As Elysian began cultivating, his thoughts drifted to the day he first stepped into the realm of ascendancy. This particular chapter of his past remained etched in his memory, altering the course of his life forever. The memory was still so vivid, as if it were just yesterday. This did not surprise him since failure seemed inevitable at the time. Now that he had time to think about it, he realized that he was lucky to be able to cultivate when he started so late. Well, it wasn’t really just luck; it was also thanks to his master and his patience. 

 

‘What did my master say again? Take a moment to relax. Clear your mind. Breathe in. Breathe out. Feel the energy around you.’

 

As he had done in the past, Elysian prepared his mind for the struggle ahead, following the words of his master: he relaxed his body, closed his eyes, emptied his mind, and tried to sense prana around him. Suddenly, he froze. Unlike before, he was not worried about failing. However, he did not expect to sense the energy this quickly. It had taken him weeks before, but now he did it instantly. It felt as natural as breathing. It seemed not only his knowledge but also his experience had greatly helped him.

 

‘If this is the case, it will make my journey much easier and smoother than before. I also learned a lot that will surely improve my cultivation. This is truly exciting.’

 

After his initial surprise, he quickly refocused his mind on searching for prana within himself. Just like before, the orb of life was still as captivating as ever, attempting to lure him into her embrace. This time, however, he was prepared. Knowing what to expect, her temptation had no effect on him whatsoever. As he observed it with indifference, he quickly noticed that the orb was three times more intense than before. He was uncertain of the reason, but he had a nagging suspicion that something within him must have changed to cause such a deviation. While the orb of life continued expanding, he kept a watchful eye on it. When the orb reached the size of a head, he thought it would finally stop growing; however, it kept expanding until it was three times its previous size. He had already suspected this would happen when he saw the increased intensity earlier. Although he didn’t understand what was happening, this presented an opportunity that he would gladly accept.

Drawing from his previous experience, he instantly steeled his mind, putting all his will into compressing the orb of life. Despite knowing what to expect, it didn’t make the task any easier, especially with the energy now three times greater than before. However, he didn’t panic; instead, he remained calm and collected, focusing every ounce of his mind on compressing the energy. With the energy being three times larger than before, once it reached the size of his head, it gained stability. Although he could have stopped at that moment, he didn’t. Unsatisfied, he pressed on.

In the past, he always regretted that he hadn’t compressed the energy even further. This was one of the few opportunities to increase his capacity, so he willed himself to compress the energy even more. 

It was easier at first, but as he compressed it further, it became exponentially more difficult. When the energy was the size of his fist, he considered giving up; it was already a third of its supposed size. He felt what he achieved was enough. Yet, realizing he could only do this once made him hesitate. Deep within, he knew that he would regret it if he gave up now. So, he relaxed his body and calmed his mind as he readied himself. Bracing for a final push, he compressed the orb beyond what he thought was possible. He just gave it his all. Even on the verge of collapsing, he continued until the orb finally stopped getting any smaller. Suddenly, as he pushed it to its limit, the orb burst into a blinding light. Breathing heavily from exhaustion, he looked at the orb of life. A smile crossed his face when he saw that it was now the size of a marble, with a purple hue radiating around it.

 

‘Hmm, I’ve noticed that my capacity now is nine times greater compared to the past. I’m sure it’s not due to my age because it's been proven that capacity grows with age. However, getting older without any energy circulating in your pathway causes the meridian to stiffen until you can’t open any nodes at all. Fortunately, I was lucky that I was still able to open nodes in the past.

There are many prevailing theories regarding energy capacity. I have heard that parentage is very important. This has given rise to the theory that the physical body is a major factor in energy capacity, while others believe that it’s not the body but the soul. My current situation supports the latter. Theorists observe that the soul grows in relation to a person’s experiences. This is why capacity grows with age.’

 

After calming his mind, he slowly moved the energy to his head and gently placed it into his upper dantian. Just as before, his dantian immediately came alive, drawing prana around him and converting it into psion. As energy circulated through his pathways, the psion that entered his middle and lower dantian was converted into mana and qi. Similar to the past, the ratio of his mana or qi to his psion was still thirty percent, since he had chosen the shang dantian again. However, the amount of qi or mana had now increased ninefold, including psion. That was why, when he used psion to open the nodes in his head, he easily succeeded in opening three nodes consecutively. Just like in the past, it still hurts like hell. 

As Elysian opened his eyes, he was greeted by the crescent moon in the night sky. Admiring such a beautiful view, he slowly smiled, releasing his aura as it blazed in the cold night. Suddenly, something popped into his view, causing his mouth to instantly drop.

 

 

 

“What the hell!” Elysian shouted in surprise. “I stink? You’re the f*cking bastard that got us killed!”

“Young master, are you alright?” Bran asked, concerned, as he hurriedly went to him.

“Huh? I’m fine,” he replied. Just as he was about to shoo him away to start his tirade again, the servant suddenly covered his nose and said, “You stink!”

“What?” Elysian asked, coughing when he got a whiff of his own smell. “Yeah, you’re right. I stink really bad!” He suddenly let himself fall on his back while laughing like crazy.

 

‘Not only have I taken my first step in ascendancy in this lifetime, but I also retain the Eye of Sacraeon. This is a great day—a truly great day indeed!’

 

 

---

 

 

“What a busy day,” Elysian mused, leaning on the bathtub, pondering on what he knew about the artifact. He sighed, realizing he didn’t know much, or more precisely, no one really knew for sure. Even the one who asked him knew little about it, aside from legends and myths written in ancient texts. And those ancient texts were only from oral traditions and stories passed down from generation to generation.

 

‘Until Tariq told me that he found clues about the artifact, I didn’t even know that the Eye of Sacraeon really existed. I tried to find it in the past but failed.

Hmm, from the few stories I’ve read, the Eye of Sacraeon belongs to an ancient, one-eyed race that was gifted in the arcane. Some even said that they were gods, but some texts contradicted this; however, they all agreed that this race was extremely powerful and had immense magical prowess. In one legend, it was mentioned that the artifact was created by their most powerful king, who delved into the deepest mysteries of magic, forging a vessel of great power in order to save their race from impending doom. In another story, it was said that it was forged by their greatest craftsmen, creating a powerful artifact to help their king ascend into godhood. There were many of these kinds of stories; however, there were also some that speak about the use of rituals that sacrificed a huge portion of their race to forge this artifact. However, one thing they all agreed on was that this artifact was immensely powerful. If this is true…‘

 

Elysian was about to scream in happiness, thinking that he might become a god or some powerful being, before sighing.

 

‘I have a bad feeling about this. No one had really seen or used this artifact before because it was sealed. So, all those stories about its uses were mere speculation. Also, the stories and legends were initially passed down through oral tradition before being put into writing, making it hard to distinguish what’s real and what’s not. Well, not just hard—it’s impossible, given the scarcity of the source material.

What I’m certain of is that this artifact will not be that simple. If it grants immense power, what will be the cost?

Also, the artifact seems to be alive. If I remember correctly, the eye appears to be staring at us when we open the box. Also, when I saw the status window, the remarks section seemed to be talking to me. Yes, there’s no question that this artifact is alive. If this is the case, I’m in a lot of trouble. The artifact is inside me. I can’t just sell it or throw it away. F*ck! Is this thing going to take over me?

Hey, can you hear my thoughts?! 

….

I know you’re alive!

….

Hey, can you hear me?!

….

It seems it can’t. That’s a relief.

Hmm, how did I do that earlier?’

Elysian looked around him, nothing happened. He tried to remember what he did when he looked at that giant worm and the moon.

‘Hmm, what did I do?

……

Ah! I think I might’ve unconsciously put some energy into my eyes to improve my vision. Okay, let’s try it.’

 

Elysian grabbed a bar of soap and stared at it, slowly connecting one of his nodes to his eyes.

 

“What’s the problem with floral soap? It smells nice,” Elysian scoffed before his mouth just hung open, reading the final remark. “F*ck! Can you read my mind? Are you trying to take over my body? Hey, answer me!” When he tried to activate his skill on the soap again, nothing happened. So, he quickly took his underwear next to him and activated the skill.

 

 

 

Elysian gritted his teeth, taking a towel near him and activated the skill, but nothing happened. He tried a few more times with the same result. He even tried a different node, still nothing. He sighed. “It seems I can only use it three times. That’s its limit. Yes, it’s typical for items to have a cooldown. The problem is how long I will be able to use it again. Some items have only minutes between intervals, while others have weeks or even months. I need to take note of it to maximize its use,” he said quickly, turning his attention back to the last statement. “Do I need to worry? Hmm, hey, bastard! You’re just messing with me, right?” Elysian waited a moment for a reply, sighing. “It seems it can only reply to me if I use the skill.” He suddenly grinned. “Wouldn’t it be nice to just curse at the artifact when it can’t answer back at me?”

 

“What?” Elysian’s eyes suddenly widened, cursing when he realized what it meant. “F*ck you!”