It was nighttime already, as a lot had already happened during the day. Robert lay on his bed and stared at his phone. His room was orderly arranged and spacious, with various teen-related items. By the side of his room was a study table with some books on it, a lamp, and other items like an electric pen. Close to it was his bookshelf, where he stored various books and manga. There were posters on his wall, gaming posters, Marvel and DC character posters, science, tech, and supercar posters, and Chinese artwork. There was also a wardrobe, and the room was well-lit.
"Just got a few friends on WeChat, and not much going on. Well, I can't wait to see Josh and Danny," Robert spoke to himself as he glanced at his chat. Then Ling Zhong appeared out of nowhere, startling Robert.
"Oh my God, could you stop appearing randomly or just popping up out of nowhere? You're scaring the shit out of me," Robert fired at Ling Zhong.
"Well, one's master must appear unnoticed to his student to know if he can sense his presence on time. That's a rule in the cultivation world," Ling Zhong said proudly while stroking his beard.
"That's one hell of a rule. And why does it feel like I'm being homeschooled right now? So, Master Zhong, I am ready to begin training—can we start now?" Robert asked Ling Zhong while waiting for his response.
"Well, Robert, don't be in too much of a rush. Your first training will be absorbing spiritual Qi into your body to build your cultivation foundation and base," Ling Zhong said and began explaining in detail to Robert, who was getting the hang of it a bit.
"Master Zhong, permit me to speak," Robert asked respectfully, as Ling Zhong was his master, and Robert knew well that showing respect to his master was essential.
"You are permitted to speak, so go ahead," Ling Zhong gave him the go-ahead.
"Remember you said that there is no spiritual Qi in this world, so how am I supposed to absorb spiritual Qi into my body?" Robert was skeptical as he asked.
"Well, Robert, that's no problem. The crystal will provide you with enough spiritual Qi to absorb, and its spiritual Qi is unlimited," Ling Zhong gave a smirk as he said this. Upon hearing this, Robert was stunned.
"What? It has unlimited spiritual Qi? That's amazing, which means I get to cultivate much more often!" Robert's eyes blazed with excitement.
"Well, we shall start with the sitting posture in which both legs must be crossed, and you must enter a state of calmness. Free your body, mind, and soul, and let the Qi flow into your body," Ling Zhong directed Robert, who, on the other hand, found it difficult at first to sit properly cross-legged, but then he got it and got ready to start absorbing Qi from the crystal. He had already placed the crystal in front of him, and the crystal began glowing and released spiritual Qi in Robert's room, which was invisible to the naked eye. This spiritual Qi floated around the room like dancing balls of light.
Then Robert began cultivating as he could slowly feel the spiritual Qi entering his body. But he got distracted by a mere thought and immediately got a backlash. He felt so much pain from the backlash he received from the spiritual Qi because he had a mere thought.
"Hah, Robert, you have to keep your mind clear and at peace because you have to build your cultivation base. So keep trying until you get it. And for the backlash you got from the spiritual Qi, you will keep getting it if you keep failing. So don't give up. Do you understand me, Robert?" Ling Zhong told him in a kind of serious tone.
"Yes, Master Zhong, I will keep trying no matter what," Robert bowed as he said.
Robert kept trying and trying while getting backlash. Then, on the ninth try, he got it and started absorbing spiritual Qi at a pure and fast rate. While Robert felt the surge of power flowing through his body like rushing water, his eyes were closed, and his hair floated due to him presently absorbing spiritual Qi. This made Ling Zhong happy.
One hour had passed since Robert began absorbing spiritual Qi, and now he was feeling like he was about to explode and couldn't absorb any more spiritual Qi. A white light surrounded his body, and the light expanded before it receded. Then he awoke back into reality, and he was breathing really heavily. Ling Zhong made him stable by healing him.
"That was a great one, Robert. On your first night of training, you were able to step into the Nascent Realm level three and also built your cultivation base really strong. So that's all for this night, and I know you are exhausted, so go and take your rest," Ling Zhong tapped him on the shoulder as he said.
"Well, I really felt like I was empty before, but you healed me and I regained myself. So when do I get to use that healing technique you used on me?" Robert asked as he lay flat on his bed. Then Ling Zhong laughed at him, saying,
"You're looking too far ahead, my boy. Your current realm is far from learning the technique. And starting from tomorrow, you will need spirit stones to increase your cultivation faster," Ling Zhong told Robert as he stroked his beard and floated around in the room.
"You said spirit stones, Master Zhong. Where are we going to get that?" Robert asked without thinking a thing or two.
"Ah, Robert, are you really that naive? A master is always prepared to teach his student. Do you think I came all this way empty-handed?" Ling Zhong told him with a smirk. Then Robert immediately got the hint.
"Oh, so to say, the crystal is also like storage that has everything I need for cultivation? Even pills, weapons, talismans, spirit stones, and other treasures? Maybe even nice outfits?" Robert said as he wondered.
"Well, you have a good sense of information, Robert, and that's correct. You will still need pills, and maybe with time you will learn alchemy," Ling Zhong informed him.
"So how large is the space in the crystal?" Robert asked with curiosity.
"Well, it has infinite space," Ling Zhong responded to his question.
"What? Infinite space? That's unlimited space! That's amazing, which means that's a lot of space, and I bet countless treasures could be in there," Robert said while being shocked at the same time.
"You have a sense and taste for curiosity. Well, you should go to bed now and get ready for tomorrow," Ling Zhong said and floated to his side.
Then Robert immediately sat up while thinking of something and closed his eyes. He went into a calm mode. Five minutes passed, but nothing happened, which confused Ling Zhong about what he was trying to do. Suddenly, his body began to glow, and a golden light surrounded him. Then he summoned the five elements he had acquired in the palm of his hand: fire, water, earth, wind, and thunder appeared. He opened his eyes to see the elements and became happy about being able to pull it off. Meanwhile, Ling Zhong was shocked with his mouth wide open.
"How was he able to summon the elements at this early stage of cultivation? He's just in the Nascent Realm, stage 1, and he was able to do that? Nobody in the cultivation world has ever done that before. This is one of a kind. Now the crystal's choice of choosing him was not wrong," Ling Zhong said to himself.
"Look at this, Master Zhong! I was able to summon my elements!" Robert said with great joy.
"That's a pretty good job, Robert, but that's just a small step. Well, I will also teach you some skills and techniques based on your elements. Tomorrow, make sure you get up early," Ling Zhong told Robert as he placed his hand behind his back.
"Yes, Master Zhong," Robert agreed, and then he yawned as he felt very sleepy. The elements slowly dispersed and disappeared. He immediately fell asleep, and Ling Zhong looked at him.
"I wonder what surprises you will show me in the future. As I can see, my and the crystal's 80,000 years of searching finally pays off great," he said with joy in his eyes and looked out the window as he stared at the night sky.