《One Armed Devil》 Chapter 1 "Give it up Jue Tian. The Alliance between all the worlds in Minos are here. The Universal Order of Minos has gathered its strongest members to end your legacy today." Jue stands and watches as multiple figures start to levitate towards me. Watching the man who is speaking of my end. His rival Shengjun Taixiao who has been after my life for many years. "Shengjun, you know who I am. The One Armed Devil, Jue Tian is the name that I have given up centuries ago. That name means nothing to me anymore." Jue closes his eyes slowly as he begins to recall the memories of how he lived back then as Jue Tian. Life was peaceful, it was a wonderful experience. He remembers the look on his mother, her beautiful green eyes that looked like jade. Her hair was a wonderful blonde that was as soft as silk. She never failed to make him happy. He misses her more than anything. As Jue opened his eyes, he saw more figures; the rest of the Universal Order of Minos had arrived to kill him. Seeing many familiar faces, as this is not the first time the Order has done this. Still his eyes are locked on Shengjun as he know this is probably his last battle. Most of his Qi has been lost during research for his plan. However, he cannot wait for them to control the battle, he decides to pounce first. He needs to at least kill one with my first attack if he wants to have a chance of surviving this to go along with my plan. "Demon Veil Slash!!" Jue unsheathed his sword and slashed horizontally to strike every single member of the order. Knowing this wouldn''t be enough he extends his Qi outwards to use Qi sense. Two of them are greatly injured while most of them have slight injuries. "Jue has gotten weaker since his last battle with us." Shengjun thought to himself happily. Knowing that the last battles were close and this one will be Jue''s last. "Jue you really have gotten soft haven''t you?" He''s right, Jue no longer lives up to the fear and terror of The One Armed Devil anymore. But as Shengjun said that name memories continue to reappear in Jue''s mind. The visions of his mother and her soft touch. The touch that brought every negative though out of his head. Wondering if this battle is really worth it, Jue attempts to buy time. He needs to finish his plan if he wants to continue living. "Shengjun, I have a preposition." Jue sheaths his sword and puts his hand behind his back. Reaching to his back pocket and pulling out his highest grade Qi Pen, it took years to forge and it allows him to use Qi Circles to amplify his techniques. Shengjun locks eyes with Jue, stunned by his words especially since Jue made the first move. Jue can tell Shengjun is doubtful of his words and he is not wrong. However, he needs the time to draw his circles for his plan to work. "Jue Tian, in all the years I have known you, have we ever talked anything out? The One Armed Devil, the master of chaos and trickery. The one who killed billions of innocent people for no reason." Jue frowns as his listens to Shengjun speak. Sure Jue killed billions of people along his life, but most were not innocent whatsoever. Jue killed those people for reasons that aligned with him. They may not of aligned with the Orders ideals but they did to Jue. A stubborn man such as Jue sees no wrong in his actions. "We are not here to compromise and fight another day. The Order has gathered those here today to risk their lives to kill you. This day will be your last and there is no way around it." Jue sighs loudly so that all can hear him. He is only around 30% of the way done with the Qi Circle and if the battle continues he doesn''t know if he can finish it. "I am not here to compromise to fight another day. I simply just want to have a quick chat before we continue." Jue said with a straight face and with lots of resolve. It confused Shengjun as he couldn''t tell Jue''s intentions. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. "Then what was the purpose of striking first? You want to have a quick chat before we startour final battle but you have already started. You''re a hypocrite." Jue smiles. He can tell that Shengjun is getting annoyed with him. With his countless years of knowing Shengjun, he knows he is straightforward and isn''t very bright when it comes to lies. If he can continue to stall for time and lie to Shengjun then he can finish his plan and start from the beginning. He wouldn''t have to start late in life before he knew his full potential. "How else was I supposed to great my rivals? With a hug? How many years have we been doing this Shengjun? We are basically reenacting a historical play that has the same ending every time. Is it wrong for me to want to talk to my rival with words instead of a clash with our swords?" Jue watches Shengjun closely, examining his body language and he can tell that his plan is working. He watches as Shengjun''s hand releases from his sheathed sword. He is already 60% of the way done with his Qi Circle. With a couple more minutes of stalling he will be done with his plan. However, one of the members of the order is watching Jue just as closely as Jue is watching Shengjun. He notices as the hand behind Jue''s back is scribbling something and sees a pen. "Shengjun! He is just stalling for time! He is making a highly advanced Qi Circle behind his back look at his hand!!" Just then Shengjun''s hand regrips his sword and pulls it out the sheath. His eyes stare directly at Jue with hatred. Shengjun''s intuition was correct. There was no way Jue wanted to talk he is just a demon who wants to kill. "Jue this is the last time you trick us. You have done this for the last time and it will surely be your last!" Shengjun mummers some unidentifiable words and a large amount of Qi is expended from his body. It forms an aura around him that seems to amplify his power. Shengjun charges towards Jue with rage and hatred in his heart towards him. Jue watching as Shengjun already used one of his most powerful moves. Jue knows that this will be his last battle if he cannot finish the Qi Circle. It''s already 80% of the way done, and if he engages in battle he won''t finish the circle and he most likely will not have enough Qi to use the technique. "Phantom Devil Steps" Jue uses his footwork technique to quickly dodge all of Shengjun''s powerful attacks. Each one of Shengjun''s attacks leaves a shock wave from the swing of his sword that continues endlessly in the time of space. Suddenly, a meteor as large as a medium sized plant is hurled towards Jue. Jue recognizes the technique and realizes that Malrik has joined the Order. One of the most powerful mages in Minos who has ascended to the realm of a 9th Circle. Jue clicks his tongue in disappointment as he has to unsheathe his sword and use even more Qi. "**Endless Abyss Slash**" He uses his sword and slashes the meteor into two. However, he cannot focus on that for long as Shengjun doesn''t stop his relentless attacks. Shengjun is determined to make sure that Jue doesn''t come out of this alive and he wants to stop whatever plan Jue has up his sleeve. Jue smiles as his Qi Circle is already 95% of the way done. All he needs to do is continue dodging and then make distance from the Order even just for a split second. He isn''t sure that if he used it too close to someone it would allow them to soul transfer too. He wants to be completely sure that his plan will go smoothly. "Chrono Dilation Field!" Jue immediately feels his body get sluggish. He curses Malrik constantly in his head. Malrik is someone you don''t want to go up against unless it is one on one. He skills that have a wide range of effect make him perfect when going against someone in a group. Shengjun smiles as he watches Jue slow down. He knew that asking Malrik to join the Order just for this battle was worth going through all the trouble of finding him. Even if he has to face the consequences of disturbing a mage in seclusion the death of The One Armed Devil is worth any consequence. Blood is sent into space as Shengjun cuts Jue''s leg open. The blood is floating in space in a bubble that is soon slashed apart by Shengjun. The blood dyes his sword a dark red as Shengjun''s focus only increases. Even though Jue is taking damage from Shengjun he cannot help but smile. His Qi Circle is finally finished after many minutes of preparation. Going through many years of developing the most efficient Qi Pen worked well for him to make highly advanced Qi Circles with little time. Jue takes a deep breathe in as he uses a cloning and teleportation technique at the same time. While the teleportation technique used lots of Qi he still had just enough to use the Qi Circle. He knew he only had a couple of seconds of time before the Order found him again with the help of Malrik''s abilities. He quickly put the Qi Circle on the ground before wiping his hand on the cut on his leg. He places his bloodied hand on the Qi Circle before chanting words of a ancient language. He can feel his body stop responding to him. He starts to lose his vision and his conscious as he feels his soul leaving his body. His eyes are getting droopy and they feel as if the weight of the world is on top of them. Still he must finish the chant before he loses conscious. Jue''s eyes close and when he reopens them he is in an unfamiliar place. Chapter 2 Jue opens his eyes and is facing a window. Looking outside he sees the green grass, the sun shinning in his face as he feels the warmth of it all, watching the beauty of the light blue sky looking at the clouds as they drift freely in the sky. Oh how he''s wished to be a cloud throughout his life. Jue looks around him and he is in a room. His is currently laying down in a baby crib. The room is wooden and has a bear carpet on the ground. The window the Jue looks through has no glass and can be covered by a wooden shutter. Jue is laying down in a wolf''s fur that was made into a blanket. Jue finally being done taking in the beauty of the world his soul has gone to he tries to move his body. Nothing happens. He tries to close his eyes,. Nothing happens. He try''s to talk, cry, scream, anything to make some noise. Nothing happens. Jue is confused. He is the One Armed Demon, a genius who is the strongest cultivator Minos has ever seen. He thinks back to the soul transfer Qi Circle. The only possible way for the technique not to work was if the body he inhabited had a higher soul strength then him. Jue knew his power, and his soul strength was definitely someone with a higher soul strength than most people in history. You can probably count the amount of people on one hands who have a higher soul strength than Jue. Yet this baby, the one person that Jue inhabited. Is the person who made that count now on two hands. A baby with a high soul strength than the most powerful cultivator in history. Jue is terrified yet amazed. The amount of soul strength you have is basically the amount of potential and talent you have. The higher soul strength the better. If Jue passes on his techniques and his knowledge to this little squirt he inhabited, the child will be stronger than even the likes of everyone combined in the Order. Jue can''t help but smile with his soul. Since the two souls share a body Jue can still talk to the baby once he grows old enough to have thoughts of his own and can properly communicate. Until then Jue just gets to spectate this child''s life. "Li!" A woman called out as she walked into the room. Jue looked at her and was memorized by her beauty. She had a light brown hair that in the sunlight it reflected it. The length of the hair was to her mid back and was wavy. Her eyes were a hazelnut that was added with sugar that were addicting to look at. This woman was breath taking to look at. Jue could only assume that this was the kid''s mother and that the kid''s name was Li. Jue continued to watch from Li''s eyes as the beautiful lady picked Li up. Jue was hypnotized from this lady''s beauty. As Li was picked up he got closer to her face and Jue was speechless. A button nose that complimented the lady''s eye shape. A mouth with lips that were full and nice shade of light pink. If Jue was in his old body this lady would''ve been his wife. Li''s body was carried by the lady outside where the father was. Jue was able to look at the father as he was chopping wood for the family. He examined the father''s moves carefully and watched with immense concentration. He wondered, the father looks weak, he''s having a hard time chopping wood. How the hell does this kid have more soul strength than me. Li''s parents may not even be cultivators, but your talent and potential are not determined by what energy you have in your body. Jue was very confused looking at Li''s family. First Jue needed to find what world they were on. Across Jue''s lifetime he traveled across Minos and went to almost every planet that was inhabited with life. While most of the planets had similar characteristics and life living on it. The energy quality and sometimes the energy itself are different for each planet. Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. Jue''s planet for example, Lunaris, uses Qi as the main energy as has a high Qi quality. It is an ideal planet for a cultivators growth and increases it exponentially due to the quality of Qi. However, Jue cannot determine what energy is used since he is not in control of Li''s body. Jue must wait until someone uses energy and watch to determine. Until then Jue looks around him with and observes the surrounding area. They seem to be in a forest where the trees are tall and thin. Although they are very tall they could probably be chopped in one swing by an experienced lumberjack. The grass around them is a rich, green and is not itchy to lay on. In the grass there are many types of flowers spread out that are beautiful to look at. Jue can only imagine the smell of them. There is a path into the forest and Jue can see tracks that are left in the dirt that are left by a carriage. Jue can see that carriage next to the man chopping wood. He can only think of them as merchants. "Baby" The lady called out towards the man chopping wood in a happy tone. "Are you done with the wood? We must start dinner soon, how else will Li became a strong and nourished child*?" She said in a tone that was annoying but the man was not annoyed. He finished chopping the wood he had and picked up all the pieces into a cart. Rolling the cart towards Li and the lady. "Coming Yue!" He called out as he was pushing the court towards them. As he reached them he gave Yue a kiss and rolled the cart inside and started putting the wood next to the leftover wood from last time. "Li baby come here." Yue called out to Li and Li crawled over. Yue picked Li up and put him into her arms. Walking inside before putting Li down into a dinner chair. The chair was wooden and was sturdy. It was made out of good quality wood. It was sanded down to perfect and no chance for Li to get a splinter. They are in the kitchen and he can see the type of appliances they have. The stove doesn''t have burners and the lights used in the house are made from fire. From Jue''s experience worlds that have less advanced appliances normally rely on a type of energy that replaces electricity. The most likely energy in this world is probably Mana. He watches Yue closely as she approaches the kitchen. She opens up multiple cupboards and drawers and takes out food from each one. Seasonings, parsley, ginger, onion, all types of vegetables and fruit. As Yue is doing this the man walks in and puts some meat on the counter. "I got the meat you wanted honey. It was hard to get it since I had to travel into the town to find it." The man said as he pulled out a knife and started to cut it into pieces. "*Thank you baby*" Yue cheerfully said as she ran up to him and gave him a hug. They were both smiling greatly in each others arms before getting back to making dinner. Yue pulls out a pan and places it on the stove. Jue starts to smile as he hears her say some words. "Flame arise, burn with might, From the spark, ignite the night" "Magic!" Jue thought to himself excitingly. Mana is one of the more rare and powerful energies that he could''ve gotten. Although Mana is different than Qi the process of obtaining your core for Mana is similar to that of cultivation. Most of Jue''s knowledge will transfer over and it will help Li immensely. Jue continued to watched as the two parents cooked dinner for their beloved son Li. Not knowing that the most evil cultivator, the One Armed Devil was inhabited inside their son not able to make a move. With dinner finally being done Jue was disappointed that the one feeding Li was the man instead of Yue. The man definitely wasn''t ugly by any means. However, if you compared the two Yue''s beauty was in a whole other universe compared to the man. But the mans blue eyes, blonde hair, with a sharp nose, and chiseled jaw line made him quite handsome. Jue can see why Yue picked this man to be her husband. Especially with his personality. With dinner done it came play time to get rid of some of the energy in Li before bed. Li was able to freely crawl around the room for around an hour or so. With Jue gaining all the knowledge he needed about the world he was in and the energy being used. He didn''t pay much attention to Li''s life before he finally had his first thoughts and words. "Hello Li" Jue''s voice boomed in Li''s mind. Chapter 3 Li is sitting at the dinner table with his family and they are all having a fun time eating the boar that dad bought from the market. It''s Li''s second birthday, and he can already form proper sentences and walk on his own. Thus, the dinner table is packed with lots of food, desserts, and a birthday cake. "Thank you for cooking the meat, mommy!" Li said with glee as he took another bite from his plate before asking for seconds. He grabbed more bacon and a variety of different vegetables from the table before scarfing down the food he had just grabbed. Li has an abnormal appetite for someone so young. "I''m happy you''re happy Li, it''s your birthday, it''s the least we can do for you. Make sure to thank Daddy for getting the boar from the market." Yue said with a smile on her face. She was happy that her son was already able to form sentences and walk. She hopes that Li will continue to show his smarts as he grows up. "Daddy, thank you for going to the market to get the boar! It''s very tasty!" Li said as he happily had a third helping to the food. "Of course, son." He said with a somewhat happy tone, but Li could tell he meant well by it. Li has noticed that he has stopped showing a lot of emotion for a while now and is a little worried by it but doesn''t know what it means. After eating and talking for awhile, they finally get to the birthday cake. They place 2 candles on top of the cake to celebrate Li''s second birthday. "Flame arise, burn with might, From the spark, ignite the night" Yue chanted and lit the candles ablaze before they started to sing to Li. This caught Jue''s attention again as magic has always interested him. Seeing how powerful Malrik is and the versatility of magic he has always wanted to try and learn it. Unfortunately one you learn one energy then it''s impossible to learn another. With the exception being Shenhuang of course. The ancient master who was able to learn more than one energy with ease. The most powerful being in existence who acts as a god inside of Minos. Even just thinking about him brings Jue''s heart to skip a beat in fear. After eating the cake and getting his presents from his parents Li walks over to his room. It''s already much later than when he would normally go to bed but it''s his birthday so its an exception. Li looks out the window and looks at the galaxy above him. Looking at the countless stars in the sky and attempts to count them. Hoping that he will finish before he falls asleep. 1 2 3 4 5 6... 1147 "Hello Li" Jue''s voice boomed in Li''s mind. Li startled by the sudden thought almost fell out the window in shock. Losing all count of the stars he had just counted for the past half and hour. But there is no time to be worried or mad about that. He is in fear from the voice in his head. "Who... who are you!" Li though to himself in fear of the voice. "How are you in my head! Answer now!" Li''s fear already faded and he is angry about the voice inside his head invading his privacy. "Jeez.. calm down kid. If you knew who I was you would be bowing down in forgiveness. However I do admire your guts, so I won''t do anything to you yet." Jue bluffed immensely as he talked to Li. Jue couldn''t do anything if he wanted to. He has been trying for the past 2 years to try and take control over Li''s body but nothing happened. Not even a single twitch of the finger or the bat of an eye. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. "Well who are you then mister?" Li said somewhat afraid but still confident in his own abilities. "I am The One Armed Devil! The greatest cultivator who has ever lived in the Minos! Feared and resented by many!" Jue proudly boasted with confidence with his nose held high up in the air. Even though he already knew that Li had no idea who he was. "If you''re so great why have I never heard of you then?" Li said with confused, he''s heard of some of the great heros in the Order such as Shengjun but not the One Armed Devil. Li sighed when he heard this since he could hear all of Li''s thoughts. "You won''t know me until you get out of this forest place of yours. However that''s not what is important right now. You see, I used my soul transfer technique in an attempt to regain my youth and start back from the bottom and go up to the top with all my knowledge. However, the only way my technique doesn''t work is if the person has more soul strength than me. You kid, are one of the handful of people who do. Which is why I''m just some thoughts in your head. Your body now houses two souls." Li''s head was practically on fire with all the knowledge he just obtained. Sure he could understand that he is a voice in his head, however soul transfer technique?? Li was confused out of his mind. Li and Jue continued to talk throughout the night as Jue talked to him about what soul strength is and how he got there and why he is just a voice in his head. Although Li was only two years old, Jue was impressed about how much he started to understand in such a short amount of time. He understood what most of the stuff was despite how young he was. But Jue was still in a stalemate, he still couldn''t do anything for Li''s progress as a mage for a couple of years until he can fully understand how to gather mana to form a mana circle. He also has to wait until he can properly walk and use his muscles before he can teach him how to train his body. Li is still only 2 years old and training won''t be able to start for at least 3 years. Still Jue also could only just sit in Li''s mind. Jue needs to find a way for him to either have some control over his body at some times or a way to get his soul a new body to inhabit. In the next morning Li can''t stop talking to his new friend. He has to ask Jue everything about his life. Li was always curious about the worlds outside of his own and now he knows someone who has practically been everywhere. "Hey hey, mister what was your family like?" Li asked Jue in a innocent way just wanting to know more about Jue. "Well, when I was younger I had a family just like yours right now. We all had every meal together, we slept in the same room, we were always there for each other. Then when I left my family for work as a mercenary, my family was killed in a battle between strong cultivators. Hence why I started my cultivation journey." "Woah mister, I''m sorry. I didn''t know.." A tear went down Li''s eye as he thought about his family getting killed by someone. "See Li, that''s why I''m going to help you train to become really strong. Just right now isn''t the proper time for it. Wouldn''t you like to get stronger and protect your family?" Jue thought of this perfectly, he set everything up knowing how sensitive Li was. By saying that he would get Li to think about his family dying and the thought of protecting them. A genius plan to get him to want to get stronger. "Yes! I''m going to protect my family from anyone who dares to lay their hands on them. I''m going to be the strongest!" Li''s mood instantly cheered up and he was booming with confidence. He didn''t understand why he couldn''t train now but he trusted the mister in his head. The mister had already told him a lot about the world outside of his own and he liked the mister. "Good." Li said with a smile knowing that his plan had worked perfectly. Li walked out of his room and he ran towards his mother. Hugging her with all his strength and not ever wanting to let go. "Mommy I''m going to protect you from all the bad guys, I swear it!" Li said with a smile as he was still hugging his mother. Yue smiled as she heard this and hugged him back. "Thank you baby." Yue said with a smile and she comforted Li. Chapter 4 Li''s 3rd birthday, the day his dad promised him he would take him into town and go on a shopping run with him. Li is very excited for the trip as he cannot stop asking his dad when they are leaving. "Dad dad dad dad are we leaving yet!" Li asked over and over throughout the day until it was finally time for them to go. Li''s dad gave him a few copper coins and said to spend it wisely. They then walked out to the carriage where Li and his dad both feed the horses. The horses were not strong by any means. They were skinny and in the middle age of their life. The horses both had a nice coat of brown fur. You could tell they were taken well care of. With that they are off, they packed a bit a food for the road and with the crack of a whip they started heading towards the town. Jue noticed that they were heading the opposite direction from where the forest was, even though their were carriage tracks leading into the forest. Yet they didn''t go that way they went the opposite. It confused Jue a bit but Li didn''t notice at all. Heading towards the village Li''s dad didn''t use a map at all. He followed a river that was next to a dirt road that seemed to only be used by carriages. There was only dead grass where the carriage wheels would turn. Looking at the river you could see the endless amount of jumping through and out of the water. Seeing a little rainbow through the water droplets each time the fish would jump out as the sun above was beating down heavily. Li breathed in the fresh forest air, he smell the scent of the trees and the flowers in the close vicinity. Slowly traveling on the path on their way to the village Li took in every second of it. He had never been away from the house before and this was a new experience for him. As they were traveling by Li was looking towards the river as he sees a herd of deer running quickly across the grass plain on the other side. They were running much faster than they usually would, it seems they are running for a certain reason. Li''s father stands on the carriage and looks behind them, he doesn''t see much and just plays it off as a unique experience. Li following his dad he going on top the carriage and looks at the grass plains. Li doesn''t see something but Jue does. A simple pack of wolfs that are further up into the forest, quietly stalking them. Since Jue doesn''t find it a serious issue he chooses not to alert Li about the wolfs stalking them. A wolf or two shouldn''t be an issue as long as they continue moving. Continuing along the trail the views only get better for Li. He looks at every direction at every simple thing that''s new to him. Looking at the mountains in the distance with a little bit of snow on top. Looking at the waterfall that beats into the rocks as you can hear it from a ways away. Looking at the different types of animals, Li only used to know boar, but now traveling to the town he has already seen so much more. Excited for the day that he himself can hunt food like that for his family and protect them. After an hour or so of travel they finally reached the point where they can see the town. Li looks at the wall that surrounds the town and is confused. "Daddy, why does the town need a wall surrounding it?" Li asks curiously. "It protects the town from monster attacks and keeps them out when they try to raid the village." Li''s father answered with a straight expression and a monotone voice, not showing much interest in the topic. Li looked at the wall and then looked at the surrounding forest. He never realized it but the forest was massive. He stood on top of the carriage again trying to find the end of it, yet nothing was in sight. The forest continued for what seemed to be forever. However squinting his eyes he can see a huge tree in the distance that toward over all others. He wanted to ask his father but after his last question he decided not to. "That huge tree in the distance is the world tree. Since I do not know the name of the world you live on I cannot tell you it''s exact name. The world tree provides life to all the trees in the forest, all the trees you see are connected to the world tree. Also depending on what world you are in it can have different purposes. Some are home to gods or giants, while others trees simply give the energy to the world." Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Li was amazed when he heard this, he wasn''t just surprised about the world tree, but also the mister. Li continued squinting at the world tree until it hurt to keep his eyes open any longer, there were tears coming from his eyes before he closed them. Then he embraced the view of the forest and all the life surrounding it. Li sits back down on the carriage as they start to enter the village. They get stopped by the guards but are immediately let through. A nod between the guards and Li''s father was all that was needed. Entering the village Li was shocked, seeing all sorts of different and new things. Shops that sold magic items, different foods, charms, etc. He saw other children playing around in the street and running around. The different buildings that were much different than his own house. Most of the buildings being made out of stone rather than wood. Li''s father is not entertained by any of these things and knows exactly what he wants and where he wants to go. "Follow me Li." Li''s father says as he bends over so that Li can hear him. He doesn''t bother to hold his hand or put him on his shoulders or anything. Even though Li is the proper age for such he has much more trust in Li to know what to do. Li follows his father closely as they walk to where his father is leading them. While walking Li watches the people around him and the different shops. Looking at buff men with swords and shields by their sides. Looking at men whom had armor covering their whole body so you couldn''t see them. They were all walking towards a single place. The Hunters Guild. Li could hear the voices coming inside from outside the building as they walked past it. Seeing all the different people inside made him curious and want to go in, but he knew better than to leave father''s side. After another minute or two of walking and passing more shops, they finally reached Li''s father''s favorite butcher. Li''s father opens the door and a bell rings. "Cairon! Oh, and who is this you have at your side?" The butcher calls out as they enter the shop. Cairon is one of his most loyal customers after all, buying boar every week at the same time every time. Li however is a little startled, that is his first time ever hearing his fathers name. The only name he knew him by was daddy or the names that Yue called him. He just looked up and stared at his father in curiosity. He always wondered what his name was. "One boar like usual Edric." Cairon said in a happier tone than normal. Which again surprised Li as his father does not normally act as such. "Here ya go buddy." Edric takes out the boar and throws it onto the counter. You could hear the meat slam onto the counter as it made a disturbing sound. It made Li want to throw up as he heard it. Cairon picks the meat up by a rope coming out by its mouth and throws it over his shoulder. "Is there anything you want to do Li?" Cairon asked Li in a comforting tone, making Li forget all about the noise he had just heard. "Yes!" Li said with excitement. They walked around the village with Li skipping ahead of Cairon. Looking around the town as he skips around as he walks into every shop that he passes. Entering a variety of different shops such as another butchers place, a place that sells daggers, a blacksmith, a produce shop, etc. However, one shop catches his eyes, a shop that sells gear for mages. He walks towards it with great interest. Walking in the bell rings just like all the other stores. As he walks into the store he can see the selection of different wands, staffs, hats, and robes. It seems like a paradise to him. He walks around looking at the different wands and staffs each of them making him more curious than the other. Most had a type of rare wood as the handle then a pretty looking gemstone on top. Li walked even further towards the back of the store as he stumbles upon a bookshelf. A bookshelf that held countless books that seemed to be as thick as his whole body. He wondered if he could even hold up the weight of the book. Li reaches his hand out towards one of the books on the shelf... Cairon comes out from nowhere and tightly grabs his hand. "Li, don''t be wasting your time with stuff as such as that, our family doesn''t have any mages in our bloodline. Either way we couldn''t afford such a luxury anyways. We must hurry back to our house too if we want to get the boar to your mother in time for dinner." Cairon says in a serious and angry tone, as if he is tired of following Li around. "Okay.." Li lets out in a defeated tone. He quietly follows Cairon back to the carriage in defeat. "I can help you with that Li." Jue tells Li in a way to make him seem as a savior. Chapter 5 Jue watches through Li''s eyes as Li walks into the magic shop. Jue looks at the different wands as Li walks around, sighs in disappointment at the junk the shop is selling. Jue can tell that there mustn''t be a lot of mages in the area with such a crappy magic store in the town. The wands and staffs they sold were next to garbage and practically just a stick with a rock tied on it with rope. However compared to Li who has never seen such a sigh before he was amazed. Jue looks at the bookcase as Li reaches his hand out to the book. Looking at the countless books and their titles. Recognized maybe one or two of the books that are about basic magic theory and some magic spells. The others were unnecessary since they had noting of use. He watches as Cairon smacks Li''s hand away from the book, afraid they will go into generation debt if Li even dared to touch it. It costs a lot of money for one to become a mage thus mainly only nobles and a few exceptions go to an academy and become a mage. Feeling the disappointment Li experienced an idea pops into his head, one to convince Li even more to tread the path of power. "I can help you with that Li." Jue tells Li in a way to make him seem as a savior. "R-really?" Li said with a desperate tone, at this moment there was nothing he wanted more than to be able to become a mage. Hearing the mister tell him that he could help was a saving point that made him too curious. "Well of course." Jue said with a sly tone as he knew Li was unaware of his plans. "I was the most powerful cultivator, and Qi and Mana are not that different in terms of the way to create you core and absorb the energy. I''m sure I can help you with a thing or two. I even read those books you were looking at just a few moments ago." Jue himself was interested in the laws of mana and magic theory. Coming across multiple powerful mages in his time in his prime, he needed to find a way to better deal with them. Especially after coming across Malrik when he was still just a greenhorn who didn''t know any better. After suffering a defeat with almost no competition towards Malrik he needed to study mana to find magic''s weak points. Of course, Jue didn''t find much is his endless study, and since he couldn''t use mana himself due to already having an energy. He couldn''t find weak points in practice. Thus having to hunt down mages and study them while they used their unique spells. The only weak point he found was the weak point that was already discovered when magic was. Most if not every spell needs cast time and a chant to be casted. However, you could overcome this disadvantage if you blessed by the gods of mana. For example, Malrik doesn''t need to use chants because he was blessed by the gods and goddesses when he was born. "Woah! You read those books back there mister? I thought those books costed a fortune!" Li said with amazement as he praised the mister the a god that bestowed him powers. Li was happy hearing this too, if the mister could help him obtain a mana core to become a mage. Then he could protect his family and hopefully make a living to support his family. The mood he was just in from the recent events already disappeared as he was smiling walking back to the carriage. "Seeing as how advanced you are for a child already, I may allow you to start training your core earlier than expected. Maybe by the time you are four years old we can start the beginning process." Jue said as he praised Li for his talent and fast growth rate. However Li didn''t take it this way. Looking at Li''s face expression his soul visibly left his face and it resembled a dead body. "A whole year!" Li asked with concern, he wanted to start now. If he could he would start training in the middle of the street to become a mage. That''s how serious he was about this. "Well Li if you look at it like this, most children born into families that are mages normally start their training process around age 10. While those who are genius start as early as age 8. While you are starting a whole 4 years earlier!" Jue proclaimed as he tried to lighten Li''s mood back up. He wanted Li to be aware of his heaven bestowed talent and force him to walk the path of a mage. Someone who is destined to be great and was given such talent shouldn''t live the life of a farmer. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. "Woah.." Li said to himself quietly before booming with confidence and arrogance. He had his nose held up high the whole carriage ride back. Li wasn''t even bothered by the amazing views that surrounded him. He continued to harass Jue to convince him to let him start training today. Of course, it didn''t work as Jue was set in his decision. Arriving back at the house Li jumps of the carriage as soon as it stops. Leaving Cairon behind to deal with the deer meat and good they bought from the town. Bursting through the door. "Mommy!! I''m home!" Li yelled as he was running around looking for his mother. He wanted to jump into her arms and give her a big hug. Li continues running around the house looking for her. Turning around the corner and opening her bedroom door and finding her sitting on the bed making a new blanket for Li. As soon as Li sees her he jumps into her arms and feels the warm embrace of his mother. Her soft touch as he can feel the warmth of her body flowing over to his. "You''re home Li." Yue said with a smile as she accepted Li''s hug without a second thought. "Are you not going to help your dad with the goods you bought?" She asked curiously but it was said in a way that was almost scolding Li for not helping out. Saying this as she looked Li directly in the eyes. "Heh heh.. Of course I was going to help! I was just coming to see you first mommy to let you know we are here." Li said to get out of the scolding, rubbing his head and avoiding the eye contact Yue just initiated. Staring down at his feet as he turned around quickly and ran back through the house and back towards the carriage. Hurrying outside and climbing back onto the carriage and looking for something to grab. Finding some carrots with dirt still on them you could tell there were fresh. They were a white color and had an interesting smell that Li could smell as he brought them to his face. Making an obvious gesture with his face and making a throwing up noise. He held the carrots away from his body and his arm fully extended outwards as he ran back into the house. Hurriedly putting the carrots on the counter before running back out to find something else. Arriving at the carriage and looking for something else to grab. Not finding anything and running back inside to talk to his mother again. Li wanted to talk to Yue about all the things he saw today. The deer running on the grass plains, the beautiful sights that he saw, and the butchers shop. Most importantly he wanted to talk about the magic shop! Yue knows magic even though its only the very basic fire spell that beginners learn, it''s more than enough to cook dinner for her family. Li want''s to know all about magic and Yue can help him with that. "Mommy! Can you tell me about magic!" Li said with a happy expression and he called out from the entrance of the house. Running back through the house and about to enter his mother''s room before stopping right at the entrance. Li hears his mother and father talking in the room and seems to be eavesdropping on an important situation. "Yue I don''t know how much longer I can keep doing this, you know how unhappy I am." Li heard Cairon talk to Yue through the door as he eavesdropped on their conversation. Li wanted to open the door and give his father a hug to cheer him up, he thought that was make him feel better. "Li stop, leave it be and walk away." Yue told Li sternly and he meant it. Jue was doing this for his own good, what he doesn''t know can''t hurt him. Even though later it will affect him greater but Jue can use that as fuel to pressure Li into further training. Jue also didn''t want to have Li to experience and hear what his parents were talking about especially how serious the conversation sounded from the first sentence. Li had his head down and was walking to his room as he choose to listen to the mister. The mister has normally been right and he was probably right now, but something inside of Li tempted him to burst through that door and hug both of his parents right then and there. "Li do you want to do something fun? You like stars right?" Jue said with the intentions of having him grasp the basics of gathering mana for his mana core without letting him know it. "Yes!" Li said as he loved looking up at the stars and admiring their beauty. It was also during that time was counting the stars that he met the mister. "Well, the stars are much more visible if you do a certain technique that allows you to see them all around you and not just in the sky."