---
The sun rose gently over the green hills, dew still clinging to the grass when Tian Jue and his mother stepped onto the dirt path leading to Qingyuan Town.
She carried a modest wicker basket on her back, filled with carefully wrapped bundles of spirit herbs—gentle medicines she'd grown herself in their garden and wild stalks Tian Jue had helped her forage near the mountain cliffs.
He walked beside her silently, hands clasped behind his back like an old master disguised as a child. Each step he took was controlled, deliberate, his breathing aligned with the rhythm of his qi.
"You're quiet again," his mother said softly, glancing down with a faint smile.
"I'm just thinking," he replied.
She chuckled. "About herbs?"
"No. About everything."
---
Qingyuan Town bustled like a hive of low-level cultivators and civilians. Horse-drawn carriages creaked past spiritual beast pens. A few sect disciples in uniform robes passed through the main street with subtle arrogance in their stride.
Tian Jue narrowed his eyes at their aura. They were barely at the Foundation Layer, yet looked down on commoners like they were gods among mortals.
Pathetic. In his old world, they'd be crushed by outer sect gatekeepers.
Still... he felt something off.
The density of qi in the air here—even in the mundane streets—was higher than in any city from his past life.
Not only was the qi purer, but it flowed in complex patterns through the land itself. Natural formations, subtle leylines… this world was deeper.
They reached the medicine hall, a humble but refined building. His mother went inside, greeted with warmth by the old apothecary master, while Tian Jue's gaze wandered to the side entrance—a tall wooden gate marked Library – Outer Access.
He asked gently, "Mother… can I visit the records hall while you finish?"
She smiled. "Of course. Don't touch anything ancient, and don't disappear."
He gave a small nod and drifted inside.
---
The library was quiet—dust-filled, lit by soft spiritual lanterns, lined with scrolls and bamboo slips arranged by cultivation path.
A disciple near the desk barely looked at him. "Children section's to the right."
Tian Jue walked left.
He searched the records for texts on cultivation systems, spiritual roots, realm structures—anything that could give him a foothold on this new world's power hierarchy.
The more he read, the more he frowned.
> "The Five Mortal Provinces lie on the middle continent of Jiuyuan Realm, under the governance of the Lower Celestial Court…"
"…Qi Refinement to Foundation, then Core Formation and Nascent Soul. However, above these stages, new divisions are recorded: Law Manifestation, Domain Ascension, and Starweaver…"
"…it is believed this world was once a fragment of the Great Heavenly Continent, split during the Shattering War of Immortals. Some sages theorize Jiuyuan Realm is a surviving piece of a higher realm—its laws partially preserved…"
He stared at those words for a long moment.
> [System Notice]
Your soul signature resonates with these writings.
Hidden compatibility detected: Jiuyuan Realm holds evolutionary potential not present in previous world.
→ This world's cultivation ceiling is higher.
→ Growth potential: Unlimited.
His lips parted slightly. The system was confirming it.
This wasn't just a new world.
It was a better world.
In his past life, the heavens were fractured. True ascension required breaking through shattered realms or gambling with forbidden dao techniques. Here, the world itself invited ascension—it had layers built into its foundation.
And perhaps… the nine curses tied to his soul in that old life?
They might never form here.
They might be trapped in the laws of the old world.
He closed the scroll and whispered:
"…Then this world will be my forge."
---
He returned to the medicine hall just as his mother was finishing her exchange. She held a few spirit coins and a mild headache remedy given in trade.
"Find anything interesting?" she asked, brushing a loose hair from his forehead.
Tian Jue gave a slow, thoughtful nod.
"Yes. I think this world is much bigger than we thought."
---
To be continued...