Eos

Chaotic Celestial Qi swirled in the air around Eos. Small flashes of lightning crackled around him in all sorts of colors, but he was completely unmoved as he sat on the floor in a cross-legged position.

He was only in the Peak Celestial Qi Realm because he had failed to break through from the Peak Celestial Nascent to the Primary Celestial Soul Sea Realm. The backlash had been horrible. It had happened many times and, as usual, it had almost cost him his life.

It was like a curse, but he knew that one day he would be able to break it. But the goal at the moment was to enter the Primary Celestial Golden Realm.

The main difference between Calestrial Qi and ordinary Qi was its power. The actual cultivation scale with the different realms was the same. Cora had estimated Celestial Qi to be between one to two realms stronger. But she had also said it was an overlap, and the scale was non-linear.

There were only one in ten who could cultivate qi, and there were only three Supremes that he knew of. But at the same time, they lived in a world that was endless, with an infinite number of continents and oceans. Who knew how many there were. There were numerous stories and legends about Supremes, so it couldn't just be himself and his sisters.

Eos felt how his spirit root was about to start growing again little by little. Everyone who could cultivate had a spirit root. They were different in quality, and it determined how fast you could cultivate and evolve. The quality was divided into five levels: inferior, ordinary, excellent, superb, and divine.

All roots have one of four possible elements attached to them: earth, fire, water, and air. They were also light or dark in nature. Once a cultivator had entered the gold-core realm, he or she could begin to use techniques and spells that are linked to the spirit root's elements. These were known as golden arts.

If you had no spirit root when you were born, it was not impossible to use Qi. But you had to become a mortal cultivator by letting a Jinx spirit bind to one's soul and create a fake spirit root. But the price was high as the lifespan was shortened several times over. Unless you managed to cultivate and develop the fake spirit root.

Depending on the quality of the root, the mortal cultivator could at best cultivate it to the Golden Core Realm. But that was rare. Generally, only two-thirds succeed in advancing their cultivation to the next evolution level.

It was common for those sentenced to hard labor or enslaved to be forced into a contract with a Jinx spirit. These slaves, could work harder and endure more hardship. But it was also a death penalty as they were not allowed to cultivate.

It was also common for soldiers to enter into contracts, but they had the opportunity to cultivate and the possibility to extend their lives. But it was a gamble. Especially if you didn't have any resources.

The average lifespan of those who received a false spirits root was only thirty years, and one had to undergo at least two evolutions to get a lifespan of seventy years. The mortality rate was high, as just two-thirds succeeded with one evolution, and only four of nine succeeded with two evolutions. And one of the biggest reasons was the tremendous shortage of cultivation resources.

The basic principle of cultivation was the same for everyone, regardless of the method or technique used. You needed to absorb and cultivate Qi. It made the spirit root grow and evolve, and you got stronger. The root itself was not a part of your body but a part of the soul.

Qi was everywhere in many different forms but the quality was very different. In principle, there were five different kinds of Qi. Yin-Qi, Yang-Qi, Soul-Qi, Naturel-Qi, Demonic-Qi, and Celestial-Qi.

The natural Qi was all around you but was also the weakest of the five. In the long run, it was useless to cultivate natural Qi without using alchemy. On the other hand, Demonic- and Calestrial Qi were mysterious and almost impossible to cultivate for an ordinary cultivator.

To reach your full potential, you had to do everything and anything. But above all, you needed to kill and absorb Soul Qi, as well as dual-cultivate Yin and Yang.

In order to harness Yin and Yang Qi, they needed to be blended through sexual interaction and dual cultivation. And since women needed it as much as men, sex was an ordinary thing to have and nothing strange. Some even said that a harem was a cultivation resource. Yin and Yang-Qi were especially important in the advanced stage of the Golden Core and in the Advanced Nascent Realm, as they were the only energies an immortal cultivator could use to nourish their spirit root. Unless you could use Demonic or Calestrial Qi…

Eos opened his eyes but remained on the floor. He hadn't managed to break through to the next realm, but it was close.

There was a light knock on the door, and in came Ciri and Nephele.

"Master, we have received word from the Dragon Sky Sect." Nephele didn't sound particularly cheerful.

She handed Eos the letter written on the finest parchment. He took it hesitantly and looked at it. It had an unbroken seal, and he had no doubt that it was genuine.

"The messenger said we have a twenty-four-hour period to leave the city," Ciri said with an angry voice.

Eos thought something must be wrong with Dragon Sky Sect. Very few would turn down the chance to work with the Yinpai, even if they had to give up some of their freedom.

When he opened and read the letter, it was nothing new. They thanked him for the offer and… declined. The only disrespectful thing was the ending. "We must ask all of you to leave the Grimholde so that no complications arise." No reason was given.

"What's going on? Nephele asked.

"I don't know. But it's an obvious threat. Something has happened or will happen, but what… and why? It is worrying." said Eos.

"I don't trust them. They were hostile from start." Ciri's voice was harsh and not nearly as chanting as it used to be.