Rui sat on the floor, his mind in a haze.

The tribulation was much harsher than he had expected, giving him quite the shock, both literally and figuratively.

Thankfully, being located inside his family estate, people rushed over to help him as soon as the tribulation was over.

Tribulations were one of the most common things for cultivators, most of them having to undergo harsher trials and possibly die in the process.

They were called ‘tribulations’ for a reason. The world itself had set rules, and being a cultivator with either incredible stage or cultivation talent, would warrant the notice of the world rules.

Rui was the latter, possessing both a rune (core) and a ten times refined body. This placed him at the center of attention when it came to advancing to the next stage, since the world rules would try to stop his advance the more progress he made.

He had just gotten to the second stage, but the lighting that struck him was red, being a third rank lightning.

Without the array he had bought from the shop, withstanding that attack would have been impossible with his current body and runic energy, since it was a tribulation meant for third rank rune masters.

Smiling bitterly, he looked up at the approaching crowd, fainting in exhaustion.

It took over a month for Rui to fully recover the damage he had received and to consolidate his cultivation stage.

The second rank of rune masters was a qualitative leap in every aspect from the first rank, especially for Rui, since he had a much greater foundation.

Just by finishing his rune forming stage, his combat power rose to 32000, doubling from the previous 16000.

Compared to others of his stage, he was far stronger when it came to fighting prowess or energy amount, but he lacked one thing.

Although Rui had an incredible foundation when it came to cultivation, he lacked the basics of combat and martial arts.

Going on missions gave him a bit more understanding about the world of cultivators, giving him far more insight into his insufficiencies.

He had gotten somewhat used to killing people, especially evil practitioners, but he still had a guilty conscience.

Having a cold approach to life was different from being totally indifferent and thinking human life was insignificant. He was someone who grew up in a harsh environment, but he had later become a true member of society, getting the common views for human life.

Getting used to killing felt dehumanizing, but he knew that he had to.

Rui was someone who would see things as a whole, wanting balance across all fields.

Being a jack of all trades, master of none was something people scorned, especially cultivators.

But Rui was different. With the assistance of the system and his own potential, at least as a cultivator, he knew he could accomplish things others couldn’t even imagine.

Becoming an alchemist, blacksmith and even a spiritual artifact maker. Any of those could be a help for him in the future.

The only thing he had at his hands was time.

At least for now…

Rui never forgot the counting timer for the invasion, however it was something like an end goal to him at the moment, since he was too weak.

If he wanted to protect himself and his family from interplanetary enslavement and even extinction, he had to be strong enough to rival them as a single person, which that in itself seemed impossible.

The twenty one thousand years left till the invasion had lessened by one.

Time was a fleeting concept, especially for cultivators/Rune Masters.

Rui knew without a shadow of a doubt, that it would take thousands, or even tens of thousands of years to reach the peak of rune masters, if he didn’t die half way that is.

He could still the pain from the tribulation, understanding that in the grand scheme of things, he was as insignificant as an ant.

Rui searched the family libraries with the help of his elders over the following weeks for suitable cultivation methods, now that he had reached the second stage, but he reached a dead end.

As his physique had evolved to the Extreme Rune Physique and his spiritual roots being of the heaven rune spiritual roots, he was having a hard time finding a method that would work.

The only method that had a high compatibility with him was the [heavenly rune mantra], that was derived from the [heavenly demon mantra].

Since he advanced to the second rank, the mantra had become obsolete, but it was still better than any of the methods the family had for him.

Regrettably, he realized that he was stuck. Even asking for assistance from the grand elder was basically useless, as she couldn’t find anything that would suit him.

After countless searching attempts, he finally realized he had no other choice.

Sitting inside the library, surrounded by countless books, he sighed and spoke.

“Yue, do you know the location of the second slip of the heavenly demon mantra…”

As soon as he spoke those words, he realized how desperate he was. He had already made a promise to himself to not use the [heavenly demon mantra], but he had no other choice.

He had no currency to purchase a technique from the store, since they were incredibly expensive, and he didn’t have a way to acquire one through any other means. Even his family was stuck on this matter, making it impossible for him to advance his cultivation stage without it.

He could try to create his own cultivation method, just like his ancestors did, but he was only a second rank rune master. It was better to follow methods that were already there, before one created their own.

Rune masters usually created their own unique path at the fourth rank, since it was then that they would form a “soul”, but that was a matter for the future him to tackle.

For now, he needed to acquire the [heavenly demon mantra], and the more slips he could acquire, the easier his path in the future would be.

The moon shaped earring glowed lightly, as it sprang to life in an instant.

“Yes, master. It is currently moving, however, so the whereabouts can change at any time.”

Rui’s heart skipped a beat, as his fears had become reality.

“Is it far? How long do you think it will take us? How about the other slips?”

“It is at the Xieye Kingdom outskirts. It will take us at least two weeks to arrive at the area. The fourth, sixth, seventh and ninth slips are untouched, while the rest are in constant movement.”

Dread started seeping into Rui’s heart when he realized what this situation meant.

Clutching his head, he went over his current situation.

He knew fully well that Yue’s information could only be good enough for tracking the slips, so he was lacking in details to come to a clear conclusion.

If the person that held onto the slip, was someone with a higher cultivation stage than him, for example a third rank or possibly even higher, he was doomed.

Being unable to think of a suitable plan, he resulted in asking the system, who had a much greater and unbiased opinion.

“Rai, is it truly impossible for me to find a suitable method here? Should I really search for the other parts.”

╓It is highly improbable that Host will find what he desires here. From my calculations, I’ve come to the conclusion that finding the [Heavenly Demon Mantra] would be the most beneficial for the Host’s growth, based solely on the first jade slip the Host acquired. ╖

Breathing deeply, he came to the decision to at least try.

For the following week, Rui gathered enough resources in his inventory to venture outside, at the same time informing his clan of the situation.

Entering the grand elder’s chambers, Rui glanced around to find them relatively empty, only a single large array covering the center most part.

Guang Zhe sat there, teaching Guang Jian how to use his runic energy.

Jian had entered the first light stage in his first hour of cultivation and progressed quickly through the stages.

However, his main focus was on refining his sword techniques.

Feeling the new presence in the room, Jian turned around and delight instantly filled his eyes.

“Big brother!”

He screamed, while rushing over to Rui.

Jian was already 14, but he behaved like a little child when it came to interacting with his elder brother and family.

Rui knew fully well that this little brother of his was far smarter and ruthless than what he showed him.

Just like Rui, Jian was taken on a mission and from what Rui heard from Grandpa Xin, he was way more ruthless and fast acting than both Rui and Liliang.

He had decapitated two rapists and ruthlessly cut a fleeing slave trader in half.

Just from that fact alone, Rui couldn’t help but look at his younger brother in a new light.

“Rui, you told me that you wanted to see me, what is the matter?”

Just as Rui and Jian were having a hearty chat, the grand elder interrupted.

Remembering why he had come, Rui didn’t beat around the bush.

“I will be leaving tomorrow.”

The grand elder looked at him, amused, while Jian stared in shock.

“And where are you going exactly?”

“Explore the world and widen my horizons. I don’t think the environment here is fit for the current me.”

The grand elder smiled mischievously, glancing at her great grandson with a mocking gaze.

She could clearly tell he was lying, but she didn’t say anything and just granted him permission to go wherever he wished.

On the other hand, Jian begged Rui not to go.

He was extremely attached to his older brother, to the point that Rui found it baffling.

Knowing full well that, even though he was acting like a needy brat, Jian was far more mature than others his age, he patted his now taller head and calmed him down.

“I won’t be gone for long, at most a few months or a year. With the training you will undergo, time will pass in no time. As for danger? Don’t forget that I’ve already given my soul fragment to the records building.”

Hearing his words, Jian calmed down.

The records building was a unique place where every family member would place a ‘soul fragment’ into a pendant.

This soul fragment was a copy of the rune master soul and if an outsider possessed such a thing, they could track him to the end of the world and even know his life and death.

It was basically a reassurance for the elders, making sure that their precious family didn’t die outside on missions, and if they did they had clues as to how to avenge them.

Quite a simple thing, but it worked wonders.

Rui waved his relatives and friend goodbye, as he instantly ran into the distance.

He already had a destination, thanks to Yue’s assistance.

The jade slip had already moved positions quite a few times in the span of a week, but Rui could tell that it had not gone far from his initial place.

The road ahead was long, so the provision and rune stones he had acquired were necessary.

Sunny was perched on his shoulders, hanging on with his life.

Since he was too weak to freely fly across the sky, for now he either stayed inside Rui’s clothes, or on his shoulder.

As he was new to the world of rune masters when it came to adventure, he took things step by step, even slowing down his pace while running, constantly inspecting his ever expanding map window.

After a few hours of travel, he reached a town and slowly inspected his surroundings.

Since it was his first time there, he asked around a beggar for directions and headed towards a good tavern with acceptable pricing.

Rui knew fully well how scary beggars were in this world, having encountered some while on his missions.

They were people that had a wide network of connections, able to acquire incredible amounts of information.

In reality, most of them belonged to the peasants sect and only cared about things such as cultivation resources.

Although they looked dirty and poor in the surface, in reality they were people that just didn’t care about appearances, sometimes even possessing an incredibly high stage of cultivation.

Just like the beggar Rui had just asked.

[Cang De Long, Age 489

Cultivation stage: ██████████████

Physique:█████████

Combat Power: ██████████████

Character Personality Path: ██████████████

Luck: ████]

He was someone who had lived for almost half a millennium.

Just by looking at him with his unique vision, Rui couldn’t distinguish him from ordinary people and even the system map recognized him as a mortal.

It truly was scary how many masters roamed the streets, completely unnoticed by the common folk.

As he was used to the food served at the capital, Rui decided to try out the local cuisine.

Since it was a city located near a forest, they mostly had stuff like [Fair Deer] meat and [Spring rabbit], being creatures unique to the region.

Rui decided to try out the deer steak, along with rabbit stew. As for sunny, he gave him a few yang herbs and a small steak as a treat.

Although he didn’t find rabbit stew appetizing in his previous life, however, the meat of the [spring rabbit] was extremely tender, having even a unique taste to it.

As for the [fair deer] steak, he knew that the tavern couldn’t get a hold of the most precious ingredients, but he appreciated the effort put into making it taste good.

After exploring the city, while digesting his food, he once again began his travels.

He traveled continuously, only once in a while stopping to rest by either going to an inn or using his camping gear.

In the outskirts of the Xieye Empire, a figure darted along the sewers.

Unlike earth’s sewers, the village sewers were crude and covered in rats and feces, but the figure still withstood the horrible state, to escape its pursuers.

From afar, his figure seemed normal, but as someone took a closer inspection, they would realize that he was different.

His skin was in patches, being sewed together in countless places. Half of his face was slightly warped, but he still didn’t exude the feeling of discomfort, having almost completely symmetrical features.

His right eye was blue while his left was brown. His hair was a mix of colors, clearly signaling that they were from different people.

The rune on his forehead was extremely unique, resembling a shattered star.

He seemed to be around the age of fourteen or fifteen, having a skinny and lanky body.

On his hand, a slip was held tightly, as he stood inside his hiding spot.

He held his breath, as the people searching for him lost him.

After a while of waiting, he finally felt that he was safe and curled over, sobbing silently.

Since his eyes were damaged, he couldn’t produce tears, but he couldn’t suppress the amount of sorrow he felt.

He was so broken and lonely, having lost everything. He fell asleep reminiscing of the most beautiful moments of his life, escaping his current nightmare.

“Gui Xue, wake up, you have to go to eat.”

Gui Xue woke up, his mind in a haze.

His mother had just awoken him from his long slumber, as she reminded him it was time to eat.

He had worked hard at the fields all morning, so he was tired, falling asleep as soon as he returned.

Feeling his empty stomach, he laughed bitterly and headed towards the kitchen to eat the porridge his mother had made.

His father sat in a corner and sipped his tea while petting their dog, while his little sister was eating her own food.

Looking at this scene, for some reason he felt empty, his heart aching.

“Gui Xue, what’s wrong? You aren’t eating?”

“Nothing mom, I was just lost in thought.”

Saying so, he took a big spoonful of porridge, trying his best to enjoy it, but it felt tasteless and even disgusting.

Spitting it out, he choked, his mother looking at him in distress, wondering what was wrong with her son today.

Suddenly, a shout was heard from outside, as hooded men came barging through the front door, killing and incapacitating his father and mother in an instant.

Before he could realize what was going on, a man pressed him down, knocking him unconscious.

Gui Xui sprung up in distress, as he calmed his beating heart.

Looking around, he found himself in the so familiar sewers he had spent his life in the past few months.

“Another nightmare…”

He thought, while clutching his head.

While it was true that it was a nightmare, it was at the same time his reality. He had lost everything in the span of seconds, only to become a guinea pig for those people.

He could clearly remember he had already died once at their hands, later on getting used as an experimental subject and stitched together with countless other bodies.

The only thing that was truly his, was the brain, while everything else didn’t belong to him.

Since he awakened with a rune, he was using his all to constantly reconstruct his failing body, keeping his heart beating, even while sleeping.

“The puppet sect… those fucking bastards… If it weren’t for that random righteous sect barging in their laboratory, I would have been tortured and chopped up countless more times.”

He shivered by just thinking of the countless times his body was ripped apart by those insane bastards.

The puppet sect wasn’t an inherently evil sect, but they possessed methods that could be considered unconventional by most.

There was also an underground group of their members that would hunt for living humans to use as test subjects and Gui Xui was one of them.

It had been who knows how many years since his body was deceased, but those madmen were able to revive it through some forbidden rituals, sacrificing countless lives in the process.

Thanks to this, the righteous sect was able to track down their position, freeing him in the process.

Gui Xui was sure that they would end an abomination like him, if they were to find him.

However, even though the vast majority of the puppet sect members were chased out, some remained and searched for him, both for his unique body as an experiment and the jade slip he had stolen from them.

He didn’t know as to what the jade slip was, but as a person who had recently awakened, he could feel an evil aura permeating it.

As his body was an amalgamation of countless other bodies, his physique was extremely unique, having qualities that were artificially created and even augmented.

Of course, Gui Xui didn’t know that Rui was searching for his jade slip as well, resulting in an entangling of fates.

He got up, trying to find a better spot to hide. His body was covered in filth, but he didn’t even react to it, having completely shut off his sense of smell and enhanced his other senses.