Kiana is bound to leave this place. She wants to find her father. Her last two years are basically her going from places to places in hopes of finding her deadbeat dad.
I know, Siegfried left her to remain under Otto's surveillance. It had some effect. Otto did not care about her until the third eruption.
Either way, she would continue searching for her dad until she meets her aunt.
"You're willing to leave with me?"
I nodded.
"I don't have anywhere else to go."
"..."
I am alone in this world.
The first familiar 'person' I met and befriended was Kiana. It's not bad to help her on her quest. I am aware of the dangers around her, too.
It is logically better to stay away from the main crew.
To develop steadily and let things play out as it did originally.
To let all the deaths I know to happen.
Once I become successful in cultivation, I can step out of the solar system, break the barrier, and enter the wider honkai universe.
It is much better than dying early on.
…
'I am tired of it.'
Death.
I am very tired thinking about it.
I did not stop thinking of it once I grew mature. The thought of dying at a young age scared me.
Even if I forgot about it, that fear would return. A fear that my heart would stop beating one day.
This situation caused me to have panic attacks.
This time…
I am tired of it all.
It does not matter anymore… and I want to prove it to myself.
Living or dying…
Failing or succeeding…
Whatever happens, I shouldn't grow weak because of it.
"You really won't mind it?" She asked.
"I won't."
"Sure."
It was resolved just like that.
*****
Unlike Schicksal which is a globally-recognized organization, Anti-Entropy acted more discreetly. Their main source of funds was the ME Corporation. Stationed in the Far East, it is a company with electronics as their expertise. It is a well-deserved conglomerate as one of the ten biggest corporations in the entire world.
"Uh. Siegfried, this guy…"
Raiden Ryoma's mouth twitched as he saw the billing of a company black card. He was fully aware of Siegfried giving it to his daughter. He was speechless because he hadn't given her anything after he left.
That's right. Passport, official documents, birth certificate…
During the first three months of living alone, Kiana had to sleep on the streets. She had to find food as well. Only then did Siegfried asked him to check her condition.
Kiana's situation was not miserable. Her one year of fighting honkai beasts and zombies alike gave her an edge compared to others.
Still...
It made him extremely speechless.
He had to pull out a lot of strings to give Kiana that black card and phone number.
Siegfried asked Ryoma not to reveal his identity. Thus the latter chose to present himself as a broker of sorts—the type that does work for money. Ryoma resolved many problems Siegfried caused by not leaving her the documents.
Otherwise, how could a fourteen-year-old fly across the globe? How can she enroll in schools without official papers?
After that incident, it prompted Ryoma to actually send some people to watch over her.
Compared to how he pampered his daughter, it was the difference between heaven and hell.
In short: Siegfried, what a bastard!
"Two plane tickets?"
Ryoma saw this month's billing. Aside from the usual withdrawals from ATMs, he saw Kiana's usage over some clothing stores, restaurants, and hotels. These were her usual expenses.
What he was surprised about was the two plane tickets she asked for.
"Uh huh. Hm. Oh."
He easily fished out the information from her. His mouse cursor moved between five different screens, with four of them being job related. The final one was for his personal stuff, which included his daughter at home.
His fingers moved around the keyboard and asked some of the people following her.
"Oh, oh? Tsk, tsk, tsk."
A grin appeared on his face. Ryoma found out about how Kiana met a homeless boy who turned out to be a 'martial artist'. The training they did on the basketball court and the gym was transmitted to him.
The boy's 'powerful' martial arts was also repeatedly emphasized.
"He must be from Shenzhou? Come to think of it, there are some schools over there."
He did not think about it much. What mattered the most was this discovery.
If Siegfried knew Kiana grew close to a boy…
Well, it's not like he has any right to get angry.
Ryoma found that possibility funny.
He concluded it to his people with:
"If he shows bad intentions, beat him up. If not, let them be."
*****
It is the twelfth day since I came into this world. Nine days since I drew spiritual qi to my body.
When this spiritual qi session ended, my head felt refreshed. My body became very relaxed. No kinds of hot springs and massage could match it.
"I mean… who could have thought that Body Arts starts to work in Foundation Establishment?"
Definitely not me.
I learned more about the nature of cultivation. Each technique spelled more knowledge. I am completely awakened by the fact that cultivation is more complicated than I thought.
My previous plans involved the training of Qi, Body, and Mind at the same time. It will be my basis for strength.
Later on, I discovered that the Qi Refining Realm involves the opening of three dantians—Jing (Body), Qi (Spiritual Qi), and Shen (Mind). Every single qi cultivation technique opened up these three dantians, and as such, there isn't any need for Body Arts and Mental Sutras during this stage. Qi Cultivation alone upgrades those three aspects at once.
Only after Qi Refining would these Body Arts and Mental Sutras matter. The development of a cultivator diverges at that stage. Some would have a stronger body; some with stronger qi; some with a stronger mind.
No matter what path they chose, they can break through the Purple Mansion Realm.
Then again, I can still use the Body Art and Mental Sutra to make my body and mind stronger at the same level (Qi Refining). It was the reason why I still chose to create these techniques. When I learned them, though, I became aware of the problems I listed above.
My schedule became like this:
One session of Body Art in the morning.
Two sessions of Qi cultivation.
An hour of [Toushen Manual].
Then comes Kiana's training. Since I am teaching her the [Cloud Seeking Steps], I am learning it myself. In my spare time, I solve the puzzles on the [Xinhai Sutra]. Though, it's more of knowing the answer. I place the puzzle in my mind and do mental gymnastics to solve them. My mind gets tired after that, which indicates improvements.
Once evening comes, I will spam the [Toushen Manual] for two hours, run the [Xiutian Jue] (qi cultivation) for three to four hours, and then sleep.
Overall, I spent eleven to twelve hours a day on my cultivation routine. Six hours are spent on our training and leisure time. The remaining six hours went to sleep.
Well…
"Can I cultivate while sleeping?"
I decided to add another dilemma in my list of long problems.