Chapter 1: Regular Lives
'Ever since that day… I never tried to show off my powers to anyone, again.'
[7 years ago….]
The world has two kinds of people. One of them is the people who live regular lives, get a job, fall in love, make kids, and then die. Two, the people who could cultivate Qi and awaken abilities and become superhuman. They don't live regular lives. They tend to be special… fight monsters and stuff. That is if they do it willingly… society doesn't use them as dogs anymore. It's democratic now.
Ling Tao was one of those 'cultivators' who were special. But, even among cultivators…. He was an exception. Why you ask?
Ever since he was a kid, at least once a week, a spirit who attempts to kill him comes out of his bathroom. And every time that spirit was spawned, Ling just managed to exorcise those evil ghosts with a simple blow. (A mere 4th grader who managed to kill off an S-Rank spirit with a simple blow.)
Then, after he got to 4th grade, he found out more about the world; like…
'People should not hide their true selves.'
That was enough for him to go tell his classmates the truth about himself.
There was only one person in the school which he really saw a speck of aura from, and he could see no other's aura in his vision. Not even the ones who claimed to be cultivators who even showed special abilities. To him, their aura was invisible.
It was a Monday morning at the interval at school when he decided to walk up to her and tell her about the case.
As always, the school girls who idolized her gathered around her to worship the idol.
"Qiqi! Oh my God! You are the best! Dear God Qiqi! How are you doing that? You are so amazing!"
Such were the screams of the crowd when Shinro Qiqi showed off her sword skills to the girls and boys around her. Her skills were good. She was a popular idol at school. And her beauty surpassed the masses of the school. She scored excellent grades and bested many in sports.
And this particular day, one guy, who was not even known among his own class's students came pushing through the crowd of girls towards Qiqi.
Ling was a kid who was invisible to every other person in his classroom and his only friend back then was his teddy-shaped school bag. He talked with it. A lot.
Of course, everyone was surprised when this stranger came pushing through the crowd of girls, and what he said afterwards made the whole crowd go dead silent.
"SHINRO QIQI! Can I have a moment with you please!" Ling bowed to the Queen of the grade schoolers to excuse her. Shinro Qiqi was surprised by this sudden appearance.
Qiqi's purple eyes turned to the apparition.
"Umm. What do you want… Ling Tao?"
That took the crowd by surprise. She knew the boy's name??
However, the most shocked person was Ling Tao himself.
'She knows who I am? Could it be… that she already knows I am a cultivator?' Ling began to get excited.
Of course, it was not the case. Ling Tao and Qiqi happened to be in the same class at that time and she happened to be the class president too, so she knew all her classmates' names.
At that moment, everyone in the crowd was gazing with wide eyes at the two students, Ling and Qiqi. They were literally the center of attention with a huge circle of grade schoolers surrounding their Queen and this strange apparition. However, Ling was not the one to sweat even when a hundred eyes were staring at him directly.
"Qiqi…" Gasps went through the crowd when she was addressed by her first name. "I don't really see anyone's aura in this school who claimed to be cultivators except yours. Please, if you can see my aura… Tell me. Tell me if I'm a cultivator or not."
Murmurs went through the crowd, and a few of them, as Ling Tao heard, went like this:
"Not being able to see the aura even? What… he's a fake. It's obvious!"
"Crazy fool!"
"Who does he think he is?"
Qiqi stared at him. "Umm… Ling," she addressed him by his first name too. The crowd fell silent once more, dead shocked by this. Qiqi looked around him, and she felt undignified to say the words here, for Ling Tao that is.
"Can I speak to you in private?" She asked, pointing at a spot behind the crowd with a wince on her face. The crowd gasped again.
"Just who is he?" The kids began to mutter. "In private? Does it mean…"
Ling Tao nodded and followed her. 'Finally, someone who can see my power,' Ling thought to himself as he went. The kids did not follow the apparition and Shinro Qiqi, because their idol announced that it should be 'Private.'
The two grade-schoolers stood, gazing at each other under the shade of a tree.
"Un…" Qiqi was going to speak her honest opinion on this when she was disturbed by Ling Tao's words.
"So, you see it don't you? You can see that I'm a Cultivator. Finally…" Ling smiled.
Shinro Qiqi was a kind person, yet she held no belief in lying to a person out of sympathy.
"No…. I don't, Ling."
There was absolute silence between the two. "Bu… but I can see a small spark that glows within your heart. That's your aura, right? Why can't you see mine? I can prove –"
"Ling." Ling Tao was silenced by Qiqi. "Everyone knows that I have… the power of a cultivator, right? So… um… Ling. Living like a regular person is not that bad. You don't need to force yourself… out of that life. To be honest, living with these powers is quite annoying too, Ling. I think living like a regular person – is a blessing! After all, you can't deny who you are. And you should be proud of yourself. You don't need powers… Ling. As long as you're happy, what more is there to life?"
For a moment, there was utter silence. All the eyes in the crowd were concentrated on Ling Tao now. Ling thought about this statement for a second. And finally….
"Living like a regular person?"
"Yes. You don't have to be a cultivator…." she smiled at Ling.
"I don't?"
///
[Present: Year 2022, Xin City]
Treeng!
Ling Tao smashed on the alarm as he woke up in his messy bed and wiped his drippy mouth.
Then, his usual routine began.
He opened the window shutters, and the sun hit him right in the face. He yawned.
"Good morning, Xin." He greeted the vast city before him.
Then, he grabbed a towel and walked out of his room, still in his underwear.
Gwarrr!! Gwarrr!!!
He was greeted by a weird noise coming from the bathroom early in the morning, and he felt a glint of aura alongside it. He knew exactly what it was. It had returned.
"Oh… it's Sunday after all. It's high time you returned… Evil spirit."
He walked through the hallways towards the bathroom.
An immense dark aura was being emitted from behind the closed door of the bathroom but from Ling's point of view… It was a mere spark of aura.
He turned the doorknob and walked in.
"GRARRRRR!!!" A demonic creature was dominating the bathroom; its gooey skin spread all over the tiles of the floor. As the door opened, a thousand eyes in its dark gooey skin shifted in the direction of Ling Tao.
"MEAT! MEAT! MEAT!" All the mouths in its skin roared out all at once.
The demon charged towards the 16-year-old boy with immense killing intent, all its claws darting towards the young man.
Ling raised his hand and exhaled. The aura in Ling's body blasted up into indescribable power as a beam shot out of the boy's hand.
BAM!
The monster's insides spread on the walls and Ling's white shirt was painted with purple blood with an unbearable stench.
"Sigh…." Ling was unamused.
He absorbed all of the blood and the remains of the demon into a tiny ball of aura in his hand and vanquished it. "Stupid spirits. How many times will you keep coming back here?"
'And… I still don't get why they come here in the first place.'
Then, he went in front of the mirror with the towel around his neck and splashed some water on his face to feel lively. There was nothing quite better than splashing some cold water on your face on a Sunday morning, knowing that the whole day was gonna be just yourself and simply chilling from morning to night.
He looked in the mirror, only to see the same old face. Short messy hair, a long nose, and dead eyes with the dark circles.
"Classic Ling."
Drying his face with the small towel around his neck, he went back to his living room. His mom's door was half open, and he could see his mom snoring in her bed, upside down.
'She was late yesterday too… I wonder why she keeps coming home late from the pharmacy these days.'
He poured some warm coffee into his "Ohio!" mug and sipped it. 'Ha….'
Then, he reached for his phone which was lying on the kitchen slab and there was just a single notification on the screen.
[New volume of Sword King Liu out in stores now!]
His next destination was decided.
Moments later, he sipped up his white sweater and stepped out of the apartment. He checked the time on his phone.
[7.00 am]
His heart skipped a beat.
"Damn it! I still have time! I still have time!!! Please, God! Don't sell out all the volumes!!! ARGHHHH!" At an inhuman speed, he rushed down the hallways towards the nearest elevator.
//Author's note!//
[Arc 1: PAIN IN THE ASS]
Arc one begins here folks! Hope you enjoy it!! Give up your goddamn power stones if you need more daily content! And leave a review and a comment, thank you. Makes my day.