Author's Note: Firstly, been busy with work lately. So, I haven't been able to write as much as I want. But I will still be trying to write whenever I can. Okay, now onto the real topic:

Most of these chapters have probably been boring...Fret not, for the story shall be picking up soon. This chapter was relatively shorter than the rest by about 500 words. I like to aim for 4k+ words with each chapter, but I don't want to just fluff the story with pointless words. So, I decided I'm going to throw my 4k+ word goal out the window and just stop the chapters where they feel right.

Now then, most likely one or two more chapters to go until the story starts to pick up and more action/drama/stuff seeps its way in. Now without further ado, enjoy the chapter. :P

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Chapter XII

Alex opened his eyes as a solemn expression emerged on his face. He raised his short-sword and once more entered into the first stance of The Raindrop Sword. He stood motionless as he calmed his mind. 'This is a huge risk...But what other choice besides running away do I have? I will not run!...Either the wolf dies or I die!!' A bone-chilling cold glint flashed in the depths of his ice-blue eyes as he glared at the wolf.

Unbeknownst to him, his skill Emit Killing Intent activated as his thoughts reached the latter part. As it did so, the wolf suddenly let out a deep snarl as its fur stood on end. It returned a glare right back towards Alex. Almost like they both came to an understanding, it too seemed to have sensed that this fight could no longer drag on.

Abruptly, the wolf dashed forth towards Alex. As it did so, his expression remained unchanged. Holding his sword in front of him, he waited for the wolf to approach. In only a couple of breaths of time, the wolf was upon him. It leapt into the air, its eyes focused on Alex's neck. Clearly it was ready to receive a wound in exchange for a killing blow.

It opened its mouth and bared its sharp fangs. It would bite and rip out his throat; in exchange it would receive a minor or medium wound. Like this it would emerge victorious, is what the wolf thought. However, the human its eyes were locked onto suddenly vanished from its vision. Its eyes jolted wide open as a look of consternation appeared on its face.

The moment that the wolf was close enough for him to feel its breath, he moved with haste. Rather than retreating or trying to avoid the attack, he instead stepped forward and to the side of the wolf. As he did so, he swung his blade in an upwards motion. It tried to twist its body and swing its claws at him. However, the wolf was helpless while it was in the air.

The blade slashed across its midsection leaving a deep laceration. Warm blood spewed out, covering Alex's blade and splattering onto his face. The wolf crashed to the ground in the former spot Alex had been in. It growled in agony as it struggled to its feet. It endeavored to turn to face him. As it did so, it snarled. A bloody froth started to form at the corners of its mouth as saliva dripped to the ground.

It began to take shaky steps towards Alex. While the wolf approached him, blood seeped to the ground leaving a bloody trail behind. “I-impossible...” He couldn't help but stutter as he witnessed the wolf move closer to him. 'It can still move!? That should have been a deep wound! I felt the blade pass through bone!!' His hands trembled slightly as he gawked at the wolf.

Only a few steps remained until the wolf would reach him. As it took two steps forward, Alex raised his blade, preparing to strike again. However, before it could take another stride the Listra Vikas collapsed to the ground. It spasmed for a moment before it ceased all movement.

Alex stared wide-eyed as he watched the life fade from its eyes. He slowly lowered his blade as his legs began to tremble. “I-I did it?” He uttered in disbelief as he stared at the wolf's corpse. Chuckling to himself, he fell onto his butt. “I did it! I actually managed to kill a late-stage beginner profound beast!” As he sat there, he grinned and let his body fall backwards.

Laying on his back staring up through the canopy of the forest, he had a foolish smile on his face. 'I can't believe I really did it!...Now I just need to take care of my wound and get the wolf's Qi Core, then I can return to town...I wonder what mom and dad will say, when I show them a late-stage beginn-' His thoughts were interrupted as a loud chime rang out. Multiple status windows appeared, filling his vision. As he read them, his smile turned into a radiant grin.

*Ting*

Congratulations! For killing a profound beast that was vastly stronger than yourself, you have earned four times the normal xp. You have gained 80xp.

Level Up!

You have gained 5 distributable stat points

You have gained 10 Health, 10 Energy and 10 Qi.

Level up: Sword Style – The Raindrop Sword (Beginner Level 8 [3/45xp])

Level up: Sword Mastery (Beginner Level 8 [3/45xp])

You have gained 3 Willpower (+3 WILL)

You have gained 3 Focus (+3 FOC)

You have gained 1 Perception (+1 PER)

You have gained 2 Agility (+2 AGI)

You have gained 3 Dexterity (+3 DEX)

You have gained 1 Endurance (+1 END)

You have gained 1 Constitution (+1 CON)

You have gained 1 Stamina (+1 STA)

You have gained 2 Bloodlust (+2 BLDLST)

After reading all of the status windows, he dismissed them and closed his eyes. Lying on the cool grass, Alex started to drift into deep thought. As he did so, a silly smile crept onto his face. 'Finally...I've finally managed to level up! I can't believe I actually received more health, energy and Qi from doing so...Unbelievable.' He let out a deep breath. 'Five distributable stat points...Hmm, just what are they and how do I use them?' After thinking to there, he opened his eyes and mentally called for help regarding the latter part of his thoughts.

Distributable Stat Points are unallocated points that you may assign to an attribute of your choosing. Doing so will increase the chosen stat by one.

When he finished reading the help message, his eyes widened. 'Holy crap! No way!...I can increase my stats like that too!?...Then doesn't that mean I could continue to level up and gain a ridiculous amount of stats?' He chuckled to himself as he opened his status window.

*Ting*

Name: Alexander HartlowAge: 12Level: 1XP: 0/200Health: 40/40Qi: 28/28Energy: 200/200Satiety: 100/100Titles:

NoneStats:

Distributable Points: 5+ Constitution: 3+ Intelligence: 18+ Vitality: 1+ Wisdom: 14+ Stamina: 10+ Endurance: 3+ Strength: 6+ Charisma: 9+ Agility: 8+ Dexterity: 10+ Willpower: 10+ Bloodlust: 4+ Perception: 4+ Focus: 5+ Luck: 50???????????????+ Attack: 1 (+21)+ Defense: 0 (+6)Element Resistance: NoneAdditional Information:Race: HumanGender: MaleElement Affinity: All ElementsAlignment: NeutralAllegiance: Undeclared

When he opened it up, he noticed something different from all of the other times he had done so. Currently, there was a small plus sign next to all of the different attributes including Attack and Defense. As he viewed them, his thoughts once more started to race.

'I guess I need to press the little plus sign in order to assign a point to that attribute?...Wait a minute! If I can add points to attack and defense...Couldn't I increase my defense to such a level that I wouldn't be able to be harmed!? Then couldn't I do the same for attack!? Maybe I'd be able to split mountains with a single swing of my sword!...'

He frowned as his thoughts continued on. 'What nonsense am I thinking? So far I've increased my strength by five but only feel a tiny amount stronger than before...To reach the level I was thinking of would probably take hundreds of points wouldn't it?...If I get five points per level...' He furrowed his brow as he remained engrossed in his thoughts.

'By the gods, I would need to level up at least twenty times just to get one hundred points to distribute...It took me a month to gain just this one level!! How long would it take for twenty!?...' His facial expression continued to quickly change along with his thoughts. 'Maybe it wouldn't take that long?...If I were to kill profound beasts and monsters all day...I could even get their Qi cores and try to consume them...Mother said that doing so could increase a cultivator's strength.'

He shook his head and sat up. Letting out a deep sigh, his thoughts started to calm down as if a bucket of cold water was poured on him. 'What am I thinking? I'm not even a cultivator yet. I have no idea how to guide Qi throughout my body or even how to go about absorbing a Qi core...I'll just have to wait for a bit. Once I find out how...' A slight ambitious smile hung on his face as he reached the latter part of his thoughts.

Glancing down at the sword in his hand, a sudden realization struck him. 'Oh crap! I forgot about my wound! Not good!' He quickly let go of his sword and examined the injury that was left by the wolf. However, to his astonishment the wound was gone. He stuck his fingers in the torn area of his shirt's sleeve and felt around.

Rubbing the spots where there was previously a set of deep gashes, Alex was dumbfounded. 'W-what...Just what is going on?' He rolled up his sleeve and examined his arm more closely. Furrowing his brow, he wiped what blood was still there away with his shirt's midsection. Disbelief flashed across his eyes as he widened them. 'It's gone! The wound is completely healed!'

Staring at his arm, he muttered, “Just what exactly is going on?” He raised an eyebrow. 'The only thing that happened was I leveled up...' He glanced at his health, Qi and energy bars. 'Holy shit! They're all full! I regained my lost health, energy and Qi! How!?!?...Was it from leveling up!? Hahaha! Amazing! Absolutely astonishing! That means that when I level, everything is restored to full!! I wonder how it works though. Just what exact-'

Alex stopped his thoughts where they were and quickly grasped his sword. He stood up and turned around with haste, entering into the first form of The Raindrop Sword as he did so. With utmost scrutiny he scanned his surroundings. After a couple minutes of staying on guard, he finally settled down and lowered his blade.

'What the hell was that?...It felt like I was being watched...' His gaze landed onto the status window that had minimized the moment he sprung into action. Before he could think about his stats again, a chime rang out while multiple new windows appeared.

*Ting*

You have gained 4 Perception (+4 PER)

Congratulations! You have learned the skill [Sense Presence – Beginner]

Pleasantly surprised, Alex smiled and opened up his new skill.

Sense Presence – Level 1 [0/10xp] Beginner (Passive) – your ability to detect/perceive hidden entities within a certain range of yourself. Current level allows you to discern the relative direction of hidden entities.

'So that's what happened. It felt like someone was watching me from behind...Hmm, this will be another very handy skill.' He closed all of his status windows. 'Alright, I'll carve that wolf's Qi core out of its body and then get the hell out of this forest for now...I don't want to risk going back for those other wolves' corpses...If that Pala Lew were to come back or if I encountered any more wolves...' He shuddered and then looked around his surroundings once more.

Seeing that it was still all clear, he walked over towards the wolf's corpse and knelt down. 'Once this is done, I'll go back home and then figure out what stats to grant those points to.' He held his blade and brought it closer to the corpse. For a moment, he looked at a loss for what to do. 'Mom said that the Qi core should be located near the heart...This is my first time doing this, so it's probably bound to be messy...' He sighed and then proceeded to carve open the wolf's chest cavity.

** ** ** **

As Alex set to work removing the Qi core from the dead Listra Vikas, Laylah stared slack-jawed at him with a slight disbelief on her face. She was overjoyed that her son was able to defeat a late-stage beginner profound beast, but she just couldn't wrap her mind around it. 'How did me manage that?' She watched the fight from start to finish. Laylah was certain that Alex had no chance of winning.

The entire time, she was prepared to leap into action and save her son the moment things turned for the worst. She wanted him to have a taste of what it was like to risk his life in battle. Where the slightest misstep could be fatal.

As the wolf recklessly attacked and pushed him back, Laylah was just about to intervene. However, she stayed her hand when she noticed that Alex seemed to be able to hold on. At first, he was pushed back continuously and could barely dodge or parry the attacks. But as it went on, he improved at a visible rate.

She was startled by it. Laylah closed her mouth as she continued to watch Alex. 'Ever since he was born, I've checked his Qi veins a few times every year. Yet, they've always remained the same. Only two were open. His potential as a cultivator is horrible...I never would have thought that despite that, he has such a talent for swordsmanship...Maybe him becoming a cultivator would be good.'

A warm smile surfaced on her face. 'Although his potential for cultivating is horrible, if he manages to learn how to control Qi and maybe learn some techniques, he could integrate that into his swordplay...Then maybe...Just maybe, he could advance as a cultivator.' She let out a breath and brushed some hair out of her face.

'It seems like he has some good senses too. He almost found me, I had no choice to put a little more distance between us. I hid myself almost perfectly and yet...Maybe it was just a fluke...' She shook her head and continued to watch Alex.

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A quarter of an hour passed as Alex searched for the Qi core. Finally, he withdrew his right arm from the chest of the Listra Vikas. Sweating and covered in blood, he raised his hand in front of his face. He chuckled as he viewed what he was holding.

Grasped between his index finger and thumb was something that looked akin to a blood-covered marble. He frowned slightly and then wiped it off on a relatively clean portion of his shirt. The marble was a grayish-green color and its size was around three centimeters in diameter.

A beaming smile spread on Alex's face as he inspected it. 'Finally found it!...So this is a Qi core, huh?...It's kind of warm.' As he focused on the Qi core, he thought, 'Huh, I wonder...Identify.' Heeding his mental command, a status window appeared with the sound of a chime.

*Ting*

Qi Core - A standard Qi Core attained from a profound beast.Qi - 25/25Rank - Late-stage (Level 9) Beginner

'Amazing!...It has twenty-five Qi...Did that Listra Vikas have that much Qi?...I have twenty-eight Qi right now. So am I comparable to a late-stage beginner rank then?...No, I shouldn't be. I may have that much Qi, but my body is definitely not at that level yet.' He shook his head as he dismissed the status window.

'Hmm, I feel like I'm still being watched...For now I'll play it safe.' He placed the Qi core in the pocket of his pants. However, before he removed his hand, he made sure to store it into his inventory. 'I don't know who or what is watching me, but I'd rather be extra careful so that no one learns of these abilities of mine. Who knows what troubles it may bring me if they're ever found out.'

He looked around his surroundings once more. Not noticing anything out of the ordinary, he wiped the short-sword off on the fur of the dead Listra Vikas. After it was clean he sheathed his blade and started to walk in the direction that would lead out of the forest. 'I'm not going to go for the corpses of those four Listra Vikas. Who knows if they're even there still. I don't want to risk encountering any higher rank profound beasts or monsters.'

A slight frown surfaced on his face while he walked. 'I really want those Qi cores, but...Not worth it! Definitely not going to let greed cloud my judgment.' He let out a deep breath and mumbled, “Okay, time to find some herbs.”

As he was walking, he suddenly halted in his steps. “Shit.” He mumbled. 'I knew something was weird. I thought I felt lighter...' He turned around and frowned. Laying on the ground was his backpack with torn straps. 'Crap...It must've happened when I was dodging the attacks of that Listra Vikas...' He glanced around his surroundings.

His frown deepened as he thought to himself. 'Still feels like I'm being watched...Guess using my inventory is out of the question.' He walked over to his backpack and picked it up. 'I suppose I'll just carry it then.' Holding the pack in his left hand, he began to trot in the direction that led out of the forest.

** ** ** **

It didn't take long for Alex to reach the outskirts of the forest. As he made his way there, the sound of wolves howling became distant. 'I probably shouldn't run into any out here...' He thought as he slowed his pace down. 'Alright, should be safe to check some things now...Open quest log.' Heeding his mental command, a status window appeared.

Quest Log

Meet your Mother's requirements:

Acquire a Qi Core

Show Qi Core to Laylah Hartlow

Meet your Father's requirements:

Create three difference medicines from herbs in the Nilyl Forest

After he read his log, a grin surfaced on his face. 'I figured they would be quests...Great, it shouldn't be too difficult to make three medicines and bring them back...I wonder how much experience I'll earn.' He dismissed the window and mumbled, “Alright, time to find some herbs.” Alex diligently set forth to find the herbs he required to make three different medicines.

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Time quickly passed. As Alex was searching for herbs, the night arrived with haste. He was covered in dirt and some sweat as he finished digging up a plant. He exclaimed, “Yes! Perfect! Finally, I have all the ingredients!” He grinned as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

He carefully stored the herb into his backpack and proceeded to leave the forest. It didn't take long for him to reach a clearing outside of the forest. With the light of the full moon and stars, Alex sat down on the grass. 'Okay, time to get this done!' He gently laid his backpack down in front of him and opened it up.

Slowly, he removed each ingredient and organized them. Once done, he pulled out his mortar and pestle. 'Alrighty.' He chuckled as he thought to himself. 'Hope dad doesn't complain about this one...' He inspected the laid out herbs. 'Izaley, Aheves and Essu Husk all in good condition. Some Blood Sealing Paste coming right up.'

He smiled as he set to work grinding the herbs into a fine powder. When he finished, he pulled out a flask from his pack and uncorked it. He poured the contents of it into the mortar. 'Water, check. Time to mix it up.' After pouring out about a quarter of the water flask's contents, he began to stir everything together.

A few minutes later, he had an odd smelling white paste in the mortar. He reached into his pack and pulled out a different flask. He uncorked it as he thought to himself, 'One medicine down. Two to go.' He smiled as he scooped the paste into the flask.

Once more he picked up the water flask and poured some into the mortar. He grabbed a cloth from his pack and wiped out any residue that was left behind from the paste. 'Okay, this next one is easy. Six ounces of Eccu Leaf and four ounces of Ebbeley.' He placed the ingredients into the mortar and ground them up.

Then he poured in some water and mixed the powder together. When he finished, he was left with a greenish-yellow ointment that had a strong medicinal smell. 'Bruise Easing Ointment, check!...One medicine left.' He thought to himself as he stored the ointment in a different flask.

As he viewed the remaining ingredients, he couldn't help but grin. 'Four ounces of Monk's Leaf and four ounces of Saffron.' He placed the ingredients into the mortar and ground them into a fine powder. Then he added some water and mixed it all together. When he finished, he was left with a faint red liquid.

Smiling, he poured the red liquid into an empty flask. Chuckling to himself, he uttered, “One flask of Lesser Wound Recovery Tonic. Three medicines check! Now I can go back home.” Having finished creating all the medicines, he carefully packed them into his backpack and started to head towards the town of Solaris.

'Hahaha, I did it! I have a Qi core and three different medicines that I made! And the Qi core isn't any early-stage rank profound beast's...It's a late-stage rank! Hahaha, I bet mom and dad are going to be speechless! When I get back, I'll probably have to wait until tomorrow to learn about all the sects and schools...I can't wait!' Alex rejoiced mentally the entire way home.

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