Five years flashed by before Sprite and Leo knew it. Over the past few years, Sprite absorbed knowledge from destroyed technology. This enabled the AI to understand the human's recent history and details. Regretfully he couldn't find any cultivation techniques for Leo as the lack of energy caused many civilizations to no longer practice cultivation.
Leo also got stronger. Through Sprite survival training and lessons, Leo knew how to trap his own food, build shelter, escape from the beast, and even introductory martial arts found in karate, taekwondo, and boxing manuals. Due to his training and fusion with Sprite, Leo was much stronger than the average ten-year-old.
He was finally starting to hit a growth spurt. Leo was about 140cm tall and had long scruffy blackish hair. His brown eyes and tan skin from the sun. Scratches and scars were all over his fit physique, showing that his life was difficult for the last 5 years. Luckily for him, Sprite's nanites helped with most small cuts and bruises.
The most significant improvement was Leo's mind. He had a brilliant mind and became very clever. Leo trapped a local wolf pack in a pit and picked them off one by one just last week. Sprite was proud of the young boy feat.
While Leo practiced his martial arts on a sunny morning, Sprite interrupted him after compiling some data.
"Sir, I believe we should explore the wreckage of the Smithsonian."
"There is no food there, Sprite,"
"I know that Sir, but I have been gathering information for years now and still haven't found you a cultivation technique." The Smithsonian was one of the few local buildings they had yet to fully explore. From the information he gathered last time, there should be an underground area with intact artifacts.
"Technique, technique, technique, this is all you ever talk about Sprite." Leo knew Sprite was looking out for him, but Sprite was desperate to learn a cultivation technique to absorb energy. Only by starting on the cultivation path could the boy survive in the cruel world. Sprite explained the basics to him, but even Sprite didn't have the knowledge to begin the process. Hence Leo and Sprite had visited many areas to find such knowledge.
"Sir, you need more power to protect yourself. You can't always think yourself out of every situation."
Leo sighed, "Fine, we can dig through that rubble again."
Leo walked over to a table near his bed and loaded supplies into his backpack. The room he was in was a basement of an old apartment building. Leo had his bed next to a rusted boiler and a table made from metal and plastic he found.
Walking up the stairs, he opens the door to a tunnel of rubble. Crawling upwards, he slid out an open window and crawled out of the ruined building. He walked about a kilometer until he got to the ruins of the Smithsonian.
"Sir, I detect there has been a collapse of the foundation since the last time we were here."
"You're right, Sprite. We can get through the roof right there."
Wiggling through this new hole, Leo dropped down into a stairwell leading to a basement floor.
"Sir, up ahead is foreign documents. Move closer so I can analyze them."
"Ok, Sprite."
The AI scanned the crumbling paper documents. "Analyzing.... translation complete. The information is not important. Sir, there is carved writing over in the corner. Let me analyze the writing."
"Ugh…. Fine." Leo walks through the darkroom and kicks an old box of relics.
*Cough…cough…cough.*
"Sir, there was a box there."
"Sprite, too slow."
"Sorry, Sir."
Leo worked his way over to the carving. The glowing from Sprite lit up the carving. Leo was in awe of the ancient dry wooden sculpture.
"Analyzing…." The letters started to lighten up. "Translation complete. Sir, this text explains how to store energy in a sphere with the Nordic symbol. Right now, this text is useless to us." Sprite stored the information for later as it could become helpful with more studying.
"Sprite, it is dirty in here. Can we leave?"
"Sir, let me analyze a few more transcriptions."
*Cough* "… fine."
Leo walked around as Sprite analyzed several hieroglyphs, runes, and documents of research on them. Luckily Sprite's primary database had several thousand languages built-in. This allows him to study materials to their most authentic form.
"Sir, let me analyze the hieroglyphics on that stone."
Leo got close to the wall, and Sprite lit up the wall. "Analyzing…"
The moon and sun hieroglyphic started to shine. "Energy currently increasing, Sir. I have found you a cultivation technique." Sprite responded almost excitingly. Even though 70% of the scripture was missing, Sprite resolved that issue for Leo using the higher cultivations in his database.
"You found one?"
"Sir, this cultivation is called Dance of Sun and Moon."
"Dance of Sun and Moon?"
"Yes, this is a Body Tempering Technique trains the mortal body by absorbing energy to the flesh, muscles, organs, bones, and the energy meridians throughout the body. Each step is broken into early, mid, and late stages. The Dance of Sun and Moon allows the user to absorb the yang energy during the day and yin energy of the night. The Sun is a body of fire that produces ultraviolet energy. When mixed with mana produces yang mana energy. When night arrives, the ultraviolent reflected off the moon reverses through mana, producing yin mana energy. Balancing these energies will produce great results."
"How will I absorb the energy, Sprite?"
"Based on my analysis, Sir, you will perform the movements at midnight and noon every day. Also, in old Taoist manuals, monks absorbed energy through meditating. We will just need to experiment until we get it right." Sprite began generating a new training schedule for Leo to learn the movements and proper times to meditate.
*Ka-boom*
A sonic boom was heard up above the rubble in the sky. The explosion was heard all around the world.
"Sprite, what was that?" asked Leo.
"Sir, a large spaceship has entered the atmosphere. The probability the ship holds enemies is 77.92%. Sir, I advise you to run as far from that ship as possible."
Sprite's far-range scanner informed the AI that many beings with high energy levels resided inside. The threats towards Leo were increasing and increasing by the second. He needed to make this boy stronger before it was too late.
As the many ships descended, Leo ran west opposite the Atlantic, where a large ship was landing.