It was already dark when Jake got to his room.

With a sigh, he dumped his bag and slumped on his bed.

Immediately, he stood up, went to his drawer, and brought out a drink.

Youths were freer in this world than in his previous world. The only thing that could restrict them is their duties to their families, which sometimes, if not most times, can be terrifying.

It was like buttering a chicken only to kill them.

The families give their younger ones fake-free will and impose on them duties they are meant to fulfill, which chains them up for life.

However, Jake didn't think badly of it.

It was a give-and-take situation. Not many people do give things and expect nothing in return.

After gulping down his drink, Jake breathed out a breath of hot air and laid on his bed for a few minutes.

Following that, he stood back up and positioned himself in the direction of the moon.

He was about to cultivate.

Last night, he had reached [Stage-8] and was just a few breadths away from [Stage-9].

The problem was that he had activated more than eighty(80) [Spiritual Gates], but he could feel that he had not done everything.

It was widely known that the average humans have eighty(80) [Spiritual Gates], and anyone possessing a number above that was special.

After his hours in the library, Jake understood what this special actually meant.

It meant that anything could be considered special as long as it outside the norm.

Anyone special would have more than average [Spiritual Gates] and not the other way around.

The term "special" was not as exaggerated as it sounded.

As long as one could manifest an ability without the help of cultivation, they could be termed as special.

Bloodlines, Unique Bodies, Special Abilities, and many more were all listed as special.

And that could be proved by them possessing more than the required amount of [Spiritual Gates].

All of them possess something that separates their physiques from the norm.

It was said in a book Jake read that Specials are grouped into different ranks, but Aztec did not have access to such information, even the whole southern continent didn't.

In Aztec, it was difficult to spot a "special" as most of them might not be extremely strong.

However, Jake knew that most of them in the competition could be listed under that category.

For instance, the trio. Jake suspected them very strongly. He had to admit that they were well outside the norm and just behind him in terms of cultivation speed.

Another one he suspected was Princess Cheyenne.

Well, she was already a public "special" as anyone with the Aztec Royal bloodline was special, but Jake suspected there was more to her than that.

Strangely enough, he felt an unexplained irritation every time he was close to her. While he could control it perfectly now, it was still something to suspect both in her and him.

The rest of the participants were not that clear as they could be counted as specials or just someone with a good talent for cultivation.

It had to be known that not every special had a good affinity for [Spirit Essence].

Anyway, Jake was sure he was special. He had the [Akashic Eye] and the [Purple Whirpool].

So, he was not surprised after doing some checking that he would possess more than eighty(80) [Spiritual Gates].

Sitting in a lotus position, Jake used his absorbed energy to find his remaining [Spiritual Gates].

It came off rather easy for me.

Eighty-one... eighty-nine...ninety.....ninety-five...

Jake kept finding [Spiritual Gates] easily until he reached a number of one hundred and forty-seven.

Jake reached a road stop as he couldn't find anymore. He thought that was all until his [Purple whirpool] came out of his body.

The tiny whirlpool swam on his skin and indicated where his remaining [Spiritual Gates] was.

Jake was puzzled and followed through, by the time he got to the [Spiritual Gates], he felt there were huge and vibrant and instantly, he remembered everything.

'The three cores. One for my energy pathway, two for my physical body. The [Purple Whirpool] is a manifestation of them,' recounted Jake.

When creating his body, he molded cores out of wisps of [Primordial Chaos] into his body.

He added it as a guarantee in case he lacked enough strength.

All this while, the [Purple Whirpool] had been absorbing [Source Energies] to increase them, that's why they have been vibrant.

They basically signified the most important part of his body. Jake remembered that there were two additional cores, but he couldn't remember where he placed them.

Anyways, now he knew where the [Source Energy] went to.

But he had to admit. He was very ambitious, for him to steal [Primordial Chaos] and attempt to make himself a Son of Chaos again.

Well, that would probably take millennials to achieve, so he could only wait for his cores to gradually influence his body towards that of a Son of Chaos. Yet, that could only be achieved by feeding the cores.

The moment Jake found his full [Spiritual Gates], something in him unlocked and he was opened to the world of energy.

He felt so free like a bird in the sky and tried to absorb energy.

The [Spirit Essence] flowed through his body perfectly, passing through all his [Spiritual Gates].

This was the ability of all [Realm-1 Stage-9]. They had the perfect manipulation of [Spirit Essence], able to move it anywhere in their body.

This was extremely useful and way better than the half-ass energy manipulation of the lower stages.

Now that he was in [Stage-9], he wanted to try his luck and complete it.

[Realm-1 Stage-9] was different from the rest. It was a crucial point in reaching [Realm-2].

At [Realm-1 Stage-9], one had to refine [Spirit Essence] and change it to a liquid state in the middle dantian, the stomach region.

One would spin the energy around until it changes form, which would also increase its purity and permanently store it in the body.

The liquid [Spirit Essence] is called dew droplets, coinciding with the actual title of [Realm-1], Morning Dew Realm.

Jake quickly got to work.

Jake quickly got to work.

The amount of time required to create a dew droplet varied on the individual.

Some take a year. Some take six months. Some take a month. Some take a week. Some take a day.

It all depends on the purity level of [Spirit Essence] that one absorbs.

Jake, being one that absorbs an astonishing level of purity, formed his first droplet under two hours.

He knew then that he could break through to the next stage, but he decided not to.

He had read in the library that only those who have acquired the [Hidden Stages] for the previous cultivation realms would be eligible to contest for one in their current realm.

With that, Jake began his journey to the [Hidden Stage].

Following the hint from Gavin, Jake had done research on the [Realm-1 Hidden Stage].

It was exactly like Gavin said.

At the [Hidden Stage], one had to become closer with [Spirit Essence].

They had to open up their veiled sights and see the nature of [Spirit Essence].

Jake spread my mind across the air, where [Spirit Essence] were.

He let his mind wander about attracting energy, and played with them.

Using his energy sense, Jake could feel a blue air around him. That was the same sight for every [Realm-1] cultivator.

Jake could feel himself absorbing and refining the [Spirit Essence]. It was a wondrous feeling that anyone would like.

As he kept diving into the world of [Spirit Essence], Jake began to sense something other than the blue [Spirit Essence].

At first, he thought he was hallucinating, but on second thought, Jake finally understood what the hidden stage was.

It was the same as his guess. It was all about awakening one's element.

After another round of sensing, Jake figured everything out.

Blue [Spirit Essence] was the natural form of [Spirit Essence]. However, that was just the general form, [Spirit Essence] could further be broken down into [Elemental Spirit Essence].

The blue warmth one perceives when sensing [Spirit Essence] was the mixture of different colors of [Spirit Essence].

They signified the elements of nature; Fire, Wind, Water, Earth, and many more.

Those at [Realm-2] would get to unlock their elemental affinity, but those at the hidden stage would unlock faster, plus Jake was sure that there was a benefit involved in doing so.

As one progresses into [Realm-2], one would realize that the blue [Spirit Essence] they assumed they previously absorbed was not totally blue.

Instead, it was a shade of blue.

This meant that from [Realm-1] they were already absorbing [Spirit Essence] aligned with their respective elements.

Jake opened his eyes and quit his meditation. He ruminated over his thoughts before he went back to meditation.

'This meant that I could also find out my element earlier,' thought Jake.

He now understood why the hidden stage cultivators could already use their element well.

He once again dived into the world of [Spirit Essence]

This time he saw that the [Elemntal Spirit Essence] his body was attracted to were only two; a blue icy one, and a stormy purplish-blue one.

Within an instant, he recognized the element. They were Ice, which was a secondary element, and Lightning, which was a tertiary element.

The elements of nature were grouped into primary, secondary, and tertiary based on their nature. Basic elements have a simple nature, while tertiary elements have a very complex nature and were difficult to manipulate.

It was only due to a book he read in the library that he was able to identify the element.

Immediately after his realization, his body seemed to understand him as it wantonly absorbed the [Elemental Spirit Essence] into his body.

Without further ado, Jake began to refine the new energy. He decided not to break through instantly, but instead, get more familiar with the hidden stage.