Azalon lay on the ground groaning, as the damage he took was not light at all, all the while cursing that pretty face bastard silently in his heart. After a long time, he grit his teeth and tried to prop up his body. With some great difficulty and agonizing waves of pain, he managed to slowly stand up.

                But as soon as he took some steps in the direction of the mansion of his family, a ‘Tong’ sound resounded in the air, as his face once again kissed the hard and unforgiving ground. Another wave of pain ran assaulted his already tight nerves. A low shout escaped his throat, as the pain this time, pushed the limit of his endurance.

As he turned his head, the reason of his fall entered his line of sight. The culprit of the incident was a green jade bottle that hit the back of his head. As he glared in the direction the bottle came from, a voice resounded beside his ears.

“That is a medicine for your injuries. Take it and hurry up. The one thing I hate the most is waiting for someone, and that too a brat like you. So, try not to make me irritated, Azalon~~~.”  The blatant pressure from the last sentence made shivers run up his spine, as he swallowed whatever the profanities that wanted to come out.

                He immediately took the bottle and as he opened the cork and tilted the bottle, a small green colored pill came into his palm. Vitality literally oozed out from the pill, and he stared in amazement as he could feel that this pill is not ordinary and of a very high grade.

                With a flick of his hand, the pill promptly landed on his tongue. As soon as he closed his mouth, the pill immediately melted, and with a cool sensation, it slid down his throat. He could feel the same coolness all over his body, and the pain immediately receded. His injuries healed at a rate visible to the naked eye. He could feel his bruised bones mending back, and his mind immediately sobered up as he almost let out a moan due to the comfortable feeling all over his body.

                Without any word, he turned and swiftly made his way back to his home, to meet his grandfather. It took him almost half an hour before he stood in front of the city gates. Generally, he would walk slowly enjoying the hustle and bustle of the city, but not today. He nimbly passed through the crowd on the streets, and only a short moment later, he was entering the gates of his family mansion.

                He did not slow down as he made a beeline to his grandfather’s cottage. The 3rd generation children practicing in the grounds gave him some puzzling looks as they could feel his hurrying pace.

“What is that trash up to, rushing through the family grounds like that? Does he think he is some important figure or something?” someone from the group commented in irritation.

“Ignore him. Whatever he thinks of himself, trash will always be trash. He is destined to be the bottom feeder of this family. Come on, let’s continue the practice. You know, I feel that I am so close to breaking through to the 5th level of the Spirit Sense Realm. I don’t have the time to mind some insects scurrying about.” Anyone could imagine the owner of these almost textbook narcissist comments.

                But Azalon was not in the mood to mind these words; as such he turned a blind eye to these obnoxious kids, and arrived at the garden of his grandfather’s cottage. He stood at the entrance of the garden for a moment, before taking a deep breath to calm down his excitement. He slowly walked in, and the sweet smells of various flowers and the lush green surroundings further calmed his mind.

                His grandfather is crouching near a plant tending to it tenderly and with great care. Azalon stood at a distance simply watching silently, in order to not disturb his grandfather. Only after his grandfather stood up and turned towards him with a warm smile, did he respond with a smile of his own and a wave.

“What’s the matter, Azalon? You are awfully excited today. Did something happen?” As expected of the leader of the family, his grandfather could tell his excited state with just a glance.

‘I guess that’s why they say that old people are a treasure trove of various life experiences.’ Azalon nodded his head while thinking.

“Grandpa, Um…Uh… I have to talk to you about something… ” Azalon stammered slightly as he did not think about the excuses in his rush to get to his grandfather. His mind raced through various scenarios and reasons he could tell his grandfather without arousing any doubts.

“First come and sit here, Azalon.” His grandfather waved his hand as the ground rose up before forming into two chairs. Azalon could never stop his amazement whenever his grandfather or the elders of the family play around with the elements.

                He slowly sat down into one of the chairs facing his grandfather, as he tried to come up with some reasonable reasons for his absence. He lightly sighed as nothing feasible came to his mind, enough to fool this old man watching him. So, he could only tell the truth with a mix of some lies in between.

“Grandpa, I am going out into the Wilderness for about 4 days. There is something I have to do, and I came to you to inform you so that you will not be worried when I will not be back for these 4 days.” He spoke along with as much seriousness and sincerity he could show on his face.

                His grandfather just sat there without moving, watching him intently with a sharp gaze. After a long time of scrutiny, his grandfather retracted his gaze, but the serious expression he had did not relax.

“I can tell that something important happened to you, otherwise you will not be talking like that. And I know that you can’t talk about whatever happened. I can respect that, but I have to make sure that nothing bad happens to you. So, you have to tell me something here, Azalon. I have to make sure that you are not falling for the promises of some dark faction, as i have seen some good people fall in that abyss.” The grave tone of his grandfather made him feel sure that he would never allow Azalon to walk away without a proper explanation.

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                Azalon felt a warm feeling bubble up in heart, as he could feel the concern his grandfather had for him in those serious words he spoke. He took a deep breath, and spoke a single sentence.

“He called himself Asma.”

                As soon as those words left his mouth, his grandfather froze. His expression slowly changed from the seriousness to that of astonishment, incredulity, before that old face brightened up with a boundless happiness. He stared at his grandfather, shocked, as two rows of tears fell from his grandfather’s eyes. Truth to be told, he never expected such a reaction to his words.

“Grandpa, what happened? Do you really know that person?” Azalon couldn’t help but ask when he saw his grandfather literally shaking with happiness.

“Azalon. Tell me, does that person resemble a very handsome young man, wearing black robes, and with a somewhat aloof personality?” his grandfather suddenly gripped his shoulders, while his eyes were shining with excitement and happiness.

                Azalon hurriedly nodded his head, all the while trying to guess the relation between that pretty bastard and this loving grandfather before him.

                It took a longtime before grandfather calmed down, but the happiness and relief he could see in those eyes never waned but instead increased with time. The doubts in Azalon’s mind increased as he watched all that happened after he spoke that man’s name.

“Grandpa, exactly what is the relationship between you and that pretty face?” Azalon asked probingly.

                The happiness of his grandfather immediately disappeared, the moment I asked the question. He lifted his head as his eyes lost focus, as if remembering things that were long lost in the flow of the time. His fists clenched tightly as his entire being radiated a loneliness and regret. His voice came from who know how deep, as he responded to my question.

“Let me tell you something, Azalon. The world is a very cruel, you know. There are things you can’t do in this world without enough strength. The moment you show any kind of weakness, the world will tear you apart bit by bit. The same thing happened between me and that man you met, as well as the master of that man. You don’t have the strength required to know of those things, Azalon. But if you do, that man will be the one who will tell you, not me.”

‘Something incredible must have happened between my grandfather and that man. And who can be the master of that bastard? Moreover what kind of relationship does a being of that kind of strength have with this old man? Anyway, with that pill that pretty face will give me, I will reach that stage one day, where I can demand all the answers I want.’ Azalon thought in his heart, and pushed the things to the back of his mind.

                The only thing he had to concentrate right now was to Awaken his Petrified Spirit, and take his first step onto the path of Cultivation, to achieve Immortality. He stopped his pondering, and looked at his grandfather, who was lost in whatever memories he was recalling.

“Grandpa, does this mean, I have your permission to go into the Wilderness for four days?”

“Hmmm? Ah, yes. You can go, and don’t tell that man that you told me about him. And remember, Azalon, never speak about that man or whatever he asks you to do to anyone. Not even to me, understand?”  His grandfather spoke with his seriousness returning once again.

                Azalon slowly nodded his head, as he had come to the same conclusion, as soon as that man showed him the Demon Cultivation Pill. He knew that pills of such kind should be rare enough to rile up the countries to the point of waging war against each other.

‘But there’s only one problem. How should I explain the Awakening of my Petrified Spirit? Hmmm… Whatever, I can ask that pretty face bastard, but I have a feeling that he wouldn’t care for such things and push it all on me. Maybe, grandpa can help me with it, as I can’t hide the secret of my Spirit from the family anyway.’  As these thoughts were bouncing through his head, he bid farewell to his grandfather, and made his way to his room, to make some preparations for the Re- Awakening. He still had some time before the appointed time with that pretty face.

“Marina, get some meat and large quantities of water to my room. And, Marina, make it fast. I have to go somewhere.” Azalon ordered a maid passing in the corridors before returning to his room. He had to take of his body conditions if he went to coma for 4 days straight. His metabolism should be maintained during that time; otherwise he may end up a dried husk due to undernourishment.

                The maid brought the platters of meat and large jugs of water, before withdrawing without any word. He smiled bitterly at that, as even the maids don’t respect him, even though he was the grandson of the family head. He shook his head and helped himself to the meat before dissolving some salt rocks and sugar clusters in the water. He drank the water until he felt his stomach’s going to burst.

                He lightly worked his body, and slowly walked towards the Wilderness with a smile on his face. He felt confident that today marks the day where he would start his journey into the exciting new world…