Chapter 3: Between Legends and Dreams
Lester sat in his chair, his thin frame slumped as he stared blankly at the black screen of his computer. His mind was spinning, replaying everything that had just transpired. The excitement from witnessing Li Xiao’s breakthrough still lingered in his veins, but it was slowly being replaced by a creeping sense of uncertainty and curiosity.
“Is he the strongest human on the planet now?” Lester muttered to himself, mentally going through a list of the known powerhouses of Earth. Several formidable names surfaced in his mind, causing him to quickly dismiss his own question.
"Tink." He powered his computer back on and opened a streaming service, flipping through the various channels, deep in thought.
“No way, the Water Prince is the undisputed number one,” he continued, talking aloud to himself as his eyes scanned the screen. “And then there’s the Sword Hero and the Wolf Madman—they should be stronger too.”
Lester's thoughts wandered to these well-known figures, each a legend in the world of cultivation. The Water Prince was another Chinese cultivator who had obtained a cultivation technique of unimaginable power. His control over water was said to be unmatched, earning him his moniker. Unlike Li Xiao, the Water Prince was widely believed to be on the verge of becoming a Late Stage Cultivator—the highest known cultivation level. When someone was said to be "one step away" from being a Late Stage Cultivator, it meant they were almost capable of filling their entire core with World Qi. No one had yet accomplished this feat, and the mystery of what would happen when it occurred remained unsolved. But if anyone could do it, it was the Water Prince.
Lester stopped scrolling through channels and landed on a popular stream featuring a scholarly man with circular glasses. The man spoke confidently about the current measures of power within the world of cultivation.
“The measures of power in the world today are as follows: from weakest to strongest—Foundation Cultivators, Beginning Stage, Middle Stage, and Late Stage Cultivators,” the man explained, walking across the screen and pointing to visual aids that showed a core gradually being filled with World Qi.
“Foundation Cultivators are those who have formed their cores but have not yet filled them with World Qi. It is said that in this stage, one should build a foundation in martial arts and mental fortitude to prepare for the cultivation road ahead. From then on, cultivators progress to the Beginning Stage, where their cores are one-third filled with World Qi. This stage is followed by the Middle Stage, where the core is two-thirds filled, and finally, the Late Stage, where the core is almost or completely completely filled…” The man continued, pausing at the center of the screen for emphasis.
The Sword Hero and the Wolf Madman were both considered Middle Stage Cultivators. Their statuses as two of the pillars of society highlighted the vast gap in power between them and the Water Prince. This cultivator, hailed as a prodigy, was a cut above the rest. Some attributed his strength to his cultivation manual, speculating that he had simply been fortunate to find such a powerful text. Whether he was a true genius or just exceptionally lucky remained a topic of heated debate among cultivators and scholars alike.
The Sword Hero was revered for his unparalleled control over World Qi. With only a few pages from an incomplete cultivation book, he had managed to use his Qi to control swords, moving them with such precision and speed that it looked like a dance of death. His initial idea was to manipulate guns, but he soon discovered a crucial limitation: World Qi was the most potent weapon in the world. If someone enveloped themselves in a barrier of World Qi, ordinary bullets became useless against them. Only World Qi could counteract World Qi. He had briefly considered the possibility of coating bullets with World Qi, but the task was deemed impractical and overly complex. As a result, many cultivators reverted to using ancient weapons—swords, spears, and axes.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
To Lester, it was a surreal sight to see people in this modern age carrying weapons from a bygone era, their ancient blades and staves gleaming under city lights.
The Wolf Madman was an entirely different breed. His cultivation book enabled him to transform into an alien creature, though the book, like so many others, was incomplete. Through painstaking research, pattern analysis, and experimentation, he had managed to create the subsequent stages of his technique, evolving into a massive, fearsome wolf with alien features. The transformed wolf towered over buses and possessed the strength to raze entire city blocks—its size and power rivaling the fictional kaiju monsters from old movies.
Transformation techniques had become some of the most mainstream cultivation methods, thanks to the abundance of similar books found among the crashed alien cargo. In addition new, strange creatures emerged almost daily, many being bizarre hybrids between Earth animals and extraterrestrial life forms as it seemed like the new awaken World Qi was changing the life within the planet.
“Li Xiao must be one step into being a Middle Stage Cultivator at this point, but who knows?” Lester speculated as he finally stood up from his chair. He placed his little booklet on the desk and tucked the chair back into place. “The top 10 strongest cultivators in the world are constantly changing.”
As he walked toward one of the doors, his steps faltered. A small cabinet stood beside him, against the wall, with a single drawer. His gaze lingered on it for a moment too long, and his heart began to race. Tiny beads of sweat formed on his forehead, and his hand trembled slightly. He quickly glanced away, shaking his head to dispel the thought, and continued toward the door.
Lester lived in a small, isolated house in a remote part of the Philippines. He wasn’t from here, nor was he Asian. His parents had traveled around the world frequently, and the Philippines just happened to be their final destination before fate claimed them. Both his parents died within the same year, leaving Lester alone. He found solace in this remote, peaceful place. After a lifetime of moving from city to city, country to country, Lester had grown weary of crowds and constant change. In fact, he was born on a flight over the ocean, complicating his birth records and creating a tangle of bureaucratic issues for his family. He had been living in this quiet corner of the world for the past eight years—just before the day of contact.
Entering the bedroom, Lester looked at the simple furnishings: a bed with a modest mattress and a small television on a wooden stand. He sat on the bed and turned on the TV. The screen flickered to life, displaying an Asian woman in casual clothing speaking directly to the camera like a seasoned newscaster. Large red letters at the bottom of the screen read “Breaking News” as she reported on Li Xiao’s recent breakthrough.
“Damn, they are fast, aren't they?” Lester muttered, impressed by the speed at which news spread these days. He reached for the remote and turned up the volume.
“The Chinese government is recruiting young cultivators to join their Cultivation Division. You will be guaranteed a cultivation technique as long as you swear loyalty to China,” the woman announced.
Although nations had initially come together to study the crashed alien ship and its contents, it quickly became clear that their cooperation would only last as long as their mutual interests aligned. In the end, each country sought to become the strongest, constantly vying for power and influence in this new era of cultivation.
“In other news, be cautious with online cultivation books,” the woman continued. “A thirty-one-year-old man died last night in his home after attempting to cultivate a technique from an online book titled ‘One Step From God.’ Online cultivation is dangerous and should be avoided by everyone.”
Lester listened, but his mind was starting to drift. Fatigue washed over him, and he decided to turn off the television. Lying back on his bed, he stared up at the ceiling, lost in thought.
“If I were a cultivator…” Lester murmured to himself, allowing his mind to wander into a world of fantasy. He imagined himself battling monstrous creatures, soaring through the skies, and wielding god-like powers.
But as his imagination took flight, a familiar image appeared in his mind—the small cabinet with the single drawer. His heart began to race, and his body tingled with a mix of excitement and fear. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he tried to calm himself and closed his eyes.