The Hourvault
[A/N: Hello Guys! It's AstralisNexus Here, so you guys might be thinking wtf is happening to these chapters!? Don't worry let me explain. before I thought of making this novel a mana based setting. but then I got a inspiration and thought that 'no I want a QI based setting'.. so I thought, what to do? so I had to modify all of the previous chapters. but don't worry, there might only be slight mixing-maxing in the previous chapters since I used AI to convert it. now I have a Qi based system and the novel can go on for longer chapters.]
[Now there comes an issue, it is that, since the novel now has a cultivation setting, doesn't that mean that this lifespan trading and buying system, which I took inspiration from somewhere, is a fail? Well, not really, so I came up with a new system. the user will be able to 'use' lifespan for his cultivation to hasten his progress. the lifespan can even be used to return old people to their prime. the lifespan can even be sacrificed to do many divine things. the lifespan can still be used to buy things from the system. the lifespan is still helpful to the mortals. the lifespan can be used as a currency for system upgrades. the lifespan will be useful in a lot many ways!!! so don't think that lifespan is useful only for living longer? hell who said that? in this novel... lifespan will be useful for everything except living longer LOL. anyways mortal cultivators don't get an increase in lifespan. it will only start from higher realms.]
Now, enjoy :)
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It was a regular night, the streets were empty, and one could hear dogs howling. it was so silent that even light wind was audible.
On the same night, in the noble district of the city of eternal sunlight,
there could be seen two men wearing black cloaks in front of a big plot of land.
One was an old man, but he had a lean and muscular build with a moustache on his face. He wore a black coat underneath and had a red tie.
This was Butler Alex. And right next to him was a young man who didn't look any older than 20. This young man was Victor. He was standing in front of an empty plot of land with a red cube in his hand, which was glowing. He then threw the cube on the land, and it started to increase in size by 1 cubic meter. Victor then took out a paper scroll and threw it over the cube. The scroll dissolved inside the cube as if it were melting. And he quickly took out 200 Worker Drones from his inventory and put them over the cube as well. These drones drowned in the cube as if drowning in water.
The paper scroll was the blueprint for the shop, the cube was the engineer's magicraft, and those drones, not even the size of a fist, were the worker drones.
Zummm! Zummm! Zummm!
Immediately, several drones with materials and tools started building at an astonishing speed. They even heated the material using what looked like a blue laser when needed. And where did the materials come from? Of course, Victor had loaded them in the cube. They cost over 4 million gold coins. And the shop was not even that big. There was Mythril, Etherstone, Voidglass, Starsteel, Arcanite, Celestium, and Moonore used in building this monster. Victor had to use the king's crest to order these materials from several suppliers 3 days before! And the procuring cost alone was a whopping 2 million gold coins. Victor never felt this broken before.
After what felt like only 30 Minutes, the building was complete.
The Shop stands like a silent giant, glowing softly at the edge of reality. Its tall spires shimmer with light from the stars, and the walls are smooth and strong, made from shining metals and strange glowing stones. The building looks both ancient and new, as if it came from the future and the past at the same time. Its windows are dark and deep like endless mirrors, showing nothing inside. The doors are large, arched, and covered in glowing symbols that hum with quiet power. Around the shop, the ground feels calm and still, as if even the wind and time itself are afraid to disturb it. Hanging above the arched entrance is a smooth, dark plaque made from polished Voidglass, with glowing silver letters that slowly shift and swirl as if written by the flow of time itself. The shop only allows entry to people without hostile intentions, as those who try to force entry get trapped in an illusion formation for 3 Hours. The name reads:
'The Hourvault'
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"Alex, make sure to hire the staff and start selling time in it. Also, you can promote the shop as much as you want. Make sure to sign contracts with the people who work here."
"Yes, Young master", said Alex.
Then they both vanished from there and went back to their mansion.
[Host, congratulations on breaking through to the First Stage of the Mortal Disciple Realm]
"Hmm, thanks..", when suddenly Victor noticed.
'!!'
"Mortal Disciple Realm?! What is that?!"
[It is your cultivation realm host.]
"Realms?! Why didn't you tell me that?"
[host, these realms are what ancient people used to call them; these are the true names. It is in only this mortal realm that we get to hear 'stars', maybe because no one has ever ascended in this realm, probably because they don't know how to cultivate.]
"Why didn't you tell me before?!"
[This part of knowledge unlocked within me just now, host, so I thought it would be nice to see your reaction. haha.]
" 'haha'? Anyway, EXPLAIN to me everything."
[Okay, Host.]
Oracle then started explaining whatever it knew.
Currently, from the knowledge I have unlocked, there are 5 Types of Realms.
[1–5 ⚝]: Initiate Realm
[6–10 ⚝]: Disciple Realm
[11–15 ⚝]: Master Realm
[16–19 ⚝]: Grandmaster Realm
[20 ⚝]: Paragon Realm
From what it said, to go beyond 20 stars, one must have a strong body. And to attain the strong body, one must start cultivating the body as well from the disciple realm. it also told that the heavens will start giving him tribulations after the paragon realm. The system also told that the puppets have their strength limited to that of 21 stars only. Beyond that, he is required to build his strength on his own here and take it to the world beyond this mortal realm.
'wait.. I received a technique that had 50 stars. Doesn't that mean that there are 30 more realms above Paragon Realm?! Gasp!'
'But wait, I can't make assumptions since Oracle's knowledge seems to be locked beyond this realm.'
"You said I need to build my body right? then do you have a technique for that?"
[Host, there are new additions in Eclipsing Eternity Codex]
[Name: Victor Chronis]
[Lifespan: 1215 yrs]
[System level: 2]
[Qi Cultivation: First Stage of The Disciple Realm]
[Body Cultivation:
[Soul Cultivation:
[Technique: Eclipsing Eternity Codex (Qi Cultivation + Body Cultivation (New!) + Soul Cultivation (New!))]
[Balance: 13 Million Gold Coins]
[System functions:]
[1. Time God's Eyes - View Lifespans.]
[2. Time Shop - Time God's Shop]
[3. Time Contract - Used To Buy And Sell Time.]
[4. Time Pause - Pause Time Around Yourself And Others As Needed.]
[Stats:]
[Vitality: 1000]
[Qi: 15000]
[Intelligence: 100]
[Charisma: 100(+50)]
[A.N.: This is the final format of the system interface, no more changes;-; sorry.]
Suddenly, A Plethora of knowledge entered the Brain of Victor. Everything related to mortal cultivation realms, he knew it all!
Also, Victor had advanced to the first stage of the Disciple Realm last night while sleeping. If you guys are forgetting, Victor passively cultivates as well, so the dude even cultivates while sleeping. It's just 10 times faster when he sits in a lotus position and actively cultivates.
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So I need to cultivate three different things at the same time.... It's good that the eclipsing eternity codex passively cultivates everything.
The Next Day,
The entire city was in turmoil. A company was recruiting, offering salaries of up to 10,000 gold coins per month! That is a considerable amount of money. This, along with the sudden appearance of a unique building in the noble district, sparked various speculations. Many wondered if this building was where the new employees would be working..