you are here, you also qualify to take part in the Trials.¡± The young man let out a deep sigh. As silence took reign, the young man asked, ¡°Are there any differences between these Arts?¡± The man nodded his head and started explaining, ¡°These three Cultivation Arts are all different. One is a full Body Refining, one is full Qi Refining and one of them is a mix of both. Each of them have their own advantages and disadvantages.¡± The man continued explaining, ¡°Full Body Refiners are unbeatable against Qi Refiners in close combat and their fighting style is up and personal. Qi Refiners however focus more on Arts and fighting from a distance. The mixed one however is proficient in both, although, in close combat, they are weaker than Body Refiners and from a distance, they are weaker than Qi Refiners.¡± The man then crossed his hands on his chest as he explained, ¡°However, the mixed one is the most versatile one. If the situation calls for it, they can fight in close combat or from a distance.¡± Hearing this, the young man nodded his head. The mixed one wasn¡¯t the strongest in neither close combat or from a distance but for the ability to do both well. They were stronger than Body Refiners in controlling Artefacts and Arts to fight form a distance and they were stronger than Qi Refiners when fighting in close combat. The young man then murmured, ¡°It is like an RPG. Body Refiners are Assassins and Qi Refiners are Mages or Archers. Mixed ones are like Luminaries that can fight in both.¡± Thinking of it like this, the idea behind it was simplified a lot. The man then waved his sleeve and three Arts floated closer to the young man and the man explained, ¡°From the left, the Arts are a Body Refining, Dual one and Qi Refining one. I will now explain the benefits of each of them before you make your choice.¡± The young man nodded his head, indicating that he understood. The man started with the Body Refining one, ¡°This Art is called [Infernal Demon Art]. It focuses on training your body to be extremely durable and strong. The perfect weapons for this Art are two handed heavy weapons that make full use of the ridiculous amounts of strength this Art grants. However, training in this Art is extremely difficult as it places an enormous strain on your body and overestimating oneself when training in the Art may split your tendons shatter your Meridians.¡± Hearing this, the young man¡¯s eyes grew as wide as carriage wheels as he gulped hard. The man then pointed at the next Art and said, ¡°This is the Dual Art. It is called [Nether Angel Art]. The unique aspect of this Art is that cultivating in it will allow you to create a Nether Flame inside your Dantian and incorporate it in your attacks.¡± He then introduced the last one, ¡°This is the [Illustrious Illusion Art]. This one focuses training ones Soul to control more Artefacts at the same time. The higher your cultivation in the Art, the more Artefacts one can control simultaneously to set up death traps for the enemies.¡± After giving a brief overview of the last Art, the man turned quiet. The young man fell into thought, each of them had their own advantages. For example the Body Refining one would give him ridiculous amounts of strength however, at the same time, it was the most dangerous to cultivate as it was easy to harm himself. The Qi one however would give him control over more and more Artefacts. If he accumulated enough Artefacts, he could smother his enemies under them. However, in his opinion, the [Nether Angel Art] seemed the best. Although, he didn¡¯t know how strong this Nether Flame was but seeing as the Art that was centred around the Flame, it couldn¡¯t be weak. After taking a few moments to decide, the young man look at the man with determination in his eyes and said, ¡°I choose the [Nether Angel Art].¡± The old man nodded his head and with a wave of his hand, the other two jade slips flew back to his sleeve. The one containing the information about the Art however, floated to his side. The old man then said, ¡°I haven¡¯t asked for your name yet.¡± The young man was startled and said with a sheepish smile, ¡°My name is Jack Lumi.¡± The man nodded his head and continued, ¡°These three Arts are the Offensive Arts. One is a Blade Art, one is a Sword Art and one is a Spear Art.¡± Jack looked at the three jade slips in front of him and asked, ¡°Which one goes best with the [Nether Angel Art]?¡± A sly smile appeared on the man¡¯s lips as he said, ¡°The Blade Art.¡± Jack didn¡¯t hesitate to choose the Blade Art then. Although he had no idea if the old man was lying or not, he had no experience with any weapons, so he would be starting with a clean slate any ways. Up next were the three Defensive Arts. After a brief introduction, Jack chose an Art that had both escape and defensive abilities. Now, it was time to choose his Defensive and Offensive Artefact. It was obvious he was going to choose a Blade as his Offensive Artefact, however, he had no idea what he was going to choose as his Defensive Artefact. Chapter 2: Start of cultivating Jack had no idea what the benefits of the Artefacts were and if they helped or not. His best bet¡­ It was to trust the old man in front of him and hope for him not to screw Jack over. He said to the old man, ¡°I will have to trust the Offensive and Defensive Artefact to Seniors opinion.¡± Hearing this, the old man raised a brow but Jack gave a weak smile, ¡°I have no idea how to look inside the jade slip and secondly¡­. I have no idea what is good what is not.¡± Hearing this, the old man let out a deep sigh and floated before Jack. He raised a finger and as a milky white glow appeared on the tip of it, he touched Jack¡¯s forehead. Suddenly, all sorts of information entered Jack¡¯s head. The [Nether Angel Art], [Phantom Blade Art] and [Ghost King¡¯s Steps]. The three Art¡¯s he had chosen before all appeared in his head. In addition to them, a long list of items appeared in his head as well. It was the Artefact Catalogue. He closed his eyes as he browsed through all the items listed there. After a few moments, he opened his eyes and said, ¡°I choose the Bloody Asura Blade and the Thousand Forms Armour.¡± Hearing this, the man nodded his head and two white lights appeared next to him. Inside these light bubbles were a pitch black blade and simple black linen clothes. With this, the man gave Jack a fist sized black Token and said, ¡°The Trial lasts for ten years. For the First month, there will be no Ferocious Beasts. Use this time to advance your cultivation. After the month, the Trial will truly begin and the more Ferocious Breasts you kill, the more Points you will gather.¡± The man then took a deep breath as he gave his last bit of explanation, ¡°The final score will be determined by your total accumulated points. So, don¡¯t be afraid to exchange your points towards items or Arts that you need. Once you manage to step on the path of cultivation, send a bit of Qi into the Token to brand it and you will understand how everything works then. For now, I suggest you find a place to cultivate your [Nether Angel Art].¡± With this, the man turned around and disappeared. Jack finally regained control over his body and the first thing he did was fall on his ass. With a deep breath he looked up in a daze, trying to process everything that had just happened. Although, he had put up a strong front for some reason, now that the old man was gone, he couldn¡¯t help but fall into a daze. He had a hard time coming to terms that this was all real. He looked at the blade in front of him and gulped hard as he grasped it and felt the heaviness in his hands. The feeling, the weight of the blade¡­. It was all too real to be a dream. He looked up into the sky with cloudy eyes and murmured, ¡°What the hell¡­.¡± As one last test, he slowly unsheathed the blade and after a moment of hesitation, he ran his index finger across the sharp end of the blade. A second after cutting himself, he withdrew his hand and looked at the blood trickling out of the cut. He let out a hollow laugh and said, ¡°Seems like this is not a dream¡­.¡± With that, he had made it certain that this was real and not a dream. This meant that he truly had been thrown into a Trial between Immortals. However, a tinge of excitement burned in him as he thought back to how he had now also obtained the means to become an Immortal himself. Although, he had no idea how this World worked, he would give his best to survive and win in the end. With this new found determination and resolve, he stood up and looked around for a place to cultivate. It didn¡¯t take him long to find an enormous tree. It took him nearly half an hour to climb so high that he was completely hidden from sight. After sitting in a small crack inside the tree trunk, he closed his eyes and with a deep breath, he looked over all of the information regarding the [Nether Angel Art]. Doing as instructed in the Art, he started trying to accomplish the first step: Sense the Qi outside. As he was trying to find the feeling of Qi in the outside, the hall with the gigantic sphere in the middle were looking at the various people on the sphere. One of the men commented, ¡°This Shi Fang seems to have a pretty solid foundation for someone his age.¡± The other men nodded and another added, ¡°Qing Ling seems to have also progressed her [Azure Phoenix Art] quite well. This time, we have a lot of talented and notable youths taking part in the Trials. However¡­.¡± As the man said that, everyone¡¯s gazes converged on the image of a blonde haired young man sitting in a tree. The man then said, ¡°That boy is the biggest wild card in my opinion. He has a Top Grade Art to cultivate, however, his Talent, comprehension and abilities are all unknown. This gives him the advantage against the more well known people.¡± The other¡¯s also nodded their heads. The more well known a person was, the more was known about their abilities. However, Jack was a complete mystery to even all these people. How far he could go, only time would tell. It was also possible that he had no talent what so ever for cultivating but at the same time, he could have monstrous talent. They were all eager to see who would end up in the top 1000 in ten years. The middle aged man who had been called Chief however had his eyes glued to Jack.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Suddenly, his face changed as he stood up and looked at the screen in complete and utter astonishment. When one of the men followed his gaze and saw Jack, he also stood up in shock. He muttered, ¡°How is that possible¡­. He only has had the Art for only an hour, how was he able to successfully cultivate it already¡­.¡± Following the murmur, all of the gazes in the room turned to Jack. On the screen, they saw a blonde haired boy sitting cross legged with a blank face. Around him, small black flames the size of a nail were flickering in and out of existence. Everyone in the room exchanged a glance with one another and then their eyes converged on the middle aged man they had called Chief. The man looked at the screen and then said with a steely expression, ¡°Realm Spirit, keep a close eye on him. He is a valuable and a rare seedling.¡± ¡°Yes, sir!¡± The voice of the old man who Jack had gotten all the Arts from echoed out in the room. The man then turned towards the other people in the room and said, ¡°This news must no leak out! This Art has been buried in history for over a 100 billion years. At long last, there has been someone that can take up the mantle of Nether Angel Warden.¡± Hearing this, the men¡¯s faces turned serious. They were slightly dazed when they thought back to the various illustrious achievements of the ¡°Nether Angel Warden¡±. He was without a doubt the strongest in all of the Three Realms in his time. However, one day, he just disappeared. His Life Slip shattered and no one managed to find his body. Until this day, no one knows what happened to the man. However, one thing is certain, since the time the Three Realms came into existence, he can be considered as one of the strongest people the Three Realms have ever given birth to. Through the years, countless people have tried cultivating the [Nether Angel Art] however, no one has succeeded thus far. Jack has been the first person in 100 billion years, to successfully take the first steps in cultivating the Art. This in itself was a heaven shaking news. Given enough time, he might even be able to grow into the next Nether Angel Warden. *** On top of the tree, Jack had no idea that he had managed to shock the movers and shakers of the Three Realms to their core. His mind was completely blank as he sat there. His mind was engulfed in a weird feeling. With every movement he made with the Qi, he frowned even harder, as it just didn¡¯t feel right. The problem wasn¡¯t with Jack or the Qi in the surroundings but rather the Art itself. He had no idea how he knew this but this Art was never meant to be cultivated. If you followed the instructions of the Art, you would never be able to cultivate it. However, as Jack followed his gut feeling and adjusted the movement of the Qi to what he felt was right, he made tremendous progress. Just when he completed the first cycling and refining of Qi, black flames appeared around him. New information entered his head, rather, more precisely, the [Nether Angel Art]¡¯s description and teachings changed. Everything from the refining cycles to the description of the Art itself. As Jack looked over the new description of the Art, he fell into deep thought. The first three sentences were; ¡°Only those that are fated will have made it this far. This Art is incomplete and is outside the norm. Unlike all of the other Arts, it lacks the fixed pattern of cultivating, this Art is something only those that have the ability to create their own Art can cultivate.¡± These three sentences were what made Jack fall into deep contemplation. He felt like he had been cheated. He was promised a completed Art, however, from what he learned now, he needed to create his own Art to cultivate. He had no idea how cultivating worked, much less creating his own Art for cultivating. However, if there was one saving grace, it was the mysterious gut feeling that allowed him to cultivate it in the first place. After refining the first thread of Qi, he could be counted as having stepped onto the path of cultivation. However, his mind was still caught up on the fact that this Art had been cyphered like this. After familiarizing himself with the new description and refining methods. He let out a deep sigh. He laid his head back against the tree and closed his eyes. He was thoroughly exhausted. Too many things had happened today and even though he only tried cultivating on a whim, he had never expected it to work. He could feel the thread of Qi moving around inside his meridians. This new sensation of Qi flowing inside him was weird but for some reason, it was also comforting. With exhaustion washing over his body, before he knew it, he had managed to fall asleep. He didn¡¯t care if anyone else found him or if a wild animal killed him, he just wanted sleep. What he didn¡¯t notice was that the moment he fell asleep, a small figure that looked identical to him appeared on top of his head. With closed eyes, it sucked in the Qi in the surroundings and channelled it all into Jack according to the new method of refining. Jack only felt his body become warm and then lighter. Then a tinge of pain and then his body felt lighter, more durable and stronger than ever before. Even the hunger and thirst he had had before had disappeared. With a smile on his face, he fell into deeper and deeper slumber. The white little figure however, kept gathering the Qi and channelling it all into Jack. Not long passed before popping sound rang out and Jack¡¯s body was covered in a black grimy substance. Chapter 3: The white figure When Jack opened his eyes, his body felt lighter than ever. However, when he looked down at himself, he discovered that he was covered in some black oily substance that smelled really bad. He almost threw up at the smell of it but managed to force it down. ¡°What the hell is this stuff?¡± As he thought that to himself, he quickly exited the tree crack he was hiding in and used the high ground to locate a river or a bond or a lake. He desperately needed some place to wash this all off from him. With that in mind, he quickly located a river and after picking up his things, he started descending to the ground. Going down was a lot quicker than getting up the tree. In only a few minutes, he was on the ground and after a few glances around to orient himself, he started making his way towards the small river he had seen from high above. As he made his way through the woods, he always kept a look out around him. Although the man had said that there would not be any beasts for the first month, he didn¡¯t know how much he could trust the man. When he arrived next to the river, he took a look around and after seeing no one nearby, he took off all of his clothes and threw them into the river with him. The black oily substance was extremely difficult to wash off from his body and it took him nearly half an hour to scrub himself clean from it. After he was done, he looked at his clothes and sighed. He knew it was impossible to get the clothes clean. After giving the clothes one last glance, he looked at the Thousand Forms Armour. What he was pondering was on how to bind it. He unsheathed the blade a bit and after a moment of hesitation ran his index finger alongside the sharp end. With a wince of pain, he quickly dropped a drop of blood on the Armour. However, nothing happened. Just as he was frowning, he thought of another thing. He tried to urge the strand of Qi he had into the next drop of blood. When the Qi infused drop of blood touched the Armour, it disappeared into it. A wide grin was on Jack¡¯s face as he succeeded. He immediately felt a weird sensation in his mind. He could instinctively feel the Armour. With but a thought, he could make it change into another form. After experimenting with several different forms, he made it look like his clothes from before. A black T-shirt and black trousers. After putting them on, they felt weightless. He could see himself wearing them but he felt as though he was wearing nothing at all. After stretching a bit and seeing that these clothes didn¡¯t restrict his movements one bit, he turned his attention towards the blade. He looked at his still bleeding index finger and tried to do the same with the blade. After the drop of blood was absorbed by the blade, another connection appeared in his mind. He picked the blade up and unsheathed it for the first time. It was a simple single edged, completely straight blade. The blade itself was pitch black with red grooves running along the blade in a Tribal Pattern. As he inspected the blade, he tried a few swing and he felt as though he was swinging a branch around. The blade felt weightless in his hands. After a few more swings, he sheathed the blade and felt inside his body for the first time. He had felt that his body was drastically different from last night but the urge to get the black stuff off of him was far stronger than looking at the changes. When he felt the amount of Qi roaming around his body, he was shocked. When yesterday, he had only a single hair width thread roaming around, then today, there was nearly a dozen of them roaming around his body. He had no idea how that was possible but as he was inspecting the threads, he suddenly discovered that there was a thirteenth one that suddenly appeared. Shocked, he had his mind follow the thread back to a small figure. He felt shock. Not from the figure but being able to see inside his body. He hadn¡¯t thought how to do it but before he knew it, he had instinctively done it. This method of looking inside ones body was done subconsciously. Once one focused on the feeling on Qi inside his body, they would be able to look inside their own body. When the shock of seeing inside his body subsided, his face turned serious as he inspected the small white figure that was sitting at where his stomach should be. The first thought he had was to consult with the [Nether angel Art] to see if there is any mention of this small figure in there. To his dismay, however, there was no mention of it. Though there was a mention of something similar called a Nascent Soul, he should be far, far off from it. As he kept a close eye on the small figure, observing it, he discovered that the figure was constantly taking in Qi from the surroundings, refining it and channelling it into Jacks body. With no idea how it worked, he found himself a quiet place, hidden from the surroundings and sat down cross legged. With a deep breath, he focused all of his attention on the small figure and started observing it. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. *** As Jack was observing the unknown small figure that was refining Qi for him, inside the large hall, all of the men were deadly silent. The reason for this was the addition of a single man in similar but different robes. The man¡¯s face was cold as he looked at the Chief and said, ¡°That boy will get a monthly allowance of 10 Qi Gathering Pills and 5 Healing Pills. Also, keep a close eye on him. No matter if he gets in the Top 1000 or not, he will join the Wardens. Should anything that may hinder his future happen to him, you will all be locked in Tartaros for the rest of your lives.¡± Hearing this, the people present all gulped heavily. One man however grit his teeth and said, ¡°This is too much. The outside forces are going to cause a ruckus because of this obvious bias.¡± The cold man then said indifferently, ¡°Then let them. If they can produce another person that is able to cultivate the [Nether Angel Art] then they will receive the same sort of bias. If they can¡¯t, then they can shove all those complaints up their asses for all I care.¡± These powerful and domineering words could only make the people smile wryly. The man then said as he turned to walk away, ¡°The Council has put special attention on this boy and I do not need to remind you, there is a very important reason for it. Should anything happen to him¡­.¡± With these words left behind, he disappeared. When the man had disappeared from the room, all of the people in it let out a deep breath as their gazes converged on the Chief. Sensing the gazes, the man let out a deep sigh and said, ¡°That is the Council¡¯s order, none of us can defy it. Prepare the Qi Gathering Pills and Healing Pills. I will personally go and deliver them to him this time.¡± Hearing this, one man nodded his head and left the room for a moment. When he came back, in his hand, there was a simple unadorned black ring. He handed the Chief the ring and when the man got the ring, he said, ¡°Realm Spirit, take me to him.¡± After saying so, he disappeared from where he was. *** Inside the small cave, Jack was immersed in observing the little figure. The more he observed him, the more he felt like he understood something but at the same time, the more confused he became. As he was completely immersed, a sudden voice jolted him awake. ¡°That little figure is your Martial Spirit.¡± Hearing this, Jack looked up and saw a robust middle aged man in front of him. Seeing the man, Jack was alarmed and just as his hand reached for the blade, the man said, ¡°Not every person who cultivates has a Martial Spirit but everyone that does is a Peerless Genius.¡± Hearing this, Jack stopped his hand and listened. The man sat down in front of Jack and continued, ¡°The Martial Spirit you have is called the Ethereal Martial Spirit. It is extremely beneficial for cultivation but in combat, it had no use. There are some Martial Spirits that have no use in cultivation but are extremely helpful in combat.¡± Hearing this, Jack stared at the man seriously and asked, ¡°Is it harmful?¡± The man shook his head and said, ¡°No, it is not. It is actually extremely beneficial to you. It will keep rotating Qi according to your Cultivation Art all the time. Even when you are sleeping, or travelling, it will keep cultivating.¡± He then rubbed his chin and said, ¡°If you cultivate at the same time, it will be double the result in half the effort. The other major benefit it has is that it will help you see the faults in your cultivation and fix them.¡± Jack sucked in a deep breath as he recalled the mysterious gut feeling from before. ¡°So it was this Martial Spirit thing that was telling me how to cultivate the Art right¡­.¡± As he mumbled that to himself, the man¡¯s eyes turned sharp. He asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡± Jack looked at the man with a sheepish smile and said, ¡°When I first started cultivating the Art, I had this mysterious feeling that something wasn¡¯t right with the Art. When I followed the feeling and fixed what felt like errors, the Art itself changed.¡± Hearing this, the man raised a brow before he asked, ¡°The Art itself changed?¡± Jack shook his shoulders and said, ¡°The description changed, saying something that only those that are fated have gotten this far and stuff.¡± Hearing this, the man let out a deep sigh as he said, ¡°So that¡¯s the reason no one was able to cultivate it¡­.¡± Hearing this, Jack¡¯s ears perked up. The man looked at Jack with a helpless expression and said, ¡°Since the creator of the Art, you are the first person to be able to cultivate it. Also, due to that, special attention has been attached to you by the higher ups.¡± Hearing this, Jack didn¡¯t know what to say. In all honesty, he had no idea whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. The man flicked his sleeve and a ring flew in front of Jack. The man then said, ¡°This is a Spacial Ring. Inside are 10 Qi Gathering Pills and 10 Healing Pills. Instructions on how to use them are inside the Ring. Also, we have included a brief overview of the History of the Eternal Wardens.¡± Hearing this, Jack picked up the small black ring. As he examined it closely, the man said, ¡°You should know how to bind Artefacts, so I won¡¯t go over it with you. Just remember, the higher ups have put special attention on you. Do not endanger yourself unnecessarily.¡± After saying so, the man disappeared from the cave. Jack looked at the ring and back to the blade next to him. He grimaced, ¡°Couldn¡¯t they have found a less painful and barbaric way of binding things than with blood¡­.¡± With a sigh, he cut his finger again and dropped a Qi Infused drop of blood on the ring. When the blood was absorbed by the ring, another connection appeared in his mind. He gave a weird chuckle and shook his head, ¡°I will never get used to this weird feeling.¡± With but a thought, his mind entered the ring and he saw two jade bottles and two jade slips inside.