After the two servants carefully tended to his wounds, Ren Lu excused himself, retreating to his room under the guise of needing rest. His voice was calm, his expression fatigued, and none dared question him. Yet, once the door closed behind him, the veneer of weariness fell away.

  In the solitude of his dimly lit room, Ren Lu crossed his legs and began cultivating, his movements precise and deliberate. The faint hum of qi energy filled the air as he immersed himself in the process, his wounds forgotten. Hours passed unnoticed, the steady rhythm of his breathing syncing with the ebb and flow of qi energy coursing through his veins. Not once did he falter, his resolve as unyielding as iron. Only when the first rays of sunlight pierced the horizon did he finally stop, his body drenched in sweat, but his gaze sharper than ever, like a blade tempered in fire.

  "Hehehe. I had a hunch," Ren Lu chuckled, a trace of self mockery in his laughter. He had expected this outcome. Despite cultivating tirelessly through the night, bolstered by the grueling efforts of the past two weeks, he had yet to break through to the next sub realm.

  The path of cultivation was as unyielding as it was intricate. There were nine major realm, and each major realms was divided into twelve sub realms, and within each sub realm lay three stages: early foundation, middle foundation, and late foundation. Ren Lu had pushed himself to the brink, enduring eight days and nights of relentless effort just to step into the middle foundation of the first sub realm. Progress came at a cruel pace, demanding every ounce of strength and patience he possessed.

  Ren Lu fell into deep contemplation, his brows knitting together in thought. "The Qi energy in this region... it's alarmingly thin." he muttered, his voice tinged with dissatisfaction. From the fragmented memories of this body, he knew this city was small, scarcely populated by cultivators. Yet even so, the surrounding Qi energy is still very low.

  His frown deepened as he examined his frail form. "This body is far too fragile." he mused, a bitter comparison rising unbidden in his mind. "If this were my previous life, such superficial, weak wounds would have healed in the blink of an eye. But now..." A faint sigh escaped his lips, his gaze hardening with determination. "I cannot afford to linger at this stage. I must break through the body tempering realm and ascend to the Qi condensing realm as soon as possible. Without a stronger foundation, survival itself is a gamble."

  Ren Lu lowered himself onto his back, sinking into the sparse comfort of his bedding. He adjusted his position, seeking a rare moment of ease, the faint semblance of coziness lulling his restless mind. But before tranquility could settle, two sharp knocks echoed through the room, cutting through the silence like a blade.

  "Of course..." Ren Lu muttered, his lips curling into a bitter smile. Resignation flickered in his eyes as he sat up once more, his brief reprieve stolen by the inevitability of interruption.

  When Ren Lu opened the door, he was met by an older woman. Her long, dark hair cascaded over her shoulders, framing a face etched with worry. Her eyes scanned his disheveled state, and a shadow of sadness flickered across her expression.

  "Ren Lu..." she began softly, her voice trembling just enough to betray her concern. For a moment, she hesitated, as if searching for the right words, but then she continued with a quiet urgency. "My dear son, please, come with me. There are matters we must discuss."

  Ren Lu immediately understood what this was about. A wave of reluctance washed over him, his instincts urging him to refuse. His mind was far from its sharpest, clouded by exhaustion and frayed nerves, and he knew the likelihood of making a mistake was dangerously high. Yet, refusal wasn't an option.

  If he declined, it would raise suspicions, casting shadows he couldn't afford. This was a matter far beyond his control, a current he had no choice but to drift along with. Suppressing a sigh, he steadied himself and prepared to follow.

  As the two descended the stairs and took their seats at a modest table, Ren Ling subtly gestured with her hand. The two girl servants, ever obedient, quickly departed without a word, leaving the room cloaked in a tense stillness.

  The atmosphere that followed was peculiar, almost unsettling. Though mother and son sat across from each other, it felt less like family and more like two strangers navigating an unspoken rift, their connection buried beneath layers of formality and unease.

  Ren Lu did his best to summon an expression of sorrow, a mask of helplessness that seemed to consume him. His features were flawless, expertly crafted to convey grief and vulnerability, yet his mother, unyielding and sharp, continued to bombard him with questions.

  Though she was his mother, Ren Ling was no ordinary woman; she was a demonic cultivator. In public, she wore the mask of a gentle, daring matron, but in the privacy of their home, her true nature surfaced, revealing a cunning and ruthless side. Her acting, however, could not match Ren Lu's skill. With each probing question, Ren Lu's tears flowed freely, and each time he repeated the same story with a consistency that left no room for doubt. The lies slipped from his lips so smoothly, so convincingly, that even his mother could not see through the facade.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  Although Ren Ling was a cultivator in the second realm, she lacked the ability to search others' souls, an ability that only became accessible when a cultivator reached the fifth realm. Even then, one had to progress through the sub realms to achieve the mastery needed to peer into another's soul without facing significant backlash.

  This limitation, however, worked to Ren Lu's advantage. Were it not for this, he would never have risked returning to the city. The danger was immense. If anyone discovered the truth, that he was, in fact, the old demon Ren Lin, a kill order would be swiftly issued, sealing his fate.

  After several more attempts, Ren Ling finally calmed herself, though the sadness over her husband's death still lingered in her eyes. Beneath the sorrow, however, there was a deep, gnawing fear, one far more pressing than grief. She feared that the truth would come to light if Ren Lu's soul was ever searched. Demonic cultivators like her were abhorred and relentlessly hunted by the righteous sects and clans.

  Though this city was small, little more than a mere outpost within Tu Fai's vast territory, it was still bound by his rule. Any hint of her true nature, any discovery of Ren Lu's identity, could lead to catastrophic consequences, not just for them, but for anyone connected to them. The risk of exposure was ever present.

  Ren Ling let out a heavy sigh before her lips curled into a faint, weary smile. "I will enroll you in the academy." she said, her tone soft yet resolute. "Although you were taught from a young age, there is still much you don't know about this world. It's time you broaden your understanding."

  Her expression shifted, becoming more serious as she leaned forward. "And remember, Ren Lu, never reveal personal matters to strangers or even to friends. Trust is a fragile thing." She stood slowly, her eyes hardening with a new resolve. "You should go now and rest. I have a mission to complete. Afterward, we will begin a different ritual."

  "Another ritual?" Ren Lu asked, deliberately allowing a hint of concern to cloud his features. His expression faltered just enough to convey unease.

  "Don't worry, Ren Lu." Ren Ling reassured him, her voice calm but firm. "It's just a standard yokai awakening ritual. It will help you conceal the fact that you possess the blood seeking yokai within you."

  Ren Lu hurried to his room and collapsed onto the soft bed, the exhaustion from both body and mind weighing heavily on him. "What a complex situation..." he muttered to himself. "My cultivation speed is agonizingly slow, and without proper resources, I can't use any special methods to quickly advance through the sub realms."

  He paused, his thoughts shifting. "Ren Ling is worried about me. She likely assigned the two servants to keep an eye on me, trying to subtly extract more information. She's being cautious, too cautious. It seems she still harbors extreme faith in her husband, despite his pitiful status as a mere Qi Condensing cultivator, interesting..."

  "But this was her mistake." Ren Lu thought, his mind sharpening as he analyzed the situation. "While the demonic ritual can awaken any rank 1 blood path yokai, the user has the option to target a specific yokai. Of course, there are conditions to consider, like the need for precise chants and the fact that the higher the yokai's tier, the lower the likelihood of a successful summoning. Moreover, the awakening process for blood path yokai is notoriously grueling, with high demands that few can endure."

  A smirk tugged at the corners of Ren Lu's lips as he continued his thoughts. "The blood seeking yokai, despite being rank 1, is a high tier yokai. Its power is formidable, so much so that it could slay a defenseless cultivator in the Qi condensing realm."

  Each realm surpasses the last by a vast margin, granting not only new abilities but also exponentially increasing the power of previous realms. Sub realms, however, serve a different purpose. They focus on gradually and steadily harnessing the power bestowed by the realm, slowly maximizing one's potential. As for the three stages within each sub realm, their sole function is to gather and refine a small portion of power at a time.

  Ren Lu naturally possessed several demonic path ways that could accelerate his cultivation rapidly and more efficiently. However, at his current level, such methods remained just out of reach. The first barrier was a lack of the necessary resources to make them viable, and the second, more pressing issue, was that he simply lacked the strength to carry them out effectively.

  His plan was to rapidly gain as much power as possible. As it stood, he wasn't even worth being toyed by the cultivators in the fourth realm, the Element Resonating realm, the highest and strongest of the mortal realms.

  There were three realm categories: the mortal realm, which spanned from realm 1 to 4; the immortal realm, covering realms 5 to 9; and the divine realm, which encompassed realms 10 to 12. Each of these three categories represented the greatest surge in power. It was said that an immortal cultivator could single handedly fight against thousands of mortal cultivators, and a divine cultivator could take on entire legions of immortal cultivators.

  Ren Lu was living proof of this. In his past life, although the highest discovered realm was the ninth, he still fought against thousands of mortal cultivators at once and maintained the upper hand throughout.

  Ren Lu took this time for granted and went to rest. Even a normal yokai ritual was no simple matter; one had to maintain focus, as even the slightest lapse in concentration could cause the ritual to fail, wasting valuable resources.

  Resources were precious, scarce, and often needed to be seized at the earliest opportunity. The academy, despite its status, couldn't provide the necessary resources for such matters, those were limited for everyone. The academy's role was to offer guidance and tips, nothing more. Ren Lu was fortunate that his parents had managed to gather the required resources for the ritual, especially given how difficult they were to acquire. As they couldn't search for or purchase such resources openly, as it would draw the ire of the righteous cultivators.