Chapter 5: The First Sect Stone
A soft mist blanketed the forested hills behind the village as Alex sat in silent meditation atop a stone outcrop. The early morning wind brushed past his white robes, and faint golden spiritual energy swirled around his body like dancing threads of sunlight.
He recalled the Main Quest he had received not long ago:
Main Quest:
Hide your true identity
Spread cultivation knowledge
Wait for the rise of the Great Pirate Era
Reward: Immortal Realm Breakthrough Pill
"A long path," he murmured. "But the reward is worth a thousand lifetimes."
He stood slowly and gazed down at the village below, still quiet in the early morning. In this era—two hundred years before the World Government would rise—the world was wild and fractured. Pirates roamed in loose fleets, kingdoms waged quiet wars, and ancient clans guarded their secrets. There were no Marines, no Admirals, no celestial dragons.
Perfect.
Alex returned to the small training ground he'd set up at the forest's edge. Lina was already there, drenched in sweat, repeating the Flowing Leaf Sword Art. Her form was better now—more fluid, more stable.
"You've improved," he said.
"I can feel something inside me," she said, eyes wide. "A warmth… it moves when I breathe."
"You've opened your first meridian," Alex replied. "Soon, you'll be ready to cultivate properly."
From the system shop, he spent 80 Origin Points to unlock a Yellow-Perfect Grade Cultivation Manual: Sunroot Foundation Technique. He handed her the scroll.
"This will stabilize your body and let you draw in spiritual energy. Study it carefully."
Lina knelt and bowed. "Thank you, Master."
Ding! Cultivation Manual Passed
+100 Origin Points
Hidden Quest Progress: 2%
Alex nodded, pleased. Her spirit roots were average, but her determination was admirable. He needed more like her—people who could become seeds of something greater.
That evening, guided by faint energy traces in the earth, Alex discovered a moss-covered stone ruin deeper in the forest. It was a fragment of some long-forgotten temple, cracked and leaning, but the land held a faint resonance.
Perfect for a base.
Drawing his sword, he carved the basic Spirit-Gathering Array directly into the soil. It would not compare to the great arrays of the immortal sects, but it would concentrate energy enough for low-level cultivation.
Ding! Minor Spirit-Gathering Zone Created
+10% Cultivation Speed for disciples
Hidden Quest Progress: 3%
He looked at the stone ruins again.
"This shall be the foundation of my sect," he whispered. "The first stone."
As he meditated that night, spiritual energy lightly gathered around him, threading through the carved lines and into his body. The world was poor in energy—but that could be fixed, in time.
And far beyond the island, storm clouds brewed. A pirate fleet had recently plundered an island kingdom, and strange rumors spoke of a boy with eyes that could see the future. History was still unwritten, and the balance of power fragile.
But one thing was certain: before the Great Pirate Era arrived, the seed of cultivation would already be rooted deep in this world.