The Elven Cultivator

Early the next morning.

Laine hurriedly shoveled down a few bites of breakfast, then eagerly left, heading for the treehouse where the test had been held the day before.

He thought he had arrived quite early, but when he got there, he saw a figure already waiting in front of the treehouse.

It was Lucius.

He was sitting on the steps by the treehouse door, the wooden sword he had carved himself resting across his lap. His fingers traced the grain on the sword’s spine.

”Morning, Lucius,” Laine said, taking the initiative to greet him.

”Morning.” Lucius nodded, his tone as placid as ever.

After the simple greeting, the two fell into silence.

Laine was already used to Lucius’s taciturn nature and didn’t find it awkward. He walked to the other end of the steps, sat down quietly, and idly scanned his surroundings.

Before long, the sound of silvery laughter drifted from the distance.

Laine followed the sound with his gaze and saw Furlo and Mia approaching side by side.

Furlo wore a light blue, knee-length dress tied at the waist with a silver ribbon. Her emerald-green hair was woven into a loose braid that hung over her chest, swaying gently with her steps.

She was carrying a small, woven wicker basket covered with a piece of white linen, its contents a mystery.

Mia, on the other hand, was dressed in practical hunter’s garb. Her dark brown leather boots made a light TAP-TAP-TAP sound on the ground, radiating a lively energy.

”Laine, Lucius, what are you doing here so early?” Mia walked over quickly, striking up a conversation with them without any reservation.

”I couldn’t sleep soundly, so I woke up early,” Laine answered honestly.

”Me too!” Mia giggled. ”I tossed and turned for ages last night before I finally fell asleep. My mom said I was like a wriggling caterpillar.”

Furlo smiled, pursing her lips. She also sat down on the steps and took out several golden-brown cookies from her small basket, sharing them with the other three.

”I baked them this morning. Have some.”

Laine took a cookie and bit into it. It was crisp, sweet, and fragrant with honey and nuts. It was different from what his mother baked, but it was delicious all the same.

”It’s delicious,” he praised sincerely.

Furlo smiled, her eyes curving into two crescent moons.

The four of them sat on the steps like that, chatting idly and eating cookies as they waited for time to pass.

One after another, the other Elf children who had passed the test also arrived.

Some excitedly recounted how their families had celebrated for them the night before.

Some wondered curiously what Lord Anton would teach them.

Others stood quietly to the side, silently observing their surroundings.

Before long, all twelve children had gathered.

After waiting a little longer, the sound of steady footsteps echoed from the end of the treetop corridor.

Eleanor approached, dressed in a pale cyan robe, her gait unhurried.

Her gentle gaze swept over the group, and she smiled slightly. ”Is everyone here? Follow me.”

As soon as she finished speaking, she turned and walked toward the other end of the corridor.

The children immediately followed, a mixture of excitement and nervousness spreading through their ranks.

They left the training ground, passed through the corridor, and headed in the direction of the Eternal Tree.

The surrounding scenery gradually became unfamiliar.

This area was the residential district for the Clan’s upper echelons and also a key garrison for the Forest Guard. Ordinary clan members were not allowed to enter without permission on a normal day.

Children like them were only permitted to enter this vicinity during important festivals.

For a moment, all the children couldn’t help but look around curiously.

After walking for about five or six minutes, the group finally stopped in front of a building.

Laine looked up, his eyes widening slightly.

It was a structure unlike any he had ever seen.

It nestled between several towering ancient oaks. Its flying eaves and upturned corners were like a bird spreading its wings, the corners tilting slightly upward in an elegant arc.

The roof was covered in a layer of dark cyan ”tiles.”

But upon closer inspection, he realized they weren’t real tiles, but countless fine vines and leaves layered and interwoven. The leaves were as thick as leather, gleaming with a gentle luster in the morning light.

Several wicker lanterns hung under the eaves, a soft fluorescent glow faintly visible within them.

The entire building had not a single nail or rivet, not the slightest trace of a chisel or axe from human hands.

The walls were woven from vines, their texture as fine as brocade.

The beams and pillars were branches extending from the ancient oaks, naturally curved into load-bearing arcs.

Even the outlines of the doors and windows looked like gaps the trees had left behind as they grew.

It seemed not to have been ”built,” but to have ”grown” out of the forest.

Laine didn’t know how to describe what he was feeling.

The building before him didn’t have the common treehouse style of the Elf Race, nor was it a rugged stone fortress of the Dwarves, and it certainly wasn’t one of the brick and stone structures the elders sometimes mentioned.

It was archaic and serene, every line exuding a natural, effortless charm.

”It’s so beautiful,” Mia couldn’t help but sigh in a low voice.

The other children were also mesmerized, their gazes lingering on every detail of the building, unwilling to look away.

Eleanor stood at the door, a faint smile playing on her lips as she watched the children’s reactions.

This building had been personally constructed by Anton using a Technique.

When she had first seen it, she too had been stunned by its strange yet beautiful style.

Anton had named this building the Dao Transmission Pavilion.

”Go on in.”

Eleanor gathered her thoughts, pushed open the main doors, and walked inside.

The children snapped out of their daze and hurried to follow.

The moment he passed through the doorway and stepped into the main hall, Laine’s field of vision suddenly opened up.

It was an extremely spacious and bright hall.

Sunlight poured down from a skylight in the roof, filtering through a latticework of vines on the ceiling to become countless tiny motes of light that scattered across the polished wooden floor like flecks of gold.

Directly opposite the main doors stood a smooth stone wall.

The wall was light gray, its surface as smooth as a mirror. Faint, fine patterns could be seen flowing slowly beneath the surface like ripples in water.

In front of the wall was a single wicker meditation cushion.

Anton was sitting upright on the cushion, his gaze peaceful as he watched everyone enter.

The twelve children’s movements and expressions became visibly stiff.

They had grown up hearing tales of Anton’s deeds and had heard his name countless times from their elders, but they had only ever seen him from a distance a few times at clan gatherings.

This was the first time in their lives they had ever seen him in person, this close.

”Find a place and sit down.”

Anton’s voice rang out in the hall.

The children, as if waking from a dream, all came to the center of the hall.

There, twelve meditation cushions were arranged neatly in a semicircle, facing Anton.

They each found a cushion and sat down, straightening their backs, looking every bit the well-behaved children.

Eleanor stood at the door. After confirming that all the children were seated, she gave Anton a slight nod, then turned, left, and gently closed the door behind her.

In an instant, only Anton and the twelve children remained in the hall.

Anton’s gaze swept over the children’s innocent faces, a hint of emotion flashing in his eyes.

’I remember that feeling of being lost and helpless right after my memories awakened,’ he thought. ’Back then, I knew what the future held, but knowing was one thing. There was very little I could actually do. Without power, knowing everything is just empty talk. But now, I finally have enough power to change things. To change the Clan’s destiny of weakness, to change the fates of those I care about, and to change my own destiny as well. It starts with teaching these children.’

”Before we officially begin the lesson, you first need to know what kind of power I am about to impart to you.”

Anton began to speak slowly, his tone calm and solemn.

”It is different from the Magic you have heard of, and it is different from a Warrior’s breathing method.”

”It is called the Dao of Cultivation.”

The hall fell silent. All the children held their breath, their eyes fixed on Anton, afraid of missing a single word.

”What is cultivation?”

”As you all know, every race has a limited lifespan. Humans do not live past a hundred years, and even for a long-lived species like the Elves, a thousand years is the limit.”

”Where there is birth, there is old age, sickness, and death.”

”This is a Law of this world, and no one is an exception. Even a mighty Legendary Powerhouse cannot escape the passage of time and will one day grow old and perish.”

”But cultivation is different.”

”Cultivation is to walk a path against the heavens. This world wants you to be born, to age, to sicken, and to die. But you will seek long life, to transcend the world’s Laws with a mortal body. This is cultivation.”

Heaven and earth give birth to man, whose life does not exceed a century. They are subject to birth, aging, sickness, and death, trapped within the Five Elements, unable to achieve transcendence.

A Cultivator is one who walks against the heavens, who questions the Celestial Dao with a mortal body, seeking long life and transcendence over life and death.

These few simple sentences had to be broken down by Anton, explained bit by bit in words that the people of this world could understand.

Especially since his audience was a group of children no older than thirteen.

Even so, the children only seemed to grasp half of what was being said.

Anton saw the changing expressions on the children’s faces and smiled faintly.

”These concepts are still too profound for you. There’s no need to rush to understand them. You only need to remember that cultivation is a long road. It requires perseverance and persistence, an accumulation of effort day after day.”

”You are still young. You have plenty of time.”

He paused, then changed the subject. ”Now, let’s begin the lesson.”

”First, we will discuss the definition of Spiritual Qi.”

”Spiritual Qi is the foundation of cultivation. One of the things a Cultivator must do is sense the energy between heaven and earth, draw it into the body, and refine it for their own use, turning it into Spiritual Qi.”

”Refined Spiritual Qi is stored in the Dantian’s Qi Sea. The more Spiritual Qi one has, the stronger the Cultivator becomes...”

The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only Anton’s voice echoing within it.

Spiritual Qi, the creation and destruction cycles of the Five Elements, Spirit Roots, the Dantian’s Qi Sea, Spiritual Sense, the realms of cultivation...

The children’s eyes were wide as they listened to Anton’s lecture, completely entranced.

These terms, which they had never heard before, were like puzzle pieces assembling a magnificent, unprecedented scroll painting in their minds.

A brand new world was opening its doors to them.