Walking along the way home, Meng Chao kept remembering the information he had obtained from the lessons.
The information clearly states that upon entering the Xiantian realm, one undergoes a fundamental transformation and becomes a different person.
He had seen his sister a few times, but she didn't seem any different. It made him wonder if what he learned was really true, even though she had already reached the third Heaven of the Xiantian realm.
From what he knew, reaching even the first Heaven of the innate realm was impressive for someone like him.
Meng Chao was deep in thought until he saw the familiar gate ahead. The sight snapped him back to reality, reminding him he was almost home.
"I'm home already! Last night, my parents said my sister would be back from her three-month training camp. Meng Chao looked forward to the gifts she always brought.
He continued to work on his body, thanks to the items his sister brought home. Even if others thought his talent was useless, he refused to accept it.
He wondered how to tell his sister about everything without being sure. She hadn't been home when his talent was put to the test, and he worried about how she would react. Would she understand, or just brush it off? Their parents had gone on a training camp, and Meng Chao was not that ignorant of the truth.
He had already heard some things from Fatty Liu Yan.
Clearly, his sister and other students had left for the legendary wilderness beyond the boundary walls.
Even though it was still within the boundaries controlled by the Federation, Meng Chao knew it was a place where one could lose one's life.
Without enough ability, death was possible.
He wasn't too worried because his sister was thoughtful and always knew her limit. As Meng Chao neared his house, his thoughts about his sister were interrupted. He spotted her standing by the door, talking on her phone.
When she saw his figure, the worried expression on her face was hidden behind a smile.
"Brother, you are back! How is school? You have not been lax over the past three months while I wasn't home, right?" She commented upon setting her eyes on him.
"How could that be? I've made some improvements!" he replied. Meng Shui's eyes seemed to see through him.
He felt as though a massive behemoth was looking right at him and seeing through him. His breathing grew heavier, and a chill ran down his back. "What are your future plans?" She didn't make any choice for him.
When he heard this, he recognized what she was referring to: his talent.
His talent was incompatible with the existing inheritances, making cultivation impossible.
"What else can I do? I'll just take things as they come. Perhaps my opportunity will appear in the near future!" He replied without even showing any dejection.
"Alright, go on inside," she said, changing the subject.
Meng Chao, on the other hand, looked at her with concern and asked, "Sis! Is everything alright?"
"Nothing's wrong. Don't overthink it, kid!" She patted his shoulder and gently pushed him toward the door, leaving him no choice but to go inside.
She was strong enough to crush him with a finger. If she had problems, he was the last person who could help, making his question useless.
"My sister is definitely worried, but she's pretending everything is fine. She doesn't want to share her problems. She's the only strong one in the family, and even if we knew, what could we really do to help?" Meng Chao sighed quietly, accepting this truth.
Meng Chao went inside, leaving his sister outside. He was a very attentive little brother. He could definitely tell something wasn't right, but he just couldn't be sure. Meng Shui sighed to herself and thought, 'I can't worry them with some issues.'
Meng Shui was already at the peak of the Third Heaven of the Xiantian realm.
This level was already a big deal, and even most of the instructors at Meng Chao's school were old, yet they were barely at this level. Meng Chao himself was nothing but a mortal.
He had yet to acquire a proper cultivation technique due to his talent limitations.
If she had problems even at the third Heaven of Xiantian, how could someone like him, who hadn't even started, possibly help her? The intelligent Meng Chao was able to grasp and adapt to this quickly.
Even though he knew his chances were slim, he didn't want to give up on martial arts. He tried to stay realistic, but he still hoped for a breakthrough to prove himself.
He knew facing reality was the only way to move forward.
"I agree to participate in the mission! The information has to be kept a secret from my family, though! I can't let them worry about me all the time!" She finally spoke.
She really was keeping something from Meng Chao.
"Okay!" This was the only reply from the other side.
"When is the mission on?" She asked what concerned her the most.
"The plan to enter the ruins will take place in three to four days. We might be able to send in the first team for exploration. We have gained this chance from the federation just because of the proximity of the ruins, but after four days, we are afraid those from other cities will arrive." The voice continued.
"Okay! I'll report in a day." She thought it over and made up her mind.
Unlike her family, she understood why the Federation invested so much in training warriors.
This wasn't new to her. The city walls couldn't guarantee safety if disaster struck.
The world in which Meng Chao lived consisted of only 23 cities.
Each city had a city Lord, with the youngest earning the title only a few decades ago.
The oldest city lords have been in this role for centuries.
To become a city Lord, one required achieving the highest level of martial prowess currently known.
Only this way could they manage to suppress a city and maintain order, as well as deter calamity from engulfing it.
The huge creatures outside the city walls kept growing in number and strength, so people had to stay within the twenty-three cities.
Unless new, powerful warriors appeared, the twenty-three cities would remain humanity's only safe places.
The ruins offered a chance for people to become stronger and for new heroes to rise.
But most ruins only held incomplete legacies, and some had nothing but broken treasures.
Going to the ruins didn't promise a chance to change your fate, but it always meant facing danger.
That's why Meng Shui wanted to keep this information from her family.
Ruins existed in the void and required a powerhouse to open a pathway, allowing weaker practitioners to enter.
Even though they were called ruins, in actuality, they were just world fragments from powerful worlds that had collapsed or been destroyed.
If lucky, legacies or other treasures could be present on them. In most cases, they are usually empty.
Meng Chao had no suitable technique. His talent and lack of martial background kept him from asking his family for help.
Without a cultivation method, time was slipping away, and soon it might be too late.
He didn't have much time, since martial arts training had strict rules and an age limit.
If he waited too long without a technique, his path could be blocked forever.
Even Meng Shui, who was at the third Heaven, was eager to get stronger and willing to risk her life for a chance.
She was indeed willing to take risks because higher cultivation brought real benefits. Meng Chao entered the house and went to his room. With nothing else to do, he collapsed onto his bed to rest. Without a proper technique, he couldn't advance, so he focused on basic exercises and spent the rest of his time resting and reading about the Xiantian realm online. After resting for two hours, Meng Chao woke up feeling refreshed and sat down at his computer, ready to change focus.
The content was titled "Intricacies of Xiantian*
As soon as he looked, he saw the exact words he always did. Each time he read them, he understood something a little different.
*Those who attain Xiantian have grasped the cultivation method and attained entry, allowing them to ascend from the foundation stage.
The ascension leverages the Cultivation method to temper a Xiantian body, which allows one to ascend the Heavens stairway.
With the ascension, one obtains Xiantian Qi, which forms and accumulates with every Heaven stair one takes.
In the ninth Heaven, the Quality of the Xiantian is refined so that it can help one break open the heavenly gate to become a grandmaster-level figure standing above many, with few above.*
The content was the same every day, and he read it patiently.
He continued to try to make sense of the text, hoping for new insights. But even when he thought he understood, he felt frustrated. The knowledge was useless without a technique he could use.
What did it matter if he understood? He still didn't have a cultivation technique to help him reach the Xiantian stage.
The methods that existed couldn't help him, so he needed to find his own chance. But this wasn't possible, as he wouldn't be allowed to go outside the boundary wall due to his weakness.
He really was powerless to change his fate.