The first day after his arrival passed in the blink of an eye. Waking up the next day, the first thing Yang Ze did was look at the screen.
------------------------------------------------------
{Name: Yang Ze}
{Realm: Early Stage Qi Guiding}
{XP: 500/500}
{Technique: Seaheart Art Second Layer} +
{Martial Arts: Black Tiger Blade Technique 'Great Accomplishment'} [0/500] +
{Efficiency: 100 XP/day}
{Level : 1} (0/10 spirit stones needed to upgrade)
--------------------------------------------------------
"It is about time."
Without wasting another second, he clicked on the '+' behind the Seaheart Art.
The moment he clicked on it, Yang Ze felt a current running through his body. Even with his cheat, the process lasted for a long time before subsiding.
With his eyes closed, Yang Ze was feeling the changes in his body. At this time, he had a feeling of having another body part, except this body part was inside his body. The Qi inside his body now was not only limited to circulation.
"This."
Raising his hand, Yang Ze circulated the Qi inside his body, trying to move it out and soon, a thin transparent layer covered his hands.
Taking a deep breath he looked around and after making sure no one was there, bent his knees and patted on the ground beside him.
'BOOM'
The moment he patted the ground a deafening sound spread throughout the area along with the rising dust and shards of rocks.
It took a moment for everything to clear and when the dust settled, Yang Ze finally saw a ditch around one meter in radius in front of him.
"HOLY SHIT."
It was at this moment, that Yang Ze realized he had completely surpassed mortals and stepped into another realm. Compared to his previous strength, the difference was night and day. So much so, that he could pat the previous him dead in a single blow.
With a smile, Yang Ze looked at the screen again.
------------------------------------------------------
{Name: Yang Ze}
{Realm: Middle Stage Qi Guiding}
{XP: 0/1000}
{Technique: Seaheart Art Third Layer}
*Reached the limit of knowledge. (Can be Derived further from Yang Yuanzhen) (Spirit stones 0/1)
{Martial Arts: Black Tiger Blade Technique 'Great Accomplishment'} [0/500]
{Efficiency: 100 XP/day}
{Level: 1} (0/10 spirit stones needed to upgrade)
--------------------------------------------------------
At first, Yang Ze was grinning from ear to ear while observing the changes on the screen, but soon, the smile on his face faded before it was replaced by a grim expression.
"The fuck is this?"
Looking at the newly added row of text, Yang Ze frowned for a moment.
"Is it because I only read till the third volume?" When he saw the words 'Limit reached', Yang Ze already knew why. But when he saw the next words, his frown only deepened.
"And why can it be derived further from Yang Yuanzhen? Is it because I asked him to perform the complete set of Seaheart Art in front of me?" This was the only reason that made sense. Initially, he had already forgotten the Seaheart Art that Yang Yuanzhen performed in front of him. At that moment he only asked the question to avoid embarrassment of his lack of knowledge. But now... It seemed that it was a blessing in disguise.
"Hold on a second."
With confusion, Yang Ze looked at the screen again.
"I clearly remember the Black Tiger Blade Technique being up to the great accomplishment in the book. How come I can upgrade it without reading further?"
Yang Ze felt like his mind wasn't working anymore. He could upgrade one art without knowing anything about it while he couldn't upgrade the others? The more he thought about it, the more it didn't make sense. Was it because one was a martial art while the other was a precious secret technique?
"Forget it, it will become clear after I get XP to level it up."
For him, it was just a matter of days before everything became clear. Making up his mind, Yang Ze didn't bother with this topic anymore. His days were as monotonous as before. Compared to the Yang Mansion, the only difference here was that there wasn't anyone talking about him or making fun of him.
After telling Steward Li about his plans, he didn't see him anymore. If not for the timely meals delivered, he would have thought that steward Li had forgotten about him.
......
Five days passed in the blink of an eye. After the initial day, Yang Ze didn't go for the morning walk. During these five days, he was slowly adapting to his newfound strength.
"It's about time."
Looking at the screen, Yang Ze exhaled heavily.
------------------------------------------------------
{Name: Yang Ze}
{Realm: Middle Stage Qi Guiding}
{XP: 500/1000}
{Technique: Seaheart Art Third Layer}
*Reached the limit of knowledge. (Can be Derived further from Yang Yuanzhen) (Spirit stones 0/1)
{Martial Arts: Black Tiger Blade Technique 'Great Accomplishment'} [0/500] +
{Efficiency: 100 XP/day}
{Level : 1} (0/10 spirit stones needed to upgrade)
--------------------------------------------------------
This time, Yang Ze didn't upgrade it like the previous time. He had an ominous feeling that he would lose consciousness again if he upgraded it.
Looking at the night sky that was full of stars, he was silent for a moment before clenching his fists and making his way back inside the room. He had made up his mind to upgrade it inside where he was safe.
Heading back inside, he closed the door and this time properly locked it, in case that bastard Yang Li barged into his room uninvited. After making sure everything was ready, he sat on his bed, closed his eyes and took a deep breath before touching the '+' sign. The moment he clicked on it, the familiar feeling of darkness overtook him.
.........
"Grr."
In a lush green forest, a small tiger cub was roaming inside the cave proudly. Even though the surroundings were dark, it wasn't a problem for him. After roaming for a long time, the cub seemed exhausted. Sitting on the ground, it licked its paws before looking at the entrance to the cave that was illuminated with light.
For as long as he could remember, he had lived inside this cave since his birth. There were times when he wanted to explore the area outside the cave, but every time he dared to, his mother roared at him loudly before picking him up by his neck and throwing him back inside the cave.
He didn't dare to defy his mother, so he never dared to walk outside the cave.
"Wooo."
Looking at the entrance, he howled for a moment before closing his eyes. Every day his mother would go out and bring him food. He didn't know what it was, but it was tasty. Today should have been the same, but he still couldn't see the figure of his mother.
With every passing second, he was getting more anxious.
"Wooo."
He was doing his best to call for his mother, shouting as loud as he could, but there was no response.
Tired, he didn't know when he fell asleep, but by the time he opened his eyes again, it was already morning.
"Woo. Woo."
Looking around, he still couldn't find his mother. With all the hunger and thirst, he couldn't sit still. Even though his mother forbade him to go outside, he couldn't stop his instincts from wandering.
Slowly walking towards the entrance, he poked his little furry head outside. Other than the long trees and grasses that were as long as five of him combined, he couldn't see anything in sight.
Walking carefully, he slowly walked towards the loud sound of the burble. Following the sound, he soon reached a small stream. Looking at the water, he seemed to know what it was. Without wasting any more time, he rushed towards it and started drinking mouthfuls of water.
After quenching his thirst, he looked around with his bright eyes. Though his thirst was quenched, he was still hungry. Habitually, he raised his nose, trying to find the scent of anything edible. But the moment he did, his eyes flashed with happiness. There was a peculiar smell in the air, one that was different from others, one that he was extremely familiar with.
"Woo."
Finding the familiar scent of his mother, he followed the trail with great enthusiasm. Even though his mother forbade him from walking outside, he didn't care about it. Right now he just wanted to go to his mother and lie with her peacefully.
With each passing second, the scent of his mother grew heavier and heavier. With great excitement, he increased his speed further. The scent of his mother was soothing to him, but mixed with this scent was a rancid smell. It was the same smell that came from the food that his mother used to bring him.
'Perhaps she caught so much food this time.' With these thoughts, he couldn't wait to rush as fast as he could. But even though he was running constantly, the distance was somewhat far. His small body, which wasn't strong like his mother could only stop for rest several times.
"Woo."
It took a lot of effort for the little him to reach his destination, but he managed to reach there. But the moment he reached his destination, he was stunned at the scene in front of him. On the ground lay a huge body covered in blood.
"Roar."
Growling at the body, he was confused. The scent that was coming from the body was that of his mother, but the appearance was completely different. The lustrous white fur was gone, replaced by bloody sticky muscles. Her long and powerful claws, with which she held down food, were gone too. Walking in front of the body, he tried to see her head, but there was no head.
"Rawr."
He roared at it again. This time full of anger. Perhaps this thing has hidden his mother and is not returning her back.
He spent his entire day near this body. Sometimes he would growl; sometimes he would push it with his paws, but the body in front of him remained in the same position. Perhaps if he stayed here for a long time, this thing would get tired and return his mother back to him.
Thinking about this, he lay near the body and fell asleep, dreaming. Perhaps he could not see his mother right now, but in his dreams, she was always with him, playing and bringing him food. Sometimes she would grab him by the neck and pick him up before running around.
In this forest that was now covered with a layer of darkness, there was a serene scene of a young tiger cub lying beside his mother's corpse. The only sound that echoed in the forest was that of insects that were perhaps performing a final goodbye song to this queen of the forest.