The list materialized before me, each line appearing with methodical precision, as though the universe itself was taking inventory of what I had earned through violence and survival.
[Rewards for defeating Obsidian Fang Demon:]
[+2,350 Experience Points]
[+1 Nascent Core Fragment]
[+150 Spirit Stones (Low Grade)]
[Skill Acquired: Predator's Instinct (Passive)]
[Title Earned: First Blood]
[Bonus Reward: Demon Scale Armor (Nascent Grade) - Added to Inventory]
I stared at the words, reading them over and over, trying to extract meaning from what felt like a foreign language masquerading as something comprehensible. Experience points I understood in a theoretical sense, the concept felt familiar even if I could not remember why. But Nascent Core Fragment? Spirit Stones? The terms hung in my mind, recognizable yet undefined, like words heard in passing from a conversation I had not been part of.
The screen pulsed once more, and a new section expanded below the rewards.
[Total Experience: 2,350/5,000 to Level 2]
[Current Level: 1]
[Realm: Mortal (No Cultivation Base Established)]
Mortal. The word carried weight, a designation that felt simultaneously accurate and limiting. I looked down at my hands again, these hands that had just obliterated a creature three times my size, and tried to reconcile the term with what I had witnessed. If this was mortality, what did power look like?
'System.'
I spoke the word aloud, my voice rough from disuse and the dry air. It cracked slightly, breaking the silence that had settled over the plateau like a shroud. The wind carried the sound away, and for a long moment, nothing happened. I felt foolish, standing there talking to the air, addressing a translucent screen as though it were a person.
Then it responded.
[Yes, Host?]
The voice in my head was the same as before, that neutral tone that belonged to no one and everyone simultaneously. Relief flooded through me, though I could not say why. Perhaps because it meant I was not alone, not completely. Perhaps because it meant there were answers to be had, if only I knew which questions to ask.
'You can hear me,' I said, still speaking aloud. It felt more real that way, more concrete than simply thinking at the voice in my head.
[Affirmative. This system is connected directly to Host's consciousness. Verbal communication is not required, but is permitted if Host prefers.]
I nodded, though there was no one to see it. 'What is the Eternal Body?'
The question hung in the air between me and the screen. It was the most important question, I realized. Everything else, the rewards and the levels and the strange terminology, all of it was secondary to understanding what I was. What I had become. Or perhaps, what I had always been.
The screen flickered, and for a moment I thought it might not answer. Then text began to appear, slower than before, as though the system itself was choosing its words with care.
[The Eternal Body is an innate ability of the highest rarity. Classification: Unique. There are no recorded instances of another being possessing this exact ability in the current era.]
[Primary Characteristic: Immortality of Form]
[Host's body is classified as a Divine Vessel. While Host can die through conventional means—decapitation, destruction of vital organs, cessation of brain function, energy depletion—the physical form itself is eternal. Upon death, Host's body will not decay, will not rot, will not be consumed by time or the elements. It will remain perfect, unchanging, until the end of existence itself.]
I felt my breath catch in my throat. The implications of those words were staggering, spiraling outward in directions I could barely begin to comprehend. I could die, but my body could not. It would persist, frozen in whatever state death left it, forever.
'Why?' I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. 'Why would a body need to be like that?'
[The Eternal Body serves a purpose beyond Host's mortal existence. A Divine Vessel of this caliber is suitable for possession by beings of godhood or near-godhood status. Should Host perish, any deity or entity of sufficient power could claim the body as their own, using it as an anchor to the material realm.]
The words settled over me like a heavy cloak, suffocating in their weight. I was not just a person, not just a being with unusual power. I was a resource. A prize. Something that gods might covet and fight over. The thought made my skin crawl, a visceral revulsion that had nothing to do with logic and everything to do with the fundamental wrongness of being reduced to an object.
'There's more, isn't there?' I said, forcing the words past the tightness in my chest. 'You said primary characteristic. That implies there are others.'
[Correct. The Eternal Body possesses a secondary characteristic that is, in many ways, more significant than its immortality of form.]
[Secondary Characteristic: Law Assimilation]
[Host possesses a passive ability that operates continuously, without conscious activation or energy expenditure. This ability is designated: Steal All Laws of Cultivation.]
The screen paused, and I found myself leaning forward, my earlier fatigue forgotten in the wake of what I was learning. This felt important. This felt like the key to everything.
[Explanation: When Host defeats an enemy, witnesses a cultivation technique in use, or comes into contact with any manifestation of cultivation law, the Eternal Body automatically analyzes, deconstructs, and assimilates that law into Host's being. This process is absolute and cannot be resisted or prevented by any known means.]
[Categories of Laws that can be assimilated include, but are not limited to:]
[- Elemental Laws (Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Lightning, Ice, Light, Darkness, and all derivative elements)]
[- Martial Laws (Weapon mastery, combat techniques, physical enhancement methods)]
[- Soul Laws (Spiritual refinement, consciousness expansion, mental fortification)]
[- Bloodline Laws (Hereditary abilities, racial traits, genetic advantages)]
[- Dao Laws (Conceptual understanding, universal truths, philosophical foundations)]
[- Esoteric Laws (Space, Time, Gravity, Fate, Karma, and other fundamental forces)]
[Once assimilated, these laws become permanently integrated into Host's cultivation base. They cannot be stolen, sealed, or removed. They grow with Host, evolving as Host's understanding and power increase.]
I stood there, processing this information, my mind struggling to grasp the full scope of what I was being told. Every enemy I defeated, every technique I witnessed, every law I encountered would become mine. Not copied, not learned through study and practice, but stolen and made fundamentally part of who I was.
'I'm a cheat code,' I said aloud, and the words felt both ridiculous and perfectly accurate. 'I'm a walking, talking exploit in whatever system governs this world.'
[That is... not an inaccurate assessment, Host.]
Was it my imagination, or did the system's voice carry a trace of amusement? I shook my head, unable to tell if I was projecting human qualities onto something that might be nothing more than an advanced mechanism.
'Show me my status,' I said, deciding that understanding my current state was more important than philosophical debates about the nature of the voice in my head. 'Everything. I need to see what I'm working with.'
[Displaying Host Status.]
The screen expanded, growing larger and more detailed, filling my vision with information that organized itself into clear categories. I read each section carefully, committing every detail to memory.
[STATUS]
[Name: Kai Silver]
[Age: 17 Years]
[Race: Human (Divine Vessel Variant)]
[Level: 1]
[Realm: Mortal]
[Cultivation Stage: None - No Foundation Established]
[Experience: 2,350/5,000]
[ATTRIBUTES]
[Strength: 12]
[Agility: 14]
[Endurance: 11]
[Intelligence: 16]
[Wisdom: 13]
[Spirit: 8 (Undeveloped)]
[Luck: 25]
[INNATE ABILITY]
[The Eternal Body (Unique)]
[- Immortality of Form]
[- Law Assimilation (Passive)]
[ULTIMATE SKILL]
[Invincible Domain]
[Description: Creates a spatial domain where Host becomes absolutely invincible for a brief duration. Within this domain, all of Host's attacks ignore defense and become certain to hit. All incoming attacks are negated completely. Reality bends to Host's will.]
[Duration: 0.03 seconds]
[Cooldown: 24 hours]
[Energy Cost: 90% of current Spirit Energy]
[SKILLS]
[Predator's Instinct (Passive) - New!]
[Effect: Heightened danger sense. Ability to detect hostile intent within a 50 meter radius. Improved combat intuition.]
[TITLES]
[First Blood]
[Effect: +5% damage against enemies Host fights for the first time. +10% Experience gain from first kill of any creature type.]
[ASSIMILATED LAWS]
[None]
[INVENTORY]
[Nascent Core Fragment x1]
[Low Grade Spirit Stones x150]
[Demon Scale Armor (Nascent Grade) x1]
I read through it all twice, then a third time, letting the information sink in. Seventeen years old. Was that right? I tried to feel if the number resonated with any buried memory, but found nothing. It could have been accurate or completely fabricated, and I would have no way to know the difference.
My attributes made some sense. The numbers were low, I could feel that instinctively, but they provided a baseline. Strength, agility, endurance, these were straightforward enough. Intelligence and wisdom seemed self explanatory, though I wondered how the system measured such things. Spirit was listed as undeveloped, which aligned with my current realm designation. Mortal. No cultivation base.
But that luck score. Twenty five, when everything else hovered between eight and sixteen. That seemed significant, though I could not say why.
'System,' I said, my eyes still on the status screen. 'Where am I? What is this place?'
[Current Location: The Abandoned Temple of Zha'thun, the Forgotten God of Boundaries]
[Region: The Shattered Peaks]
[Territory: Unclaimed Wildlands]
[Danger Level: Extreme - Recommended minimum cultivation level for survival: Core Formation Realm]
I felt my stomach drop. Core Formation Realm? I did not know what that meant in concrete terms, but the fact that I, a mortal with no cultivation base, was standing in a place designated as extreme danger painted a very clear picture.
'How am I still alive?' I asked, though I suspected I already knew the answer.
[Probability analysis suggests extreme luck was the primary factor in Host's survival. The Obsidian Fang Demon was the weakest predator in this region, having only recently matured into the Nascent Realm. Most creatures in the Shattered Peaks operate at Foundation Establishment Realm or higher. Host's encounter with a relatively weak opponent, combined with immediate activation of Invincible Domain, resulted in survival against statistical probability.]
[Current survival odds if Host remains in this location: 0.3%]
The number hung in the air like a death sentence. Zero point three percent. I needed to leave this place, and soon. But first, I needed to understand the world I was trying to survive in.
'Explain cultivation to me,' I said, sitting down on a nearby rock. My legs were grateful for the rest, and something told me this was going to take a while. 'All of it. The stages, the realms, what it means. I need to understand what I'm dealing with.'
[Acknowledged. Initiating comprehensive cultivation explanation.]
[Cultivation is the process by which mortal beings transcend their natural limitations and ascend toward divinity. It is the fundamental system by which power is gained, life is extended, and reality itself can be manipulated. All cultivators begin as mortals and progress through established stages, each representing a fundamental transformation of body, mind, and soul.]
[There are nine primary realms of cultivation, with each realm divided into nine stages. Progression through these stages requires the accumulation of energy, comprehension of laws, and transformation of one's entire being.]
The screen reorganized, creating a hierarchical list that expanded as the system spoke.
[REALM ONE: BODY REFINEMENT]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Physical transformation. The cultivator strengthens their mortal flesh, purging impurities and rebuilding their body to serve as a foundation for future cultivation. Each stage represents the refinement of a specific body system: muscles, bones, organs, blood, marrow, skin, meridians, senses, and finally the complete integration of all systems.]
[Average Lifespan: 150 years]
[Power Level: Can shatter stone with bare hands. Move faster than normal human vision. Survive falls that would kill ordinary mortals.]
[Weakness: Still vulnerable to conventional weapons. Still requires food, water, and air. Cannot manipulate energy externally.]
I absorbed this information, trying to imagine what it would be like to shatter stone with my bare hands. The demon I had killed would have been far beyond this realm, I realized. Even at my weakest point of understanding, I could grasp that much.
[REALM TWO: FOUNDATION ESTABLISHMENT]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Energy cultivation. The cultivator opens their meridians fully and establishes their dantian, the core where spiritual energy is stored and refined. They learn to sense and absorb ambient energy from the world around them. Each stage represents an expansion of energy capacity and control.]
[Average Lifespan: 300 years]
[Power Level: Can release energy externally as attacks. Move fast enough to create afterimages. Survive without food or water for weeks. Begin to fly short distances.]
[Weakness: Energy reserves limited. Cannot yet manipulate laws of reality. Vulnerable to specialized weapons and formations.]
Three hundred years. The number seemed impossible, yet the system stated it as simple fact. I tried to imagine living for three centuries and failed. My mortal mind could not stretch that far.
[REALM THREE: NASCENT SOUL]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Soul formation. The cultivator condenses their spiritual energy into a nascent soul, a spiritual body that exists independent of physical form. This marks the first true step toward immortality. Each stage strengthens the nascent soul, allowing it to exist briefly outside the body and increasing its resistance to soul attacks.]
[Average Lifespan: 800 years]
[Power Level: Can survive destruction of physical body if nascent soul escapes. Manipulate energy with thought alone. Fly indefinitely. Destroy mountains with concentrated attacks. Begin to comprehend and use minor laws.]
[Weakness: Nascent soul is fragile if separated from body. Vulnerable to soul-targeting techniques. Cannot yet fully embody laws.]
'The demon I killed,' I said, interrupting the explanation. 'It was Nascent Realm, Stage 3. It was this powerful?'
[Affirmative. The Obsidian Fang Demon was at the third stage of Nascent Soul Realm. Under normal circumstances, Host would have been killed instantly. The demon's physical strength alone was sufficient to tear through steel. Its scales could deflect sword strikes from Foundation Establishment cultivators. Its bite force could crush stone.]
[Host survived only because Invincible Domain activated at the moment of contact, transforming a mortal-level punch into an absolute attack that ignored all defense.]
I swallowed hard, looking down at my fist again. I had not just gotten lucky. I had been impossibly, astronomically lucky. If that skill had not activated, if the system had awakened even a second later, I would have been nothing more than a meal.
'Continue,' I said quietly.
[REALM FOUR: CORE FORMATION]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Power consolidation. The cultivator compresses their nascent soul and spiritual energy into a Golden Core, a crystallized source of power that resides in the dantian. The core becomes the true center of their cultivation, and its quality determines future potential. Each stage represents refinement and expansion of the core.]
[Average Lifespan: 1,500 years]
[Power Level: Casual attacks can level cities. Flight speed approaches sound barrier. Can survive in void of space. Minor laws can be wielded with significant effect. Begin to develop Domain abilities.]
[Weakness: Core is vulnerable if exposed. Destroying the core kills the cultivator permanently. Still bound by fundamental laws of reality.]
Cities. The word echoed in my mind. These cultivators could destroy cities casually, as a side effect of their power. And this was only the fourth realm.
[REALM FIVE: NASCENT DIVINITY]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Divine transformation. The cultivator's Golden Core undergoes a qualitative change, beginning the transformation from mortal to divine. They start to generate their own laws and can impose these laws on reality within a limited range. Each stage represents a deeper integration with universal principles.]
[Average Lifespan: 3,000 years]
[Power Level: Reshape landscapes with intent. Move faster than sound. Create permanent changes to local reality. Command multiple laws simultaneously. Divine sense can observe events thousands of miles away.]
[Weakness: Transformation is incomplete. Still vulnerable to higher-realm cultivators. Cannot yet exist purely as law or concept.]
I was beginning to understand the scale of what I was dealing with. Each realm represented not just an increase in power, but a fundamental change in what the cultivator was. They were transcending mortality step by step, becoming something else entirely.
[REALM SIX: SOUL INTEGRATION]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Unity of being. The cultivator fully integrates their physical body, spiritual core, and soul into a single unified existence. Death of the body no longer means death of the self. Each stage represents a deeper fusion of these three aspects.]
[Average Lifespan: 5,000 years]
[Power Level: Can reform body from soul alone. Survive in any environment. Manipulate fundamental forces like gravity and time on local scale. Project consciousness across continental distances. Attacks carry weight of laws.]
[Weakness: Reformation requires time and energy. Still bound by causality. Cannot transcend physical reality completely.]
Five thousand years. The number had lost meaning. These were beings that would watch civilizations rise and fall, that would outlive kingdoms and dynasties. And there were still three more realms beyond this.
[REALM SEVEN: VOID TRANSCENDENCE]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Breaking limitations. The cultivator learns to exist in the void between realities, stepping outside the normal flow of space and time. They begin to operate on conceptual levels rather than physical ones. Each stage allows deeper immersion into the void.]
[Average Lifespan: 10,000 years]
[Power Level: Teleport across planetary distances. Exist in multiple locations simultaneously. Manipulate space and time freely within personal domain. Attacks can strike from any angle, any direction, any time. Immune to most conventional damage.]
[Weakness: Extended time in void risks losing connection to physical reality. Still vulnerable to conceptual attacks. Cannot create or destroy fundamental laws, only manipulate them.]
'How many of these cultivators exist?' I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. The idea that beings of this power were out there, somewhere, was both terrifying and awe inspiring.
[Estimated global population of Void Transcendence cultivators: Between 200 and 500 individuals. They are extremely rare and typically reside in hidden dimensions or special spaces where time flows differently.]
Hundreds, not thousands. And yet each one could probably kill me with a thought, if they even noticed I existed.
[REALM EIGHT: TRIBULATION SOVEREIGN]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Challenging heaven. The cultivator must survive tribulations sent by the universe itself, tests designed to destroy those unworthy of true immortality. Each tribulation survived grants authority over natural laws. Each stage represents surviving increasingly severe heavenly judgment.]
[Average Lifespan: 50,000 years]
[Power Level: Command weather and natural disasters. Invoke tribulation lightning against enemies. Resist attacks that would annihilate planets. Comprehend and create minor laws. Influence fate and karma on regional scale.]
[Weakness: Tribulations become progressively more deadly. Each advancement risks total annihilation. Heavenly Dao actively opposes further progression. Cannot defy fundamental universal laws.]
'The universe tries to kill you,' I said flatly. 'At the eighth realm, reality itself becomes your enemy.'
[Correct. Tribulation Sovereign is the threshold where cultivators challenge the natural order. The universe responds by attempting to eliminate threats to cosmic balance. Only the strongest, luckiest, or most favored by fate survive to reach the ninth realm.]
[REALM NINE: DIVINE ASCENSION]
[Stages 1-9]
[Focus: Becoming godhood. The final realm before true divinity. The cultivator transforms from a powerful mortal into a being that operates on divine principles. Each stage represents shedding another layer of mortality until only divinity remains. Success means immortality. Failure means total erasure.]
[Average Lifespan: Unlimited - True Immortals do not age or decay]
[Power Level: Create and destroy worlds. Establish universal laws within personal domain. Exist across multiple timelines simultaneously. Attacks can erase beings from existence retroactively. Near-complete immunity to all but conceptual damage. Can grant power to mortals and create minor deities.]
[Weakness: Bound by cosmic laws until divine throne is claimed. Vulnerable to other Divine Ascension cultivators. Still cannot defy the Heavenly Dao's fundamental edicts. Achieving breakthrough to true godhood requires extraordinary comprehension, preparation, and often, sacrifice.]
The list ended there, and I sat in silence, trying to process everything I had just learned. Nine realms. Each one a world unto itself, a transformation so complete that comparing one to the next was like comparing an insect to a dragon.
And I was at the very bottom, below even the first realm. Mortal, with no cultivation base. The gap between where I stood and where those Divine Ascension beings existed was so vast that I could not conceptualize it.
'What happens after the ninth realm?' I asked, almost afraid of the answer. 'What comes after Divine Ascension?'
[True Godhood. Beings who have completely transcended the cultivation system and exist as fundamental forces of reality. They are no longer measured in realms or stages. They simply are. Gods create universes, establish cosmic laws, and exist beyond time and death. They are eternal, unless killed by another god.]
[There are no confirmed gods currently active in this world. The last verified deity was Zha'thun, whose temple Host currently occupies. Zha'thun disappeared approximately 12,000 years ago. Current status: Unknown.]
I looked back at the temple behind me, seeing it with new eyes. A god had lived here once. A being of such power that they existed beyond the comprehension of even Divine Ascension cultivators. And they were gone, leaving behind only ruins and mystery.
'Why did they disappear?' I asked.
[Insufficient data to determine cause. Theories range from voluntary departure to seek higher planes of existence, defeat at the hands of another deity, voluntary dissolution, or achievement of a state beyond godhood. The truth is unknown.]
I stood up, my legs steadier now, my mind racing with everything I had learned. The cultivation system was vast, complex, and built on a foundation of continuous transformation. Every realm represented a fundamental change in what a being was capable of, what they could survive, how long they could exist.
And I, with my Eternal Body and its Law Assimilation ability, could potentially steal my way through all of it.
'System,' I said, looking down at the blood stained ground where the Obsidian Fang Demon had ceased to exist. 'Did I assimilate any laws when I killed that demon?'
[Negative. Law Assimilation requires either direct contact with an active law manifestation or observation of a technique in use. The Obsidian Fang Demon was killed before it could utilize any abilities beyond basic physical attacks. No laws were present to assimilate.]
So I would need to see techniques, witness powers in action. Simply killing would not be enough if my enemies died before they could show me what they were capable of.
That felt like a critical piece of information.
I looked out over the Shattered Peaks, at the mountains stretching into impossible distances, at the valleys shrouded in mist, at the sky so blue it hurt to look at directly. This world was dangerous, filled with beings who could kill me as easily as breathing. The Abandoned Temple of a forgotten god sat in the middle of a region designated as extreme danger, and I had a zero point three percent chance of survival if I stayed.
But I also had the Eternal Body. I had Invincible Domain, even if it only lasted for the barest fraction of a second. I had the ability to steal any law I encountered, to make it permanently mine.
'I need to get stronger,' I said aloud, speaking to the system, to myself, to the universe at large. 'I need to establish a cultivation base, learn how this all works. I need to survive long enough to become something more than prey.'
[Agreed. Recommended immediate action: Depart the Shattered Peaks. Seek civilized territory where resources and guidance can be obtained. Current physical condition: Adequate for travel, though food and water should be prioritized.]
Food. Water. The mention of such basic needs brought me crashing back to immediate reality. I was standing in the ruins of a battle I barely understood, having learned that I was something called a Divine Vessel with reality breaking abilities, and I needed to eat.
The absurdity of it made me laugh, a short, sharp sound that echoed across the plateau.
'Alright,' I said, looking back at the temple one last time. Whatever answers it might have held, they would have to wait. Survival came first. 'Let's go find civilization. And maybe something to eat that isn't trying to kill me.'
[Acknowledged. Updating objectives: Survive. Descend from Shattered Peaks. Locate settlement. Establish cultivation foundation. Good luck, Host.]
I started walking, choosing a direction that looked like it might lead downward, away from the peaks and toward whatever lay beyond. Each step took me farther from the temple, from the only landmark I knew, into unknown territory where anything might be waiting.
But I was Kai Silver. I had the Eternal Body. And somehow, someway, I was going to survive long enough to understand what that meant.
The blood on the stones behind me was already drying, flaking away in the wind like rust. In a few days, there would be no sign that the Obsidian Fang Demon had ever existed. Nature would reclaim the space, and the plateau would return to its empty peace.
I did not look back.