Ray woke up the next day in his bed and saw that his mother was sleeping beside him. She was actually sitting on the edge of the bed with her legs stretched out and her head resting against the headboard, while he lay on the other side.
He looked at his mother, and then the memories of yesterday came flooding back. He had managed to form his soul core—and now, he could finally cultivate soul runes. He could create a formation! The excitement bubbled inside him. He waited eagerly for his mother to wake up so he could celebrate with her.
After a while, Diana stirred awake and realized she'd fallen asleep there. She quickly looked around for Ray, only to find him watching her with a bright smile on his face. Seeing his cheeky grin, Diana reached over, pinched his cheek, and asked, "What are you smiling at?"
Ray responded, "I'm looking at the most beautiful woman in the world."
Diana grinned. "Who taught you that? Do you want a beating?"
"I'm telling the truth," Ray said sincerely.
Diana's smile faded a bit as she took on a more serious tone. "Then tell me this—why didn't you follow the method described in the book to form your soul core using a single rune? What if something went wrong? I should have guided you properly before letting you attempt it. I assumed you were a genius and would understand easily. But you nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"But Mother," Ray replied, confused, "I did try to form it with a single rune. It failed every single time. It only worked when I tried using multiple soul runes and combining them with a law. That's when I succeeded."
Diana stared at his confused face, then exhaled. "I know you succeeded—but you made it so much more complex. You used multiple runes, created a law, and fused it all into your soul core. You're supposed to comprehend one rune at a time when you first start cultivating. What you did is something silver-stage cultivators do."
She started rubbing her temples. "You attempted one of the most dangerous things possible in this world. You could've lost your life. If I hadn't given you the soul pill, soul formation, and surrounded you with soul stones, you'd be dead right now."
Ray finally understood and nodded, "Then I won't tell anyone. Problem solved."
Diana could only smile wryly at the cheeky child who could comprehend so much at just six years old. "You better not. If anyone finds out, you'll get into trouble. People get jealous easily—and they don't hesitate to kill geniuses."
She added, "I'll create a concealing formation inside your soul core so that no one can investigate it. Even if they do, it'll look like a soul core formed with a single rune. You've already reached the peak of the Qi Soul stage. What you need now is a strong foundation. I'll start teaching you how to use the runes and form formations."
Ray nodded like an obedient boy, carefully listening to his mother. Diana felt nothing but pride and happiness seeing how bright her son was, especially now that he could comprehend soul law at such an early age.
Then she asked, "So why are you in such a hurry to create a formation? Why don't you want to be a swordsman or a mage?"
Ray looked nervous. "Mother, please don't be surprised, but… it seems I have memories from a past life. I think I've been reincarnated."
Diana was shocked but smiled. "Really? Who were you in your past life? A legendary swordsman? A powerful sorcerer?"
Ray shook his head and replied seriously, "No. I was just a mortal. I lived in a world of mortals. That world had so many inventions and innovative technologies that don't exist here."
Diana's eyes lit up. "You need to tell me more about it."
Ray gave her a skeptical look and said with a smile, "Mother, you're weird."
"Why?" Diana asked, confused.
"If someone else were in your position, they'd be freaking out," Ray said.
"I should be," Diana replied softly, "but you're my baby. You're not someone from that world anymore. You're you—the child I gave birth to. I refuse to believe you're someone else."
Ray's eyes began to water. Tears fell down both cheeks. He had been so nervous revealing this to her, expecting a different reaction. But now, he felt an even deeper love for his mother. Seeing her baby cry, Diana pulled him into a tight hug.
She whispered gently, "Besides, there have been beings reincarnated into this world before. It's rare, but it's happened. Some kept it secret until they were strong enough to reveal it. Others, like you, told someone early on. But we should keep it between us—for now. Others won't react the way I did."
"I was going to say the same thing, Mother. I wasn't planning on telling anyone else," Ray said seriously. "But to make my plan work, I'll need your help. I'll need powerful allies. Everything must be kept secret until we're strong enough to protect ourselves."
"If you ever keep another secret from your mother again," she said, pulling on his ear, "you'll find out how I punish little liars."
"Ouch! Ouch! Mother, you said if I do it in the future! Why are you pulling now?" Ray cried.
"Well, you need to know how it will feel in the future. What are you going to do about it?" Diana asked with a smirk.
Ray was speechless. He had no comeback. Finally, he said, "Mother, do you want to become the first member of my team to bring the inventions from my past world into this one? Let's make this world more advanced!"
"I don't mind helping you. I'll always support my only child," Diana said firmly. "But I need to know the full scale of this idea. We need to evaluate what's possible and what's not. We also have to calculate the cost of these inventions."
As she continued speaking, Ray realized how far behind he was in terms of resources. He'd have to earn a lot before his ideas could become reality. But seeing her son begin to calculate and plan so seriously made Diana feel incredibly proud.
Ray's thoughts drifted to the kind of people he would need—inventors, tinkerers, and engineers. People who loved to create—not just weapons, but machines that could help people. He needed dreamers. He looked up at Diana with a determined look in his eyes, one eyebrow raised.
Diana, smiling knowingly, waited patiently for the question she knew was coming.
"Mother," Ray began, "we need a large number of people who love to invent things. Not just weapons, but tools and accessories that help people—flying machines, transport machines, anything useful. I want people like that."
Diana looked at him with a mischievous smile. Names started popping into her head. But there was one person in particular she wanted to introduce first.
Ray, sensing her strange grin, instantly felt the urge to run. But before he could escape, Diana grabbed him with her sharp claws, locking him in place.
"I don't want to hear it! It's okay, Mother!" Ray said, trying to wiggle free.
"We're going to the royal party tomorrow," Diana said with a wicked smile. "The king has invited us to the palace. There's a princess with a special bloodline that might help you."
She leaned in closer with an evil grin. "I think she'd make a perfect second member of your team. And if you can win her over—maybe even make her your wife—you'll have the whole kingdom backing you."
Ray gulped. "Which princess are you talking about, Mother?"
"She's the 7th princess. The king's 36th child. She was born with a Formation Heart," Diana said, eyes gleaming with excitement.