24 - A Series in a Day

In blank blank valley, the sky is as blue as prusean blue. The grass is as green as blank blank, dew thick on the leaves.

The center of the valley holds a small town. Although the construction of most of the town apears shody, it holds a quiantness to it and feeling of timelessness.

In the central part of town, where the builds are not so shabby, a young girl is exercising in a courtyard.

Based on the amount of sweat alone, it seems she has been practising since dawn.

Nearby, a man watchs her, his eyes smiling and filled with familial love.

The man, looks about 35 years old, with short black hair and a tanned body from working in the sun.

Contraritly, he seems frail like a scholar. Equally shocking, given the prestien nature of the house he's in and the strength of the girl, his daughter, he is not a martial practioner.

In fact, he doesn't have an ounce of martial strength! Even a 5 year old child is normally at the initial realm of cultivation.

In fact, his daughter, despite being 8 years old, is at the peak of the inital realm, something rarely seen even in the biggest cities in the country of blank blank.

While watching, the father slowly walks up to his daughter, before calling out to her.

"Zi Er, you've done enough cultivation today. Come with father to work on techniques."

The young girl Zi er looks over at her father, excitement visible in her eyes as she stops her cultivation and rushes over to him.

"Dad, is it already time? What are we doing today."

The man ponders for a bit, before taking out a scroll from his satchel.

"Today, I believe we can perfect that "Sweeping Kick Against the Earth" techique we worked on a while ago."

A few hours later, an old man in white robes appears in the courtyard, looking at the father and daughter.

His eyes contain a mixture of pure joy and pain.

Sighing to himself, "My granddaughter is so strong already and my son so smart. Yet, he cannot seem to cultivate. Even by now he could have reached the 2nd realm of cultivation and lived anouther hundred years..."

Suddenly, in the corner of the old mans eye appears a group of people, causing him to frown.

A few men and women, talking about things, move through. At the front, an elegent man and women appear deep in discusion.

The hansome man resembles the father.... while the beautiful women resembles.... the daughter!

The entourage sees the father and daughter in the courtyard, a mix of expressions appearing.

"Big Sis Meua, that man and your daughter are in the courtyard again. You really need to keep him away from her, he'll hamper her cultivation."

One of the girls in the back says.

"Zi Er's cultivation is aready beyond many in this towns, my honerable huband isn't capable of causing trouble for her."

The lady at the front responded cooly. Her eyes contained a complex mixture of feelings.

Although her husband is trash, not comparable to his handsome unmarried brother, he still is douting on his daughter and.... well.... good at you know....

In the courtyard, the old man and the entourage hear the father and daughter yell out in excitement.

The father, shouts out loudly, in a bousterous manner.

"Finaly, we've completeled the initial realm version of the "Sweeping Kick Against the Earth" techique. Thats every technigue in town prefected for the first realm!

I can finally start cultivating!"

Suddenly, everything went quite.

The girl, shocked, looked up at her father with a quivering voice.

"Eh?D-d-dad? What you mean? I though you couldn't cultivate."

The father, pat his daughters head, smiling.

"No, I've just never bothered. In order to strengthen our families foundations, I've not cutivated the past 30 years, so that I can perfect all of our martial cultivation techniques and martial skills.

Everything our blank blank family currently has is flawless within the 1st realm, well writen, easy to understand. Over the past 30 years, thanks to my work.... every member of the town is garaunteed to reach the 2nd realm!"

Garaunteed to reach the second realm!?!?

"Also, all ouf our martial skills can be used by an litterate person to perfection."

?!?!?!

Everyone in the courtyard looks extremely shocked.

100% chance to reach 2nd realm, 100% chance to perfect a skill.

Even in the largest sects in the world, they couldn't claim such a thing!

"Eh, dad, I don't think thats..."

"Then, why can your dad use all of your techniques better than you? You know, every times someone gains strength in a realm or jumps to the next realm, their comprehension ability increases right?

So, If i can use all of our martial skills to prefection and can fully understand all of our cultivation techniques... anyone should be able to."

No comment! Nobody in the courtyard can argue with him. Everyone except the daughter feels their hearst drop to the floor.

"Wait, so dad, you haven't been cultivating for the family? How are you suppose to reach the next realm? It gets harder to increases your strength the older you get right?"

"Well, thats normally true. But your old man has a method to reach the next realm almost immediately.

I made this technigue a long time ago.... but I wanted little Zen Er to be born first."

"Why's that dad?"

"Because my technique involves directly eating beast cores."

!?!? Another shocking developement.

Beast cores, harvested from beasts that have strength equal the 2nd realm, are often used used to increase the strength of cultivators.

They are used to make weapons, armors, tools, and strengthen certain martial skills.

However, they are NEVER eaten until someone is at least 1 realm above the level of the beast the core was extracted from.

This is because beasts at the same realm are almost always stronger than humans at the same realm, unless they cultivate a physique technique, and the energy in the core is a consentration of the beasts energy.

Anyone who uses cores would explode due to the energy.

Also, nobody eats the cores directly! The energy is normally purified before entering the body.

What kind of skill lets someone eat beast cores?

"Eh?? Dad, how's that work?"

"...Well, it hurts a lot and has strong consequences if done wrong. I call my cultivation technique "Transformation Cultivation Technique"

Dad's been getting this ready for a while. Before cultivation to the initial realm, I've gotten some friends to bring me a few buckets of condensed blood essence from beasts without cores.

Cranes, Tigers, Bears, Rabbits, Cows, Horses .... all sorts of animals. Tonight I'll bath in that blood, then absorb it into my system until I demonize."

"Demonize? Dad that doesn't sound good."

"Well, I say demonize because I won't be a normaly human anymore. I'm not even sure if I can have anymore children...

My friends have told me that some beasts can cultivate until they assume human forms and those can have kids so *mumbles like a madman*"

"Dad, your doing it again!"

"... uhh *cough *cough* right, so doing this will bring me to the initial realm and allows me to shapeshift to the animals I used, while gaining their relative strength while in those forms."

?!?!?! What kindof of bull-

"Dad that sounds really strong, does that mean you will be able to turn into-"

"Anything yeah. It will also let me eat beast cores in the same realm. If I eat enough, I'll get their forms! I've been preparing for this for years you know? Ah, is that your mom Zi er?"

Suddenly, the father noticed everyone else in the courtyard, staring at him like a monster.

The first one to speak was his father.

"*cough* *cough* Little Zi er, why don't you go out and play in town. Here, have some money." The grandfather threw a pouch to the granddaughter.

Beaming, she looked to her father, who nodded, before running out of the courtyard.

Silence... more silence...

Once again, the grandfather spoke

"Jack... why did you never say anything?"

"The some reason you never did, I was worried."

"Worrried? What were... I see. I'll go tell your mother the news."

The old man left.

The father spoke again.

"Meua"

The beautiful woman shuddered.

"Jack"

"I need to speak with you in private."

The handsome man, with a sinister gleam, cut into the banter.

"Jack, whats the problem?"

"...Jiu, I really don't mean to be mean, but it's really not your business. "

The handsome man began flaring his nostrils and cold said.

"Hmpf, Jack, give me some face. I was simply cirious, there is no need to become so hostile."

"Hahaha, I know, I just wante to be. Meua, come."

The father turned to leave and the beautiful wife followed after.

Only, in their home, the two sat.

"Meua, tonight is the night of the ritual. We only have 4 hours left together."

"Husband, why are you taking off your clothes"

"Eh? I just said we've only got 4 hours."

The beautiful woman, at this point became flustered while she spoke.

"Four hours is,is a long time. Lets hve tea first, I sing something on the zither to-"

The father, quitely, whie still taking off his clothes.

"Four hours isn't that long if its the last time Meua."

The beautiful wife paled.

"Last... time?"

"Meua, this ritual, even if it succeeds, there is no garuntee that I'll still be human.

To put it another way, it won't be a problem at the first stage if you give birth to a tiger, but you definately can't handle a horse.

That's why... I never told you."

The father, completely naked, reached out and held the beuatiful woman's face, tears forming in his and her eyes.

"Thats why... let me give you as much love as I can today.I won't be able to touch you again until the legendary stage where demonic beasts gain a human form!"

"Jack!" "Meua!"

Four hours later, the father left the home, a thick stench in the air permeating for miles.

At the ritual location, the father and old man prepared a simple cauldren to stir the blood into.

For simple blood, a simple cauldren! The father believed it might work better if done that way.

After being sealed in the blood filled cauldren, the father began meditating. The old man stood outside, waiting.