In a circular, well-lit room, a child strolled leisurely while a man followed behind with a dark expression. They were currently in the treasury of the Xiawen family.
The child was Elias, and the man was Ray.
Inside, treasure troves were arranged meticulously in rows and glass cases. All kinds of manifestations were imprisoned in bottles, and myriads of ranked material were stored there. Each row and glass case was labeled carefully.
"Quickly choose a single thing. I don't have all day," Ray said impatiently.
"..." Elias did not answer, his eyes scanning the room.
"I am not giving you more than one thing. I am already being generous enough. You should be grateful." Ray continued, his tone sharp.
Elias's eyes eventually settled on a small, unassuming bottle perched on a pedestal. Inside, a tiny flame flickered, glowing a deep, mesmerizing red.
"You have a rank 4 manifestation?"
Ray noticed Elias's interest and quickly interjected, "You can't take that! It's a Rank 4 manifestation and a family treasure. I won't let you have it even if I have to die-"
However, unlike what Ray expected, Elias soon sighed and lost interest in the rank 4 manifestation once he saw its name. He then continued to look around the room, uncaring of the rank 4 manifestation.
Even low-rank cultivators knew that ranks were only one of the numerous factors determining a manifestation's value. Just because it is ranked 4 doesn't necessarily mean it is a good manifestation. However, it doesn't mean it wasn't precious either since it was often more difficult to obtain.
After a while, Elias suddenly stopped before a small, unassuming bottle, and his expression grew colder. "This one," he exclaimed while pointing with his little hands to the bottle in which a gray flame danced.
Ray was a bit perplexed by Elias' choice. 'He's choosing a rank 1 manifestation? When there is so much better around? Is he planning to use that for his first manifestation when he awakens?' he then looked at the manifestation's name and description and smirked.
'Keke, Idiot. This manifestation is quite rare, and its ability seems quite outrageous. But nobody uses it for a reason,' he thought with a satisfied expression as he took the bottle and gave it to Elias.
"Take it. Don't forget our deal. If you tell anyone, I will kill you," Ray said, a bit proud of having successfully scammed a child.
"I also want the rank 1 Misty Essence Herb, the rank 1 Fogleaf Plant, the rank 2 Smokebloom Flower, and a few kilograms of the rank 2 Whispering wolf meat."
"What? Are you crazy?! There's no way I'm giving you all these! You are only randomly saying the name of the ranked ingredient! Moreover, we agreed on a single thing in the treasury!" he yelled, his expression bewildered.
"Yes... but those look so pretty," Elias said, his eyes glued to the bottle.
"You want them just because they are... pretty? Do you know how expensive they are?" Ray asked, his voice filled with disbelief.
"So?"
"So? So?! This is not a joke! You are asking for a fortune! Some plants are very difficult to find despite their low ranks! I can't give you all these!"
"Do you rather me tell your father and my mother about what you did?" he said as he pointed at his wound.
"You...Shameless!" Ray gritted his teeth. 'This bastard ... At least there are no rank 3 ingredients, so it should be fine. I can just tell Father that those ingredients were damaged.'
"...Fine, I'll give you those. But you can't tell anyone, or I'll kill you," he threatened once again.
"Deal," Elias said, his expression neutral.
.
.
.
Inside his dimly lit room, Elias sat cross-legged on his bed, his gaze fixed on the bottle cradled in his hand. His expression was a mixture of contemplation and stoicism as he studied the small, flickering gray flame within.
"This is a Rank 1 Haze Projection," he mused silently. The flame's dance was mesmerizing, but Elias was focused on the reality of its capabilities.
"It allows the user to create a mental projection of themselves. The projection, however, is intangible— it can't physically interact with anything."
He shifted slightly, adjusting his position as he continued to ponder. "The projection can't touch or affect objects, so it's useless in physical combat. Its primary function is to distract or deceive, and even then, only once. Anyone encountering it would be unlikely to fall for the same trick twice."
Elias sighed softly, his eyes narrowing as he considered the practical senses. "The aether consumption is also huge. Without a Rank 2 purple talent, you can't maintain it for more than five minutes. That's hardly enough time for any serious tactical advantage."
Elias carefully set the bottle down on his nightstand, his movements slow and deliberate. "No Rank 1 cultivator would waste their only manifestation slot on something like this," he muttered to himself. "It's too situational and comes with too many drawbacks."
A small, knowing smile tugged at the corners of his lips as he continued to examine the bottle.
"But this manifestation is actually one of my favorites in the game. Despite being weak early on, it has tremendous potential once it's ascended."
Elias's gaze drifted over the array of ingredients scattered around the room, each clearly intended for the ascension process. It was a bold move to request such a large variety of ingredients from Ray, but Elias felt confident that he wouldn't suspect his true intentions.
Despite the somewhat obvious nature of his request, Ray was unlikely to realize the deeper motive behind it.
After all, Elias was only five years old, and it was far easier to believe that he had chosen these ingredients at random rather than having meticulously studied and learned the formulas for each manifestation in the treasury.
The truth was that Elias had not only known the formulas but had mastered more than one for each manifestation.
"But that's for later," Elias reminded himself. I'm still Rank 1 and can't even use a Rank 2 manifestation yet. Even if I was, I still miss some stuff to ascend it." A gentle knock on the door cut short his thoughts.
"Elias, I'm coming in," Yui's voice called from the other side.
"Just a moment, please," Elias replied, his tone calm but firm.
"Ah… Oh, okay, I'll wait outside," Yui responded, her voice fading as she moved away from the door.
Elias let out a soft sigh and started to hide the ingredients under his bed. Once he was done, he opened the door, his expression blank.