[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring":3,"chapter-starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-chapter-124":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Starting at Hogwarts, Logging into Elden Ring",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1496298,1944,"Chapter 124: Eastern Realms of Cultivation, and a Plan to Return Home","starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-chapter-124",124,"\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian began by correcting him:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"In the East, we don't call it the 'mystic side.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We call it the Cultivation World.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you ever speak with Eastern cultivators, don't use Western terminology.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Remember that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He leaned back, arms crossed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Eastern cultivators are… very wary of outsiders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frankly speaking, if you weren't a fellow countryman, I wouldn't even be talking to you — wizard or not.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had heard similar things from Dumbledore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When foreign mystic factions once tried to invade China, Eastern cultivators fought them off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Given that history, their hostility toward other supernatural systems was only natural.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian continued:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"As for factions in the Eastern cultivation world, even I don't know them all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Our homeland is vast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every region has its own traditions.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But the famous ones?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kunlun, Shushan, Maoshan, and the Northeastern Qingqiu traditions.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tapped the yellow talismans on his desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I myself come from Shushan.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur blinked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…Don't tell me it's really Kunlun for immortals, Shushan for sword cultivation, Maoshan for talismans, and Northeastern mediums for spirit-riding?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian grinned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hoho! You're surprisingly well-informed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Those are the iconic paths of the four major factions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, each sect has more than one lineage.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur silently cursed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He only knew this because he'd read webnovels in his previous life.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn't expect reality to be exactly the same.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What about Buddhism?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Buddhism doesn't thrive in the cultivation world,\" Li Xuanjian said bluntly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But there are so many temples back home,\" Arthur pointed out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Appearances,\" Li Xuanjian scoffed. \"Most monks just collect incense money.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They have no real abilities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a few genuine enlightened monks exist, and they're wandering hermits, healing and helping people.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buddhist culture spread widely — the cultivators couldn't stop it —\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but real Buddhist practitioners didn't spread with it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only native-born monks walked the cultivation path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then, Uncle Li, could you tell me about Shushan?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's been a long time since I talked about home.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We Shushan don't recruit like your Hogwarts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Daoist sects choose disciples based on fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every few years, we open the mountain and accept new initiates.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You wizards test children for magical ability.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We judge by talent and foundation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a child meets the standard, they enter the sect.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We follow the Neidan Path — the Path of Internal Alchemy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without thinking, Arthur blurted:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Refining Essence into Qi, Qi into Spirit, Spirit into Void, and Void into the Dao?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian stared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…How do you know that?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Books at school mention it,\" Arthur lied smoothly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, it was novel knowledge from his past life — but it turned out to be real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eastern romance indeed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian accepted the explanation and continued:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Correct. Neidan cultivation has four great realms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most disciples reach the first realm after years of training.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Once a disciple reaches the second realm — Refining Qi into Spirit — we send them out to temper themselves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That's how I came abroad.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Aren't training journeys usually within the country? How did you end up so far away?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My master's doing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The government was worried about overseas Chinese communities and asked our sects to send cultivators abroad to look after them.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"My master had seven disciples.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was the unlucky one chosen.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But luckily, most people here are Chinese.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everyone treats me like family — not much different from home.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So how long are you stationed here?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ten years,\" Li Xuanjian said. \"Master's orders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After ten years, another junior brother will come replace me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And how long has it been?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Nine years now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If nothing goes wrong, I'll go home next summer.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sighed dramatically.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hard to believe it's been that long.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back then, I was just like you — young, handsome…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Look at me now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time is a butcher's knife.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur stared at his rugged face and suppressed a twitch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What kind of butcher's knife could cut a pretty boy down into a Yan Chixia look-alike?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He quickly steered the topic away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And the last two realms?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The last two?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian raised two fingers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Refining Spirit into Void — reach that, and you become an Elder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You can take disciples, or retreat to cultivate, or travel the world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the stage required to open your own temple.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And the final realm — Refining Void into the Dao.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rumor says our sect master reached it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he's elusive; I've never seen him.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It's said that achieving this realm adds three hundred years to your lifespan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One gesture can split mountains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Half an immortal, really.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If compared to Western wizards… how strong are these realms?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian thought back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When I went to report at the Ministry of Magic, most wizards there felt about the same level as me — some stronger, some weaker.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There were also those equivalent to the first realm, Refining Essence into Qi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I didn't pay much attention.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His pride showed through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had reached Refining Qi into Spirit in his early twenties — a prodigy among his sect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing that an entire Ministry lacked even someone at Elder level made him proud of Shushan's superiority.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur fell silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even elite Aurors were only that strong?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eastern cultivation was far more powerful than he had imagined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He guessed that Hogwarts professors — especially Professor Flitwick, a former international dueling champion — should reach the third realm, Refining Spirit into Void.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for Dumbledore…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>likely near the peak of that realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He certainly didn't look like someone who could live another three hundred years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian clapped his hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Anyway! Didn't you want to see Eastern magic?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What should I demonstrate?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur thought for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You're from Shushan, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How about showing us sword flight?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That? Easy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this room isn't big enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No problem. Don't resist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We'll move somewhere spacious.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur grabbed Ranni's hand, placed his other hand on Li Xuanjian's shoulder—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Apparition.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a blink, they appeared in a forest near Arthur's home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian froze for a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He knew the wizarding world's rules here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Underage wizards couldn't use magic outside school.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And this level of long-distance teleportation…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not even his best escape talisman could move him this far.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the boy didn't even use a wand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>you're really still a Hogwarts student?\" Li Xuanjian stammered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course, Uncle Li.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I'll be starting third year soon.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…You don't look like any third-year wizard I've ever heard of.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And doesn't using magic outside school cause trouble?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur waved it off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Relax.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I can block trace spells easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And without a wand, the Ministry can't detect anything useful.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian's lips twitched violently.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If this level barely counted as \"a genius,\" then what on earth was he?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He also realized something unsettling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't sense Arthur's magic at all — he thought Arthur was weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now it was clear:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur simply surpassed him completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the little girl beside Arthur?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't sense her either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A dangerous pair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur interrupted his spiraling thoughts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uncle, if you're ready, please demonstrate.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"O–Oh. Right.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian inhaled, focused, and summoned his natal sword from his dantian.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stepped onto the blade, forming hand seals — and shot into the air like a streak of light, cutting through the forest at speeds even faster than Arthur's reforged flying broom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur had attempted to probe the sword with spiritual sense, but the blade's interior was covered in Li Xuanjian's consciousness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Intruding would injure him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur backed off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had hoped to learn sword flight secrets, but the sword's protection was too strong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eastern cultivation truly had deep foundations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Arthur wanted this skill, he would have to pursue legitimate channels.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all —\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>flying on a sword was a romance engraved in the bones of every Eastern-born soul.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur quietly added this to his ever-growing list of goals for when he returned East.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would never force Li Xuanjian to teach him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shushan's techniques were sacred — not something to give away to a stranger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian eventually landed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur gave a big thumbs-up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uncle — that was epic.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian felt conflicted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Being praised by someone possibly stronger than him was… uncomfortable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Well then, anything else you want to see?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur shook his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's enough, Uncle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thank you.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Let's go back.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur Apparated them back to Li Xuanjian's apartment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once seated, Arthur asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Uncle Li, next summer — when you return home — could you take me with you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hm?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What for?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I want to see the beauty of our homeland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And… maybe visit your sect.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian considered it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bringing one extra person was no trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Arthur was a prodigy — befriending him would only help Shushan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stay in touch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When my replacement arrives, I'll let you know my departure date.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Thank you, Uncle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It's getting late — we should go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I'll have my owl contact you later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Oh — a small gift.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arthur placed a fruit basket on the table — nothing rare, but impossible to buy in Britain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They all came from his Zen Garden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he grabbed Ranni and Apparated away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian stood frozen for a long time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he whispered:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"…What the—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>a storage treasure?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mustard-seed space?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was a magic artifact common in the East — crafted only by senior artifact masters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His master had given him one for his journey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Arthur was a foreign wizard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How did he have one?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unless…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unless Arthur was actually a lost child of some powerful Eastern sect?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Xuanjian frowned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would definitely investigate Arthur's family background later.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To read 90+ future chapters, head over to Patreon:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>patreon.com\u002FWhiteDevil7554\u003C\u002Fp>",1617,"2026-06-06T04:19:46.381Z",1,"novelbin.me","1d95378fd8d6c3182c3bdaa8ce05b2d9f282e502c6088e694dda6104da391331","starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-chapter-125","starting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-chapter-123",281,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarting-at-hogwarts-logging-into-elden-ring-cover.jpg"]