Five years had passed since Evan first opened his eyes in this world.
Five years since a reincarnated soul had taken the place of a newborn child.
For the outside world, time had moved normally.
For Evan, however, those five years had been a period of quiet preparation.
Learning.
Observing.
Growing.
And pretending.
Pretending to be an ordinary child.
Morning light slowly filtered through the curtains of the bedroom.
The small house had not changed much since the day Lyra first brought him here.
Simple furniture.
Sturdy walls.
A peaceful atmosphere.
But one thing had changed drastically.
Evan himself.
The boy sleeping on the bed was no longer the chubby infant from years ago.
He was now a small child with soft, dark blue hair and bright, intelligent eyes.
His body had grown stronger.
His mind had grown sharper.
And most importantly—
His understanding of this world had improved greatly.
Evan slowly opened his eyes.
He stared at the ceiling for a moment.
Silent.
Then he sighed softly.
"Morning already…"
His voice was still childish, but the tone behind it carried a maturity that did not belong to a five-year-old.
He sat up and stretched slightly.
Lyra was not in the room.
That wasn't unusual.
For the past few years, she had often left him alone in the mornings while she handled things around the city.
She trusted him.
Perhaps a little too much.
Evan rubbed his eyes.
Then suddenly—
A familiar sound echoed inside his mind.
!~Ding~!
A translucent window appeared in front of him.
Evan blinked once.
Then a small grin appeared on his face.
"The system."
It had been a while since it last appeared.
The calm mechanical voice echoed in his mind.
[System Notification]
[Congratulations, Host.]
[Your physical age has reached 5 years.]
Evan raised an eyebrow.
"Oh?"
That was… unexpected.
The system continued.
[Certain system functions are now available.]
A new interface appeared.
[Available Functions:]
[
• Status • Inventory (Unlockable) • Shop (Unlockable) • Skills (Unlockable)
]
Evan leaned back slightly on the bed.
His curiosity immediately awakened.
"So the system finally decided to give more features."
Until now, the system had mostly stayed silent.
Aside from a few helpful abilities like the Reading Assistant, it had not shown many functions.
But this looked different.
This looked like the real system interface.
He looked at the list again.
Status.
Inventory.
Shop.
Skills.
Those names sounded extremely familiar.
Almost like the systems he used to read about in the novels from his previous life.
Evan smiled slightly.
"Well… this should be interesting."
The system spoke again.
[Host may choose to unlock the locked system functions.]
[Do you wish to proceed?]
Evan didn't even hesitate.
"Yes."
Immediately—
The interface flashed.
!~Ding~!
[Inventory Unlocked]
[Shop Unlocked]
[Skills Unlocked]
Evan leaned forward slightly.
His eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"Alright."
"Now let's see what these actually do."
He raised his hand slightly as if talking to someone standing in front of him.
"System."
"What is the purpose of each function?"
The system responded immediately.
[Inventory]
[
1) Allows the host to store items within a spatially sealed dimension.
2) Stored items will not decay or spoil.
3) Time does not flow inside the storage space.
4) Current storage capacity: 10 cubic meters
Additional space will unlock as the host's cultivation level increases.
]
Evan nodded slowly.
"Basically a spatial ring."
Ten cubic meters…
That was already larger than most beginner spatial rings.
That alone was extremely valuable.
In the cultivation world, spatial storage artifacts were rare and expensive.
Even low-quality spatial rings could cost enormous amounts of money.
And the system had just handed him one for free.
Convenient.
"Next."
[Shop]
[
Allows the host to purchase items using System Points.
Available items may include:
• Cultivation resources• Techniques• Weapons• Pills• Special artifacts
More items will unlock as the host grows stronger.
]
Evan's eyes widened slightly.
That was even more ridiculous.
If the shop truly contained those kinds of resources…
Then the system alone could make him incredibly powerful.
He leaned back again.
"Alright."
"And the last one."
[Skills]
[
Allows the host to search for specific abilities or techniques.
Skills may be purchased using System Points.
Once acquired, the system will assist the host in learning the skill efficiently.
Mastery requires practice
]
Evan whistled softly.
"That's broken."
A skill purchasing system?
Combined with the reading assistant he already had?
Learning techniques would become absurdly easy.
Still—
One important question remained.
He looked at the interface again.
"System."
"How do I obtain System Points?"
The answer appeared immediately.
[System Points may be obtained through the following methods:]
[
1) Completing System Missions
2) Completing Daily Tasks
Examples include cultivation training, physical exercise, and skill practice.
3) Completing Special Missions
These missions will appear when certain conditions are met.
4) Achieving some system-recognized achievements
]
Evan nodded slowly.
"Figures."
Evan remained quiet for a moment after reading the message.
His eyes stayed fixed on the floating blue interface.
"System points…"
He murmured the words softly.
No points meant no purchases.
No purchases meant no real advantage.
In other words, the system was powerful—but only if he could keep earning its currency.
Evan tapped his fingers lightly against the wooden bed frame.
"Daily tasks… missions… achievements."
His mind immediately began organizing the information.
Daily tasks meant consistent growth.
Missions likely meant larger rewards.
And achievements…
Those were usually tied to important milestones.
It was structured almost like a game.
But Evan knew better than to treat it like one.
This world was real.
People bled.
People died.
If he wanted to survive in a cultivation world filled with monsters and powerful cultivators, he couldn't rely on the system alone.
Still…
A slow smile formed on his face.
Even if the system was only a tool, it was an incredibly powerful one.
And tools were only as useful as the person wielding them.
"Alright," Evan muttered.
"Let's see what kind of opportunities you can give me."
Every system needed a currency system.
Otherwise, the shop would be meaningless.
Still, the structure seemed reasonable.
Daily tasks.
Missions.
Special events.
But in this world, the consequences were real.
Evan stretched his arms again.
He was starting to feel excited.
For the past five years, Lyra had sealed the violent Qi vortex inside his body, preventing him from cultivating naturally.
She said his body needed time to stabilize.
Five years, Evan thought.
If he remembered correctly, today might finally be the age when cultivation could begin.
She wanted him to grow older before starting real cultivation training.
He understood why.
But now—
With the system unlocking new functions—
Things might become much more interesting.
Evan looked at the glowing interface again.
His eyes slowly moved toward one option in particular.
Shop.
The idea of a system shop in a cultivation world was extremely tempting.
What kind of resources could it contain?
Rare pills?
Ancient techniques?
Legendary weapons?
Or something even more dangerous?
Even if the early items were simple, they might still be incredibly useful.
Evan grinned slightly.
"Well…"
"Let's take a look."
He focused on the interface.
Evan glanced toward the door.
Lyra was still gone.
Good.
Because if she suddenly walked in and saw him talking to empty air again, she might start suspecting something.
Last time she nearly called a physician.
"System."
"Open the shop."
For a brief moment—
Nothing happened.
Then the familiar sound echoed again.
!~Ding~!
A new window began forming in front of him.
Bright lines of light slowly expanded across the interface.
[Notice: Opening System Shop…]