Eternal Cultivation of Alchemy

The inks in the water moved and twisted as they settled on another dream, another scene from his past that he had forgotten.

This time, Alex was inside a small room with shelves full of books and trophies to one side, and a large window on the other.

He was sitting on top of something and could see a desk in front of him. There were pens and markers in a glass, a bunch of files to the side, and a sign that said 'headmaster' next to a lamp.

Behind the desk was a man with round glasses and a thick beard. At the very least, this man was 40 years old.

"Thank you for coming on such short notice, Mr. And Mrs. Benton," the man spoke. "I… I don't know what to say, honestly."

"You can start by saying why there is a bandage wrapped around my son's head for now," Alex heard his father speak.

His father was currently holding him.

'So young,' Alex thought when he saw his father. He looked almost as young as in the last dream.

Next to him, Alex saw his mother. She too was so young and so beautiful. Alex almost couldn't believe how thin she was as well.

Then, he saw her face with fury clear in her eyes. She was angry.

Alex didn't remember seeing her angry. Sure, she would get annoyed sometimes and become serious when it was time for him to get a scolding. But never had he seen her with such rage.

'What happened to make her feel this angry?' he wondered.

"I'm so sorry that this has happened. These kids aren't used to seeing someone younger in the same grade as them. We… we didn't think that little Alex would get bullied by the older students. Please don't worry, we have punished them and let their parents know as well," the headmaster said.

That was when Alex put together where he was. 'This is the school?' Alex thought. Because of how far away the school was, Alex's father had taken him out of it to home-school him. So, he never really remembered his time at school.

'I was also… just 5 years old, wasn't I?' he thought.

"We told you," his father's calm voice spoke. "We insisted that you don't send Alex up a grade and instead keep him with his own peers. But you didn't listen, did you?"

"And now my son is hurt because of you. He is bleeding from the forehead."

Despite looking calm, his father had rage in his voice too.

"I'm so sorry about that. That was our mistake. I will suspend the other children if that's what you want," the headmaster said.

"I don't care about what you do to the other kids. I simply want you to immediately transfer him back to first grade again, so he can study like a normal child," Alex's father said.

"That's… that's a little hard. Alex is too good for his class. He understands everything about his subject. Trust me, it will be better for him to skip class."

"He's already starting to show how good he is at second grade's subjec—"

"Stop it," Alex's father said. "If you won't transfer him to his appropriate class, then we will take Alex out of this school."

"And go where?" the headmaster asked. "This is the only school in the area. The nearest other one is 2 hours from here. You will have to waste 8 hours a day just to get your son to and from school."

"We don't have to take him to any school. We will home-school him. My wife used to work as a teacher in the city, so she knows how to do it well," Alex's father said and stood up.

When he did, he hulked over the Headmaster, giving him a small fright. "Let's go, dear," he said and walked out.

The entire time there, Alex's mother said nothing at all for she feared all the curses she would throw at the headmaster for letting a bunch of older students bully her 5-year-old son.

When they returned back to his father's old truck, his mother finally took him and caressed his head.

"Does it hurt, Al?" she asked softly.

"N-no," Alex once again heard his voice come out even though he didn't speak.

Alex chuckled a little as he heard the pain in his own voice. 'Why was I trying to hide my pain? Did I want to look strong like father?' he thought.

Suddenly, his father slightly pressed on his wound. "Ouch!" Alex cried out and tear filled his eyes.

"See? It hurts," he said with a slight chuckle.

"What are you doing?" his mom cried out, but his father ignored her and looked at him.

"Listen son, you don't have to act like it doesn't hurt. You can cry if you want. All you need to do is not let the pain take you down."

"As my father used to say, whether you are beaten or hurt, you let that pain go through you, change you, and then you stand up and keep moving forward," his father said.

"Keep… moving forward?" the little Alex asked.

"Yes," his father said.

"What are you telling to a 5-year-old kid?" his mother said.

"Uh… right. My bad," his father said and started the truck. "You want to get some snacks on the way, son?"

"Yes," the little Alex shouted in happiness and the small truck moved.

Even as it did, Alex was left behind as he saw the family of 3 move on without him. And soon… they disappeared once more like ink on water.

When the ink resettled once more, Alex found himself standing in the midst of a lot of people. He was maybe a couple of centimeters smaller than what he was at the moment.

'Oh, I grew,' he thought. When he looked around, he recognized the place.

'It's the train station,' he thought. If he was here then…

'This must have been the day I left for university,' he thought.

"You've got everything in your suitcase right?" his father asked.

"Yes, father," Alex said.

"And the location of the dorm? Can you go there by yourself?" he asked.

"I can, father," Alex said.

"Sigh, we sheltered you for far too long because of… never mind. Now that you are an adult, you should be able to handle yourself," his father said.

"For what?" Alex looked confused.

"Oh, here's the train. Quick, get it," his father said and Alex went in.

"Have a safe journey, son. Remember what I told you okay, no going to clubs and stuff," his father said.

"I know, father," Alex said.

"Good," his father said. "And remember, don't let anything in the city weigh you down. It will be new, unique, and probably a scary experience."

"No matter what happens, keep moving forward," his father said.

"Yes, father," Alex said.

"Goodbye son," his father said and the train left.

That was the last day Alex had seen his father. That was the last day he had been in this place. For that was the day he would enter the game and be teleported to the Western Continent.

As the train vanished like ink in water, a single thought swirled around Alex's mind.

Keep Moving Forward.

The ink changed to something else, and Alex found himself on top of a mountain in the middle of the night.

He knelt on the ground and had his master's dying body in his hand.

Alex's face got serious. This was a pain that he never wanted to experience again.

He had already been through this once. He didn't need to go through it twice.

The pain had changed him already, and he didn't let this pain weigh him down. He had already moved forward.

"No!" he said with a stern expression and the dream vanished.

* * * *

Alex opened his eyes on the outside and saw the crimson barrier still surrounding him.

"What? How are you not suppressed already?" the woman outside the barrier shouted at him.

"You…" Alex said with a heavy, but stern expression. He tightened the grip around the sword in his hand, and continued, "You cannot stop me."

"What?" the girl said.

"You cannot stop me," Alex said and dashed ahead to slash. he remembered the words his grandfather used to say, which then became his father's.

Now, it would be his.

"You can beat me, you can hurt me," Alex said as he swung back at the barrier with all he had. He hadn't noticed that he was holding the sword in which he couldn't pour in his Qi at all.

"All that will do is make the pain change me," he shouted and slashed back harder. The barrier shuddered and even the girl was surprised as to what was happening.

This was already a weak barrier because its important function was mental suppression, but physical suppression.

So, when the barrier shook, her heart shook along with it.

'No, he can't break it,' she thought.

"One the pain goes through," Alex shouted as he slashed. "I will stand up."

His strikes got exceedingly violent.

"And I will move forward," he said as he slashed the barrier and stopped. He looked ahead of him in awe as if noticing something for the first time.

"I... will move forward," he said absentmindedly as the pained expression in his eyes changed to one of happiness.

"Yes," he said as he prepared his sword with a white outline appearing on top of it.

"That is me," he said. "I am the one who moves forward no matter what."

The white outline on his sword started to grow and soon, it fully covered the entire sword.

Then, he struck the barrier.