What is Immortal Cultivation?
What does it mean to be an immortal cultivator?
To mortals, it is a dream, a legend, a myth beyond reach.
To those who walk the path, it is a never-ending struggle, an existence where they defy heaven itself.
Immortal Cultivators are gods and devils among men.
They can soar through the skies without wings, wield swords that cut through space, and shatter mountains with a single glance.
They are universes inside their asse—uhm—themselves, containing boundless power in their very being.
The strongest of them can reshape reality, bend time to their will, and even rewrite the laws of existence in any universe they step into.
Some of them do not die, even when killed.
They persist in memory, in legend, in whispers across the cosmos—and that alone is enough to bring them back to life.
Even if their bodies are destroyed, as long as someone remembers their name, they can return.
It is power beyond reason, strength beyond limits.
And yet…
Elius knew he would never reach that level.
He's not praying for that kind of power.
For he knew, even if immortal cultivation was real, even if it had awakened within him, he understood one brutal truth, it would start weak.
He was weak.
Too weak that he knew it won't even probably scratch this foe in front of him.
And yet…
He still wanted to use it—no matter what it took or how weak it was.
Even if he had to go against this world's strongest hero.
Even if it meant going against his father.
Even if it meant facing Radiant Man.
Because right here, right now, he doesn't have another choice, does he?
Looking at his mother, helpless, with her whole face in his father's grasp—just a few seconds from being crushed, struggling and frantically moving her feet—something in Elius snapped.
"GET OFF MY MOTHER!"
He roared out.
And then…
A screen appeared before him.
[ Initializing… ]
It was mechanical, emotionless—yet the words burned themselves into his very eyes.
Ding!
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───
[ Welcome to the Path of Cultivation ]
Cultivation is the art of surpassing limits. It is the journey of transforming the mortal into the divine.
Through cultivation, one can transcend the constraints of the physical world. They can wield Qi to manifest their will, refining both body and spirit to reach heights unknown.
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───
Elius blinked. His breath caught.
This… this was… familiar.
It was with the memory that came with his past life.
It was the same as the immortal cultivation game he played before he died.
[ In the endless space of heaven span, there are two paths an immortal cultivators can take—
[ Spiritual Cultivation: The path of Qi, using the energy of the universe to command divine abilities.
[ Body Cultivation: The refinement of the physical self, forging a body that rivals the heavens themselves. ]
Elius's vision blurred seeing the information.
[ You are currently being introduced to: Spiritual Cultivation. ]
[ Cultivators who walk this path use their Qi to conjure Spiritual techniques, allowing them to unleash supernatural techniques. ]
A new prompt appeared.
[ Ding!
[ Would you like to use the given Spiritual technique? ]
Elius's eyes darted across the list. He began to process what he should do with a little time.
Hesitation would be a problem, but he also needs to think what's the best he could use.
There were multiple skills—Falling Star Strike, Phantom Wind Palm, Thunder Flash Step…
All of them are straightforward attacks.
But then, one caught his eye.
[ Golden Lion Roar – A sound-based Martial Skill that unleashes an earth-shattering roar, paralyzing all enemies in range for a short period. ]
He barely read the details before choosing it.
Instantly, another message flashed in front of him.
[ Golden Lion Roar tutorial initializing… The host body will be controlled… ]
---
On the Other Side…
Radiant Man narrowed his eyes.
Before he had even arrived here, he had sensed something.
While he was blasting every creature inside the S-Class Dimensional Rift for fun, something had changed.
A bloodline awakening.
One of his offspring.
It should be today, so he's not that much surprised.
The moment he exited the rift, he could feel it resonating with his being.
And he knew immediately who it was.
Keith.
The child with black hair.
Radiant Man's teeth clenched.
Black.
The color of filth.
The color of impurity.
If not for the fact that he had spent sixty years on this planet, and three generations attempting to breed the perfect Solarion successor, he would have eliminated the child on the spot and wipe the whole civilization clean.
But this was the only one.
The only Solarion-blooded offspring that had ever awakened.
That meant he had no choice.
He had to accept that child.
Still…
It was infuriating.
And that frustration had to be released somehow.
So, naturally, he would kill his other offspring.
Like the one standing before him.
Radiant Man looked at Elius, one could see the disgust in his gaze looking at his child's flowing blonde hair.
"It's a pity," he muttered. "If you had awakened instead of that black-haired child…"
His golden eyes darkened.
"It would have been perfect."
If Elius had awakened, he wouldn't have hesitated to take him under his wing.
He would have trained him personally, shaping him into the ultimate Solarion warrior.
A warrior of pure light.
A warrior worthy of his bloodline.
Radiant Man exhaled slowly.
"But you are nothing."
He tightened his grip on the woman's face.
And then…
However, he immediately stopped.
Something changed.
Elius stood there.
However, there was some strange familiar energy around him.
It was unlike anything Radiant Man had ever seen.
And behind the child—something was forming.
Radiant Man's golden eyes widened slightly. His gaze locked onto his unknown son. His golden irises, usually filled with indifference, reflected something unfamiliar—curiosity.
Behind Elius, a shape had formed—an unfamiliar yet eerily recognizable symbol.
A lion.
Not just any lion.
A golden lion, like the sacred Solarion emblem.
What is that?
Radiant Man, with a tone devoid of emotion, muttered under his breath, yet it had a faint trace of intrigue.
And then—
Elius inhaled.
A deep, shuddering slow breath that seemed to draw in the very air around that could be seen through one's naked eyes.
His chest expanded, his shoulders straightened, and the golden energy surged, pulsating like a heartbeat.
Not long, the room began to tremble.
Slowly, the glass windows cracked.
The walls groaned like it was under pressure.
And then—Elius exhaled.
ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAARRRR!!!
The very sound erupted from Elius was like a force of nature.
A lion's roar.
Deep.
Piercing.
Full of pride.
It didn't just travel through the air—it shook the very essence of reality.
Radiant Man was waiting to feel it. So he did not move.
Instead, he smirked.
"Foolish." His voice was calm, utterly unimpressed. "You think a mere roar can harm me?"
He did not flinch. He did not falter.
He was Colt.
A proud Solarion citizen of the Strongest Solarion Empire.
The strongest group of beings in this universe.
This so-called attack—it would not affect him.
It could not.
He was blessed by divine Solarion genetics.
Sound?
Vibration?
Techniques of mortals?
Who cares?
They were beneath him.
Unless—
Unless Elius had somehow awakened his bloodline too.
Radiant Man's smirk faded for a moment.
No. That was impossible.
He had sensed nothing to this child.
This child had little Solarian Blood too.
And yet—
He turned his gaze to Shannon, Elius's mother.
A mortal.
A fragile human.
By his calculations, she would die instantly once the roar from this useless offspring of his landed on both of them.
Her weak, non-reinforced human body would shatter under the pressure of the attack. He could sense it.
And yet—when the roar landed!
BRAAAAAAANG!
Right before Radiant Man's eyes, she had not.
And worse—
He had felt it.
A sensation he had not felt in decades.
His vision blurred.
His muscles tightened.
For the first time in over sixty years—he felt like something stopped him.
Even for just a fraction of a second.
Even if it was insignificant.
It happened.
His eyes widened slightly.
Impossible.
And then—
His grip loosened.
His fingers, which had been holding Shannon like a vice suddenly slipped open involuntarily.
Before he even realized it, Shannon was free.
She staggered away.
Her body trembling, her breath ragged—but alive.
Radiant Man blinked.
What?
He had not intended to let go.
Shannon stumbled backward, her eyes locked onto him in horror.
"C-Colt…" she whispered, her voice barely audible.
But he ignored her.
His focus was entirely on Elius.
That attack—
It had passed through his divine genetics as a proud member of the Solarion Empire.
It had affected him.
This was not normal.
This was not possible.
And yet—
It had happened.
His jaw tightened. His golden eyes burned.
"Do it again."
Elius stared at him, stunned.
Even he seemed to not fully comprehend what had just occurred.
Cultivation Qi affected Radiant Man?
And he, Elius, had actually managed to make him feel something from his attack earlier?
Radiant Man, the Superman of this world.
They are beings known to have no weaknesses.
No one could harm him unless they were at least four times stronger than him physically or their attacks are four times stronger than them.
Or—
Unless they had awakened their Solarion Empire Bloodline too.
However, Elius hadn't.
So how?
Radiant Man's thoughts churned with impatience.
This makes no sense.
His mind raced through every possible explanation.
It shouldn't be possible.
And yet—
His body had felt it.
He badly needed confirmation.
Radiant Man's golden eyes narrowed.
His voice dropped, cold and absolute.
"Again."
Elius remained frozen, and only stared at him.
He didn't move.
Didn't even breathe.
Radiant Man exhaled slowly.
He turned his gaze to Shannon.
If Elius didn't comply—
He would force him.
His fingers twitched.
He was prepared to act.
And then—
Elius moved.
His body shifted into a Martial Arts stance that looked like earlier.
Once again—
The familiar golden energy around him began to form and condense.
Again!