The World Devouring System

Her innocent reaction amused Caelum greatly. A part of him wanted to devour her in that instant, but he held back. He needed to finish doing other things first.

Laughing, he replied, "I'm happy that you're so eager, but no, we won't be doing anything just yet."

His words only deepened Saya's embarrassment, and she lowered her head even further, her cheeks flushed.

"Right now, I'm more inclined to cultivate," Caelum added with a grin, steering the conversation away from the spicy and provocative direction it was headed in.

As soon as she heard the word "cultivate," Saya tried her best to put on a serious face and said, "Lady Elara already told me that you were eager to get started with cultivation. I have already procured the necessary materials needed for you to undergo Body Tempering. I have them all in my spatial ring."

"Good!" Caelum praised.

"I'm going to go over these two manuals for a while before doing anything else. Make yourself comfortable in the meantime. There's no need to keep standing."

Seeing Saya cautiously seat herself in a corner, Caelum fought the urge to shake his head and began reading the manuals.

He started with the cultivation technique known as the Goldheart Pulse Method. Cultivation wasn't something one could begin simply because they wanted to. There was a process that needed to be followed, and the most important step was choosing a cultivation technique.

Powerful cultivation families all had their own techniques, which offered various advantages over the Basic Cultivation Technique—the method practiced by most cultivators until they could obtain more advanced manuals.

After reading this, Caelum recalled that Saya also practiced the Basic Cultivation Technique, even though she was his personal maid. Curious, he asked, "Saya, you said you follow the Basic Cultivation Technique, right?"

The alert Saya promptly responded, "Yes, Young Master."

Caelum frowned slightly. "Why? Does the family not provide better cultivation manuals even for personal maids?"

Saya explained, "Partially, yes. It is because I'm still considered a new personal maid. I would need to prove myself first before being allowed access to better techniques."

"I see. By the way, you're at the eighth level of Qi Condensation at 30 years old. Is that considered fast?" Caelum asked.

Saya thought for a moment before replying, "As per my understanding, it is well above the average cultivation speed in the Novastead Empire. However, if we were to look solely at the Goldheart family, I think it is quite average."

Then she cautiously added, "Lady Elara also mentioned the matter of potentially finding a tutor for you. At least during the early days, please don't hesitate to ask me any questions about getting started with cultivation. I will help you to the best of my abilities."

Caelum smiled, appreciating Saya's willingness to help, and then returned to his reading.

Caelum only studied the basics outlined in the Goldheart Pulse Method to gain a rudimentary understanding of how cultivation typically worked for individuals without a system. The Body Tempering Realm, where he currently resided, was considered the zeroth realm of cultivation. Many did not regard it as a true cultivation realm.

The progression of cultivation began with the Qi Gathering stage, marking the true starting point for cultivators as it allowed them to sense and manipulate spiritual Qi. This was followed by the Foundation Establishment Realm and then the Qi Condensation Realm, where both Boros and Saya currently were. These four realms together—Body Tempering, Qi Gathering, Foundation Establishment, and Qi Condensation—were called the Foundational Realms. Cultivators in these realms were considered novices, only beginning their cultivation journey. However, far too many spent their entire lives unable to surpass these stages.

Currently, Caelum was in the Body Tempering realm which was subdivided into only three stages - The Muscle Refinement stage, Bone Strengthening stage and finally the Marrow Cleansing stage.

Curious about his progress, Caelum opened his system interface to review his cultivation stats.

*****[Basic Stats]*****

[Cultivation]:

 [Realm]: Body Tempering Realm

 [Stage]: Muscle Refinement stage

 [Progress]: 0.6%

'A long way to go. I'll need to defeat and devour tougher enemies,' Caelum thought.

He skimmed through the detailed process of Body Tempering described in the manual. The method involved sitting in a medicinal cauldron, akin to a bathtub, while maintaining a specific breathing pattern. This had to be preceded by rigorous exercise to ensure the medicinal properties were fully absorbed. Although Caelum diligently memorized the breathing pattern, he didn't concern himself too deeply with it, knowing that traditional cultivation might not be his main path to strength.

Once he was done with it, Caelum set the cultivation technique aside and picked up the Foundation of Thousand Cuts manual with a sense of anticipation.

The manual, despite being tens of pages in length, was designed to be easy to digest. Most of its space was occupied by illustrations, making it resemble books intended for primary school students.

The Foundation of Thousand Cuts manual was an excellent tool for building a solid foundation in the sword path. It began with the basics, such as the proper grip for holding a sword and fundamental footwork. From there, it delved into correct forms for essential moves, like thrusts and slashes. Finally, it demonstrated various practical combos that could be employed in real combat scenarios.

In no time, Caelum had read through the entire manual. He didn't fuss over memorizing every detail, as he planned to enlist Saya's help during his training.

"Saya, what weapon do you use?" he asked, realizing he didn't know if she used a sword herself.

"My primary weapon is the sword, Young Master," she replied. Fortunately, it aligned with his needs.

"Good. I'm going to do some training. Join me—I'll likely need your assistance. But first, inform the dining hall staff that I won't be dining with my family tonight because I'm busy cultivating. Ask them to send some food over in a few hours, and make sure to get yourself a portion too."

The Duke Mansion's exclusivity meant that most members of the family couldn't freely use its facilities whenever they pleased. Thanks to this, Caelum had no trouble securing a private training space near the garden. The area was well-equipped, featuring a durable training dummy capable of withstanding substantial punishment. Additionally, it had a self-repair formation to maintain its condition.

Caelum decided to begin with the "Thousand Cuts" exercise. The concept was simple: he had to attack the training dummy a thousand times using the combos outlined in the manual. The exercise also recommended imagining himself in real combat to enhance its effectiveness.

However, simple didn't mean easy. Executing proper attacks a thousand times required immense stamina, and as someone who hadn't even reached the Qi Gathering stage yet, Caelum knew completing the exercise in one go was unlikely.

'I'll just do what I can,' he thought.

Thinking so, Caelum began the exercise.

By the time Caelum reached his fiftieth slash, exhaustion had already taken hold. His breathing was labored and sweat clung to his body in a thin sheen.

Saya had arrived several minutes earlier and quietly observed from a distance. When Caelum finally paused to catch his breath, he acknowledged her presence.

After almost a minute of standing still and regaining his breath, he asked Saya to point out his mistakes and correct his form based on what she had observed.

Saya stepped forward while speaking. "Your form was surprisingly good, Young Master," she began. "It's clear you trained the basics diligently when you were younger. Still, I noticed a few minor imperfections—especially in the synchronization between your breathing and your body movements. Allow me to demonstrate."

Then, Saya illustrated the corrections she had in mind. While she demonstrated, Caelum took the opportunity to recover some of his stamina. Despite the physical strain, every moment holding the sword brought an inexplicable sense of peace and belonging. Yet this feeling also unsettled him, since its origins were unknown and untraceable to him. For now, he chose to set the thought aside.

Having recovered some energy during Saya's demonstrations, Caelum attacked the training dummy thirty more times with great difficulty. By the end, his body was near its limit. His arms trembled from exertion, and his legs ached from the constant movement required by the combos outlined in the manual.

Utterly spent, Caelum leaned on the sword for support before issuing an instruction to Saya.

"Take me to my room," he said in a low voice.

"As you command, Young Master," Saya responded promptly as she summoned her Flying Sword. The sword, massive and imposing like a greatsword but even larger, was designed to carry two or three individuals with ease and was not meant for fighting.

Carefully, Saya assisted Caelum onto the sword, stabilizing him with her Qi to ensure he wouldn't fall. Flying on a sword required reaching the Qi Condensation Realm and learning the corresponding technique from a manual.

After holding Caelum with her Qi, Saya hopped onto the sword as well and flew into Caelum's room through an open window.

Once inside, Caelum slumped onto his bed and just instructed Saya to prepare the medicinal bath for his Body Tempering.