Obtained: Heavenly Scholar's Legacy
Obtained: 100 Destiny Value
Obtained: 100 Fate Points
System Integration in Progress…
A series of mechanical sounds jolted Zhao Wei awake, and a stabbing headache greeted him the moment his eyes fluttered open. He winced, clutching his temples.
"Ugh… Where the hell am I?"
He blinked, adjusting to the dim light. Around him, jagged walls of stone stretched into shadowy corners, the air damp and cold. Beneath him was a roughly carved stone slab, the surface uncomfortable and gritty. It looked like something out of a dungeon novel.
"This better not be some escape-room nonsense," Zhao Wei muttered, sitting up cautiously. The headache had dulled, but unease gnawed at him. He glanced around but saw no immediate threats.
Then he remembered. The notifications!
"Do I have to call out 'status' like in those Chinese novels?" He tried it half-jokingly, and to his surprise, a golden hologram blinked to life before him.
Name: Zhao Wei
Lifespan: 80 years
Cultivation: Qi Condensation, 6th Layer
System Level: 0
Martial Arts: Heavenly Scholar's Legacy (Lvl 0)
He squinted at the display, his mind processing the unfamiliar terms. "Heavenly Scholar's Legacy? I barely graduated college! Why do I have something so fancy?" Then it hit him—this was the reward for clearing that survival trial.
Right beside the "Level 0" text was an upgrade button glowing faintly. Curious, Zhao Wei tapped on it.
Upgrade Cost: 100 Fate Points. Proceed?
"Why not?" he shrugged, confirming the upgrade.
A surge of knowledge slammed into his brain. Star charts, ancient calligraphy, esoteric debates—it all flooded in at once. Zhao Wei groaned, gripping his head as the influx overwhelmed him. "What the hell? Stop! My brain isn't big enough for this!"
When the pain finally subsided, he gasped for air. "They could've at least put a warning on that!"
System Integration Complete.
New Ability Unlocked: Heavenly Insight.
A calmer notification rang in his ears.
Heavenly Insight: Grants access to knowledge stored within the system. Use this ability to inquire about things you're curious about.
"Oh, that's actually kind of useful," Zhao Wei muttered, rubbing his temples. "At least this one didn't fry my brain."
His gaze returned to the status screen. Something about "Qi Condensation" caught his eye.
"Cultivation, huh? Just like the novels," he said, trying to piece things together.
Ding! Qi Condensation is the foundational stage of cultivation, focused on absorbing and refining spiritual energy.
The robotic voice startled him. "Oh, so it's like a chatbot? Great, I'm stuck with a glorified encyclopedia."
The system didn't respond, leaving Zhao Wei alone with his thoughts. "Well, whatever. Let's test out this Heavenly Scholar's Legacy thing."
He closed the hologram and grabbed a rock from the ground. The knowledge from earlier surfaced in his mind, guiding his hands as he traced a crude symbol onto the stone. Though rough, the symbol glowed faintly as he channeled his intent into it.
"Not bad," Zhao Wei said, a hint of pride in his voice.
He activated the symbol, and it exploded with a sharp pop, sending shards flying. Zhao Wei shielded his face, coughing as the dust settled.
"That's one way to kill insects" he muttered, brushing off his clothes. The memory of another symbol came to mind—this one designed for defense. Eager to try it, Zhao Wei grabbed another rock and began tracing.
"Detonate and Shield, huh? These are going to be fun," he grinned, despite the lingering ache in his head.
But his grin faded as he glanced toward the cave's entrance, the faint sound of footsteps reaching his ear.
"You're awake?" A girl, seemingly in her teenage years but dressed in extravagant gold jewelry and robes with hints of gold, asked coldly.
[A young miss from some sect, perhaps?] Zhao Wei raised an eyebrow.
"Who are you?" Zhao Wei asked, pretending to be surprised.
The girl, seemingly annoyed by the question, squinted her eyes. "Is that how you treat your savior? Man, these days…" she retorted.
Zhao Wei was irritated but quickly changed his expression as he realized that the girl was the one who had saved his life.
He bowed respectfully. "Thank you for saving my life."
The girl seemed to soften, her anger subsiding.
"But may I ask where we are and what happened?" Zhao Wei asked, genuinely curious.
"You don't remember?" The girl asked, her expression a mixture of surprise and disbelief.
"Unfortunately, no, Miss." Zhao Wei replied.
The girl sighed and explained, "You're in a mystic realm. People come here seeking treasures, and I found you unconscious in the nearby forest. You had no injuries, so I brought you here to keep you from being eaten by spiritual beasts."
[A mystic realm?] Zhao Wei thought, processing the information.
Ding! A mystic realm is a space created by powerful cultivators to house their legacies or a naturally occurring realm filled with treasures. As soon as a mystic realm appears, cultivators fight over the treasures or inheritance within it.
[I see.] Zhao Wei thought, understanding the gravity of his situation.
"Thank you again for saving me. May I ask for your name?" Zhao Wei asked, grateful.
"Xue Yan, from the Verdant Cloud Sect," the girl replied.
"And you?"
"Zhao Wei. I'm just a passing cultivator, haha." Zhao Wei chuckled inwardly.
[The classic line. Works every time.]
Xue Yan didn't seem to probe further. "I see."
[And it works every time.] Zhao Wei smiled to himself.
Xue Yan didn't press further, her attention shifting to the crater outside.
"What caused this?" she asked, eyeing the explosion site.
Zhao Wei scratched the back of his head. "Just testing something."
Xue Yan gave him a long look before turning away. "Be careful. This realm is filled with spiritual beasts that can kill you in seconds." She left without another word, her robes trailing behind her.
Zhao Wei let out a small sigh of relief. "She's got a temper," he muttered, heading back to the stone slab.
Zhao Wei returned to the stone bed inside the cave. It was already late, and he decided to inspect the rest of his surroundings later. Before he lay down to sleep, he made sure the cave entrance was covered with shield symbols, and he placed some detonation symbols near it as a precaution.
He lay down and closed his eyes, the quiet hum of the world outside lulling him to sleep. It was the first time he had slept since his second death, and as exhaustion took over, his thoughts drifted, finally succumbing to sleep.
The next morning, Zhao Wei was hit with a flurry of notifications.
Ding! You have killed a 1st-level spiritual beast. You have obtained 10 Fate Points x7.
Ding! You have killed a 2nd-level spiritual beast. You have obtained 30 Fate Points x3.
[The girl wasn't lying about there being a lot of spiritual beasts, I see.] He noticed that he now had 160 Fate Points and decided to check the requirements for Level 2 of Heavenly Scholar's Legacy.
300 points required. The notification read.
[Hmm, I need about 140 more points. How do I hunt them?] Zhao Wei thought to himself.
He decided to venture outside. The view had been obscured by darkness the night before, but now in the light of day, he could appreciate the beauty of the mystic realm. Mountains stretched as far as the eye could see, with a river flowing peacefully towards them.
As he gazed at the river, Zhao Wei suddenly realized that he hadn't eaten anything in days. His stomach growled in protest. Without hesitation, he rushed towards the river to drink its water.
[I'm a cultivator now. I shouldn't die from bacteria, right?] he thought, chuckling at his own concern. After drinking his fill, he decided to wash up. As he glanced at his reflection in the water, he was taken aback. He looked different—much different. His dark hair had grown long, and his piercing dark eyes seemed to stare into the abyss. He hadn't even realized his hair had grown during his struggles. It seemed like he had regressed to his teenage years.
Feeling a sense of joy, he jumped into the water to wash up properly.
While he was cleansing himself, he suddenly heard the sound of something moving toward him. A boar was charging in his direction, making him instantly recall the earlier encounter with the wolf. But this time, a grin spread across his face.
[Good thing I placed some detonation symbols near the water.]
Just as the boar was about to leap toward him, the ground beneath it began to glow. Boom! The explosion tore through the earth, burning the boar to a crisp and killing it instantly.
Ding! You have killed a 1st-level spiritual beast. You have obtained 10 Fate Points.
Zhao Wei finished washing up and made his way over to the charred boar. His stomach growled again. He was far too hungry to care about anything else. The boar's meat was tender from the explosion, and without hesitation, he began devouring it. Days without food had left him famished, and the boar was gone within minutes, reduced to nothing but a pile of bones.
[Hmm, still need more Fate Points. What should I do?] Zhao Wei thought. Then an idea hit him.
[Maybe 'that' will work.]