From all the wuxia novels I had read, I knew what cultivation was but what shocked me was I didn't find people using weapons and battle skills in the pictures but instead, people had control over the weather, could shoot ice related weapons from their bodies and could even liquify their bodies.
"This looks more like meta human abilities than cultivation." I thought.
The article went on…
"These new abilities can be improved through what the world has deemed as cultivation. It was first discovered by a telepathic monk who upon meditating after the meteor shower for 4 days felt his body fill with an indescribable body as his blood turn a dark shade of yellow. The seventy some aged monk had his age and vitality restored along with his youthful appearance. Several of the monks achieved the same results and so the system known as cultivation was introduced in to the modern-day system. The greatest allure to the general populace was the life extension cultivation provides. But to every great benefit comes massive disadvantages, crime rates have seen a mind-blowing spike lately and since the world is yet to recover from that catastrophic meteor shower, order has completely broken down. The various leaders of the world have made an alliance they term the cultivation pavilion which will regulate the distribution of ranchuku crystals. Ranchuku crystals are the only energy sources known for cultivation presently and as such are being gathered by the cultivation pavilion as we speak. The meteors that crashed on our planet were large ranchuku crystals that have a unique trait of growing anywhere they attach themselves. These has caused a lot of ranchuku mines to sprout all over the world. As such the standard currency from the world has become ranchuku crystals with most transactions being with basic low tier ranchuku crystals. And some transactions with priceless goods in premium high tier ranchuku crystals."
After I was done reading the paper, I felt more lost than I was before even reading it. I had just one thought and that was to survive. And the first step was to find the nearest human settlement. Limping on a foot I walked for over 3 miles without seeing a single sign of human life. I didn't stop to rest I kept moving through the night and at the first rays of the golden dawn came I so it down in the valley, I saw it, a tiny village with about 50 tents set up. I increased my pace, the numbness in my left foot was gone and I ended up running headlong in to the village. I don't know if I triggered an alarm but immediately, I stepped into the village I was surrounded by hulky looking men before I could take another step. Some of the men had fire blazing around them, others had mists enveloping their upper body and some even had scales on their arms. I don't know which of them spoke but his voice sounded so thunderous it shook my internal organs making me collapse to my knees.
"State your mission!"
"Help me, please!" I pleaded.
They men seemed displeased with my answer but were at a loss as to what to do with me when a young-looking man walked up to me from among the crowd that had gathered. Immediately his presence was noticed, everyone gathered bowed in complete reverence.
"Let him in." He said as he walked up to me. Despite his looks of a young man, his voice I carried the caring sentiments of an old man.
"But chief there is barely enough to go around."
"I know", the young man replied.
"But this young one has completely no energy and from what I can sense from his body, he has never cultivated so he should not be a threat." He continued.
"But…", before another of the hulky looking men could argue the village chief released his aura and his stare got icy-cold as he glared at them. Everyone of the lost their nerve as they cowered back in fear. He only released his aura for an instant but it was enough to engrave itself in my memory as I thought,
"The power of a cultivator."
"Dear friend, could you follow me for a bit." He said with a stretched arm.
Helping me up, I walked behind him till we got to the tent located in the center of the village where his tent was. Inviting me in, he asked me to sit.
"Now dear friend, do you mind telling me your story."