Elemental Roots

Seeing the scene before him, the boy froze in place, his eyes showing a mixture of slight surprise and fear at his brother's condition. As he opened the door and witnessed the situation, he found himself at a loss for words. He had no idea how to react to the sight of his brother—someone he had known since birth—trying to embrace the air.

However, the moment Evan heard someone enter, he swiftly turned his head toward the source of the sound, visibly startled.

""WTF?! Why didn't he knock…? No, wait! That's not important right now. Did he see what I was doing?!"" he thought in panic, immediately stopping his unusual actions. He quickly pulled away from the status panel and leaned back into his chair, trying to appear as normal as possible.

While he was still caught up in his thoughts, he forced himself to speak, addressing his brother.

"Big brother… what are you doing here?" he asked, his voice slightly nervous. He tried to show a hint of concern, but deep down, his fear wasn't about his surroundings—it was about whether his secret had been discovered. A single bead of sweat trickled down his forehead, betraying his inner anxiety.

""Don't let him notice… Don't let him notice…"" he kept repeating to himself in his mind.

But outwardly, he maintained his composure.

"Did something happen?" he asked, taking a small step forward. His eyes still displayed confusion and a slight worry, but inside, his mind raced.

""Did something happen to him? Why is he acting so strangely?"" he wondered, deeply concerned for his brother. He truly loved him and didn't want anything terrible to happen to him.

As he looked into Evan's face, he reached out slightly, moving toward him.

Evan, seeing that his brother hadn't noticed anything unusual, felt a wave of relief wash over him.

""Phew…"" he sighed internally, feeling a sense of ease. He immediately put on a smile and replied,

"Did something happen?"

He quickly got up from his chair and ran toward his brother, acting as any normal child would when hearing that something might be wrong.

His brother, watching Evan rush over to him, let out a small chuckle and exhaled in relief.

""Hah… Thank goodness, nothing happened,"" he thought, extending his hand and gently patting Evan on the head.

Then, after a moment, he crouched down to Evan's level, gazed into his younger brother's eyes, and reassured him,

"No, nothing at all."

Immediately after saying that, he reached out with his other hand, lightly grabbing Evan's nose and gently wiggling it from side to side.

""What is he doing?!"" Evan thought internally, completely caught off guard by this unexpected "attack" on his nose. Instinctively, he smacked his brother's hand away and exclaimed,

"Brother! Why did you do that?! That hurt!"

He stomped his foot dramatically, attempting to appear intimidating, faking his anger. However, deep down, he was still slightly panicked, uncertain about what would happen next.

""Did it work? Did it work?"" he wondered, observing his brother closely.

His brother, David, suddenly burst into laughter.

"Hahaha… Evan, you never change. You're still so quick-tempered," he chuckled, a soft smile of relief on his face as he watched his younger brother's reaction.

""I'm glad he's okay,"" he thought again, his sky-blue eyes—sometimes almost appearing white—gleaming with quiet reassurance.

"Oh, come on now, don't be so mad, or I'll get scared," David teased, pretending to be frightened while still smiling at Evan. He ruffled his younger brother's hair again.

"Hmpf…" Evan huffed, pretending to be upset with his older brother. He turned his head away in mock anger and said,

"I won't forgive you so easily."

Yet inside, he was still nervous, thinking to himself,

""Before, I didn't have to fake my emotions… they were too worried and in shock. But now, I need to act naturally and gather some information.""

David tilted his head slightly, his eyes gleaming with amusement.

"You won't forgive your big brother?" he asked playfully.

Then, he suddenly burst out laughing again.

"Hahaha!"

After his laughter subsided, he withdrew his hand from Evan's head and, in a more serious tone, asked,

"Hmm… Then what should I do to make you forgive me?"

His voice carried a lighthearted tone, filled with the affection he had for his younger brother. He truly enjoyed teasing him.

However, before Evan could respond, David suddenly leaned forward, stretched out his arms, and—before Evan could react—he lifted him onto his shoulders in one swift motion.

"How about a ride?" David asked, looking up at his little brother with a grin.

""WTF?! What just happened?!"" Evan thought, his eyes widening in disbelief.

Before he even had time to open his mouth, he realized he was already high up in the air.

""How did he lift me so quickly?! Is he a cultivator or something?!""

His mind was racing with astonishment as he stared down at David, momentarily lost in thought.

"..an!"

"..vaN!"

"EVAN!"

David's voice finally snapped him out of his daze.

""Huh? What happened?"" Evan said, realizing that he had zoned out.

Quickly regaining his composure, he scratched the back of his head and let out an awkward laugh.

"Hahaa… Brother, it's just that you picked me up so fast, I didn't even notice!" he admitted with a mixture of awe and excitement.

Hearing that, David smirked and scoffed playfully.

"Evan, of course you were surprised! Your big brother is a rare genius, after all."

He spoke with confidence, looking up at Evan, who was still sitting on his shoulders.

Evan tilted his head in curiosity.

"I still don't get it, big brother…" he said, before his eyes lit up with realization.

"Wait! Is it because you're a cultivator?!" he asked excitedly, pointing a finger at David as if he had figured it out.

David grinned and nodded.

"That's right! Your big brother is a cultivation genius!" he declared proudly.

"Not everyone can reach the 7th stage of Foundation Establishment at my age."

"Ooooh! But… what does 'Foundation Establishment' mean?" Evan asked eagerly.

David's expression shifted into that of a teacher, as he raised a hand and began explaining.

"The first stage is Energy Grading, which has nine sub-levels."

"The second stage is Foundation Establishment, which also has nine sub-levels. That's where I am now."

"The third stage is Energy Liquidation… that's the level our father is at."

David's voice carried pride when he mentioned their father.

"But don't feel bad, Evan, if you think that's all Father has achieved."

He looked at his younger brother with a smile.

"He's actually preparing to break through to Core Formation—the fourth stage, which has four sub-levels: early, middle, late, and perfect."

As he spoke, he gently lifted Evan off his shoulders and held him in the air. Evan gazed at his brother in amazement.

David continued, his voice dramatic.

"Then there's Core Transformation… a stage where people supposedly become immortal!"

Evan's eyes sparkled with excitement.

But then—

"BUT!... That's just a legend."

David grinned mischievously.

"Hahaha! I can't believe you actually fell for that, little brother!"

Evan looked at David again and stomped his foot in frustration, his expression twisting slightly.

""Oooooo! Why did you say that?! You got my hopes up that I could become immortal!"" he thought internally, feeling a surge of disappointment. However, after a brief moment, he turned back toward his brother, his expression shifting to one of curiosity.

"Then… what comes next?" he asked sweetly, trying to coax more information out of him.

David simply smirked, raising his hand in front of Evan's face and wagging his index finger from side to side.

"You don't need to know that just yet," he replied with a teasing grin.

Evan pouted, puffing out his cheeks. "Oh, come on! Just tell me!" He reached out with both hands, grabbing onto David in a pleading manner.

"Not this time, little brother," David responded, once again waving his finger in a playful gesture of denial.

"Hmpf… If that's how it is, then just leave already!" Evan huffed, crossing his arms in mock anger.

Before he could say anything more, David was already at the door.

"Hahahaha! You won't get me that easily!" he called out triumphantly before swiftly disappearing from the room.

Evan stood frozen for a moment, processing the scene, before his irritation surfaced.

""WHAT A STINGY GUY!"" he yelled internally, though deep down, he felt an odd sense of happiness from their interaction—even if he wouldn't admit it out loud.

Letting out a small sigh, he muttered to himself, "Well, whatever."

Turning towards his bed, he walked over and sat down. The mattress creaked softly beneath him as he let his body fall back onto it, exhaling as he stared at the ceiling.

"Alright… let's see what's next," he murmured, summoning his status panel.

The glowing interface materialized before his eyes, filled with various pieces of information. His gaze moved down to the next section.

"Hmmmm… so the next thing is Spirit Root."

.......

[SPIRIT ROOT: ELEMENTAL]

[GRADE: |Grand|Mid|]

[...]

"A root that is in harmony with the elements of nature, but not all of them. This allows the possessor to comprehend the laws of their respective elements at an accelerated rate."

[Elemental Affinity:]

[Fire]

[Water]

[Earth]

[Air]

[Lightning]

[Light]

[Darkness]

[Space]

[Elemental Affinity Stage:]

[Fire | IV |]

[Water | IV |]

[Earth | IV |]

[Air | IV |]

[Lightning | III |]

[Light | III |]

[Darkness | IV |]

[Space | V |]

[Boost:]

[Law Comprehension of each Affinity:]

[Fire: 4x]

[Water: 4x]

[Earth: 4x]

[Air: 4x]

[Lightning: 3x]

[Light: 3x]

[Darkness: 4x]

[Space: 5x]

[Cultivation Boost: 5.5x]

Lying on the bed, Evan's eyes widened, his mouth falling open in utter shock.

""WHAT THE HELL?! THERE'S SO MUCH!"" he screamed internally, his excitement reaching new heights.

His gaze darted across the various statistics before stopping on one particular detail.

"Wait… I even have Space affinity?!"