Sitting cross legged on his bed, Yuan slowly opened his eyes. It had been a week since he had received the pills from Old Man Longwei Feng. Now, with all of them used up, he was left with no cultivation materials in hand.
harshness of cultivation was essential, especially when progress seemed slow or invisible. Yet, even the smallest advancement was still a step forward. Enduring the monotony and harshness of cultivation was essential, only through patience could one truly succeed.
Currently, Yuan was focused on awakening his hearing sense. It was a strategic choice. In battle, especially against higher stage cultivators, being able to hear approaching danger was far more useful than simply seeing what lay ahead.
A sharp ear could protect his blind side, something sight alone could not do.
After awakening his hearing, his plan was to progress through the smelling sense, then taste, and finally touch.
He was already halfway through awakening his hearing sense. The first sense was always the hardest for all cultivators. The second came more easily, and his current environment, richer in spiritual essence than before, made progress smoother.
In contrast, his first awakening, sight, had taken four long years, mostly due to the lack of ambient spiritual essence. With better conditions and prior experience, that process might have only taken two years.
Still, four years had been a worthy investment.
Yet, when he compared himself to other so called prodigies, it felt painfully slow. Even under similar circumstances, others often advanced faster.
"Haa…" Yuan sighed, pushing aside those discouraging thoughts.
"I shouldn't care how others progress," he muttered, shaking his head. "I just need to focus on my own path. Even if it takes me eight, or ten, years to complete the first stage."
With that, Yuan took out a fasting pill and swallowed it. As he did, he noticed the faint smell coming from his body and decided it was time to take a bath.
Within the wooden pavilion, now known to Yuan as the Longwei Management Pavilion, there were many facilities, a bathhouse, a library, a training ground, even a small meditation hall that resembled a church.
It felt more like a noble estate than a working administrative building. But aside from Yuan and Old Man Longwei Feng, no other cultivators resided there. The rest were mortal guards, servants, officials, or royal advisors.
In truth, the pavilion was nearly empty.
There weren't many servants either. Cultivators didn't require much from mortals. After all, their understanding of time was completely different. For a mortal, spending a week alone in a room doing nothing was torturous.
For a cultivator, sitting in meditation for weeks, months, or even years was routine.
One year to a cultivator was a small thing, but for a mortal, a year could change everything. Someone could go from being a simple laborer to a wealthy merchant in the same time it took a cultivator to finish a single secluded session of training.
These thoughts came to Yuan as he soaked in the hot bath, his muscles relaxing in the warm water. His perspective on mortals had shifted, shaped by his years living in that nameless village, four years that passed in the blink of an eye for him, but meant everything to his friend, Lin Xiaoyu.
"Haa…" Yuan sighed softly.
Even though he could meditate for a month without pause, a full week of nonstop cultivation still demanded a break for him now.
"In the end," he murmured, eyes fixed on the white ceiling above, "mortals and low staged cultivators walking the path of the Dao aren't so different. We only see a little farther ahead."
"Mortals can still kill a Mortal Awakening Stage cultivator... but once someone reaches the Blood Purification Stage, they become untouchable. Mortals are too slow to attack or defend. They can't even run."
He fell quiet for a moment, letting his words settle in the steam filled air.
"Only with great luck could a mortal escape the notice of such a cultivator… but that's only if the cultivator is at the early layer. Beyond that… to mortals, they are already gods."
As he said those words, Yuan paused, a realization surfacing in his mind. He chuckled softly."A god to a mortal, an ant to a cultivator… how ironic."
The chuckling faded after a few moments, and he closed his eyes, letting himself sink into the warmth of the bath, a bath prepared by one of the Longwei Management Pavilion's servants. He let himself enjoy the heat of the water, the silence, the stillness. Just for a moment.
When he opened his eyes again, the warmth of the moment had passed. He stood up from the bath, dried himself off, and noticed a fresh set of robes laid out for him.
The robes resembled those of a templar. The upper half was white, the lower half black, accompanied by a pair of well crafted black boots. The material felt finer than anything he had worn before, smooth, soft, likely high quality silk.
As he dressed, Yuan noticed a mirror placed nearby. He paused and looked at his reflection, perhaps for the first time in a long while.
His face hadn't changed much. It still resembled his younger self. His black hair now reached his shoulders, giving him a more mature appearance. The only real difference was that he looked… slightly better than before. Not handsome, but cute, perhaps even charming in a quiet way.
If he grew up, he might be considered above average, but certainly not exceptional.
Only his black eyes stood out. They held something different, an unshakable loneliness, something deeper than age or appearance.
After a brief glance, he turned away and exited the bathing room, intending to return to his room. But it seemed the day wouldn't remain peaceful.
He spotted a pair of children up ahead, a boy and a girl. Twins, from the looks of it.
They shared the same face, raven black hair, vivid green eyes, similar features. The boy was slightly taller and had a more muscular build, while the girl was petite and delicate in form. Yet their resemblance was unmistakable.
They wore the same robes Yuan now had on, with one difference, on the sleeves of their robes, a long, sharp red line ran down the middle, stopping at the elbow.
"Main Family," Yuan thought instantly, recognizing the sharp red line on their sleeves.
"Hey, little brother, who are you?" the young girl asked curiously, her green eyes sparkling as she spotted Yuan walking in the same type of robe as her own. She was a few centimeters taller than him.
Though she addressed him brightly, the boy beside her remained indifferent, barely even glancing Yuan's way. He looked bored, uninterested.
Yuan would normally have ignored them, just as the boy ignored him, but since he had to walk directly past them and since the girl seemed genuinely curious, he decided to respond.
"I'm Luan Yuan, just an ordinary Supreme Commander Candidate cultivating here in the Longwei Management Pavilion," he said calmly, offering a slight nod. "Please excuse me, young lady, but I must attend a meeting."
Yuan gave them a simple lie. Not in the mood for conversation, he strode past them without another word."
As he did, the girl's eyes widened in surprise. "Supreme Commander Candidate!" she exclaimed, her voice full of wonder.
The boy echoed her words, but his tone was entirely different, sharp, tinged with jealousy. His interest was piqued for the first time.
Unfortunately for them, Yuan was already gone, leaving no room for further questions.
"Hmph," the young prince sneered as Yuan's figure disappeared down the corridor. The young princess sighed softly beside him.
They continued walking toward the entrance of the Longwei Management Pavilion. As they approached the gate, a middle aged man in gray robes stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
"Young Prince, Young Princess, it is time to depart."
He was one of the Longwei Family's trusted household servants.
The twins simply nodded, one with a cold, expressionless face, the other with reluctant obedience.
As they climbed into a sleek black carriage waiting just beyond the gates, the young prince turned to the servant.
"Find me everything you can about a Supreme Commander Candidate named Luan Yuan."
"Of course, Young Prince. I'll have the information ready by tomorrow," the servant replied with another bow.
The carriage door closed behind them, and soon the horses began to pull them away from the Longwei Pavilion.
At the same time, somewhere on a remote mountain, three figures stood together. One sat on a stone throne while the other two stood respectfully before him. All three appeared young, no older than twenty.
The man seated on the throne looked down at the male and female before him. "Is that the truth?" he asked quietly. His voice carried no emotion, only a chilling coldness.
"Yes," the young man replied firmly. "Your heir confirmed it in person. The Loose Tail Family truly possesses something from the era when the heavens collapsed. They have obtained a spiritual creation... one said to rival the very heavens themselves."
Upon hearing this, a glint of interest sparked in the throne sitter's eyes. A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"If that's the case, then why not simply take it?" he said slowly. "Since the Day of Doom, when heaven and earth crumbled and ancient beings and mortals alike perished without distinction… possessing a spiritual creation from that age must mean immense power."
His smile widened, and his eyes gleamed as he recalled the ancient legends, the fall of the heavens, the destruction of the old world, and how many ancient beings died trying to protect their descendants with divine artifacts.
"Very well, it's decided," he said, his voice sharp with determination and veiled with greed. "We begin preparations immediately."