’Who is this woman?’ Karn wondered.
The young woman standing before him had somehow rendered herself invisible to his Ethereal Eye. Even with his heightened senses, Karn could not properly perceive her figure despite her standing only a few steps away.
His expression remained calm, but his mind was already turning.
Karn looked above her head.
Tier One — Mystic Warrior
His brows furrowed. He had never seen the title Mystic Warrior above a cultivator’s head before. Everyone he had encountered within the Dragon Meteor Sect possessed the same title.
Martial Warrior
’So there are different paths of cultivation?’ Karn carefully studied the woman.
"Hm?" The young woman tilted her head when she noticed his continued silence.
"Don’t tell me..." A playful smile appeared on her lips.
"You’re one of those people who subconsciously contracted with a mystic beast without even realizing it?"
’Contracted a mystic beast?’ Karn’s eyes narrowed. He had never heard such a term before, yet the woman spoke of it as though it were common knowledge.
"Why would you think that?" Karn asked.
"If you understood mystic techniques, you wouldn’t be sitting so calmly in front of my contracted beast." The green-haired woman gave him an unsettling smile.
She formed a hand seal and the air suddenly changed. An enormous figure appeared directly in front of Karn. An Oni.
The massive creature towered over him, its size easily surpassing even Hong Tao’s. Two curved horns protruded from its forehead, while its muscular body was covered in dark, almost metallic skin.
Its eyes were closed but somehow, Karn could feel its gaze. A suffocating pressure descended upon him. For the first time in a long while, Karn’s body instinctively tensed.
Danger!
"Koko..." Karn slowly raised his cane.
"How intimidating. This old man truly has little knowledge of mystic techniques." He glanced toward the surrounding elders. None of them had reacted. Not a single person seemed to notice that an enormous Oni had appeared beside them.
’They can’t see it.’ Karn’s expression became slightly more solemn.
His Ethereal Eye shifted toward the Oni. He looked above its head but there was nothing. There was no cultivation level. No title or information whatsoever. It was as though the System itself refused to acknowledge the creature.
"Koko...You certainly know how to make an entrance." Karn stroked his beard.
"The Ethereal Eye is quite a rare beast. To think you could subconsciously attract and contract one without even realizing it..." The green-haired woman giggled.
"Truly fascinating." She shook her head in amusement.
"I see..." Karn glanced toward the Oni.
"Then how rare is the creature standing in front of me?"
"Oh, him?" The woman casually tapped the Oni’s massive arm. The creature immediately opened its eyes. A dreadful aura erupted from its body causing Karn’s robes to flutter from the pressure.
Several elders nearby shifted uneasily, yet none of them looked toward the Oni.
’This is not Qi.’ Karn’s eyes narrowed. He had already gained a small understanding of the Dao, and with it, a degree of mastery over Qi. But the energy radiating from this creature was completely foreign. It wasn’t as domineering as Qi, it was something else entirely.
"He is also a rare beast to find in the Mystic Realm." The woman smiled, a touch of pride entering her voice.
’The Mystic Realm?’ Karn quietly committed the term to memory.
"My heart nearly stopped when I first saw him." He chuckled.
"I have never seen anything about mystic arts in the Sect Library. Would you mind enlightening this old man?"
"Nothing is free, old man." The green-haired woman smiled as she extended her hand.
"What will you give me in return?"
"Koko... How much?" Karn rubbed his beard.
"Ten spirit stones per question." She smiled gleefully.
"Koko... How expensive for a few questions." Karn chuckled as he pulled a pouch of spirit stones from his storage ring.
"What are mystic arts, and how can I learn them?" The woman paused. Then her eyes widened slightly.
"You really know nothing, huh? That’s two questions." She extended her palm.
"Koko... Is there really no first-time buyer discount?" Karn placed the pouch containing twenty spirit stones into her hand.
"No. I have a monopoly over my products. There are no sales." She happily stored the spirit stones away.
"What a shameless businesswoman." Karn shook his head.
The woman merely smiled.
"Well then, let me explain." She moved to stand beside Karn, casually watching the ongoing battles in the arena below.
"Besides Qi, there is another form of energy." She raised a finger.
"We call it Mystic Energy." Karn’s attention sharpened.
"It allows us to cultivate what are known as mystic techniques." She glanced toward the Oni.
"The most common and essential technique is called the Dream Plane."
"Dream Plane?"
"Yes." She nodded.
"It allows a cultivator to travel to different dimensions where mystic beasts like him and creatures such as your Ethereal Eye reside."
"So the Ethereal Eye is a mystic beast?" Karn’s brows rose.
"Of course. Didn’t you know?" The woman smiled.
"You said us earlier." Karn ignored the question.
"You’re paying for answers, old man. You know the price." The woman’s smile widened.
"Koko... Answer the other questions first. Then this old man will decide whether another question is worth ten spirit stones." Karn smiled.
"Haha! Fine." The woman laughed.
She raised three fingers. "Mystic cultivators have three main strengths that differentiate them from Martial cultivators like the people of this sect."
"Contracting, Enchanting and Possession."
Karn listened carefully.
"The first step toward mastering the other two is to contract a mystic beast." She gestured toward the Oni.
"The stronger the beast you contract, the higher your mystic rank. This Oni is a Tier One beast." She smiled.
"Therefore, because I have contracted him, I am a Tier One Mystic Warrior." She paused as her eyes shifted toward Karn.
"Understand?"
"I see..." Karn nodded slowly.
The woman had been charging him ten spirit stones per question, yet she was at least explaining things thoroughly. Karn couldn’t complain.
"I wonder why I’ve never felt this Mystic Energy before."
"Hm? You really can’t?"" The woman blinked as she looked at him strangely.
Karn shook his head.
"How about now?" The woman stared at him for a moment before forming another hand seal.
Something changed and Karn’s expression shifted. He could suddenly feel an energy resembling the presence of his Ethereal Eye spread through the surroundings.
It was nothing like Qi. Qi felt powerful, imperial and dominating. Mystic Energy was different, it was like a ripple spreading across still water. So faint that Karn could barely register it.
"Ah... I can feel it." Karn’s eyes widened slightly.
"That makes sense." The green-haired woman nodded.
"It would be strange if you couldn’t, considering you have an Ethereal Eye following you everywhere." She glanced at his Ethereal Eye.
Karn’s mind began connecting the pieces. An entirely different cultivation system existed beyond the Martial Path.
"Koko..." Karn stroked his beard.
"What?" The green-haired woman glanced at him.
"This old man suddenly has many more questions." Karn smiled.
"Ten spirit stones each." Her eyes immediately lit up.
"Sigh...You truly know how to exploit an old man." Karn sighed.
"It’s called business." She smiled.
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