After ending the call with his parents, Ren glanced at the time.

It was already 9:30 PM.

He was about to head back to his room to continue cultivating when his stomach suddenly protested loudly, reminding him that he hadn’t actually eaten anything since the small meal at midnight, almost twenty-four hours ago.

"Right... I still need food," he muttered.

He sighed lightly.

"Only after reaching Stage 2 can I rely on energy and become independent from food. Until then, I get to keep being a normal eighteen-year-old with a normal eighteen-year-old’s stomach."

Ren walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge.

The moment the door swung open, he paused.

Inside, instead of normal groceries, he saw things that still felt unfamiliar even after three days in this world.

There were eggs the size of an adult’s fist, colored a deep purple, with faint scaly patterns spiraling across their shells. They sat in a neat row in their tray, looking less like eggs and more like polished stones that someone had decided to keep cold.

Beside them were vegetables of all kinds — some glowing faintly along their edges, some with leaves that shifted from green to silver depending on the angle of light, some shaped in ways that had no equivalent on his old Earth at all.

Ren blinked once.

"...Yeah."

"This is definitely not Earth."

Even after a few days, moments like this still reminded him that he was living in a completely different world — one where cooking dinner could feel like assembling a chemistry experiment, and where the apartment’s automatic mister had been calibrated to keep some of the produce above a specific energy threshold so it wouldn’t wilt.

Still, he didn’t hesitate for long.

One of the few practical advantages he carried from his previous life was something simple — but useful.

"I at least know how to cook."

With that, Ren took out a few ingredients.

"Let’s just make something quick. Fried rice should do."

Even if the ingredients looked strange, the basics were still the same. Rice, eggs, vegetables — just slightly... mutated. He cracked one of the purple eggs into a bowl, watching as the inside shimmered slightly with a faint internal light before settling into something that, structurally, was still recognizably a yolk.

"...Okay," he muttered. "That’s new."

He shook his head and got to work.

Soon the kitchen filled with the sound of cooking, the sizzling of oil, and the warm, slightly herbal aroma of a meal coming together. Whatever the eggs had originally been, they fried like ordinary eggs. Whatever the vegetables had originally been, they cut like ordinary vegetables. The fried rice came out a little more colorful than he was used to, but otherwise behaved itself.

Ren ate quietly at the small kitchen table, watching the city lights through the window.

— • —

Planet Jupiter — Blueberry City.

While Ren was busy preparing his food, his parents were having a quieter conversation in their hotel room.

After several minutes of careful discussion, they made a decision.

They would talk to Alex.

The two of them walked down the hallway together and stopped in front of his hotel room.

Knock. Knock.

"Coming."

A deep voice came from inside.

After a few seconds, the door opened.

A burly man with a simple appearance stood there. A noticeable scar ran across his forehead, giving him a slightly intimidating look that did not quite match the easy, relaxed posture of his shoulders.

He appeared to be in his early forties — but in reality, his age was much higher than both Elena’s and Adrian’s.

This was their team leader, Alex. A beginner Stage 4 Bloodline Pathway expert.

Although the difference between Stage 3 and Stage 4 was only one major stage, the gap in actual power was enormous. A Stage 4 cultivator was several times stronger than a peak Stage 3 cultivator — depending on talent and foundation, the multiplier could range anywhere from three to five times the raw output. It was the kind of gap that, while not absurd on paper, became practically decisive in actual combat. A peak Stage 3 cultivator who picked a fight with a Stage 4 cultivator usually came out of it with Broken Bones or Half Dead, if they came out of it at all.

Seeing Elena and Adrian standing outside, Alex raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Oh? You two, at this hour?"

Still, he stepped aside and gestured for them to enter.

"Come in."

After they walked inside and took their seats, Alex closed the door and looked at them with mild curiosity.

"What brings you here so late at night?"

Adrian and Elena exchanged a glance before explaining everything.

They told him about Ren’s awakening. About the Bloodline Plant Lord Talent. About the fact that they were hoping to get more detailed information about the pathway, so their son could have a stronger foundation in the future. They also added, openly, that they would owe him a favor if he was willing to help.

Hearing this, Alex was visibly surprised.

"The Bloodline Plant Lord Talent...?" 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

He leaned back slightly, his expression turning thoughtful.

This was not something common.

Although information about this pathway was not exactly forbidden, it was not available on public networks either. Only certain families, colleges, and high-level organizations had access to deeper knowledge — and most of them guarded it carefully.

Still...

Alex knew about it.

His family had records. He himself wasn’t an important figure within his clan — only a side branch, not a direct descendant — but a side branch with access to a side branch’s library was still a far cry from no access at all. He had read enough, when he was younger, to remember the basics. And the basics, in this case, were already more than what most schools would ever teach.

Even so.

Helping them now could be... beneficial.

If their son truly grew in the future — and a Bloodline Plant Lord with proper support and resources had every reason to grow — this favor could become valuable. Possibly very valuable.

And there was a quieter consideration, too.

Alex had spent two years now working closely with Adrian and Elena. He had watched them under stress, under disappointment, under the small daily frictions that wore most expedition partnerships thin. He had not seen either of them lie to each other once. He had not seen either of them lie to him at all.

That kind of thing was rarer, in his experience, than legendary talents.

After thinking for a moment, Alex made his decision.

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"Congratulations," he said calmly. "Your son is quite fortunate."

Then he continued, "As for the information... I’ll gather everything I know and write it down tonight. I’ll send it to you by morning."

Both Adrian and Elena visibly relaxed.

"Thank you," Adrian said sincerely.

Alex waved his hand lightly. "It’s nothing."

It was, in fact, several hours of his sleep — but he was not the kind of man who flinched at that, and they were not the kind of friends he needed to flinch in front of.

— • —

Back on Edius.

After finishing his meal, Ren returned to his room and resumed cultivation.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, settled his breathing into the rhythm the optimized manual had taught him, and reached inward toward the seed.

It was easier this time. The path had already been opened during his first session; now his energy moved along it the way water moves along a channel that has already been dug. Bloodline. Soul. Seed. Bloodline. Soul. Seed. Each cycle brought a small fraction of fusion progress, and each cycle felt slightly steadier than the one before.

By the time he had been sitting for an hour, the warmth he had only barely noticed during his first session had become a steady, low presence in his chest — like a small ember keeping itself lit without needing to be tended.

By the time he had been sitting for two hours, his heart rate had slowed, his breathing had deepened on its own, and his sense of his own body had taken on the strange, drifting quality that all serious meditation eventually produced. The hum of the city outside the window faded into the background. So did the soft mechanical breath of the apartment’s air system. So did the slow ticking of the clock on the wall.

Time passed quickly.

Before he realized it, it was already next-day afternoon.

A slight strain began to build in his body, forcing him to stop. Ren slowly opened his eyes and let out a long breath. After checking his condition, he realized that his progress had increased further.

He had now fused around 40% of his blood and soul with the seed.

"Not bad," he murmured.

’At this rate, the fusion will be complete in three or four more days. Roughly half what the manual estimates for a typical genius. The OPTIMIZE function alone is doing absurd work.’

Just then, his light-brain lit up.

It was a message from his parents.

The message contained a file — information they had received from their team leader about his pathway.

Ren stood up, stretched lightly, and freshened up. Once he was ready, he returned to his desk, sat down, and opened the file.