“How much time do I have?”
Spencer’s felt drained as he gazed up at the black robed woman. The bike accident had left his body in a mess, even the act of looking up strained his nerves.
When the stranger told him to leave the mortal world behind to join the cultivation world, no thought popped in his mind. But the hope which bloomed in his eyes brightened the ward otherwise filled with despair.
With no one to accompany the orphan in this lonely world, books were his only source of light before the ray of sunshine, his girlfriend entered his life.
And what other books other than webnovels to keep him company as their daily chapters reinvigorated him to keep living. It was inevitable that he had heard of cultivation.
The myth was real. The reality which would help him with an otherwise mythical feat of bringing Selena to the land of living.
Yes, it wasn't a revival. He knew she wasn’t, or rather, wanted to believe that she wasn’t dead. She was alive, trapped in the dead realm, and he only wanted to bring her back to the realm of living.
“A week. Here is my number, contact me within a week and I’ll come pick you up. Just pack your things and say your goodbyes, the legal matter will be handled by us. Remember, don’t speak about the cultivation world.”
By the time he had finished processing what she spoke, the mysterious person had already vanished, the card in his lap being the only proof that he wasn’t hallucinating.
He didn’t feel that any of this was unreal, scam or fake. He had personally been to the terrifyingly magical bridge, watched the black chains binding Selena and witnessed the two completely opposite realms of life and death. He couldn’t be more certain that there was a wider world beyond the one he had been living in until now.
Strength left his body as soon as she left, falling back onto his bed with vestiges of wounds he had incurred in the accident reminding him of the pain. He wished that was the only casualty which occurred. It would’ve been far more bearable.
Yet, despite the situation, a smile graced his lips as his eyes closed and eyebrows quivered. Salty tricklets of water dribbled down from the side of his eyes, reaching the inside of his ears, teasing his brain with a ticklish sensation. He had to stay strong.
“You are strong. There’s nothing you can’t do.” He heard her speak.
What reality refused to display, his brain made up for him.
Moments with Selena flashed past his eyes as he kept hearing her voice.
What felt like an eternity to him was but a minute in reality before his eyes opened with renewed determination. Gone was the boy who was wallowing in despair as he now considered his future steps.
Could anything which had already happened be reversed? No.
But could he do something about it? Yes.
Three days went by, with numerous checkups being done and doses administered. More time was spent sleeping than awake, numbing all the thoughts he might have had. He spent all the money he had saved for his future to heal his body. Some scars remained, but every internal and serious damage had been healed.
After Spencer was dispatched from the hospital, he quickly booked a cab for their apartment. When he finally got a break and some peace as soon as he leaned back into the seat, thoughts spiraled out of control.
Can I meet her parents? No, I don’t want to. She is not dead, yes. She is still alive. I can’t tell them anything about her, but they’ll know eventually. I am not her killer, I am going to save her. But what if they eventually know about it?
Spencer crumpled into the back seat of the cab while his hands grabbed a bunch of his messy black hair.
Yes. That woman! Could she help? She told me legal matters will be handled by them. Could she declare Selena missing? I’ll save her, then she can reunite with her family.
He hastily searched his pockets and took out the card with her number on it. When the cab arrived near their home, he paid the driver and after taking in the box outside, he beelined for the door. Shutting it close behind him, he called the woman without any delay in his actions.
“What? Are you done already?”
“No. I wanted to ask you something. Is it possible to not tell anyone of my girlfriend’s death? Declaring her as missing should be possible right?”
The woman was silent. This wasn’t the first time a mortal had requested something like this. Many who knew about the legends of cultivation wanted to bring back their loved ones, but none had succeeded. Requests like these were common. It wasn’t any difficult for her to declare his girlfriend missing and erase the memories of people who knew of her death, so she easily agreed to it.
He put down the phone with a relieved sigh and approached the box.
These should be Selena’s belongings right?
They lived together, so it was only obvious that anything which was on her at the time of accident would be delivered here.
It wasn’t much, he went through a few things and finally took out her locket. Its string was of earth brown color, possessing a soft texture, while its pendant was oval shaped and had a firm silver outline. A transparent protective film of unknown material encased a small seed inside, which could be opened with a small click. There was another button to open a small compartment, which housed a portrait of him.
Smiling slightly, he entered his room and rummaged through the drawers to find a small picture of Selena and replaced it with his in the pendant. Unlocking the clips on the string, he then gently wore the locket around his neck.
There wasn’t much left to do. Any other connections he had in this world were shallow, not worth it for him to tell them he was leaving the country.
Once again, he dialed the number of that woman while taking in a last look at his home. He didn’t need to wait long as she picked up after a few rings. This time, he spoke before she did.
“I am ready. Is there something important I need to take with me?”
The woman swallowed the words she was about to say and considered his question before answering.
“Nothing in the mortal world will be of use in your journey to cultivation. But if there’s anything which you want to bring with you for the sake of memory, feelings or such things, then you can do that. Keep in mind, you only get a small quarter so pack the things accordingly. You can take your phone for communication since you wouldn’t be getting a specialized one from the sect unless you have sufficient credits. About the clothes, food and other necessities, the sect will provide for you. That’s all.”
Spencer nodded solemnly, even though she couldn't see him through the call. When she finished speaking, he conveyed that he had completed everything he needed to and was ready to leave.
No sooner than he completed his sentence did a knock resounded through the door. Even though her entire body was covered up in black robes, including the face which had a black mask, he instinctively knew she was the same woman who had been in his hospital ward the other day.
“You aren’t taking anything?”
She asked, gesturing for him to follow her. He shook his head, and locked the door, following her after she refused his invitation to have a drink. It seemed they would be immediately leaving for the cultivation world.
“What will happen to my belongings?”
She replied without halting. “We can help you exchange them with spirit stones, which you’ll get at most a dozen, or you can keep them as they are. You need credits and spirit stones to buy your cultivation resources. And to earn them, you need to complete missions, some of which involve entering this world of mortals. At those times, you could simply use your house before you entered the world of cultivation as a place to live.”
He noticed they were walking towards a car. It was an offroad jeep, with a person already sitting behind the wheel. She told him to sit in the back and seated herself beside the driver.
He strangely didn’t feel any discomfort, or reluctance at the prospect of leaving everything he had behind to pursue cultivation. Selena was the only reason he needed, to do anything and everything to get her back.
When he noticed that the car was heading towards the center of the city, he was confused. After speaking out his doubt, the woman replied rather exasperatedly.
“I wasn’t alone when I picked up this mission to escort you. Someone else tagged along, we need to pick him up before we return to the sect. This driver is one of ours, you don’t need to conceal any matters regarding the cultivation world from him.”
“Oh, I see.” He nodded and leaned back into his seat. It was approximately twenty minutes later that the car stopped near a public library. A young man with a jovial smile walked out with a long umbrella in his hand.
As he was headed towards their car, Spencer took note of him. Unlike the fully covered woman, he was in a black tracksuit. With short black hair like himself, the man sported an ordinary face. One which would blend in the crowd quickly if not paid any special attention.
With a smile still on his face, the man opened the door and sat beside Spencer. He placed the umbrella beside him, and Spencer watched as the color on it faded, rather, it felt like the ‘umbrella’ itself was fading away. He looked on with bated breath as a long sheath with a delicately carved handle inserted inside appeared where the umbrella was.
“Surprised?”
The man suddenly asked. Spencer absentmindedly nodded his head as he turned to look at the man. He had a smug smile on his face which he quickly wiped away before he spoke up once again.
“Why do you look so down? Broke up with your girlfriend?”
Unpleasant memories sprung up in Spencer’s mind as opened his mouth without realizing.
“She is no longer here.”
“Oh…that’s not a way to break up with her you know.”
Spencer stared at him impassively, not knowing how to respond when the woman from front spoke in an admonishing tone.
“Don’t tease him, Atlas. Newbies picked up from outside aren’t in the right state of mind. They are leaving behind the place they lived in for their entire lives. Lord Lysander sensed his talent awakening when he returned to the sect yesterday, you can talk about it to him.”
The man, whose name seemed to be Atlas, was quick to retort. “C’mon Elena, don’t be so serious all the time. I’ll handle this.”
Without waiting for her, Atlas turned to Spencer and asked, “So, which sport do you like?”
The former’s question was entirely unrelated to cultivation or anything that woman Elena told him to converse with latter about. Spencer wasn’t inclined to answer him, but felt it would be better if he didn’t needlessly slight a member of the sect where he would be heading.
“Volleyball.”
“Oh. Professional hot potato.” Atlas nodded with a serious expression.
His lips cracked at the edges, curving into a slight grin. He had never heard his favorite sport being given that name. Atlas broke into laughter while pointing at him.
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“Got you, didn’t I?”
He calmed down, settling back into his seat with his right hand caressing his sword.
“Look, things might be hard but you should learn to accept them and move forward with it. I might come off as harsh if I tell you to move on from the love of your life, so instead, keep her in mind if you want. But also remember to not miss out on life, there's a lot it has to offer.
“Your lover wouldn’t want you to live your life in sadness, despair and hopelessness, would she? Wouldn’t she want you to live your life to the fullest? Enjoy, at least on behalf of her?”
He isn’t actually bad.
Spencer reevaluated Atlas in his mind. He came off as a prick with his first interaction but he was surprisingly a thoughtful individual. He realized just how less stressed he suddenly was. It was as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulder.
Yes. Selena isn’t even dead. Would she be happy if she knew I went through life entirely despondent? I need to have stories to tell her when we reunite. Happy stories, exciting stories, interesting stories. She knows everything about me till now, the rest I’ll have to live for her so she would have plenty to listen to when we reunite.
Spencer’s face broke out into a genuine smile as he gratefully thanked Atlas. Who knew how long he would have wallowed into his previous state before snapping out of it and having the realization he received now.
He realized they were already nearing the edge of the city, and would soon be driving into the outskirts on the lonely roads. With curiosity bubbling in him, he asked.
“Where is this cultivation world exactly? Are there teleporting formations or something similar in place?”
Atlas chuckled from the side. “Oh, do we have another reader among us now? Mortals really have a rich imagination. You aren’t completely wrong.
“There are teleporting formations in place all over the world which lead to the cultivation world. Of course, it’s guarded by cultivators, so mortals wouldn’t be able to enter even if they wanted to. Even weapons like nuclear bombs can only do so much damage to it before we can get the formation up and ready again. So it’s not fragile either.
“It’s like an independent world, far larger than the Earth, which connects to this planet at different places. We are going to one such place right now.”
Spencer seriously listened to him, taking in all the knowledge he could. “Can you tell me more about the cultivation world?”
“Curious aren’t you? I was getting to that.”
Atlas grabbed the handle of his sword, removing it from his sheath and placing it on his lap. The man took out a cloth from his pocket and began wiping it across the sword while he shed some light on the unfamiliar world for the newbie.
“Like I said, the cultivation world is a different but bigger world altogether. So we also have our fair share of people who don’t cultivate, we call them mortals. Those who do are, obviously, called cultivators. Sects are the biggest force in this era of cultivation, then the noble families who form their own force, often dependant on a sect to rule the city for them. They are the intermediary between the cities and sects, the one who conduct examinations and such to select batches of excellent seedlings to send them to the sect they are tied with.
“The sects exist solely to train disciples, and expand their area of influence so they could get more cities under their control, therefore more good seedlings. Of course, there are also plenty of tournaments which encourage the youths to participate, granting various rewards if they happen to put up a brilliant performance.
“There are some excellent seedlings who awaken a talent. Talents are extremely rare, sometimes granting them extraordinary affinity with an element, or type of techniques, like physical or mental. Sometimes they also grant skills to the individual. Talents are highly variable, and there is no known pattern yet.
“This is also where you guys come in. The high ranks in the cultivation world can sense people who awaken talents on Earth. Depending on where the target lived, the corresponding sect who had that area under their jurisdiction sent disciples to fetch the target. Of course, the target can refuse.
“Righteous sects will simply leave you be, and no other sect will disturb you again. But the same cannot be said for Demonic sects, they force the target to follow them without any chance of refusal, and may also enter areas under other sects if their high ranks were able to sense a talent there.
“Don’t worry, no sect, be it Demonic or Righteous, would dare to enter our area. We are currently the strongest sect, and honestly, our pursuits are also a bit different to them. A space passage has been opened up in our sect in the last decade, and it leads to the land of demons. We —”
“Shush. Tell him that later, we’ve arrived.”
Elena spoke out from the front, interrupting the explanation.
Spencer looked out of the window to see that they had arrived in an empty area of land with just a single house in sight. At some point they had deviated from the road and entered the forest, driving through the trees to reach a place of clearing.
Elena alighted from the jeep and approached the house. Just then, a man appeared on the balcony in tight fitting clothes wrapped around his body. The two conversed for nearly a minute before she returned.
Spencer could hear nothing at that distance but could guess that they were some kind of guards and Elena had just gotten the permission to go through.
The jeep roared into action as it began moving straight.
As it crossed the house, Spencer’s surroundings began to blur. A crushing sensation engulfed him, as though his entire body was being forced into a box too small to contain him. It was the kind of horror that would paralyze anyone with claustrophobia. For those with arachnophobia, it was like the unseen crawl of countless spider legs skittering across their skin.
Just when he thought he couldn’t endure a second more, the sensation abruptly vanished. Spencer gasped desperately, his lungs hungrily drawing in every molecule of air as if he could somehow inflate himself back to normal size. His chest heaved, trying to undo the feeling of having been compressed into nothing.
The two seniors watched their newbie struggle but refused to help. It was a reminder of sorts that he was now in another world, which worked on different rules and regulations.
After about a minute of readjusting, he looked around to find that none of the three, including the driver, appeared least bit troubled by the crushing sensation.
He swallowed the piece of resistance he was about to mount and instead looked around. They seemed to be in some kind of parking lot as he could see numerous other different types of cars parked. Many of them were being driven off to who knew where while plenty were being brought into the parking space. The place was busy, there was no one like him who was staring like it was their first time.
Talents really are rare huh? What kind of talent do I even have? Is there a procedure to find that?
The clothes of everyone were the same as those worn by the people on Earth. There were a few unique ones, like Elena, but the rest looked the same to him.
Numerous booths were set up where the cars stopped for a moment, likely registering themselves, before moving in or out.
After the four of them exited the car, the driver bid them farewell and headed off towards a different building in the distance.
“I’ll take my leave too. I only tagged along to get fresh air from my monotonous schedule. I’ve got to return to my work now.”
Atlas informed after the driver left. Elena turned to him, and it felt like she smirked behind her mask before mocking.
“Please, keep your delusions to yourself. Your schedule is anything but monotonous, everyone would drown you in their spit if you said that out in public.”
Atlas simply shrugged and waved off to Spencer as he left in a different direction.
As far as Spencer could see, there was only a dense forest beyond a few buildings located on the outskirts of this open parking lot filled with booths.
“The nearest city is just across this forest, don’t worry, it has been cleared of all the monsters. After reaching the city, we’ll take a transport to the sect area.
“By the way, our sect’s name is the Boundless Sky sect, currently ranked 1st in the world.”
An undertone of pride creeped into Elena’s voice as she spoke the last sentence. Just as she finished, a voice was heard in their ears at the same time.
“Is he the talent I sensed?”
A middle aged man with long blue hair emerged from a nearby building they were passing by.
“Lord Lysander! Greetings to the Primordial Lightning, I didn't know you were here, else I would have surely visited you as soon as I arrived.”
The middle aged man gently smiled as he consoled the panicking woman.
“Elena, I’ve told you countless times to treat me as you would to any other elder. Don't fret it. I was here to take a look at the talent I sensed. It’s not often I am in the cultivation world to do such things, so I got curious.”
Spencer bowed when the middle aged man looked at him. He knew enough about the cultivation world from books that strength was revered, and respected here. Judging from how Atlas explained only high ranked figures could sense talents, without any doubt, this middle aged man was one of them.
“Hmmm do you know anything about your talent yet?”
Spencer shook his head when Lord Lysander asked him about his talent. He hadn't felt anything even remotely different with himself since the accident.
Does that mean he has no idea about the experience I had on the bridge?
The middle aged man narrowed his eyes as he spoke. “I definitely sensed a talent awakening in you. Maybe it will reveal itself once you start cultivating, there have been plenty of such cases.
“Anyway, even though you aren't my disciple, it's me who could be said to have brought you here.”
He then looked at Elena and continued. “Notify Alice to give him a 1000 spirit stones, once you reach the city. She should be awake by now, and tell her to take the lad to the sect. You should focus on your cultivation instead of doing all the errands.”
Elena bowed deeply before replying. “Lord, let me do the work, it’s the least I could do. I swear I am not neglecting my cultivation.”
The man simply waved his hand off and left after leaving a few more sentences. “Enough. Just do as I say. I want you at a higher minor realm before I return from the Demon world next time. It’ll also do good for Alice to work a little more.”
Elena did a minor bow in the direction in which Lord Lysander left before heaving a sigh.
Spencer, a bit clueless about their discussion, asked the thing which stood out the most to him.
“Is the demon world the land of demons Atlas talked about? And from his talks it looks like Lord Lysander stays there more than here in the cultivation world?”
Elena sent a worried glance in the direction Lord Lysander left before she resumed moving towards the nearest city, entering the forest while answering Spencer.
“Yes, that is what he was talking about. About Lord Lysander, he is well known in not just our sect but throughout the cultivation world in being a battle maniac. Before the demon world opened up a space passage leading to our sect, he used to go around picking fights with everyone in the world.
When an unfamiliar space passage suddenly opened up in our sect, tons of demons rushed out to kill into this world. Thankfully our sect acted quickly and suppressed the disaster.
Ironically, ever since then, the entire world had more feelings of gratitude about the fact that Lord Lysander fought in the demon world than feelings of gloating when the strongest sect faced the brunt of the invasion. Likewise, even the Boundless Sect felt grateful about the passage since Lord Lysander would stop making enemies for them. He returns to the cultivation world only if he ever gets seriously injured.”
Spencer felt a strange emotion well up inside him as he listened to her talk about him.
This is how a man should be. This is cultivation!
The rest of the time till they reached the city, Elena poured in as much basic knowledge about the cultivation as she could.
Finally, the massive city walls came into his sight, with the word Velaris written across the walls in huge bold format.
It took approximately 10 minutes to enter the city after waiting in the line outside. Without waiting for anything else, Elena took him where Alice stayed and left after telling him a few things.
“I’ve already notified Alice, she should be here soon. Don’t worry, she owns this hotel, no one else will enter this place except for the staff living here. The rest of the introduction and other work will be done by Alice. You have my number, give me a call if you have any difficulties.”
He looked down at the assortment of food on his table. It wasn’t much different for Earth either. He gorged on food, since it was the first in 4 days that he was eating real food, something other than the liquid portions fed to him in the hospital.
Elena said Alice was Lord Lysander’s personal disciple, but she was extremely lazy, completely unlike her master. She said that Alice was chosen purely based on her monstrous talent, it was also the only reason she wasn’t lagging behind other disciples of her age.
She said I should start calling others with their formal titles rather than on a first name basis. According to her, I should be an outer disciple of the sect. Currently everyone is a senior brother and senior sister regardless of their age. Others who aren’t disciples have other titles, like elders, I’ll gradually learn about.
As he was halfway through his meal, one of the doors in the hall opened up and a petite woman walked in while rubbing her eyes. He guessed she was barely 5’5, and when she put down her hands, her face came into his view. Judging from her overall looks and vibe, he immediately thought of a motto she must be living by.
With great cuteness comes no responsibility.
The woman sat on the chair opposite him and yawned after putting up a pouch of leather on the table. She immediately spoke after she was done yawning,
“I really need to start sleeping before midnight like normal people. Everyday I sleep the next day, and even yesterday I slept today. Are you getting me?”
Spencer unfortunately understood every single word. As a youth of the modern era, he had stayed up late countless times to train his hand doing honorable deeds before getting into a relationship.
She complained more to him about her daily lifestyle and minor inconveniences in life before moving onto actual important things relevant to him. He nodded and conversed with her occasionally while eating his food so that he could learn more and it wouldn’t be a one sided conversation. Unfortunately she also had the habit of putting in absolutely irrelevant gossip or information he had no business knowing.
Talking so freely with a stranger she just met. An extrovert thorough and thorough.
After finishing his food, he reached out for the pouch on the table. That’s when something happened. As soon as he touched the pouch, a line of words materialized in his mind.
[Minimum wealth for system activation: 1000 spirit stones]
[Successfully achieved]
Fuck! A Golden Finger which discriminates against the poor. Would I have never unlocked it if my poor self didn’t receive this donation? This shit is economically racist!