《A Golem in a Cultivation World.》


 The master PLAN

    I had a plan. A good one too. Now I know what you are thinking, things don''t always go as planned. Every now and then god or fate, depending on what your believes are, will throw a stone your way. Things will get complicated but ultimately things will work out.


    Well, no. My plan was perfect, simple and it worked. That is not the issue though. The problem is the results.


    My plan was as followed: 1)Study hard in high school. 2)Hard enough to be able to get into a good university. 3)Graduate from the said university. 4)Find a comfortable position on a nine to five office job.


    Simple right. Now I know what you are going to say. Everyone has the same plan. It''s true but there is a reason why everybody has the same plan. It works. Simple plans always work.


    I am not going to lie. It wasn''t easy though. To execute the first step I had to sacrifice a lot. Skipped a lot of social activities. Hours of studying. I even got a weird nickname in high school.


    In the end, I was able to get accepted by a decent university.


    From there, things kinda worked out on their own. We all know that the hardest part is actually being accepted by a university.


    Five years later I finish university and graduation day comes. The proudest day of my life. Everyone was there. My family, close relatives, friends of the family, even some of my old childhood friends were there.


    I remember being so excited. Finally, I had achieved something of value. All the sacrifices I had done over the years were paying off. My decisions had lead me to this moment.


    I remember staying in line ready to walk on the red stage as names were being called. Every second felt like a lifetime. Eventually, my name was called.


    I almost didn''t recognize my name. The stairs that led to the stage suddenly looked like mountains to me. My limbs weren''t responding to my commands. I was frozen in place.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    A push came from behind. I turn my head to see who it was but for the life of me, I can''t remember his name. His face is blurry to my memory. Was he a friend of mine? I don''t know.


    Anyway, that push gave me the strength to move. I started climbing the stairs one at a time. In my head, every stair represented a challenge that I had overcome.


    As I raised my head bright light assaulted my eyes. I took a few seconds to adjust. Mysteriously I had climbed all the way to the stage. A small podium was a few steps ahead of me. Next to the podium was standing a short guy wearing a dark robe with a red stripe. In his hand, he was holding a scroll tied with a dark red ribbon.


    ''My diploma'' I thought. The thing I had worked so hard to get was within reach. Just a few steps more and I would have achieved the third step in my plan.


    Luckily my legs didn''t rebel against me this time. As I approached the podium noises entered my ears. A crowd of people was cheering to the top of their voices. They were the family members of the other students who were graduating the same day as me.


    My own family was among them. I even heard someone from the crowd call my name. Most likely my mom. I tried to locate them in the sea of people but my attempts were cut short as I reached my destination.


    The short guy offers me a firm handshake as he hands me the scroll in his hands. With a smiling face, he congratulates me. A short hug later and I was finally free to leave with my most prized possession in hand.


    That scroll, that crappy piece of paper was my key to success.


    For that paper, whose monetary value couldn''t be more than a few cents in materials, I had worked my ass off for years.


    But that day was my greatest day. Nothing could ruin that moment. And Nothing did.


    =====


    Exactly a year later was my lowest point in life. I had tried everything. Called every favor I could call. Send my resume to every company that I could find.


    A dozen interviews later all I had to show was a crippling student debt and a dead-end job in a call center.


    My father taught me that there is no shame in working. But I didn''t set out for this. I didn''t make all those sacrifices, all that hard work for this. I didn''t want to end up working for a boss with a high school diploma.


    I didn''t want to be forced to take a shit by a nobody just because he has nothing better to do. And more importantly, that crappy job wasn''t going to pay my student loan. In fact, it was barely enough to pay my rent.


    So in a moment of desperation, I took the easy way out. I had worked hard and I was tired. I couldn''t go on anymore.


    <div>


    Exactly a year later from the day I graduated, I committed suicide.

 Purpose

    Abruptly I become aware. It feels like waking up in the morning. One moment there is nothing but blissful unawareness. The Next moment, all sorts of information enter your brain.


    I open my eyes and what greets me is the view of a dimly lighted room. No, room isn''t the right word for it. It looks more like a cave. The walls are not uniform like they would be if they were made of bricks.


    The rocky surface of the walls and the small but sharp stalagmites in the ceiling proves that I am right. This is a cave.


    Glancing around I notice that I am sitting in a weird yoga pose, with my legs crossed atop a blue mattress. My back is facing the end of the cave and right in front of me is a gap which I presume leads further into the cave and hopefully out of this place. I can''t see beyond that, it''s dark.


    Next to the gap to the right, is a dusty bookshelf with only one book on it. The bookshelf looks old and dusty as if it''s ready to crumble with the slightest touch.


    Other than the bookshelf there is nothing else in the cave that I am in. A part of me is slightly disappointed that there isn''t anything else.


    After all, waking in a cave isn''t an everyday occurrence. Especially after you commit suicide. Oh, I remember I did kill myself. I remember vividly when I jumped from the top floor of the highest building I could find.


    But that was the old me. I am not that person anymore. He died and this cave isn''t the afterlife. I know that because this isn''t my body either.


    I am now a different life form altogether. I am an Android. No, Android isn''t the best word to describe the present me. Golem perhaps? Yeah, golem feels better.


    I am a golem now. From where I can see my body is this dark gray color. I could be some other color but because of the lack of light, everything I see is either gray or black.


    My form is humanoid with legs, arms, and a torso. I raise my hand and I notice something rather disturbing. I have no fingers. There is the arm, elbow, and forearm, but right where there is supposed to be my hand and fingers it ends up in a stump.


    Looking at my legs I notice the same thing. No toes. Rather my feet look like weird elephant feet.You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    I take all this calmly, without panicking. After all, this is not me. The real me has died. Now I am just a golem with memories of the person I once was. That is not the only thing I know.


    I also know that a golem is a toy whose sole purpose is to obey his master''s commands. I know this because the memories of my old self aren''t the only thing I have. I also have bits of random knowledge scattered around.


    More importantly, I also have my orders. Three orders were set down by my master. My memories are disgusted by this information. No, I am unhappy with this fact. Those memories in my head might have belonged to someone else but they are mine now. It is part of who I am.


    Did I mention that I also have a head? Crazy right?. I don''t have anything like a mirror to see myself but feeling around with my stubby arms I discovered a thing or two about my face.


    First I <u>am</u> bald. I don''t know if golems are supposed to have hair or not but I am not happy being bald. Of minor notice might also be the fact that I have no ears, nose, mouth nor eyebrows.


    Anyway, it doesn''t matter. All I want right now is to die. I have nothing to live for and I don''t want to be the plaything of some dude who I have to call master.


    I am sure that other people will see this as an opportunity. A second chance in life even if the only thing I have from my previous self is some recollection of memories.


    I don''t though. I don''t see this as a second chance. I know what awaits me. A life of thankless hard work. Struggles in every corner. Sacrifices to achieve my goals that will go unrewarded.


    I will not do this again. I wasn''t able to achieve what I wanted as my previous self. And I definitely won''t achieve it in this life. An existence less than human. A golem who doesn''t possess even the most fundamental thing. Freedom.


    I just want to die but I can''t. Not because of the lack of desire to do so. No, I literally can''t. I am unable to intentionally harm myself.


    Whoever this master dude might be one thing is for sure. He knows how to take care of his toys. Apparently, a golem is unable to against the commands of his creator.


    As long as I hear and understand a command I must execute it. There is no other way about it. I can''t resist nor rebel against the master''s commands.


    The same way I can''t harm myself right now. I want to but every time I raise my hand with the intend to punch my face. My hand stops obeying me no matter how much I want to do it.


    That bastard could order me to walk and I would be walking until the day I die or until he says to stop. That is a scary thought.


    Luckily he is not here at the moment. At least he is not in my sphere of vision but he might be back. No, he will be back unless he forgets where he let his golem toy.


    This might be my only chance to escape. A golem is compelled to obey the orders of his creator and master but not if he for some reason can''t hear those commands.


    I might want to commit suicide but I sure as hell don''t want to be a slave for some random dude with magic powers. Someday I will find a way to circumvent my current orders. Then I will be free. Free to leave this world and embrace the sweet relief of oblivion.


    Yeah, that is my goal. I have a purpose now. My purpose is death and I will accomplish it.

 Trapped

    I have a purpose now. I am committed to this goal and I will see it done no matter what I have to do.


    But for me to be able to do that I must first understand the orders I was given. I know my master,  may he suffer a terrible death, gave me three commands upon my creation. The problem stands that I don''t remember the exact wording he used when he gave them.


    I try to search my memories and as I sort through them a window suddenly pops up in my vision.


    Well sort of. You see first of all I am not too sure that I even have eyes.


    My earlier investigation of my face discovered that I just have two bumps where the eyes would normally be. What made me question my ability to see is the fact that in this cave there is no visible source of light. So I think the window is more like a mental vision in my head.


    #Standing orders#


    1)Always obey Masters commands.


    2)Kill Alex Van Daren and exterminate his bloodline.


    3)Improve, repair, learn, and survive until you kill Alex Van Daren and exterminate his bloodline.


    The first command that has been given to me is of no surprise. To obey the master. What strikes me as odd is that there is no explanation of who "the Master" is. Like for example how would a golem know who to obey if he can not recognize his master?


    Wouldn''t that mean that a golem could set himself free by not recognizing or ignoring his master? No, it can''t be that easy. There must be some mechanism that either compels the golem to recognize a master or a way to force ownership upon a golem.


    For example, some animals recognize as their parent the first creature that they see. Will the same thing happen to me? Will, I also recognize the first thing I come across as master?


    So many questions but no answers. It pointless, to think of it right now. Any explanation I come up with will not be based on reality.


    Moving to the second command I have been given I also notice some problems there too. The first part of the command is simple. Kill Alex Van Daren.


    What confuses me is the second part. Exterminate his bloodline.


    If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.It sounds easy but there is no description of what bloodline entails. For example, do only his children are considered as part of his bloodline, or are also his cousins, uncles, and aunts are also included?


    Either the dude who is my master is an imbecile or he didn''t have time for some reason to give proper orders. There is no time limit for where I should kill Alex and exterminate his bloodline.


    I could just wait until Alex dies of old age. I don''t think golems age. Well at least they don''t in books but in this reality, they could. Either way, it is a win-win situation for me.


    As for exterminating his bloodline? That''s even easier. Since there is no definition of what a bloodline is in my commands I will just interpret it as meaning this Alex guy and his kids. If I make his kids sterile, with time they will die without descendants.


    My job will be completed and in no time I will be free. Since the only thing stopping me to die is the third command. Which orders me to improve, repair, learn, and survive until the second command is completed.


    I mentally *sigh*. As things stand presently  I will be able to complete my goal but things might change.


    This might be my only opportunity to escape. Without no commands to stay put, I can leave. I have to take advantage of this opportunity because I doubt I will have another one like this.


    Slowly I move my legs from the crossed position. My arms touch the floor as a rotate my body until I am on my knees. With one arm on the wall, I slowly stand up.


    As I stand I get a better look at my body. I think I am around 1 meter(~3feet)tall. Of course, without any measuring device, I can''t know for sure. My body is made of some sort of metal. I have no idea if it is iron or some other metal but I am 90% sure that it is metal.


    I say this because of the ringing sound my body made when I touched the wall. Slowly but surely, with one hand leaning on the wall I make my first step in my new form.


    Saying that it feels weird to walk as a golem doesn''t do it justice. I have no sense of touch or heat. Normally when you walk you feel your feet pushing against the ground and vice versa.


    One foot in front of the other, with small steps I approach the gab in front of me. My walking speed as a golem isn''t much. It''s like a toddler walking but without the swaying.


    My short legs slowly carry me to the gab. As I approach I start to see what lies beyond that gab in my cave.


    It''s a narrow dark corridor. I can still see around in this strange grey color. Even though there is nothing obvious to provide light.  But I ignore my questions about my eyesight for now.


    I have more pressing problems. I have to escape this place before someone comes around and starts giving me commands. The corridor is so narrow I can barely walk straight. Luckily I don''t have to crouch. The ceiling is about two times as me in height.


    I start walking along the narrow corridor one hand in the wall. Partially because there is no space and partially because I expect myself to stumble and end up face first.


    After all, by this world''s standards, I am just a toddler. Well, I presume I am in a different world. I don''t remember golems being a thing on Earth.


    A few meters along the corridor I finally see the end. It feels like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. With only one or two differences. One there is no light. Second, the exit of the corridor is blocked.


    I am trapped here.

 The Grand Escape

    I am trapped here. For a few moments, I stand there in shock as the reality of the situation sinks in. O my God, my master, may he be struck by a thousand lightings, didn''t just leave me here.


    He trapped me here so I won''t be able to escape. Then he will come to collect me when it suits him. That is if he hasn''t forgotten about me.


    Panic washes over me but strangely a part of my mind is also calm. I imagine that if I was still in my old body my heart rate would through the roof right now.


    But that part of my mind that for some reason isn''t panicking is saying something else. If my master, may he burn in hell, wanted to trap me here there are easier ways to do it.


    He could just command me to stay put. There was no need for him to go out of his way to block the exit with the giant round boulder in front of me.


    No, this feels more like a kid hiding a toy from his siblings in his back garden. He will cover the toy with dirt but not to trap the toy. The dirt is there to disguise the toy from the other siblings.


    Look at me. Comparing myself with a toy. How the mighty have fallen. Anyway, the reason for his decision isn''t important.


    The important thing is how to get out before my master, may he never feel the touch of women, comes back.


    I approach the boulder to get a better look at it. Just as it looked from afar, the boulder is one giant mass of rock. Where did he even find something like this? It''s not like giant rocks are everywhere. At least I don''t think so.


    Let alone the fact of how did he move the boulder here or how he enters here. There isn''t a moving mechanism that I can see at least.


    Ok, escape plan number one. Push the boulder. Maybe I am strong enough to move it. Spoiler alert I am not. Thank God that I don''t have muscles anymore or I would definitely have pulled a couple of them.


    Escape plan number two. Punch the boulder. Results? After a few hundred punches I finally made a dent. A dent in my Teddy bear hands that is. The boulder is completely fine.


    F*ck this boulder in particular. Aren''t golems supposed to be super strong? Moving giant boulders is what golems do.


    Escape plan number three. Dig around the boulder. Yeah, escape plan number three is put on hold at the moment. Teddy bear hands don''t have fingers. I can''t dig without fingers. I also can''t use any equipment for digging without fingers not that I have any anyway.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ======


    Crestfallen I return to the room I first woke up. Maybe that isn''t my only way out. There could be other things that I might have missed too.


    As I walk with small strides towards the room I realize something interesting about my eyesight. I can see at the back of my head.


    I didn''t realize it earlier because it felt so natural to see this way. My brain or whatever passes for a brain in a golem body was still processing the information like I used to do as a human.


    Basically, I was ignoring the data input coming from behind and only concentrating on what was in front. Now that I am concentrating on my eyesight I discover even more unique characteristics of my vision.


    I am able to see all around me in all directions but only for a certain distance. A few meters at most and then beyond that my vision turns to black immediately.


    Unlike human eyesight where after certain distances objects start to turn blurry until you can only make out a vague outline or until they blend entirely with the horizon.


    As I am musing about the specifics of my eyes I enter the room that I first woke up in. I don''t know why I am disappointed when I see that nothing has changed.


    I just left this room an...hour ago? I don''t know ok I don''t have a watch. Anyway, the stupid mattress is still there. As is the bookshelf. Seriously who brings a bookshelf inside a cave only to store one book in it.


    Like doesn''t my master, may he fall in a dark pit, has anything better to do. Well, now that I think about it no one in the right mind would block an entrance with a boulder instead of just putting a door.


    *Sigh*, Of course, he isn''t normal. No one creates a golem just to leave it in a dark cave. Maybe this is normal in this reality. I can''t keep judging things by Earth standards.


    Happy thoughts, think happy thoughts like maybe a cave in will happen which would crush me to death. It''s not entirely impossible, right? I don''t think my luck will be that good but one can hope.


    With nothing better to do, I reach for the book. Well, I try to. The funny thing is the book is stored on one of the top shelves. I can''t reach it. Why must my master, may his wife cheat on him, have to put the book on the top shelf.


    Like can''t he put it on the lower shelves, even the middle shelves are ok. You know short people no, short golems want to read too. It is not our fault that we are short.


    In frustration, I punch the bookshelf and unlike the boulder, it breaks. The section where my teddy bear punch landed has a missing chunk of wood now.


    The wood of the bookshelf must have been rotten because after that punch the whole bookshelf started making creaking noises. Just like dominoes, the bookshelves collapse with me under it. The wood planks fall on me and break.


    Dust and splinters fly everywhere but other than that I am fine. A bit dusty but not damaged in the least. Not even a dent in my metal body. I didn''t even fall. I am standing like nothing it was nothing.


    To think that for a moment I had my hopes up. Lots of people die crushed underneath a falling bookshelf. It seems that my metal body is impervious to falling bookshelves.


    So I am strong enough to shatter rotten wood but not rock. I raise my teddy bear hands to get a better view of them and I make the most terrifying discovery since I woke up in this body.


    The dents in my hands from punching the giant boulder at the entrance are gone.


    Great I have an impervious body from falling rotten wood and a self-healing mechanism.


    How is a golem supposed to kill himself?

 The Book

    Cracking sounds echo around the cave as I walk amidst the remains of the bookshelf. It feels nice. Like stepping on fallen leaves during autumn.


    I am only missing the setting sun on the horizon and everything would be all most perfect.


    Where did this dumb book land anyway? I have been looking around for the past ten minutes but I still haven''t found him. Well, I admit I was kinda distracted by the cracking sounds for the first few minutes. The fact that I can''t see color also doesn''t help.


    Ah, there it is. Wow, how the hell it ended up on the other side of the chamber. Next to the blue mattress. Wait a minute, I thought I was unable to see color.


    How am I able to see the color of the mattress? Everything I can see is in various shades of gray. How is the mattress able to have color when there is no light source?


    I am not a doctor or a scientist but I know that to be able to see color there needs to be a light source. The colors are just the reflection of light.


    For example, let''s take a blue pen. Sunlight, which is white because it contains all spectrum of colors, hits the blue pen. The blue pen will absorb all the other colors in the spectrum except blue, which will be reflected. This reflected light from the blue pen enters our eyes. Since only the color blue was reflected by the pen we see the pen as blue.


    At this point, I think it''s safe to assume that my eyesight is not dependent on light. Man, who knew that golems could be so complicated?


    Ignoring the blue mattress for now I approach to grab the book. Guess what else I discovered. I can''t open the thing. F*ck the teddy bear hands. Why my master, may he never taste coffee, didn''t give me fingers?


    Like he was able to give me a self-healing mechanism, but not fingers. By any chance are fingers harder to make? I don''t think so but what do I know about golems or fingers anyway.


    Taking a deep mental breath because golems don''t have lungs I calm myself down a little bit.


    Ok, I can do this. I have done things harder than this. Besides how hard can it be to open a book with teddy bear hands?


    ======


    After attempt number... Two hundred? I learned a couple of new things I didn''t know. One the book is a lot more sturdy than it looks. This black book has suffered so much abuse from me in the past few minutes.


    I don''t know what type of material was used to produce this book but whatever was used is sturdy. In my attempts to open the book, I have punched it, thrown it into the air a couple of times. At one point I even jumped on it just to test it. The book is completely fine. There isn''t even a wrinkled corner or anything.


    The second thing I learned is that opening a book with teddy bear hands is frustrating. Imagine you have boxing gloves. Now try to open a book with it.


    No, I need a new strategy. Then an idea hits me. There are splinters everywhere around me.


    I carefully grab one of the bigger splinters by wrapping the inside of my arm around it.


    After a few tries, one of the splinters is safely tucked between my arm and forearm with my other hand on top of it for good measure.


    Carefully not to drop the splitter I approach the book. As I slowly drop to my knees a tragedy occurs. I drop my splinter. F*CK.


    This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.


    =======


    With another splinter in my care, I make my way to the cursed book. This time I make sure that the splitter doesn''t drop or break. Yeah, that happened a few times.


    Finally on my knees next to the book with the splinter in my hand I poke the book. A few pokes later I see some success as the cover of the book rises. I managed to put the splinter between one of the pages and the cover.


    Slowly I lift the cover by pushing it with the splinter until it is half opened. From there gravity takes over.


    As the cover touches the ground I finally see what is on the first page. Oh, hey I got lucky and it opened on the first page.


    I didn''t skip anything. Looking at the page I notice that the pages are thick. All most as thick as the cover of the book.


    Definitely not made of paper. The first page is mostly an illustration. A guy sitting in the weird yoga pose that I was in when I first woke up. His legs crossed, eyes closed while his hands are in a prayer posture in front of his chest.


    Is he doing yoga? Who needs a book to learn yoga? I thought all you need is a hot instructor. I never knew that there were books about yoga.


    At the sides of the illustration are words written in there. Well, I presume that they are words but honestly, they look more like a toddler with a pen decided to display his art on his mom''s yoga book.


    Seriously, I don''t know who came up with this writing system but he must have been drunk. Even Chinese hieroglyphs aren''t this complicated.


    So imagine my surprise when I started to read them. I don''t understand how and it doesn''t exactly feel like I am actually reading. It''s more like the meaning of those hieroglyphs is being shoved in my brain as my eyes pass over them.


    Ignoring the way how things are being shoved into my brain I ''read'' the first section of the page. It talks about a type of energy called qi and how to assimilate this type of energy into your body. Apparently, qi is found everywhere in the environment.


    Every living organism has some measure of this energy in their bodies. Some plants too. The second half of the page talks about a technique that can be used to gather qi in your body.


    The technique is a simple one. All you have to do is to sit down in the yoga pose demonstrated in the illustration. This pose even has a name. It''s called the meditation stance.


    After that, you have to clear your thoughts and concentrate on your inner self. You have to use your inner strength to draw the qi in the air towards you. In the end, you store the qi in your core.


    This sounds crazy. Let''s try it.


    As I move to the blue mattress I keep having this feeling that something isn''t right. I have had this feeling for a while now.


    You know the feeling that you have forgotten something but you can''t remember what. That''s the feeling that I have been having for a while now. What did I forget?


    I came back to the room because there was a giant boulder blocking the exit. I came to see if maybe there was another way out. I approached the bookshelf to.... To grab the book?


    No. I approached the bookshelf intending to see what was behind it and because there was nothing else. Maybe a secret exit or something was behind the bookshelf.


    Then why did I try to grab the book? Because I had nothing better to do? That is not right I have plenty of staff to do.


    I have to leave this cave before my master, may a demon punish him, comes back. If he finds me here I am going to end up as a slave for the rest of my existence.


    I don''t have time to do yoga in a cave. At least not without the hot yoga instructor. So why did I spent so much time trying to grab and open the book?


    Because I wanted to? No, what I want is to leave this place and commit suicide after I am free from the commands.


    The commands. F*ck. They have been messing with my mind. I thought that golems have to obey their masters because otherwise, they will experience pain or their body moves on its own to obey the command.


    What is really happening is that the commands imprint upon you this desire. They deceive you by making the golem to believe that he wants to do what the commands are saying.


    Earlier when I tried to punch myself in the face it''s not that some mysterious force took over my arm. I simply lacked the desire to go through with the act.


    My brain''s interpretation of this sudden lack of desire was that I somehow was unable to do so. Now this could be me making


    conspiracy theories on little to no evidence but the impactions are insane.


    That also explains why I wanted to read that book so badly. I wasted an insane amount of time just to open the thing.


    The commands have been etched in my mind as a form of a desire, a need, a necessity. Something that I simply have to do no matter what.


    And what better way to make sure I follow the commands than to make my own mind the guard with the whiplash. The guard that makes sure the slaves are following the orders is me.


    My worst enemy, the one that prevents me from disobeying is myself. How can I win against myself in this game?


    I don''t know. What I know is this though. I will accomplish my goal no matter who I have to destroy, myself included.

 Cultivation

    After discovering that the commands were messing with my brain and making me believe I wanted to do things I didn''t really want, I sat down on the blue mattress. Duplicating the weird yoga pose shown in the book I start cultivating.


    I know that this isn''t the best time to do this but I have to. It''s like the last piece of cake in the fridge. You wake up in the middle of the night and you can''t stop thinking about that piece of cake.


    You come downstairs, and you tell yourself you are just going to get a glass of water. You open the fridge and there it is the last piece of cake, starring at you. Promising untold pleasures and satisfaction, just out of reach.


    You know that you are being manipulated to eat that piece of cake. You know that it''s a bad decision to eat that piece of cake. It will ruin your diet.


    After a few moments of arguing in your head with yourself. You lie to yourself by saying ''maybe just a bite. A bite never hurt anybody, right?


    In no time there is no more cake. You ate it all. Now you feel guilty about it. You knew from the very beginning that it was a bad decision but you still made it


    Something similar is also happening to me. The right decision now is to attempt escaping this cave. I know that.


    I want to do that but before I escape I have to eat "The Cake".


    My "cake" is learning to cultivate.


    =======


    Legs crossed, hands in front of my chest in a prayer motion. Well, I try to have my hands in that position. You see I have teddy bear arms so picture a teddy bear making a prayer gesture.


    Ok, the easy part is done. Now comes the hard part. Clear my mind and start taking in the qi on the air. How do you clear your mind? I can''t possibly tell my mind not to think.


    I stay for some time in that yoga pose. Nothing is happening. My head isn''t clear and I am not feeling the qi in the air.


    As time passes all kinds of terrible thoughts start entering my mind. I imagine the boulder moving and my master returning to collect me.


    I imagine him ordering me around. I imagine him giving me commands just for his entertainment. Commanding me to be a chicken in front of a crowd of people who are laughing at me. Commanding me to cover myself in shit, while praising him. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    *Deep mental breath* calm down me. I am not going to end up like that. I am going to figure out this cultivation thing. Then I will be free to try my escape.


    I will escape. I am not going to be a slave. I have done things that are harder than this. I survived high school. It''s not the first time that I have had to avoid someone. We all had our bullies in high school.  We all learn how to best avoid them.


    All I have to do is avoid this one guy who can order me around. Easy right? I can do this. Of course, this being a magical world my master, may he die by a thousand cuts, could have some way to track me down.


    Now that is a scary thought. No, this isn''t just a magical world but a cultivation world. The difference? Cultivation worlds have young masters. As long as I am able walk into a restaurant I am dead.


    There is no way a young master won''t be offended by me. I just have to sit down at a table and wait for my death.


    Now that is a happy thought.


    With my mood improved a little bit I start focusing on the task at hand. Maybe I am thinking about this the wrong way.


    The book says that I have to clear my mind but the technique seems to be directed at humans, not at golems. What is the difference between a human being and a golem?


    Well, there are a dozen differences that I can think but the most fundamental difference is that humans get their energy from food.


    What do golems eat? I don''t know but if I had to make an assumption I would say qi. As far as I can tell my body is entirely made of metal. A lump of metal wouldn''t start moving and thinking on their own.


    Humans need food, water, and oxygen to live. Golems must be using something to fulfill their needs. So if golems are already unconsciously using qi then I don''t need to perform the first part. The part where I clear my mind.


    Time to test this hypothesis. I stop trying to clear my head. Instead, I concentrate on my body. I open my eyes. No, I don''t think I have eyelids so it''s better to say that whatever mechanism I use to see is on.


    Oh my god. I can see what is inside of my body. It''s similar to an ex-ray vision of my body.


    Different from what I thought my body isn''t just solid metal.


    Inside my metal body, there are inserted these threads. Every individual thread has a diameter measured in militaries and there are thousands, no billions of these threads. They stretch all over my body. In my legs, arms, head, and torso.


    Inside my chest in the same place where a human heart is supposed to be there sits a crystal. The Crystal has a pale white color and is constantly transmitting a type of energy to the threads that are attached to it.


    My memories tell me that this is qi. The crystal is my core. It''s transmitting qi to the threads which in turn give me the ability to move.


    My memories also tell me that this crystal is the equivalent of a human heart and brain. While these threads are the equivalents of blood vessels. If somehow this core is destroyed or runs out of qi I die.


    The pale glow that it is giving tells me that it''s running out of qi. When it stops glowing it means that it has run out of qi.


    F*CK.


    I was so close to death, my final goal, without even realizing it. Now that I know that a problem exists, a problem which will lead to my death, I have to fix it.


    I have to continue cultivating. I have to recharge my core. My commands are very clear about it. I have to survive.


    F*ck. To think that I would have accomplished my goal if not for this stupid book.

 The grand escape part 2

    I have to say this sitting in a yoga position inside a cave in god knows where can actually be very relaxing. After I discovered that my core was running empty I had to fill it with qi.


    Which wasn''t hard. Apparently, what I had to do was try to catch the specks of white light in front of me. The white lights which my memories tell me are qi particles come in contact with my body. Later on, these qi particles infuse themselves with one of the closest threads that run all over my body.


    At that point, the qi particles become part of me. They slowly travel their way up to the core. That''s how I can refill my core.


    Now it sounds easy and it is. The hardest part was deciphering what was written in the book.


    All that nonsense about clearing your mind and closing your eyes.


    That was misleading.


    Maybe that is how humans cultivate but not golems. Firstly I have to keep my eyes open. Otherwise, I won''t be able to see the qi particles.


    Secondly, my mind doesn''t need to be cleared. What it needs to do is to actively get involved in drawing the qi particles closer to my body.


    Filling my core with qi it''s a long exhausting process. A process in which I have to stay in the yoga position no matter what. I tried to cultivate while moving but it doesn''t work. The white particles just go away from my vision.


    As I cultivate the intensity with which my core glows changes. In the beginning, it was this pale white color while now it''s a brighter white. That was my only indication that the core was being filled.


    Yeah, I say was in past tense because things have changed. As I was trying to assess how much the core was filled with qi, a window appeared in my view.


    The reason why it came up now? I don''t know. It could be the fact that I started taking in qi or it could be because I was trying to examine how much qi my core had.


    Regardless, the reason why it showed up now, it''s not important. Not at the moment.


    What''s important right now is the information that is providing. The window is similar to how you see the status of a character in a video game with only a few minor changes.


    The biggest difference I can spot is that the window is greyed out. Unlike the character sheet in a video game, I can do no change here. The second biggest difference, in my opinion, is the fact that there are no individual attributes like strength, agility, and such.


    #Golem Overview#


    Structural integrity ¨C 100%


    Core integrity ¨C 100%


    Qi reserve ¨C 76%


    #Basic Qi Skills#


    None


    #Advanced Qi Skills#


    None


    #Talents#


    Qi sight


    Qi sense


    Regeneration


    Golem modification.


    That''s all that this so-called golem overview offers. No, explanation. Nothing. The only explanation I get is the one that is offered by these scattered memories I have.


    I don''t know how much I can trust these foreign memories in my head but they haven''t steered me wrong until now.


    So structural integrity refers to the state of my physical body. It shows how much damage my physical body has sustained.


    The same thing goes for core integrity. It indicates the state of my core and will tell me if it has taken any damage.


    Qi reserve is even easier to understand. It shows how much qi is stored in my core.


    My understanding of qi skills is pretty limited. My memories don''t have much information about them. All I know is that these skills require qi to execute.


    And the last tab. The talents. Supposedly talents are things that you are born with. Unlike skills, they can not be learned.


    Here one of the biggest mysteries, since I opened my eyes, is solved. How am I able to see?


    The answer, qi sight. According to my memories what qi sight does is uses qi to enable someone to see. How exactly does it do that?  I don''t know.


    Also, I discovered the reason why I am able to see qi particles while I am cultivating. Qi sense. Just like the name would suggest it allows me to sense qi.


    Lastly, I meet my most hateful enemy. The self-healing mechanism. This hateful opponent is trying to deceive me by changing his name. I won''t be fooled. Yeah, I recognize you regeneration, or should I say self-healing mechanism.


    Man, staying by yourself in a cave does a number on your mental state. It''s no wonder people start giving names to objects when they are trapped on an island in the middle of the ocean.The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    No, talking to objects is fine. Not healthy but fine. The point in which I should start getting worried is when regeneration starts talking back. Now that would be worrisome.


    As for my final talent golem modification, I have no idea what does it do. I can start speculating based on the name but without evidence, I don''t believe I would learn anything useful.


    I wonder why my memories aren''t giving me any information on golem modification. Could it be because I haven''t used it? The other talents in my golem overview I have used them one way or the other. The only thing I haven''t used is golem modification.


    If this talent stays true to its name then I can look forward to fingers. That would make my stay here a bit more bearable.


    As I continue to study my golem overview I notice that my core is full. Finally, I am free to try my escape plan.


    So imagine the horror I experienced when unconsciously my teddy bear hands tried to change the page of the book that was standing in front of me.


    I must be cursed with bad luck by some God because I successfully changed the page on my first try. How is that even possible without fingers?


    =======


    There is a saying: time awaits no one. I feel that I understand this saying now more than ever. I don''t know how much time has passed since I woke up. It could have been hours, days, or even weeks.


    A part of me is still afraid of what might happen if that bolder moves on its own. A small voice inside my head says that it''s already too late. I  should stop what I am doing. My master will be here in no time and all of this would have been for nothing.


    Another voice is saying: why escape? You don''t know what lies outside. What if someone forces ownership upon you. Stay here, it''s safe. Nothing bad will happen to you here. Perhaps your master has already forgotten about you or died somewhere.


    I ignore all these voices. That''s just my insecurities speaking. I have to escape and I am finally doing something about it.


    This is my only opportunity to escape. I have to take it and I finally have the tools to do so.


    Even though I hate this book with all of my existence I have to say right now it is repaying me for the torture that was inflicted upon me.


    Don''t get me wrong, I still hate the thing. It made me waste so much time. So let''s just say I have temporarily postponed my revenge to a later date.


    The reason for this sudden change of heart is the content of the page I accidentally opened earlier. It had a qi skill. A basic one but that''s enough to enable me to escape.


    The qi skill is called [Amplify]. An extremely versatile skill. According to what was written in the book this skill can increase the strength behind an action.


    So basically, I can punch harder than before. It uses qi but that is fine. That''s what I am doing right now.


    Yeah, you guessed it right. I am punching the giant boulder blocking the exit.


    Imagine my delight when the punch landed on the giant boulder. Debris went flying everywhere. A decent chunk of the bolder missing.


    I have been doing this ever since. However, not everything is going my way. Unfortunately, unlike fantasy books, in real life, it takes a bit longer to learn a skill.


    There is no convenient training montage. In order to execute the skill properly, not only do I have to manipulate the qi inside my body in a certain pattern I also have to be mindful of the timing.


    If I executive the skill way before my punch connects with the boulder I waste a considerable amount of qi. The reason for that is because I have to keep the skill activated the entire time. And that costs qi.


    It''s an active skill, for every second it stays active it uses a certain amount of qi. While momentum does carry over, it just hasn''t the same impact when the skill is active.


    A different problem is if I activated after my punch has landed. The skill doesn''t do damage by itself. It amplifies the strength behind actions.


    If I activate it after most of my momentum is stopped by the boulder, it won''t do much more damage.


    Theoretically, the most opportune time to activate the skill is just right before the punch lands on the bolder. The time that I have to keep the skill on is reduced while getting the same amount of damage.


    However, doing so isn''t easy. Up until now, only one in ten attempts activates properly.


    Which also reflects on the golem overview.


    #Golem overview


    Basic qi skills


    [Amplify]¨C 8% proficiency.


    ======


    Ever since I learned the [amplify] skill, I have been doing the same thing over and over again in a never-ending cycle.


    Hit the boulder until my qi reserves go under 20%. Then go back to the room. Sit down in the blue mattresses, and start cultivating. Fill your core with qi. Check if the dents from the previous punching session have healed. The back to the bolder again


    I have been repeating this cycle so much, I even started to measure time by it.


    Right now I am at the 670th cycle. It is amazing how fast time passes when you get numb by doing the same things over and over again.


    Still, mindless work has its benefits. My first ever basic qi skill [amplify] is steadily improving. The proficiency percentage sits on 23%. Roughly two out of ten attempts to activate the skill are successful but I am making progress.


    Speaking of progress my skills aren''t the only thing that is improving. I started noticing a new trend. After every cultivation session, the number of times I could activate my skills started increasing.


    In the beginning, it wasn''t that apparent. As time went on the number of times I could activate started increasing. Now the number of times I can active the skill is almost doubled since I started punching the boulder.


    Man, I have to say this boulder is really annoying. I have been punching it for a long time now. I have been able to create a sizable hole in it.


    The deeper I go the harder to break the bolder becomes. It''s not that the boulder itself is harder to break but the area for me to move becomes more restricted.


    Punch after punch I continue to pursue my goal. To escape. With every punch, debris fly everywhere. Some even land on me. They don''t do much damage just scratches. The vast majority of the damages done to my body comes from the impact of my punch with the boulder but regeneration takes care of it.


    Ah, regeneration my old enemy. This talent not only uses qi without my permission, but it also prevents me from accumulating damage over time.


    Punch after punch. Like a possessed golem I continue my job, restless in my pursuit. Debris lies all around me. Pieces of rocks that I have managed to separate from the bolder.


    For the longest time, nothing happened. Then with one final punch at the 1279th cycle, I see the light at the end of the tunnel. Of course, figuratively speaking because I don''t see light unless the object is special. Like my mattress.


    I have no idea how to describe what I am feeling right now. Finally, after god knows how long I am free. Free at least.


    Somewhere outside this stupid cave, my death awaits me. Whether I complete my commands or I die at the hands of an arrogant young master, it''s not important.


    I have to hurry though. I can''t let death waiting for me.

 Running

    Finally out of that damn cave, I take my first step towards my death. I know that my death is out there. Maybe a young master will take offense at me. Who knows. No one has been able to decipher the mind of a young master.


    At least the books that I have read in my free time describe them in that way. A creature who attacks others with the slightest provocation. A creature, unable of rational thought. More importantly, despite the ability to see, somehow this creature is incapable of identifying a certain mountain. I look forward to meeting this creature.


    My internal monologue is interrupted by a white light hitting me. Without me realizing I drop the blue mattress along with the book from my armpit as my body goes into combat mode.


    Qi runs my body as I scan around for potential dangers. My teddy bear hands in front of my chest ready to punch anything that dares to come close.


    It takes me a moment to come to my senses as I understand what this white light is. Snow. The white light that hit me was snow. For some reason, snow doesn''t show as grey in my vision but instead, it gives this bright white glow.


    Great, I now dropped my matters and book for no reason. Trust me you have no idea how long it took me to fold the mattress and bring it to my armpit.


    The easy thing to do right now is to just leave them there. While it''s tempting to do so, I can''t though. These things represent an opportunity for me to improve myself and learn new things. The desire, imprinted on me by the commands, is too strong. There is a reason why the mattress glows blue in my vision. I have to find out why.


    It could be useful.


    For that along I have to keep them. Crouching I extend my hands toward the mattress. Luck is with me this time. The mattress is still folded with the book tucked inside it.


    After a couple of failed attempts, I manage to secure the blue mattress and the book inside my armpit again.


    Man, life would be so much easier with fingers. Who knew that fingers were such important? I certainly didn''t appreciate them enough the last time I had them.


    With everything in order and a reminder to myself not to allow the mattress to drop again, I take a step forward. My feet sink into snow as the crunching noises come to my ears.


    Then I take another step, slowly I make my way through the snow. The view isn''t much. There is snow in every direction except behind me, the stupid cave is there. I can''t tell anything else. Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    I can''t even distinguish if I am in a mountain, valley, or whatever this place is. My [qi sight] talent only offers me a few feet of vision at a 360-degree angle. After that, I am unable to see a thing. I wonder if I can do anything to extend this vision.


    I reserve this question, for later. I have bigger problems right now. I have to escape. No, I am not escaping. I am not trying to postpone an opportunity to improve myself to escape from my master, may he hit his pinky toe on a chair, no I simply prioritizing my survival.


    You hear that, stupid commands. I am in an open area searching for Alex so I can not stop to experiment with my talents. Who knows what dangerous creatures could assault me, while I am learning to expand my vision.


    Ok, that doesn''t sound so bad. I have to find an opportunity to do that but not here. I don''t want a random meeting with my master. I am sure he has better things to do.


    Look at me speaking with the commands. Trying to convince them. I might have mental problems but hey look at the bright side. At least the commands aren''t answering me. That would be disturbing.


    My internal monologue doesn''t stop me from walking. I continue to walk straight in front of me. Trying to put as much distance as possible between me and that cave.


    For the moment the qi reserves are holding up but for how long I don''t know. The snow isn''t helping either. In fact, is only making things harder. Every action I make is powered by qi.


    The moment my qi reserves run low I have to stop and start cultivating to fill my core with qi. Think of it as a phone battery. Every action on your phone is powered by its battery.


    When the phone battery becomes low you have to recharge it otherwise the phone shuts down. In my case, that means death.


    The same thing happens if my battery, which in my case is called a core, is destroyed.


    So every step I take spends a certain amount of qi but this snow is making things harder for me.


    My steps spend more qi than they otherwise would. My short stubby legs aren''t helping either and the snow just keeps getting harder to transverse.


    In the beginning, the snow reached up to my knees but now it reaches up to my waist. My limited vision is also making things harder for me.


    Being only able to see a few feet in front of me I can''t tell if I am going upwards or downwards. Nor can I tell how much further away I am from my cave.


    I swear if I am walking in circles I will be furious.


    ======


    I continue walking. I don''t know how long I have been doing it.  Time is irrelevant to me. Especially, without any device or ability to measure it. I can''t even use the sun to measure time because I can''t perceive light in my qi vision.


    Except for the mattress, in my armpit, everything else is either grey, white or black.


    My qi reserves are also getting low at the moment, only 23%. Soon I have to stop and cultivate to refill them. The moment I have been dreading is coming closer.


    I am afraid to stop. I know I have to eventually. All kinds of thoughts are entering my brain right now.


    With my limited ability to see I can''t judge how far away I am from the cave. I have been walking straight without taking the slightest turns for fear of walking in circles.


    However, that might have been a mistake on my part. I am unable to see where I am going but by now I am certain that I am walking upwards.


    I don''t know what I am climbing. It might be a hill or a mountain I have no idea but I am climbing something for sure.