At the start of the game, Caelum found himself standing inside a dilapidated and weathered hall. He was dressed in a patched old robe that looked as though it had seen better centuries.

Stepping outside, he discovered that he was on a mountain.

Aside from the main hall, there were barely any buildings left. Even the nearby Gatehouse looked ready to collapse from years of neglect.

Above the gate, several faded characters were carved into the stone.

Skyreach Monastery.

"Skyreach Monastery?"

So this was the name of the sect.

The game introduction appeared.

[Mortals cannot escape birth, aging, sickness, and death. Only through Ascension can one roam freely beneath heaven and earth, commanding wind, fire, lightning, and thunder.]

[However.]

[An Ascendant who fails to become Immortal will ultimately perish.]

[Ascendants.]

[Must Ascend.]

[To attain Immortality.]

...

[Player: Caelum]

[Realm: None]

[Cultivation Method: None]

[Four Arts: None]

[Martial Arts: None]

[Mystic Arts: None]

[Treasures: None]

...

Most of the information was self explanatory.

The only exception was the Four Arts.

The Four Arts referred to the four major disciplines of cultivation.

Alchemy.

Artificing.

Runecraft.

Formation Arts.

Together they formed the Four Arts, auxiliary paths that supported cultivation and combat.

Compared to ordinary Ascendants, practitioners of the Four Arts were exceptionally rare.

Even a modestly skilled specialist could become an honored guest of a cultivation clan or sect, often serving as a Patron Elder.

A ruined place like Skyreach Monastery naturally had no such figures.

Nor did it possess the resources needed to train one.

[Game World Detected]

[Loading Cheat Module...]

[Loading Complete]

[Please Select Your Cheat]

[1. Secret of Transcendence]

[2. Immortal Cultivation]

[3. Supreme Insight]

Immortal Cultivation would allow Caelum to ascend directly into the Immortal Realm.

The drawback was equally obvious.

It was a single use shortcut that exhausted all future potential. As for whether he would be powerful or insignificant after entering the Immortal Realm, there was no way to know.

Not exactly a safe choice.

Supreme Insight, on the other hand, offered incredible long term potential.

With it, he would likely become the most talented cultivator the Ascendant World had seen in countless ages.

As long as nothing unexpected happened, attaining immortality would only be a matter of time.

Even after ascending to the Immortal Realm, Supreme Insight would continue to carry him toward even greater heights.

But compared to Supreme Insight, Secret of Transcendence was even more absurd.

It was an ultimate technique that stood beyond heaven and earth themselves.

It allowed the user to rapidly increase their Realm regardless of talent or aptitude.

It could even shatter the natural limits imposed upon every Realm.

Most importantly, it required no resources whatsoever.

Simply by circulating the technique, one’s Realm would continuously rise.

That wasn’t all.

The Secret of Transcendence could also nurture Divine Armaments, pills, and virtually any material, raising their quality while breaking through the restrictions imposed by heaven and earth.

To stand above heaven and earth.

That was Transcendence.

There was nothing to hesitate over.

Caelum immediately selected Secret of Transcendence.

No matter how he looked at it, this was the strongest option.

[Secret of Transcendence Selected Successfully]

[Enjoy Your Game]

A mysterious scripture appeared in his mind.

Moments later, Caelum had fully grasped the Secret of Transcendence.

He had expected to find at least a few people inside the monastery grounds.

Instead, after searching the entire mountain, he discovered he was completely alone.

Skyreach Monastery truly consisted of a single person.

It was a sect so impoverished that it could hardly be called a sect anymore.

Fortunately, his search wasn’t entirely fruitless.

Inside the hall, he found an old cultivation manual.

The Skyreach Scripture.

Unfortunately, it only contained instructions for the Initiate Realm.

The cultivation path was divided into nine major Realms.

Initiate.

Awakened.

Ascendant.

Soulbound.

Transcendent.

Voidwalker.

Worldbinder.

Paragon.

Immortal.

Nine major Realms.

Each Realm contained twelve layers.

Everything began with the Initiate Realm.

"Better than nothing."

Caelum was easy to satisfy.

After memorizing the circulation method described in the Skyreach Scripture, he sat cross legged inside the hall.

Before long, his mind settled into complete stillness.

While cultivating the Skyreach Scripture, he simultaneously activated the Secret of Transcendence.

[Secret of Transcendence Activated]

Instantly, the World Essence throughout heaven and earth became violent.

It surged toward Caelum from all directions.

The Secret of Transcendence devoured it endlessly, feeding the cultivation of the Skyreach Scripture.

Boom!

A massive vortex of World Essence formed overhead.

Faint thunderous rumbling echoed through the mountain as countless streams of energy rushed toward the center and disappeared into Caelum’s body.

Then...

[Cultivation Increased]

[Realm: Initiate Realm, First Layer]

[Cultivation Increased]

[Realm: Initiate Realm, Second Layer]

[Cultivation Increased]

[Realm: Initiate Realm, Third Layer]

...

This continued until the following day.

Only then did Caelum finally stop.

[Cultivation Increased]

[Initiate Realm: Twenty Third Layer]

The twenty third layer of the Initiate Realm.

This was the true power of the Secret of Transcendence.

It shattered the natural limits of heaven and earth, completely ignoring the traditional cap of twelve layers.

Though he was still in the Initiate Realm, his cultivation far exceeded what twelve layers could normally contain.

"Haaa..."

Caelum exhaled.

The breath tore through the air with a sharp whistle.

A faint gleam flashed within his eyes.

His Vital Essence flowed through his body like a raging dragon.

Every aspect of his body and spirit was overflowing with vitality.

His movements felt incredibly stable and powerful.

Every step carried a subtle sense of force.

Walking outside the Gatehouse, he stopped before a boulder roughly as tall as a person.

Then he threw a punch.

Boom!

The boulder exploded into several pieces.

Initiate Realm cultivators absorbed World Essence to strengthen their bodies and meridians, building the foundation for everything that followed.

Simply put, physical strength was the only advantage possessed by Initiate Realm cultivators.

They had no other methods yet.

An ordinary twelfth layer Initiate Realm cultivator could also shatter a boulder of this size.

But Caelum’s strength went far beyond that.

With a single step, he could cross dozens of feet.

A casual leap carried him high into the air.

His physique had already surpassed ordinary cultivators by a wide margin.

A woodcutter carrying firewood happened to pass by the Gatehouse.

Seeing Caelum toss aside a stone the size of a human head, he greeted him with familiarity.

"Little Monk, that’s some impressive strength you’ve got there!"

Caelum smiled politely.

"Elder, the mountain path is rough. Watch your step."

"Hah, I’ve walked this road my whole life. You think I’m going to trip now?"

The old man laughed.

"The sun’s already high. You ought to head out and hunt something. If you wait until dark, the wolves and tigers will start roaming the mountains. That’s when things get dangerous."

Several mountains surrounded Skyreach Monastery.

Beyond them stood a small town.

Many hunters and local families depended on these mountains for their livelihood, and everyone knew there was a young monk living atop Skyreach Mountain.

Unfortunately, the little monk wasn’t a cultivator.

Otherwise the monastery wouldn’t have fallen into such disrepair.

If disciples actually came seeking the Dao, Skyreach Monastery might have had a chance to recover.

Even after witnessing Caelum’s impressive strength today, the old man didn’t think much of it.

He simply assumed the young monk had learned some martial arts.

Thanks to the reminder, Caelum finally remembered that the monastery had run out of food.

If he wanted to eat, he would have to hunt in the mountains.

After all, he was only in the Initiate Realm.

He had not yet reached the stage where he could survive on Spiritual Essence alone.