Page 2
Mikael paused before reading the next page, a low chuckle slipping from his lips as a small smile curled on his face. The author's personality—this so-called Carefree Immortal—was definitely something. Her unfiltered tone and chaotic style of 'writing' were, admittedly, quite amusing to him.
With that lingering smile, Mikael refocused his attention on the book and began to read the second page.
Page 2
Hello to all readers of this humble section. I am the personal secretary of Lady Carefree Immortal, and in this first part of the book, I will guide you through multiple topics which, though they may seem simple or even mundane at first glance, hold vital importance for your survival and adaptation within the Akashic Records Universe.
Let us begin with culture, which varies greatly between…
Mikael continued his reading, moving through the structured and densely packed knowledge compiled by the secretary. While this part of the book lacked the flamboyance of Carefree Immortal's introduction, it provided valuable insights—small but critical details that could make the difference between standing out or being crushed in an unfamiliar world.
The first section was long—very long. Each page was saturated with dense information, and the total number of pages was no less daunting. Even with Mikael's enhanced mental processing, it took him nearly two hours to finish the entire section.
During that time, Kiara had grown bored with reading and quietly left to retrieve her harp. Soon, a soft, flowing melody filled the living room, her fingers dancing across the strings. The gentle music weaved through the air, creating a serene atmosphere as the others remained immersed in their respective books.
Page 680
Good news, everyone! The boring part is finally over!
That's right—it's me again! Your dazzling, brilliant, and oh-so-generous big sister Carefree Immortal! You can wake up now and reactivate your brain cells, because the true star of the show has returned.
Of course, I'm only addressing those among you who valiantly read through the entire first part, suffered in silence, and maybe even whispered desperate prayers for me to return and save you from the abyss of boredom.
Well, your wish has been granted! I'm here.
As for the rest of you sneaky little sinners who skipped ahead? I don't blame you. I'd have done the same. I mean, let's be real—I didn't even read my own book. Shocking? Please. I have better things to do.
Selene—my devoted, hardworking, possibly masochistic secretary—probably did an incredible job with all those tedious explanations. I trust her. But that doesn't mean I want to suffer through reading that snoozefest myself.
Now that we've gotten that charming reintroduction out of the way, we can finally dive into the true purpose of this book: what to do—and more importantly, what not to do—before reaching the Spiritual Foundation Realm.
There are countless things I could tell you, but everything boils down to two simple golden rules:
To Do: Accumulate.
To Not Do: Prematurely break through to the Spiritual Foundation Realm.
That's it. That's the big secret. Everything else I'll be saying will be an elaborate, dramatic, and wonderfully entertaining deep dive into these two points.
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Accumulate Why?
The reason is painfully simple: the more you accumulate before breaking through to the Spiritual Foundation Realm, the greater your future talents will be.
Now, let's dig into the specifics of how this so-called "breakthrough" actually works.
First and foremost, you'll need to visit an evolution center. This is the very first step, and it's absolutely mandatory. Why? Because this is your first breakthrough—and at this point, you're not yet 'compatible' with the Akashic Records Universe. So unless you want to die in a spectacular fashion, or worse, become a cripple, don't even think about attempting this alone.
Let me be crystal clear: breaking through by yourself is impossible. In the best-case scenario, it simply won't work. In the worst-case scenario, you'll cripple yourself, rendering further cultivation completely impossible—unless, of course, someone wastes precious heavenly treasures to fix your broken self. But here's the thing—no one, and I mean no one, is going to waste those resources on a cripple with no future. If that happens to you, consider your life officially over. So, yeah… don't do that, okay?
Oh, and don't forget the other oh-so-fun possibility: your Qi might rampage out of control and tear you to bloody shreds. Either way—crippled or turned into scattered chunks—it's the same result in the end, isn't it?
Anyway, let's get back to the actual process of breaking through to the Spiritual Foundation Realm. As I just said, you'll need to head to an evolution center. There, you'll be given a choice between two paths: the 'passive' method or the 'active' method.
Let's not kid ourselves—the passive method is for weaklings. The active method? That's for people with potential.
So, what's the passive method, exactly? It's nothing more than breaking through inside a special room in the evolution center. Your accumulated stats and achievements are analyzed, and you're assigned something called a Cultivation Aptitude. This aptitude will directly impact your cultivation speed and innate talent—at least at the lower levels. In higher realms, it becomes less influential and gradually fades into irrelevance.
But since most of you readers won't even smell those higher realms, don't downplay the importance of a good Cultivation Aptitude. It can save you a lot of time and effort early on—though maybe not your dignity.
So, for the weak-minded masses clinging to the passive path, here's a breakdown:
Cultivation Aptitude Level 1: No requirements—because, of course, it's the absolute bottom of the barrel. You've accomplished nothing, and you'll get nothing in return. What a surprise.
Cultivation Aptitude Level 2: Requires 125 in all stats—for non-natives of the Akashic Records Universe, obviously.
Cultivation Aptitude Level 3: Requires 500 in all stats. Again, this only applies to outsiders like you.
Cultivation Aptitude Level 4: Requires 2,000 in all stats—also known as reaching the Absolute Limits.
Cultivation Aptitude Level 5: Now we're getting somewhere. To reach this, a non-native must first hit the Absolute Limits in all stats and then continue growing stronger through other means. Only after going above and beyond can you qualify for this level.
And there you have it. Level 5 is the highest you can get through the passive method. It's… okay, I guess. Not impressive, not glorious—but decent. If you manage that, you'll be considered "above average," which, frankly, is still kind of sad.
Of course, anyone who actually plans to achieve something meaningful in life will take the active path. But hey, I know some of you are too dumb, too lazy, or too weak to even consider it—so I included the passive method just for you. You're welcome.
Now, for those of you who do have working brains and a bit of spine, let's move on to the real deal: the active way.
The active method—aptly named—is essentially a grand 'trial' where you get to test yourself across any number of challenges, choosing the ones that best suit your skills. In the end, the system will take your highest scores from those trials and combine them to calculate your final Cultivation Aptitude. Unlike the pathetic limits of the passive path, the active way actually allows you to surpass Cultivation Aptitude Level 5.
Yes, you heard that right. With the active method, it is entirely possible to obtain a Cultivation Aptitude above Level 5.
There are countless trials available. For instance, a battle trial will evaluate your performance based on the strongest opponent you manage to defeat. Then there are strategic trials, formation master trials, endurance or speed-based running trials, alchemy trials, and plenty of others. I think you get the idea—even if you don't have any imagination.
And here's something most people overlook: it's often better to attempt more trials rather than fewer. Why? Let's say someone is a solid fighter but also happens to dabble in alchemy. Taking the alchemy trial in addition to the battle one might add valuable points to their overall score—just enough to push them into a higher Cultivation Aptitude tier. So don't be stingy with your efforts. If you have any secondary skills, use them. Every bit of accumulation counts.
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Now that the part of the audience with functioning neurons understands they must take the active path… what comes next? Do you simply break through into the Spiritual Foundation Realm and that's it? Is the story over? Nothing more to say?
Of course not!
Don't be ridiculous. Up until now, while this book has been somewhat useful, it wouldn't be worth the 100,000 life points you paid for it—if that were all there was to it. And even though that minuscule amount means absolutely nothing to me, the entire reason I priced this book at 100K was to filter out the idiots too cheap or too stupid to invest in their own future. For a mere mortal like you, though, it is a considerable sum. So it's only fair I give you your money's worth.
Which brings us to the next critical point: once you successfully break through to the Spiritual Foundation Realm, the second part of your accumulation will come into play—and it's just as important as the first.
See, the Cultivation Aptitude you received from all that accumulation before your breakthrough? That's only one part of the reward. The second part is what truly begins to shine after you enter the Spiritual Foundation Realm.
Why? Because the very moment you break through, your system—or to be more precise, your status window—undergoes a complete transformation. Everything gets overhauled.
"How?" you might be tempted to ask. But I won't tell you. I mean, I could... but I won't. That way, you'll get to enjoy the surprise.
I can already hear some of you whining, sobbing in frustration, probably thinking something like: 'I paid 100K life points for this book and that incredibly kind, gentle, and beautiful fairy—Carefree Immortal—won't even give me all the answers! This isn't fair!'
And to that, I'd say: you're absolutely right. It isn't fair. But I do whatever I want.
Now that we've cleared that up, let's move on to something more serious. As mentioned earlier, once you break through to the Spiritual Foundation Realm, your system will go through a significant overhaul. But that's not all that happens. No, no—this is also the moment where you'll be faced with a choice. And not just any choice—an extremely important one.
At this point, you'll be presented with two options. The first option allows you to retain all of your current skills—but there's a catch. You'll never be able to improve those skills again, nor will you ever gain any new ones. You'll keep what you already have, which may give you a decent edge over others in your cultivation realm, making you somewhat 'special' in the short term.
But here's the problem: as you grow stronger, those very same skills will begin to lose their relevance. Eventually, they'll become so weak compared to your new level that they'll be virtually useless. So really, Option One is for the short-sighted and the foolish. If that description fits you, then congratulations—you now know exactly what to choose. Take Option One and cling to your little collection of soon-to-be obsolete skills.
Now, let's talk about Option Two. In this path, you willingly give up all of your current skills. Every last one. You'll also never be able to acquire new ones again. But—and this is a big but—every single skill you lose will be converted into… let's call it a special energy, just to simplify things.
The amount of this special energy you receive will depend on the number, rarity, and level of the skills you previously owned. The more you had, and the better they were, the more energy you'll get.
Once you have this special energy, you can freely allocate it into talents. These are innate affinities like "Sword Talent Level 1" or something along those lines. You choose which talents to enhance, and how much to enhance them, depending on how much special energy you've accumulated.
So, by choosing Option Two, you lose all your skills—but in return, you gain the ability to enhance or even acquire new talents. This not only accelerates your cultivation but also opens the door to much greater heights in the long run.
In short, this is the option for the smart, the ambitious, and those who think beyond the next five minutes of their life. If that's you, then Option Two is your obvious choice.
Author Note:
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