The morning sunlight creeps in through the window… I slowly open my eyes.
"Ngh… a new day… my body still hurts…" I mutter, dragging myself up and stretching my arms with a groan. I grab the back of my neck, cracking it, then roll my shoulders and pop my back too. My stomach growls.
"Guess I'm starving…"
I drag myself to the stairs. Every step I take makes the floorboards creak under my weight. By the time I reach the bottom, each step sounds louder than the last.
"Angh…" I yawn, stumbling into the kitchen. I grab a piece of bread and rip a bite out of it. Then I head to the counter and throw some leftover meat onto a plate—stuff I bought yesterday during one of my breaks in training.
I sit at the table, chewing slowly. "Oh… wasn't today the day I start cultivating mana?" I mumble to myself.
I seriously need to start already. It's not even that hard to reach Cassian's level of mana. The problem is the state of my body. I heard from the Emperor himself that Cassian trained his body every single day after his house fell. Never stopped. Didn't even hesitate.
"This is gonna fucking suck…" I grumble. My body still hasn't fully recovered from that fight with those damn Dragonic Beasts. I keep chewing.
—
After finishing, I clean the plate, wipe down the table, and push the chair in. That damn creaky floor again. My whole body aches.
I start walking toward the basement. Step after step, slow and dragging. I reach the ladder and climb down.
I move to the center of the room. Center is best—they say it helps the mana flow properly through your body. Scientifically proven or whatever. I sit down, legs crossed.
I start breathing slow. Real slow. Feel the mana. Feel it swirl around me. Then push it into my veins, gently, carefully. "It's hot… still not used to this…" I whisper, my voice barely audible.
And just like that, I spend the next few days doing nothing but cultivating.
Same spot, same position. Center of the room. Legs crossed. Shirt off. Sweat dripping down my chest. My breathing's heavy.
Something's coming. I can feel it.
I'm close—on the edge of a breakthrough. Sword Enthusiast level. I don't even need to train my skills—I already have them. Burned into my memory.
"Ha… ha… so… hot…" I murmur. My whole body's soaked. The air grows still. Dead silent.
This is it.
The Mind Realm.
The realm of breakthroughs.
Everything goes dark. When I open my eyes again, I'm standing in a black void.
—
I look around. "Where is it…?" I mutter. Normally by now the monster shows up. I glance down—and there it is. A sword. In my hand.
"Where did this even come from?"
Then I freeze.
My eyes widen.
"No… no fucking way…" I whisper, spinning around.
A Dragonic Beast.
Huge. Intimidating. Way above my level. This shouldn't be here. At all.
"Is this even fair?! I don't have the mana for this!" I shout, slowly backing up. The beast lets out a low growl and starts walking toward me.
Heavy footsteps. Each one sounds like thunder.
"No… no…"
I grit my teeth. My body shakes.
This is how you break through, huh?
Of course it is.
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End of Chapter
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