The night before it happened, I couldn't sleep. The mark on my chest kept glowing softly, pulsing like it had a heartbeat of its own. Even with my eyes closed, I saw faint flashes behind my eyelids—a vast sky filled with silver stars, mountains that floated on clouds, and dragons curling between lightning strikes.
I didn't need Arina to tell me what it meant. The first teleportation was coming.
At dawn, the world around me began to waver. My room in Cairo blurred like wet paint. The floor beneath me dissolved into white mist. Then, the calm voice echoed in my mind.
"Host, the first divine travel has been authorised. Destination: Tianyuan Continent. Sign-in reward upon arrival."
Before I could take a breath, everything shattered into light.
There was no pain—only endless motion. I fell through radiant clouds, through storms of colour, through time itself. Then, suddenly, I landed on solid ground.
The air tasted sharp and alive, like thunder before rain. I looked around and saw a valley bathed in golden sunlight. Giant mountains pierced the clouds, their peaks surrounded by flocks of spirit birds that glowed with blue feathers. Rivers of pure spiritual energy flowed like living threads through the land. Trees gleamed with strange fruits that pulsed softly, and beasts with crystalline horns roamed freely on distant plains.
"This… is Tianyuan Continent," I whispered.
Immediately, Arina's voice echoed gently. "Welcome, host. This is the world where cultivation determines fate. Here, power is law, and weakness is a sin written in blood."
I looked up at the huge floating islands drifting across the horizon. Each one shimmered with castles and towers built of jade and steel. The air carried faint hums of qi—the energy that shaped reality here. I could feel it brushing against my skin like invisible wind, flowing into my lungs with every breath.
"Arina," I said quietly, "tell me about this world."
"Yes, host." Her voice turned formal, like a teacher's. "Tianyuan Continent is one of the central worlds of cultivation. All life here follows the Laws of Strength. The continent is divided between four great regions: the Eastern Divine Empire, the Northern Beast Domain, the Western Abyss Sect, and the Southern Spirit Valley. Conflict is eternal, balance fragile, and only the strong shape their destiny."
I listened in silence, marvelling at the vastness she described.
"The cultivation realm system here follows nine major stages," she continued. "Each stage is a threshold between mortality and godhood."
Then, in my mind's eye, symbols unfolded like burning constellations as she explained:
Body Tempering Realm – The foundation. Cultivators strengthen their flesh and awaken the smallest spark of qi.
Qi Condensation Realm—They gather energy into their meridians, learning to control spiritual breath.
Core Formation Realm—Energy takes form within the dantian, becoming a personal core, the source of a cultivator's power.
Golden Soul Realm – Spirit and body unite. Cultivators develop soul-sense and extend their consciousness beyond their bodies.
Void Ascension Realm—The body transcends gravity; cultivators begin to defy natural limits.
Saint Foundation Realm—A stage of enlightenment, where the cultivator's will begins to influence space itself.
Divine Origin Realm—Those who shape their own laws. Power here bends reality.
Celestial Emperor Realm – Rulers of heaven. Their presence alters weather and destiny.
Eternal Deity Realm—Legends say they walked beyond life and death, creating worlds from their own essence.
I stood frozen for a moment, feeling awe and fear blend inside me. "That's the power system of this world?"
"Yes," said Arina. "And divine beasts and spiritual pets also cultivate. Many of them can form contracts with human cultivators. The bond between beast and master amplifies power, but betrayal is punished by the destruction of the soul."
I took a slow breath, the enormity sinking in. "So strength means survival."
"It does," Arina said softly. "And weakness often means a forgotten grave."
Just then, a bright glow enveloped my right hand. Arina's voice grew clearer. "Congratulations, host. You have successfully entered the Tianyuan Continent. Your first sign-in reward is now being distributed."
The glow thickened until it shaped into a small golden scroll. Strange runes danced around it, whispering in an unknown language. I hesitated before touching it, but the moment my fingertips met the surface, knowledge burst into my mind like lightning.
"Reward: Heavenly Beast Contract Scripture," Arina announced. "Grade: Supreme Divine Artefact."
I gasped, eyes wide. "What is it?"
"This scripture allows the host to contract with any divine or spiritual beast without rejection," she explained. "Once the pact is made, the beast's strength grows alongside yours. You may contract up to nine beasts, one for each realm."
Images flashed before my eyes—massive dragons, phoenixes, tigers made of lightning, wolves of shadow, and serpents with golden scales. Each creature roared silently, their eyes full of will and wisdom.
"Be warned," Arina said softly. "The scripture is ancient and alive. Each contract tests your heart. If your soul wavers, the bond fails, and the backlash can destroy your spirit."
I closed my fist, letting the scroll vanish into red light that sank into my body. The mark on my chest pulsed once, burning faintly. I could almost hear heartbeats that weren't mine—distant echoes of unseen beings stirring somewhere far away.
"What now?" I asked. "Do I start cultivating here?"
"Correct," she replied. "But first, adapt. This body now carries the identity prepared by the system. You are known as Mukul Shen, an apprentice spirit cultivator of the Falling Sky Sect. The sect believes you were found abandoned at their gate three years ago. Your existence fits completely within this world's memory."
I touched my face—same as before, but my robe and hair now belonged to this world. Threads of black and silver cloth shimmered with faint symbols, and I could feel a sword hanging at my waist, its hilt carved with my new name.
"Arina," I murmured, still looking around. "Everything feels so real."
"It is real," she said quietly. "Every world is real. Every breath here shapes its destiny. Remember your task: to walk among them, to grow strong, and one day, to bring unity."
As her voice faded, the sky above Tianyuan dimmed into twilight. A wind full of spirit energy rolled across the valley, making the trees sigh with silver light. I could see distant lights of cities glowing on floating mountains, where cultivators trained and duelled for glory.
I took a deep breath, feeling something raw and fierce awaken inside me—a longing to grow stronger, to prove that the boy once found in a dustbin could stand among gods.
"Alright then," I said softly. "Tianyuan Continent… let's see what your sky feels like."
The breeze answered, faint and warm, carrying the scent of storm and lightning.
Arina's last whisper echoed in my head like a blessing. "Welcome to your first world, host. May power and peace walk with you."
And as I stepped deeper into the valley, the mark on my chest began to glow again—alive, waiting, ready for what came next.