‘The mighty gods yielded the power of the Laws and created the world. They also created all the living beings.

“Cultivate,” the gods said. “Cultivate and come to where we are. Help us protect the Law.” They handed out many cultivation methods. And thus, began the Age of Cultivation.’

I closed the book. What a load of crap! I thought.

Ding!

You have gained +1 Comprehension.

I was trying to find out more about this world. So far I was not having any luck. Apart from the fact that this world was huge (according to the books I read it was at least hundreds of times bigger than Earth) and the fact that many Empires and Kingdoms with many different races existed, there were not many take away. No definite map. No proper communication system. Most part of the books was dedicated to praising the gods.

There was also the Law. According to the books, the gods, to bring order and harmony to the worlds they governed, they created the Law. Yet they also seemed to be bound by it. It was very easy to guess that Law was not something the gods created. But all the books somehow skipped over that detail.

The Law was pretty vague. Why do rivers follow downstream instead of upstream? It was because of the Law. Why was fire hot? It was because of the Law. Why did people grow and die? It was because of the Law. In other word, the Law was the one-stop answer to everything that was incomprehensible.

That said, any oath you took, swearing to the Law, you must absolutely abide by it. Otherwise, the consequences were really dire.

I heard the loud commotion little Byakko and little Ling were creating in the kitchen.

Keeping the book aside, I stood up and went to check on the two troublemakers.

We moved into the bookstore a few days back.

Apart from the storefront, the bookstore came with a bedroom, a bathroom and a kitchen. It couldn’t be considered luxurious but it was definitely be better than living in an inn where you had little to no privacy. Moreover, we had access to our own kitchen. We could roast all the meat we wanted!

We had to go and buy many necessities from the market. For starter, we switched the old man’s dingy bed for a larger one, together with a big comfortable mattress and beddings. We also bought some simple cooking sets.

Thanks to Sister Yu, the restaurant finally relented to letting us eat there once in a week. It took a tedious amount of negotiation. We were not exactly satisfied but it was better than nothing. For the other days, we could only sustain ourselves with skewers and other foods from the street. We had to be careful not to frighten the street food sellers. It wouldn’t do good to get blacklisted again. The last line of our defense was our own homemade roasted meat. There were many bodies of beasts in my spatial ring. It would take us a while to deplete it. Even if we managed to deplete the whole supply, we could always go and hunt for more.

I decisively closed the bookstore. There was no business to talk of. Beside, I had no shortage of money. I converted the storefront to my personal library, a haven where I could quietly read.

But with Byakko and Ling, quiet was the last thing I could get.

“Father~ we prepared the dinner~” Byakko said with a triumphant smile on his face. Ling also held her head high with pride.

I looked at the mess in the kitchen. Many pots and pans were burnt and scattered carelessly all over the kitchen. It was alright to let them handle everything in the wilderness but putting them in a close-knit kitchen didn’t seem to be a good idea. I sighed. We wish we could get a proper cook.

I gave up on trying to read more books about the world. Travelling the world was already on my itinerary. As they said, travelling hundred miles is better than reading hundreds of books. I could learn about this world as I explored it.

I switched my focus to those related to traits.

‘…Traits are gifts of the gods to the beings of the lower worlds.’ I closed the book as soon as I saw the line. It might be my biasness coming into play but as soon as I saw superfluous language praising gods, I felt no credibility from that book.

I sifted through many books and finally found a concise book that was written in a precise manner. Just the thing I wanted. I immediately read through it.

‘Trait is the innate qualities one was born with. It could also be acquired through special circumstances,’ it said.

I continued reading.

Traits were pretty useful. It needed no special energy or anything to use. Yet it was also dangerous. With the grown in its owner, the trait would grow. If the trait outgrew the owner, there were cases where the trait would take over the consciousness of the owner. It didn’t normally happen with people possessing two or less traits.

More traits did not mean a good thing. The book chronicled the incident of a man who had five traits, the highest that was ever recorded in history. With his five traits, he made a strong presence in the cultivation world. Everyone believed that he would transcend this world and go beyond. Yet when he broke through to become a Spirit Transformation Stage cultivator, he lost his mind. He went on a slaughter spree.

In the end, the Empire could only send some of their best cultivators to kill him. The journey of a great cultivator ended on a tragic note.

I couldn’t help but sweat. That man only had five traits while I already had seven. From the looks of it, I would acquire more in the future.

The book did not explicitly mention about the egos of the traits but I could see traces of it alluded in the book.

The author had mentioned two methods of taking care of this hidden danger. One, cultivating strong stats. That would enable the owner to fight against the traits. Second, cultivate the and take control of the traits.

Ding!

You have gained +1 Comprehension.

I recalled my situation and thought that it had unwittingly played out the way the author had penned down. I had high stats that enabled me to fight my traits and my had been activated, albeit not fully.

was a skill that one could cultivate when one reached Core Formation Stage. But with my stats, I shouldn’t have any problem cultivating it now. I remembered that dingy room created by the traits to imprison me. That had been a .

I searched for a book on but found none.

I could only go and check out one of the stores that sold jade records.

It had a whole different atmosphere than the bookstore. It gave out a classy and high-class vibe. There was a cashier at the counter and many assistants to assist the customers. What’s more, they were all beautiful women! Talk about customer care!

As soon as I entered the store, an assistant approached me. “Young sir, is there anything I can assist you?”

“I am looking for a jade record on ,” I replied brusquely. I was still not that good with strangers, although that was improving lately.

“Please come this way, young sir.” She guided me to a shelf that contained many jades. She patiently explained all the jade records available on .

The only thought in my head was: How professional!

I picked the best one. It cost me two gold coins. The assistant enthusiastically explained how to use jade records, which was really useful to a person like me. Judging from her reaction, two gold coins was apparently a huge amount of money. Not that it mattered to me. I had plenty to spend. Thank you, Mr. Demon. You made my life so easy. Otherwise, I would be toiling to meet ends meet. What with the two gluttons at home!

I went home and promptly used the jade record. It was a one-use item. Once it was used, it couldn’t be used anymore. The process was really simple. I just needed to meditate while sending the Qi into the jade.

Information flowed into my head. I didn’t gain any attribute points.

I could see why people preferred using jade records rather than books. It was very easy to learn things through jade records. But I still preferred books. When one went through books, people would be required to process through the whole thing. It helped develop comprehension and fostered creativity.

Ding!

Congratulations!

You have acquired the skill .

Ding!

Please create your …

Through the information I got, could be considered a world of its own. The main purpose of this skill was to defend our consciousness against external influences. However, in the later stages of the skill, one could even store things, including living beings in it. Therefore, one needed to be really careful when they first created their . One wouldn’t be able to change their .

There was a step-by-step guide to creating a great included in the jade records. It wasn’t the most expensive jade records on for nothing. The final result would be a sturdy castle. Most people created some sort of building as their .

But I didn’t want to follow the crowd.

Leaving behind the processes, I dismissed everything.

I created a vast land. It could be considered weak at the moment. But that was fine. It was just a foundation. I wanted my to be ever evolving. In normal circumstances, it would be impossible but it was possible for me. I was creating as a Qi Gathering Stage cultivator with very high stats. There was still time for me to slowly build onto it.

Ding!

Congratulations!

You have successfully created your .

I opened my status. I hadn’t looked at it for a while.

GENERAL

Name

Su Ren

Age

11 years old

Cultivation Method

Heart’s Yearning

Realm

Qi Gathering 9

(999/1000 Essence)

Lifeforce

5320/5320 (Regeneration: 20% per second)

Qi

5380/5380 (Regeneration: 20% per second)

ATTRIBUTES

Strength

507

Physique

532

Movement

526

Control

528

Soul

538

Comprehension

550

Charm

68

Fate

41

INNATE TRAITS

Innards of a God

Kaleidoscope Eye

Photosynthesis

Eternal Stratum (Incomplete)

############

Heavenly Butterfly Flame

Bow

Bond:

Byakko (White Tiger)

QI SKILL LIST

Slot

Skill Name

Rating

Level

1.

Qi Arrow

Unranked

8/10

2.

Earth Steps

Epic

7/10

3.

Heart Force

Unranked

4/10

4.

Spiritual Sense

Unranked

3/10

5.

Mindscape

Epic

1/10

My stats were growing at a steady rate. I had promised myself that I wouldn’t break through to Foundational Stage until I broke through the third shackle of a mortal.

Time for some experiment. I rubbed my spatial ring and took out the book with the malicious energy.

I hesitated a moment before I chomped on it. In a few more bites, I had eaten the whole thing.

Ding!

You have consumed a Corrupted Living Grimoire.

Congratulations!

You have gained +10 Soul, +5 Comprehension

While I was celebrating my growth, a searing pain that came from the very core of my being overwhelmed me. Damn it! I had forgotten that [Innards of a God] did nothing against pain. Again. Not that I would have stopped. The corrupted energy the Grimoire possessed put me through torture for what felt like an eternity to me. In reality, it was less than thirty minutes.

Ding!

Congratulations!

You have acquired the trait [Living Grimoire]

Ding!

A synergic effect has been found between [Kaleidoscope Eye] and [Living Grimoire].

Congratulations!

[Kaleidoscope Eye: Mode Black] has been upgraded.

You can now identify anything recorded in [Living Grimoire].

I opened the details for the new trait.

LIVING GRIMOIRE

Consumes books to record all the information contained in it. Generates extra information depending on your Comprehension level.

Good. Good. With this, I would be able to get more information. If I used it together with [Kaleidoscope Eye: Mode Black], wouldn’t it be like I had my very own pokedex?

Now then, it was time for me to move onto the next stage. I closed my eyes and entered my . Like I expected, there was a book floating in the air.

Unlike the first time, I was in full control. I could even use other traits!

I froze the book with [kaleidoscope Eye: Mode Yellow] and tore it with a [Qi Arrow].

Ding!

You have subdued the ego of [Living Grimoire].

The book transformed into a stream of light and entered me.

I curled my lips upward in a smile. With this, there would be no future troubles. I wouldn’t have to worry about traits taking over me since their egos no longer existed. Now, I could eat without having to worry about acquiring a new trait accidentally.

The three of us, Byakko, Ling and I were returning from the restaurant. Today was the agreed upon day. I rubbed my stomach in satisfaction. How good life would be if I could eat like this every day.

Byakko was walking in a wobbly manner due to sleepiness. Ling, who was sitting on my shoulder, was also trying to fight off the sleep. Following the several incidents of them falling asleep immediately after eating, I had warned them I wouldn’t bring them next time. It was super effective. I didn’t want to put them through this but if I didn’t stop them now, it might devolve into bad habits.

Near one of the skewer stands, I noticed a scrawny girl. She was begging for food to the passersby. Most would ignore her while some would give her small bits of food in pity. There were even some who would outright spit on her. The girl would just take in the insults without complaining. I had the urge to go up to them and give them a good beating. But I didn’t. The world was unfair. I couldn’t change anything even if I bare my fangs against it.

What struck me the most about the girl were her eyes. They were dim and lifeless. It was like she didn’t understand why she was living yet she struggled to survive. Just like me in my previous life…

I bought a skewer from the nearby stand and gave it to her.

“Thank you,” she said in a really small voice, her expression still lifeless.

I watched her as she slowly nibbled at the skewer like she wanted to imprint the taste in her mind.

“Say,” I began. “Would you like to live together with me?”

She looked up from her skewer. Her eyes, for the first time, contained something different.

I brought her, I thought in disbelief. I suddenly started to feel like that uncle who deceived kids with candies. It was like I was a sly kidnapper.

But at that moment, I had been overcome with emotion. I felt the need to do something for her. I had acted on that impulse. In my previous life, I had wanted others to hold out their hands to me. I hadn't wanted their pity, I had wanted their companionship. I had wanted to be treated like a normal person. What she wanted might be different from me, I was sure, she was definitely asking for help silently, a ray of hope to give her strength to go on living.

Although I felt a little weird for bringing her along with me, I felt no regret.

I heard the sound of running water coming from the bathroom. I had bought her spare clothes while we were on the way. I had told her change into them after taking a bath.

And thus, a new member was added to our family.

She told us that her name was Xue'er. Apart from that, we didn't know anything about her. Her background. Her circumstances. Nothing. But that was fine. As we stayed together, we would get to know more about each other.