“This, Azalon, is a Demon Cultivation Pill.”

Those 8 words sent an uncontrollable shiver down his spine. Who didn’t know about the Demons? In fact the war of the mankind in this world is mainly with the Demons. The Demons are not that different from the Desolate Beasts. In fact the Demons originate from the Beasts.

The evolution of the Beasts is somewhat similar in every aspect. Every Beast will absorb huge amounts of Spirit Energy from the surroundings into their body. They utilize this Energy to strengthen their physical bodies to a frighteningly absurd level, so much so that a Beast can effortlessly trample on a human cultivator of the same Realm.

But the Demons are fundamentally similar and different from the Beasts. According to Azalon’s research, he considered the Demons to be a tangent Evolution from the normal evolution path of the Beasts. Just like even though how apes evolved into humans over a period of millions of years, there exists a vast number of apes till today. Why didn’t they evolve to a similar evolutionary stage as the humans? There exists a myriad of reasons for that question.

Similarly, Demons are a unique evolutionary line of Beasts. As per his conclusion, the main factor for the evolution of the Beasts into the Demons is the existence of a powerful and ancient bloodline, which grants them some high brain activity. Along with the ever present Spirit Energy, the already relatively advanced brain power will naturally advance to another level. With that advancement, they gain considerable intelligence rivaling the human intelligence.

But the only drawback for the Demons is that, even though they can advance their brains to a comparatively human capacity, their origins lies within the Beasts. So, they can only be considered as dangerous Beasts with intelligence. But that makes it all the more dangerous. That’s the main reason why the Demons generally are considered as the Generals and Commanders within the Beasts. They direct the mindless Beasts under their control into a somewhat organized force.

So when he heard the name of the pill, he naturally became terrified. But when that man saw that he was panicking, his expression changed into that of amusement. Looking at that expression in that pretty boy face immediately changed all that panic into anger.

‘God, I really want to punch this bastard, so much that his pretty face changes into a bloody pulp.’

Without giving me a chance to respond, he once again opened his mouth.

“Don’t think too much, Azalon. I said this pill’s name is Demon Cultivation Pill. I didn’t say that this will change you into a Demon. This name of the pill is something decided by its creator as a punch line. Yup, I agree that he doesn’t have that much sense of humor. But even then, his proficiency in making pills is not as degenerate as his naming sense.”

“So, what exactly does that pill do?” Azalon asked barely restraining his temper and irritation.

“This pill here is a kind of remedy for the Damaged Souls like yours. I will explain how it will work. So, listen carefully. But before that, do you know the Realms of the Spirit Cultivation and mainly about Soul Root?” that man posed a question ignoring my inquiries again.

“… … I know about the first four Realms of the Spirit Cultivation. Spirit Novice, Spirit Sense, Spirit Condensation and Spirit Core, right? I don’t know the levels after that, and I didn’t want to know because that type of information can only be considered worthless for someone like me with a Petrified Spirit. But I never heard of this Soul Root. What exactly is it?”

“Hmmm… that is good. As a matter of fact, that kind of information is indeed worthless to you. But it’s not because of your Petrified Spirit, because it will take a long time before you can reach that level. If you can reach such level, you can naturally obtain the information regarding the later stages of the Cultivation easily. Don’t you think?” that man spoke with an appreciative look.

‘Hmmm… that is some weird logic but it’s indeed a sound logic.’ Thinking that, Azalon simply nodded his head.

“So, let me explain about the Soul Root. Generally this kind of information can be considered as common knowledge in the Cultivation world. As such, it will not be particularly mentioned as a point in any material. If you not had your Petrified Spirit, naturally your grandfather or even your instructors would have naturally told you about it.

A Soul Root is a place at the center of your chest just below your ribcage. It is also the place where your Soul resides. All the meridians in your body branches out from the Soul Root. Think about it like this. Imagine your meridians as branches of a tree. All the branches of a tree are originated from its trunk, right? That trunk is the Soul Root, and also the place where the Spirit Energy you cultivate is stored.”

Azalon listened raptly, while trying to imagine according to the man’s words. So it’s like an extensive network of various terminals interconnected through a single node. And that node is the Soul Root, and it also functions as the main database for all the terminals.

“It seems like you understood. So, I will explain the next part. The Soul Root houses both your Soul and your Spirit Energy. You know about the Soul Bridge, right? The soul Bridge is generally created in the Soul Root, between your Soul in the Soul Root and the Spirit, which is manifested in the material world, and it is only via this Soul Bridge, you can cultivate the Spirit Energy from your surroundings.”

“But, since I have a Damaged Soul, the Soul Bridge cannot be formed, as such rendering me unable to cultivate the Spirit Energy. And this pill will change that? How?”

“Indeed.” Again an appreciative nod from the man. “A Damaged Soul is not like a damaged limb. The Damaged Soul is nothing but having some parts of the Soul diffused from the Soul. As such the scattered part of the Soul creates a sort of a hole in the Soul; making the Soul Bridge it can form become unstable. That’s the main reason why the Damaged Soul cannot access the Spirit Energy from its surroundings.”

Azalon slowly nodded once again, thinking about the words of this man and applying it to his real condition. If what this man said was correct, then all one had to do is to find an adhesive to stick that scattered parts of the Soul into the Main Soul. Even if the adhesive wears out over time, the constant influx of the Spirit Energy can act as a substitute for the original adhesive, recovering the Damaged Soul over time.

But the problem is that his Soul is not a Damaged Soul, per se. it’s just that it’s not of this plane. The proof of this statement exists in the fact that he can sense the Spirit Energy in his surroundings, but because his Soul is not of this plane, it was rejected by the laws of this plane, making him unable to draw in the Spirit Energy into his body.

So, basically, the remedy that may work on a Damaged Soul may not work when it comes to him. Instead of that, he kept his mouth shut, and listened to the man who went on explaining the workings of the pill.

“Azalon, this is the first thing I was told to give to you. The next thing is a Cultivation Method that comes in conjuncture with this Demon Cultivation Pill. It is named ‘Soul Embryo Cultivation’. I will explain it to you later. Now for the third and fourth, they are an attack technique and an agility technique respectively. The final one will be given after you decide to accept these 4 things, as you can’t use it without the first four or especially the first two.”

Azalon was amazed looking at the four things laid out before him. A ping poll sized black pill and three scrolls shining with a soft golden glow. He could even feel a sort of pressure bearing down on him from the scrolls. But he had to wait and listen completely before taking a decision.

“As I explained before, the Demon Cultivation Pill gathers the scattered parts of the Soul and binds it together, allowing the Soul to form the Soul Bridge. But the delicate Soul cannot bear the sudden rush of the Spirit Energy coming from the surroundings, as only when refined by the human body can it be tamed into usable Spirit Energy. With the continuous pounding of the wild Spirit Energy onto the Soul, the bindings made by the Pill will gradually weaken with the flow of time.”

“But this Cultivation Method has been created to rectify that possibility. The inspiration for this Cultivation Method came from a mother’s womb. You see, Azalon, humans are innately weak, they don’t have any affinity with the Spirit Energy, but even then humans are thriving in this world. Why? It’s because of the protection granted by the mother’s womb.”

“A mother shares her body, flesh and blood with her child, and in that process she transfers some of her life force into that baby. That is the reason why a mother shares a connection with her child, be it a human, a Beast, or even a Demon. That is the reason why mothers are praised as the ultimate expression of love any living being can express.”

“According to the same concept, what you have to do is to create a womb for your injured Soul to recuperate and sacrifice a part of your life force to accelerate the healing process. The more you share, the faster your Soul and your Spirit will recover. But the creator of this technique advised that one should not share more than one fourth of their life force, and if they do, they will lose control over their own Spirit, as it will gain sentience from the life force it leeches from the cultivator, and replace the Soul of the Cultivator with its own.”

“So, Azalon, I have explained all I have to explain. The final decision will be up to you. Think it over carefully. I will wait for your decision, no matter how much time it takes.”

Azalon mind was currently in shambles. All that information, along with his chaotic emotions, is rampaging in his mind, making it a mess. He took a deep breath, and turned towards the waterfall. He lightly jumped before landing on the boulder at the base of the waterfall. The roaring sound of the water along with the splash of the cool water gradually cleared his mind. He immediately sat down in a lotus position as he entered a meditative stance.

Once again he appeared within his bubble surrounded by the streams of the Spirit Energy, and with no distractions, he sorted out the information he obtained from the man.

As Azalon was toiling over his information in his mind, the man was observing the actions of Azalon. He was first pleased with the way Azalon has dealt with him, but that pleased feeling gradually turned into faint appreciation, as most of the cultivators with a Damaged Soul will rush over without any thinking at the words he had said to this 12 year old boy.

But this boy strangely jumped into that waterfall and he could sense the chaotic emotions inside the boy’s heart gradually calming down, finally resembling a serene lake. His head involuntarily nodded twice before he caught himself in his act and stopped. With a slight smile on his almost womanly face, he too closed his eyes waiting for the boy to make his decision. But in his heart, he hoped that he would not take too long a time, as his pursuers are ever present and he had to hurry from this place, otherwise his enemies will not even bat an eye before razing this city to the ground. And if that happened, he could not face this boy’s father…