8 Monster Cores

After practicing the cultivation technique, Lucas finally had a grasp of it. As he started to feel the spiritual energy flowing into his veins, he cleared his mind as the technique instructed.

A few minutes passed and he felt a sudden, strange sensation in his spirit, like a click. But there was something off about it. Lucas frowned, looking deep in thought.

"This isn't good. If my passive abilities activate on their own, it's all for nothing. If that passive ability that rejects foreign energy activates, then cultivating will be pointless. I must seal some of my core to feel the progress in my cultivation base," he muttered, a hint of disappointment in his voice.

He knew that if he left his core open, he wouldn't be able to feel the progress in his cultivation. Furthermore, it would be disastrous if the dominant magic core he possessed tried to reject the inferior amount of Qi in his body.

Since he couldn't merge both energies, he would need to partially seal his core so that it wouldn't be rejected. This way, he could see his progress and not be left powerless in this harsh world.

Lucas made a decision, "I've learned a little about the cultivators' mindset from what I saw earlier. I'll just partially seal my core so that the spiritual energy won't be rejected and I can see my progress."

He then chanted a spell to inflict a cooldown on his core's reaction, sealing his passive abilities. As the chant continued, his body gradually weakened and his core glowed with tremendous light.

"This is also a remedy so I won't drain my mana. This world is lacking in mana, so if I use it too frequently, it will reduce the speed of its recovery. And who knows the limits of their expert cultivators, since cultivation is said to lead to immortality? I can't afford to waste my mana," he explained.

Unlike his previous world, he had attained immortality by consuming the blood of dragons known for their long lifespan. He had become close to several dragons and even became the master of all dragons because of his kind nature.

When he finally saw that his core was sealed in half, he let out a sigh of relief. "I must try to create a way to merge mana and Qi. If I can achieve that, maybe I can reach the place where immortals live and not be lonely in this repetitive life anymore. A new experience awaits," he thought, a glint of excitement in his eyes.

Lucas felt lonely being the only one remaining from his generation, even his pet dragons had left him to take care of their children. It was the most depressing moment in his life, even in the darkest era he had lived through.

But now, with a chance to reach the level of immortals, he felt a spark of hope. "I must continue cultivating. I can finally feel the Qi in the air again," he muttered, returning to his meditation position.

He gathered as much spiritual energy as he could, regulating his dantian and breathing according to the technique's method. Hours passed and he advanced five levels in the Apprentice Spirit Realm, reaching the sixth level.

When he noticed that the spiritual energy coming from the array formation wasn't keeping up with his cultivation, he slowed down his absorption.

"Haa... this weak formation. Why can't it keep up with my absorption?" he muttered, a hint of frustration in his voice.

But he continued on, patiently gathering spiritual energy and making breakthroughs.

Woosh!

Energy coursed through Lucas's body, making him feel lighter than air. He flexed his arms, feeling the strength in his muscles and the rush of spiritual energy flowing through him. He had reached the peak of Apprentice Spirit Realm, and he couldn't help but wonder how long it had taken him.

"Is this slower than what's supposed to be usual?" he muttered to himself, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration. Despite his achievements, he felt a growing frustration - the spiritual energy he had absorbed seemed to be slowing down.

At that moment, the door of his room creaked open, letting in a stream of light from the outside. Lucas blinked and rubbed his eyes, adjusting to the sudden brightness.

"My time is up," he said, stretching his limbs and straightening his clothes. He felt refreshed and ready to face the day.

As he stepped outside, Lucas looked around, taking in the sights and sounds of the world. He couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment as he noticed the relatively low cultivation base of the staff around him.

"I must know the average growth of cultivators. I feel I'm too slow," he thought, his brow furrowed as he gazed around. He had merged his innate ability to absorb mana with a cultivation technique, but even with this unusual approach, he felt that he was moving too slowly.

He noticed a young man his own age and couldn't resist glancing at his cultivation base. To his surprise, the young man was at least at the second stage of the Warrior Spirit Realm.

"I'm really slow! Or maybe this is because I just started? Ugh! Never mind, I just have to enjoy this world's offer," Lucas said, shrugging his shoulders and trying to shake off his frustration.

Unbeknownst to Lucas, a staff member was watching him, shocked by the young man's sudden growth. "What the heck! He was just a mortal earlier! Don't tell me he reached the peak of the Apprentice stage with only 30 hours?! How is that possible!" the staff member cried inwardly, his eyes wide with disbelief.

But before he could get a better look, Lucas had already disappeared from view. The staff member sighed and shrugged, heading back inside. "I must report this to my master," he thought, his mind buzzing with excitement.

***

Lucas was on the brink of leaving the city when a thought struck him. He needed to join a sect if he wanted to continue cultivating and avoid the loneliness of being a rogue mage like he was in his previous life. But then, a conflicting idea entered his mind. The freedom of not being bound by sect rules enticed him.

He stopped in his tracks, deep in thought. After a moment, he decided to try venturing into the world first before settling down. He headed into a nearby forest to hunt some monsters for some extra gold coins. He only had 65 left and needed resources for his cultivation.

"Starting from the bottom again," he chuckled to himself. Who would've thought that the once most powerful human would be reduced to this? But he couldn't deny the excitement of the challenge ahead.

As he ventured deeper into the forest, he came across some chimeric monsters and normal-looking animals. He remembered that not all monsters had cores and only those at the 7th level of the Apprentice Spirit Realm or higher had a chance of materializing one.

One of the monsters noticed his presence and pounced at him. Lucas, with little talent in reflexes, instinctively swung his arm to defend himself. The monster was no match for him and he effortlessly slew it, but his arm was now covered in sticky red blood. He crinkled his nose in disgust and shook it off.

After checking the monster for a core, he was disappointed to find that it didn't have one despite being at the 7th level. But a few hours later, his luck changed and he was able to gather 10 monster cores. He smiled in satisfaction at his haul.

However, he soon realized that the effectiveness of the cores would lessen if there was a disparity in their levels. He would need to gather cores at the same level if he wanted to reach the middle of the next stage.

"I'll have to visit the nearest city and buy some weapons or martial techniques," he mumbled to himself as he leaped from tree branch to tree branch. The sun was about to rise, and he needed to get moving.