As I arrive at the base of the path that leads to the peak of the majestic mountain where my cultivation chamber resides, I look over to the palace that sits snugly within the mountain face. It is beyond massive, beyond mortal comprehension, with large glass windows reflecting the sunlight and large balconies that seems to be as large as some castle bedrooms, while the palace itself being made out of what seems to be pure white quartz, looking like a residence of a God rather than a mage. Well, I am about to become a God, or as close to it in this world I thought.
As I looked back to the winding stone path in front of me, I started to walk, I could just teleport straight to the entrance. But there is something calming about making the trek there. It allows for me to calm my mind and get into the right head space.
After walking for a couple of hours I made it to the top, and what I saw before me was a huge flat rocky wall with a clearing that seems to be done by machinery of some sort. While along that wall was a large, expansive set of doors with the engraving of a large burning sun. I pushed the doors open and step inside.
This place is my personal cultivation chamber, with the some of the most dense quantity of mana found anywhere in the world. This chamber is special because it was built around the mana, rather than for most mages they will purchase chambers that are fuelled through magic crystals, a material usually found in dungeons, higher the grade of the dungeon the higher the grade of magic crystals reside within them and then the denser and hight quality the cultivation chamber.
Then there are places like this, natural phenomena they are called, places where there is a huge density of mana, and powerful mages fight and die to control them, to be able to do what I have done, and create a chamber around it. This was one of the reasons I built my residence on the mountain. As I look around it seems very unremarkable to the mundane person, no frills or loud luxury on display, just a cavern really, with a cushion in the middle of the space. However, if a powerful mage were to be here they would instantly realise just how great a resource this space really is.
As I seated myself on the cushion in the middle of the space, I closed my eyes and started my cultivation.
...
In this world of Magedom, cultivation is the practice of drawing in a substance called mana from the environment and then circulating it through themselves, to strengthen their bodies ready for the increase in power from levelling up their cultivation level, then they push that mana it into their magic core, filling their core with mana until it becomes completely saturated and full, then at this point the core will break and reform larger and smoother that before. Giving the mage more mana reserves and purer mana to use for spells - allowing the spells to be more powerful.
This is where talent comes into it, and why it defines a mage. Because the higher the talent you have, not just the further you can go on the path of cultivation, but the quicker you can go down the path, and the stronger you are within the level of your cultivation. So, if two people were on the same level, of Emperor Mage, then the one with the better talent of core will usually come out the victor. For reference the levels of cores from worst to best are as follows: Black, Yellow, Orange, Blue, Red, Green, White.
...
With my eyes closed I drew the pure mana into my body and started to circulate it around, strengthening my body further - bones, ligaments, cells, blood, the mana kept pouring in at such an intensity that my body felt overloaded, but I kept at it, calming the mana as I circulated it and slowly but surely poured it into my core filling it with mana while trying to saturate it completely to break, reform it and finally after 15 years become a Great Mage.
This process lasted nearly three whole days, just the monotonous process of drawing in mana, circulating it, feeling my body strengthen and then my core fill even more with mana. Rinse and repeat over and over again. However, for me time seemed to fly as I was so engrossed in the process.
Then, finally, it happened. BOOM! The cavern and even the mountain shook. As my core broke apart and started to reform, stronger, larger, filling up with even purer mana, the mana seemed to be as clear as glass and the physical quality and image of it within my mana core as it refilled, seemed to be almost like liquid gold - my connection to mana also started to feel even closer, like I could almost communicate with it, as if it were not just a object or resource, but a living breathing entity, I thought, 'I will need to test this more after I deal with the Vaelgrim's.' Thinking this, I continued on, while outside the confines of the cavern, something monumental was taking place.
As this process took place within the cavern at the peak of the mountain, outside a huge golden sun appeared above the mountain and the people of the palace and the city felt it, the change in the air, the huge golden sun up in the sky, the almost need to revere what ever existence was at the top of the mountain peak. Some people within the city even knelt, kow-towing like some Demi-God was just birthed, and in actuality this was essentially true.
A Grand Mage within the world of Magedom was legendary for a reason, it was a level of power that bordered on divine, your connection to mana was almost symbiotic and ethereal, and just like when you gain long distant personal teleportation at Great Mage at Grand Mage you gain the power of, domains. They form naturally, almost subconsciously, after the breakthrough, based off your power, your element and the potential and direction for your power in the future.
A Grand Mage within a domain is essentially unbeatable, unless an outside force is able to break in and destabilise it or the person within a domain is also a Grand Mage. If that is the case they can use theirs and then something called a battle of domains will occur - the winner will come down to the person with the best foundation, talent and stronger will. That is not all, whoever loses the battle of domains or gets theirs breached will suffer a temporary backlash, which will weaken the mage, and that will make the mage vulnerable to the opponent.
Right now within the world that is known that is, there are only as many as ten Grand Mages, they are not active in this era as most of them have been in closed door cultivation for decades. However, their legends are still known throughout the world and their names still find themselves on the end of peoples tongues as they tell their children of their tales as bed time stories. They are the ancestors of each imperial family within the world, some wanderers, one even the head of the academy. Some centuries or even thousands of years old.
Now there was another one added to their illustrious ranks.
The One Blessed by The Light.
Kyros Lightborn.