Early the next morning, Kayle was already sitting beneath the spirit tree.
His legs were crossed, his back was straight, and his eyes were tightly shut.
At least, they were supposed to be.
One eye slowly opened.
"Father."
Asher sighed.
"Close your eyes."
Kayle obeyed.
A few breaths later, his other eye opened.
"Father."
"What is it now?"
"How long do I have to sit here?"
"Until you can feel the energy around you."
Kayle frowned.
"But I don't feel anything."
"You've been sitting there for less than five minutes."
"Oh."
Kayle closed his eyes again.
Asher shook his head while Liu Yu watched from nearby, trying not to laugh.
Today was Kayle's first true day of cultivation.
His fire affinity had already been confirmed, but having an affinity and becoming a cultivator were two entirely different things.
Asher sat behind his son.
"Don't try to force it. Breathe slowly. Forget about everything else and feel the world around you."
Kayle took a deep breath.
He could hear birds singing in the distance.
Leaves rustling above his head.
His mother's footsteps.
The gentle wind brushing against his face.
But energy?
He couldn't feel anything.
"Father?"
"Yes?"
"What am I supposed to feel?"
Asher thought for a moment.
"That is difficult to explain. Everyone experiences the energy of heaven and earth differently. Some describe it as warmth. Others feel it like water flowing around their bodies. Your mother once told me it felt like thousands of tiny lights floating through the air."
Kayle's eyes immediately opened.
"Mother is a cultivator too?"
Liu Yu smiled.
"Did you think your father was the only one?"
Kayle looked at his mother with newfound admiration.
Asher cleared his throat.
"Concentrate."
Kayle reluctantly closed his eyes again.
This time, however, he truly tried.
His breathing became slower.
The sounds surrounding him gradually disappeared.
And then—
something changed.
Kayle saw a tiny red light.
Then another.
And another.
Soon there were hundreds.
Thousands.
They floated around him like tiny fireflies.
Kayle instinctively reached toward one.
The moment he did, the red light rushed into his body.
Boom!
Kayle's eyes flew open.
A wave of heat burst from his body.
The grass surrounding him bent outward.
Asher immediately stood.
"Kayle!"
But before he could intervene, the spirit tree moved.
Several branches descended around Kayle, forming a loose circle.
The violent energy instantly became calm.
Kayle stared at his hands.
"Father..."
A tiny flame appeared above his palm.
"I did it!"
Asher stared silently.
It had taken him several days to sense the energy of heaven and earth when he first began cultivating.
Kayle had done it before breakfast.
Asher looked toward the spirit tree.
Once again, he wondered exactly what had happened to his son on the day he was born.
But Kayle was already smiling proudly.
"Does this mean I'm strong now?"
Asher nearly laughed.
"No."
Kayle's smile disappeared.
"You have taken your first step. Nothing more."
Asher sat beside him.
"You need to understand something, Kayle. The path you've just entered is much larger than this town. Larger even than our country."
Kayle remembered their conversation from the previous evening.
"The world?"
"Exactly."
Asher picked up a stick and began drawing in the dirt.
He drew five enormous shapes.
"Our world is divided into five great continents."
Kayle leaned forward immediately.
Asher pointed toward one.
"The first is Khu Long Suei, a land ruled mainly by Dragons."
Kayle's mouth fell open.
"Real dragons?"
"Real dragons."
"Can they breathe fire?"
"Some."
"Can they fly?"
"Many."
"Can we go there?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because I would like you to survive childhood."
Liu Yu laughed from behind them.
Asher moved to the second continent.
"This is Si Nu. The Land of Cultivation."
He tapped the ground.
"And this is where we live."
Kayle looked down at the enormous shape his father had drawn.
"Our continent is that big?"
"Much bigger than you can imagine. Si Nu contains countless kingdoms, sects, cultivation clans, cities, forbidden regions, and ancient ruins. Even if you traveled your entire life, you might never see all of it."
His finger moved toward the third.
"Then there is Lu Cheng, the Land of Monks."
"Monks?"
"Their path is different from ours. Many cultivate the body, spirit, and mind. Some seek enlightenment. Others possess techniques that outsiders understand very little about."
Then came the fourth continent.
Asher's expression became more serious.
"Cha Du. The Land of Blood and War."
Even Kayle noticed the change in his father's voice.
"Is it dangerous?"
"Yes."
"How dangerous?"
"Dangerous enough that you should never believe strength alone will keep you alive there."
Kayle stared at the name Asher had written into the dirt.
Unlike the excitement he had felt hearing about the dragons, something about Cha Du made him uncomfortable.
Asher moved on.
"The fifth is Feng Hua—the Land of Wilderness. Vast forests, mountains, ancient beasts, poisonous valleys, and regions untouched by civilization cover much of the continent."
Kayle's eyes lit up again.
"Are there strong beasts?"
"Extremely strong."
"Stronger than you?"
Asher became silent.
Liu Yu laughed again.
"Your son seems determined to discover exactly how weak you are."
"I never said I was weak."
Kayle giggled.
Then he noticed something.
His father had drawn five continents, but an enormous empty space surrounded all of them.
"What is this?"
Asher stopped smiling.
"The Chaotic Sea."
His stick slowly traced the waters separating the continents.
"The oceans aren't empty, Kayle. Deep beneath those waters live creatures older than many human civilizations."
"How big are they?"
"No one truly knows."
Asher looked toward his son.
"There are Giant Sea Creatures living in the deepest regions. Some can destroy ships without ever reaching the surface. Others are said to be large enough that sailors have mistaken their backs for islands."
Kayle's eyes widened.
For a five-year-old who had spent his entire life in a small town, his little courtyard suddenly seemed incredibly small.
Dragons.
Cultivators.
Monks.
Warriors.
Ancient beasts.
Sea creatures larger than islands.
There was an entire world waiting beyond his home.
Kayle looked at the little flame still floating above his palm.
Then he looked toward the five continents drawn in the dirt.
"Father."
"Yes?"
"One day, I'm going to see all of them."
Asher smiled.
"When you're strong enough."
Kayle clenched his tiny fist.
The flame disappeared.
"Then I'll become strong."
Above him, the spirit tree's leaves gently rustled.
Asher didn't notice the two marks on Kayle's hands briefly glowing beneath his sleeves.
The lotus burned red.
The sword shone faintly.
And somewhere deep beneath the distant Chaotic Sea, something ancient opened one enormous eye.
For the first time in countless years, the creature looked toward Si Nu.
Then it slowly closed its eyes again.
The child was not ready.
Not yet.