Kaizen woke up the next morning fully refreshed, having slept almost an entire day.
Time to explore my options for leaving this planet and reaching hers.
Reuniting with his partner was one of the few reasons he didn't resent this timeline reset, even if it was technically a punishment.
Obviously though, I need to get stronger first. Only the highest kind of teleportation can allow a weak body like that of a rank one to teleport safely.
As far he knew, those kinds of teleportation arrays were researched much later. The ones active in this era weren't so lenient on the physique of travellers, so only those at higher ranks could travel safely.
Kaizen stood up, freshened up, had a hearty breakfast, and left his room.
It was the first time he got a good look at his residence since he left through his door this time.
It was a two storey building equipped with top notch medical facilities, with the other rooms for his guards to stay in. One of them would be occasionally emptied out for his brother and mother to stay in when they paid him a visit.
The guards informed him that the mother of this body would be arriving that afternoon. That gave him only a few hours to gather what he needed before he returned.
As he walked amidst the crowded streets, Kaizen's thoughts couldn't help but wander around.
Is this my real identity?
He wondered.
In his past life, he'd known no such thing as family.
Memory had never been his weakness; once he rose high enough in cultivation, his mind sharpened to the point he could recall scenes from infancy with perfect clarity.
And in those earliest memories, he was alone, lying in a hospital crib, later raised in an orphanage.
When his capabilities grew, he tried tracking down his origins, but came out empty handed all the time.
The farthest he reached was a middle aged woman who admitted him to the hospital.
She claimed to have found him in an empty house which was set to be demolished to make space for a noble's estate. She was one of the workers tasked with checking all the nearby houses.
Could this be my true identity even in my past life?
This coma…was it really just that?
Or some strange, drawn-out condition that took decades to resolve?
But then, that doesn't explain why I was still an infant decades later in past life while I am already a young man in this life.
How was I able to live that long? And reverse my aging?
Does this have something to do with the fact that I have a time based bloodline?
It wasn't without basis that Kaizen thought this could be his true identity.
This body was awfully similar to his past life's body down to the last hair.
Add to that his unclear origins in past life.
Could that be a mere coincidence?
I'll think about it later.
Kaizen drew a silver coin from his pocket and held it out to a young boy wandering the street.
Naturally, the money came from the Fourth Prince. He intended to cross check the general information he was given.
True family or not, the instincts forged over countless years weren't slipping away any time soon.
"What do you want to know about?"
The boy eyed the silver coin like a starving cat watching a roasted fish.
"Hm… a rundown of the major powers, and how to leave this planet," Kaizen said. "Don't try anything clever. I'll know. Lie, and you don't get the coin."
The boy swallowed, nodded, and took a moment to gather his thoughts.
"If we take The Aeonhart Empire as the benchmark of a major power, there are seven.
"Naturally, the Aeonhart Empire is one. The others are the Moriem Empire, the Wildlands, the Krick Merchant Clan, the Church of the Unfinished Grace, the Temple of Perpetual Witness, and the Cosmic University.
"The Aeonhart Empire's royal family is known for their time based cultivation skills. Their ancestral artifact is known to control time itself, but it has never been used."
Kaizen's eyes narrowed at that. This was not mentioned in the information given by the Fourth Prince.
Probably just a rumor. If there really was a time-controlling artifact, it wouldn't still be sitting on some random empire in a backwater world — it'd be in the hands of a god by now.
At this point of time, all five classes were still in their beginning stages, the pioneers mapping out the path ahead bravely as the threat of gods and ghosts loomed over their heads.
If there truly existed such an artifact, some measly empire which housed rank three, or at most, a rank four powerhouse would never be able to keep it to themselves.
As to how he knew about the general power level of the empire? It was mentioned in the information booklet given by the fourth prince.
The boy continued, unaware of Kaizen's thoughts.
"The Moriem Empire's royal family is known for their mind based cultivation skills. Unlike our emperor, the ruler of The Moriem Empire is the strongest person in their region.
"The Wildlands isn't just one major power, but a collection of tribes which border our empire. Due to constant infighting, they aren't too dangerous. But when they run out of resources, they unite and raid our borderlands."
"The Krick merchant clan is proficient in alchemy, artifact refining, and creating array formations, therefore they are sufficiently wealthy and capable of protecting themselves even with a portable base. Their whereabouts are often unknown.
"The Church of the Unfinished Grace, and The Temple of Perpetual Witness serve the God of Incomplete and God of Information respectively. Obviously, they are just branches established on this planet.
"Their main purpose is to kill the ghosts, therefore they very rarely have conflicts with the other powers. Not to mention no one would offend them either.
"Lastly, The Cosmic University. You see, this one is a bit of an oddball."