"Where am I?" At this moment, Javon was looking around the cave he had gotten himself into, a frown on his face.
He had just woken up. Feeling confused, he had no choice but to look for an exit from this place, but unfortunately, he hadn't found one after hours of searching.
It wasn't as though there was no other way to leave this doomed place — but he couldn't do so.
He could only grunt in dissatisfaction as he sat on the dirt, looking at the light source above him.
He couldn't tell the distance between himself and that light source, but all he knew was that he couldn't reach it. No matter what he did, he couldn't.
"I can't just sit here and wait for death, right?"
He turned to look around, trying to find at least a clue to leave this place, when suddenly his gaze focused on a skeleton in a dark corner of the cave. His eyes lit up instantly as he trembled.
He took a step toward the skeleton, deep in thought. With another glance, he noticed an inconspicuous ring on the skeleton's finger. His hand moved, coming in contact with the ring — when the skeleton suddenly released a golden glow.
A voice reverberated in his head.
"Young one, I must say your meeting here is fate. Today, in this cave you've found yourself in — this is my tomb and also the place of the heritage I left behind.
I don't want to waste time with nonsense. You see that ring you just touched? Put a drop of your blood on it and claim my inheritance.
Do not disappoint me, I — the Raging Flame Emperor."
"This…"
For a moment, Javon was stunned. "What the hell was that?"
After replaying everything that had just happened in his head, his confusion turned into excitement — before gloom followed. I just peed this isn't some kind of prank, he thought to himself as he bit his pinky finger, forcing out a drop of blood onto the ring.
The instant the drop of blood touched the ring, his expression changed drastically. "This… this feeling… why do I feel as though something just attached itself to my mind, but I don't know what it is?"
With a thought, he put the ring on his finger, throwing every other thought to the back of his mind as he focused all his attention on it. He was trying to figure out how to use it — since that voice said his inheritance was in this ring, it had to be.
"Goddammit, I knew it. This was all a prank! How could I have believed a random voice that burst out of nowhere? Dammit… dammit!" He grunted as he slammed his fists into the ground multiple times before finally calming down.
After a while, he looked again at the ring on his finger and rubbed it gently. "Okay, buddy, I know you've got that inheritance the old fart was talking about. How about you reveal it to the true successor, huh?"
Swish…
"Where am I? Wait… is this a pocket space? Like the one in my previous life?" His eyes widened. "These are all inside the spatial ring! These must be rare treasures."
He clenched his fists. "No — I must look for a cultivation method. That's my top priority if I want to reign supreme among the chosen sent into this world."
With that in mind, he looked around and noticed a pile of books neatly arranged — clean, as though someone had been dusting them all this time. He began searching for the perfect cultivation method until he came across one titled 'The Raging Flame Dragon Cultivation Method.'
"So tyrannical," he muttered to himself as he browsed through the scroll. The Raging Flame Dragon Cultivation Method granted its user the ability to burn everything in sight — as long as it wasn't opposed by underworld-cold energy. Cultivating this method gave one a clear advantage over anyone at the same cultivation level.
Keeping this in mind, he continued searching for a better method. But soon, he noticed that the Raging Flame Dragon Cultivation Method looked quite special — it was kept in a very distinct place compared to the other methods.
With that thought in mind, he decided to cultivate this method. But suddenly, his gaze landed on a serene scroll tucked away in a corner — one easily overlooked. It was the only scroll among the others he hadn't browsed through yet.
He frowned, hesitating for a moment before taking the scroll. "This is also a cultivation method… The King Summoner Cultivation Method."
"Also a domineering name," he muttered. "Then why was it tossed in a corner like trash?" Shaking his head, he continued reading through it.
The King Summoner Cultivation Method, when cultivated, would grant the user the power to summon beast souls for battle. The greater the number of beast souls one could store, the greater their army.
"Wow… this cultivation method is literally crazy!" he thought as excitement surged through him. He imagined facing someone of the same cultivation level — then suddenly summoning a beast soul, or maybe ten… no, a hundred beast souls. His opponent would be crushed in mere seconds. The thought thrilled him — until the next line hit him like a bucket of cold water.
"An old friend of mine passed this cultivation method to me and once told me to find a successor to inherit it. Even though he was strong and had a beast army of ten that could overpower opponents of the same cultivation level, that was his limit. His soul could not contain more beast souls."
"This…" Javon's face darkened. "What the heck?"
After taking a deep breath, he still stuck to his decision. "Even ten beasts are more than enough for now," he muttered. "Having an army of ten as one man is still exciting."
With a single thought, his mind left the pocket space. His vision blurred as dizziness washed over him. When he finally recovered, he hurriedly cleared the area to prepare for cultivation.
"I think I'm ready," he whispered.
With just a thought, the scroll appeared in his hands. He read through it one more time, then took a deep, steady breath. Closing his eyes, Javon began cultivating the King Summoner Cultivation Method.