Zao Ning follows Grand Elder Chi into Heaven's Pavilion while the two guards turn a shade of pale white.
"We are so dead." one of the guards say while gulping. They realized that the two have just offended the strongest Elder's only disciple in all of the Elder's life.
While figuring out what to write in their will's, the two guards can only imagine what unspeakable things will be done to them.
Zao follows Grand Elder Chi around the Heaven Pavilion and gives Zao a personal tour.
"This is the Techniques hall. Here, disciples can trade in Heavenly points for every type of technique imaginable." Grand Elder Chi says while pointing to a metal building.
Zao just glances at the highly secured metal building as he plans on visiting it later and only needs to memorize its location for now. Continuing on with the tour, Grand Elder Chi brings Zao to a large tower that pierces the skies.
"This is the Battle Tower, disciples can test their strength against many monsters in order to gain Heavenly points here. Beside the tower is the Missions building. There, disciples can gather missions in the outside world to be able to-."
*Gentle yawn*
Grand Elder Chi is stopped mid sentence due to Zao's yawning. This isn't all just Zao being disrespectful, but he is actually fairly tired right now. Evolving took enough out of the reincarnated dragon, and he even had to fight and chase two people down.
Grand Elder Chi just laughs at the boy and continues with the tour, knowing that Zao is actually paying close attention, even if he doesn't seem to be. Truth is, Grand Elder Chi can sense something very immense and ancient inside of Zao, Zao just doesn't know it.
Grand Elder Chi shows Zao more important buildings, being the Elder's hall, the Reprimanding hall, the Test Arena, the Weapon Shops, and finally Zao's new estate. Zao makes sure to make a mental note of all of these places and then follows Grand Elder Chi into the Elder's hall.
Walking into the Elder's hall, Zao is surrounded by large glass statues meticulously hand crafted of all the legendary heroes of the Heavenly Pavilion. Bits of their power leak from the statue, leaving off kingly auras to any mortal who seems them.
Weak, the heroes are much more intimidating in person. This is a disgrace to the heroes if anything!
Zao is not pleased with how the Heavenly Pavilion honors their most legendary members but what more did Zao expect? This is just the Mortal Realm after all.
Showing Zao their ancestors and coming to the end of the tour, Grand Elder Chi pulls out a robe and some items wrapped inside of it out of nowhere. Zao is able to identify the pocket dimension bracelet that the items were previously stored in on the Grand Elder Chi's left wrist and his eyes shine with greed.
Those greedy eyes disappear after a few seconds though as Zao is not dumb enough to bite the hand that feeds him.
Grand Elder Chi hands the items over to Zao Ning with an expectant look in his eyes.
"I am giving you enough items to be able to cultivate on for a while. If you want some insight tips or some tips on anything at all, just come find me. Your insignia will lead you to me."
Grand Elder Chi then leads Zao Feng out of the Elder's Hall and then disappears inside. Zao immediately puts on the white robe that is accented with silver swords on the cloth. Warmth fill Zao's bones and a chill covers his skin, keeping his body at a perfect temperature.
Zao nods in approval and sees that the robe fits perfectly and even came with a hood. Zao now looks at the items with the pockets of the robes. Inside of his right pocket is something that makes Zao's eyes shine in excitement.
A pocket dimension ring! That Grand Elder Chi has more power than I expected. To be spoiling me like this though is rightfully deserved as I am the Dragon Emperor.
Former Dragon Emperor but whatever, anyways, Zao puts on the ring and is surprised to see many herbs and different colored books filling the 1 cubic meter big pocket dimension. Also in the ring seems to be some healing potions that Zao will be able to use in case of emergencies.
Pocket dimensions are small dimensions stored within an item that can bring things in and out of reality. When an item is stored within the pocket dimension, the item disappears from the reality of the outside world and is brought into the pocket dimension reality. Zao's is fairly small as it is only 1 cubic meter wide but Zao won't complain about the free hand out.
In his left pocket, the boy finds an insignia. Zao puts it on his shoulder and the insignia of two golden and silver swords crossing each other, the symbol of the Heavenly Pavilion's lower tiers, attaches itself to Zao's robe. Zao smiles and takes in a deep breath and then lets it out slowly.
In the distance, the sun is setting and the feeling of sleepiness hits Zao like a fist to the face and Zao wonders if he should just go to sleep right now.
Yet for some reason, Zao feels like he is forgetting something.
Yes, I'm forgetting something very important...
...
...
OH SHIT! MOTHER WILL BE PISSED!
Zao remembers that his mother is still in that shitty shack located in the middle of an abandoned slums and he had jsut forgotten about her due to all the information he had to learn after joining the sect.
A flash of white and silver begins to zoom out of the Heavenly Pavilion at high speeds as Zao runs his way home. Managing to find his way back to were he killed that cannibalistic man, the corpse still there but it is now being feasted upon by birds, Zao runs back out of the woods and into the dirt road he was taking back home.
Not stopping for anything at all and still running at max speed, Zao makes it home just as the sun is setting. Zao slows down as he approaches his house and tries to catch his breath.
Walking up to his house, Zao can feel something is wrong. It is quiet... too quiet.
Zao slowly walks into his house and as he looks unto his and his mother's bed, Zao's heart drop to the bottom of his chest.
no.... No... Where is she?
Zao silently sneaks into his house and searches everywhere, even under the bed. Looking outside, Zao can see the sun disappear and darkness beginning to place the dim light.
Zao's heart sinks to the bottom of his chest as Zao knows the dangerous of the abandoned slums and the area around it at night. Sure Zao can run around with no fear due to his cultivation and peak tier abilities but what about his mother? She is just a mortal after all.
Zao goes outside of house, only after double checking that his mother isn't here. Outside, Zao turns around and flexes his legs. Shooting into the air and landing on top of his shack, Zao now has a better view of the area around him.
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Staff in hand, Zao's eyes dart around all of the area around him, searching for any signs of his mother. In the distance, Zao can only see a flock of Danger Birds and other than that, there are no other signs of life.
Danger Birds are a Base Mortal Realm animal but yet they signify great dangers. Danger Birds follow the most dangerous animal in the area around and pick up the scraps left behind by said animal. Zao can see that these Danger Birds seem to be flocking towards the stream where his mother and him usually get food from.
With a spark shooting through Zao's body, Zao can feel a spiritual connection with his mother. The connection screams at Zao, telling him his mother is in danger. Zao's expression turns serious and even the fatigue once plaguing him washes away. The fatigue is replaced by adrenaline and Lightning Ki as Zao activates the one murky dark blue lightning worm within his veins.
The worm begins to wriggle and Lightning Ki is sent to every inch of Zao's body. His platinum hair stands up like spikes due to the electric shock going through them and sparks of lightning emit from Zao's body.
Fusing himself with his Ki and boosting his strength and speed, Zao pushes his body to the limits as the Lightning Ki is searingly painful to Zao's newly evolved body. This is a technique one is supposed to learn at the Spirit Realm, but since Zao already has the knowledge of fusing one's Ki with his body, Zao can do so.
There is consequences though as a 4th Mortal Realm body is not made to handle this amount of power.
I have about 15 minutes like this... It should be enough to kill whatever weak creature is out there.
Zao nods his head and a dead serious look covers his face. Fully concentrating on controlling his Ki for now so it doesn't go haywire, Zao disappears from sight for anyone if they were watching and heads to the sight of the Danger Birds faster than most eyes can see.
It takes Zao 1 minute to run the 10 Kilometer distance from his house as his footsteps leave deep imprints on the ground. Zao can already feel his blood begin to boil, which is not a comfortable feeling.
Shitty body! If you don't make long enough to save mother, I will kill you!
Zao yells to himself while indirectly threatening to end his own life, Zao can finally see the beast that all of the Danger Birds are attracted to.
A large tiger with a pair of wings stands tall and proud. The aura of a peak 5th Mortal Realm beast emits from the horrifying tiger and a small presence quivers in front of the beast.
Mother!
Wei Ning lays on the ground, head bloodied and her sides cut open, blood pouring out of them into the ground. Zao's iris and pupil's become as small as dots and anger helps fuel the adrenaline pumping through his body.
Grinding his teeth so hard that they begin to creak as if they are going to crack, Zao has a truly expression and horrifying expression on his face.
The tiger has yet to sense Zao and slowly approaches Wei Ning while seeming to laugh at the woman. Zao looks down at the staff in his right hand and without a second to spare, the staff explodes into a bright blue. Lightning replaces the staff's wooden frame and a sharp tip made of the lightning forms at the tip of the staff.
The staff groans in displeasure as it threatens to break if this keeps up but Zao could truly give a fuck less at this point.
Reeling his arm backwards and getting into a throwing position, Zao aims for the area between the tiger's shoulder blades and wings, as he senses this is its weak point.
YOU BASTARD! DIE!
Zao screams in fury inside of his head so the tiger doesn't heard him and he lets the Lightning spear fly.
KACHAAAA~!
Time seem to stop as the Lightning Spear flies through the sky towards the tiger at speeds that Zao's eyes can barely keep up with.
Flying at the tiger with the insights of a Fiend Realm being and the fury of an ancient dragon, the lightning spear is strong enough to kill most 5th Mortal Realm monsters, but alas, to Zao's dismay, the word almost doesn't include this tiger.
BOOM!
The sound of the spear exploding as it hits the tiger's back shatters the ears drums of everyone within a 5 kilometer radius and even causes Wei Ning's ears to begin to bleed. She can't even feel it as she is unconscious from the tiger's first attack.
ROOOOAAAAARRRR!
The ear drum shattering boom is followed by a chest shaking roar as the tiger screams out in pain. Sure the spear didn't kill the tiger but pelt on the tiger's back is now completely destroyed and only bits of its muscle and a small glint of bone from its spine remain.
Zao doesn't waste a second as his time is limited and begins to run towards the tiger. Hearing the sounds of crackling lightning coming from Zao and now being able to sense the immense amount of Lightning Ki emitting from Zao, the tiger tries to prepare itself for battle.
Unfortunately for the tiger though, that lightning spear was filled with the insights from an ancient dragon and causes the tiger to become paralyzed for a few seconds. These few seconds are enough for Zao though as he already arrives at the tiger.
Leaping into the air, Zao lands on the back of tiger and draws his right arm straight into the air. Lightning covers his whole hand and Zao readies his palms attack.
"Break!" Zao yells as he sends his palm straight down onto where the tiger's spine can be seen. Zao activates Rock Cracking Thrust to its fullest potential and when his palm actually hits the tiger's bone, Zao can feel his whole body go numb.
Sending Zao flying backwards into the air due to the rebound, the tiger falls to the ground, limp and unable to move. Before doing a flip in the air to where he is facing the sky, Zao could see that he had cleanly snapped the tiger's spine in half.
Preparing his body and a bloodthirsty smile spreading across his face, Zao finally reaches the climax of his flying experience. Being around 20 meters in the sky, Zao makes sure to get a good look at the area around him. Looking into the sky, Zao can see the bright moon shine down on him.
Man, I miss having fights for my life. Even if this was one sided, I still had a sense of danger I haven't had in a long time...
...
I might enjoy this second life of mine.
Zao has a enlightening moment while falling from the air. A weird time to have one in my opinion, but who am I to judge the reincarnated dragon?
CRASH~
Zao crashes into the ground and he can feel his bones creak and moan in pain. Surprisingly to Zao, no bones were broken but he would definitely have a large amount of bruises tomorrow.
Getting up and not deactivating his Lightning Ki, Zao limps over to the limp body of the tiger. Surprisingly the tiger is not dead yet but the tiger cannot move a single bone in it body. All the tiger can do is cry out in pain but even then, that hurts the tiger even more.
Coming in of the tiger, who is laying flat on its stomach, Zao walks up to the tiger's head. Putting his foot ontop of the tiger's nose, Zao looks down at the beast in disdain.
"Let this be a lesson for you in the next life young one. There is always someone stronger than you and you should always watch your back. I've learned from experience." Zao says like he is an old man lecturing a child.
The tiger only stares up at Zao with pure hatred and anger but Zao only laughs at the tiger's emotions. Opening up its mouth, Zao flexes his muscles and rips out one of the two biggest teeth with the tiger's mouth, covering his hands in blood in the process.
"Goodbye and good luck in the next life."
Zao says a prayer for the tiger as he lifts the tiger's ripped out tooth in the air with both hands. The tooth streaks down at high speeds and embeds itself inside of the tiger's eyes. The tooth pierces the tiger's skull and goes straight into its brain, killing the tiger.
Only then does Zao relax and release the Lightning Ki building in his body. Zao looks down and sees blood dripping from some of his pours and finally, Zao vomits a mouthful of blood.
Nearly passing out due to over exerting his body, Zao manages to catch himself from falling over and Zao balls his hands into fists.
Not yet! Just hold out a little longer! Zao yells to himself. Continually pushing his Mortal Realm body past its limits, Zao pulls out two red colored potions from within his dimensional pocket. This is one of the three health potions his master had given to Zao.
Popping open the cork to one and having the smell of medicinal herbs assault his nose, Zao tips his head back and downs the potion within seconds. Being a low level potion, its effects will react slowly but it is better than nothing for now. Zao then pops open the cork to the second one which lets out a much stronger smell of medicinal herbs as it is the highest level potion of the three. One can tell this by the deep red color of blood compared to the watered down version Zao had drank.
Limping weakly over to his mother, Zao falls to his knees right beside his injured mother. Zao puts his mother's head into his lap and pours the health potion down her throat. Wei Ning has enough life within her still to swallow the potion but still needs Zao's assistance as she is unconscious. Zao massages the woman's throat to help the potion go down smoothly as he fades in and out of consciousness.
The powerful health potion does its magic and the wounds on Wei's body closes and color returns to the woman's skin.
Zao gently caresses his mother's head as he struggles to keep awake. Zao begins to think where he went wrong.
How is my mother so unlucky as to have met the strongest beast within 10s of kilometers? Where did I go wrong? How will I be able to protect mother while continue down my path of cultivation.
An idea hits Zao in the back of his tired head.
What if I helped mother cultivated herself? I could use my newfound support of the Heaven's Pavilion to help her get to a level which I can be more of a teacher.
Zao does not have much knowledge of the Mortal Realm's process as he didn't have to go through it. The only reason Zao is zooming through it right now is due to his insights in Lightning Dao being at the peak rank in the Fiend Realm.
Nodding to himself and finalizing his decision, the bloodied boy caring for his mother decides to bring the woman he cares for the most with him through the path of cultivation.