Chapter 7 — Names, Not Titles and cultivation manuals
Azren stared at the group chat, his face blank as another message from Hephaestus's Hammer popped up:
> "Alright, let's see what cultivation techniques we've got!"
He groaned. "Enough."
Azren:
Before we go any further, can we stop using these spirit names?
It sounds like a horror movie when someone says "Horus," and 'Hammer' just sounds like a toolbox.
Let's use our actual names. We're not just spirits.
I'll start. Asi is my spirit. I'm Azren.
There was a pause.
Then—
Spear of Longinus:
You're right.
I'm Liora Solmere.
Ring of Solomon:
I-I'm Elira Dawnmere.
Hephaestus's Hammer:
Tch. Whatever. I'm Brannor Pyraethos.
Arcane Tome of Merlin:
Vireya Meriatus~ But Merlin was cool while it lasted.
Tamamo no Mae:
Lysandra Valeblume. Write it down. I'm unforgettable.
Eye of Horus:
...Selene Valeblume.
Ame no Habakiri:
Arashi Ryoto
Shadow:
Neris Mireveil.
Nine Dragons Heavenly Tripod:
Liang Meilin.
(Still love the name Tripod though.)
Epirus Bow:
Thalor Caerwyn.
Dark Dragon Bahamut:
...Kael Thornefell.
Azren looked at the list of real names now lighting up the chat interface. Somehow, it made everything feel… more grounded. The masks were off. These weren't just legendary spirits anymore. They were people again.
He smiled. "Now we're human."
Then his tone shifted, just a little.
"Okay," he said, his voice lower. "Now we should get serious."
The chat fell quiet.
Azren continued:
"I know we've all been joking around—laughing, making fun of our names, acting like this is some kind of game. And maybe… that's okay. It helped us forget. About where we came from. About what we lost. About the world we left behind."
He paused.
"But this right now—this is a turning point. This is where it all begins."
Without waiting for a reply, Azren opened the System Shop for the first time.
A new interface bloomed into his vision—glowing icons, sorted tabs, and a refined, elegant design. Among them was one that pulsed faintly: Cultivation Techniques.
He tapped it
Immediately, a scroll of powerful techniques appeared before him, each glowing with symbols, elements, and faint spiritual resonance.
Everyone fell quiet.
This wasn't just a shopping trip anymore. This was the beginning of their paths.
Azren took a breath and started reading out the ones with the highest affinity for each of them:
---
Azren (Asi): Void Vein Scripture – A technique tied to space and darkness, devours energy, shapes void into anything.
Liora (Spear of Longinus): Divine Piercing Path – Each attack refines her piercing force; at higher levels, nothing can block it.
Elira (Ring of Solomon): Covenant Soul Codex – Pacts with spirits and magical beasts; powerful summoning and support.
Brannor (Hephaestus's Hammer): Molten Forge Manual – Strengthens the body like metal, turns spirit energy into weapons.
Vireya (Merlin): Spellcore Bloom Sutra – Learns and stores spells permanently; can cast silently and with little effort.
Lysandra (Tamamo-no-Mae): Thousand Mask Mirage – Illusions and charm; controls minds and senses through spirit arts.
Selene (Eye of Horus): Heavenly Gaze Technique – Sees weaknesses, marks enemies, manipulates fate threads.
Ryoto(Ame no Habakiri): Storm Cleave Canon – Combines sword with lightning-fast strikes; faster the longer he fights.
Neris (Shadow): Umbral Requiem Codex – Stealth and necromancy; can raise shadow wraiths from fallen foes.
Meilin(Tripod): Draconic Tempering Scripture – Refines the body using dragon-element cores; grants massive durability.
Thalor (Epirus Bow): Celestial Arrow Pulse – Arrows made of spirit energy; can bend in air, strike delayed, or hit through dimensions.
Kael (Bahamut): Abyssal Dragon King Path – Devours enemies with raw might; grows stronger through fear and battle.
Then came the voice.
[NOTICE: THE TECHNIQUES AVAILABLE HERE ARE HIGH-GRADE BUT ONLY THE FIRST PHASE IS UNLOCKED. EACH TECHNIQUE CURRENTLY FUNCTIONS UP TO THE YELLOW REALM ONLY.]
Azren frowned. "So we'll have to upgrade them later?"
[CORRECT. PARTIAL INHERITANCES UNLOCKED. FURTHER STAGES REQUIRE REALM BREAKTHROUGHS, RARE MATERIALS, OR ADDITIONAL KARMA.]
The chat slowed.
No jokes. No banter.
Everyone was quiet now, studying their path—really seeing it for the first time.
Even though they were just babies, they understood this wasn't some fantasy game anymore. This was the start of something real.
The moment Azren finished reading the techniques, the chat exploded.
Brannor:
"Molten Forge Manual? That sounds metal—literally. I'm in!"
Vireya:
"Ooooh, permanent spells stored like bookmarks? Yes, please~"
Neris:
"I get to raise shadow wraiths... I have no complaints."
Thalor:
"Celestial arrows that pierce space? I'm actually shaking."
Selene:
"Fate threads? Finally, something that makes sense for me."
Everyone started cheering—or as much as one could through excited mental typing. Spirits flared gently within each of them as if reacting to the choices.
Then came the price.
[TOTAL COST: 7,700 KARMA POINTS]
Everyone froze.
Liora:
"...Whoops. Guess we forgot to check the price tag."
Kael (Bahamut):
"I'll cover half."
Azren:
"Me too."
Without hesitation, the two of them confirmed the purchase. A soft glow flickered across all twelve of their interfaces.
[CULTIVATION TECHNIQUES SUCCESSFULLY TRANSFERRED TO HOSTS.]
Each of them felt it instantly—a warm, tingling sensation sinking into their core. Like something ancient had just found its rightful place inside them.
The chat continued for a little while longer.
There were jokes. Brannor asked if he could forge a crib using fire qi. Lysandra teased Kael for being a "dark dragon softie." Thalor started trying to calculate how far his arrows could go by age two.
But eventually...
Vireya:
"My head's getting fuzzy…"
Liang:
"I think I just drooled on my own shoulder."
Selene:
"We'll talk later. I want to start internal cultivation."
Liora:
"Same. Good night… or good cultivation."
Azren:
"Let's meet tomorrow. Same system chat, same baby bodies."
One by one, their signals faded from the interface.
Azren closed the window, took a deep breath, and turned inward.
The moment he activated the Void Vein Scripture, a cool rush of darkness rippled through him. His spirit energy began folding inward, feeding into something deeper—something vast.
He expected it to settle in his heart. Or maybe around his navel, like every novel he'd ever read.
But instead…
He felt it above his eyes.
"…Wait. The third eye?"
A faint, swirling darkness opened like a black sun at the center of his forehead. It wasn't just a symbolic core—it was a core. Real. Pulling in energy like a calm, quiet black hole.
It wasn't violent. It wasn't fast or maybe he didn't have anything to compare so can't really say. But it never stopped.
Even when he did nothing, the energy slowly trickled inward—like gravity drawing in stardust.
He checked details of the cultivation and it had special trait passive energy absorption like a black hole and can manipulate space energy to create anything.
Reading this he smiled to himself and his eyes closed.
The void pulsed softly in his mind, steady and endless, even as he drifted off to sleep.