CHAPTER 3: THE ORIGIN IMPRINTS
Long Haochen blinked his eyes open, taking in the sight around him. He was in some kind of compact world, sitting on a mountain that hovered in the air. At the top of it loomed a huge, ancient temple reaching up into the clouds. Bold letters on the tower spelled out STRANGE ARTS TEMPLE.
Beside the temple was a small, rundown building with "STRANGE ARTS LIBRARY" scratched across the front in big letters. An old man with wild white hair sat back in a rickety wooden rocking chair, sipping slowly from his wine gourd.
"Where am I?" Haochen muttered to himself, his back turned to the old guy and the temple.
"Young one, you've finally arrived after I've waited thousands of years," the old man said, stroking his beard.
Haochen whipped around, startled to find someone there. "Who are you? And what is this place?"
"You could say it's a space within your hollow bead. People might call it the strange arts imprint world," the old man replied offhandedly.
"And me? Just call me Gu Long. Honestly, I don't know what I am, god, deity, human, demon, beast? Part of my memories are all wiped out, so I can't tell you who I was." As he talked, Old Gu walked closer to him.
His deep sea-blue eyes locked unto Haochen's body. "I'm sorry for all the humiliation you've gone through these last few years. Falling from the peak to the bottom like that... It's tough for anybody." Old Gu's words struck Haochen like a jolt, and his expression turned grim right away.
"Are you here to make fun of me too?" Haochen shot back, his face twisting in clear anger.
The old man gave a slight smile. "Make fun? Nah, I'm just stating facts. And besides, it's not like you can't cultivate again." At that, Haochen's face eased up a little.
"Senior, is there a way for me to get back on track?" Haochen asked, his words tumbling out in a hurry.
"Sure, there's a way ahead, especially since you're the chosen one for the strange arts imprint temple." The old man said it, and Haochen bowed deeply. "Senior, please guide me," he added.
"The temple cleared out your old imprint fragments, dropping your power back to the first-stage bearer level. It was just too weak to handle the temple's full strength," Old Gu explained, his face steady and calm.
"So all the humiliations I've dealt with were because of you and this temple of yours? Do you have any idea how rough it's been for me?" Haochen snapped, realizing now that his years of bad luck traced right back to this old man and his temple.
He ground his teeth, his fist balled up hard. That anger of his looked ready to blow any second. Old Gu gave his shoulder a tap, and a gentle breeze seemed to sweep in, easing him right back down.
"Kid, you'll only see who your true friends and family really are when times get hard, and I figure you've gotten a good look at those so-called ones over the years." The old man stepped closer as he spoke.
"Since fate's tied us together, I'll help you get back up." Old Gu's encouragement made Haochen's face light up again.
"Senior, does that mean I can awaken a new imprint, something stronger than my old lightning one?" He sounded shocked but pleased.
"Not exactly. In the God Realm, immortal realms, demon lands, or human territories, every being gets only one chance to awaken an imprint. If it fails, your only choice is to defy the heavens and carve one directly into your body. But almost no one has the nerve for that. Do you?" Old Gu asked, and a beam of fire sparked in Haochen's eyes.
"As long as there's even a small chance to turn this around, I'll grab it, even if it ends me. I have to get strong. I have to free my mother from her long suffering." His voice burned with determination.
"Good kid. In this world, you climb to the top by going against fate and pushing forward no matter what," Old Gu said, nodding in approval.
Over the generations, people have honed the art of divine imprints to near perfection with nonstop work. As knowledge of them spread, it worked its way into daily life for ordinary folks, blending cultivation right into how they go about their days.
From that main divine imprint practice, all kinds of branches have grown. Each has its own strength and style, some pack more punch, others develop in unique ways.
Looking back thousands of years, these imprint methods fall into low, mid, high, and heaven grades.
The method you choose basically sets your entire path. Say someone has a mid-grade imprint: they could overpower a low-grade one even if the other person's at the same level or beyond.
In this world, your cultivation stage or rank isn't everything when it comes to true strength. The divine imprint technique you use matters just as much.
Old Gu led Haochen over to an old stone platform formation on the floating mountain. Four pillars rose at the east, north, west, and south edges, each glowing with divine imprint runes that danced like fire. The platform buzzed with etched patterns, giving off a sense of holy energy.
"Kid, sit down in the center of the formation," Old Gu instructed. Haochen walked forward and crossed his legs amid the glowing pillars. Old Gu channeled his divine power into the four burning stones, and the platform burst into light.
Haochen's body still bore the lightning imprint patterns from his earlier awakening. Runes surged up from under the platform and into him, stripping away every last bit of the old imprint's power. He gritted his teeth and let out a sharp cry as the pain overwhelmed him.
Countless fragments of old divine imprints rushing out of his body
He clenched his fists, forcing himself to endure. "I have to hang in there. If I don't, my brothers will crush me before long." His resolve held; all his former strength drained away completely.
"My body's empty now, no divine imprint energy surging through me anymore,just like any regular person," he murmured.
"Okay, now comes the main part. Remember, once we start, there's no stopping until it's over. You ready for this, kid?"
"Senior Gu, I'm good to go. Let's begin," Haochen said with resolve.
Old Gu drew out his ancient brush and traced symbols in the air. The golden character "Huang" soon appeared, shimmering. "Now," he commanded, and it shrank into a fierce golden dragon that shot straight into Haochen's forehead and vanished inside. His body jolted violently, and the sky above churned into a gathering storm.
His body started vibrating, and right then, these new golden imprint patterns appeared all over his skin.
"Aah!" Haochen shouted as the pain intensified, with fragments of divine imprints rising from the platform and pouring into him.
His veins were bulging out, and he could sense his dantian right on the edge of shattering. The air around them thickened bit by bit as the sky darkened. Bursts of divine imprints flooded into his body without control, and at that speed, Haochen felt his limbs snapping one by one while his whole body started to give way and weaken.
"After all the humiliations and beatings I've taken before, this feels even worse. I swear, I'm about to snap any second now." His eyes began to droop shut. "No, I can't let myself go down like this, not after everything I've been through," he thought, feeling utterly helpless.
"Kid, hold on," he said, his hand darting out with spot-on precision. Old Gu sketched another character, "Xuan," which twisted into a massive black dragon from the shadows. It coiled toward Haochen's forehead, adding to the torment.
His cry echoed through the space right then, blood pouring from his mouth as his body collapsed flat onto the platform, desperately gasping for any last bit of strength. Black divine imprint patterns began tracing amid the golden ones, and suddenly his whole body lifted into the air, hovering and his eyes failing him.