In a dark forest where the animals quietly manoeuvred the grassy plains, the moonlight illuminated the former pile of animal corpses used for fertiliser as a group of handymen members of the Hidden Blade Sect looked confused.
"He was here for sure, right?" Asked the oldest member, with a balding head, his front teeth now yellow and decayed.
"Ah... Old Yang, They tossed his poor body here." Said a younger male with a decent face, but his right leg was slightly limp.
"Oh, Su Lang... What did they do to you?" An aunt with grey hair looked at the strange sight of the pile of corpses that were now drained dry like someone sucked the insides from their bodies until they became powder.
Old Yang looked up to the huge purple moon, his eyes barely able to see with their cloudy orbs as he shook his head in denial and stepped away from the fertilising pile.
As the lowest members of the Hidden Blade Sect, those who had yet to open their crust and start cultivating for real were merely regular trained humans and not even cultivators—thus, resources were next to nothing, and they were lowest on the pecking order.
"Let's go... We can only hope he's not dead." Old Yang's harsh voice sounded as he walked away with a slight limp.
Yet, in reality, he was the most concerned. If not for that boy in this dark guild bordering the demonic path, Old Yang would have been killed by now.
Meanwhile, as Su Lang dashed through the forest, a strange feeling of strength and stamina flowed through his flesh and blood, and he wasn't tired even after sprinting at full speed for more than 10 minutes.
"I managed to achieve the same thing that Rat had spent 5 years wasting their time in one night!"
A light flow of thin energy flowed through his muscles, bones and blood, heading toward his organs—the first Realm of Cultivation in this world was called the Cycle of Earth, and its first stage was the Core Stage.
Right now, Su Lang's body had already stepped into another Core Stage, a time when the body would slowly syphon a tiny amount of Qi from the world, using it to temper one's organs, starting with the Heart, then the liver, kidney and lungs and finishing with the brain.
Once the brain has been tempered like Su Lang, the mind would become clearer, those lacking intellect will become intelligent, and those who are intelligent may become wise.
Cultivation was a mystical and dream-like ability for all boys—Su Lang was no different. One needed to begin the first Cycle of the World.
'The body is the source of life, and everything begins from there...'
'The Earth is the source of humanity—the body and Earth form the foundation.'
"I am so happy to take back my body and step into the world I had dreamed of in that dark, isolated prison..."
Su Lang made a bitter sneer narrowing his eyes, becoming sharp and glinting with a neon blue light trailing his body with a blue shine as he rushed towards the exit.
The feeling of the weeds and flowers brushing against his bare legs with each step, he could feel more of their texture, the light damp from the evening rain, a faint Qi fluttering from the small flower blooming at night.
'It's so strange to be outside.'
*Tap-Tap-Tap*
Suddenly a group of people appeared from the darkness—two were limping and struggling to get up the hill towards the Broken Blade Sect, wearing the same outfit that Su Lang wore...
'I know them... Aren't they the ones that supported that Rat?'
'Although I would love to declare I am supreme and can fight anyone at the same level or above... I have been trapped in that prison, only watching the world like a movie.. or so it was called on Earth.'
"Old Yang!" Su Lang spoke with his normal voice, but rather than the mumble without confidence.
It was a bright and charming voice with a slight baritone ring as he dashed forward and helped support the old man with a poor leg.
The scent of Old Yang was enough to make Su Lang feel nauseous, a sour scent like someone who hadn't bathed for weeks and worn the same outfit for months.
'Endure...'
"Eh... Su boy!? Where have you been? No... What?" Old Yang's voice sounded gruff and hoarse like chalk being dragged across a board.
For a moment, he looked at Su Lang in the darkness, seeming to notice the difference in his body, taller with more muscles and eyes that were no longer dull but were burning with hope and the will of a normal youth.
Old Yang just gave a bitter smile before turning away and letting Su Lang help support him. What could an old crippled Handyman do? So he seemed to choose the more logical and easy choice...
To trust Su Lang.
"Su Lang, you're back. Did anyone hurt you?" The aunt with grey hair looked at him with gentle brown eyes while helping her son Du Yang walk with his lame leg.
"Ah~ Aunt Wang, you look as pretty as always!"
"Oh, you~ don't be so sweet. Do you want more sweet nectarines tonight? Fufu." Her voice was quite high-pitched, but this woman helped keep his body fed when the previous user acted like a pathetic tool.
In reality, they all noticed the changes, but rather than mention it, they just hoped the boy finally found a lucky encounter and could climb higher.
The moment they reached the Sect, it was rather dark, with only the four hidden guards in the Second Layer of the Earth Cycle.
'I wonder what it feels like to be halfway to opening the Spirit Sea... Yet being so old.'
"Oh? Is it Old Yang and his family?" A sudden voice sounded like a whisper in the wind as a single guard stood at the gate with black hair and a thick beard. He nodded to the group. At first, Su Lang was expecting some bullying or trouble, but instead, the man opened the gate for Old Yang...
"If it isn't Meng Lao, how is your son? Did he manage to reach the third Layer?" Old Yang nodded politely and smiled, his yellow teeth wobbling with each word, while Meng Lao waved away with a huge grin."
Although the Hidden Blade Sect was as close to a Demonic Sect as you could get, the people treated members like family—betrayal and theft were quite common, and even worse crimes happened at least once a week.
'Strange?'
The group entered the Sect without a problem—well... Their area was more like the entrance than the actual Sect, which was blocked by huge gates.
You needed to reach the first Layer of the Cycle of the Sea even to attempt the trials to be promoted and enter the outer disciple area.
Handymen lived in dull brown huts with a very low level of hygiene and were comforted most of the day.
They would be given a single job or task for 8-10 hours, be it cleaning, weapon care, mount feeding, or even serving as a training dummy taking the blows of outer disciples...
Su Lang was one such person before he passed on...
'Now I am too...'
Old Yang seemed to understand that Su Lang had something to do tonight, and instead of bugging him for a large meal, a small bowl of white rice with fish and lentil soup was enough for him.
"Phew... Finally, I have some time to myself... Got to admit, the information on novels from that Rat's word is quite interesting..."
"Transmigration... Systems... Rebirth... Face slapping... I wonder what type of world I will get to live through?"
Su Lang sat in the centre of his small room—in the corner was a straw bed, a small pot to make tea and some trinkets that the old him seemed to find interesting...
Making a pile of soft hay in the centre of the room, he sat on the top, crossing his legs, placing both hands on his knees and entering a focused state.
He could feel the atmosphere around him suddenly slow down, the strange technique left in his soul since he lost his body, something that even Su Lang(Rat) didn't know about...
'Slowly draw in the Qi... as if breathing, try to get a feel for each small spec, the colour shows the element... But I can absorb all elements...'
"Sooo.....Haaa....."
Su Lang could feel the air swirling around him.
The sensation of a gentle breeze and a watery bubble began to enter his body, flowing around his body along his veins, slowly dancing, swirling around before entering his abdomen where a dark hole was rotating like a vortex.
For hours Su Lang performed over 200 cycles as he slowly began to absorb each speck of Qi, but now he could slowly split the water from the wind and the rare flame Qi from the boundless Earth Qi.
Like this, the night passed as Su Lang's body slowly filled with a thick and dirty mess of what seemed to be close to excrement or oil...
His memory would call this the impurities of his body... dirt and rot from all the bad habits of the body before they began cultivating...
According to the cultivation method in his mind that even the name was blurred from his vision.
"Phew.... 8 hours... my body feels sore..."
*Crack*
When Su Lang stood, the dirty impurities cracked and crumbled to the ground, stirring the disgusting scent and forcing him to hold his nose and feel nauseous...
'Fuck, worse than Old Yang!'
Before he got to start cleaning, there was a sudden loud call outside the shared yard of himself and the Yang family...
A deep voice, but youthful, maybe around Su Lang's age? But the call caused his memory to trigger, and a frown came to his face...
'It's that fat cunt... cockey because he is in the First Layer of the Earth Cycle... Here to use me as his practice opponent again...'
"Su Lang!!! Come out—it's 6:00 am and time for you to help me practise my technique!"
Listening to the voice, the yard came alive as Old Yang seemed to have gone out to ask for Su Lang's day off because of injury, but then the sound of wood being tossed on the ground and the sound of Old Yang letting out a pained gasp before a thud of someone falling.
'It seems I was too drunk on meeting the nice family and guard... Su Lang, you know this guild is where the weak are devoured by the strong... and the weak devour the weaker...'
Su Lang's eyes shone with an evil neon blue—as he stepped towards the door, wearing a set of brown robes, his face looked emotionless with a faint smile.
However, the anger smouldering in his chest would soon find a person to vent, letting the other Handymen know.
Su Lang was no longer a weak mortal...
He, too, was in the First Layer of the Earth Cycle!