Strongest Businessman of the Cultivation World

Ikasa put the outer panel of the Printer in place and removed the USB drive from his chest. He wiped his forehead habitually after finishing the assembly.

All he had to do now was check the new changes and improvements.

He had just inserted the USB device of the Printer in his chest when he heard an overeager voice.

"Do you see the changes?"

The Absolute of Water asked Ikasa with a voice overflowing with excitement. She looked enthused to hear him praise her finest product.

Ikasa was left speechless by her change in attitude. She never came off as cool and distant during their meeting but she had maintained her decorum. Now, she was behaving like an eager girl, expecting praise from an adult.

Still, he did not answer her as he had not even read the Welcome Message yet.

[Welcome back, User.]

[New features have been detected. Would you like to check them?]

Ikasa chose 'Yes'. Instantly, a new value added below the number of  CPs and BPs was highlighted in the right corner.

PP: 50

"PP?"

Ikasa incredulously whispered the new term added. A screen flashed before his eyes that explained the Profession Points.

[Profession Points: The points collected when Blacksmiths, Pill Refiners, Talisman Makers, Array Masters and other Cultivation related professions use Professional Technique manuals printed by the Printer.]

"When a Cultivation-related professional uses the manual to learn the technique or formula related to their profession."

At the same time, the Absolute of Water also spoke, hearing Ikasa whisper the new term.

'This means my target market has just expanded!'

Ikasa cheered when he thought about the implications.

World of Cultivation is ruled by the strong. But no one could deny the role the side professions played in their advancement.

Medicine Masters prescribe pills to treat their patients but they are made by Alchemists. Some pills can also give cultivators a temporary or permanent boost in their power.

Most importantly, when a Cultivator is stuck at a bottleneck, a pill made by the Alchemists can help him overcome his limits!

Similarly, the Blacksmiths played a huge role in increasing a person's combat prowess. If two Cultivators in the same realm fight, the one with better armament is almost always the victor!

Hence, no strong person in the Cultivation World would deny a Master Blacksmith's favor.

The Spiritual Talisman makers are rare but respected everywhere. Their ability to communicate with the Heavenly Laws and put them on paper made them desirable to every individual.

Having just one Spiritual Talisman meant having an extra trump card in your possession. How can any sane person ignore such power?

While the other three professions were focused on individual growth, the Array Masters could help any power grow collectively.

Just a simple Energy Gathering Array could increase the fortunes of any power. A defensive array laid around the important locations of a Clan or Sect or a Family can provide them security in case of hostile attacks.

With these many benefits, which power would deny friendship with such an Array Master?

As a Leader of an emerging power, GHBG would also need the services of all of these Professionals. He was worried about how to approach and strike up a friendship with the top masters in their fields. Now his worry had disappeared.

'With this new addition, I can lure the masters of various professions easily!'

Ikasa smiled with ecstasy as he looked at the newly added option under the Targeted Printing. It read 'Profession Manuals'.

"Do not underestimate the power of Professions." The Absolute of Water warned as if seeing through Ikasa's thoughts.  "After all, the Furnace Fire Empire is managed by the Guild of Pill and Weapon refiners!"

Ikasa whipped his neck and looked at her with shock.

Everyone knew that the Empires were Monarchies ruled by Royal Families of Yan, Mu and Shui. However, the Absolute of Water claimed that the decisions of the Royal Family of Yan were influenced by the Guild of Refiners.

'Even in this World of Cultivation, strength is not everything. Money can still manipulate the government.'

Realizing this fact, his lips curled upwards. He would have liked to know more, but as the Absolute had said, they were on a tight schedule. He did not want to ask her questions whose answers he could get easily in the outside world.

Ikasa checked the other features that had become available to him. Under the Print button, a new feature had appeared.

"Levels?"

Ikasa asked the Absolute with confusion. The interface did not give much information. He could only see the Levels 1 to 9 pop up when he clicked on Print.

"It seems 'he' decided to organize and simplify a little."

The Absolute muttered to herself. Looking at Ikasa she elaborated on the feature.

"'He' liked to call the Cultivation Stages as levels. Level 1 was Path Forging Realm, Level 2 Sense Realm and so forth. It should be the same there."

Ikasa decided to try. He chose Level 1 and clicked on the Random Print option. For the first time since he acquired the Printer, nothing happened. He clicked again and still no response.

'Did I assemble it wrong? Was there a mistake in the process?'

He became anxious by the abnormality of the Printer. This was his cheat and he had broken it!

The Absolute of Water saw Ikasa turn pale and his shoulders droop. She realized the reason behind his panic when she saw him click in the air without any results from the Printer.

A chortle escaped her mouth. Ikasa immediately turned to look at the laughing Absolute, his eyes filled with frustration.

"The Printer will not work in this place or even in the Planar Rift. Because it cannot communicate with my Cloud."

"Oh!"

Ikasa breathed a sigh of relief. He took a few breaths and disconnected from the Printer.

The Young man kept the Printer and the USB drive back in his storage space while carefully studying the room that looked like someone's lab.

Curiously, there was a large window but he could not see anything outside.

"Just what is this place?"

Inadvertently, Ikasa muttered. The Absolute of Water also came and stood beside him near the window. She stared into the gray fog outside.

"This is a ruined vestige of our plane. Had we not created a sanctuary, the entire world would have ended up like this."

She said, smiling with sadness. Ikasa's ears perked upon hearing the word 'sanctuary'. He remembered the words of the Old Man he had heard in the ruins near Sal City.

[Sanctuary… breached… arriving soon. Energy gathering acceleration is needed. ETA - 80 Years.]

'Are they speaking of the same Sanctuary?'

Ikasa probed the Absolute further.

"Sanctuary?"

"Yes. Sanctuary. The entire World of Cultivation is protected by the powers of us five Absolutes."

Ikasa believed her. The Absolutes were not humans. They were manifestations of their respective elements. So, this should be within their abilities.

Still, this made Ikasa realize just how powerful an Absolute was.

He looked outside the window. He wondered how a plane could be broken into pieces in the first place.

"How did this happen? And is the Planar Rift also a part of the broken vestige of our Plane?"

Ikasa asked, wondering whether the word 'breached' had something to do with the Planar Rift.

The Absolute of Water smiled at Ikasa, like a protective mother smiling at her child. She shook her head and stared into the distance.

"Planar Rifts are merely training grounds. To prepare cultivators for the forces that did this."

Ikasa gulped loudly, hearing the implications behind her words. A force powerful enough to break planes was targeting the Cultivation World!

For some reason, Ikasa thought of the visuals of war shown by the Metal Brain. He had a deep suspicion that the cyborgs in the Visuals were the enemies that Absolute was talking about.

Ikasa tried to confirm his guess.

"Does the enemy use Steel Guardian Beasts?"

The Absolute of Water extended her hand and patted his shoulder.

"You should focus on spreading your manuals to more people and making the World of Cultivation stronger. Maybe when you become an Immortal, you can start worrying about the World with us."

Ikasa saw her smile to assuage him but at the same time her eyes held melancholy and fear for the enemy. She smiled one last time and snapped her fingers.

The room rapidly crumbled around him and Ikasa was sucked into a blue portal. He was deposited in a heap near the cliff from where he entered the vestige.

In the light of new information he received, Ikasa had to question whatever he encountered in the ruins of the Sal City and the visuals of War.

'Was the Old Man in the Ruins near Sal City warning me or merely notifying me?'

'What did the old man mean by accelerating the Energy Gathering process?'

'And most importantly, am I an enemy of the Cultivation World or an ally?'

In the end, Ikasa ended up with more questions than answers.