Cultivation starts with picking up attributes-Chapter 53: Ch-: Map of ???

The moon climbed higher, casting a silver path across the Azure Sea. Onboard the Azure Wind, all seemed tranquil—sails taut, hull slicing clean through the glassy waters.

But to a cultivator’s senses, tranquility could often be deceit.

Tian Shen leaned against the railing, gaze fixed on the distant outline of the Thunderhead Isles.

His body, though worn from the journey, remained tense. The Qi fluctuations he’d sensed earlier still lingered beneath the surface—like sharks circling beneath a fishing boat.

"Kyuu~"

’I sense Qi fluctuations.’

Little Mei chirped softly from her perch on a crate nearby, tail flicking as her eyes glinted with restless energy.

"I feel it too," Tian Shen murmured.

"Something’s coming. We’re being tracked."

Feng Yin emerged from below deck, her dark hair damp from sweat, formation disc humming faintly in her hand.

"The barrier’s holding, but it’s reacting more than it should. Either the ocean’s playing tricks, or someone’s pressing close to the hull."

Tian Shen straightened, eyes narrowing.

"Pirates?"

"Or worse," Feng Yin muttered.

"Higher Realm Cultivators that subtlety doesn’t come from common raiding groups."

From the helm, Captain Luo turned at the sound of raised voices.

"Something wrong?"

He called.

"We have company," Tian Shen replied.

"Probably cloaked cultivators. Probably Core Formation Realm ones."

Captain Luo paled.

"They wouldn’t dare attack open sea trade. Not near the Thunderhead Isles..."

"That’s where you’re wrong."

A new voice joined them—calm, crisp, and feminine.

The silver-haired envoy, her white robes immaculate despite the journey, stepped onto the deck. Her companions—the talisman-weaving woman and the jade-dagger youth—followed silently.

"They’ve been tailing us since dusk," she continued.

"I’ve let them come close enough. It’s time to flush them out."

Feng Yin turned, surprised.

"You knew?"

"Of course."

The envoy raised a slender hand, brushing her fingers through the air. A sudden pulse of spiritual energy rippled outward—gentle as mist, but imbued with profound intent.

In an instant, the sea erupted.

From beneath the ship’s shadow, six figures burst forth, leaping from the water like ink-stained wraiths.

Each wore deep-blue cloaks, their auras hidden beneath concealing talismans—until now.

"Assassins!"

Captain Luo shouted, reaching for his short sword.

Tian Shen drew his blade, body instinctively shifting into a defensive stance. But as the figures surged toward the deck—

—they stopped mid-air, frozen in place.

The silver-haired envoy had raised her palm again. A shimmering lattice of Qi snapped into existence around the ship, forming a hexagonal barrier.

The cloaked cultivators slammed against it like flies against glass, their concealment shattered.

"6-Star Concealment Seals," the envoy noted coldly.

"Custom work. Not cheap."

The jade-dagger youth stepped forward.

"Permission to engage?"

The envoy nodded.

"You may indulge."

In a flash, the youth disappeared—his form blurring with afterimages. One of the enemy cultivators barely had time to scream before a jade blade parted the air and struck true.

The sound of bone shattering echoed over the sea.

"Stay back," the envoy ordered Tian Shen’s group without looking.

"Foundation Realm cultivators should not engage Core Formation assassins."

Tian Shen gritted his teeth but obeyed, pulling Feng Yin and Little Mei towards him, retreating back.

"She’s not wrong. We’d only get in the way."

"I hate being powerless," Feng Yin muttered, clutching a talisman so tightly it crumpled.

"We’re not powerless," Tian Shen said, eyes fixed on the battle. "We’re learning."

The talisman-weaving woman floated above deck now, releasing scroll after scroll into the air.

Each talisman unfolded like a petal, forming walls of fire, wind, and lightning that boxed the assassins in with surgical precision.

One attempted to break free, soaring above the mast—only for a bolt of blue fire to spear through him, reducing him to ash before he hit the sea.

"That one..." Tian Shen whispered, watching the silver-haired envoy.

"She didn’t even move."

She hadn’t. Her hands remained folded behind her back. Her aura alone was suppressing the battlefield.

A survivor dropped to one knee, coughing blood.

"We... didn’t know you were here. We thought it was just merchants."

"And what did you hope to steal?"

The envoy asked quietly.

"The herbs? The cargo? Or the relics your sect sent you to intercept?"

The assassin looked up, eyes full of hate—and swallowed something. His body convulsed.

"No!"

The talisman woman shouted, flying forward.

But it was too late. The assassin’s body exploded in a burst of black smoke, tearing a hole in the deck before the silver-haired envoy’s barrier sealed it.

Captain Luo stumbled back, covering his face.

"Suicide pills. Fanatics."

The envoy closed her eyes.

"The Sea Serpent Sect. I recognize their spiritual marks. They’ve aligned with dark factions from the Eastern Regions."

"The Sea Serpent Sect?"

Tian Shen repeated, stunned.

"Aren’t they forbidden from transpassing the Central?"

The talisman women asked the envoy.

"They’ve grown bold," the jade-dagger youth said. "And stupid."

The silver-haired woman turned to Tian Shen then, for the first time since the battle began.

"You kept calm under pressure. That’s rare at your level."

"I froze," Tian Shen admitted.

"You didn’t interfere where you’d die, and instead held the line. That is the first step."

Tian Shen blinked.

"Thank you... Senior."

The envoy studied him a moment longer, then turned away.

"Reinforce the barrier. The noise will draw more. We’ll handle the threats, but you three—remain alert. You may be tested again."

As the night deepened, the ship continued its journey—but now it sailed through dangerous waters under the weight of secrecy and protection.

Later That Night

Below deck, Tian Shen sat cross-legged beside Little Mei, who was curled into a ball of warmth and tail. Feng Yin was nearby, gently repairing a talisman, her brow furrowed.

"Did we do enough?"

Feng Yin asked quietly.

"We lived," Tian Shen said.

"And next time, we’ll do more."

"But they were so far beyond us..."

"That’s how it always starts," he replied.

"Until one day, someone like us stands between realms and doesn’t flinch."

Feng Yin looked up, a small smile touching her lips.

"Sounds like you’re aiming high."

"I have to," Tian Shen said softly but he thought otherwise.

’Otherwise, what’s the point of picking up all these attributes?’

Little Mei murmured, "Kyuu~" and flicked her tail toward his chest.

Tian Shen looked down and realized—his system had absorbed something during the encounter. A flicker of light appeared in his palm.

『Host gains mid-grade fractured Core ×2.』

『Host gains a low-grade fractured Core ×3.』

『Host gains a map of ???.』

His smile returned.

"I guess we didn’t leave empty-handed after all."

...

The sea had turned golden with morning light, shimmering like spilled spirit coins across the horizon.

Gulls circled lazily above as the distant outline of the Thunderhead Isles emerged.

Towering cliffs shrouded in mist, crowned by jagged black trees and scattered spires of stone like the fingers of some ancient titan reaching skyward.

Tian Shen sat cross-legged near the ship’s bow, his back resting against a weather-worn barrel.

The rhythmic creak of the hull and the snap of the sails offered a lulling tempo, but his mind was far from restful.

He stared at the glowing parchment in his lap, the so-called "map" he’d obtained.

It wasn’t a map in the traditional sense—no coastlines, no names, no direction markers. Just flowing, cryptic lines of ancient script pulsing with low Qi resonance, as though alive.

Feng Yin crouched beside him, chewing on a sweet dried plum.

"You’ve been staring at that for hours. It still hasn’t changed?"

Tian Shen sighed, flipping the parchment over again.

"It’s not even made of paper. It’s... something else. Beast-hide? Spirit bark? And this writing—it’s not any script I know."

"Maybe it’s a code. Or a layered formation that only reveals itself under specific Qi signatures," Feng Yin mused, leaning closer.

He offered it to her.

"Try. Your affinity with formations is better than mine."

Feng Yin touched the map, her Qi brushing lightly across its surface. The runes flickered but did not react.

"Nothing," she said.

"It’s like the thing’s asleep."

"Kyuu~?"

’Sleepy?’

Chirped Little Mei, hopping up beside Tian Shen and pressing her paw to the glowing skin. For a moment, the symbols shimmered—one line pulsed red.

Tian Shen leaned in, astonished.

"Did that just..."

"Look!"

Feng Yin exclaimed, pointing.

"That curve. It looks like a coastline."

Now visible was a faint contour—an outline resembling the shape of a crescent moon, with three dots inside like islands.

Tian Shen’s brow furrowed.

"This... this isn’t anywhere on our charts."

"No. It’s older," Feng Yin whispered.

"These are pre-great war markings. Before the current realms divided. Maybe even during the Ancient Era." freёweɓnovel.com

"That’s thousands of years ago..."

Tian Shen muttered, a shiver running through him.

"Why would an assassin from the Sea Serpent Sect have something like this?"

That’s what he told Feng Yin and also what he believes it is, as the attributes, though random, still somewhat relate to the source.

Feng Yin looked up at him, expression serious now.

"You don’t accidentally carry a relic like this. Someone gave it to them. Someone who wanted it smuggled. Maybe even delivered."

Tian Shen clenched the map, careful not to tear it.

"But the self-detonation... they were trying to destroy it. Or maybe they failed."

Little Mei licked her paw. "Kyuu~" she murmured quietly, tail twitching.

Then, without warning, the fox spirit’s eyes widened. Her fur flared slightly as if reacting to invisible wind.

"She senses something," Tian Shen said, eyes narrowing.

Mei’s paw touched the map again. This time, a second section lit up—this one glowing with faint blue veins, like rivers coursing through stone.

Feng Yin whispered, "It’s unlocking. Slowly. Maybe as we get closer to where it’s supposed to lead."

"But we’re heading to Dragonstone Port, not wherever this map points," Tian Shen said. "No wait—Maybe the port is the first step."

A voice called out from above.

"Land ho! Thunderhead Isles ahead!"

Tian Shen stood, folding the map into his storage ring.

"Whatever this is, it’s tied to the Sea Serpent Sect... and maybe the Eastern Regions. I don’t know why it chose me—but I’m going to figure it out."

Feng Yin smirked and nudged his shoulder.

"You always did have a knack for picking up weird things."

He chuckled.

"Yeah. And this time, it might be more than just that. This might be destiny."

As the Azure Wind veered toward the dock carved into the cliffs of Thunderhead Isle, Tian Shen felt it again—that stirring in the air. Like something old was watching. Waiting.

And the map pulsed faintly from within his robe.