The academy courtyard stretched wide beneath the morning sky.
Stone tiles formed a perfect square, two hundred zhang on each side. A formation array was carved into the ground, it's purpose to contain the fluctuations of the true will inside the formation.
Twenty disciples stood in loose rows, waiting..
Instructor Qing Yue emerged from the academy building, her robe flowing behind her as she walked. Her expression was composed and professional.
She stopped at the center of the courtyard.
"Today marks your first practical cultivation lesson. What you learn here will form the foundation of everything that follows."
Her voice carried clearly across the space.
The disciples stood at attention.
What none of them noticed were the five figures observing from concealed positions around the courtyard's perimeter.
Supreme Elder Feng stood on a second floor balcony. Elder Yun occupied a shadowed alcove to the east. Elder Bai watched from a third floor window. Elder Hua and Elder Wei had positioned themselves on opposite rooftops.
All of them were invisible to mortal eyes and lower realm cultivators.
All of them watched intently.
Qing Yue continued her instruction.
"Your spiritual root will play a significant role in determining your fighting style. As you cultivate and advance through the realms, your spiritual root will develop what we call paths."
She gestured, and a small blue flame appeared above her palm.
"Paths are manifestations of your understanding of the Dao. They are techniques, abilities, and characteristics unique to your cultivation journey. A fire attribute cultivator might develop a path focused on explosive destruction. Or purifying flames or something else entirely. The direction depends on comprehension, not just the attribute."
The flame vanished.
"Today, you will learn the first step. Drawing true will into your body."
Several disciples leaned forward slightly, attention sharpening.
"Cultivation methods differ from person to person. Your spiritual root's quality, your natural affinity, your mental disposition, all of these factors influence the process. Therefore, I cannot give you a single universal technique. Instead, I will show you my method, and you must adapt it to yourselves."
Qing Yue moved to an open space.
"Watch carefully."
She sat down in a cross legged position, back straight, hands resting on her knees.
Her eyes closed.
For three seconds, nothing happened.
Then a faint glow began to manifest around her body. Light blue, gentle, like moonlight filtering through water. It pulsed softly, expanding and contracting in rhythm with her breathing.
The disciples stared.
Some with shock. Others with admiration. A few with barely concealed envy.
The glow intensified for another ten seconds, then faded as Qing Yue opened her eyes and stood smoothly.
"That is the basic process. Sit. Clear your mind. Imagine drawing true will from the environment toward your body. The specific visualization method you use doesn't matter. Some imagine breathing it in. Others see it as light being absorbed. Find what works for you."
She gestured to the courtyard.
"Begin."
The disciples immediately started moving, finding spots to sit. Several dropped into meditation positions right away, eager to attempt.
Zhen Wu remained standing.
His eyes swept across the other disciples, observing their attempts.
One young man sat rigid, face scrunched in concentration. Nothing happened.
A girl nearby was breathing heavily, as if trying to physically inhale spiritual energy. No glow appeared.
Another disciple had his eyes squeezed shut so tightly his face had turned red. Still nothing.
Minutes passed.
Not a single student succeeded in manifesting even the faintest trace of spiritual energy.
Zhen Wu continued watching, making no move to sit.
Qing Yue noticed.
Her gaze fixed on him, curious but not hostile.
In the hidden observation positions, the elders took note as well.
"Why isn't he attempting?" Elder Yun murmured to himself.
"Arrogance?" Elder Wei suggested quietly. "Thinks he's above the exercise?"
Supreme Elder Feng said nothing, simply watching.
Elder Bai's eyes never left Zhen Wu's figure.
More time passed.
Five minutes became ten.
The other disciples were growing frustrated. Several had tried multiple times, changing positions, adjusting breathing patterns. Nothing worked.
Then Zhen Wu moved.
He walked to an empty section of the courtyard and sat down in a cross legged position. His back straightened naturally. His hands came to rest on his knees.
His eyes closed.
Three seconds of absolute stillness.
Then it began.
A golden glow erupted around Zhen Wu's body.
Not faint nor gentle.
Instead, it was thick and radiant. Overwhelming to the eye.
The golden light formed a dome around him, three zhang in diameter. Within the dome, golden clouds swirled and churned, flowing in complex patterns. They moved outward from his body, then back inward, like breathing lungs of pure spiritual energy.
The courtyard went silent.
Every disciple stopped what they were doing and stared.
Mouths hung open. Eyes went wide.
"Impossible..."
"How is he doing that?"
"It's so bright!"
"I've never seen anything like it!"
The reactions varied, but shock was universal. Some looked amazed. Others envious. A few seemed genuinely happy for him, their faces lighting up with vicarious pride.
In the hidden positions, the elders reacted.
Elder Yun's eyebrows shot up.
Elder Hua leaned forward, studying the phenomenon intently.
Elder Wei scowled, his face darkening.
Elder Bai's expression remained neutral, but his fingers gripped the windowsill tightly. His gaze was fixed, unblinking, consuming every detail of Zhen Wu's cultivation display.
Supreme Elder Feng finally spoke, his voice carrying just enough to reach the other elders.
"Truly exceptional! Zhen Wu is a very talented individual, truly! This level of manifestation on a first attempt... Even some Nascent Soul cultivators produce less visible results."
Qing Yue stepped forward, her professional composure cracking slightly to show genuine surprise.
Then she recovered, schooling her features back to calmness.
"Excellent work, Zhen Wu. Your affinity with true will is remarkable."
She turned to address the other disciples.
"Do not let this discourage you. Even I did not succeed on my first attempt. Cultivation is a journey of ten thousand steps. Some take their first step quickly. Others take time. Neither path is wrong."
Her words were kind, but several disciples still looked deflated.
Inside the golden dome, Zhen Wu's mind was racing.
'This... this speed...'
His breathing had become slightly rough, uneven.
'Even in my previous life, my cultivation was never this fast. The lower realms have less ambient true will than the upper realms. The density should be lower here. So why...'
He could feel it. The true will flooding into his body, filling his meridians at an impossible rate. Each breath drew in quantities that should have taken minutes and minutes to accumulate.
'Why is it so easy? Why is it so...'
Ecstasy.
That was the only word for it.
Pure, overwhelming joy at the sensation of power flowing through him. His eyes stung behind closed lids. He was on the verge of tears from the sheer intensity of it.
His breathing grew rougher.
Then he noticed something.
The cultivation efficiency was dropping.
The moment his emotional state became unstable, the flow of true will began to decrease. Not by much, but measurably.
He forcefully suppressed the ecstasy, pushing it down with mental discipline honed over centuries. His breathing steadied, his mind as a result cleared.
The flow rate increased again immediately.
Qing Yue's gaze had shifted.
She was no longer looking at Zhen Wu.
Instead, her eyes had moved to a seemingly empty section of the academy's second floor balcony.
Her expression was neutral, but there was knowledge in her eyes.
She knew the elders were watching.
On the rooftop, Elder Wei turned to Elder Hua, his voice low and bitter.
"Exceptional talent. Of course. The boy stumbles into supreme quality spiritual root and suddenly he's the sect's greatest treasure."
Elder Hua's response was measured.
"Talent is talent, Elder Wei. Whether stumbled into or earned, the result is the same. The sect benefits."
Elder Wei scoffed but said nothing more.
In his window position, Elder Bai continued staring at Zhen Wu.
His expression was gentle, grandfatherly, benevolent.
But his fingers had gone white from gripping the windowsill.
'That spiritual root and that cultivation speed...'
He smiled softly to himself.
Supreme Elder Feng observed everything with cold calculation. The boy's talent. The other elders' reactions.
'Everything proceeds as expected.'
The lesson concluded an hour later.
Most disciples had managed to produce faint glimmers of true will by the end. Small victories, but victories nonetheless.
Zhen Wu's golden dome had faded thirty minutes into the session when Qing Yue instructed him to stop and conserve his energy.
As the other disciples filed out, Qing Yue approached Zhen Wu.
"You'll stay for your private session."
He nodded.
The courtyard emptied.
Once they were alone, Qing Yue gestured to the center of the space.
"Cultivate again. Same method."
Zhen Wu sat and entered the meditative state.
The golden dome manifested again, though slightly smaller this time. His meridians had already absorbed significant true will during the group lesson. The capacity was reduced.
Qing Yue watched for several minutes.
Then she spoke.
"Stop."
The dome faded. Zhen Wu opened his eyes.
"Tell me." she said carefully. "Do you feel any resonance with your spiritual root? Any sense of what attributes it might develop?"
Zhen Wu considered the question.
Truthfully, he answered.
"No. I feel the true will entering my body. I feel my meridians filling. But there's no... connection. No understanding of what attributes my spiritual root possesses."
Qing Yue frowned slightly.
"That's unusual. Most cultivators with high grade spiritual roots feel some instinctive pull toward their attribute. Fire cultivators feel warmth. Water cultivators feel fluidity. You feel nothing?"
"Nothing."
She fell silent, thinking.
"Let's try something. Focus inward. Don't cultivate. Just observe your spiritual root directly. Tell me what you sense."
Zhen Wu closed his eyes again.
His spiritual sense turned inward, examining the space where his spiritual root resided.
He saw... something.
It was difficult to describe. Not a shape. Not a color. More like a void that somehow held substance. An absence that was simultaneously a presence.
"I see emptiness." he said slowly. "But it's not nothing. It's... dense emptiness. Like concentrated absence."
Qing Yue's frown deepened.
"That doesn't correspond to any known attribute."
They tried several more exercises.
Attempting to manifest spiritual energy externally. Trying different visualization techniques. Even attempting basic techniques from various elemental schools to see if any resonated.
Nothing worked.
Two hours passed.
Finally, Qing Yue shook her head.
"We'll continue tomorrow. Perhaps as your cultivation advances, your understanding will deepen. For now, focus on building your foundation."
"Understood, Instructor."
Zhen Wu stood and bowed respectfully.
He left the courtyard and exited the academy.
Zhao Lin materialized beside him as always, falling into step.
After fifty zhang, Zhen Wu spoke.
"Brother Zhao, may I make a request?"
"Of course, young master."
"I'd like to make friends among the disciples. But with you walking beside me in guard robes... people are intimidated. They won't approach me."
He turned to look at Zhao Lin directly.
"Could you watch from a distance instead? Still protect me, but less visibly?"
Zhao Lin considered this for three seconds.
Then he nodded.
"I understand, young master. Your social development is important. I'll maintain surveillance from concealed positions."
"Thank you, Brother Zhao."
Zhao Lin's form shimmered and vanished.
Zhen Wu continued walking alone.
After another hundred zhang, he spoke inwardly.
'System. Why are my spiritual root's attributes unknown? How can I discover them?'
Text appeared in his vision.
[QUERY RECEIVED]
[ANALYSIS: Spiritual root classification requires sufficient cultivation advancement. As host's cultivation rises, understanding of spiritual root attributes will naturally increase.]
[ESTIMATED REVELATION POINT: Core Formation Realm]
Zhen Wu's steps slowed.
'Core Formation? That's two full realms away.'
But something bothered him about that answer.
'In my previous life, the moment I awakened, I had a special connection with my spiritual root. I knew its attributes immediately. It was wind, I had an unmistakable feeling.'
He continued walking.
'Why is this time different?'
[...]
The system remained silent.
No response appeared.
Zhen Wu frowned.
'Interesting.'
His mind worked through possibilities.
'Could it be because of the formation? The Primordial Awakening Formation assisted with the re-awakening process. Perhaps that artificial intervention disrupted the natural connection? But Qing Yue's comments showed me that it couldn't be the case.'
He walked another fifty zhang, thinking.
'Or is it because this was a re-awakening, not an initial awakening? The original Zhen Wu's spiritual root was destroyed and rebuilt. Maybe that process severed the instinctive bond...'
Another thought occurred to him.
'In the immortal realm, ambient true will density is high enough that people awaken naturally. No formation required. The awakening happens organically when the true will triggers a reaction with the soul. But here in the lower realm, the density of true will is too low. Formations are necessary to concentrate enough true will for awakening.'
He paused.
'So was my spiritual root shaped by the formation rather than by natural resonance? Is that why it feels... artificial?'
The system offered no response.
Zhen Wu sighed helplessly.
'If this continues I will have to wait until the core formation realm to obtain any answers.'
He looked up and realized he'd nearly reached his home.
The Wu family courtyard came into view.
Through the open gate, he could see his father and mother moving about, packing belongings into wooden crates.
Wu Chen looked excited, his movements energetic as he wrapped dishes in cloth.
Wu Mei was more reserved, her expression tense. She kept stopping to look around the courtyard, as if memorizing it.
'She doesn't like change.' Zhen Wu observed. 'Comfortable with familiar surroundings. The move to the inner sect is making her anxious.'
He stepped through the gate.
Wu Chen looked up immediately, face brightening.
"Son! Perfect timing! Come help your old father with these cultivation manuals. I can never remember which ones are which."
Zhen Wu smiled warmly.
"Of course, Father."
He moved to help, his mind still turning over the mystery of his spiritual root.