A bloody scythe cut a swath through a library in Enyatta’s dreams. She watched as pages were scattered through the air like dead leaves. Some, soaked in blood, fell to the ground like small birds whose wings had been coated in oil. The scythe disposed of fiction and nonfiction alike as though they were only so much wheat. Arriving at the large section of cultivation manuals, it seemed to hesitate for a moment, before becoming a screeching blur as it disemboweled the knowledge of the ages. Enyatta looked on, separated from the scene by a semi-transparent veil. Every book shredded by the scythe felt like a miniscule needle driven into her heart.

The books weren’t her bosom companions, so treasured that the loss of even one might break her heart. Rather, she knew them as one might a good acquaintance. She imagined that if she passed one in a hallway, she might stop and say hello, perhaps chat for awhile about physics, or language, or cultivation. In short, while Enyatta did not feel the loss of any single book too deeply, the scythe was destroying a lot of books. The combination of so many small pains developed into a deep and abiding ache pressing down across her chest and inhibiting her breathing.

Finally, after what seemed like an age, the scythe finished its bloody work. It paused, suspended mid-animation, and Enyatta had the fleeting thought that it seemed akin to a small child, who, having finished her homework, waited for permission to play outside. Enyatta held her breath, watching with growing fear as the blade of the scythe slowly pivoted until it was pointed directly at her. Blood dripped from the tip of the scythe, making a plip plop noise that was faintly audible to Enyatta even from behind her veil. Enyatta swallowed softly, entertaining increasing doubts as to the solidity of the barrier.

Suddenly, the pain that had heretofore been merely emotional looked like it was about to become unavoidably physical. The scythe began to spin faster and faster, a red light trailing from its curved point until it was going so fast that it appeared to be only a large circle of bloody light hanging in the air. Enyatta could just make out the high pitched whine created by its astonishing speed over the heavy sound of her own breathing. Terrified, she reached for the chaotic qi within her core to try and fight back. Nothing. Enyatta couldn’t sense her dan’tian at all. Shit, she thought as she dumbly faced her impending doom.

The spinning scythe shot forward, its high pitched whine growing instantly to an ear shattering scream. Enyatta raised her hands defensively to shield her face as her vision went read. The scythe tore through the insubstantial barrier between them like tissue paper and connected with Enyatta’s forehead. The phantom pain shattered the dream and Enyatta lurched awake gasping for breath.

She slowly lay back, trying to relax. Her head ached fiercely, and she shuddered as she turned the nightmare over in her mind. Are you ok? WuYe poked his nose into her field of vision and stared down at her. His gentle voice in her mind helped to further calm her down. You were having quite the dream. When you woke up you sat up so suddenly that you slammed your forehead into the bottom of my antler. That is probably why your head hurts. Good news though, I don’t see any blood.

Enyatta glared at him. So, you are responsible. You and your big antlers. Ow. She moved a hand up to massage her forehead.

WuYe ducked his head sheepishly. To be fair, I think the guilty party was more your head, and less my antlers.

Stop being reasonable and let me be angry for a second ok? What the heck are your antlers made of anyway, diamond?

If you are well enough to complain, it must not hurt that bad. And no, my antlers are just made of bone. I have tried to reinforce them a bit with qi but I haven’t gotten very far. Diamond antlers would be awesome though, don’t you think? WuYe rose to his feet and walked across the beach to the small pool of water, bending his head to take a drink. Rays of the morning sunlight entering through the hole in the roof of the grotto hung suspended in the moist air above the pool.

Enyatta rose to her feet much more slowly and stumbled over to join her friend. She stared down at her reflection in the pool. Her blue eyes stared back at her, set above her graceful nose and small mouth. A mane of red hair cascaded messily down her back to just below her shoulder blades. Already her forehead was beginning to turn purple and bruise. She slipped her hand into the cool water and brought it back to rest on her forehead. The chill of the water began to soothe the ache in her head. She sighed in relief.

Better? WuYe asked, turning to look at her. He paused, you know, if you are trying to develop a gem on your forehead like mine, I have some bad news. Hitting yourself in the head won’t work; and that shade of purple doesn’t really work for you anyway.

Har di har har. Very funny. Enyatta punched him playfully in the shoulder.

Well I thought it was. Forget about that though. What do you want to do today? It’s your first day here on the 三夏 (San’Xia) world. There are so many possibilities. Adventures just waiting to happen. We could climb Mount 大想 (Da’Xiang). We could hunt a flame-tusked boar. We could…

How about some breakfast? Enyatta asked, cutting off WuYe’s excited speech.

Oh. Breakfast. Yes, breakfast is important too. Say no more my friend. WuYe dived into the pool splashing Enyatta’s white robe in the process. Enyatta just stared after him, shaking her head.

He did raise a good point though. What should she do next? Enyatta was happy that she could no longer call an asteroid home, but that did highlight the fact that she currently didn’t have a home at all. She knew that her ultimate goal was to return to Earth, but she wasn’t sure how to go about accomplishing that. She doubted that WuYe would be able to help her. What she needed was the advice of the Librarian. She frowned and directed her consciousness toward the soul shard that she clutched in her hand. The Librarian gave off the same muted sensation of pain that she had felt the day before. Enyatta pushed another small portion of chaotic qi into the stone. It disappeared and a vague sensation of gratitude flowed back across the link. So at least there is hope, she thought to herself. As long as I keep feeding L bits of chaotic qi, eventually she should recover.

A splashing noise broke Enyatta’s ruminations, as WuYe surfaced with another fish impaled on his antlers. This time, Enyatta made out small gossamer wings attached to the fish just behind its gills. She surmised that it must be a winged skitterfish that WuYe had told her of the day before. At least it wasn’t a red-tailed trout. Enyatta wasn’t sure how a fish could taste spicy, but she wasn’t eager to find out.

WuYe deposited the fish on the same flat stone that had been used to cook yesterday’s dinner. He then backed up several paces. Once again, a small tightly controlled stream of fire shot forth from the gem on the stag’s forehead, charring the fish to a nice golden brown. Breakfast is served! WuYe announced.

Enyatta joined him by the rock and used her chaotic qi to strip the fish of its scales. She picked up a piece and took a bite. Unlike the salmon from the night before, the skitterfish didn’t really taste like much. She looked up and offered some to WuYe. No thanks, WuYe declined. I’m a vegetarian. I eat the orange flowers that you can see at the edges of the grotto. They are called sundrop flowers.

Suit yourself. Enyatta sat back down in the sand and continued to eat the fish. Where exactly are we anyway? She asked between bites. I know that you said that this was the SanXia world, but where exactly are we located?

Well, WuYe responded, This grotto is located on the edge of the Lionwood forest in the heart of the 玉玄 (Yu’Xuan) Empire. There is a small city named Lion’s Edge about a two day walk from here, and the capital of the empire, Jadespire, is a two month journey beyond it.

So, what you are saying is that the nearest settlement is about a two day hike away and even when we reach it we will still be in the boonies huh? Enyatta said.

That’s right. WuYe affirmed.

Well then, might as well get started. Enyatta finished the last bite of fish and got to her feet, looking around for an exit to the grotto.

Hey, what’s the hurry?

No hurry, except that I would like to sleep in a real bed as soon as possible. Sand gets everywhere. Besides, I finally get to see another human being! Wait, Enyatta paused, this is a human world, right? From what I remember reading the SanXia world does mainly have humans on it.

Yeah, WuYe answered, unfortunately, due to losing a great war several centuries ago, magical beasts have been pushed to the edges of the world and humans have ascended to dominate the planet. We are still around, don’t get me wrong, but all of the real power nowadays is held by human cultivators.

Ummm, damn. That sucks. Enyatta was lost for a moment as she tried to decide how to respond.

Don’t worry about it. It all happened long before I was born. I am only eighteen cycles old anyway. My parents were alive back then, but they left to go traveling and they didn’t say when they would be back.

Your parents are over five hundred years old? Enyatta was only mildly surprised. WuYe certainly didn’t appear to be an ordinary magical beast and she knew that many of the more extraordinary beasts were extremely long lived.

Yup. WuYe confirmed proudly. It was only last year that I convinced them that I was old enough to take care of myself so that they could take that trip they have always been talking about. They said that it would take them about four years, so until they get back I am down to do whatever.

Ok then. What I want to do now is go meet some new people. The first step is getting out of this grotto. I am assuming that you know where the exit is?

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Of course. WuYe lead Enyatta over to one of the walls of the grotto and brushed away a section of thick hanging vines, revealing a tunnel in the cavern wall over six feet high.

WuYe started down the tunnel, ducking his head so that his antlers didn’t catch on the ceiling. Enyatta followed, moving slowly since the tunnel was so dark. Luckily, the tunnel wasn’t very long, and it was only after a minute that Enyatta saw WuYe brush aside another curtain of vines to reveal the bright sunlight from the outside world.

As Enyatta followed WuYe through the opening, her jaw dropped open in amazement. They had emerged into a vibrant forest. Huge trees towered above her head, seeming to go high enough to touch the sky. There were some bushes and scrub along the ground but their growth had obviously been stunted by how little sunlight penetrated the leafy canopy.

Wow. Those are very big trees. Enyatta couldn’t tear her eyes away from the majestic natural pillars before her.

Yeah. They’re all right. Whats the big deal? WuYe was puzzled.

Its just that I don’t remember seeing trees before. My previous home was an asteroid and there wasn’t exactly room for a forest, Enyatta explained.

An asteroid? What’s that?

It’s like a planet, except its tiny, there is no air to breathe, and it’s made of minerals. It was a pretty lifeless and boring place to live.

Wait, but if there is no air on the asteroid, how did you live there? WuYe asked.

It’s a long story, Enyatta replied. I’ll tell you more as we walk. She chose a random direction and started to move forward. It seemed she had chosen correctly since a moment later WuYe pushed past her and took the lead.

They finally stopped as it began to grow too dark to see. Night came early as much of the dying light from the sunset was blocked by the forest canopy. WuYe had found a hollow tucked into the roots of a fallen down tree where they decided to make camp. Even though the day had passed uneventfully, Enyatta was exhausted. By her count, they had walked for almost eight hours since leaving the grotto that morning. Enyatta hadn’t had much need for walking back in the asteroid and her legs were letting her know exactly how they felt about the new routine.

Seeing the state that Enyatta was in, WuYe volunteered to take the first watch. Enyatta collapsed gratefully on a large patch of moss. She glanced up at WuYe with tired eyes. How come you have to keep watch? Is it dangerous in this area? I haven’t seen anything larger than that rabbit you caught me for lunch all day.

While it is true that this is a relatively safe area since it is on the outskirts of the forest, it never hurts to be careful, WuYe replied. Despite whatever that trick is that you do with your hands, I suspect that even a beast at the lowest level of cultivation- the qi condensation level- could best you with both paws tied behind its back.

Hey wait a minute, Enyatta protested. That trick took me fifteen years to master. I do it by manifesting chaotic qi around my hands. Chaotic qi. It is more than powerful enough to defend me. I promise.

What will you do if the beast you are fighting has a ranged technique? WuYe countered.

… I’ll… shout for help? Enyatta knew he was right. Chaotic qi might be the most powerful force in the universe, but it mattered little unless she was able to bring that force to bear. Maybe I’ll play dead until whatever I am facing gets close enough that I can slap it around.

That might work a little better, WuYe admitted. However, even if your enemy does get close enough that you can slap them around, do you really want to broadcast the fact that you can cultivate the Dao of Chaos to the whole world?

No, probably not, Enyatta said, remembering the Celestial Emperor who had attacked the library. He was probably still searching for her, and showing people that she could wield the Dao of Chaos would definitely not help her blend in. At the moment, it was like the Celestial Emperor was trying to find a needle in a trillion of needles. Throwing chaotic qi around would be like painting one of needles black and shifting all of the needles in its vicinity to point in her direction. It would downgrade the search from impossible to merely insanely difficult. No need, Enyatta concluded, to make life easier for the person trying to kill her.

I need something else. Some other ability to defend myself with, she stated.

Don’t worry. I will protect you, WuYe puffed his chest out. I have already cultivated past the qi condensation stage to the qi foundation stage. I’m even at the ninth level of the qi foundation stage. I wouldn’t be considered weak for my age anywhere on this world.

That’s sweet, but I’m serious, Enyatta replied firmly. Suddenly she had a thought. Why not begin to cultivate normal qi alongside her chaotic qi? The reason she hadn’t considered it up until now is because there hadn’t been any normal qi to speak of on the asteroid. She knew that cultivation of any kind was a long and difficult journey full of pitfalls, but it had to be faster starting with the easiest qi to cultivate rather than the hardest that she had struggled with so far. Besides, she had the knowledge she had gained from the greatest cultivation manuals in the library to guide her.

She sat back up, suddenly excited to try out her idea and see what this new world had to offer. She searched through the cultivation records in her photographic memory. She wanted to make sure that she started with the cultivation technique most suited to her as technique was extremely important. Using the right technique was the main determinant in how far one could advance in power on the road toward immortality. Due to the absence of the Librarian from her mind, this was also the first time that she had gotten to make an important life decision for herself, and she didn’t want to screw it up.

Unfortunately, almost all of the techniques that she had studied in the library were not meant for beginners. Often times they were instead meant for Immortals who had already mastered one or more Daos. There was only one technique that required starting from the very beginning of cultivation. It was called The Seven Daos Descending. This technique seemed perfect for Enyatta though, due to its unique requirements.

At the core of the technique was the creation of six additional dan’tians, and then linking the extras plus the original together in a system of seven dan’tians. In practice, this meant that it would take Enyatta seven times the amount of qi as a cultivator of the equivalent level to advance her cultivation. This was because she would have to cultivate seven dan’tians rather than one. Making the cultivation of this technique even more difficult was the fact that all dan’tians had to advance in stage together. Enyatta couldn’t cultivate one dan’tian to the Immortal stage and come back for the others later. This would throw the network between the cores into disarray. This network was what made The Seven Daos Descending so powerful. It gave Enyatta the ability to channel the strength of all seven cores at the same time. Theoretically, once one ascended to the Immortal stage, this would also allow the cultivation of seven Daos at the same time. While in the beginning the extra time and resources required would be enormous, the rewards would increase exponentially as Enyatta ascended through the various levels of cultivation toward immortality.

The main reason that no one practiced this technique was due to the initial hurdle: creating the additional dan’tian. For a cultivator, the dan’tian is the center of the body’s spiritual power. It is the node of the network of spiritual veins in the body, where all the qi absorbed naturally tends to congregate. The space exists in both the spiritual and the material planes at the same time. Only a supremely gifted expert in the Dao of Life could mimic the miracle of procreation closely enough to create a separate dan’tian, and they couldn’t create one without the body that came with it. To create a dan’tian independently from the body, a force powerful enough to subvert the laws of reality in a fundamental way was needed. The only force that fit the bill was the Dao of Chaos. Thus, to begin cultivating The Seven Daos Descending, one either needed to have cultivated the Dao of Chaos or have the help of someone who had.

Enyatta was one of the only cultivators of the Dao of Chaos to have appeared since the before. Even the Celestial Emperor, ruler of a divine world, had been seeking the spirit of the library in order to begin to cultivate the Dao of Chaos. It would be safe to say, therefore, that Enyatta would be the first to cultivate The Seven Daos Descending since the before.

Once all the stringent requirements were met, the actual creation of the separate dan’tians wasn’t especially complex. Her decision made by process of elimination, Enyatta rearranged herself until she was sitting in a lotus position and began the process. Using a finger coated with chaotic qi, she pricked herself in the hand. Once a droplet of blood appeared, she quickly surrounded it with the chaotic qi until it what she held in her palm was a small sphere the size of a marble. Its inky black color seemed to dissolve the small amount of light from the campfire that WuYe had started as it made contact. Enyatta stared at the sphere, an expression of intense concentration on her face. Suddenly, the sphere began to rotate, picking up speed until it was going too fast for the eye to follow. Enyatta began to compress the sphere, exerting a massive amount of spiritual pressure through her iron willpower as she forced the outer layer of chaotic qi to mix with the droplet of blood. Slowly red flecks began to be visible on the outer surface of the sphere as the blood mixed with the qi. For the final step, Enyatta forced the sphere to reexpand to its previous size, leaving it hollow in the center.

She stared down at the ball in her palm panting heavily. WuYe crossed from where he had been sitting on the other side of the fire and sniffed at the sphere. What is that? he asked.

It is, or at least it will be, a dan’tian, Enyatta replied, trying to get her breath back. The concentration required during the creation process had been so intense that she had held her breath for fear that she might ruin it.

Sure it is, WuYe said skeptically.

I’ll prove it to you when I’m done, Enyatta retorted. Just give me some space, I’ve got five more of these to make.

WuYe snorted impatiently and backed off, returning to his place on the other side of the fire. Enyatta returned to contemplating the ball in her hand. She then turned her consciousness inside of herself and examined her natural core, the one that she had spent eight years filling with chaotic qi. Between the qi that she had given to the Librarian’s soul stone and the qi that she had used to create the separate dan’tian, it was only two-thirds full of chaotic qi. It had regenerated a little the previous night, but even more slowly than it had on the asteroid. Regardless, Enyatta decided that she would have just enough for to complete what she had started. Coating her hands with chaotic qi probably wouldn’t be possible for the next couple of weeks though.

She repeated the process of dan’tian creation five more times, stopping to rest between each attempt. Due to her increasing exhaustion, she rested for over an hour before creating the final dan’tian. All in all, the process took over three hours, but in the end there where six black and red beads of energy sitting on Enyatta’s palm. She blinked and yawned. Maybe I should have done this in the morning instead of after having walked all day, she thought to herself. Once she had started though, Enyatta had gotten carried away, like she often did. She wasn’t one to quit half way through.

That being the case, Enyatta moved on to the next step. She popped all the beads in her mouth and swallowed them one after the other. Before they arrived at her stomach, she pushed them out of her esophagus and into the area of her dan’tian, grimacing in pain at the small tear that she created. Holding each of the six new dan’tians in orbit around the original by the control she could exert through the chaotic qi, Enyatta mentally groped for her soul force. She guided the substance that now shined a milky blue to her consciousness because of the soul bond down into the region of her dan’tian. Manipulating the soul force, she created thin hollow tethers binding the six cores together like spokes on a wheel with the natural dan’tian as the hub. Drawing on the meager reserves of chaotic qi remaining, she coated the tethers with a thin layer of chaotic qi. Finally, she set the metaphorical wheel spinning and collapsed with relief.

The process was complete. Having the six outer dan’tians revolve around the one in the center was Enyatta’s idea. She hoped that the spin might create a vortex, helping to suck in the qi and speed her cultivation. Only one way to know. She resumed her lotus position through force of will, then carefully adjusted herself until she matched position she remembered from The Seven Daos Descending manual. Cross legged? Check. Back straight? Check. Hands on knees? Check. Toes pointed correctly? Check. Fingers forming the correct symbols? Double check. Enyatta closed her eyes and regulated her breathing. She stilled her thoughts until she became an empty vessel just waiting for the world to fill her up. Then she sent her consciousness out. Then everything happened very, very fast.