Once grandpa Mo had organized and confirmed all the necessary details with the sage. He hugged zhen. Looked him in the eye and proceeded to hand him a golden scroll with four seals on it.
Zhen was instructed only to open it once he reached the early core formation. And just like that, Grandpa Mo was gone. All that was left was zhen, the sage, his wife, and the little girl. After his grandfather left, the sage signaled for both zhen and the little girl to join him under the tree.
Zhen sat on the right side while the little girl sat on the left. Eager to finally start cultivating, zhen looked at the sage with anticipation. The sage could sense the gaze indirectly. Reluctantly, he sighed and began his lessons.
Sage:
"I don't want to, but I need you both to be familiar with each other. Since you will be fellow disciples. She is the daughter of the immortal emperor, Ruoyan Tianjin. And he is Zhen Tianxiu, a very well-known troublemaker.
I can see, however, that both of you have met. And clearly, neither of you seems surprised by the other's background...How boring, not the reaction I was going for.
I will head inside to bring the scrolls you need to begin. Try not to kill each other while I am gone".
Seeing the sage enter the house, she, as if trying to reclaim some ground after being teased, turned toward Zhen. She crossed her arms and gave him a confident, almost arrogant smile.
Ruoyan:
"So you're not just some random weird pervert after all."
Zhen:
"Pervert? I ran through a forest of illusions just to pass a test. I didn't even know you were here. I'm four—why would I care about that?"
Ruoyan tilted her head slightly.
Ruoyan:
"Well... I thought you were peeping."
Zhen:
"If I were that kind of person, the sage wouldn't have let me stay. And I am too busy enjoying the immortal world to care about that".
Ruoyan looked away for a moment, thinking. Then, without a word, she pulled a small stone from her sleeve—smooth and round, with faint patterns.
She extended it toward him.
Ruoyan:
"Here. I found it earlier. You can have it. And I'm... sorry for calling you that."
Zhen took the stone gently. A quiet warmth stirred in his chest. It wasn't just the gift—it was the way she said it. Honest. Unfiltered. Deep inside his core, a warm sensation could be felt, cuddling his inner sea.
Zhen:
"…Thanks, I will make sure to keep it safe."
Ruoyan:
"Safe? You don't have to; it's just a random rock; you don't have to keep it if you don't want to."
Zhen:
"I won't do that; this is the first gift I've ever received from someone who wasn't from my clan. And how old are you?"
A giant smile erupted on her face, and she gleefully stood up. As if pronouncing to the world, she looked down at him and shouted
Ruoyan:
"I AM FIVE YEARS OLD, which is one more than now, and that makes me your older sister".
Zhen:
"Really? Do you mean it?".
Ruoyan:
"Yup, from now on you are my little brother Zhen'er, so you will call me big sister Ruo."
As if taking an oath, Zhen and Ruoyan had declared themselves as each other's best friends. Watching from the small window next to his wife. The sage was somewhat proud, since he didn't have to try and get them to get along.
Sage:
"Ok, ok, that's enough. Sit back down under the tree. I don't feel like doing more than I want to. Now, just to be clear, you both have not yet become my official disciples. To become my disciples, you must fulfill three conditions. The first condition is for you to master a technique I created sixty thousand years ago. I named it [a mortal's entry to space]. It has three stages. You are to master the first stage within the one-hundred-year time limit.
Second, if you can reach the early stage of core formation. For the third condition, you must open up at least 1 extreme meridian. The one-hundred-year time limit was set by the ancestors and had remained a staple rite of passage for the immortal world.
My wife will send the rations, you will not receive any personal guidance, and you must complete these with your own abilities."
Ruyoan, looking for more answers, lifted her sleeve, raising her arms above her head.
The sage uses a technique to close her mouth. Shaking his head, he informed her that his wife would be her master.
However, the age assures her that his wife is more powerful than he is.
Ruoyan:
.....but?
Sage:
"No buts, I know your concern. However, I think you should speak to my wife."
Reluctantly, Ruoyan decided to take his advice and would go to speak to his wife, whom he fully acknowledged as her master.
On the outside, though he seemed like a beggar, one could tell his abilities were true.
As Ruoyan and zhen prepared for their training. The sage began inspecting them. Minute by minute, the sage had gained an impressive and deep understanding of Zhens strengths and weaknesses.
Using his Dao-based technique, " White Sages Dreamless Perception." A self-made Dao technique, born from the sage's unique Dao path — a fusion of Mental, Sound, and Heart Dao. Known as {Dreamless Perception of the lost soul-activated only in a state of stillness, when the sage is half-asleep or deep in idle thought}
As he continued inspecting zhen. It was now time to ask the question.
Sage:
"In order for me to teach you. I need to know more about you. I want you to tell me all that you know of the cultivation realms of the immortal world."
Ruyoan(whispered):
"You got this."
Zhen:
"From what I know, the first system is named the mortal ascendent cycle. Within it, there are three major realms: body refining, soul refining, and foundation establishment. With each having nine stages."
Sage:
"Very Good. Your knowledge and understanding are still somewhat premature. But your way of explaining is clear and concise, not bad."
Though he was praised, zhen still felt lacking in his knowledge of the immortal world. Especially cultivation.
After all, he had no intentions of cultivating at the time. Why should he? He had a palace, maids, and immortal bodyguards, and was the loved young master.
to him, cultivation was just another form of entertainment, but now that it's time. The consequences of being indulgent finally caught him by the heels
Instead of letting that get to him, he crossed his still child's body. Thinking for a minute, Zhens inner sea began to shake.
When he opened his eyes, the petal on his forehead briefly appeared. Invisible to even the sage's eyes, then disappearing.
Unsure whether it was due to the petal or because he had obtained Enlightenment. His mind was clearer, and he was now willing to listen and learn.
Noticing this, Ruoyan's view of him changed little by little. Began to slowly change shape.
Felling somewhat pleased with both zhen and Ruoyan. He began taking the time to explain the realm system in-depth.
Sage:
"Understand one thing. Even though in the immortal world, we call it the mortal ascending realm. In other words, it's known by different names. But the system remains fundamentally the same and follows the same progression ladder.
The mortal ascending cycle comprises six realms, the first three of which are referred to as the "body foundation phase." These three stages mainly prepare your body for spiritual qi.
Since spiritual qi is chaotic in nature. If you try to absorb it without proper technique or foundation, it will be done forcefully. Then job well done, you have made yourself a cripple.
To prevent that, I will give both of you a technique that your clans created. The gate to the first stage of body tempering is opened when you have repeatedly struck at your tendons, blood, dantian, and bones using a qi absorbing technique or an external stimulus.
Once you have opened four meridians, you will officially step into the first stage of body tempering. Once 36 meridians are opened, the final ninth stage will be reached, which will awaken the soul in your inner sea. Once it's awake, you will have reached the first stage of soul refinement. Which, instead of tempering your body and opening meridians. You will refine your soul as well as open another thirty-six meridians.
Once all 108 meridians are fully opened, upon reaching the ninth stage of foundation establishment. A cultivator is no longer a mortal but a transcendental being. Each step serves to further awaken and strengthen the soul, expanding the inner sea.
The cycle is the most crucial step, as ascending past foundation establishment is very difficult for most. Some succeeded, while others must accept that they will never be able to reach it."
Waving his hand, pulling the scrolls into his hands.
sage:
"Now, I will be passing on the qi absorbing technique from both of your families. Each technique was created specifically for members of those clans and bloodlines.
Walking towards Ruoyan, the sage handed her a qi method used by her father-immortal
[Emperor's Luminous Heart Sutra]
An incomplete technique that helped the emperor reach his current level. There are three stages in total. Your father believes there are more and that only your dao can comprehend the lost stages...But for now, he wants you to reach basic comprehension or minor attunement of the first stage, within the hundred-year training."
Lost in her own world of bliss, Ruoyan immediately began comprehending the qi method.
Then the sage walked towards Zhen and handed him a scroll that looked similar but had a more profound and more powerful qi than the one his grandfather had given him.
Sage:
"This is your family's primary qi-absorbing method: The Scales of Heavenly Judgment. It's a well-known qi method; it's believed to be even older than the nine founders. Its key details are that instead of having stages, it only becomes stronger as you open up the extreme meridians.
Though it is passed to each tianxiu member. Most people lack the necessary talent to practice it. Thus, only a select few in your clan have opened an extreme meridian. Your grandfather and grandmother are the only ones to open 2-3 extreme meridians."
Focusing on the sage's words, zhen realized he had heard something amazing.
Zhen:
"Extreme meridians? Are there different ones? You only said 108?"
Extremely lazy by nature, the sage planned to leave after handing over the scrolls for them. However, for some reason, he lacked the strength or will to leave.
He felt like he still had much to teach Zhen, even though he was now his master and had years of experience to draw upon. Something in him told him that "this moment is special".
Reluctantly, he responded.
Sage:
"I did not mention the extreme meridians at the beginning, or planned to, because I have seen geniuses ruin themselves trying to open a single meridian. I did not mention it, as Ruoyan does not need to know about it. But you are different. The technique i gave you relies on the extreme meridians, thus i have to tell you of its existence."
Looking at Ruoyan, the sage instructed her to head with his wife to begin her exclusive training.
Once gone, the sage took zhen to his designated cave and continued the lesson.
Sage:
"The nine extreme meridians take time to be unlocked and are a very dangerous process. Once open, each meridian Each one giving a 1.5x boost in combat,dao comprehension, body forging, and many more. A cultivator who is only at the core formation realms and has opened one extreme meridian can fight one who is in the peak stage of core formation and kill them.
The problem lies in how extremely difficult and painful it is to open. As the process requires you to attack the unopened extreme meridians with spiritual qi. A process that can be shattered by just one mistake, leaving your extreme meridians vulnerable. Once it shatters, just as ping xin turned into a blood worm. A cultivator will fall into his inner demons."
His sarcastic comment threw zhen off. How did he know about Ping Xin? Just how powerful is he?
Sage:
"That is all I will explain for now. After seeing your performance in the forest of illusions. I look forward to seeing how far you can go in the next hundred years.
Although I believe in you, if i see you cant surpass the foundation establishment and are not able to enter core formation. You will lose your position as my disciple and holy son."
-Myriad Heavens Cave-
Inside the cave was a giant pool, vast and full of extremely refined qi. In the middle was a single lotus, gracefully floating above the pool.
The sage, whisked zhen toward the petal.
Sage:
"It's time for you to prove your talents, show me why you are my disciple."
Zhen:
"ok"
Zhen closed his eyes, his dantien shaking. One strike, two strikes, three strikes.
After three painful hits, Zhen had successfully opened his fourth meridian, reaching the first true stage of body tempering.
Confident, zhen continued the process more, after 10 minutes of agonizing pain. Zhen had successfully opened 12 ordinary meridians, reaching the 3rd stage of body tempering.
To an outsider, the speed at which zhen is breaking through is extraordinary. But to the sage who has seen hundreds of words fall.
Zhen was like a snail.
"Is this it?" He thought
sage(whispering):
"So, this is all the Tianxiu Holy Son can amount to? Pathetic."
With each absorption of liquid spiritual qi, Zhens' understanding of his family's qi-absorbing method deepened. In just moments, he went from initial insight to basic comprehension. As his mastery of the method improved, the amount of pure liquid qi he absorbed increased.
So did his realm. With each breath, a sharp spiritual qi struck his meridians.
Crack... Crack...crack
One by one, zhen intensively opened his meridians with such precision that he was unaware that he had already reached the 6th stage of body tempering, with 24 meridians opened.
In the sage's mind, he was growing increasingly curious about how far Zhen could go.
Sage:
"Mhmm.. Not bad, still lacking".
As he watched on, time slowly passed. For zhen, time became a prison. Ten seconds felt like ten minutes.
"I can't stop here."
Zhens mind became a mess. Now plagued with self-doubt, he felt as if he should just give up. He can always try again; this isn't the end. He believed time was on his side. But deep down, he knew that was a lie. He knew firsthand what "trying again" meant.
His days were spent lying in a hospital bed, curled, cold, and malnourished. You could even see his bones. Ashamed and exhausted. His days, months, and years in the hospital were akin to hell. Needles, after needles. It just never stopped; he eventually became used to the pain. No longer could tears flow from his eyes.
Slow and painful, that would become his fate. And so, the young hopeful boy, became a husk of his former self.
"This isn't the end."
In Zhens inner sea, A figure of pure light descended. As if divinity manifested, it began walking on a prism of pure light. It had manifested its divine qi into pure physical form. And walked on it. As it reaches the last prism, it instantly appears in front of him. It waves its hand, and a gush of spiritual qi surrounds zhen.
It encircles him and wraps around him. Unable to move, zhen begins to worry about its intentions.
It inspects him, from ear to mouth, fingers to toes. Every single part of zhen was seen by this thing. Satisfied, the thing opened its mouth and a scroll shot out and landed in front of zhen. It then raises its hands and taps Zhens forehead, then disappears.
With the qi dissipating, Zhen was now able to move freely. But now, it felt different. He began tapping his body. Trying to gauge what had changed in his body.
After his probing, zhen realized his body was healed. And not just healed, he noticed his inner sea had expanded by 10x times. It had transformed from a small dot to an entire island. Aside from that, Zhen had also opened up 32 meridians, reaching the 8th stage as well.
Zhen:
"Nice, I knew I had it in me. I can't stop here."
With his will reignited, zhen continued.
"Only four more to go."
Just then, his 36th meridian had opened. Qi, like the mighty waves of the ocean, swam through his dantain and inner sea, healing it. Soon enoug,h his dantian began to be completely dowsed in spiritual qi.
He had now reached the 9th stage of the body tempering realm. His skin now as hard as an iron sword.
The sage, still looking at zhen, finally let out a smile.
Sage:
"Now this is the talent of an ancient bloodline."
Slowly rubbing his chin, he thought for a second.
Sage:
"Why can I feel laws emanating from his dantian? Did he comprehend a dao? That's not possible. The Dao laws do not reveal themselves to one who has not reached core formation."
Slightly concerned, zhen raised his voice to ask a question.
Zhen:
"Did I mess up?"
Sage:
"No, you did perfectly. But before you continue, the missus has informed me that I forgot a detail....".
Teleporting away, the sage would step into a void portal and bring back Ruoyan. He instructed her to sit next to zhen:
Sage:
"It seems I failed to include details about the different types of immorts. Which will play a major role in your future as immortal heirs."
Turning around, the sage lifted his sleeve. A large blank scroll flew out and remained stationed in the air. On the scroll, he wrote two words.
[Innate immortal] and [ascended immortal].
Confused, zhen looked to Ruoyan to see if she had any clue. Looking back at zhen, Ruoyan shook her head in silence.
Then, a small sound could be heard
Ruoyan(whispering):
"I don't know...."
Sage:
"Of course, you don't know. Only once you reach the nine gates can you learn of it".
Ruoyan/zhen:
"Oh ....."
Sage:
"As immortal heirs, you must understand one key detail about the immortal realm. It is a much higher-tier world than others. It has become a divine grade world. Making it a 6th-tier world. Thus, those who are born in the immortal realm will be blessed by the dao-infused qi, which increases the potential of that cultivator.
They have a higher chance of being born with a higher purity of bloodline, talent, or a divine body, etc. This, in turn, means that only 1,000 out of 10 million cultivators can be born in the immortal realm.
Therefore, understand that a higher-grade world has rules, laws, and dao qi. Which makes it nearly impossible for a child of a powerful cultivator to be born."
Ruoyan interrupts mid-lecture.
Ruoyan:
"But Zhen and I are both from powerful families. How were they able to give birth to us?"
Sage:
"....Mhmm, good question. Just follow along, I will mention it soon.
An [ascended immortal] is an immortal who, through their own merits, cultivates and endures tribulations to shed their mortal body. If they succeed, they are reborn as an ascended immortal. There is not much difference between the two. Only that one was born with a head start, and the other had to prove it.
And as a piece of advice for both of you, I have met geniuses such as yourself. Since they were innate immortals and given sufficient resources, they still moved with arrogance and were destructive. Eventually, they fell to an [ascended immortal].
So, although you are talented and innate immortals. Do not let that get into your heads and lead you to ruin."
Ruyoan/zhen:
"We won't."
The sage pleased, patted both of their heads.
Sage:
"So, once an innate immortal is born. We test them to see if they qualify. And those who do will be trained. You were initially supposed to train in your clan's order and judgment cave.
I will now be leaving. I will set up a formation that transports food, medicine, scrolls, and is filled with spiritual qi. I will come back in 20 years. I hope to see how far you have progressed in that time."
Zhen:
"Yes, master. Don't worry".
The sage laughed, patted four-year-old Zhens' head, and disappeared into the void.
Now on his own. Zhen looks around his new home for the next one hundred years. In the back of the cave, there was a small bowl filled with water. On the far right was a shelf filled with scrolls. And in the middle of the cave was a large stone table.
On top were numerous pill bottles. One alchemist technique, three spirit-absorbing talismans, and one beast egg.
Alongside a formation that replenished spiritual qi, and thirty-three immortal blaze stones.
Satisfied with organizing his cave. Zhen sat down in the middle with his legs crossed. Now it was time to create a schedule. Having learned about the different professions. Zhen wanted to see how far he could go.
So the schedule was set. At 6:00-8:00 am, he will practice creating talismans, and at 9:00-11:00 am, he will learn to create 1st-grade formations. Then from 12:00-3:00 pm, he will use the herbs his grandfather gathered to create 1st and 2nd grade pills. Then spend the rest of the day cultivating and improving his comprehension of the qi absorbing techniques.