They spent a few hours in the cosmetics shop, and by the time they left, Karl was even more baffled.
He stared at the light golden ring on his index finger, and excitement shone within his silver eyes.
‘Space ring.’
The name had appeared in his head the moment Lyold kept his things inside his own space ring.
Karl had never seen something so miraculous in his life.
The ring was so small, yet it held the mountain of cosmetic bottles they bought from the cosmetic shop.
It was shocking.
Karl couldn’t stop looking at the ring.
“Let’s go to a restaurant to eat before returning to the academy,” Lyold suggested.
Karl nodded.
Then, he shook his head.
“No.
I’ll eat with my husband.” He really needed to go back.
He remembered the physician’s warning about his diet.
He couldn’t afford to make such a silly mistake.
“Let’s go back to the academy first.” He suggested.
Lyold coughed.
Excitement showed in his eyes as he nudged Karl.
“Really?
Have you won His Grace’s heart?”
“He even brought you to the academy today.”
Karl shrugged.
He hadn’t.
He wasn’t even planning to.
Lyold clasped his hands together.
“You are so wonderful, Karl.
You’re so good.”
“This is a perfect example of a toad lusting after a swan and eventually getting it.
You’re so lucky.”
“Wait, who’s the toad?”
“You, of course.” Lyold mocked.
Karl bared his teeth.
Lyold laughed.
“Anyway, congratulations to you.”
“His Grace is the most perfect man in Salibion.”
Karl’s lips curled.
‘Of course.
Varek is the most powerful.’
Even among the people he’d been seeing since they came out, none looked the way Varek Dawnspire looked, and none were as powerful as him, either.
The realization made Karl slightly proud.
The walk back was the same as when they came.
Everyone was flying in the air, both young and old.
Karl was starting to grow numb to the scene.
“I’ll look for my husband first,” Lyold said as they reached the academy’s central hall.
Karl didn’t mind.
He also needed to see Varek privately, and it would be better if Lyold had left for a while.
He watched Lyold leave before he turned toward the guards at the entrance of the central hall.
“Is Varek inside?”
The guards, four young men, trembled at the name, and their knees involuntarily buckled.
They lowered their heads.
“His Grace…
His Grace is inside.”
Karl didn’t seem to notice anything wrong.
Hearing that Varek was inside, he thanked the guards and rushed in.
The hall was large.
Grand hall.
Countless seats.
Karl wondered if he would ever be able to reach the end even if he walked for hours.
However, the man soon appeared before him.
Tall.
Handsome.
Ethereal.
“Varek!”
Karl called excitedly.
Varek nodded gently.
He reached out, and Karl immediately placed his hand on his.
The same thing happened again___ Karl appeared in a relatively large and simple office—a table filled with papers and a few seats.
Nothing really special.
However, Karl immediately knew that this was Varek’s space.
He looked around curiously.
“How was your outing with Lyold?”
Varek asked as he released Karl’s hand and returned to his seat.
Karl smiled.
“It was fun.
We bought a lot.” What was even more fun was the fact that they didn’t have to pay.
The Madam didn’t even bother to ask them for any money.
It felt so good.
Karl pulled up a seat and sat down.
He looked at Varek’s side profile, and his lips pursed slightly.
Varek paused.
His fingers, which had been moving on the piece of paper on his table, stopped.
He raised his eyes slightly.
“Cultivate?”
Karl nodded enthusiastically.
“Yes.
I want to be strong, too.
I want to be able to protect others in the future.”
Varek’s eyes flickered.
A sharp light glinted in his deep blue eyes.
Karl didn’t seem to notice.
“Can I do that, please?”
He had seen that none of the gers in Salibion ever cultivated.
Though this surprised him, it didn’t stop his determination to cultivate.
He wanted to be strong.
He wanted to cultivate.
He only hoped Varek wouldn’t turn him down…
Varek Dawnspire sat upright.
He looked at Karl, seemingly thinking the other was joking.
“Do you really want to cultivate?” His eyes narrowed slightly.
Karl nodded enthusiastically.
“I want to.
Can I?”
Silence.
Varek’s eyes lingered on him.
Karl grew anxious.
“Um, I know…”
“Alright.” Varek interrupted him.
“Huh?”
“I said, alright.”
Karl’s eyes widened.
He was in disbelief.
Varek brought out a square-shaped black token.
“This will help you get into the academy’s library.
Read about cultivation and come back if you still want to cultivate.”
Karl took the token from him.
He was so excited that he was almost dancing.
“Alright!”
He rushed out of the office.
Fortunately, the library was inside the central hall.
After walking for a while, Karl found it.
A middle-aged man sat by the door.
Eyes closed.
He paid no attention to Karl even when he stood before him.
“Sir?” Karl called.
‘Is he asleep?’ He tried to touch the man.
The next moment, an invisible force pushed Karl backward, and he almost fell.
The token in his hand reacted, deflecting the force.
Only then did Karl feel less burdened.
The man’s eyes snapped open.
He lowered his eyes to the token in Karl’s hand, and his eyes widened.
He stood up abruptly.
“You…
You are His Grace’s cultivation partner?”
Karl stared at the man.
His heart felt bitter.
He wanted nothing but to pay the man back for almost hurting him.
What if he wasn’t Varek’s partner?
Was that enough to do that to him?
That force…
Karl reckoned it might have left him unconscious if the token hadn’t deflected it…
The man bowed.
“I’m sorry, Young Master.
I’m really sorry!”
“Do you want to use the library?”
Karl said nothing.
“Come in.”
The man swiped a token on the door.
Creak.
The door opened.
Karl stepped in, ignoring the man.
He had to use all his will to stop his mouth from opening.
It was really hard to hold himself back from insulting the man.
However, he knew the man was very strong.
He could kill him with barely any effort.
‘I’m too weak…’ Karl sighed wearily.
He had escaped the slum, but somehow, weakness had followed him.
The library seemed bigger than Karl had imagined.
Shelves spanned longer than his eyes could see. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
Books and tags were so many that they made him dizzy.
Lips pursed, he turned to the middle-aged man who had followed him in.
“Where can I get a book on the stages of cultivation?”
The man raised a brow.
His eyes flicked over Karl.
“Cultivation?” He seemed surprised.
Karl nodded.
“My husband asked me to check it.” He stressed the word ‘husband’.
As expected, the man shuddered.
“It’s…” He paused.
He stretched his hand out, and a book appeared in his hand.
“This is it.”
Karl looked at the black-covered book and reached out to take it.
After that, he found a seat at the entrance of the library, sat down, and opened the book to read.
In Salibion, every male was born with a cultivation physique, which enabled them to sense the energy of heaven and earth.
“The first level of cultivation is the body cleansing stage.
A stage where the body is thoroughly cleaned and reconstructed in preparation for true cultivation.
Then, followed by the Foundation Level.”
Karl read through the book.
He realized that in Salibion, there were eight levels of cultivation.
From the body cleansing level to the Undying level, each level consisted of nine ranks.
“The most powerful level, the Undying level, was almost legendary in Salibion a few hundred years ago.
However, in recent years, many have broken through, reaching the pinnacle of the world…” Karl paused.
‘Could Varek also be in the Undying Level?’
People respected him greatly, and even though he wasn’t the king, they still called him sovereign.
Didn’t that mean he was really powerful?
Karl closed the book and stood up.
Holding the book to his chest, he left the library.
He glanced at the middle-aged man and silently rolled his eyes.
He would definitely return to teach the man a lesson when he was strong enough!
Karl’s determination grew as he made his way back to Varek Dawnspire’s office.
He stepped in.
Varek was in his seat, reading a book.
He raised his head when he heard the door open.
“You’re done?”
“Hm.
I still want to cultivate.”
Varek’s expression softened slightly.
“Sit.” He pointed to a chair.
Karl did as told.
“Cultivation is really hard, Karl.
It’s painful and long.”
“How long do you think it takes to reach the sky level?”
Karl’s lips pursed.
That was the fifth level of cultivation.
“Twenty years?” He estimated.
Though that still felt very long.
No one would cultivate for that long, right?
Varek’s lips twitched.
He sighed softly.
“It takes thousands of years, Karl.”
“The most talented ones might spend hundreds of years.
Do you still want to cultivate?”
Karl’s eyes widened.
“Hundreds of years?” He couldn’t count on his hands.
How???
“You…
how old are you?” Could it be that Varek was a thousand-year-old man?
The thought suddenly made Karl want to laugh out loud.
Varek’s lips pressed into a thin line.
“25.”
“25 thousand years?”
“25 years.”
Karl’s inner laughter paused abruptly.
25?
“Then, are you still at the foundation level?” If it took hundreds to thousands of years to reach the sky level, at 25, didn’t that mean Varek was still either at the foundation level or even the body cleansing level?
Karl looked at Varek again.
‘He’s so powerful even at such a level.
Cultivation is so good.’
Varek looked at him.
His deep blue eyes flickered slightly, but a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
“Foundation level?” His tone was filled with amusement.
“I’m the sovereign of this world.”
‘The most powerful in this world…’ Karl completed his words.
“Undying?!”
Varek paused.
The amusement in his eyes grew.
Karl blinked rapidly.
He was so envious…