I didn’t know how my soul weapon had ended up with such a name and with such an ability. I didn’t know who had created and added that piece of paper into the Heavenly Archive, who had dared to leave behind something so blasphemous in the eyes of the heavens. But someone or something had.
And if that ledger had made its way to me, then maybe I wasn’t as alone as I thought. I wasn’t the only one trying to fight against his fate.
If my soul weapon’s first ability had been the system—then whatever this second ability was, it had to be significant. Please, I thought to myself, let this be a great cultivation method. Something I can grow from.
I sat up slowly in the straw, crossing my legs with more formality than comfort, my back straightening as I centered my breathing. The air in the shack was cold, but I felt strangely still, as though everything around me had paused.
Then, with intent, I focused my thoughts inward—on the name the system had shown me once before.
Fate-Defying Ledger.
The moment I called it to mind, the space in front of me shimmered. Letters began to form from thin air, emerging in clean strokes of light as if written on an invisible scroll. The glowing text hung silently in the air before me, the same way it had when I first saw the description of my soul weapon’s first ability, the Fate-Defying System
I was speechless.
A skill that functioned as my own personal store, fueled by a currency from the lives of other beings.
Fate Points.
Earned not through study, or patience, or alignment with some mission board like these of the merit points.
But through the act of killing.
And not just any killing—no. The text was clear. Celestial beasts. Spirit beasts. Cultivators. Demonic entities. Divine figures. The stronger the enemy, the deeper their bond to the heavens, the more fate unraveled when they died—and the greater the reward.
The ledger asked for their lives. And in return, it offered power that should not be within reach of someone like me.
It sounded… wrong.
As I read the description again, I felt a tinge of dread coiling deep inside me. A hollow cold that hadn’t come from the night air. Was this skill… asking me to harvest strength not through righteousness, but by tearing it away from others?
Was I supposed to become a murderer?
No one was exempt. That was the implication. If someone bore the mark of heaven, if they walked with its favor, then they were worth Fate Points.
Enemies, sure. Beasts, maybe. But people? Even those like me?
I looked down at my hands and wondered just how many lives I would have to take to change my own.
But then I shook my head.
No. That kind of thinking—that slippery slope—wasn't where I wanted to fall.
Though the implications were clear, the Fate-Defying Ledger never forced my hand. It didn’t dictate how I earned those points. It didn’t whisper commands or push me toward some blood-soaked path. It merely offered a way forward… and left the choice to me.
I reread the glowing text in front of me, line by line. No forced pledge to darkness. Only a system that recorded victories against those tethered to the heavenly order.
I would not become one of those cultivators. The ones ill-spoken, demonic cultivators, they were called—those who gained strength by slaughtering their kin, draining life essence, harvesting souls in pursuit of power at any cost. I wouldn’t walk that path. I refused to.
In the end, like all cultivators, my journey would inevitably place me against beasts. Against corrupted things, and yes, perhaps even other cultivators… those who would see me dead simply because I dared to exist without their permission.
But that didn’t mean I had to become a monster to survive them.
No, I would not aim my blade at the innocent. I would not seek out blood to feed a system, no matter how tempting its rewards might be. This Ledger… this skill… it would not be my leash. It would be my shield.
I would not use it to become something twisted.
I would use it to become someone strong.
With that quiet promise sealed within my heart, I took a slow breath and focused.
Fate-Defying Ledger, I called inwardly.
Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.
I willed it to open, the full breadth of its functionality. I wanted to see it now, to witness the tool I had been given. And as if answering my intent, the space before me shimmered once again.
What emerged was far larger, far more intricate than before. A full interface unfolded in the air, glowing lines and drifting symbols arranging themselves into branching categories, each one marked by their own words. Cultivation methods, Marital arts techniques, Miscellaneous items, equipments.
But they were all locked.
Every category—grayed out, sealed behind faint chains that shimmered slightly.
All but one.
A single category stood open, softly glowing, awaiting my attention.
As I focused on it, a second projection rose atop the interface.
[Access Denied: The Fate-Defying Ledger cannot be fully accessed until a Cultivation Method has been chosen.
[Be warned: You may only purchase a single Cultivation Method. This decision is irreversible. It will shape the foundation of your path. Choose wisely, defier of fate.]
The words pulsed once before fading into stillness, leaving only the lone, open category glowing beneath them.
I was surprised by it, but after thinking about it, it made sense.
The Heavenly Archive was meant to provide cultivation methods—foundational techniques for walking the path. But I hadn’t received one. I had been handed something else entirely: the Fate-Defying Ledger. A store... but not a method.
And without a cultivation method, I couldn’t truly begin the path of cultivation.
In hindsight, it was obvious. No matter how strange or powerful this ledger seemed, without a proper way to refine Qi, circulate energy, and grow my core—I was still standing at the starting line. So, I did as it asked.
I willed the system open and selected the glowing category—the only one currently accessible.
Instantly, the projection shifted.
Dozens of names unfurled before me, lined up, each accompanied by a single cost. The full list didn’t even fit on the screen. In the far right corner, a small glowing line extended downward—a scroll bar. And it was long.
Very long.
The first techniques I saw were simple, almost unimpressive by name alone:
- Breath of Stone Cultivation Method – 1 Fate Point
- Still Water Cultivation Method – 5 Fate Points
- Drifting Leaf Cultivation Method – 10 Fate Points
There were many more like them—basic-sounding techniques, clearly entry-level. Their descriptions were minimal, just enough to suggest they focused on circulation stability, core strengthening, or body fortification. I could afford none of them.
Because I had zero Fate Points.
I couldn’t even purchase the weakest, least demanding technique.
It didn't really matter—I only had one chance to choose my cultivation method, and I wasn’t about to squander it on low-ranked methods.
I could settle for mediocrity, grinding for just enough Fate Points to buy something barely functional—a tool that might jumpstart my journey yet ultimately restrict my growth.
Or I could wait.
I could choose to struggle—fight, bleed, and claw for every single Fate Point I earned, no matter how long it took or how grueling the process. Then, with those hard-won points, I could invest in a method that would truly empower me to rise above.
I stared at the list, the sheer size of it overwhelming. Thousands of methods, all waiting.
I sighed and leaned back into the scratchy bed of hay. My mind, already strained from the day, began to fog with fatigue.
It would take days to go through every option. I didn’t even know what I was looking for. And more importantly—I had nothing to spend.
Still, before closing the ledger for the night, curiosity got the better of me.
What’s the most expensive method in here?
I gripped the scroll bar and dragged it all the way to the bottom.
And then I saw it. The very last entry.
The text wasn’t just gold—it pulsed with a soft crimson glow, as if alive, as if dangerous simply by being read.
[World-Root Severing Method]
[Cost: 9,999,999…]
The number kept going.
Nine after nine, more than I could count, more than I could even process. It wasn’t just a high price—it was an impossible one.
My chest tightened as I stared at it. What kind of technique required a cost that felt eternal? What kind of power did this method hold to be priced so far beyond reach? Even the system offered no description. No detail. Just a name—and a number that might as well just have been removed.
But then I paused, a thought creeping quietly into my mind.
Wait… If the ledger contained cultivation methods from all levels… then did that mean—?
I glanced up at the search bar that hovered above the page, awaiting a command. Slowly, hesitantly, I thought of a name. One I had no business uttering, let alone hoping to access.
Nine-Petal Amethyst Sutra.
The moment I finished the thought, the name was etched into the bar in a bright, flowing script. I held my breath, not expecting anything to happen.
But then— It appeared.
A single entry.
[Nine-Petal Amethyst Sutra]
It hovered in the space before me, bathed in violet light, its lettering refined and delicate—feminine, almost. And beneath it, the cost: 1,000,000 Fate Points.
That was her method. Lan Rou’s. A cultivation method so rare and treasured it had become synonymous with her name today. They said it was a technique developed specifically for her constitution.
Curiosity tugged at me harder now. I couldn’t help it—I reached out and mentally selected the glowing name, urging the system to display more. A soft chime echoed in the space around me as the Nine-Petal Amethyst Sutra opened, revealing a block of text suspended in the air.
I blinked, then leaned back slowly, letting the information sink in.
Of course it wasn’t that simple.
Not only was it priced at an astronomical one million Fate Points, well beyond anything I could even imagine earning, it was also limited by constitution.
Female Constitution. Celestial Orchid Physique.
Two things I most certainly did not possess.
Still, it told me something else. Something more important than the method itself.
The Ledger wasn’t just powerful. It was honest.
It didn’t pretend I could become someone I wasn’t. It didn’t lie about what I could or couldn’t wield. It offered everything.
That… I could respect.
And when I finally earned enough Fate Points to choose something for myself—I would make sure it was something meant for me.