Liu Ming sat cross-legged on the worn, straw-stuffed mat in his corner of the orphanage dormitory, his tiny brow furrowed in concentration. Sunlight streamed through the large, open window, painting warm golden rectangles on the polished wooden floorboards. Dust motes danced lazily in the beams. Outside, he could hear the familiar of Havenwood Refuge: younger children babbling as they played with knotted ropes and smooth river stones in the courtyard, the rhythmic thump-thump of laundry being beaten clean near the well, and the distant clucking of chickens from the coop behind the herb garden. The air smelled of sun-warmed wood, drying linens, and the faint, sharp scent of the medicinal herbs Henna hung from the rafters to dry – minty, earthy, and a little bitter.
His mind was entirely focused on the glowing [STATUS] panel floating before him, puzzling over the cryptic terms like 'Heavenly Refined Body' and 'Primordial Bloodline'. What do they really mean? Are they blessings… or curses waiting to happen?
Suddenly, without warning, bright blue text flashed violently across his vision, obscuring his status screen:
----------------------SYSTEM-----------------------
[SYSTEM FULLY INITIALIZED]
[THERE ARE MANY UPDATES THAT USER MIGHT LIKE. WOULD YOU LIKE TO CHECK?]
[Y/N]
Liu Ming jumped slightly, his heart giving a startled thump. Finally! It's awake! He took a deep breath, the scent of hay from his mat filling his nose. "Yes," he whispered, a suppressed grin tugging at his lips. "Anyway, I don't have anything to do right now but sit here." He chuckled softly, careful not to draw attention from the other toddlers napping nearby or Henna, who was visible through the doorway, mending clothes by the hearth in the common room.
--------------system---------------
UPDATES:
Breakthrough Bonuses: Every time user breaks through to a new cultivation realm, the System will update and unlock new functions (major changes will occur upon reaching high realms).
Realm Rewards: The System will reward the user after every successful breakthrough.
Quest Hub: User can accept quests given by the System to earn System Coins.
System Store: User can purchase information, cultivation resources, items, etc. using System Coins.
"System is even more useful than I thought," Liu Ming murmured, his eyes wide with excitement. The possibilities swirled in his mind like the dust motes in the sunlight.
1,000 coins! Liu Ming felt a surge of pure joy, though he kept his face carefully neutral, like a baby just staring blankly at the wall. He glanced around the simple room – the rough-hewn wooden cribs, the patchwork blankets, the single clay water jug on a low shelf. What can I get with this that helps me right now? Especially with this tiny, weak body?
He focused inward. 'System, what can I do with these coins that will benefit my body the most immediately?'
[Suggestion:] the text shimmered, [User can utilize System Coins by purchasing a 'Basic Body Tempering Pill'. This low-grade medicinal pill will gently force open latent Qi channels within your immature meridians, purge minor physical impurities, and accelerate bodily maturation. This will allow you to safely begin cultivation significantly earlier than normal.]
Liu Ming's breath hitched. Accelerate maturation? Open Qi channels? That's exactly what I need! He thought hard. Henna was still focused on her mending, humming softly. The risk of a pill appearing was small. 'System, buy me this Body Tempering Pill!'
[Item: Basic Body Tempering Pill. Cost: 30 System Coins. Confirm Purchase?]
Only 30! 'Yes! Confirm!' Liu Ming mentally shouted.
[Purchase Confirmed. 30 Coins deducted. Remaining: 970.]
[Item Delivered.]
A faint warmth bloomed in Liu Ming's tightly closed fist. He cautiously opened his fingers. Nestled in his small palm was a pea-sized pill. It was unremarkable – dull brown, with a faint, slightly sweet and medicinal smell, almost lost in the room's other scents. Quick as a flash, before anyone could notice, he popped it into his mouth. It dissolved instantly on his tongue, tasting vaguely of herbs and honey.
For a moment, nothing happened. Then, warmth. Not unpleasant, like drinking hot tea on a cold day. It spread down his throat and pooled in his stomach. Then, the warmth intensified, turning hot. It felt like liquid fire was pouring from his core, rushing through his limbs, flooding into his fingers and toes, even prickling across his scalp. It wasn't painful, but incredibly intense, like his whole body was being flushed with powerful energy. He felt his tiny muscles twitch and tighten, his bones humming faintly. The sensation lasted only a few seconds, but when it faded, the difference was astonishing.
"Woo....," he breathed out, the sound startlingly clear and strong in the quiet room. His voice! It wasn't the gurgling babble of a baby anymore; it was the clear, albeit still high-pitched, voice of a young child. "It's like my body has matured a bit," he whispered experimentally, marveling at the ease of forming words. "And all my senses... they're sharper!"
He looked around. He could see the individual fibers in the rough weave of the blanket beneath him. He could hear the distinct chirp of a specific bird outside the window, separate from the others. He could smell the sharpness of the pine resin used to polish the floorboards beneath the scent of herbs and hay. He flexed his hands – they felt stronger, more coordinated. 'I was in the body of a one-year-old child, but I feel like I am in the body of a 5- or 6-year-old child now!'
But there was more. The world around him felt… thicker. Richer. The sunlight seemed to carry a faint, invisible shimmer. The air itself felt alive, humming with a subtle energy he hadn't perceived before. He reached out a hand, not touching anything, just feeling the space around him. 'Is this… Qi? Is this the energy I felt gathering? It's everywhere!' Excitement warred with frustration. 'If it's Qi all around me, I should be able to cultivate! But… how? How do I actually grab it and use it?'
'System,' he pleaded mentally, 'how can I cultivate? How do I absorb this Qi?'
[NOTICE:] the blue text replied promptly, [You can purchase foundational knowledge manuals on Qi Cultivation Principles in the System Store.]
[Would you like to browse the 'Cultivation Knowledge' section?]
'WHAT! Can't you just tell me? Free advice?' Liu Ming grumbled internally.
[ANSWER: Negative. System functions operate on transactional protocols. Knowledge dissemination requires coin expenditure.]
'Fine,' Liu Ming sighed, the sound of his own clear voice still strange. 'Then just tell me the cost. Show me the cheapest option for starting.'
The System screen flickered, displaying new text:
Low Level (Mortal to Foundation Establishment): Cost: 1,000 System Coins
Intermediate Level (Core Formation to Nascent Soul): Cost: 1,000,000 System Coins
High Level (Soul Transformation to Ascension): Cost: 100,000,000 System Coins
Saint Level (Beyond Ascension): Cost: 10,000,000,000 System Coins>
'WHAT THE FUK!'* Liu Ming screamed inside his head, barely stopping himself from shouting aloud and alerting Henna. He stared at the numbers, especially the 1,000 for the lowest level. He only had 970 coins left! 'I can't even buy the beginner stuff! It's right there, but I can't reach it!' Despair washed over him. 'So… I have to figure it out by myself. From scratch.' He slumped back against the cool wooden wall behind his mat, feeling the grain press against his back. 'How should I even start?'
Looking at the shimmering air near the sunbeam, an idea sparked. Sensing. He'd been doing that passively since taking the pill. He needed to do it actively. Taking a deep breath of the Qi-thick air, Liu Ming shifted on his mat, arranging his small legs into a crude cross-legged position – a meditation pose he vaguely remembered from movies in his past life. He closed his eyes, shutting out the sight of the sunlit room, the rough wood grain, the hanging herbs. He focused inward, then outward, trying to feel the energy he now knew surrounded him. He imagined his skin breathing, not just air, but that shimmering, humming Qi.
Three Days Later:
Liu Ming sat in his now-familiar spot, the late afternoon sun painting long shadows across the dormitory floor. The sounds of children being called in for the evening meal drifted from the common room. For three days, in every stolen moment of quiet – during naps, early mornings, when Henna was busy elsewhere – he had practiced. He sat, he breathed, he focused.
And slowly, it was working. 'It looks like I am progressing somewhat,' he thought, a flicker of pride warming him. He could now feel the Qi more distinctly. It wasn't just a vague hum; it felt like a gentle current flowing through the room, denser near the sunbeams and the potted green plant Henna kept on the windowsill, thinner in the corners. He could feel slight eddies and swirls in the air around him. It was like learning to see in a dim light – shapes were becoming clearer.
One Month Later:
A full cycle of the moon had passed. Liu Ming sat meditating not just in his corner, but sometimes hidden behind the woodpile in the courtyard, or tucked under the broad leaves of the vegetable patch during the quietest parts of the day. His senses had sharpened further.
'I can feel the Qi density around myself clearly now,' he realized. He could map it like a heat map in his mind – thick, vibrant patches near living things, flowing streams near water, steady pools near large rocks or trees. The orphanage sat on land with surprisingly decent, steady Qi flow, he noted. The temptation grew overwhelming. Sensing it was one thing... but using it? 'How about I try to pull it in? Just a little? How about I forcefully make Qi enter my body?'
Gathering his courage (and his focus), Liu Ming sat bolt upright on his mat. He closed his eyes tightly and concentrated with all his might. He pictured the Qi currents swirling around him. He willed them towards his body. He imagined himself as a dry sponge, desperately thirsty for the energy in the air.
At first, nothing. Then, he felt it. A tiny trickle, like a cool droplet, seeped through the skin of his forehead. Then another on his palm. Encouraged, he pushed harder, mentally sucking the energy in.
Big mistake.
The trickle became a flood. The coolness turned into searing ice and burning fire simultaneously. Qi, raw and untamed, violently rushed into his immature meridians – the pathways the Body Tempering Pill had only gently opened. It felt like shards of broken glass were being forced through his veins. His skin burned as if being flayed. Muscles cramped and tore. Bones felt like they were grinding against each other. Unimaginable, excruciating pain exploded through every nerve ending. He couldn't scream; his throat was locked in agony. Tears streamed down his cheeks, hot against his burning skin. He instinctively tried to stop the influx, but the Qi, once invited in, raged like a wild beast trapped inside him.
Just as the pain threatened to shatter his mind, he managed to violently sever his mental connection to the swirling Qi outside. The torrent stopped as abruptly as it started.
Liu Ming's eyes flew open, wide with terror and residual agony. "Huff... huff..." He gasped for air like a fish thrown onto a riverbank, his small chest heaving. Sweat soaked his simple tunic. He trembled violently, his body screaming from the internal trauma. He stared down at his hands, half-expecting to see blood or torn flesh, but they looked normal, though trembling uncontrollably. The room seemed to spin, the familiar wooden walls blurring.
Then, cutting through the haze of pain and panic, bright, celebratory golden text flashed before his eyes, accompanied by a soft, melodic chime in his mind:
[CONGRATULATIONS!]
[You have taken your first step on the cultivation path!]
[Your body has shed its Mortal Shell!]
[BREAKTHROUGH ACHIEVED: Self-Tempering Realm (1st Stage - Body Forging Initiate)]
[REWARDING THE USER FOR BREAKTHROUGH:]
[SKILL: Five Divine Paths Yin-Yang Cultivation Method (Heaven Grade)]
[2,000 System Coins Added!]
The pain was still a deep, throbbing ache, but the golden text and the sudden influx of coins (his total now 2,970!) sent a wave of euphoria crashing through Liu Ming. He had done it. He had forced his way into the first realm, enduring agony to step beyond mortality. And the reward... a Heaven Grade cultivation method! The System screen shimmered, the [Cultivation Base] on his Status now proudly reading: Self-Tempering Realm (1st Stage).
He slumped back, utterly exhausted but grinning through the lingering tremors. The ordinary sounds of the orphanage settling for the evening – Henna calling a child's name, the clatter of a wooden bowl – sounded sweeter than ever. He was no longer just Liu Ming, the abandoned baby. He was Liu Ming, a cultivator. His journey, painful and self-directed as it had begun, was truly underway. The Qi around him still hummed, but now it felt less like an impenetrable wall and more like a vast, challenging ocean he had just learned to dip his toes into.