One year had passed since I had achieved level 5. In the 3rd year class, I learned how to advance to level 5 and improve my abilities. The key was to make my soul mobile, which meant that I had to control my soul so that it could leave my body. I had achieved this goal and was now able to make my soul leave my physical body.
Now, I was in my 4th year class and curious to learn how to cultivate at level 6. When I arrived, I noticed that there were only 10 students, 4 female and 6 male. It was clear that completing level 5 was a major benchmark, and only a select few had made it this far.
We were all waiting for the professor, and the silence in the classroom was almost deafening. Finally, a man of Mandarin lineage entered the room. He appeared to be a Herculean rather than a psychic, and he was hovering slightly above the floor.
"Good morning students," he said. "I am Professor Zǐ Jiàn, and I will be your professor this year. This is the most important year of your education, and maybe your last year of formal education if you manage to pass. Let's get to know each other's names, starting with you."
As we introduced ourselves, I couldn't help but notice two students in particular. One had a humanoid fairy type soul named Eithnee, and the other had a Chinese azure dragonic soul named Meng Zhang.
"Ok, let's start your first class of the year," the professor began. "Everyone here has already completed level 5 under 30 years of age, so you can be called geniuses. But starting from level 6, talent doesn't matter. To advance to level 6 and beyond, you will have to visit the river Nagvinashak. And we are going to do just that for those who are ready. So this year, you will be taught survival skills. It won't guarantee that you will survive in the river, but it will provide some help. The first thing to note to survive in the river is to..."
I quickly grew bored with the lecture and soon fell asleep. I kept my physical body on autopilot for the rest of the year.
Fast forwarding to the end of the year, it was the last class. The professor had an announcement.
"For those who think you are ready to advance to level 6 and enter the river, finish your private matters, visit your family and friends or something. We will be starting the voyage the day after tomorrow, so prepare yourselves. And for those who will be repeating this year, see you next year."
I stood up from my seat and went over to Eithnee and Meng Zhang, my companions on the upcoming voyage.
"How you guys doing?" I asked smiling.
They didn't seem amused by my greeting, but I continued anyway. "Are you guys going to visit your family?"
"And tell them we are going on a death trip?" Eithnee replied. "I'll tell them if I survive, and they'll know if I don't."
"And what about you?" she asked me.
"I'm not going to tell my family. I don't want to worry them," I replied.
" Let's go to the storage facility." Meng Zhang suggested leading us there.
" Why?" I asked with a questioning look while in motion.
" You need to serious for this trial. Don't think that your talent is gonna help you in surviving there." Meng Zhang said with a serious face.
" No need to be so serious. Now, tell me why we are going there."
" Professor didn't say to prepare yourself metaphorically. Those going to river Nagvinashak for the first time are allowed to freely choose 3 items of their choice." He answered.
We arrived at the reception room of the storage facility. Going inside further wasn't allowed for us.
A woman entered the room after waiting for a while and handed a tablet to each of us. "Choose any 3 items and choose carefully." She warned before leaving the room.
A long list of mythical items was on display. I saw something which outright shocked me.
[1] Amrit. Current use known: Grants false immortality.
"Are you seeing what I am seeing?" I said, pointing at the screen.
"Don't choose it. It's useless. False immortality means you will not age but you can still be killed. Not much useful," he answered while browsing the items on the screen gingerly. Eithnee as well.
I continued browsing as well.
[1] All Language translator. Current use known: grants the user the ability to understand and speak any language fluently.
[2] Philosopher's stone. Current uses known:
Grants cursed immortality.
Transforms any metal to gold.
[3] Aladdin's lamp. Current use known: Grants user any 3 wishes. Handle with care.
[4] Excalibur. Current use known: Able to cut through anything and heals the user. Recommended.
[5] The Ring of Gyges. Current use known: Grants user invisibility.
[6] The Chintamani Stone. Current use known: Able to grant any wish and shape reality to will. To be handled with care.
[7] The Eye of Ra. Current use known: Grants user protection. Highly Recommend.
[8] The Seven-League Boots. Current use known: Grants user long and short distance teleportation.
And the list went on.
We contemplated what to choose for the whole day.
I decided to choose the language translator, the Chintamani stone, and the eye of Ra.
The language translator was a small nail which was to be attached to the back of the ear to be used.
The Chintamani stone was an ordinary looking perfectly oval-shaped stone.
The eye of Ra, which I chose because it looked cool, was in an amulet with esoteric marking on it with a moving eye embedded in it.
We eventually finished choosing and went out. The items would be delivered to us in our dorm rooms.
"What did you choose?" Eithnee asked me.
"The language translator, the Chintamani stone, and the eye of Ra," I replied.
"You know the items are level 8 or under, right?" Meng Zhang.
"I guessed as much," I replied.
"Then why did you choose the Chintamani stone? You cannot properly imagine what you want in a dangerous situation and it's power aren't long lasting. So you won't be able to able to properly use it."
"It looked beautiful," I replied, which left them flabbergasted.
I bid them farewell before taking off and returning to my room leisurely not before visiting the library.
The day of our voyage arrived and I dressed myself and looked in the mirror, which I had done for the first time since being reborn. The mirror broke as I looked into it.
I arrived on time to see Professor, Meng Zhang, and Eithnee waiting for us. They appeared a bit pissed off.
"Let's go," the Professor said, hovering slightly above the ground.
"The earlier we reach the better. Don't fly above the trees and fly fast," he said, flying fast towards the forest. We followed him.
Just to be safe, wished to the Chintamani stone to reach the river as soon as possible safely and watched the stone vanish like smoke.
As a blinding white light entered my eyes, I felt a sudden shift and realized we had arrived somewhere, though I couldn't discern where. Everywhere I looked, there were only colors - a kaleidoscope of hues that left me feeling uneasy. I quickly opened my third eye and saw the professor and the other two staring at me, their expressions a mix of surprise and concern.
"What?" I asked, trying to steady myself.
"What did you do?" the professor asked, his voice heavy with confusion.
"I used the Chintamani stone to get us here as quickly as possible," I replied.
As I gazed around, my eyes came to rest on a sight that spoke awe - a horrifyingly gigantic river that seemed to defy reality. It was so vast and majestic that I couldn't even begin to imagine its true size. The river had no color, or perhaps it had all the colors at once - I couldn't tell. It flowed like a snake, twisting and turning in unpredictable ways that made me dizzy.
At times, the river flowed constantly, like a never-ending stream, while at others it seemed almost static, like a photograph. It was chaotic and unpredictable, with no rhyme or reason to its movements. And yet, despite its apparent randomness, there was something undeniably mesmerizing about the way it moved.
The river was so enormous that it dominated my entire field of vision, stretching out as far as the eye could see. There was nothing in between - just the river, the ground beneath our feet, and the sky above us. It was as if the river was within arm's reach, so close I could almost touch it.
And yet, as awe-inspiring as the river was, there was also something deeply unsettling about it. It wasn't just the size or the way it moved, but the fact that it seemed to distort reality itself, warping the very earth beneath it. As I stared at the river, I couldn't help but feel a sense of unease, which I had only felt once, in the white hell.
" What now?"
End of Volume 1.