It was the first time in two thousand years that the lights of the realm had dimmed, and frost was already accumulating in the higher latitudes. The cold temperatures clashed with the contrasting warmer air of the lower areas, creating powerful slanting winds that seemed capable of swiping away anything that stood in their way.

These events had naturally shaken any living creature present inside the realm. An anxious look was visible in the eyes of the demonic beasts as they erratically raced about. But what seemed to scare them the most was not the apocalyptic scenario, but the shadow of a giant human that was being cast down.

High up in the sky, there were two existences that seemed like two gods casually chatting with each other.

One was an azure flame, and the other was a young human.

Jack was attentively gazing at the flame. He appeared calm from the outside, but thoughts flooded his mind. The atmosphere remained tense for some time before Jack finally decided to break the silence.

“This sudden situation doesn’t feel right. On what basis do you say that we are connected and why are you acting so generous towards a stranger like me? Even though I believe in your sincerity, I have the feeling you are purposely hiding something from me.”

Jack then turned around and already prepared to depart. “Ever since I made contact with other cultivators, it was just one deadly situation after another. Same happened with the spectre and that stupid creature. Before I become stronger and have a better understanding of the cultivating world, I am reluctant to make any important decisions at this point! I also have no guarantees that you will not try harming me in some way!”

The flame flickered, its tone now a bit more thoughtful. “I repeat myself, young human… I cannot harm you, and neither do I have any intention of doing so. As you could see when you were approaching me, the protective mechanism left over by the founder kicked in action and suppressed my soul. Back then that bastard went to great lengths to ensure the protection of his disciples and orchestrated several countermeasures just in case I harboured malicious thoughts.”

“Ah, so you cannot harm me now, but if I accept your inheritance, whatever it means, wouldn’t that give you some control over me?”

The Shred of Will sighed. “As I said, I will not force you. It’s entirely your choice.”

“I still have some months left. I’ll think about it. Besides, you are the one who said that being impatient is a bad thing, right? Thus, I’ll take my time to decide.”

A reply of laughter instantly arose from the flame, and it remained to snicker for a while. “Human… I’ve to admit that your sense of humour is quite classy. I’ve already taken a liking to you, so whatever you will decide, I am still going to help you. Consider it free karma; I don’t want anything in return!”

Jack sighed. “Thanks for your offers, but right now, I am not interested in your so-called inheritance. I just want to be myself for the time being.”

Jack didn’t wish to linger in this place any longer as he started descending the slope.

“You are at the peak of the 2nd Qi Seeking Realm, but your progress has been halted!”

Jack immediately paused his tracks as he glanced back at the flickering flame with curious eyes. Although he had no desire to continue this discussion, he desperately lacked information. At first, he was putting his hopes on the clone of the 3rd Patriarch, but his plans had gone awry.

He didn’t know if this was a bite or not, but he had no option but to take it.

The tone of the flame slowed down and turned a bit more serious.

“Before anything else, I would like to first warn you about your current situation.

“Your body was able to cultivate a large amount of qi in a short period of time only because it had been suppressed since the day you’ve been born. Now that its hunger has been satisfied, your cultivation should slow down by a third or even a fourth of the previous rate. Regardless of this, observing your body implies that you have a fantastic Qi absorbing ability, and this is where I must warn you.

“You could say that the path connecting the outside Qi to your body is like a bridge over a river. For each cultivator, this bridge is different; some are long and thin, others wide and short, and some are made of wood, while for others they are made of metal. But regardless of which type, if the weight exerted on the bridge had to surpass its limits, it will start getting damaged, or worse collapse under the heavy pressure.

“What I am trying to tell you is this; I’ve been observing you the moment you’ve entered inside this realm, and you’ve gone from being a mortal to the peak of the second Qi realm in less than two months. This massive Qi surge has already harmed your body, and even though there aren’t any serious injuries, I would advise you to refrain from cultivating additional Qi for the next six months. This will allow your internal wounds to heal themselves.

“Always keep this in mind. If your QI passage bridge collapses, your life will perish along with it!”

Jack listened attentively as he unknowingly swallowed a gulp of saliva. He was so happy cultivating recklessly that he ignored the potential after effects it could have on his body. There really was nothing that could be taken for granted in this world he thought, interrupted only when the flame continued its speech.

“The lower cultivating realms; there are two: The Qi Seeking Realm and the Foundation Realm. The Qi Seeking Realm is subdivided into fifteen stages. Besides these stages, there are five unique instances where a cultivator can try his luck and severe fortunes from the heavens. This can only be done at the peaks of the 2nd, 5th, 8th, 11th and 14th stages. Regardless if you fail or succeed, you will then progress to the next stage of the Qi Seeking Realm, and you will be able to cultivate qi again. Once at the 3rd stage, you will also gain the ability of flight.”

The flame paused as it noticed Jack’s confused look. It didn’t take long for Jack to ask, “Severing the fortunes from the heavens?”

“Yes, precisely that. So far, you’ve only been able to cultivate qi, the primary manifestation of the cosmos’ power. You, cultivators, spend most of your lives amassing qi, but there is only so much you can advance with just the power of qi!

Natural Essence is the real power of the cosmos! You can say it compromises all the possible elements, laws and principles that exist inside this reality! What fortunes you will steal from the heavens will depend on your bloodline, your cultivating will and most importantly, the strength of your own Dao!”

The flame suddenly flickered, momentary amplifying its fires, which then materialised into a hand that pointed towards a specific location.

“For your first severing, I’d advise against trying to gain enlightenment directly from the heavens. Failure is nothing but guaranteed in your case! Instead, head in this direction, towards the Archaic Billows. There you will find several Heavenly Relics left behind by the ancestors and elders of this sect.

“These relics represent a spiritual copy of the essences that they had managed to obtain from the heavens. Gain enlightenment from one of these and the particular essence will indeed become yours. To what degree, it will depend on your performance. As for which relic you will choose, follow your instincts.”

Jack nodded. “But didn’t you just tell me not to cultivate anymore for the next six months?”

“Jack, I said you can’t cultivate Qi, but natural essence is a different case. It will not harm your body in the slightest.”

The pensive Jack nodded thankfully again, then left without saying any farewell words.

Shortly after his silhouette faded, the giant fist retreated back as the flame regained its brightness.

It took a while for Jack to arrive at the Archaic Billows. Strangely enough, no demonic beasts dared to assault him during his travelling. He quickly assumed that this development was not a mere coincidence but had something to do with the flame.

As a first impression, he didn’t feel anything special about this place and was already becoming suspicious regarding the flame’s intentions. The Archaic Billows were barren lands, and they looked no different than an extensive graveyard.

He was getting the creeps as he trailed along the muddy path, fighting past a cloud of mist that lowered his vision to a couple of metres. As he dwelled deeper inside the Billows, he could see several marble-like statues scattered around. Most of them were antique and covered with mould, some even broken.

The statues came in different shapes and sizes. Some had the forms of humans, others of strange beasts and some even had the outline of random objects. There was also a statue that crackled with lightning and a figure with a fountain on its head.

As he approached the statues, he could sense weird energies coming out from them, seemingly trying to overwhelm his mind. He quickly summoned his qi circulation to protect himself. He felt that if he were a bit careless, he would definitely end up losing his sanity inside this place.

After some distance, he stumbled across a towering statue of an imposing fatty man, similar to a Buddha. Its eyes seemed to be following Jack as he walked, and he could notice its mouth opening and closing, seemingly filling the surrounding air with ancientness. However, when Jack inspected closer, everything appeared static, as if what he experienced before was just a mere illusion from the mist.

But what really caught his attention was not the statue but its three extended hands, with the extra hand coming straight out from the belly.

Hovering over the statue’s right arm, there was a ball of fire, similar to a miniature sun. Resting on the middle hand, there was a small metallic cup which contained a small pool of liquid lava, and the remaining arm had a flame which appeared to have been frozen in time.

From up close, Jack could feel that all three fire elements were discharging the same amount of heat onto his body.

When Jack placed his hand over the statue, his cultivation core trembled, as if it thirsted for something hidden deep inside the statue. His qi surged out of its own volition, sending a commanding aura that was able to calm the nearby natural elements.

A faint smile was visible on Jack’s face. Out of all the statues he had observed, this one was the only one that he felt some sort of reaction. He decided to sit before it and began examining it.

“Interesting… he chose that relic….” The flame remained pensive as it attentively observed Jack. “I had my doubts, but now I am certain... that man I saw from his memories, this young human’s incredible ability in controlling qi… he is undeniably connected to them!”

Jack had already started his meditation, but not a long time had passed before an anxious look was visible on his face. Whenever he glanced at the statue; he felt like one hundred eyes were looking back at him, shattering his resolve. No matter how much he concentrated, in these hostile conditions, it was just impossible for him to gain some type of enlightenment.

“Calm yourself, Jack!” The flame’s voice suddenly reverberated inside his mind. “Cultivating essence is a long and crucial matter! Even a small distraction can lead to failure! Remember, the number of essences you will severe will determine how strong you will become in the future! And you only have five chances in your lifetime to obtain these essences; if you fail it will mean you have forever lost the opportunity of obtaining one of these essences, limiting your future potential! Any failures now you will severely regret them later on!

And using your vision will not do… no, do not cultivate with your eyes, but with your heart! Preserve in your Dao! Only that way you can subdue the powers of the relic!”

With these words in mind, Jack seemed to recollect his composure, shutting his eyes. Although it took him some time to adjust, he finally managed to resist the savage aura coming out of the statue, and slowly sank deeper and deeper as he focused on his dao and gaining enlightenment.

Time slowly passed. Breath after breath, hour after hour, day after day, month after month…

Jack meditated with peace as mould began growing over his body, his hair and clothes thoroughly wet. His mind was disconnected, and he had no more idea of what was going on the outside.

Gradually, four months had passed.

Jack still didn’t manage to gain enlightenment from the statue. Half of his body had sunk deep into the mud and black vines covered his face and chest. In fact, if other cultivators had to see him right now, most probably they would confuse him with a bush.

Unbeknownst to Jack, glittering lights were occasionally forming around his body, lasting for a couple of breaths before disappearing. However, as more time passed, the frequencies and duration of these lights appeared to be increasing.

The Shred of Will noted this and let out a sigh as it whispered to itself. “He only has some more days left before his eventual ejection. If only I could use my powers… but regrettably, I can’t prolong his expulsion. If he fails, not only he would have wasted all this time, but I will also fail to pass over my inheritance. What a pity that would be…”

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the Shred of Will because of the spiritual-blocking powers of the protective shield, a spectre that looked like a little fairy was hovering inside the monastery.

Over his hands rested a spherical accumulation of qi, which slowly began gaining mass as invisible particles of qi rays fused within it.

“I can’t believe it’s taking me so long to complete this trivial technique,” the spectre cursed at himself. “If only my soul were still intact!”

What followed was a devilish grin, though on such a tiny being, it looked cute, without any form of intimidation.

“Wait for your daddy you brat… once I finish this technique, my real self will become aware of my memories! When that happens, I’d like to see… if you would still dare to act cocky in front of me! The humiliation you have brought on me, I will make sure to repay you back a thousandfold!”