All around was nothing but pure darkness, with many differently sized lights scattered everywhere. Floating amongst the vast, infinite space was a palace made of pure gold. Inside the golden palace sat a man on a throne in a big room.
The throne was at least six meters high and two meters wide. The stature of the man who sat on the majestic throne was appropriate for it since he was around five meters tall, and that was while he was seated. With one hand leaning on one of the throne's arm supports while holding up his chin, the huge man spoke in a thunderous voice.
"Ten years of crime, four years as the most wanted international criminal, multiple cases of ..." He continued to list the many deeds of Vin Blake, the white ethereal soul that was floating in front of the huge throne.
"...was eventually caught and executed on live TV as a sign of triumph for the peacekeeping bodies all around the globe." There was a moment of silence before he continued, "What is your say on these matters, Vin Blake? They concern your life. Your previous life, technically."
Vin Blake replied in a nonchalant voice, "Pretty much the exact speech the Secretary of Defense gave before I was murdered. So?"
"You act as if your life was stolen from you unjustly, not as an execution of an infamous criminal," the huge man said in a questioning tone.
"What? It's not like justice is my strong suit. But I have to ask, am I in hell?"
"No, this is not hell. Your soul was supposed to pass through to the River of Reincarnation, but your life piqued my interest. I was in need of a soul to finish a certain task, and you seem fit enough for the job."
"What kind of job is this? And more importantly, who are you?" Vin asked in an irritated voice. "And who the hell said I'm interested?"
"First, keep your tone in check, soul. You are only here because I want you here. Second, I do not answer to you." The huge man then looked straight at Vin Blake.
"Sure. Then put me up on this River of Reincarnation because whatever you have in mind for me, I am not interested." Vin proceeded to look the huge man straight in the eye with an emotionless face.
The huge man boomed with laughter and looked Vin in the eye, "Oh, I am starting to like that fire inside you. As such, you are perfect for the job."
Vin Blake was going to spit out another response to the huge man, but he never had the chance to because before he did, the huge man snapped his fingers while laughing. Slowly, Vin Blake's soul started to disappear until he vanished.
. . . 7 years later . . .
A boy with pitch-black hair could be seen in an open field, seated cross-legged on the ground with his eyes closed. He was wearing a light blue shirt and navy blue shorts. His shirt had an embroidery of a white sword facing down, the symbol of Lydon Academy.
The boy opened his eyes to reveal his striking dark eyes. They were the kind of eyes that you would stare at and feel a sense of mystery. A cocky grin slowly found its way onto the boy's face as he let out a deep breath.
Vin Blake was quite proud of himself because he finally accumulated enough essence in his body to meet the requirements of the Core Creation Rank. If he succeeded and formed his core, he would move from being a normal person and finally become a cultivator.
Vin looked up to the sky and let out a long sigh as he remembered how all this began. He did not know whether he imagined it or if it actually happened. Back at the Golden Palace, before he fired back at the huge man who had kept his soul captive, a suction force started pulling on his soul until it eventually engulfed all of it.
When he opened his eyes again, he was in the body of a little baby boy. His best guess was reincarnation. What he did not understand was why he was reincarnated. The huge man said he had intercepted his soul on its way to the River of Reincarnation. Then why did he reincarnate, and more importantly, why did he reincarnate in the body of a boy who was going to be named Vin Blake?
He did not understand whether his situation was peculiar or if that was how all reincarnations worked. But one thing caught his attention as he grew up. In this new world where he had reincarnated, people lived without technology, which was something he did not expect, but he was in for more shocks.
In this world existed something called essence. Essence was the one thing that innately made this world different from his previous one. Essence was used as the source of power for everything, including human beings.
People who harnessed the power of essence using their bodies, souls, and minds were called cultivators. Cultivators were divided into ranks based on the level they had reached on their Path of Cultivation. But not everyone has a chance to be a cultivator. Those whose bodies cannot handle the strain of having essence flowing through them cannot create their cores and thus can never become cultivators.
However, those who are gifted to have the power of essence coursing through their bodies can become cultivators and start their Path of Cultivation. Everyone's path is tailored by them, but there are three main categories.
The first Path of Cultivation is the one taken by the Elementalists. Elementalists are people who have the power to harness essence and use it to form elemental attacks based on the eight elements.
The second Path of Cultivation is the one taken by the Manifestors. Manifestors are people who have the power to harness essence and use it to manipulate their weapons and armor, making them dangerous opponents.
The third Path of Cultivation is the one taken by the Beastials. Beastials are people who have the power to harness essence and use it to transform themselves and gain beast-like traits.
Now that Vin Blake has met the requirements to begin his Path of Cultivation, the only question is, which path will he embark on?