The moment Josh finished speaking his vow, the ball of light surged forward with sudden speed, slipping through his chest without resistance and vanishing into him as though it had always belonged there.
A sharp pulse spread outward from the point of contact, neither painful nor pleasant, but vast in presence.
Then, before he could draw his next breath, a voice echoed within his mind, clear and resonant, as if thought itself had taken form and spoken with the weight of command.
[New Host Detected!]
[Qualification: Body of Anointed Providence]
[System is beginning fusion. Please wait...]
Josh stood motionless, his chest heaving with the surge of emotion that welled too quickly to be tamed.
Tears threatened to spill again, not from sorrow this time but from the overwhelming relief of being pulled from the edge of despair and placed, impossibly, on the threshold of a new life.
Just hours ago, his path had seemed carved in stone, narrow and gray.
Now, he stood reborn, a system bound to his soul. And not far away, the Immortal wept openly, lifting his face toward the heavens as though seeking witness, then dropped to his knees, overcome by a joy so wild it bled into laughter.
"You're finally gone! Took long enough. Now this... this is what a fresh start feels like!"
"Forgive me, I didn't hear clearly. Honorable Immortal… will this process harm you in any way?"
"Young one, that doesn't matter."
Though the bulb overhead cast a iridescent shimmer on the peeling plaster, Josh remained fixed in place, his posture stiffened not by fear, but by the quiet disarray unfolding before him.
The old man's movements, jerky and half-thought, betrayed a dissonance that words could not account for, and Josh, struck by the unnatural cadence of it, spoke with a measured concern sharpened by unease.
Realization came slowly, like fog lifting from a war-torn plain, and with it, the Immortal, bearing the ruin of centuries beneath the thinnest veil of flesh, stilled his hands.
Composure reclaimed him, not swiftly but with solemn force, as he wiped the tears that weakness had briefly allowed.
"Kid, since you get the system, you better grind like your life depends on it."
"Mm-hmm! I will!" Josh gave a firm nod.
"You thinking about training for real? I know a legit school that'll take you in," the Immortal said.
To spurn the chance to cultivate at a school, where legacy, power, and refinement converge, could only mark one as blind or foolish, for even the heavens favor those who pursue structured ascent instead of wandering without purpose.
"I do, I really want to go!"
As if the words had unlocked some long-awaited chord within him, the Immortal allowed a slow, satisfied smile to settle across his face, the lines beside his eyes deepening with quiet approval.
With a gesture both fluid and deliberate, he reached into the wide cuff of his sleeve, the fabric whispering with age and concealed weight, and drew forth a folded square of golden paper whose shimmer caught the dim light like captured fire.
"Take this letter. It'll get you into the Dominion Institute of Cultivation. The first real step on your path towards immortality."
Without a word or change in breath, he extended it toward Josh, the offer clear in its silence, the moment poised between the end of destitution and the beginning of a new journey.
Startled by the gesture, Josh felt the weight of destiny settle upon him, for the Immortal had already laid a path toward supremacy in the art of cultivation.
With both hands, he received the golden letter, bowing slightly as gratitude filled his gaze, heavy and unspoken.
"If I may... what is Immortal's honorable name?"
"My name isn't important, you are the protagonist of your own story."
The Immortal gently stroked Josh's head, his face calm, though a faint sympathy flickered beneath the stillness.
"I've got to head out. Catch you later, kid."
The Immortal offered a final wave to Josh, then ascended into the drifting clouds and mist without a word.
"May our paths cross again, honorable Immortal, when fate sees fit to intertwine our journeys once more."
Josh gratefully bowed towards the Immortal who was flying towards the sky.
The sound of the Immortal's laughter traveled down from the heavens and it sounded extremely carefree and wanton. It appeared as if he had got rid of a lifetime of grievances.
'Why does he smile like that? That smile isn't joy. I felt like he's escaped something I haven't. Did I miss something?'
Josh furrowed his brow and scratched his head, confusion knitting his thoughts as he glanced around, finding no source, no sign.
[Hello.]
Then, like a tremor slipping through still air, a clear female voice stirred within his mind, not uttered through sound but imprinted upon thought itself, its presence as certain as breath drawn in silence.
A sudden shiver ran down Josh's spine as the voice lingered in his mind, ethereal and unearthly in its beauty, like a hymn sung from behind a veil of stars.
'It sounded too divine to belong to anything ordinary. Could this truly be the system's voice?'
The thought came laced with doubt and wonder. Then, as if drawn by the question itself, an interface unfolded within his consciousness, muted in color, displaying only a sparse line of faded text.
[Conqueror Mechanism]
[Activating...]
[Activation Failed...]
[Activation Requirement: Enter Celestial Elysium]
'What's this Celestial Elysium? Could it be...'
Remembering the Immortal's gift, Josh reached into his jacket and retrieved the golden sheet, its surface gleaming faintly despite the dimness that surrounded him.
With a hopeful breath, he unfolded it, expecting words or sigils of power, but found only emptiness, no inscription, no instruction, nothing but a single handprint pressed faintly into the gold like a seal left by time itself.
Though uncertainty flickered across his face, he pressed his palm against the print, aligning finger to finger, as though answering an ancient summons.
Suddenly, a magnificent golden light radiated from the paper and Josh only had time to exclaim in surprise before his body was swallowed by the golden light.
"Woah! What's going on?!"
Without warning, a wave of vertigo crashed over Josh, distorting the shape of the world as searing light flooded back into his eyes, fierce and unwavering, erasing detail and thought alike beneath its sheer intensity.
When the glare faded, he found himself suspended high in the sky, air whipping past him as gravity reclaimed its hold.
The sensation was all too familiar, that stomach-hollowing plunge echoing the terror of leaping from a rooftop. No matter how often he was hurled into this so-called exhilarating descent, it always made him want to cry.
The earth shuddered beneath the force of his impact, dust and loose soil flaring outward in a burst as his body struck the ground like a dropped stone from the heavens.
Bones jarred and breath torn from his lungs, Josh lay still, spared from death only by the golden light that had wrapped around him mid-fall, softening the blow with an almost divine precision.
It faded slowly, leaving behind a quiet, trembling silence where breath met earth again.
"What kind of teleportation is this? It feels more like a punch to the gut than a smooth move!"
A groan slipped from Josh's lips as he lay sprawled against the cold earth, every joint aching with the echo of the fall.
He shifted with effort, propping himself up on one elbow, his vision still trembling at the edges as he struggled to reorient himself.
But before his breath had steadied or his mind cleared, his eyes fell upon a sight that seared itself into memory.
Towering before him, two immense white pillars soared skyward, each carved with winding dragons that seemed to shift in the light.
Between them, a plaque hung suspended, its surface etched with ancient characters beyond his grasp, their meaning lost, yet undeniably powerful.
Beyond the gate, a vast expanse of palatial grandeur unfolded, stretching endlessly into the horizon where form dissolved into brilliance.
Tens of thousands of towering halls, each crafted with otherworldly precision, shimmered beneath the light of drifting iridescent clouds that curled like incense smoke through the air.
Between the sky and the distant courtyards, beasts of countless shapes and sizes flew in graceful arcs, their cries resonant and ancient.
Josh stood frozen, eyes wide and breath caught, his face painted with pure, unfiltered astonishment. He forced himself to steady his breath, suppressing the whirlwind of awe that threatened to overtake him.
Just then, he spotted a girl in flowing daoist robes approaching with quiet purpose.
Without hesitation, he rushed forward, hoping her presence might offer clarity amidst the overwhelming grandeur.
"Pardon me, miss. May I speak with you for a moment?"
Josh lifted his hand in a hopeful wave, his gesture cautious yet eager beneath the weight of unfamiliar surroundings.
The girl, graceful in her movements and striking in her poise, shifted course and began walking toward him, her expression unreadable yet attentive.
As she neared, the tension within him broke into a flicker of relief, and with a breath drawn too quickly.
Josh stepped forward and spoke, his voice edged with excitement and urgency, grasping for answers in her silent approach.
"Hey, mind telling me where this is? Just got here and I'm kind of lost."
Upon hearing Josh's words, the girl's expression shifted subtly, a flicker of confusion and amusement crossing her face.
"Vyrnak shi loru mensa."
"Huh? What was that? I didn't catch it clearly."
Josh tilted his head slightly, puzzled by her reaction. Strangely, the girl mirrored his confusion, her brows knitting with equal uncertainty.
"Kel varin dosha telen?"
Josh stood bewildered, struggling to grasp her words. Slowly, a chilling possibility began to surface within his racing thoughts.
"Hey, miss, wait, do you... do you speak English?"
"Vyrnak shi loru mensa, kaldrin vo thar eska!"
The beautiful girl set her hands firmly on her hips, her posture sharp, her expression tinged with visible annoyance.
'It's useless, my ears catch sound, but I can't understand anything at all.'
A hollow stillness gripped Josh as he stood motionless, eyes glassy, mouth half-parted in silent disbelief. The weight of incomprehension pressed into his chest like a stone lodged where breath should be.
Only one thought pulsed through the fog in his mind, crude and helpless in its despair.
This wasn't how the stories in the novels began at all!