Damovotsk, Molkovia, Earth.
Demian's P.O.V.
As the words left her mouth, Demian nodded before downing his glass of wine. As the effect of the drink started spreading throughout his whole body, a satisfied smile appeared on his face, bringing a cheerful thought to his mind. ‘I’m getting stronger again!’ Turning his gaze in his Aunt’s direction, he spotted the mix of impatience and worry in her eyes, prompting him to explain himself. “Aunty, you should drink the wine. Mr. Anrepov was right when he said that it’d be extremely helpful to us.” Looking slightly doubtful, she nonetheless trusted him enough to follow his advice and mirroring his previous action, she quickly drank the whole glass before setting it down on the table and exclaiming. “Let’s go now!”
As she was about to stand up, the two were instantly transported back to their previous location, with the bar counter in front of them glaringly lacking in any human presence, while indistinct whispers and jazz music were still quietly resounding in the room, as if the prior encounter was simply an illusion. Of course, the warm energy strengthening his whole body coupled with the two books in his hand reassured him that everything that happened was not a figment of his imagination. With a wry smile on his face, he bowed his head lightly in the counter’s direction while claiming. “Thank you again for the books and the drinks.”
Turning toward Adeliya, he noticed the look of surprise on her face, probably from the feeling of the magical drink strengthening her body. “Shall we go?” His question woke her up from her light daze before she imitated him and thanked the bartender for his gifts. She then took his hand and quickly dragged him toward the exit, the young man not resisting at all. As the two were about the leave the premises, they froze for a second when they heard in their ears. “You’re very welcome. May you have a pleasant drive back.” As if in sync, the duo did not turn or reply but instead elicited to continue on their way to the car without speaking a word to each other.
Once they were about to reach it, Demian volunteered to drive them back, which was quickly accepted by the mature redhead, the latter giving him the keys after they were both seated inside the vehicle. Turning on the ignition, the young man inserted the SUV in the heavy night traffic, the car’s interior still silent for a few minutes before he could not hold it in anymore and asked gently. “Are you okay?” Throwing a brief glance in her direction, he noted the thin perspiration running along her cheeks and her forehead, her face reddening, and her disturbed breathing pattern. “I... I’m fine!” Hesitating for a second, she added. “The drink is making my body stronger, but at the same time, it feels... Anyway, it should pass with a bit more time.”
Nodding his head, he kept his eyes on the road as he continued. “It was really... Something! Back there, I mean.” Grunting in approval, she then replied. “I didn’t expect a superhuman from the Great families to deal with a ‘small’ problem like ours. It feels a bit unreal...” Shaking his head, the young man retorted. “Right! He was also surprisingly nice. Although we don’t really know his true intentions...” The two stayed silent for a few seconds, pondering over the previous scene before Adeliya responded. “He’s definitely after something, but I don’t think it should be anything bad. We still have to be careful though. At least, until one of us reaches his level of power. Whatever it may be.” “That’s the best way.” He replied firmly before adding. “Why don’t you take a look at the basic technique book? Just so that we can get a general idea about what we’re dealing with.”
Nodding her head, the woman grabbed the thin brown book lying on her thighs before opening it and started skimming through it for a while. A few minutes later, the middle-aged woman stopped reading and turned her face toward him before asking. “Do you want the long or the short version?” Pondering for a second, he then responded. “Just give me the general idea. I’ll read the book myself later. I mostly want to know about the power levels. Like where Big Sis and I are situated compared to the rest.” “Sure.” She responded with what seemed to be slight helplessness in her voice, pausing to think for a second before starting her explanation.
“So the gist of this is that ‘Superhuman’ is a wrong term to designate those people like you guys who train to attain your power level. The right term is ‘Cultivator’ and the reason for that is simply because you grow in power by cultivating what’s called ‘Spiritual Energy’ inside your body.” As his mind wrapped around what the woman was trying to explain, a thought came to him. ‘Sounds similar to what I read in those novels...’ “As for the level of power... Wait a second.” She rechecked the book quickly before continuing. “Found it. It says here that Mortal cultivation is divided into one preparatory Rank and six true cultivation Ranks. The one you’re in should be called Body Strengthening and it’s the preparatory Rank I just talked about.”
Letting out a sigh, Demian retorted. “So, even with my strength, I’m not a true cultivator... How strong are the real ones then?” Shaking her head, Adeliya replied. “It doesn’t say on there. Although, assuming that they should be very powerful is clearly a no-brainer.” Pausing for a second, she then asked. “Do you want to know the name of those ranks? It may be helpful, who knows?” Nodding his head, he claimed. “Go ahead.” “Mmmhhh... The first Rank is Chi Gathering, ‘Chi’ being another name for the ‘Spiritual Energy’ I talked about earlier. The second Rank is called Foundation Building, then Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Void Refinement, and lastly Tribulation Transcending. It also says that legend says that if one were to go beyond the last Rank, he or she would become immortal.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
While unconsciously scratching his smoothly-shaven chin, the young man commented. “Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Talk of being immortal is too far away from us. We haven’t even reached Chi Gathering yet. In any case, from what you told me, the people behind Petrovich should only be at the first Rank. It’s somewhat reassuring...” Wearing a wry smile, the older woman retorted. “We don’t even know how strong that is. I don’t see why you'd be happy about it.” After a few light chuckles, he explained. “Because, at least now, we’ve got a clear target. Whether he’s strong or not, not only can we reach his strength level, but we’ll also know when we do.”
As his words left his mouth, he noted the complicated look she threw in his direction before she replied. “You guys can do it, yes. Anyway, there’s something else in the book. It’s about the fact that when one reaches a higher Rank, they get a lifespan extension. An average Chi Gathering Cultivator will live for around 200+ years.” Cocking his eyebrow, the young man asked, puzzled. “That sounds like great news. So why the long face?” After his question left his lips, she turned her head away to look through the window on her right side before answering softly. “I... I’m not sure I can follow the three of you. I mean, with how quickly Bryn reached her current strength, I’m sure she’s talented enough to go very far and very quickly. Then there’s you with your incredible Perks and Sera who can rely on you through your Bond. The three of you are sure to reach incredible heights.”
Pausing her words for a few seconds, she then turned her head back in his direction, with her gaze trained on his face and her facial expression displaying her internal struggles. “What about me, then? I’m a 45-year-old woman with a hip injury that never healed correctly. It’s already hard for me to work out normally for too long because of it and from what I read in the book, the basic technique seems to be highly demanding on the body and the older one is, the harder it is to progress in it...” Moving her head to face the road, she lowered it a bit and then claimed. “Sorry, I’m just ranting. I shouldn’t bother you with that stuff...” Shaking his head at her apology, he swiftly grabbed her left hand with his right and declared firmly. “It’s never been and never will be a bother. I may not be the best when it comes to reassuring people, but I’m very willing to try. Especially for the people I care about.”
His words brought a timid smile to her worried face as she replied softly while squeezing his hand back. “Thanks...” Wearing a caring smile on his face, he looked at her briefly before refocusing his eyes on the road and adding. “And you don’t have to worry about keeping up with the three of us. I’ll pay almost any price and do almost anything to have the four of us stay together. And now that we’ve got a chance to live forever, there’s no way I would miss that opportunity just because of a silly reason like an injury. Nope. You’re with us for the long haul, Ms. Mikhailov.” She giggled at his half-joking, half-serious statement before teasing back. “You’ve really, become more dependable since you’ve got back your memories. It’s... Nice...” Flashing her a confident smirk. “What can I say? I’m amazing like that!” After a light chuckle, he added. “Joke aside, I want you to rely more on me. I’m not the little brat of two months ago anymore. I... I want to help you. Like, share your burdens or something like that. Does that make any sense?”
Nodding her head, a dazzling smile appeared on her face as she responded. “It does. That way, Bryn won’t have the excuse of being the only dependable person in the family besides me. Not that I can complain about having her take charge, but she tends to overburden herself too much. She seemed to think that she has to bear everything on her shoulders and I can see it’s getting to her.” Letting out a helpless sigh, the young man replied. “Yeah, I get what you mean. I noticed she changed a bit lately, though.” Following his words, a mixed expression appeared on her face as she stared at his face quietly for a moment, leading to ask. “What’s wrong? I’ve got something on my face?” Snickering at his question, she retorted. “She did change and it has everything to do with you.”
“Is it because I’m almost as strong as her?” He asked, after which she nodded her head and explained. “Yes. Do you know why she’s been so frustrated about not becoming a Superhuman... Wait, it’s ‘Chi Gathering Cultivator’, right? Keep in mind that she’s already the top as a ‘normal’ human.” After he shook his head, she explained. “Because that was the level of strength she needed to protect us against those so-called ‘Supes’.” Pausing for a second to think, she added. “Her father, your uncle, died in a military operation when she was only three years old. I’ve told you and Sera that already.” He nodded but kept silent. Seeing his reaction, she continued. “But I haven’t gone into too much detail. Martin didn’t die fighting enemy soldiers. At least, not in the way you might think.”
Shaking her head, she added. “If it was simply that, then Bryn may not have been so obsessed... No, the reason he was killed was simply because he was in the vicinity of a few Supes fighting each other and the shockwaves took his life and many other soldiers around. Or at least that’s what I pieced together from years of investigation. The reality is that despite being an Officer in the army, he died for nothing...” The mixed emotions contained in that sigh made him understand what she felt about the whole situation. It was not love or longing, as, after all, the man passed away many years ago and the two were only together for a few short years. Fondness for what was certainly a good man and some frustration at how unfair the society they lived in was. That was what he sensed from her sigh.
“So she thought that by reaching beyond the Master Rank, she’d be able to keep us safe? But what does that have to do with me becoming stronger?” He questioned, puzzled. She quickly replied to his query. “Because you can physically keep up with her. So, she probably removed some of the expectations she had for herself. Although, it may not be something conscious.” Her words made him ponder for a long moment before he came to a simple conclusion. “As long as it helps her.” Giggling at his short answer, she retorted. “You really have a way with words!” Following her remark, the two continued chatting with each other, until they reached their garage.