The first realization involved the Dragon King.
Liam had only heard Crazy Uncle mention that the King was the Ancestral Dragon's son, making him think that the matter was secret.
That assumption had turned out to be wrong. There was even a saying about it. Apparently, the fact that the King was the son of the Dragon of Pride was common knowledge in the cultivation world.
Then, the second realization came, together with its terrible implications.
'Will I also have ten spiritual roots?' Liam gasped in his mind.
While apparently promising immense benefits, the fact that Liam was the son of the Snake of Hatred was his greatest secret, something he absolutely couldn't allow others to discover.
If that news came out and word reached the Dragon King, it wouldn't just be about Liam losing his life. Cyrus and Adrian might be implicated, too.
After all, the King had launched the kingdom-wide Screening to flush out the Ancestral Snake's son. Liam had to believe the King would stop at nothing to kill him and eradicate any trace of his existence, including those who might have helped him remain hidden.
"Do all Ancestral Beasts' sons have ten spiritual roots?" Liam asked, not wanting to fall prey to despair yet.
There was a flaw in what Lucy had said. Liam didn't know how much Crazy Uncle was to be believed, but he allegedly was the Ancestral Turtle's son.
If the cultivation world knew about the King, it should be aware of that old man, too.
"So they say," Lucy casually responded. "The Dragon King is the only cultivator known to have claimed such a feat. Even then, the achievement is so incredible it has become legend."
That was a non-answer. It didn't prove or disprove anything. Crazy Uncle might have lied, just like he might have kept his bloodline a secret from the world.
"Is there a way to fake this test?" Liam questioned, his despair gaining ground.
Lucy stopped wandering and giggled at the sight of Liam's panic. She mistook it for simple anxiety, prompting her to reassure him again.
"I told you not to worry," Lucy reminded. "I've never seen or heard of anyone as strong as you. Besides, you are already a foundation expert. That much is proof of your talent."
Those words worsened Liam's despair instead of reassuring him. If his strength was really as unheard of as Lucy claimed, he might truly possess the so-called divine ten spiritual roots.
"Look," Lucy sighed, since Liam's panic didn't wane. "Cultivation talent comes from multiple factors."
Liam had long since stopped worrying about his lack of talent. His problem was that he might have too much of it, but he remained silent to avoid misspeaking.
"We all carry traces of the Ancestral Beasts' bloodlines," Lucy continued, "With levels depending on how much blood we share, but our upbringing also plays an important role."
Liam was almost ready to hope again, only for Lucy's following words to deliver the finishing blow.
"Even the most fertile ground has to be maintained," Lucy explained. "Hunger, illnesses, and other problems can stunt growth, sullying the body, making it unsuitable for cultivation."
Lucy smiled again. "But you clearly grew up properly. It's evident."
The muscular frame and broad shoulders highlighted by the tight robe confirmed that point and claimed Lucy's gaze, but Liam's thoughts had already moved elsewhere.
As the son of a hunter, Liam had never lacked meat. Life in the mountains had also been the perfect training ground, developing a body no kid his age could match.
When Liam coupled that with his bloodline, his situation became utterly hopeless. He now felt almost sure that the imminent test would expose his secret.
"What's that?" Lucy asked in front of Liam's silence, nodding at the furled piece of paper in his hands, wanting to distract him from his apparent anxiety.
"The Disciplinary Elder gave me the Sect's circulation technique," Liam responded absent-mindedly. "He also said I have a poison core."
The second part of Liam's statement dispelled Lucy's smile and made her widen her eyes, before a trace of annoyance invaded her expression.
"You shouldn't have told me that," Lucy scolded. "Didn't I tell you to stop being so trusting?"
Lucy's past words had actually only applied to old men, but Liam realized his mistake. If cores truly were the most precious and private places for cultivators, their nature was probably best kept a secret.
Still, Lucy took the matter a step further, wanting to give Liam clear examples of what she meant.
"What if I decided to tamper with your nutrients?" Lucy questioned. "Now that I know what you need to cultivate, I can use it to my advantage and ruin your core."
Liam opened his mouth but didn't reply. Lucy was completely right. It was actually the same with the animals Liam had hunted. Learning their habits and needs was key in laying proper traps, and the same seemed to apply to cultivators.
"But," Lucy exclaimed, dropping her serious tone, "We might become brother and sister of the Sect tomorrow. You still shouldn't divulge such information so carelessly, but I'm fine being the exception."
Lucy was just teasing Liam at that point, but he took the scolding to heart. He had already messed up with the Elder earlier, and tomorrow's seemingly certain doom soured his mood even further.
"Come on, close the cave," Lucy sighed, wanting to ease the atmosphere. "I'll help you understand the circulation technique."
The mention of the technique snapped Liam out of his sourness. He had finally gotten his hands on a piece of the cultivation journey, basically making it real in his mind, managing to distract him.
After getting scolded about secrecy, Liam didn't hesitate to bring his square tablet to the entrance, which began to close before he could wave it awkwardly at it.
Privacy arrived, and Liam turned to find Lucy sitting cross-legged on the praying mat, waiting for him.
"This is the lotus position," Lucy explained, nodding at a spot in front of her. "Hurry up."
Liam quickly sat in front of Lucy, unfurling the piece of paper to give it a proper look, but the frown that followed hinted at problems.
"You can read, can't you?" Lucy chuckled, while part of her seriously worried about that.
"As long as the words aren't too complicated," Liam revealed, his frown deepening as he found many of those complicated words on those four lines.
"Show me what you can't read," Lucy invited, but Liam didn't show her anything, instead bringing the piece of paper to his chest.
"You are learning," Lucy praised, "But we all receive the same low-grade circulation technique when we enter the Sect."
"Low-grade?" Liam questioned. "Are there better ones?"
"Medium and high grade," Lucy nodded. "Though I don't know if the Pale Moon Sect has those. I'm only an outer disciple after all."
As humble as Lucy had sounded, Liam still saw her as the most knowledgeable person he knew, prompting a genuine question. "How do you know so much about cultivation?"
"I've joined the Pale Moon Sect during the second-last recruitment period," Lucy explained. "I've been here for over a year and attended many lessons."
That statement revealed how much Liam needed the Sect. Lucy spoke of many incredible topics as if they were common knowledge. They probably were. Liam was the problem there, and the ability to solve it was now in doubt.
"And I have a blood core," Lucy suddenly revealed. "See? That's how cultivators exchange information. A secret for a secret."
The revelation distracted Liam, and he instantly connected it to what he had seen earlier that night.
"So, when I met you ..." Liam mentioned.
"Those are Blank Leaves," Lucy nodded. "They gain the properties of whatever they are fed with. I grow them with my blood, so they work as nutrients for my core."
Liam's eyes went wide. He knew animals more than plants, but those Blank Leaves sounded magical. Still, his shock came from something else.
If Liam wanted to, he could now ruin Lucy's garden and hinder her cultivation. Actually, a proper expert could tamper with those plants, making Lucy ingest nutrients that could damage her core.
"You shouldn't have told me that," Liam exclaimed.
"Do you understand now?" Lucy asked. "But well, as serious as you are, it's probably best to tell you how important my garden is. I know you won't mention it by mistake now."
Liam nodded repeatedly. He wasn't good with lies, but learning about the garden's importance would ensure his silence when put on the spot.
"The Sect has protected gardens," Lucy added, "But they cost contribution points, so I set mine outside. Anyway, circulation technique!"
Liam didn't hesitate to show the piece of paper now, his finger pointing at anything he couldn't read.
"This," Liam muttered, "This, this, also this. This, too, and I'm not really sure about this one."
Lucy didn't mock Liam. Instead, she noted down everything, knowing why Liam was so lost.
"Those are words specific to the Qi channels," Lucy explained, adding details before Liam could ask for them. "They are the pathways where the Qi flows, also known as meridians."
That prompt addition had solved one of Liam's doubts, but more arrived. Still, Lucy had been ready for them.
"This is the Transcendent Immersion," Lucy said, pointing at one of the complicated words. "It's a way of breathing that allows you to sense your Qi more clearly and interact with it. You'll need it until you learn to control it without it."
Lucy proceeded to explain all the other highlighted points, and Liam listened attentively, but a different kind of understanding also spread.
It wasn't just about general knowledge. Merely reading techniques required study. Certain words implied meanings that ordinary people could never connect to actual practices.
And Liam had to believe that everything about the cultivation world was like that, meaning that he desperately needed teachers.
As Liam currently was, he wouldn't be able to grow stronger on his own. He wouldn't be able to do anything at all. Someone had to teach him how to walk before he could hope to run, and that someone was the Sect.
"Do you need me to repeat something?" Lucy asked once she was done explaining.
Liam shook his head, emboldened by that new realization. The situation was hopeless, but accepting it allowed him to stop worrying and focus on the little he had managed to seize, starting with that technique and Lucy's trust.
So, Liam placed the wooden tablet and the piece of paper on the mat, adjusting his cross-legged stance and closing his eyes, reviewing Lucy's instructions before beginning to follow them.
Liam's breathing pace changed. He performed four short breaths in quick succession before doing a deep one, only to immediately repeat the process.
The practice made Liam light-headed and put him in a trance-like state, bringing his mind closer to the sense of fulfillment inside him. That energy gradually gained a more tangible shape, or rather, his will attuned to it, learning to touch it.
Slowly, the energy Liam sensed in his lower waist started to rise. He willed it to do so, pushing it higher and higher, until it reached his heart.
There, the energy met a hindrance, a filter that demanded more of Liam's effort to cross. Only fragments came out of the other side, smaller but purer, continuing to rise toward his head.
Once the fragments reached Liam's head, he gained newfound control over them and the paths they could take. He saw countless roads lighting up inside his body, and he decided to fill them all.
Liam willed the fragments to descend, pushing them back to his heart, which pumped them out, warming his back as they spread throughout his body, reaching even the tips of his toes.
And that wasn't the end. More energy was rising from Liam's dantian, slamming on the filter that was his heart, waiting to be refined and turned into power his body could use.
Yet, the overlap of processes made Liam lose control, and his body expelled the mystical warmth that had filled it.
Liam restored his usual way of breathing, opening his eyes while the last traces of his light-headedness dispersed. Still, his gaze quickly focused when he noticed the disbelief in Lucy's face, as well as her fluttering hair and the unmaking of her bun.
"Who even are you?" Lucy muttered, her tone almost timid, not knowing whether to feel blessed or cursed to have witnessed the scene.