The selection stone in the old man’s hand cracked with a loud snap and shattered.

“!!”

The old man was startled.

For a moment, the look of regret passed over his face. Then, he threw a heated gaze at the young man.

‘An incredible surge of gold energy! And on top of that, a Celestial Spirit Root!’

A pure gold attribute Celestial Spirit Root, it was beyond belief.

A Spirit Root was a talent of an immortal who could handle the energies of heaven and earth.

Among them, the Celestial Spirit Root was a singular attribute among the five elements of Water, Gold, Fire, Wood, and Earth, a talent bestowed by the heavens.

If one cultivated the Gold attribute’s martial arts, there would be no obstacles, and the cultivation speed would surpass that of most multi-element Spirit Roots.

Ah.

Such luck!

The Celestial Spirit Root was highly prized even within the Immortal Sect.

He had to take this one.

‘But why did the selection stone break?’

He shook his head.

Was that even important? The Celestial Spirit Root was what mattered!

“Hahaha.”

The old man grinned, his laughter ringing out and shaking the mountains.

“Let’s head back to the main sect right away. I owe Qingyo a favor. Make sure to tell him I’ll visit later.”

With a wave of his arm, the leaves that had emerged from his sleeve grew to an enormous size.

“Now, everyone, get on!”

The selected boys and girls glanced at Kalstein before elegantly climbing onto the massive leaves.

“Ha! I knew you’d get picked!”

A middle-aged man approached him and spoke in a friendly manner.

“Despite avoiding my gaze just now?”

“Ahem! Ahem!”

The middle-aged man had discreetly avoided Kalstein’s gaze when he was selected.

“I didn’t know how to face you after taking your help, so I had to avoid it.”

“Let’s just move on, shall we?”

Kalstein didn’t mind it too much. He climbed onto the leaf, following the old man.

‘A technique for shrinking and expanding objects…?’

The Galactic Empire could technically do it, but doing it so effortlessly wasn’t something within their usual capabilities.

‘Well, there’s a lot to learn from this.’

YongYong’s space magic didn’t utilize ether, so there was little to learn from it, but this situation was different.

“Alright! We’re off. It’ll probably take about two months to get there. No need to rush!”

To Kalstein, it felt like the old man was subtly manipulating the ether to make the giant leaf float in the air.

Ether.

Right now, Kalstein didn’t feel any ether within his body. It was like a rock submerged in water, completely blocked and unmoving.

Maybe the disconnection from the community was related to this?

‘Anyway.’

There was no real issue with the journey itself.

Along the way, the old man provided various explanations.

“A Celestial Spirit Root is a talent given by the heavens. You won’t be able to cultivate other elemental martial arts, but there’s no problem. You only need to learn martial arts of the same attribute as your Spirit Root.”

Wouldn’t that be a bad thing?

“If you put in the effort, you’ll advance much faster than others—no, ten times faster.”

“Hahaha. The main sect will treat you with great respect. Resources for cultivation, proper teachers, and anything else you need will be provided.”

“Celestial Spirit Roots are ranked based on the purity of their attribute, but yours is…”

“No need to say more! It’s the most pure Spirit Root I’ve ever seen!”

The old man’s eyes sparkled as he eagerly spouted off his words.

Kalstein, who had felt a little disappointed by the fact that he could only learn one element, wasn’t entirely bothered by the old man’s enthusiasm.

Maybe this wasn’t so bad after all?

Kalstein hadn’t been expecting much anyway.

“You’ll be assigned to the Yanji Hall.”

“Yanji Hall?”

“It’s where they forge the magic tools used by the immortals.”

So, he’d be stuck in a production role, after all?

“It’s especially well-suited for learning Gold attribute martial arts. Our Huogong Sect is exceptional when it comes to forging magic tools.”

The old man’s voice carried a tone of pride.

Could it be that he came from Yanji Hall himself?

“You’ll have everything you need to cultivate your talent properly. Hahaha.”

“Well, I see.”

Hmm.

Well, there’s no need to complain about it.

Kalstein was being watched with a mixture of envy and admiration by the boys, girls, and even the middle-aged man as he chatted with the old man.

There was a clear distinction in how they were treated.

After the old man measured Kalstein’s talent, it seemed like he no longer paid attention to the other children.

“Haha, let me tell you about the history of the sect.”

The old man kept Kalstein by his side, never letting him out of his sight.

For Kalstein, who didn’t find any special thrill in flying through the air, it could have been rather dull.

However, he managed to pass the time by learning useful information from the old man, receiving jealous glances from the youths, and enduring the middle-aged man’s flattery and the girl’s strange gaze.

Beneath the massive leaf, an endless expanse of forest stretched out. Despite the speed at which they were traveling, it seemed like they would never reach the end.

This daily routine wasn’t too bad.

But traveling for two months with an old man he didn’t know?

And with the old man constantly throwing burning glances his way?

Ugh.

Yeah, this wasn’t it.

Ah.

At least the “logout” function, as he’d named it, allowed him to reconnect if necessary.

The only issue was that his physical body would be left unattended during the disconnection, but that was something he dealt with by giving the old man a vague explanation.

He sometimes fell into long, deep comas like Sleeping Beauty, he said.

The old man’s startled face made Kalstein feel a little guilty, but it was still better than revealing he was the Emperor of the Universe, right?

If problems arose…

His possessed body was precious, but it wasn’t irreplaceable.

Considering the state of the war beyond the Galactic Empire’s borders and the aftermath in the World, Kalstein couldn’t afford to waste any more time!

The fact that he was now in the xianxia realm was an unexpected turn of events. He couldn’t just let this drag on indefinitely.

It wasn’t that he didn’t mind the sticky old man’s company for a couple of months, but…

Well, maybe.

Kalstein quietly muttered to himself, keeping an eye on the situation.

Logout!

Flick–

As his vision faded, his physical body collapsed as if a thread had been severed.

When he opened his eyes again.

[Huh? Master?]

Upon exiting the capsule, Kalstein saw Aria staring intently at the egg.

***

“Ah... I’m back.”

Aria blinked and stared at him. Kalstein smiled widely.

“Heh.”

Was it because he had returned to his original body?

The mind that had been suppressed in the possessed body now found its proper place, and the vast power of his physical form was immediately apparent.

Crack—

He clenched his fist tightly, then opened it, causing the space around his fist to ripple slightly.

“I won’t be able to stay connected for long.”

The frustration was inevitable.

Kalstein looked at Aria, who was staring at him with wide rabbit-like eyes.

“Why the face after such a long time returning?”

Hm? What’s this?

Then, Aria’s response came through.

[The forced disconnection probably required a minimum time, didn’t it?]

“Hm? Oh. I think so. After about a week, I started feeling it… the sensations came back a little.”

[Master…]
“What is it?”

Aria, showing a hologram with data, said with a somewhat bewildered tone.

[Master, you connected to the possessed body less than a full day ago.]

“What?”

Kalstein tilted his head in surprise at the unexpected statement.

Did I miscalculate the time there? No, that can’t be right, surely?

[It seems like it's true, judging by your reaction.]

“Uh…”

Kalstein had not neglected studying the time differences between dimensions. Naturally, he had done research on the subject, and while there were slight differences, he had never encountered such a clear discrepancy before.

“So… was this a good thing or not?”

A dimensional time scale with a ten-fold difference…
Depending on how it’s used, it could yield significant advantages…

Kalstein’s curiosity and interest in the xianxia world surged within him.

At that moment.

Boom—

“Aria! What’s going on!”

A green-haired girl kicked the door open and barged in.

“Hm? Camila?”

Camila froze upon seeing Kalstein standing there, perfectly fine.

“W-what?”
“Why did you take off your gas mask? Don’t you hate breathing the same air as us—”

“Eeeeeek!”

“??”

For reasons unknown, Camila screamed and ran out of the room.

[Well, that saved us some trouble.]

“Hm? What do you mean?”

Kalstein wasn’t sure what she meant by that.

Boom—

“Your Majesty—”

Maxien, who entered the room next, froze when he saw Kalstein.

“...Are you in good health, Your Majesty?”

“Hm? Yeah, I’m fine.”

Maxien glanced at Aria and sighed.

“Well, I’m glad to hear nothing’s wrong. Please take care of Your Majesty’s health.”

Thud—
Maxien closed the door and left.

Bang!
“Chancellor!”

Thud!
“Secretary!”

Bang!
“Your Maaaaajesty!!”

Bang!
“Please, have mercy!!!”

After enduring several similar situations, Kalstein mumbled, irritated.

“Hmmm…”

[You might want to acknowledge my efforts, Master.]

“Y-yeah.”

Walking through the royal palace like it was his own house…

But the madness in the eyes of those who barged in and slammed the door wasn’t lost on Kalstein.

It was as if they would risk death to get in…

But that couldn’t be true, right?

Kalstein shook his head.

He hadn’t done anything, but already felt utterly exhausted. Moreover, the way Aria was looking at him didn’t feel right either.

He needed to change the subject!

“Ah, anyway, how’s the progress with the World?”

[Just when Master was needed.]

“Oh? Do we have a backup possessed body?”

[Thankfully, I prepared one in advance. But…]

“Oh, that’s impressive, Aria. But?”

[There’s something you should know.]

Kalstein, relieved to have shifted the conversation, listened carefully to her words.