Side Quest

'Missions... is this like in a game?' Bruno thought.

Quickly, old memories from Earth came to both of their minds. In the few free moments Bruno had, he used to spend his time reading fantasy books or playing games. Soon, memories of one or more books where the protagonist benefited from missions, classes, and solo-evolving by killing monsters inside portals came to mind.

"What the hell is this? If the laws wanted to help us, they should just give us everything they could. Why stupid missions? What a stupid idea," Alm said gruffly.

"Well, the universe's QI is clearly being controlled. Maybe if we simply cultivated ourselves, something bad would happen. In the other universe, we were already born outside the queen's control, and it's possible that in her main universe, just by cultivating, you end up contaminated and dominated by her. It's a plausible hypothesis," Bruno explained.

"For now, let's just see where this leads. We don't have many choices; regular cultivation seems impossible," Bruno concluded, clearly excited.

Their round, swollen fingers moved towards the greenish window, but then they realized it would be foolish to touch the air and simply replied with a "Yes."

[Side Quest Available 01]

[Master the Beast in its Lair]

[Reward 01: 10 Upgrade Points]

[Reward 02: Access to the main mission]

"Beast? Lair? Upgrade Points?" Bruno thought. "Well, this is just a side quest; these points must be used for something. But where will we find this so-called beast..." Suddenly, a strong yawn escaped their mouths.

"This useless body... It's the middle of the night, and it has no endurance at all. It would be easier to just kill ourselves and free our soul from this fat sack," Alm spoke.

"We're just regular mortals now, and it's been quite a while since we've had a proper sleep. It's not so bad to relax a bit..." Bruno stopped abruptly as he remembered something. "I get it... Maybe that's it. Let's go to sleep soon."

Alm was clearly curious, but his eyelids were heavy, and his mind was drifting. It had been thousands of years since he felt something like this; the only thing he wanted now was to sleep. So, they moved to a stone bed and closed their eyes calmly.

***

Alm and Bruno regained consciousness in a pitch-black forest, immersed in a world completely devoid of light. It was an oppressive darkness that enveloped everything around, so dense that you could barely see your hand in front of your face.

*ROAR!!!*

A sinister and unsettling sound echoed in the darkness, followed by footsteps that made the ground tremble. It was a scene straight out of a horror nightmare, but Alm and Bruno stood there, expressionless, as if they found it all ridiculous.

The roars continued, getting closer and closer, and the heavy footsteps seemed to draw near. Bruno and Alm were in a "Primordial Dream," a place they both knew well but didn't need to sleep to access before. This place existed within the mental sea of the soul of every living being. Everything inside should reflect the soul as a realm of nightmares and the home of inner horrors.

"What a strange place... Even when we reincarnated from Earth, our Primordial Dream was just a commonplace from our memories, always with our father. Then, it started getting creepier, but this place... we've never been here before... Could this body be influencing this?" Alm asked, looking at Bruno, who was beside him, both in spirit form.

"The answer was in the body owner's memories. If I hadn't checked everything, it would be complicated to understand the system's intentions," Bruno explained while looking in the direction of something approaching.

Bruno continued explaining as they both managed to see, at a great distance, the massive shadow of a creature. "Denil has been having the same nightmare for a long time, possibly his entire life. It wasn't the kind of nightmare that humans have had since the beginning of time. But something disturbing and sinister."

"In his dreams, he was hunted and slowly tortured by a gigantic creature that seemed to be the size of a city. This creature had an armored body, and he could see the shadow of three sharp horns on its head; just the idea of seeing it could scare him enough to wake up."

"Over the years of inexplicable torment, his mind was slowly twisted and affected. Then, one day, while walking in the city, he saw a girl being abused by some thugs in an alley. He felt something strange burning inside him at that moment. After attempting something similar, he sank into that abyss slowly. And in the end, because of having a weak mind, he became someone who deserved death."

When Bruno finished speaking, frenzied winds attacked their spiritual bodies. From above, a pair of crimson eyes fell upon them, followed by a guttural roar. Even though they were completely calm, they felt the mind and the body lying in bed tremble and recoil from the power coming from that creature.

"Did... this come from his bloodline?" Alm asked.

"But... Regardless of how weak we are, just any bloodline couldn't possibly affect our divine soul, let alone change our primordial dream," Bruno replied. "The bloodline in the trash's body must be something special."

The creature was just a few meters away from them, and they could witness its entire being made up of terrifying runes. Amazement only grew on their faces.

"I've never seen anything like this in our universe... this bloodline is obviously unyielding and refuses to be mixed with anyone else's bloodline, thus the fat's nightmares. Is it a primitive beast? But which one? We should research the local legends a bit," Alm said with seriousness.

The gigantic beast looked at the two and seemed to feel something strange as well. It was just a primitive will formed from runes and had no consciousness, but its instincts were sharp. When it looked into the eyes of those two small dots, one white and the other black, the runes on its body seemed to react in survival.

Alm then smiled, the reflection in that creature's eyes making that smile seem like it came from a nefarious and bloodthirsty demon. Both Alm and Bruno seemed excited; they thought that fat body was useless... well, maybe it was... but it did have something good about it.

They were now the owners of this body, no longer victims of that bloodline. Instead, they were now the predators. The primitive bestial bloodline mixed with human blood had caused serious physical and mental problems in Denil's mind, but Bruno and Alm were worse than any demon or primitive beast. When they turned to face the monster, the bloodline realized who the real monster was.

The creature retreated, feeling threatened by the imposing presence of the two spirits. It roared once more, but this time, it was a roar of fear and terror. Finally, it turned around and ran away.

"Hahahaha! Come, kitty, kitty, Uncle Alm has something good for you!" Alm laughed as he shot after the shadow. Even Bruno found it funny. What primitive beast? Before them, it can only be a pet!

***

The first rays of the sun touched the skin of a round and swollen mortal on top of a stone bed. A deep snoring that sounded more like that of a wild beast came from that room. Everyone near the corridor where the room was located could hear those thunderous sounds and had looks of disgust on their faces.

With gentle knocks on the door, little Ruri entered the room. Immediately, the sounds ceased, and the eyes of the sweaty, round, and nearly two-meter-tall man turned to her. In his eyes, she saw a deep, sinister darkness, making her body tremble with terror. A muffled scream escaped her trembling lips, but quickly, she saw those black eyes change completely to something soft and welcoming, as if they were from a completely different person. For some reason, her fear was completely extinguished from her mind.

'Don't be so agitated, idiot. We're no longer being pursued,' Bruno mentally spoke.

'We haven't slept for centuries, only meditated and cultivated ourselves. The reflexes of the distant past must have leaked,' Alm replied.

"Good morning, Ruri," Bruno said with a sheepish smile on his face.

"Good... good morning, sir. I've come to serve the food," Ruri replied with trembling words.

Bruno nodded in agreement, and Ruri, with hurried steps, wheeled in a dozen carts with trays on top. The room was completely filled with dozens of dishes and the smell of food. Both Bruno and Alm were astonished by the excessive amount. How could an almost mortal human eat the equivalent of dozens of people just for breakfast?

They hadn't known what it was like to eat for thousands of years, and they felt an overwhelming sense of nostalgia after smelling that aroma in their noses. So, even though they didn't think they would eat even a third of it, they began to savor it slowly.

One plate was gone... three... nine... thirteen... Something was wrong. They ate and ate, but it seemed like there was no bottom to those stomachs. Suddenly, they felt a faint glow in their meridians.

'Is this... his bloodline?' Alm mentally spoke.

'How strange. This body lost all of its cultivation and should be just an ordinary mortal without any Qi. But clearly, the bloodline is being awakened...' Bruno replied.

Then, as if they were in a feeding frenzy, they continued to eat ferociously while observing the changes inside the body.

'Ninety-nine percent of the bloodline runes are in a suspended animation state. But the runes are restless as if begging for more,' Bruno observed.

Suddenly, they took a forkful from the plate, and then the metallic sound of an empty plate rang out. Alm and Bruno were amazed to realize that they had eaten everything, but they still weren't anywhere close to feeling satisfied.

They noticed Ruri looking at them with a certain fear in her eyes as if this scene had repeated itself several times before. With a sigh, Bruno thanked the astonished young woman, who quickly removed everything from the room.

Now alone in the room, they continued to observe the changes in that body and reflect. "In the trash's memories, right when he entered adolescence, that voracious hunger began. The dreams about the beast also became much more frequent," Bruno commented.

"Mortal food isn't enough to satisfy this bloodline. The frail and scarce Qi that existed within his body must also have something to do with it. To fully nourish these runes... maybe... not even the herbs and meat of powerful beasts from the divine world in our universe would be enough," Bruno concluded.

"This body wouldn't withstand consuming something that powerful while being weak anyway. The most potent food it can consume right now is probably nowhere near enough," Alm added.

When Ruri returned, they headed straight for the clan library. There, they could find information about this universe that might be useful and perhaps discover something about this primal bloodline.

Walking down the corridor, they remembered the side quest that should have been completed. And with just their thoughts, the green window appeared in front of them.

[Congratulations, Side Quest Completed!]

[Upon receiving the reward, you will immediately start the main mission. Do you wish to receive the reward?]

[Yes / No]

"Hmm... we managed to defeat the bloodline beast because our souls are above the mortal plane, and it was just a side quest. It's better to wait a bit and gather more information before we accept," Bruno remarked.

Alm didn't respond. They both had many questions still. This system needed to be studied carefully.

As they were walking, lost in thought, they arrived at the entrance gate of the library. After the first few steps, a booming voice echoed in their ears. They turned around and found themselves facing a group of young people blocking the entrance to the library with mocking expressions.

"Look who we have here, 'Orc Denil.' Think you're going to find anything useful in the library?" one of the young men said with a sarcastic smile.

Another young woman chimed in, "Maybe he's looking for a place away from everyone's view. I can't believe he's thinking of doing something with this little girl..."

Ruri started to sweat cold. She had been serving Denil for a few months now, chosen against her will because she was still a child. No one believed he would be capable of doing anything to her for a few more years. However, she vividly remembered seeing the situation of the other maids who had served him before, and a tremor made her mind blank.

Then, she felt a swollen hand gently stroking her hair. Those thoughts suddenly disappeared like a fog dispersing under the light of the sun.

Bruno walked past after using a bit of his soul's energy on her. His steps could be heard by all, and the weight of each footfall sounded strange, as if a huge beast was walking, and his round belly swayed along, making all the young people find it even more ridiculous and smile. His imposing presence and calm attitude contrasted completely with the mockery of the other youngsters.

When he was in front of them, Bruno looked at the elder in charge. The elder was just an old man at the end stages of the Foundation Establishment Realm, with a frail and unstable cultivation. Bruno knew from Denil's memories about all of them. Despite being just a librarian, the clan's most valuable techniques and other important information were stored there. That said, the one in charge had to be someone influential and trustworthy.

That group of young people was the same age as Denil. They would be taking the test for entry into one of the main sects of this country in a year. They were all around the Eighth and Ninth Stages of the Qi Condensation Realm. From this, one could tell just how much harder it was to cultivate the Foundation Establishment Realm, considering the elder there was many times older and was still just one realm above.

In their midst was a young girl with golden hair and a look of disgust. She was a relative of this elder, and he probably favored her by granting her followers access to the best techniques and knowledge from there. 

"I have permission to enter the first floor and study common knowledge books, right?" Bruno asked the elder.

"Yes, the first floor is open to everyone," he replied expressionlessly. But the laughter of the young people became even louder. They were blocking the entrance and didn't move an inch, clearly provoking.

Bruno turned with a noisy step toward the library entrance. With an arrogant and brave expression, a young boy stepped forward, wanting to appear cool. Bruno didn't even spare the boy a glance and continued to advance.

He was just a meter away from the group and the entrance when the young man addressed him disdainfully.

"Where do you think a dirty pig like you is going? Go back before I beat you," the boy taunted.

Suddenly, a malicious smile appeared on Bruno's face.

The elder, who was watching the scene, felt his body freeze. Instinctual terror made his soul tremble. Bruno's eyes then changed to a sinister abyss, and a small yellowish point shone in his pupils.

In the blink of an eye, the air around the area. The sky darkened abruptly, and even the sect patriarch felt the Qi in his meridians agitating uncontrollably. All of this lasted only a second before returning to normal. It was so fast that the patriarch wondered if he had imagined things.

Inside the library, all the young people fell to the ground, trembling uncontrollably. Even the elder felt his internal Qis flow in reverse for a moment while fear filled his mind. In the elder's case, his higher cultivation should have been enough to protect him against the attack. Yet, he wasn't expecting it at all. Thus, he also suffered the backlash. Bruno hadn't stopped his steps and continued walking, passing by all of them as if they didn't even exist.

Ruri, who was completely baffled, suddenly saw everyone falling strangely. Still, she ran after her master, stumbling into the library.