Kaito pulled off the helmet with a slow exhale, blinking as the brightness of his room replaced the forest groves of Verdant Hollow. The hum of the nutrient cabin faded behind him, its lid retracting with a soft hiss.
He rubbed the back of his neck and stood, stretching his shoulders. His body wasn't stiff—he was used to the routine now—but his mind still churned with momentum from the digital world. Glory's pace was picking up, and Barkjaw waited for him. But today, reality came first.
Without another word, he stepped over to the chilled storage recess beside the wall. A soft pulse of light opened the compartment with a hiss.
Inside rested the vial—clear, glowing faintly.
Mythic potion rested, untouched. He opened the seal and took a single sip—nothing more. The warmth flowed through his limbs, clean and controlled. He didn't think about dosage warnings or mystical consequences this time. He simply placed the vial back in the compartment which closed automatically.
Then, without delay, he began his morning martial training.
The courtyard outside his window was still damp with morning mist. Turning away, he stepped into the open space beside his bed and assumed his stances.
"Horse Stance."
"Crane Root."
"Iron Arc."
"Falling Branch."
The Four Pillars.
His breathing shifted naturally into the flow of the Skyshatter Eternity Manual, the same foundational technique his Third Uncle had taught him. Inhale—steady, expand. Exhale—control, compress. His body vibrated faintly as the Mythic energy circulated through every muscle, fusing with the ancient rhythm of the poses.
Ten minutes passed.
Then twenty.
Finally, a soft sheen of sweat glistened on his temples.
He straightened and walked to the small terminal at his desk. A brief mental query triggered the internal AI.
[Internal Cultivation Estimate – Rank 1 Progress: 30%]
He nodded. Based on his uncle's training timeline, he still had around 10–12 days before reaching Rank 1. That matched with the goal—two weeks from April 7th, his birthday. Still on schedule.
He wiped his forehead with a towel, walked back inside, and stepped into the shower. Water hit his skin, warm and calming.
When he emerged, refreshed and wrapped in a fresh robe, his AI chimed gently in his ear.
"Delivery ETA: 30 minutes. Ten nutrient cabins. Destination: Genesis Dome."
Kaito nodded. "Notify Jin and Lei. Prepare the cars."
"Confirmed."
He tapped his comm tab and opened the family group. Aika, Hiroto, Kaede, Daichi, and Suzune.
Kaito: "Meet me at the east carport in 5. We're heading to the studio."
Aika replied immediately: "Now? Why?"
Kaede: "Something up?"
He didn't answer. He just smiled.
Fifteen minutes later, the hover-Sedans glided along the main road, Jin and Lei at the wheels. The cousins sat with growing curiosity.
Daichi leaned forward. "Why are we going today? Didn't you say training was enough for now?"
Kaito just gave a small shrug. "Thought you deserved a look."
They didn't press further. But by the time they arrived, everyone was wide-eyed.
The Genesis Dome
Half of the dome structure was already completed. Curved alloy pillars arched upward, supporting partially transparent walls and heat-dispersal tiles. Scaffold bots crawled along the beams, and light-conduits blinked along the dome's circular edge. It looked like something from a high-tier tech conglomerate.
"Whoa," Hiroto muttered.
Aika leaned against the window. "It's way bigger than I imagined..."
When the hover-sedans came to a stop, the main gate slid open. Waiting inside was Meirin, dressed in a simple white jacket, arms crossed.
"You took your time," she said.
"You're already here?" Kaito asked.
She nodded. "We logged in from here last night. I figured since this place was half-ready, might as well test it. I also oversaw the first internal inspection."
He glanced around. Most of the interior hallways were powered, the main console chamber had its energy grid online, and the environmental controls were partially installed.
"How's the pace?" he asked.
Meirin smiled faintly. "At this rate, full readiness in two days. You can start moving in tomorrow if you want."
Kaito nodded in approval. Then, from the far access road, the sound of cargo trucks rolling up reached them.
The delivery had arrived.
Multiple staff in dark-blue uniforms stepped down, each unloading precision crates.
"President Ren," the lead delivery assistant said. "All ten nutrient cabins, as ordered. Alpha and Beta models both."
The cousins stared.
"Wait... are those..."
Kaito gestured casually. "Your cabins. Surprise."
Aika blinked. "You mean... we each get one?"
"Starting today," he confirmed. "They're yours."
The group went quiet.
Kaede finally whispered, "Holy crap."
The installation began.
Each of the ten cabins was wheeled into position and slotted into its designated room. The dome's second ring held twelve personal chambers—ten for core members, two reserved. Each was soundproofed, climate-controlled, and had biometric security linked to neural IDs.
The Alpha cabins (for male users) were installed in the west wing. Beta cabins (female) in the east. Each model came with gender-adjusted AI voice assistants—a subtle personalization layer that added comfort. All of them could connect to Glory without delay.
Suzune ran her fingers across the sleek surface of her Beta cabin. "It's beautiful."
"Designed for unlimited sessions," Meirin said. "Integrated nutrient reservoir, posture correction, mental load dampeners. It's the best in market."
Daichi opened his cabin hatch. "Is this... really for us?"
"You're part of Genesis," Kaito said simply. "So yes."
Meirin stepped beside him. "Where do you want yours installed?"
Kaito pointed to the central zone. "President's chamber. Custom AI already loaded."
The cabin for him was the only one different. Slightly larger, fitted with security overrides, a unique AI interface tuned to his personal rhythms. No extra flair. Just tailored precision.
The moment it was set, he stepped back and watched the others begin exploring.
The dome finally felt alive.
Tomorrow, they'd start logging in from here. Side-by-side. Just like the old days—but smarter.
He glanced at Meirin, who was quietly checking energy outputs on the dome terminal.
He slipped away quietly. There were a few tasks still left for him before the studio officially became operational.
He had come prepared.
Behind him, Lei and Jin carefully unloaded three separate alloy cases from the rear of the hover sedans. Each was temperature-regulated and sealed for transport. Kaito had organized them the night before: one for Mythic-grade vials, another for pure S-grade solutions, and a third—carefully diluted and unlabeled—for the studio's newest members, already placed in the storage wing of the studio.
So he moved toward the smaller side wing and entered the storage room that had just been fitted with motion-triggered lights. The soft hum of the hover-crates greeted him. His gaze fell upon the sealed cases holding the potions, in particular the mythic-grade potion vial.
He unlocked it with a retinal scan, then carried the crate to his private presidential chamber. Inside, the platinum cabin waited—its internal systems already active, its side panel glowing faintly. He approached the nutrient bay and tapped in the command sequence.
The chamber opened with a light hiss.
Kaito set the vial carefully inside the storage slot, then brought up the interface. He calibrated the distribution to 1 sip per 24 hours, starting from the following day. There were seven sips left, and with the automated schedule set, it would sustain him for a full week without needing manual monitoring.
Satisfied, he exited the room and returned to the storage wing to retrieve a second case—this one filled with several vials of S-grade potions.
He moved with quiet purpose.
As his cousins continued marveling at their cabins, circling the chambers and peppering Meirin with questions about neural sync rates and posture correction mechanisms, Kaito stepped in beside them one by one. He didn't make a show of it. Instead, he quietly opened the side hatch of each cabin's nutrient module and inserted a vial of S-grade potion into the fluid slot.
The interface on each cabin pulsed green. Registered.
Hiroto turned to him, blinking. "What's this?"
"Just nutrition," Kaito said casually. "Don't worry, it'll handle everything during gameplay. You won't feel any fatigue or hunger."
Daichi looked amazed. "This is better than eating!"
Kaito chuckled lightly. "Almost. Just don't skip your real meals."
He repeated the process for all five of his cousins and for mei rin's cabin, then moved to the east wing.
He returned to the main lounge, where Mei Rin's friends—all ten of them—were chatting around a corner table, still in awe of their surroundings.
"Everyone, over here."
They gathered, some fidgeting, others standing straight. These were Mei Rin's close allies—skilled, but new to cultivation, and new to the real world of Glory.
"I've placed your nutrient solutions in the central cooling chamber," Kaito announced. "You'll each receive one vial every 12 hours. Drink it all at once. Don't skip a dose."
A few glanced at each other nervously.
"No rank labels?" someone asked.
"You won't need them," Kaito replied. "Just know that they're safe—and built for early-stage use."
He paused, letting the moment settle.
"Once you all turn sixteen, you'll qualify for basic martial initiation. When that happens, I'll assign personal techniques—custom footwork, defensive forms, and aura refinement scripts. Until then, don't force anything."
A few nodded eagerly.
"I'll also upload the first set of foundational drills," he added. "Coordination, eye-hand reflex, and a footwork module based on the footwork technique I just mentioned so that it can fit in early. All part of your new studio package."
"Also I will get your studio contracts as soon as other members join so don't worry you all will have fixed salaries."
After addressing them He went back to his room ready to login again after telling others to login as soon as possible.