Chapter 3: Beginning
The noise of the horses hooves hitting the ground resounded in Koshin's ears as he opened his eyes. It had been 3 months since he found the stone, and he planned to reach 100% after finding a place to stay in Void Crow City.
The attack on the village had been unexpected, but he understood that the situations which occurred in life could be unpredictable at times. The only way to survive was to adapt, and whether you lose yourself in the process was up to you. As they say, "The strong survive, while the weak perish".
Koshin understood this since he himself was weak, 3 months ago he was about to kill himself as he didn't see an out. But now? He wanted to go all the way, he now had a reason to continue onward and he planned to do so without losing himself again.
The scent of drying blood perfumed the air as the boy looked at the three bodies, two were dead while one unconscious.
Looking away the boy's determination strengthened, he didn't want to end up like them. So powerless that they couldn't even decide how they died, hell, they didn't even know that they had died since they never saw it coming.
That is the fate of the weak, powerless, when the strong ordained their deaths.
Shaking his head at the bleak fate of the weak, Koshin then felt a bump. Looking outside he saw that they were now traveling on a paved road, which meant that they were close to the city.
He then saw two carriages passing by with a few guards trailing behind them.
'Are they going to Teemed as well' the boy pondered as the two carriages got further away.
Koshin felt bad for the innocent people who were being slaughtered in Teemed, but what could he do about it? Nothing, that was what.
The boy looked away from the fading backs of the guards as he began hearing noises from outside. The wagon had gotten off one of the cross roads and join the singular path to the gates.
As the boy stared outside, he saw the wagon pass by multiple people who where also making their way to Void Crow City.
Looking up at the sky the boy saw the orange rays of the setting sun beaming down onto the land casting long shadows with it.
His attention was the taken away from the sky when he heard a man's shout.
"Next!"
'Are we finally here?' The boy thought as he saw another wagon pull up behind them.
"Next!" The guard shouted again.
After a few minutes it was finally their turn to go up.
"Next!" The guard shouted as he signaled the old man to get closer.
The guard was dressed in sliver armor that covered everything but his head. He and 15 other guards stood in front of Void Crows cities wall which stood at about 24 meter tall. As for the length of the wall it stretched for hundreds of meters across, Void Crow City was massive in size, this gate was one of many that allowed the entry to the city.
"What is the purpose of you visit?" The guard asked the old man.
"Sir, my village was attacked by bandits, I escaped with my family but my wife and daughter-in-law where killed in the process, now it's just me and my son," the old man said in a sadden tone, his eyes had gone dark and his shoulders slumped down like he had boulders attached to them.
"I meet a few warriors on my way here who told me to come here and explain my situation" he continued.
"I see, my condolences, but I'll need to verify your claim, that means checking the wagon" the guard said as he gestured for another guard to follow him.
"I-I understand" the old man said in a shaky tone. He knew that his wife and daughter-in-law were dead but he still couldn't bear with the thought.
Going around the back the guard looked into the wagon. He first saw a boy with a bloodied face looking up at him.
'Is this the son' the guard thought as he looked passed the boy, he then saw three bodies, one was an old lady laying on the left side of the wagon, she had a huge sword wound in her head, on the floor next to her was a headless body that appeared to be female, and on the right side was a man who appeared to be alive.
'The old man said it was only his son and him left, he didn't say sons,' the guard thought as he squinted his eyes.
"Boy, get out" the guard said as he gestured for Koshin to come out.
Nodding his head, Koshin exited the wagon slowly. The guard then gave the young boy a once over.
'Kid looks like he went through hell' he thought, he then spoke,"Follow me to the front kid"
The two guards and Koshin then came to the front where the guard then began questioning the old man.
"Is this boy also your son?" The guard questioned.
"N-No sir, this boy is an orphan who we picked up before we escaped, I actually forgot about him" the old man said nervously, he hoped this slip up wouldn't cause any issues, if so, it could be disastrous for him and his son. At this point he was already regretting letting the boy come with them.
"I see, alright then, do you want to take the boy with you?" The guard asked
The old man avoided the guard's eyes as he looked at stone paved road.
"No, I already have to much to on my shoulders" the old man said, his voice gave away at the end but the guard heard him loud and clear.
"I see," the guard nodded, he then looked over to the guard next to him, "lead this man to the morgue, then make you way back here,"
The other guard saluted,"Yes sir!"
The guard then looked back at the old man and spoke,"After dealing with your family, I would advice you to scarp the wagon, rebuild it, or buy a new one"
"I understand sir, I'll handle it, I promise" the old man said while giving deep bows.
After giving one last nod, the old man and the other guard left.
The guard next turned to Koshin, he then took out a water skin that had a small piece of cloth tired around the top.
Untying the cloth, the guard then soaked it with some water and threw it at Koshin.
"Use that to clean your face,"
"Thank you," Koshin said as he wiped his blood soaked face.
Seeing this the guard spoke again,"You can enter, by the way you can keep the cloth,"
Nodding his head Koshin thanked the guard again and began his walk into the city. After he left, the guard stared at the boy's back and shook his head.
"What a cruel world" he said before turning away.
While walking Koshin thought about the old man. He didn't blame the old man for his decision, he understood that the old man had his own problems to resolve and taking care of a sick orphan would've placed even more problems and pressure on him.
And while it would've been nice to have to have someone to depend on, it wasn't realistic, not in this world anyway.
Making his way through the gates, he emerged into an entirely different world than he was used to.
Tall buildings lined the streets as far as the eyes could see, the many different businesses had countless lanterns outside which lit up the night sky, and the various pagodas which were scattered around the city looked like beams of light descending from the heavens. And even though it was nighttime the street were filled to the brim with people and carriages. There were smiles all around from many different families who were enjoying their nighttime stroll.
Mothers and fathers were smiling and laughing as their kids joyfully ran around, and many food stall vendors and business owners put on their best smiles as they beckoned people to try their cuisines and wares.
This world felt completely foreign to the one Koshin was used to, leaving him in a bewildered state.
As Koshin was staring at the scene dumbfoundedly, a man bumped into him.
The man turned to the boy and scrunched up his face, he then pinched his noise and in a shooing manner said,"Get out of the way stray!"
After chiding the boy he continued on his way. This woke Koshin up as he quickly found an empty corner to stand in.
'I need to find somewhere to stay' he thought. Looking around, Koshin saw many inns but knew that even though he had a sliver coin, he would likely only be able to spend 1 night since those places looked expensive, and that's only if they let him through the front door.
Koshin then felt his stomach grumble as the sweet smell of the different foods around him converged into his nostrils.
'I need to get out of here' he thought as he quickly looked around. He chose a random street to walk down, he made sure the street was well lit and had people, just to be safe. He wanted to get out from the Main Street and find an inn off the beaten path which would be cheaper.
As he walked, the lights on the streets got less and so did the people. After walking for a few more minutes, he finally found and inn that looked suitable.
'Ravens Lookout' was the sign that hung on the old two story building. From the outside the building looked like it wasn't opened for business, it was only because of a dim light which was shining through the front doors window that gave an indication that it was open.
Opening the door and walking in, Koshin was meet with a middle age woman who was writing something down in a book.
The lady looked up with a bored expression, she then gave Koshin a once over before asking,"Need a room kid?"
"Yes please, but before that, how much does it cost per night?" Koshin responded.
"10 copper per night" she lazily responded.
'10 copper? 100 copper coins is equal to 1 silver coin, that means I can spend 10 days in this inn,' Koshin thought.
"Then I'll stay for 5" Koshin said as he took the silver coin out of his robe, he then placed it on the counter.
She took the coin and pull out a coin purse made of cloth with a rope tied around the top.
"Here, 50 copper, and you can keep the sack" she said while looking Koshin dead in the eyes.
"Thank you very much" Koshin responded as he gave a bow.
"No problem kid, here is your key, your room is on the second floor, it's the third door on the right" she then toss the key into Koshin's hands before looking back down at the book she was scribbling in before.
"Thank you again," Koshin said before turning around and making his way up the stairs.
The middle age woman gave Koshin once last glance before he disappeared upstairs.
Opening the door to his room, Koshin looked around, the room was extremely small, it had one small bed, a dresser next to it, and a table with a small oil lamp and chair on the wall opposite the bed.
Locking the door, Koshin placed the money sack on the table, not even bothering to turn on the oil lamp. He then found an empty corner of the room and slumped down, his back facing the wall.
Taking the stone out of his robe Koshin looked at the box which appeared in front of him.
-Omni-Blood Inheritance-
-Blood extraction - 90%-
-Would you like to continue? (Yes/No)-
"Yes" his lone voice sounded in the room.
Like the other three times, Koshin's right arm shriveled up like a raisin, he clenched his teeth and squeezed his eyes close as he waited for the extraction process to finish. As for the pain? It was just as bad as the first time but he didn't release the slightest of yeeps.
His body began to tremble as he sweated profusely, so much so that his robe got soaked.
Unbeknownst to Koshin, the percentage on the transparent box began rising.
91%…93%….96%…99%…100%
'Huh? Is it over' Koshin thought as the pain stopped. He opened his eyes to see the transparent boxes text.
-Omni-Blood Inheritance-
-Blood extraction - 100%-
-Beginning integration-
"What's thi-" Koshin's words were cut short as his throat locked off, in fact, he felt his entire body lose strength, making him fall forward flat on his face.
He felt the pain spread through his face but couldn't let out a yelp.
'The hell's is going on, I can't move!' Koshin panicked.
An intense pain then attacked his body, a pain so intense that he felt like he was being burned alive.
'ARGH!' The boy tried to scream yet nothing came out. His body began to spasm wildly on the floor as blood poured out of his eyes which were wide open.
After a few minutes of torture the boy's body went limp as he lost consciousness. The black stone was sitting in the center of his palm which was facing upward.
The stone then began to melt, the black liquid was then absorbed into the boy's body. Once inside, the liquid shot towards the boy's heart, stopping right in front of it. The liquid then began trembling violently, it slowly turned into a black mist, it then sank into the boy's heart.
The mist appeared in another place, this place had a white swirling vortex that spun in a clockwise direction.
If a cultivator saw this place they would know exactly what it was, it was Koshin's soul space.
The black mist shot into the middle of the vortex causing it to shake violently. On the outside, Koshin coughed up a mouth full of blood. Blood also began flowing out of his eyes and nose.
The white vortex slowly turned black, as white, purple, red, and blue dots began appearing at random places within it.
Looking at it from a distance, it looked like a swirling galaxy. A dot of black qi with a purple outline then appear inside Koshin beating heart, and a new text appeared in front of the boy.
Yet, he was still unconscious, sleeping soundly as his innocent youthful face pressed against the cold hard wooden floor.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone