Chapter 12: Castle

"Then what should I do? Should I hide this tree somewhere?" Reynold said with a cheeky laugh.

It's already too late in the evening, and very little light is available. That's why Reynold is trying to leave as early as possible, and more than that, he needs to get ready for travel tomorrow morning.

"Stop your silly jokes. I'm talking about some serious stuff, boy." Leo said.

"What is it? Do I need to complete any more quests?" Reynold asked with an intruding face.

"Listen carefully and do exactly like I said"... "activate all your sixty-four meridians and try absorbing the Leo Kernel and simultaneously, transfer the entire qi towards the right-hand fist. It will be a little bit painful. So bear with it; the process must be quick."

Leo explained while pointing towards meridians and the flow of qi towards Reynolds' right side.

Reynold quickly entered into a meditation posture without asking any questions. He can understand the gravity of the task from Leo's voice, and Leo has already mentioned absorbing Leo kernel into person body and using it as a storage measure.

Reynold began the process of kernel absorption while holding the kernel in his right hand, guided by the Leo spirit. The right-hand muscle is gradually bulging, and he can feel tiny ruptures within his muscle mass. His right-hand sleeves almost tore apart with the increasing size of his right hand, and his hand started changing into a purple-red colour. The Leo kernel in his hand grip also started vibrating with a buzzing sound. Reynold was trying to hold the kernel while still forcing the qi flow in his right hand. The unbearable pain did not even let him faint this time.

Leo was staring at Reynold, with a serious expression… It can understand the painful look, which it has seen several times on his previous master's face.

(Note: Leo's previous master name was Tang Zi Chen. If you already know about this person... You are really a legendary reader.)

Finally, the Leo Kernel disappeared into his body. What felt like years was completed in a few minutes. Reynold was clearly feeling the presence of Leo kernel inside him. In his right palm, he can see a purple glow.

"Haha… good job kid… good d job… Now summon the kernel outside your body..." Leo said with a cheerful laugh.

"Well…what should I do? Do I need to fallow any specific pattern?" Reynold was still in an amazed state. The things going on around him after entering this world are like a fairy tale.

"The kernel is already part of your body… you just have to feel it to control the kernel." Leo said.

Reynold concentrated on the kernel on his palm and summoned it with his thought. The kernel appeared on his palm without any changes. It is just a thought away for him. Reynold tried it a few more times to play with it.

"Hahaha! What a strange thing! For years it stayed in my family... but we know nothing about it. Leo, why did you never mention these secrets to any of my ancestors?" Reynold asked in a casual tone.

"Why should I? First of all, I can't communicate with anyone on Earth. Because there is no qi available in the earth's environment. Even though I can understand their words, I never intended to communicate with them. The only goal we, the six kernels, had was to find a capable one to carry out my master's final wish." Leo explained patiently.

"Wait… what do you mean by we, the six kernels? Are you saying that the six kernels have the same origin?" Reynold asked with surprised face.

No one know about the origin of these kernels. What he knew most was that the six hidden families existed because of the presence of six kernels.

"This is not the time to talk about my origins. What you have to know is that one day you must combine all six kernels to repay my debt. I'm not asking it for my own selfish reasons; you will also greatly benefit from this process." Leo said while memorising its past.

"Leave these matters for another day… What you have to do now is check the internal space of the Leo kernel." Leo said, smiling.

Even though Reynold was very much interested to know about Kernel origin, He can't force Leo to say about it.

With a disappointed expression, he returned his attention to the Leo kernel.With a single glance, though, he can see everything inside the kernel.

"Ohh… Leo, why are saying it as an empty space… there is literally a castle inside… Wahh…" Reynolds opened his mouth in a big "O" shape. When Leo mentioned about internal space of Leo Kernel, Reynold thought there will be a small empty space to store some petty things… but there was a beautiful white stone castle inside the kernel.

The castle includes gardens, palaces, halls and several majestic buildings inside it… occupying more than a hundred-acre area. Reynold started observing the castle from every corner in a third-person view. But the strange thing is that the entire castle was an empty space; he did not find anything useful or valuable.

After roaming for a few minutes inside the castle, Reynold reached the core area of the castle, which was surrounded by a mystic barrier that did not allow him to pass on.

"Leo, why is this barrier stopping me? Do I need to break this barrier to enter inside?" Reynold asked at the same time he was observing the core barrier.

"Kid, stop playing jokes. even I can't break that barrier. Inside that barrier was my master will and his physical body. To enter inside, one must first reach the soul separation stage, and then pass my master test to gain his legacy." Leo said with a smirk on his proud face.

"What is soul separation stage… it is not even mentioned in the 'Beginners guide to cultivation' book and who is your master… is he a powerful being." Reynold asked questioningly.

"Reynold, you have to travel a long path to know about all things... at present store that tree inside the Leo Kernel and leave from here. It's already too late now… That village chief, Garner, came to visit you several times in the afternoon." Leo hurried Reynold to leave for village.

Reynold quickly store the big tree inside one of the castle-garden. "One last question, Leo, can I store living beings inside the kernel?" Reynold asked with a cheeky smile.

"Maybe one day... if you reach the grand-master stage on this planet."Leo said in a thinking pose. After listening to it without another word, Reynold Left for the village.

It was pitch dark inside the forest… but the village was brightly lit like a fire torch… Many people are decorating the houses... Men are building different structures... The children are still playing outside. Servants are busy making different food items... and some teenagers are arranging fruits into baskets... Little girls are making flower garlands. The entire village atmosphere is like a festival.

Without disturbing anyone, Reynold reached his room in stealth. But as he expected, Garner was waiting for him… inside the room.

"Hmmm... finally, you showed up... I thought of sending people to look for you, but where do you even go in this small place?" Garner asked with a relief after seeing safe return of Reynold.

"The bridal journey is tomorrow... Why are you wasting your time here? You should be busy making preparations for tomorrow." Reynold commented.

"Everything is already set in place, and what I'm most worried about is you. You know nothing of this place or its culture. Instead of trying to mix with people, You are disappearing from the village during the day. Do you even know how much I'm worried about you? ... hah… hah…cough…cough…" Garner asked with a raised voice.

Reynold passed on the water jug to Garner, and he did not say anything to him. Reynold slowly raised his hand, and at the ends of his fingers, a dark blue-coloured energy gathered like a candle flame.

'Thump… the water jug in Garner hands slipped on to the flour.' Garner was staring at Reynolds' hand with a stupefied expression.

"How…" Garner slipped a single word from his mouth after seeing the qi energy on Reynolds' hand.

"Hahaha. Old man, first you should sit properly. It's not your first time to see a person with qi energy." Reynold said it laughingly.

"No… no… you must be playing some tricks… I can't feel the presence of qi in your body." Garner said anxiously.

Reynold used a very high-level qi manual to open his meridians. That's why Garner failed to probe qi in Reynold body. This time Reynold willingly released his qi aura... so that garner could see it. This time on Garner's face, a big smile appeared.

"Good… good… I've known you are a mysterious fellow since the day I met you. You really surprised me Reynold… haha…" Garner laughed heartily.

"Stop your drama... Now tell me the reason for your visit..." Reynold asked while withdrawing the qi energy.