The man sat down on the white floor and breathed, for what seemed like the first time since his sudden appearance. That had only been 10 minutes, yet so much had happened and Ren had learned so much. Now, he would learn much more, as much as he could!

“Firstly, as an Administrator, I am restricted in telling you some things, but I will try to tell you everything that you will need to know. Is that alright?”

“Please tell me everything you can, Master!” Ren eagerly replied as he sat down, facing the man.

“Haha, no. Don’t call me Master, for I fear I am not worthy of the title. My name is Hendrin Akelth, of the Blazing Sword Dynasty. I suppose I should start with the Foundation Stage. Although there are technically three Stages in the Foundation, namely Body, Mind and Soul, they are generally referred to as a single Stage. This is because you don’t have to go through a Trial to advance from Body to Mind, or from Mind to Soul and also because so many Followers, especially higher Stage Followers, believe that the Path only truly begins once you reach the Lord Stage, which is the Stage after the Foundation Stage. The overall goal of the Foundation Stage is to open all of your meridians. In the Body Stage you strengthen your body to prepare it for the energy that will flow through it. You can strengthen your body by doing basically any physical activity, like swimming or running. You will know that it is working if your physical attributes, which are Power, Speed and Vitality, increase.. Currently your attributes are unusually high considering the average for a Follower at the Small Body Stage is about 1.”

“What about the available points I have? Should I use them now?” Ren quickly interjected, as this was something he was most curious about.

“NO! Every attribute point you get while in the Foundation Stage must be earned yourself, lest you create the foundation of your Path with borrowed power. You can allocate attribute points once you become a Lord. In order to advance to the Mind Foundation Stage, you must refine your entire body with energy. This includes your muscles, bones and even your blood. Do not miss anything as that could take time to fix later on. The Mind Foundation Stage is similar to the Body Foundation Stage, except you must refine your mind with energy. This is very dangerous as one mistake can cripple you. Whenever you refine your mind with energy, make sure that there is someone at the Soul Foundation Stage at least, to save you if you make a mistake. It is also much easier to train you mental attributes, which are Mind and Will. Unlocking the Will attribute this early gives you a hidden advantage as Followers normally obtain it after breaking through to ********.”

That last word that Hendrin said was obscured, which made Ren tilt his head in confusion. Noticing his confused listener, Hendrin breathed out a long sigh “Hmm, I should’ve known the System does want children like you to know of the higher Stages too soon. Well, the names of higher Stages don’t really matter, just know that you obtaining the Will attribute this early means you can start developing your Intent much sooner than most. After you fully refine your mind - again, no slacking, don’t miss anything - you will reach the most important Stage of the Foundation. At the Soul Foundation Stage, you will need to open your soul and connect it to your refined body and mind completely. When connecting your soul to your body and mind, you will create your Soul Garden. Your Soul Garden is at the centre of your soul, and it is where your Energy Core and Dao Cores are found, which allow you to cultivate. However, you don’t need to know about your Cores until Peak Soul and I hope to return with my Master long before then, so I will just skip that part. You may have noticed on your Status about your Layer. There are four Layers for every Stage, including all three Foundation Stages. If you know the Layer your enemy is on, then you will know their approximate power level, but don’t think yourself superior as some talented Followers can fight above their Layer. The four Layers are Small, High, Great and Peak. Whenever you enter a new Stage, you will automatically enter the Small Layer. As you can see from your Daos, The Layers also apply to them. From 0-24%, your Dao is at the Small Layer, from 25-49% it is at the High Layer, from 50-74% it is at the Great Layer and from 75-99% it is at the Peak. 100% and therefore total completion is… something i’ll tell you later.”

“If you can remember, I told you that my Master is preparing for his next Trial. A Trial is how Followers breakthrough to the next Stage. Once you achieve the Peak Layer in both your Cultivation and your Dao, an additional symbol next to your Status. To start your Trial, all you need to do is focus on it and think ‘begin’. However, you should never begin your Trial the moment you meet the requirements or you will risk ending your Path permanently. In a Trial, you either succeed and refine your Energy Core, or you die inside of it. If you die inside your Trial, you will awaken in reality, but you will never be able to cultivate again, no matter what. That is the ultimate rule of the System. You will keep your Cultivation, Dao and lifespan, but you will be forced to watch as people around you grow more powerful. There are no second chances.”

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“That sounds horrible.” Ren said with a trembling voice.

“Yes. That is why you should always prepare for your Trial the best you can. Your first Trial will be when you advance from Peak Soul Foundation to Small Lord. All of your Daos must be Peak Fractals or higher.”

“So all I need to do is get my Sword Dao Fractal to Peak? That sounds a bit easy. Also, what do you mean by ‘or higher’? Do you mean Dao Fragments?.” Ren replied curiously.

Hendrin smiled wide. “I thought you might pick up on that. Yes, you could make all your Dao Fractals into Fragments. However, think of that Reward for your [Child Of Heaven] Achievement.”

Ren did as he was told and the line appeared in his mind.

Reward:

Increased chance to achieve Perfection.

Ren immediately thought of something. “Does this mea-“

“Yes.” Hendrin interrupted him, with his smile growing ever wider. “The Fifth Layer. Perfection. It is also known as The Layer Of Mastery. If your Dao or your Cultivation reaches the limit, when your Dao reaches 99% or when your Energy Core is at the top of the Peak and can hold no more, and you push, adding more Energy or more Insights, then you have the slightest chance of achieving Perfection. Despite your Reward, I must warn you. The chances of you achieving Perfection is minuscule. It is almost impossible. If you push too much, you will die. Your guardian can save you, but your Path will be crippled, which will take years to fix, if ever. The risk and danger involved in achieving Perfection makes it even more unbelievable that you have already reached it.”

“What?? When?” Ren shouted in shock.

“Yes, I must admit I was very surprised. That was until I saw your Achievements, which wore off the shock of your Perfect Soul Dao Fractal. Show me your Daos again.”

Ren did as he was told instantly and, when he did, he noticed something he hadn’t before.

Dao:

* Soul1 - Small Dao Fragment - 0%

* Sword - High Dao Fractal - 25%

“That number next to your Soul Dao tells you that you have achieved Perfection in your Soul Dao once. If you achieve Perfection twice in the same Dao or in Cultivation, it will turn into a 2. Achieving Perfection even once is something very few Followers manage to do, and if they do, they normally do it later in their Path. This is because younger Followers are less experienced and less patient, so they value a higher Stage or Dao more than a Perfect Dao Fractal or a Perfect Foundation Stage. However, just because you achieved it once does not mean it is guaranteed. Don’t aim for Perfection in all your Daos or all your Stages as that will not only slow your Path down dramatically, but will definitely kill you.”

Ren thought about Hendrin’s warning and was about to thank him, when he noticed a white light flashing within Hendrin’s body.

Looking down, Hendrin sighed. “That marks the end of my time here, but before I go, I have two last pieces of advice for you. Don’t show your full Status to anyone, not even those you trust implicitly. Lastly, I advise you to make more Dao Fractals. From what I can see, your Soul originally had the capacity for four different Daos, but with the Reward from your [Prodigy of the Dao] Achievement, you can hold six. Don’t make your Fractals hastily. They must all have a purpose and fix flaws in your Style. I don’t know how long it will take for me to return, but I wouldn’t expect it for at least a year. Goodbye, Ren!”

With tears in his eyes, Ren watched as his teacher dissipated in front of him. As he did so, he thought of his home, where his parents probably worried about him.

With that thought, he vanished from his Soul Garden, as pristine as he found it.