That night, Ye Lin couldn't sleep.
He lay on his thin straw mat, staring at the leaky ceiling of his hut. The faint moonlight filtered through the gaps in the roof, creating strange patterns on the wall. But Ye Lin's mind was not focused on any of that.
Ever since his encounter with the mysterious old man that afternoon, something had been different inside him. It felt like there was a small space in his head that had never been there before. A space that was silent, yet felt alive.
"What exactly did that old man give me?" he muttered softly, holding his head.
Ye Lin closed his eyes and tried to sense the strangeness more deeply. Slowly, like a faint whisper in his mind, something began to appear. Not a sound, not an image, but like... writing forming in his thoughts.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
Ye Lin's eyes shot open, his heart pounding. "What is this?" he whispered, his breath catching.
He closed his eyes again, and the strange words reappeared clearly. There was no sound, no explanation. Just simple information about himself displayed in his mind.
"Cultivation level... Mortal Realm?" Ye Lin remembered the old man's words about the world of cultivation. "So this is what they call a system?"
He tried to concentrate more deeply, hoping for other information or perhaps an explanation of what he should do. But there was nothing. The system only displayed four simple lines of information, then fell silent again.
Ye Lin sat up on his straw mat, rubbing his face. All traces of sleepiness were gone. His mind was filled with curiosity, fear, and a little disappointment.
"Is that all?" he muttered. "I thought there would be something... more magical."
The next day, Ye Lin woke up earlier than usual. He hadn't slept well, constantly thinking about the strange system in his head. He got ready to continue his daily routine—looking for any work that could earn him money for food.
As he walked toward the village center, he kept trying to understand the system. Every few minutes, he would close his eyes for a moment and see the same status reappear.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
"It hasn't changed at all," Ye Lin muttered, kicking a pebble on the road. "So what's the point?"
"Ye Lin!" a familiar voice called from ahead.
Ye Lin turned and saw Uncle Wang carrying a large sack on his back. The middle-aged man's face was sweating, but he still smiled kindly when he saw Ye Lin.
"Wandering around so early, Lin'er? You haven't had breakfast, have you?" Uncle Wang asked, setting down his sack.
"Not yet, Uncle. I'm looking for work," Ye Lin replied with a faint smile. He was used to questions like this. Everyone in the village knew about his living conditions.
"Perfect! I need help carrying these sacks to the warehouse," Uncle Wang said, pointing to a few other sacks still left near his house. "Would you like to help? I'll give you breakfast and a little money."
Ye Lin's eyes lit up. "Of course, Uncle Wang! Thank you!"
While working, hauling sacks of rice, Ye Lin's mind occasionally drifted to the system in his head. He wondered if working hard like this would change something in his status. Perhaps there was a hidden part he didn't know about?
But every time he checked, the result was the same. There was no change whatsoever.
"Lin'er, are you alright?" Uncle Wang asked, noticing that Ye Lin was often lost in thought. "You look... different today."
"I'm fine, Uncle. Just thinking about something," Ye Lin replied, lifting the next sack.
"A boy your age shouldn't have so many worries," Uncle Wang said, shaking his head. "But I know your life isn't easy. If you have any problems, don't hesitate to tell me, okay?"
Ye Lin nodded sincerely. Uncle Wang was one of the kindest people to him in this village.
That afternoon, Ye Lin continued his work by helping Aunt Chen clean her chicken coop. The job was not pleasant—the coop smelled bad and was dirty—but Ye Lin never complained. Every job was a blessing to him.
While cleaning chicken droppings, he once again tried to access the system in his mind.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
"Still the same," he sighed inwardly.
Aunt Chen, who noticed Ye Lin being quiet and lost in thought, finally asked, "Lin'er, you don't have a fever, do you? Your face is so pale."
"I'm fine, Auntie," Ye Lin replied with a forced smile.
"Hmm," Aunt Chen looked at him with concern. "Did you eat this morning?"
"Yes, Auntie. Uncle Wang gave me breakfast after I helped him."
"That's good. An orphan like you needs to take better care of your health, Lin'er. There's no one to look after you if you get sick," Aunt Chen said with a sad tone.
Those words pierced Ye Lin's heart. It was true, he was completely alone in this world. No family would care if he got sick or even died.
But now, for some reason, he didn't feel completely alone. There was something in his mind. Something that was always there, even if it didn't speak or offer any help.
"This system... it's like a silent friend," he thought as he continued his work.
In the late afternoon, after finishing various small jobs, Ye Lin returned to his hut with a full stomach and a few copper coins in his pocket. A decent haul for the day.
He sat in front of the hut, watching the sun begin to set. The sky was a reddish-orange, creating a beautiful yet simple view.
"That old man said to use it wisely," Ye Lin muttered, remembering the words of the gray-eyed old man. "But how can I use it if I don't even know what it does?"
He closed his eyes and looked at the system again. This time, he tried to concentrate more deeply, hoping to find something he had missed.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
"Still the same," he sighed in disappointment.
But this time, Ye Lin tried to think differently. Maybe this system didn't give him power directly. Maybe its function was just to... show his current condition?
"Mortal Realm," he said softly. "That means I'm still an ordinary human who can't cultivate. And techniques... that means I don't have a way to train yet."
A little enlightenment began to dawn on Ye Lin. Maybe the system was like a mirror that showed him himself. And if one day he learned cultivation or got a technique, his status would change?
"But how can I learn cultivation?" he asked himself. "No one in this village knows about it."
A gentle evening breeze blew, carrying the scent of earth and grass. Ye Lin remembered the stories he had heard from merchants who occasionally passed through. They said there were people with extraordinary powers who could fly, control the elements, and live for hundreds of years. Those people were called cultivators.
"Can I become like them too?" Ye Lin whispered, staring at the darkening sky.
The night grew late, but Ye Lin still couldn't sleep. He sat on the threshold of his hut, looking at the stars twinkling in the sky. The night air was cool, and the sound of crickets created a calming symphony of nature.
For the umpteenth time, he accessed the system in his mind.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
This time, instead of feeling disappointed, Ye Lin felt something different. Something hard to explain. The system didn't speak, didn't provide guidance, didn't give him magical powers. But its presence felt... calming.
"You're like a mirror that never lies," he whispered to the system. "You show me who I really am without beautifying or worsening it."
He felt a strange sense of peace. All this time, he had always felt unsure of himself. Was he strong enough? Was he smart enough? Did he deserve a better life?
But the system showed him a simple fact: he was Ye Lin, 9 years old, an ordinary mortal without cultivation techniques. Nothing more, nothing less. And for some reason, that made him feel... accepted.
"Maybe this is how you work," he murmured with a faint smile. "Not to give power, but to give clarity."
The next day, Ye Lin woke up with a slightly different feeling. The system in his mind was still the same—still silent, still displaying the unchanging status. But his attitude toward the system had changed.
He no longer expected instant miracles or supernatural powers. Instead, he began to see the system as a part of himself. Like a new, invisible limb that was always there.
While working, helping Uncle Li herd his goats, Ye Lin would occasionally check the system casually. There was no more disappointment or frustration. Just a quiet curiosity.
"Lin'er," Uncle Li called, pointing to a goat that was straying from the flock. "Please chase that one, it will get lost."
Ye Lin ran to chase the goat nimbly. Although his body was thin, he was quite agile thanks to his habit of working hard every day. After successfully herding the goat back to the flock, he closed his eyes for a moment.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
"Still the same," he thought without disappointment. "But that's okay. One day it will change."
The following days passed with the same routine. Ye Lin worked hard from morning to night, helping anyone who needed his services. Every night, he would sit in front of his hut, staring at the stars and having a silent conversation with the silent system.
What he began to realize was that the system never judged. It never said that his status was not good enough or disappointing. The system only showed the facts honestly, without any emotion.
"You're like a good friend," he whispered to the system one night. "You don't talk much, but you're always there when I need you."
Although there was no answer, Ye Lin felt a faint warmth in his mind. As if the system did hear and understand, even if it couldn't respond.
One morning, while helping Aunt Chen clean her yard, Ye Lin overheard a conversation that surprised him.
"I heard a sect is coming to the next village next week," Aunt Chen said to her neighbor, Aunt Liu.
Ye Lin stopped sweeping and listened carefully.
"A cultivator sect?" Aunt Liu asked, her eyes gleaming. "For what?"
"To find new disciples, they say. They will hold a selection test for children under fifteen," Aunt Chen replied, sweeping dry leaves.
Ye Lin's heart began to pound. A cultivator sect! This was an opportunity he had never imagined before.
"But surely only children from rich families can participate," Aunt Liu said with a tone of envy. "There's no way they would accept village kids like us."
"That's true," Aunt Chen agreed. "Besides, cultivation is dangerous. It's better for our children to be farmers, to live a safe and peaceful life."
Ye Lin couldn't stop thinking about that conversation all day. His mind was filled with possibilities. Could he take the selection test? Was there a chance for an orphan like him?
That night, Ye Lin sat in front of his hut with mixed feelings. Hope, worry, and determination all mixed together in his heart.
He closed his eyes and looked at the system in his mind.
[Status]
Name: Ye Lin
Age: 9 Years
Cultivation Level: Mortal Realm
Techniques: None
"Mortal Realm," he murmured softly. "That means I can't cultivate yet. But maybe... maybe there's a way to change."
He stared at the stars in the sky, whispering to the silent system, "You didn't give me power. But you showed me who I am now. And maybe... one day you will show me who I've become."
The night wind blew softly, as if carrying a promise of change. In his heart, a decision had begun to form. That cultivator sect was an opportunity that might not come again.
"I have to try," he whispered with strengthening determination. "Even if I'm just an orphan who has nothing, I have to try."
In his mind, the system remained silent as usual. But for some reason, Ye Lin felt something vibrate faintly there. As if the system was also waiting for the right moment to show its true abilities or purpose.
That night, for the first time since getting the system, Ye Lin slept with a feeling of optimism. In his dream, he saw himself standing before people in cultivator robes, ready to face whatever challenges awaited him.
Unbeknownst to him, the system in his mind vibrated very subtly, as if responding to the determination that was beginning to crystallize in the heart of the nine-year-old orphan.
The journey to the world of cultivation was getting closer. And that simple system would become the silent witness to every step Ye Lin would take in finding his own path to the true Dao.