Cultivator from the Modern World

Shen Long, however, grew more and more uncomfortable as his body flickered with pain. The intense fire was clashing with his soul as Shen Long grasped the Dao of water. Fire and water, in nature, are two opposing elements and they are incompatible with each other.

His affinity for water seemed to grow weaker, and his insight in the Dao of Water seemed to have all vanished at this moment. Shen Long, however, continued to use the art, gritting his teeth as he trusted his master.

More time had passed and his consciousness started to grow even weaker. He began to sink into blankness and darkness while his awareness of his surrounding slowly lessened.

His flesh body continued to rise upwards though his speed was slowly reducing, even after he fainted. Just as Shen Long's body was about to sink back down, Daoist Fireblade utilized all his cultivation base to forcefully teleport Shen Long out of Earth.

Daoist Fireblade coughed out a mouthful of blood after fighting against the essence of the world, while Shen Long lied unconsciously, floating in midair in space.

"This brat, you better not disappoint me. You better rise to prominence quickly and become a Celestial Immortal in 200 years. Only then, Earth would recognize you as the owner; then I can finally return home…" Daoist Fireblade said in a tone of nostalgia.

After a few days, Shen Long regained his consciousness. He was currently lying on a traditional Chinese bed in Daoist Fireblade's palace. Shen Long was shocked as he looked around the room. Every furniture was made of wood and it resembled an ancient, Chinese room.

"OH! I have seen this on the TV before! This is the pillow they use in ancient time! Wow! These coins on the table... Aren't these the bronze coins from the Qing Dynasty!? Holy shit! Any of these antiques could sell for thousands and thousands of dollars! I'm gonna be rich!" Shen Long laughed at these valuable items.

"You're awake? Good, good. I will tell Qingyu to tour you around and I will formally welcome you as my disciple after you finish settling in." Daoist Fireblade informed him in a weak voice.

Immediately, someone knocked on Shen Long's door, and of course, it was Qingyu, Daoist Fireblade's third personal disciple.

"Greetings, Junior Brother Long. Let me introduce myself. I am Qingyu, and Master's third personal disciple. Other disciples of Master are venturing outside, and I'm the oldest here. So

Qingyu continued to tour the whole palace which was gigantic. This is because Daoist Fireblade's battle prowess was on the same level as normal Emperors, hence his palace was decorated with top-quality accessories. Plus, in the Huaqui realm, he was pretty much invincible. Celestial Immortals were rare in the first place, and Emperors were even rarer. In the whole realm, all the emperors could be counted in 2 hands.

(In a universe, there are multiple realms, like different countries on Earth; each realm many different planets.)

"Here is the library. There are four main sections here: Qi, Spirit, Soul and Secret Art. You can freely browze on the first and second floor as you're Master's personal disciple. However, the top-floor contains Master's self-created Art and manuals, and you can only enter with Master's talisman token. Otherwise, the guardian here would definitely kick you out." Qingyu continued to speak.

Shen Long was even more shocked. The library here was so grand, and there seemed to be countless books. There were so many cultivators, all dressed in either red, orange or yellow robes, and they were all cultivating cross-legged.

Qingyu saw Shen Long's face and continued to tell him more information as they started walking to different buildings within the palace.

"Here is the cultivation den... Here is the battling arena... Here is the challenge pagoda..."

After an hour or so, they had finally finished visiting every facility in the palace. Before Shen Long went to greet his Master for the first time, Qingyu told him some pieces of advice and more information about the people here.

"Master had not received any disciple for almost two thousand years now. I can tell that you, Junior Brother, must have great potential. However, let me warn you about the cultivators in blue robes. They are all well-known figures who Master had hired to protect this palace. Do not speak to them unless you're in great trouble. They would typically ignore people, but if their mood is bad on that day, they would probably kill you, or cripple your cultivation base. However, their battling prowess is top-tier and that's why Master hired them despite their irrational and crazy personality."

"Before you go in and meet Master, you really should wash up first. Your face is still filled with mud and soil, and Master hates disciples who are not punctual. After you finish washing, wear the green robes I put in your room. Red robes are for visitors; Orange robes are for outer disciples; Yellow robes are for inner disciple; green, of course, is for us. Basically, the robes present your rank and authority. It follows the sequence of a rainbow, so it should be relatively easy to remember." Qingyu warned before setting off.

Shen Long immediately sprinted to the mirror to take a good look at himself. His face was flushed red as he realised how embarrassing it was for him.

"Holy shit... I was walking around the palace with legit grass and soil on my head!? But no one laughed at me at all!? Not even Senior Sister Qingyu? Wow. Everyone here really is different from Earth. People here are so well-mannered! I better be like them as well..." Shen Long thought inwardly while rushing to the bathroom.

In reality, this was because all the cultivators were able to communicate spiritually. Some disciples, of course, laughed at Shen Long, but Shen Long did not hear them. This was because spiritual communication could be private and direct. Shen Long was not aware of that at all.

After washing and dressing up, he rushed to the main hall. There were two guards standing in front of the hall, and they stared at Shen Long as he entered.

Shen Long rang the bell as Qingyu instructed him to earlier while kowtowing and shouting,

"Shen Long requests an audience with Master!"

"Very well. Enter." Daoist Fireblade said as the door opened. Shen Long was slightly afraid as it was Shen Long's first time meeting his master. The atmosphere inside was grave and solemn as the sinister wall blocked out all the entry of light.

There was a slender, tall man who was sitting on his white and gold, crystal tufted throne chair. His hair was white yet his face did not have a single wrinkle. Some features of his were like a normal human though he had some resemblance to a monkey as well. This was probably because he was born three thousand years ago, hence his genes were slightly different from Shen Long.

"Greetings, Master!" Shen Long respectfully said while kowtowing.

"Well done, Shen Long. You're the first person from Earth after me to become a cultivator. My family was dead a long time ago, and I have no more family nor relatives. Although you are my disciple in name, I will treat you like you are my son. I don't need you to repay me in the future, but I do sincerely hope that you can breakthrough to Celestial Immortal in the next 200 years. Only then, I would be able to return and eliminate this inner demon of mine. Then I would have a chance to breakthrough to become an Emperor, and remain eternal." Daoist Fireblade spoke calmly and slowly, yet a tinge of sorrow could be felt.

Shen Long listened carefully as Daoist Fireblade continued to speak.

"Shen Long, I don't have much to offer you, but my secret art - Fireblood Sutra - is extremely powerful. I would transmit this skill to you and I hope that you will not divulge any information to others. I won't request you to sware a lifeblood oath as I trust you, but you absolutely must not spread this. It may not fit you as you are walking down the path of the Dao of Water, but it should provide you with some insights as all elements are somewhat connected." Daoist Fireblade handed Shen Long a token where it contained the entire manual inside - for Shen Long to cultivate it.

"You can choose any cultivation manual you like in the library, and you can ask the guardian for some advice on which one to take. After that, you should stay in the palace and cultivate to at least Demigod level until you go out and venture. To breakthrough, you can either borrow the power of the Dao of Water, meaning that your insight needs to be at a sufficient level, or you can breakthrough with your Qi and spiritual energy. Your soul also needs to be strong enough, otherwise, your consciousness may crumble as soon as you breakthrough. However, after reaching Demigod level, breakthrough becomes much more difficult. Only through grasping Daos of the universe would you be able to advance, and you need to fully grasp one law to become a Celestial Immortal."

"Go ahead and select your manuals, and come back once you reach Demigod Level or if you need any assistance with cultivation. However, you still need to work hard as medicinal herbs cannot help you breakthrough, it can only act as a supplement. With the manuals and my secret art, you should be able to reach Demigod in 10 years. Go now." Daoist Fireblade said as he teleported Shen Long to the library.

"Master! I won't let you down!" Shen Long exclaimed as he truly felt bad for his master. He might be strong and almost immortal, but what was the point of living if one cannot even return home or spend it with the family?

Shen Long deeply cared about his relationships, and he felt his master's pain. He also started wondering about his parents back on Earth, and his eyes started to become watery..