Secret Element at the Start!

Yu Yan didn't speak much on the way back to her home. After hearing what the cashier said, she now saw Bai Yunfei in a new light.

Everything had happened suddenly, and she hadn't realized how handsome Bai Yunfei was. Only after the store attendant's comment did she realize it.

But of course, she didn't say a word about it. After all, they had just met, so talking about that would be weird.

She only started talking when Bai Yunfei asked her about the game, which was something she was really excited about.

"How does the game work, exactly? I mean, what's the goal?" Bai Yunfei asked.

In real cultivation, the goal was to get stronger, but more importantly, to become immortal and have the power to protect the people you cared about.

Yu Yan was surprised by the sudden question. "Well, it's a game to have some fun. You know, work and college are pretty boring. But you can also earn money from the game if you are good enough. I've heard the competitive aspect of it will be huge."

The thing that Bai Yunfei wanted the most was to get back his power, which vanished after he got sealed. He had lost all of his cultivation, and Earth didn't have enough Qi for him to cultivate either, so he was trapped there.

But even though the game might not help him with that, he wanted to feel like a cultivator again. Being a mortal after attaining such a high level of cultivation was just terrible.

"I see. But what things can you do besides cultivate?" he asked.

"I've heard there are rankings of all players, so the strongest will get ahead when it comes to competition and stuff. You can kill monsters, tame them, make farms, practice alchemy, build sects to participate in large-scale battles, etc."

Bai Yunfei listened to everything, and he was more and more excited about trying the game. Despite working hard to increase his cultivation during his life, it wasn't like he could just go and attack people.

Fights were rare because dying was something no one wanted, but according to Yu Yan, the players in the game were basically immortal.

"You won't lose your character if you die, but the game developers said you can lose some items, or even have your cultivation level decreased a bit. Also, in official tournaments, you won't lose anything even if you die," she explained.

They wanted some level of hardcore to the game, like losing something during fights or in the open world, or even in sect battles.

But during official tournaments, that was not the case. That gave it a balance.

Bai Yunfei didn't care about any of that. He knew that his knowledge about cultivation might give him a vast advantage, and it wasn't like he would die often.

In fact, he was more concerned about the other millions of players who might have to face him.

That was how confident he was in his skills.

"So do you plan on playing together with me or not?" Bai Yunfei asked her.

Yu Yan's cheeks turned red as she thought about it. "We can start in the same province, but the world is massive, so it will take quite some time for us to meet in the game. Starting in the same province doesn't mean we start at the exact same place."

"That's good enough, I think. So how does the character talent work? Like the element affinity?" Bai Yunfei asked.

When confronted by that question, Yu Yan was excited. "Well, you can choose the element you want, but you can also get it randomly. Your talent can improve during the game, and everyone starts with the same talent grade."

It was different when compared to an actual cultivation world. Back where Bai Yunfei lived, everyone had a different level of talent upon birth.

Some were better when using water techniques, others fire. Some could improve rapidly even without resources, others couldn't even get to Foundation Establishment. That was how fierce and unfair the world was.

But that was different in the game. It had to please millions of players, so they had to make it fair and consistent for everyone.

"Talent still matters, though," Yu Yan said, "Some players are just better when it comes to the control of their bodies, their learning capability, and even their luck in finding rare techniques."

"I see."

After returning to Yu Yan's home, they made something to eat before relaxing for a while until the game servers were open. The scheduled time was 6 pm.

Mei Li returned at around 5:30 pm, and she was glad to see that her daughter was fine.

"So you two are playing the game together?" Mei Li said, giving her daughter a wink.

"Stop it, mom," Yu Yan said, "It's just a game."

"But he's pretty handsome, isn't he?" Mei Li said.

Yu Yan looked down, "Yes, he's good looking. Anyway, I'll go to my room, okay?"

She went upstairs to her room, as the game was soon opening.

Bai Yunfei was already inside the guest's room, lying on the bed with the game helmet on his head. At 6 pm, he would become a cultivator again, and that was exciting.

Time felt incredibly slow to him. It was like 6 pm would never come, but when it finally did, he entered the game.

That was the strangest thing he had ever seen. He was in an empty white room where he saw a mirror. When in front of it, he could change his appearance.

In fact, the game obligated the players to change their appearance, at least a little bit. They didn't want people to get recognized easily on the streets.

Bai Yunfei tweaked his face, and then he saw the list of elements he could choose from.

Only the basic attributes were there, which was lame. He wanted to use the powerful lightning element, which was rare and was the one he used back in his world.

He had an idea. Bai Yunfei felt the Qi around him, so he didn't choose his element immediately, but sat on the ground, and closed his eyes.

Despite having lost his cultivation level, all the techniques were still inside his mind. He followed the specific breathing pattern of his lightning cultivation technique, Nine Heavens Rumbling Thunder Art.

Not only that, but he focused on visualizing the memories of him practicing the technique, feeling the energy from the heavens. That's when something peculiar happened.

A lightning bolt came toward him! The lightning hit the white room where he was, breaking the wall and hitting his body. He felt the power rush through his veins.

When he looked at the mirror where he could choose his element, lightning was there! Somehow, Bai Yunfei unlocked a secret element at the start by using his technique!

He chose it, and then moved toward the broken wall of the room. That's when he realized he was above the clouds, and there were millions of other square rooms floating around him.

'Are these rooms where the other players are?' he thought.

If that was the case, then he was the first one to find a way to break it!

After getting his hidden lightning element, Bai Yunfei was ready to start his new cultivation journey in Path of Ascension, and become the strongest.