Tales of Dragons, Demons and Gods

by Dragon Nexus

I was just an average fiction loving nerdy salary man when I was transmigrated to the world of Tales of Demons and Gods, right at the start of the story. Receiving neither cheats nor artifacts, I had to rely on my wits and on Nie Li to carve my own future. However, the Heavens seemed to favor me, one way or another. Rated M for language, gore and violent sexual content (aka lemons)

1. Chapter 1: I am Long Wan!

Short foreword: this fanfiction is written from a first person perspective of 'what would it be like to wake up in the world of the web novel I love'. My tendency is to drift towards overpowerdness, but I am not One (author of One-Punch Man) so I can't keep the story entertaining like that. As a result I will do my best to keep it modest but I need to warn you that some unexpected and maybe nonsensical powerups may slip through. You have been warned...

Sexual content warning: this fanfiction will eventually present scenes of rape, slavery and heavy perversion (such as, but not necessarily or limited to: incest, bestiality and so on). They will be separate chapters with clear warning so if you don't like that kind of content you can just skip them and not miss anything pertaining to the main storyline.

Violent language warning: Swearing and cursing are a stress relieve for me. Expect plenty in this fanfiction.

Updates: will be depending on my mood and circumstances so don't have any expectations.

Permissions: Free to copy, distribute, rewrite and continue as you so please. I would see any of it as an honor and since I don't make any money from this so I got nothing to lose. As more of a request, I would like it if you would reference and/or PM me if you do.

Disclaimer: The folowing is a non-profit fan based parody. Tales of Demons and Gods is owned by the original author and anyone who owns licensing rights.

On with the story:

Chapter 1: I am Long Wan!

"Urg.." I slowly grunted as I opened my eyes, the bright sunlight threatening to burn holes in my retinas. Slowly rising backwards I held my head as my consciousness began to reset. 'That's the last time I'm mixing vodka with sparkling baiju. Solani spiced rice baiju will be enough for me for a while..' I thought as I rubbed my throbbing headache away, which stubbornly refused to leave my skull. 'Dafaq? Solani spiced rice baiju?' My eyes widened. I didn't remember exactly how I knew what it was or when I tried it but I could clearly remember the soothing taste of that beverage, like a less viscous jaggermeister but more minty and easier to drink.

Snapping back to reality I noticed that I was looking at a pretty well crafted and mildy decorated wooden desk. Trailing downward I took a gaze at the bottom of my shirt and pants. I was dressed in some kind of traditional dark black Chinese outfit with bronze trims. They looked like props from a kung-fu movie. The only thing that was different from those was that the shirt buttons closed in the middle of the left breast as opposed to passing in front of the sternum.

I removed my gaze from the strange outfit and moved it up to find the fuckers who took advantage of me being wasted on booze to dress me up like some kind of Jackie Chan knockoff when my jaw dropped. I was in some kind of Chinese amphitheater being surrounded by kids around 11, maybe 12 years old. Fuck Solani baiju, or any kind of booze for that matter, I'm definitely keeping off that shit forever. What kind of retarded dream is this? I pinch myself hard and I grimace 'That fucking hurt like a bitch!'

Which meant that this was no dream. 'Where the blue moon fuck am I?!'

I surveyed my surroundings like a hamster in a hawk's nest. That's when I saw her.

A redhead woman was in the teacher's spot, and she was steel melting capital H hot. Long flowing hair that reached below her ass, legs that any man would kill to bury his face in between, and a dress (or were they stylish curtains?) that left very, ve-ry little to the imagination (Is that the string of her panties on the side of her hips!?). However her face, although gorgeous, was stuck in an absolutely disgusting mix of 'sharkweek bitchmode' and 'I'm holier than thou'. It was a face that could convince even a hormonal 14 year old teen boy that the bitch wasn't worth the hassle. So why did I have the nagging feeling that I knew her.

She was blabbering some things which I was in no state to understand even if I was paying attention to her words.

Suddenly miss Restingbitchface yelled "Scarlet Flaming Fox!" With that her body began radiating a flame-like aura that was almost tangible and her features took on more predatory tones, with fox ears growing where her human ones were, whilst a tail sprouted from her ass.

My eyes widened so much that they could've popped right out of their sockets if not for my brow falling onto them in a deep scowl. Of course I knew this queen cunt. Shen motherfucking Xiu. As a hardcore Tales of Demons and Gods fan I read the novel at least dozens of times, well part of it at least since the translation updates were painfully slow. By this time it was up to chapter 490 something or 500 something, by the time Nie Li was getting ready to return to the Tiny World from the Draconic Ruins Realm. Not to mention I also read the manhwa just as many times and put the animated series on play at least once a month whilst waiting for season 4. I like it that much so don't judge. Anyway , that is not important here or now.

What is important was that I was in Shen Xiu's fucking class, in the motherfucking Holy Orchid in-stink-turd, in Glory hole City, in the goddamn Tiny Dick World, in the universe of Tales of Dickmons and Gods!

Suddenly that earlier hangover returned with a vengeance and it took all my willpower not to scream to high heavens as I clutched my head in agony. Flashback after flashback filled my aching skull with different memories of a childhood I had but at the same time hadn't...

I remembered a new life, with a new name. My name was... is Long Wan (first name Night, family name Dragon). Kind of fitting considering my tall and fit-to-skinny build, long dark hair that reached between my shoulders, coal black eyes and pale complexion made me look like a dark serpentine dragon.

Regarding my history in this world, I was an orphan. My parents Long Bai and Xiao Xing, no not Xiao as in Winged Dragon family but a term used denote a beloved person (usually female or young). They were Silver ranked fighters in the hire of the Divine family and had died during a routine hunt of demon beasts outside the city while protecting a young noble main family member. For their sacrifice, the Divine family took it upon them to take care of my upbringing in the orphanage and to sponsor my enrollment in the institute. All in all I was as background as a side character can be.

I had just finished superficially processing most of these new memories when a new voice entered my ears.

"Teacher Shen Xiu, I have a question,"

No fucking way! It couldn't be...

I turned around and there I saw the mop of orange hair dressed in a burnt orange jacket and pants set. There was Nie Li. And if memory served well, he was getting ready to rip Shen Xiu a new one. This was also an opportunity I couldn't miss...

Shen Xiu coldly snorted, "What is it?"

"Teacher Shen Xiu says that Glory City is the only one that survived the Age of Darkness, that we are the only surviving humans. What proof do you have on this statement? May I ask if teacher ever went out of the St. Ancestral Mountains and visited the Endless Desert, the Toxic Forest, the Blood Moon Marsh, the Spirit Gulf, the Heavenly Luster Mountains, and the Northern Snow before?" Nie Li asked.

Just as I suspected, it's the novel timeline. I would've been fucked sideways by a demon beast with a spiked dick if this was his first life.

"What Heavenly Luster Mountain? What Northern Snow?" Shen Xiu frowned.

Shen Xiu snorted, "I've been in Glory City since birth, and have never been to those places."

Nie Li smiled faintly and said, "Since Teacher Shen Xiu never went to those places, how can you be so sure that we are the only human beings alive?"

Shen Xiu was clearly at a loss for words. Nie Li was ripping her credibility apart every time she parted her lips. Not to sound sexist but this bitch should just stick to only using her mouth to kiss Shen Hong's ass.

Seeing the students below discussing away, Shen Xiu's was extremely displeased and scoffed, "So what? How can you prove that we are not the last surviving human beings?"

"Proof?" Nie Li faintly smiled as he calmly said, "Let me tell Teacher Shen Xiu a story. There was once a frog in the depth of the well. Since his birth, he has always been in that well. Since the start he could only see a part of the sky, so he claimed that the sky is only as big as the hole of the well. But is the sky only the size of the hole? We could only say that the frog is ignorant."

Listening to what Nie Li just said, the students in the class couldn't help but laugh. And the saying, "a frog viewing the sky from the bottom of the well", is basically calling Teacher Shen Xiu a frog.

"Viewing the sky from the bottom of the well, what an appropriate description," a few girls said while giggling. If I remembered from the novel none of the commoner students liked Shen Xiu, and couldn't help look at Nie Li full of admiration, since Nie Li was the only one brave enough to openly insult a teacher in class.

"You…" Shen Xiu growled. This was my cue…

Often had I imagined what would I have done if I had reincarnated into the novel. My mind had played out dozens of what ifs. Most disadvantageous would've been to actually be Nie Li but without his experience, slightly better would've been to be Shen Fei or his little bro and so on. Right now I was in the best possible situation. A nobody who had the chance to befriend Nie Li

I raised my hand up high "Great teacher Shen! May I also humbly appeal to your wisdom?" I said very politely, swallowing my sarcasm and pride, together with a little puke that rose up from the sweetness of my voice.

Shen Xiu frowned curiously at me before motioning me to speak. It would seem that Nie Li knocked some wind out of her sail.

"Honourable teacher mentioned that commoners will never rise to mean anything." I paused a little for dramatic effect and to enjoy Shen Xiu impatient expression. "But wasn't the City Lord's father, the previous City Lord, Lord Ye Mo born a commoner? Isn't the great lord also the only Legend rank in the entire city?" I ended with a smirk.

Shen Xiu's rage boiled that she unconsciously drew on her Fox spirit such that her features became vicious and her eyes silted and red.

"You… In the hundreds of years of Glory City, Lord Ye Mo's the only one able to climb to the peak by relying on his own ability," said Shen Xiu, showing that she stuttered for the answer.

I acted surprised "But that doesn't change the circumstances of the lord's birth. I am really slow in the mind because teacher's great wisdom eludes me. I just don't understand how a commoner could rise to become a lord if teacher said that commoners will always be nobodies. Is teacher calling Lord Ye Mo a nobody? Or is teacher saying that effort can overcome circumstance? Teacher please explain to this dumb me!" I cupped my hands and bowed my head so that it was touching the table in an act that faked my humility and also hid my face, the later was because I couldn't hide my chuckles anymore.

What saddened me was that I couldn't see teacher Restingbitchface's bitch face but I caught Nie Li looking at me with equal amount of amusement and amazement. I playfully stuck out my tongue and saw him purse his lips to contain his laughter. However he couldn't hide the blueness in his face from lack of air. He was holding his breath to prevent the chuckles from escaping.

I returned to attention when I heard Shen Xiu growl, "You two, you think that anything like this could change the harsh reality? You only looked at Lord Ye Mo's glorious moment, but didn't look at how many people have failed. Not to mention being a Demon Spiritualist, even becoming a Fighter in itself is a difficult thing to achieve. Let's see what kind of talent you both have." Shen Xiu lowered her head and took a look at the parchment paper in her hands.

"Nie Li, right? You can be considered bloodline of an Aristocratic family.

Let's see: red soul realm, current soul force 5, strength 21. With your talent you can only reach Bronze rank Fighter in your entire life. Wanting to become a Demon Spiritualist is simply impossible. You're even inferior to some of the commoners. No wonder you dare to speak in this way. You are just trying to hide your own low self-esteem!

And you..." She turned to me before returning to her scroll " Hmph... not that much different. Long Wan: orange soul realm, soul force 11, strenght 18. You are someone who can be considered lucky to break into Silver rank fighter in their late 30. Useless trash belongs in the same pile afterall. Shen Xiu aggressively continued "With such talent, you won't be able to get any attention. Yet, you act so rampant and are rude to your elders!"

Everyone was surprised that even though both Nie Li and I were being ridiculed by Teacher Shen Xiu, we weren't showing any signs of embarrassment.

On the contrary, Nie Li's gaze was firmly locked onto Shen Xiu's and he said, "Teacher Shen Xiu, you feel that a person's soul realm decides a person's future, right? With that despicable character of yours, you'll only defend the gifted and mock the mediocre. And yet, you still speak a bunch of principles. You're just merely trying to cover your despicable character."

Hearing Nie Li's words, Shen Xiu's body quivered with anger. She had never met this kind of student. He actually dared to contradict her so badly. Nie Li's words directly hit the hidden thoughts within her heart, causing her to be enraged. She cursed uncontrollably, "Silence! Who do you think you are to discredit your teacher?!"

Nie Li curled his lips in disdain.

"I feel ashamed to have a teacher like you. I can guarantee that in this class, there will be a lot of commoners exceeding your imagination. They will have unimaginable achievements. Instead of coaching then patiently, you use harsh words to attack their self-confidence. You're not worthy to be a teacher! Although my talent is weak, so what? One day, I will become a Legend rank Demon Spiritualist like Lord Ye Mo and marry the most beautiful woman in Glory City!"

As he spoke, Nie Li's gaze fell on Ye Ziyun, who was sitting far away. His eyes shined with an absolute resolve.

When she saw Nie Li looking towards her, without knowing why, Ye Ziyun suddenly felt her heart speed up. Her cheeks were burning red. She had never thought that Nie Li would actually be so bold and say something like this in class. After meeting Nie Li's gaze, she knew his meaning was clear. Except, in her heart, she doesn't have any feelings for Nie Li. After hearing Nie Li's speech, she had an indescribable feeling within her.

Seeing Ye Ziyun's expression, Shen Yue's face turned a dull colour. Although he and Nie Li aren't of the same standard, he still felt a bit threatened by him.

"Hahaha! This is the funniest joke I've ever heard! A red soul realm actually said that he wants to become a Legend rank Demon Spiritualist like Lord Ye Mo. Even when Lord Ye Mo was younger, he was already tested and showed to have amazing talent. He had a cyan soul realm! You think success relies on luck alone? Ridiculous!" Shen Xu mocked mercilessly, "Rather than being a smart mouth here, why don't you start learning seriously?"

Nie Li's next words were powerful and resonating.

"I know your heart is full of contempt, but one day I will shut your mouth with hard facts. Aptitude cannot determine a person's achievement! We use the weak to defeat the strong, to overcome the heavens! We practitioners are already challenging the impossible by going against the way of the heavens!"

Nie Li's words couldn't stop causing the students in the class to feel their blood surging. Practicing was already going against the way of the heavens. If one did not oppose the heavens, how could they talk about practice?

Nie Li enunciated powerfully, "Without a continuously fighting heart, without the courage to turn the impossible possible, even possessing extraordinary talent would be useless. Since I, Nie Li, was born into this world, I shall challenge the impossible! Teacher Shen Xiu, how abo..."

It was my turn to intervene. Nie Li wanted to bet his time and status at the institute against Shen Xiu's but it wasn't the best moment for this. No, we needed some better witnesses for that and that opportunity will be in about a week.

I cup my hands and bowed before stating loudly "I thank teacher for her words of encouragement!" before turning to Nie Li " Classmate Nie! Please think of the time and place to challenge a teacher. Doing it in front of students is pointless." Please let him understand.

"I end my words but stand by them!" nodded Nie Li "Let the guilty suffer heavens retribution." he continued. Phew. I could tell he was slightly frustrated but understood the situation. Even if he challenged Xiu now, it would barely do any damage to her reputation. All I did was cool him down as he needed to wait for the right opportunity

Shen Xiu let out a haughty snort "Such rudeness to your teacher. Nie Li, for the next two months, you will stand at the back of the classroom and listen to the class! "

Shen Xiu's famous for being unreasonable. Nie Li looked contemptuously at Shen Xiu before he smirked and strolled to the back of the class.

Seeing Nie Li standing at the back, a few noble kids started to mockingly whisper.

"The future Legend rank Demon Spiritualist got punished standing!"

"Weren't you being egotistic a while ago?"

Shen Xiu turned to me as if I was a fly "Long Wan, since you know your wrongs, you can sit!" She dismissed me with a wave.

Bitch, in half a year I'll have you biting the pillow because of me going in dry. I will enjoy breaking you in.

I silently moved from my position to the back with Nie Li. There I put a hand on his shoulder and turned and pointed rudely at Shen Xiu.

"Teacher Shen, do not mistake my words as acknowledging wrongs. True my wrongs in the world are many, but my words today are none of them. I respect you as an elder and respect the institute of which you are a teacher. But you have yet to earn mine as a person like this fellow." I said before turning to the class "I Long Wan am an orphan with nothing to my name but the clothes on my back! However, this day I declare Nie Li my good brother and myself his if he will have me! And together we shall walk the Martial Dao together, even through the flaming sea or jagged mountains! " . .Gods. That was corny enough to feel the cob in my throat. Why did I say that? The plan was to appear as the class idiot. I was going to lay low as to not attract too much of the Sacred Family and be an enforcer in the shadows, working to further Nie Li's plans and getting a piece of the pie in return. Yet it all went to hell in a handbasket and I didn't even know why I did it… Wait! 'I' did it but the me from earth was never that outspoken. But now my consciousness didn't just take over, it just became more dominant. I could feel Long Wan's , the original one's consciousness had merged with my own and we became a mix of both. Luckily, we were two peas in a pod. We both had the same values and desires, and we both agreed that a man's word is to be a sacred unbreakable vow. However he was just a twelve year old kid while the me from Earth was a few months short of thirty. Those childish dreams and aspirations I had when I was young and suppressed as age came to me reignited with gusto.

I swallowed my embarrassment and peeked at Nie Li. The motherfucker was actually looking at me like I was bat shit insane but couldn't contain his amusement and happiness at having friends again. He finally shook his head with a smile and put his hand on my shoulder as a gesture of acceptance. Booyah baby! Call the devs because I got exploits.

Du Ze was silent for a moment. He gritted his teeth, then rose up and went to stand beside Nie Li and myself. We were punished for helping the commoners speak up, so naturally, he wants to stand together with us.

Seeing that Du Ze stood beside us at the back of the class, Shen Xiu's eyes darkened and hummed, "Since you also like standing, you can stand together with them."

Nie Li and Du Ze looked at each other before both turned to me. Their eyes flashed a sense of rapport as we lightly smiled at each other.

After Du Ze stood at the side of Nie Li, Lu Piao was submerged in his thoughts for a moment and then stood beside us.

Nie Li smiled as he asked, "Why are you here?"

Lu Piao shrugged, "Sitting down is pretty boring. I feel cooler standing, can't I?"

"Haha, that suits you!" Nie Li laughed. Lu Piao , good ol' goofy Piao. Although his mouth has no filter, he is very loyal. This punishment had nothing to do with Lu Piao, but he thought of Nie Li as a friend, and friends should share their fates together.

I silently stretched my fist out and he looked at it curiously before raising his face towards me with a raised eyebrow. At this moment I noticed that I was about half a head taller than both him and Nie Li. I wondered if Duan Jian ever had these kinds of realizations. Lu Piao on the other hand didn't take much to reset his brain (not that there was much to reset anyway) and bumped my outstretched fist with his own.

Successively, three other commoner kids stood up and stood by our side. Nie Li belonged to a noble family, but he took a risk to speak up for them. They were grateful for that, so they felt that they have to support Nie Li. At the same time I felt that my actions also inspired them a little more than in the original story. I could see that with these brothers by his side, Nie Li felt that it wasn't so bad to be punished and his mood turned exceptionally cheerful if that smile on his face told any truth.

Seeing this, Shen Xiu's facial expression turned ugly. She put on a cold face and continued her lecture. "After being tested, among the students in this class, Ye Ziyun, with a cyan soul realm, has a soul force of 86. Shen Yue and Xiao Ning'er both have a green soul realm, with a soul force of 78. They will soon reach 1-star Bronze rank. Congratulations to them!" Shen Xiu lightly said. Her gaze fell on Nie Li and myself for a moment and I knew what the bitch thought. However, she had no idea of the future I had planned for her . I had a lot of pent up frustration so just imagine what will happen when I get my hands on her the night her family is eliminated.

This wasn't goody good Earth anymore. No more protecting bitches who bark a lot but were weak as moist shit. By the time I deliver her back to glory city I will be at least Black Gold rank and a disciple of a righteous sect. Both myself and my future will be far too valuable to be lost over the rights of a criminal who is to be executed.

I also noticed how the students in the class all cried out in surprise following Shen Xiu's words. For them these three existences were like the full moon. Shining towards them but impossible to touch. I knew however their true potential and my plans involved all three. My glance flew towards Shen Yue who was glaring daggers at Nie Li. Storming my brain for an answer as to why, recollection hit me hard. Before Glory City was destroyed, Shen Yue and Ye Ziyun almost got married. In the eyes of their families, they had always been a perfect match. If Glory City wasn't destroyed, both of them would have definitely gotten married. Before they underwent the ceremony, Glory City was under the attack of the Snow Wind beasts and the Sacred Family betrayed Glory City by abandoning their post and fled. Shen Yue was a rotten kid but not necessarily incorrigible. You would be too if all your life you were told that the you are the greatest and all the rest are worms. Maybe I should attempt to steer him to our side a bit later.

Glancing to my side I could see that Nie Li was boiling with rage towards him. Can't blame the guy since he lost nearly everyone he once held dear. However he also failed to see the bit of good they did for him. Had they not abandoned the city Nie Li wouldn't have gotten to spend time with Ziyun, nor would he had the chance to find that superbook, err... oh yeah Temporal Demon something something book. I really hated having a crappy memory capacity on Earth.

Wait, memory? There were several moments in the novel that described that a high-ish soul force equaled incredible, if not eidetic memory. Even Nie Li's little cousin Xiao Yu could memorize a chapter from a complicated cultivation technique after only hearing it once and she had a soul force in the 30s (as a side note on that, my... Long Wan's talent really sucked to be beaten by an 8 year old, or was she 9?). This was a gold mine that could be exploited like crazy but I needed to get my soul force at least into the 50s which shouldn't really take long with Nie Li's cheats.

Speaking of said cheater, poor xiao Li (little Li) was given the cold shoulder by Zyiun. Judging by her expression she was definitely thinking we were some kind of weirdos. We were just some kids with no background or power yet we dared to stand out like this. The girl must definitely consider that we're a few cards short of a full deck. Can't say she wasn't pretty though. A little on the underdeveloped side compared to some other girls but she will definitely grow up to be worshiped by men and maybe some women too. She also has the status of being the daughter of Glory City's City Lord, as well as being the granddaughter of the Legend rank Demon Spiritualist, Ye Mo, and had a cyan soul realm. That information was not public knowledge but not necessarily hidden either.

What only I knew (for now at least) was that she was a late bloomer, in more ways than one. Her soul form was one of legends, the Ice Phoenix soul form. While it takes much more effort to cultivate at the beginning than ordinary forms, once she reached Black Gold rank the phoenix will hatch and she would be nearly unmatched, easily enough to keep up with Ning'er.

I tried to locate Ning'er in class but couldn't find anyone matching my memories of the said person when I saw a black haired girl. That's when I realized that the Ning'er I 'knew' and the original were different. The manhwa artist took some liberties with her appearance, steering away from the novel. Raking my brain, the novel description popped up in my mind. Ning'er had long black hair, high boots and wore some sort of dress or light skirt and the person I saw earlier fit that description perfectly, except for the boots since I couldn't see below her waist.

She was also slightly bent forward while clutching her side. Seems like her Arctic Affliction was acting up because that should be where one of her bruises is, with the other being on her foot. It pained my soul to see her like that. She was my favorite character in the novel, someone my heart went out to. Now she was real and so became my feelings for her. My logic immediately fought with my heart and, swallowing my impatience I turned to Nie Li who was already planning his future and inevitable fight with the Sage Emperor and the Deity rank demon beast generals. This was something that personally shouldn't involve me but in this world or the next my word is my law. I remember once giving my word to someone I hold dear and then didn't keep it. While I was a preschooler then and the subject of my word was more than trivial it hurt being called out. I then and there swore that I will never make any promises I don't intend to keep. Dancing around subjects became my specialty in order to avoid making deceitful promises.

Nie Li certainly didn't have any plan to share with us the future he wanted us to share. That was also something to correct. But how? Well, there is still time before Nie Li calls us into the library to share cultivation techniques and rope us in so the solution may come to me since then. Too many details to your plans mean too many things that can go wrong, and Murphy's Law is a cunt.

Anyway, before that my priority was Ning'er. In the next five to seven nights Nie Li will meet her in the hunting grounds and she will fall for him. No way and in hell no! I needed to squeeze the cure for her affliction which was two kinds of grasses, emperor striped grass and golden something, plus the Daoyin redirecting technique. I will definitely need those. "Arctic affliction..." I growled in frustration.

"What did you say?" Asked a curious Nie Li.

Shit, he heard me... Wait! This is a golden opportunity. "Sorry, I was just thinking out loud in frustration. " answered yours truly back with a goofy smile scratching the side of my head. "My... acquaintance has these symptoms and no doctor could find the root cause. But last night after scouring the medical archives I managed to find an old diagnosis that fit my acquaintance perfectly, however it said only 'Arctic affliction' and no course of cure..." My words continued with a frustrated frown on my face.

Nie Li for his part only nodded sagely and said "Are you sure it's Arctic affliction?" He questioned

"Yes. It matches the symptoms written there: Burning feet, painful night time chills and bruises." Came my answer. "Yes that sounds about right..." Responded Nie Li. Damn right it was right. "To cure the Arctic affliction one needs to consume medicine made by mixing Golden Striped Grass with Imperial Sky Grass for about a month or two. Best case, a few days and the person would be cured. But for the bruises, they need to be massaged the Daoyin redirecting technique..." Continued Nie Li. This was old information for me but it set up the perfect scenario.

"Daoyin redirecting technique? " excitement filled my voice. There are two ways to lie successfully: half truths or masking lies with other real emotions. My expertise lay in the later, rather than the former. "I have never heard of this technique before." I never heard about it, only read about it in the novel... "Do you know it?"

Nie Li smiled and nodded "Of course I know. After classes we can go see your friend..." He put a hand on my shoulder.

"Actually..." I continued with a strained voice. The whole purpose is to avoid contact between you two. However this was within my expectations "That person is only an acquaintance for now..." Half truths are best truths "And is also rather shy and distrusting of strangers..." Not really lying here, Ning'er wasn't exactly an extrovert at this point. "Can brother Li show me how to do it instead? I don't have much but I will some day repay you! "

"Of course I can show brother Wan!" He smiled " And don't speak about paying me back, it's really just a simple technique!" He dismissed. Holy yang cow, that really worked!

"Still I, Long Wan have to thank brother for this kindness." I cupped my hands in respect towards him. Perfect, phase one complete. The next step would be to get the Lightning Dragon cultivation from him, and I think I have just the plan…

"In the Fighter and Demon Spiritualist tests in two months time, I hope that there will be a few 1-star Bronze rank Demon Spiritualists. Both myself and the Holy Orchid Institute will feel proud of you!" Shen Xiu laughed.

Bronze, Silver, Gold, Black Gold, Legend, these five ranks are further broken down into 1 to 5 star levels, and thus obtaining a 1-star Bronze rank is considered the starting point.

Once a Fighter's strength or Demon Spiritualist's soul force reaches 100, they can be considered a 1-star Bronze rank. Entering the entry level is extremely difficult. Lots of people are unable to step into the entry level to become a real Fighter or Demon Spiritualist.

Hearing Shen Xiu's words, the students in the class started whispering to one another. In order to become a 1-star Bronze rank Fighter you must to be able to lift up a hundred kilogram rock, and break a coconut tree with a punch in order to reach 1-star Bronze rank. For these kids, it would simply be too difficult. Unless one has been consuming elixirs since birth they have little chance. As for becoming a Demon Spiritualist, one is required to refine a large amount of soul force within their body. This is a lot harder to accomplish compared to becoming a Fighter.

Soul realms can have one of the following seven colours: red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, azure and indigo. A normal human would have a red soul realm. According to the teachings found in Glory City it is nearly impossible for a red or orange soul realm to become a demon spiritualist. They would normally become a Fighter instead. As for people with yellow soul realms, they're more likely to train their soul force. The people with green or cyan soul realms are considered extraordinary talents. Finally azure and indigo are only spoken of in tales long passed.

The students in the class all looked at Ye Ziyun, Shen Yue and Xiao Ning'er. They envied them because they are the only ones that could become a 1-star Bronze rank in less than half a year. After becoming a 1-star Bronze rank, they can then enter into the official Fighter class or official Demon Spiritualist class. At that time, they won't be in the same class as them. Feeling the gaze of other students, Shen Yue proudly puffed his chest out. As a member of the Sacred Family, he's had all kinds of elixirs ever since he was young. It would be an easy thing to get his soul force to hit 100 in two months. He shall await the test in two months time.

Shen Yue looked at the elegant Ye Ziyun beside him. He probably thought that only he's worthy of her, and that Nie Li's nothing! Nie Li actually dared to belittle with Shen Yue's aunt and state that he will become a Legend rank. So egotistical and ignorant! Nie Li thought that it's easy to become a demon spiritualist? A red soul realm trash dared to make such an egotistical statement? Ha!

Ye Ziyun and Xiao Ning'er looked each other in the eyes. They both had superior origins, which was certainly not bad. Ye Ziyun always wanted to be friends with Xiao Ning'er, but Xiao Ning'er had always gave her the cold shoulder.

Shen Xiu looked towards Nie Li and myself with contempt in her eyes and spoke in a disdainful tone, "As for those who claim they can reach demon spiritualist so easily, I want to see to what extent they can actually reach!"

One's soul realm and physical condition determines a person's cultivation speed. For both Nie Li's and myself's situation, according to normal thinking, we would need at least two to five years to reach entry level. Even we become 1-star Bronze rank, becoming a Demon Spiritualist while having a red or orange soul realm is simply dreaming.

Nie Li did not put Shen Xiu's words to heart and neither did I. My… brother did so because of his cheats, whilst I ignored her because I knew the future, and thinking of that future made me so hard it threatened to rip my loincloth apart. "In two months I will probably be halfway to Silver rank demon spiritualist," whispered Nie Li as the side of his mouth upturned, showing a faint confident smile.

"I have a feeling you will be at the border of it…" I continued in the same volume. "What makes brother Wan so sure?" Nie Li voice sounded genuinely curious, with a slight tone of arrogance in it.

It was natural that he would be curious about me. In the novel Long Wan was such background that I didn't even know he/I existed. Here goes nothing "Earlier I sensed a strange surge of energy from your direction…" letting my voice linger a bit I saw his eyes widening "Brother Li, have you ever heard of a book called 'Tales of Demons and Gods'?" let's pray this works.

Crossing both his hands and furrowing his brows, Nie Li closed his eyes in contemplation "Can't say I have." he finally admitted. And I admit I would shit myself if he did… It was almost murder on me to craft my story like this but it was the only way.

Could I have gone to Nie Li and said 'Listen, I come from a world where your life is a novel and I have read it many times. I know about your previous life and want to help you. '? If I were in Nie Li's shoes I wouldn't trust myself as far as I could toss me. Maybe I was the Sage Emperor or one of his lackeys that came back in time with Nie Li. Better not risk it…

"It is a novel about a hero finding a particular artifact and growing up to be an existence to be both respected and feared…" my words were formed slowly as I crafted half-truths to make the story believable.

"Sounds very interesting." admitted one of the other boys. He rose first after Nie Li and I so he must be Du Ze.

Smiling, I continued recounting "It was written with Dao Intent" Dao intent to my knowledge is imprinting a portion of a person's will in a recording, whether that was a picture, words or carvings. My eyes also caught Nie Li's rising interest. Books written with Dao intent were very valuable repositories of knowledge "The artifact that the hero found was one of the two supreme artifacts in existence. All those touched by the artifact are destined for unimaginable greatness." Even Lu Piao couldn't stop but listen to my crafting "It was a book, whose name was… ummm what was it again? " I faked not knowing to avoid being too obvious "Ah yes, it was called the Temporal Demon Spirit Book!" I answered hammering my palm with my other fist.

"Eh?!" gurgled Lu Piao in disgust "A book?! Whoever heard of a supreme artifact book?" he spat out "It's definitely a fake story. A book could never be a supreme artifact!"

"Just because you would rather sleep than study doesn't make a book less valuable." I retorted sagely "But to satisfy you, the other supreme artifact is a sword, but I digress…".

Nie Li appeared to be stupefied "Temporal… Demon Spirit Book?" he said slowly, as if those words would leave him for another lover. My head moved in a nodding motion and I continued "The book I read had an array which contained a portion of the energy of the book. It was the same energy I felt from you. " I smiled looking away as if recalling but was actually hiding my face to prevent my lies being exposed "Come to think of it brother Li, why did I feel that from you?"

Got to hand it to the two hundred something year old man in a 12 year old's body, he recovered fast. Straightening his back he shrugged "I have no Idea brother Wan. Maybe you fell asleep in Shen Xiu's class and dreamed it?" he answered like a wiseguy.

Frowning I paused for a second before fisting my chest "Well, I've already crossed this bridge. Also I, Long Wan will never go back on my words!" Ah stop it me! Please, any more and I will have to make some nachos from all that corn.

"Do you still have that book?" asked a hopeful Nie LI.

That surprised me a little but my answered followed a sigh "I no longer have access to it. It was only permitted to me to read it at a place I once worked years ago to make ends meat. Orphans don't exactly live in luxury in Glory City. Though I was more fortunate than most that my parents had worked under and died for the Divine Family. As thanks for their loyalty the took care of my most basic needs as well as my tutelage at the institute. Unfortunately both my former employer and the book perished in a fire a few years ago…" Translation: When I was working retail on Earth I used to slack off and read the novel. It was my only solace during the short breaks before facing the demons called customers. Since then I have the conviction that people should have a mandatory service in retail of at least 6 months. Then I can guarantee we wouldn't have anymore assholes pushing shopping carts.

From hopeful Nie Li instantly took to looking like someone had kicked his puppy (to anyone who would kick a puppy: I really wish that your mothers swallowed you!). Houses in Glory City were made mostly of wood, fabric and paper so fires were common occurrence. Although they were quickly handled by the city guards and the people, casualties were still more than none and material losses were unavoidable.

"Nie Li, do you like Ye Ziyun?" Lu Piao asked looking at Nie Li. Lu Piao wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed but his instincts and empathy were second to none. Or maybe he wanted to stop talking about books…

"Yes!" Nie Li said truthfully, instantly lighting up.

Lu Piao stared into Nie Li's eyes, after a while he sighed, "Ye Ziyun's a beauty indeed. And seeing that you're my brother, I shall not fight with you. But as a brother, I have to warn you, Ye Ziyun's identity is too noble. She isn't someone we can match."

Although his family belongs to one of the twelve aristocratic families, Ye Ziyun's identity compared to him is simply astronomical.

"You two, can you be more realistic? Ye Ziyun's a super genius with a cyan soul realm! Soon she'll become a 1-star Bronze rank Demon Spiritualist. I estimate that in two months time she'll be able to enter the official Demon Spiritualist class. After entering the official Demon Spiritualist class, her cultivation will definitely soar. Whether she remembers you or not is still a problem. What I hate the most is your kind of noble offspring is constantly thinking of how to chase after girls, when you don't even know how to work hard and train!" Du Ze snorted, relentlessly.

A chuckle escaped my throat "Du Ze, you have a point but counting someone's talent by their soul realm color is amateurish at best." Du Ze frowned and looked at me hard. It was the way taught by the previous experts in the city's history so it was natural that I was stepping on some nerves. "The color of a soul realm is really like guessing a person's identity through a thick fog. The soul crystals used during the Holy Orchid institute testing are polluted by using it on too many people. Once a second person uses the same crystal it will form interference and the true nature of one's soul realm will be indistinguishable, with only the color and quantity of soul force being visible."

"Other than soul realm's type and the strength of the soul force, what else can be tested?" Lu Piao asked curiously. Even Du Ze's frown turned into a curious gaze.

"The attributes and form of the soul realm! Just like Long Wan said, in this world there are no crippled soul realms. Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, azure, and indigo are the seven color types of soul realm. Each represents a person's unique personality and talents. Due to various reason, some soul realms are more easy to train, but that doesn't mean that red soul realms are crippled. If you find the right cultivation technique to train with, even with red soul realm, you can also unleash powerful strength. For those who grade the soul realm into different grades, in terms of soul force cultivation, they are a bunch of amateurs!" Nie Li faintly smiled as he answered. However, he never fully explained things and left things to be painfully deduced. That wasn't in my nature.

"Attributes, just as the name implies, are affinities to a specific nature. Just like demon beasts can be lightning natured, snow-wind natured, fire natured and so on, so can soul realms. This is very important because choosing a cultivation technique or merging with demon beasts that are contradicting to your nature will stunt your growth severely. In some cases even merging with a demon beast is impossible due to the opposition of it's element to your soul. For example an ice natured soul realm will nearly always reject a fire natured spirit."

Nie Li nodded in approval "There is a lot more to it but Long Wan summarized it perfectly."

"Oh." hummed Du Ze. "What about the other criteria?" he continued.

"You mean soul form. That is more difficult to explain. Whilst attributes are more external orientated, soul form is born with the self. In layman terms, it's a person's soul realm characteristics given form. You can consider it a person's talents." words flowed out of my mouth following me cupping my chin to rub my non-existent beard. Damn adolescent fluff, I miss my beard… "I realized after reading Tales of Demons and Gods that I had the ability to peek at a person's soul form and attributes."

"Really?!" asked Nie Li in sheer surprise.

"It's not something amazing. It takes an absurdly long time to map out a person's attributes, at least in the order of days. More if the person is a lot stronger..." I nodded "It's easier to use a demon crystal." pausing to let it sink in before continuing "However, since we were together in class so long I had the time to know how each of your attributes, and in some cases even soul forms."

"I bet mine looks amazing!" declared Lu Piao tucking his hands arrogantly behind his head.

"Can you please tell us how ours look like?" asked one of the boys. If Long Wan's memories served me well, then this was Wei Nan.

"Of course! We are all brothers here after all. I will share everything I know about it." Seeing the boys' surprised expressions before they smiled filled my heart with joy. So this was even more painful to continue "Unfortunately Zhang Ming, Zhu Xiangjun and Wei Nan were seated a bit too far from me so I could only vaguely see something which I suspect are linked to your attributes". The boys still smiled and nodded in understanding. It would appear that it was enough for them to know even that information.

"It's not like it's the only option. We can always get some unused soul crystals later to get the entire information." continued Nie Li saving the situation "Besides, cultivation is mostly dependent on attributes, the soul form is less impactful."

Turning to Du Ze I began "Yours looks like an endless burning field that touches a greyish clouded sky filled with lightning" . I really hoped this worked. It was more than likely I was just sprouting nonsense since the novel rarely detailed such

"Lightning Fire attribute, Heavenly Thundercloud form." interrupted Nie Li.

"Lightning Fire attribute, Heavenly Thundercloud form?" asked Lu Piao. You could see the steam coming out of his ears as his brain struggled to keep up with us.

Nie Li continued telling Du Ze "Once you find a suitable cultivation technique, any soul realm color can also reach legend rank! With a suitable cultivation technique, inscription pattern and a Heavenly Thunder Demon Beast for the Lightning Fire attribute, your achievements will be shocking. Comparatively, your power would drop if you practiced other things, not to mention your cultivation would progress a lot slower."

Hearing Nie Li's words, Du Ze showed a distress look on his face, saying "Unfortunately, the Lightning Fire cultivation techniques in Glory City are incomplete."

At this moment, Nie Li revealed a smile as though he had a card up his sleeve. He whispered loud enough only for us to hear "With me here, there is nothing to worry about. It's just Lightning Fire cultivation techniques, nothing too difficult for me. I know the top 69 strongest Lightning Fire cultivation techniques. In fact I have a lot more cultivation techniques for each of us. The fact that brother Wan can read our soul realms saved us a lot of time. After class, let's find a secluded place to cultivate."

Excellent. This was progressing a lot faster than expected. If I can keep Nie Li out of the hunting grounds then I can lessen the chances of him meeting Ning'er. "Let's meet at the library after class. We should be able to find ourselves a secluded spot there."

Nie Li nodded in agreement and so did the rest. Lu Piao however seemed to have a mild allergic reaction to books as he appeared to be less than enthusiastic. However his curiosity was always at the top "Long Wan, what about me?" he asked me curiously.

"Yours is like a spinning red sun. However the area around it is like a formless ever shifting unstable mass." I tried to picture Lu Piao's form and attributes as best as I could.

"Scarlet Sun form, Chaos attribute" hummed Nie Li.

Lu Piao puffed his chest "Ahahaha! That's good right?"

Nie Li frowned his brows for a moment digesting the information, "Scarlet Sun soul form is quite common, but Chaos attribute is surprisingly rare. There wouldn't be one Chaos attribute in hundreds of thousands of people."

"I read a bit about Chaos attribute. Supposedly under the right conditions seeding your soul realm with Chaos Qi will start a reaction causing your soul force to continuously surge on it's own, even in your sleep. You would only need to stabilize your cultivation every once in a while. It's a slacker's dream attribute" my comments flew at Lu Piao and Nie Li.

Du Ze put a hand on Lu Piao's shoulder, and he wasn't gentle either "Fits this lazy person like a glove…"

Before Lu Piao could retort, Nie Li cupped his chin and said "Sounds like the Holy Primal Chaos technique" He turned to Lu Piao "I will teach you that technique after class."

Holy Primal Chaos technique? Is it strong?" Lu Piao asked excitedly, as it sounded powerful from the name itself.

"Of course. As it doesn't require much practice, only the need to foster the Chaos Qi in your body, it suits you." Nie Li said, laughing, "It will depends on your luck as for training to the highest level."

Listening Nie Li's words, Lu Piao's eyes instantly shined. This piece of cultivation technique is too suitable for him. He chuckled as he said, "I don't need to practice to the highest level, I will be satisfied as long as I can reach 1-star silver rank demon spiritualist."

"That's impossible." came my reply causing Lu Piao sink down dejected "The Chaos energies won't stop swelling at 1-star silver rank demon spiritualist. Even Black-Gold Rank or Earthen Fate probably won't be the end…"

Immediately Lu Piao stood straight and smiled proudly. "Earthen Fate?" asked Du Ze

Crap! I slipped… "Ahem… I read that also in the Tales of Demons and Gods book. It's another name for Legend rank and is the top of the earthen fate cultivation. Supposedly, it is also the stepping stone into a realm called Heavenly Fate."

Du Ze's jaw fell loose "A realm higher than Legend…"

"What else did you learn from that book?" asked Nie Li. I could tell he was getting suspicious. This never happened in his previous life so there was no way this couldn't catch him off guard.

"It would take too long to tell. I read it over many months and didn't actually get to finish it. Also, I thought that book was nothing but a fictional view of reality. The only reason I even brought it up was because I thought I sensed that weird energy from you…"

Nie Li nodded with a smile and put his hand reassuringly on my shoulder "Okay then. I hope that brother Wan can share his knowledge with me in the future."

Relaxing a bit, I smiled and nodded. Don't worry Nie Li, I will share a lot with you and keep your rear away from a lot of trouble that shows up. You may be centuries old but your character type is the one that puts their foot in their mouth when their pride swells… "I'll start by telling you that your soul realm has no form or any distinguishing traits. It's as bland as I ever saw" He wanted me to share so I did.

"What does that mean?" Asked another one of the background trio, Zhang Ming if I remembered correctly.

Nie Li sighed "I suspected this. It means that my soul realm has no attributes or form. All soul realms are very powerful but my type is without a doubt the weakest of the strong..."

Du Ze and Lu Piao threw some pitying looks at Nie Li. Poor fools, if they only knew the advantages he possessed. Advantages that I will be more than happy to clarify. "That sounds really versatile. While you don't have any strengths to take advantage of, you also don't suffer any limitations. You can practice any technique with equal gain and also merge with any demon beast."

Nie Li nodded with a smile "It is also the formless soul realms are more predisposed to change. Practicing the right cultivation technique can attune one's talent to that cultivation to bring about explosive results. It will take effort to build the foundation but in the end one must not be afraid to grow slowly."

"Long Wan, what about us?" asked Wei Nan innocently. Thank heavens for secondary protagonists!

I glanced at each of them and answered "Zhang Ming's looks like his soul realm is covered in blinding, but at the same time soothing white light within a shell of red mist . Zhu Xiangjun's is made of red flames with shining golden cores. As for Wei Nan, I can see red winds constantly blowing around."

Nie Li was now resting his back against the wall and was contemplating with his eyes closed before answering "Holy, Sacred Flame and God attributes. I have a few powerful cultivation techniques for each attribute. We will change them later to suit your soul forms if needed and at least they will be leagues above anything the city can provide."

"Thank you Nie Li! Thank you Long Wei!" answered the trio in unison while cupping their hands.

I waved them off as sweat starting to form on my brow "I said we're brothers so you don't need to thank me. Thick or thin we need to stick together."

"What about you?" Asked a concerned Du Ze "What is your soul realm like?"

A bead of sweat formed on my head as I laughed it off "It doesn't work with mirrors and humans can't exactly detach their eyes and look at themselves..."

Du Ze looked away and became silent for a moment "Sorry Long Wan"

Smiling I shrugged it off but Nie Li interfered "Like mentioned before, we just need some soul crystals." He corrected with a smile.

Fuck! Fuck! FU~CK~! We were back to square one: soul crystals. Fate is a fucking bitch on her period that needs to be slapped silly. Time for phase 2!

"We will still need a lot of money..." I hummed using this frustration as a cover for my plan.

"How much do you need? I have a lot. I saved up two thousand demon spirit coins. If I can become a Demon Spiritualist, I can afford to spend it all." stated Lu Piao as he loosened his breath

"Unfortunately, two thousand won't be enough. I was thinking that if we had elixirs, we could progress even faster" I threw out.

"Elixirs that could enhance cultivation would cost tens of thousands of demon spirit coins." replied Wei Nan.

Nodding I continued "As a side note, I heard that Alchemy in Glory city has steadily declined and that most of the pills now in use are just leftovers from the Snow Wind era. If an alchemist were to rediscover those old superpills once can only assume they would become incredibly rich."

Suddenly we all heard a thud and turned back to see Nie Li crouching down holding the crown of his head. I can only imagine that he was contemplating with his head low and, hearing our conversation, raised his head too fast and hit it hard against the wall.

"Nie Li, are you alright?" I asked in genuine concern.

Said ginger recovered instantly and wrapped me into a hug "Long Wan I could kiss you!" He squeezed. His strength was slightly higher than mine so it was a bit uncomfortable. "If all works out, by this time next month we will be all filthy rich."

Excellent! Nie Li will directly join the alchemists association skipping the training ground and thus will not meet with Ning'er anymore.

Later, I will get the her that cultivation technique and finally phase three and the plan will be complete. It should be fairly easy to do but it's not good to rush things.

After class we departed a bit on our separate ways, with the promise to meet within the hour at the library. Nie Li took Lu Piao with him on an errand and myself together with the rest went to the dorms to wash and get changed. Personally I took the time to work on getting that damn cultivation technique for Xiao Nigger. If push comes to shove I will just ask for it directly and vouch for her. Nie Li already knows she is a good girl and an enemy of the Sacred Family. The hour passed fast and most of us found ourselves gathered at a table in a secluded corner of the library. The only missing parties were Nie Li and Lu Piao. It didn't take long for them to join us though.

"Long Wan, catch!" Lu Piao smiled as he threw something at me.

It was a primary soul crystal. My gaze rapidly shifted towards Lu Piao who was smiling like a nut job. "Lu Piao, this is too expensive. Thank you but I can't accept this!" My words came out as I moved to return it. A primary demon spirit crystal was a thousand coins, it would easily be enough to feed a family of four for a month or two from it and still have change to spare.

However Lu Piao pushed my hand away "A gift once given to a friend cannot be returned." He admonished "Besides it was Nie Li's idea."

Nie Li smiled as I turned to him "It was Lu Piao who bought it though. Take it and use it well. And don't worry about the money, your talents if proven true have just saved us a lot more. It also wouldn't be fair to be the only one with no inkling of your soul realm. Besides, I have plans for the near future that will save us the worry of funding."

I nodded with a smile and pulled the crystal up close while scouring my brain on how to use it. Once again Long Wan's memories surged forward and the foreign feeling of using soul force invaded my mind. It was a funny feeling, like that one when you never know that you needed something until you got it. Inner energies are a metaphysical concept back on Earth, but now I couldn't believe that I managed to exist without them.

Tightening my grip on the demon crystal I willed my soul force into it. It was like breathing energy through my skin, and the feeling of having and controlling that energy was better than any coffee I ever had times a thousand.

The crystal shone a bit before it became darker and darker forming an aura of boiling shadows and eleven lobes of orange mist around it. Finally I took to see that the center of the crystal was occupied by eleven wisps of different sizes, each darker than a moonless sky and writhing with tendrils. The light from the surrounding orange mist seemed to spiral in towards the center of the tendrils like it was going down eleven miniature black holes.

Nie Li peeked over my shoulder to look at the crystal and gasped "Void attribute..."

I turned around with a raised eyebrow that said go on. He coughed slightly and continued "It looks like your soul is also formless like mine, but to think that you would have a void attribute. That's even rarer than Lu Piao's Chaos attribute. Forget one in a million people, you would be lucky to find one in ten thousand generations."

That was shocking. Did Long Wan always possess this talent or were we to thank our merger? Void attribute eh.. Then maybe that cultivation technique could work.

Nie Li cupped his chin in thought "This attribute is so rare that I can't think of a suitable cultivation technique. Most that I have were created to help stabilize merging with Void attribute demon spirits and not to increase strength."

"Then what options are there?" I asked hopefully. This was Nie Li, there was no way he didn't have a cheat for me.

The said ginger rested his elbows on the table and thought for a while before answering "I know three cultivation techniques which are more neutral than any others. They fit formless soul realms very well but are not really designed for Void attribute." he sighed. Three cultivation techniques for formless soul realms? He couldn't be thinking about what I think he was thinking…Could he? "They are War God, Void God and Heavenly God."

My ears caught something that I can't believe I missed before "Void God?" I asked. The name was kind of obvious there…

Nie Li shook his head and waved his hand in front of me, motioning me to stop "A pretentious name for the technique. It doesn't mean it's linked to Void element." he laughed

I suspected as much. It would've been too easy… I chuckled a bit with him. "Can I hear them out first before deciding? I can understand if it's impossible. Powerful cultivation techniques are too valuable in Glory City…"

"Ah, it's no problem at all!" he waved his hands in front of me as if he had offended me "We are all good brothers and they're just cultivation techniques. There is no point to their existence if nobody is practicing them. Listen close!"

Willing my soul force to my ears and brain I set up myself for memorizing the technique "Ready!"

Nie Li nodded and said "First is the War God technique. It is the most overbearing and easy to fail at but also the one with the quickest progress of the three"

He started the technique and as soon as soon as I contemplated on the words the surrounding energies surged towards me like a torrent. It was almost like rivers were converging on me filling me with power. However just like rivers can feed lakes, they can also drown. This new soul force was too violent. It twisted and churned my soul ocean and, although very strong, they felt wild and uncomfortable. This wasn't the technique I could enjoy practicing.

"This technique is very powerful but it feels like my soul force is rebelling against me. Please share with me the next one." came my reply as I wiped the sweat from my brow.

"Knowing your limits is written on the staircase to progress. The next one is the Void God cultivation technique. It is the most secretive of the three. While a quite a bit slower than the War God technique but it is calmer. However, nobody ever managed to cultivate it, not even it's creator. Even I don't know the true limits of it's capabilities."

Words of power flowed through Nie Li and just like before, meditating on them caused my soul force to surge and accept the energies as my own. It was like darkness was enveloping me, it didn't do so menacingly but more like it was protecting me. I could sense untapped abilities that would be unlocked, hidden in the dark and would be revealed to me should I continue to practice it. This technique was a lot more fitting for me who liked to fight more with my smarts than my fists but unfortunately, there was a lingering feeling that something was missing."

I huffed a bit after releasing the technique "This one is also incredible." came my review as I turned to Nie Li who nodded " Still, it feels incomplete. It's like someone served me a very delicious meal that just didn't fill me up no matter how much I ate."

"It's indeed a symptom of incomplete compatibility. Perhaps Heavenly God cultivation will suit you the best."

Nodding, I replied "If a person knew the future they would prevent it. We won't know until we tried." It was a saying from my life back on Earth and I didn't realize how insensitive it was until remembering that this person actually knew the future. It didn't seem that it had cause any visible damage as Nie Li nodded in approval and began the chant for Heavenly God.

Light and dark energies began flowing towards me as if the heavens and the earth were connecting through me. It felt very comfortable and, although not nearly as fast as the previous two, power was still filling me up, energizing my soul ocean and strengthening me overall. But this was painfully slow and I could see that much more dark energies were being swallowed up by my Dantian than light. Sadly it would seem that even this third attempt would be for naught.

As I chanted the words that Nie Li had shared with me my mind flew towards the Void God chant and a reaction occurred. My inner self suddenly found itself surrounded by darkness. All of a sudden golden words appeared within the dark and with them came a cultivation technique that looked like a mix of the Void God and Heavenly God. However, unlike each separate part felt incomplete, this new technique seemed to be tailor made for me. Dark energies surged towards me and mixed with the void in my soul realm. Just like a large black hole my Void attributed soul force absorbed this new energy without any protest, growing larger by the moment.

At the same time two new abilities that could be willingly used came to my mind like distant memories long forgotten and then remembered again. Both were something to attempt later and gauge their capabilities.

"Long Wan!" came a shout and my consciousness returned to reality and I opened my eyes "Are you okay?" asked Lu Piao.

Why did he seem so scared? "I never felt better. Why do you ask?" my answer came together with my smile.

Du Ze took the chance to answer "After meditating on the last technique your soul force began to explode outwards violently, the intensity increasing and decreasing periodically." he answered and you could see that even Nie Li was slightly worried an puzzled.

My right hand moved to my temple and I sighed "Something weird did indeed happen…" I said pausing to think the best way to explain this "I think the Heavenly God technique and the Void God technique merged within my mind to form a new cultivation technique."

From across the table Nie Li suddenly moved forwards towards me, slamming his hands lightly on the table looking like a kid in a candy store "Really? How?"

Although taken aback by the suddenness of his actions I shrugged "No idea." The Heavenly God cultivation technique definitely didn't cause something like this in the original novel "Perhaps it's a side affect of the Void God technique. When I chanted it I felt like there were many secrets inside. Or maybe it has something to do with my Void affinity. For all we know it could be a combination of all these factors…"

Once again Nie Li nodded in acceptance and explained "It could be. However that is not important. How do you feel and how is this new technique."

"I feel great. This technique seems to be a perfect match. When chanting it I could feel that my soul force turned into an all-consuming darkness that grew as I cultivated and with it so did my strength." taking the soul crystal my energies flowed into it and soon the my soul realm started being reflected in the image in its core. Unlike before however there were no more wispy shadows, but one writhing blob of slowly spiraling darkness with four tendrils reaching out as if pointing to the cardinal directions. What was strange was that, indifferent of how you looked at it or from where the blob always seemed to meet you with the same appearance .

"Interesting." Hummed Nie Li. Meeting my curious expression he continued "Formless soul realms are indeed more likely to change. Whatever happened with your cultivation technique also mutated your soul realm into an entirely new form. I don't know what its new limits are, but just by looking at it I can tell that it has near limitless potential. I am curious about how it matches your new technique."

Focusing on the technique I began chanting the words that once had illuminated the darkness my mind had found itself in. Nie Li immediately closed his eyes and turned to his vast knowledge to analyze it "This technique is amazing. The chants are a mix of both parent cultivations, with characteristics from both but with a variation that I don't recognize to fill in the gaps. Let's see..." Explained Nie Li before sinking deeper into thought "From the Heavenly God technique it gained the ability to commune with the Heavens and Earth, the ability to refine the breath and then use it to refine the body as well as integrate with more than one demon spirit, with the limit being four. However, due to your Void attribute, those demon spirits must be either Yin or dark aligned. As for the Void God part, it increases your mental fortitude allowing you to have a high resistance to mental attacks as well as increasing your focus. You also gained the ability to use surrounding Yin energy to alleviate mental fatigue, very useful when aiming for higher levels of cultivation. "

Forget amazing, this technique is incredible. While it had the limitation of dark aligned spirits, I really didn't mind it. If I remember correctly from the novel, dark aligned demon spirits have some of the coolest abilities. Take for example the… what was that called? … Ah yes, the Shadow Devil. Or that spirit that prevented Shen Hong's escape, the Nether Phantom (I think that's what it was called) which had the ability to seal space-time.

"As for the parts that elude me, only time will tell…" finished Nie Li. There was more?! Holy hell what kind of monster did my mind give birth to. Talk about cheats and being overpowered, I feel more like the main character than Nie Lie. But I don't wanna be a main character. I wanna be a side one. Side characters generally stay out of trouble since troubles are like MC seeking missiles.

Lu Piao immediately perked up and said "Let me try it too!" He sat cross-legged and started chanting but nothing happened. "This technique is garbage. I had more increase in power from the institute's techniques!" he cried out after failing to cultivate after a few seconds but was struck on the back of his head by Nie Li.

The look Nie Li gave him was incredulous "That technique is not suited for you that is why it's useless in your hands. It transforms the many kind of energies it absorbs into Void attributed one with nearly perfect efficiency. Your soul realm has a different attribute so it will reject that soul force and only absorb scraps." he chastised Lu Piao who looked sheepish. Then Nie Li turned to me "Long Wan, what will you call this technique?"

"Me?" I asked taken off guard.

The carrottop nodded "It owes it's birth to you. You are its parent so you get naming rights."

I cupped my chin in thought. This had to be a good, powerful and borderline corny name. That's how it worked in this world "Heavenly Void Dragon God technique…" Those words escaped my throat unconsciously. They didn't filter through my brain before I had the chance to stop them. Well there goes the 'borderline' part. This was deep inside the cornfield.

"Very fitting . The technique shall be known as that " Nie Li approved and the rest nodded.

There was a real need to shift the attention from me. "What about the rest? Do you have some techniques for them?" I asked Nie Li.

He snapped back to reality and looked towards Du Ze "Du Ze's soul realm was Lightning Fire attributed with the Heavenly Thundercloud form. You'll practice Heavenly Qilin technique, one of the three strongest Lightning Flame cultivation techniques. I will impart you with the chants for the technique and I'll also make a copy of the various martial arts for it in the future!" Nie Li soon imparted the chant for the technique to Du Ze. Heavenly Qilin technique's chant isn't too cryptic, so Du Ze remembered it very quickly.

Softly contemplating the chant inwards, Du Ze was extremely shocked by it. The Heavenly Qilin technique is definitely stronger than any other cultivation technique that he had seen in the past, save for the three… uh four God techniques he saw before ! But this technique fitted him the most. Just by chanting, Du Ze already felt his soul realm frantically surging; his soul force also had obvious signs of strengthening. He has yet to begin training and his soul force already began to expand and increase! It's foreseeable that after practicing this Heavenly Qilin cultivation technique, Du Ze will have all kinds of leaps and bounds with his soul force!

All this time, Du Ze has been struggling with the bleak fate of his family. His dream is to change the fate of his parents and family, but he clearly knew that this goal was too far away. But at this moment, Du Ze probably felt that by diligently practicing the Heavenly Qilin cultivation technique, all of this wouldn't pose a problem! All of this is given to him by Nie Li!

"Seems we were correct in determining Brother Ze's soul realm capabilities." I patted myself on the back. My plans would've been thrown down the latrine if something had changed…

"Yes, that is correct. I will also record for you all the details of the cultivation technique in a few days!" Nie Li said as he faintly smiled.

Du Ze is filled with gratitude for both myself and Nie Li. His eye redden, solemnly saying, "The kindness of imparting Heavenly Qilin technique to me, the help you gave me in determining my talents, I appreciate it all! If you have anything I could be of help to you in the future, even if it's to hike the jagged mountains or to swim the flaming sea, if I, Du Ze were to event consider hesitating, then let me suffer Heaven's retribution!"

"Don't put it this way, we're good brothers! It's just a cultivation technique!" Nie Li slightly smiled as he patted on Du Ze's back. I also squeezed Du Ze's shoulder firmly in reassurance.

To Nie Li, this is just a piece of cultivation technique. To myself it's nothing but helping out good people I trusted. But for Du Ze it was so much more!

I was beginning to understand my merger with Long Wan. It would seem that when we merged he became a sort of subconscious. His instincts, memories and sentiments became my own while I became the conscious and the logic. On that part Long Wan was similar to Du Ze. Being an orphan he… I… damn reincarnation, anyway 'we' had a hard life with no people to even call friends, much less brothers. Due to this, it didn't matter how many schemes and plans I had, his existence wouldn't let me betray anyone I declared close.

At this moment, Lu Piao already couldn't wait anymore from the excitement, saying at the side "You guys talk too mushy, as brothers we should share the blessings and the misfortune together! Nie Li, I'm just a red soul realm, am I also suitable to train soul force?"

"Of course, everyone can train in soul force, even if it's red soul realm, except there's a difference in the cultivation technique that is suited for red soul realm!" Nie Li said, smiling "And as mentioned during class you will practice the Holy Primal Chaos technique.

"Is it stronger than Du Ze's ?" Lu Piao asked excitedly, causing Wei Nan to facepalm. Du Ze didn't seem to take it to heart though. That was just Lu Piao being Lu Piao…

"Holy Primal Chaos technique isn't in any way inferior to Heavenly Qilin technique and again, it suits your lazy personality best since it doesn't require much practice." Nie Li said laughing, "It depends on your luck but it will allow you to step on the road to reach the highest level."

Nie Li also began to test Wei Nan, Zhu Xiangjun, Zhang Ming and gift them each with a set of powerful cultivation techniques. One after one, my words were proven true and those techniques fit their aptitudes perfectly. With each match I noticed how the last remaining doubts in Nie Li's minds slowly evaporated into non-existence. Although it can't be compare with Holy Primal Chaos, Heavenly Qilin technique or my Heavenly Void Dragon God technique, they are still cultivation techniques that no other technique in Glory City can be compared to.

Nie Li then spoke "As for myself…"

"Heavenly God?" I asked or more like predicted with a smirk.

"Heavenly God." Nie Li nodded and began cultivating with us joining him a moment later.

As I meditated the Heavenly Void Dragon God, my soul realm turned into a black hole and started greedily devouring the surrounding energies growing with each passing moment.

***The Heavenly Dao shines and the Dao of the Void consumes. Heaven shrouds and the Void contains. The Great Dao envelops but cannot contest the path you chose. To know all is impossible for such is nature.***

I continued mentally chanting over and over, contemplating the meaning behind the words. Then I remembered something from Earth. Astronomy was a small amateurish passion of mine, as were all the natural sciences so my mind flew to stars and black holes ( Heavenly Dao shines and the Dao of the Void consumes), to galaxies and voids ( Heaven shrouds and the Void contains.). To the nature of reality, a universe that exists because we acknowledge it (Great Dao envelops but cannot contest the path you chose). Finally to the uncertainty principle of the very small ( To know all is impossible for such is nature)

Energies began pouring rapidly within the center of my soul realm until... Boom! My soul force exploded with green color and it felt unbelievable. It was like I could take over the world, like my fate was mine alone.

"Long Wan you..." I heard Du Ze begin as I opened my eyes "1-star bronze rank. Congratulations!"

"Congratulations!" This time it came from Zhu Xiangjun.

"Wah! Brother Wan you are amazing! How did you do it?" Lu Piao asked me as he slung his arm over my shoulder.

My mind was beginning to reset "I think... I ... managed to contemplate some of the true meaning behind the first chapter of the Heavenly Void Dragon God."

"You truly are an amazing person." Came Nie Li's stunned reply "Understanding true meaning behind a cultivation technique means making that technique truly your own. From now on your progress should be even faster than before. Achieving such understanding within the first hour is unheard of even in the most seasoned cultivator."

Nie Li had never known Long Wan in his previous life. If my alter ego from that timeline was also Void attributed and had a formless soul realm then, with Glory City's horrible techniques and his own lack of suitable talent then it would be safe to say that Long Wan would never had had the chance to stand out and thus no chance to remain in Nie Li's direct memories. For fucks sake he was an unknown even for me when I read the novel back on Earth. Now, I felt so cheaty I almost wanted to be nerfed.

Du Ze and Wei Nan also approved what Nie Li said with Lu Piao and the resy looking at my like I grew a second head.

I gently waved them off "Thank you for your kind praise but I am still very inexperienced. There is still a lot more I need to understand about both this technique as well as life in general."

"As am I." Du Ze acknowledged.

Suddenly Nie Li got up and stretched. "This is enough for one evening. We had a good head start so there is no point in pushing ourselves too much." He twisted around to get the kinks out of his muscles.

"Ehh? I can still keep going!" Declared Lu Piao while puffing his chest.

Smirking I replied with " Don't you mean you can keep snoring? You've been asleep since we started meditating." Of course I was lost in my own cultivation then so I wasn't paying him any mind to know for sure. However, the dejected look on his face told me I hit the nail square on the head.

"That's just how my cultivation works. You guys are just jealous of my innate talent." He retorted causing all of us to erupt in laughter.

"Nie Li.." came my call "Earlier you said you will show me the Daoyin technique." I wanted to meet Ning'er tonight so this couldn't wait.

My new brother from another mother smiled and nodded "Alright, it's a really simple technique that involves using your soul force to grab hold of or redirect elements within yourself or another person so it shouldn't take more than an hour so let me show you. First you need to memorize the meridian points and how to feel the person's chi paths..." There were many more words and instructions after this and I used my soul force in my brain to memorize them all. A surprise came in the form of Du Ze also taking a liking to this technique and learning how to do it. Lu Piao however was far too impatient and the trio had neither the aptitude for it nor the ambition to learn.

A short while later I was in the hunting grounds on my knees gasping for air while in front of me lay the body of a horned sheep demon beast. While searching for Ning'er's cultivation spot I stumbled upon it and it charged at me as per its territorial nature. Although I made a tactical retreat (ran like I motherfucking stole something), the dammed horny mutton chop managed to corner me so in the end I had no choice but to fight. However, demon beasts are generally a half-level level stronger than practitioners so a one star bronze rank fighter/demon spiritualist was at a disadvantage when facing a one-star bronze rank demon beast. Coupled with my absolute lack of combat experience it meant that I was fodder for the beast. It almost trampled me to death until my instinct activated and called out all my soul force in my fist before throwing it forward right into its face. The next thing I saw were tendrils of obsidian dark that would make Shub-Niggurath itself jealous extended from my fist and pierced the skull of the beast killing it instantly.

This must be one of the secret techniques of the Heavenly Void Dragon God cultivation, the ability to manipulate internal energies to produce these… Void tendrils. After recovering my breath I moved to a nearby tree and summoned a single tendril from my palm. Getting more inventive I tried summoning it from other places and realized that any part of my body could be used to generate it. Also, it could split into any number of smaller tendrils, stretch to increase range or shape it into any shape I could imagine. The only limit was that it had a limited amount of… what should I call it? Energy? Soul Force? Void mass? I kind of like that last one. Anyway, the Void mass was limited so each time I split or stretched the tendrils they would become thinner. The mass limit was equal to my own body but I had a feeling this would grow as my strength did. This means I could produce a kind of pure black copy of my body from this Void mass.

Setting my target I summoned a tendril as thick as my arm and shaped it into a blade. My arm moved like a whip and I intended to chop down the tree with one fluid motion. The blade met absolutely no resistance up to a quarter of the tree's thickness when it suddenly collapsed and crumbled like wet sand, taking a good bite out of my stamina as well. This got me curious and I made a smaller blade and moved to cut a boulder with it. Like before, there was absolutely no resistance up to a few centimeters when it also crumbled.

Looking at the cuts I could see something strange. There was no crushing on the area. Even leaves that barely stuck to the surfaces of the rocks and tree seemed to be missing part of it but otherwise undisturbed. I sat down and began contemplating my own soul force and this new information. The only conclusion to be drawn was that this Void mass actually swallowed everything I wanted to pierce or cut, and when it had reached its limits it would crumble apart. However, doesn't this mean I have a virtually unstoppable blade? I would need to experiment further.

Stretching a string made from this energy my focused moved to a small rock. I wanted to get more information on how much this mass could 'devour' . Seeing it wrap around like a net, I couldn't help but think how cool it would be if I could reel in in. What the fuck?! I ducked fast as the rock came flying towards my head at blinding speed. I tried again and the same result. The next thing I wanted the rock to be brought gently into my hand and the tendril just fished it up and set it with the utmost care into my palm. Ok. So the mass followed my intention. It would devour things I wanted destroyed, otherwise it would act as an extension of my body. Also, using it without it consuming anything also didn't affect my stamina.

Nodding and feeling the exhaustion beginning to set, my thoughts moved towards Ning'er. As I was preparing to set out I remembered something important. There was a dead horned sheep near me and it was full of valuable items. The horns and fur were too bulky for me to carry, but the demon crystal was not. Forming a Void blade (corny name I know. It seems corny-ness will be a theme) I split it's skull and a small light temporarily blinded me. It had a demon spirit! These demon spirits are rare, one in several thousand demon beasts have one. The spirit felt strangely solid in my hand so I took it and the crystal and stuffed them both into my pocket. This spirit was mostly useless but it could be used for inscriptions so it sold for at least a few thousand.

Moving on, I took to jumping from tree to tree in order to avoid any more sheep along the way until I saw a green-ish light in the distance. Reaching it in the following moments I stayed up on the branch as I peeked at the source of it.

The moonlight allowed me to see a slender and slim figure standing in the middle of the moonlight . She had shoulder length hair, was wearing a leather jacket, and was exuding a faint blue light. This is the light of soul force! Although she hadn't step into Bronze rank, she should be entering Bronze rank soon. Using the light from the soul force, my eyes landed on her face . Her eyes were shut, her long eyelashes slightly trembled, and delicate eyebrows were slightly tightened in discomfort. She had flawless, white skin glowing a healthy pink, and

rich, delicate lips .

"Ning'er…" I whispered to myself but apparently it was louder than I intended. With her soul force her senses were probably a lot more advanced than ordinary people.

"Who's there!?" Xiao Ning'er suddenly opens her eyes, and frailly shouted, while retrieving a short dagger from her interspatial ring. Her facial expression was chilling cold as she scanned the area for me. Through the moonlight, those deeply alert eyes had an indescribable charm in them. Although she was only thirteen years old, the current her can definitely be considered beautiful. The leather jacket's front chest area was slightly budding. At this age, she can definitely be proud of it.

Jumping down a good distance from her I waved in greeting "Good evening classmate Xiao Ning'er!" Although neither the past Long Wan nor myself have ever talked with Xiao Ning'er, we can still be considered classmates and thus somewhat familiar with each other.

Xiao Ning'er lowered her short dagger, but still kept her guard up as she looked at me and said, "Long Wan? What are you doing here?"

She knew who I was? Maybe se remembered me as I was one of the two weirdos who stood up to Shen Xiu. Crossing my arms in front of my chest and tilting my head I answered with a kind smile "Looking for you." but then I winced as moving my head had unintentionally crushed a bruise I received as a gift from that damn sheep "Ouch. But it seems I found only trouble at first."

Ning'er's face showed a small trace of concern but her features were still icy "What?"

My right hand moved to my neck as my left waved her concern off "It's nothing. I just danced with a horned sheep earlier." That's the first time I ever danced the Judo too.

Her face twisted with mild annoyance "I did't ask that. Why are you looking for me?" she raised her knife again.

Sighing, my features turned serious "During class I noticed you were suffering some discomfort…" my gaze then fell to the bruise on her foot before she pulled it back. A slender hand moved to her mouth to hide her surprise but before she could voice anything I continued "As night falls doesn't your body begin to feel colder and colder, getting absolutely unbearable near the peak of the night? " a gasp told me I was right "Besides that, your feet begin to burn as if they were boiling on the inside." each word made her eyes widen more and more "Finally, your body should've developed very painful bruises." I said confidently, "Thankfully you still haven't reached Bronze rank yet. However, once your soul force breaks through, your affliction will advance at a rapid pace. Best case you'll be bedridden for months. Worse case your soul realm will freeze and you will die. "

Xiao Ning'er was momentarily dazed . Both of her fists were clenched tightly, and her eyes reddened. Despair flashed across her face and tears leaked from the corner of her eyes. Even wrought with misery she was still insanely beautiful. My previous self wouldn't consider her more than a good kid, but this self of mine had Long Wan's thirteen year old heart and body. Not to mention my own fanboy… fanman love for her. I remembered that ever since she was young, her family had been wanting for her to marry into the Sacred Family by marrying Shen Fei . As she grew up, she gradually learned what kind of person Shen Fei was . Because she didn't want to get married to that waste of space, she started practicing very hard with hopes of avoiding this cruel fate . Unfortunately, the

heavens seemed to work against her, since she who would soon reach 1-star Bronze rank, suddenly got to hear from me such news .

"Long Wan, since you know what kind of illness I have, you should know how to treat it, right?" Xiao Ning'er asked me. She was definitely frightened by my words since she unknowingly dropped her strong guard and pleaded "Can you help me?"

Xiao Ning'er had a strong personality and rarely asked others for help . Crouching down and resting my hands on my knees I said with a smile "This affliction can be treated. You can look it up in the Holy Orchid Institute's library . The affliction is called: Arctic affliction. It's actually relatively easy and inexpensive to cure."

"Really?" replied Xiao Ning'er . Her eyes shined with hope "How can it be treated?"

"Every day you must drink an infusion made from combining Golden Striped Grass with Imperial Sky Grass, once in the morning and once before night falls. I would suspect that the chills and other sensations you feel will disappear within the month." came my reply and I could see the despair washing from her expression. "However, your bruises are a different story. They will need a long time to pass, perhaps years."

"Is that so…?" she whispered dejected. They were painful. I remember in the novel it said she cried herself to sleep at night.

My head moved side to side in denial "There is a way to dissipate them. It is called the Daoyin redirecting technique."

"Daoyin technique?" repeated Xiao Ning'er . She knitted her brows. She had never heard of any Daoyin technique before.

"Those bruises are from an accumulation of strong Yin energy. You have been practicing in the night so cold moon Yin seeped in." I had half the idea what I was talking about but she didn't need to know that "Though there are exception to this rule, a woman's soul force normally has more Yin energy whilst a man's is full of Yang. Before reaching Bronze rank that extra moon energy couldn't be contained by your soul realm so it moved to accumulate in other areas. The Daoyin technique can disperse that energy allowing the medicine to neutralize it. This is also why you must stop practicing when midnight comes." I explained "There is also a chance your cultivation technique is strongly Yin aligned. May I see it?"

Xiao Ning'er hesitated for a moment. Cultivation techniques were closely guarded family secrets but I knew she would come around. She retrieved her cultivation technique from her interspatial ring and handed it to me. It was a piece of slightly aged parchment, with a bunch of densely packed words written on it .

I couldn't understand jack shit from it. It wasn't me who had centuries worth of experience on it however trying to move my soul force according to it left me with a slimy feeing in my soul realm considering that I was comparing it to the supreme techniques that Nie Li imparted us as well as my own "Urgh, this technique is too poor." I rolled it up and moved to give it back to her and as she picked it up her fingers touched mine. They were indeed soft and even though she was a hard worker I couldn't feel a trace of calluses on them. Looking up, the moonlight revealed to me her boiling red face. Girls in this world are so cute and pure! Letting out a breath of air I didn't know I was holding in my next words followed "I will try to find a suitable cultivation technique for you in the next following days. Until then I suggest you practice using a more neutral one. At least until your affliction cures." I said and she nodded "Do you have a piece of soul crystal with you? If not bring one over tomorrow night. Just one will be enough and it must be unused before. I will test your innate talents with it."

"I have one now…" she answered with a strained voice. Demons and Gods she was cute! A crystal appeared in her hand and she moved to give it to me.

"Ah, you don't need to hand it to me. Just channel your soul force into it and after we will take a look." I pushed it back without touching her

"Okay," Xiao Ning'er nodded her head and injected her soul force into the crystal, the crystal released a dazzling light . Inside the light was slowly forming into a Jiao Dragon with large wings, and it was flying though a lightning storm.

"Soul force of 83, Winged Dragon soul form with the Wind-Lightning attribute. "

"Wind Lightning Attribute, Winged Dragon shaped soul form, what are they?" Xiao Ning'er couldn't understand what I just said . Doubt filled her beautiful pupils .

I smiled. Nie Li never explained this properly to her in the novel either "Reusing soul crystals causes a reaction with the lingering soul force in them that makes them cloudy. This is why only the color and the amount of soul force is shown in them. Using a fresh one reveals not only that but also the shape and attribute which are the actual things that influence cultivation." I could see more questions forming inside her mind but I didn't allow her to continue "The attributes are the ones you should focus when cultivating. For example your attribute is wind lightning, which means that with a cultivation technique attuned to either or both elements of wind or lightning your cultivation will increase exponentially." pausing to let it sink in before continuing "However if for example you practiced earth or fire cultivation your progress would be negatively affected and you would need to put many more times the effort to obtain even a crumb of results."

Her hand moved to her mouth in realization and surprise "Oh!" she whispered

"As for demon spirits, a compatible demon spirit of good quality will increase your talents even further while an opposing one will decrease it. In some cases it is even impossible to merge with demon spirits due to opposing natures. Soul forms on the other hand are special traits that each person possesses. And just like attributes, some are extraordinarily rare, others not so much."

You could see the look of understanding slowly being built in her head "Your soul form…" she tensed "…grants you exceptional cultivation efficiency. Practicing any kind of cultivation technique will produce more for you than nearly any other. It is a top tier legendary soul form. If I possessed such frightening talent, I would've already been scratching at the door to Silver Rank. This is why you nearly reached bronze rank with your low quality cultivation technique. But with a top wind lightning technique you would be unmatched. "

Finishing my explanation before she could retort on her family's cultivation technique, I stood up straight and stretched "I think this will be enough for the night. We should head home. Don't forget to drink your medicine and take it easy.." I said as I made my way towards the direction that I came from.

"Long Wan!" she called out. "Do you know the Daoyin technique?" she asked meekly.

Turning around slightly I replied "The Daoyin technique is a massage so it requires contact with the bruised area. I know it but it wouldn't be appropriate for a man to do it."

She lowered her head, blush forming on her face and said, "I don't mind . Isn't it you just treating me? I don't want to turn into a useless person . "

"Very well, I'll help you. Where are your bruises?" foot and her side, I already knew but she didn't knew I knew…

Xiao Ning'er's cold cheeks slightly blushed and pointed to the back of her foot "There's one here . "

I crouched down, and sat on the grass patch .She then placed her foot on my legs and a light flashed across her eyes . She seemed to be thinking of something . Gripping onto Xiao Ning'er's creamy marble white foot made my heart run miles. I could clearly see that Xiao Ning'er's smooth tight calves were simply perfect "I'll state once more just to avoid any misunderstandings, I'm only treating your affliction. It's also a pleasure to meet you . I hope that we can be friends in the future," I explained as I looked at Xiao Ning'er's charming face . Hearing my words, Xiao Ning'er's shoulders slightly shook . She nodded her head and faintly muttered, "En . "

My hand gripped Xiao Ning'er's foot, thumb at the bruised area and, gently, I started to massage it.

"Ah" Xiao Ning'er couldn't help to let out a pained sound .

Pursing my lips I stated "The first time will hurt a little so bare with it." I really wanted to say that "And yes, I do understand how that sounded but try to keep your head on the situation at hand."

While my face was slightly rosy , Ning'er's was a repository for blood. After all, some of the girls her age are already married with kids so she would be taught about intimacy by her handmaidens. After a while, under my massage Xiao Ning'er couldn't help letting out a little 'ah', which made her endlessly timid. The pain that clouded her eyes was slowly washing away as relief came with her breaths.

"Done," I said a few minutes later as I finished the massage. The Yin energy was now dissipated but it would partially recollect again requiring the area to be massaged again until fully cured.

"In the next few day, there will still be traces of pain, you will be fine with some rest. "

"En," said Xiao Ning'er, nodding her head . Suddenly, her cheeks flushing red and I knew what she was going to say, "I still have another bruise, could you massage it, too?"

"Another bruise?" my chest started pounding but I swallowed the feeling back. "Where is it?" I asked. Here it comes… Xiao Ning'er hesitated for a long time, her face shyly blushing red. "If it's not appropriate… . " I continued remembering the scene from the novel.

"Long Wan, do you have someone you like?" she asked meekly.

Tough I was expecting it, anxiety still started gripping me and it made me feel light-headed "Yes." I stated without hesitation.

"Who is she?" she asked, slowly moving her hand to the top of her jacket.

I smiled and looked directly in her eyes "She's amazing. Strong, gentle, intelligent and unwavering. Regardless of hardships she always pushed forward and was always someone to be admired. And to me she is definitely the brightest and most beautiful gem in existence." my words came out as I described the girl in front of me. It was so easy to point out each one of the things that attracted a person when the said target of affection is in front of you.

Xiao Ning'er's eyes flashed with a sentiment that I couldn't quite decrypt. It also seems she didn't understand that it was her and asked, "Then, does she like you back?"

I shrugged my shoulders and smiled, not saying a word more. Ning'er looked puzzled for a moment before she giggled. It seems she will not push this matter further. Grinding her teeth, she began to undo the buttons on her shirt . "Ning'er." her name exited firmly out of my mouth and it caused her to stop at the second button "I suspect your bruise is on the side. You avoid leaning in that direction." she looked like a deer in the headlights and nodded not knowing what to do anymore. It wasn't easy for her to undress in front of me and now I surprised the resolve out of her. I got up and moved behind her "I can treat the bruise from here."

Xiao Ning'er actually began to look somewhat dejected.

Sighing hard I snapped her out of that melancholy "Don't misunderstand, there isn't any man alive that's not family that wouldn't want to see. It's just that a good woman's modesty is too precious to her." I said with a flat voice to cover my excitement. I'm probably the only male her age that wouldn't end up castrated by her for saying something like that to her face… uh to her back.

"Ah! En." She nodded in appreciation of my consideration for her. Even though she was now facing her back towards me I could feel that she was smiling.

I watched as Xiao Ning'er slowly removed her shirt . Her cold back had an unspeakable charm to it . The first button, then the second button . Xiao Ning'er's fat-less smooth white skin was already

visible, glowing under the moonlight . After the fifth button was undone, Xiao Ning'er's perfect curves were revealed and she was absolutely divine. Her chest area was wrapped in a pink silk bandage and I couldn't help swallowing down the drool that rained in my mouth. Her figure can be described as extremely hot . With only a glance, she would drive many men crazy .

"Amazing…" I whispered but she must have heard it because I saw her flinch. Pushing the naughty thoughts away I calmed his mind bit and my eyes fell on Xiao Ning'er's side. Near her lower rib sat an extremely dark bruise . Although it is only the size of a thumb, the color was very deep. "Poor girl…" I cooed softly "Even the strongest warriors would cry themselves to sleep when the moon was high. You did very surviving up to now. It's something to take pride in, but you've suffered enough."

Muffled heaves hit my ears and Xiao Ning'er's body began trembling. A strange feeling welled up from the center of my Dantian. Fueled by pure rage the Daoyin energy changed from a silvery-blue to impossibly black. Rage towards the Sacred Family for putting her through such torture, rage towards the Winged Dragon Family that dared allow such torture, rage towards her friends who abandoned her and finally the purest rage towards the damn cold Yin energy that gave her many sleepless nights. Since my mind was brimming with such rage I failed to notice the change in my Daoyin technique. The Void energy rapidly seeped inside her, and like a pack of starving wolves on a hunt it barreled down towards the cold Yin destroying any trace of it that it came across and fully clearing it out in mere moments. All that Yin energy went straight into my soul realm enlarging it and pushing me closer to 2 star bronze. This happened before I realized that it did.

The feeling of pain must have washed away instantly as a loud moan escaped her voice. It wasn't a calm one at that. It was a full on roar. "Ahaa!" she let out together with all the air in her lungs, sweat wetting her skin and the cloth on her chest. She slumped forward, using her arms to avoid falling on the ground.

Unconsciously my hands met her bare waist to protect her and prevent her face from meeting the cold grass as I leaned forward to see her face "Ning'er, are you alright!"

She shook out of my grasp and pushed me away "Ah! I'm alright!" She crossed her arms in front of her chest to cover it.

"My bad!" I turned away from her "It seems I lost control of my power and ended up removing all invading Yin energy too fast. Ahem, you should have no more problems but you should take tomorrow off from school to rest." Change the subject, change the subject, change the subject…

Ning'er was silent as she put her clothes back. I needed a way to dispel this atmosphere "Let's meet here tomorrow night as well. I will try to find a wind lightning attribute cultivation technique for you till then…" I said before jumping away. I couldn't face her now. Had I turned back I would've heard Ning'er calling out my name …

The following day was pretty much the same until after class. It seemed that Ning'er took my advice and didn't show up. This time I was fully prepared to get that technique from Nie Li. Yesterday I had scribbled something before meeting in the library with the gang. What I had written down was the Lightning Dragon cultivation technique. A bastardized, crude, almost inhumane version of the technique written from my memories of the novel as well as Long Wan's memories on cultivation. Comparing it to the Heavenly Void Dragon God was painful to me. I had used very dilute ink , spilled some oil and dirt on the parchment and left it in the sun to bleach. I tried to make it look as scribbly and garbage as I could.

You might ask why not just ask the technique from Nie Li. Well, how would it sound 'Give me a legendary technique that you found in some lost ruins in another realm that I wasn't supposed to know about."? Yeah. You can see how that would work and stating that it was for Ning'er could backfire. Nope, this needed a stealth approach...

Following my plan I was also the first in the library, and taking out the parchment I pretended to start studying it with gusto as soon as Nie Li's voice registered in my ears.

"Long Wan!" the group greeted and I nodded back.

Lu Piao swung his arm over my shoulder "What are you doing?" he asked as he was the first to see the parchment.

I chuckled and pointed at the paper "I once found this paper that had been thrown away and when I looked at it there was a cultivation technique written on it. It sounded powerful so I tried to study it but it didn't work. Its become some sort of hobby for me to try and work out why."

"A cultivation technique? Can you tell me what it is about, perhaps I can help." Nie Li interrupted as his interest peaked.

"It's supposed to be a cultivation technique called Lightning Dragon." I answered with a smile.

"What?" a surprised Nie Li got up and moved to my side. Taking a few quick glances at the technique I could tell he could tell that it stinks. It was as if the paper was insulting him "Brother Wan should put it back in the trash where you found it. This is not the Lightning Dragon cultivation technique. Actually I don't know what this can be called. A child's scribbles at best." he almost vomited on the paper.

"Oh" I answered dejected. All according to plan "Wait!" I turned to Nie Li in surprise, anxiety evident in my voice. "You said that this is not the Lighting Dragon technique. Does brother Li know the real one?" I used the anxiety I had from my plan as a cover for my hobby.

Nie LI smiled and nodded "Actually I do. But Long Wan, that is not a suitable technique for you." he said as he took his seat back.

I expected this but still pretended to be surprised "Ah, I don't want to practice it." I want to give it to Ning'er "It's just that, after so long…" my hand waved over the scribbled parchment as I started staring hard at the paper.

The expression on Nie Li turned slightly softer "You want closure. That obsession is something I can understand... Listen close, this is the true Lightning Dragon technique."

My mind filled in with the new technique and I finally had the last piece of the puzzle. I knew that Nie Li couldn't resist. That hubris he had due to his knowledge was an exploitable weakness, of which I now suspect he also knew about which is why he always kept a tight lid on his mouth in the novel. But he always let his guard down around those he considered friends. It was also strange for me to have a virtual stranger trust me so much. That wasn't something I had in any lifetime. Feelings I never knew I could have welled up from inside my stomach. It honestly made me want to give my life for Nie Li.

Suddenly Nie Li beamed "Ah, don't wait for me tomorrow, I have some plans and won't be coming."

Nie Li had plans for tomorrow? But he didn't diss Shen Xiu in front of the experts so it couldn't be Zyiun. Ah, of course. I looked towards Nie Li and said "Good luck and watch out for director Yang Xin. Roumor has it that s he has a thing for smart young boys."

With that I scrammed before Nie Li started explain the reason for his .

Moving through the forest at a rapid pace I landed at the spot where I left yesterday to find Xiao Ning'er waiting for me. Today she was wearing a checker laced dress . Her ink black hair was scattered around on her back and she wore a bracelet on her marble white wrist, becoming extraordinarily beautiful and charming. Usually she would wear a tight fitting jacket as it was convenient to train in.

However, she seemed to have meticulously dressed herself up today . She was even more beautiful compared to how she usually dressed . This was how she would've dressed for Nie Li in another timeline. Now it just made it harder for me to keep my composure.

She didn't say anything, just shily looked away, a blush adorning her marble white cheeks. I approached slowly and said "I have a cultivation technique for you. This cultivation technique is much stronger than the one you're practicing!"

She nodded and started paying attention as I shared the Lightning Dragon technique with her, shyness rapidly being replaced by shock.

"This cultivation technique is called Lightning Dragon!" I said when finished sharing the technique.

Xiao Ning'er continued to stay silent and it pained me highly. Did I do something yesterday to upset her? Why would she doll up if I did? Sigh women, what an enigmatic species… "Long Wan…" she finally called out, strain evident in her voice but still not looking at me "Yesterday…" she paused again "I acted disgracefully and even pushed you away when you were concerned for me."

Huh? Is that what she was worried about? No way! I could hug her so hard right now it would split her in two.

Before I could voice anything she continued "Now you even shared a such a powerful cultivation technique with me." She bit her lip "I don't know how to repay you . But no matter what you want me to do, I am willing to do it. "

I knew it would work. I had all the information and tools at my disposal. My plan was flawless. But actually hearing the girl I like say that, I couldn't be more happy.

Slowly, I made my way in front of her until we were less than an arm's length apart. She started to tremble but put on a brave front and didn't retreat "You should be careful with what you say. Anyone else other than me might abuse that privilege and take advantage of you."

She nodded as tears started forming in her eyes "Yes." her voice trembled "You have someone you like…"

'Silly girl' I thought as my hand moved a strand of her hair to her side. Once again she jumped a bit but didn't move. My voice strained but in the end it came out as soothing as possible.

"I never said that person wasn't you…"