The Elven Cultivator

A satisfied smile spread across Anton's face as he gazed at the heavy Honey Bells hanging from the branches.

The different attributes of Spiritual Qi determined a Cultivator's future development path and combat style.

But as a practitioner of the Taichu Hiding Skill, he could freely split his Spiritual Qi into five different attributes. This meant he could learn almost any Cultivation Technique, art, skill, or Talisman.

His potential was self-evident.

Anton closed his eyes and focused, locating the Taoist Jade Scroll deep within his soul, and began to browse through it.

After refining Spiritual Qi, a Cultivator could begin to practice arts, skills, and Talismans.

These were mainly divided into two major categories: Techniques and Martial Skills.

Palm Thunder, Binding Spell, Iron Shirt Spell, Rejuvenation Skill... all of these fell into the category of Techniques.

However, for Anton, who had just managed to condense a wisp of Spiritual Qi, the difficulty of practicing Techniques was still a bit too high.

Cultivators generally waited until the Middle Stage of Qi Refining before they started learning Techniques.

Cultivators in the Early Stage of Qi Refining often started with martial skills.

Of course, these weren't ordinary fisticuffs, but genuine, divine martial arts that were accompanied by their own supernatural phenomena when executed.

Molten Soldier Hand, Cloud-Piercing Dragon Roar, Forbidden Golden Armor, Divine Sun Sword Skill, Jade Wave Finger, Like a Shadow...

The dazzling array of martial skills left Anton feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"There's too much to learn. I'll never be able to learn it all..."

Anton grimaced, just now realizing he suffered from analysis paralysis.

He didn't make a decision right away. He just gave them a quick browse to get a general idea before moving on to the knowledge related to Talismans.

Talismans were also one of the important combat and support tools for Qi Refining Stage Cultivators.

Even at the Foundation Establishment Stage, many Cultivators still relied on Talismans.

At first, Anton thought that tools like cinnabar and yellow paper were necessary for creating Talismans, but after browsing carefully, he discovered that wasn't the case.

A Talisman has no fixed form; its power comes from Qi.

At a high enough level of cultivation, a casual flick of the wrist could create a Talisman.

However, that was something only a Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator who had awakened their Divine Sense could do.

Qi Refining Stage Cultivators still had to obediently draw their Talismans.

This was especially true for Qi Refining Stage Cultivators who were just starting with Talismans. It was best to use a spiritual catalyst as a medium; otherwise, the success rate for drawing them would be infuriatingly low.

However, the spiritual catalyst didn't have to be yellow paper and cinnabar. Any material with Spiritual properties would suffice.

This included, but was not limited to, peach wood, jade bamboo, the juices of Spirit Plants, and the fur, blood, bones, or even scales of Spirit Beasts and demonic beasts.

'Before I can learn to draw Talismans, I'll need to sort out the materials,' Anton mused.

Compared to the boost Talismans could give his combat power, he was currently more interested in their practical, everyday uses.

For example, a Storage Talisman could store items of a certain volume, acting as a single-use Space Ring.

A Spirit Gathering Talisman, when placed inside a building, could gather Spiritual Qi, increasing its concentration and accelerating the efficiency of absorbing it—like an extremely weakened version of a Spirit Gathering Array.

There were also Purification Talismans, Invisibility Talismans, Peaceful Spirit Talismans, Person-Finding Talismans, and many more.

'Once I've sorted out the materials, I'll make a Spirit Gathering Talisman first. Then I won't have to run so far away to cultivate.'

At this stage, Anton's most important goal was to find a way to increase the efficiency of refining Spiritual Qi and strive to reach Foundation Establishment as soon as possible.

...

「The next morning.」

Anton awoke to a beautiful singing voice and sat up in his vine bed.

Looking out the window, he saw a slender Elf girl sitting on a branch, humming softly. Her pale-gold hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and the morning light, filtering through the gaps in the leaves, enveloped her in a hazy halo, making her look like a living oil painting.

All Elves were artists.

This was a widely accepted fact on the Dawn Continent.

They needed something to fill their long lives, and art was their choice.

Although in this world, due to significant external pressures, the Elves were not quite so laid-back, they were still passionate about art forms like painting, singing, weaving, and dancing.

Of course, there were also oddballs like Romance, who spent her days carrying an axe and wanting to chop down trees.

'Then again, in the eyes of the other Elves, I'm probably an oddball too.'

Anton chuckled self-deprecatingly, then got out of bed to wash up. He plucked a Honeybell Fruit to eat and prepared to head out.

After refining Spiritual Qi, his need for food had greatly diminished. Relying on absorbing Spiritual Qi was enough to sustain his daily needs.

Once he reached the Foundation Establishment Stage, he could even begin Fasting entirely, abstaining from worldly food.

When Anton stepped out of the treehouse, Romance was already waiting outside, still carrying that inseparable axe of hers.

The girl who had been singing earlier was gone. He wondered if Romance had scared her away.

"Morning, Anton." Romance greeted him with a brilliant smile, holding out a palm-sized, golden-brown, and perfectly formed loaf of bread. "I brought some Sunlight Bread. Want some?"

"No thanks, I've already eaten." Anton shook his head. "Let's go, it's getting late."

"Okay." Romance didn't seem to mind. She polished off the bread in a few bites and followed Anton toward the training grounds.

The so-called training grounds were actually a huge, specially cleared open space, subdivided into areas for combat skills, archery, sparring, and Magic.

When the two of them arrived, quite a few Elves were already training or sparring on the grounds.

The pair split up at the entrance. Romance headed for the combat skills area, while Anton went straight to the Magic area.

Unlike the other areas, which were simply open-air fields, the Magic area was a large, sprawling treehouse. Its interior was divided into small rooms furnished with tables and chairs.

Anton glanced at the notice board by the entrance. It listed the day's instructors, classes, and their corresponding rooms.

The newcomer's class was scheduled for Room 3.

Anton looked away from the board, entered the hallway, and quickly found Room 3. Inside, two male Elves were already waiting. They looked to be about his age and were likely also new recruits for Magic training.

The Silver Moon Clan had a small population, numbering less than two thousand in total.

The vast majority of them were adults; underage Elves made up only a small fraction.

Those under the age of 18 were even rarer.

As a result, very few Elves participated in the selection training each year; often, there were none at all.

A scene like this year's, with three new Elves simultaneously choosing to train in Magic, was a grand occasion that hadn't been seen in many years.

Although they were his peers, Anton didn't know either of them.

They, however, seemed to recognize him, and identical strange expressions appeared on their faces.

'Looks like my 'fame' is quite widespread.'

The corner of Anton's mouth twitched. He found an empty seat and sat down, pretending to rest with his eyes closed while his consciousness sank into the Taoist Jade Scroll to continue browsing the martial skills.

About ten minutes later, the sound of steady footsteps echoed from the hallway.

Anton opened his eyes and saw a figure standing silhouetted against the light in the doorway.

He appeared to be in his early twenties, dressed in a grey-blue robe. His silver-grey hair was loosely tied to one side of his shoulder. His face possessed the characteristic refinement of the Elf Race, yet it also had a gentle, scholarly air that was uncommon among them.

Three silver waves were embroidered on his cuffs, signifying his status as a high-ranking Silver Caster within the Elf Race.

Anton and the other two immediately stood up and bowed to the newcomer.

"No need for formalities. Please, sit."

The man gestured with his hand for them to sit. His gaze swept over the three of them, pausing for a subtle moment on Anton.

"My name is Darian Silver Moon. From this day until you come of age, I will be responsible for teaching you Magic."

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