The Path through the Heavens: A LitRPG Wuxia Series (The Heavenly Throne Book 6)

by Yuri Ajin

  A small cut appeared on her finger, from which several drops of blood fell on the wooden floor. Swelling, they began to grow and form a figure that turned into a creature resembling a ghoul. It wasn’t alive as it didn’t have a soul but it possessed a ki reserve equal to a peak Exorcist with a six-point foundation.

  “You won’t give me a chance to prepare, will you?”

  “Nope.” Acilla smiled. “The fight starts... Now!”

  ***

  “Great!” Clapping her hands, Acilla approached the exhausted Kai.

  “I don’t... know what that.... thing was...” he panted. “But... it was strong...”

  “Initially, I wanted to see how long you’d survive, but you surprised me again. It never crossed my mind that you’d win,” she admitted.

  Stopping near Kai, she used the Blood Path Technique on him. A scarlet cloud surrounded him and then merged with his body. He instantly felt his Source fill with energy, his flesh regenerate at an accelerated rate, and his power of regeneration return to its previous level, even though he had used the Eight Flashes of Yang Technique against the ghoul.

  “Why did you do that?” he asked as soon as the healing was completed.

  After fixing her dress, Acilla sat down next to him. Their eyes were level with his.

  “I suggest you become my student,” she said instead of answering his question.

  Kai froze. Dozens of thoughts and questions flashed through his head but he only managed to ask one.

  “Why?”

  “Are you asking me why I want to become the mentor of a genius with an ideal foundation who owns three concepts, wields the elements of Sword and Space, has a powerful bloodline, knowledge of Forces, and is an excellent cultivator? Are you serious?”

  “What’s in it for me, and what will I have to do?”

  Kai wanted to agree, but doubts tormented him. He wasn’t going to turn to Rune’Tan for advice and he even temporarily closed the mental connection so that he could make this decision on his own.

  “You really are a piece of work...” Acilla sighed and then grinned. “Anyone else in your place would’ve jumped with joy. And here you are, asking questions... What’s in it for you? I’ll help you in your development, teach you techniques and various skills, and allow you to contemplate your Forces of Sword and Space. As for what you’ll have to do... I want you to follow me on my travels through the Ecumene.”

  “I have one condition,” Kai said after a minute of silence.

  “I’m not surprised... Very well... Speak.”

  “We’ll visit my homeworld on the periphery of the Ecumene. I need to pick up my sister.”

  “Zealous... But that will only be possible once you become an Elementalist. Otherwise, you’ll ruin your progress if we now go on a journey through worlds less saturated with energy. I don’t have a lot of resources with me, and there’s nothing valuable among my artifacts.” Acilla shook her palm, hinting at the Ring on his finger, which, for her stage of development and origin, was worthless.

  “If I need to become an Elementalist to start my journey, then I’ll do just that,” Kai agreed.

  “In that case, we must conclude a Soul Pact — an indestructible bond between the Sparks of the student and their mentor,” Acilla said, putting her hand to Kai’s chest.

  At that very moment, he felt that an unknown force burst into his soul and encircled his Spark. He had felt something similar in the past, the day he met Greenrow on Earth. Back then, he also felt their Sparks connect, which didn’t allow either of them to lie and harm one another.

  Closing his eyes, Kai concentrated on that power. A shimmering thread of energy appeared in his imagination and stretched toward Acilla.

  He had made up his mind. Whether it was fate, luck, or maybe just a coincidence, Acilla’s proposal came like a heavenly gift. If there was a better candidate than her to become his mentor, what was the chance of meeting them?

  There was always Rune’Tan. However, due to the lack of a corporeal form and a significant part of his soul energy, he was quite limited in his ability to teach him. He could only give advice and talk about the things he had seen. The two of them had only two things in common: the Path of Space and alchemy. Unfortunately, this wasn’t enough.

  No verbal response was required to complete the pack. His desire alone was enough.

  “You made the right decision,” Kai heard Rune’Tan’s voice after he finally opened the mental connection with him.

  “Isn’t this an ability of some ancient artifact?” Kai asked Acilla, remembering what Rune’Tan had once told him.

  “Yes. But all representatives of the older races are capable of creating a Soul Pact. This is one of our unique abilities,” she explained. “It’s time to get out of here, but first...” She examined Kai. “You ought to finally become a True Master. I feel that your soul is ready. If resources are the problem, I think I have something suitable for your level. It may not be the best breakthrough drug, but with my help, your foundation will remain intact.”

  “It’s not a problem. Actually, I have the necessary resources.” A thin smile lit up Kai’s face. “I only need to make the infusion and start the process.”

  “You’re also an alchemist?”

  “I dabble.”

  “You’re full of surprises.” Acilla smiled in response and then snapped her fingers. Both of them were instantly transported to another room in the palace. “The workshop is at your disposal. Unfortunately, the only tool here is a boiler for cleaning resources. I hope you have a Cube with you?”

  “I do.” Kai nodded, heading to the table.

  After Lightus had tried to rob him, Kai no longer kept his belongings in the Ring, wearing it only as a decoy. He had learned his lesson that day.

  Removing the Night Space sphere from his body, Kai began to retrieve all the necessary resources from it, including the already prepared ingredients and the Three-Bladed Flower. The time had come to prepare the Heavenly Flask of Unlimited Destruction and Recreation.

  “You keep things of value in such an unstable space?” Acilla winced.

  “Yes,” Kai replied with a shrug, without turning around.

  “I know what to teach you first... Masters that use the element of Space shouldn’t get their hands dirty with such techniques or Rings...”

  ***

  Kai stood on the roof of the palace. In the dark skies above hovered a gigantic shining ball that fueled this entire pocket dimension with prana. In essence, it was somewhat similar to Azure Crystals, but thousands of times more powerful. It was here, at the top of the palace, where the main stream of this artificial energy flowed.

  Acilla was sitting nearby, immersed in meditation, observing her student through the Spark connection. She was ready to help him at any time if necessary.

  Once he drank the Heavenly Flask, Kai entered a state of deep meditation.

  The process of reaching the Exorcist Stage was divided into three stages — the Crack Creation Stage, the Shards Stage, and the Recovery Stage. The Spark was the source of one’s will, and to start the process of transitioning to the first stage of true mastery, a cultivator first had to express a powerful desire to become stronger through their will. And if their will wasn’t strong enough, that’d be the end of their path of development, despite their foundation and talent. Without a powerful desire, a cultivator wouldn’t be able to even start a breakthrough. And there wasn’t a second chance.

  If one’s desire was strong enough, it gave rise to an invisible wave of infinitely deep Soul Forces. Having passed through the Shell, they’d start a chain reaction, forcing the soul to begin to transform, and the physical and astral bodies to start a breakthrough.

  Usually, before releasing a wave of will to begin the transition to the next stage, the cultivator meditated for several days or even a week so that their thirst for power would grow. However, Kai didn’t have to waste that much time. He had long ago discovered the Master’s Will, which was why he managed to
start the breakthrough process almost fifteen minutes after coming to this place. To speak nothing of the Heavenly Flask and its effect.

  The elixir moved from the stomach to the Source and then condensed into a small sphere. The infusion could remain in this state for more than two weeks, without losing almost any of its power. However, Kai didn’t need that long. Therefore, as soon as his soul received the order to begin its transformation, the sphere frozen in the Source instantly exploded.

  If Kai’s mind and body hadn’t been trained and tempered, he wouldn’t have withstood even the first shockwave and managed to remain in control. The force of the explosion went directly into the walls of his Source, which marked the beginning of the first stage — the Crack Creation.

  However, Kai didn’t need to pass through this process as his Source was crushed after his brother’s death. The Cold Void was the only thing that saved it from disintegrating further, but now it only interfered with the process, so he had to forcibly squeeze particles out of it a moment before the explosion. Fortunately, during a breakthrough, one couldn’t die of spirit wounds.

  As soon as the explosion hit the already shattered walls, the Source shattered into thousands of fragments, pulling the meridians with it.

  Kai proceeded to the Shards Stage.

  Usually, the first effect of any breakthrough drug on the Exorcist Stage always resulted in a cracked Source. In order to shatter it and properly finish the first stage, cultivators created a powerful explosion. Even those like Kai and Lightus found it difficult to withstand such power as it could easily kill them if they overdid it. That was why it was necessary to crack it first and then spend about a week trying to shatter the Source on their own.

  High-quality drugs like the Heavenly Flask could help reduce this time to one or two days, depending on the cultivator’s talent for energy control. However, thanks to the existing cracks, Kai was able to instantly move to the second stage.

  Using the obtained fragments of the Source and meridians, the number of which the further quality of the foundation depended on, Kai had to reassemble them and form an astral body — a special energetic structure that followed the contours of the physical one.

  At the Body and Mind Stages, ki was stored directly inside the cultivator’s flesh. At the Soul Stage, the primary form of the astral body finally appeared. Prana didn’t need to be inhaled anymore — instead, it entered through acupuncture points, getting into the Source along the meridians. The two were inside the body but they differed from storing ki inside the flesh in that they weren’t physical but energy structures. That was why a cultivator with a Source could store much more ki than one that hadn’t yet created it.

  As for the astral body, the same Source was in its essence, except it grew to the size of a person and took its form. That was why it was called the astral body since it simultaneously existed along with the physical one.

  Together with the creation of the astral body, the method of absorbing prana also changed. Earlier, it had to be drawn through acupuncture points, using an artificially created difference in pressure. Now, the Ki Vortex, which each Exorcist got after the breakthrough, replaced the Source and the acupuncture points. As for Kai, along with the Vortex, as well as his ability to control prana and ki, he could potentially gain a much higher ki recovery rate than that available to ordinary Exorcists.

  On average, it took two to three weeks to create an astral body from the shards. It was a long process that shouldn’t be rushed because the foundation of the future Exorcist depended on the final form of the created structure.

  It wasn’t in vain that Kai had spent so much time searching for resources to prepare the Heavenly Flask. The drug attracted the shards, showing him how to properly stretch and bend them. All that remained for him to do was to put in relatively low effort to solve this unusual puzzle, which, given his abilities, took only two and a half days.

  Keeping the foundation intact was the task of the breakthrough drugs. Common elixirs were good at doing their jobs but infusions helped more. Say you were going on a hike. Weaker drugs were like walking on your own to the top of the mountain — it’d take some time, but you’d eventually get to your destination. The infusions were like riding a mount that knew its way up the mountain — quick and doing all the work.

  As for Kai’s Heavenly Flask, it was like he had been given wings with which he flew over the entire forest and landed at the very top of the mountain.

  The breakthrough to the Exorcist Stage lasted while the soul of a person was transforming and ended when the cultivator completed the creation of the astral body. But if they didn’t do it fast enough and within the specified deadline, then the discrepancy between the two bodies and the soul would kill them.

  Still, most didn’t hurry to complete the breakthrough ahead of time even though they could. Why throw away precious time if the chance to enter the state of enlightenment reached its peak at that time? Why not spend it contemplating?

  Thanks to the infusion, Kai had about thirty-two and a half more days to contemplate before he had to finish his breakthrough.

  All this time he sat motionless, like a statue, eagerly contemplating the Forces of Sword and Space, which Acilla transmitted to him through their connection. Although the Force of Fusion and the Sphere couldn’t be studied — only created by the cultivator themself — it didn’t hurt to familiarize oneself with the experience of other cultivators and contemplate their Forces.

  Unfortunately for Kai, he wasn’t destined to create the Force of Fusion for even one Path in the next couple of years. No matter how favorable the conditions were and no matter what talent he possessed, it wasn’t so easy to reach the Learner Stage. All he could do for now was come closer to it.

  When less than ten minutes remained until the transformation of his soul was completed, Kai turned his mind’s gaze inward. In the place where his Source was previously located two small drops hovered — one transparent and one scarlet. Those were the remains of the Heavenly Flask.

  Using his will, Kai activated both drops. The first instantly flew to the side, crashing into the still unfinished astral body and then spreading over it. The fragments, not yet united, began to thicken. The process of Energy Expansion had begun.

  The second drop entered Kai’s soul, making him feel like a thousand blades had pierced him. But instead of death, each of them carried understanding.

  The Manifestation of the Elements began.

  The sword. A sharpened strip of metal created to kill. How many forms did it have? How many uses did it have? What was a sword to the universe? What was the Path of the Sword? Kai thought about these questions for a long time but couldn’t find any answers. However, had he found them, he would’ve long ago reached the end of this Path.

  What did the sword mean to Kai? He at least had an answer to this question — it was a tool, a friend, an extension of his body... What about the Forces of Sword that he used? He perceived them as aspects of the blade, imprinted in the universe itself.

  A blazing fire was a consequence of the Forces of Fire. Kai didn’t ask the fundamental questions like “why is there a fire?” or “why does this Force work?” as it was the prerogative of the gods to seek answers to such questions. But he was interested to know what exactly particles of Forces were.

  This question bothered him since he mastered his first Force. Through his own research and conversations with Rune’Tan about the nature of the soul, as well as energy vision, and observations, he ultimately came to the conclusion that these particles were conductors.

  Like any person, animal, or even plant, everything in this world wanted to live. The flame longed to burn, the water to flow, and the wind to blow. And when the strength of an element became great enough, it began to form a will of its own, generated by the desire to exist. And it was at this moment that the particles were formed.

  Kai’s hypothesis was confirmed by two facts. First, a large accumulation of particles of one element always led to the bir
th of a Spirit. And second, even Shadows had a will, although they weren’t living beings since they didn’t have Sparks.

  All of this made him realize that every time he invoked Sword particles, he was trying to materialize his desire to use the blade, unconsciously using his understanding of the Forces.

  Having realized this, he came one step closer to figuring out what the Force of Fusion was. At the same time, new questions about the nature of the Will of the Sword arose. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t grasp the understanding of the mysteries of the universe.

  Ultimately, the Manifestation of the Elements came to an end.

  Less than two minutes remained until the transformation was done. Kai’s astral body didn’t yet exist. However, he had put the pieces together beforehand so the correct shape had already been prepared. All that remained was for it to be properly sealed with a meditation technique. For this, Kai planned to use the Cold Void as a bonding material.

  He summoned the particles and began to saturate what would soon become his astral body with them. Less than ten seconds later, the fragments began to merge. Kai’s Spark instantly reacted and the Yang-enhanced soul energy rippled like a stormy river.

  Kai felt that he lacked ki, which forced him to take control of the flow of energy that surrounded him. Having subdued it, he began to suck in prana, concentrating large amounts of energy within himself.

  For a while, the entire palace was deprived of energy. Acilla stared at Kai in bewilderment, feeling more and more strength accumulating in his body.

  What is he doing? she wondered.

  Kai continued to supply energy to the Spark, which spilled back a sea of artificial soul energy. He directed all this force into the rapidly forming astral body. However, along the way, it touched his physical body, forcing him to change its course. To evolve with his soul. To become stronger.

  It was precisely this process that rejuvenated the Exorcists. However, it needed to be carefully monitored. If one allowed too much of this unusual energy to flow into the body, there was a risk of excessive rejuvenation. Something like this happened to Tassarion, which was why he looked much younger than he actually was.