I Want to Cultivate!

The spring sunlight was exceptionally bright, warming the skin and making one feel languid.

A fair-skinned, red-lipped child stood with his arms outstretched, while a young girl dressed in animal hide quickly and carefully helped him put on a fur coat. Another girl stood nearby holding a large earthenware jar and a small basin; in the basin was coarse white salt, and the jar was filled completely with fresh water.

"In my past life I was always ill and dressed myself. Now that I'm perfectly healthy, I have servants attending me," Ji Ning mused. He had grown accustomed to being waited on since birth; in fact, when he once tried to dress himself, his two personal maids, Chuncao and Qiuye, had fallen to their knees in terror, trembling uncontrollably.

"Give it to me."

Once dressed, Ji Ning took the dark, crude earthenware jar and the small basin, walked outside, crouched by the corridor, scooped some coarse white salt into his mouth, and began to 'brush his teeth'.

"What a tragic era—no toothbrush, so I have to use my fingers. No toothpaste, so I have to use salt!" After quickly rinsing, he realized that since birth he had always been clean, without any bad breath, and didn't actually need to brush. But his mother insisted.

"Gurgle, gurgle~" Ji Ning tilted his head back, spat out the water, then handed the jar and basin to Chuncao.

Qiuye brought a green stone basin, and Ji Ning quickly washed his face, then dried it with a cloth.

"Qiuye," Ji Ning blinked his large eyes, "in your tribe, do you also brush with salt?"

Though he was already four years old and had read many books in the clan's collection, learning much of what he needed to know, he wasn't very clear about life in the tribes.

"Of course not." Qiuye had a few freckles on her face. "Even in the tribe, the salt used for cooking isn't as white and clean as this, let alone for brushing teeth. The men and women in the tribe just rinse their teeth with water, many never brushing their whole lives. And this earthenware jar—it's for cooking soup, very precious. How could it be used to hold water for brushing teeth?"

Cooking soup?

Ji Ning blinked. That jar was also used for cooking soup?

"Come, let's go eat." Ji Ning turned and strode off, followed by his two maids.

...

"Father, Mother." Ji Ning entered the hall and stood to bow.

"Mm."

Father Ji Yichuan sat at the head, Mother sat on the left side, and his own seat was on the right. Before him was a black stone table bearing three plates of fragrant meat, thick soft flatbread, and an earthenware jar of hot water—this was his breakfast.

A four-year-old's breakfast, if back on Earth, would probably be enough for three grown men. But in this world, every child could eat a lot, and so could he.

"Hmm, smells delicious." Ji Ning grabbed a piece of meat from one plate and began eating. Even by Earthling standards, it was delicious. He knew that because his natural constitution was ordinary, his diet was very special from an early age. The meat he ate was not from ordinary beasts but from spiritually endowed demon beasts, which was expensive even in outside tribes. Yet he ate it every day.

The effect was that Ji Ning was very strong!

"I'm done!" Ji Ning ate quickly, wolfing down the food, then gulped down the entire jar of hot water.

"Let's go." Ji Ning dashed out, followed by Chuncao and Qiuye.

Yuchi Snow watched her son run off and said with a smile, "Although Ning'er was born with an ordinary constitution, that was because he was injured in the womb. His potential is still great. Look, he can eat so much demon beast meat every day, and his body will surely improve."

Ji Yichuan nodded slightly. Demon beasts were different from ordinary beasts; they absorbed natural energy to cultivate, and their flesh contained energy. Normally, a child who ate this much might not feel hungry for one or two days, but Ji Ning ate three meals a day, and his small body could completely digest it all.

Two maids each carried a thick book behind Ji Ning. Behind them were eighteen tall, sturdy guards in crimson armor, with strange, arcane runes on the armor that faintly stirred mysterious power, making each guard exude a strong aura.

The Crimson Armored Guards—the strongest soldiers of the Ji Clan. The Western Prefecture had only a hundred such guards, all under Ji Yichuan's command. He arranged for eighteen of them to protect Ji Ning, staying with him whenever he left home.

"To the training grounds." Ji Ning strolled leisurely.

Wherever he passed, no one dared block his way!

West Prefecture City was a majestic city, home to hundreds of thousands of people. Inside the city were three super-large structures: the Inner City, the Barracks, and the Martial Hall.

The Inner City was where the Ji Clan's Western Prefecture clan members lived, the ruling core.

The Barracks housed the Western Prefecture's army.

The Martial Hall was where countless tribal youths and Ji Clan disciples trained.

A direct passage connected the Inner City and the Martial Hall. Ji Ning led his servants and guards to the vast training grounds, where thousands of youths were practicing.

"Look, it's Ji Ning!"

"The son of the Drip Sword, Ji Ning?"

"The maids beside him are carrying books, right? I once saw a traveling merchant selling books in our tribe—it cost a thousand goat hides to exchange for one."

The youths murmured quietly. Many were already familiar with this child, knowing he was the son of the Western Prefecture's strongest, 'Drip Sword' Ji Yichuan. Many liked him because, despite his noble birth, he never bullied them. But no matter how much they liked him, they dared not approach.

"Ah." Ji Ning sat in a chair, his eyes shining with excitement.

In his past life, he had often been alone; deep down, he loved lively places.

"Give me the book." Ji Ning took a thick book from Chuncao—about twenty centimeters thick, made of paper pressed from animal hide. In this age of slaves, books were a luxury, but Ji Ning could freely browse the library and even take a few books out.

Since birth, Ji Ning had mainly done two things—

First, visualize the 'Nuwa Diagram'. After strengthening his soul, his body became robust, and he gained a photographic memory. Half a month ago, he had even achieved 'split-mindedness'.

With split-mindedness, he could write an essay with his left hand while painting with his right, as if his mind were divided into two parts that did not interfere.

This was not strange; according to books, immortal cultivators could split their minds many times, controlling multiple magic treasures simultaneously. The Nuwa Diagram was truly profound; after two years of visualization, Ji Ning's soul had grown strong enough to achieve split-mindedness.

Second, read books!

Half a year after birth, when Ji Ning could babble a few words, he would point at pictographic characters in books and go "This, this, this..." Chuncao and Qiuye, chosen as personal maids, were both literate and naturally dared not refuse. Most characters were pictographic, so he could guess many, quickly learning to read.

After that, he began to read.

Sharpening the axe does not delay the work of chopping wood. Although he had been determined to walk the path of immortality since birth, he understood the principle that haste makes waste. Reading was the sharpening of the axe on the path of immortality. First, he needed to understand the world, the process of cultivation, its varieties, and everything.

After knowing, he would have a foundation in his heart, and then he could make the best choices.

After reading many books, Ji Ning learned that the Ji Clan's Western Prefecture was a small force in the vast territory of the Grand Xia Dynasty.

The Western Prefecture's domain spanned over three thousand li from north to south and over five thousand li from east to west. All the countless tribes living in this territory were under the rule of the Western Prefecture!

And this was only the Western Prefecture.

The Ji Clan was an ancient tribe, divided into the Main Prefecture, Eastern Prefecture, Western Prefecture, Southern Prefecture, and Northern Prefecture. The five prefectures together formed the complete Ji Clan.

However...

The Grand Xia Dynasty was too vast, its territory nearly endless. This ancient dynasty had been born in the 'Primordial Era' and had safely passed through that terrifying age, existing for countless millions of years. A dynasty that could exist for millions of years made Ji Ning shudder.

The Ji Clan was merely a small force on the vast territory of the Grand Xia Dynasty. Of course, to the countless surrounding tribes, the Ji Clan was the absolute overlord.

"As expected of a world where immortals and demons appear." Ji Ning sighed inwardly. "A mortal dynasty lasting a thousand years would be a miracle, but in a world where immortal cultivators exist, the heritage of an ancient, powerful dynasty is beyond imagination."

"I've been in this world for two years now, and I've learned a lot about cultivation. It's time to start practicing."

Because he was born in winter, the New Year came shortly after birth, at which point he was considered two years old.

Though he was now four, he had only been in this world for two years.

...

That evening.

In the main hall, candles as thick as a child's arm burned on both sides, illuminating the entire hall. Father still sat in the main seat, Mother on the left, Ji Ning on the right. On his table were meat, several vegetable dishes, and noodles.

"Gulp, gulp!" Ji Ning devoured the meat and noodles on his table like a whirlwind, then looked up. "Father, Mother!"

"Hmm, something on your mind?" Ji Yichuan looked at his son, as did Yuchi Snow.

They were pleased but not surprised by their son's intelligence, for in this vast world, there were beings of near-monstrous wisdom.

"I want to cultivate!" Ji Ning said solemnly. "I want to become an immortal!"

Yuchi Snow looked at her son's serious expression and laughed. "Become an immortal? Yichuan, our son wants to become an immortal!"

"Become an immortal?" Ji Yichuan looked at his son, his face still cold. "Do you know what it means to cultivate immortality?"