"Little Feng! Tonight, Your father, I will teach you about cultivation."

Tian Lang began to explain the little Tian Feng in his hand. "Cultivation is an arduous task. To cultivate, one must have innate talent and potential. To progress further, one must have a strong determination. But that's not enough, you also need to have a path."

Tian Lang's voice was melodious and soothing. It actually felt nice to hear. Somehow it makes one remember it in their heart. This is different from his usual voice.

"A path?" Tian Feng asked in a low voice.

Tian Lang continued, "That's right! A path is a way that a cultivator has chosen to progress. It cannot be changed and It must be true to oneself otherwise it will hinder your future progress." He paused for a moment before continues. 

"Little Feng, you don't have to worry about that for the time being. First, let's see if you can sense atmospheric energy. We call this energy 'Qi' which means vital energy. There's no technique for this. You have to depend on yourself."

"Close your eyes! Feel it!"

Tian Feng is lamenting in his heart. [A path! It's the same as all those novels that I read. It's not that hard to understand. However, just like those novels, my father didn't tell me the specific procedure at all. How am I even starting to sense Qi?]

Noticing that his son expression, Tian Lang seemed a bit helpless. "Little Feng! It's not that I want to make thing hard for you. Alright! I'll tell you about my experiences when I first start to cultivate. It's the most I can do for you. I hope it can help. When I first start to cultivate..."

He went on and on about his experiences while cultivating. Tian Feng was listening attentively but he couldn't make out any useful information at all.

After a long while...

"Alright, that's all. Now, It's your turn to try it out". Although he wanted to teach his son to cultivate quick, there's nothing he can do in this situation. He also noticed that his son doesn't seem to understand anything at all. But he can only hope for the best.

Tian Feng reluctantly sits down in the lotus position with his father's help. 

In fact, this position is not necessary but he was influenced by many martial dramas that he watched in his previous life.

After which, he closed his eyes and tries to feel his body and the surrounding.

After some time has passed...

[Nothing, nothing...I don't sense anything different at all. Where is that energy???] 

Tian Feng was crying inside his heart right now. But he still maintained his calm look on the outside. 

[Could it be that I can't cultivate? Could it be that I have no talent for it? Isn't this where a system supposed to appear?]

It's almost midnight. His father doesn't look too well either. "Little Feng, let's go to bed. We'll try again tomorrow. It's normal to fail at first try."

---

He immediately fell asleep as soon as he got to bed. Even if he has a mind of an adult, his body is still of a baby.

In the morning, his mother comes in to feed him as usual. 

"Mother, are you also a cultivator?"

"Of course! Although I'm not as strong as your father, at least I can extend my life to 100 years."

After answering a few more questions, she left.

He stayed in his room trying to sense the energy but there's nothing. He's become agitated. If he can't cultivate, he'll be bullied by others. No need to think about protecting his friends, he might not be able to protect even himself.

Last night, his father told him that most people would be able to sense Qi on the first try and that some genius can have a breakthrough to the next level in one go.

"Is there something I missed? or perhaps I do it wrong somewhere?"

He kept thinking about this for the whole morning. In the afternoon, when his mother came to find him. She was scared out of her wit because her son now looked so pale and weak. 

She immediately asked him about what happened worriedly. Tian Feng told her everything.

After she learned about the matter, she hugged him and said softly
"Little Feng! Even if you can't cultivate, your mother will still love you. Maybe your body is still too young. When you grow older, you can try it again. Mother believes that you will be able to cultivate and become a great person in the future."

What he doesn't know is, he can't cultivate because he's actually a young man inside a baby body. He already lost his baby talent for leaning thing. His mind already got influenced by the outside world.

In that evening, he has decided to ask his parent if they have any book. He had spent that afternoon thinking about what to do and recalled that knowledge is also one kind of power. 

He used to love studying. He loves books. There's only one problem, he doesn't have a good memory. 

When he was 15 years old, he underwent a heartbreak experience. He was so stressed that it actually affected his brain. He started to become forgetful day after day. But now he was still a baby and his brain hasn't damaged yet. 

[Maybe I still can change fix my memory problem.]

His parent didn't say anything negative. After dinner, his mother brought him some books for kids.

He opened one of the books and started reading. YEAH, he started reading in front of his mother.

Sitting by his bedside, his mother is now staring at him with a shocked face. "You... you know how to read?" 

Earlier, she was about to read them for him. But who could have known that a baby can read by himself?

Hearing his mother question, he was stunned. He was so agitated that he totally forgot that he was a baby and a baby is not supposed to be able to read a book. 

Previously when he talked with his mother, he didn't tell her that he comes from another world yet. It was not that he didn't want to but he didn't know how to start talking about it.

Knowing that his secret can't be kept anymore. He decided to tell her about his other life. Whether she believes him or not doesn't matter anymore. Since he can't even cultivate, he started to expect less and less with this new life. 

The effects of instant gratification haven't worn off yet. One failure is enough to make him depressed.

He's actually a good liar. However, he doesn't like to lie to people closed to him. Lying to them make him feel really bad.

"Actually, I have this memory..." He began to tell her about everything from when he first came into this world and his life on Earth.

"No wonder why you can speak so maturely..." said his mother believed in her child completely.

Not daring to meet his mother's gaze, he lowered his head. 

"Mother, would you believe me?"

His mother patted his head and smile. "Of course! I believe in you. I'm your mother after all. In fact, It's actually easier to believe in this than to believe that a baby can read without learning."

A moment later, she stood up and walked away. "I'll bring some other books." then she left.

Tian Feng was in a daze. He didn't expect his mother to believe him completely. His heart felt warm and guilty. 

[In this life, I'll make my parent happy.] He firmly thought to himself and made a silent decision.

After waiting for a while, his mother came back with a basket of books. It's all necessary knowledge about the world. 

There's history, geography, math, literature... just like school. The smell of the books filled the room. Tian Feng felt invigorated at the sight and smell of the books.

If he didn't love books this much, earlier he wouldn't let down his guard and read in front of his mother.

His mother was taking out those books one by one, allowing him to see the title. One by one, there were 120 books. There are all kinds of book laying on the floor of his room but there's one book that caught his attention.

Ignoring that book, he picked one history book and started reading. After he read for several pages, his mother told him to sleep and not to stay up late. He agreed and went to sleep.

He didn't pick the book that caught his attention first because it's a cultivation book "Steel Body". He can't even walk yet so he decided to take a look later when he can actually cultivate.

10 months later...

Tian Feng has almost finished all the 120 books. The total amount of books had increased to 130. There are two books about the academy and the rest is cultivation books.

As he read a lot of books, he came to know that while the geniuses can simply success at their first try in cultivation. The same can't be said about most of the ordinary people.

He had an idea that if he could somehow get to know more about what is actually cultivation, he might just be able to sense that atmospheric energy. It was hard to sense something you can't even imagine in the first place.

As such, last week, he asked his mother to buy cultivation books.

Today is his 2 years old birthday. Those books have become his birthday present. Last night, his mother already gave him the books but unfortunately, she also told him to sleep and read them later.

Normally, he would be able to read them by the morning inside his room but ever since he can walk some time ago, his mother started bringing him to the restaurant every day so that she can help out with the works there. 

If it was before, she wouldn't bring him there even if he can walk but now that she knows that he's actually a young man inside, she didn't have to worry too much.

His mother already told his father about everything that night and they both believe him without question. They only said, "No matter what, you are our son, be it your previous life or this life."

His father didn't even have the slightest hint of disappointment. It was something that he didn't expect. 

Riding on the motorbike, it didn't take long before they reached the restaurant. It felt great to ride this motorbike with his parents again. He remembers those times from when he was young. 

He would always sit in the front seat until he couldn't sit there anymore. It was his favourite spot because he can see everything.

In the restaurant, he's able to observe many things. This is a world of cultivation but no one is walking around with a sword or any weapon. It wasn't a surprise as he had read about it before.

This is a rather peaceful era. The civilization is under control. Compared to what he read from those novels on Earth, this world is rather modern.

The foods in the restaurant looked good. There are many kinds of wines. It seems good just by smelling, he can't wait to taste them. 

His father didn't cook by himself as much anymore as he hired a chef for the restaurant when he was born. His mother was only responsible for taking bills and orders. Most of the time, she would stay by the cashier table because that's where Tian Feng is.

Except for sitting in the restaurant next to his father's subordinates, he didn't go anywhere else. He's an introvert by nature. He only cared about his books and only looked around once in a while.

Tian Feng was a bit restless today as he finally decided to read that book by tonight. "Steel Body"

Day and night exchanged place. It's already time to close the restaurant. At night, it wasn't so dark on the road. There are lanterns that lid the way. 

Tian Feng enjoyed the cold breeze that brushes his face as he's going back home.

After dinner, he walked toward that book and picked it up. At that moment, a series of notifications ring up in his mind.

"Ding...World Data initialization completed"

"Ding...data is analyzed"

"Ding...scanning host body"

.
.
.

"Ding...scanning completed and integrating"

"Ding...host obtained 'Steel Body' Skill Book"

"Ding...loading interface, please wait..."

Waking up in a new world, Tian Feng finds himself become a 1-year-old child once again. Along with this weird phenomenon, a seemingly omnipotent system awaken within him. 

To become the most potent being, to live without regret; Possessing this OP system, he thought it would be smooth sailing. Little did he know that it couldn’t be further from the truth.

This is a melancholy story of a man and his companions, adventuring from one world to another; Discovering the meaning of life and regret.

"I'M done. Can you see everything?" Argent asked her sister who was on the other end of the line.
 She was currently at a corner of a narrow alley. She picked that place so no one could see her using her light brain. She just finished putting up the hidden cameras at the northern area of the city. With this, Argent finally had the whole city under surveillance. Well, not really the whole city since she couldn't really set a camera inside the much more important establishments. Like the Apostolic Palace for example. She could but it would be too risky. She didn't want to do something that might ruin her plan. At least not until the day of the festival.
 "Yes, I can see everything clearly," answered her sister's voice.
 Aurum was inside her room at Casa Royale, holding her sPhone in one hand and a rectangular device similar to an sPhone but much bigger, that her brother called a tablet, on the other. According to her brother, this tablet was connected to all the cameras she set up all over the city. Using this, they could monitor the things that's happening in the city while they're here. Maybe if they're lucky they could even find the whereabouts of that elf much faster thru this. 
 While talking, her gaze accidentally flashed to a small, unassuming violet stone attached on the wall atop the bed. Because of her brother's suspicion that Casa Royale had a way to monitor its guests, they swept their rooms as early as the first night and did find a magical tool. It's the stone. It's some kind of tool that could record every sound in the room. That's why they never had a meeting in any of their rooms.
 Really, these people from the Temple were nothing but a bunch of snakes who couldn't even respect the privacy of anyone.
 "You're really okay just staying in your room this day?" Argent asked. 
 Her sister volunteered to stay in her room to watch the tablet connected to the cameras Argent set up. While Clay, to her knowledge, went out to search additional information about the elf if ever in the off chance that they couldn't find him in the auction.
 "Yes, Brother. I'll be fine here," Aurum reassured her brother.
 "Okay, then."
 Argent ended the call. She was glad that Aurum seemed to be back to normal. Looked like her worry was unfounded after all. She walked out of the alley. Although she finished putting up the cameras in this area, she hadn't set up the much more important device involved in her plan. She needed to be much more careful in setting that up. She's not in a hurry though. She just have to make sure that she would be able to set it around the Holy Temple before the Festival of Creation.
 For now, she's relatively free. So, she's going to do one of the things she had planned to do the moment they got here - read the books in the Temple Library. She heard it had the oldest collection of history books in the world. She might be able to find some of the important information she needed there. 
 Argent continued to walk and then stopped in front of a building that looked like a Greek pantheon. A very big pantheon. She walked inside the building and she immediately noticed how much bigger it was inside. It had five floors. There weren't that many people around. Most of them were just young priests, maybe some were even priests-in-training. Everywhere she looked, all she could see were books, books, and more books. She inhaled deeply, smelling the scent of old paper. 
 A small smile crossed her lips. Ever since she came to this world, this had been one of the smell she came to love. Probably because her original world didn't have much physical books to begin with. Long before she was born, almost all the books had been turn into a digital copy. Paper became a rare commodity and having a physical book became some kind of luxury.
 She walked towards the front desk where an old man wearing a priest's robe was sitting. He's probably the chief librarian here. 
 "Good day," she greeted. "Where could I find books about history?"
 The old man looked up at her. "It's rare for a young person like yourself to visit an old place like this," he said with a kind and gentle smile on his face.
 Argent was quite surprised. This was probably the first priest of the Temple she encountered that didn't seem like a scum of the earth. The old man genuinely looked like he's truly kind and gentle. Maybe that's why he's here looking after all these books instead of being a Bishop or an Archbishop.
 "I love reading books," she just said.
 "Then you can read all the books you like here. At least before five in the afternoon that is. Because that's the time the library closes," the priest said with a little bit of teasing tone. "The history books are in the second floor. But I suggest you check the card catalog over there first," he said pointing to a row of cabinets with small shelves. "It would be much easier for you to look for the books that you wanted if you check there first."
 Argent nodded. "Thank you."
 She walked towards the card catalog and searched for the locations of books related to Mythos continent and the war that happened 500 years ago. Because the cards were arranged alphabetically, it wasn't that hard for her to look for the books she wanted. After remembering the locations of the books written on the cards, she climbed the stairs towards the second floor. There were shelves after shelves of books. It took a while before she found the books she wanted. Then she took them to one of the tables so she could immediately read them. 
 She first read the book titled, 'Mythos: A History'. According to the book, Mythos was a continent personally crafted by Gaia. That's why the three races born there were the ones who received most of Gaia's blessings. The dragons with their unimaginable power and bravery, the elves with their beauty and wisdom, and the beastkins with their strength and their desire for victory.
 Before the continent closed off, Mythos was the center of trade in the world. Mainly because they have a lot of resources not available anywhere else and the three races could turn resources into wonderful magical tools. They lived peacefully with humans. Although their population was infinitely smaller, no one could doubt their power. The three races ruled over the world.
 The same things were said in two other books she read. 
 Then she went off and read about the war that happened 500 years ago. In Argent's opinion, most of the things happening to her and her family right now was closely related to the event that happened then. All the three books she found told of one thing. That the war was caused by someone called the Silver Witch.
 She instigated the three races into fighting with humans. She used the weird contraptions she made into seducing the three races to be on her side. Then at the end, with the lead of the Temple, the humans won. They burnt the witch alive and the three races closed off themselves inside the Mythos continent.
 But were all of these true?
 She remembered what the remnant of the dragon king said to her that the reason the war started was because of the obsession of a certain demon. That was so far off from the details she read from these books about the war. Unless the demon was that Silver Witch. Which she doubted.
 There was something about this Silver Witch. Something that the Temple was hiding. She's like a sword hanging over the head of the Temple. Like a time bomb just waiting to explode. If not, then they wouldn't hate Silver Corporation just for the reason that Argent had the same silver hair as that so-called witch. 
 Argent closed off the last book. They said that history was written by the winners. So she couldn't really trust the things written in this book. Especially about that Silver Witch.
 So what exactly was the truth?
 That's the only thing running inside her mind even after she left the library.


She's a known genius of the 31st century. But due to humans' endless greed, she was forced to end her life. The moment she decided to die, she already accepted that it would be the end. But miraculously, she survived and woke up in a completely different world.

A world filled with magic and creatures that she thought only existed from myths and legends. The people there have abilities called 'Gifts'.

There's only one problem tho. She's now inhabiting a different body. And that body belongs to a... young duke?


Please don't review this story and then give it a low rating when you haven't even read a single chapter. If you're only doing that for the exp, then please, don't do it on my novel's expense. Thank you. :)



Cover art belongs to the respective owner.



Twitter: @tyramisu_wn
Discord: Tyramisu#9858

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The first page was the title page, empty and white as snow, with only these eight words written in dark ink. They were abnormally vivid, such that anyone who opened this book would not be able to miss them.

If a normal person were to open this book, they would assuredly begin to carefully consider what sort of meaning was hidden in these words. Then, with an understanding of these eight words, they would continue to read. But Chen Changsheng was different from the rest. He did not turn to the next page, instead standing up and walking to the bookshelves, seeking out several other books on Purification. After quickly flipping through them, he realized that the title pages of all these books also contained these eight words. After this, he sat back down and placed all of his mind on the pages of the book, forgetting everything else.

The words of On Purification were very simple. As he attentively read it, it didn't take long before he had finished reading the first chapter. This chapter was concerned with how one should nurture their spiritual sense. He did not stop here to think or to try, but continued reading. The following chapters were also gradually noted down in his mind. The primary topics of these chapters were how to nurture the spiritual sense, search for one's Fated Star, and how to draw starlight into the body.

He needed only one hour to finish reading it. He then closed the books, closed his eyes, and began to think.

After a dozen or so breaths, he opened his eyes, opened the book once more, and began to read.

He needed even less time to finish than the first. In the time needed for several incense sticks to burn, he had finished reading.

He then once more closed his eyes to contemplate the contents of the books.

After a few breaths of time, he opened his eyes and began to read once more.

As he repeated this procedure, the sunlight spilling in from the window was as fierce as ever.

He closed On Purification for the last time and opened it no more.

He took out a brush and ink and, without opening the book, began to record from the memories in his mind his thoughts from his readings.

It didn't take long before the paper was densely covered in words.

The instant he placed the brush on the inkstone, all the contents of On Purification were remembered in his mind like they had been carved in stone.

Crucially, this was not rote memorization, but true understanding.

This was Chen Changsheng's reading method.

This method was very special, the precious treasure he and Senior Yu Ren had obtained after ten-odd bitter years of reading books. Although the old temple of Xining Village did not seem very remarkable, the books contained within were as boundless as the sea. If one wanted to memorize so many books in the shortest time possible, one naturally required a very special ability.

With this reading method, one did not need to read a book until it was on the verge of falling apart—in reality, the vast majority of the books in Xining Village's old temple were like new, but the contents of these books had all been completely memorized by the two.

The most important phase of this method was the final step of notetaking. Whether these notes were taken down on paper or remembered in the mind, these notes were the final sorting and confirmation for the entire session of reading, and it was only after completing this step that the reader could say that they had taken all the contents of a book and made it into their own knowledge.

To finish reading On Purification and close the book was naturally not an end. Learning and constant review could be done in the mind and in notebooks, but what was the goal of reading and study? It was practice, and his goal in reading On Purification was so that he could succeed in Purification and begin to cultivate.

The first step of Purification was to condense one's spiritual sense. The spiritual sense was a human's mental strength. To explain it in more everyday terms, it was 'thought'. As long as the idea one thought was intense enough, if one concentrated enough, thoughts could transform into a sort of strength.

It did not sound difficult, as if one only needed to do the utmost to crease their brows into mountain valleys and then be able to freely travel across the magnificent mountains and rivers of their imagination, but the fact was that it wasn't this easy at all. This was because whether or not one could form a spiritual sense was completely dependent on the strength of one's soul. The strength of one's soul was purely a matter of innate talent, nothing to do with effort. No matter how much an ordinary person worked, could his soul be stronger than the reincarnation of the Heavenly Phoenix?

Chen Changsheng had prepared for cultivation for many years. To be more precise, from the moment that peculiarity with his body appeared at the age of ten, he had been silently waiting for that day to come. He knew that there was a problem with his meridians, the illness his master said he had: his nine meridians were severed and could not connect, so his soul could not circulate through his body and could only be forced out with his sweat. Although after the age of ten, his master had used medicines to suppress his illness, preventing the continued loss of his soul's essence, it was still a problem. Otherwise, why would that black Sensory Stone in the Heavenly Dao Academy's assessment have failed to sense the slightest spiritual sense in his body?

If the soul was not strong enough, how could one condense the spiritual sense?

Without spiritual sense, how could there be dispersion?

This first step of Purification—how should he take it?

He did not feel disappointment like those other people who found out that they had no hope of cultivating, let alone despair.

He firmly believed that countless years ago, there must have been countless incredibly intelligent people that had resolved this problem, because there were many people like him. In the books of the Daoist Canon, he had read accounts of how these disappointed people would find some genius method and thus become peerless experts, like Wang Zhice for example. However, he was not prepared to work in this way because he had never found a case in the Daoist Canon similar to the problem with his meridians. Even his master had said that it could not be treated, that it was just fate. He did not have the surplus time to struggle with fate, nor did he believe that he could think of a new and genius method in such a short amount of time. He enjoyed moving with the current, and he believed that if he followed existing methods, he would also be able to condense his spiritual sense. No one believed more than him in the knowledge of his forebears.

"Read one hundred times, naturally grasp the meaning."

All books related to Purification had these eight striking words. It was very obvious that these eight words were the most important part of Purification, and also the part that his predecessors wished to communicate to those that followed. But which book should he read?

Chen Changsheng looked at the dense directory on the back cover of On Purification, gazing at those sometimes fair and honest, sometimes unconventional book titles. He shook his head, somewhat surprised that after coming to the capital, he would still have to continue the life he had lived in Xining Village.

If this was a place like the Heavenly Dao Academy or Star Seizer Academy, if students needed to break through the bottleneck of Purification, a teacher would naturally tell them that the most crucial part of Purification was reading a large amount of related books, thus strengthening the soul and reaching the goal of condensing the spiritual sense in one stroke.

On Purification merely provided the general principles. What one truly needed to study was the forty-nine books listed on the back cover.

Of course, this did not at all mean that all students needed to read every one of these forty-nine books one hundred times before their soul reached a level at which they could condense the spiritual sense. In the vast majority of cases, in the process of reading, the reader's spiritual sense would be condensed and they could stop this process.

This process was not one in which the earlier one finished, the better it was. If one needed to only read one book ten times and be able to successfully condense spiritual sense, that person would presumably be the cultivator with the weakest spiritual sense in history. On the contrary, the more books one read and the more times one read them, the stronger the soul would become, yet it would still be unable to break through that thin layer of paper. When the spiritual sense was finally condensed, only this sort of spiritual sense could truly be called powerful.

If someone could read all forty-nine books on the back cover of On Purification one hundred times before finally condensing their spiritual sense, then when they drew starlight into their bodies to undergo Purification, they had a chance of reaching the level of perfection. But this sort of situation was incredibly rare. Other than those lucky enough to be born with incredible innate talent, it was basically impossible.

This was a very stimulating process. As time passed, as the number of books and the number of times one read them gradually increased, one could anticipate becoming a genius with a powerful spiritual sense, but there was also a high chance that one could ultimately fail at condensing the spiritual sense and be resigned to the life of an ordinary person.

Hope and disappointment would continuously increase over this process, ultimately becoming a gamble of epic proportions. No one knew the result of this gamble. Only after reading those books, one hundred times each, would the result appear on its own.

Read one hundred times, naturally grasp the meaning.

This was its meaning.

...

...

After reading On Purification once, Chen Changsheng did not feel any change in his body, did not sense his soul, so he naturally could not sense his spiritual sense either. He did not begin to immediately read the books listed on the back cover, but instead began to calculate.

He believed that his reading efficiency was higher than an ordinary person's, so perhaps he might not really need to read each book one hundred times, perhaps twenty to thirty times might be enough. There were forty-nine books in total on the back cover, so calculating with his average reading efficiency, for the very first round, he could only finish reading seven books, seven days to finish reading all of them once. Even if he gradually got faster with time, to completely read all these books would at least take half a year. Did he have half a year? No, so what should he do? This was the first time he felt rather vexed ever since coming to the capital.

If other people were to learn that he was feeling vexed, they would definitely be feeling something different. This was because in his calculations, it was very obvious that he only intended to condense his spiritual sense after reading all forty-nine books—if he could condense his spiritual sense, that is. In other words, from beginning to end, even if subconsciously, he was truthfully placing himself on the same level as geniuses, or even higher.

It was no wonder Tang Thirty-Six thought him very arrogant on their first meeting. He looked reticent, cautious and courteous, but in reality, in many aspects, he was inexplicably confident, making people feel that he was extremely arrogant.

...

...

As he was thinking, he was suddenly caressed by a breeze and a shadow fell, covering the words on the back cover.

Chen Changsheng raised his head and saw a pretty girl sneering at him.

At the moment, he was sitting on the floor, so this girl was naturally somewhat looking down on him from up high.

This girl was precisely Shuang'er of the Divine General of the East's estate. She looked at the books concerning Purification next to Chen Changsheng and knew what he planned to do. She jeered, "To begin Purification at the age of fourteen, you don't think you're somewhat late?"

Chen Changsheng seriously replied, "Seeking the Dao can come early or late. The early might arrive late, the late might arrive early."

Shuang'er did not expect to hear such an answer. After staring blankly at him for a few moments, she disdainfully retorted, "Forty-nine books, one hundred times, ten days, —these are the numbers left by my young lady when she condensed her spiritual sense at the age of four. The late might arrive early? Where do you plan to arrive early?"

Chen Changsheng pondered this question, but he realized that he didn't know how to answer.


To pick is to choose. This is a story about choices. Three thousand worlds full of gods and demons, with a daoist scroll in your hand, you are able to control the entire universe…

At the beginning of time, a mystical meteor came crashing down from outer space and scattered all over the world. A piece of it landed in the Eastern Continent, with mysterious totems carved upon it. Through the observation of these totems, humankind comprehended the Dao and established the Orthodoxy.

Several thousand years later, the fourteen years old orphan Chen Changsheng left his master to cure his illness and change his fate. He brought a piece of marriage vow with him to the capital, thus began the journey of a rising hero.

"After reading hundreds of times, the meaning will reveal itself," but some people only need ten days while others will require half a year. This kind of difference makes many speechless. Just like Tang Thirty Six had said, that girl often left others speechless. Chen Chang Sheng also didn't say anything either.

Secretly, Shuang Er was unhappy of Chen Chang Sheng's quiet and stiff reaction. Perhaps she thought that since he has a marriage vow with the lady, even if their status differed greatly at least he should show some sort of ambition or confidence?

Also from her point of view, if it weren't for her lady that wrote a letter from the Nan Xi Temple, Chen Chang Sheng would be dead already. How would he have the chance to enter the Classical Teaching and sit on a clean floor to read and xiuxing? Although she didn't need his appreciation, he shouldn't be silent either and treating it like nothing happened.

Shuang Er looked at him and shook her head. She took out a thin piece of letter from her pocket and handed it to him.

"Since you obtained the precious chance to xiuxing, then you should appreciate it and start from ground zero. Don't think of some strange way to boost yourself and place your hope upon others, especially women." Suddenly she thought of something and said strictly "Xiuxing, is never simple. Even if you don't have any hope, I hope you won't self destruct. Do you understand?"

Chen Chang Sheng took the paper and was stunned for a moment. He didn't understand the what she was trying to say. He thought to himself, even if he had hid in an academy as gloomy as a cemetery to read and xiuxing, the General's Mansion and that Lady Xu still think of him as an obstacle?


 

The sun outside of the library was hanging in the middle of the sky. The tree leaves were rocking back and forth from the breeze. The sunlight scattered under the tree and landed upon the earth. Luckily it was still early spring so the temperature wasn't too hot. The piece of letter contained a girl's fragrance but had no trace of sweat.

Chen Chang Sheng looked at the sentence upon the letter and remained silent for a long time.

"Look out for yourself."

The penmanship of the words were neat, but had nothing special. The strokes were very straight, which seemed naive and cute. Although Chen Chang Sheng guessed that this sentence was written by Lady Xu from the south, he couldn't connect the girl who has this sort of naive penmanship with the talented girl who is famous throughout the world.

He understood the sentence and it seemed as if he could faintly see the expression on Lady Xu's face when she wrote this sentence. For sure she had a cold face and wrinkled eyebrows, which expressed her impatience and irritation. But mostly, it was indifference.

She only wrote a sentence for him, but the most important word was "Yourself."

Yourself meant you.

You live.

You read.

You xiuxing.


 

You eat and sleep.

Chen Chang Sheng thought quietly for a moment and didn't think any further. He collected the letter and put it in his pocket. Then he stood up and walked to the bookshelf to find the forty nine books mentioned in the end of "Purification". While he was searching, he thought about the words Maid Shuang Er said previously and wrinkled his eyebrows. His fingers slowed down during his search for the books. Does it only need ten days to read all of these books a hundred times? How did she accomplish this?

"Purification" was just a summary. The forty nine books mentioned at the end of it was the actual studying material. The students need to use the knowledge and wisdom in those books to open their mind and solidify their view of the world to strengthen their souls.

It was purely a xiuxing in the spiritual field. It started when the Books landed on earth and humans started to xiuxing. The first step of solidifying their souls was always the same method. It was concluded and measured by countless pioneers and the method was proven to be the most effective and had the highest success rate. Since words were the only physical form of thoughts, then in order to use the ancestor's thoughts to help them transfer mind into strength, words were the perfect bridge to connect the two.

Since this method was used throughout the human word, the forty nine books mentioned in the "Purification" were obviously recognized by everyone as the most helpful books to solidify one's soul. It began from 1582 when The Tradition created the index and it wasn't changed since then.

Chen Chang Sheng walked around the bookshelves and searched. Although he was familiar with the order of the books it still took him an hour to find all of the forty nine books and moved them to the floor beside the window. Then he placed them in order.

He didn't start reading immediately. Instead he went to the Street of Hundred Blossom and ate at a restaurant. Then he rested around the lake's grassfield for an hour. After satisfied by his relaxation, he returned to the library once again and picked up the first book and began reading.

Previously when he was finding the books, he checked the titles and made sure he never read these books . Although he was a bit disappointed, he was curious as well. What were the content of these books that they can help humans solidify their souls.

The first books that he picked up was "Discussion of Pu Men". He was sure that he never read the book. When he opened the book and saw the familiar contents upon it, he thought he was seeing illusions similar to the entrance test of the Heavenly Academy.

Although this book was very thin, it felt heavy in his hands. He looked at the sentences in the books confused and discovered something with surprise. He had already read these materials when he was four years old, more precisely, he has already memorized this book entirely.


 

Except this book was named "The Scripture of Pu".

(Editor Binggo: Yo this guy.. be going against his shishou's teachings and started to xiuxing)

He was for sure a little surprised. It felt as if he returned to the testing field of the Heavenly Academy. He always thought this type of good thing won't happen again but out of chance it occurred once more. It took him a while for him to return to his senses.

After returning from his daydream, he quickly opened the second book.

This book's name was "Collection of Mausoleum of Knowledge".

He flipped through the pages as if a strong gale had blew open the book. He quickly realized that he had also read this book as well. The praises written by past poets for the Mausoleum of Knowledge were all in his head. Except when he first read these poems when he was five years old in the old temple of Xi Ning Village, this collection was named "Index of Fancy Poems".

Chen Chang Sheng remained silent for a while and flipped open the third book.

Still the same.

He read this book as well, except the title was different when he read it while he was young.

The fourth book, the fifth book... He quickly scanned through the forty nine books for once and knew that he read all of these books.


 

Just like this?

This is a surprise? Chen Chang Sheng picked up the "Purification" once again and fell silent. He thought silently but the corners of his lip raised a little. His closed his eyes, but happiness filled his heart.

He remembered the words that Shuang Er said when she left.

"Xiuxing, is never simple."

He raised his head and looked outside of the window. The sunlight had scattered outside of the door. Although the wind is still blowing, there was no sign of anyone around. Chen Chang Sheng was a little disappointed. If that girl was still here, he really wanted to tell her that he may have a chance to solidify his soul faster than her lady.

But he thought again, Xu You Rong finished the forty nine books a hundred times to reveal its meaning. She successfully solidified her soul when she was only four years old. The little self pride that appeared in Chen Chang Sheng's heart quickly dissolved. He thought it was really was meaningless.

The next thing that he needed to do was to use the ways recorded on the "Purification" and use the words carved in his head from the forty nine books and transform the power of the words into fertilizers that can strengthen his mind. Then once and for all he will be able to solidify his soul.

If it was anyone else in this kind of critical moment, they will continue this process until they succeed. But Chen Chang Sheng looked at the sun and noticed it has already moved westward and dawn was here. He put down "Purification" and collected the books on the floor. Then he walked out of the library.

It was time for dinner.

————————————————–


 

Since he needed to eat dinner, he ignored the chance to change his life. If this is self-discipline, then this self-discipline was too strict and harsh. It was almost to the point of self-harming. But it could also be viewed as self confidence because he believe that chance wouldn't slip away.

From the entrance exam of the Heavenly Academy to these forty nine books, Chen Chang Sheng already noticed some things. His master has already built the basic and the road for xiuxing. His master for sure wasn't just a regular Taoist.

The way of xiu xing was long and distant, but his senior and him read the entire Scroll of the Way when they were young and memorized countless literatures in their heads. This meant that he has already made his first step way before anyone else. He has already traveled ten thousand miles on the way of xiu xing, then of course he was able to arrive at the destination earlier than anyone else.

Chen Chang Sheng was always confident in himself, but upon realizing this he grew more confident. By now the night has slowly approached the capital and the sun was slowly setting in the horizon, but in his open heart, another red sun was slowly raising. Why would he be afraid of the darkness ahead?

After finishing his dinner, he returned once again to the library and boiled a pot of water. Then he made a cup of tea he bought in the street of Hundred Blossom. He sat on the ground and meditated for a long time. His eyes skimmed through the forty nine books that were lined up perfectly and finally stopped at the "Purification".

The words in the books slowly raised in his head. The contents returned from his childhood memory and became extremely clear. Then slowly they released a certain presence that followed the path that was mentioned in the first chapter of the "Purification" and continuously traveled in his mental world.

Many years ago in the old temple, he had already opened his mind. The only thing he needed to do now was to solidify his soul.

He closed his eyes and thought quietly but gradually he forgot to think.

To clear one's mind and see one's soul wasn't that difficult.

It just requires practice.

Time slowly went by and frogs started to make noise in the wetland outside of the library.

It was still early spring.

The night darkened and the stars brightened. The capital was still full of noise.

But the Classical Teaching was still quiet with its only resident inside.

The oil lamp inside the library was dim, but it seemed to never fade.

Suddenly, a light ring was heard in the building.

A breath of wind circled around the structure.

Chen Chang Sheng opened his eyes and confusion filled his pupils, but slowly it turned into calmness. Then finally they were filled with happiness.

He successfully solidified his soul in the time of one day and one night.

Xiu xing is just this simple.

To pick is to choose. This is a story about choices. Three thousand worlds full of gods and demons, with a daoist scroll in your hand, you are able to control the entire universe… At the beginning of time, a mystical meteor came crashing down from outer space and scattered all over the world. A piece of it landed in the Eastern Continent. There were mysterious totems carved upon the meteor. Through viewing these totems, mankind comprehended the Dao and established the Orthodoxy. Several thousand years later, the fourteen years old orphan Chen Changsheng left his master to cure his illness and change his fate. He brought a part of a marriage vow with him to the capital, thus beginning the journey of a rising hero…

"How many books do you have left to read?"

"I don't know the exact amount but it's going to take about 2 to 3 weeks to finish reading all of them."

Soo Hyuk and Yeon Joong continued on with their conversation.

"Wow, minimum 2 weeks?"

"Yeap."

"I'm super jealous."

"What're you jealous about?"

"You're wisdom increases when you read a book."

Yeon Joong said he was jealous because of the stats. In the case of reading a book, it was already a well-known fact that it would increase your wisdom.

"On second thought, I'm suddenly very curious?"

He continued talking as his face was filled with curiosity as he asked.

"What number is your wisdom?"

He was curious as to how much wisdom Soo Hyuk had because he continued reading since the game opened.

"Ummm…."

Soo Hyuk murmured to himself as he pondered.

'The most recent time I checked...'

He did not know exactly how much wisdom he had. It was because every time the message stating that wisdom increased popped up, he didn't open his character window.

'Was it 925?'

He recalled the latest wisdom checked and told Yeon Joong.

"925."

"....?"

Yeon Joong heard his response and was speechless. However it was only for a brief moment, he then opened his mouth as his face was filled with disbelief.

"WHAT?"

The first thing he did was ask a question.

"925? Your wisdom is 925?"

He continued to ask questions.

"Yeap, when I checked, the most recent wisdom was 925. It's likely that it may be a little higher than that. Because after that, wisdom increased a little more."

"...…"

Yeon Joong became silent once again.

'Crazy.'

He was flustered.

'Wisdom's 925? It's even higher than that?'

He said his wisdom was 925? No, that it may be a little higher than that?

"What level are you?"

He was deep in thought but asked Soo Hyuk once again.

"8."

He thought to himself.

'Level 8, wisdom's over 925?'

He asked because he thought his level would be high. However, his level was not high. Soo Hyuk's level was only 8. But 925? That number was unfathomable.

"How many books did you read?"

He asked after he finished his thoughts. How many books did he read? How many did he read that he was able to attain 925? He was unable to fathom it. No, to be exact, 925 were unattainable just by reading books.

"The more you read, doesn't wisdom stop increasing?"

In order to raise wisdom by 1, the number of books that needed to be read was different with every user. A user may need to read 2 books to increase by 1, another may need to read 3 to increase, while a different user may need to read 10 to go up.

However, there was a commonality amongst all. It was that, the more you read, wisdom did not increase. In the beginning, if you read 3 books for your wisdom to increase by 1, after, it would take 5, 7, 10 books to raise wisdom by 1.

".....?"

Soo Hyuk was confused.

"What do you mean? The more you read, it doesn't increase?"

He could not understand.

"Generally, if you read 1 book, your wisdom increases by 1, right?"

 

It did not increase every time. Though, on average, if you read 1 book, it increased by 1. It was very rare when it did not increase.

"What?"

Yeon Joong asked.

"You're telling me that every time you read a book it increased?"

He was astonished.

"Yeah. Practically."

Soo Hyuk shook his head.

"...…"

Yeon Joong did not say a word. He just thought to himself.

'Was Oren's library special?'

Many users experimented with reading books in order to raise their wisdom. Especially those whom wanted to become Magicians went to Matab's library and read books innumerably and researched a formula to increase wisdom.

However, the number of books that needed to be read to increase wisdom by 1 was all different. Ultimately, they were unable to find the exact formula.

It was only speculated that there were a lot of things that were in correlation with one another. But, in Soo Hyuk's case, every time he read a book, his wisdom rose by 1. That is, it wasn't once or twice, but continued to increase. By any chance, was Oren's library special?

'Or was it his level?'

Oren's library may not be special. The problem may be his level. His level was 8; it could be that the lower your level, the number of books needed to raise your stats was small.

'The possibility was quite high.'

The possibility that it was because of his level was quite high. Although other users have said they read books, they did not continue reading books like Soo Hyuk. They hunted, completed quests, and read books in situations to grow their characters.

"You can't tell anyone about your stats."

He said to Soo Hyuk.

"The possibility that something troublesome may occur is quite high. Especially if the guild finds out, they're going to lust heavily for you."

It was difficult even for someone over level 100 to reach beyond 900 for wisdom, but only a level 8 surpassed 900. If that fact became known, Soo Hyuk would be dragged into a troublesome situation.

Specifically, it was the guilds that were the problem. The strength of the guild members became the guilds' strength. There would be an enormous amount of guilds that would desire Soo Hyuk. There was a chance that if they weren't able to have him, they would make it so that no one else would be able to have him.

"Of course I know that too."

He replied to Yeon Joong. He also knew about this.

"I told you because it's you."

He only answered because it was Yeon Joong. If it wasn't him, he wouldn't have said anything.

"Okay, I'm glad you know about it."

He felt relieved when he heard his response. Soo Hyuk opened his mouth.

"But, didn't you say you were going to create a guild?"

"Yeah, but it's not something that you can create easily. I'm only planning on it."

* * *

"3rd class ranking occupation has been undone!"

"Yeah?"

Joo Hyuk Yang responded calmly.

"Why are you so calm?"

Jang Yool turned around and asked.

"Because it's not the first or second time it's been undone. Eh, it's only 3rd class ranking."

It wasn't the first time a 3rd class ranking occupation was solved. It was already two months since the game opened and five days have passed. During that time, quite a lot of special occupations were undone. 3rd ranking special occupations were not considered shocking anymore.

It was at that moment.

"Uh?"

Jang Yool turned to look at his monitor again and shouted. It was filled with panic.

"What?"

Joo Hyuk Yang asked with his ever-calm voice. What type of occupation was undone this time? Or was there a different hidden condition?

"That, that is..."

Jang Yool stuttered as he spoke.

"A user that has acquired the title of Conqueror at O, Oren's library has appeared."

Rustle!

Joo Hyuk Yang stood up from his seat. His composed self was no longer seen. He was shocked.

"Conqueror of Oren's library? Really?"

Title 'Conqueror of Oren's library', was created but it was a title that he thought would never be acquired by a user. However, a user that's obtained that title had appeared.

"Yes."

Jang Yool shook his head.

"Who is it?"

Who in the world would have obtained this nonsense title?

"Hold on one moment."

Jang Yool began typing away on his keyboard. And a short while after, a window popped up on one of his many monitors.

"It's a user named Soo Hyuk."

He looked at his window and responded.

"Soo Hyuk?"

Joo Hyuk Yang mumbled as he approached Jang Yool.

"Let's look at his information."

"Okay."

Jang Yool looked up Soo Hyuk's information on his monitor.

Level: 8

Experience: 51%

Vitality: 2540

Mana: 26420

Satiety: 40%

Strength: 14

Agility: 15

Stamina: 48

Wisdom: 1321

"...…!"

"...….!"

Both Joo Hyuk Yang and Jang Yool looked at the monitor and became silent. They were both astonished as they looked at the information regarding Soo Hyuk on the monitor

'This is crazy.'

Joo Hyuk Yang thought to himself as he saw Soo Hyuk's info.

'He's level 8 but how is his stats.'

His stats were unheard of. The stats were not of a level 8. Though, Joo Hyuk Yang quickly changed his thoughts.

'No, the stats may be possible because he's a level 8.'

On the contrary, his stats were possible because he was level 8. In the case of reading a book that hasn't been read, users would be able to raise their stats.

Stats did not blindly increase. If you read a book that hasn't been read yet, you would receive special experience called stats experience.

In order to increase your stats, you would need to raise that stats experience to its limit. The problem was that the limit to the stats experience was different according to the level of each user.

Of course, if your level was low, the experience needed to raise your stats was small and if it were high, even more experience would be needed.

In other words, in order to increase your stats easily, you would need to read a lot of books but more importantly your level needed to be low.

'But....'

Joo Hyuk Yang was caught in his thoughts as he tilted his head in confusion. There was something he couldn't understand. It wasn't the level. On the contrary, he understood the level. What he didn't understand was....

While reading a book, a sparkle of light disappeared. And, as it did, a message appeared.

[Wisdom increased by 1]

This is translated by Asada Translations, if you would like to, you could read it there, the credits go to asada translations...Thank you, reviewer (I 4got ur name) for pointing that out

We will beat Asada translations tho, some friendly competition ?

Twenty-six kinds of dim sum were devoured by a group of doctors before they vigorously returned to the operating theater.
People who worked in another field might find this a little too strange, but none of the doctors present found it surprising. 
The patient was in the recovery room. It would definitely make things troublesome for the doctor and make them feel uneasy if the doctors took their time and delayed the surgery.
To some extent, the reason behind the doctors' large workload was the outbreak of diseases. Moreover, it also depended on the doctor-patient ratio. If there were more doctors, their burden would have been reduced.
Of course, there could never be an ultimate solution to this conflict. Just like now, Professor Feng Zhixiang's personal surgeries were absolutely different from those performed by regular attending physicians or assistant lecturers. Not only was there a difference in the chief surgeon, but there was also a distinct difference among the other posts. 
Unless Beijing University Sixth Hospital had other ideas or had a few screws loose in their heads, Professor Feng Zhixiang must definitely have the best surgery team. The team must have the most experienced and scrub nurse who can deal with pressure the most, the most intelligent circulating nurse who was very familiar with the environment, and an anesthetist who was highly skilled in pharmacology and had an abundant experience as well as enough sleep.
Needless to say, the operating theater, equipment, and materials used by Professor Feng Zhixiang would also be the best. Even when the patients were reluctant to use imported drugs or consumables, the hospital would still use them, but the hospital would charge the patients according to the price of domestic drugs.
Of course, all these were only medical details. Even if they were truly great, the final deciding factor that would determine the effect of the surgery would not depend solely on a few simple details.
Feng Zhixiang also knew this very clearly. The smile on his face faded away after he entered the bathroom, he became serious. The first thing he did was ask Ling Ran, who was next to him, a question. "Have you performed gallbladder cancer before?"
"No." Ling Ran washed his hands carefully. He did not feel as enslaved by a burden as other doctors would when it came to this. Instead, he felt relaxed and comfortable. He wished he could wash his hands longer.
Feng Zhixiang turned to look at Ling Ran. He could not help but have a slight smile appear on his face. He then quickly let it fade away and said, "You have not performed gallbladder cancer surgery before, yet you dare to be my first assistant?"
Ling Ran looked at Feng Zhixiang calmly and said, "I know the anatomy of the abdominal cavity very well. I've done cholecystectomy several times, and I'm good at lymphadenectomy and hepatectomy. I will be very helpful to you."
Feng Zhixiang was speechless. He often used this technique to frighten his students. Unexpectedly, it was not effective on Ling Ran at all.
"Oh, I almost forgot. You have been a chief surgeon several times, haven't you?" Feng Zhixiang sighed and coughed a couple of times, "In this case, if you are the chief surgeon, how would you assign the tasks?"
Ling Ran then pondered about it seriously.
When he was a chief surgeon, he always paid attention to his assistants' capabilities and allocated tasks properly. This was from Ling Ran's many years of experience from team activities.
Although he did not like social activities very much, since he entered kindergarten, Ling Ran had always inevitably participated in various team activities. He would be chosen to practice and perform in his choir and drama teams, to raise the national flag, or be the one to greet people with warm welcomes. 
He would always get various invitations for bigger occasions as well, such as competitions or activities in class, grades, the school, district, city, province, and even activities at a national level.
But after staying in teams for a long time, Ling Ran gradually understood a fact: what was said by members was often not true, especially when they talked about their own abilities. 
The team members who like team activities were most likely to be one who liked to tear each other apart the most. Meanwhile, those who were good at completing tasks independently were often the ones who were best at helping people.
As a serious and responsible student, Ling Ran gradually learned to judge everything by himself, not by the opinions of his team members.
In the same way, when he faced Feng Zhixiang's query, Ling Ran put himself into the shoe of the chief surgeon and thought about his work assignments.
"If I were you, and if I were to assign tasks…" Ling Ran's words were a bit vague, but his thoughts and words soon became clear. He said, "I will read up first."
Feng Zhixiang was stunned for a moment. He then could not help but reveal a smile. "Your idea is a little too direct, but… Hmm, you would want to read up first?"
"Yes, I'll read up first." Not only had Ling Ran never performed gallbladder cancer surgery before, but he also had not deliberately read the relevant materials.
No doctor would actually memorize all medical books, and it would even be impossible to memorize the most basic ones. According to the five-year undergraduate clinical medicine professional textbook catalog, there were fifty-three basic medical books that students need to master. There was no need to challenge others. If a student really had to write down the entire content of Dermatovenerology, he or she would most likely rather suffer through all the diseases listed in the textbook instead. 
Even the doctors who were promoted by developed countries in Europe and America needed to invest a lot of money and time in reading. The preferred solution for unfamiliar diseases was to flip the books!
Unless it was a well-known material, otherwise, no matter how good a person's memory was, it would be better if he just flipped through a book instead. Because, if something went wrong, the patients' lawyers would question the doctor on why he did not read up on the relevant material. 
It was also common for resident doctors or attending doctors in hospitals to flip through books before giving any treatment. When they became Level 1 assistant lecturers, it did not mean they would not need to read up anymore. They still had to, because their scope of treatment would become narrower. Meanwhile, they always read up secretly when they have their own offices.
Ling Ran did not mean to read books secretly.
He would lean against the glass by the washroom before entering the operating theater. He would look at the surgery preparations as he took his time to read a book that was given by a junior doctor. 
Therefore, the doctors in the visitation room could see that in the operating theater below, Feng Zhixiang was doing a careful examination, while the highly anticipated first assistant, Ling Ran, was reading leisurely with a book in his hand.
"You can pay attention to the stages of gallbladder cancer surgery. Once we open up the abdominal cavity, you can compare them. There should be pictures.
"Gallbladder cancer is generally associated with stones. It is currently believed that physical stimulation is still a major factor in it. You can verify it later on the spot.
"Remembering the steps of the surgery would not be a problem for you. However, it also depends on the condition of the abdominal cavity once we open it. We've confirmed that it's spreading in the liver, I don't know about other internal organs…"
Feng Zhixiang gave Ling Ran on-the-spot teaching through the glass window. The atmosphere in the operating theater was like a classroom, which was quite different from the teaching scene understood by doctors.
The vessel-damaging assistant lecturer could not help but sigh, "I read up on the literature three days for a surgery in the past and memorized all the cases. In the end, during the surgery, the chief surgeon only said three phrases to me in total."
"Which three phrases?"
"Start, don't block me, and move." The tone of the vessel-damaging assistant lecturer was heartbreaking.
The 223-pound resident doctor secretly glanced over at the vessel-damaging assistant lecturer's belly before he let out a sigh of sympathy.


Ling Ran, a med school senior, begins to see the world like a game UI. He uses it to pave his way towards graduation, a residency, becoming the greatest doctor in the world... And finally getting a Transformer from his newbie packs? Maybe. We don't know yet.

Picking up his smartphone Shaheer answered the call that came moments ago disturbing the flow of his newfound Qi channeling throughout his body.
"Aren't you comin' for swimming? I've been waiting for you outside for quite some time now." A familiar voice spoke out from the phone.
"Today is not a good time for me" Shaheer replied with a carefree voice. 
"At least inform me when you call quits!" the voice said sounding annoyed.
"I would keep that in mind, although I've never asked you to wait for Me." Shaheer said, reminding him that his request was absurd.
"That's true but still, well, if you not coming then I'll be going ahead. Bye! 
Shaheer cancelled the phone call as he also cancelled his routine swimming because he decided to go at a library. Shaheer occasionally visits the library whenever that he feels he need a break. In addition, he is a knowledge maniac. He knows that knowledge is not a product of schooling but of the like long attempt to acquire it.
Sorting out his plans, he went downstairs and called out Jiya to tell her that he would be leaving. Shaheer also informed the babysitter they hired to look after Jiya day and night, as there are times when both the adults in house are out just like a similar situation here.
After that he excused himself promising Jiya that he would have the pastry when he comes back home who was giving him a hard time to leave telling him they would be ready soon.
Shaheer started his bike wearing the helmet that completely fits in style for him, zooming down the roads like a fish swimming in water. He choose a motor bike as his personal vehicle as this experience for him was the calmest of all. He often took off on a road trip with his bike to focus or get inspiration. While riding down the roads with unimaginable speed, he feels calm and the moment becomes vivid and clear like seeing the world from a different perspective. The experience Shaheer was having now was calmer and he could see a lot more than he used to. He was focusing on all the things even the slightly unbalanced roads, taking in the information, zipping between the cars. It was a feeling that cannot be describe in words and could only be share with the motor bikers when they enter the zone whilst driving. The clearer perspective and the calmer experience than before was all because of a notification Shaheer cancelled when he started his bike's engine. 
Ding!
[The skill Bike Riding has gain +1 level]
He came to a halt in front of the Defence Central Library and took off his helmet while locking the bike in the parking lot.
Shaheer has always felt good buried in books gaining knowledge. He had an extremely good memory; close enough to the ability many called photographic memory. He can remember a lot from the book he read once but cannot actually recall it word by word. This being the reason he was not crown by the title of photographic memory holder. This did not bothered Shaheer, as he never started to read to be good at memorizing. It was more like a hobby he developed due to his curious nature for the worldly stuff, which he fulfilled with books and books filled with knowledge.
He entered the library after showing the guard his membership card he held on with since he was ten years old. That makes this card seven years old itself.
The thing he admired the most about this library was that it was constant and never changing. They have kept their interior the same as when he first came here with a few non-visible changes. The only change that ever occurred around here was the people and the new library books. This provided Shaheer a nostalgia feeling which he was not able to feel anywhere else as his life has been ever changing. 
He went around the reception and started to walk around the bookshelves trying to search a book for a good read. He went to the encyclopedia section, as these books were the most relaxing read and extremely knowledgeable he found out of all. He was going through the books in which most of them were already been read by Shaheer. After surfing around a bit, his eyes caught an imbalance. A book, which was extremely thin that it could only be a ten pager, was between two huge books called encyclopedia of the sociology and governance. 
The book was place in a way that only the eyes actively searching for this particular book would be able to notice it. Shaheer had already visited this aisle and even read one of the book called encyclopedia of sociology, so chances of him missing this book was very slim but there was always a possibility of it being a new addition, but his instincts tell otherwise.
He draw the book out and read the title, which he found interesting. "Meditation"
'Why is it here?' Shaheer practically had no use of this as he has more proficiency in meditating then most of the monks who meditate for almost their whole life. However, his curiosity was at its peak and his instincts were yelling him to read this book so in the end he sat down deciding to give this book a chance to present itself worthy.
He opened the book with expectation in his eyes, but it felt as the world had pranked him and holding in its laughter because of the silent sign hanging everywhere in the library. It was the basics of the basic manual provided to kids in meditation classes. After two pages Shaheer even looked back to see if there was an author for this book but there was no name to be found, neither at the back nor in the front."
This library is not a place where they would keep books without an author name. Even if they did take a book like this due to its increasing popularity, at least they would make sure that 'anonymous' is written under the author's name. However, there was not a single word of author as if it was a brochure of meditation for kids.
Shaheer was not ready to believe that this was all there is to it as when he first saw the book, the first thing he noticed was it was planted in a way that it would become an irritation for a person who possess a keen eye and he would eventually notice it. Also never have his instinct failed him before and he was still sure there is more to this somehow so he continue from where he left.
Throughout the book, his face had a disappointed look, which anyone can clearly point out, until he reached the last line. Before reading the last line, Shaheer noticed that it was a quote.
Remember, "The goal of meditation isn't to control your thoughts, it's to stop letting them control you"
After few seconds of comprehending those lines, realization struck him as a face that screams 'I knew it' came into view. Shaheer was looking for this cliché moment from the start. It was obviously words of someone with deep profound knowledge about meditation. His mind went numb and clear at the same time. In his head, the whole book was revised again with a new and different perspective. It became clear to Shaheer as to why the book was the based on the basics of the meditation as he connected the dots, because after reading that quote, anyone would get enlightenment and they would like to review the meditation from the very start disregarding whatever they already know.
After the flashback of the book, a familiar sound went off in his head.
Ding!
[You have decipher the true meaning of meditation.]
Ding!
[Your wisdom has increased by +10]
Ding!
[You have unlocked a new skill 'Meditation'.]
Ding!
[The passives of the skill (Meditation) has been activated]
Ding!
[You have completed a hidden quest]
Ding!
[Your level is increased by +1]
Ding! 
[Would you like to see the rewards of the hidden quest, "The Seeker of Solitude"?
A series of notification came crashing towards Shaheer, who had a carefree smile on his face whilst he look at the notifications one by one.

A monstrous talent got a mysterious gift. An ability? Any skill? What is it? Read to find out more.
OBVIOUSLY inspired by 'The Gamer' from webtoon. If you haven't read it yet then I highly recommend it.

(Disclaimer:  All characters, organizations, places, cases and incidents in this novel are fictitious.)
Support:
Please support me, reading it on 
https://www.webnovel.com/book/15025179505509105

Some could said he always changing mind?
The reason was obvious, 
Zora was concave mirror.
.
The sport girl like both him and her another boyfriend and slept with both of them.
.
Too many times Zora went out with girls, 
If they met people they knew and they introduced Zora as their friend.
. 
Other looking at him like something wrong, 
so Zora asked these girls and got answer.
Zora never good at romance relationship so he did not know.
.
There were never that close male and female just friends, 
(Always exceptional.)
.
.
If there were really close friend, 
Time to time they were alone, 
get drunk at night and that and this happen accidentally 
But Even If they Already Had Sex, they all never change saying ""friend.""
.
.
That would happen to close friend between male and female.
.
And Zora ask, after sex with friend they would not change into girlfriend and boyfriend?
He asked them for other people male and female friends.
.
They reply,
"No, one night stand sometime would not become boyfriend."
.
So, Zora understand and said.
.
"A Dick is not determined." 
.
'I heard that before???'
While saying Zora confuse
. 
Any way, when these five girls heard what Zora said and they angry.
.
So, Zora got one more understanding,
 Many things you know, you should keep it inside and,
.
"You should not say the truth, people would hate you."
.
So, Zora corrected what he said, 
.
"Sorry, they are just male and female friend, 
They only sometime let their anger out on each other and fight on the bed."
.
Five girls punished him for saying that,
 'No, dinner.'
.
So most of these girls told other as Zora is their friend.
.
But,
The beautiful girl broke off her boyfriends and told other that he is her boyfriend.
.
Even once they met with her ex-engaged man. 
Her ex-engaged man always after her by his lackey tail her all the time. 
And telling everyone that the beautiful girl was rich so she never loyal.
…..
The story of richest girl,
.
She is rich and beautiful, moreover intelligent,
But she wanted to be loved by only a man and slept with one. 
So she carefully chose man. 
But her parents engaged her to that man.
.
So, that girl thought he was good and thought him as future husband, and he took her virginity.
. 
And he thought he could get every woman on the world and change back his original wolf form. And chase around many other women.
.
When the rich girl know that and she stopped sleeping with him and starting to have many boyfriends.
 And she done that in front of that man and his parents, even that they never broke off engagement.
.
But that guy parents went after her parent and make them gave lesson to their daughter but they underestimate the girl intelligent.
.
The girl showed every evidence and made her parents angry toward that man and his parents.
. 
Her parents broke off the engagement and started attacking to that so called alpha male parents.
That why that so called alpha male chase after her again, 
.
That was three months ago and she tried to started new life.
And she introduced that alpha male that Zora as her boyfriend. And she stay with only Zora.
.
That was the reason Zora changed his girlfriend as he was concave mirror. 
.
That so called alpha male came to Zora 
And claim that how he got her virginity.
.
Zora only said one thing back, 
'she let him slept with other girls while she was present.' 
.
And that guy angry.
.
But what Zora wanted is only one love but got many friends with benefits. 
.
Some want many women but got only one. 
Some want only one but got many.
.
Zora don't go to other girls too but they all come.
Most of the time they don't sex, they talk.
.
They taught each other most of the thing. 
And Zora learn many things about Female.
.
That make Zora more 'not to understand' about Female.
Even these five girls mostly do or say straight forward with him. 
.
They were like family, 
Zora told them, revenge with sleeping too many men is not good.
.
They told him that, 
They were so angry and just let go of their mind but they would trying to control back now.
.
He understand some but still too many thing he did not understand.
And one more thing he don't understand, 
.
When a man approach them, they knew,
If someone like them, they knew. 
That was woman instance.
.
So Zora ask what he heard from his many friends,
"But many of my friends said when he ask her out, most of their girl said they did not know that man like them."
.
These five girls answer, 
"Think yourself."
.
Zora did not understand. 
'They said they know inside but Why they said outside they don't know????'
...….
And…
They all were talking about books,
What kind of book they should read or they should not.
.
The married child mother said that once she interview a famous university graduated person.
She asked him what kind of books they should read and got answer.
.
""How to success.""
""Famous writer books for knowledge,""
""and work related books.""
And that all.
So she fail him in interview.
.
And she asked Zora what kind of books, 
""they should read,""
.
What Zora said was,

""Every books"" 
OR 
""even if just a sentence.""
.
They amaze and ask why,
.
Zora explained ….
.
But first, 
Books reader levels,
.
At the started, 
level 1, books reader thought this books were so good when they like.
.
Level 2, they started thinking 
'why these MC or stories could not do it or do that.' 
They started making questions on the book they like.
.
Level 3, they started angry on the book they like. 
And become they don't like.
On this stage, reader starting to chose their books, which they like and which they hate.
.
Level 4, they tried not to read it, but still read it. 
.
Level 5, 
They finally understand, 
""every books give knowledge even all other said trash book.""
.
Level 5 explained, 
Every books have knowledge, 
But how to get that knowledge was depend on who read it.
.
That stage reader could even got many knowledge from trash books that all other remark it.
.
So Zora answers was,
Every books or even if just a sentence give knowledge.
But only depend on who read it and how.
(Some got just wet, some feel the rain. Bob Dylan)
.
These five girls understand as they were good reader too.
.
When they exchange information between different sex.
As Zora never side with any sex, 
So he told them,
.
Most of female were more greedy than male when it come in relationship.
.
They wanted many thing from their male. 
.
The five girls did not agree,
.
So, Zora asked them, 
Counted what you wanted from your male. 
.
Zora asked them to chose,
.
Beauty(mean so handsome or flower boy) (even if you don't chose, Man or woman were not ugly, Around average, if you chose especially beauty.)
.
Rich, (Same as beauty, not poor if don't chose.)
.
Educated, (same as other.)
.
Young, (if don't choose does not mean too old)
.
Loyal, (if you don't chose they may be average affair.)(but if it was chose mean absolute loyal.)
.
Zora only wanted one, and just one.
.
But most girls said they only wanted one too, that was,….
.
.
'A Prince with white horse come only for her and loyal her forever'
.
Zora could not help,
"HaHAHAHA.."
.
They ask why,
So Zora explain.
.
'A prince' 
with 
'white horse' 
come only for her and 
'loyal her forever.'
.

This five girls angry Zora for the whole day and no dinner. As Zora day numbers were counted.
.....
 The second time at that place.
The beautiful girl asked him about married.
.
When he refused and she thought Zora did not want her for she slept with many other before.
.
Zora explained her let her know how he was so close to dead. 
But still he could not say he was a spy of government but got fvcked.
.
He did not want her to suffer or her life in danger. 
Especially Zora kind of jobs could implicate his surrounding.
.
Only if he took care of his thing and when he free from string. 
He could came to her.
.
Because of that she clam down,
Zora never know, 
Why is these girl were favour him?
Why did they come into his life when he have nothing left in the world.
.
He really string attached with these girls. 
He even decided to married the beautiful girl and stay with them after he cleaned up his mess.
.
But he needed to leave again. 
But he never forget about these days with them.
.....
This time he got different job, but not drug trade.
He needed to go into middle of city and kill a family. 
.
That family got something conflict with some powerful leader. 
About jewellery.
.
That was not exactly his job but Zora volunteer.
Because they were his father's younger brother family.
.
Zora subordinate were raping both mother and daughter while they were begging to Zora, 
But he did not care.
.
Zora made a hidden film.
Zora always knew that was not easy to killed a rich family.
He made film because one of the subordinate was part time spy.
.
When the mission gave them, 
Zora ask himself why?
There were many other group, why they send this family killing job to them?
He suspected, so he checked.
And found out.
. 
They were set up,
Like bandit killed the family, police were arrested them and finished them off.
And they wanted to clean up lose end Zora.
One stone two birds,
.
But Zora killed the spy there before he trigger the set up 
And left a copy of film to prevent manhunt.
.
If the movies went out and the part time spy families would involve. 
And that spy families got some power in some area too.
.
But Zora did not know what kind of stupid part time spy is that, join to become a spy?
.
And that could make the whole countries would know what was happen.
.
They stopped manhunt but...
(That case become unsolved murder and robbery.)
.
When he got back, 
he got order from government to draw back from his mission.
.
He was asked to go to a place, 
Zora knew, 
So he took money, ID and last...
.
He gave final message to the girls, and ask forget about him and never look for him. 
Some thing bad would happen to him, 
So he begged for 
'not to look into it.'
.
Because these fives girls have some power to involve 
But still they could not enough power to fight a country.
.
These five girls may be thought of something.
...
He went to the place where they asked him to go and set up bomb.
. 
But he stay near there. 
For make sure what they wanted from him.
.
Unfortunately and fortunately,
.
A thief went in just before some people went in.
They shot the thief right away and reported for further instruction.
. 
Zora heard all from as he left a bug.
And he decided to set off bomb.
.
After he set off bomb he run. Run run run....
.
He run a country after another.
.
After many, he arrived somewhere he could live.
.
While running he saw his news that ""drug dealer die in drug raid."" 
And many government hero die because of him. 
But there were no face.
.
At that time, Zora salute to the all real hero on the world, 
Who die in a bad name.
....
He bought new ID,
But he is still in illegal,  
He needed to go to make it become a legal.
. 
But he afraid that someone would find out.
.
Zora never live in peace when a country was chase after him, 
Only sometime with five girls, he felt that he is still alive.
.
These five girls taught him too many things, 
That lead him to escape from manslaughter.
.
A wise man said,
Behind A successful man there were a woman.
.
(Disclaimer:  All characters, organizations, places, cases and incidents in this novel are fictitious.)
Thank
Zmp

There were people who try to run before they walk.
.
Who did not know, what is ABCD and trying to write eassy in English.
.
Without foundation, building a Skyscraper.
.
Who did not know, what is Magic and trying to used Nine Sun magical fist.
.
There is one Question,
What is magic?
.
Action start from Vol. 2, 
Skip for action, 
Read Vol.1, history later.

I pickup one of the books and dusted it off. My brother has long finished these books, so I guess he hasn't touched any of these. Too bad these books were of high quality, but he left them to dust.

I've started reading some of the pages in a silent manner. Memorising historical details and more from it. Completely ignoring the existence of the crown prince who was sitting comfortably at the edge of the bed. 

When I finished reading the whole book, I get another book and casually sip some tea before continuing.

"Were you even reading or just showing off? Pretending to read the pages"

"Can you shut your mouth for once and stop pestering me?" I answered back, while he grabbed my teacup, poured himself some tea and drink from it.

"Makes me wonder how a noble lady like you have the skills to read things that most nobles can't."

I abruptly stopped reading and looked at him in confusion.

"What were you trying to say is?"

"Isn't it obvious? You're reading things casually when in fact only students from East Heaven Imperial Academy who were taught how to read these manuals knew how. Noble ladies and most people who weren't a part of that academy can't. And you're not one of us."

I smiled.

"With respect to his Highness, you've stayed long enough, it's time for me to send you back."

I stood up and put the book down. He caught me off guard, it's true that I can read these books with ease. But what he doesn't need to know is how.

He also stood up.

I unhurriedly walk out of my chambers as he followed closely.

"You haven't answered me--" the crown prince was badly cut off when the royal guard came rushing towards us.

"His Highness! The imperial consort has befallen ill!"

"What happened to imperial mother?"

The soldier and him hurriedly went out of my courtyard. 

Sounds interesting, I should learn his identity soon. But for now, I shall get back to reading.

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