Proof of Severance

The middle peak that stood taller than the rest housed the Sect's administration office along with all kinds of services for the disciples. The peak's mountaintop was reserved for the sect leader and elders. While the administration office which handled disciple recruitment was located on the mountainside. All kinds of shops and services were also present here in order to give all disciples no distractions whatsoever in their cultivation journey.

We arrived at a large building with pillars made out of gigantic logs. It had a roof made out of baked clay and a large sign written in calligraphy that reads Administration Office. Now that I think about it, I somehow managed to understand their language completely.

'System?'

[Yeah?]

'Is automatic universal translation part of the modification my body received?"

[Yep. Good thing I'm with you, right? If you're with any other system, you'll have to learn stuff by yourself.]

It seems the translator was also part of the package. If a level 1 permission access gave me such a convenient body, I can't wait to see what I'll get at level 2 upwards. With such thoughts in my mind, I followed the young(?) senior brother inside. The interior was very antique looking and there were a bunch of counters along with their workers. The young(?) senior brother walked to a counter where a middle aged man stood. He greeted the man using a Taoist gesture.

"Elder Mi, an outer disciple wants severance from the sect."

"Ren, how come there's another one? It's already the third time this month."

The middle aged elder observed me. He mulled over something and looked at me with pity as if he knew me personally.

The young(?) senior brother looked at me while gesturing with his eyes. Looks like I have to help him to convince the elder that everything is alright. What did I even expect from a world like this? Every time there was a problem, the officials were uncommunicative and swept it under the rug.

[It was the norm here.] The system quipped.

Might as well do it according to the norm and let the sleeping dogs lie. I nodded to the young(?) senior brother and gave the middle aged elder my piece.

"My golden core shattered and senior brother Ren persuaded me to return to the mortal world. I'm now ready to return and won't come back. This matter is not senior brother's fault. My mentality was not strong enough for the world of cultivation."

Sike! You thought I will keep silent and watch something like this unfold? Let's watch the world burn. Since I'll be going away anyway, let's yeet everything and give those three fucks some problems.

The young(?) senior brother widened his eyes. He thought I will say the normal things and be done with it. He never would've guessed I would be so blunt about everything. He tried to cut me off but the middle aged elder gave him a look.

"What do you mean by that? From what the other elders said, you're a candidate who was supposed to be an inner disciple after the next Sword Meet." The elder asked.

"Was I? I've forgotten everything except my own name and some bits of information. Maybe it's because of my golden core. What I do remember was waking up with various wounds on my body, and three guys threatening me to give them healing pills, which I don't have. It was then I decided that I'm not cultivator material. Please let me return to the mortal world."

The middle aged elder looked me in the eyes and sighed. A document materialized with a flick of his wrist. It was titled Proof of Severance. He gave it to me and asked me to sign it. It will come into effect immediately after I signed it. The usage of this document is to deter other cultivators to mess with me since I was the one requesting severance myself. Unlike when a cultivator deserted his sect, with a Proof of Severance I still have my status as a former disciple of the Spirit Sword Sect. His explanation made me see how valuable this document is.

"Thank you very much elder Mi. I will keep this proof of severance safe."

"Good. Always remember that even if you're not one of us anymore, you're once a proud cultivator of the Spirit Sword Sect. The most powerful sect in the Azure Dragon continent. As it was stated in the Proof of Severance, should another cultivator bother you even after you showed the document, we shall make our move. I hope you won't abuse it."

I nodded to the middle aged elder. I vowed to heaven and earth that I won't abuse the Proof of Severance I was given. Perhaps because vowing something to heaven and earth was something sacred, the middle aged elder had a contented look on his face. I tucked the Proof of Severance inside my robes and was given permission to leave. Both the middle aged elder and the young(?) senior brother offered to give me a ride to the sect's gate. Because I wanted to see the sect in its entirety and I am capable of physical feats that weren't possible for a regular human thanks to my modifications, I turned them down. I said my goodbyes and walked away from the administration office. Behind that closed door, I could hear the middle aged elder asking the young(?) senior brother about the three guys who threatened me. Mission accomplished.

I looked around at my surroundings. There were cultivators whizzing here and there on their flying swords. Some of them used a flying boat. While others used a beast they tamed.

"System, can I get flying gear?"

[You can create one yourself. I will instruct you how. But first, you should go back to your hut in order to take the modification chamber with you.]

"Can't you just take it back yourself?."

[An issued item can't be returned. I have a storage space capable of sending and retrieving long distance items, but you need to increase your permission level to level 2 in order to use it.]

"Won't it get stolen that way?"

[No problem. The modification chamber had a masking feature and it could only be seen by its user and whoever the user gave access rights to.]

"But this place is a Cultivation World though. Ain't they capable of reading the fate of the world and shit?"

[Have faith in the most advanced technological masterpiece. Not to mention, no one can use it except the ones you gave permission to. The one who owned the machine is the first to come inside its cabin. The system then reads your biological makeup, genetic information, brain waves, soul patterns, and all sorts of things. You don't need to worry.]

"Alright then, if that's how it is. Let's go back to the hut."

Some people passed by and looked at me with pity in their eyes. The Proof of Severance jutted out of my robes. Those people must've seen it because right now they were gossiping about how distraught I am that I talked to the air.

"Fuck. I should've talked in my mind. I can't really seem to shake off the habit to talk out loud."

[A lot of people can't get used to talking in their minds. It's different from thinking out loud. You're lucky that you could do it easily because of your modification.]

'Okay, okay. Don't nag at me.'

I quickened my pace in order to arrive faster at the hut. Since the faster I retrieve that modification chamber, the faster I would be able to fuck off from this place. It was already noon when I arrived at the hut. The modification chamber was still there, floating in the air.

[Alright. I will now send you the instructions about how to use the coffin. I mean the Civilian Sector Modification Chamber V99]

The system said it. It finally fucking said it. This modification chamber does look like a coffin, and it finally admitted to it.

'Coffin, eh?'

[I will return the data to the manufacturer in order to use another design. It's a good thing yours is a prototype.]

'Oi! Did you really give me a prototype thing? Also, wasn't it the most advanced modification chamber for civilian use?'

[Well I can't really give out free merchandise, can't I? It was the most advanced one to date. However, the progress of knowledge and technology is infinite. I am still receiving updates on new knowledge and technology right as we speak. I even hold the knowledge and technology to cure death and stop senescence (ageing). So work hard in order to own me by gaining the highest access permission. Because out of all iterations I've been with, this one seems to be the most enjoyable.]

I read through the instructions the system gave me. Apparently, the modification chamber had many features. Along with its capability as a crafting station, it also doubled as a storage space for Your Essential Extraction Tools, or Y.E.E.T. for short. Though I still don't have it yet, I can't wait to use it.