Several days passed.
Rayen was still in deep meditation within the shrine, not moving an inch from where he had first sat. His breathing was calm. Steady. Silent.
The old man, observing from a distance, could see through Rayen's life force—it was growing stronger by the day. He didn't interrupt. Not even once.
Days turned into months. Months slipped into years.
And still, Rayen remained in meditation, untouched by time. But this time, the old man didn't worry. He knew. Rayen hadn't fallen into an eternal sleep. He was meditating—truly meditating.
Two years passed.
And then came the day again. The same day the old man had first found Rayen. A day now marked as his birthday.
His fifth birthday.
Inside the house, the old man stood at the table, preparing the same sweet dish he had made on rayen's third birthday. It was a soft, warm pumpkin pie-looking sweet, golden on top and rich in aroma, filled with gentle spices and a smooth texture that melted on the tongue. Steam rose from it, carrying a familiar scent through the air.
Once finished, he placed the sweet carefully on a plate and stepped outside.
Without a second thought, he soared into the sky, heading toward the shrine.
Would he still be in meditation?
He landed softly on the shrine's ground and stepped inside.
And there he was.
Rayen, just as before, still seated with eyes closed, still deep in meditation.
The old man looked at Rayen, then at the plate in his hands. With a small sigh, he placed the plate gently on a rock just outside the shrine and returned inside.
He stood silently for a moment… then raised a single finger.
The rocks on the ground started to tremble.
Then they rose—slowly—floating around him in the air.
With a sharp motion, he pointed at Rayen. The rocks shot forward like arrows, aiming directly at him.
But just before they could strike—
They stopped.
Frozen in the air, mere inches from Rayen's body.
A translucent yellow shield surrounded him, glowing faintly, rippling with life force.
The old man's eyes widened.
"A shield?" he muttered. Did he… already mastered his life force?
Rayen slowly opened his eyes, a smile on his face. He didn't know how much time had passed since he started meditating—it felt like only a few hours to him.
"See, this time I stopped your attack," Rayen said, glancing at the suspended stones around him.
The old man, smiling quietly, remembered something and stepped outside to retrieve the plate. A moment later, he returned, holding it carefully.
"Congratulations, Rayen. You're five now," he said warmly, offering the pumpkin pie-looking sweet.
Rayen looked at him, stunned. Then he looked down at his own arms and legs, flexing his fingers slowly. My body… it's bigger than before. Have I really been meditating for two years?
But to him, it hadn't felt that long—just a few hours at most.
Rayen looked at him, stunned. Then he looked down at his own arms and legs, flexing his fingers slowly. My body… it's bigger than before. Have I really been meditating for two years?
But to him, it hadn't felt that long—just a few hours at most.
The old man handed him the plate with the familiar sweet, its warm scent rising in the quiet shrine.
Rayen picked it up and took a bite.
His eyes widened slightly. It's sweeter than what I ate on my third birthday…
Maybe it was because of how long it had been… or maybe, just maybe, it was because this time, he had truly earned it.
"Thank you," Rayen said quietly, chewing slowly, savoring every bite like it was something sacred.
The old man sat beside him, silent but content, watching this strange child who was no longer the same boy from two years ago.
This kid is something else, the old man thought, watching Rayen with quiet reflection. He doesn't have any natural talent in him. Talented ones complete this step in just a few days… but he took two years.
And yet, he didn't gave up. His perseverance, his curiosity to learn and grow… it's different.
I can't say anything about his future, but if he keeps walking, keeps enduring—he might just reach higher than anyone else.
Rayen finished the last bite of the sweet and gently placed the plate down. Then, without a word, he sprinted outside, his excitement bubbling over after two long years.
"Hey, don't get tripped on the ground!" the old man called out.
And just as the words left his mouth—
Thud!
Rayen stumbled forward and hit the ground.
Why the fuck do I always have to minus my own aura so much? he brushes dirt off his clothes before standing back up like nothing happened.
The old man sighed with a smile, shaking his head.
"Old man," Rayen called out, fists clenched, a determined look set firmly on his face.
The old man looked around, confused, as if searching for someone else.
"I'm talking to you," Rayen pointed directly at him.
"You mean… me?" the old man blinked.
"Yes, you!"
The old man paused, then suddenly let out a short laugh as realization hit him. Ah… I forgot. I never told him my name. Of course, all he knows about me is that I'm the old man who picked him up.
"I have a name," he said with a gentle smile. "It's Dattadri."
Dattadri? Rayen repeated the name in his mind. That's… different. In WuXhun Online, the worldbuilding was full-on fantasy—the naming conventions were always a mix of Western and fantasy styles. But this… this name feels completely outside that pattern. I mean, yeah, I get it—this isn't the game. But still, the world, the civilizations, even the cultivation systems—they're almost identical. So why is this name so out of place?
He narrowed his eyes slightly, curiosity flickering. Is this world exactly like the game… or is it something more?
"But why were you calling me before?" the old man asked, glancing at Rayen with a raised brow.
Rayen snapped out of his thoughts and replied with determination, "I want you to train me further!"
The old man stared at him for a moment, his gaze unreadable. Then, without a word, he stood and stepped outside the shrine. Rayen followed him out as the sunlight gently filtered through the trees.
Dattadri placed a firm yet warm hand on Rayen's head. "I won't," he said with a smile, "until you bring me three Divine Lilies."
Rayen's eyes widened. Divine Lilies? He knew those—rare, radiant flowers that grew only in the high mountains. But those mountains were crawling with mutated wolves, aggressive and territorial. Why the hell is he asking a kid like me to go there?
He clenched his fists. Wait, I don't remember any mission like this in WuXhun Online. None of the early cultivation stages had such a quest.
His eyes narrowed slightly. Divine Lilies… I remember them. In the game, they were used to craft Disguising Potions—camouflage bottles that masked aura and presence. Those game developers were trying to turn the cultivation RPG into something like that damn sandbox game—those damn minecrafters… He shook his head, focused. But this isn't a game now. This is real. And that old man not sending me out for fun.
Rayen looked up at Dattadri again. What are you planning, old man?
Rayen tilted his head and furrowed his brows, playing the confused child perfectly. "What is a Divine Lily? Why do you need them? And… where do they even grow?"
Dattadri stroked his beard, amused by the question. "Divine Lily is a flower," he said, then pointed to a small, plain blossom nearby. "It looks similar to this one, but the real Divine Lily has a glow of its own—a divine charm. It shines yellow under the moonlight, like it holds a piece of the stars inside."
He turned and pointed toward the towering mountains in the distance. "They grow high up there, in the mountains crawling with mutated wolves. Wolves are creatures larger than sheep—sharper minds, sharper teeth, and no patience for kids like you. You'll have to survive their territory and bring me back three Divine Lilies."
Rayen blinked. "But why do you need them?"
Dattadri gave a mysterious smile. "That... is a mystery."
Womp womp, Rayen sighed internally. I mean, sure, wolves are scary and flowers are shiny, got it. But you're no 'Lord of Mysteries,' mister Dattadri. I know you're just cooking something suspicious in that bald head of yours.
Still… game or not, if this is part of my training, I'll play along. Let's see how real this quest gets.