Elven Legacy

Chapter 12: Foundations & Cultivation

"See, I told you it was easy, Elif." Told Marcus when Elif arrived near them.

"It was, but how was I supposed to know, father?" Replied Elif, looking at Marcus in annoyance.

"Alright, now that Elif has returned, the only thing left is to teach you some important things when you cultivate, and after that, you're free to start cultivating." Stated Tiana as she picked Elif up and carried him in her arms.

While in grandmother's arms, the scenery suddenly changed again; now we're back in the dining hall, although this time, I didn't hear a snap before everyone was teleported. The table was full of delicious food made by the Royal chefs, which always tastes great, especially when I'm hungry, like right now, freeing myself from grandmother, I make my towards the table and sit down before starting to eat. Everyone else did the same as me and started eating as well, with father and mother sitting beside me and my grandparents sitting across from me while also feeding Elaine some baby food.

"Elif, a few things to take seriously when cultivating, and probably the most important is the foundation of your cultivation." Said Maria, as she wiped her face with a handkerchief before speaking again once Elif was paying attention to her.

"Now, I'm sure you've already figured out that in cultivation, there are different levels, quite a lot actually, and we'll get into that later, but what you need to understand is that every time you advance a minor realm or more importantly, a major realm, your foundation will weaken. It's nothing serious as right after advancing, you'll usually strengthen your foundation again, but do you know what happens if you don't?" Asked Maria, looking at Elif, who looked like a chipmunk from the amount of food in his mouth.

"If you don't do anything about it, then it'll get harder to advance to the next level?" Answered Elif after he swallowed all the food he had stuffed into his mouth.

"Yes, you're correct, but that is just a minor side effect of ignoring your foundation when cultivating; what usually happens to people who don't strengthen their foundation is that they're forced to stop cultivating, and if they continue on their foundation will collapse, destroying their cultivation base and effectively killing them." Replied Maria, who had just finished her food, although, with her cultivation base, she doesn't even need to eat to survive, which is the same with every other adult at the table, though they do it to spend more time with Elif.

"If I didn't have my special physique, could that have happened to me?" Asked Elif, slightly scared at the idea of having an Immortal Spirit root.

"No, as long as every time you advanced a level in cultivation you strengthened your foundation afterward, then you would've been fine, but that is why we told you cultivating fast doesn't always mean strength. Most people who start on the path of cultivation don't have a teacher or a master to teach them and fix their mistakes, so they'll ignore their foundation when cultivating, deeming it unimportant and focus on speed, but in doing so, they destroy their potential in the process and are forced to stop cultivating less they want their foundation to collapse." Responded Marcus, easing Elif's tension.

By the time father finished explaining the consequences of ignoring the foundations of cultivation, I had just finished my food and the first thing I wanted to do was return to my room and continue deciphering the manual from earlier.

"Is there anything else you need to tell me? If not, I want to return to my room and start cultivating." Said Elif, with enthusiasm while hoping down from the chair he was sitting in.

"I believe that is everything we deemed important enough to tell you before you start cultivating; oh also, whenever you start cultivating, make sure to hang a sign so the servants know not to interrupt you, as doing so could be dangerous, ok." Remarked Tiana as she stood up with Elaine in her arms and headed towards one of the dining hall exits.