"How could my new master be a wastrel like you?" the voice asked in a new, melodic tone.
Laine felt he was going mad when the key spoke to him again. It didn't help that the voice had changed.
Is this key possessed? Laine wondered.
"Are you stuck here? Can you see the light ahead? Go into it if you can."
"What I see is a moron. Turn around."
Laine spun on his heels, and his breathing hitched.
Floating inches off the ground beside his stone table stood the most graceful woman he had ever seen. She looked about thirty, with long green hair falling past her waist, contrasting with the white hanfu dress she wore. Draped over it was a ruby-red top that matched her eyes.
He studied her thoroughly—her willowy waist, her well-sized chest. Laine wouldn't admit it out loud, but he was quite perverted.
"Finished?"
Laine had expected the green-haired woman to be upset or have a flushed face; however, she didn't. Instead, her expression was one of disdain he had seen from many passing cultivators when he had traveled further north into the city.
"What are you? Do you have a name? I'm your new master, right?" Laine asked.
The green-haired woman waved her hand in the air. "Bah, you ask too many questions. Bring me some spirit wine and I may answer them."
"Spirit wine! Are you insane? The cheapest costs 500 spirit stones. If I had that kind of wealth, would I live in this dump with such low cultivation?"
She tilted her head. "What is a spirit stone?"
"Dammit granny! Stop playing games and answer me. Am I not your new master?"
The slight twitch of her eye when being called granny didn't go unnoticed by Laine.
"My first master gave me the name Calla. As for what I am—have you never seen an artifact spirit before?"
Laine's disbelief shook him. Artifact spirits were said to come from Mythic-Grade artifacts, and even then, only in legends. Mythic artifacts sat at the pinnacle of power, with the last one found in texts from tens of thousands of years ago.
He could barely contain his excitement and practically shouted, "Calla, do you know how many years ago you came into existence? How many masters have you had?"
Calla shook her head. "I answered your question. Now answer mine. What are spirit stones?"
"Spirit stones are the currency of cultivators and the source of aura used for cultivating."
"Why use such an inconvenient method? Just freely gather the aura from the air. Surely that method is much faster."
Laine's eyes widened. "It's been recorded in numerous ancient scrolls that such a method went extinct 10 thousand years ago. Spirit stones and heavenly medicines are the only two methods I know of to gather aura. Whatever existed freely throughout the world has long since been used. How long have you been around, exactly?"
Calla floated backward, shock on her face. "Before my last master sealed me, she said the aura was thinning. But it wasn't supposed to deplete for 10,000 years."
Calla tapped her finger against her chin. "Are we on the Heavenscar Continent?"
"No, I've never heard of it. This is the Golden River Continent," said Laine as he gathered the urn fragments.
"To also end up all the way here." Her finger paused on her chin, and she sighed. "Why did my master have to be a man?"
Laine had finished gathering the fragments and placed them on the shelf carved into his wall, right beside some old bowls.
He turned back to face her. "You've never had a male master?"
"No… I've seen my masters fall because of men. I won't make the same mistake."
Laine remained silent and then turned to look out of the clouded window, seeing that there was no one lingering in the alley. He then walked over and peeked through the cracks in the old, crooked door, making sure no one was passing by on the nearby muddy street.
"There's no need. I have no combat ability, but I can sense everything in a 200-foot radius. No one's nearby."
"Two hundred!" Laine cleared his throat. "More importantly, what's this tarnished key called? How am I to use it?"
Calla gracefully floated over to his straw bed and hovered an indiscernible amount above it to appear as though she sat with one leg crossed. She took a deep look at him, as though she could see every aspect of his existence.
"The Tarnished Key is its name. As for using it, don't be foolish. You're several cultivation realms away from even using its basic function."
She paused. "But I have a proposition for you."
Laine leaned against the wall with his eyebrows raised. "What kind of proposition?"
"Simple. You help me gain a physical form, and I'll help you gain power and prosperity."
"How can I help you?"
"Once you reach the Tyrant Realm, I will explain to you how."
"Tyrant Realm! I would need several more lifetimes just to break out of the Neophyte Realm."
He wasn't being unreasonable. The number of Tyrant Realm cultivators on the vast Golden River Continent was less than a thousand. Wherever these cultivators went, others could only lower their heads. With the might to split seas and part mountains, these cultivators truly lived up to their name.
Laine, currently at the 3rd Stage of the Neophyte Realm, would unlikely reach even the 5th stage before he died of old age. The Neophyte Realm had nine minor stages. Each minor stage focused on strengthening different facets of the cultivator, preparing them for future breakthroughs.
Two major realms separated the Neophyte Realm from the Tyrant Realm: the Earth Realm and the Sky Realm.
There were only a handful of Earth Realm cultivators living within Cloudveil City. As for Sky Realm cultivators, it was unknown if there were some powerful experts concealing their cultivation realm within the city.
"Did you misunderstand me?" Calla floated closer. "I've lived longer and know more than you can fathom in your current state. Turning you into a powerhouse is just a matter of time. My last master could kill 100 Tyrant Realm cultivators with a flick of her wrist. Help me, and I'll help you. Deal, Master?"
Laine fought to stay calm, excitement bubbling up. The key to his future lay in his hands. How could he stay composed?
"Yes, but call me Laine."
"Fine. Our first major goal—gather these spirit stones. You mentioned spirit wine costing 500 spirit stones, right?"
"…"