When Jack opened his eyes, he was immediately assaulted by an extremely foul smell. When he looked down and saw himself covered in black grimy stuff, he couldn’t help but frown deeply. Since he was too young, he lacked the basic knowledge of cultivation. His senses were far sharper than before and he felt his strength having risen over all.
He had a slender body, he wasn’t as built as his father but his strength was still quite strong. At seven years of age, he had the same strength as a professional bodybuilder had in his old world. The biggest change this time was that he could feel some strange energy all around him in the air. He couldn’t see or touch it but he could feel that it was truly there.
As he looked at his body and clothes covered in grime, he first tried to wash it off but since the grime was oily, that plan didn’t quite work. He still had no idea what this stuff was but the smell by itself was enough to make a person vomit his stomach out.
As he looked around in dismay, an aged figure suddenly appeared in front of him. Seeing the figure, Jack was startled for a second before he respectfully bowed and said, “Ancestor.” The old man neither nodded or said anything but just kept his gaze locked onto Jack.
After a few moments passed, he finally took a deep breath and asked, “Which major power are you from?” Jack was startled as he suddenly understood something. His behaviour wasn’t exactly befitting to those of the same age and his unusual behaviour had attracted the interest of his Clan Ancestor.
Jack straightened his back and looked into the old man’s eyes with the same confidence and coldness as when he was still at pinnacle of power in his past life. The old man was secretly startled. Jack then said with a wry smile, “To be honest senior, I am not from any major power. The reason I could reincarnate like this was due to a lucky chance of the Judge taking an interest in me.” As he said that, he didn’t bother trying to conceal the truth.
When growing up, he learned a lot about this world he was in. It was a hundred thousand times bigger than Earth and it was unified under a single power, the Xing Royal Dynasty. However, this world had two other special existences, the Nura Clan and the Fang Clan.
Both of the Ancestors of the Clan were people on par with the Royal Dynasties Ancestor in strength, so a delicate balance had formed between the three. The two Clans were wary of the power behind the Royal Dynasty and the Royal Dynasty was afraid of the two Clans teaming up if it tried anything funny.
Although there were hidden struggles between the three powers, on the surface they each gave one another face and never pushed things too far. To try and conceal something from a person that stood at the pinnacle of this World, was that not a good joke?
The old man’s gaze sharpened as he asked, “Then, who were you in your previous life. Those eyes, this aura…. It can’t be obtained from being just a normal person.” Jack gave a wry smile again as he said, “I was nothing more than a Mortal. To better my own life, I climbed over a mountain of corpses and obtained the power unparalleled in the world. I could appoint someone as a Leader of a country or take one off that seat with a single word.”
The old man was startled for a second but he didn’t show it on his face. Jack raised his head and looked at the sky as he said, “My previous world…. It was ravaged by war…. If you wanted to survive, you clawed at every opportunity and killed anyone in your way.” He then looked at the old man and gave a sad smile, “In that world, my family died when I was young, I stole, killed and murdered to survive. Even when I reached the top, I was still alone. Much like the path of cultivation is a lonely road to the top, so was my life in that world.”
The old man sighed as he revealed a gentle light in his eyes. His cultivation was worlds apart from someone like Jack, so he could see with a glance that Jack didn’t lie when he said all that. More like, it was heartfelt truth. The old man then pointed his finger out and the water from the river rose to the air and formed a small screen in front of Jack. The old man then said, “Walk through the water screen. It will take all the impurities off from you.”
Jack tilted his head as he looked at the water screen. He didn’t feel any maliciousness from the screen and carefully stepped through it. In truth, even if he tried to run away, he would have no chance in Hell outrunning the old man. If the old man wanted to do something to him, no one in the Clan had the qualifications to say anything about it.
As Jack passed the water screen, all of the black grimy stuff was washed off his body and clothes, staying in the water screen. Jack closed his eyes as he indulged himself in the feeling of cleanliness and the old man revealed a smile as he waved his hand, sending the water screen covered in grime flying to the distance. Jack opened his eyes and then bowed to the old man again, “I thank Ancestor.”
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The old man had visibly loosened up as he laughed it off and pointed towards the rock Jack sat on before. “Take a seat, I will explain what just happened to you.” Jack nodded his head as he took a seat on the rock. The old man then started, “That black grime were the impurities in your body that have accumulated over the years of eating mortal foods and by breathing in the foul air.” He then clasped his hands behind his back and said with a smile, “You have unintentionally stepped on the road of cultivation now. You have broken through to the first stage of Qi Gathering.”
Jack’s eyes went round as he absorbed the information the old man was imparting on him. The old man continued explaining, “There are a total of Thirteen Stages of Qi Gathering. After that comes the Foundation Establishment, Palace Building, Core Formation and finally the Nascent Soul Stage. These are called the Large Boundaries.”
Jack nodded his head as he committed everything the old man said into his memory. The old man then said, “After each Large Boundary comes a Tribulation to test your cultivation and determination. I will tell you more about the details of higher stages as you reach higher cultivation.”
Jack suddenly started as he looked at the old man with confusion in his eyes. The old man revealed a smile and said, “I have taken quite an interest in you, so I will guide you down the path of cultivation to the best of my ability.” Jack immediately stood up and cupped his hands as he bowed to the old man, “This Junior thanks Senior for his guidance to come.” The old man let out a laugh and gestured for Jack to sit back down.
After Jack sat back down, he continued, “There are two cultivation paths, Qi Gathering and Body Tempering.” The old man’s eyes turned solemn as he continued seriously, “Qi Gathering is faster and easier but is weaker than Body Tempering. Body Tempering on the other hand is several time more difficult and the degree of pain involved will be no small matter. Qi Gatherers specialize in magical combat while those that temper the body specialize in close combat.”
Jack tilted his head and asked, “Is the difference in strength between the two paths that big?” The old man sighed as he nodded his head, “Yes, it is a very large difference. A Qi Gatherer stands no chance against a Body Temperer of the same Boundary. Body Temperer’s are virtually unbeatable against Qi Gatherers of the same Boundary.”
The old man waved his sleeve as he said, “For example, an Early Stage Foundation Stage Body Temperer could fight a Qi Gatherer of the Late Stage Foundation Stage to a stand still. If the Body Temperer’s foundation is solid enough, he could even beat him.” The old man took a deep breath as he continued, “However, if the same Body Temperer were to put against an Early Stage Qi Gathering Foundation Stage cultivator…. Instantly getting killed isn’t a miracle if the Body Temperer can get into close range.”
Jack gulped as he learned of the vast difference between the two. As he looked at the old man in puzzlement, the old man chuckled as he said, “You are wondering why most people choose the path of Qi Gathering if it is so much weaker than Body Tempering?”
Jack nodded his head as the old man explained, “As I said before, the path of Qi Gathering is several times easier and far, far more painless. In addition, only Qi Gatherers can train in Alchemy, Forging and such. Body Tempering is a path focused on fighting while Qi Gathering is more focused on fine controlling their Qi which allows them to take up professions such as Alchemy and Forging.” Jack had a sudden face of realization as he understood why there were a lot more Qi Gatherer’s than there were Body Temperers.
The old man then turned serious as he asked, “Which path do you wish to follow: Body Tempering or Qi Gathering?” Jack fell into thought as he pondered on the question. Both Paths had their merits but at the same time both paths had their demerits.
Qi Gathering was easier and faster but resulted in less personal strength. Body tempering however was hover several times harder and more time consuming but at the same time, the gains were also several times bigger. Jack then asked, “Do Body Temperers have any side Professions as well?”
The old man nodded his head and said, “They can also forge weapons and lay down Arrays. Forgers in particular need a strong robust body to smith the weapons and armours. Arrays, they just follow ones own comprehension. If one has talent for them, he has talent for them. If not, then he just doesn’t.” He shook his head lightly as he finished his sentence, “It has nothing to do with the path one chooses.”
After saying so, he started sizing up Jack again as Jack pondered on which path to choose. If he didn’t see that Jack had talent for Body Tempering, he would have never even given him a choice in the matter. His mindset was also suitable as he wasn’t afraid of hardship or hard work. As Jack pondered on the merits and demerits of both paths, time slowly passed and the sun slowly set as night began to take over the forest.
The two, one old man and one young boy, were still by the side of the creek. The old man had all the time in the world so he wasn’t in a particular hurry and was actually approving of Jack taking his time with choosing. If he had quickly chosen a path, he would have disdained it instead but seeing as Jack is taking his time, it showed that he was currently seriously sizing up the merits and demerits of both paths and also his own strengths and weakness.
When the silvery moon stood high in the sky, Jack suddenly opened his eyes. Seeing this, the old man revealed a smile as he asked, “Have you chosen your future path?” Jack nodded his head as he answered with determination, “I wish to follow the path of Body Tempering.”