Chapter 03: The Heart's Desire

A pair of a silver-whistish young man and a white furry cat stood before a two-story house, looking at it with a strange satisfaction on thier faces.

After a full week of work, they had finally completed the bookstore. Though it wasn't luxurious, it had a simple charm with clean and welcoming atmosphere.

Surrounding the building was a small, open patch of land and a pond bordered it with marble stones on its shore. At the top of the structure, a black plaque proudly displayed the words "Cosmic Valve."

A strange look appeared on Asty's face when her gaze landed on the plaque as some distant memories surfaced in her mind.

"It's not perfect, but it'll do," Aadi smiled, clearly pleased with their work. "Now, we just need the books. But first, this garden could use some herbs, and the pond needs filling."

With a wave of his hand, the garden suddenly bloomed with divine herbs, the kind for which entire worlds might go to war. Plants like 'Twin Dragon Fruit,' 'Chaos Thunder Grass,' and 'Ice Spirit Flame Grass' sprang up like ordinary grass, blanketing the garden with their rare presence.

At the same time, Asty flicked her little paw, forming an invisible barrier that concealed the herbs' divine aura from the outside.

As the pond absorbed this energy, it transformed into a soul pond. Drinking just a cup of its water could elevate a person's soul to the next stage.

Inside the bookstore, shelves lined the walls, neatly organized and filled with various books. In the center of the room, tables and chairs awaited their first readers.

"You infused something into the books, didn't you?" Asty noted, eyeing the shelves.

"If this were an ordinary bookstore, how could I ever pass as a hidden expert?" Aadi replied with a smirk. "I just added a few enhancements so readers might gain some benefits. But whar they receive depends on their cultivation and how they actually are."

Asty rolled her eyes, only half-listening as Aadi continued his explanation.

With that, Aadi and Asty settled into a quiet life managing their little bookstore. Since the town was mostly populated by mundane people, the visitors were mainly locals looking for entertainment.

They had not stepped on the path of cultivation so they received nothing from the divine herbs or the enchanted books except enjoyment. Aadi also minimized the Profound aura emanating from the herbs to protect these locals, otherwise there would have been major consequences.

---

One Month Later

A young man with silver-white hair sat in a comfortable chair, absorbed in a book. Beside him, a white cat dozed peacefully on a cushion atop the table.

Asty stirred awake, rubbing her eyes with her little paws. Her gaze then drifted to Aadi, or rather, the book he was reading.

"'Battle Against the Hell'? You even changed the title," she remarked, reading the cover.

"It's not like you're the one dealing with copyright issues," Aadi replied with an amused grin.

Asty shook her head, speechless. She changed the topic, "Does this realm have a chosen one? I sense a calamity coming, so the chosen should already be born."

"Of course," Aadi answered. "Normally, I'd ignore him—most of them are self-righteous pricks anyways—but this one interests me. Do you know why?"

 He paused for dramatic effect.

 "He has 'The Heart's Desire.'"

Asty blinked, dumbfounded, then asked, "Are you serious?"

"Apparently, Azure Divine World's Heaven's will tried to mimic the original and succeeded, sort of. While this copy doesn't come close to 1% of the original's power, it's still 'The Heart's Desire.' This should get interesting if he ascends to the Divine World." Aadi chuckled, imagining the chaos this would cause.

Asty exhaled in relief. She understood the true power of 'The Heart's Desire'—and though it was no longer a threat to current her, she had witnessed its terrifying might so she knew just how much pain in the ass the owners of The Heart's desire can be.

Just then, they heard a thud from outside as if something heavy dropped on the ground. Aadi raised an eyebrows as he sensed the depleting life force. Curious, he went outside with Asty still sitting on his shoulder.

As soon as he opened the door, a bloodied figure of a young girl came into his sight, plastered on the ground turning it red from her blood. Her clothes were in tatters, her face and and hair smeared with dirt.

Her heart was barely showing any signs of working and her breathings was also rapidly decreasing. 

"Quite a sight, isn't it?" Asty remarked, her voice flat as ever.

Aadi, on the other hand, stared at the girl, his surprise turning into a quiet laugh. "Fate truly is a strange thing."

Curious, Asty glanced at him. "What's so funny?"

Aadi was someone who became happy over little things from the start, so she wasn't very surprised seeing him laughing like this. Calming down, he finally said, "Let's get her inside and heal her. I'll explain everything soon."

Asty nodded, helping Aadi bring the girl inside. They laid her on a bed, and Aadi gave her some healing pills he'd crafted in his spare time.

"So," Asty began, curiosity evident in her voice, "what's the story behind this?"

Aadi looked at her. "Remember when I mentioned the chosen of this realm?"

"Yes, but how does that relate to her?"

"Well, there's a high chance this girl will end up being the chosen's fated rival. Their karmic threads are already intertwined."

"Ordinarily, she'd be a stepping stone for him, but her blood complicates things" Asty mused. She paused, then asked, "Which bloodline could stand in the way of 'The Heart's Desire'?"

"The Rulers' Bloodline," Aadi replied. "Though it's diluted, it's still there."

Asty's eyes widened in shock. Even learning about 'The Heart's Desire' hadn't startled her this much. Composing herself, she asked, "So what do you plan to do with her?"

Aadi's smile widened. "It's time for me to take on my first disciple."