The water reflected the stars in the sky, from the small window one could see, a young man cross-legged on the bed, a white glow emanating off him. His thoughts slowing down, his consciousness becoming more and more still, and his mind becoming clearer and clearer. It was whis, it was already midnight and he had unconsciously entered a transcended state of cultivation.

He had already formed his dantian and it was breaking with Qi, but he hadn’t reached the first seal of the Foundation Realm. He had read from the heaven rendering manual that the mortal realm did not only have five stages but they were other three eccentric stages. The Will tempering, Soul opening and Transformation stage.

These stages were ancient, and forgotten by the masses due to their high prerequisites and risks. But it just so happens whis did not like following the conventional path. He had already fought his heart demon to break through the will tempering stage and now his was banging and the invincible wall of the Soul Opening Stage.

According to the manual the code to linking to the soul was located between his brows, whis attire was drenched – his entire body was sweating bullets, but his efforts would surely reap fruits. A faint light emerged on his brow; a victorious smirk crept up on his face. The light went from a glow to a dazzling light comparable to the stars. If one was sufficiently drunk, he’d have thought one had just fallen.

Whis dark vision immediately lit up, a small white ball stood in the distance, floating. Spotting the source of light, whis moved towards it. This place was peculiar, he looked down, and couldn’t see his body. It was as if he was omni present, not there physically but was there. He couldn’t explain it.

He reached the small ball and moved even closer and grabbed it. The moment he made contact; his vision went dark again.

‘Did it run away?’, whis pondered, but he’d not for too long as he felt a gush of blood from his heart into the arteries, it ramified into other tubes, and slowed down as it reached the organs. Whis was startled, he could feel his own blood so vividly as if he was looking at a waterfall.

These were not the only changes, he opened his eyes, his transcended state of mind had stopped, because it wouldn’t be useful for the next bottleneck. The transformation Stage. This stage required one to familiarize with his blood, bones, soul and meridians and struck the balance. Whis knew this required understanding of his new found powers.

His vision was perfect, his Qi flowed more steadily and he felt as if he could think more efficiently. His smiled widened in elation, he walked around the room, testing his basic movements. Then it struck him, his visage – he wondered if it had been amplified or maybe he had better control of it now?

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Whis dashed to the small door inside the cabin, it was the restroom. He quickly looked for a mirror, he started caressing his face trying to remove the mask, but soon realized it had sunk into his bones. His eyes slowly closed, heartbeat slowing down. He moved his focus unto his face and under the skin. He could feel a hard layer, his bones and on top of it was not skin but a comfortable tissue.

Somehow whis was confident, that even if he was burnt, his face would be unaffected. Then an idea hit him, he channeled his QI towards his facial bones, he only felt a slight tingle on his face as something came off him like peeling a mango.

Got it! A sense of euphoria enveloped him as he took hold of the mask and stared in the mirror, he wasn’t entranced as before. His facial features were greatly outlined, it was no makeup but a natural gift.

He quick looked away before he was pulled into the centrifugal will of his beauty. His visage shifted to the mask; he had never taken time to check it out. It was a silver mask, with an oval bottom and a meniscus top, when worn it could only cover from the chin to the nose and left the eyes and forehead exposed.

The mouth section had two rows of sharp teeth overlapping into a cage, it gave one an eerie chill. From the manual, he knew in this world, they had artifacts just like on earth they had advanced Tech like elevators.

These artifacts were like day-to-day tools with amplified abilities and this mask’s ability to lower and raise beauty was shocking. Enhancing, whis immediately wanted to try raising his own beauty. Putting on the mask, he stared intently on the mirror for a change that’d not appear.

The mask did not sink into his skin but remained visible, and only revealed his eyes, however his hair had been cut, he looked like an earthy white person. This look made him look both dangerous and charming. He immediately sent QI into his face and to the mask as he did some words appeared in his mind.

Phantom Mask!

Can lower and raise beauty

Can mask Qi and vitality

Whis was stupefied this thing could even hide his vitality, did that mean it could make look dead, like a ghost? Immediately, he realized why it was called ‘phantom’, it defied all logic. Such a treasure, whis immediately added more qi into the mask, and into finally sunk into his sink and attached to the bones.

‘Even if you x-rayed me, it still would be undetectable’, the discoveries stunned whis. He looked again in the mirror, this time his face was normal. He urged the mask again and his radiance diminished, he now looked handsome, then charming, then ugly, whis was astonished. He could control his visage now.

He then urged it again, he wanted to raise his radiance again, but only reached his original countenance; more Qi – No change. However, whis was persistence and pushed further, but as he did the mask shook under his skin, he immediately halted his actions.

It seemed like his current look was the peak, whis sighed not in regret but in pride. The only thing more beautiful than him could be a woman.

He immediately dropped his visage to charming and walked out of the restroom, he was slightly worse than the handsome look he showed Lila and the attendance, but this would make it less pompous. He also altered his robe, he normal looked like a charismatic cultivator, the striking feature of the feathers had been carefully pulled out.

He took a glance at the small window, it was day break, he looked at the tray Lila had prepared, his heart warmed as he devoured the meal. Only, after finishing did he leave a note, expressing his gratitude, he didn’t think of her as just an attendant, a passerby. But something much more, like a compatriot. It had to be acknowledged that whis was very cautious, the word friend, he only mentioned it when referring to other peoples’ friends.

He gently closed the door, and strawed through the corridor. He was looking for familiarizing himself with the cultivation world, however, he wasn’t idle, his mind was immersed in the martial art he memorized, Roaring Fists.

*Definitions*

Heart Demon – a deep regret, heat or emotion which ties one from pursing longevity