Re-birth: The Beginning after the End

After shutting her door, Li Hua activated the barriers around her room, adding a few of her own just in case, and crawled into bed. She entered her inner space where Little Firefly greeted her eagerly.

"Master! What are your plans tonight?"

"Studying." Li Hua said as she petted Little Firefly, his golden feathers soft beneath her fingers.

In the span of a heartbeat, they both stood in front of the Library, its doors wide open and welcoming. After collecting the manuals that caught her interest and creating a neat pile beside her chosen seat, Li Hua settled into a comfortable chair. The familiar scent of ancient texts surrounded her, while stored knowledge pulsed gently in the air. Jade slips and scrolls emanated a soft glow that created the perfect atmosphere for quiet study.

Little Firefly perched contentedly on the armrest as Li Hua began to read. "Eight days should be sufficient for this study session," she murmured, setting her intention to match the flow of time with her needs.

The first three days in her space, she immersed herself in basic pill refinement techniques that would form her foundation, then moved to more advanced theories about spiritual herb combinations. Though she wasn't ready to experiment with the Spirit Condensing Cauldron yet, understanding these fundamental principles would be crucial for her future attempts.

As she read, Little Firefly continued through his own cultivation beside her, his golden form pulsing with growing power as days passed in their private space. Li Hua established a rhythm—six hours of intense study followed by two hours of meditation to consolidate knowledge. The peaceful atmosphere of shared practice and study made the passage of time feel natural and productive.

When Li Hua had questions, she noted them in a journal, creating a comprehensive record of her progress across the equivalent of a week's study.

After four days dedicated to medical knowledge, Li Hua set aside those texts and reached for the Beast Tamer manuals for her remaining time.

The advanced beast taming theories opened her eyes to concepts far beyond what the sect's basic texts covered. These ancient manuscripts detailed the subtle interplay between a tamer's essence and a beast's spiritual core, explaining how the strongest bonds were formed not through dominance, but through a deep resonance of compatible energies.

The spiritual resonance techniques were particularly fascinating. Unlike the simple communication methods taught to regular disciples, these described ways to harmonize with multiple beast types simultaneously. One scroll explained how different elemental affinities could be woven together, like strands in a tapestry, to create connections that transcended normal limitations.

But it was the texts on beast attributes that truly captured her final two days of study. They contained detailed analyses of how various spirit beasts developed their unique characteristics, and how these traits could evolve under the right circumstances. The knowledge seemed to complement what Elder Sun had noticed during her test—her unprecedented ability to harmonize with any beast type.

By the eighth day within her space, Li Hua found herself drawing connections between these advanced theories and her own unusual affinity.

"Master, our time is complete. It's approaching dawn in the outside world." Little Firefly's gentle voice broke through her focused reading. Continue reading at My Virtual Library Empire

Li Hua stretched, her arms reaching overhead as her back arched. With a final satisfied look at the knowledge she'd accumulated over what felt like eight full days, she prepared to return to her physical form. The night—a mere eight hours in the outside world—had yielded the equivalent of more than a week of intense study. Both she and Little Firefly had made remarkable progress in their respective paths.

When she returned to her physical form, Li Hua rose from her bed and moved to her washing basin in the bathroom. The cool water against her face made her feel much more refreshed. She combed her fingers through her hair, arranging it with swift movements before reaching for a cup and filling it with spirit water.

The first sip sent a rush of vitality through her meridians—eight days of mental exertion in her inner space had left her body craving nourishment, despite only a night having passed outside. She drained the cup in several deep gulps, feeling the water's essence immediately restore her depleted energy. With her spirit refreshed and her appearance impeccable in clean morning robes, Li Hua stepped into the dawn-touched courtyard, ready to face the day's challenges.

Her feet carried her toward the dining hall, intent on grabbing a piece of fruit for breakfast. The early morning quiet was broken only by the occasional sound of other early-rising disciples and their spirit beasts heading to their own morning routines. As she rounded a corner near the dining hall's entrance, she ran into Li Wei.

"Sister. How did you sleep?" he asked, a knowing smile playing at his lips. The slight dark circles under his eyes suggested he'd spent the night studying the manuals she'd given him.

"Ok," she replied simply, matching his smile. Some things didn't need to be said between siblings who understood each other so well.

They each grabbed a spirit fruit from a nearby serving table—Li Hua selecting a ruby-red fire peach while Li Wei chose a more tart frost plum—before continuing on their way.

As they approached the balcony, they noticed the space was more crowded than previous days. Other disciples had gathered in greater numbers, clearly aware that today's tests would be particularly revealing. Senior Ming and Senior Chen spotted them from their usual observation spot, waving them over. Senior Chen's serpent shifted slightly to make room as the siblings took their seats, nodding thanks to their seniors.

"There are more observers today," Li Wei noted quietly to Senior Ming.

A slight smile tugged at her lips. "Ah, you noticed. There's quite a large betting pool going around." At the siblings' surprised looks, she explained further. "It's a tradition among disciples. After the Heart-Demon Tests, people start placing bets on who'll make it through the final selection. Today's Character and Morality Tests usually give the best indication of who'll pass."

Senior Chen's serpent familiar flicked its tongue in amusement as its master added, "The prize pool this year is particularly substantial. Some disciples even claim they can predict not just who'll pass, but who'll be ranked highest among the new disciples."

Li Wei and Li Hua exchanged glances, both thinking how fortunate they were to have bypassed this intense scrutiny. Below, the first group of candidates was being led into the testing area.

Below, the testing area had been transformed overnight. Instead of the harsh formation arrays used in previous tests, the ground now bore intricate patterns that seemed to shift and flow like liquid silver. Elder Sun stood at the center, accompanied by two other elders the siblings hadn't seen before.

As Elder Sun began explaining the test instructions to the candidates, Senior Ming tapped Senior Chen's shoulder. "Look," she whispered, her head nodding toward three cultivators standing at the edge of the observation area.

Li Hua followed their gaze but couldn't immediately tell what had caught their attention. "It's Sun Wei, Liu Fei, and Zhao Jun," Senior Ming explained quietly—three names Li Hua recognized from the top rankings she'd studied yesterday.

"The top five are rarely seen around the sect," Senior Chen added in a hushed tone. "It's truly unusual to see them here."

"Why?" Li Hua asked, her curiosity piqued.

"One, they're incredibly powerful cultivators," Senior Chen explained, his serpent familiar coiling with respect. "And two, they're constantly taking on special requests from the sect. Their skills are too valuable to waste on ordinary tasks."