Lying on a worn wooden bed, Valt anxiously awaited midnight, marking the turning point in his life.
He didn't know the exact time, as he didn't own a clock—the lack of money had deprived him of even that. Extremely poor, Valt wasn't quite a beggar, but he was close to it. He had sold almost everything he owned to acquire a cultivation method.
The only thing he had left was a chicken, kept for times of hunger.
Time seemed eternal. Valt had no sense of how long had passed, but suddenly, information appeared in his mind, as if it had been etched into his very being:
[Awakened Skill] 100x Cultivation Critical Hits Return.
This skill allows the cultivation given to your beasts to return 100 times the amount provided.
Debuff: Works once per day. Only the first cultivation of the day will be counted. The more you endure, the greater the return. Cultivation returned will not count. You will not lose progress from the previous day.
Buff: Works on any beast, allowing them to evolve based on the time of cultivation.
Upon seeing the information in his mind, Valt couldn't stop the tears from rolling down his face. His sacrifices hadn't been in vain. Selling everything had been worth it.
Wiping his face, he sighed in relief for not having eaten the chicken, as it would be his first beast.
"This is embarrassing... A beast master with a chicken... But what can I do? I have no money, and I need to get stronger. When I have enough strength, I'll join the Exploration Division."
That had always been Valt's dream: to explore the vast world. According to the few books available for free, Blue Star had many unexplored territories, both on the human continent and in the mysterious areas. Even the strongest had been unable to map everything. This star was immense.
With a radiant smile, Valt got up from the bed and walked to a wooden chest a few meters away. He took a key from his pocket, placed it in the lock, turned it, and lifted the lid. Inside the chest were a blue book, a lantern, and some men's clothing.
Taking the book with joy, he rushed back to the bed and opened it. The title was "Lunar Breathing."
> "Use lunar Qi, obtained from the moon, to practice. To absorb it, you need to meditate in open spaces at night, under the direct light of the moon. When performing the technique, lunar Qi merges with the body, allowing the control of internal Qi flow."
Carefully closing the book, he placed it back in the chest and took the lantern. He was determined: he would start his cultivation. Now was the perfect moment.
Leaving the room, he crossed the small wooden yard and was met with the full moon that illuminated the entire area. His house, simple as it was, had three rooms: a bedroom, a kitchen to the left, and a bathroom to the right. The structure had been built by a mason who charged little—many workers use auxiliary skills (Non-combatants) in daily life.
Placing the lantern on the ground, Valt began his cultivation. At first, he felt nothing, but he continued trying to merge with the moonlight. After some time, small blue spheres, the size of ants, began to gently descend onto him.
[First Cultivation Started]
Ignoring the message that appeared in his mind, Valt focused, trying to merge lunar Qi with his body. With each attempt, a slight warmth flowed through his skin, but soon the first signs of exhaustion appeared. After an hour of constant effort, his bones were sore, and his energy seemed drained.
[You endured for one hour - 50 lunar Qi gathered.]
"Is that it? My talent is terrible..." Valt murmured, discouraged. But then he remembered the skill he had and smiled. At least he would get a hundredfold return.
Thinking this, he rested for half an hour before heading to the chicken coop to check on his chicken.
Walking quickly, he soon arrived at the coop. The small bird was quiet, comfortably sleeping on the straw. For a moment, Valt observed the chicken, thinking that its life seemed more peaceful than his. He felt completely useless.
Shaking off those thoughts, he entered the coop and grabbed the chicken, which immediately got startled, trying to break free. But it was impossible.
"Relax, I'm not going to eat you... For now..." Valt said, trying to sound kind as he touched it.
[You gave 1 hour of cultivation to your chicken and received 100 hours of cultivation (4 days and 4 hours).]
[You gained 5,000 lunar Qi.] [Congratulations! You broke through to the Three-Star Warrior Realm.]
Feeling an explosion of energy in his body, Valt was pleased, but the next moment, he collapsed to the ground. He was hungry, his stomach empty. Even though he was poor, he usually managed to get food, but this time it was different; it felt as if he hadn't eaten for several days.
"Side effects, damn it... Why didn't the Debuff warn me?" he cursed, looking at what could be his food.
Seeing the chicken in his hands, which had changed a little, its legs turning white, he started to salivate.
The chicken, sensing the danger, freed itself from Valt's hands and ran into the bushes.
Consumed by hunger, Valt chased after it. As a warrior, his speed was three times that of an average human, but the chicken, surprisingly, was fast.
"Stop... That's my beast, I can't eat it!" Valt stopped midway and didn't continue the chase. He struggled to stay conscious, collapsing to the ground. He felt his mind shutting down.
Just as he was about to lose consciousness, his savior arrived: a chicken carrying a piece of succulent meat in its legs, appearing like a hero.
Smelling the delicious scent, Valt fought to keep his consciousness. He dug his hands into the ground and crawled toward the chicken. When he reached it, he didn't think about how it had gotten the meat; he just sank his teeth into it, tearing it apart and devouring it like a caveman who hadn't eaten in days.
After finishing, he let out a relieved sigh. He was so happy to be alive, but soon a feeling of guilt hit him. His chicken, the one he wanted to eat, had saved his life. If it weren't for her, his fate would have been to live with Hades.
"Sorry, Felix," he said from the bottom of his heart. From now on, he would treat this chicken as a companion.
"Who stole my meat?!" A furious voice echoed through the forest.