Road of Defiance

"So, let me get this straight, you were a powerful cultivator that ended up getting killed because you foolishly tried to steal something from Heaven to help better your cultivation strength? While also not having taken in consideration that your actions would bring forth Heaven's wrath?"

『Essentially yes』

"...Yeah, you deserved it."

At the present time, Tsurugi could be seen sitting on top of the same mountain he had woken up on. He could be seen staring up at the hovering form of the elder in front of him, who was currently looking pretty lazy as he was hovering as if he were lying on a hammock or something.

This person's name was Guo Tingfeng

From what Tsurugi had learnt, this old guy was essentially one of those cultivators from the Chinese novels back when he was alive in his old world. Tsurugi was glad though, the guy didn't display the tone of arrogance and superiority a majority of characters from those novels did.

If Tsurugi were to take Tingfeng's words for granted, then the guy was supposedly a very powerful cultivator who had managed to ascend from being a mortal being into an immortal. The question now was why the hell this old dude was with him.

"So, you have no idea why your here?"

『I know, crazy. I was expecting to reincarnate, not become... whatever this is』

"Wait, reincarnate? As in being reborn into a new life?"

『Exactly. Once you become an immortal like I did, reincarnating is one of your many benefits』

'But didn't I already reincarnate a few minutes ago?' Tsurugi thought to himself as he held his chin in thought. Maybe his world didn't follow the same laws as the one Tingfeng came from, he wasn't sure. "Is it possible for me to become a cultivator?"

Tsurugi had a very simple reason for this, he was in unknown territory and was not comfortable being defenceless. Not only that, perhaps becoming a cultivator could help him get down from this mountain in one piece.

『Anyone can become a cultivator, though whether or not they have the potential or not to truly begin the journey is another story entirely. If you don't have even the slightest bit of talent, becoming a cultivator is nothing more than a pipe dream』

"Of course, it can't ever be that easy. So, it's a luck of the draw..."

『I can help you in attempting to unlock your meridians, but if you don't have any talent, then that's the end of it. Sit on down, let's begin!』

"Yeah, might as well give it a shot. Wait, why are you so eager to help me? I may be wrong, but I figured teaching the ways of cultivation were usually only given to those who are privileged enough."

『Oh, I just want to go and explore this new world of ours! Think about all the exciting new sights, the new foods to taste! But for whatever reason, I cannot move beyond a few meters from your position! Thus, you need to get down from this mountain!』

Tsurugi deadpanned upon hearing the reasoning. 'Is he a child? Can he even eat anymore?'

『I can hear you, you know? I'm not a child! In fact, I'm more than eighty-thousand years old』

Not wanting to hurt his brain any longer, Tsurugi just followed Tingfeng's instructions as he quickly got into a lotus sitting position. According to the old man, the environment around them was very good for meditation and such, it was both quiet and apparently had a decent abundance of Qi in the air.

Tsurugi couldn't lie, the position was pretty uncomfortable, he was just not used to sitting in such a strange position. He wouldn't be surprised if his legs were to go numb at some point, so all he could hope was that he'd get used to it over time.

『Now, you must clear your mind of all unnecessary thoughts and focus only on what is important. You must feel the Qi that is flowing around you, imagine it flowing into your body through the meridians. You can imagine it as blood flowing through your veins』

'That sounds easier said than done...'

『I said focus!』

"..."

Minutes passed by pretty quickly, though it was probably because Tsurugi was so focused that he didn't even register the amount of that had passed. Maybe it was his imagination, but he felt as if he could feel something akin to rain drops gently colliding with his skin.

『Very impressive! Even a talented cultivator may take an hour to even feel the Qi, but you're already gathering it into your body. You must have quite the talent indeed!』

After hearing Tingfeng's words of approval, Tsurugi merely gave a mental nod as he continued focusing. The better the grasp he got on the sensation, the stranger it became as it soon felt as if multiple garden hoses were spraying water gently against him.

It was a strange analogy, but it was the best way to describe how it felt.

『You're almost there! Push! Push harder!』

'Shut up! Stop making it sound like I'm pregnant!'

『Tch, youngsters are so rude nowadays』

Taking a deep breath, Tsurugi focused entirely on the direction of the Qi. Just like how Tingfeng advised him earlier, he began imagining it flowing into a set of veins in his body. Immediately after doing so, he felt a strange yet comfortable sensation all over his body.

The feeling continued to grow stronger and stronger as time passed, and soon he felt as if it was going to burst out. His heart was beating faster as well, and he could feel multiple sections of his body twitching unconsciously as the Qi began circulating.

Soon enough, the flow of external Qi coming into his body faded away.

『Unbelievable...』

Hearing Tingfeng mutter that single word, Tsurugi slowly opened his eyes, only to be greeted by a beautiful glow that seemed to originate from his body. Looking down, he noticed that multiple root-like veins were running along every single part of his body, their glow passing through his suit without any trouble.

If he wasn't mistaken, these 'veins' were his meridians. Essentially, they were the channels that allowed for Qi to circulate throughout the body of the individual. Unlocking the meridians were compulsory if one was looking to become a cultivator.

A few moments later, the meridians faded away before everything returned to normal.

『You... possess incredibly powerful spiritual veins』

Tsurugi heard this as he looked up at Tingfeng, who in contrast to the lazy and carefree looking guy he had known, was looking at him in both seriousness and awe. Tsurugi didn't know why his meridians incited such a reaction, but that was soon answered.

『Meridians of such quality are impossible to come by for starting cultivators, the exceptions only being those who have reincarnated. It would seem that the Heavens have truly gifted you with an extraordinary body』

"Perhaps it's because I've already reincarnated."

『What? I thought you said you weren't a cultivator』

"That's the thing, I wasn't." Tsurugi spoke seriously as he leaned back while closing his eyes. He remained silent for a bit before opening his eyes again, though he continued staring up at the clouds. "I was just a normal human. Yet here I am."

『That's very... unusual』Tingfeng spoke while narrowing his eyes.『The only being I can think of possibly controlling the cycle of reincarnation is the Jade Emperor himself. Though, I have doubts that even a powerful existence like him is capable of such. I figure that the person who reincarnated you may be something beyond possible scope of comprehension』

"In any case, I'm glad I was given a chance to live longer. I don't know about you, but I'd rather live for longer than just seventeen years." Tsurugi sighed as he pushed himself off of the ground. Raising on hand, he clenched his fist multiple times. "My body feels much lighter than before. Tingfeng, how strong am I right now?"

『Compared to the normal mortal? If you mean based entirely on physical power, at your current stage, you'd be around three times stronger than the average civilian. Though, with the quality of your meridians, you could definitely get stronger much faster than average cultivators』

"On that topic actually, what benefits do the quality of my meridians give me?"

『On top of allowing you to better absorb Qi, with the quality of your meridians, you'll most likely find it easier to manipulate your Qi as well as exhaust far less energy in comparison to average cultivators』

"Not bad."

『In fact, I don't think I've ever seen meridians of such quality. You may be at the Early Qi Condensation realm, but it shouldn't be too difficult for you to rise up further in the next week or so, perhaps even sooner』

"Oh yeah, you cultivators have some system to judge power, huh?" Tsurugi seemingly recalled as he made his way to the edge of the mountain. With narrowed eyes, he scanned over the landscape. 'Amazing, even my vision and hearing have improved.'

Unlike before, he could see the bottom of the mountain much clearer compared to how he could previously. It wasn't that he couldn't make anything out before, it just became much clearer in comparison.

He continued looking around for a bit before spotting what looked to be a rather peculiar looking fruit and hanging down from the branches of a tree, orange and yellow in colour and shaped a bit similar to that of a pear, just much bigger.

"Tingfeng-."

『Call me Master! The disciple should show respect!』

"...Master, what are my chances of safely getting down the mountain?"

『Hmm... As long as you manage to climb down to around half-way, then falling to the ground shouldn't cause that much damage to you. Maybe a broken bone or two, but that shouldn't happen if you empower yourself with Qi』

"How wonderful..."

Tsurugi deadpanned before taking a deep breath.