Legend of Icaros

It turns out, this world was far more complex than he'd initially imagined – it was a realm entirely on its own, nothing like the Earth he'd called home for ten thousand years. Every detail he'd absorbed from the library's books painted a picture of a place with rules, powers, and structures that defied everything he'd known before,well,not entirely everything. Icaros took a deep breath, letting the cool evening air fill his lungs as he stood just outside the library doors. He'd spent hours inside, and the sun was now beginning to dip toward the horizon, casting long shadows across the sect's paths. He acknowledged the unshakeable fact: he was in a different world, and there was no going back – at least not for now. He hadn't even begun to figure out how he'd been pulled from the sun's flames and deposited here, and dwelling on it only left him with more questions than answers. What Icaros maybe didn't realize was that maybe deep down inside, there was a desire to live. "I have to navigate through this world for the time being," he thought, closing his eyes for a moment as the knowledge he'd read flashed through his mind like a stream of light. The social status and hierarchy here were completely unlike Earth's. In his old world, power had been spread across nations, governments, and institutions – but here, in the cultivation world at least, only strength and personal power mattered above all else,although power was divided among cultivation sects and clans,it was still individuals that made the sects and clans as it is . He'd also discovered the world was broadly divided into two groups: mortals and cultivators. Mortals were much like the humans Icaros had protected on Earth – they built cities, formed governments, and lived lives bound by time and physical limits. Their social structures were more organized and civil compared to the cutthroat cultivation world, with laws and systems designed to keep order. But when cultivators interfered in mortal affairs, chaos often followed. Wars would break out over resources, territory, or disputes between powerful sects, and the damage could ripple across entire regions,ending a vast amount of mortal lives. It had become so severe that the four great superpowers eventually signed an agreement: no cultivator was to interfere excessively with mortal life. The pact was rooted in practicality as much as compassion – mortals were the primary source of new cultivators, and while cultivators lived far longer than ordinary people,they rarely had children, and their mortality rate from battles and cultivation accidents was high. In the cultivation world, while there was a semblance of structure – sects, clans, and ranks – in reality, strength was the only true measure of worth. An individual cultivator could wield power enough to rival entire nations, and that level of might shaped every aspect of life. At the very top of the cultivation hierarchy stood four supreme individuals, each the leader of one of the world's greatest powers. The Li Sect was one of them, founded by the wielder of the Nega Bands – one of four legendary weapons that granted their users unmatched power, passed down through generations. Next was the Battle Force Sect, whose supreme weapon was the magical hammer Mjolnir; their leader was always called Thor, a title carried through every era. Then there was the Heavenly Sword Sect, which held the Heavenly Sword – a weapon passed to the sect's best disciple each generation. The last of the four was the Nine Transformation Sect, known to many as a demonic and evil power, whose founder and leaders wielded the Nine Transformation Demonic Book. According to the texts, these four mystical weapons and treasures were discovered long ago by four friends who were cultivators in the early days of the cultivation world. The story told of how they'd set off on an adventure to explore uncharted lands, only to stumble into a danger zone formed by the force of nature – a place split into four separate parts by the sheer might of the weapons hidden within. Each of the four was trapped in a different section, and for years, the world believed them dead. But one day, they emerged alive, wielding the mythical treasures, and the dangerous zone vanished behind them. What should have been a triumphant return quickly turned sour – no one knew what had transpired inside the zone, but the friends had changed dramatically. Not just their ideologies, but their very personalities had been reshaped – it was this transformation that gave birth to their conflicting ideals. Whether it was the influence of the weapons or the trials they'd faced, their differences ran so deep that they eventually clashed in a battle that shook the continent and caused catastrophic natural disasters. In the end, no one won – instead, each retreated to form their own power, and no other cultivator could stand against them. Over time, their organizations grew into the four great superpowers known today. Though their core beliefs about cultivation varied widely, Icaros learned that the lowest stage of cultivation – body refinement – followed the same basic pattern across all sects, even if details differed. Body refinement was divided into three parts: blood refinement, bone refinement, and flesh refinement. Completing all three stages didn't make one a true cultivator, but it prepared the body to enter the Spirit Realm – the first tier of genuine cultivation, where the real benefits and power began to manifest. This was where the four sects' paths diverged sharply, though Icaros couldn't learn much about the Spirit Realm from the low-level library he'd used – its contents were limited to what outer and unofficial disciples needed to know. From what he'd gathered, the Li Sect focused on harnessing spirit qi, making it the most orthodox path. The Battle Force Sect prioritized physical training, weapon mastery, and battle prowess, though their spirit qi cultivation was weaker by comparison. The Heavenly Sword Sect was made up of sword fanatics who pursued the ultimate potential of blade arts, developing magical and terrifying sword skills. The Nine Transformation Demonic Sect cultivated demonic qi, using it to transform their bodies for battle and other magical arts,which some can be considered forbidden. While Icaros didn't yet fully understand what spirit qi or demonic qi were, he grasped that they were forms of energy fundamental to this world – a place the texts called the Jade Continent, likely named for its abundant deposits of jade, which were used in everything from cultivation tools to building materials. With all this knowledge settling in his mind, every small detail he'd wondered about since waking up in the forest suddenly made sense. He no longer felt like a lost novice stumbling through unfamiliar territory. A genuine smile bloomed on his face as he straightened his grey robe and stepped toward the library's entrance, where the one-armed man still sat at his table. "Junior has finished using the library," Icaros said respectfully, bowing his head slightly. "Thank you, senior." The man nodded with a casual, unconcerned expression, but deep in his heart, he was surprised. "He's catching up fast – he already knows the proper etiquette," he thought, a flicker of shock crossing his mind before he masked it. It had been less than three hours since Icaros had entered the library. "Maybe he just focused on small but important things like etiquette," he mused, a smile returning to his face. If he'd known that Icaros had absorbed every single book on the first floor – memorizing even the most obscure details – his jaw would have dropped to the ground in disbelief. As Icaros walked away from the library and into the growing evening crowd, he continued to organize his thoughts. "So the grey robes are for outer and unofficial disciples like me," he reminded himself. "Green is for inner disciples, blue for core disciples, and white for elders. That man was wearing white – so he's an elder of the sect. I already have a run-in with an elder on my very first day here." He let out a quiet chuckle at the thought, then grew serious again. "According to proper etiquette, I have to address elders – and even outer disciples with higher standing – as 'senior,' no matter their age. Only those at the same cultivation level can be called 'fellow cultivator.'" "I shouldn't antagonize that elder too early," he decided as his silhouette melted into the crowd of grey-robed disciples. "I don't even know where my full power ranks in this world yet. More importantly,I need to lay low and thread carefully. I don't want to become one of the countless cultivators who die every year from battles, accidents, or power struggles." With that goal firmly in mind, he merged with the crowd, heading toward his quarters to rest before the mission that would determine his place in the Li Sect.